RAFTING. 410 



are used now at short intervals to slacken speed at narrow 

 places and dangerous corners, and the men must know exactly 

 when the front of the raft will reach a dangerous place so that 

 they may apply the brakes in time. When the brakes are 

 applied, the whole raft creaks and shakes through all its 

 members, and the last sections spring up and down according 

 to the inequalities in the bed of the stream. The men with the 

 brakes have hard work to do, for when the brake is withdrawn 

 by removing the withes which bind it to the raft, it has to be 

 replaced in time for the next dangerous passage. Meanwhile 

 the raft floats so rapidly down-stream that a man running full 

 speed along the bank can hardly keep up with it. 



The first flooding of the stream may take the raft down from 

 five to ten miles ; then the water runs dry, and the raft lies on 

 the bed of the stream until sufficient water is collected for a 

 second flooding, when the work recommences. Once the raft 

 has reached the broad and deep water below there is no more 

 difficulty about conducting it to the junction with a large river. 



Only spreads are used in guiding rafts on large rivers. On 

 the Rhine different kinds of spreads are used, either spruce 

 boards or long logs cut into shape of a board at one end. 

 The larger kinds of spreads are so heavy that they are moved 

 by a number of men, who push them with their shoulders and 

 take several strides in turning them. The men need not leave 

 their places to move the smaller spreads. The rafts are pulled 

 ashore by means of anchors fixed to the shore, and attached 

 by ropes to the raft. 



On the larger German rivers, both logs and sawn timber are 

 rafted, and the rafts are further laden with firewood, oak planks 

 and scantlings, laths, staves, vine-props, poles and many 

 other wares, termed raft-ballast (Oblast). 



[On the Brahmaputra and Ganges rivers, heavy logs of sal 

 (Shorea robusta) and other wood, which will not float in water, 

 are attached by ropes to long poles fastened across large 

 buoyant boats ; they are thus floated down- stream. Tr.] 



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