FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 



21 



A PRIZE-WINNING LOAD. 



far enough to hold a large portion of the 

 intended cut. Before spring piles of logs 

 will cover the surface, and the jce must 

 be strong enough to. bear the, great 

 weight until the work is done. The 

 river bank at this point must be of such a 

 nature that heavy sled loads of logs can 

 safely be driven down upon the ice. If it 

 is too steep, a graded roadway must be 

 cut back through it, or the logs' may be 

 unloaded at the top of the bank and 

 rolled down upon the river. Arrange- 

 ments are also made to pile a quantity 

 of logs on the bank, to be launched after 

 the spring freshet. 



The camp foreman (whom we will call 

 O' Brien) then constructs the foundation 

 of the logging road from the cuttings 

 to the river. The timber next the 

 stream has probably been already re- 

 moved. If not, a way must be cleared 

 through it, usually at least twenty feet 



wide. Allowance must be made every 

 quarter mile for turnouts, where op- 

 posing teams may pass. Rocks and 

 stumps must be avoided or removed ; 

 hollows must be graded level if unavoid- 

 able. In descending from the higher 

 land towards the river, the road may 

 have to wind about the hillsides in order 

 to reduce the grades. It may be neces- 

 sary to bridge a gully or two. The 

 swamps and boggy places are usually 

 safe enough after a week of the north- 

 ern frost, but should heavy snow come 

 before severe frost, the ground may be 

 so protected from freezing as to remain 

 unsafe for a time. In such a case the 

 snow must be shoveled away to expose 

 the ground to the freezing action of the 

 air, or a quantity of brush is thrown into 

 the boggy places, upon which corduroy 

 is laid, and the snow heaped over all to 

 form the road. 



