Clearing 237 



him nothing beyond cutting and hauling, there 

 would be real extravagance in hiring men to 

 split up knots and forks and burls. Rail and 

 board and stave timber, indeed whatever was 

 fair and straight-riving, he always had worked 

 up, even if he had no present need of rails or 

 boards or staves. 



Log-rolling was a great day — so great it 

 is easy to see how the name of it has got into 

 politics with something of sinister implication. 

 Big logs are best moved by the strength of 

 many men. Hence, for log-rolling you ask 

 help of your neighbors, of course returning 

 the help in kind when they have logs to roll. 

 Fifty men black and white came to the roll- 

 ing in the big new ground. They chose out 

 captains, as boys do when playing ball. There 

 was need for literal captaining. Log-rolling 

 requires headwork no less than handwork. 

 Sleight even more than strength best solves 

 its problems of weight and mass. The four 

 captains were all veterans of many heaps, as 

 well as men of mighty muscle. Their men 

 were armed with hand-sticks, for the most 

 part of sassafras or hickory, six feet long, 

 three inches through, and trimmed tapering 

 at each end, so they might be held with a 

 desperate grip. 



There was edged rivalry between the crews. 

 There was honor in putting up the first heap, 



