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The tribulations of the wanigan were as the salt of life to the spectators. Billy Camp tried to keep back of the rear in clear water, but when the wanigan so disposed, he found himself jammed close in the logs. There he had a chance in his turn to become spectator, and so to repay in kind some of the irony and facetiousness.
Make some coffee right off, and bring it down. Get the lanterns from the wanigan, and bring them to the dam. Come on, boys!" Over a score of men attacked the sluice-way, for by now part of the rear crew had come down river. The pond above had recovered its volume. Water was beginning to trickle over the top of the gate.
After consultation with Reed, another rope was brought and the end of it tossed down to the shipwrecked crew. Orde pointed to the stern of the boat, revolving his hands in pantomime to show that the wanigan would be apt to upset if allowed to get side-on when freed.
The opening of the portal admitted a roar of sound. The river was rising. "Come on, boys, she's on!" said he sharply. Outside, the cook and cookee were stowing articles in the already loaded wanigan. The scow contained tents, blankets, provisions, and a portable stove. It followed the drive, and made a camp wherever expediency demanded. "Lively, boys, lively!" shouted Thorpe.
Finally, in a voice fallen almost to a whisper, and with an elaborate politeness, Charlie proffered a request that his assistants acquire the sense God gave a rooster. Newmark, who had elected to accompany the wanigan on its voyage, evidently found it vastly amusing, for his eyes twinkled behind his glasses.
Across the eye spun the thread of the railroad. Far away gleamed the broad expanses of Lake Superior. The cook had, early that morning, moored the wanigan to the bank. One of the teamsters from town had loaded the men's "turkeys" on his heavy wagon. The wanigan's crew had thereupon trudged into town. The men paired off naturally and fell into a dragging, dogged walk.
The end of the rope came to the tree; he clung for a moment, then let go, and ran around the tree to catch it before it should slip into the water. By this time the wanigan had caught the stronger current at the bend and was gathering momentum. Charlie tried to snub at a sapling, and broke the sapling; on a stub, and uprooted the stub.
A moment later old man Reed ran up, carrying a rope. This, after some difficulty, was made fast to the bow of the wanigan. A dozen men ran with the end of it to a position of vantage from which they might be able to pull the bow away from the sunken obstruction, but Orde, appearing above, called a halt.
"Like to join the wanigan crew permanently?" "No, thanks," returned Newmark drily. "Well, stay with us as long as you're having a good time," invited Orde heartily, but turning away from his rather uncommunicative visitor. "Thank you," Newmark acknowledged this, "I believe I will." "Well, Tommy," called Orde across the fire to North, "I reckon we've got to rustle some more supplies.
Thus it was literally true that each one of these men was called upon almost daily to wager his personal skill against his destruction. In the meantime the rear was "sacking" its way as fast as possible, moving camp with the wanigan whenever necessary, working very hard and very cold and very long. In its work, however, beyond the breaking of the rollways, was little of the spectacular.
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