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During our studies my partners and I interviewed two men, David Calder and Leonard Violet. They agreed and disagreed on different subjects. I am going to compare their differences and tell you about their thoughts. A good example was that Leonard thinks, in the end, it was a good idea to stop the log drive, but David believes that if operated properly, it could be ok to still have it. Both men had different jobs. David brought up the rear. His job was to throw logs off the banks of islands,or he would be on a boat making sure that all the logs were in the water and not on the islands. They usually moved the logs about a half a mile to two miles a day depending on how much wood and the weather conditions.They usually worked from 6:30 in the morning to about 4:30 at night. Leonard worked as a foremen. He was in charge of looking after the booms, the sluicing, cleaning, and making sure everything was done right. Both men agree that, yes, it was hard work and yes, it was low pay. If the log drive was still around today, they would still like to work on it. The thing they liked most about the log drive was the scenery and what it had to offer. They both appreciated the beauty of the land and wildlife along the river. David also worked as a carpenter during the winter. Leonard plowed snow, hauled pulp wood, "and basically worked on jobs wood related." Other men worked odd jobs like carpentry, working in a saw mill, or laboring for the town. The cabins that some men stayed in were "clean, warm and had good food," says Leonard. David didn't stay in them though, he went home at night. But, he does agree that there was good food and they were warm in cold weather. Both men had fathers who also worked on the log drive. For Leonard he says that that didn't affect his decision and for David it couldn't have affected him, because his father was in it with him. Leonard says that there were dangers that came with the job, but none as bad as some portrayed. The worst thing that ever happened on the log drive to David was he got poison ivy so often that he actually became immune to it. The worst injury he ever got was... "I banged my knee and it was sore for a few days." David say the worst kind of weather he worked in was cold rain. He says "cold and wet don't mix well, so you'd have to dress warm." The worst weather he worked in was either an occasional snow storm in early spring and late fall, or cold wind. Leonard thinks it was a good idea to stop the log drive, for two reasons. One is, the way the log drive operated didn't really go along with the new technology. The second is that logs were sinking because they were green when they sent them down the river. In conclusion, both log drivers were very informative and interesting but they differed on some points regarding the log drive. |
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