Never Love a Logger by Curry Edna

Author:Curry, Edna
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: historical romance novel, minnesota author, minnesota frontier, 1886 minnesota logjam, largest logjam ever, logging history
Publisher: Edna Curry

Chapter 10

As Carrie waited on the loggers’ tables all through supper that night, they were discussing that same idea. Many of the men seemed to think getting rid of Angle Rock would solve their annual logjam problems.

“Ya, we need to straighten out that damn river, so our logs won’t get caught up there all the time,” one logger said. The others murmured agreement.

Carrie bit her lip to keep from speaking up and joining in their conversation. She knew men didn’t like women butting into their conversation. Her aunt would be furious if Carrie angered their boarders, but the very idea of the loggers blowing up the cliffs that were the main attraction of her valley to further their own interests galled her.

She did notice that Will was quiet on this subject. That gave her the courage to speak to him as the men began leaving the table to go out to the porch for their cigars.

When he was among the last to push his chair back from the table she grabbed the chance to stop him.

“Could I speak to you for a moment, Will?” she asked. Several of the men stared curiously as Will stopped to talk to her. She didn’t care. This was too important to her town. They could think what they liked.

Will sat back down at the now deserted table. “Sure, Carrie. Is something wrong? Has one of my men been misbehaving himself in here?”

She slid into a chair facing him. “Oh, no. Nothing like that. I...I heard you men talking about the proposal to blow up Angle Rock.”

Will stared at her, a surprised look on his face. Carrie bit her lip. He probably thought she was the one misbehaving. Women weren’t supposed to have opinions on business or political matters. Those were men’s affairs. Well, this was too important to stay out of.

Raising her chin defiantly, she said, “Angle Rock is at the heart of this valley’s unique rock formations. Tourists come here to view them. While they’re here, they buy food and lodging and souvenirs. That’s important to our economy. If you blow up Angle Rock in order to straighten out the river, the whole valley will be changed.”

He ran his long fingers through his thick black hair in frustration. “Logjams cost the loggers a lot of money each year, Carrie. We’ve had to hire the piling boats and we’re constantly replacing frayed ropes. All of the dynamite has to be shipped in. Do you think hiring a couple hundred extra men and as many horses is cheap?”

“Of course not. I know the jam is costing you a lot of money, I’ve seen the figures from the Loggers’ Association meeting that you gave to Uncle Joe for the paper to publish. But God made this beautiful valley. Blowing it up and ruining His handiwork is not the way to thank Him for growing the trees you cut down to make your living.”

For goodness sakes. Now she was preaching again. She bit her lip in consternation and wondered if she’d gone too far by mentioning how they were ruining God’s forests.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.