North of Boston

They aint much happened sence the last riting. Early in March I have to go up into the mountins right back of town to check a few lines where we are operating. It was wun of them perfect spring days with the thermometer just below freezing and a brite blue sky and no wind.

Fire up the jeep and take the black road. Off the black road onto a dirt road. Climb and climb and the roads keeps getting narrower and the snow banks higher. The mountins are pale blue-grey and the lakes white dishpans.

Turn onto a bulldozed road that is mostly ice and straight up. Then a long flat, a corner and there is the landing. Character with a red beard is tossing hardwood bolts onto a truck. Another is massaging logs with a power saw. Leave the jeep at the hoss hovel and start to climb.

It is good walking. The March crust holds. Check the lines and freshen a few spots. Hear power saws yowling and come to where we are operating. There is the usual small fire to keep the dinner pails warm, and trees thump down.

Cut around and pretty soon I hear a team coming down the mountin. They is the thud of hooves and a man talking and around the corner comes a big bay team and a yung feller in a red shirt and green stagged pants riding the load of logs and leaning back on the reins.

He stops and we light up and wisecrack. He hadn't never been beyond a one-room school but he knowed the woods and hosses and scoots and power saws and how to lay out and build roads, as good as any man can.

He flips his cigarette.

"This is a real nice day."

"As nice a day as any man can live on." I nod.

He looks way off for about a minute and says, real quiet, "I wouldn't want to be nowhere else. Not nowhere. I hear tell that when they get as much as a foot of snow down in the city they cant hardly move."

"I hear tell that too."

"But we can, by God."

He jumps onto the load and speaks to the team. They hit the collars. The last I see of him he is riding like wun of them old Ben Hur movies.

I would of give as much as five dollars if wun of you fellers could of ben with me. You might of liked it.