% A Pacific Tribune writing contest selection

Loggers’
holiday

By SAMMY WOODMAN
THE STORY THUS FAR: A group of loggers, on

their way to the city for the Christmas holidays, are riding
the crummy from the camp to the wharf when they find
the track blocked by a derailed logging train. They have
to. walk the remaining seven or eight miles through heavy
snow and as they start off the logger relating the story
tells how one of the group, Wally Heavypockets, came
by his nickname. It began when Wally went to Vancou-
ver for a holiday and started out one memorable evening
with a few drinks in a friend’s hotel room . . .

Naturally, they take a few
swigs from the Scotch bottle
until there’s no swigs left. By
this time they’re feeling no
pain.

Wally’s ready to top one of
the forties now, but, - before
he even puts his hand on one
of them, one of their chums
barges right in the room, look-
ing like the world is treating
him according to God’s Rule
and says, “Are you apes com-
in’?”

“You didn’t say
Wally reminds him.

“Why, the loggers’ ball. It’s
on tonight and itll be high-
ballin’ in about an hour,” the
guy says.

where,”

°

So, Wally reaches for his
hew jacket and puts it on
without saying a word and
picks up the forty-ouncers,
shoves them down in his jack-
et pockets and asks, “What
are we waitin’ for?”

Bert says, “Let’s have a
round of rye. Whose-shoes is
Wally wearing?” And with
that he yards a rye bottle bet-
ter than half full out from
under the bed and hands it
around.

By the time the three of
them have had fair swigs
there’s only enough left for
an eye-opener. So Bert shoves
it back under the bed and says
he’s ready to go now.

Well, down they go and in-
to a beer joint to take on a
few beers for a chaser. After
a few rounds of that they
go out and nab themselves a
passing hack and down to the
auditorium where the loggers’
ball is being held. In they go
with Wally still packing his
full bottles. By his time, they
say, he’s commencing to ap-
pear a little front heavy. The

payoff comes when Wally goes
and gets himself a redhead to
dance with.

After Bert tells me all this
I come to the conclusion that
the redhead has a fair amount
of nerve and*also high acro-
batie ability to come out of
that deal, as this dance Wally
gets himself into with the red-
head is nothing else but jitter-
bug, which is going full blast
at this time. So, Wally’s in the
middle of the floor with the
redhead who is no killjoy and
also, both of his bottles are
still in his pockets and still be-
having according to gravity.

Well, you can guess the rest.
Wally and his girl] start in jit-
terbugging and Wally really
goes into action. You’ve seen
jitterbug experts in action and

.they look like they have

weight on their neck which

seems to pull them forward
while dancing. Well, Wally is
already in that position with-
‘out even trying.

After he picks up the mo-
mentum, those _ forty-ounce
bottles start flying with no
control whatever .. Haw the
redhead manages to keep
ducking them with rhythm
without conking Wally’s nog-
gin is something worth watch-
ing.

Anyway, according to what
Bert tells me, Wally’s not on
the floor more than two min-
utes when the other dancers
commence to pull up to the
side. “In a way,” he says, “I
don’t blame them. Maybe they
are not carrying accident in-
surance and don’t want to
take unnecessary risks.”

Anyway, when the music
stops, there’s a good sixty per-
cent less dancers on the dance
floor than when Wally starts.

—_—

a2.
=

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Now he comes back all winded
to the corner, where most of
the boys from his camp stand
around.

Right away some of the boys
start hinting, Wally’s pock-
ets are too heavy and could
stand less weight. Of course
by now, most of them can
stand a drink. Wally under-
stands the hint, so, he yards
out one bottle and tells them to
get back in a dark corner and
help themselves. The bottle
doesn’t last any longer than
you can say jackpine.

The music starts again, so,
Wally goes and finds himself
another dame without even
taking a drink, one full bottle
still in his left pocket. But this
time he is a complete failure,
Bert says, as this is ‘a waltz and
he is so left-sided he almost
look ridiculous. Well, there’s
not much more to that except
that the boys starts calling him
Heavypockets before he even
finished his waltz.

Some of the boys are saying
what rotten luck this is. Here
is Christmas practically on top
of us and this damn train has
to go and pile up this particu-
lar day.

Haywire Sandy pipes up
with, “Luck be damned. If
that pencil pusher up in camp
had gone ahead on ’er and
made up our time this morn-
ing, we’d have been by here
hours ago and this train would
have been behind us.” And
others are cursing and blaming

a
ec ———
heuneuenineeeee
—————
ee

4

the whole chin-whiskered,
gunnysack set-up in general,

Somebody says,“This doesn’t.

get us any place. Let’s. do
something about it.” I see Wal-
ly turn around and start walk-
ing back where the crummy is
standing. One of the boys holl-
ers and asks him where he is
going. He hollers back over
his shoulder something about
getting his packsack.

We're still trying to decide
what to do, when Wally comes

_ walking back with his pack-

sack looking nice and snug on
his back and looking like he’s
under way already for a long
hike. He’s right on top of us
now and says. “You guys bet-
ter get movin’ if you want to
catch that tub tonight.”

Now, for the first time,
everyone yards out his watch
to see what time it is. Every-
one agrees that it is about
three-fifteen now and the tub
is supposed to sail away from
the beach camp at five-thirty.
And anyone will tell you that
to walk four miles an hour is
a good average for any man
even if he isn’t packing any-
thing. _

So, here we are, most of us
with our life savings, which is

‘a full packsack. Some more
prosperous ones with packsack
and a suitcase, others with
two suitcases to pack. And we
have to plow a foot of snow
along the track to start with
and it keeps piling up right
along with the time. Yet we
must average four miles an

hour if we want to catch
barnacled old tub. 4

After we know all this)
scene is practically in an
roar. At least seven guys#
already heading for the crf

‘my to pick up their propel
“and follow Wally. I figur
a mistake and a bunch of
ishness, but, on the other hal
I might as well tag along 4
be with the adventurous gr
since I like my fun as well
the next: guy. Also, I
quite light so I’m reasonal
sure I can keep up with at I@
half of them. |
Well, I find myself wi
along just behind HayW
Sandy. Looking back I ¢
see Yodelling Norwegian ab®
fifty yards behind us, doin}
little snow-ploughing on ¥
side with the corner of.his®
leather suitcase. ze
No doubt his mama wo
have done a little extra @
ing if she could have fores®
this. twenty-seven years
while stuffing things into
very suitcase for her boy!
take along on his voyage
the land of fortune. Chal
are, he promised his ma
he’d come back to see’
after he gets his fortune. BY
here he is, twenty-seven yea
afterwards, packing his not
right with him and the fort!
in his hip pocket totals $190
There’s been no mail f
Mama for seven years noW,
Little Pete and Little ’
are just coming ’round ©
bend, so, there’s thirteen of |
in the race against time, ©
cluding Wally, but he’s so¥
ahead it’s hardly worth ©
cluding him though he’s bré
ing the trail. But he’s got cat”
boots on and also travels4
light as they come. He
pretty sure-footed. He takes™
two ties at a time. That MU
snow won't bother him m
In fact, he’s about the ®
one I give an even chan¢e
make the tub. ‘
The reason why Little
is so far back is they’re
of superstitious, which is
uncommon ‘for a logger.
tried to coax the flunky
come along to make it an ©
fourteen.
Yodelling Norwegian #
them a hand for a while
their own benefit, but he 4
see any use in arguing
time was waiting for n0
so he runs around and tr
tell them there’s really Sg
twelve in the crowd as Woy
Heavypockets is so far @0@
you can’t very well count My
in. But they say as long 4
there are thirteen guys Wag
ing on the track and all 8%
in the same direction anf
time something is bounm®)
happen. ;
Finally, they give up be

Dp

Q eo er —

coaxing and that a chant t
coming. This being Prag .
doesn’t make it any easiely 4

them either, though they é
the Friday jinx is already 4g S

up on that log pileup. t;
thirteen guys walking 97% ¢,
on the track and on Fri a
really a bad combination Ks

(Continued next wee?”

July 13, 1956 —PACIFIC TRIBUNE — PAG®