Late into the night the rude torches, made quite
simply from brown stone jugs full of oil and with wicks in their
necks, cast their flickering glare over the ice of the haul-roads.
And though generally in that part of Michigan the thaws begin by the
first or second week in March, this year zero weather continued even
to the eighth of April. When the drive started, far up toward
headwaters, the cut was banked for miles along the stream, forty
million feet of it to the last timber.
The strain over, Orde slept the clock around and awoke to the
further but familiar task of driving the river. He was very tired;
but his spirit was at peace. As always after the event, he looked
back on his anxieties with a faint amusement over their futility.
From Taylor he had several communications. The lawyer confessed
himself baffled as to the purpose and basis of the Land Office
investigation. The whole affair appeared to be tangled in a maze of
technicalities and a snarl of red-tape which it would take some time
to unravel. In the meantime Taylor was enjoying himself; and was
almost extravagant in his delight over the climate and attractions
of Southern California.
Orde did not much care for this delay.
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