"Close call," said Orde briefly.
"Bet you," replied Marsh.
Neither referred to the tug's escape; but to the fortunate closing
of the opening.
XLI
Orde now took steps to deflect into the channel recently dredged to
Stearn's Bayou the mass of the logs racing down stream from Redding.
He estimated that he had still two hours or so in which to do the
work. In this time he succeeded by the severest efforts in
establishing a rough shunt into the new channel. The logs would
come down running free. Only the shock of their impact against the
tail of the jam already formed was to be feared. Orde hoped to be
able to turn the bulk of them aside.
This at first he succeeded in doing; and very successfully as
affecting the pressure on the jam below. The first logs came
scattering. Then in a little while the surface of the river was
covered with them; they shouldered each other aside in their
eagerness to outstrip the rushing water; finally they crowded down
more slowly, hardly able to make their way against the choking of
the river banks, but putting forth in the very effort to proceed a
tremendous power. To the crew working in the channel dredged
through to Steam's Bayou the affair was that of driving a rather
narrow and swift stream, only exaggerated.
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