THE LOG CABIN.
Immediately after fitting out Jim Halliday with his water wheel we set
to work on our log cabin. As a model we had a photograph of a log hut
which Uncle Ed had sent us. As the cabin was designed particularly for
use in winter time, we decided that it should be located where it would
be sheltered from the northern winds and would be exposed to the sun.
The ideal spot seemed to be on the southern shore of Kite Island, which
was backed by a thick grove of trees but gave an unobstructed view in
front for a distance of about four miles down-stream.
FOUNDATION OF LOG CABIN.
First we staked out the plan of the house. It was to be 12 feet long by
10 feet wide, so we leveled off a space of this area, and at the
corners, where the greatest weight of the building would come, large
rocks were embedded in the ground.
A LOGGING EXPEDITION.
The logs for the house were cut from a tract of wooded land about five
miles up the river, belonging to Mr. Schreiner. To be sure we could have
cut the timber from our own island, but when Reddy had said something to
his father about our building a log cabin, Mr. Schreiner had warned us
not to cut down any of the trees without the owner's permission. All we
could learn about the owner was that his name was Smith, and that he
lived somewhere in New York city. It seemed unlikely that he would ever
have anything to say about our cutting down a few trees, but rather than
run any risk Mr. Schreiner advised us to make use of his woods for any
timber we might need. Accordingly we started out early one morning on a
logging expedition. We had no apparatus for handling any logs more than
6 or 8 inches in diameter, and Bill reckoned it out that we would have
to have about fifty logs of this size for the sides of the building
alone. This did not mean that fifty trees had to be chopped down,
because we could usually cut two logs from a single tree. As the logs
would have to overlap about a foot at each corner, we had to cut the
longer ones to a length of 14 feet and the others to a length of 12
feet. Aside from these we had to have several 16-foot logs for the roof.
Only the straightest logs were chosen, and while Bill and Reddy wielded
the axes the rest of us hacked off the small branches with hatchets and
hauled the sticks down the river. Here we tied them together to make a
raft.
THE LOG RAFT.
[Illustration: Fig. 264. Tying the Logs Together.]
This was done by running a pair of ropes alternately over and under the
logs at each end (see Fig. 264). About fifteen were thus fastened
together, and then as an extra precaution a log was laid across each end
of the raft and tied fast. As soon as we had cut enough timber for our
first raft, we all ceased work, to take a ride down the river on the
logs. Two of us, armed with poles, were to do the steering. There was
one spot in the river of which we were rather apprehensive. That was a
bit of shallow, swift water three miles from camp. A line of rocks
jutted up from the river, forming a natural dam which was broken only at
the eastern end. The water swirled madly through this opening, and
veering off a huge rock which lay directly in front of the gap turned
sharply westward. As we neared this dam the river became deeper and
deeper, until finally we could no longer reach bottom with the poles,
and could not properly steer the boat. For some time we drifted
helplessly round and round in the still water above the dam. Then
suddenly the current caught us and we swept like a shot for the opening.
The gap was quite wide, and had we only thought to provide ourselves
with oars we could have steered the raft clear of the rocks below, but
we were entirely at the mercy of the current, and with a terrific crash
we were hurled head on against the boulder.
[Illustration: Getting Dinner.]
[Illustration: The Photo after which Our Log Cabin was Modeled.]
Just what happened then I can not say. When I undertook to record the
incident in the chronicles of the S. S. I. E. E. of W. C. I., I found
there were five entirely different versions of the affair besides my
own. I knew that immediately after the shock I found myself struggling
in the water just below the rock over which I must have been slung by
the force of the impact. Dutchy declared up and down that he had sailed
fifty feet in the air astride of a log. Bill had been almost stunned by
a blow on the head and was clinging desperately to a jagged projection
of the rock. The ropes that had held the raft together had parted,
scattering the logs in all directions, and I could see the rest of the
crew hanging on to them for dear life.
Shouting to Bill to let go his hold on the rock. I swam over and caught
him as he drifted down, then I helped him ashore. Leaving Bill to
recuperate I rushed down the bank, shouting to the others to paddle the
logs over toward shore. Then I plunged in, and pulling myself up on the
nearest log, paddled shoreward as we had done on the planks when
shooting the rapids. In this way one by one we corralled the logs, and
after tying them together again resumed our voyage down the river. We
now had no swift water to fear and were able to guide the raft
successfully down to Lake Placid. But here we moored it, not venturing
to take it past the mill-race until we had gotten the oars from the scow
and nailed on oar locks at each side and the rear, so that we could
properly row and steer the raft safely to Kite Island.
THE SAIL-RIGGED RAFT.
[Illustration: Fig. 265. A Sail-rigged Raft.]
When we went up the river again we carried the oars with us, also the
sail and mast belonging to our ice boat, as there was a good breeze
blowing down-stream. Our second trip was more successful. The mast was
stepped in a small but solid box nailed to the logs. In the top of this
box a hole was cut for the mast to fit into and then the mast was braced
with guy lines. We came down the river in fine style, steering straight
for the opening in the dam, and just as we were about to shoot through
Reddy and I plied the oars for all we were worth on the port (left) side
so as to swing the raft around past the boulder. However, we didn't
escape entirely without accident, for the raft rode up on a submerged
ledge, dipping the starboard side clear under water and nearly tipping
us over. But in a moment the raft had righted itself and we had smooth
sailing for the rest of the way.
BUILDING THE LOG CABIN.
[Illustration: Fig. 266. Foundation Logs Notched.]
[Illustration: Fig. 267. Foundation Logs Fitted Together.]
[Illustration: Fig. 268. A Corner of the Log Wall.]
Our third expedition completed the number of logs we required for the
log cabin. Two large 12-foot logs were chosen for the foundation logs at
the front and rear of the building. The logs were flattened along the
bottom so that they would have a firmer bearing on the ground, and
particularly on the corners, where they rested on foundation stones.
Each log was now notched about a foot from the ends. The notches were 8
inches long and about 2 inches deep. Care was taken to place those on
one log squarely opposite the notches on the other. A pair of 14-foot
logs were now laid across the foundation logs and rolled along them
until another half-turn would have dropped them into the notches (shown
in Fig. 266). Then notches were cut in the 14-foot logs to correspond,
so that when the final half-turn was given one notch would fit over the
other, making a mortise joint (Fig. 267). When the side logs were in
position notches were cut in their upper surface to receive a pair of
12-foot logs which were rolled onto them, notched and dropped into
place. Then another pair of side logs were laid on, and so the work
progressed. The notches in each log were cut to a depth equal to
one-quarter the diameter of the log; that is, if the log was 8 inches in
diameter the notch was made 2 inches deep, and if 6 inches in diameter
it was cut to a depth of 1-1/2 inches. When the logs were laid in place
no space intervened between them, as will be clearly understood by
reference to Fig. 268.
We found, after a few logs had been set in place, that our cabin was
growing faster at one end than at the other. The trouble was that our
logs were not of uniform diameter throughout, and we had been laying the
butt ends, which were larger, all at one end of the building. So we had
to take down the logs and relay them with the butt end of the front
foundation log at one end and that of the rear foundation log at the
other. Then the cross logs were laid on with their butt ends on the
small ends of the foundation logs. The next end logs were laid with
their small ends on the butt ends of the cross logs, and so on, taking
care never to lay the butt end of one log across the butt end of
another. In this way the walls were built up evenly to a height of 3
feet.
[Illustration: Fig. 269. Piece Cut Out to Admit Saw.]
We had planned to make a large open fireplace in the cabin, and this
necessitated cutting an opening in the rear wall. But we did not want to
cut the opening until the wall was built up to its full height lest it
might buckle while the remainder of the logs were being placed in
position. So we merely cut a piece out of the top log to make room for a
saw when we were ready to cut the complete opening. As our fireplace was
to be 5 feet in width, a 5-foot piece was cut out of the center of the
log. Then the ends were supported by cleats nailed on each side, as
shown in Fig. 269. This done the building was continued as before, but
as the walls grew we found it more and more difficult to raise the logs
to position. We could not lift them directly to the top of the wall, but
had to roll them up on "skids"; that is, on a pair of 14-foot logs which
were laid against the top of the wall. When the walls had reached a
height of about 5 feet above the foundation logs, a length 4 feet 9
inches long was cut out of the top log to allow space for sawing out the
front door and window, and also a 30-inch piece was cut out for the side
window. Cleats temporarily held the sawed ends of the logs, while the
walls were carried on up to a height of a little over 6 feet from the
foundation logs.
THE ROOF OF THE LOG CABIN.
[Illustration: Fig. 270. Skids]
Then we started laying the roof. A 16-foot log was now notched in place
at each side, with its forward end projecting about 3 feet over the
front of the cabin to form a shelter in front of the building. A pair of
12-foot logs were then laid in position. The next pair of 16-foot logs
were laid about 20 inches in from the sides, and after a pair of the
cross logs had been set in place a third pair of logs were laid about 40
inches from the sides. Finally, a single 16-foot log was set in place at
the center, to serve as the ridge beam of the roof. The roof logs were
all carefully tested to see if they were sound before we laid them in
place, because we did not want to run any risk of the roof falling in,
particularly in the winter time, when it would be heavily covered with
snow. A chalk line was drawn from the ridge beam to the lower roof beam,
and the cross logs were sawed off along this line, as indicated in Fig.
271. Several slabs were now procured and laid across the roof beams to
serve as rafters. These rafters projected about 18 inches beyond the
side walls of the cabin, so as to support the eaves. Over the rafters we
laid a roofing of slabs, starting with the bottom and lapping them, as
we had done on our tree house.
[Illustration: Fig. 271. How the Roof Logs were Laid.]
THE DOOR AND WINDOW FRAMES.
We were now ready to cut out and frame the doors and window openings.
The front window of the cabin was to be close beside the door, so we
merely widened the door opening at the top to include the window opening
as well (see Figs. 271 and 272). The door was made 2-1/2 feet wide, and
was cut down to the foundation logs. The window opening was cut to a
depth of 24 inches. Before sawing out the opening we wedged pieces of
wood between the logs along the line we were to follow with the saw, so
as to keep them in place. After the opening had been made a couple of
stout boards were nailed to the sawed ends of the logs at each side, to
hold them securely in place and make a suitable framing for the door.
The cleats were then removed. The foundation log and the one at the top
of the opening were flattened, to serve as the sill and lintel of the
door. Between the door and window a short post was wedged in place. This
post was flattened on opposite sides, so that the door jamb could be
nailed against it on one side and the window frame on the other. The
side window was next cut out and framed. After it had been framed it
measured 2 feet square.
[Illustration: Fig. 272. The Finished Roof.]
THE FIREPLACE.
Then came the task of building our fireplace. First we sawed out the
opening, cutting right through the rear foundation log. Then we gathered
from the river a large number of the flattest stones we could find. With
these we planned to build the three outer walls of our chimney. But the
question of getting mortar to bind the stones together bothered us for a
while.
"If only we could find a bed of clay. Don't any of you know of one
around here?" queried Bill.
But none of us remembered seeing any clay bed in the vicinity.
"If we were in south Jersey now," I said, "we could use some of that red
mud they have down there. It sticks like the mischief to shoes and pant
legs. I bet it would hold those stones together."
"Red mud? Why there's plenty of it over the hill, back of Lumberville,"
said Reddy. "All the roads over there are red shale roads, and I saw
some red banks along the river when we went after the logs."
That was just what we wanted. The banks Reddy referred to turned out to
be genuine red shale, and soon we had ferried several scow loads of the
stuff down to Kite Island. When the shale was wet it made quite a sticky
mortar. The foundations of the chimney were laid in a trench about 2
feet deep, and the side walls of the chimney were carried inside of the
cabin and covered the ends of the logs at the chimney opening. The side
walls extended outward a distance of 3 feet, where they were joined by
the rear wall of the chimney.
THE PROPER WAY TO BUILD A STONE WALL.
In making our chimney we could not rely on the red shale to hold the
stones as firmly as good lime mortar would, so we had to be careful that
each stone, as it was laid, had a firm bearing. The stones were embedded
in a thick layer of mud, and if they showed any tendency to teeter we
propped them up by wedging small stones under them until they lay solid.
Another thing that we were very careful about was to "break joints";
that is, to keep the joints in each layer of the stones from coinciding
with those in the next layer, above or below. To make sure of this we
made it a point to lay a stone over each joint in the top of the wall
and then to fill in the space between the stones with smaller stones. In
this way the wall was made very substantial.
[Illustration: Fig. 273. How to Build a Wall.]
When the masonry had been carried up to the top of the chimney opening,
a heavy timber about 12 inches wide was laid across the walls close
against the wall of the building. This was to support the fourth wall of
the chimney, and so we flattened its upper surface. To prevent it from
catching fire it was covered with a thick plastering of mud, and then to
keep the mud from cracking and flaking off we procured a piece of tin
and tacked it over the log. The tin also extended over the top log of
the opening. Then we went on with the building of the chimney walls,
carrying them up about a foot above the ridge of the roof. Our chimney
was completed by paving the bottom with stones, well packed in mud and
nicely smoothed off to make the hearth. The hearth extended about 18
inches into the cabin, and was framed with logs, as shown in Fig. 275.
THE FLOOR OF THE CABIN.
A number of logs were now laid on the ground to serve as floor beams.
Slabs were used for the floor. We had some trouble in making the floor
perfectly even, because the floor beams were rather irregular, and a
great deal of time was spent in smoothing the logs off to a common
level. If we had the work to do over again we would have bought two or
three planks and laid them on edge to support the flooring.
[Illustration: Fig. 274. Building the Chimney.]
[Illustration: Fig. 275. Section through the Fireplace.]
THE DOOR HINGES AND LATCH.
[Illustration: Fig. 276. The Door Hinges.]
[Illustration: Fig. 277. The Latch Guard.]
[Illustration: Fig. 278. Door Catch.]
A door was now constructed by battening together a number of slabs. In
place of a hinge a hole was drilled into the sill and another into the
lintel directly in line with it. Two sticks of wood were then whittled
to fit snugly, but without jamming, into these holes. These sticks were
then nailed to the inner face of the door, with their whittled ends
projecting into the holes, forming pintles on which the door could turn.
A narrow strip of wood was nailed to the outer jamb for the door to
close against. The latch consisted of a stick of wood, fastened to the
door at one end with a nail. It hooked onto a catch whittled out of hard
wood to the form illustrated in Fig. 278, and nailed to the jamb. Then
to keep the latch from dropping too far when the door was open, and to
guide it when slammed against the catch, we whittled out a guard piece
to the form illustrated in Fig. 277, and nailed this to the door, with
the latch projecting through the slot of the guard. A string was now
fastened to the latch and passed through a hole in the door. A block was
tied to the end of the latch string to prevent it from slipping back
through the hole; but at night, when we did not want to be molested by
any intruders, we untied the block and drew in the latch string.
THE WINDOW SASH.
[Illustration: Fig. 279. The Latch.]
For our windows we made wooden sashes which fitted nicely into the
window openings. A small hole was drilled through the sash at each side
into the frame, and nails inserted in these holes held the sash in
place, and served also as hinge pins for the sash to turn on. The sash
could be taken out at any time by removing these nails. As we could not
afford to use glass for our windows, we covered the sashes first with
cloth, and later, when it occurred to us that in winter time it would be
difficult to keep the cold air out, we used oiled paper.
BUNKS.
[Illustration: Fig. 280. Hinged Window Sash.]
[Illustration: Fig. 281. Bunks.]
Our next work was directed toward providing sleeping accommodations in
the log cabin. A large log was laid on the floor the full length of the
cabin, as far out as possible without interfering with the opening of
the front door. Stakes were laid across this log, with their opposite
ends wedged in between the logs of the wall. A nail or two in each slab
held it in place. This formed a sort of shelf 12 feet long, which was
divided at the center to form two bunks, each wide enough for two
persons. But as there were six of us in the society, we had to provide
two more berths. A stout post was set into a hole in the ground, and
nailed firmly at the bottom to the lower berth log and at the top to one
of the roof beams. This post supported a second berth log, which
extended the full length of the building at a height of about 3 feet
from the floor, and was wedged at the ends between the logs of the
house. Cleats were nailed to the walls under this berth log to make it
perfectly secure. Then slabs were nailed across it to form the two
bunks.
STOPPING UP THE CHINKS.
The log cabin was completed by stopping up all the chinks between the
logs of the walls. Strips of wood and bits of bark plastered with mud
were driven into all the cracks and crevices until everything was made
perfectly tight.