Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 11.djvu/206

192 jam in the gate way with levers. They both worked with a will, each at intervals suggesting where a lever would be effective. The last suggestion was "Billy's", as we called him; with their utmost efforts the frame was relieved and the grand old man dropped his pole and clasping the boy in his arms kissed him on the cheek.

When we had finished our job above the falls Mr. Welch paid me with a check on Dr. McLoughlin, which I presented, of course, to< Billy McKay, as clerk of the store, telling him the kind of clothing I needed. "John," he said, "I believe Mr. Welch has fully drawn his account, but grandfather and all of us have seen how you have done your work; we have not the kind of goods you want, but if Mr. Pettygrove can furnish you I am sure grandfather will honor the order. I got the goods as far as my check would reach, but I got more, which I now feel constrained to relate.

The reader will easily understand that men working in the river all day as I have described would be too wet at bedtime to sleep comfortably; so at Mr. Welch's suggestion I went to the cooper shop of Uncle Jimmie Stephens, who liked company and conversation and had shavings to burn; on one of my drying nights Uncle Jimmie told me that William Overton, who drove staves and shingles on the future site of Portland and sold them at Oregon City, had offered him (Stephens) his claim for 300 new salmon barrels and would give him two years' time to make them in. "But," Mr. Stephens remarked, "Lovejoy and Pettygrove are talking of buying Overton out and starting a town on the land. Now I have no means to start a town with, but a man named Carter, who recently died in the hospital at Vancouver, had a claim on the east bank of the river opposite Overton's, which is to be sold by Nesmith as Probate Judge. I believe I can buy that for $300.00; I know I can if Judge Nesmith doesn't want to bid on it. Do you think I had better bid on that claim, John?" (This was the first time any one had asked my opinion on a business venture.) "What do you want with land, Mr. Stephens," I asked, "You