Sam Schrader:this bridge-- you could walk over the bridge, you didn't have to walk through the muck? Or did you have to walk through the muck, too?
Gus Demos:No, you have to walk ~ the bridge to come to town, come to sawmill. You had to walk that bridge because there was no road there. In other words it was separated from the Americans altogether. But when we come up here, was still separated, but, you know, we could go to town from-- it was down below this pit, you see, first, you see still goes by the same name, —
Sam Schrader:Well, I just really wonder how the people felt about that, because to me, it doesn't seem very American to have the different groups of people separated.
Gus Demos:(Laughter) It doesn't seem all right to you, yeah, but the Scandinavians were among the Americans. You know swedes and Norwegians and SO on, they were up that way. But there were many of them that were married. You see, they brought their wives from the old country, and those that didn't, they got married here. They were more people to learn quicker-- I don't know, the language is similar to the English language or not, but they do have some English words in their language, and that way they, it seems to me, they learn quicker than other nationalities. Sundberg's father and grandfather was Scandinavian.
Sam Schrader:Did the Italians and Greeks , Did some of them mind that? Did they just accept it or did they feel that it was fair at all?
Gus Demos:Well, they didn't feel that way, but they didn't mind it, because they knew that they didn't have +he ability to mix, you see. Because they didn’t understand the language. And that way they talked their own language and they got along alright. The only thing was that they had some trouble, you know, that was serious-—- well, like the fellow that died-- I told you one time, didn't I?
Sam Schrader:When you went to see Laird?
Gus Demos:Yeah. Like the fellow that got killed in the fire-- well, I couldn't understand Laird and of course, he had to send to Spokane get somebody that understood, and he had to go in court to-- well, not to He went al This the court-- well, yeah, he had to go to court. He had the power of attorney from his sister. And in that case I couldn't do anything, because I didn’t understand enough English. And, I still don't under
Sam Schrader:You got no trouble understanding what I say!
Gus Demos:(Chuckles) No, but all the same in a case like that, you don't, you hire a lawyer.
Sam Schrader:Yeah. That's true. You got to do that anyway now a days, no matter how much English you know. One thing about this Swamp- I was wondering-did that breed mosquitos? Was it a pretty bad place that way’?
Gus Demos:Yeah. It was. That brought mosquitos, but they didn't care. Who cared what the Greeks, let 'me be out there?
Sam Schrader:How much swamp was it right around the camp?
Gus Demos:Oh, not very much. Just a strip, you know. They had to build a bridge in order to cross, you know. Temporary bridge, it wasn't very strong, either. But we managed to cross from there to the depot. Where the depot is now. And we come up to the store.
Sam Schrader:Now, you said didn’t make much money, but things were cheaper. Well, how much money did---?
Gus Demos:Two dollars a day. Ten hours. Ten cents an hour. Isn't it?
Sam Schrader:Two dollars-- no twenty cents an hour-- twenty cents an hour for ten hours, two dollars.
Gus Demos:Some get Little more than two. The common laborer worked for two dollars a day. I worked for less in the railroads, so this was a fair wage for that time
Sam Schrader:What did it cost to live on? When you get done with the expenses of the rent and the food, did you have anything left?
Gus Demos:I don’t know, didn't have very much, no. It cost about, oh, thirty dollars a month. It all depends-- depending on the cook- if he was getting good meat, why, I think it cost that, but if he get cheap meat, maybe fifteen dollars. In one place-- in Ephrata, this side for elf Ephrata, we was working railroad, and we used to eat rabbits. Jackrabbits and sometimes small ones and they were good meat. And we got along for about seven, eight dollars a month. Of course, we got a lot of meat from them cottontail rabbits, you know. They were good.
Sam Schrader:Shoot them? How did you get them, trap them or shoot them?
Gus Demos:Shoot ‘em. We had a section foreman, boss, you know, he was American, and he had a twenty-two rifle and he liked to shoot 'em. So when we were going on the railroad, with speed-car-- not speed car-~- handcar-- have you seen them?- and he just stop it when he'd see one of them, he used to stop and shoot ‘em and I'd go get ‘em. He was pretty good shot, too. Never miss. Yes, it was quite an experience.
Sam Schrader:Well, in the mill-- did you ever see any bad accidents?
Gus Demos:Yes. Not in the mill, no. On the railroad, I did.
Sam Schrader:On the railroad? What did you see there?
Gus Demos:| seem I saw the train passenger train, got in the mud and all you could see was the chimney. And the fireman and the engineer was caught between the tanker and the engine, and the fireman apparently tried to jump and he was caught under the rail and he was cut in the Have id see you know-- spreading back in the car., The engineer, you could See nothing but the head. The tanker and the engine was together and apparently he was trying to stop the train, the engine, and I don't know how it happened, but they thought that the switch was open, either open or half open, and hit the rails and went over. And when they engine went down, he was going pretty good speed, too, probably sixty, seventy miles an hour or more.
Sam Schrader:The engine went in the mud?
Gus Demos:No mud, it was dirt. Well, it was flat country. It was the other Side of Yakima. Selah, they call it.
Sam Schrader:The engineer was killed, too?
Gus Demos:The engineer and the fireman, and the baggageman broke his arm and leg. And another baggageman, I guess, was hurt. But no other accident happen then, except with those four fellows. Two got killed and two were hurt. I saw here in the mill many accidents, but they re minor; cutting fingers and so on the saw.