Anecdotes form old loggers, bafflegab from officials, sensations headlines that makes fascinating reading and is sure to delight and infuriate anyone with an interest in the biggest industry in the north. This lively book introduces the characters of the forest industry, from mill hands to magnates. These are the people who opened up the north. They raped the forests, endured the ostracism of the respectable, took their lives in their hands to drive huge trucks or top fall spars -- and forged a lifestyle that has become the stuff of legends. The coming of the railways, the companies, the unions -- the conflicts, the deals, the government's attempts to regulate -- there is plenty of action and plenty of dirt.