noon
In front , several walnut , oak and elm trees had been left standing to preserve the wild beauty of the place . The first day was spent in preparing materials and laying the foundation logs . The men laughed and jested and shouted merrily as they worked ; and by noon the timbers were prepared , and the rock hauled for the two mammoth chimneys . Well it was that the hardest part of the work was already done , for some of the party , not content with the efficacy of hard cider , had brought whisky , and at the noon repast many of the men imbibed so freely that they were incapacitated for active service , and spent the afternoon lounging on log heaps , dozing off the effects of their potations or singing maudlin songs and making still more maudlin jests . However , the whisky of those days was pure , and though it did inebriate , its after effects were not so injurious , nor did it render its votaries so quarrelsome as does our so-called `` pure Bourbon '' of to-day . By the next morning even the most intoxicated had slept off the effects of their indulgence , and all reassembled at sunrise for the `` raisin ' . '' Four `` corner men '' were chosen , whose business it was to notch and place the logs handed them by the rest of the men , as needed .