Looks like it's gonna be a good crop this year. A hundred acres of wheat just ripe for the harvesting, and at 75 cents a bushel, I'd say the Ingallses will be sittin' pretty. They quickly set to work making plans for their upcoming payday. Now, with things going as good as they are now, you just know something bad is bound to happen. After all, this is Little House and tragedy lurks around every corner. That night, there was a fierce storm. Thunder, lightning, and even hail. As a result, the wheat was destroyed. Charles took it surprisingly well, though I can't say the same for the other local farmers. Mr. Hanson understood their plight and wanted to help, but he was financially unable to do so. The death of the wheat fields affected the mill to virtually no end. Charles Ingalls, however, tried looking at the glass half full and decided to venture out and look for work elsewhere, lest the family starve through winter. Without a horse to ride, Charles made the journey by foot, hence the title 100 Mile Walk, and to make matters worse, his boots were almost worn through. On the plus side, it looks as though Charles will have some company on this pilgrimage. Enter Jack Peters, a kindly Australian, and another farmer, Jacob Jacobsen (yes, that's really his name), who also turned out to be a boot maker and gave Charles a new pair. Jack tells them he's going to a job in a quarry, blasting rocks. It was hard, dangerous work, but it was still a paying job and Charles and Jacob wanted in. Let's hope they all come back in one piece.
Back in them days, they didn't have power drills or jackhammers, so to bore through a rock, one guy had to hold a stake while the other guy drove it in with a sledgehammer. Constantly was the fear of getting hit on their minds. After watching a demonstration of drilling, they meet the boss, Tom Cassidy, who puts Charles and Jacob to work right away, with Jacob holding the stake. But after a few pounds, they were able to change positions. Imagine how those men must have been feeling at that moment. Let's put it this way, whenever you hold a nail between two fingers and get ready to drive it into the wall, you know how worried you get about missing the nail and hitting your fingers with the hammer instead? Imagine the nail and hammer being twice as big and you're using both hands. So while Charles and his new friends put the fear of God in those rocks, Caroline has rounded up many of Walnut Grove's women (sans Mrs. Oleson of course) to harvest that sad crop of wheat. Just because it's ruined doesn't mean it should go to waste. However, all this prosperous work seemed to get in the way of Willa Sweeney's bitching. Why help if all you're going to do is gripe? Anyway, back at the quarry, Jack was put to work as a "powder-monkey", meaning he sets and lights the fuses that contact the dynamite that blow those rocks to pebbles. You couldn't hold back Jack for the world, he loved blowing things up. Day out and day in the men chopped away at those massive stones while back in Plum Creek, Caroline and the women bundled and threshed the wheat, which can't be sold but will certainly make enough bread to see them through the winter. Back at the quarry, Boss Cassidy held a drilling contest, with the winners receiving a $50 bonus. It was a grueling competition, but Charles and Jacob won because the script said so. Jack was so overcome with joy for his fellow drillers that he forgot about the lit TNT stick near him... Jack Peters was blown to bits, and Charles was requested to deliver his pay to his missus. He went about his task as Jacob was happily reunited with his wife and new baby boy. Upon finally returning home, Charles was greeted by his loving family, as they both had some really exciting stories to tell each other.
This one was really good. Well acted, well written and well directed. Michael Landon, Don Knight and Rick Hurst were excellent, and Jack and Jacob were very likable characters whom unfortunately didn't get to stick around for any more episodes. The scenes at the quarry with those men pounding the bores into the rocks is very cringe-worthy. You feel as though the guy with the sledge is going to hit the guy holding the stake at any moment. As I said, very well put together. This episode would be the first of many, many instances in which the crops fail and Charles has to seek work elsewhere. The plot with the dynamite would be used again in Season 3's "To Live With Fear" where Charles and Mr. Edwards blow away rocks to make a tunnel. That's a good episode too. If you like Charles, you like episodes where he goes on adventures to work his ass off to provide for his family and you like when stuff gets blown up then "100 Mile Walk" is for you. An all-around swell episode.
Back in them days, they didn't have power drills or jackhammers, so to bore through a rock, one guy had to hold a stake while the other guy drove it in with a sledgehammer. Constantly was the fear of getting hit on their minds. After watching a demonstration of drilling, they meet the boss, Tom Cassidy, who puts Charles and Jacob to work right away, with Jacob holding the stake. But after a few pounds, they were able to change positions. Imagine how those men must have been feeling at that moment. Let's put it this way, whenever you hold a nail between two fingers and get ready to drive it into the wall, you know how worried you get about missing the nail and hitting your fingers with the hammer instead? Imagine the nail and hammer being twice as big and you're using both hands. So while Charles and his new friends put the fear of God in those rocks, Caroline has rounded up many of Walnut Grove's women (sans Mrs. Oleson of course) to harvest that sad crop of wheat. Just because it's ruined doesn't mean it should go to waste. However, all this prosperous work seemed to get in the way of Willa Sweeney's bitching. Why help if all you're going to do is gripe? Anyway, back at the quarry, Jack was put to work as a "powder-monkey", meaning he sets and lights the fuses that contact the dynamite that blow those rocks to pebbles. You couldn't hold back Jack for the world, he loved blowing things up. Day out and day in the men chopped away at those massive stones while back in Plum Creek, Caroline and the women bundled and threshed the wheat, which can't be sold but will certainly make enough bread to see them through the winter. Back at the quarry, Boss Cassidy held a drilling contest, with the winners receiving a $50 bonus. It was a grueling competition, but Charles and Jacob won because the script said so. Jack was so overcome with joy for his fellow drillers that he forgot about the lit TNT stick near him... Jack Peters was blown to bits, and Charles was requested to deliver his pay to his missus. He went about his task as Jacob was happily reunited with his wife and new baby boy. Upon finally returning home, Charles was greeted by his loving family, as they both had some really exciting stories to tell each other.
This one was really good. Well acted, well written and well directed. Michael Landon, Don Knight and Rick Hurst were excellent, and Jack and Jacob were very likable characters whom unfortunately didn't get to stick around for any more episodes. The scenes at the quarry with those men pounding the bores into the rocks is very cringe-worthy. You feel as though the guy with the sledge is going to hit the guy holding the stake at any moment. As I said, very well put together. This episode would be the first of many, many instances in which the crops fail and Charles has to seek work elsewhere. The plot with the dynamite would be used again in Season 3's "To Live With Fear" where Charles and Mr. Edwards blow away rocks to make a tunnel. That's a good episode too. If you like Charles, you like episodes where he goes on adventures to work his ass off to provide for his family and you like when stuff gets blown up then "100 Mile Walk" is for you. An all-around swell episode.
