Damnation Spring

The newspaper blames the destruction at Damnation Grove on “unknown” vandals. The local policeman is in Merle Sanderson’s pocket. Colleen informs Rich about Eugene’s poaching operation after Chub spilled the beans to her. Rich shrugs off the issue.

Rich cannot ignore the threat to the family’s water supply though. The three of them trudge over the ridge to inspect the situation at Damnation Grove. Mud and timber have damned up the creek above their intake pipe. Rich tries to cut a channel through the build-up, but he releases a sudden torrent of mud that, for an instant, sucks him under. He claws his way out, escaping death by a narrow margin.

Rich helps Eugene fix his roof, but the situation between the two families is tense. Eugene needles Colleen, who waves a knife at him, her nose again bleeding from the secondhand spray she inhaled with Joanna. Enid steps in. They leave after dinner, Colleen still distant and angry.

Colleen and Rich squabble over whether Chub can attend Luke’s birthday party. Nevertheless, they clean themselves up for a night out at the Sanderson fish fry. Helen, Carl, and Luke turn up too, causing many sideways looks and snide remarks. Even Enid wants them to leave. Carl’s own father gets so drunk, he bellows abuse at Carl and Helen. They try and leave before things can spill over into violence. Colleen’s nose bleeds again. Enid says it’s for poking it in where it doesn’t belong.

Eugene collars Rich in town and drags him to a bar for a drink. He pressures him about the next week’s hearing and urges him to keep a handle on Colleen. He even informs Rich that she has been talking to Daniel Bywater, confirming Rich’s suspicions. Before Rich leaves, he sees Merle emerge from a backroom, where he has been talking to forestry board officials and their local congressman.

Rich bumps into Merle at the gas station. Merle is towing his boat, which he is about to sell. He reminds Rich about the forthcoming hearing. Merle drives off and fellow logger Pete takes his place. Rich asks him if he is worried about the sprays. Pete’s not sure but says, if he had kids, “they wouldn’t be drinking out of no creek” (295).

Colleen chastises Enid for Eugene’s behavior. Enid pushes back and reveals Marla told her about Colleen and Daniel’s hookup. Thankfully, she has kept the secret from Eugene.

On the day of the hearing, a large crowd gathers both inside and outside the venue. Protesters are out in force, waving signs and chanting. Inside, speakers take their turn to voice viewpoints at the microphone. Activists point out that Damnation Grove is one of the last remaining areas of redwood forest in the country. They also talk about the mudslides destroying the gravel beds where salmon spawn. In response, loggers take to the microphone, claiming there were no problems before the environmentalists turned up. Logging has fed and clothed local families for years.

The atmosphere becomes heated. Both sides trade insults. Tussles break out. Helen takes the stage and dumps out money in front of the crowd—an effort by Merle Sanderson to buy her silence, she says. Then it is Rich’s turn. He talks about his family’s long history logging in the woods. He concedes he doesn’t know what is causing the birth defects and says it is natural for the bereaved to apportion blame. He also says he has drunk from the local creeks his whole life and never gotten ill from them. Like all the families in the community, he relies on the industry economically. Rich’s remarks are well received.

George Bywater, Daniel’s uncle, takes the microphone next. He reminds the crowd how essential the salmon are to the Indigenous peoples’ lives. Then, amid much heckling, Daniel takes over. He holds up a sample of contaminated water and announces it is from Colleen’s tap. He says she has not only witnessed birth defects but suffered her own miscarriages, too. Someone grapples Daniel from the microphone. Chaos breaks loose. The Gundersens make a break for it. In the truck, Rich is angry at Colleen, but she reminds him she has lost eight pregnancies. She will do what she wants.