TRANSCRIPT

JG - James Gibson, interviewee [with Wilma Morrison (WM) present] / LR - Lyn Royce, interviewer

JG: Okay? So, okay, let me finish this, okay? The reef knot comes in on this, okay?

LR: Okay.

JG: So, any rate, so Harold [James' cousin] took me through the clove hitch, 'n the... he said, 'This is a knot you're gonna use when you're riggin' for the gang,' 'cause you can, you're goin; in there, say you're a rigger, that means you gotta set up the platforms for the, for the, for the crew. [laughs]

LR: The boy who blows up trees... yeah...

JG: So I practiced these, I practiced these knots, you know, 2, 3 days... So I said, 'Harold, you know, let me know; I'll go down.' So he says, 'righ... Tomorrow. I told the, the boss, I told what's his name...' whatever we call these guys then, '...and he said bring him in tomorrow.' So I says, so he says, 'Okay.' So he says, 'You comin', come in with me tomorrow.' So I went in, with Harold, the next day. These guys, all these iron men workin', with 'd spikes, 'n the thing, 'n the heat, 'n watchin' all this crap. And over there, there was a Indian gang, real Indians, okay? There was an Indian gang over there. Whew...

WM: I think they built ½ of the high rises in Mon... in New York.

JG: I'm telling you, boy, those guys they would shimmy up the... like this, 'n... Och! Man! Shit...no way I could do that.

WM: Chicago couldn't have been built without them.

JG: Oh, I tell ya, man. So any rate, the guy said, 'Well, is this him?' 'Yeah, he's my cousin.' 'Is he a rigger?' 'Yeah.' H' says, 'Well, you know, what's-his-name isn't in this morning, he uh...' Somethin' happened to the dude and he won't be in for a couple of weeks. He says, 'If your cousin can do it, he'll work with that gang over there.' And the, the boss of this gang, was a tall guy, but [body builder grunt], okay? And I remember [indecipherable - standin'?] over this guy. So, they look, the other guys see me, boss: 'Yeah, this guy's name is Jim.' And naturally, being, you have to be man, and so, 'Guy's name is Jim,' and he looked at me and I just looked, look around at him, like daring anybody to do what, you know. [laughs]

WM: I know what I'm doing!

JG: Oh, yeah, yeah; I'm me, you know what I mean? So, 't any rate, so, the boss leaves, I'm standing there, the chief says, 'We're going to move over there to that position over there; go set up the, your platform over there.' I says, 'Okay.' I said, 'So where's the platform man?' He says 'Can't you see? It's right there!' I says, 'Okay, mister, mister, be...' You know, be cool wasn't in, it wasn't in the vernacular then. So, 't any rate, so, eh, eh, I put the, I cautiously go down, picks up this... [under breath] it's heavy, man. Instead of like, being sensible and grabbing it underneath and dragging it with both hands, no... couldn't do that.

WM: 1 hand.

JG: 1 hand; walking... took my hand out of the shoulder out of the socket. [laughs]

WM: Should have called Frances [James' 1st wife; see story: Frances Moves the Stove].

JG: Frances had a been there, she woulda threw it! Any rate, I dragged this thing over to the platform, and it was on the same floor where he was going, 'cause they were up here, up on a, a floor up, and be, the floor below them was covered with wood. You know, certain, so 'n that's where the platform, so I dragged it, he had to be right. On the outside of that... corner, okay, is where I had to set this thing. I... to this day, I don't know how I got that platform not to fall down [laughs]. To this day... But I got this thing, and I couldn't remember my knots. I knew I was supposed to use such-and-such a knot in this position, such-and-such a knot here, such-and-such to join there, such-and-such a knot to do this. I couldn't remember 1 knot! The only knot I could remember...

LR: Reef knot. [laughs]

JG: The whole thing was covered with reef knots.

WM: Did it work?

JG: Down comes the gang. 'Right, how y' doin?' 'Come on up.' They come trompin' down; the guy, they, boun, boun, boun, boun, boun; they're all on this, it's... Below them is nothing. Okay? 'N they're all on this platform. I said 'Take it easy, man.' I says, 'Gimme a break, this is my 1st platform. Let the knots seat themselves.' What did I open my mouth for; they'd never noticed the knots until then. The guy looks. '... What the hell is that?' The other guy looks, '...What the hell is that?' They look at me, "...[grunt] you set that up [exclamatories]...' and this and that. I was cool. I'm just standin' up there lookin' at 'em. They're rantin'; lookin' ...

WM: Did they back off?

JG: No. What? Back off?! Shit, they'd have to throw me off, okay? Finally, the boss yells over to the super, the super comes, he's down 3 or 4 flights on the ground, 'kay? Comes down, '[series of partial, aggravated syllables] It's...[partial expletives]...all reef knots!' The guy looks at me. I said, '[hollering] You! What's the safest knot in the book?' Chief looks up at the other guy, the, the boss, at the guy. Boss guy looked at the chief, he looked at me. I said, 'Yeah, what's the safest knot in the book?' '[series of partial, protesting syllables]' He says 'Get back to work!' [laughs] That was my 1st day on the job. How I lasted... After that, you had to mo... well, yeah, the knots came back, you know. But that 1st platform? All reef knots.