This episode was the first half hour television program filmed in full Technicolor. It was the series' only color episode until 1964, when all the episodes started to be filmed in color.
A "swamper" is an assistant to the driver of a team of horses or mules. The term originated in 1857 in southern United States for a workman who cleared roads for a man who falls timber in a swamp. It has become slang for an unskilled assistant to a skilled worker.
The $25 Dana earned for his 10 days (165 miles) of work is equal to about $620 in 2018.
The term "dude" is possibly derived from "Yankee Doodle Dandy." It became a derisive term for city slickers in 1883 (two years before this episode is set), so it would be appropriate for "Hermie" to refer to "Dana" as a dude.