The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1872-06-28

| " w hen i SAID three lnOusdhu uol'
lars" replied Mr.. Gripper, meant to
include only ten acres of land. II you
want ten acres more. | must call 1t
thirty.hve hundred"
And with this monstrous proposition,
which was to be open three days, the
parties separated.
One of the entlemen of MIR. Bates
party was Beneto Mcintosh, the most &C
| complished civil engineer OF the day.
"You speak of another fall below
here" he said, after be had left Grip
per's residence.
I" Yes answered Bates, but you
will find it utterly impracticable."
Still Mcintosh desired to look at it,,
and thither the party bent their steps.
The fall was found TO be tumbling,
dashing flood, pouring down decliv-
| ity of at least seventy feet in distance
OF twenty rods, leapiug and surging
over the jagged shelves of rocks into a
! boiling chasm below, while on both
hands arose perpendicular walls of solid
granite, showing that at some period
! far remote the mountain torrent had
literally cut its way through the ada
mantine ledge.
Mcintosh examined the land below
the falls, and at point not far distant
! in that direction he found q shallow
swell, or gully overgrown with grass
and shrubbery, but with a deposit of
river sand upon its bottom. The APP
pearance of the place attracted his at
| tention
Probably" said Mr.. Bates, ait is
where the melted snow and heavy rain
| find their course from the hills
81 think not" said Mcintosh. "This
sand is from the river-not from the
hills-and you will observe that ii could
not have backed up by any rise from
the water below. Let us follow it,"
So they struck into the water path,
and followed it up around the ledge, by
an easy and gradual ascent, until it led
them upon the rivers bank nearly a
quarter of mile from the fall.
Eureka" cried Mcintosh, clapping
his hands, exultantly. "Here we have
water course, marked out and graded
by Nature herself, which will yield
power UNNECESSARILY superior to the
one above. And, moreover, all danger
from flood is debarred."
The others quickly comprehended the
value of the discovery. They saw that
by cutting canal along the old water
course over which the river had poured
stream at its highest flood, they would
be able TO control the water at will, and
use it over and over again for mills, set
on below the other along the grace
fully curved track. And two things
more-the sites were more favorable
for building than were those above,
with better timber land surrounding,
and the furious cataract would not be
between their mills and the market.
The next question was, Who owned
the newly discovered privilege? 1t be.
longed to David Somerby. They visited
him and carefully opened their business.
Look here, gentlemen" he said, af.
ter they had beaten the bush awhile
their experience with Gripper had made
them cautious" " let us understand
each other. Tell me plainly what you
want, and will tell you as plainly what
| will do on my part"
Mr.. Bates made up his mind that he
had an honest mana straightforward
man-to deal with, and he stated his
told how the company would develop
the W alter power and erect their mills,
but he went on TO point out the advan-
tages which would result TO the owner
of the adjoining land, both in enhanc-
ing the value of the land in itself and
also of the magnificent pine and spruce
timber with which it was covered
Mr.. Sombery listened attentively, and
at length told them to call upon him on
the following morning. he wanted TO
sleep upon it.
That evening Jasper Gripper called
down to see his friend Somerby. He
wanted TO purchase five hundred acres.
more or less, of the pine interval spruce
upland adjoining his land. Gripper
fought shy, and hung on, and Somerby
only got rid of him by assuring him
that he was not at present at liberty to
sell.
"Aha ~ chuckled Gripper "Them
ere mill folks have been here. They
want the land Well, let them buy it
| shall own the land between it and
their mills, and they'll find it hard
work to get their logs up without my
consent"
And Gripper returned to his home,
firmly persuaded that the company ha.
resolved to purchase his water privilege.
Oh why had he not asked them five
thousand dollars for it?
On the following morning Mr.. Bates
and his friends were punctual, and when
Mr.. Somerby had been asked what con.
ISOLATION he had arrived at, he spoke as
follows:
Gentlemen, have thought the mat.
ter all over and have made up my
mind. have two propositions to make,
and you can accept which you choose.
All told, | own about fifteen hundred
acres of land in this section, and the
river cuts it nearly in halves. Full
half of it is rich interval covered with
pine, and the rest is upland and hill,
with spruce, unlock, and oak. First,
| will give you the land for your course
and deed you the power, and also give
you all the land necessary for your mill
buildings, provided that you, on your
part, will set at once about developing
and improving the power and putting
up the mill. Or, | will turn all my
land into the stock of the company, at
a fair appraisal, and become one of
you