Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1883-12-06
Wood County Robbers.

large per cent of the lands of our
county were brought in the first place
expressly for the timber. After cut
ting off all that was considered worth
handling, averaging perhaps in value
from five to ten times the cost of the
land, it would be deserted, thrown
away, no more taxes would be paid.
The holders knowing, but not caring
that three years of such delinquency
according to the law forfeited their
title and vested it in the county.
The justice and necessity of such a
law is plain, it is based on the fact
that every community has an inherent
right to protect its own interests
against the encroachments of any of its
members.
This principle extends evcn'to the
taking of life and must therefore,
cover the less important matter Of the
abrogation of land titles when
holders repudiate their just obi
cations and stand directly in the
way of the development of the
county and the wellbeing of It's in
habitants It is undoubtedly a fact
that such holders have taken from the
county ten times more than they gave.
They stripped it of millions of dollars
worth of it's finest timber, leaving in
place of majestic pine forests nothing
but an unsightly mass of stumps and
brush. Here the curtain would fall
and the actors retire from the scene,
many Of them to distant states and
countries to spend the money obtained
by the sale of Wood county lumber.
Years after this, these abandoned
lands began to be bought up of the
county for farming and other purposes.
This raised the question as to the
of tax deeds, some claiming
that the original owners were still
masters Of the situation, that notwith-
their desertion and tax delin-
quencies they were nevertheless the
true owners.
II this case, like the dog in the
manager, they could at any time fly in
the face Of all who might attempt to
pick up and utilize what, years before,
they had thrown away as worthless.
The dallest can see that such
ruling would be utterly mischievous
1t would settle and set afoat
everything throughout the whole
northern portions of the state,
causing blight and ruin to settle
down upon it from which it would
take years and years to recover; yet
knowing all this there is good reason
to believe that we have men among us
who are anxiously waiting aud working
for such a calamity to happen and
who like unclean birds that are said
to follow in the track of contending
armies, hope to fatten on the general
ruin.
Pending the issue which they hope
will be favorable to an indefinite
enlargement of their nefarious bust
ness, they are in the meantime,
working on their idea in small
way.
When they find man who they
think they can rob they hunt up the
original owner and by telling him a
plausible story manage to get his
"Quit Claim for perhaps ten or fifteen
dollars They now inform their vic
tim that they own his land, that the
title given him by the county (Which
he had bought in good taith) is
worthless; frightfuI bin is trumped up
Of all timber that may have been
taken from the premises and the poor
fellow given to understand that they
will surely obtain Judgment at the
next term Of court for the full amount,
land and all.
This he sees would ruin him and
his family, so he concludes to settle
with the blackmailers on the best
terms he can obtain.
They are now ready to strike some
one else and so on indefinitely. No
body is secure against the wiles of
these heartless rascals.