Millheim Journal. [volume] (Millheim, Pa.) 1876-1984, 1885-12-03
Romance of a Claim.
A YOUNG DAKOTA SETTLER LOSES HIS
FARM-How HE RECLAIMED 1T.

| a year ago last spring young man
named Belden came to this county,
took up l60 acres of land, and built
himself shack. Two weeks later
girl named Helen Chapman took up the
claim adjoining him on the west, and
also built cabin. The neighbors be-
came slightly acquainted, ! but both were
too busy to do much visiting. Belden
was an asy-going-fellow, none too
foad of work, and Helen was an active,
aggressive, good looking, and ambitious
young woman. She did two days work
to his one, and had a better farm at the
end of sixty days than he would have
had at the end of year ii he had kept
on in the way that he was going.
After Belden had been on his place
about three months ne became weary
os the monotonous life, and, going to
town to have some fun, found 80 much
enjoyment that he came pretty near
forgetting to go home. When he had
been gone longer than the time permit
ted by the land law, Helen, who had
been watching her opportunity, jump
ed his claim, and in less than..ten hours
had shack of her own standing on his
farm. Belden returned at last, and,
finding that woman had jumped his
claim, he said nothing. IL it had been
a man it would have been his duty to
go out and fight him to the death. bur
as it was woman, and rather comely
one at that, he thought he would say
nothing and trust to luck to get rid of
her. Occupying his own shack, he
was not more than 800 feet from her
new habitation. She held her ground
we'll, treated him as an interloper, and
never acting as though she had any
idea that he belonged there.
Belde:'s wrath began to rise finally.
and when he reflected on the comments
that would be made If he permitted
girl to jump his claim he grew furious.
Knowing that the temper.of most set
tiers would brook no interference with
"a girl farmer, he went to town for con-
sultation. First he talked with his
friends. They shook their heads and
said it was mighty bad job. Then he
consulted a lawyer, who gave him some
hope.
In the course of day or two he got
two of his friends and the lawyer 70 60
out to his place with him to see what
they. could do toward patching up
settlement. Once on the ground it
was agreed that the lawyer should 90
and see the girl. He was absent an
hour and a half, and when he returned
he said it was no use. The girl was
posted, and he didn't see what could
be done about it.
''If it was man." he said, ''we
could go over there and throw hrm by
the heels into the next county, but 1t
won't do to harm woman"
The four talked the matter over, and
it was finally agreed that the lawyer
should call again in the morning, and
represent to her that Belden's friends
we're coming to his assistance, and that
if she wanted to avoid serious trouble
, she had better abandon her shack and
leave his claim alone. The lawyer
started out on this errand the next day,
but he was back again in fifteen min
utes with lump on his head the size
of horse chestnut, where he said she
hit him with an axe handle.
After talking the matter over, every-
body being mad, it was decided that
thew would give her a scare as soon aS
it became dark. At about 9 O'Clock all
hands went over to the girls new shack
and surrounded it. At given signal
they yelled aud fred their revolvers i'm
the air. The reports had hardly died
away when shotgun was discharged
from one of the windows OF the shack,
and moment later another shot was
, fired from the other side Of the house.
The men waited in silence for few
minutes, when two more barrels were
fired. This convinced them that the
girl was not to be frightened, and they
crawled away as stealthily as they
could. All that night the girls shot
gun thundered at regular intervals, un-
Til her adyersaries, who were vainly
, trying to sleep, wished that 1t would
explode, and blow hen and her shack to
kingdom come.
, In the morning Beldan's lawyer and
two friends started for town, leaving
the jumped farmer alone in his misery.
After their departure Belden did some
work on the place, taking care not TO
run across the girl, and though they
saw each other frequently they both a.
! voided meeting.
Things went along in this way until
fall. Helen worked on her own farm a
good part of the time. and Belden pass.
ed many days in hunting. He had
made up his mind that he could tire
the girl out, and he believed that after
she found that he was not to be got rid
of che xvould Voluntarily abandon the