The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1891-08-20
orabe for making the incest quality of sugar found in

Some of the principal villages in the County about
one thousand feet above sea level to WITT Island Pond
1880 feet; Lunenburgh Corners, 1144 Concord Corn
ers, 1885, Gudhall Falls, 1913 mouth of the Nuhegan
1852 feet This elevation, with vast covered with
resinous woods, like pine spruce and basam plenty of
pure air from the mountains and water from the springs
these and many other life preserving aids make this
of the healthiest spots earth. Grave yards
and asylums health resorts needed.
Game of many kinds still roams through the vast prime
val forest of northern Essex from the gigantic moose,
the graceful deer the sturdy bear and the noxous wolf
down to the tmd rabbit the alert weaze and the Curl
GUS bat. The last killed here, so far as known,
undertook with railroad train on the Grand
Trunk at Brighton, in 1858. He kept ahead for mile,
but in turning to look at his foe struck by the
ond and killed, throwing two from the track.
Fish of the most valuable varieties such unge, trout
pckere perch etc. abundant the numerous lakes,
ponds rivers and brooks In fact this of the fav
orte resorts of the hunter and fisherman, whether he
seeks for pleasure profit.
But the lumbeman does not always admire the sports
We give extract from a leading lumberman, to
show how they feel about the hunters the railroads and
small farmers reminding the reader that there two
sides to most controversies:
Northern Essex County has very few abandoned farms,
because she has few to abandon. And it would have
been just well if there had been still less To be
there land in the valley of the Connecticut and along
the banks of its branches that admit of cultivation But
the larger part of the land too rocky broken. The
soil is too poor to be worth clearing 1t ought to have
been kept in the line provided by nature, the growing of
timber, the cutting of which is subject that will repay
careful consideration, and ought to be matter for
lghtened legislation the forests of this country had
been properly handled in the last forty years. that is
only mature timber cut the small growth saved and the
fires kept OUT there would have been nearly as much
timber here then and the land instead of being
worth from to three dollars per acre. would be worth
from ten to twenty. The practice has been indscrim
timh an IN
the fire. which has proved to be greater enemy to the
forests than the The principal causes of fire are
first railroad trains second, settlers; third hunt
and sportsmen, class OF men for whom have little
love respect The railroad fires have been most de-
structve in this County having burned thousands
of In very few instances have the railroad
panies paid any damages They will not pay unless
forced to do and few men have the courage
to compel them to pay After the fire has gone over the
land it is likely to again and again. is
taken to prevent it. have in mind lot of land from
which the timber cut thirty five years ago. The
next year fire went it. 1t up to red cherry
and poplar is invariably the here. Last year the
poplar cut and sold for pulp making, leaving good
growth of small pines spruce hemlock and BIRCH show.
ing what nature will do when left to herself call to
mind another lot Of land from which the mature timber
both hard and SOFT properly cut twenty-five years
ago. The fire was kept OUT Last year it cut again,
and fully eight thousand feet of good spruce lumber was
cut to the In twenty five years a similar crop
can be cut The practice has been for umbermen to sell
ally tme for very little cash down. Then begins
the clearing The settlers fires frequently run beyond
his lot and often burn in value Of the luberas
standing timber than the lot sold for. AS a rule
these settlers have not Succeeded After three five
sometimes ten years, with small crops hard work and
poor are they have abandoned their places to the men
holding the mortgage which is often largely swollen by
store bills have case In point. A man bought one
hundred fifty Of land within one mile of the rail-
road The large spruce timber had been cut there was
left Of small timber and other growth twenty to thirty
cords of wood to the acre; this wood worth three
dollars per cord the railroad line. This man worked
hard for years to cut this wood he cleared one hun
dred twenty-five acres, built poor buildings and then
turned it over on mortgage, owing seventeen hundred
dollars. An adjoining lot of hundred fifty
similarly situated. The owner contracted the cutting
and drawing Of the wood to the railroad, realizing
twelve hundred dollars from the sumpage This he did
fool away in clearing the land The settlers fire
the other lot Both lots in the same pas
ture, but the lot that not cleared is the best All
good woodchopperS not good farmers and this is one
of the difficulties. A who can do nothing else
thinks he must have farm.
But to the third of fire. the hunters and fisher
men. They are usually lawless careless set. 1 have
often traces of them in the ubroken forests otener
about the streams and logging camps They set fires
and leave them without care. Many lumberman has
lost good set of camps from this cause but the loss of
the camps trng compared to the loss by fire in the
forest Some times they camp the border nearer to
civilization to plumber. have case in point. once
had cosset sheep that with the cows She had a
very fine lamb Early in September the lamb was miss
ing One day met hunter whose camp was lust out
side my border and substantially the following converse
ton ensued; You have lost your lamb hear" " Yes,
he seems to be missing" 80 well, bear has GOT him I
have been up to Megantc When came back to nv
shanty last week found there had been bear in it.
tracked him out and found where he had dunged and
took stick and paved over the dung and there was
wool in It, These are some of the things that we do
not want neither do assisted Swedes" to at
tempt to clear our forests and sarve in doing it, walk
vail H.