The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1892-11-19
The Brothers, Fued.

You will take the road to the
right, over the hill, at Brothers
Feud," said the liveryman. "The
bridge on the lower road was
washed away in the Storm"
"Brothers' Feud?" said /. ''Where
is that?"
"Aren't you acquainted in this
No? Well, you can't be.
Everyone within hundred miles.
I suppose, knows about Brothers
Feud. The way it was, when old
man Ellacot died he gave his farm
undivided to his two sons. They
had no other relatives living. But
they couldn't get along to-
gether, and one of them brought
suit for partition. The place is
verv billy, and isn't worth much in
the first place. And the lawyer
fees didn't make it any more valua-
BILE. But they finally got the mat
ter through the court, and the sur
veyors came out to survey the
place. They asked him who was
to pay him, and he said each would
pay half ofthe expense of partition.
They agreed and he went ahead.
zone of them paid and the other
didn't. That. was nobody's loss
but the surveyors, but it made the
paying brother SO mad to think
that his brother had done less than
himself that he took up the divid-
ing-line stakes and set them over
two rods in his brothers land.
That made his brother mad and he
took up the stakes and set them
two rods beyond the line. So they
began fighting over that four rods
of hill land that wasn't worth $40
an acre. But the timber. was fine,
and when the buyers came along
and offered $40 a thousand for stave
timber Jim and Joe began quarrel
ing in earnest.
Each one hired gang OF chop
pers, and the choppers took up the
fight, for it did seem the likeliest
timber grew in the disputed strip
Why, those choppers had regular
battles there, and the sheriff had to
60 out with a posse. Three men
were killed-just chopped to death
with axes. We have had more
criminal cases from that four rods
of sand and gravel than from all
the rest of the county. We finally
had to get out a company OF mill
tia when the buyers run up the
price to $22 a thousand. 1t was
worth something then. But each
fellow spent all he made from his
trees defending his suits, and wher
the timber was finally gone and the
price fell there stood about the only
good walnut in the county. That
is worth good deal of money
now. All the rest of the walnut
was sold years ago, and 1t is worth
near it's weight in silver.
"Well, if you go by there to-day
you will most likely see two gray
haired old men sitting one on each
side of that strip of timber, each
one with a rife beside him ane
waiting to kill the other if he steps
on the strip. They both swear they
will stop right there till they die
l suppose they will, but if either 0.
them gets reckless and ventures or
the strip his brother will shoot
him sure. You see the ground il
worth good deal now. The mer
were SO busy fighting in the timber
time that they didn't have time t.
cut. Goodbye. Take the right hane
road when you come to the hill
The bridge is gone on the othel
| one.'
l found the Brothers. Feud with
out any trouble, and looked will
great interest for the two insane
brothers. They had been so de-
voted to their quarrel that they
had never married, and they livec
all alone, each in little cabin Their
father had given them. As ! drove
along / saw a group of neighbor
about one of the houses. At tn
door of the other sat q trembling
| palsied old man, with rifle across
his unsteady knees. went up t.
the croud and found that Jim wa
dead.
"Been dead two or three day.
when we found him." said TIT
| neighbor.
"What more does his brothe
! want?" / asked. /" He still seem
to be on guard"
"Well, he is so deaf that he can
hear when we holler over and tel
him, and be is so blind he couldn'
see when his brother fell down b.
the log and died. Besides he ha
lost his reason. lie will neve
know that the brothers feud j
ended. Chicago Herald.