The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-10-16
A QUEER COMMUNITY.
Norcross, Me-, and It's Happy Inhab-
itants.
1t 10 without Schools, Law, Theology,
Medicine or Taxes.

Residents of Maine who look to the New
York and Boston papers for accounts OF
queer people and strange forms OF governs
ment In different parts of the world could
learn facts worth studying by coming to
Norcross, The settlements of Eskimos on
the coast Of Greenland have their old men,
the tribes Of Africa have their chiefs, and
even penal colonies recognize the authority
Of firearms and the lash. Here the law
abiding people feel but one power-the
hurrying, unsynipathetic cars, which bring
everything that comes TO their homes and
take away everything that goes out.
The distance from Milnocbet bridge,
which crosses the West Branch 1ast of here,
to Perkins Siding, which Is three miles
west, is five miles as the railroad runs or
the crow flies. AT and between these two
points are five settlements Of new log and
board structures, comprising about 40
buildings In all OF these one Is railroad
station, one Is q small store, two are small
hotels, one is a sawmill, six are good sized
sporting car. ps, eight are frame houses,
with shingles and clapboards on them. and
the rest are primitive log cabins, with
splits for roofing, spotted poles for floors
and boughs for bedding.
One-half of the male inhabitants are
either guides or lumbermen. partly both,
one-guarter are mill hands who saw spool
bars and dowels at Perkins Siding, and
the remainder are section hands and other
employees who work for the Bangor and
Aroostook railroad. Though no census
was ever taken Of the place, there are about
goo people who live here the year round
Among them are some 90 women and near
ly 40 children. This is when the popula-
q; l. In, T,,1,, ,Ha, q h..
Branch drive comics down the population
swells to 400 or BOO, and after open season
for big game begins IL often reaches /, 200
souls, besides Indians.
Having grown without governmental re-
straint from one log camp to its present
proportions inside of three years, Norcross
has made itself the most anomalous com
munity Oh earth. 1t is not IA town. 1t is
not even a plantation. On the old survey
maps it Is named Indian township, No. 3,
so called by the surveyors to distinguish 1t
from Indian townships Nos. and e. The
name of Norcross signifies nothing. 1t
was so called In order to locate n station
for "a railroad and a postoflice for the hunt
ers.
Though property that cost $500, 600 Is
here and visible, the assessor and tax col
lector never visit tho place. The children
are born and grow up without seeing the
inside or the outside Of u schoolhouse.
There are not rods Of bicycle and not 20
yards of cart roads in the whole township
As the nearest clergyman, lawyer and doc.
tor arc from 80 10 90 miles away, the pco-
pie get along very we'll without them.
When couple want To get married, they
take their bridal tour In hunting up a min.
lister and coming home again. IL "a person
Is sick, he Is sent out To doctor, because
no physician can be coaxed TO come and
see him, and In case he dies the body must
be transported more than 30 miles before
IL can rest In a Christian buryipg ground
There Is 10 drug store, no dance hull and
no barroom or other place where liquor Is
sold In the township. III two or moro mon
have dispute which leads To "a free fight,
the nonoombatants stand 10y 90 see fair
play, without attempting 20 interfere. In
case the defeated party feels himself
wronged and wants to take thB matter in-
to court, be cannot afford To do 40, because
be would have TO travel nearly all day by
rail before be could find "a magistrate
Even the gamc wordcns who arrest mon
for killing deer spend more money in TAX
ing their prisoners To court than the fines
amount 20 when "A conviction is secured
Once In It's history, when murder was
committed near here, sheriff from Dover
spent week In reaching here ana gcding
back home. The chances are it would take
something bigger than murder TO bring
him bero again.
The person who reads this description of
NorrrOss affi thinks the inhabitants are
degraded on Immoral will make "a great
mistake. A mall four times day brings
letters and pnrors from everywhere. An
enterprising and oonsiderate railroad car