The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-01-31
KINGS OF THE BACKWOODS.
LITTLE soTERBIeNTIEs THAT TX
listed ONCE IN

hnds IL hard work to keep track or them. and
has adopted q rule to drop the plantations
from the voting lists whenever they fail TO
make election returns for three years running.
The result is that several plantations drop out
every ,ear. and. losing their charters. become
nothing but unorRanlxed to xnships, with no
taxes 20 DO assessed. no school or road money
to raise. and no right to vote for anything.
Tho story of these plantations 10 an odd one.
Until September. 1910. Maine had no planta-
lions. All Maine communities were either
Incorporated As towns or chartered a. cities
or unoreanized townships. not recognized undor
the laws Of the State. In September. 1910.
when
Maine went hell bent
For Governor Kens
Tippccanos
And Tyler too.
Gov. John Fairfield. who was q strong Demo
crat. and hoDed to save Maine for his party at
the November electin, called 4 special session of
the Legislature. and It passed the celebrated
Wildcat act. Incorporating moro than fifty
townships and giving them the right to vote.
These newly Incorporated communities of the
~baekwoods, many of which did not consist of
moro than three families and had . voting
population OF from three to six, were not large
enough 10 DO dignined under tho name OF
town, 90 the act called thcm plantations.
Engendored In the brain of . nRhtinG Gov
ernor and born to mcet . political emergency
which they failed to overcome In tho Novem-
Der election. these plantations have hal many
vicfssitudss. Under tho law ,bey could have
no sslectmen, but FMS cad the citizens were en-
powered 10 elect ASSESSORS, school s~upervis-
ors, . plantation clerk, and one or moro con.
stables. They could build roads. support
schools. and. above all else. they could vote for
Il Nannfv HtafA AnA TAI.rsl NA.r. To- sI..
tationi where three or four mon msdo up the
voting population every man Was sure OF got
ting an o1ao In one plantation. whore three
DO .hers constituted the population. the old
est brother was first assessor. super visor Of
schools. road surveyor. plantation clerk. and
constable. Tho second and third brothers
held all the ofices OF the FIRST except that Of
plantation clerk. Tho wife OF the second
brother was Postmistress and the daughter
OF tho Oldest brother taught the plantation
school II was all In tho family. As all the
money for building school houses and con-
structing roads and most Of that for the sup
port OF schools came out OF the State Treas
ury. the brothers. their wives, and children
checrfully hired themselves out to tho State
OF Maine and made money by 90 doing. In
their capacity NJ assessors they could value
their property as they pleased. and It Is need
less TO say they mover placed It too high. With
money earned from tho State. sdded to cash
derived from farming and numbering, they soon
purchased the township which they ruled 20
wisely. and were able TO become sovereign die.
tators OF tho whole territory. exercising the
sway OF absolute monarchs.
From 1850 TO 1900 tho desire TO own and
rule a plantation was an overmastering pas
sion In Maine. The records In tho Land once
and the onlce OF the Secretary OF State tell OF
dozens OF plantations. every one OF which was
ruled by three or four men. The sAme names
OF stockholders and tho same names OF men
who applied for land war anti and settlers
claims appear year after year. showing hos
ltsh Kingdoms for themselves. Tho sons Of
these men. as they grew up. swarmcd TO other
went into tho plantation business Tor them.
selves. The girls, taough reared In the back
woods and, nsying little or no city culture.
men and college graduates from ali parts Of
10 her. husband 1000 acres Of pumpkin pine
timber land q, 2 dGwry. and make him a per.
p Pr. n o,irss1'a ass 10 m, shs "a. ~. II t asa s *. The The
sion Of new blood in'o the family community.
Instead OF dsysi0ping q %ors liberal .pirt,.
lines elosor and putting up higher walls against
everybody who was not q blood relation.
Ms hSS ,o %sHs h. .d% the S%ra SGS,d been n.s oon Smnsd
VAL sroks z. out and m. neT ambition
and fought we'll: Those who did not. Loot "a
from the drafts. After The war II" Il. f state Dc.
sided to go gu, Of bushes; as : lsndo snsr, An
auction all the Wild lands In is possession.
After this sale there was no moro State land
for the squattere 70 take up. and tho men who
OWNING 70 new :Sr'p pia az GtsaHi found IiSSaRsips; e oas
business aa Of @asin aa- new plat pian.atio %i'S ee as ,sd. F fes
Of voting. Grsdusiiy the rrsidents lost Inter.
and failed tn attend the elections. No re.
turn. were received from many pls9tatlons for
to Vote. but did not ohoose 70 exercise It. 4
tioL which neglected. 10 vote for local ohicers
riaht TO vote at ali. and should revert back to
the old township form:
tlons which had q population of afty or more
suddenly Determined to become 70 xns. and ap-
S %sy ,b 70, D,. ss.,sl:: 81 q T lniSS.SSra MI,S NJ, u Dd chi.
have lately become towns: This year the
ana S:Acyville. Penobscot county. have asked
to he admitted. Their petitions are now before
a ,ni GSs s sHsn,sa. on M TsS%i; and th no S SHaSs SSss
year. LAST s;rins IoS.ntas, SsnoS.sos county.
Nhn Opbo's ehe ttAAn t1At lbhtAtlOn EtO. II.
Hancock county. shared tho same fato. The
plantation of NaraRuaRus. Washington county,
made q gallant s lruggle 20 live, but will prob
ably succumb. A few years ago the cltizons.
knowing that their political existence was in
peril. held q public meeting. resolved TO
vote every timo they had n chance. and start.
cd n weekly paper. TO boom the place. For a
slime the voters and the paper made their reRu-
lar appearance. Last fall the editor OF tho
paper made the announcement that Ia was
going away on o four weeks vacation. and
during his absence the publication OF his paper
would be suspended. But the editor and his
paper are still on q vacation. and In conse-
ouenee .he people neglected to vote at the last
election. From all accounts Naraguagus is
on the way to an carly dissolution.
No sooner had the State sold It's wild lands
To tho highest bidders than the pleasant Oecu-
patton OF getting rich rapidly was shifted
from the sauatters 70 the new PROJECTORS. " no
advanced prices by Jumps, asking S3. So. and
Slo an acre for lnnd which they had bought
In a year, and poor clerks. who had toiled for
small salaries cAIno out In broadclotbs and
diamonds. To mention the names of the por-
sons who have been Interested IN timber lands
during the last thirty years would DO giving a
list OF about oil the leading mon I'm Maine.
john ApDletOn OF Bangor, for twenty years
Chies j dstice OF the Supreme Court. was a poor