The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1898-03-16
Reply to Mr.. Reynolds.

roads, what he saw and learned during
the five years following the spring of
1870, when he entered upon the onerous
duties of his responsible station, my
mind reverted back to a little episode
that transpired away down east, many
years ago, when the militia was In its
glory. A conceited captain of one of
those companies was Boosting of his
ability and the responsibility resting up
on him as commander of the company.
He claimed he was not only captain, but
lieutenant and orderly sergeant as well.
A young lady to whom his brag was di-
rected, replied: "And your own trump
eter." 1t is singular how such incidents
should pop into ones mind, being so for
eign to the matter under discussion.
Yes the c. q w. M. R'y was pushing
out towards the northeast, when our
friend became connected with it. But it
did not come by the way of Paw Paw.
And why not? Mr.. II. explains thus
And what would Paw Paw have been
had she voted sufficient aid to have in
duced Hon. A. III. Morrison to push his
road through here and Allegan, to Grand
Rapids?" Well, new discoveries seem to
be the order of the day, and this is one
of them Ito me, at least. Not until our
friend informed me, was / aware that it
was through our righteousness, or neg
lect, that the road did not come here, and
that Paw Paw alone is responsible for
| the loss. What nonsense for any one to
assert that this township could have Sc
cured the road! Any one can see by a
glance at the map of our state, that to
reach Allegan and Grand Rapids from
| Benton Harbor via Paw Paw, would be
| like going from here to Kalamazoo by
the way of Schoolcraft.
How about the X. & S. III. branch of
the Michigan CentralY Well, does Mr..
r. believe the Central could have been
induced to build another road almost
within sight of their main line in order
to reach Paw Paw? What a bright idea
that would have been for the Central to
adopt, when a large area of country with
several thriving villages located therein
and no railroad within many miles, was
open to them.
Then follows jumbled mess in re-
gard to his my scheme for bonding the
town, n. q. mo good railroad, the u
miles of some good from Buchanan to
Benton Harbor, the presumption that
this poor, begging n. c. r. h. will soon
build an extension between Hartford
and Benton Harbor. Then Paw Paw
will no longer be an n. G.. town" Further
along in his article, he says: II dislike
sarcasm or irony, but if that is your
stock in trade, use it for all it is worth"
etc. Very well, thank you. If our
friend will refer to his first article,
headed Railroad Bond Scheme" and
read carefully his own words, charging
our ancestors with non-enterprise, and
RIGHTEOUSNESS, he might have expected
to run against snag, and if he is hurt
by the collision he should grin and bear
it.
| am glad to learn Mr.. II. has some
money invested in our fine school build
ing, and no doubt he feels better for
having the privilege of dropping some
money into its treasury. He says that
''in four years | paid total tax on 50
acre farm of S20l.73, and Sl0959 of it
was school tax Then he opened fire
with his blunderbuss, and the first shot
was this: Let me ask you, friend Wood
man, who postponed their coming to
Paw Paw until the school house debt
was paid to avoid taxation?" Well, l
don't know; it might have been Billy
Patterson or the man who hit him such
blow for aught / know. Then his
blunderbuss goes off again with tremen-
dous roar: who made the most vigor-
Gus protest against the electric light
plant?" etc. Well, that is another
"stumper," but it might have been
brother of the man who hit Billy. Then
off goes his blunderbuss again, and for
the last time, as the weapon was so over
loaded with insinuations and falsehoods
that it kicked over the gunner and upset
his ammunition chest. The overload
which caused the sad catastrophe was
this: Whose voice has always been
raised against every appropriation offered
in our town meetings for the improve
ments of roads and bridges?" All, poor
me (at whom he aimed his wide mouthed
gum, how shall | protect myself from
being kilt by the shot and shell hurled
at me by this adroit gunner and great
manipulation of railroad schemes? Shall
| give it up as the frog in the milkman's
pail of milk proposed to do, or shall |
kick back? If am such a kicker as my
friend claims | am, he should be on his
guard lest he gets hurt; so here goes:
:. The school house was erected in 1869.
In May, 1869, bought the block where
l now reside, agreeing to pay therefor
$1,000, but did not become a resident of
the village until 1882, "to avoid heavy
taxation" Mr. Il. says. Not so, my
friend. While you were dropping the
money of two railroads into your pocket,
l was digging the means out of the earth
to pay for the property and to improve
it, which have done, to some extent, at
least. So instead of shirk, as Mr.. r.
insinuates, have been a constant tax
payer in this district ever since the
school house was erected, and my school
tax averaged over 5000 year for long
time, and my total taxes for one year, at
least were over S2OOOO No floubt my