Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1899-11-16
KINGS OF OLD MAINE.
Local sovereigns Of Towns in tho
Pine Tree State.
How Men Of Money Have Ru. rhf,s~
In Their own Interests.
Last Of the Original
Band.

MS 40 "0A iQuht<1teo 0y oA9
case OF Elder George Higgins. leader q
the Holy Ghost disciples, who w~s
tarred and feathered at Levant a few
weeks ago. Since Elder Higgins was
carried on . rail over the town line into
Glenburn the bslisvsrs in tho gospels Of
Higgina have made frantic ef1orts to Inn
mortalizs John White by calling him
the modern Nero. John White owns
the town of Levant. When the annual
taxes come due he draws his check for
the full amount and deposits 1t with the
town treasurer, getting the benefit Of
the ten per cent. discount allowed on
payments made before August i. Then
he goes among the taxpayers, taking
hay, stock. potatoes and apples until
his claim IL satished. He IL the finan-
cial and moral center Of the community,
higher than whom no man can presume
to be. What Patrick jerome Gleason
tried to be in Long Island City John
White is in Levant, and has been for
40 years. Therefore, while Mr.. White
was not present when Higgins was deo-
grated. the followers Of Higgins be-
lieved the town boss was the instisaAos
Of the outrage. In the hope otlmplicat-
Ing White IN the Affsir, ~ men and boys
were arrested and taken bs1ors judge
Voss. of the Bangornunisipal court
AZ ths hearing three men testiAsd
that they saw msmbsrs Of the naoS
scratch matches and spply the b,sss TO
the tar-ooatsd body Of aiSg1nA IN rsv
ply to the queaEon Why thsss nsn ap-
piled burning nAtohss 70 Higgins,
Reeves Clements saidi
II suppose they wanted TO touch him
off,"
"Nero!" "Nero!" cried some OF Fig
gins followers from the back part Of
the courtroom.
In the days before the civil war near.
~ every small agricultural town In
Penobscot county had It's local sot.
ereigns, whose functions were eauailsr
to those which John White S1ssssss
In Levant. They were all hardy moosy
grabbers. but punotiAoua in ksspaaf
contracts and often generous, pas43e1-
larly when generosity eA,s1tissd thSs
business. Their ascsnasnGr w. xafned
by catering to the NEEDS q ths people.
The money In general .oixpu(ation was
state bank notes, whinh were always
going to protest. and could not b nAeo-
tiated on any terms outside Of HAna.
After repeated losses the poor 4arma1o
learned that the name Of lssAina
townsman on the back Of a note M
far more reliable than any banks bin.
The issuing Of national currency
Al IL ~. ~
the local money lenders to make large
profits from speculation In mortgages,
bills Of sale and brokerage commissions
upon everything from the sale OF lit
ter Of pigs to the purchase Of a substl-
tute for some man who had been
drafted and didn't want to 20 to tho
war.
The manner Of conducting their op-
erations was much the same in Ill the
towns, though every man had somesps-
cialty which distinguished him from his
rival. over the town line. Calvin Whit
ney, who owned moAt oil Of Dixmont,
believed he could perpetuats his fame
best by having male children named in
his honor, He paid cash prize. Of Ave
and ten dollars to poor parents who
would attach his name to their of
spring. The result 10 that about one
third of the middle-aged men who re.
side IN Dixmont and Newburg to-day
bear the Christian name Of Calvin Whit
ney.
Joseph Wheeler Eaton, for so years
tho boss Of Plymouth. displayed his tall
ents along agricultural lines. II a man
had yoke OF steers valued ut $50 and
wanted to raise e2s for immediate use,
Eaton furnished the money and took .
bill OF sale. When the steers had grown
to oxen and were worth $3.50 or $500
Eaton would go to the debtor and offer
to let him have another pair Of steers
as good a. the pair for which tha bill
Of sale had been recorded. Tho farmer
was glad to consent. Then Eaton sold
the oxen for beef, making 5000 profit
on four-years' investment Of S26. Of
course tho farmer had tho use Of ths
steers all the time they were growing
ly felt grateful to Eaton for his kind
ness.
John Gardner, Of Patten; Nathan
Ellingwood, of Greenbush, and John
Morrison, Of Corlnth. held sway In their
respective towns. Gardner and Elling-
wood are dead, but Morrison, who IL 9a
years old, drives pair Of iaAt bays
to Bangor. 20 miles away. as often II
once week. and can train colt OF
shave note as neatly a. he could bali
century ago. Francis W. Hiu, the king
Of Exeter, made 41oo. 900 befors the war
He put half Of his fortune into Aaine
Central railroad stock when Quotatioua
were down TO ten and twelve cents. el1
years ago Hin died and &s esta4s M
appraised at 100000
White, Of Lsvaot, No1ska. o9 oor.
inth, and 6impsoa, Of oasmsl a1e ~
only survivors ot 20 az mn1e eeown An0l
who ruled PAnobseot county ARa quar-
ter Of century. eimpsoa wen 1asl,
ing force on account a hs oppoatt1cG
70 saared oonosrts. - Chicago TnSsa
Ocean.
I.vsivso 1fy 1HeEa
"Bunssts aas Ss.suesl" snnIstmsl
ths eonnoisssuf. why nsver 6 sun
Tisss"
.AA. tAsss = As 3asuaty q seese.
Ing . 1odsl, you l1swi" pnotesAA a.
: syelak 1@k 0sv sssss . hsAe
-; :;