Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1904-04-01
|E&onance|
) Water Trough.
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES

nNdIGHT as we'll be in Halifax as in
M my barnyard. 1t amt good
| for anything, and what's more, it never
will be-"
Farmer Stone Stood looking down in
evident disgust at the water trough
and faucet which had just been placed
by the town official in his barnyard.
Not a drop of water came through the
faucet, although it was wide open.
When the town officials of Southville
had applied to Farmer Stone for per-
mission to dig ditch and lay water
pipe through his land on the way from
the springs above to the village below,
| he had told them that he did not need
any of the water and he could not see
why he should have his farm all dug
up to benefit somebody else unless he
were to receive an adequate return.
The water commissioner of the village,
sturdy Luke Mathers, declared that
he would take the law to Farmer
Stone" To which he had just as
fiercely replied that he might take the
| law and wallop him as much as he
pleased" Then Luke did go to the
law. The right-of-way across private
property had a value which must be
considered before entering upon 1t.
But, like many another man, Luke was
stubborn, and he did not want to ap-
pear to have yielded in any way what
ever.
Sitting on the fence he had argued
with Farmer Stone the better part of
a day on the wonderful benefit it would
be to the people of the village, and
| that nothing Farmer Stone could do
would bring him so many friends. He
would be public benefactor. The viii
lage was poor and could not afford to
go to great expense in the matter of
right-of-way. Argument was useless,
Farmer Stone said The farmers were
swindled on every hand by unfeeling
corporations; and he'd just be as fool
ish as the rest Of them If he followed
their lead, like "passel O she ep."
1t was at this juncture that a would
be arbitrator appeared on the scene,
the very pretty daughter of Luke
Mathers, so fair and so sensible that
Joshua Stone, the stirring son of the
man who owned the farm, had been
suspected for more than year of car
ing more for her than for any other
woman in the world. One afternoon
not long after her fathers failure to
come to terms with Farmer Stone, she
rode over to the scene Of contention
with her father and sat for long time
In the carriage listening with sorrow
full countenance to the conversation of
the two uncompromising men. Then
she made a proposition.
"Mr. Stone" she said very sweetly,
"if the town would put nice water
trough here in the barnyard and fur
nish 1t with faucet, so that you could
have all the water you need the year
round, would you not be willing to let
the line go through your land?"
Farmer Stone thought Mettie never
looked prettier. But he was not so
easily captured. If he wanted a water
trough he supposed he could put 1t
there.
"But you haven't got the spring,
have you?" Mettie innocently queried.
And this settled this part of Farmer
Stones argument II was a fact that
his farm was destitute of springs; and
when, as always happened In dry sea-
sons. the wells on his farm failed, his
place was as dry as the desert of Sa-
hara-
well. I'll have to think about II. I
J amt ono Of the kind 10 make ap ny