Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1904-01-14
CHAPTER X.

Nor more than week Thorpe
X had journeyed through the for
est. His equipment was SIM
- pie in the extreme. Attached to
leavy leather belt of cartridges hung
wo pound AK and sheath knife. In
pocket rcposed n compass, an air
Int tin of matches and map drawn
oiled paper of a district divided into
ttions. Some few of the sections
IRE colored. which indicated that they
lonGcd to private parties. All the
st was state or government land He
FRIED in his hand a repeating rifle
re pack, If opened. would have been
lnd to contain wooden and rubber
lnket. fishing tackle, twenty pounds
so Of flour, a package Of tea. sugar,
slab Of bacon carefully wrapped in
ed cloth. salt, suit of underwear
d several extra pairs Of thick stock
gs. To the outside Of the pack had
en- strapped frying pan. tin pail
d cup.
lie had not met human being or
EN- any indications Of man excepting
ways the old blaze Of tho govern
fnt survey. Many years before, off,
lis had run careless lines through
e country along the section bound
les. These latter stated always the
elton, the township and the range
st or west by number. All Thorpe
d to do was to find the same figures
his map. He knew just where he
as.
The map he had procured at the
hited States land office in Detroit
e had set out for the purpose OF
boxing" suitable bunch of pine in
e northern peninsula. which ut the
me was practically untouched. Ac
(ss to the interior could only he OBJ
incd on foot or by river. The South
ore railroad had as yet penetrated
ly rs fnr rs Scney. Marquette. Me
bmince and a few smaller places
long the coast were numbering near al
bmc, hut they shipped entirely by
ater.
Thorpe, with the farslghtedness OF
be pioneer, had perceived that the ex.
oitatlon Of the upper country was an
fair Of 4 few years only. The north
fould not prove as accessible as il
pw seemed. for the carrying trade
fould some day realize that the en-
re waterway Of the great lakes Of
'rcd an unrivaled outlet. With that
iscovcry would begin rush to Tic
cw country. He resolved to antici
F,te it and by acquiring his holdings
rforc general attention should be turn.
that way to obtain the best.
He was without money md practi
billy without friends, while govern
hcnt and state lands cost rcsDectively
80 and 81 % an acre. cash down
tut he relied on the good sense of cap
alists to perceive from the statistics
'hich his explorations would furnish
he wonderful advantages of losgins
new country with the chain OF grea,
likes MS shipping outlet at its very
DOR In return for his information
@ would expect half interest in thu
Enterprise.
Thorpe was by no means the first tt
zee the money In northern pine. Out
|lde the big mill districts already
|amed cuttings Of considerable size
|'cre already under way, the logs from
which were usually sold to the mills OF
Marquette and Menominee.
But work was on n small scale and
With an eye to the immediate present
|nly. 1t was accomplished by purchas
hg one forty and cutting a dozen
(horpcs map showed often near the
forks Of an important stream sectioi
whose colorng indicated private pos
Pession. Legally the owners had thu
Fight only to the pine included in thu
parked sections. but If any one haC
fnken the trouble to visit the district
pc would have found operations yoinl