Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-08-30
MAINE ISLAND A PARADISE.
No Government, Taxes, Churches,
Lawyers or Officers Arc Known Thers.

No Government, Taxes, Churches,
Lawyers or Officers Arc Known There.
From the Philadelphia Record.
The maps OF the United States coast sur
vey show fong, narrow strip Of land on
the border lying between Penobscot bay
and the Atlantic ocean. It Ia known on the
charts as Ragged Island, but sentimental
summer residents have named II Cris Ha-
ven. in honor Of old John erie. bearded
Scotchman, who settled there among the
rocks more than half a century ago. The
regular all-the-year residents now number
ferty-two. but In July and August, when
the vacation tourists invade tho place. there
often are from eighty to one hundred per-
Sons living among the rocks and taking on
heavy coats Of tan from the fresh sea
breezes.
Students OF social problems say that resi-
dents of this community have more OF the
real comforts of life and less OF llfe's wor-
ries than any other people On the globe.
The island is under no form OF government
and. though 1t Ii q part OF the state OF
Maine. the people pay no taxes and have no
officers Of any kind. There IL not q rat or
a mouse in all OF its mile and O half OF
ledgy width. There are no reaches in the
pantries no cats or dogs behind the stoves,
and no mosquitoes in the fresh pools OF
crystal water. The island has no church In
which to worship and no clergyman to tell
the people whether they are doing right or
wrong.
No lawyer ever resided there and no sher-
III or constable ever went to issue summons
or to serve processes. kindly doctor. who
lives in Rockland, is the only physician who
makes professional visits to the place, and
he is told to come by carrier pigeons. which
fly to the mainland faster than any steam
boat can take the message. AS soon as the
physician receives call he liberates q
pigeon from his loft. which bears a mes
sage telling when to send a boat to meet
him at Martinicus so that there may be no
delay.
There are eight cows and three horses on
the island. but not a mile of road for them
to travel In. The horses are used for haul
ing up boats. and the cows give milk for
visitors Everybody walks by well-worn
footpaths. which were originally laid out by
the cows while seeking fresh feed among
the boulders. The chief and practically the
only occupation Of the resident Is catching
Holsters In pots covered with netting.
Every person tries to capture enough every
day to bring s.. which Is easily done when
Holsters are sold to the steamers for 10 to
IS cents q pound. As 1t takes only about
two hours to tend the lobster pots, the Is
1anders spend the rest of their time in
building boats. whiting driftwood and eat
ing Holsters which are too short to sell.
John Ericsson. gigantic Swede. Is the
only celebrated man On the island He Is
six feet tall. weighs 234 pounds and every
body believes him to be the most powerful
man on earth. They talk by the hour about
his feats of strength. Last summer. when
the new iron keel for Capt. Jones' sloop
yacht came to the island by steamer and
was put on the wharf men went to catch
the horses to haul the heavy length OF iron
up the pier and around to the yard. While
they were away Ericsson shouldered the keel
and did not put 1t down until he had placed
II under the bottom OF the yacht The dis
lance was 600 feet and the weight of the
kaa A N -0f n.
jr.) went to school until he weighed more
than the five other pupils combined. ana
finished his education at the age Of fifteen.
He then tipped the scales at 2i2 pounds.