The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1907-02-02

was tWelve-repeater IN tennessee
which he got cheap, so to speak, be.
cause it was out of repair, portion
of the crag which reflected it having
tumbled down. He believed he could
repair it at cost of few thousand
dollars, and, by increasing the eleva-
ton with masonry, treble the repeat
ing capacity; but the architect who
undertook the job had never built an
echo before. and so he utterly spoiled
, this one. Before he meddled with it
it used to talk back like mother-in-
law, but now it was only fit for the
deaf and dumb asylum. Well, next
he bought a lot Of cheap little double.
barreled echoes, scattered around over
various States and territories he got
them at twenty per cent. off by TAX
| ing the lot. Next he bought per-
feet Gatling gun of an echo in Ore
gon, and it cost fortune, I can tell
you. You may know, sir, that in
the echo market the scale of prices is
cumulative like the carat scale in
diamonds; in fact, the same phrase
ology is used. A single carat echo
is worth but ten dollars over and
above the value of the land it is on !;
a two carat or double barreled echo is
worth thirty dollars a five carat is
worth nine hundred and fifty teE-
carat is worth thirteen thousand. My
uncle's Oregon echo was twenty
two carat gem, and cost two hundred
and sixteen thousand dollars-they
threw the land in, for it was four
hundred miles from a settlement.
"Well, in the meantime my path
was path of roses. / was the ac-
cepted suitor of the only and lovely
daughter of an English earl, and was
beloved to distraction. In that dear
presence I swan in seas of bliss. The
family were content, for it was known
that / was sole heir to an uncle held
to be worth FIVE millions of dollars.
However, none of US knew that my
uncle had become collector, at least
| in anything more than small way,
for aesthetic amusement.
''Now gathered the clouds above
my unconscious head. That divine
echo, since known throughout the
world as the Great Koh i-noor, or
Mountain of Repetitions, was discov-
cred. 1t was sixty-fve carat gem.
You could utter a word and it would
talk back at you for fifteen minutes,
when the day was otherwise quiet.
But behold, another discovery was
made at the same time; another echo
collector was in the field. The two
rushed to make the purchase. The
property consisted of couple of
small hills with shallow swale be-
tween, out yonder among the back
settlements of New York State. Both
men arrived on the ground at the
same time and neither knew the other
was there. The echo was not all
owned by one man a person by the
name of William Bolivar Jarvis own
ed the east hill, aud person by the
name of HARRISON J. Bledso owned
the west hill the swale between was
the dividing line. So while my uncle
was buying Jarvis hill for three mil
lion two hundred and eighty five
thousand dollars, the other party was
buying Bledso's hill tor shade over
three million.
Nov, do you perceive the natural
result? Why, the noblest collection
of echoes on earth was forever and
ever incomplete. since it possessed
but the one half of the king echo of
the universe. Neither man was con
tent with his divided ownership. yet
neither would sell to the other. There
were jawings, chickering's, heart burn
ings. And at last, that other collec-
tor, with a malignity which only a
collector can ever feel toward man
and brother, proceeded to cut down
his hill
"You see, as long as he could not
have the echo he was resolved that
nobody should have it. He would
remove his hill, and then there would
be nothing to reflect my uncie's echo.
My uncle demonstrated with him, but
the man said I own one END of this
echo; l choose to kill my end you
must take care of your own end your
SELF
"Well, my uncle got an injunction
put on him. The other mau appeal
ed and fought it in a higher court.
They carried it on up clear to the Su-
preme Court of the United States. 1t
made no end of trouble there. Two
of the judges believed that an echo
was personal property, because it was
impalpable to sight and touch, and
yet was purchasable, salable, aud con
sequently taxable; two others be-
lieved that an echo was real estate,
because it was manifestly attached to
the land, and was not removable from
place to place other of the judges
contended that an echo was not prop
erty at all.
'sIt was finally decided that the
echo was property; that the hills
were property; that the two men
were separate and independent own
ers of the two hills, but tenants in
common in the echo; therefore de-
feudant was at full liberty to cut
down his hill, since it belonged solely
to him, but must give bond in three
million dollars as indemnity for DANA
ges which might result TO my uncle S
half of the echo. This decision also
debarred my uncle from using defen
dant's hill to reflect his part of the
echo without defendants consent
he must use only his own hill /; if his
part of the echo would not go, under
these circumstances, it was sad, oi
course, but the court could find nc
remedy. The court also debarred
defendant from using my uncle's hill
to reflect his end of the echo without
consent. You see the grand result
Neither man would give consent, anc
| So that astonishing and most noble