The new enterprise. (Madison, Fla.) 1901-1908, 1907-10-31
a LEGACY OF APPLES.
Thousands Of Trees in Prospect MaiHe---
Fruit Given Away, But Never SOld..,..,.....'
sroRY or rHE FAMOUS "snPsoN swiETNcs'

There are more than 12OO acres
of rocky land on the south and east
sides Of Heagan's Mountain, in the
northeast corner of Prospect, Me-,
where wild apple trees are so abund-
ant that they have become weeds.
The owners of the wood lots, when
they go out to chop firewood in the
fall, as a rule get more than half
their supply OF fuel from the wild
apple trees.
There are families who have ex-
tension tables and sofas and settees
and ordinary dinlng-room and kltch-
en- chairs that are made of apple
wood, and when the owners Of fish
weirs along shore go to drive their
weir stakes in the spring, nearly ev-
cry one of them uses a heavy top
maui made from the indurated and
fibrous wood of an apple tree.
The cause for such an abundance
of fruit trees growing wild in wood
lots and pastures and by roadsides is
due to the eccentric conduct of HI
ram Simpson, an aged religious en-
thusiast, who emigrated to this town
from the shore front of Hancock
County right away after the Millerlte
excitement in 1S4S, at which time
more than half the people of Eastern
Maine believed they were going to
be translated TO another and bet
ter world on June 6, 1S4S, at the
early hour Of 23O O'Clock in the
morning.
Old man Simpson had made elabo-
rate preparations for the event. Not
only had he sold his farm and stock,
but he had converted all his earthly
possessions into gold, and sunk it at
the bottom Of the family well, so that
no scohing unbeliever could benefit
from the sacrifice he had made.
On the fateful morning Of June
6 he yoked a pair OF steers to cart,
and, taking his wife and two daugh-
tiers, all dressed in their best, he
drove forth to the top of high hill
and stood waiting for the great
change to take place.
1t was a still summer morning, and
as the windows of his home had been
left open, he could hear the family
clock as 1t recorded the passing of
time
When the clock struck the four
persons who waited started to pray,
and when the chime for $50 was
brought to their ears, they shouted
and sung revival hymns for full
half hour.
on the arrival of o'clock, with no
change in the conditions of affairs,
Simpson ceased his shouting and
said:
Come, Mary. 1t is time we were
getting out Of this. II the Lord had
really intended to come this morn
ing He would have been here before
now. We have been deceived and
must move to some place where no
body knows us.
Fishing the bag Of gold coins from
the well, he bundled his family into
the cart and headed the steers north,
and before sunrise they were on their
way to Bucksport. Crossing the fer
~ at Prospect, they went up along
the shore until they reached Hea-
gan's Mountain, where the family and
household goods were unloaded, and
the old man started in to clear up a
farm among the rocks.
Among the articlel carried in the
cart were FIVE apple trees Of variety
locally known as Simpsons sweet
ing" which produced a large fruit
that had the virtue of keeping until
late in the winter and growing sweet
er and more mellow with age. In the
autumn and early winter it was too
hard to eat raw, but when roasted
among the Goals Of an open fire It
was better than cake or pie or candy.
In the course Of a few years Simp-
sons farm became famous for its
sweet apples AS fast as he was able
he enlarged his orchard, and finally