Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1911-09-27

found an almost unbroken forest and
the land for . home and the first
crops. Reforestation was then un-
heard of. but deforestation was OF
vital Importance for many years.
In late sum ,ner or early autumn, be-
fore the foliage had fallen, those
giant trees of beech, birch and maple.
on a lot of perhaps FIVE or ten acres.
were felled. The next spring. after
the hot and dry days of late May or
eai ly June, when the wind was righe
and the day seemed propitious, hrst
were started across one side and the
whole would soon be mass of seeth-
ing flames. A common query was,
"Did you get good blu n.y., If so,
all except the larger logs would be
consumed and much labor saved.
Then the bodies of the trees had to
be cut with an axe into lengths that
could be drawn by oxen. and rolled
into piles, and again these were fired,
and no fireworks were ever more
Interesting than a hundred such fires
in one night. Then such crops, both
in quantity and in quality, as were
g own on that virgin soil No other
potatoes compare with those 81 own on
new land. The planting was no easy
task, as no pillow could be used among
the stumps, and the soil had to be
broken with hoe. But the planting
accomplished, the farmer could wait
for the harvest, for there were neither
weeds nor potato bugs to contend
with. Rye, barley, and corn wera
much grown.
A Mr. Sargent had the misfortune
to have his house burned one winter.
nd = Ix oI II IF 49, no
town called around to c)ndole with
him. and do what they were able to
aid him, and as each one took what
he could best spare, they each brought
bag Of rye. One man was later in
his call than his neighbors and. after
expressing his sympathy. remarked
tat he had brought along a bag of
rye. Mr.. Sargent replied that she
had got done taking rye"
Barley made very dry bread. NV
father used to tell the story of fell
low workm man in the woods whose
dinner consisted largely of barley
bread. AS he was trying to wash
each mouthful down with liberal
supply of cold water he remarke |,
They tell about its being miracle
when five thousand were fed with
, FIVE loaves and two fishes. If it had
been barley bread they couldn't eaten
half of it."
A gristmill was one of the first
necessities of a community. The
/ miller ground the grain and took his
| toll of the grain for pay. AS he
usually divided his time between the
mill and his own farms. he could not
always be readily found. In which
: case the farmer who had brought the
OF h,1fc sat ha
= going and after grinding left an
: honest toll for the miller.
= An incident that occurred in such a
case with a mill in my native town,
e l think worthy of record. In the soath
ern part of the town was body of
r water one and q half mile long by
D three fourths of a mile wide. and more
e than hundred feet in depth, known
2 as Long pond. This was the head of
: Lamoille river which flowed south
: emptying into Lake Champlain. A
e short distance north of this was a
small pond which was the head of
b Barton river, flowing north and
n emptying into Lake Memphremagog.
n and that into the st. Lawrence. -Four
t miles below on this Barton river, this
mill was built. In times of low water
the owner was much troubled by lack
of power. After talking the matter
- over with the settlers, all of whom
. patronized the mill, it was thought
T best to have bee and all hands take
n hold and divert a portion Of the flow
). of Long pond from Lake Champlair
y to Lake Memphremagog. According
/ ly on June 9th, 1910, a company OF
n some twenty men, including my
h grandfather. my father and several
Of bic rrooooI1L ~ =, &
4 project into execution. The trench
~ was dug in what proved to be sandy
+ soil. until at the edge of the ponc
= they encountered hard crust which
= had been formed through long years.
. by the action of water. After an
opening had been made in this
stream began to flow, washing away
r the sandy soil until large excavation
J. had been made behind this crust Those
e present began to see that their calcu
lations in engineering had not tax
all contingencies into consideration
q and they took to the hills for safety
none too soon. for this crust suddenl,
n gave way to the depth of fifty fee
d AMI the whole of this large body o.
v wat started on it's mad rush thr ougi
IS toe valley. At the first sign of dan
d ger one of the feetest ran down ths
If valley to warn the miller, which h,
s had barely time to do. and was onl,
l., enabled to accomplish by the fac
It that the accumulated debris of up
e rooted trees occasionally formed
# dam at some narrow point in the val
e ley. thus retarding the progress Of
y the flood.
~ The only life lost was that of
il horse hitched near the mill. hav,
4 often thought as I have been ridni
- through this valley and the bed O
:, what is now known as "Runawa,
49, Pond" how providential it was tina
!. this occurred at that time, for tn
q entire valley is now dotted with thriv
20 ing villages and productive farms.
I'd Many instances of artificial dam
es giving way have been known, but tina
so large a natural bldy of waite
err should have suddenly changed it
as course and rushed olt at it's uppe