Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1911-01-20


fighting to keep the other fellow of
from having share Of his bounty. II
was all wasteful. half savage. We
didn't want settlement; we didn't want
law; we didn't want a state. We want
ed free range. We were line Of pi-
rates from beginning to end, and we're
not wholly reformed yet
Some one at the table accused Red
field of being more Of a town site
boomer than a cattleman.
He was quite unmoved by this charge.
'The town site boomer at least believes
in progress. He does not go so far as
to shut out settlement. don't care
TO have my children live the life I've
lived. Besides. what right har -, we to
stand in the way Of a community's
growth? Suppose the new life is less
picturesque than the old We don't
like to leave behind us the pleasures
and sports Of boyhood. but we grow
up nevertheless. I'm far more loya
/ to the state as forest supervisor than
| | was when | was riding with the cat
| tlemen TO scare up the hester"
At this moment Sam Gregg entered
the room. followed by young man in
an English riding suit Seeing that
the star boarder table" offered n cou-
/ pie of seats. they pointed that way.
Sam was plainly in Il warlike frame Of
mind and slammed his sombrero on its
nail with the action of man beating
an adversary.
THAT is Sam Gregg and his son Joe
/ Used to be ranch cattleman. now one
/ Of our biggest sheepmen." Cavunagh
! explained. Hes bucking the cattle
/ men now"
Lee Virginia studied young Gregg
/ with interest. for his dress was that Of
man to whom money came easy, and
! his face was handsome, though rather
fat and sulIen. In truth. he had been
| brought into the room by his father TO
see Lie Wetherford's girl" and his
eyes at once sought and found her. A
| look of surprise and pleasure at once
lit his face.
Gregg was the greedy west checked
and restrained by the law. Every
man in the room knew that he was
bitter opponent of the forest service
and that he had it in" for the ranger,
and some Of them knew that be was
throwing more sheep into the forest
than his permits allowed and that a
clash with Redfeld was sure to come
1t was just like the burly old Irish
man to go straight to the table where
his adversary sat.
VLrginia's eyes fell before the g1ze
of these two men, for they had none
of the shyness and none of the indirec-
ton Of the ruder men she had met
Redfield did not soften his words on
Greggs account. On the contrary, he
made them still more cutting and to
the line.
THE mere fact that live near the
open range or national forest does
not give me any rights in the range or
forest" he was saying as Gregg took
his seat. Il enjoy the privilege of
these government grazing grounds,
and l ought to be perfectly willing to
pay the fee. These forests are the
property of the whole nation. They
are public lands and should yield
revenue to the whole nNt!cn. 1t is
silly to expect the government to go
ON enriching a few Of us stockmen at
the expense of others. ! see this. and
accept the change"
"After you've got rich at It, said
Gregg.
"Well. haven't you" retorted Red
field. "Are you so greedy that nothing
will stop you
Gregg growled out: I'm not letting
any of my rights slip. I'll have your
head. Mr.. Supervisor I'll carry my
fight to the secretary"
every WELL" returned Redfeld.
"carry it to the president if you wish.
simply repeat that your sheep must
correspond to your permit. and if you
don't send up and remove the extra
number | will do it myself | don't
make the rules of the department. My
Job is to carry them OUT
BY this time every person in the
room was tense with interest. They
all knew Gregg and his imperious
methods. Some of the cattlemen in the
room had suffered from his greed. and,
while they were not partisans Of the
supervisor, they were glad to see him
face his opponent fearlessly.
Lie delivered parting blow. "Rull-
frog. you and me are old timers. We're
on the losing side We belong to the
good old days when the Fork was a
week kept us in news. But them
times are past. You cant run the
range that way any more. Why, man,
you'll have to buy and fence your own
pasture in few years more or else
pay. rent same as | do. You stockmen
kick like steers over paying few old
cents a head for five months range;
you'll be mighty glad to pay dollar
one of these days. Take your medicine
that's my advice" And she went
back to her cash drawer.
Redfeld's voice was cuttingly con.
temptuous as be said quite calmly
You're all kinds of asses, you sheep
men. You ought to pay the fee fol-
your cattle with secret Joy. So long
as you can get your stock pastured
land in effect guarded, by the govern
ment from June to November for e
cents or even so cents per head you're
in luck. Mrs. Wetherford is right
We've all been educated in a bad
school. Uncle Sam has been too lazy
to keep any supervision over his pub
lie lands. He's permitted us grass pi
rates to fight and lynch and burn on,
another on the high range ito which
l. - ~. -.