The New era-leader. (Wagner, Charles Mix County, S.D.) 1911-1912, 1911-12-01
HOW "A FEUD
AROSE
b. EVAN CAMERON
Copyright by American Press Assoc
citation. 1911.

iii clatlOus lSA1. III
Quarrels are like fires. First there
Ii q spark, then = Tiny dame. then a
swapping. then 4 blazing Dire. then q
roaring confagration. And the worst
kind OF quarrels are those between
friends.
Two pioneers, Daniel Simpson and
Henry Underwood. emigrated with
their families to the far west and en-
tered land owned by the government.
They had been schoolmates and owned
farms side by side. There was no &C.
casion for a dispute to arise between
them so long as they remained In the
east. for their boundaries had been SUR
veyed and fixed generations ago, and.
being well fenced, the stock Of neither
could trespass upon the others prem
ises. Therefore their affection for
each other grew stronger, and the fami-
lies were further bound together by
an engagement between Eliza Simpson
and Frank Underwood, the oldest
daughter Of the n and oldest son
of the other.
The two friends each entered a
quarter section of land, the two farms
being side by side. Simpsons land
was more largely covered with tim
Der than Underwood's. and this fact
became a wedge between them. A
railroad soon after their settlement on
the land was projected to run along
side their property, and 1t became at
once apparent that the timber would
be valuable for ties. As soon as this
was learned Underwood became In
terested In his boundary line covering
as much of a wood as 1t could be
stretched to cover, living on the line
between the two properties.
One morning Simpson went out to-
ward his friends property and found
Underwood driving stakes On what he
considered to be his own land. He
protested. and Underwood declared
that that was the dividing line and he
was intending to begin the next norm
Ing to fell trees in order to be ready to
supply the railroad with ties as soon
as there was need. Simpson declared
that every tree he cut beyond a eer-
tain point would be robbery. Then
Underwood called Simpson a pig and
the fight was on.
The next morning the ex-friends met
on the line Of dispute, each having an
ax with which to fell timber, and be-
fore the day was Owe instead of fell.
ing trees they felled each other. Mel
ther coming home to supper. their re-
spective families went out to look for
them and found their dead bodies. the
skulls of both being cloven.
The trouble threw a gloom over both
families. 1t was especially deplorable
on account of the engagement of the
two young people. Frank Underwood,
In order that there might be nc more
trouble, SEM to the county seat for a
surveyor. who fixed the boundary. 1t
turned out that neither his father nor
his fathers friend was right, the true
boundry being a diagonal line with the
one about which they ~contended.
Nor was this all that was mistaken
In the matter. The disputants had not
long been buried when the railroad to
whose contractors they had expected
to sell so many ties was discovered to
be running the line several miles away
from the property OF either and
through its own timberland.
One night when Eliza Simpson wa
sleeping nj home she was awakened
by the sound of axes being driven into
the trunks Of trees. The sound seem
ed to her to come from the direction
of the boundary line. She sat up in
bed and listened. The ak men were
apparently vying with each other,
each striving to strike more rapidly
Eliza got up and went into her moth.
er's room to awaken her. but by the
time she had succeeded in doing &c
the sound had ceased.
The next morning when she had told
of what she had heard all considered
that she had been dreaming. Never
theless she declared that she had
heard the axes distinctly. the sounds
coming from a point between the
Simpsons and the Underwoods' dwell.
ings. When she told her lover about
Ii he declared that II any such sounds
had existed he would have heard
them more readily than his iancee
since the Underwood house was nearer
the line on which the timber bordered
than the Simpsons. Eliza. who was
positive as to what she had heard
gave him a sharp reply. and he left
her In anger.
Eliza Simpson heard again thu
sounds Of axes on the boundary line
Since the double murder Of the head.
OF the two families the conditions hat
been embarrassing. and the day afte'
Eliza's having heard the mysterious
az men again Mrs. simpson went Il
Mrs. Underwood and fold Of the oc
currence. Mrs. Underwood had beei
under q strain yer since the catas
frnnho and unOn Mrs SimDSOn'S yiSi