The L'Anse sentinel., 1922-12-15
The Strength Of the Pines

There's no softness. There's no mid
die ground" She smiled grimly.
.rve lived with death, and I've
heard Of It, and I've seen 1t all my
life. II there hadn't been any other
way. would have seen 1t in the dra-
mas Of the wild creatures that go on
around me all the time. You'll get
down to cases here, Bruce-or else
you'll run away. These men said
they'd do worse things to me than
kill me-and didn't dare take the
risk.
"But once or twice I was aDle to
get word to old Elmira-the only ally
had left. She was Of the true breed,
Bruce. You'll call her hag, but
she's woman to be reckoned with.
She could hate too-worse than a
she-rattlesnake hates the man that
killed her mate-and hating Is all
that's kept her alive. You shrink
when say the word. Maybe you
won't shrink when I'm done.
"This old woman tried to get In
communication with every stranger
that visited the hills. You see, Bruce
she couldn't write, herself. And the
one time ! managed to get written
message down to her, telling her to
give it to the first stranger to mail
one Of my enemies got IL away from
her. expected to die that night
wasn't going to be alive when the
clan came. The only reason I didn't
was because Simon-the greatest Of
them all and the one hate the most
kept his clan from coming. He had
his own reasons.
From then on she had to depend
on word Of mouth. But at last-just
few weeks ago-she found a man
that knew you. And it is your story
from now on"
They were still little while. Bruce
arose and threw more wood on the
| fire.
Its only the beginning" he said.
"And you want me to tell you all p
she asked hesitantly.
| "Of course. Why did I come heref'
you won't believe me when say
that I'm almost sorry sent for YOU"
She spoke almost breathlessly. 81
didn't know that 1t would be like this
That you would come with smile on
your face and light in your eyes
looking for happiness. And instead
Of happiness-to find all this ~
She stretched out her arms to th'
forests. Bruce understood her per
fectly. She did not mean the wood:
in the literal sense. She meant tn,
primal emotions that were their spirit
ITO know the rest, you've got to &c
back whole generation. Bruce, have
you heard Of the terrible blood-feuds
that the mountain families sometime.
haveY
"Of course. Many times"
"These mountains of Trails END
have been the scene of as deadly @
blood-feud as was ever known in the
West. And for once, the wrong was
all on one side.
"A few miles from here there is q
wonderful valley, where stream
flows. There is not much tillable land
In these mountains, Bruce, but there
along that little stream, there are al
most five sections-three thousand
acres-of as rich land as was ever
plowed. That tract of land was &C
quired long ago by family named
Ross, and they got 1t through some
kind Of grant. I can't be definite a.
to the legal aspects Of all this story
They don't matter anyway-only the
results remain. ~
"These Ross men were frontiersmer
Of the first order. They were virtuoul
men too--trusting every one, and oh
what strength they hadi With theil
own hands they cleared away the for
est and put the land into rich pastur,
and hay and grain. They raised grea
herds Of cattle and had focks Of sheer
too.
'Tt was then that dark days begal
to come. Another family--headed b,
the father Of the man I call Simon
migrated here from the mountain dis
tricts Of Oklahoma. But they wer,
not SO ignorant es many mountain
people, and they were killers Pei
haps that's word you don't know
Perhaps you didn't know II existed 4
killer is man that has killed othe
men. 1t isn't hard thing to do a
all. Bruce, after you are used to II
These people were used to II. An,
because they wanted these great land
my own fathers home-they begaI
to kill the Rosses.
i AT first they made no war on tn
Folgers. The Folgers, you must know
were good people. too. honest to tn
last penny. They were connected, b.
marriage only. to the Ross fami;,
They were on our side clear through
At the beginning Of the feud the hea
Of the Folger family was just youn
man, newly married. And he had
son after a while.
"The newcomers called II a feut
But 1t wasn't a feud--it was simpl
murder. Oh, yes, we killed some q
them. Folger and my father and Al
his kin united against them, making
great clan-but they were nothing 4
strength compared to the usurperi
Simon himself was Just a boy whe
It began. But he grew to be the great
est power. the leader Of the enem