The Monmouth inquirer., 1924-01-10
Burning the
Mortgage

Maine. The word ceremony, In fact
but family describes what happened.
IT was more like jubilee. with the
semblance Of barbaric rite added
All the Edwards kith and kin were
there, with goodly number OF their
friends and neighbors.
At the farther end of the garden, In
front OF the farmhouse, there Is
knoll, ct the top Of which messy
ledge crops out. On this ledge there
was pyre erected of dry wood, pitch
and rolls OF curvey birch bark--a
fine pile of 1t. At the centre stood an
iron rod, set in hole, drilled in the
ledge, and here an old oppressor OF
the Edwards homesteam was burned
at the stake!
This sounds so savage that I make
haste to say that the old oppressor
was not an animate form Of flesh and
blood, but merely an effgy.
The effigy was masterpiece in its
way, the very simulacrum of rapacity,
with q face like the tabled Harpies
and hands like ta1ons, hugging to its
breast folded, yellowed paper.
That yellowed paper was mort
gage, which had rested on the home
farm for one entire generation.
The history of that mortgage is SO
much like thousands Of others that
1t would hardly be worth relating II,
at the last moment, noble effort to
lift 1t had not been crowned by sue
cess.
The Edwards farm adjoins the one
where / lived when q boy. There
were three hundred acres OF tillage,
pasture and woodland, with a we'll
built two-story house and two large
barns. The Edwards children-Chesr
ter, Thomas, Catherine, Eunice-were
my youthful neighbors.
In those days the farm was we'll.
titled, unencumbered and prosperous;
but In an evil hour travelling agent
cajoled Jonas Edwards, the father.
into buying the State right to make
and sell certain newly patented an-
tomato farm gate, for the sum OF two
thousand dollars. Edwards had a
thousand dollars in the savings bank;
he drew out this and raised the other
thousand by mortgagang the home
stead
It was the old story The much
Wanted gate proved a gate to trouble
for Edwards. He was never able to
sell It. But II the gate proved illusory,
the mortgage was tangible. The farm
er spent the remaining fifteen years Of
his life paying interest on It,
After his fathers death Chester Ed
wards went home to live" as peo-
pie say In Maine. The family then
consisted Of his mother, his sister
Uunice. who was an invalid from
spinal curvature, and his mothers
brother. Uncle Horace, who had lost
q leg In the Civil War. but for some
reason did not draw q pension. Chea-
ter began by selling OF the wood and
timber on the old farm, thereby pay
ing the accumulated interest. He
then embarked In the dairy business.
but did not prove successful farmer,
and during the fifth season lost almost
his antire herd of COWS from tubercu-
losia. Becoming discouraged, he gave
up and set OF suddenly for the Klon-
dixie gold region.
A nephew then carried on the farm
for year, but did not remain.
Meanwhile Thomas, the younger
SON. had become a Methodist minister.
He was unable to do anything toward
reducing the mortgage.
1.-THE mortgage will get the old
place now. and no help for it." the
neighbors said.
But there was still another mem.
Der Of the family to be heard from
Catherine, the younger daughter.
Largely by her own efforts, Cath
crime Edwards had graduated from
the State normal school, and obtained
a position as instructor in another
normal school at good salary. We
imagined that Catherine would aid
her mother and sister, but never sup
posed that she would come home to
care for them there.
But after Chester left, Catherine
never hesitated for a moment. She
resigned her position, babe farewell
to all prospects OF advancement as
teacher, and came home.
She had saved seven hundred dol
lars. With this she paid years In
terest, had the leaky roofs repaired,
and hired such help as was necessary,
indoors and out Yet what could she
do with that old farm and its mort
gage?
That season, however-1903-th
old place quietly put forward one Of
It's natural assets.
Our county is in what is known as
the apple belt" Of New England Ap.
pie trees spring up everywhere here,
and If grated and trimmed, soon bear
well. Although cripple, Uncle Hor-
ace Flint had been in the habit
every spring Of hobbling about from
one young apple tree to another. set
ting Baldwin scions and trimming the
trees. He had not thought his WORK
amounted to much. but he liked to be
doing something.
The year 1903 was an apple year"