. Conservation. Forests and forestry. THE FRAUDULENT HOMESTEADER 581 thirty-seven miles from Everett. Index is a picturesque mountain town, with towering peaks around it, and is the great gate entrance to most of the claims taken in that region. Cascade Bill dropped into that country from California with a pretty good know- ledge of the Benson-Hyde system, and some ideas of his own. He located with his wife on a tract of land, built a cabin and several outbuildings, cul- tivated a patch of potatoes, and pro- ceeded to put his "system" into exe- cution. And so it came to pass that hun
. Conservation. Forests and forestry. THE FRAUDULENT HOMESTEADER 581 thirty-seven miles from Everett. Index is a picturesque mountain town, with towering peaks around it, and is the great gate entrance to most of the claims taken in that region. Cascade Bill dropped into that country from California with a pretty good know- ledge of the Benson-Hyde system, and some ideas of his own. He located with his wife on a tract of land, built a cabin and several outbuildings, cul- tivated a patch of potatoes, and pro- ceeded to put his "system" into exe- cution. And so it came to pass that hundreds of people, mostly hard-working, ignor- ant Swedes, Danes, and Germans, began to swarm into Index, lured by the inducements thrown out by their friends already snugly settled on mil- lion-foot timber homestead tracts of 160 acres. Cascade Bill, with his gang, would meet the new victims at the train upon its arrival at Index, con- duct them up the trail, and over the "Settlers' Bridge" (about which I will tell later) constructed across the Skykomish River, a beautiful mountain stream, dashing in a swift, tumbling fashion along the edge of the town, and skirting Cascade Bill's land on the east. After a three-mile walk between mag- nificent firs and stately cedars, drink- ing in the crystal air, and listening to the lavish descriptions of the timber and "chances" to make a "stake" out of the homestead "business," the new arrival is quite willing and anxious to part with his ready cash as soon as he is "; After a good "feed," for Mrs. Bill is a capital cook, and a sound night's rest, the victim was conducted to his "; and Cascade Bill showed him what were supposed to be the corner stakes and witness trees. It so happened, however, that the would-be home- steader, knowing little or nothing about such matters, was perhaps shown the corner stakes of some claim already settled on. The wily locator w
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectforestsandforestry
