DRAINING THE SwAMPS 

 drcds oi people are residing on farms now that 

 a few years ago were mush-rat ponds. Years 

 ago tt was a very common thing to hear of 

 some Eastern speculator being taken in by one 

 of those swamp-land swindlers. They would 

 plat out a tract of swamp land, go East to find 

 their victim and trade or sell a tract of this land 

 to some speculator. One Mr. Jones, of Dayton, 

 Ohio, was taken in by some swindler in this way 

 and when he came to look for his land he could 

 not find it as it was covered with water from one 

 to five feet deep and the way that Jones told it 

 was more amusing than true. Jones said he 

 was a victim of mispleced confidence. He had 

 traded for a tract of land on the Kankakee 

 River and was making a trip down the river in 

 search of his land. He said that it had two 

 good houses on it and was near a town. I 

 should judge from his description of the country 

 that he was looking for his farm. That the town 

 and houses must of been musk-rat houses and 

 the town must have been a rat-town. I would 



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