108 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE 



to "great falls" upon what we now know as Cohas Brook very 

 clearly indicates that a much heavier volume of water commonly 

 flowed from the lake at that date than has been known for two 

 generations. The cause of the present greatly decreased and 

 diminishing flow is obvit usly to be attributed to the disappear- 

 ance of the great forests. The object of this old provision for a 

 fish way was to protect the ale-wives in their run to the lake, as 

 they furnished a considerable food-supply to the settlers. Laws 

 were also passed to prevent the killing of deer and " Deer In- 

 spectors " were duly appointed. On the other hand a bounty of 

 twenty shillings was offered for each head of "a full-grown 

 wolfe." In this year more than twenty wolves were killed in 

 Chester and Derryfield, of which John Stark killed two. 



In 1745 a man by the name of Bunten was killed by Indians 

 in Hooksett. He was from Pelham and on his way to Penacook, 

 following the old path to which reference has been made. 



The 1719 Chester petition before referred to was "signed by 

 about 100 hand," and modestly asked for a tract " on the east to 

 Kingston and Exeter, on the south to Haverhill, and on the 

 West and North to ye woods." This elastic piece of " waiste 

 land," originally intended to be eight miles square, was after- 

 wards increased to ten and finally to fourteen, which was under 

 the limit, and extended from the Exeter line westerly to the 

 Merrimack north of the Derryfield reservation. This latter ap- 

 pears to have been first known as Harrytown or Henrysburg, 

 and originally consisted of about eight square miles, but in 175 1 

 eighteen square miles from Chester and nine from Londonderry 

 were added. 



At various dates between 1639 and 1733 — the Massachusetts 

 century of dishonor — that commonwealth made an extensive 

 series of land grants in the disputed northern territory, ranging 

 as far north as Lake Winnepesauke. These grants were of two 

 classes, those given to friends and supporters of her claims and 

 those made to soldiers. It was well understood that none others 



