ich they get out in three Months, sow Corn, etc., (& having sown
in peace by the Law of the Land they are secured in reaping in
peace) & continue at Work without ever enquiring whose the Land is,
until the Proprietor himself disturbs & drives them off with
Difficulty.[18]

This experience was duplicated in the Fair Play territory where there
were no immediate neighbors whose permission was necessary for
settlement, or until a dispute was carried to the tribunal for
adjudication. This procedure was detailed in the last chapter.

Having selected a site, preferably on or near a stream, and obtained
approval from the Fair Play men and his neighbors, the prospective
settler was faced with the long and tedious work of clearing the land
for his home and farm. This was an extended effort for he could clear
only a few acres a year. In the meantime, his survival depended upon the
few provisions he brought with him--some grain for meal, a little flour,
and perhaps some salt pork and smoked meat. These supplies, combined
with the wild game and fish which abounded in the area, served until
such a time as crops could be produced. It was a rigorous life
complicated by the fact that the meager supplies often ran out before
the first crop was brought in. The first month's meals were too often
variations on the limited fare of water porridge and hulled corn, as
described by a later pioneer.[19]

Homes in the Fair Play territory were built "to _live_ in, and not for
_show_...."[20] The following description, by the grandson of one of the
original settlers, illustrates the cooperative nature of the enterprise,
in addition to giving a clear picture of the type of construction which
replaced the early lean-to shelter with which the frontiersman was first
acquainted:

Our buildings are made of hewn logs, on an average 24 feet long by
20 wide, sometimes a wall of stone, a foot or more above the level
of the earth, raised as a foundation; but in general, four large
stones are laid at the corners, and the building raised on _them_.
The house is covered sometimes with shingles, sometimes with
clapboards. [The latter required no laths, rafters, or nails, and
was put on in less time.] ... The ground logs being laid
saddle-shaped, on the upper edge, is cut in with an axe, at the
ends, as long as the logs are thick, then the end logs are raised
and a "notch" cut to fit the saddle. This is th