"Uncle Will," I said, "tell me again how you got to own an apple orchard all on your own."
Will smiled. "Well, I'll tell you..."
***
When your Gammer Esmerelda married Alfred Burrows (Fred for short), Esme's parents were none too pleased. In fact, they'd only allowed the marriage on one condition: that Fred promised to support Esme completely.
Now Fred, having got his start as a poor pig-farmer from Budgeford, didn't have no connexions in Brockenborings to start. But he did a bit of asking about, and came to find a prospect of interest.
It seems that a while back, five fellows wanted to try and turn a profit off the local apple orchards, but no feller had the money to buy the land hisself. So, these five fellows decided to pool their resources and go in together.
Eventually they all passed their shares on to their sons--well, kind of. One gentleman had a daughter, with no interest in apples, and so he sold his share in the apple orchard operation (which in turn he used for his daughter's dowry). So now there was just four fellers.
Now at the time Freddy Burrows arrived in Brockenborings, one of these four remaining shareholders had just died (so there was just three of 'em now), and on top of that the whole plot was in terrible shape--overgrown, some of the trees diseased, and for some reason all the apples had gone bitter over the last few years. And these last three fellows was all in terrible debt trying to keep things afloat.
So Fred went to Esme and said, "Sweetheart, I know we're just wed and not well off, but I'd like to use your dowry to buy into this apple orchard--they're doing so bad they'll no doubt let me buy in for a bargain price."
Now to you and me this sounds crazy, but Freddy had done crazier things in his time, and Esme had a hunch it would all turn out all right. So she said yes, and Freddy became the fourth shareholder (for what were, indeed, a bargain price).
Fred didn't know nothing about apples, of course. But he were a smart lad and quick to learn. He wore himself clear out riding 'round the Shire, consulting with other apple farmers, and he dictated long letters to Esme (for he couldn't write himself) which he sent off to folks who were reckoned to be experts in the matter. And to everyone's amazement, Fred began to turn the place around. He cut down all them diseased trees (for couldn't nothing be done). He had the fellers start treatin' the trees with a special sort o' fertilizer. And the apples grew sweeter and more abundant.
By the time I, Willem, was born, the orchard were quite profitable. One man decided he'd get out while the gettin' was good, and he retired and sold his shares on to the other owners--so now there was just three. By the time I was growed up and your mum and Uncle Raynald was around, another feller had died, leaving no sons nor daughters behind. Which is why when your Grandpa Fred passed on, leavin' his shares to me, it were just me and one other feller left. And seeing as there was only two of us, it made sense to jest split the orchard down the middle so's each of us owned our own plot outright.
And that, me dear, is how yer Uncle Willem comes to own his own apple orchard.
