In the same fall Elisha Hubbard, Thomas Atkinson, and others went over on Goose Creek, Idaho, down to the Thatcher Ranch below where Oakley now stands and traded for an old Sweep Stakes threshing machine, and after a great deal of labor and time succeeded in getting it to Grouse Creek. They had to make some of the road and cross the creek a number of times without bridges. We very much appreciated the presence of said machine. After threshing arrangements were made for us, Wm. P. Paskett and Albert F. Richins, to take two loads of wheat to the grist mill at Corrine, Wm. P. to take fifty-two bushels with two yoke of oxen and A. F., the writer's one yoke of oxen, with about twenty-three hundred pounds of wheat. After a slow and tedious journey they got to Corrine. The miller said it was not a custom mill. They would buy the wheat and sell the flour so the boys concluded to go on to Brigham City; found the mill there was full. They went on to Willard; the mill was also full there. They stayed there for some time working for Thos. Birch (an old acquaintance) at a molasses mill for some molasses. While staying there, they thought they would go up to Henefer and see their relatives, so they walked to Ogden and from there rode on the cars to Henefer. After visiting they got Charles A. Stevens, a brother-in-law, they arrived all right and found their wagons and wheat in the street where they had left it. Nothing had been molested. The oxen had been unyoked and turned in the field which was open. The boys traveled on to Ogden with their grists arriving at the Sperry mill, the miller looked at Wm. P. Paskett's wheat which was good but not free from pieces of greasewood, and put it all on a large scales together. Wm. Paskett asked, “How much does it weigh?” The miller said instantly, “Fifty-two bushels,” when in reality it was twenty-six seamless sacks full each weighing from fifteen to twenty more than two bushels. Wm. could see in a moment what had been done but could do nothing to remedy it.

The miller then got up on A. F.'s wagon, untied one sack, just looked at the wheat then said, “I don't want it.” Part of this wheat was smutty.It had been raining and the wheat was wet and the smut had made the good wheat look smutty too. The miller told A. F. where another mill was. Albert took the grist there only to hear the same repeated, “I don't want it.” A man happened to be present who sympathized with Albert and said, “I want some pig feed, I'll give you six dollars for your load of wheat,” so this offer was accepted. A. F. brought two hundred pounds of flour and two dollars worth of sugar with the money he had to haul the load away across the railroad tracks to the man's house. They came back to Willard, got the barrel of molasses they had worked for, and finally got back to Grouse Creek the first part of December after being away six weeks. A. F. divided the two hundred pounds of flour and the two dollars worth of sugar between Philip A. Paskett and himself. I forgot to mention the miller would not let Wm. P. Paskett have the sacks the flour was in, but insisted on dumping it into the seamless sacks the wheat was brought in.

By this time water was scarce and we were under the necessity of hauling water from way up the creek and we would haul ice in the water to make water for domestic use. Brother Benjamin F. Cooke thought he would try digging a well near his house and was agreeably surprised to find good water about sixteen feet down. It was not long before all the settlers had a well near their house, a benefit which was very much appreciated.

The people were counseled to move closer together so as to be more convenient for meetings and schools. So a number of families moved up to what was called Cooksville, about a mile above our present meeting house. Those who moved with their families were, Philip A. Paskett, Wm. C. Bitterdige, W. P. Paskett, Albert F. Richins, and David H. Toyn.