Summary

James and Posey have become frugal and focus primarily on raising Lavinia. Lennart Vogel and James, who have become friends, discuss the future of the company. Settlers are now arriving en masse and clearing acreage that belongs to Duke & Sons in order to make room.They agree they need to go deeper into unknown lands in the Michigan territory and claim trees there. To do so, they hire on a man named Armenius Breitsprecher to help them survey the land.

James, Lennart, and Breitsprecher embark on their journey. Many times Breitsprecher goes ahead and leaves the other men nervously awaiting his return. Eventually, they reach the Michigan territory and there are more than double the amount of trees they imagined. Immediately, they plot to buy up the land. The men return to Boston, where Breitsprecher and his brother, Dieter...