Larkin "Birdie" Newhouse was a Grantville farmer who lost most of his farm's arable land after the Ring of Fire. Furthermore, the little bit of land that the Ring of Fire had left him was mortgaged to the Grantville Bank. Frustrated by his loss, Newhouse decided to gain additional lands from the German lands bordering Grantville. He secured permission from Willie Ray Hudson for his proposal. Newhouse, with help from a Scottish interpreter Danny McTavish, negotiated with the villagers of Sundremda represented by Ernst Bachmeier to buy their land with the "fair payment" of plastic soda bottles, a gutting knife, and the food he grew. However, he learned from McTavish that he could only rent the lands owned by Claus Junker and needed to seek permission from the Gemeinde (community).