Thursday,
May 25, 1916
An effort is being made by Congressman Littlepage to have a mail route established from Cass to Durbin, Pocahontas county. The proposed route would be 16 miles long.
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Whether times are good or not depends in the first instance on the individual. One of the richest men that we ever knew was talking about a man who did not have the knack of making a living. It was not a question of piling up money, but just a matter of food and clothes. The rich man said, “Why, he couldn’t stop a dollar rolling down hill.” Some persons have plenty to live on no matter what the condition of the market is. But at other times there is a feeling that pervades the country with all the thoroughness of an east wind, and people begin to stint themselves in the way of buying goods and spending money that affects the whole county. How it starts no one can tell. If we could trace the motion through, we might see that it centered on some man who decided that he would not buy a spring suit, though he had been accustomed to do so as the season came around.
Say that he lost his pocketbook. The merchant lost his profit on the suit and unconsciously began to retrench. The tailor lost the work. The cotton, buttons, wool and threads men were affected and the farmers were reached in the end.
Prices began to go down, and a panic grew out of a state of feeling which affected the nice balance of trade.
At other times a mysterious advance in prices begins and endures for a time. The thinkers cry out against combinations and trusts, but in many of the cases this is not the cause. One merchant marks his goods up a little bit. Another merchant, watching, sees the upward trend and follows, and a third pursues the second, until the whole county is seething. When that spending fever is on, then we have good times.
We never have seen a time when there was as much going on in the way of work and business as there is at this time. It is positively a hardship if you have some work to do, that you cannot attend to yourself, to get someone else to do it for you. Some political economist has said that the best sign of good times is when you cannot hire a man to hang a door. All engaged and cannot stop for a small job. And another has pointed out that in the millennium that it will be impossible to get a man to black your boots, and possibly every man will have to cut his own hair or let it grow.
Many a man will have to work his own garden this year who has hitherto sat on the front porch and meditated…
So here’s to the spender! May he last long and continue. One good spender is worth more to a community than many tight-wads.
FATAL SHOOTING
Ellwood City, Pa., May 20 – A. S. Lyons, aged 34, of Pocahontas County, West Virginia, angered, it is said, because a porter ordered him to leave his room in a hotel here tonight, went to the barroom and began shooting. Louis Witte, bartender, was shot in the left side and Albert Sasser, aged 30, of Koppel, was shot in the head. Sasser will probably die.
Lyons was soon arrested and a few minutes after being placed in the lockup here, a large crowd gathered, and several advocated lynching Lyons, it is said. Officers removed him to an unknown point to keep him from the mob…
It is presumed that this is Amos S. Lyons, who owns property and lived near Hillsboro. He is a lumberman by occupation.
AGRICULTURAL NOTES
The farmers of Linwood and Slaty Fork are rejoicing over the recent rains. They are planting corn, and plowing and getting ready to sow soybeans. There will be a lot of soybeans sown. The following will sow soybeans: Col. A.C.L. Gatewood, Douglas Hodgson, Dunlap Brothers, J. T. Beal, B. W. Beal and others.
J. J. Coyner has a good prospect for fruit this year. He is spraying his apple trees. His alfalfa is growing nicely and will be ready to cut soon.
W. C. Gardner’s alfalfa will soon be ready to cut the first time.
G. P. Baxter’s alfalfa is good, but has some weeds in it.
HILLSBORO
The question of Woman Suffrage was thoroughly debated before a large audience at the High School auditorium last Thursday night. To affirm, Rev. Eye and Gene Kennison; to deny, Rev. Johnson and Clifton Gurd. The debate was close and interesting. The decision was in favor of the negative. The judges were Dr. Smith, Mrs. Mann and Graham Larue.
Carl Beard is moving his family to the Chapman house. We gladly welcome them to our town. Mrs. Beard has returned from John Hopkins Hospital, much improved in health.
Misses Eva Beard and Margaret Larue returned Monday from Morgantown.
Annabelle, little daughter of E. H. McLaughlin, had her collarbone broken by falling from her pony last Saturday.
F. K. Isbell is quite the expert with his automobile; he meets every train.
A. C. Hill has moved back to his farm at Lobelia. We are sorry to see this good family of people leave town.
BROWNS CREEK
Pretty weather and farmers are through planting, and are now laying by watching the ground squirrels and crows. There appears to be a bountiful crop of these this year.
The sawmill shanty near C. L. Moore’s was burned last week. It contained clothing and tools of considerable value.
W. T. T. Moore and sons are making considerable improvements on their farm.
Our old friends, Mr. and Mrs. Sheldon Moore are with us again. We are always glad to have such fine, genial old people with us. Mr. Moore is in poor health and is talking of going to Ohio.
Strickler Hoover is among friends on the Creek. By grabs, we are glad to see you, Strickler.
Sheep shearing will soon be the order of the day. Strange as it is, we cannot hear a word from our Republican friends regarding present prices of wool and lambs, but when the figures per pound for wool is mentioned, you can see a wide sheepish grin spread over their faces. Those, too, who were almost overcome with fear and trembling when good old Wilson was elected, and vowed they would have to sell their sheep; some of them only owned one sheep too.
ONOTO
We had a fine rain Monday, and it was badly needed.
Bernard VanReenan has gone to Raywood to work for the Warn people.
Miss Ruth White, who was called home on account of her mother getting crippled, returned to Buchannon Monday.
Joe Buzzard and his mule were in this part last week.Homer Hefner has so far recovered from his long spell of sickness as to be able to visit his sister, Mrs. W. J. Gilmore.
BUCKEYE
Fine rain now to please the farmers, make the meadow grass to grow and weeds for the cows. Wheat looks fairly well, beginning to head out; oats look bad, not coming up well. Corn is not coming up well. Ose Morrison planted his corn all over, the little web worms just ruined it. There will be no cherries and not much of an apple crop.
There are too many candidates out for office for anything to do well. Several of them will go up Salt River before long. If all were elected to office there wouldn’t be enough men left to till the ground. They are all god fellows now.
Our delegate to the legislature ought to commit himself to the repeal of the laws that protects the fox, coon and skunk. They are all nuisances to the farmer. The tax on all stock under a year old should be taken off. That is what the farmer wants.