Thursday,
September 21, 1916
The great change is coming over the forest. The leaves are beginning to turn. You can look at it as a pouring back of the sunshine garnered in the summertime or as the hectic flush that denotes that the serial leaves are dying from a hardening of the arteries. The first is the poetic view of it. It is the poet’s business to make the most of the hard circumstances of life. The second is the true state of the case.
GREAT CLOUDBURST ON ELK
Man and horses
drowned at Camp 11
On the night of September 14, there was a great rain in this county. At Marlinton, 2.22 inches of rain fell that night but the ground was so dry from a three weeks’ drought that the waters were hardly muddied.
In the Elk Valley, however, there was a cloudburst centering around the heads of three small runs that come in from the Gauley side of Elk near the Pocahontas Webster line. On one of these runs was located a woods camp of the West Virginia Pulp and Paper Company, and at the camp was a large stable for teams. The camp was manned by a number of Austrians who came from the mountains of Europe and who are good woodsmen. The camp was in charge of a splendid Austrian who was known as Frank.
The clouds let down water in a terrible downpour. The men were aroused and saw that the stable was in danger of being washed away. There were ten horses in the building and Frank went to work to get them out. He succeeded in freeing six of the horses but the water rose so fast that the building was swept away with the man and four horses in it. Two of these horses succeeded in reaching the land but the foreman and two of the horses were drowned.
The stream raised about fifteen feet in a few minutes. Great hemlock trees were carried down the little stream and when the run reached the river, large trees were carried up stream as far as 150 feet and left stranded. The three runs combined made a big flood in Elk river and a large camp on the main river was considerably damaged and would have been washed away but for the fact that it was partially protected by two large loaded railroad cars. Much damage was done to the railroad.
This cloudburst was a great deal like the recent catastrophe in Cabin Creek Valley…
BIG DAY AT
MINNEHAHA
On Saturday, September 23, a game day will be at Minnehaha Springs. The Marlinton Band has been engaged; a football game between ladies and gentlemen; a prize for the best fancy costume; speeches by H. M. Lockridge, Hon. Howard Southerland, J. A. Viquesney, Douglas McNeill and others.
Prizes for the best decorated automobile. Athletic events, including 100 yard dash, three legged race, sack, potato and other races Nail driving, ice cream and suspended apple eating and other contests including a hat trimming contest by gentlemen…
Refreshments served during the day and evening. Dinner served for a reasonable charge. Grounds illuminated and band music until 9 p.m. Everyone welcome and an enjoyable time guaranteed.
TOP ALLEGHANY
We have been having some frosts recently but have not heard of much damage being done in this section.
Cutting buckwheat is the order of the day.
Clarence, son of W. H. Barkley cut and bruised his face pretty badly by falling down stairs in his sleep. People used to say you would not hurt yourself falling in your sleep, but you can’t get Clarence to believe anything like that.
Quite a lot of fine cattle have been passing through this section to be shipped from Bartow.
ONOTO
Threshing and cutting corn seems to be the order of the day.
Alex Hefner and son Fred were in this part taking up calves which they had bought. Calves are bringing good prices.
DURBIN
Fine frosts in this part of the country.
J. C. Goodsell is now a busy man – repairing automobiles, running a picture show, furnishing lights for all the citizens of our town, and selling gasoline on the side.
Some of the people are just getting back from the stock show at Monterey, as the booze got mixed badly and some of them went to Keyser looking for the C & O Railroad.
BENNETT – SIMMONS
Married at the Presbyterian Manse, Monday night, September 18, 1916, Forrest Bruce Bennett and Miss Mazie Pearl Simmons, Rev. J. M. Walker, officiating. The bride is the accomplished daughter of Lewis Simmons, and a sister of L. O. Simmons of The Times Office. Mr. Bennett is from Caldwell, and is a track foreman on the C & O railroad. They will make their home in Caldwell.
MRS. MARGARET BELL McNEEL
Mrs. Margaret Bell McNeel was born in Augusta county, Va., September 5, 1849. She was the only daughter of Ebenezer and Margaret Bell Christian. Her mother died during the infancy of Mrs. McNeel and her bringing up devolved upon an aunt whose kindness and training she never forgot.
In 1870, she came to Pocahontas county and taught in the family of Capt. Wm. L. McNeel. In September 14, 1871, she was united in marriage to Matthew John McNeel at the Brick House in Renick’s Valley, Greenbrier county. They settled in the ancestral home of the McNeel’s where she spent the rest of her earthly life in the faithful service of a devoted wife…