Thursday, December 24, 1914
Over thirty thousand pounds of turkeys and other poultry were shipped from the Marlinton express office last week. The shipments were heavy every day in the week, and on Thursday, Friday and Saturday an accurate account was kept of the amount shipped. On Thursday the amount was 6,000 pounds; on Friday 7,000 pounds and on Saturday 10,000 pounds. The value of the poultry shipped from this one station last week is in the neighborhood of five thousand dollars. While Marlinton is possibly the heaviest shipping point, Cass, Sitlington, Bartow, Clover Lick, Buckeye, Seebert and Beard also ship a great many turkeys. The Christmas and Thanksgiving turkey crop is no inconsiderable item of wealth to the county, when it is counted. The greater part of the poultry from this county goes to the Philadelphia market and the rest mostly to Baltimore.
Bowels of the Earth
L. O. Simmons, the local Hercules, determined to find water or bust a wheel. He contracted with a well known well driller. The contractor came with his gigantic machinery, his ropes, and his pulleys. His engine of several horsepower was ready.
So they erected the machinery and started to drill at a place cunningly chosen between the old house and the hennery. The mighty drill trembled on the rise and hit the ground with a sullen chug. One foot, two foot, it chiseled out the resisting earth and after a time the modern Moses struck a rock of most uncommon hardness and the words gushed forth.
Day after day the drill chugged downward. Ten feet, twenty feet, thirty feet and Simmons waved them on. To the depth of thirty-seven feet they burst the crust. Deep, devilish deep!
And then there came a change in the note of the great drill and upon investigation they found seventeen feet of a colorless limpid liquid compound composed of hydrogen and oxygen in volume of two of the one and one of the other.
The well was mighty deep and it gave up its secret. Now there is an ample supply of water patent pump in his well.
GAME WARDEN’S REPORT
The third biennial report of J. A. Viquesney, State Forest, Fish and Game Warden, is in our hands. It is a volume of one hundred and fifty pages and contains not a little matter of interest. Among the illustrations are pictures of the clubhouse, elk and forest scenes at Minnehaha and the island in the Greenbrier at the Marlin Ford.
During the past 18 months, 463 violations of the game law have been tried. 392 were convicted; 56 acquitted; and 14 appealed; 16 were jailed, and $6,225 in fines assessed, of which $584.97 has been collected. Number of fish planted, 834,438.
CLOVER CREEK
Seeing so many correspondents writing to the paper, we will give you a few lines.
Woods Dilley had a log to drag him down while skidding, and hurt his leg. The team pulled the log on his leg for ten feet or more before he was rescued by his son, Edgar. The log would contain 500 feet.
Cecil Shinaberry says it keeps so cold he can’t get out to visit much. On the morning of the 16th it was 8 below at W. T. Shinaberry’s milk house.
Barny horse died the other day. He was once owned by J. C. Price. We think Mr. Price rode him in the war during the sixties.
Dogs have been killing sheep in this neighborhood. Some people have more dogs than stock and as they don’t feed them they have to do something to live.
Born to Mr. and Mrs. Jack Smith, a son; and to Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Burns, a daughter.
About the worst foot and mouth disorder we know of is the gossiper who runs around and talks about the neighbors. People with this disease ought to be quarantined. We do not suppose it would do to shoot them.
ARBOVALE
Pretty good winter this. On last Wednesday morning the thermometer registered 16 degrees below zero at Arbovale, the coldest for several years.
The Virginia Lumber Company had to lay off part of their hands on account of the snow being too deep to work on the railroad.
Lawrence Conrad sold his fine saddle horse to Frank Ashford last week.
J. W. Oliver, of Greenbank, was at B. M. Arbogast’s Monday getting his horses shod, ready for the ice.
DUNMORE
Monday was the shortest day in the year.
Jesse McLaughlin and family have returned from Canada and located at Cass.
Lots of ice is being put up.
Uncle Jim Loury spent a few days with friends, and says he will tell us more about the war when it comes closer.
Zack Nottingham has a case of blood poison.
Sam Williams was in town Monday selling beef at 11 and 12 cents per pound.
Lots of wagons are over from Highland county delivering turkeys to the railroad and hauling goods.
The mail order houses are doing a rushing business in our county.
BUCKEYE
We are having some old time winter now; thermometers registered 12 degrees below zero, but the weather is more moderate now.
Picking turkeys has been all the go in this part for the last week. Mrs. Willis McKeever is the champion in the turkey business – slaughtered about 170, and they were fine ones, too.
Jim Cline, below Buckeye, killed six whopping big turkeys; he said the six weighed 214 pounds. Ed Auldridge is going to take them to market for Cline.
There will soon be a railroad running up Swago to take logs to the big mill on the east side of the river.
