Thursday, April 6, 1900
A Leaf from my Notebook
Mr. Hicks says: “April opens fair and mild.” Yesterday, the first day of April was fair but not very mild in this section. Today, however, the prospect for mild weather seems more favorable so we start from Slaty Fork to go to Edray. Let me say right here that Slaty Fork enterprising merchant L. D. Sharp is doing a good business. He is just now arranging to enlarge his store house and improve his stock of goods.
Let us hurry on across the creek and exchange a few pleasant words with Charles Curtis, the blacksmith, whose shop stands on the margin of the creek. Mr. Curtis is a friendly man and a good blacksmith. He is doing well where he is but expects to move away from that stand soon. We hope he will do well where he goes.
Standing just inside the door of the shop is Burton Hoover, son of George Hoover. Burton is also a blacksmith, and we understand he will occupy this shop as soon as Mr. Curtis moves away. Burton is a good boy and will no doubt fill the place well and make a mark in the world.
Our faithful horse carries up the hillside and down the next slope. We meet William Hannah, son of Andy Hannah, who lives to the right at the mouth of Slaty Fork. The usual friendly greetings through with, we inquire of him, though he seems to be in a hurry, if his folks are well of the measles. He says they are about well.
Looking down a ravine here, we seem to almost get a glimpse of a neat little schoolhouse nestled down in a quiet little vale among some sugar trees, just above the mouth of Slaty Fork. Here, the Slaty Fork school is kept and here in the favorable seasons of the year, there is kept a thriving Sunday school. Here, the good people of this section meet to sing and pray and worship their Creator on His glad day.
Imagine you see also beyond this. Look down the creek a little from the schoolhouse and round a point to the right and look upon the Big Spring Fork of Elk, as it comes bubbling along like Tennyson’s Brook to “go on forever.”
Here, on this noted spot we find we can go to the mill and find also that nice man Mr. Griffin ready and willing to grind a grist for us.
A little farther up the stream lives Hugh Sharp, a great man for bee hives. Captain Munday, of Buchannon, spends much of his time with Mr. Sharp, and were it not for a family that occupies a part of Mr. Sharp’s house, we cannot tell what these gentlemen would do, as one is a widower and the other a bachelor. If you want to have a good sociable time, however, and get well and intelligently entertained, just call over to see Captain Munday and Hugh Sharp.
While we are here in contemplation of these things we must not neglect to notice the “King of the Gaulies” – H. B. Sharp, who lives a little below, at the mouth of Big Spring and Laurel Creek. Here is one of the foremost hunters of all this country. We are not sure, but Harmon would rather hunt than eat when he is hungry. This place used to be thronged with sportsmen when the game law was favorable for them. Don’t you forget it, this man will use you well if you go to see him.
We glance still downstream and “see or seem to see” S. B. Moore’s and John Poage’s grazing farm occupied at present by Messrs. Cook and Grimes. Mr. Grimes moved with his family in here during that very cold weather in February 1899. He is about to leave and go back to his old place near Dunmore.
We cannot delay here longer but hurry on by Sheldon Hannah’s place. We have a sympathetic thought here, unexpressed as haste forbids us to call. Mr. Hannah’s son, Clark Hannah, is in Randolph County, very low with typhoid fever. His mother and oldest sister are at his bedside. We do sincerely hope he will soon recover.
We started out to go to Edray and mean to go there but bear with us as we make our bow here for the present and promise more later. With good will to all men. A. M.
BUCKEYE
We are glad to say the good people of our town and neighborhood who have been wrestling with grippe are improving nicely.
We notice some people are often forced to realize the truth of the old saying: A mule is dangerous at both ends.
About the behavior of outsiders at church, a close observer says that our own boys have worn out a great deal of boot and shoe leather kicking the church house. Swago must pull the beam out of her own eye before she can justify condemning the morals of other people. Don’t throw stones while living in glass houses.
To be plain, we have had some very bad behavior at church – but who is to blame? The “Mountain Rover” would say other boys; but I would say the members of the church, who have the rights and powers of protection. It is through their own fault that the House of God and its occupants are mistreated by the degraded part of humanity. Why not command a decent respect for the sacred places of religious worship. The right and only way to Christianity and to populate the church is to abolish all wickedness within its pale. The Bible reads similar to this. “Keep they house in order.” – Silly Sam