10 Years Ago
Week of March 19, 2015
SUGAR GROVE
The upcoming days of spring abound with well-known celebrations. Centuries ago, the Catholic Church wanted to make sure that every day of the year was celebrated as some saint’s feast day. No saint was to be left out, and since there were more saints than days of the year, that meant several saints had to share feast days.
It appears that the United States wants to give the Vatican a run for its money. Every month of the year has been officially proclaimed as “this month” or “that month,” so now virtually every day is dedicated to something or someone with several days being dedicated to more than one.
60 Years Ago
Week of March 25, 1965
HEALTH TIPS FOR TODAY
There is a right way and a wrong way to do everything, including the taking of medicine.
When medicine is taken correctly, the exact dose is taken at the proper time under conditions that insure against error.
A pamphlet of the American Medical Association offers a few useful directions for taking medicines—
• Store medicines in a cabinet, preferably locked, away from the reach of children.
• Keep only medicines currently in use.
• Destroy old prescriptions, because many drugs lose potency or may be chemically changed by time.
• Read the label in a good light before opening the bottle or box. Read it again before taking the medicine.
• If you have more than one box of pills or capsules to take, be sure one is closed before opening the other. This avoids switching covers, and also the labels.
• When pouring from a bottle, keep the label up so that any dripping will not soil it and make it hard to read.
• When taking medicine at night, be certain that the light is on and that you are wearing glasses if you need them. It is easier to misread and misunderstand labels at night when you are sleepy than when fully awake during the day.
• Keep medicines away from the bed. Make it necessary to get up to take them. Keeping drugs and medicines on the night stand by one’s bed is dangerous because an overdose may occur if the medication is accidentally repeated while sleepy.
• Keep medicines in the original labeled container. If you carry pills in a pocket pill box, identify them with a label. Never put medicines in containers identified with foods.
• Avoid using medicine for children which is disguised as candy. Poisoning—or at least overdoses—can occur when children find and take medicine which looks and tastes like candy.
100 YEARS AGO
By LON K. SAVAGE
Editor’s Note—The following is one of a series of articles on the Civil War. Each weekly installment covers events which occurred exactly 100 years ago.
Lee’s Last Offensive Repelled By Grant
Gen. Robert E. Lee’s Confederates launched their last major offensive 100 years ago this week and set off an explosion that ended with the Confederacy’s collapse.
The attack, itself, was a failure, repulsed within four hours by Gen. Ulysses S. Grant’s huge Federal army outside Petersburg, Va. But it went down in history, not so much as a Confederate defeat, but as the fight that began the end of the Civil War. The first shot in that attack was followed by two weeks of raging warfare that brought the fall of Petersburg, the burning of Richmond, Lee’s retreat and his surrender at Appomattox.
Lee had ordered the attack as a last gasp attempt to break Grant’s line. If he could force Grant back, he hoped, he might be able to slip off to the South and continue fighting.
Target for the attack was Fort Stedman, one of more than a dozen Federal forts on the Petersburg line, situated less than 200 yards from the Confederate line, so close that pickets of the two armies often chatted back and forth.
Gen. John B. Gordon, a Confederate who had fought since the Civil War’s outbreak, was chosen to make the attack under cover of darkness in the morning of March 25.
And at 4 a.m. that morning, Gordon led his men into a bold dash across the 200 yards of no-man’s land before Fort Stedman, overrunning and capturing the pickets. Men with axes cleared the wooden obstructions in front of the fort, and within moments, sleeping Federals awoke to find Confederate infantrymen swarming through their stronghold. Before the sun had risen, Gordon, himself, was giving orders from Fort Stedman, and hundreds of Federals had been captured.
But that was as far as the assault went. Gordon’s Confederal.
From the nearby forts, Federals came on the run. Hand to hand fighting broke out. Federal artillery opened on the fort as soon as daylight illuminated the target.
The overwhelming Federal power forced the Confederates back into Fort Stedman, and more Yankees swarmed in against them. Lee had ordered up re-enforcements to help Gordon, but they never arrived. Shortly after daylight, Gordon knew he was stopped, and at 8 a.m., Lee sounded the recall.
That was disastrous, too. Federal artillery and small arms fire rained down on the no man’s land that the Confederates had to cross to get back to their own lines. Hundreds were shot down making the attempt; other hundreds surrendered without trying.
By mid-morning it was all over. Lee had lost more than 4,000 irreplaceable soldiers, and the lines had not changed.
The top had been blown off the winter of inactivity. That same day, Grant and President Lincoln, who was visiting at the front, made plans for their own attack on Lee.
Next week: Lee’s line breaks; Richmond falls.
70 Years Ago
Week of March 24, 1955
EDITORIALS
Conserving Our Wildlife—
By ELDON HOTTINGER, Conservation Officer
The scope of conservation in the present day is a wide one. In the early days of our country, wildlife existed as Mother Nature planned. Forests were plentiful and so was wildlife. With the coming of the white man there came changes. Forests had to be cleared for the newcomers’ activities. The red man, who had been living here, lived much as the wildlife did. He killed what he needed for food and clothing and left the rest alone.
For a time it was much the same with the white man. Then commercial hunting began taking heavy toll of our game birds and animals, and fur-bearers. Forest fires also left death and destruction. Draining of swamps and poisoning of streams by factory wastes killed the fish in many streams.
Very little, if anything was done about this tremendous waste until a national policy of conservation was introduced in the United States in 1908 when Theodore Roosevelt appointed a national Conservation Commission composed of 49 prominent men of science, industry, and politics. The North American Conservation Conference was held in February 1909 and a broad statement of principles of conservation was adopted at this meeting.
At state levels the conservation policies are carried on by state conservation departments or commissions.
By law, the ownership of wildlife is in the state, as a trustee for the people. In recent years conservation of all wildlife, rather than the creatures considered game, which comprises less than 10% of all wildlife, is the policy. This gives protection to our insectivorous and song birds. Seasons for the harvest of game are set up so that taking without depleting the stock can be achieved. By-laws and regulations gives the citizens equal rights to the sport of hunting and fishing. Now if all are to have an equal chance to pursue his sport, the rules must be obeyed.
In a football game, or other sports events, violation of the rules of the game isn’t too popular with the spectators and other players. In the business world those who take unfair advantages of their associates are frowned upon. How much different is it for the poacher who takes our wildlife unfairly? He is breaking the rules of the “game,” taking what does not belong to him. Too often it is taken by some as a joke or “just getting by” with something, a poor attitude for a sportsman (?) to take. What is the answer for the problem?
J. J. Shomon, editor of “Virginia Wildlife” in the January issue gave some good thoughts. He says, “As a man, am I worthy of the blessings of abundance and consider my opportunity to go afield a privilege rather than an inherited right? Am I just a ‘take’ and not a ‘giver’? How much have I given of myself to make for a better, safer, and more abundant outdoor world?”
One good way to aid in our wildlife conservation is get the youth of our county interest in preserving our forests and wildlife. The 4-H clubs, Boy Scouts and Conservation Clubs are doing much in many counties. To obtain this we must back them by assisting them.
80 Years Ago
Week of March 23, 1945
BEAD MARKET SLUMPS IN PACIFIC
That time-worn phrase, “carrying coals to Newcastle,” is being superseded out this way by a new expression, — “carrying beads to the South Pacific,” says Marine Correspondent Lt. Milburn McCarty Jr.
For years beads were one of the most popular items of barter among natives of the Pacific Islands. Natives made beads out of shells, cat eyes, coral, hammered silver coins, human teeth, etc.
Since the coming of American forces two years ago, the bead market here has been flooded. Well-meaning parents and wives back in the states have sent so many boxes of broken-down 5-and10-cent store jewelry for the servicemen to trade that sometimes a bushel of beads will bring no more than a couple of small turtles.
MOUTH OF SENECA
Spring! Spring! Miss Spring is here! Is she or not? Well, according to the song birds, greening grass, she is here. We have had the loveliest weather here I ever saw in March. Very warm, lots of days the thermometer ran up to summer heat plus.
The Franklin Band
A most interesting Band Concert was given at Riverton Saturday night to a large audience by the “Franklin Junior Band.” The director of the band is Prof. Walter Judy and judging from the fine discipline and interesting manner in which the members of the band performed, he is an excellent teacher.
Tap dancing by Miss Joan Spaulding and Miss “Dotty” Campbell proved a very interesting feature. The reading “Apple Blossoms” by Miss Polly Ann Calhoun was well delivered and held the audience spellbound. Congratulations Miss Pollyanna!
The comic recitals by Betty Hutton (Miss Joan Spaulding) brought the house down with laughter and cheers and continued until she repeated. Congratulations Joan!
The special selections of music by Misses Mary Jo Judy, Adaline Smith, Martha Bennett, Joan Spaulding and Ruth Pitsenbarger were well rendered and well received.
The program was sponsored by the “Ever Ready Circle of Riverton” and the proceeds will go to the church.
We are very proud indeed to know so many of our youngsters of the county are displaying so much interest and have such marvelous talent along these particular lines and as we look out and beyond a short distance, we see many Pendleton folks journeying to the big city to see some of these girls playing from the stage.
NOTICE TO TOWN PEOPLE
The Town Council has requested that no trash be dumped in the back alleys and burned.
Complaint has been made, due to danger of fire, when not properly looked after and extinguished.
Order of the Town Council.
Draft Deferment
CARRIES A SOLEMN OBLIGATION
WHEN YOU ASK your draft board for deferment, you are asking them to send another man in your place. Some other man will have to endure the hardships of army life; to risk his life instead of yours; to live in a foxhole at army pay so you can continue to enjoy the comforts of home and a well-paid job.
That’s a good deal to ask, isn’t it?
The draft board gives you deferment only if they think you are doing a more important job than the man they send in your place.
A man who is engaged in critical work such as pulpwood production has a perfect right to ask for deferment. But having been given deferment, he has no more right to AWOL from his job than the man who is serving in his place would have to desert in the face of the enemy. His deferment carries the obligation to serve his country as faithfully at home as the other man serves it at the front.