From Yeare'Ago: I*ower Reduced As
Water Level Drops; Millwheels Stop
(Here is another in a series
of items written for Lancas
ter Farming by Charles Slentz
of Quarryville. It’s a look into
the past, re-recording high
lights that are interesting.
Editor).
“Power was reduced greatly ”
Because it was, that fact amply
justified complaints by la number
of millers whose operations de
pended upon sufficient water to
turn their millwheels. These com
plaints terminated in a suit
against the water company of an
up-county borough, back in Janu
ary, 1906 The Clarion, of New
Holland, gives the story: “The
New Holland Water Company
Was sued by eight millers along
Mill Creek, who claimed that the
water of Mill Creek was so much,
less that their power was re
duced greatly New Holland, of
course, derived its water supply
from the springs at the source of
this stream ” So, for the un
fortunate millers involved, it was
a case of “Less (rather than
more) power to you'” And, as
for thS farmer who possibly was
caught in the middle, he may
have had “an ax to grind”
seeing that he doubtless had some
gram to grind and, accordingly,
had to grind his way elsewhere
to get it ground
Much is said today about pow
er. Much, for instance, about
horsepower, motive power (mod
ernly, through diesel and, now,
jet engineering) and. not the
'least, manpower While rarely, if
ever, anything is heard about
woman-power, it took a remote
Davey Crockett story, gleaned
from press files of 1881, to bring
(this one to light And while not
vouching for its authenticity, as
Davey Crockett tales go its does
seem interesting “The house
Davey'Crockett lived in at Law
renceburg, Tenn, is still stand
ing 'and divers persons m the
neighborhood possess legal docu
ments written out by his hand as
Justice of the Peace. He had a
mill' near the house, but it is
said, went off hunting and elec
tioneering while his wife took
care of the mill Mrs" Crockett
was a woman of great strength
and could handle sacks of grain
with ease.” Now if that isn’t
operating a mill by woman-pow
er, we miss our guess!
Another Invention
Just 'as there’s power and pow
er, and still more power, there
are wheels and wheels even
wheels within wheels.. Mill
wheels were mentioned above
and. while presently thinking
about wagon wheels, the follow
ing paragraph from East Earl
had a more specific bearing on
the spindles than on the actual
wheels. Its another Clarion ex
cerpt of early 1906; “A. M. Weak
er, of East Earl, came out with
another of his many inventions.
This one was a wrench for loosen
ing or putting on the burrs of
wagon spindles. The device had
a lever and spring by which the
burr whs firmly held Some of us
who have had experience with
wagons can appreciate what an
improvement this was” —• and
surely the farmer in our midst
was not the last, or the least, to
appraise its value
What, possibly, could ''a stray
rooster, pretzel crumbs, a crane,
and 50 pounds of bologna have
in common’ Mighty little, you’ll
believe and you’ll be right;
particularly when considering
that they, severally, made news
at different times and places.
First, the rooster, and we turn to
the press at Lifcitz for an account
of a Plymouth Rock that hoppsd
into the limelight in January, 60
years ago. It was said that “A
Plymouth Rock rooster came'to
the premises of Henry Sturgis
and refuses to Heave ” Mr Sturgis
served notice that “the ewner
shall come and get him, other
wise the guillotine will be
brought into service and a pot
pie follow.” ... As for the pretzel
crumbs, they were 3ust thrown
in; since Lititz, the name Sturgis,
and pretzels are synonomous Na
turally one can’t help wondering,
though, if the rooster wasn’t real-
ly looking for Sturgis’ pretzel
bakery, and crumbs or dough,
if the crumbs proved too salty
for its taste.
Next, tKe crane and we
shift to the Spruce Grove neigh
borhood and a late January, 1907
issue of The Quarryville Sun for;
“Last Saturday Walter White
side shot a crane m the meadow
near his home which measured
almost six feet (from tip to tip.”
Reading further, the crane “is
now in the bands of Mrs Brin
ton Walters, Christiana, who in
tends to have it mounted.”
You’re probably wondering, of
course, about any common
ground for the rooster, pretzel
crumbs, and crane’ In an effort
to find such, though straining a
bit in, suggesting this, the fol
lowing is submitted for your con
sideration. if that wading bird
hadn’t been craning its neck too
far, and in the wrong direction
—land if the rooster hadn’t been
strutting in strange territory, per
haps bent on finding different
feed well, neither crane nor
rooster would have made the
front page, and there wouldn’t
have been a “dead duck,” dead
crane, rather
* A Lot of Baloney?
And what had “a lot of ba
loney’’ to do with it all 9 Once
more it’s a matter of straining a
point, but, a crane (“an iron
arm to support kettles, etc, ovei
a fue”) figures in the picture at
butchering time and at butch
ering time at least “50 lbs of
bologna” could be among the
makings According to this Quar
ry ville brfrough happening (and
one right up the farmer’s “al
ley”), as per The Sun forty-nine
years ago at this time, “cranes”
its way right 'into our common,
thought “G Oran Phillips and
John Wiker, the expert butchers
of our town, butchered for H.
H. Aument two hogs 10 months
old weighing 650 pounds, doing
up the job iproperly in five hours,
besides putting 50 pounds of
bologna in casings. It is claimed
they can beat that record if it
needs be ” 5
While on butchering, and meat,
a farmer in the Lititz enviorits
iost a considerable haul from his
smokehouse one wintry night in
January, ’96 The Lititz Record-
Express informed that “The
smokehouse on the farm of David
Walter about a mile west of War
wick, was forcibly entered on
Monday night and robbed of meat
from two big hogs, some sausages
and beef Three hams, however,
were-left untouched, Mr Walter
says if the thieves want any giore
meat they shall come and take
the hogs on foot as he still has
fourteen left, thereby saving him
the trouble of butchering; other
wise they will meet with a warm
reception ”
The Record-Express also in
formed, about the same time
that year, that “the big hog at
Schaefferstown about which so
much had been talked was killed,
and dressed 824 pounds!”
Now there was something (meat,-
of course) to chew on' Baloney
Lebanon baloney, particularly
—is something that even we Lan
caster Countians like to chew on,
though feallimg, of course, that,
we have just as good at home;
but then, credit where credit is
due.
REPAYS LOAN 100-FOLD.
NEW YORK Forty-eight
years ago, David B. Stemman
entered Columbia University on
a $650 scholarship He received
his Ph.D. in 1911. Recently, Dr-
Stemman, designer of the Henry
Hudson Bridge and 300 other
bridges on five continents, re
turned to the school to set up a
$lO,OOO “debt of "honor” scholar
ship fund. His recent grant
brought to $650,000 the amount
he has given the institution, re
paying his own scholarship grant
a hundredfold. The son of a fac
tory worker, Dr. Stemman’s first
job was as a newspaper boy
when he was 7. His current pro
ject is the $99,800,000 Mackinac
1 Bridge in Michigan.
Lancaster Earning* Friday,'February 3, 1956—-11
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FOE SALE- No 1 Cobbler
(potatoes Gauranteed good-
Sound potatoes Aaron M Weng
er Box 100 EDI Barevmlle, Pa. 14
Mi. North of Bareville.
PEICED TO MOVE —Barn clean-
er, % H. P cooler compressure,
egg walflher, greenerop loader, air
icompressure, wagon unloader-
Aaron Zimmerman East Earl ED
Pa.
&KQI9p>.METT££...QAF£fI
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CONESTOGA FARM SERVICE
Quarryville Ph. 282
FOR SALE.—I2OO Eggs Peerless
electric incubator like new.
David A Martm Bird-m-Hand
BDI 1 mile north of Leacock,
FOR SALE—22”x36” all steel
Tthresibing machine with blower
and weigher Daniel M. Hoover
RDI Barevtlle.
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water power, also budding lots.
Route 73 south' end of Bowmans
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