Demorralic Watcha,
Bellefonte, Pa., October 6, 1922.
A “FRANKENSTEIN MONSTER.”
By Margaret H. Barnett.
. There was an editorial in a recent
issue of The North American, entitled
“Frankenstein Monsters.” The ed-
itorial is based on Mrs. Shelley’s sto-
ry, “Frankenstein.” The hero of this
book, a young medical student, fash-
ioned a creature which had the sem-
blance of a man out of parts of bod-
ies taken from the dissecting room,
and succeeded in endowing it with
life, mere physical life. The creature
was soulless, and without any moral
nature. It was powerful and vicious,
and became a veritable nemesis to its
creator, who seemed unable to destroy
it, once he had given it life. The
monster finally drove him to his
death.
The editor applies this idea of the
gruesome story to many of the agen-
cies which men and nations build up,
to the objects and ends which they
pursue, which frequently work their
destruction. He cites as an example,
the militarism of Germany, which
brought about the downfall of that
nation.
There is another “monster” which
might be added to those which the ed-
itor of the North American names,
the liquor traffic, which the people of
this country, and. especially of this
State, encouraged and built up by
their laws, and which has proved a
vicious, soulless, destroying monster
to its creators.
A great many years ago it occurred
to some one to give the exclusive
right to sell intoxicating liquors to
those who kept hotels or inns, in order
to encourage persons to provide places
where the traveling public might be
accommodated with food and lodg-
ing. This combination business, liquor
selling and hotel keeping, seems to
have been very popular, and the State
was well supplied with public houses
of entertainment. In 1840, one small
town, whose population is given as
“over 600 souls, had five taverns, and
a small rural county had within its
borders twenty-two taverns.”
But when once the liquor traffic was
connected with the hotel business, it
seemed impossible ever thereafter to
separate them.
The most recent license act in Penn-
sylvania is the Brooks High License
Law, of 1887. Its title is “An Act to
restrain and regulate the sale of vin-
ous, spiritous, malt or brewed liquors,
or any admixture thereof.” The ti-
tle of an act of Assembly must set
forth its purpose. The purpose of
the Brooks Act is to restrain and reg-'
ulate the sale of liquors, not to li-
cense places where travelers might
get food and lodging. In this respect
it differs from earlier license laws.
But in spite of this change in the
law, the idea persisted that a licens-
ed bar for the sale of liquor was an
essential part of a hotel. It had be-
come firmly imbedded in the public
mind, and it could not be dislodged.
For those seeking liquor licenses
“strangers and travelers” became a
phrase to conjure with. It was said
year after year, especially in the small-
er towns, that we must have liquor
licenses, in order to have hotels. A
hotel keeper sometimes told “strang-
ers and travelers” that he would
have to charge a much higher price
for the meals which he served, if he
did not have the profits of the bar to
keep up the table, and he did not seein
to realize the irony of it.
A very few years ago, an attorney
for an applicant for a liquor license,
inquired, pathetically in license court,
“Who will provide for strangers and
travelers in this town, if this license is
refused? Will these remonstrants?”
A very few years ago, judges said
in license courts, with pious solicitude,
“We must provide for strangers and
travelers,” and they provided for them
by granting licenses to sell intoxi-
cants to bring woe and ruin to the
residents of the places where they
were granted.
This combining eof liquor selling
with hotel keeping is but one of the
ways in which the people of the State
encouraged the liquor traffic, but it
was a very effective way. And the
monster thrived and grew strong, and
fully justified the opinion of Gladstone
that “Intemperance has brought more
calamities upon mankind than the
three historical scourges, war, pesti-
lence and famine.”
The monster received its death-
blow when national prohibition was
adopted; but though mortally wound-
ed, it is not dead. There are some,
who, with strange perversity, are try-
ing to heal its mortal wound, and to
prolong its life.
There are candidates for important
offices who announce themselves as
“wets.” Some are running on a “light
wine and beer” platform. All these
announce themselves as against the
enforcement of our National Constitu-
tion. They encourage that spirit of
lawlessness which is becoming general
enough to be a serious menace to our
government. Against it, many new-
made graves in our country bear silent
testimony, the graves of the victims
of lawless violence.
The Literary Digest’s National poll
on Prohibition asked people to say
whether they were in favor of strict
enforcement of the Eighteenth amend-
ment or not, as if it were optional
with the people whether it were en-
forced or ‘not. It must be enforced
or such a spirit of anarchy will be de-
veloped as will not stop with viola-
tions of the prohibitory amendment.
All voters, men and women, should
carefully study all candidates who are
asking for votes at the coming elec-
tion, and they should register at the
polls their condemnation of all those
who practice and encourage contempt
for law.
The final outcome of the fight
against the liquor traffic is certain,
complete and final victory for the
forces of law and order. All true
American citizens should see to it
that final victory is not delayed.
A ro———— em ——
——There is enough iron in the
blood of forty-two men to make a
plowshare weighing twenty-four
pounds.
WILD BOARS.
When I was eight years old, I went
on a deer-hunt in a wild swamp not
far from our plantation on the banks
of the Santee river. The old negro
hunter who had charge of the hounds
seemed to be uneasy about my being
along; and this was especially true
when we took up the stands for what
was known as the Laurel Tree Drive.
After he had posted me at a big pine
and had ridden a hundred yards off,
he turned his horse and came back to
me.
“If a deer comes out,” he said, “or
a turkey, or a fox, shoot it. But if
you see a big hog come out, you'd
better let him pass; and you need not
make any motion so that he can see
you.”
Neither deer nor turkey nor fox
came; but there passed within easy
gunshot of my stand e creature which
has haunted my imagination for more
than thirty years. It was remarkably
tall; it looked powerful; its color was
a tawny gray; and out of its hideous
flattened mouth I saw the dull gleam
of long rakish tusks. It did not trot
like a hog; neither did it bound resil-
iently like a deer; nor did it strut
gracefully like a turkey. Through
the low bushes it tore with savage
strength; and now and then it would
clear with a great leap of brute pow-
er a high log. He was in sight for a
few moments only. My gun was on
him; but I remembered the negro’s
warning. I did not shoot; and I have
been sorry ever since; for this crea-
ture was a wild boar—and one of the
few I have ever seen alive in the
woods.
Within a minute or two the driver
came galloping up; he passed me, dis-
mounted hurriedly, and stopped the
hounds that were now coming full cry
on the boar’s track. He told me that
he didn’t want any of them killed; and
he added that he had heard of this
boar’s being in this part of the swamp,
and that he had thought it best for me
not to shoot at and wound him; for
then he might be highly dangerous.
Even since that day I have heard
occasionally of the killing of one of
these monsters in the swamp. I have
seen the tusks, treasured as trophies,
in the lonely homes of those hardy
woodsmen who live on the borders of
the wild swamp. I have had a pack
of hounds bay such a creature in the
desperate heart of a jungle so gross
that there was no penetrating its
semitropical tangle of briars, and
myrtles. Nor is it an altogether easy
matter to bring one of these great
creatures to bay. Some dogs are
not eager about following such an an-
imal, especially through the kind of
country that he is sure to traverse;
that is, wild morass, monstrous cane-
brake, baffling swamp. I know of one
great boar that has been hunted for
more than five years; yet he has been
sighted only twice. This huge fellow
has had some of his jumps made in
full flight measured by a reliable
hunter. The longest of these was full
twenty feet, and the average was six-
teen.
In this same Santee swamp there
are many black bears; and the feud
between boar and bear is age-old.
The bears catch many pigs and half-
grown hogs; but I'believe that a ma-
ture boar is a match for a black bear,
especially since there appears nothing
that one of these boars is so little in-
clined to refuse as a fight.—Alexan- |
der Rutledge.
NEW DIRECTION SIGNS
FOR STATE HIGHWAYS.
The Pennsylvania State Highway |
Departmeent has begun placing stand-
ard direction and warning signs along
all state highways. Made of cast iron
and mounted on iron coiumns, the
warning signs are painted white, with
a black outline and black letters. The
supporting columns also are painted
white.
Direction posts are painted black
and the sign has a yellow face bear-
ing black letters. State highway offi-
cials declare that they have received
many letters of commendation for the
new signs already erected, because
they are legible either in the daytime
or at night.
Distances between important points
are given on the direction signs, 1700
of which have been ordered. The de-
partment plans to place division lines
terminating in an arrow on all curves
of a 300-foot radius or more. These
division signs are intended to keep
motor drivers on the right side of the
road in rounding dangerous curves,
preventing possibilities of collision.
Dangerous undergrade crossings on
sharp curves are being marked with
black-and-white checker boards. Ata
number of points where sharp curves
run along steep declivities the depart-
ment has placed huge red warning
signs which reflect the headlight rays
at night. These signs are protected
with a wire netting.
EE
Many Trees in Clearfield Nursery.
District forester Dague, of Clear-
field, has reported to the Department
of Forestry that an inventory of the
Clearfield nursery last week showed
that it contained very nearly 8,000,000
young trees. This is the first year
since 1918 that the nursery has been
fully stocked. Scarcity in obtaining
forest tree seeds during the war ac-
counted for the shortage in seedlings
for the past few years.
During the last two years the de-
mand by private planters for free
seedlings for planting has increased
and has overrun the supply, but it is
expected that the Department of For-
eestry will in a few years be able to
supply ail the stock needed. The
Clearfield nursery will be enlarged to
almost double its present capacity.
————— fp ———————
Real Estate Transfers.
John C. Glenn, et ux, to H. F. Reese,
tract in State College; $1,000.
Angelo Genua, et ux, to Peter Man-
gino, et ux, tract in Bellefonte; $1,000.
Charles W. Corl, et ux, to Sarah E.
Keller, tract in State College; $500.
T. Miles Cronover, et ux, to Charles
S. Lucas, tract in Snow Shoe; $600.
Peter Mangino, et ux, to Octavio
Berardis, et ux, tract in Bellefonte;
$1,400.
A LONELY JOB.
Every large sheep station in Aus-
tralia has upon its territory three or
four lonely huts in which live the sol-
itary men who look after the sheep
in the remoter paddocks and ride
around the wire fences, keeping them
in repair.
These men have but slight inter-
course with the outside world. Once a
month, perhaps, the boundary rider
may lock up his hut and ride to the
nearest township, spending a night or
two nights away. Occasionally he
rides in to the head station on busi-
ness connected with his sheep; now
and then he may be called from his | 4
regular work to assist at a lamb-
marking camp or to join the muster-
ers at shearing time; but for the most
part he lives absolutely alone with his
dogs and his horses, except for the
rare visits of the station ration car-
rier, the sheep overseer or some pass-
ing traveler, taking a short cut from
one main road to another.
The boundary rider’s hut is gener-
ally placed near a creek or permanent
water-hole, in the corner of a large
sheep paddock, for which he is re-
sponsible. As this enclosure may be
anything from twenty to sixty miles
in circumference, a small paddock of
twenty to thirty acres is fenced in to
hold his horses.
Of these he may have three or four
supplied by the station, and he is
generally allowed to keep one of his
own, so that he has sufficient for his
needs even during the hard conditions
of flood or drought.
1
His close companions, both at his
daily work and in his long lonely
evenings, are his sheep dogs. There
is no doubt that in many cases these
animals supply the reliable strand in
the rope that holds back such a her-
mit of the bush from the brink of
mental downfall which the peculiar
mode of life brings near.
His hut consists of but a single
room. It is built of weather-board or
of rough slabs, like untrimmed rail-
way ties, set on end. At one extrem-
ity of the hut is a deep fireplace and a
chimney of galvanized iron. On the
hearth an immense log smolders con-
tinuously. Most of the cooking is
one in a camp oven, a round pot on
three short legs, which is set upon
red hot wood cinders, with a generous
supply of the same heaped upon its
lid. In this are cooked the mutton,
the bread, and the “brownie,” that
simple but appetizing cake so dear to
the bushman.
At one side of the small room is
the bed, which is simply a rough bunk
covered with old bagging or sheep-
skins, and a four-inch layer of gum
leaves or pine tassels—a fragrant as
well as a soft mattress. On the oth-
er side of the room is a small table
consisting of a flat sheet of bark on
four supports. On a shelf stands a
few cans containing salt, sugar, nails,
golden syrup, baking powder, and
Srychnine for poisoning wild dogs.—
x.
——The “Watchman” gives all the
news while it is news.
F.O.B.
DETROIT
i Cink Bia NW,
GRRE
Ry th
dthedif
Never before has there
been produced, at so low
a price, a car so service-
able, so trustworthy and
so economical of mainte-
nance as the Ford Touring
Car. Millions of owners
say so. Buy your Ford
today. Terms if desired.
Beatty Motor Co,
BELLEFONTE, PA.
EEC
AVE that Diamond mounted in the
H new style White Gold Ring that
is so popular and is here to stay
Different styles on hand for your in-
spection
This style mounting makes
the stone look twice the size.
from $8.00 to $25.00
Prices
F. P. Blair & Son,
Jewelers and
Bellefonte, Pa.
Optometrists
School Shoes |
The time is now here §
for School Shoes and it
will pay you to look over
our line before you pur- g
chase. pd
Quality the best and the
price reasonable.
Le EEE,
CREA
Ran
i
Ce
fe
Yeager’s Shoe Store
THE SHOE STORE FOR THE POOR MAN
Bush Arcade Building 58-27 BELLEFONTE, PA.
Co
:
1 Eb fe
A A A nn Ne a Ra
Come to the “Watchman” office for High Class Job work.
Lyon & Co.
Lyon & Co.
Special Savings
Timely things we’ve priced under their reg-
ular values to make this store important to
buyers.
LOT No. 1
Winter Coats, all sizes—16 to 44, all colors,
only $9.48.
LOT No. 2
All wool Embroidered Tricotine Dresses, all
sizes, navy blue only, $10.00.
LOT No. 3
All white Shirt Waists in the heavy mater-
ial, high or low, sizes 42 to 48, only, $1.50.
SPECIAL IN SHOES
Ladies’ High Shoes in black and tan; were
$7.00, now $3.50.
Men’s Fine Dress Shoes in black and tan;
were $8.00, now $4.75.
Children’s Shoes all reduced.
Lyon & Co. « Lyon & Co.