VOL. IX. NO. 29.
This Is the Place £
C To Buy Your Jewelry \
S Nothing in Town to Compare With>
( the Quality that We are Giving /
r You for the Low Price Asked. S
C Quality and moderate prices makes a force that
J irresistibly draws into our store the best patronage
C of this section. Many years here in business, always y
with a lull line of i,00.i. c . above suspicion; chosen C
( with a care and judgment comm nsurjte with its 1
\ desirability and adaptability tore line taste, makes \
{ our store a sale place to invest.
/ Repair work done on short notice arid guaran-£
\ feed, by skilled workmen Your orders appreciated. \
S RETTENBURY, S
<, niTSHOKE, PA. The Jeweler. $
COLE
HARDWAR
No Place Like this Place
For Reliable
STOVES and RANGES,
COJLXj OK- WOO D.
HEATERS;
ONE OF WINTER'S GREAT DELIGHTS.
House Furnishing Goods, Tools of Every
Description, Guns and Ammunition.
Bargains that bring the buyer back.
Come and test the truth of our talk.
A .lot of second hand stoves and ranges for sale cheap.
We can soil you in stoves anything from a fine Jewel Base
Burner to a low priced but satisfactory cook stove.
Hot Air, Steam and Hot Water Heating and
General Repairing, Roofing and Spouting.
The Shopbell Dry Good Co.,
313 Pine Street,
WILLI AM SPORT, PA.
January Sale, Muslin Uuderwear.
1 his week, we an important sale of Muslin
Underwear, at special prices, that is wor hy of more
than the umi il att .Mit on of muslin underware sales. Every
garm nt is entirely new and the prices are very much
less than you have been paying for equal value.
For 10 Cents
Ladies' Comets Covers: Children's lirawers, to (i years; Hoy*' and Girls'
1 willed Muslin Waist.-: Children's Skirts, I to •» year.-, and Infant's Dresses,
Neck and Sleeves lulled with Lace. for 10c.
For 15 Cents
Ladies Corset Covers, edged with lace or honiestitehed rufHes: Ladies'
Drawers, with nitHes: Childrens' J'lain or Unfiled Drawers, sizes '1 to 8; Childrens'
M aists and Infants' Dnsses will. \okc and itiscrHon, for 15 els.
For 55 Cents
Ladies Gowns, either square or V neck, tucked yoke or lace or embroidery
insertions; Ladies Drawers with Flounce and lucks: Ladies' Long and Short
Skirts, with hemstitched ruffle; Corset Co\ers daintily trimmed with lace and
ribbon, and Infants' Dresses, lor 25c.
For 50 Cents
Ladies' Corset Covers with lace embroidery and ribbon; Ladies' Drawers
with deep flounce edged with embroidery or lace; Ladies' Long Skirts; Ladies'
Short Skirts with lace edge—several styles of gowns to choose from, fur 50c
For 75 Cents
Ladies CIOWIIH with tucked yoke, lace embroidery insertion; Ladies' Long
Skirts, with tucked flounce tr insertion arid lace edge: Ladies' Drawers with deep
flounce trimmed with tucks and embroidery or lace, A large line of Corset Covers
daintily trimmed with fine lace and embroidery, excellent values for 75c
For si.o()
\\ e show a large lineot Ladies Muslin. and' Cambric Uuderwear elaborately
trimmed with fine laces and embroideries: the best assortment we ever showed lor
$ 1.00
In connection with ibis special sale of Muslin Undeiwear we will have dis.
played a large line of ,the finer gra.les ol Muslin and Cambric Under Garments,
that are elaborately trimmed with dainty laces, embroidery ami ribbons. (Quality
considered, the prices will be very low.
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LAPORTE, SULLIVAN COUNTY PA., THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 1905.
I THE CHANGE
Conducted by
J. W. DARROW. Ch&Jh&m, N. Y. t
Press Citrrcspouilent .Vcir I'irrk State
Grange
TH€ BARGE CANAL.
Senator Amliler of thee w York
Mate tiruiiKi' LoglNlntivc Commit
tee Z'nvorH IteMiitinjlMMlou.
Senator Ilenry S. Ambler, who was
ane of the most ardent opponents of
She barge canal scheme in the legisla
ture last winter, will introduce at ilie
earliest opportunity at the next session
of the New York state legislature a
1,111 for the resubmission of the propo
sition to the voters of the state unless
prior action may lie taken by the Icgis
lature for the repeal of the act. Sena
tor Ambler argues that the expendi
ture of $101,000,000, as now cnutem
plated, will not suffice for the pur
pose, but that it will require at least
.$300,000,000 to complete the canal. If
the canal is constructed he believes it
will be a huge burden upon the agri
cultural interests of the state and upon
real estate in the cities. lie further
says that there lias been a radical
change in the opinion of many who
supported the measure before, as they
did not then, have full information as
to the possibilities of cost of construc
tion nor that it would be inadequate
to the purpose. lie believes that the
canal should lie made a national wa
terway and its construction paid for
by the national government. He has
recently caused to be sent to the mas
ters of the subordinate granges in the
state a communication asking that
they forward a petition signed by their
members to the canal board asking
that no more expenditures be incurred
for the barge canal until such time as
the legislature shall convene and con
sider the proposition anew.
Xew York State Dntrymen'* Aaaodn
tlon.
The New York state dairymen's an
nual convention will be held in Herki
mer, N. Y., on liec. 13-15. This is one
of the strongest agricultural organiza
tions in the Kmpire State, and its aim
is educational in every particular, it
is self sustaining, although it receives
no sj.af 1 .- a'i;>ropriation. AinongV>'e
speakers will be ex-Governor Hoard
o£ "Wisconsin, l 'r. \V. 11. Jordan of |
Geneva experiment station, Professor
Pearson of Cornell and Dr. Hills of j
Vermont, and several others will be in-,
vited. It has been decided to elimi-!
nr.te the exhibition of dairy appliances
from the convention for the reason j
that most of the prominent houses J
who deal in dairy supplies are now
making exhibits at St. Louis at great
expense, and the exposition does not
close until a late date, which will ren
der it quite impossible for them to
make a creditable showing at tiie con
vention. Grangers of central New
York will attend this meeting in large j
numbers.
I
Jurisdiction of Kntionnl and S»ale j
(ira ntcca.
The national grange has jurisdiction
over all the granges, issues charters,
makes the laws, except that each state
grange of course makes its own by
laws, which must conform to the na
tional grange constitution and laws.
Each state grange has jurisdiction over
its county or district and subordinate
granges. In some of the New England ;
states instead of county limits there I
are district jurisdictions. The subor
dinate granges are the local divisions. |
Usually there is but one subgrange to |
a township, but there may be more if [
they conform to the grange law that no |
two granges shall be nearer together
than five miles.
Antl-Oleo LeglHlatlou.
There will be business for the legis
lative committee of the national
grange before congress this winter. It!
is stated that the oleo manufacturers |
have organized tin association and are j
soliciting contributions from o'.co deal-j
ers in the United States to raise funds j
to repeal the ten cent tax law this win- j
ter. There is no doubt that a large
sum of money will be raised for this
purpose, as the tax on each dealer will
be $25. As the grange has been ardent
ly in favor of the ten cent tax, it was
largely through its influence that the
law was enacted. It behooves the sub
ordinate granges to petition their con
gressmen at once that the law be not i
repealed.
A County Kiiuril of Tritdc.
The I'omona or county grange of
Androscoggin county. Me., is organiz- j
Inu a board of trade. Each of the i
eighteen subordinate granges of that
county is to appoint a representative j
its financial agent, and these, with a
representative of the I'omona grange, I
will form a board of trade to look i
after the interests of members of the :
Order in the county.
Count)' Lecturer* - Conference.
If the lecturers of ail the subordinate!
granges in a county would occasionally j
meet for consultation on their work
they would find the results exceedingly j
profitable. Such a conference could be j
held at the time of ijio I'omona grange
meeting, or porluips they would find i
more time at t'.ieir disposal if the con
ferencc was held on some other date. I
NOPDMONT CHEMICAL WORKS
One of the Greatest in the Country.
SHIPS ITS PRODUCT TO ALL PARTS OF THE WOPLD.
A PROGRESSIVE CONCERN WITH LARGE OUTPUT.
The Employees Are Well Paid, and '.he Relations ol Employer
and Employees Are of the Most Cordial Kind.
I
A prominent industry of Sullivan ;
county is the Nordmont Chemical
Company's' acid plant located one- 1
fourth mile above Nordmont, occu
pying, a site of several acres aD>n _r
the banks of the Mnncy creek and
stands as a sentinel to the long \\ hid
ing valley reaching to the headwaters
of the stream that supplies it with
an abundance of water. This enter
prise was started in the Spring of
I *OO, by the Mutton I'(v« Chemical
l Co. who were at that time operating
I a similar plant at Emmons, erected
lat that plate in 1808. This enter
| prising firm operated the two plants
until last year when they sold their
J interests to other parties. The Kin
| mons plant is now operated by the
Fishing Creek Mfg. to. An inter-j
est in the Nordmont plant was pur- i
chased by business men of Scrunton |
and W'iikeslJarre, forming a com-;
: pany known as the Nordmont Cheni- (
I ical Company. This company in |
their purchase of the acid works ut ;
Nordmout, included the stave factory !
at l.aporte and vasts tracts of limber j
land extending to the vicinity of
Rickett and estimated to comprise
over JOOO acres. .
After the purchase was made the j
! acid works closed for alterations and \
enlargement to meet the increasing '
demands of the trade. A new plant I
was erected by the side of the old one |
in which was installed mod* rn equip- 1
irient and labor-saving deviets which I
shows a marked contrast with the
old part of the present plant. The
new part roughly estimating must
have cost a sum not less than SOO,OOO 1
in its construction. The old part in j
its erection is said to have costs2o,ooo :
however these figures cannot be)
given as correct. The plant resumed
operation on the Ist of November,
1004.
The News Item editor was recently
entertained for several hours at this
hive of activity and was given much
valuable information in the varied
process of extracting alcohol from
hardwood timber and the many uses
made of the products.
When coming in view of the plant
one is first attracted by the .six large)
smokestacks towering high in the |
air and by the busy appearance of
workmen hurrying from place to j
place. On entering one is further!
impressed with the fact that it is
an industry which ranks with the
most prominent in the manufactur-
ing world. It has a floor space of
over 1:1000 square feet. A boiler;
capacity of .100 h. p. is required at i
the new plant. The old and new
plants are worked independently of!
eaehother, excepting the distill room :
where the refining of raw liquor
is done. There arc twelve pairs ol
retorts in the old part, each holding
1 \ cords each, which are tilled by
hand. In the new part huge ovens
take the place of retorts. Four of
j
{ these ovens each holding six cords,
are quickly tilled by three iron cage
' like cars each containing two cords
of fifty-two-inch wood which arc
loaded in the yard and run into the
ovens where the distillation takes
place. Sixteen cords of wood for the
old part and twenty-four cords for
the new part istheduily consumption
when working at full capacity. Each
month seven hundred bushels of
time is used in the manufacture of
acetate of lime. Four hundred tons
of coal is consumed monthly for heat
ing the ovens and retorts and gene
rating steam. From the forty cords
I of wood consumed daily, over thirty
cars of charcoal are shipped monthly.
HOW TICK DISTI i.mxi; is lIOXK.
As soon as the wood cars have
been run into the ovens, two massive
| iron doors are wedged securely shut
1 making the ovens air tight. In this
! manner the wood is given a baking
i process. At the end of each oven
|is a large iron tank into which the
j smoke from the wood passes. Many
copper pipes are connected to these
tanks which are called condensers,
j in these condensers a gas is generat
!' d which is conveyed by pipes to the
Uoilcr furnace where it serves as
j fuel. Through another pipe loading
from each of the condensers pours
a steady stream of liquor which is
{called pyrolignous acid and contains
: the elements that make wood alcohol
! and acetic acid, the latter being con
verted into acetate of lime through a
process of an introduetion.of lime
by distillation. From this product
! all the different salts of acetate are
j made such as soda acetate, led acetate
(etc. Acetate of lime is found to h<
I the most expeditious way of hand
ling acetic acid and for that reason
the lime is introduced as an absorb
ent. Acetate of lime is also used as
one of the principal ingredients in
the manufacture of smokelss powder.
It is us <1 exteusiv«ly in for niing
component parts of chloroform, white
| iead, celluloid and various other sim
ilar articles. The market for this
product is principally abroad.
The wood alcohol finds its market
I mostly in America, only a small
1 portion being exported. It is used
us a better substitute for grain alco
! hoi where a more powerful solvent
!is needed. It is deadly poison and
ils use is confined entirely to ehomi
cat purposes. In distilling the raw
I liquor,, or pyrolignous acid, wood
: tar is obtained. After the acid has
I been extracted from the wood, char
|coal of the best grade remains and is
found to be a most profitable bi-pro
,duet for the market, it being used in
large quantities by iron foundries
for use in melting-furnaces. Char
coal is also used extensively for
making gunpowder, it forming the
body and serves as an absorbant of|
the explosive substances.
It is estimated that this factory
75 TS. PER YEAR
! has it timber supply to keep it in
operation for thirty years. A force
i of twenty men are employed at the>
works and about sixty workmen are
; engaged in cutting and hauling the
: Wood.
Mr. \Y. E. Smith, a graduate In
chemistry, is foreman of the works.
The directing force and energy of
this establishment is It. Kessler, Jr.,
general manager, who is constantly
widening the saies territory to meet
the requirements of increased pro.
duction, and is one who takes pride
in being progressive and up-to-date
in business affairs. In Mr. Kessier's
'•Mice are seen two striking mottos
hanging where the eye cannot escape
lhem. < >iie i*, "I>o il Now!" another
cads, "Me who takes his time, gen
rallv takes other people's too."
11 is ellieient bookkeeper Mr. Ernest
totsford is the only office assistance
te dials necessary to keep the busi
tess end of this successful enterprise
ii uniform motion.
The officers of the company are
I'lieo. (i. Wolf, President, Scran ton;
i. A. W.itres, Vice.Pres., Scranton;
<'. M. Ililem.in, Treasurer, I'ittston.
Vi s; D-lh fiutil Becomes the Bride
of Mr. M. L. Potter.
A very pretty wedding look place
it the risidence" of Mr. and Mrs.
lohn Dyer, liicketts, Pa., when
heir neice, Until X. Putties was
narried to Milton 1.. Potter, son of
Mr. and Mrs. Wintield Potter of
Lopez. The ceremony was perform
ed Wednesday afternoon, December
JB, at three o'clock by llev. J. F.
i lower, in the presence of the imme
liate relatives. The bride was at
tended by Miss Pauline Meeks, and
15. ('. Potter, brother of the groom
was best man. After the ceremony
m excellent winkling dinner wi.s
served and enjoyed by all. Soon af
erward the bride and groom disap
peared from their friends until the
•veiling train came in when they ap
peared on the platform amid a show
er of rice.
A very enjoyable reception was
endered the bride and groom at the
lome of the hitter's parents at Lopez,
Thursday evening, December 2i>.
I'he happy couple received many
useful presents and start out on the
sea of wedded life with the best
wisVes of a host of friends. They
vill commence housekeeping the
irst of February at Laquin, where
the groom holds a good position as
•lerk in the company store.
Advance of Ten Per Cent in Svjar.
Sugar was advanced ten per cent,
ast week on all grades ot the New
York exchange and the prices will
nost likely continue to advance for
some time. At this time last year
the price of granulated sugar was
luoted as 1.55; now the quotation is
A prominent grocer says that
lie high prices are due to the failure
of the European and Cuban sugar
•rops, and that in the southern states
he planters are reboiling the syrup
md turning it back to sugar, as they
ire paid nearly double for it in this
form. The refiners refuse to guar
antee their shipments for thirty
lays, as tney formerly did, and they
>vill not allow the wholesalers to
"o speculate before hand. They
>»iust order the exact amount they
want.
"Love Lav&hs at Locksmiths."
The Hughesville Independent of
last week says: A new version of
•'love laughs at locksmiths" was en
icted at Picture Itocks last week.
Itev. A. S. Williams, the Methodist
minister, performed the marriage
I ceremony for David Converse and
Mrs. Sarah llulismith. Because o r
the prevelanee of diphtheria in hi
household, pastor Williams and his
family are quarantined. Hut hoist
ing a window, and while Converse
■ind Mrs. Huffsmith stood on the
sidewalk six feet away, the mar
riage ceremony was solemnized.
The payment of the fee, however,
was deferred until the preacher is
able to get out.
Congress reassembled after the
holiday recess, Monday. The liill
creating two states out of Oklahoma
and Indian Territory and Arizona
anp New Mexico was called up and
postponed. Not much will be done
during the present week.