x » * fditoriaily Speaking: : The Real Why is the State Department the erection of traffic signals at tersection in Shavertown? Murderers of Highways so obstinate about the dangerous Center Street in- This isn’t a matter for blind adherence to rules or policies laid down in Harrisburg. The problem of erecting traffic lights in Shavertown is one that can be effected through the plain applica- tion of common sense. In refusing to listen to the pleas of citizens who are interested in Highway Safety, the officials of ‘the Department of Highways are taking the responsibility on themselves for any blood spilled at Center Street. A fatal accident there will be murder. And if it happens the State Highway Department will be the murderer. Any body with a grain of sense knows that it is going to happen there one of these late afternoons—one of these evenings. The Highway Department can continue to block the erection of lights. the responsibility will rest where and it will come. It can continue to tangle all efforts in red tape; but it belongs when death comes — ° The officials of the State Department of Highways talk a good line of safety but they fail to put it into practice. For two years now they have plead with the preach highway safety in their newspapers of Pennsylvania to editorials, news columns, and through newspaper advertisements which they have asked the publishers to sell to local sponsors . They have furnished the news- papers with lurid pictures of fatal accidents; bombarded them with statistics on the rise of rural highway deaths; but they have refused flatly to approve the erection of a single traffic light in the Back Mountain area. That would save a life. Dallas Borough Council, backed by an aroused public opinion, took the bull by the horns and approval. erected its lights without State The lights remain up, but pettyfogging “traffic en- gineers and so-called experts” still meddle around with ex-post facto suggestions. What the Department of Highways needs is more traffic ex- perts with common sense and fewer who got their knowledge out of the Department's book of rules. : Why is the Highway Department so obstinate about the erec- tion of a traffic light in Shavertown? Here's your answer. - The Department's Code says five persons must be killed at a particular spot before the Department will approve a traffic light. There is one solution to Shavertown’s trafic problem. Let the people buy the lights by public subscription, erect them, and then defy the State to take them down. Let the Department of High- ways be the murderers! x ROM PILLAR By Mrs. T. M. x Xx TO POST B. Hicks, Jr. Tur DaLras Post MORE THAN A NEWSPAPER, A COMMUNITY INSTITUTION JA Vol. 57, No. 41 who * have volun- Eighty women teered their services during the Com- munity Chest Drive which opens to- day gathered Monday night at a Kick- off Dinner in Shavertown Fire House FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10, 1947 to hear leaders say that the Back Mountain area annually receives more in service than it pays into the chest. In Dallas alone, visiting nurses made 1,525 calls last year. The Chest pays Back Mountain Workers Gather At Kickoff Dinner $5 for every three visits. There were 1,206 free or part time hospitaliza- tion cases. There were eighteen fam- ily and child welfare cases and 323 services were extended to the blind, crippled and tubercular. This year marks the seventy-fifth { anniversary of the organization and ! incorporation of Maple Grove Meth- i odist Church. / { The congregation was incorporated i under the laws of Pennsylvania by ia charter drawn up on January 8, 1872 and recorded on January 9, { 1873. | The present church building was | erected during the same year on a | piece of land deeded to the trustees [by Simeon and Sarah Lewis for one dollar. No record is available con- | cerning the original dedication of the : church, but according to Barney During this week dedicated to Fire Prevention, everybody in the community Davenport, one of the oldest residents has had an opportunity to learn a great deal about the cause of fires, their prevention, and what to do if a fire does get started. Fires don't ordinarily just happen, they are caused by rank carelessness. Al- most every fire could have been prevented. True, if your house is struck by lightning, that classifies as God and relieves you of dire sibility. Us ing to comp sults. The insurance W e around before embers have cooled, but the amount you are entitled to will not begin to build you another house of the size and quality of the one which is now represented by a smoking excavation in the middle of what was once a beautiful lawn. There isn’t much you can do about lightning, but there are any number of , things you can do to prevent the com- mon run of costly conflagrations. After all, only! a: very small percentage of fires are caused by lightning, direcl SpOn- You can’t pick up a metropolitan newspaper without noting a grisly item about some child's having burned to death because he was playing with matches. Who left the matches where the child could reach them? Are your own matches in as safe a place as your lye and your ammonia? The lighting of a match is a minor miracle. Any child will try to duplicate the fascinating little explosion and the tiny burst of flame. Have you a fire extinguisher on each floor? A fire that starts with a spark may grow uncontrollable in a matter of seconds. You haven't time to get help, you must have help at hand and know how: to use it. An electric iron neglected when the phone rings can burn through the ironing board cover and ignite the curtains. Disconnect the iron when you leave it, even for only a moment. This insures its being actually turned off. There is such a thing as spontaneous combustion, but here again it is usually the result of carelessness. Oily cloths, paint rags, cotton-waste soaked with grease, should never be shut up in a closet. There is a house in Kingston, built several years ago, whose entire interior had to be redecorated before the family could move into it. A painter had stuffed the pockets of his overalls with painty rags and shut them into a closet, the rags had gener- ated heat enough to catch fire, and before the blaze was detected in the empty house, costly damage had been done. 3 During the fall housecleaning it pays to get rid of everything that might be considered a fire hazard. Don’t use the attic or that space un- der the eaves as a catch-all. Those stacks of magazines, those cartons of excelsior, are fuel to feed a roaring blaze. And do leave plenty of room be- tween piles of necessary articles. Al fireman might have to grope his way | through a clutter, wasting valuable time and causing still further damage. ! Most important of all, bear in mind | that appealing baby on the posters. That baby is definitely not fireproof. The life of your baby is wholly in your hands, and it is a grave respon- sibility. There is nothing so helpless as a baby, nothing so horrible as the knowledge that neglect of proper pre- cautions has caused his death. an Act of® ; Company. Fire Prevention Program At Lehman Lehman Township Volunteer Fire Company will present an interesting “Fire Prevention™ program in the High School auditorium, Friday evening. Beginning at 8 the program will feature selections by Lehman band. Winners of the Fire Prevention es- says will be anounced and presentation of awards will be made by Jack Gra- ham, president of the Lake Silkworth Volunteer Fire Company and H. L. Hendricks, president of the Lehman Volunteer Fire Company. Chief Lanceford Sutton will give a short talk on ‘Keeping the Lehman Firemen Happy.” Charles Nuss will discuss the progress of the Lehman Two reels of comedy movies followed by, “Crimes of Care- lessness” will climax the evening's en: tertainment. A large crowd is expected. The pro- gram is presented as a public service and no admission will be charged. Committee in charge: Charles Nuss, Edgar Nulton, L. E. Beisel, Lanceford Sutton, James Davenport and H. L. Hendricks. Church Training School To Open October 15 Dallas Subdistrict Leadership Train- ing School, sponsored by the co-oper- ating churches of the Back Moun- tain Area, will be held in the Shaver- town Methodist Church Wednesday evening, starting October 15 through November 19. Rev. Frederick Rein- furt is dean of the school. Courses to be offered are: “A Christian Message for the Present Day World” by T. Ross Paden, executive secretary of Wyoming Valley Council of Churches; “The Growth of Chris- tian Personalty During Childhood” by Mrs. Thomas Shelburne of Trucksville; “How to Administer Sunday Church School” by Adelaide Hartpence, direc- tor of religious education First Pres- byterian Church, Wilkes-Barre; “Jesus and His Teachings” by Rev. Frederick Reinfurt, pastor of Dallas Methodist Church. Field Trial Luzerne and Wyoming County Coon Club will hold a field trial at Sgarlat Lake, Sunday, October 12. The public is invited. All dog owners are to bring their dogs. First i heat will start at 11:00 o'clock. Lehman Turkey Supper The annual fall bazaar and turkey supper will be served by the Lehman W.S.C.S. at the church, October 7. of the Pike's Creek area, it was dedi- | cated on a cold and blizzardy Sunday in January 1873. The pastor was Francis Asbury King, a namesake of the first bishop of the Methodist church in’ America and a colorful figure in the history of Methodism in Wyoming Valley. The parsonage was erected several | years later under the pastoral leader- 1 ship of Philip Houck and G. W. | Leach. It was completed in the early 1880’s. Prior to that time the pastor lived at Lehman, and Maple Grove Tis part of the Lehman charge. The original church was a frame { building with shuttered, plain glass | windows. The present vestibule and belfry are a later addition. In the ' beginning there were two doors, one j door used by the men, as was the “custom in those days, and the other used by the women and children. The memoriol stained glass windows | were installed and dedicated in 1917 under the leadership of Dr. Mark + A. Dawber, the pastor. The social hall was erected in 1915. ! "At the time of organization, the policy of the Methodist church was ito organize small groups called i “classes” under the direction of a “class leader.” The early class leaders included F. W. Kindred, Joseph ! Booth, John Moore, Jonas Hoppes, 'Q. N. Marcy, Benjamin VanHorn, Nathan Klinetob, Charles Steele, H. G. DeLong, Robert Park, and Silas Ide. It was out of these ‘‘classes™ that the other churches on the charge quickly grew. {- The following men have served as pastors: F. A. King 1872 J. B. Wilson 1877 Philip Houck 1878—1881 G. W. Leach 1881—1884 GE. Ace 1884—1887 J. W. Harrison 1887—1889 William Rawlings 1889—1891 J. iW. Price 1891—1894 £. D. Cornell 1894—1897 J. A. Transue 1898-—1899 T. J. Vaughan 1899—1901 Henderson Harned 1901—1903 G. W. Craig 1903—1904 B. L. Lyon 1904—1907 J. R. Austin 1907—1908 L. W. Karschner 1908—1909 W. I. Randle 1909—1912 C. M. Griffith 1912—1913 L. W. Karschner 1913—1914 C. E. Cook + 1914—1916 M. A. Dawber 1916—1919 E. R. Roberts 1920—1923 F. S. Crispell 1923—1924 P. H. Heller 1924—1928 Alfred Backus 1928-—1929 R. L. Cornell 1929—1930 C. B. Henry 1930—1932 N. D. Henry 1932—1934 G. L. Sweet 1934—1938 i M. E. Kroehler 1938—1940 G. C. Snyder 1940—1941 W. A. Forred 1941—1943 J. A. Fiske 1943—1947 Attend Meeting Russ DeRemer and Tom Harrison attended a Philco dealers meeting in Scranton Wednesday evening. Plans were discussed for “‘Philco Week”, tenatively scheduled for the week of October 20-25, when many new Philco model radios will be on display at dealer's outlets. Maple Grove Methodist Church Founded Seventy-Five Years Ago Directors Will Discuss School Consolidation Township Board Takes First Step Toward Cooperative Effort Taking the first frep to encourage consolidation of high schools in the Back Mountain arga, Dallas Township School Board at fits meetin uesday night unanimouslin_ins ed its sec retary, Floyd Chamberlain, to draw up solicitors of Back Mountain school boards to a general meeting to discuss common school problems. Prime purpose of the meeting, the directors said, is to discuss the possibil- ity of establishing a consolidated high school in a centrally located area. It was brought out that many Back Mountain school directors as well as representatives of county and State educational departments’ think that such a high school is needed here; and that it would give the students a com- plete well-rounded curriculum as well as eliminate many of the increasing school problems brought about .by rapidly expanding enrollments. Because of the combined resources and appropriations brought about by consolidation, it is believed that no financial hardship would be worked on any township. In the words of one Dallas Township director, a con- solidated district would add materially to the progressive growth and develop- ment of this whole area.” The date of the meeting will be an- nounced when the invitations are sent. The Board awarded the contract for laying asphalt tile in the new cafeteria to John Girvan on his low bid. It is expected that the cafeteria will be in operation on November 1. The Board also voted to install an untraviolet, germicidal lamp in the i Primary Grade to sterilize the air and destroy air-borne bacteria. Similar lamps are now in operation in Wilkes- Barre Day School and other Luzerne county schools. The lamp is expected to reduce the incidence of respiratory infection among students who will be protected by its rays. Those attending were Directors Floyd Chamberlain, Thomas Moore, Walter Elston, Donald Evans, Super- vising Principal Raymond Kuhnert and Solicitor Frank Townend. Football Mothers Plan Annual Dinner Kingston Township Football Mothers Club met Wednesday night at Trucksville Fire Hall to make plans for the annual Football Dinner to be held at the close of the football season. Mrs. Cedric Griffith, presided, and announced that Booster tickets will be sold from November 19 to 27th. Chairman of the dinner committee is Mrs. James Martin who will be as- sisted by Mesdames Hons, Gelsleicher, Long, Richards, Dilcer, Handley and Cleasby. Attending were: Mrs. Wallace Per- rins, Mrs. Howard Gilsleicher, Mrs. Stanley Henning, Mrs. Elwood Lutsey, Mrs. Fred Handley, Mrs. J. A. Martin, Mrs. Barl Hons, Mrs. D. B. Dilcer, Mrs. C. Griffith, Mrs. Jacob Harrison, Mr. Dewey Richards and Mrs. Lincoln Long. The next meeting will be held at the home of Mrs. Elwood Lutsey, Summit Street, Shavertown. | Book Club Meeting Boob Club members will meet at the Library, Wednesday, October 15, jat 2 o'clock, 8 : resolutions inviting all members and Fiske Is Called To Laceyville Will Preach First Sermon On Sunday Rev. Joseph A. Fiske, pastor of the Maple Grove Methodist charge for the past four years, has been/called by the people of Laceyville antewilt begin his duties there this Sunday. Rev. Fiske was relieved of his duties at Maple Grove last Thursday evening during a special meeting of the charge which was presided over by District Superintendent Roswell Lyon. No successor has been announced. : Rev. Fiske was an accepted supply minister during the. war years, joining the conference upon completion of his studies at Drew Theological Semi- nary this spring. His previous charge was composed of the Maple Grove, Meeker, Loyalville and Mooretown churches. His present charge includes Skiner’s Eddy, Silvara, South Auburn and West Auburn. He will reside in the parsonage at Laceyville. Rev. Fiske replaces Rev. Ronald Wyckoff, an ‘accepted supply minister, who will serve at Rankokus, N. TJ. while completing his ministerial studies at Temple University, Philadelphia. Father And Son Dinner Planned By Lehman Class Men's Bible Class of Lehman Meth- odist Church will hold its Father and Son dinner Thursday evening, Octo- ber 23. Any father and son are welcome to attend. Serving will start at seven to be followed by music and other entertainment. There will not be any speeches. Last year eighty men and boys at- tended. Tickets may be obtained from any member of the class and should be purchased before October 19th, Woman's Club Hears Talk On Pa. Dutch Art Mrs. T. M. B. Hicks Jr. gave an enlightening and entertaining illustra ted talk on Pennsylvania Dutch art at the meeting of Dallas Woman's Club at Irem Temple Country Club Wednesday evening. Business consisted of a report by Mrs. Fred Eck on the North East Conference of Woman's Clubs; pre senting of the Club scrap book of 3ack Mountain activities by Mrs. Al Shaffer, book to be sent to Hawaii; ippointment of Althea Gross, Pauline Clewell, Martha Elston and Martha Mascali as delegates to the Luzerne County Federation of Womans Club meeting October 21. Present at the meeting: Mesdames Robert Bodycomb, Philip Cheney, Dan Robinhold, Milford Shaver, Edna Mec- Carty, Raymond Elston, Wilson Maury, Joseph Rauch, William Rear- don, Walter Elston, Sam Thompson, H. L. Hendricks, Donald Evans, James Garey, Granville Souden, Edward Love, Eugene Lazarus, Willard Garey, Verna Isaacs, T. M. B. Hicks, W. H. Clewell, James Gross, Bernard Whit- ney, Carl Dick, Donald Harris, Joseph Schmerer, Lettie Culver, Dan Rich- ards, L. L. Richardson, Robert Scott, Paul Goddard, A. J. Pruett, Donald Williams; Misses Lola Taylor and David Jenkins, J. Vincent, Ann Nolan, Ross Lewin, Howard Bailey, Robert Wililams; Misses Lola Taylor and Viola Morrett. Library Story Hour To Start Tomorrow The Library story hour will be re- sumed tomorrow, Saturday, October 11 at 10:30 o'clock. ~ All children around ten years of age and younger are invited to come and enjoy them- selves. Mrs. Janet Smith of Lake , street will be in charge of the group 6 CENTS PER COPY Main Street Property Owners Discuss : Back Mountain Highway Deaths and DALLAS | 2 | __10 LEHMAN | 1 | 1 KINGSTON TOWNSHIP NRO TOWNSHIP BOX SCORE Serious accidents since V-J Day Hospitalized Killed 1 5 2 P 3 2 1 Sewage Disposal With Councilmen Main Street property owners who orial Library Tuesday night. Ask Council To Accept Financial Responsibility If State Refuses To Approve Their Installations What does Council demand? was the question posed by a dozen gathered to discuss sewage disposal with Dallas Borough Council at its meeting in Back Mountain Mem- The property owners, all substantial business men and women whose 2 [> GREAT GRANDPARENTS SEE THEIR THREE GREAT GRAND SONS BAPTIZED ON SUNDAY Sunday was a ted letter day in the lives of Mr. and Mrs, Frank Ruggles of Meeker, both in their seventies. They saw three great- grandsons, all born within two months, baptized at Meeker Methodist Church. Christened by Rev. Joseph Fiske were David Allen Wadas, born March 15; Jack Ruggles, born April 17 and Michael Lawr- ence Drabick, born May 4. Mrs. Wadas is the former Dorothy King. Mrs. Drabick is the form- er Janice Ruggles. Mrs. Ruggles is the former Helen O’Leary of Ontario, California. " Mr. and Mrs. Wadas have an older son, Frank. Jack and Michael are first children. Mr. and Mrs. Ruggles have ten grand- children and eleven great-grand- children. Man Instantly Killed When He Nalks Into Car Bertram Saxion, 16 Driver, Released By State Troopers Norman Honeywell, 65, of Shaver- own, was instantly killed Monday. ight at 8:45 when he apparently salked into the side of a moving automobile on the dark curve oppo- site VanCampen’s Restaurant in King- ston Township. Driver of the automobile was Ber- tram Saxton, Jr., 16, Davis Street, Trucksville, an employee in the thread drawing department at Natona Mills, whose family recently moved here from New Jersey. Because the driver was a juvenile, he was released by police in the cus- tody of his parents. Honeywell had left his home a short time before the accident ‘to go to VanCampen’s Restaurant and had taken a short cut through the fields from Pioneer Avenue to the lower road. Apparently he was just com- ing out onto the highway when he walked into the machine. A State Troopers Eugene Ware and Frank Miller investigated and sum- moned Deputy Coroner Hugh B. Hughes who pronounced Honeywell dead. Mr. Honeywell, a resident of this area for many years, was an employee of Sordoni Construction Company. He is survived by his wife and he following children: Mrs. Hazel Lohman, Mrs. Raymond Price, both >f Shavertown; Mrs. Norton New- erry of Aberdeen, Md.; Wilson C., “rucksville, and Elmer L. of Plains; Iso a sister, Mrs. Edwin Roberts, shavertown. The funeral was held yesterday fternoon at 2 with services in charge »f Rev. Howard Harrison ‘of Shaver- own Methodist Church. Interment was in Wardan Ceme- ery. Name Committee for Hallowe'en Eighth Annual Parade . To Be Biggest Of All Preliminary arrangements are being made for Dallas Borough and. Town- ship's Eighth Annual Hallowelen Par- ade to be held on Friday nights=Oc- tober 31. 3 Members of the general committee are Henry Peterson, chairman, with the following representing community organizations: Charles James, Dallas Borough Parent-Teachers; Joseph Delet-Kanic and Raymond Kuhnert, Dallas Township Parent-Teachers; Da- vid Joseph, Dallas Kiwanis Chub; Charles Lee, Harold Titman and Dan- iel Richards, Dallas Rotary Club; Mrs. Fred Eck, Dallas Woman's Club; James Besecker, Dr. Henry M. Laing Fire Company. Last year the parade was one of the largest and most successful in its ex- istence and the committee hopes to make this year’s event even more attractive for participants as well as spectators. | again this year. livelihood depends on the present as | well as future progress of the com- i munity, recently received official notices from Borough Council that they must desist from dumping raw sewage and garbage in Toby's Creek or face the prospect of $100 fines. ordinance more than a year ago to comply with requirements of the State's _anti-stream pollution laws oughs and cities for the action of their citizens who permit wastes to enter State streams. Explains Council's Stand Council President, Veigh, explained the history of the act, and the position of Council, by stating that Dallas Borough in itself is ‘not an offender since it does not operate a sewage system entering any State stream; but that certain individ- uals in the community are offenders. He explained that cities such as Wilkes-Barre and Boroughs such as Tunkhannock where present municipal systems have their outlets in the Sus- quehanna River or in other State streams are definite offenders and must remedy the situation by construction of disposal plants. By contrast, Dal- las Borough in itself is not an of- fender, but some property owners, particularly those adjacent to Toby's Creek, are offenders; and individuals persist, Dallas Borough will likewise be cited as an offender by the State. Borough Solicitor Burt B. Lewis interposed. Council, he said, has gone into the costs of a survey to determine and has found that construction of a disposal: plant here will impose a burden on the Borough of from one to three million dollars. Such an expenditure is not neces sary ‘at this time, he said, if the few offending property owners along Main and Lake Streets will do as the rest of the community has done—install septic tanks or sumps. Por more than fity years these people have had free sewage disposal while other citizens have borne: the expense of installing their own septic tanks. Council sees no reason why the rest of the community should be penal ized in order that a few may evade their obligation to public health be- cause of their location along a stream. Titman Acts *As Spokesman Harold Titman, who was apparent- ly spokesman for the property owners, asked Council if it would be willing to assume the responsibility to reim- burse Main Street property owners if, after installing septic tanks, State inspectors refuse to accept such in- stallations as satisfactory. It was the opinion of Solicitor Lewis that this was a matter to be worked out between the property owner and the State and was no con’ cern of Council. At that point one of the Council men quoted. Ralph Brickel, Main Street property owner, who was not present, as having said to him, "I am willing to install a septic tank and am going ahead with the work immedi: ately; for years I have had free sew- age disposal in Toby's Creek while others have had to install tanks and have them cleaned out periodically at their own expense.” ; It was brought out by the property owners, that they are willing to install proper sewage disposal systems, but in many instances their properties are adjacent to the creek and seepage is bound to enter that stream; during flood periods water is apt to back up into their sumps. They asked if Council would provide an engineer to help them with their construction problems. Here again, it was the contention of solicitor Lewis that it is not the re- sponsibility of the Borough to pro- vide sanitary engineering any more than it is to provide an architect for a man to build a house. Council, he said, is concerned pri- marily with facing its responsibility to the State by seeing to it that it is not an offender through the wilful action of its citizens who persist in dumping raw sewage into a State stream. That's why this ordinance was passed and that is why you will have to obey it. Plan Town Meeting Council did, however, consent to the suggestion of a spokesman, that a town meeting be held shortly in Dallas Borough High School and that rep- resentatives of the State Department of Health, State College or some other recognized authority acquaint the com- munity with the implications of the State Law as well as advise citizens how they can meet their responsibili- ties under it. . Among those in the property owners group, most of whom spoke at one time or another during the course of the session were: A, C. Devens, Wes- A (Continued on Page Eight) Council passed its sewage disposal which place responsibility upon bor. Joseph Mac- if these the sewage needs of the community | se
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