-4 The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, May 13, 1998
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“We hope it's true that an accommodation is near between the
“Ballas School District and neighboring property owners who
“object to the construction of new fields behind their homes on
“Westminster Drive. For the first time in months, both sides
appear positive about resolving this sticky issue, which affects
'=7a’small number of properties but hundreds of other families
“Because of the shortage of playing fields for youth sports.
=: Atty. Bruce Phillips, who has been leading the home owners
“5 their fight against the fields, says open lines of communica-
“on have led to optimism. We hope he is right. Much has been
made on his side of perceived hardship construction of the
“fields will create, while the school has countered with evidence
- that property owners have encroached onto school land. That
i»kind of Hatfields and McCoys talk hasn't accomplished much,
iba a little compromise on each side may.
“+ In the end, there is little chance the school will not be allowed
z 210 build the fields, so it’s only right to end the standoff now, and
get to work to provide adequate recreation opportunities for all
fhtsiders of the Back Mountain.
Hey, Gov. Ridge, how
‘about fixing the roads?
Gov. Tom Ridge is touting a record of accomplishment in
' campaign ads, ads that it seems are hardly necessary towin re-
election. He mentions jobs and education, claiming credit for
a healthier economy and better achievement, attained at least
in part because of the state’s spending in those areas. But he
doesn’t talk about the condition of the roads.
Afew days of rain such as we've had lately bring out the worst
in Pennsylvania's infrastructure, as potholes yawn open on
highways and byways. The only saving grace for motorists is
they are the same holes and ridges that appear month after
‘month and year after year, because they have never been
properly repaired, so we know when to zig or zap to avert major
| Suspension damage.
“Perhaps. if he wins re-election, and the economy remains
strong, Gov. Ridge will find a way to put our roads in shape, and
to keep them that way. That legacy just might make him one of
the state’s most popular chief executives.
Publisher's notebook
Now that every shortage, accident or misfortune is being
blamed on El Nino, I expect California winemakers to jump on
the bandwagon and claim the weather phenomenon forced
them to raise prices even higher. I've written before that my
vinuous (is that a new word?) goal is to find the best cheap wine.
By cheap, I used to mean under $6 a bottle, but every wine I
once found at that level has jumped in price by at least $2 a
Bittle, some by $4 or $5. I'm not dating myself by saying Napa
‘Ridge used to go for $5.99. It's now more like $8.99, and the
wine i isn’t any better, but more people have discovered it. Same
for Monterey, which was my “best buy” a couple of years ago.
Now, the price is higher and the quality may be lower.
«= What is a dedicated, but cheap, wine drinker to do? Go
Soret way south, to Chile and Argentina, where supply seems
éndless and quality is pretty good. The first cheap wine we had
from there was Undurraga (pardon the spelling) Sauvignon
Blanc, which was delightful at under $10 for a 1.51 bottle. But
Iwas buying the ‘94 two years ago, and the shelves are still full
bf that vintage! That seems much too long for a modest wine to
last, so now we've switched to Concha y Toro, red and white,
gn it's proving to be a good substitute at $8.99 or $9.99.
=. Speaking of price, I was in one of our inadequate, overpriced
state stores the other day and a clerk pointed out the “great”
price on a bottle, announcing that it was lower than in New
York. “Wonderful,” I said, “now, what about the prices on the
other 99.9 percent of the stock?”
. If you've read any of the stories about giddy Wall Street
traders and their wine buying habits, you know that I compete
in a different league. There are restaurants in New York
charging $5,000 for a bottle of wine that sells for $1,000 in
another eating place nearby, and probably can be bought in a
liquor store for less than half that. Let's see, $5,000 divided by
$9. 99, with each bottle lasting four days, that means for the
price of one of those bottles, Charlotte and I could imbibe for
5 1/2 years! Oops, forgot, the kids are geting bigger, so maybe
we 'd only get half a decade.
Your news is welcome
“The Dallas Post welcomes submissions about Back Mountain
‘people and events. In order to plan each issue, we must adhere to self-
Jmposed deadlines, as well as those of our printer. To have the greatest
likelihood of publication, items should be received at our office by 4
‘p:im. the Friday prior to each issue. Items will be accepted until 4 p.m.
‘Mondays, although much of the paper is already assembled by that
‘time. Send or bring items to: The Dallas Post, 607 Main Road, P.O. Box
‘366, Dallas, PA 18612. Our normal business hours are 8:30 a.m. to
5 p.m., Monday through Friday. A deposit box is located at the front
‘of the building for after-hours submissions.
The Dallas Post
Published Weekly By Bartsen Media, Inc.
P.O. Box 366, Dallas PA 18612
717-675-5211
Charlotte E. Bartizek
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER
a
Ronald A. Bartizek
PUBLISHER
Kylie Shafferkoetter
REPORTER
Jessica Appolo
ADVERTISING ACCT. EXEC
VE TR Oh Whe
Ruth Proietto
PRODUCTION MANAGER
§ PRINTED WITH
44 SOYINK|
Olga Kostrobala
CLASSIFIED/TYPESETTING
Jill Gruver
OFFICE MANAGER
NINE PENNSYLVANIA
NATIONAL NEWSPAPER NEWSPAPER
ASSOCIATION ~~ Feacswess Ass FociaTioNn
Rough road ahead. Photo by Charlotte Bartizek.
Swallows, swifts, and us
A Case for
Consg ation
Alene N. Case
I started this line of inquiry by
wondering what barn swallows
and chimney swifts did before we
humans invented barns and chim-
neys. And, now, I come full circle
to the realization that swallows
and swifts have taken this pro-
clivity for human habitation much
further than any other group of
wild birds. They have taken it so
far, in fact, that purple martins
(the largest North American swal-
lows) east of the Rocky Mountains
now nest only in human-supplied
housing!
But, let's begin with the chim-
ney swifts. From what I have been
able to glean from various books
on birds, these very fast flyers
once used hollow trees as nesting
sites. In Europe, where they first
‘came to be called chimney swifts,
the forests have been managed
for hundreds of years. All dead
trees are carefully removed. It
would have been very difficult for
these birds to survive if they had
not been able to adapt to some
other nesting site. So, they have
come to use barns, silos, or aban-
doned chimneys for their roosts
and nests.
The only colony I remember
seeing in Pennsylvania (I'm sure
there are others) was on the cam-
pus of Franklin and Marshall
College in Lancaster - most inter-
esting entertainment for students
during exams.
Caves, cliffs, and branches were
once the main nesting sites for
barn and cliff swallows. They
require sturdy vertical surfaces
with easy access and have found
that buildings meet that need quite
satisfactorily. The swallows’ re-
turn from wintering grounds has
been the subject of legend and
poetry for centuries. John
Masefield wrote “It was an April
morning brisk with wind / And
overhead the first-come swallow
darted.” In California, this return
has for generations been recorded
as the time (usually in mid-March)
when the cliff swallows arrive in
the Mission San Juan Capistrano
from their winter homes in South
America. Actually, these swal-
lows not only nest in the shelter of
the mission but also on rocky
cliffs, in caves, and under the
eaves of a variety of buildings
throughout the Capistrano Val-
ley. They are of great benefit to
the farmers of the area because
they and their young eat many
kinds of insects in great quanti-
ties.
- All swallows eat insects. They
have short bills with wide bases
so that they can hold the mouth
open in a broad gape during flight
and scoop up insects on the wing.
Therefore, they consume large
numbers of the various types of
insects that are about during the
day when they feed: flies, midges,
mayflies, Japanese beetles, but-
terflies, moths, bees, flying ants,
cicadas, boll weevils and many
others. They do not generally eat
mosquitoes since these tend to be
lower to the ground and come out
more at night.
These dietary needs might give
us more clues as to why these
birds are content to live in close
proximity to people. They prefer
open space where they can fly fast
and gather lots of insects. Agri-
cultural fields are perfect. Where
in prehistoric times could a bird
find such abundance?
Purple martins were living in
gourds put out especially for them
long before Europeans “discov-
ered” America. The Native Ameri-
cans found that the martins not
only ate annoying insects but they
also acted as efficient scarecrows,
chasing away crows from corn
patches and vultures from meat
and hides hung out to dry. The
martins, on the other hand, found
the gourds larger and generally
safer than the woodpecker holes
in which they had previously built
their nests and managed to fledge
more young under these condi-
tions. Colonists, being familiar
with similar birds in the Old Coun-
try, continued and expanded the
tradition.
Now, although western purple
martins still nest in woodpecker
cavities in cacti or on cliffs, those
east of the Rockies are entirely
dependent upon housing provided
by humans. The Purple Martin
Conservation Association head-
quartered at Edinboro University
of Pennsylvania (Edinboro PA
16444; phone 814-734-5803: e-
mail pmca@edinboro.edu) pro-
vides much useful information on
the construction and care of such
housing. If you are interested in
becoming a “landlord” of a differ-
ent sort, please contact them. You
will need a fairly large area with-
out trees or large buildings. Ap-
parently boat docks are excellent
locations (Any takers from Harveys
Lake?).
Lester L. Short in his book The
Lives of Birds: Birds of the World
and Their Behavior makes the fol-
lowing statement: “For most of
us, those birds that inhabit our
backyards and city parks may
represent one of our few remain-
ing links with the natural world.”
We should be grateful that the
swallows and swifts consider us
part of their communities. Let us
continue to provide living space in
our communities for these grace-
ful birds.
WORD ON THE STREET
Q.: What was the best advice you ever received and who gave it to you?
Where asked: Back Mountain Shopping Center
JANET TRACY
Dallas
"Be true to yourself. My
minister told me that."
JASON POPLASKI
Trucksville
"My mother always told
me to do my best and to
compete with myself
instead of others."
MARGE MAREK
Sweet Valley
"My mother gave me the
best advice when she
said, ‘Still water runs
deep."
ROBERT J. RILK
Forty-Fort
"A man named Mr. Hirsh
told me to never deny
where you come from."
(0 Bl I 4
YESTERDAY
60 Years Ago - May 20, 1938
DALLAS RESIDENT GRACES
SATURDAY EVENING POST
When artist Robert Robinson,
visiting in Dallas 20 some years
ago, set out to find a typical “bad
boy” for his magazine cover found
his model in Dan Waters and that
lad, who was to grow up to be one
of the town’s most prominent citi-
zens and present secretary of its
school board, became a Saturday
Evening Post cover. Walters
chuckled this week as he recalled
his only experience as an artist's
model. “Robinson wanted a bad
boy and I guess I was it.”
Youthful aviation enthusiasts
from Dallas Borough and Dallas
Township High School will test
their model airplanes tomorrow
in a contest which will climax this
section’s observance of Air Mail
Week. The builder of the best
plane will be treated to an air-
plane ride over Dallas from Wyo-
ming Valley Airport. Trial flights
will take place in Oliver's used car
lot at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.
50 Years Ago - May 21, 1948
HILLSIDE FARMS TO HOST
HOLSTEIN BREEDERS
Conyngham-Hillside Farms,
one of the oldest breeders of Hol-
stein cattle in the east, will be
host to the Holstein breeders of
Luzerne, Columbia, Wyoming and
Lackawanna Counties, July 8 at
Hillside Farm. A program has
been arranged by William L,
Conyngham, chairman for the day,
who extends a cordial welcome to
all Holstein breeders, registered
in Northeast Pennsylvania. :
Dr. Eugene Farley, president of
Wilkes College will be the speaker
at the 50th annual Commence-
ment exercises of Monroe Towri-
ship Schools next Thursday night.
There are 15 seniors in the gradu-
ating class.
40 Years Ago - May 16, 1958...
RACE TRACK TO OPEN AT +
DALLAS OPEN THEATRE
The new quarter-midget race
track at Dallas Outdoor Theatre
will open May 24 when eight rac-
ers and 12 drivers from the Lehigh
Valley Quarter-Midget Racing
Club in Allentown will put on an
exhibition for theatre patrons. The
racers who will have a top speed of
20-25 miles an hour are exact
replicas of larger racers and will
be driven by boys and girls 6-15
years of age who are patrons of
the theatre.
Work at the Jackson Mental
Institution came to a halt May 1
when members of the Interna-
tional Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers Local 163 went on strike.
A dispute over a union stewart
dismissed by the Ross Electric
Construction Co. of Philadelphia
resulted in laying off about 95%
of the men employed. Ninety per-
cent of these men were employed
from the Back Mountain.
30 Years Ago - May 23, 1968
DALLAS SCHOOL DISTRICT
PASSES BUDGET
The tentative budget of Dallas
School District was adopted last
week by the school board at a
public meeting. Based on 48 mills,
$10 per capita tax and one half
percent earned income tax, the
budget was voted against by An-
drew Kozemchak and L.L.
Richardson. Changes can still be
made on the budget. It will be
open for public inspection for 30
days.
D.C. Roberts Fire Co. of Harveys
Lake has added a modern method
of fast communications in calls
for fire and ambulance assistance,
With the installation of a “Tele-
phone Alert-System” persons who
call the fire company number are
automatically connected with 10
Fire Phones in the homes of vol-
untary firemen, any one of whom
may turn in the alarm by activat-
ing a switch on his phone.
20 Years Ago - May 18, 1978
McDONALDS GETS OKAY TO
COME TO BMT
Kingston Township supervisors
announced at Wednesday's meet-
ing that approval has been given
by the planning and zoning com-
mission for construction of a
MacDonald's Family Restaurant
on Route 309, Memorial High-
way, Shavertown. Bullock's Tire
and Service Co., presently located
on the site has been purchased
and will be dismantled.
®