4 The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, December 23, 1998 EDITORIALS These little pigs aren't fairy tale material Some little pigs took a ride down Main Street in Dallas, then on to Pioneer Avenue in Shavertown Saturday night. Along the way, they left the mark they apparently want to be known for, cases of beer bottles and cans strewn along the roadside, leaving a trail of unsightly and dangerous trash for all the world to see. But wait, these weren't brave little pigs, like the ones who stood up to the big, bad wolf in the children’s story. No, these were cowardly little pigs, who sneak around under the cover of darkness, and who would undoubtedly head for the hills if they ever came across a wolf — or a witness. = We probably should feel compassion for someone who thinks despoiling the landscape is a meaningful way to spend a Saturday night. But before we shed tears, we demand punish- ment for actions that take away from everyone’s enjoyment of the place they live. If these cretins want to live in a sty of their own, so be it, but they can’t be allowed to impress their filthy lifestyle on the rest of us. Not that these spewers of trash are alone in their disregard for the natural beauty around us. A drive down nearly any road in the Back Mountain reveals assorted cans, bottles and bags that have been thoughtlessly — no, not thoughtlessly, but with full knowledge of their action — tossed out by drivers and passengers who care nothing for the landscape. What can we do? Perhaps not a whole lot right now, but if each of us sets a good example for our children and any other young people they come in contact with, maybe the next generation of drivers will be less likely to mess their own nest. A CHRISTMAS CLASSIC Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus The New York Sun was started in 1833 by Benjamin H. Day, then just 23. The publication - which became one of the great newspa- pers in America -was the first New York “penny paper.” The Sun ceased publication in 1950, but every Christmas its memory is revived by an editorial printed on Sept. 21, 1897. Virginia O'Hanlon, a New York City youngster, wrote this letter. Dear Editor: I'm 8 years old. Some of my friends say there is no Santa Claus. : ‘Papa says. “If you see it in The Sun, it’s so.” Please tell me the truth. Is there a Santa Claus?” Virginia O'Hanlon 115 W. 95th St. The letter wound up on the desk of Francis Pharacellus Church. an assistant editor of The Sun. A more hardened person might have thrown it away, but Church felt differently. He wrote this reply: “Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men’s or children’s, are little. In this great universe of ours, man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasp- ing the whole of truth and knowl- edge. “Yes, Virginia there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. “Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith, then no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no en- joyment except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which child- hood fills the world, would be ex- tinguished. “Not believe In Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies. You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chim- neys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? “Nobody sees Santa Claus. But that is not a sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that’s no proof that they are not there. No- body can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world. “You tear apart the baby’s rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering in the unseen world which not the strongest man, not even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, ro- mance, can push aside that cur- tain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. “Isitall real? Ah, Virginia, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding. “No Santa Claus! Thank God he lives and he lives forever. A thou- sand years from now Virginia, nay ten times ten thousand years, from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.” many forms. following guidelines: telephone number for verification. or objectionable wording. About letters, columns and editorials The Dallas Post attempts to publish opinions on a variety of topics in Editorials, which are the opinion of the managment of The Post, appear on the editorial page and are written by the editor unless otherwise indicated. Any artwork represents the opinion of the cartoonist, and columns are the opinion of the author. Letters to the editor are welcome and will be published, subject to the * Letters should not exceed 500 words. ] * No writer may have more than one letter published during a 30-day period, except as a reply to another letter. * Letters must be signed and include the writer's home town and a * Names will be withheld only if there exists a clear threat to the writer. * The Post retains the right to accept or reject any letter, and to edit letters for grammar and spelling, as well as to eliminate any libel, slander Ronald A. Bartizek PUBLISHER Jessica Appolo ADVERTISING ACCT. EXEC Ruth Proietto PRODUCTION MANAGER 2) PRINTED WITH SOY INK|_ The Dallas Post Published Weekly By Bartsen Media, Inc. P.O. Box 366, Dallas PA 18612 > 717-675-5211 Member fis: Charlotte E. Bartizek ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER OFFICE MANAGER Kylie Shafferkoetter REPORTER Olga Kostrobala CLASSIFIED/TYPESETTING Food nun Jim er Phillips “You can't celebrate Christmas without eating and drinking,” wrote James Beard, “Above all, Christmas must bring back cer- tain memories of the days of child- hood...” As far back as I can remember, (and lately that hasn't been too far!) I can recall my father bringing home eggnog during the holidays. Perhaps it was his duty as the "man of house” or maybe as James Beard wrote, my dad was making sure that our Christmas memories never faded away. Library news pA Nancy Kozemchak The Back Mountain Memorial Library was listed in the Decem- ber1998 issue of the Library Jour- nal architectural issue under the subject ‘Library Buildings. 1998". The .title of the article was “An- other year, another $543 million”. At a time when money to build libraries may be easier to come by, libraries are still finding that co- Eggnog, an American holiday tradition Eggnog has been recognized as a popular holiday beverage for over 200 years, dating back to the colonial times in Virginia and Maryland. While eggnog is usu- ally considered an alcoholic drink, it is generally based on a mixture of eggs, milk and/or cream, fla- vored with sugar, vanilla and al- ways nutmeg. With regard to food safety, the threat of Salmonella food borne illness is well documented. Since raw eggs are the main component of eggnog, you are indeed taking a risk by preparing the beverage from scratch. You are then left with two options - you can pur- chase pasterized eggnog from a reputable supplier or you can use a recipe that calls for the cooking of eggs. No matter what type of eggnog you choose, store bought or home- made, serve it with a good mea- sure joy, respect and celebration that only the holidays can bring. From Barbara Kafka's Party Food Note: Chill all ingredients be- fore proceeding. Ingredients: 1 quart milk 6 egg yolks 6-8 T. granulated sugar 1 c. brandy or rum (or 1/2 c. each) 1 c. heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks grated nutmeg Directions: For the eggnog, in a medium saucepan, bring 1/2 of the milk to a boil. In a small bowl, combine the egg yolks and sugar, whisking to combine. Remove the milk from the heat. Add a small amount of hot milk to the yolks mixture and stir. Repeat three or four times until all of the milk is added. Note: don't add all the milk at once or you'll have scrambled eggs in- stead of eggnog! Pour the egg/ milk mixture back into the sauce pan and place over medium heat, stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back ofa spoon, and/or reaches 165°F. Remove from heat, and stir in the remain- ing two cups of milk. Set in an ice bowl to cool and place in the re- frigerator until well-chilled. Incorporate the brandy and/or rum and fold in the whipped cream. Serve with a sprinkle of nutmeg. When he's not taking photos for The Dallas Post, Jim Phillips is an assistant professor of Food Pro- duction/Hotel and Restaurant Management at Luzerne County Community College. Citrus sale was a big success operative projects can satisfy everone’s needs for greater returns on the dollar. Three such projects are among the 81 new buildings LJ is reporting this year, along with 116 additions/renovations, all completed between duly 1, 1997 and June 30, 1998. There are fewer projects listed, the lowest since 1986, but this year’s 197 buildings cost $542.8 million. Can the health of public libraries be equated with the cost of their buildings? If the public is willing to spend more than half a billion dollars on new structures, it un- doubtedly consideres libraries es- sential to its well-being and fu- ture. The library’s annual fresh fruit sale conducted by the ‘Friends of the Library’ was a success with a total of 472 boxes of fruit sold. Tangerines were added to the avail- able fruit along with the oranges and grapefruits. We thank the members of the ‘Friends’ for their sponsorship of so many projects which benefit the library and for their donation of time to complete the project. The ‘Slightly Used Book Store’ in the basement of the library has proved to be a much used and very worthy project. Each Wednes- day and Saturday, the store is open to the public and so far, the caretakers of the store are pleased with the response. The bookstore is also managed by volunteers, another area of people helping with the public awareness and needs of the library. = “An Empire Wilderness” by Rob- ert D. Kaplan is sub-titled ‘travels into America’s future’. Traveling through a political and cultural landscape in transition Kaplan reveals a nation shedding a famil- iar identity as it assumes a radi- cally new one. A precise and chilling vision of a highly uncer- tain phase of its history. : The staff of the Back Mountain Memorial Library wishes its friends and patrons a very Merry Christ- ‘mas and a Happy New Year, from, Martha, Nancy, Marilyn, Marga- ret, Anna, Mary, Debbie, Jane, Millie, Bonnie, Suzette and John. » - ONLY YESTERDAY 60 Years Ago - Dec. 30, 1938 KIWANIS CLUB GIVES TO NEEDY FAMILIES Eighty two children in 31 needy families in this section received gifts of clothing from Mt. Green- wood Kiwanis Club as part of that service club's work among the underprivileged during the Christ- mas season. The Kiwanis gave away 57 pairs of shoes, 56 pairs of arctics, and three dozen woolen gloves as well as food to families in Kingston and Dallas Townships. Colored lights purchased sev- eral years ago by Dallas Business ‘Men's Association for decoration were strung up along Main Street on Christmas Eve and a large evergreen tree was raised. 50 Years Ago - Dec. 31, 1948 A.C. DEVENS BUYS HAZLETINE’S AUTO Announcement was made this week that A.C. Devens, Dallas miller, has purchased the Main Street property owned by Mr. and Mrs. Phillip Ritter and now occu- pied by Hazeltine’'s Auto Service. Devens says he has no immediate plans for the building, but pur- chased it as an investment. Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Updyke celebrated their 50th wedding an- niversary Dec. 28 with a party at their home in Demunds. They have two children living. A daugh- ter, Mrs. Russell DeRemer, is de- ceased. - 40 Years Ago - Dec. 23, 1958 BIRTH’S ESSO STATION MAY MAKE RIPLEY’S Clyde Birth's Esso Station is about to receive national publicity because of its popularity with an impatient stork that has stopped there twice to deliver babies to expectant mothers on their way to hospitals. This week Birth re- ceived a letter from Ripley's Be- lieve It Or Not asking for details and whether the night flying stork might have become confused by the big neon sign advertising Birth’s. You could get - Hams, 59¢ 1b.; turkeys, 18 lbs & up, 37¢ lb; White bread, 17¢ loaf; pumpkin pies, 45¢ ea.; potatoes, 10 1b. bag 59¢; broccoli, Ig. bch., 25¢; Vir- ginia Lee ice cream 1/2gal. pkg. 79¢. 30 Years Ago - Dec. 30, 1968 POST OFFICE HONORED FOR BEAUTIFICATION A special ‘Citation of merit’ for cooperation in President Johnson's Natural Beauty Pro- gram will be presented Friday, Jan. 3 at 2 p.m. at the:Dallas Post Office. Postmaster Buckley will accept the award on behalf of the citizens of Dallas and the Unitar- ian Universalist Fellowship Group of Wyoming Valley. The citation is presented after the postal facility has received a superior rating in a very rigid inspection by postal .of- ficials from regional headquarters and reviewed carefully by the As- sistant Postmaster General for Facilities. 20 Years Ago - Dec. 27,1978" DALLAS BORO MAYOR TO VETO BUSINESSTAX ~~ Dallas Borough Mayor James Davies will veto the boraeigh's pro- posed $10 occupational privilege tax. The tax proposed by the borough council is.a.new fundraising device this year. The borough already maintains a prop- erty tax of nine mills, “a: $5 per capita tax on all residents over the age of 18, a 1% real estate transfer tax. Davies refused comment ex- cept for the statement that he will veto the proposed tax by return- ing it to council at the next'sched- uled meeting. Proposed tax would be levied by the borough but would be split between the borough and Dallas School District. Better to Give. Even better to receive. ‘The Dallas Post « Q
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers