Turner's Public Spirit, August 25, 2023
A look back in time to a century ago
By Bob Oliphant
Center. Several of the ladies from the Center will attend the outing given by Loyal Mattawanakee lodge of Odd Ladies in Provincetown on this Saturday.
There will be a stereopticon lecture on “The thrilling tale of the Philippines” at the Congregational church on Sunday evening at 7:30.
Mr. and Mrs. Oscar R. Spalding and Mr. and Mrs. John Greig have returned from an auto trip to Canada. The Greig children were the guests of their grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. D. L. Greig, during the absence of their parents.
Harwood L. Wright is spending a week in Quincy.
The local school will open on the Tuesday following Labor day.
John G. Fletcher spent the weekend in town.
At the annual picnic of the Middlesex County Farm Bureau and Middlesex County Extension Service, Westford secured a banner, having secured 43 points, or fourth place, in the games of the day. Elizabeth Carver, the twelve-year-old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William R. Carver, competed against a number of older women in the county croquet match and secured the championship, finally defeating Mrs. T. W. Simpson, of Chelmsford, in a close game. Alister MacDougal [sic], a former Westford boy, is the new manager of the Middlesex County Extension service.
Mrs. William P. Williams, of the south part of the town, sustained a broken leg when she fell at her home on last week Friday.
The local tax rate for the year will be $32 per thousand, this being a reduction of $3 on the thousand over last year’s rate. The reduction is one of the largest in this section for a previous year’s rate, and is welcomed by the taxpayers.
Work is progressing on the regrading of the common. The new tractor has been used in a large part of the work.
Mrs. Fred Clement and children, of Charlestown, are the guests of Mr. and Mrs. Peter Clement [Fred’s parents].
Mrs. John Felch underwent an operation at the Lowell General hospital on last Saturday and is getting along nicely.
The Village Improvement society held a meeting on Thursday evening.
Miss Anna Coyne is spending a week at her summer home in the south part of the town.
The Decatur family reunion was held at Nabnassett pond on last week Thursday and proved a very enjoyable occasion. An excellent dinner was served by Caterer Harvey, of Lowell, after which a fine entertainment was presented, consisting of vocal and instrumental selections, fancy dances and readings, and during the afternoon music was furnished and old-fashioned dances enjoyed. One of the features of the day was the ball game between the New Hampshire Decaturs or descendants and members of the Massachusetts branch of the family. Warren Wright, of South Chelmsford, pitched for the Massachusetts Decaturs. At the business meeting Frank I. Decatur, of Boston, was elected president, Fred Naylor, Groton, vice pres.; Carrie Purcell, Dover, N.H., sec. The next meeting will probably be held in New Hampshire.
Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Bridgeford have purchased a new Ford sedan.
Services at the Congregational church are expected to be resumed on Sunday, September 2, although at this writing the name of the preacher of that date is not yet available. On the following Sunday, September 9, it is expected that Rev. Dorr A. Hudson, of Westbrook, Me., who at one time had a pastorate in North Chelmsford, will be the preacher. He is very favorably remembered. On September 16, Rev E. D. Disbrow, of West Boxford, is expected to be the preacher. His pastorate in West Boxford has met with great success, especially with the young people. He is an enthusiastic music lover. He is also chairman of the Boxford school committee.
The assessors find a total valuation this year of $3,816,746, an increase of over $600,000 over last year. Of this amount $1,161,266 is tangible personal property; the real estate valuation of $2,655,480 is divided between $1,933,685 for buildings and $781,795 on land. The town’s appropriations amount to $129,348.06. For the payment of maturing notes and interest $8513.91 is required. There is also a state tax of $9240, highway tax of $989.80, state tax for auditing account $282.98, state moth tax $83.63, a total of state taxes of $10,596.41. The county tax is $5686.22. As a partial offset to these items the town expects to receive from income tax $8745.08, corporation tax $8761.89, bank tax $460.06, street railway tax from the state $222.06. Various other estimated receipts amount to $13,388.38. The net result means a taxrate [sic] this year of $32 per thousand.
About Town. In reading under Townsend news last week, under the heading of “Bush Family Gathering,” it reminded me that Dr. Arthur D. Bush and John Adams Taylor of ye Old Oaken Bucket farm are both teachers in the University of North Dakota at Grand Forks and had planned to come to Massachusetts together, but circumstances arose that prevented it. We are planning to take an outing at Townsend before the sleighing gets too good or the “frost is on the punkin” and call on some relatives and non-relative acquaintances.
Mr. and Mrs. Hodson [sic Hodgson], of West Chelmsford, have a new baby—John [sic George] Henry—who arrived last week. This makes Mr. and Mrs. Asa B. M. Eastman, of this town great-grandparents again.
The kindergarten scholar at the Old Oaken Bucket farm has had another volunteer teacher from Still River [part of Harvard] added to the list of teachers. He now has four regular teachers, but the outlook is not encouraging to the patient, for the teachers do not agree on what they teach. We all know what is expected to become of the patient when doctors disagree. Well, I hope to survive until after the Sandy pond school reunion on Saturday.
Here is a comforting thought to keep company with dry weather thoughts. The first heavy frost of the season hit the Adirondacks on August 15. In some localities the temperature dropped to 30 degrees. Farm and garden crops were severely damaged.
A Canadian paper prints the following under the heading “The World’s Ingratitude”: “Luther Burbank, at the age of seventy-four, is obliged to sell his experimental farm because people have not appreciated his work. Everyone has heard of his spineless cactus, hybrid fruits and other botanical wonders, but nobody wants them.” I take this opportunity of appointing my Harvard quartet of teachers a commission to investigate this spineless ingratitude and report to me at my coming recital.
Something was said last week under Townsend Harbor news about “Do you believe in signs?” and then goes on to describe an accident as the result of too much brush and too little road. Well, now see here, Townsend Harbor covers the whole territory of Massachusetts when it comes to brush bushes, and some of the back roads are so narrowed up with bushes that it is not safe for two wheelbarrows to meet without danger of a head-on collision, and this encroachment of bushes is the result of continuous narrowing of our roads with that overworked implement, the road-scraper. Is it not a plain, self-evident fact that it is far cheaper to mow bushes with the road-scraper than with the bush scythe? Why isn’t it done all over the state?
I am glad to report that the neglected common is being ploughed up preparatory to a general re-invigorating with flowers, grass, gravel walks and other contemplated improvements. If some of us could have our way we would press the button and take George Washington’s nonflying little hatchet and cut down those non-ornamental shade trees.
Several months ago I wrote that George Pitkin was in Honolulu in the United States army. I apologize for the error and proceed to correct it. His name is John B. Pitkin and he is in the United States marines and has been ever since last September, enlisting in Portland, Me. He will be remembered as the son of Mr. and Mrs. [William B.] Pitkin, living on the Lowell road.
Charles O. Prescott, having sold his residence on Main street to Ralph N. Fletcher of Nabnassett district, gave an auction recital on Wednesday afternoon, disposing of much of the personal property. Joseph Wall was auctioneer and did most of the reciting.
Mr. and Mrs. W. R. Taylor and Mr. and Mrs. John A. Taylor left on Thursday for York Beach for a week. Their instructions were to those who are left as caretakers, “Be good to my tame crow while we are down here.” It sounds familiar.
Fragmentary isolations of the Old Oaken Bucket farm went to Hampton Beach on last week Friday. Evidently they have had less rain than in the suburbs of Westford, if it were possible to have less. The roads were so dusty where they were not oiled that it increased the danger of accident by the blinding dust clouds. Crops of all kinds showed the effects of late planting and serious drought. Everybody got caught on wet ground last year with its excessive rains this year.
Listen to this as a kind reserve soothing syrup to offset dry weather and late planting. Our taxrate this year will be $32 per thousand against $35 last year, and the valuation is $3,876,000, a gain over last year.
Mrs. William P. Williams, of Parkerville, fell and broke her leg on last week Friday. The particulars I have not heard as yet.
The Lawrence Telegram says “If some of the western farmers were given ploughs shod with gold, and automobiles with diamonds for headlights they would still out-bellow Balam’s ass howling about the hard times of the farmer.” I second the motion, while knowing quite well that like many of our eastern farmers, some of whom expected as per blossom indications, 8000 bushels of apples in 1921 and the spring frost trimmed the actual harvest down to 300 bushels, and about all the rest of the fruit growers in the east had a similar proportional experience, and if the government is going to specialize in the relief of 80-cent wheat farmers let it be carried to the eastern farmers, whose spraying and blights, and frosts and droughts and skunks, woodchucks and foxes sometimes makes a more discouraging financial showing than 80-cent wheat.
Mr. and Mrs. John A. Taylor went to Townsend on Wednesday to see the Bushs [sic]. Why travel so far, there are plenty of bushes to be seen on the Old Oaken Bucket farm and if there is not enough there are 200 miles of bushes to be seen on the roads 100 miles on each side of the farm.
It has puzzled many to know just the cause of wheat dropping to eighty cents. I have the solution and have just got around to uncaging it. The old-fashioned Old Oaken Bucket kindergarten scholar raised an acre of spring wheat and he is planning to exhibit his old-fashionedism at the coming Groton fair so that everyone will have a chance to see the real cause of 80-cent wheat.
Prohibitory Laws. “Prohibition never did prohibit nor never can,” says Deacon Teacher No. 1. Why didn’t you broaden out a little and include a universal law of life that crime of every kind has never been wholly prohibited by prohibited laws? You might broaden out more and include another universal truth, that it is not in the power of man to prohibit the opportunity to commit crime, and aside from the crime of defying the constitution of the United States. Crime of all kinds is reserving the right to decide what laws it will obey and what it will openly defy. “Speed limit fifteen miles an hour”—does any rumite [sic] pretend that it is generally enforced? If it is I wish they would enforce it on the Lowell road where weekly someone speeds by at a mile-a-minute rate, and on the left hand side of the road and around curves. Then there is the headlight law to compel muffling the glare of headlights. It being a contributory cause of many accidents is there any pretense to enforce it? My eyes testify that the law, while right, is a farce in execution.
Then there is the law against selling cigarettes to minors. Minors are smoking cigarettes on the sidewalks of our streets where there is a police patrol system to enforce it. Highway robbery, chicken, watermelon and peach orchard thieves everywhere abound to the alarming increasing extent that Massachusetts has been compelled to create a day and night police patrol system, and insurance companies have refused to take insurance on abandoned farms because crime buys these farms and get a heavy insurance on the buildings, set fire to the buildings, collect the insurance and sell the land, and all this before national prohibition, while those who are opposed to it seem to think that if even one person gets drunk under it then it is “national prohibition is a failure.”
Here is a fair sample of unjustifiable running prohibition. A few months ago a policeman in Lowell got beat up by two young toughs. In court they pleaded guilty, but said in defense, “We were drunk at the time.” An editorial said “Why, why, how is it possible for anyone to get drunk under national prohibition?” If I was competent to be an editor of a paper to be read by people of common sense and couldn’t hew any closer to a fair view of the enforcement of prohibition as compared with other laws than to say “Why, why, how is it possible for anyone to get drunk under national prohibition?” I would padlock my mouth against saying anything for or against national prohibition until I developed gray matter enough to keep me from saying anything so void of all equity in your willingly blind-folded viewpoint. Figuratively speaking you are as groggy on this subject of prohibition as a boxing partner in a boxing ring after he has been well beaten and cannot even see his partner. The only difference is that he cannot see and you will not.
Why did you not say when some poultry was stolen about the time the policeman was beaten up, “Why, why, how can people steal poultry? It is prohibited by law. It is a fair twin question to your groggy will-not-see-straight in comparing law enforcement and it is a fair sample of all the willful-blind with a few honest exceptions. Teacher No. 1 is an exception. He appears to have the willing spirit to be fair.
I quote the following from the Unitarian Temperance society issued in tracts: “Our figures show an 85% reduction in drunkenness between 1917 (wet) and 1921 (dry) in which drink figured coming to sixteen charity associations for relief,” but as it did not show 100%, “Why, why, how can anyone get drunk under national prohibition.”
Graniteville. The Abbot Worsted team swamped the Woonsocket [team] in a Massachusetts Twilight league game at Abbot park on Tuesday evening, defeating them by the score of 17 to 3. McLeod, the Woonsocket pitcher, was batted hard, Henricksen leading the attack with four safe drives including a two-bagger, in four times up. Al Davidson, the Abbot twirler, held Woonsocket to five scattering hits. The Abbots will play Ware in Ware on this Saturday.
A son [Robert McCarthy] was born to Mr. and Mrs. Thomas McCarthy at the Lowell General hospital on last Saturday [Aug. 18, 1923].
Miss Rose Raymond is spending a few weeks’ vacation with relatives in Biddeford, Me.
The employees of the Abbot Worsted mills are planning to have a day’s outing at Revere Beach on Saturday, September first. The trip will be made by special train and all who wish to make the trip are requested to get in touch with the superintendent or overseers at the different mills. The mills will be closed on that day.
Mrs. Alice M. Wells, Mrs. Fabyan Packard, with her two children, Edwin and Carolyn, Mrs. A. M. Whitley and two daughters, Maud and Marjorie, and Mrs. A. R. Wall enjoyed a day’s outing at Hampton Beach, N.H., Tuesday.
St. Catherine’s Field Day. One of the most successful affairs yet conducted by St. Catherine’s church was held on last Friday and Saturday afternoon and evening when a carnival was held at Cameron park, Forge Village, in aid of the building fund of the church. The program was one of the best of any similar event yet held and the revenue derived was such as to swell the fund materially.
The grounds presented a gay appearance with numerous decorated booths and tables and these were not alone attractive to look upon for the successful business done by all of them made these a medium of exchange in which the purchasers took goods and the attendants took the money thus exchanged. It was a merry gathering that found diversion throughout the program. Friday afternoon’s bill opened the affair but on Saturday afternoon and evening record crowds turned out. On Saturday afternoon, from five to seven o’clock, a baked bean supper was served and this number proved one of the real features of the program, as did the concerts given by the Abbot Worsted band.
The pastor of the church, Rev. A. S. Malone, was present at Friday’s as well as throughout the Saturday program, and expressed himself as well pleased with the success of the carnival as well as grateful for the cooperation of those in charge and all participating in the event.
The hope chest contest conducted in connection with the carnival was not drawn on Saturday, but announcement as to the date of making this award will be made later.
The general committee in charge was Mrs. Elizabeth Harrington and Mrs. Catherine Daley, assisted by Miss Catherine Hanley, treasurer; John McNiff, Sr. and Fred Drolet, sports; Charles E. Dudevoir, Fred Fitzpatrick, George Brullard and George Goward, booths; William Kelly and James Delaney, tickets. These were assisted by a large corps of the parish members.
Ayer
News Items. A gentle voice from Westford protests because the Man About Town names Lancaster as the birthplace of Luther Burbank, the owner of said voice holding that Harvard was the town where in 1849 this wizard of plant life first saw the light of day. I have only Mr. Burbank’s word for it in the story of his work, in which he claims Lancaster is the place. I tried the Encyclopedia Britannica about it, but Mr. Burbank hasn’t been enough of an Englishman to get into that, regardless of the mighty value of his works to humanity. Under Santa Rosa, Cal., there is mention that he once lived there, and a bit of inference that he was born there. I haven’t taken the time to survey the country to the west to ascertain where the town lines run, but residents inform me that the house is still standing and is very much in Lancaster, even should one consider the confines of the former triple alliance of Harvard, Clinton and Lancaster. Of course, the Westford correspondent may be holding some information out on me; the Burbank family might have been visiting the night Luther was born, and the fact has never been told the potato man yet.
William F. Fitzgerald, Ayer’s real auctioneer, will sell all the household goods of the late John M. Fletcher in Westford Center on Thursday, August 30.
District Court. Joseph Coture [sic], of Westford, was before the court charged with drunkenness and with operating an automobile while under the influence of liquor in Ayer. His case was continued until Saturday. Fexil [sic, Felix?] Masollas, of Westford, who was with Coture, was before the court charged with drunkenness, and his case also was continued until Saturday.
Real Estate Transfers. The following real estate transfers have been recorded from this vicinity recently: …
Westford—Stony Brook Railroad Corporation to Alice Gilman; William Wright to Lena Gates. …
Harvard
To the Editor. In all my life I do not remember of ever throwing a stone at a hornet’s nest, and when I gave a little slip of paper with these words upon it for you to publish, little did I think it would bring out such discussion: “If the government was considering establishing an up-to-date college to educate high-class criminals, then the eighteenth amendment to the constitution has surely accomplished the purpose.” Now I wish it distinctly understood that I am a staunch temperance man, and if my memory is correct I think George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, U. S Grant, Grover Cleveland, Theodore Roosevelt and Warren G. Harding were all strong temperance men. Mr. Harding, until his untimely death, did all that he could to stand firm and enforce the Volstead act. Our honored President Calvin Coolidge is also a strong temperance man and I am sure that he will do all he can to have the Volstead act enforced, and that is the duty of the president and if I could help them I would; but as I wrote in my article of August 4 in your paper, I truly think it is impossible to do it. We all know it has been tried in Maine and Vermont for many years, but open bars have been run in those states most of the time, so how does prohibition prohibit? A law that cannot be enforced is a farce.
Within a week I have received a long letter from a minister on the Pacific coast. He wrote me that he had read my article on the Volstead act in your paper of August 4, and he says, “Mr. Savage, I wish to thank you for the stand you take, for I have been a staunch prohibitionist all my life, and what I see out on the Pacific coast the last few years convinces me your argument is correct.”
I may be wrong but I cannot seem to remember of any rank prohibitionist ever holding any of the many higher offices in the government, but from a little boy up I have noticed that all our great and good men were temperate, God-fearing men. You can take our best ministers of the largest churches in the country and I will say that they are all staunch temperance men. Now do not mistake me on my meaning. I have known and do know now many staunch prohibitionists and they are truly a fine lot of men and I have lots of respect for them; but that is not the question. We already have too many unruly men now in the country, and lots more are agitating the overthrow of this government. In a recent Literary Digest it told about something like over 175 Sunday schools in New York city which were teaching little children the best way to overthrow our government—the best of any in the world!
Now I want your readers to get me right. This country is composed of common people and I am one of them, and I find they are a pretty good kind of folks. I have also noticed from a boy up that most of our great men have come from among the common people; I am also of the same mind as our most honored Abraham Lincoln when he said the good Lord must have loved the common people for there were so many of them. Now let it sink in what I say On account of there being so many common people the government has to deal with my idea is this: Our forefathers came to this country so that they could think and act and use their common sense. This Volstead act does not allow a decent, honest, industrious, hard-working, God-fearing man to think for himself. The Volstead act was passed to prohibit his thinking and using any judgment he might have.
Now listen. It takes broad-minded men now days to get anywhere. They must think of the masses of people, the common people; so it is a wise man who keeps his ear to the ground and watches for any handwriting that may appear on the wall. As ignorant as I am, without much education, I can see that we need the broadest kind of laws to govern the vast army of common people, and by altering or easing up a little on the Volstead act the country will run along much smoother and at much less expense, and I think time will show that I am right.
Before the Volstead act was passed statistics tell me that only 10% of all crimes committed in the United States were done by men who drank or used liquor in any form, and it seems to me that 90% of the people ought to be able to look after the 10% who caused any crime by drink. Every paper you read these days tells of the murder of policemen and government revenue officers. I have purposely talked with chiefs of police in some cities and they will tell you that crime is on the increase and of the worst kind this country ever had to deal with.
In closing this round No. 2 I will say to my friend, Mr. Taylor, who accuses me of standing in with the liquor traffic. Now I cannot see how he got that notion in his head, so I will say that I stand thus: If the government would modify the Volstead act just enough so that the laboring man and the common people could get a glass of good ale or beer I am sure that it would pacify several million of them and those are the people which any nation or government who wishes to be a democracy must cater to. My esteemed friend says that I am standing on thin ice. I am surprised that he would say that because I had the impression that he was a deep thinker. I feel quite safe on the ice I am on, but if by chance it would melt and let me down in deep water I would know that it was for some good purpose, for the one who is guiding me knows best, and I don’t ever doubt him. F. S. Savage, Sr.
P.S. I have not fired my big guns yet.