The Westford Wardsman, March 31, 1917
Center. Miss Gertrude Hamlin, of Berwick, Me., has been spending the greater part of the week in town, the guest of Mr. and Mrs. A. W. Hartford.
Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Hildreth are spending a vacation at Mrs. Hildreth’s girlhood home in Rutherford, N.J. Mr. Hildreth will be gone one week and Mrs. Hildreth will remain for a longer stay.
Word comes to the Westford friends from Albert D. Taylor, in Miami, Fla., that he is now convalescing nicely from a seven-weeks’ siege with typhoid fever.
Miss Freida [sic] Stiles entertained the young ladies sewing club at her home on Friday evening of this week.
Dr. O. V. Wells is having the wiring of his house for electric lighting completed this spring.
Miss Alice Wright is sick with German measles.
Sidney W. Wright and family have bought and are occupying the Harris place [53 Hildreth St.], near Mr. Wright’s parents’ [Frank C. & Aurilla M. (Decatur) Wright] home [32 Hildreth St.].
Mrs. Perley E. Wright, who was quite ill last week with acute indigestion and under the doctor’s care, is now very much improved.
Miss Edith A. Wright has been spending part of her vacation enjoying a visit with relatives in Boston.
Mr. and Mrs. William E. Wright have named the little daughter recently born to them Elizabeth.
The Frost school reopens on Monday for the spring term after a vacation of two weeks.
Mrs. Edwin Amesbury has been among the shut-ins for several weeks and under the doctor’s care, threatened with a nervous breakdown.
The subject for the morning sermon on Sunday at the Congregational church will be “Jesus the Messiah,” most appropriate for the Sunday preceding Easter. The subject for the evening will be “Seven beacons along Israel’s pathway.” The men’s choir of twenty voices last Sunday, under the leadership of Leonard Burland, sang most effectively and it was a pleasure to listen to them. They will sing again on Sunday and they are also busy rehearsing for Easter, and they plan to make the musical part of the Easter service more attractive.
The community sing will be held at the lower town hall on Tuesday evening of next week at 7:30.
Much sympathy is expressed for Nathan Prescott on account of the injury received to his already maimed left arm. While painting at Mrs. Sarah J. Drew’s house on Boston road on Friday of last week he fell and broke the upper part of his left arm, all that there was left to break, the lower part having been amputated many years ago. The injury is especially painful and X-ray treatment has been used. It promises to be some time before Mr. Prescott can work as well as he has been able to.
Charles Robey should have been given credit for taking charge of the Boy Scouts’ supper last week.
Plans are on foot for the organization of a local Red Cross branch.
April 27 is the date set for the academy minstrel show. The music for this is in charge of Miss Raynes, the music teacher, assisted by the teachers, and it promises to be a first rate entertainment. The proceeds go toward the cherished plan of procuring a Victrola for the school.
The reading circle was entertained by Mrs. H. V. Hildreth on Thursday afternoon.
The selectmen and others who have had occasion to know, feel the recent death of Hon. Levi S. Gould, chairman of the county commissioners, as a real loss to the town. A man of decision, quick and courteous, and always interested in improvements and the development and attractiveness of the rural community. Some of the improvements under the supervision of the board of which he was chairman for the past twenty years have been the relocating of the highway from Westford Center to Minot’s Corner, and the improvement of streets in Graniteville and vicinity. [Levi Swanton Gould of Melrose died there March 22, 1917, four days short of his 83rd birthday.]
Tadmuck Club. The annual musical event of the club calendar for the Tadmuck club took place on Tuesday afternoon at the Unitarian church and was a Lenten organ recital by Miss Ella Leona Gale, of Lowell. Miss Gale is an accomplished musician and gave a splendid program of wide range which she most skillfully and sympathetically interpreted.
There was a large audience present, including guests from Graniteville, Littleton and West Chelmsford. The pleasure of the afternoon to the membership and friends is due the music committee, Mrs. Frederic A. Snow, Mrs. Anthony B. Anderson and Mrs. William R. Taylor.
The president, Miss Howard, presided with gracious efficiency and gave notice of the next meeting, the annual “Children’s afternoon.” Each member is to bring a child and a good entertainment is to be provided. The meeting will take place at the Congregational church. Notice was also given of the baby afternoon, arranged by the public health department of the club, Mrs. Warren H. Sherman and Mrs. O. V. Wells. This meeting will take place at the club house in Graniteville on Saturday afternoon, April 14. Miss Geniveve [sic] Jules, R.N., of the board of health, will speak on “The care and feeding of infants,” and there will be song and lullabys [sic].
Notice was given of the neighboring day of the Ayer Women’s club on April 4.
About Town. The second grass fire of the trying to be spring season got started Monday forenoon on the Read farm on Francis hill. The wind was blowing a quickstep pace and the grass tall and fire inviting. About eight acres were burned over.
The first ploughing of the season is in order for today at the Old Oaken Bucket farm. This is several weeks behind usual marching orders.
The next meeting of Middlesex-North Pomona Grange will be he held in Odd Fellows’ hall, Bridge street, Lowell, next Friday. The morning will be in charge of Mrs. Walter Holder, of Chelmsford—Grange Journal and other good things. Afternoon address by Rufus W. Stimpson, of the State Board of Education; subject, “The County Agricultural school.”
There will be a public meeting in the interest of the Middlesex County Farm Bureau at the town hall, Westford, Friday evening, April 6. Among the speakers planned are Mrs. James J. Storrow, of Boston and Lincoln, who will speak on “Better farming in the house”; S. R. Parker, of the Massachusetts Agricultural college, who will speak on “Farm bureau efficiency”; Allister McDougal, of Northampton, a graduate of Westford, and county agent in the western part of the state, who will speak on “Experience and observation in the work as agent of the farm bureau.” Music, vocal and otherwise, between the acts. Let us plan to give these speakers a hall of encouragement and enthusiasm. Remember the date.
Westford Grange will hold its next meeting on Thursday evening, April 5. The lecturer’s hour will be in charge of Alvin Nelson, of Graniteville, which means come everybody if you wish a pleasant evening.
Hon. Edward Fisher and Hon. Herbert E. Fletcher were among the number appointed by Mayor O’Donnell, of Lowell, on the committee of public safety.
The next meeting of the W.C.T.U. will be held on Wednesday.
Sidney Wright, Jr., has bought the Harris place on Hildreth street. The place is equipped with a cottage house, barn and an acre of land, and was a bargain.
Martha Hildreth, seriously ill last week, is slightly better.
The John McMaster family, living in Lowell since renting his farm, will move to town to the Oscar Davis Place.
William Pollock, the to-be-superintendent of the Cold Spring farm, will move to the place in April.
J. Willard Fletcher and Ralph Whidden are attending the annual corn show at Amherst. The Old Oaken Bucket farm folks have corn on exhibition there.
Graniteville. Charlotte Lambert, of Ayer, has been a recent guest of Mr. and Mrs. George Gower.
The German measles is still prevalent here, but this is not considered a patriotic disease. [German measles, or rubella, was first described as a disease in 1814 by German physicians, hence the name. Rubella was not called German measles at the time of World War I as an insult to the Germans, as some have indicated.]
The roads are fast drying up and if fair weather continues for another week the traveling will be good in the outlying districts.
The schools will reopen here on Monday.
Miss Rachel Wall sang at the C.F. of A. character party held in Lowell recently.
In spite of the stormy weather of last Tuesday evening there was a good attendance at the Lenten devotions in St. Catherine’s church. The services were conducted by the pastor, Rev. C. P. Heaney, and consisted of the recitation of the rosary, followed by an eloquent and forceful sermon on “The penitent sinner.” The services concluded with [the] benediction of the blessed sacrament. The regular choir was in attendance.
The members of Cameron Circle, C.F. of A., held a well attended and interesting meeting in their rooms on Tuesday evening with Mrs. Elizabeth Harrington, chief companion, presiding. This being a quarterly meeting much business of importance was transacted. During the session the following members were elected delegates to the annual convention that will be held in Boston next May: Mrs. Julia B. Wall, Mrs. Elizabeth Harrington, Mrs. Bessie Robinson. The following were elected as alternates, Miss Nettie Hanning, Mrs. Alma Benson, Miss Belle Carpentier. After the meeting a social hour was enjoyed.
Lucille Cantara, the six-months-old baby of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Cantara, died at her home on Maple street early Monday morning. The funeral took place on Wednesday afternoon at two o’clock. Burial was in St. Catherine’s cemetery.
The finance committee of the Methodist church was able, through the pastor, Rev. Mr. Fite, to make a general statement that the year’s expenses ending March 31 will be adequately covered before the meeting of the New England conference. This is gratifying information to all who know the unusually heavy budget carried during the year. The finance committee hopes to bring the money question in the church to a business basis for the coming year’s budget. The pastor gave a talk to the Junior league at 3:30 Sunday afternoon. Harry Blodgett was the leader of the Epworth league service. The subject was “The South American problem.” Following his talk a letter was read from Rev. L. F. Havermale, who is now stationed in Chung King, China. Mr. Havermale was a former pastor of the M.E. church about five years ago.
The Epworth league cabinet met on Sunday evening to elect a successor to Percy Barnes, who was president. In the reorganization George Wilson was elected president; Miss Lottie York, Miss Lena Wilson, Miss Mattie Blanchard, Miss Alice May, vice pres.