Turner's Public Spirit, November 17, 1923
A look back in time to a century ago
By Bob Oliphant
Center. Children’s book week has been observed from November 11 to 17 at the J. V. Fletcher library by a sale and exhibition of attractive books for children. Many suggestions for Christmas gifts were found on the list. The library is open on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 1:30 to 5 in the afternoon and from 6:30 to 9 in the evening.
Miss Alice Wright, of Wollaston, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John B. Wright, is to enter the Fenway hospital, Boston, this month to take a full course in training for a nurse. Her many friends wish her much success in her chosen profession.
In recognition of education week, November 18-24, Westford academy will hold a public exercise in the town hall at one o’clock in the afternoon, of Thursday, November 22. The chief speaker of the occasion will be Dr. Carl W. Schrader, supervisor of physical education for the state of Massachusetts. Dr. Schrader, at this time, will present the “high school certificate,” placque [sic] and cup won by the academy pupils for excellence in the all-student track meet last May; also, a special certificate will be presented to Raymond Shea, who won fourth place among all the boy contestants in the state. There will be an exhibition drill by the girls under the direction of Miss Bashford and other exercises appropriate to the occasion. The general public and parents in particular are urged to attend.
Miss Amelia Willett[a] Lambert, of this town, and Byron H. Brow, of Dunstable, were married on Tuesday, November 6. Miss Lambert was born in [Kittery,] Maine, but has spent a large part of her life in this town. After graduating from Westford academy she attended Northfield seminary, later graduating from a school of domestic science in Boston. She was a dietician and held positions in several states with great success, having resigned her last position at the Thomas hospital in Peabody at the time her mother was so seriously burned. Mr. Brow formerly resided in town on what is now the Ralph Cutting farm.
(Center. The farm house and buildings, with the exception of a small barn, on the Henry Keyes place in the north part of the town, were totally destroyed by fire on last Sunday afternoon. The livestock and a small amount of furniture and clothing were saved. The origin of the fire was due to spontaneous combustion created by green hay being put in the barn. The place was partially covered by insurance. Mrs. Alice Lambert, who with her brother, Edward Keyes, [both younger siblings of Henry Keyes,] has been occupying the house, was badly burned while trying to remove some articles from the house, and was removed to the home of a nearby neighbor, Mr. Pickering. On Monday morning she was removed to the hospital in Lowell. Miss Amelia Lambert, of the Thomas hospital, Peabody, was called to town Sunday evening on account of the condition of her mother. Westford Wardsman, Aug. 5, 1922)
Following the ceremony the couple went on an extended wedding trip. Their many friends extend their best wishes for a happy future.
Mr. and Mrs. Daniel MacAskill (Annie Harris) and little son Norman, of Somerville, were guests of Mr. and Mrs. Sidney B. Wright on last Saturday.
The annual Armistice ball of the Legion was held in the town hall on last week Friday evening and was largely attended. The hall was prettily decorated and Fogg’s orchestra of Brockton furnished music for dancing. Refreshments were served in the lower hall. The Essex car which was to have been awarded to the holder of the lucky ticket, was not drawn, owing to the fact that a number of tickets still remain unsold, and the award will be made at a later date. The dance proved to be one of the best of the year and many from the surrounding towns were in attendance.
Mr. and Mrs. Charles D. Carter, of Bristol, R.I., were the guests of Mrs. Alice Wells over the weekend. Mr. Carter was formerly principal of the William E. Frost school.
Carlyle Carr of the Bureau of Biological Survey, Washington, D.C., gave a demonstration on the control of rodents on Wednesday afternoon. The affair, which was given under the auspices of the Middlesex County Extension Service, was largely attended.
Rev. E. A. Roys, of Kingston, N.H., will occupy the Congregational pulpit on Sunday.
The honor roll of the William E. Frost school for the first report is as follows: Grade 8, Alexander Gorbunoff, Linwood Nesmith, Ruth Nelson, Viola Day, Elizabeth Carver, Angie Parfitt, William Anderson; grade 7, Greta Lundberg, Leslie Sherman, Alva Peterson, Mildred Healy, Ronald Anderson, James Knight, Alan Bell, Walter Belville; grade 6, Meol Foster; grade 5, Eleanor Chalker, Inez Blaney, Wallace Downing; grade 3, Albert Sedleski, Helen Sedleski, Florence Gates; grade 4, Cyril Blaney, William Wright, Erliene Downing, Ruth Mateer.
The Tadmuck club’s presidents’ day was observed on Tuesday at the Congregational church with a good attendance of members and delegates from Littleton, Shirley, Hudson, West Acton and Ayer clubs present. The literature and library committee had charge of the program and an interesting talk on “What’s what among the new books” was given by John C. Minot. The pianist of the afternoon was Miss Ruth Shepley, whose technique was especially fine. Club tea was served with Mrs. Clarence Hildreth as hostess assisted by Mrs. Charles L. Hildreth, Mrs. Alfred W. Hartford, Mrs. Charles Robinson and Mrs. C. A. Blaney. Mrs. Frederick Meyer and Miss Edith A. Wright poured.
A daughter [Priscilla Marie Prescott] was born to Mr. and Mrs. Robert Prescott on Friday of last week [Nov. 9, 1923, in Cambridge, Mass.].
About Town. Tarbell, the landscape gardener of Lowell, is grading up a lawn tennis court for the F. A. Snows in West Chelmsford.
An amateur astronomer in Cape Town has discovered what is believed to be a new comet. The discovery has been communicated to the Royal observatory at Cape Town, which has taken photographs of the stellar object.
( This was likely comet C/1922W1 discovered by John Frances “Frank” Skjellerup, “an assiduous comet explorer” from Australia who was living in Cape Town at the time. He had discovered other comets in 1919, 1920 and 1922. This comet was actually discovered on Nov. 26, 1922. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Skjellerup.)
Northwestern Europe is the world’s greatest potato producing region because of favorable soil and climatic conditions, and it utilizes the potato to a greater extent in their diet, in the manufacture of alcohol and as feed for livestock than in any other section of the world. Germany is the world’s largest producer of potatoes, producing 1,494,181,000 bushels last year. The United States produced 451,000,000 bushels last year.
The biggest dance of the season at Memorial hall, Townsend, Monday evening, November 19. Fogg’s orchestra of Brockton. Admission 55¢.
Hon. Edward Fisher was in town on Monday, enjoying the “open season,” which he thinks will have to be closed for a period of time if we expect to preserve any game to enjoy hunting or have any meaning to an open season. It is too bad that our lack of self control and excess cruel greediness makes it necessary for the state, figuratively speaking, to tar and feather and handcuff us all to these open season restrictions.
For the topmost of red glow in all its condensed exemplification of the inspired beautiful, tag Tuesday evening’s sunset. It made some of us forget all about low priced apples and high priced taxes, and thus did we soar, but I suppose we shall land on the earth again. To a friend I said “Isn’t it a handsome sight?” but he was so sore over his recent returns for apples that he couldn’t possibly take another soar and his only answer was “Um.”
Paul Symmes and Amos Polley are cutting wood on Rocky hill road.
I read with a personal interest of the marriage on last Sunday afternoon [Nov. 5] of Charles E. MacLean and Miss Rachel M. Wall. The bride’s grandfather, William Agnew [1822-1885], a tall handsome Scotchman from the Bonnie Blue hills of Scotland, was for many years [a] close neighbor to the Old Oaken Bucket farm folks.
I suppose we have all been warned by state authority to take good heed to our corn fodder and have it all disposed of by April, either fed or burned, and the corn stubble ploughed in by December first or stand a fine of not less than $25 nor more than $500. Now see here, Mr. State, we intend to obey the law to the best of our ability, but in case some of us do accidentally and unintentionally stop and get fined $500, would the state allow us to pay our fine in apples? If you say yes, I will look around and see if there are apples enough in town at present prices to pay even one fine.
(Chap. 147 “An act relative to the disposition of corn stalks and stubble in connection with the suppression of the European corn borer” was approved by the Massachusetts legislature March 23, 1923. It states, in part, “In any town or part thereof in which an order issued under the preceding section in connection with the suppression of the European corn borer shall be in effect, every person in possession of land on which corn of any kind has been grown, shall, not later than December first of the year of its growth, plow or cause to be plowed the field in which it was grown, so as to bury the stubble to a depth of at least six inches, or pull up said stubble or cause it to be pulled up and destroy it, or cause it to be destroyed, by burning, and every person having in his possession corn stalks shall, not later than April tenth of the year following that of their growth, completely dispose of such corn stalks by using them as fodder or by burning them. Whoever violates any provision of this section shall be punished by a fine of not less than twenty-five nor more than five hundred dollars.”)
Our little adjoining town of Tyngsboro, at the annual meeting of the Village Improvement society, voted to employ an expert to draw up a plan of “How to improve the appearance of the town.” There are great possibilities there with the Merrimack river as a centerpiece and center of the town.
The Lowell road, from its intersection with the Stony Brook road to Brookside, is sadly in need of specific repairs and we pray that your honorable board or boards will send some gravel by parcel post or otherwise and thus discontinue the “small canals that resemble Mars and moon.” So testified a Lowell lad who called in the darkness of Monday evening for potatoes at the Old Oaken Bucket farm. Well of course, there is something to it, but if this road is any worse than any road that you can get in Lowell we all ought to be individually sued before we sleep.
Funeral services for George C. Moore were held on last week Friday at the Congregational church, North Chelmsford. Rev. E. Ambrose Jenkins, of Revere, a former minister, and Rev. Wilfred D. Harrison, the present minister, conducted the services. The bearers and ushers were Hon. Herbert E. Fletcher, Edgar Dickson, Walter Chase, H. Stanley Crysler, John Bridgford, Fred J. Vinal. The honorary bearers were John F. Sawyer, A. G. Pollard, Fred C. Church, Charles Traiser, E. G. Preston, Leroy Brown, E. H. Bright, Elmer Silver. The Mendelssohn quartet entertained in song; Miss Ella Gale, organist. Mr. Moore’s son-in-law [Harry Sumner Griffin, husband of Bessie Linda Moore], of New York, directed the funeral arrangements. Interment was in the family lot in the Lowell cemetery.
Paul Symmes is digging potatoes at the Old Oaken Bucket farm. The yield in places is five dollars per bushel, and I want Uncle Sam to come forward with the bright and shining dollars as a help out in the small yield, and be quick about it, too, Sir Congress & Co.
The jury that heard the evidence in the libel cases brought by J. Lawrence Hallett against W. C. MacBrayne, publisher of the Lowell Sunday News, and Joseph E. Lambert, et al., printers, found for the plaintiff in the case against MacBrayne and fixed the damage at one dollar. In the case against Lambert the verdict was for the defendant. These one-cent, one-dollar verdict returns which are frequently brought in come close to being a senseless lie on its face value. The verdict says the plaintiff was slandered; if he was slandered he must have been slandered more than a dollar’s worth—any kindergarten scholar in the fools’ class knows that much. Any plaintiff who sues for $10,000 damages and only gets a verdict of one dollar is entitled to more or else there was no slander. Any person who is slandered comes to more than a dollar, or else the slander has not had any effect and is not a slander.
Rev. E. E. Jackman, for a few years the popular minister of the [Methodist] church at West Chelmsford and Westford Corner, Brookside and Oak hill, has been transferred to the Highland Union church in Lowell.
Miss Ella T. Wright, whose summer home is at Brookside, has returned to her winter home in Cleveland, Ohio.
Perry T. Snow, a student at Lawrence academy, occupied Saturday and Sunday at the home of his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Frederic A. Snow, in West Chelmsford.
The next meeting of the Village Improvement society will be held on Thursday evening, November 22. If variety is the spice of life, come and serve as spice.
Westford says it is a girl, and Harvard says it is a boy. As referee I have not been sworn in to an introduction yet.
Arthur Wright and his sister, Mrs. Blakeny [sic, probably Blaikie, nee Estella Hortense Wright], of Wakefield, were in town last week in the interests of contesting their father’s will, the late Gilbert F. Wright [died Sept. 15, 1923], a native of this town.
I am glad that the [Groton] Sandy Pond schoolhouse reunions continue to keep the campfires of sociability burning other than the annual reunion days and evenings. But see here, boys and girls, for a change why not try some literary exercises or wholesome home talent dramatics? Why dance the legs off at dancing? It seems to show on the surface “limitations,” and the more we limit the more it limits us. But as I do not belong what am I fussing about?
The committee of the Y.P.R.U. have made great plans for their dancing party at the town hall this Friday evening and it promises to be the social event of the season.
Church Notes. First church (Unitarian) Sunday service at four p.m. Music: “Ave Maria,” Bailey, Miss Eleanor Colburn, contralto. Preacher Rev. Frank B. Crandall, the minister. Subject, “Divine worship.” Church school at three.
Mr. and Mrs. Horatio C. Chase, Russell B. Chase, Miss Emma Butterfield and Mrs. Elson H. Bigelow of the First Unitarian parish church of Ayer motored to Westford and attended the service at the First church on Sunday.
A chorus choir of seventeen assisted in the service on Sunday. They were Elizabeth Carver, Eleanor Colburn, Mrs. Charles D. Colburn, Eva Fletcher, Gertrude Fletcher, Julia Fletcher, Helen Greig, Edna Hamlin, Alice Heywood, Dorothy Heywood, Betty Prescott, Blanche Rockwell, Elizabeth Wells, Everett Millis, Gustaf Peterson, Donald Wright and Walter Wright. The minister hopes that the chorus may include both men and women and boys and girls.
The Standard Apple Box. Acting as parrot for several, it seems that Nashoba’s gallant fight for a “standard box” has proved in its work out to be a financial gain to everyone who handles apples except the farmers. Before standardization we paid twenty cents for cartage of forty-eight pounds of apples, the standard weight for a bushel of apples. Now we pay twenty cents for the cartage of forty pounds of apples. If we buy new boxes we lose five cents on every box and as it takes an extra box for every eight standard boxes here is forty-five cents on eight standard boxes of apples gone to—what did you say the name of that place was? As parrot for others I have not claimed anything for time in slating up 3 ½ pecks of apples when you could slot up four pecks just as quickly, nor extra nails or time, for there is too much evidence already to prove that the farmer got left financially in this standard box deal. To the reply that we get just as much now for 3 ½ pecks of apple as we used to for four pecks is to assume that if you went to a store to buy a bushel of onions and told the storekeeper “I will give you just as much for 3 ½ pecks as I will for a bushel.”
Say, you Nashoba folks are a bright lot of successful farmers, but don’t try to unload that nonsense onto intelligent human beings. I have no quarrel with a standard box, but with the standard box which is a liar to the standard weight of forty-eight pounds. Let the standard box measure to it.
Fish and Game Meeting. The Lowell Fish and Game association held their monthly meeting on last week Tuesday evening with an unusually large attendance at Odd Fellows’ hall, Middlesex street, Lowell, at which forty-eight applications for membership were unanimously accepted. A unanimous vote of thanks was extended to the Stevens estate and Col. Ames for the great number of fish donated to the Fish and Game association for distribution in ponds and brooks in Greater Lowell. These fish were grown in the pond on the Ames estate in North Tewksbury and were taken from that body of water during the past few weeks. It was voted that the association obtain several hundred blue gill fish for planting in Long pond in Dracut. It was unanimously voted to favor “The refuge bill” which has been the center of interest to all sportsmen throughout the state. Willis S. Holt, secretary of the association, was appointed delegate to the national game conference to be held in New York city December 10-11.
A number of recommendations which the state division of fisheries and game will present before the incoming legislature were read by the secretary, and with the exception of one the members voted in favor of the action of the division. The one item which failed to meet the approval of the association and was unanimously voted down was for the reduction of lines for fishing through the ice from ten to five lines. As a member of the association and unable to be present I feel that the association ought to vote itself a unanimous vote of censure for its unjustifiable selfishness in opposing this proposed reduction of lines which is wholly in the interest of reasonable conservation of fish. I not only affirm that the association ought to vote itself a censure, but it ought also vote itself a unanimous vote of shame to think that it has not any more sense of what constitutes “balance wild life” than to vote to continue a “ten-line unbalancing.” It would not have been unanimous if I could have been there to vote. That’s all; thanks for listening.
Fish And Game Club
(Members of Local Association Urge Passage of Game Refuge Bill
The Lowell Fish and Game association has adopted the following resolutions, unanimously endorsing and recommending the passage of a new public shooting grounds-game refuge bill at the incoming session of congress:
“Whereas, much of the feeding grounds and the hunting ground of our wild life is being drained or bought up and changed over to such an extent that our wild life will be but a memory unless action at once is taken by the government of the United States;
“Therefore, be it resolved by the Lowell Fish and Game association that it hereby unanimously endorses and recommends to the incoming congress that the public shooting grounds-game refuge bill should be passed in order to insure for all time places where game and game birds may rest and feed, while other areas should be set aside for hunting and fishing—the two oldest sports known to man.” …)
The Lowell Sun, Lowell, Mass., Tuesday, November 13, 1923, p. 10.
Graniteville. Rev. J. Emile Dupont of North Chelmsford was a recent visitor here, assisting Rev. A. S. Malone on last Saturday afternoon and evening [at St. Catherine’s].
The Abbot Worsted soccer team by defeating Fore River at Forge Village Saturday, will now enter the third round of the national cup series. It is possible that the Abbots will meet the winner of the J. & P. Coats and Fall River game in the fourth round. The “Jay Pees” and Fall River teams were deadlocked at three goals each in an overtime game at Pawtucket, R.I., on last Saturday, playing before 10,000 people, the largest crowd that ever attended a soccer game in New England. When the Abbots meet either of the above-named teams it will surely be a battle royal.
The new night school opened here last Monday evening with about 40 pupils in attendance. The teacher is James H. Fitzgibbons, the principal of the Sargent school here. It is the intention to hold sessions on Monday and Wednesday evenings of each week, and anyone in the town will be welcome to join the classes.
Mr. and Mrs. Joseph B. Murphy, who have recently returned from their wedding trip, were tendered a reception at the home of Miss Rebecca LeDuc on last Sunday evening that was largely attended by young friends of the bridal couple. The time was passed very pleasantly. An excellent entertainment was given and during the evening refreshments were served. The whole affair proved to be very enjoyable. The following committee had charge: Miss Rebecca LeDuc, Miss Emma Wood, Mrs. Fred M. Defoe and Mrs. John J. Payne.
Rev. LeRoy N. Fielding, the new supply pastor of the M. E. church, preached his first sermon here last Sunday and made a good impression. Mr. Fielding would like to meet all the boys of class 4 and other boys between 8 and 14 years at the church on next Saturday afternoon at three o’clock. Come prepared for a hike.
Next Sunday will be observed as Good Literature Sunday in the M. E. church.
Commencing Friday evening, this week, and continuing until further notice, the regular weekly prayer meeting will be held at 7:45, instead [of] at 7:30 as formerly.
The sudden passing of Miles Collins, who died at his home [Pleasant St.] in Forge Village last Saturday, caused deep regret to his many friends here, where he was well and favorably known. Mr. Collins was a man of pleasing personality and had a wide circle of friends. The deepest sympathy is expressed for the bereaved family. Mr. Collins was superintendent of the Abbot mills at Forge Village for many years, having retired from active service last spring.
Charles Edward MacLean of Ayer and Miss Rachel May Wall, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Wall, were married Sunday afternoon at two by Rev. Frank B. Crandall, at his residence in Ayer.
About Town. Government crop reports show 3,000,000,000 bushels of corn, being the fifth time that this amount has been reached; oats, 3,029,192,000 bushels or about 140,000,000 more than last year. Potatoes showed an improvement of the October forecast. The production is estimated at 416,722,000 bushels, or 35,000,000 bushels less than last year. It certainly was a premature report that showed 10,000,000 more bushels of potatoes than last year and was unofficial guess work and emphatically contradicted by prices. With the enormous increase in the grain crop prices are still rising to the consumer. Now, Uncle Sam, before you offer premiums to the producer whose enormous crops are heading him toward pauperism, will you not investigate why the consumer is constantly paying a rising price? And while you are about it, tell us why apples that sell for seventy-five-cents per bushel box for the producer and expenses out of it need to retail to the consumer for seventy-five cents per peck.
A Limited Supply. “If we go on the way we have been doing we will soon have to go to a museum to find a piece of sound timber.” Well, now, who says all these things? For the above it is Henry C. Wallace, secretary of agriculture, and his parrot at the Old Oaken Bucket farm is his repeater [i.e., Samuel L. Taylor]. “The United States is consuming timber six times as fast as it is being grown, and the 156,000,000 acres of national forests are rapidly being used up,” spoke Secretary Wallace before the apple exposition in grand Central Palace, who later was the guest of the Pomological society and the Eastern Apple Growers at luncheon and visited the Dairymen’s league. All this in New York. Yes, it is all true and more than that hasn’t been said. We are recklessly using up our forest and wantonly and brutally using up our wild life that is innocent and harmless, like the birds that are loaded with song and beauty, and worse yet the government encourages it by legalizing it by an open season, and then backs water against its own proclamation by some silly, senseless, non-enforced restraints, relating to the length of a fish, the color of a bird’s leg, the bag limit number in a day, the number of fish lines, the caliber bore of your shotgun and much else that is too senseless to take up the space of this paper.
New Laws Advocated. Two striking changes in the state laws, designed to promote efficiency in forest fire fighting and to lessen the cost of extinguishing fires, will be recommended to the incoming legislature by William A. L. Bazely, state forester. The first change relates to the appointment of local forest wardens. The state forester will urge their appointment by the state forester instead of by the selectmen as at present, for the state forester has little or no control over them, and upon him rests the responsibility for forest fire protection. The other change will be the shifting of the cost of extinguishing fires from the cities and towns to the state and counties on a 50-50 basis. The present system places a heavy burden on small towns with dense forest and sparse wealth, and there are cases on record where it has taken some of these small towns three years to pay forest fire fighting bills. With some of these small towns great difficulty has been experienced in getting help for fighting fires for lack of funds to pay help. With the state and county these obligations would be met promptly, and with the entire force working under the state forester, fires would be fought much more efficiently. This would mean reduced costs and lower taxes. The cost of extinguishment to the towns in the last twelve years amounts to $30,000 a year on the average, and in 1922 our forest fires in the state amounted to $500,000. The state is also interested in protection of some 80,000 acres of public land that is being reforested at an expense of $1,000,000.
A Sure Cure Against War. Ministers and good folks generally have the best interests of mankind in view when they try to resolve war out of existence and onto a forever sidetrack. But there is one method very much overlooked which if put in practice would do more to eliminate war than several tons of resolutions and whereas affirmatives. To go no further back than the world war, Kaiser William and all of his sympathetic advisors should have been tried at the close of the war for first degree murder (for if it wasn’t first degree murder then there never has been such or ever will be), and if found guilty they should have been put in the electric chair and turn on the switch and switch them to where they don’t have any cold winters to make them think of Florida. It is an absence of justice that lets these wholesale murderers escape that does more to develop war than several trainloads of harmless resolutions can neutralize in an offset effort.
Right here I would like to quote a criticism of resolutions adopted at the national conference of Congregational churches recently held in Springfield. I quote from the Congregationalist, which I have been taking for several years: “Were we justified in refusing to make our voices heard regarding the anti-Christian policy of the French in the Ruhr? The United States to its everlasting shame has not united with the league, but this in no way relieves us of any responsibility. If the French by their unwise policy are breeding the very things which we are seeking to destroy—hate, malice, jealousy and strife, then how can we exculpate ourselves for not condemning it? Our denunciation of war was not a united one nor did it reveal the fervent against war which shall be manifested by a Christian denomination like ours. To think that some of our constituency at Springfield should have been ashamed to be called pacifists.”
In the words of Emerson it can be said of the above: “Not quite so hot, my little fellow. Not quite so hot.” The spirit of the era of the thumb screws, the rack and the straight-jacket runs through the entire quotation. The spirit of “I am right all else is wrong; accept it or the world goes to smash.” If trying to collect your honest debts is anti-Christian, then the war which created these debts must be Christian. If France is creating the evils that he has listed there is no evidence of it, except this critic’s testimony; but of course that proves that it is so, because “I am right,” and besides me there are none others.
There are fifty-two nations in the league of nations, and so far as getting back to industrial peace and prosperity and safety first as an anti-war measure it can be written over the world show so far, “Nothing doing.” Would adding the United States and making it fifty-three make a sure fetch for peace when we consider that the advice of our best statesmen have been freely given and as freely and unanimously turned down? Would joining the league make a go of them? A class in kindergartenism knows enough to answer no. I would give more for the opinion of an electric chair on “Best methods of preventing war” than whereas resolutions, or the unbalanced froth of the above critic. “Whence come wars, war thy not in your members” [sic] and until we develop a more ideal individuality, until we adopt more ideal standards of what constitutes a successful life instead of the present low standards of weights and measures, Daltons and devil generally, which lead to greed for power and greed, place and fame and forsake, partially at least, and develop the spirit along the line of “A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches” [Proverbs 22:1a] and our lives more along the line of “With all thy getting get wisdom”—unless some of these principles are worked into our living, resolutions to stop war will have no more appeal than adulterated dish water.
This quote is taken from James 4:1, “From whence come wars and fighting among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?” KJV
his quote is taken from James 4:1, “From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?” KJV
A Tribute. The following tribute appeared in a recent number of Rhodora, the journal of the New England Botanical club. The author is Benjamin Lincoln Robinson, editor-in-chief of the magazine:
Emily Frances Fletcher, whose name has long been familiar to New England botanists through its frequent citation in local floras, died at her home in Westford April 13, 1923, in her 79th year. Born in the same town January 17, 1845, and educated at Westford academy, she was early attracted by the plants and bird life of her region. To these she devoted much attention. The interest lasted through a long life, doubtless contributing much to her personal happiness, as did her observations to the botanical and ornithological records of the area covered by her activities.
Realizing the need of aid in the precise identification of her plants, she got in touch with that notable group of botanists of whom L. L. Dame, F. S. Collins, Dr. Thomas Morong, G. E. Davenport, Dr. C. W. Swan, C. W. Jenks, W. H. Manning, Dr. F. Nickerson and Mrs. P. D. Richards were leading spirits. These persons, busy in very different callings, were amateurs in the best sense, so far as their botanical work was concerned. Many of them were associated in the Middlesex Institute about 1881, and the preparations of a county flora became one of their earnest ambitions.
This aim was realized when, after some years of preparation, the Flora of Middlesex county was published by Dame & Collins in 1888. In the preface of the work the name of Miss Emily F. Fletcher appears with those to whom thanks are extended for helpful cooperation.
One of the particular difficulties in the preparation of the Middlesex Flora lay in the fact that certain portions of its territory were the seats of the woolen industry. About these, wool-waste was frequently used as a fertilizer, introducing many plants from very remote regions, often species of difficulty since their geographic origin was unknown and their persistence usually very slight, many of them lasting only for a season or two, and often being found only at stages in their development not showing the characters for ready identification.
Westford was one of the towns where there were woolen mills and where wool-waste was thus used. Miss Fletcher, in consequence, found from time to time plants not present in any manual available to her and began to turn to the Gray Herbarium for aid in their identification. The determination of her plants often required much time-consuming search and critical attention, but the specimens were always welcomed as examples of “waifs” and “casuals” that must be reckoned with in any close local flora work.
Stimulated by success in finding several of these plants which proved to be of particular interest because introduced from widely remote parts of the world, Miss Fletcher for many years devoted special attention to wool-waste collecting, and met with much success. With the possible exceptions of the Rev. W. P Alcott and Dr. Swan, she probably accomplished as much as any one in New England in this specialty.
Miss Fletcher left her botanical collection to the Gray Herbarium, where it has recently been deposited by her executor. It includes 630 sheets, well prepared and carefully mounted. The plants are nearly all from Westford and, of course, noteworthy among them are specimens of her unusual “finds” on wool-waste.
Miss Fletcher left to the New England Botanical club her copiously annotated copy of the Middlesex Flora, a work in the preparation of which her services were, as we have seen, very helpful.
In the noteworthy attempt to record the plants of the Boston district in a series of articles under the editorship of Messrs. Knowlton and Deane, which have long been running in our journal, Miss Fletcher’s specimens are frequently cited, often being the only representatives of her region. Indeed she has in some cases been the sole New England collector of species in question.
She has herself been an occasional contributor to our journal but in general, through great modesty, was reluctant to write for publication, preferring to have her plants recorded by others. In her own words she wished to be regarded as “an observer, not a botanist.”
With the death of Miss Fletcher there passed from New England botany a devoted personality notable for loyalty to a limited field of observation in which she attained unusual results.
This tribute to Miss Fletcher appears in Rhodora, Journal of the New England Botanical Club, September 1923, Vol. 25, No. 297, pp. 149-150. For archived issues of Rhodora, see links at https://www.rhodora.org/rhodora/currentissues.html.
An electronic copy of this book may be found at the Biodiversity Heritage Library at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/118291#page/5/mode/1up.
Littleton
News Items. A musical entertainment with select readings will be given in the Congregational vestry December 14 under the auspices of the Congregational church club. The Precious trio of Westford will furnish music and local talent will read. A social will follow the entertainment.
Ayer
News Items. Charles Edward MacLean, of this town, and Miss Rachel May Wall, of Graniteville, were married by Rev. Frank B. Crandall at his residence on Nashua street last Sunday afternoon at two o’clock. They were attended by Mr. and Mrs. Frederick W. Saunders, of Lowell. The groom, a son of Edward and Delia (Ready) MacLean, is employed as a baggageman on the Salem train, and the bride, a daughter of Joseph and Maria (Agnew) Wall, of Graniteville, has held a responsible position as bookkeeper in the offices of the Bell Telephone Co, Lowell. Mr. and Mrs. MacLean left immediately after the ceremony for Montreal. After a wedding journey in Canada and Maine they will be at home in the upper tenement at the residence of Charles Sherwin, Columbia street.
Church Notes. Unitarian … A considerable number of people of the parish and others are planning to attend the dancing party this Friday evening given by the Westford Y.P.R.U., in the Westford town hall.
Real Estate Transfers. The following real estate transfers have been recorded from this vicinity recently:
Westford, Claude L. Allen to Peter L. Gregoire, land on Dell road; Floryan P. Woitowicz to Wasil Bilida, land on Story street. …