Turner's Public Spirit, February 14, 1920
A look back in time to a century ago
By Bob Oliphant
“Center. Cards are out announcing the engagement of Miss Marjorie Mitchell Seavey and
Paul Campbell Locklin.
“Doctors, milkmen, mail-carriers and all others obliged to be out of doors have had a full share of intense cold, storms and bad traveling. The blizzard last week Thursday and Fridaymade the no-school plan advisable, and the wisdom of this plan proved thoroughly wise.Automobile travel has been simply abandoned while the great bulk of snow lasts. Edward Clement and John Feeney both have their trucks and loads in storage between here and Boston.
The school children are being transported in barges on runners, and the doctors are using horses. People obliged to go to Lowell are glad to resort to train service and it is a relief that the problems of the branch line electric are not added in this winter of unusual severity. The town teams are busy making the roads in more passable condition.
“The new snow-scraper, which the town recently purchased to be used with auto truck, wastried out on Wednesday, but the ice-crusted snow made it hard to accomplish much with it.“Pleasant letters come from the Misses Atwood [of 4 Graniteville Road] spending the winter
in Jacksonville, Fla., with accounts of being well, having good weather and enjoying good lectures and concerts.
“Tadmuck Club. The meeting of the Tadmuck club took place on Tuesday afternoon in Library hall. It was a small gathering owing to weather and traveling but an interested one….“Miss Mary E. Wiggin, secretary of the Consumers’ league, gave a sensible address in connection with her work from the women’s viewpoint concerning many aspects of the safety,health and well being of women in industry….
“About Town. The Stony Brook road is still closed to everything except snow, and it must soon close for that as there is but a very shallow unoccupied space left. Daniel H. Sheehan’s auto truck is still closeby, stall-bound and snow-bound, that ought to prevent any attempt to steal it. “A flock of pheasants are enjoying popcorn at the Old Oaken Bucket farm. They skated up on the unbroken crust of the Stony Brook road. “We are not looking for motorcycles these perilous snowdrift times, yet we saw one without looking for it as it plunged from the road into a snowdrift in the yard of the writer [Samuel L. Taylor, 70 Lowell Rd.].
“Town Meeting. The annual town meeting took place on Monday…. The weather conditions of the road were adverse to a large vote, but after five hours of voting it was found that sixty votes had been cast and the following, without contest, were elected: “Selectman, Oscar R. Spalding; assessor, William E. Wright; overseer of the poor, Wesley O.Hawkes, all for three years; collector, Leonard W. Wheeler; treasurer, Harwood L. Wright; schoolcommittee, 3 years, Arthur E. Day, John Spinner; 2 years, W. R. Taylor; trustee J. V. Fletcherlibrary, 3 years, Miss Alice Howard; board of health, 3 years, Alexander A. Cameron; 2 years, P. Henry Harrington; constable, Charles W. Robinson; tree warden, Harry L. Nesmith; commissioner of cemeteries, Charles O. Prescott; auditor, Frederick B. Smith, The town voted against having anything stronger to drink than national prohibition allows. …
“The article, by request, to see what the town thinks of daylight saving, now being thrown on the screen at the state house to register opinions, 21 voted to call six o’clock seven o’clock, and 20 voted to stand by the sun, just as father used to do. …
“Article 12 called for money for roads, and $12,000 was given after a plea by Hon. H. E. Fletcher that part of this money shall be applied to establishing a patrol system to care for all light repairs and watchful lookout generally.
“Appropriations were made as follows: Town … support of the poor $3500; school $22,000; tree pests $1100; expenses of fire department $850; purchase of double tank chemical motor apparatus for use of fire department $4500; for purchase of three electric sirens for fire alarm, $550; painting and repairing the cottage house belonging to the town on land of firehouse $750. “Art. 38. To see if the town will authorize the employment of a police officer to take charge of the police department of the town. After testimony and cross examination had all been argued, the town decided in the interest of ‘safety first’ and to subscribe $2000 toward a permanent patrol. Of course the beat will be a fairly large one for one man, as the town covers 18,000 acres.”