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COLUMNS: BENNETT CORNERS, AUBURN TWP.: As we through our windows watch the autos go by, how we all wish we had one; but it remains for Miss Jessie Sumner to break through and buy one, as we hear she intends to. EAST ARARAT: A birthday surprise party was tendered Miss Belle Wademan Wednesday evening of last week. A large number were in attendance and she received a present of over $7. LYNN, SPRINGVILLE TWP.: The Elite Club will hold an oyster supper in the vacant house of Griffin Brooks, better known as the Dan Setser house, at Lymanville, this Friday evening. Boys, bring your girls and have a good time. FOREST CITY: No doubt the many friends of Jack Chambers, a former Forest City boy, will be pleased to hear that he has retired from the ring with 87 battles to his credit out of 93 battles fought. He has at present in his class, as one of his pupils, Jack Hammond, who issues a challenge to any one in the world at 158 lbs. Jack [Chambers] resides at present in Muskegon, Michigan and in his letter to his Vandling friend said there would be no more coal mines for him. He is enjoying good health and wishes to be remembered to his many Forest City friends. DIMOCK: William Bailey, son of Andrew Bailey, in his early twenties, was seriously injured while at work preparing for the filling of a silo on his father’s farm. The young man was standing on a scaffold in the interior of the silo, 25 feet above the concrete floor. He made a misstep and plunged downward striking another scaffold a few feet below and was hurled 16 ft. to the adamantine floor, striking his head and shoulders. It is a miracle that he was not killed outright. Drs. Gardner and Diller rendered effective medical aid and he is in a fair way toward recovery. The young man’s father has been in ill health for a couple of years past and the brunt of the farm work has fallen upon his young shoulders, which he has borne manfully and shown adaptitude for the responsibility. GREAT BEND: John Egleston, aged 72 years, died at his home here after a long illness, the result of diseases contracted in the Civil War. A wife, two daughters and three sons survive. ALSO Dr. Wm. Baldwin of Genoa, Italy, died at the home of his sisters, Misses Mary and Carrie Baldwin on Monday morning. He was a noted physician, not only in this country, but in England and Italy. Some years ago he was J. Pierpont Morgan’s physician, and while in England and Italy he was called to treat members of the royal families. For a number of years he had lived in Genoa, where he was a regular practicing physician. HALLSTEAD: For several months past a gang of boys, ranging in ages from 12 to 18 years, have been engaged in malicious mischief in the Lackawanna yards, in this place, by throwing switches wrong, tearing open cars and stealing cabbage and other articles out of open cars, and making a general nuisance of themselves. Detectives from Scranton recently rounded up the gang and succeeded in capturing six of them, but four more escaped. They were taken to Justice Crook for a hearing and as it was their first offense they were severely reprimanded and fined a small sum. They were allowed to go with the warning that if ever caught on the company’s property in the future they would be given a good long term in the reformatory. BROOKLYN: Chester Watrous was kept busy taking people to the county seat in his auto this week. ALSO The new barber shop was opened this week and from now on J.H. Tewksbury will greet all his old customers in his nicely fitted new quarters. SILVER LAKE: While Arthur Hill was plowing on the place known as the “Little farm” near here on Tuesday morning, he had an exciting experience which he will probably not forget as long as he lives. As he and his team were going along serenely turning over a beautiful furrow, he was horrified to see both horses suddenly disappear as if swallowed up by the earth. It seems that on this farm there used to be an old mill and a discarded well which had some boards thrown over it and a little earth which had grassed over and gave no intimation of its being there. The boards had become badly rotted and when the team stepped upon them they gave way. Heroic measures were resorted to save the team and with the assistance of some of the neighbors, including one woman, help being scarce, they were finally extracted and did not seem to be injured through the occurrence. UNIONDALE: Harry Tripp fell from the top rafters of the barn while looking for hens eggs and badly sprained his wrist, knee and back. FOREST LAKE: Miss Lelah Newton entertained the following husking bee party: Clara Green and sister, Lulu; Ray Everitt and sister, Daisy; Willie Quinlivan and sister, Mame; Mr. and Mrs. A. E. Warner, Mr. and Mrs. J. C. Clark, Leman Brown, Neva Brown, Lelah Newton, Willie Newton, Paul Newton; also a load from Binghamton namely: Ezra Lampman, Mark Brown, Lena Underwood and Lulu Underwood. B. J. Clark furnished the music. Dancing and games were indulged until midnight then dainty refreshments were served to about 25 guests. BROOKDALE: Richard Kelly recently received a letter from Ireland with the news of the death in September of Patrick Quigley, who in former years was our kind and trustworthy mail carrier. SPRINGVILLE: That the noble horse is drifting toward the class of the dodo and other extinct species, was disproved the other day when a horse and auto came together in a speed clinch. Among other things for which Springville might be noted, is a certain fast horse who was named for a celebrated predecessor, Maud S. The story follows: At Dimock the auto “honk honked,” and Maud S. started to Shaw’s Corners; the auto went past and Maud S. Started after it, and went to a place known as Muzzey’s. The auto took the left and Maud S. the right and passed. The exciting contest continued to Blakeslee’s when Maud S. stopped and the auto again passed. Then Maud S. caught the bit and took after the auto and occasionally let the occupants of the auto know that she was still in the game by thrusting her nose over among the occupants and feels that could she have had the right of way, she would have made a speed record. The owner of Maud S. is still waiting for the automobile manufacturers to add a few more cylinders to their machines before he sees any necessity of changing from the horse. Maud S. was sired by Postmaster F. I. Lott’s horse, “The Judge,” of Montrose. CORRECTION: The Montrose article in last week’s newspaper recorded the incorrect year of Robert Wood’s death. He died in 1910 not 2010.
From the Desk of the D.A. I was talking to a friend the other day about censorship and she suggested that I discussed the pending Westboro Baptist Church case that has made its way to the United States Supreme Court. If you are not familiar with the case, the facts are relatively simple, but unimaginably disturbing. The Westboro Baptist Church is based in Topeka, Kansas, and it has come into national infamy as a result of protests conducted by church members at military funerals. Albert Snyder sued the Church for disrupting the military funeral of his son, Lance Corporal Matthew Snyder, who was killed serving his country in Iraq. At his son’s funeral in 2006, seven Church members assembled near the mourning family at the cemetery carrying signs that read: “You’re Going to Hell” and “Thank God for Dead Soldiers.” In some form of demented logic, these protests are intended to demonstrate the Church’s opposition to homosexuality, abortion and war. Apparently, the Church recognizes the level of depravity involved in protesting a funeral - and uses this outrageous conduct to create a megaphone for its message. At the conclusion of the civil trial in the Snyder case, a jury of ordinary citizens sent the Church a message of its own - a 10.9 million dollar verdict against the Church for the intentional infliction of emotional distress upon the Snyder family (which was later reduced to 5.1 million dollars). The Church appealed and the Court of Appeals reversed the verdict finding that the Church had the First Amendment right to protest at the funeral. The United States Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case and arguments occurred a few weeks ago. Frankly, this case has many interesting dimensions - and wide implications for civil liability arising from future protests. Generally, the government has not prohibited any speech - and the First Amendment only protects against the government interfering with speech. There has been no suggestion that the Church could not protest - no one stopped them from protesting. The only question is whether there are any civil consequences that arise from the selected form of their speech. The law has always recognized that speech may have civil consequences - slander and libel actions have a long history in American jurisprudence. A defendant in such an action was not prevented from speaking, but the content of the act of speaking created a potential cause of action against the speaker. Of course, the Church contends that their actions are different from slander actions because they were engaged in “public speech” that has not been “proven false.” During arguments before the Court, the Church repeatedly wanted to make the point that this was a “public” funeral - not a private service - apparently because it was a military funeral in a public place like a cemetery. The Church seemed to concede that they could not interfere or disrupt a private funeral and then rely upon the First Amendment as a defensive shield. Moreover, if the statements were not false, then they would not fall into the slander category. But the argument that the “truth” is an absolute defense is also puzzling. There is no way to demonstrate the veracity of the statements on the placards regarding people going to Hell or thanking God for dead soldiers. Thus, the suggestion that the statements are true seems to be a rather weak defense to such egregious conduct. In the end, the Supreme Court is faced with a very difficult legal question - to what extent does the First Amendment protect protesters from civil liability where the content of their speech causes extreme emotional distress? As a free society, we must have the right to express our views - especially where those views are unpopular and may cause distress. But where does the line stop between public speech and private grieving? What about the right to privacy that the grieving family enjoys to bury their fallen loved one? The Supreme Court has the difficult task of weighing speech rights against privacy rights - and making a reasoned decision in a case that is repugnant to every civilized person. But the Court itself is not looking only at this case - but the wide implications and jurisprudence that will grow from it. There is an old adage about bad facts making bad law - and I cannot imagine facts worse than those in this particular case. Hopefully, the justices will have the wisdom avoid a decision that will later be viewed as “bad law.” Please submit any questions, concerns, or comments to Susquehanna County District Attorney’s Office, P.O. Box 218, Montrose, Pennsylvania 18801 or at our website www.SusquehannaCounty-DA.org or discuss this and all articles at http://dadesk.blogspot.com/.
The Healthy Geezer Q. What kind of exercise should I do to get rid of this big gut I'm carrying around? Exercise alone will not do the job. Strengthening abdominal muscles can help you look tighter and thinner. But spot exercises won't banish belly fat. The real secret to losing belly fat is a balanced, calorie-controlled diet and an hour a day of moderate activity such as brisk walking. If you are going to do abdominal exercises, which ones work best? Most people figure that doing sit-ups is the logical solution, but there are better ways to attack the middle. Believe it or not, you can develop your deep abdominal muscles by sucking in your belly. Exhale completely and then pull your belly button in and up slowly. Hold this position for 10 seconds and then rest for 10 seconds. You can do this on your hands and knees or standing. Pelvic exercises work on your lower abdomen. Lie on your back with your knees bent. Tighten your abdominal muscles and bend your pelvis up slightly. Hold for five to 10 seconds. Repeat. Here's another pelvic exercise. Lie on your back with your knees bent up toward your chest and your arms at your sides. Tighten your lower abdomen and try to lift your buttocks up off the floor. Hold for five to 10 seconds. Repeat. How often you do these exercises depends upon your physical condition. Don't do anything that hurts. And checking with your doctor before starting a new exercise program is recommended. Belly fat - or “abdominal obesity” as it is known in polite circles - is not just an unsightly mass of blubber that forces you to look for bigger pants. That spare tire is a health hazard. Excess weight is unhealthy, but extra abdominal weight is especially unhealthy. Abdominal fat cells are more than just stored energy. These cells make hormones and other substances that impact your health. Too much belly fat increases your risk of heart disease, stroke, breast cancer, diabetes, gallbladder problems, high blood pressure and colorectal cancer. There is some very good news for those trying to lose belly fat (I'm with you, Chubby). Belly fat is the first to go when you diet and exercise. Almost everyone who loses weight will lose it first in the belly. And they will lose proportionately more weight in this region than in other parts of the body. So, what exactly is a big belly? Most authorities will tell you that a man's waistline larger than 40 inches and a woman's waistline larger than 35 inches is too much middle. The proper way to measure your waist is to use a soft tape measure. Lie down and wrap it around your natural waistline, located above your hip bone and below your belly button. Take the measurement without holding your breath or pulling your stomach in. A big belly is a common sight on seniors. As you age and your metabolism slows down, the amount of fat in your body slowly increases. Women experience an even greater overall fat increase than men do. Then, after menopause, body fat tends to shift to the abdomen. However, men are more likely than women to gain weight around the waist. You can inherit a tendency to get a big belly. For most men, however, the cause is more likely to be what they do with their elbow. Too much alcohol with give you a spare tire. There is such a thing as a “beer belly.” However, a more accurate definition would be “alcohol abdomen.” There seems to be a link between abdominal obesity and depression. There have been reports showing that cortisol, a stress hormone, is related to both depression and abdominal obesity. Some researchers suspect that people who are depressed may have higher levels of abdominal obesity because of elevated cortisol. More studies are needed to determine the underlying causes for weight gain among those who reported being depressed. If you have a question, please write to fred@healthygeezer.com.
Library Chitchat No Library Chitchat This Week
Rock Doc Burning Our Own Fuels The Gulf oil spill has shown us just one of the downsides of petroleum. That makes the mind of even a geologist like me turn to several questions about the future. Could we Americans grow more of our own fuel - enough to run a number of our cars, trucks and airplanes? And, quite importantly, could we do so without displacing food crops like corn? Pretty much everybody from all sorts of political persuasions is interested in those issues. And the good news is that researchers - and farmers with a vision, too - are hard at work laboring on new uses of an ancient crop plant called Camelina. Also known as “false flax,” it’s a wispy plant in the same group as mustard and Canola. There are two impressive things about Camelina. Its seeds contain a lot of oil that’s liberated by crushing - and the more oil the better from the fuel point of view. Better still, Camelina can be grown on pretty lousy soil - either areas where no crops will grow well or at times that soil may otherwise be left fallow by farmers in dryland regions of our country. Score two big ones for Camelina. Archeologists say that Camelina has been grown by people for several thousand years. You can eat Camelina oil, which has a lot of omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants. Camelina was grown through the 1930s in eastern Europe where its oil was used in lamps and the meal left-over after crushing the seeds was fed to livestock. In short, it has been a pretty durable friend of ours, as crops go - likely an original biofuel, you could say, and one that only recently fell fully out of use. Today researchers are investigating bringing back Camelina because it has some highly valuable properties for something much more modern than lamp oil. With some processing, Camelina oil can be used in jet engines. It’s a “drop in” fuel, meaning it functions just like traditional jet fuel. Blended with petroleum jet fuel, in fact, Camelina has already been “test driven” in jet planes. Score a third big one for Camelina. “This ancient crop has a great deal of new potential,” says Professor Ralph Cavalieri of Washington State University. “We think we are poised to make major contributions to biofuels with Camelina.” But where can we grow this venerable crop in the U.S. that wouldn’t displace food crops? Here’s an example. In eastern Montana and central Oregon and Washington, where the climate is semi-arid, wheat is often grown on a rotating basis with fallow years. During the otherwise fallow times, Camelina looks like a good crop. It can help hold soil in place compared to leaving it exposed to windstorms. And it could give farmers some income during years when they would have none otherwise. It’s true, of course, that when you burn Camelina-based jet fuel - or corn-based ethanol or soybean-based biodiesel - you are liberating carbon dioxide, the well-known greenhouse gas. But that carbon is not ancient, like the carbon from coal or petroleum. It’s part of the life cycle, if you will, of the recent history of the planet. The worry about global warming rests on our liberation of ancient carbon, the material that upsets the balance of what’s in the atmosphere today. There are many details yet to be worked out for Camelina, and much work yet to do to see if it all makes sense in economic terms on a large scale. But it looks like the major international airport at Seattle-Tacoma will shortly get part of its fuel from Camelina. That’s to be welcomed, especially if it helps global warming, soil conservation and the bottom line of farmers. Still, it remains true that we cannot yet simply grow ourselves out of our dependencies on petroleum. By that I mean that the total biofuel power in the nation is a fraction of what we get from our main fluid fuels, petroleum and natural gas. But every step we can take toward energy independence that doesn’t limit our food production is clearly great news. Dr. E. Kirsten Peters, a native of the rural Northwest, was trained as a geologist at Princeton and Harvard. This column is a service of the College of Agricultural, Human and Natural Resource Sciences at Washington State University. Peters can be reached at epeters@wsu.edu.
What’s Bugging You? No What's Bugging You This Week
No Dear Dolly This Week
EARTH TALK No Earth Talk This Week
Barnes-Kasson Corner No Barnes-Kasson Corner This Week
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