East Kingsley – Mrs. B. M. Jeffers spent a week at the 50th anniversary of the battle of Gettysburg held on the ground there. It is a wonderful revelation to anyone that never visited this historic spot. When one drives around the grounds of 2000 acres owned by the Government and find, after 50 years, everything preserved and cared for, the stones that the Union soldiers piled up in long rows on the 3rd day of July 1863, for a breast work, to protect them from the Confederates and not a stone out of place and the 500 monuments that have been placed there to mark the spot where some honored comrades fell, gives one the realization of the awfulness of the conflict.

Forest City – The July days have been bad ones for dogs. The borough police have shot about twenty canines found on the streets without muzzles. Among the animals that have fallen before the rifles of the officers is the well-known bird dog that has been the companion of every night cop for several years past.

Hallstead – Frank S. Barnes and Thomas Summerton have been appointed by the County Commissioners to look after the interests of the old soldiers in Hallstead, Great Bend borough and township and to make out all papers for appropriations due to soldiers’ widows.

Brushville – The Rev. Harrington, of the Bible school of Binghamton, preaches here every Sunday at two o’clock. He is a very able speaker and one feels more than repaid to hear him. Next Sunday he will demonstrate, by the use of chemicals, the direct effects of sin on the human body.

Glenwood – John Waters, an old resident of Cameron Corners, died July 9, at the ripe old age of 90 years. Another old veteran has dropped out of the ranks and answered the last roll call. He leaves one son and six daughters to mourn his death. Interment at the Resseguie cemetery at S. Gibson.

Lynn, Springville Twp. – Welch & Button, general blacksmith’s, are rushed with work these days, repairing wagons and shoeing horses. Also Walter A. Hartman, the popular young clerk at Herbert Fish’s store, will in three months graduate in a complete course in the art of running automobiles, from the Correspondence Schools of Scranton.

Brooklyn – “Grim Reaper at Brooklyn.” Isaac Babcock, who was born in Springville, Oct. 12, 1825, was the first one to be summoned and left his pleasant home on the bank of Ely Lake, June 25th, 1913. Mr. Babcock was the son of Frank and Parmie Ely Babcock. Early in life he removed to Dimock where he learned the shoemaker’s trade, but most of his work was done on the farm. He enlisted in Co. H, 141st Regt., in the Civil War, for three years, and was discharged in 1864 and returned home broken in health. He married Sarah Allen of Dimock and removed to Montrose until his wife’s death in 1885, when he came to Brooklyn to live. In 1887 he married Ruth McKeeby and built a cottage near the border of Ely Lake, where he and his wife lived until his death.  Death waited a few days, this time in the center of the village and took one, who for many years had been a prominent resident of the township, when E. G. Williams answered the summons. Mr. Williams was born in January of 1823 on the farm now owned by E. F. Ely and known as the Bailey Farm. When a child of about 3 years old he went to the spring with a cup to get his sister a drink of water. The spring was walled up and the water deep and a speckled trout was in the water. The baby boy wanted the trout, but lost his balance and fell into the spring. How he got out never was known, but he returned to the house with his clothing wet and said to his mother—“Why didn’t you come when I called to you,” but the life was spared and the boy grew to man’s estate and became a useful citizen and held many offices of trust. Death came to him on July 14th. He is survived by one daughter, Mrs. Eva Tiffany, widow of the late N. L. Tiffany.

Lake Winola, Wyoming Co. – R. J. Potish, of Clark’s Summit, claims to have killed the largest rattlesnake that has been seen in the Lake Winola region for some time. This snake, he says, measures six feet and three inches from his poison pouch to its rattles. There were sixteen buttons or rattles. The snake was killed along the Tunkhannock creek about four miles from Factoryville.

Montrose – Mrs. M. J. Mawhinney, 25 Park St., advertises her woven rugs. Next week she will have blue and white warp, and the week after black and orange warp, on her loom. ALSO Interest in the Country Club, as the season advances, is awakening and the outlook is for a largely increased membership and many social functions in connection with the club during the summer. The golf links and courts are in excellent condition and many members are engaged in these pleasant sports each day. This evening a bridge and auction party will be given at the Rosemont for the Benefit of the club. Tickets, 50 cents.

Rushville – Claire Whipple, of Laceyville and Ed. Frantz, of Stevensville, were here Saturday looking over the ground upon which to build a new schoolhouse.

Harford – Miss Latona Gunn left on Wednesday for Kirksville, Mo., where she will enter the American School of Osteopathy to train for a nurse. The best wishes of a host of friends follow her.

Gibson – Those from here who attended the 50th anniversary at Gettysburg were Hollis Barrett, George Potter, W. H. and W. D. Estabrook. ALSO Mr. and Mrs. Ebenezer Washburn, of Salina, Kansas, are guests of Mr. and Mrs. A. H. Harding. Mr. Washburn attended the reunion at Gettysburg.

Ainey, Springville Twp. – Eben Wood, wife and son, and Mrs. Almeda Thatcher spent the week end huckleberrying on the Mehoopany mountain, returning Monday with a nice lot of berries.

Lathrop Twp. – An ice cream social will be held at the home of Fay Brotzman on Saturday evening, July 19. Everybody invited to attend.

Dimock Campmeeting – The 39th annual session of the Dimock Campmeeting will be held on the grounds, commencing Tuesday evening, Aug. 12 and closing Wednesday evening, Aug. 20th. One of the highlights of the week will be Miss Grace Saxe, the very successful Bible teacher of the Billy Sunday party, and an instructor and author of international reputation, who will conduct Bible classes for six days of the session.

Judicial Watch, a self-described “legal watchdog,” just announced that it has obtained documents that show the United States Department of Justice was involved in the organization and promotion of rallies and protests in Sanford, Florida, condemning George Zimmerman, who was charged with murder in connection with the death of Trayvon Martin.  Based upon the report, over the course of several months, the Community Relations Service, a unit of the Department of Justice, spent over $5,000 of taxpayer monies assisting, promoting, organizing and enabling protests and rallies seeking the state to file criminal charges against George Zimmerman.

I had never even heard of the Department of Justice Community Relations Service prior to this particular report.  After learning of its use of taxpayer funds to foment discontent and agitation toward a suspect in a criminal investigation, this unit may be a good starting point in any budget cutting discussions.  From a prosecutor’s perspective, it was shocking to think that the Department of Justice would get actively involved in community activities aimed at condemnation of an accused citizen prior to arrest, trial and conviction.

You might ask what is so extraordinary about the government taking an active role in promoting rallies, protests or demonstrations.  It is a fair question to which I hope that I can provide a fair and reasoned response.  Every attorney must adhere to a Code of Professional Responsibility – and the general ethical rules are fairly uniform throughout the country – even though each particular state has its own ethical guidelines.  Pennsylvania Rule of Professional Responsibility 3.8 deals with the “special responsibilities” of prosecutors, which outlines the extra ethical requirements that apply to prosecutors that do not apply to other attorneys.  The reason that prosecutors are held to a higher standard is a simple and necessary one: prosecutors occupy a role that it quasi-judicial simply by virtue of the nature of the prosecutorial function and the discretion that comes with prosecutorial decisions. 

Prosecutors have the ability to decide whether a person will even be charged and, if charges are filed, what those charges will be.  Prosecutors have some control over things like diversion programs where accused individuals can avoid criminal convictions through supervised rehabilitative programs.  Prosecutors have the ability to negotiate plea agreements that may determine how much, if any, time a defendant spends in jail.  Given the breadth of a prosecutor’s powers, it is not surprising that prosecutors are expected and called to adhere to a higher standard of professional conduct.

Rule 3.8 has a specific provision relating to communicating with the community on pending criminal matters and it prohibits a prosecutor from “making extrajudicial comments that have a likelihood of heightening public condemnation of the accused and exercise reasonable care to prevent investigators, law enforcement personnel, employees or other persons assisting or associated with the prosecutor in a criminal case from making an extrajudicial statement that the prosecutor [would be prohibited from making].”  In other words, a prosecutor in a criminal case must refrain from engaging in media-related conduct that would taint the jury pool, i.e., heighten the public condemnation of the accused person.

Plainly, a prosecutor cannot assist, organize and fund rallies and protests aimed specifically at condemnation of the accused suspect.  From the perspective of fundamental fairness, I suspect that this seems like common sense to most of us.  Prosecutors should not be out in the public beating the media drum with the aim of obtaining an arrest and conviction of an accused citizen.  Rather, prosecutors should provide the community with the simple facts about what has happened and a general description of the upcoming procedure – and the rest of the talking about a specific case should occur in a courtroom – not a newsroom or through a megaphone at a rally organized to demonize the accused.

Attorney General Eric Holder runs the Department of Justice – and he is the top prosecutor in this Nation.  He is not, however, the prosecutor in the George Zimmerman case.  In other words, he can contend that his Department had no such special responsibility to refrain from assisting in and encouraging communal condemnation of George Zimmerman.  From a purely legalistic sense, such an assertion would be accurate.  But it seems pretty clear that the Department of Justice certainly skirted the spirit and intent of Rule 3.8 – and similar rules throughout the country that define the special responsibilities of prosecutors – when it decided to take an active role in promoting, aiding, and funding protests and rallies aimed at swaying an entire community’s perception toward one particular criminal suspect.  While many are objecting the fact that $5,000 in taxpayer dollars was wasted on this exercise, the more chilling part of this report is not the monies spent, but the “extrajudicial” conduct that the Department of Justice undertook that was aimed at communal condemnation of the accused citizen.

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/.

"No bought potpourri is so pleasant as that made from ones own garden, for the petals of the flowers one has gathered at home hold the sunshine and memories of summer, and of past summers only the sunny days should be remembered."
- Eleanor Sinclair-Rhode

Oh the lazy, hazy days of Summer! Time for some relaxation and recharging of the human spirit. An opportune season for families to enjoy the world around them and each other. Vacations are taken. hammocks hung, gallons of sun tea consumed. and everything that can be prepared on the grill, usually is—after all, who wants to cook in a warm kitchen when gentle breezes can waft the delicious aromas around the neighborhood, calling young athletes and tired lawn mowing souls to the table. Time for reading all of those titles which have been beckoning to you from your bookshelf or packed away in your beach bag and for taking some time for yourself—whether it be gardening,, cycling, or just taking a leisurely stroll, enjoying fragrant blossoms—this is what we have waited all winter for!

As you will recall, I designated the month of June, “Patron Appreciation Month” here in the column—however, due to newspaper space limitations, I have to extend the honors into July. This week, the staff at the Hallstead /Great Bend Branch, Angie, Valerie and Jackie, would like to thank all of their wonderful, faithful patrons. “It is an honor to help you choose books you will enjoy and help you expand your reading.” They would also like to recognize a few “Special Patrons” who always go the extra mile for the Library.

Pat Forsyth is our Library Branch’s “Green Thumb Lady” and has planted some beautiful flowers in our flowerpots outside of the library, being faithful about coming to water them, she keeps them looking great! Pat has also been known to bring us lunch or some kind of baked goodie that she made. Another faithful patron is Alice Hall. She is always cheerful and has a smile on her face.

A voracious reader, Alice orders several books each week. We look forward to her visits to pick up her titles, dropping off another list for us to order for her. We want to recognize Linda Anesi from the Civic Club who stops in to check on the garden that she planted outside of our Library Branch. Linda always keeps it looking spiffy and is always checking in to see if the Library needs anything.

The VFW has always been very generous with us also and we sincerely appreciate it! A “Special Thank-you” to Trudy and Dale Henry, who, through their kindness, generosity and love of golf, have helped the Hallstead/Great Bend Library in many ways, especially by sponsoring the Golf Tournament with the proceeds benefiting your Local Library Branch. The Tournament is scheduled for Sunday, July 21st and will be held at the Conklin Players Club located in Conklin, New York. More details about this event are available if you call the Hallstead/Great Bend Library Branch. If you haven’t practiced your putting or shined up those golf shoes, I recommend you do so—you don’t want to miss out on a wonderful day of fun and friendship, not to mention offering a helping hand for your Library Branch and helping to support all of the programs and services you have come to enjoy.

Thank you to all!

On Tuesday, June 25th,the Summer Reading Program began and is still in progress. Your child can still join in if you drop by the Hallstead/Great Bend Branch Library and speak with Angie, Valerie or Jackie, they’ll be happy to help you with the sign-up The programs start at 10:00 on Tuesdays, and it’s going to be an exciting few weeks! The theme is: “Dig Into Reading”, and at the Hallstead/Great Bend location, a free lunch will be served after the story hour to all young participants of the program.I understand the free lunch program is terrific and a big hit. Don’t miss the fun! Sign-up the wee-ones today!

Don’t forget to find us on “Facebook”: (Susquehanna County Library) and look us up on “Pinterest” for lots of interesting nooks and crannies to explore and now, if you “Tweet”, follow us on Twitter (@susqcolib) to check out event information, local scoops and much more.

As I try to keep ahead of the dandelion population--and silently encourage our tomato plants to blossom and bear-- I leave you with this thought:

“A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken” ~James Dent

Lightning Bugs--Ice-Cold Watermelon—Strawberry Shortcake

Enjoy!!