Buildings Injured by Snow: The auditorium of the Montrose Bible Conference suffered injury during the week when the roofs of three of the one-story sections on the east side of the building were crushed by the heavy accumulation of snow. On Wednesday night, March 23, the large barn belonging to Michael O’Reilly, at St. Joseph, collapsed and did a great deal of damage.  Out of a herd of 20, three valuable cows were killed outright when the roof fell in and, young James Kelly, while assisting in the removal of the animals, was injured by getting his leg caught in the scattered pieces of lumber.  The barn was an old landmark and was erected at a period when the Christian Brothers’ College was one of the principal seats of learning in the County, many years ago.  Lyman and Oscar Bunnell narrowly escaped injury on Thursday when a shed roof, heavily laden with snow, collapsed.  The farm is just below Montrose.

Harford – The Sunshine Crochet club met at the home of Miss Clare Lindsey, Monday evening.  Those present were: The Misses Marjorie and Janette Andrews, Mrs. A. H. Rynearson, Miss Helene Rynearson, Mrs. Whiting, Mrs. C. A. Johnston, Mrs. T. Glen Sophia, Mrs. A. H. Mead, Mrs. E. J. Whitney, Misses Helen Smith and Clare Lindsey.  Dainty refreshments were served.

Montrose – It is current that an expert will arrive tomorrow to repair the clock in the court house tower, which has been out of running order.  This steeple-jack will perform a daring feat in the afternoon by climbing out on the tower and adjusting the hands.  Watch his antics while at work.

ALSO – J. Wesley Gavitt, a teacher of the violin, with studio in Scranton, was in Montrose Saturday, and arrangements can be made for lessons.  Mr. Gavitt is a son of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Gavitt, of Bridgewater.  He has been a violin student for many years and has shown exceptional musical talent.  He is a student of Arnold Lohmann, one of Scranton’s most finished violinists, and is well qualified to give instruction on this favorite instrument.

Lanesboro – Buckley Bros. store at Lanesboro was burglarized again last Tuesday night.  The glass ion the store front was smashed in and a number of small articles stolen from the stock.  This store is burglarized every few months.  Local talent is blamed for the thefts.

Brooklyn – Lois Sterling has returned from Bear Swamp, where she completed a successful term of school and has been engaged to teach another term.

South Montrose – Probably the only Susquehanna county young man who is in the U. S. forces now chasing General Villa through the mountainous region of Mexico, is Jack Zimmator, brother of Frank Zimmator, of this place.  Jack is with the Thirteenth cavalry, this command being one of the very first to cross the border after the fleeing Villistas.  He has been in the army for three years, having been stationed for a good share of the time in Hawaii.  During his residence here he was employed in the creamery, and later was in the employ of Dr. W. L. Diller, of Springville.  His friends trust no Mexican bullet will ever search him out.

Gibson – The Globe Grocery Stores, Inc., of which E. F. Brundage, formerly of this place, is president, and John M. Vail, of Scranton, a former New Milford man, is district superintendent, will soon open a store in Honesdale.

Uniondale – The explosion of a heating stove Wednesday morning of last week, caused the destruction of the home of Mr. and Mrs. Charles E. Gibson, and such severe injuries from burns to Mrs. Gibson, that her condition is very critical.  The accident happened about 9:30 in the forenoon.  Mrs. Gibson was putting a hod of coal on the fire and the explosion came either from coal gas or an explosive mixed with the coal.  The hot coal was thrown against her dress, which instantly ignited.  Mr. Gibson, who was in an adjoining room heard her cry and rushing to her assistance carried his wife out doors and rolled her in the snow to extinguish the flames.  Her clothing was by that time, however, entirely destroyed and she was badly burned.  Mr. Gibson sustained severe burns about the hands and face and the daughter, Ruth, was also badly burned.  While Mrs. Gibson was being cared for the flames quickly spread and the house with all of the contents was consumed.  We understand there was no insurance.  The family is now at the home of Mr. Gibson’s brother, D. B. Gibson. [Mrs. Gibson expired Friday evening.]

Springville – The roads are about as near impassable as it is possible for them to be and everyone has his own troubles to keep up navigation.

Hopbottom – The “April Fool” social to be given in Masonic hall, on Friday evening of this week, promises to be an enjoyable affair.  The entertainment will include as the leading feature a laughable farce, “Slim Jim and the Hoodoo,” the cast of characters including five talented young actors of the village.  The program will also include several good musical numbers.  Admission ten cents.  The refreshments to be served will include either warm sugar or ice cream, with other good things.

South Auburn – Miss Ella Crawford closed a successful term of school Friday. ALSO  A farewell party for Mr. and Mrs. Fred Love was held in the Hall, Thursday evening.  About 40 were present and a very enjoyable evening was spent.  They were presented with a very nice chair.  Mr. and Mrs. Love will move soon to their farm recently purchased near Laceyville.  We are sorry to have them go.

Franklin Forks – D. L. Birchard, of this place, was greeting his many friends in Montrose on Saturday.  For many years Mr. Birchard drove the stage between Montrose and Conklin and was always very popular with patrons of his route.

Clifford – There was no preaching service at the Methodist church on Sunday, as the congregation desired to hear Dr. Evans at the Baptist church.

East Rush – G. A. Crisman lost his cow last Sunday morning.  He thought she had the milk fever.  She was only sick for a few hours.

News Brief: The snowball season is here: to say the least, it is very annoying to pedestrians and the boy who manipulates the snowball should be rather cautious and not throw them with intent to do bodily harm.  Boys, be a little careful about the matter, please.  ALSO The best way out of trouble is not to get into it.

200 Years Ago. From the Montrose Centinel. DIED in this village on Wednesday last, Zeviah H. Howell, daughter of Austin Howell, Esq. ALSO We understand that the republican caucus at Washington, agreed to recommend James Monroe as a candidate for the Presidency and Daniel D. Tompkins as a candidate for the vice presidency of the United States.

During the course of a trial, it is not uncommon for exhibits to be marked simply for reference purposes and then never admitted into evidence.  There are other occasions when a party marks and identifies an exhibit, but the Court may determine that it is not admissible.  Finally, there are also exhibits that are admitted as evidence, but not permitted to go out to the jury itself as the courts have determined it would be too prejudicial to allow the jury to actually see the exhibit itself – as opposed to simply hearing the testimony regarding it.

For instance, Pennsylvania Rule of Criminal Procedure 646 prohibits the jury from having a defendant’s written confession in their possession during jury deliberations.  The reason for these procedural rules is simple: undue emphasis or credibility may be attributed to the written exhibit and thereby discredit or deemphasize the other oral testimony provided during the trial.

But what happens when something accidently goes out to the jury?  After the jury retires to deliberate, the court normally has the parties go through the exhibits to determine if there are any exhibits that need to be pulled before the exhibits are sent to the jury for deliberations.  As noted, there are rules that prohibit certain types of exhibits being in the possession of jurors.  Even outside those prohibited items, the trial court has discretion to determine what exhibits to go out to the jury, i.e., the trial judge can determine that a particular exhibit would be improperly given too much weight if the jury had it in its possession during deliberations.

In a recent appellate case, the Superior Court considered a situation where an unmarked exhibit (and therefore an exhibit that was never admitted) made its way into the jury room for deliberations.  The trial judge became aware of the problem when the jury sent a question to the court during the deliberations.  The trial judge went directly to the jury deliberation room to answer their question – and placed the exchange with the jury on the record.  The jury had asked to see both 9-1-1 call transcripts.  When arriving in the jury deliberation room, the trial judge discovered that the jury had a transcript of a 9-1-1 call which was never admitted into evidence – and the jury wanted the other transcript which was likewise never admitted into evidence.

At that point, the trial judge explained to the jurors that they should not have possession of that exhibit as it was not admitted into evidence, took possession of the unmarked exhibit, and explained to the jurors that they had to rely upon their collective recollection as to the contents of the 9-1-1 call.  The trial judge never explained to the parties that the jurors had an unmarked exhibit during their deliberations.  The jury ultimately convicted the defendant of attempted homicide and related offenses, and he received a sentence of 25 to 50 years in a state correctional facility.

When the defendant obtained his trial transcripts, he noticed for the first time that the jury had received and considered an unmarked exhibit during jury deliberations.  The defendant then sought to have his conviction overturned based upon the failure of his trial counsel to properly appeal his conviction based upon the jury receiving this unmarked evidence while deliberations were occurring.

In considering the defendant’s appeal, the Superior Court noted that at an evidentiary hearing, the original trial judge testified that there was nothing prejudicial about the unmarked exhibit and this was the reason that the trial judge never informed counsel about its inadvertent inclusion in the items provided to the jury during deliberations.  While the Superior Court agreed that the unmarked evidence should not have gone to the jury, the Superior Court refused to reverse the defendant’s conviction because they found that the defendant could not demonstrate that he was prejudiced by the jury having the unmarked exhibit in its possession.  In other words, the nature of this particular document (a 9-1-1 transcript) did not suggest that it would unduly and improperly influence the jury to come to its determination of guilt.  Based upon this finding, the defendant was unable to demonstrate prejudice, which requires a showing that but for the jury having the unmarked exhibit he would not have been convicted.

The case highlights the care that needs to be exercised by both to the parties and the court to monitor what exhibits (and other materials) go to the jury room.  Even where a mistake is made, however, it does not automatically mean that all the work and effort that went into the trial process is undone unless the mistake resulted in prejudice to the losing party.

“Springtime is the land awakening. The March winds are the morning yawn.” ~Quoted by Lewis Grizzard in Kathy Sue Loudermilk, I Love You.

Beloved author Beverly Cleary is turning 100 in April! Her characters Henry Huggins, Ramona and Beezus, Ralph S. Mouse and many others are loved by young readers around the world.  To celebrate, you can use this link to explore her childhood in Oregon; tour the Portland streets that she made famous, and best of all, enjoy a rare interview with this wonderful Author.

http://www.opb.org/television/video/cove-oregon-art-beat-preview-discovering-beverly-cleary/

These and other interesting facts about our beloved Authors, as well as the books we have enjoyed for decades, can be found in your local library location. Why not set aside some time for a family outing and see all of the wonderful titles, services, and programs it has to offer.

The 17th Annual “Library Auction” is fast approaching! Make a notation on your calendar to join us on April 9th, 2016 at the Montrose VFW on Route 706. Doors will open for perusing at 4:15 pm. The Brunch Buffet will start at 5:00 pm with the Auction beginning at 6:00 pm. There is an admission fee which includes the full buffet brunch beverages and desserts. This year's items up for sale include gift certificates, gift baskets, various art pieces, amusement park tickets, and a weeklong rental in the Outer Banks, just to name a smattering of delightful offerings. If you’ve enjoyed this event in years past, we hope you will be with us on the 9th and,with your winning bids, help us provide the programs and services that you and your Family have come to expect. We promise---you will not be disappointed!

On Sunday, April 17th, a Susquehanna County Library Fundraiser “A Musical Revue Celebrating Spring and Patriotism” will be held at the Harford Congregational Church, 5015 Creek Road, Harford, Pa.This musical event starts at 3:00 pm. There is no admission fee but a free will offering donation will be welcomed. Please plan to come and enjoy an afternoon of local talent and help support the new Susquehanna County Library Building Fund as well.

Do you sometimes feel as if you were born to be a reader? Check out these fourteen signs and see if any apply to you. You were picking up books at an early age. You are fascinated with learning. You have a great imagination. You’re an empathetic person. You’d drop everything if a story was involved. Bedtime was your favorite hour. When you first went to a Library (or Bookmobile), you thought you were in Heaven. You know the best way to unwind from stress. Words fascinate you. You started hoarding books at a young age. You have confused plot lines with your own memories. You like having “Alone Time”. Your Family reads a lot. You want more than reality.

As I check out the peeping daffodils and wonder who or what moved the crocus bulbs to other parts of the yard, I leave you with this thought:

“In the spring I have counted one hundred and thirty-six different kinds of weather inside of four and twenty hours.” ~Mark Twain

Colorful Kites—Robins—Crocus Blossoms

ENJOY!!

Recent columns concerning the imagined right to healthcare have provoked thought by at least a few readers. Because of that continued interest I will continue along my same train of thought to provide more in-depth elucidation. Gentle Readers, please bear with me as I provide further details of how our right to health care unhindered by the federal government has been lost while America slept.

I must necessarily begin with abstract concepts so that premises might be logically laid out, conclusions drawn, and fallacies exposed. There are the four “types” of government: (1) Self-government (individual), (2) Family government, (3) Religious government, and (4) Civil government. These four types are traditionally and historically accepted within America, and Western Civilization at large. Astute minds will readily recognize that Sharia Law seamlessly combines numbers 3 and 4 into a dominant comprehensive system which regulates every detail of numbers 1 and 2. I have not addressed the “right” to healthcare under Sharia Law, nor is it my purpose to do so in this column.

Judaism and Christianity typically recognize the family as the basic unit of civilization. Civil Government as defined in America’s foundational documents, is placed in a position of subservience to “We the People” with accountability to our Creator who has endowed us with certain inalienable rights.  Government, whether local, county, state, or federal is merely our servant. Government’s multi-level aspect as well as its separation of powers, reserved powers, and specifically enumerated powers for the federal government should give all readers a clue as to the meticulousness with which the Founders and Framers planned for our governance through civil authority. Having just thrown off the tyranny of King George III, the progenitors of America were acutely aware of the dangers of UNLIMITED power. They understood that UNLIMITED power could be entrusted only to God, with government God’s agent permitted only limited authority and for the purpose of carrying out His will. 

In the Declaration of Independence the Founding Fathers noted three particular areas of Natural Rights: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness (private property ownership). When the Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution’s framework in 1788 further clarification was made in the first 10 Amendments, known as the Bill of Rights.

The problem ever since has been that some men confound “rights” with desires. Noted author and thinker Russell Kirk explains the conundrum this way, “This confusion in definition plagues society today, notably in the ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ drawn up by the United Nations Organization: thirty articles, and a somewhat greater number of  ‘rights’ defined therein, including the right to free education, the right to ‘enjoy the arts.’ the right of copyright, the right to an international order, the right to ‘full development of personality,’ the right to equal pay, the right to marry, and a great many more which actually are not rights at all, but merely aspirations. The conservative adage that all radical ‘natural rights’ are simply, in substance, a declaration of the Right to be Idle is suggested in Article 24: ‘Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.’”

Kirk continues, “This lengthy catalogue of ‘rights’ ignores two essential conditions which are attached to all true rights; first, the capacity of individuals to claim and exercise the alleged right; second, the correspondent duty that is married to every right. If a man has a RIGHT to marry, some woman [or another individual, nowadays] must have the duty of marrying him; if a man has a RIGHT to rest, some other person must have the duty of supporting him. If rights are confused thus with desires, the mass of men must feel always that some vast, intangible conspiracy thwarts their attainment of what they are told is their inalienable birthright. Burke (and after him, Coleridge), perceiving this danger of fixing upon society a permanent grudge and frustration, tried to define true natural right and true natural law.” The previous quotes are found in Russell Kirk’s, “The Conservative Mind From Burke to Eliot.” Read the book if you are a lover of liberty. 

If Russell Kirk’s logic escapes any, or would that some still argue healthcare a right, let me offer one further perspective, that of author Paul B. Skousen. Skousen posits in his book, “The Naked Socialist,” “Every human is born with natural rights that may be categorized into eight general rights: Independent Creations, Choice, Property, Association, Equality, Defense, Compassion, and Failure.” He further asserts that one may test every government proposition, e.g. Obamacare [loosely, “the right to national healthcare”] by asking whether it violates or sustains these natural rights. Consider the following:

- Does national health care protect my RIGHT to be Independent? NO, it effectively forces me into status as a ward of the state, or notably more dependent than before its imposition.

- Does national health care protect my RIGHT to Choose? NO, it forces me to accept healthcare on government’s terms in so far as government defines what benefits are government-approved, what policies may be purchased, and availability of providers, levels of care, options, etc.

- Does national health care protect my RIGHT to Property? NO, it ordains that I am mandated to purchase insurance from a private company, and/or surrender private property (taxes) to support what government determines is best for me, though it may be in opposition to what I believe best for me. 

- Does national health care protect my RIGHT to Association? NO, it violates or potentially violates my choice of doctor and/or health-care facility.

-  Does national health care protect everyone Equally? NO, not every one is covered; some people enjoy opt-out provisions; some people (Congress and their staffs) have access to preferential subsidies and preferred status, despite the express wording of the law; even worse it forces some people to lose their doctors and their old health care plan to go on Medicaid or enroll in much inferior government-approved plans.

- Does national health care protect my RIGHT to Defend myself? NO, it has mandated (compulsory) requirements that are enforceable by the most feared federal agency, the IRS--before which I am stripped of my 5th Amendment Rights, meaning I may be presumed guilty until I can prove innocence.

- Does national health care protect my RIGHT to practice Compassion? NO, higher taxes/increased premiums/higher co-payments and deductibles undermine philanthropic donations and impose impediments to health care providers who would otherwise volunteer their time and services were it not for the increased burden of regulations and constraints. Provisions related to the implications of 30-hour/week employment have caused millions of workers to lose their previous employer-provided healthcare, or now prevent them from obtaining full-time employment.

- Does national health care protect my Freedom to Fail? NO, taxpayer-provided/subsidized health-care can ruin people’s lives by limiting their motivation to improve their lives to the extent that (1) they may have otherwise sought to provide for their own private health-care by bettering their economic condition, or (2) they may have taken pro-active steps to provide self-care before seeking professional medical care.

There is no doubt that many individuals who had no health-care insurance before passage of Obamacare in 2010 can be found. But the program’s dubious achievements have fallen far short of expectations. First and foremost, Obamacare was never about the health care right; it was about control. First, last, and always, it was designed as a stepping stone to Compulsory Universal Health Care. The plan limps along by design, but pretty clearly hamstrings economic development and creates continuing discontent with health care. And all the while costs are escalating, not declining, particularly since immigrants legal and illegal are reportedly enrolling for their healthcare “right.”

 Candidate Obama sold the plan to voters as his socialist pie-in-the-sky plan that would solve the nation’s health-care “crisis” by making the rich, selfish insurance companies pay up. President Obama sold the plan to insurance companies by promising them insurance coverage would be mandatory. And just in case things didn’t work out so well, as many insurance executives thought possible, Obamacare provided “risk corridors” (profit sharing for insurance companies, including with taxpayer money, if necessary) to cover losses. What could go wrong? The people were going to soak the insurance companies, and the insurance companies were going to soak a hostage class of enrollees, or tax payers as a last resort.

For anyone who hasn’t figured it out yet, Obamacare is a “beautiful” scam that is working to the benefit of both the Democrat and Republican Parties. Democrats run on the platform of “improving” Obamacare and making sure people can exercise their health care “right.” Not one Republican in the House or Senate voted for passage of Obamacare. Republicans have successfully won Congressional elections in 2010, 2012, and 2014 based on the promise of defunding, repealing, and replacing Obamacare. It’s obvious by now, that institutional Republicans love Obamacare as an issue, but they have no actual intention of getting rid of it. They’ve had five years to act, but have steadfastly played rope-a-dope with their constituency.

Every human’s right to health care is fundamentally located between two ears and north of two eyes. That right is individual self-empowerment to balance medical quality, accessibility, and price. The best choices (and best outcomes) are achieved when patients--those receiving medical care--have direct choice/control over all three of these aspects. Health care rights are rightly located in the spheres of Self-Government and Family Government, mentioned earlier in this column. The best medical outcomes occur when individuals and families are in full control of their medical care without interference of a Civil Government offering them a health-care “right.” When patients have a direct relationship with their doctor and make direct payment to him or her, their power is greatest. Next best is medical care through an insurance program wherein the insured purchased the policy that is best for his or her needs, and that purchase was made without government duress or mandate.

Perhaps the clearest illustration of why the federal government should be prohibited from intervening in the health care market is the distortion of pricing it has caused since massive intervention began in 1965. On July 1, 1966 the federal government began accepting enrollees for Medicare. While it costs taxpayers only a modest amount in that first year - $3 billion, the amount has risen precipitously since. The temptation to reach into the public purse to fund healthcare is never-ending, and yes, it can always be rationalized as money “invested” for good purpose. In FY-2000 the federal government spent over $197 billion; in FY-2008, over $390 billion; in FY-2010, $560 billion; in FY-2015, 640 billion. By 2020, Medicare spending is projected to be 17% of all federal spending. Costs for S-Chip, Medicaid, and Obamacare haven’t even been tallied. But based on the federal government’s stewardship of Medicare, can anyone honestly claim we should trust the federal government with even more interference in healthcare? Does this path appear even vaguely sustainable for the long-term health of the Republic?

Consider these questions. If you spend your own money on purposes upon which you alone decide, do you not spend it carefully so as return the greatest satisfaction? If someone else decides how to spend their money on you, might you receive some satisfaction, though not as great as when you were spending your own money on yourself?  Suppose someone else gives you a windfall to spend, might you consider that “free money” and consequently not spend it quite as carefully as the money you earned by sweat and toil? Finally, what if you give money (pay taxes/borrow money) to an impersonal someone (the government) to spend money on programs over which you have no control, to provide benefits you never approved,  to people neither they nor you know personally--how carefully is that  money likely to be spent?  The answer to that last question should tell you all you need to know about real is your “right” to health care, as defined by the politicians running our government. Socialist slop-swishers have sold the dream of a healthcare right in exchange for power and control. Some day in the not too distant future America will awaken to discover that the pseudo-right to healthcare comes at a nightmarish price. The price will be unpayable monetarily. Even worse will be its toll on freedom and dignity.

Wake up, America!  Demand control of your own healthcare. Federal control and intervention into healthcare markets is not a blessing; it is a curse upon the land.

How heroin is good for you

Newsflash: A 22-year-old woman died Wednesday of heroin overdose, the County Sheriff’s Office said. Authorities were called to the home of where the victim was staying, administered two doses of Narcan and did CPR on the woman. Volunteer firefighters transported her to the local hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival. The Sheriff’s Office did not identify her or provide other details.

In other news: The County Coroner's Office is investigating 3 drug-related deaths in 3 days. The people who died were all men, ages 24, 26 and 27. All 3 deaths are believed to have been caused by the illicit use of heroin. Troopers are investigating if heroin circulating in the county is laced with fentanyl, an anesthesia drug that is often used to increase the potency of diluted heroin. The public is cautioned that fentanyl is potentially lethal, even at very low levels.

The pharmacist who read the news items thought how lucky they were to have died early from heroin overdoses. They are secure in the fact that the police and first-responders who came to their rescue tried their best to breathe life into them. After all, that‘s what they get paid for. They are lucky because now they won’t have to see their children grow up. They are fortunate in that they don’t have to pick out their own coffins and that their parents can identify their remains directly from the body bag. They are blessed because now they do not have to witness all the grief and pain that went with their demise. No worrying about walking their daughters down the aisle at their weddings. No guilt about leaving their children without a parent. This is why heroin was so good for them, so selfishly worth getting the high, the buzz, and then choking on their own vomit.

Where does all this luck come from? It starts with the prescribers who cave into patients’ pleas for heavy-duty narcotics – hydrocodone, oxycodone, fentanyl. Once they discover who the doctors are that they can bluff, they continue to go back to him for more prescriptions. After a while, the narcotics do not get the addicts “high enough.” Nevertheless, they continue to see the doctors are prescribe narcotics for them so they can be sold to kids and anyone else who wants to buy they them while graduate to heroin. The cycle starts over again.

As addicts move from legitimate prescriptions to the pill mills of pure, precisely measured narcotic pain pills to the dirty world of dealers, needles and kitchen table chemists, health officials and police are noting sharp increases in overdoses, crime and other public health problems. Unlike the quality-controlled narcotic s manufactured until strict Federal guidelines, switching to heroin is a whole new ball game. Street heroin can be stronger, and weaker, or cut with anything from salt or sugar, to morphine or rat poison. The addict does not know what he or she is actually getting. Researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore say that street heroin can vary in potency from 3% to 99%. Then there is the issue of sharing syringes which can transmit HIV and hepatitis.

To stem the abuses, authorities over the past decade began cracking down on pain clinics and individual doctors. Drug companies have begun creating pill formulations that made them harder to crush and snort for a quick high. Thus, opiate addicts have found it more difficult, and expensive, to get their fix. An 80 mg OxyContin can cost $60 to $100 a pill. In contrast, heroin costs about $45 to $60 for a multiple-dose supply. And the new twist? Heroin is no longer just an inner-city plague. It is now in some of the better suburbs. It is now in the smaller cities, once bastions of clean, crime-free living. It is pervasive, not just among youth, but to people in their 50s and 60s.

Increasingly, police officers and first responders are carrying Narcan (naloxone), a drug used to counter the effects of opioid overdose. In some places, Narcan is available over-the-counter at pharmacies. The fear here is that addicts will see how high they can get, because they hope the Narcan will revive them. It is like pharmaceutical Russian roulette. As we saw in the young lady who OD’ed earlier in this story, Narcan is not 100% effective.

Luckily, the overdosed addict does not have to encumber him or herself if things go south. They will have family and friends who will bury them, pray for them and wonder for the rest of their lives how the addict threw away such a beautiful gift as life.

Ron Gasbarro, PharmD is a registered pharmacist, medical writer, and principal at Rx-Press.com. Write him with any ideas or comments at ron@rx-press.com.

Chapter 4 Bridge Work Continues And Towns Explode

The activities of daily living are not well known for the workers of the Starrucca Viaduct in 1848. As previously mentioned the work originally started in 1847 but was abandoned and went full steam ahead again in May 1848. As an advantage,there was plenty of cool, crystal clear water (literally at their feet) providing washing, bathing and bathroom use but somebody had to have provisions for these hard workers. Working 12 hour days was the norm as the need for fast completion of the bridge was very important, especially to keep the final cost down. Did they work even on Sunday? I suspect probably some of the day but not the normal 12 hours; one the very first structures built around the area were churches so religion was very important to them and others some time to tend to their religious obligations. Surely the railroad had to provide the room (tents) and board along with that 1 dollar a day everyone seemed to have gotten, regardless if you were dangling from a rope or hauling tons of stone out of the quarries. The 1 dollar pay is comparable to a wage of about $28.00 in today’s dollars. They must have been fed relatively good to get the most out of them that they could. Was it just the workers at the camps or were their families with them? I just don’t know. Eventually they came and settled in the area with lots of good paying jobs at the Shops in Susquehanna, tanneries, acid and chair factories, general stores, barbers, saloons were needing people also. Montrose, Great Bend, Hallstead and New Milford were also booming.

Work was progressing well in the summer of 1848. The stone was cut and numbered before being loaded. It was unloaded by derricks. In the large stones there were two holes drilled for handling. About 2 feet apart, attached to the derrick was a short chain with a ring in the center and short plugs in each end. With the derrick hooks in the ring, the derrick would let the huge stone down in its final resting place as indicated by black, painted numerals. Up and up it went on each tier, very methodically and with exact precision. A special cement was used, called Rosendale Cement; a special mix with lots of limestone in it. If you ever examined the viaduct up close and rubbed your finger over the cement, you would find it is as hard as the rock it is holding in place. There is no breakage or crumbs after all this time, amazing durability and was used on the Brooklyn Bridge and Statue of Liberty constructions. The Erie was committed now to our area but why did they come this way, I often wondered.

Old steam locomotive from 1865 passing over the Starrucca Viaduct. Abraham Lincoln came across the viaduct sometime during his Presidency, no evidence that he stopped on the bridge or stopped at the Depot. Other famous people came through our town, to be discussed at a later time.

The towns of Lanesboro, Oakland and Susquehanna were growing very quickly. The initial work for the shops was starting at the same present site, a toll bridge (actually just downstream from the new bridge now) was built, with a 1 penny toll charge, a rail line coming in from Binghamton was being expedited, homes were being built, stores were starting to open, churches and schools were coming next. Time to go back to about 1812 and see how this all ties together.

The war of 1812 and victory by the colonies obviously caused a trade rift with England. New York City depended on England for its chief heating supply, coal. Huge veins were discovered in eastern Pennsylvania around this time. The U.S. Government put tariffs and restrictions of English coal after the war, opening the door for a huge expansion in NE Pennsylvania. A gentleman named William Werts, along with his brother from Philadelphia saw the potential of cashing in on a huge venture and began raising funds for one of the biggest challenges to face this country yet. In 1825 construction began on the Delaware and Hudson Canal.  Steam engines for pulling trains was a new technology in the United States; England was ahead of us with that technology for awhile but soon good old American know how would surpass England’s dominance.

With no water source for water canals, the problem was to get the coal from Carbondale/Forest City from the northern edge of the coal fields to New York and also run it north to future cities like Buffalo, Binghamton, Albany, etc. 2500 men were employed to dig a canal that runs from Honesdale, PA to the upper Hudson at Kingston, NY using existing waterways like the Lackawaxen and Delaware Rivers and their tributaries. Well over 100 locks and dams were utilized to open and close the water needed to float the coal barges along. This is roughly 100 miles long! The coal would then be sent down the Hudson River from Kingston, to New York City in bigger barges. The high mountain ridge in New Jersey prevented a canal going over northern New Jersey. The canal was simply a big ditch alongside the waterways, filled up and pulled along by horses, mules, oxen, whatever they could find to pull the barges. Besides the coal, huge loads of timber were being shipped as well. It was a busy canal. A major crossing at the Delaware River near Lackawaxen, PA caused problems with a tow line running across and causing numerous accidents on cargo heading to Philadelphia. A canal aqueduct, named after John Roebling, was needed and built in 1847 and is still in use today; it is one year older than the Starrucca Viaduct. I have driven over it several times, with one lane traffic only. Mr. Roebling, a few years later built the Brooklyn Bridge.

Carbondale and Forest City were the end of the line for the coal veins that stretched southward to the Wilkes-Barre area. To transport the coal up and around the high mountains, gravity trains were utilized. With a very soft grade to keep the train running relatively safe and slow, the use of stationery steam engines to climb the grades, gravity and some brakes used to let it glide down to the Honesdale/Hawley area to pick up the canal at the end of the trip it was highly efficient. The gravity trains are kind of like a roller coaster ride when going up, click, click, click with no chance of falling back. The line from Hawley to Carbondale was under the control of the D&H. Another spur came from the southern part of the coal field, around the Pittston/Wilkes-Barre area and was under a different investment group, the Pennsylvania Coal Co. Gravity Railroad. They both converged in the Honesdale/Hawley, PA area. Completed 1828, thousands of tons of coal was making its way to New York City. The cost of the canal was 1.6 million in 1825 dollars. Once the railroad started to grab the loads and there was infighting among the owners, the canal eventually was filled in and abandoned, but it did still run until almost 1898 in some fashion. I have been told that at one time there was a small coal mine in the area of the Cascade Bridge, just north of the viaduct. In recent years we found out our area is booming with natural gas, with not so much where the coal fields were.

Often young children had to take up the slack, quit school to make money for a family struggling because of illness, injury or death.  Slate pickers, their job to sort or out metal from the mines, rocks and other debris so as to not damage the expensive steam engines. The young man standing over the children has a stick in his hand, harsh conditions to say the least.

A competitive railroad to the Erie, the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western and Central Railroad of New Jersey was running a rail line out of New York, heading south towards Scranton and Nicholson and onward to Binghamton, NY. The Erie was going to take a different route, one along the relatively flat area up the Delaware River but with very rough and difficult terrain into Pennsylvania. The coal canal of the D&H was going to be right along the way in Port Jervis, Shohola and Lackawaxen, PA. Not only would they be able to supply the heating coal for New York but very soon cities and towns were springing up all along the railroad lines. The country was booming and so was Susquehanna. The D&H would soon start their own railroad, when the canal started to fizzle out.

Next Chapter 5 – The Bridge Is Finished, Need Churchs And Schools.