Columnists

Lanesboro – A terrible accident occurred Sunday, when an automobile driven by George Romaine, of Johnson City, stalled on the track of the D&H railroad at Lanesboro, just as a fast freight, bound for Carbondale, came running around the curve and before the occupants could move struck it broadside. The automobile and occupants struck the passenger station some 30 ft. distant, with a terrible crash. Men in the station rushed to aid of the injured and found George Terrell, aged 45, was dead; his wife, Phebe, aged 28, died in the Barnes Hospital. Their little son, Raymond, three years of age, was found on the floor of the waiting room of the station, having been hurled through a large window. He suffered terrible cuts and a broken leg. Two men were also in the car, both seriously injured. The Terrells lived in Brandt until Mr. Terrell secured work in Binghamton. He came to Brandt to take his wife and son to Binghamton when the accident happened.

Lackawanna Trail – James Casey, aged 21, son of Mrs. John Casey, of Montrose, was instantly killed in an automobile collision on the Lackawanna Trail, Oct. 10th. The car in which he was riding collided with a car coming from the opposite direction. His companions in the car, Regis Dolan, who was driving, and Francis and Paul Shea, all escaped with slight injuries. The accident happened not far from Woodward’s dance hall. The young men had been at Hallstead and as they neared the junction with the Montrose Trail they decided to go to Woodward’s for a lunch. It was early in the morning and all were tired and dozed off. Dolan later expressed belief that this was the cause of the accident. The party in the other car, Harold Whitney and wife, said that they saw the car coming, wobbling back and forth across the pave, and he got off the pave, but the car grazed his machine in passing and flipped over, causing young Casey’s death.

Heart Lake – One cottage was burned and another partially consumed on Sunday evening, while a third was on fire, which was extinguished. All three were the property of Reeves Darling, of Binghamton, who owns four cottages on the lake. When the fire was discovered it was thought that the large ice house was burning, and many from Montrose went there to give aid. The cottage, known as “The Klondike,” nearby, was wreathed in flames when the fire was observed, and due to the limited facilities to fight the blaze, it could not be saved. The fact that two other cottages were also on fire indicated that the origin of the blazes might be of an incendiary nature. Evidence was found that mattresses in the cottages were saturated with gasoline and ignited. The fires are being investigated by Trooper Brennan of the Wyoming Barracks.

Montrose – The first noticeable snowfall in the vicinity came Friday night and Saturday morning, October 10 & 11. It was unusually early for such pronounced winter weather, about 2 inches of snow falling, while the high wind made Saturday morning appear like a November day. The cold wave was felt all over the east and in many places in the state an inch or two of snow fell. This is said to be the earliest snowfall in this locality in 18 years.

Ararat – A three and one-half foot snow drift was measured here on Saturday morning. That beats anything we could produce in Montrose on that day, although it was wild and wooly with the ground frozen and the mercury hovering around 25.

Dimock – Much loss was sustained by the farmers who had not harvested all their garden crops and apples. Mr. Cope was perhaps the biggest loser in this vicinity, as his apple loss its estimated at $1,300 or over. However, despite wintery weather and snow, 300 were in attendance at the Community Fair, held Saturday. All outside events were called off, yet people kept coming from surrounding towns until the community building was filled.

Uniondale – Lester Carpenter came up from Scranton in his new Essex Six Coach and spent the week-end with his mother, Mrs. Nellie Carpenter, to whom he presented a fine Victrola and assortment of records.

Auburn Twp. – Last Saturday was one of the severest days that has been known for many years. It snowed practically all day accompanied by a severe north wind which made it tedious for man or beast to be out in. The thermometer registered 26 degrees in the morning and remained around freezing all day. Farmers haven’t got their potatoes dug yet, and grave fears are they are frozen, as Sunday morning ice measured one inch.

Forest City – With three fingers of his right hand so badly mangled by the explosion of a dynamite cap that they had to be amputated, Joseph Adlus, 10 year old Forest City boy, showed remarkable stoicism Thursday afternoon, when he unflinchingly climbed on the operating table in emergency Hospital, Carbondale. He was also lacerated about the chest and head by the force of the explosion. It is stated that a boy schoolmate tossed the cap on his desk. The boy, unaware of its dangerous nature, cut into it with a knife. The resulting explosion hurled him to the floor. Dr. J. H. McGuire, who was inspecting the school, gave him first aid and hurried him to the hospital.

Millions Mourn – The entire nation was saddened to hear of the death of Christy Mathewson, probably the most famous character in national baseball history. His death was due to pneumonia. For six years he had successfully fought tuberculosis, but a severe cold developed into pneumonia, causing his death at Saranac Lake, NY. Mathewson is credited with having had a wonderfully uplifting influence in the baseball world and all admired his sportsmanship and noble character. He was for years the hero of the diamond and never committed an act that lessened his fame in the eyes of his admirers. His funeral was held in Lewisburg, PA. He is survived by his wife and son, his aged parents, Mr. and Mrs. G. D. Mathewson, of Factoryville, and a sister.

Technology continues to play a greater role in court functioning – and the use of technology in the courts has grown substantially over the past 10 years in Susquehanna County. We implemented an electronic filing program in 2016 in both criminal and juvenile cases. At that time, the state had a program in place that allowed for electronic filing in those cases if the president judge opted into the program – and we opted to a participate. More recently, the Susquehanna County Prothonotary has installed and implemented a new civil management program that likewise allows for electronic filing in civil cases. What does that mean? Attorneys and litigants no longer must travel to the courthouse to file a pleading, brief, motion, petition, et cetera; rather, they can do it from their computer in their office or home. Further, electronic filing permits a document to be filed outside of normal work hours, i.e., even if the courthouse is closed, a document can be electronically filed.

In 2019, when the large historic courtroom was renovated, we took the opportunity to install the technology necessary for both video and audio court appearances. When the small courtroom was renovated the following year, we did the same thing in that courtroom. When these upgrades were made, we had no appreciation as to how integral the technology upgrades would be to the daily court operations. In 2020, most criminal defendants began to appear for their proceedings by video rather than having to send county personnel to the jail in South Montrose to pick them up and bring them to a proceeding. Attorneys and litigants have likewise used video technology to conduct some of their proceedings if they have some legitimate reason that they cannot make it to court in person. Attorneys often have numerous proceedings scheduled throughout the day – and some of those proceedings are in different courts. Rather than rescheduling due to that conflict, attorneys can now opt to appear by video to get a matter resolved if it can be handled through video means.

With the closing of the Susquehanna County Correctional Facility, this video technology now provides a cost-effective means to have hearings without the need to have county personnel travel outside the county to pick a criminal defendant up, bring the criminal defendant back to Montrose for a proceeding, and then return to the criminal defendant to the designated correctional facility where he or she is being held. The video technology not only creates a convenient means of conducting criminal proceedings when defendants are housed some distance from the courthouse, but it also provides substantial savings to the county in terms of manpower, vehicle costs, and travel time.

The same technology that is used for video appearances can likewise be used by counsel to present their cases if they are using digital exhibits. Each counsel table in the courtroom has built in wiring and plugs that allow for counsel to use their laptops, tablets, or even cellular phones to hook up to the video presentation system and present their exhibits digitally. Outside equipment is no longer necessary to display videos or play recordings during a court proceeding. Counsel need only have their device available to be plugged into the system – powerful tools right at their fingertips.

Some litigants or witnesses lack the technology to appear by video – but the system has an audio component as well that allows us to make a telephone call through the system so that a litigant or witness can appear by telephonic means. Both the video appearances and the telephone calls run through the court’s amplification and recording system – which means that everything is heard clearly in court, it is recorded with ease, and the record is perfected.

Technology expansion over the past 10 years has created more efficiency in court operations and saved substantial tax dollars that would have otherwise been spent on transportation of criminal defendants to court proceedings. As with all new things, there were (and still are) growing pains associated with conducting court proceedings through advanced communication technology. But there is no real debate as to the value it has added to court operations – and the monies saved by using it.

Good day dear hearts, I love you. Wow, did it get cold fast? Time to get the wood burner fired up. Today I share this short set of verses with you. “Be on your guard; stay firm in the faith; be courageous, be strong. Do everything in love.” 1 Corinthians 16: 13-14. Have you ever tried to stand on shifting sand or ice? I don’t know much about sand, but ice I know very well. Like you I deal it with every winter and have had my share of slipping and falling. What do we do when we feel that coming on? We instinctively brace ourselves, widen our stance and look for something solid to hold onto. That’s the world we live in today; morally, spiritually and culturally. It shifts beneath our feet. Paul the apostle gives us a battle; ready posture for people of faith like ourselves.

In that short set of verses there are four commands for stability. 1) Be on your guard; Stay alert. The Greek word for guard implies a soldier keeping watch. For men, in particular, God has given us an awesome responsibility and many men have abandoned this call. Because of this there are many single moms raising their families. All of us today are the gatekeepers of our homes, our church, our hearts, our families and our communities. Are you alert to spiritual drift, compromise or distraction? Ask yourself this question, what are you allowing through the gates of your mind, your media, your relationships? 2) Stand firm in the Faith; Hold your ground. Stand firm in our faith, but stand on the Gospel; Christ crucified, risen reigning in heaven with the father and poised to come back and get us at the father’s calling. In a world that redefines truth, we must anchor ourselves in God’s Word, not popular opinion. Standing firm doesn’t mean being rigid; it means being rooted as we spend time spending time in God’s Word. 3) Be courageous and strong; Act with boldness. These are active not passive traits. Courage is not the absence of fear, but obedience in spite of it. We are called to lead, protect, speak truth, and live with integrity, even when it costs us. History offers us countless examples of individuals who stood firm. Here is an account of what happened in the life of Joseph from the Old Testament. Joseph was betrayed by his brothers and sold off to merchants who brought Him to Egypt. He started off as a slave, moved up the ranks and found himself serving in the house of a high Egyptian official. The Egyptian’s wife had the “hots” for Joseph but Joseph refused her advances. She later accused Joseph of trying to seduce her and he was unjustly punished for standing firm and doing the right thing. As time went on God rewarded Joseph by putting him in charge of much of Egypt and he was able to rescue his family, the ones who betrayed him, from famine. 4) And last. Do everything in love; lead with grace. Love is the governing principle. Without its strength, we become hardened. Our firmness must be clothed in compassion. Our courage must be tempered by kindness. Are you known for your conviction or your compassion?

Standing firm is not for the history books only. It is for today, for the parent raising children in a culture that questions the very idea of objective right and wrong. For the teacher who dares to speak truth in a classroom where truth is contested. For the business leader who chooses integrity over profit. For the pastor who preaches the ways of God, even when it’s unpopular. This kind of steadfastness requires courage, the kind that is not brash but brave. Courage to ask hard questions. Courage to admit when we are wrong. Courage to speak truth in love, even when it costs us. And make no mistake it will cost us. Standing firm in a shifting world often means standing alone. We must also recognize that standing firm is not a solo endeavor. We need each other. In a fragmented world, community becomes an act of resistance. When we gather around tables, sanctuaries, across generations, we remind ourselves that we are not alone. We draw strength from shared stories, shared struggles and shared hope. Where do you feel the ground shifting beneath you right now? What does it look like for you to stand firm this week; in your marriage, your workplace, your habits? Pray for answers to those questions. Ask God for alertness, rootedness, courage and love. God Bless.

Lord, make us a people who stand firm, not in pride, but in faith. Help us guard what matters, speak truth with love, and live boldly for you in a world that desperately needs your light. Father, we ask your blessing on our little town. Send your Spirit and touch the broken-hearted, give peace to the sick, bless the poor.

Please join us Saturday, October 18th at 12:00pm for a complimentary dinner consisting of chicken & gravy, with biscuits, mashed potatoes, vegetable and dessert. Have lunch with your neighbor. Pastor Vince Chiaramonte, 570-853-3988.