October 15, 1909

“I would not live alway, I ask not to stay
Where storm after storm rises dark o’er the way.”[i]

The stanza to which the above is a couplet is beautiful in language and in sentiment, but not so beautiful in practice; and we think Muhlenburg must have been suffering with an attack of dyspepsia, or acute indigestion, when he wrote it. Anyone in good health who will walk out on these beautiful, mellow, hazy October mornings, and does not wish that he might “live always,” does not belong to the human family, and has begun to die already. Shakespeare make Cato say “I had rather suffer the ills that now are, than to fly to those I know not of.” All sensible, reasonable beings expect to live always under changed conditions. We know what we have here, and like Cato we “had rather suffer the ills that now are”—if any exits—than to “fly to those we know not of.” This is a beautiful world, in the creation God pronounced it “good;” and we thank the almoner of all gifts that we have a mind to appreciate this old world, and to think it “good.” We expect to stay here just as long as we can, and enjoy as many of these beautiful October mornings, and gorgeous October sunsets and pleasant evenings as we may; and when we become so senile that we cannot appreciate all these it will be time enough to sing:

“I would not live alway, I ask not to stay
Where storm after storm rises dark o’er the way.”

And he who sings these lines before, if we may judge him from the standpoint of common sense, is lying. This is a beautiful month. Already the hickory leaves are become golden, the dogwood are carmine, the oak saffron, and the poplar have their orange; while the perennials and conifers retain their hues of green as in […] change of the year. O, yes; October is a pretty month.

The first meeting of the Milton Century Club will be held in the Jr. O. U. A. M. Hall on October 16th.

Thomas J. Lindale proposes to discontinue the mercantile business in Milton on January 1st and will move to Georgetown and take charge of the grocery business now under control of […] White.

Firemen Band will give a musical entertainment in School Hall on Friday evening, October 15th.

[….] has been appointed Deputy […] Commissioner for Broadkiln River.

The people of Milton are afraid of fire. We think Town Council should pass an ordinance prohibiting the ringing of the church bells on any week day unless something extraordinary is to be done at the churches. In that case another ordinance should be enacted, compelling the church people to thoroughly advertise their extra meeting, conventions or whatever they may be, and pay for the advertisement. This to be done in order that the people may know what the bell is ringing for. We are led to write the above, from the fat that on last Wednesday afternoon the church bell in north Milton began ringing and the women of south Federal Street[ii] exclaimed there’s a fire! The church bell is ringing! The church bell is ringing! And I got on my coat and hat and went into the street, and the bell had stopped ringing. We then learned the bell as rung for a church gathering, but most of the people in the town did not know that. “A burnt child dreads the fire.”

B. F. Gray has rented the farm he recently purchased in Cave Neck to Charles Roach.

Sunday October 31st will be celebrated as “Rally Day” at the M. P. Church.

The M. D. & V. R. R. is still repairing its road bed near Milton.

Edward Calhoun has his new building on Chestnut Street raised and sheathed.

The foreign help at the Workman Co. left on Wednesday and that of the Goodwin Co., on Thursday.

All the canneries were shipping canned tomatoes last week.

James Wright has opened another wheelwright and blacksmith shop near his home on Mulberry Street.

Lake Fanganzyki has been unusually low the past week, and considerable stench has arisen therefrom.

H. K. Wagamon has bought his brother Daniel Wagamon’s interest in the Milton Roller Process Flour Mill, situated on Lake Fanganzyki, This mill is doing a flourishing business, supplying Milton, a part of Georgetown and the surrounding country homes with flour and feed, besides doing a great amount of custom work.

W. W. Chandler[iii] and wife of Scranton, Pa., have been Milton visitors, the first time since the great fire.

New corn is retailing at 60 cents a bushel.

A small house belonging to Joshua Carey, situated outside the town limits, and near Lavinia Bridge, caught fire early on Thursday evening and was burned to the ground, before help from town could re4ach it. It was in tenure of “Oscar,” but he says he was not at home when the fire started; but he got there in time to save his goods. “Oscar” appears to be unfortunate, as this is the second house in his tenure that has been burned this year.

There is quite a quantity of hickory cord wood at Milton station for shipment.

Fred Reed lost one of his livery horses on Friday night.

Mrs. Frances Godwin is visiting in Boston.

Clarence Welch of Philadelphia made a hurried trip to Milton on Saturday evening to see the burnt district, returning on Sunday.

Large quantities of phosphate are being used by the farmers around Milton this fall.

Mrs. A. C. Raught and son Roland returned on Saturday from a visit of several weeks in New York City.

Charles Burton the colored man, whom it is said has a mania for picking up scrap paper along the streets, has a job now as attendant around the store of Harry Robinson. There is not a more polite colored man around Milton than Burton; and if more of our negroes had a part of his mania they, and the town would be better off.

The damaged shutters of the dwelling house of C. A. Conner have this past week been replaced by […]. By the agent of the Kent County Mutual Insurance Company.

Rev. J. M Sherridan, President of the Maryland Annual Conference, preached at the M. P. Church on Sunday evening.

[…] services began at the M. E. Church on Sunday evening. Rev. A. C. McGilton has procured the services of Mr. John Clark of […], a […] engineer of the Pennsylvania Railroad […] two meetings.

[next paragraph illegible]

A. O. Jermon of Hurlock, contractor for building William Mears’ property, began excavating, grading, etc. on last Wednesday. The building will be 68 ft. front on Federal Street, with a depth of 40 ft. It will be used as a dwelling for Mr. Mears and family, a barber parlor, and 26 ft. by 40 ft. of the building will be occupied by W. T. Starkey as a drug store.

It is understood a Mr. Elliott of Rehoboth City has contracted to do the brick work for James Palmer’s contemplated new building.

A. H. Lofland broke ground on Monday for the erection of a brick building on the piece of ground he recently bought of J. R. Carey, near town.

Eliza P. Webb, widow of the late Isaac C. Webb, died near Oakley, Tuesday morning of paralysis, 84 years, 11 months and 10 days. Funeral Thursday at her late home by Rev. Mather and burial in cemetery by S. J. Wilson & Son.

———————————————————————————

[i] Text is from Lutheran Hymnal #588, written by William Augustus Muhlenburg (1796 – 1877), D. D., in 1824 and probably the best known of his poems and hymns.

[ii] In all probability his daughters living with him.

[iii] Owner of the Chandler orchard managed by Thomas Spencer, at the north edge of town.