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VOLUME XXXIV. . SHELTON, MASON COUNTY, WASHINGTON, ITClDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 1920 NO. 9
EXPRESS OFFICE"
REOPENS AFTER
YEARS ABSENCE
RETURN OF SERVICE FINALLY
SECURED AFTER LONG AND
STRENUOUS KICKING--
R E - E S.TABLISHED
YESTERDAY
The Shelton office of the American
Express which was arbirarily taken
away a year ago, was re-opened this
week and the first shipments 'arrived
yesterday.
Robert C. Angle has been appoint-
ed local agent and the office will
.'be at the Journal office. Daily
service will be made from Tacoma
by the steamer S. G. Simpson, as
formerly, and the public will find it
an advantage at times for both
package and money order transfers,
at rates about the same as in the
parcel post.
There has been much complaint all
over Mason County since the express
office was removed and the public
was forced to use the parcel post or
be subjected to extra expense through
the holding up of their express mat-
ter at Tacoma. This is now over and
the express service will doubtless be
appreciated more than ever, although
it will take some time to regain its
former value of business.
At the present* time the express
,companies are still under government
.control, but the husiness will prob-
ably be turned over to the compan-
ies with the railroads on March 1st.
PERITONITIS CAUSES
D00ATH'OF MRS. ANNIE
CRUSON ON M00i;AY
A
LARGE NUMBER OF OLD
FRIENDS ATTEND FUNERAL
FROM HOME ON WED- ".
iN ESDAY
The passing of another of Shel-
tons older residents was marked this
week in the death of Mrs. Annie B.
Cruson, at the Cruson farm near
town on Monday. Although an in-
valid and more or less helpless from
rheumatism for many years, death
was directly dtm to peritonitis.
The funeral was held from the
hore on Wednesday, with C. L. Gil-
bert conducting the service, and a
large number of old friends were
present. Deceased leaves to mourn
her loss besides her husbaad, two
sons, McClellan and Burk, her sister
Mrs. Doty here, and four brothers
and one sister in Wisconsin.
Annie B. Gilbertson was born in
Norway, October 25, 18B7, and was
62 years of age. She came to the
United States when a child with her
parents, who settled in Lafayette
County, Wisconsin. She was married
)t Jasper Cruson in October, 1879,
and ten years later the family moved
o this state and settled in Shelton,
where their home was continued until
the purchase of the old Rodenberger
farm some ten years ago.
LOGGER FOUND DEAD
IN WOODS NEAR CAMP
AFTER LONG SEARCH
SUCCUMBS WHILE TAKING
SHORT CUT HOME AFTER
TRAPPING TRIP WITH
DOUG. SHELTON
The remains of Andy Townsend,
an employe of Simpson's Camp 1,
were found in the woods not far
from the camp on Wednesday morn-
ing, after a' two days search by camp
men, who later called Sheriff Ports
o their aid.
Townsend and Doug. Shelton legt
he camp Sunday afternoon to look
after some traps the latter had set
out, and after going some distance
'Townsend complained of feeling ill.
It was agreed that he should take a
short cut out to the road and wait
-for Shelton, who continued the
rounds of his traps, and on roaching
the appointed rendezvous failed to
find Townsend.
Returning to camp Doug. found
that Townsend had not returned, and
late in the afternoon he .and others
started out to try to find the latter.
Next day more men turned out for
the hunt and the day was spent in
fruitless search of the woods. The
sheriff was called on for aid and
went out Tuesday. When found
Townsend was dead, evidently having
succumbed to a sudden attack of
heart disease.
Deceased was alout 53 years of
age, and a widower, lie came from
Tennessee three years ago, accom-
panying his brother Newton and fam-
ily, an$1 has Sine ,been employed at
the camps. He/va a member of the
Masonic fraternity and the funeral
will %e held unOer Masonic 'auspices
in Shelton on 'Sunday afternoon.
1 A LEAP YE00tR VALENTINE
REED RETURNS FROM
CHICAGO; FINDS FLU
RAGING IN THE EAST
VISITS MILWAUKEE RAILROAD
HEADS WHO DECLARE THREE
YEARS NECESSARY TO RE-
STORE ROADS
M. E. Reed returned last Thursday
evening from a short business trip to
Chicago and a day or so spent with
his sons, Sol and ¢v'ill, at the Culver
Military School in Indiana. He found
I the flu epidemic raging all over the
East, and hospitals full everywhere
with rather a high proportion of
deaths. Sol and Will Reed, who had
been getting a little nervous, were
reconciled to stay and finish out the
school year.
While in Chicago Mr. Reed visited
the heads of the Milwaukee railroad
system, and learned much about the
situation of the railroads of this
country. He was informed that if
the railroads were returned to their
own management March 1st, as the
President has ordered, it will require
at least three ye.ars to bring their
physical condition up to the old stan-
dard, and this would be the first duty
before any new work could be under-
taken.
As Congress has not yet acted on
railroad legislation it is not yet
known what provision will be made
to protect the railroads until they
can get reorganized and again self-
supporting.
Mr. Reed found the weather in the
"Windy City" cold and raw, but did
not encounter much snow on the way.
AGED FORMER RESIDENT
OF HOOD CANAL REGION
DIES AT PORT ORCHARD
T
FUNERAL OF JOSEPH THOMAS,
FORMER HOLLY MERCHANT,
HELD SUNDAY
Oscar Ahl of Hoo4sport was call-
ed to Port Orchard to attend the
funeral of Joseph Thomas, an old
resident of the Canal region, who
died at that place on Feblry 5th.
The following information will be of
interest to old Canal friends:
Joseph Thomas was born Decem-
ber 24, 1836, near Akron, Ohio, later
moving with his parents to Elkhart,
Ind. He was married to Miss Moria
L. Garl in 1856 and to this union
were born 13 children. The family
later moved to Kansas, residing there
eight years, and while there he was
engaged in the mercantile business.
He came west to Hoods Canal,
Washington, in the winter of 1888,
taking up a homestead on "Dillman
S1Mt." His wife departed this life
June, 1895. He was again united in
marriage to Mrs. Mary A. Stewart of
Macksburg, Iowa, in September, 1897.
He moved from Hoods Canal to Kent
and to Port Orchard in 1903, resid-
ing there until his departure, with
the exception of three years which
he spent in Florida.
He was converted early in life and
lived a useful and corisecrated Chris-
tian life during his entire career.
His father was a Methodist minister,
and uring the early days of his
young manhood he used to accom-
pany his father and assist in the
services as a Iicensed exhorter in
the Methodist Episcopal Church.
In 1861 he enlisted in the 48th
Indiana Volunteer Infantry in which
he served three years and ten months.
In civil life he served as a postmas-
ter, justice of the peace and vs, rious
other positions of trust and honor.
He departed this life February 5,
1920 z being 83 years of age. He is
surmved by his wife, four daughters
and one son, together with twenty-
eight grandchildren and thirty great-
grandchildren. The remains were in-
terred in the Veterans' Home cem-
etery.
JAMES HODGKINSON
WHO NAMED MATLOCK
DIES AT PUYALLUP
ONE OF THE FIRST HOMESTEAD.
ERS IN THE SATSOP VALLEY,
PASSES AWAY AT AGE
OF 88
James Hodkinson, one of the earl-
iest settlers in the Satsop Valley and
Matlock's first postmaster, died at
Puyallup on Wednesday, aged about
88 years. The funeral services will
be held at that place this Friday
morning and the remains will reach
Shelton in early afternoon for inter-
ment in the plot reserved by the
deceased and cared for by him dur-
ing his later years.
A ]NEW PAPER MILL
The Northwest publishers shouht
find their paper situation relieved b:,
fall, on the COml)letion of a mare..
moth new phmt at Port Angeles h',
I the Zellerbach ('entered. Ground was
broken last w',ek on Ediz spit, and
the largest sin'le order for electrical
go(ds ever sent from the Northwesf,
has been placed with tim Wesung-
house Company. A crew o 150 men
will be working" on the buihtiug. This
will make the third print 1)aper plnt
'the smalle,' newspapcrs.
THINKS '
ENGLAND RESEMBLES
PALOUSE COUNTRY
BINNS PAYS VISIT TO TOWN OF
• DORCHESTER, HOME OF
THOMAS HARDY
OXFORD, ENGLAND, Jan. 17.
It is a surprise to one familiar
with the Palouse country of Eastern
Washington to find the county of
Dorset in Southern England so amaz-
ingly similar. The hills are not so
rounded; there are more trees in
James .Hodkinson was a native of sight. But the effect is the same
England, hailing from Matlock in the I great hills rolling away as far as the
coal mining region, which suggested[eye can see, barren looking fertile
the name for the new postoffice when iplowed land, a few jutting rock
it was established about 1888. He left l ledges, biting winds. And though
England in 1832 and spent two years I just as forbidding in appearance as
in Illinois, coming to Mason County :the Palouse country on a wintry
in 1884, settling on a homestead in
the Satsop Valley. Other settlers in
the valley at this time were the Ca.
stairs, Deckers, Anders J. Anderson
and Capt. Nels Peterson. All these
old settler families are still repre-
sented in the valley, except the lat-
ter, who soht out and moved to Al-
berta some ten years ago, but is re-
ported to be planning to return for
good this fall.
Deceased was married three times,
the last being in" 1889, and his wife
died about three years ago. Shortly
after he exchanged his farm to the
Painters for Puyallup property,, and
recenlty sold that because of the
labor involved in berry gro:wing.
FACING THE FACTS
The Journal has been about the longest and
most persistent booster for better roads over Ma-
son County, and offered its best encouragement to-
ward the bonding plan for the paved highway. We
have urged good roads regardless of cost because
good roads means better communities aad better
citizenship--but--
The Journal is beginning to feel that there is a
limit to the cost of good roads beyond which it is
not prudent to go, and it is possible that this limit
has been reached in the matter of paving, at least,
and it might be well to let that rest awhile.
When we talked paving last spring the cost
was ranging around $20,000 a mile, but contracts
later in the year had reached $25,000 a mile. Last
week the first bids were opened in Grays Harbor
County and the estimates reached $38,000 a mile.
At this rate the half-million Mason County has ar-
ranged for, after deducting the expense necessary
for state and federal "red tape," will hardly build
that portion of the Olympic Highway from the
county line to Shelton. The increase is said to be
due to the higher cost of cement and labor, possibly
sand and water, and to the uncertainties connected
with labor operations.
At this rate it Would be folly to go ahead with
paving this year, and still further aggravate the
forced lbor and cement costs, while spending all
our funds for half the job and facing later bonds
to finish it. As Masori County has already turned
over to the state its $99,999 of the bond money to
match the federal aid, and authorized the state de-
partment to go ahead on paving five miles and im-
proving the rest of the section referred to, bids will
soon be called for that work. As interest must be
paid on the bond money the county may be forced
to go ahead, but it is well to consider what the limit
may be.
With millions of doilars to spend in road work
and few equipped contractors in the state, the price
is going to be forced, and the counties that lay back
will get their money's worth in the future, and force
the earlier return of normal conditions.
Everybody tells us that the present g'avel
roads of Mason County are the best in th state, far
better than in either Thurston, Kitsap or Grays
Harbor counties. Of course, there are several bad
spots which demand attention now, but with the
fleet of six trucks, and two nbre coming, Mason
County can gravel and drag its main travelled roads
and by frequent attention can keep them up in even
better condition than in the past while building up
a perfect road-bed for future paving.
We may as well face the facts.
day, Dorset too, is a country which
grows into the soul•
Indeed, viewing Dorset as the
country of Thomas Hardy, the nov-
elist, I think January is the best
time to see it. The day we went to
Dorchester, the county town of Dor-
set, was gray and cold, with a
thought of snow in the air. Every
few miles a threshing machine was
at work, threshing stacked grain.
Lambing had commenced and hun-
dreds of horned Dorset sheep with
their baby lambs lay in the fields
along the way.
At the top of the hill we came
upon two lads who had built a fire
of twigs and were warming them-
selves. One was mun'ching at a loaf
of bvead fCold morning," one said
in answer to our greeting. "Cold is
right," I answered. "Come and
warm yourselves, he returned, "there
is plenty of fire." The boy who had
I FORBID ALL PUBLIC
MEETINGS TO HELP
CHECK INFLUENZA
TOWN AUTHORITIZS TAKE EAR-
LY PRECAUTION TO PREVENT
DISEASE FROM BE('OMING
SERIOUS EPIDEMIC.
The town autllorities have issued
an order forbidding Iurtimr dances
or public gatherings of any sort, on
the advice of the health officer, in
order to hold in check as far as pos-
sible the prevailing sickness.
At present there are about twenty-
five cases in Shelton and vicinity
with more or less of the symptoms
of influenza, and while there are
none very seriously sick, the doctors
are hoping to keep the disease in
check and avoid an epidemic. A
similar course is being taken all over
the state, where the disease is mild
and has not become general, but in
many places in the East the influenza
has become a serious epidemic.
An increasing number of cases of
sickness and the absence of three of
the teachers from their rooms caus-
ed the school board to issue an or-
der closing the Shelton schools after
the Monday moling session• Mrs.
Chas. Lewis was called to Seattle
by the serious illness of her father,
Judge grater, and the Misses Fred-
on and Sargison were confined at
heine by illness. he schools will re-
main closed while there is danger of
further spread of influenza.
LARGEST OYSTER LAND
SALE IN HISTORY OF
INDUSTRY IN COUNTY
J. J. BRENNER BUYS COMPANY
BUYS THE S. K. TAYLOR
OYSTER BEDS IN OYS-
TER BAY
For a cmsidera.tlo, gives at $80,-
000 the oyster landholdings ofS. K.
Taylor & Son in Oyster Bay last
week passed into the hands of the
J. J. Bnenner Company of Olympia,
spoken answered briefly, in a thick, making the Brenner's holdings now
burring speech, our questmns about th^ lar_est _n est roducin in the
the "oad'and the country The other • • •
...... • ..... Puget Sound dmtnct or m the North-
muncned nm orea(l aria sam nommg. est. Sam K. Taylor was the pip-
We mounted our bcycles and rode - :- *h ^ o-'^" '" .... ....',,
on. 11; was a rlnlng lneluen oI ;ne f l f v'b nv nnd he,un
road, but t was part of the sp,nt • •
the shppmg of oysters to market
of a people who must always be just l .... . ,,+ .... eas o and Mr
a httle on the defenmve a amst
. 8 Brenner is also one of the early oys-
nature, ......... I ter shippers, he taking up the busi-
rrs wew lnsappommg small
..... , ness thirty years ago. From a .
ur nrsz view o a)orchester was beginning both have become heavy
disappointing. A round tower on a shippers, and Of late the Brenner
hill far to the right looked much
more intrestig than the town that
was sprawled out in the valley. The
day is past when Dorchester appear-
ed a bit of garden surrounded by a
hedge. It has spread ar beyond
the old tree-planted, walls• We rode
in along one of the fine walks into
which the vld defenses .hve been
made. The bare crooked branches
of the ancient trees met above in
fantastic figures.
Dorchester; the real Dorchester,
is the epitome of the history of Eng-,
land, in fact of the world. Every
movement of man from the days of
prehistoric savagery to the present,
has left its mark on her and the old-
est relic seems cde and new beside
the fossil life which is dug up from
still lower strata• If Dorchester is
the epitome of past history, the mu-
seum is the epitome of past Dorches-
ter. It contains fossils of strange
huge shellfish and ereepin things,
coins and implements of flint and
bone; relics of the Britons, Roman
urns, corroded swords, skull, and
much of more recent date, all found
in the immediate vicinity. The whole
floor of the 'central!'part of the
buiding is a Roman pvement found
near by and relaid there. One beau-
tiful section, hard-glazed and perfect,
is as large as the floor of a good-
sized room.
Sees Hardy's Home.
The collection of Celtic, Roman
and Saxon coins makes one ask:
"What are a thousand years or so,
and what will come next?" It is
little wonder that a man of deep na-
ture, born and bred in this gloomy,
soulful country, with the very proofs
of the transitory nature of man's
achievements on every side, should
have the philosoplw and the spirit
of Thomas Hardy.
Dorchester (Casterbridge) is te
heart of Wessex. Hardy lives hef'e.
There and nearby his greatest and
best scenes are laid: The market
and the old bull-ring of "The Mayor
of Casterbridge are in sight of he
museum windows. he market and
the square are smaller than I had
expected, but of such strange anles
that the whole is not visible from.
any one point. Yet Lucetta's house
in "The Mayor of Casterhridge" qs
supposed to command the whole.
The curator' of the museum told us
that he one day asked Mr. ttardy
[where the house was located.
"Oh," he said, "sometime it's
there, sometimes there, sometimes
here." But in essential truth Hardv
Its always exact to the least detail.
t (Continued on Page 4.)
company has been the most impor-
tant factor in the shipping trade.
The Brenners acquired the holdings
of John Blass last fall, adding a con-
siderable acreage of oyster lands at
a high"figure to their already large
holdings, , ,"
When Sam K. Taylor became in-
terested in oysters and looked around
for beds he located, a fine tract of
natural seed ground in Oyster Bay,
and from this shipped for 'years all
the oysters called for by the Soumt
cities and Portland markets. They
were shipped in sacks and sold for
from $2 to $8 a sack, whieh now
bring $11. Indians then were the
cullers and even though nature pro-
duced the oysters with only the ex-
pense of gathering and culling oys-
tering was a pvecarious business.
Later dyking arid more modern
methods of cultivating and caring for
the beds were practiced, and a perm-
anent business built up which has
brought wealth to some• When or-
ter lands began to boomevery likely
strip of tide land on the upper Sound
was taken up and experimented on
at heavy cost, but many of these
lands proved unsuited for either pro-
ductng or cultivating oysters, and
ere, abandone, leaving those who
held a bit of natural producing seed
beds with something of permanent
value ....... .
EGG SLACKERS
Speaking about slacking reminds
us that the city folks, who in the
main are living off the country com-
munities of the state, are in mighty
small business p r a c t i c.i n g what
amounts to a boycott on eggs. Be-
cause of the slow demand eggs have
been forced below fifty cents a dozen,
which is lower than they have been
at this season for many years. At
the same time all feeds have reached
the highest price ever known, and
the farmer is vroducin eggs at a
heavy loss• Our city friends while
enjoying top waes and substantial
profits, seem to be making the farm-
er the 'oat of the h. c. o. 1. All that
4s asked of the farmer is his product
and his vote.
CIallam County, which has been
paying 45 for bridge timber and
another $15 for hauling it where
needed, will build a small mill to
Rup Iv its timb•er needs Whether
tePcountv can produce ]mber any
cheaper than the local mills remains
to be p,x)ven. ..
!!i