CORTLANDS VS. STARS, PAVEMENT MEETING AND ORSON KINNEY

American baseball in the early days.

Cortland Evening Standard, Saturday, June 20, 1896.

CORTLANDS VS. STARS.

First Game of the Season—Large Crowd—Home Team Scored Twice.

   The Cortland baseball team crossed bats with the Syracuse Stars yesterday afternoon on the fair grounds. The diamond was in fine condition but, notwithstanding the propitious circumstances, the Cortlands were defeated by a score of 20 to 2. Messitt, the new catcher, failed to appear and Buckley went behind the bat, but could not hold Donovan at times.

   Only five hits were made off Whitehill. Donovan pitched well until the sixth when the Stars batted out thirteen runs. In the seventh Murrey took his place.

   The team has but just been organized and could not be expected to play the kind of ball they will play in a few [more weeks]. They met for their first game one of the strongest teams in the East and really the fact that they held the Stars down to twenty and succeeded in scoring twice themselves was very creditable. The score:

Main Street, Cortland in 1899.

THE PAVING MEETING.

NO OBJECTION TO THE PAVING OF RAILROAD-ST.

Trustees Report on Their Inspection of Paving in Other Cities. They Went Away Favorable To Asphalt and

 Returned Converted to Brick.

   There is no doubt that the long-discussed question of paving in Cortland will soon be settled by the beginning of active operations in that direction. There is little doubt either that the paving will be of brick of some kind, though the official action has not yet been taken. A meeting was called last night at Fireman's hall at 7:30 o'clock by the president and board of trustees to hear objections to the paving of Railroad-st., a majority of the property holders of that street, reckoned by linear frontage, having filed a petition to pave the street. There were about fifty men there, including nearly all of those having property upon the street in the section in question, and not an objection of any kind was raised to its immediate paving. Indeed there seemed to be an anxiety on the part of many to have the work begin.

   During the past week the president and board of trustees have at their own expense taken a trip to Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, Tonawanda and Niagara Falls to inspect different kinds of paving with the idea of getting suggestions for the work in Cortland, and Trustee Warfield also added to these places Hornellsville and Binghamton, he having left the others and returned by a different route. As no objections were raised to the project for paving the street President Benton, who was in the chair, called upon Trustee Glann to give to those present a little sketch of their trip, with the result of their observations in connection with the different kinds of pavement.

   Mr. Glann said they had seen asphalt, brick, block stone and macadamizing. They spent only two hours in Syracuse and saw both asphalt and brick. The latter was in poor condition for the time laid and was chipping badly. The asphalt was in pretty good condition.

   At Buffalo they met the mayor and the city engineer. The latter gave them a good deal of information as to the experience of that city in paving. He then turned them over to his first assistant who spent a number of hours with them. They took a carriage and drove all over the city inspecting pavements, frequently getting out and trying it. The engineer had with him a large memorandum book of paving so that as soon as they turned upon any street he at once told them the kind of paving, by what company put down, when put down, cost, and what it had cost for repairs since being laid. In this way they got a splendid idea of different kinds.

   Buffalo has over 200 miles of asphalt streets. The asphalt varied a great deal in quality and condition. Some of it had been down sixteen years. Most of it is Trinidad asphalt and most of it is put down by the Barber company. The company guarantees its pavement for five years and makes all repairs on it in that time free of expense to the city. Sometimes the repairs have to begin in the second year. A number of cases appeared where the company had to relay the whole thing within the five years of the guaranty. In many cases they could see the concrete coming right up through the asphalt. After the five years of the guaranty the city makes its own repairs and the engineer stated that the cost of repairs averages five cents per yard every year for all the asphalt in the city—and this too when the city has an asphalt plant of its own and is able to make its own repairs without calling in an outside party, unless a city has enough asphalt streets to make it an object to possess its own plant the repairs will cost more. No asphalt is laid close up to the rails of the car tracks. It has been found inexpedient. There is more or less vibration to the tracks which loosens the asphalt. Block stone is laid next the rail and the asphalt joins upon it. The asphalt deteriorates by exposure to the weather.

   They also found brick pavement in Buffalo in good condition.

   From Buffalo they went to Tonawanda. There is no asphalt here. It is a kind of vitrified brick which is known as West Virginia brick, made by Mack & Co. There is very heavy teaming in Tonawanda, and the pavement was in fine condition. The oldest pavement there had been down seven years, the newest two years. They could see no difference between the two. Not one cent had been spent for repairs yet. The brick is laid on a concrete foundation, made the same as for asphalt. The city engineer of this place told them the brick should not be too hard or they would chip, they mustn't be too soft or they would be too absorbent of moisture.

   They spent nearly all day Thursday at Rochester in company with the city engineer and saw all kinds of pavement. They saw asphalt in all the stages of its laying from the excavation preceding the concrete to the last top dressing. They also saw them repairing asphalt. Some of the streets were in bad condition. They seemed to be always and everlastingly repairing asphalt. They found brick in Rochester on many residence streets. The engineer told them they found it better to lay the bricks at an angle of 60 degrees, rather than straight across the street.

   Here they saw an asphalt made of 30 per cent of German rock asphalt and 70 per cent of Sicilian asphalt. It is impervious to the weather, but is very slippery.

   Trustee Warfield was then called upon and spoke of what he saw at Hornellsville. The city has over a mile of brick pavement. The brick are made there. Part of it has been down four years. It was the best brick pavement he saw while he was gone. Not one cent had been spent for repairs and it didn't look as though a cent would be needed in twenty years. These brick are laid on a concrete six inches thick. This concrete is made of one part of cement, two parts of sand and four to five parts of crushed stone. This is rolled down hard and lies four or five days after completion before the brick is laid. A cushion of sand is put down on the cement to lay the brick on. In Syracuse hot pitch is poured upon the tops of the bricks and swept it with a broom.

   In Buffalo they use Portland cement and sand half and half to fill the joints. In Hornellsville they use pure Portland cement and it is as hard as solid rock. The city engineer told Mr. Warfield that they had learned by experience that once in about 150 feet it would be better to fill a row of joints with asphalt instead of cement. This would give it a chance to expand with the heat, which is not possible with the cement. The vitrified brick made at Hornellsville are annealed. This insures that they do not chip. Asphalt pavement is the finest to look at, but brick is the most practical.

   The question of cost was raised and Mr. Warfield said that asphalt cost $3 per yard, brick is generally a half dollar cheaper. In Hornellsville the first brick was put down at $2.10, but it was too low, the contractor lost money. Since then they have paid $2.25 per yard, but that is lower than we could put it down, for there was no transportation on brick there as it was made in the city and delivered where needed. This cost includes a five-inch stone curb, placed one foot in the ground.

   Trustee Glann spoke of the fact that in all the cities they visited the contractor who paves also makes water, gas and sewer connections. Great care is exercised in replacing the earth in the ditches. It is tamped hard. Of course if the contractor guarantees the pavement he guarantees that it will not settle. Be therefore takes great care with his ditches.

   Trustee Wallace was called upon for remarks, but said that he had nothing to add unless questions were asked.

   Trustee Webb was ill and unable to be present.

   A number of questions were asked and answered along the line of the above statements. It was very evident that the trustees returned from their trip wholly converted to brick as far as Cortland is concerned, though they were all quite in favor of asphalt when they went away, and the ground of the conversion is the continual expense of repairs on asphalt. They have of course taken no action yet, but there is every reason to believe that they will decide upon brick.

Left to right. Mrs. Howe, Gen. Howe, Mrs Daniel S. Lamont.

Orson Kinney.

(From the Utica Observer, June 19.)

   Orson Kinney of MeGrawville died of Bright's disease on Wednesday afternoon at his home. He was the father of Mrs. Daniel S. Lamont, wife of the present secretary of war. He was a descendant of Cyrus Kinney who, in 1791 settled in Onondaga county with four stalwart sons, being later joined by the mother and six other children who had been left in Connecticut. They subdued the unbroken wilderness, created rich farms and lived at peace with their neighbors, the Indians.

  Early in the present century some of their sons and daughters and their descendants swarmed into the county of Cortland, yet leaving the majority of their kin in Onondaga. The men and women of the name were substantial in character and stood high in the communities which they helped to create. They were representatives of sobriety, frugality, honorable dealings and neighborly kindness.

   One peculiarity of the family is illustrated in the name of Mrs. Lamont's father—Orson. There was never a James or a John or an Edward among them in the old times. Among the descendants of Cyrus we recall the names of Zebulon, Zachariah, Mason, Emerson, Elbridge, Hildreth, Atlas, Eri, Prentiss, and Julius, but never a Charles or a William.

   In McGrawville two children were playmates—one the daughter of Orson Kinney and the other a boy who was destined to become famous. The boy went out into the world early, and began climbing the ladder of fame, but he went back to McGrawville when he married, and Juliet Kinney Lamont fairly divides with her husband the popularity he enjoys in Washington and New York and wherever they are known.