CANON FOR SOLDIER'S MONUMENT AND DYNAMITE AT THE PARK

Cortland Evening Standard, Wednesday, April 21, 1897.

THE CANON COMING.

D., L. & W. Kindly Offer to Transport Them Free of Charge.

   A few weeks ago, as already noted in The STANDARD, the Cortland Monumental association appointed Judge A. P. Smith a committee of one to arrange for the transportation to Cortland of the cannon and shells which, through the kindness of ex-Secretary of War Daniel S. Lamont, the government has given to the association to be placed by the soldiers' monument. Judge Smith who has been corresponding in regard to the matter, this morning received the following letters which explain themselves and which testify to the liberality and kindness of the officials of the D., L. & W. R. R. in transporting all the articles free of charge:

   DELAWARE, LACKAWANNA & WESTERN RAILROAD CO.,

   PRESIDENT'S OFFICE, 26 EXCHANGE PLACE,

   NEW YORK, April 20, 1897.

   DEAR SIR—Have yours of yesterday and in reply we will transport the cannon and shells for the object stated in your letter, and I have given instruction to that effect. The cannon to be delivered at our depot in Hoboken,

   Yours truly,

   SAM SLOAN, Pres.

Mr. A. P. Smith, Cortland.

DYNAMITE AT THE PARK.

EFFECTIVE WORK DONE THERE BY MR. J. A. MAXWELL.

Substituted a Cartridge, a Piece of Wire and a Battery for a Beetle and Wedge in Clearing up the Debris of Last Fall's Tornado—Stumps all Blown Out.

   The great tornado which swept over Cortland upon the night of Sept. 29, 1896, did not see fit to overlook the beautiful Cortland park, and about forty great forest trees which in the early evening had lifted their towering tops far into the sky were in the morning found flat upon the ground and with roots turned up in unsightly masses. Fortunately, only about ten of these trees were in the section of the park that has been cleared up and has been opened to the public, and these too were all south of the pavilion.

   Strangely, there was a section north of the pavilion extending as far as the park has been opened that appears to have escaped the violence of the storm, for no trees were uprooted here. The other thirty trees were all at the extreme north end of the forest in that part which has not yet been cleared up or opened. One great tree fell so close to the pavilion that a short section of the corffice [sic] was broken off, but the damage was slight and repairs were at once made. Otherwise  the pavilion was uninjured. The bandstand too escaped without a scratch.

   In the south grove the little building came to grief, which stood in the rear of the dancing platform and from which refreshments were served before the fine pavilion was erected in the north grove. One large sugar maple fell right across the building, and a large amount of kindling wood was the result.

   Something of the force of the wind is shown by the fact that a huge hemlock tree that measures about three feet in diameter at the base was so badly twisted that the tree is split from the base upwards for about fifteen feet. The tree still stands and above the split seems uninjured.

   During the past winter the logs of these fallen trees have been sawed up and drawn away, the wood cut up and removed and the brush disposed of, but the stumps and upturned roots remained. It was a question what to do with them.

    Then science and dynamite came into play. Mr. J. A. Maxwell, who is the superintendent of motive power of the Traction company, has had many years' experience in the use of dynamite in removing stumps and rocks for railroad grading in Pennsylvania. The men who had cut up the timbers and the wood said they would have to split up the stumps with beetle and wedge and dig out the roots. Mr. Maxwell told them he had an easier way. During the last few days he has been showing them what that way is. Some of them looked on with not a little awe as they saw him bore into the stumps of hard rock maples as if he were tapping the tree for a run of sap, only he used a larger auger and bored deeper. Then he inserted a small dynamite cartridge, attached a wire from 200 to 300 feet long and told the men to get out of the way. With a small battery he retired to the other end of the wire, attached the wire, pressed the button, and. presto, the stump had disappeared. There was an awful crash, the air was full of flying wood and of dirt, but the stump was no more. Altogether perhaps a half hour had been used in boring the hole and making the attachments.

   "That is easier than handling a beetle half a day,'' was the verdict.

   And so they kept on with all the stumps. In several cases the roots fell back into their original positions when the charge was fired, in other cases they were so loosened that to dig them out will not be difficult. The pieces of stumps were in the main reduced to slivers and were blown far and wide. There was one exception however, where a single block of a rock maple about four feet long and two feet in diameter was blown entire about 250 feet down the hill to the river side. After that piece flew the men who were assisting got back farther than ever when Mr. Maxwell was ready to press the button. They were afraid they would have a headache if such a piece happened to come in their direction.

   The work of blowing up the stumps was completed yesterday and only one stump remains. That is so near the pavilion that Mr. Maxwell fears for its safety if he were to try the dynamite. He will let his men have a practical test on this stump of the comparison between dynamite and the beetle and wedge. He has used the dynamite and they can use the beetle and wedge and see how it goes.

   Fortunately the wind seems to have used a very nice degree of discrimination in selecting what trees to lay low last fall, for the picking out of these ten in the grove has not disfigured the grove, and when the debris is cleared up they probably will not be missed. It is to be hoped, however, that such a cyclone will not be repeated.

   A force of men is now at work clearing up the grounds for the summer, leveling down the dirt where the trees were uprooted, stringing up the wires for lighting, many of which were blown down last fall, and putting up the arc lamps. The grounds are to be placed in better condition than ever before and the park will doubtless this summer prove more popular than in the past. The refreshment privilege at the pavilion has again been let to G. F. Beaudry.

   Before Mr. Maxwell left the grounds with his battery yesterday some of the men expressed a desire to see what dynamite would do with rocks. Mr. Maxwell had a small cartridge left. There was a boulder about 18 inches in diameter in the open space below the place where the [trolley] car line ends. Mr. Maxwell placed the cartridge on top of the rock, placed a little dirt upon the cartridge and turned an old pail that they had been using upside down over the cartridge. The men got back farther than ever this time. Mr. Maxwell himself retired to the end of the wire. The button was pressed and all approached again the place where the rock had been. Nobody saw the pail go and nobody has yet found any pieces of it. A few broken pieces of stone about the size of pebbles remain to indicate that a boulder had once been there. The men were quite satisfied that dynamite is effective, but they prefer to let Mr. Maxwell handle it rather than to have anything to do with it themselves.

Sugar for England.

   Mr. A. S. Brown to-day shipped 4,500 pounds of maple sugar to parties in England. The sugar was made by several parties in the east side of the county, and was of superb quality. Mr. Brown says that the run of sugar this year is very uneven among the same makers. The bulk of the sugar was made in a single week and the sap ran so fast that week that manufactures could not take care of it and some of it got a little snow before it could be boiled. The result was very excellent sugar the first part of the week and a much poorer quality in the last part.

   Mr. Brown has handled a large amount of sugar this year. He took in four tons at McGrawville in a single day recently.

Opening of Canal Navigation.

   BUFFALO, April 21.—Official notice was received here that the Erie canal will open for navigation on Saturday, May 8, at 12 o'clock noon. Twenty boats, loaded with grain, are awaiting the opening at this port. Shippers say that the outlook for the season on the canal is exceedingly poor. Forwarders are asking 3 3/4 cents on wheat to New York, but no contracts are being made.

Death of Colonel Crouse.

   SYRACUSE, April 21.—Colonel George N. Crouse of this city died at the Fifth Avenue hotel, New York. He was about 50 years old, and for 18 years conducted a wholesale grocery business in this city. He retired from business a year ago. He was a delegate to the Republican national convention which nominated Hayes for president, and was an elector on the Harrison ticket of 1888.

James Corbett.

JAMES CORBETT'S DEFI.

Challenges Fitz to Meet Him Once More.

FITZSIMMONS SAYS "NOT YET."

Tells Corbett to Get a Reputation as a Fighter—It Is His Turn to Become a Dictator.

   NEW YORK, April 21.—To end all doubts as to his sincerity of purpose, James J. Corbett formally challenged Robert Fitzsimmons to meet him once again in the prize ring and deposited $5,000 as a forfeit.

   The challenge was as follows:

   "I hereby challenge you to box me any number of rounds for the championship of the world, under the provisions of the law, before the club offering the best inducements.

   "As it is a violation of the law to propose a side stake, that is a detail that may be settled at your pleasure.

   "As an evidence of my sincerity, however, I have deposited the sum of $5,000, which I invite you to cover, and name a time and place to meet me and arrange the final details."

Bob Fitzsimmons.

What Fitz Says.

   PHILADELPHIA,, April 21.—Fitzsimmons declared that he meant to pay no attention to challenges from Corbett or anybody else for a time, as he had earned a rest and meant to have it. He added, however, that he proposed to follow Corbett's example as dictator of the prize ring and his reply was that the latter should earn a reputation as a fighter, instead of a boxer, before he presumed to challenge him.

FIRE LADDIES DANCED.

Water Witch Boys Gave a Pleasant Party Last Evening.

   Water Witch Steamer & Hose Co. last night gave a dancing party in C. A. A. hall that for real pleasure is exceeded by few parties held in Cortland this season. A close estimate places the number of couples in attendance at 110. McDermott's orchestra furnished delightful music for dancing, and all report an exceedingly enjoyable time. The refreshments were served in John L. Lewis lodge rooms under the direction of Caterer E. E. Price, and were highly spoken of by all. There were twenty-four dances on the program, and the party, which was the second annual ball given by the company, broke up at an early hour this morning.

THE ORDER OF RED MEN.

Degree Team From Elmira to Institute Pecos Tribe To-morrow Night.

   A tribe of the Independent Order of Red Men will be instituted in Cortland to-morrow night in Empire hall. The tribe is to be known as Pecos tribe. The Elmira Advertiser of this morning says:

   To-morrow afternoon at 1 o'clock the degree team of Chemung tribe, I. O. R. M., will leave over the Lehigh Valley railroad for Cortland, where they will institute a new tribe of the order. The arrangements for the trip were completed at a meeting of the degree team held last evening. Those who will go are Sachem W. K. Fitzgerald, Senior Sagamore D. K. Maloney, Junior Sagamore George E. Reidy, First Sanap M. J. Reidy, Second Sanap Thomas Ford, First Warrior Michael Dempsey, Second Warrior W. P. Ryan, Third Warrior Joseph Cronan, Fourth Warrior Frank X. Disnev, First Brave James Smith, second Brave Bernard Delahant, Third Brave George McMahan, Fourth Brave Charles F. Brown, First Scout Edward Kennedy, Second Scout John Allen, Prophet D. J. O'Neil, Chief of Records C. J. Harrison, Guard of Wigwam M. A. Kelly, Guard of Forest P. P. Conroy.

   W. S. Rowley will accompany the team as drill master. They will also be accompanied by an orchestra consisting of W. Stevens, E. C. Cuthbert and William Wade.

BREVITIES.

   —The street sprinkler made its first appearance this afternoon.

   —The Normal reopened this morning after the Easter vacation of the week.

   —The jury in the case of Peck against Moore, which was on trial before Justice Dowd yesterday, brought in a verdict of no cause of action.

   —The members of the Epworth league of the First M. E. church will hold a parlor meeting at the home of Rev. and Mrs. B. F. Weatherwax, 12 Argyle Place, this evening.

   —A sacred concert will be given at the Homer-ave. M. E. church this evening at 8 o'clock. The concert will be given by the choir and the young people of the church.

   —A team belonging to Samuel Kehoe became frightened this morning and ran away on Lincoln-ave., running into C. V. Smith's milk wagon, tearing off a wheel, and otherwise injuring the wagon.

   —The baseball meeting last night at the office of Attorney Edwin Duffey was adjourned to Thursday night at the same place, when all who are in any way interested are asked to be in attendance.

   —New display advertisements to-day are—Dey Bros., Dry Goods, page 4; H. G. Stone, Mail Order Dept., page 8; I. Whiteson, Winding Up Business, page 4; Warner Rood, "Other People's Money," and The American Liliputians, page 5.

   —Before Justice Kelley this morning issue was joined in the case of Sophia White against Fred A. Brainard, and an adjournment was agreed to, the case being held open until 4 o'clock. The action is brought to recover an amount alleged to have been due for rent.

   —A young woman in New York is now in a hospital in that city suffering from blood poisoning as the result of a wound made from the breaking of a rusty corset steel while she was bending over a washtub. Moral for Cortland women, don't bend or else don't wear rusty steels.

McGRAWVILLE.

Crisp local Happenings at the Corset City.

   Mrs. Julia Norcott, who has been sick for several weeks, is much better.

   L. G. Pudney and son George spent Sunday with the former’s father, George Pudney, Sr., at Hunt's Corners.

   A novel sign at the People's Cash Trading Co.'s store reads, "Lost wind restored to bicycles here."

   The principal office of the McGraw Corset Co. has been divided by a handsome glass partition making two neat offices, one of which is for A. P. McGraw's use and the other for the stenographer and correspondence clerks.

   P. J. Wadsworth of Cortland was in town yesterday.

   Monday George Beers, the delivery clerk at the corner store, received a surprise. While driving down Main-st the horse and front wheels of the wagon suddenly left him and he with the balance of the wagon took a sudden drop. The horse responded promptly to his "whoa" and matters were righted without any serious damages.

   Mr. M. L. Rumsey has moved into rooms in the house of Miss Ruth Sweet on Church-st.

   George Sutliff and family are moving into rooms in Miss Huntington's house on Church-st.