Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1858-12-15

dollars to get them located on his land He
didn't ssmake good thing of it ~ 1t wasn't
ssnice operation 20 He didn't realize "a
large pile !" His three thousand dollars was,
doubtless, a charitable gift to the sspoor labo
rers and mechanics over whom the author OF
the ssmemoriar' sheds his crockodile tears
such gift, imagine, those for which the
sswealthy men of Clearfield,' Of the present
day, are so Justly celebrated! Which OF them
has ever yet failed to make charitable gifts to.
the sspoor laborers and mechanics lrhen he
could realize yfffty or a hundred per cent by the
transaction? There is no s'Sharp business tact'
among the millionaires of CIearfield, who pay
taxes on S190,064 worth of property, when
they are worth in reality ten times that a.
mount They never engage in any "sharp
speculations," or "sharp" practice, or SHARP
shavingl No, certainly not They belong to
the dull, methodical, plodding, six per cent.
stamp of ssbusiness men, !" who would Shudder
at the idea of shaving note, or taking twen-
ty per cent. off a 'spoor laborer or mechanic 20
They are entirely too innocent to engage in so
'ssharp speculation" as erecting the public
buildings at their own expense. There can be
no doubt that they would rather see the tax
payers 'ssharp'' enough to do it for them.
They prefer to exercise their 'sbusiDess tact'
in their usual way, by making the people spay
the piper while they keep their money in their
pockets. 1t is, however, / opine, matter of
indifference to the citizens of the county which
the sssharpest''-the business men of Clear
field or Curwensville, so that the controversy
results in the erection of new public buildings
without expense to the tax payers. But, says
the ssmemorial,' during the last five years
there have been but fire causes tried IRON
Clearfield, while there have been t,cenfy-nine
from Curwensvillel A powerful argument,
truly The learned author must surely have
felt relieved after delivering himself Of this
destructive volley, and it is to be hoped he
was on guard lest he met the fate OF that re-
nowned hero whose gun
"-when aimed at duck OF ploYer.
Recoied and kicked its owner over"
If the proportion of business at Curwensvillc
is much greater, why surely there is the
place the county buildings ought to be. If
there is no necessity for them at Clcdrfield,
why object to their removal! But we come
now to the fifth branch of the subject.
5. After fishing here for some time to dis
cover the 'reason against the removal which
ought to ollow s.5th, - as promised in the com
mencement, am led to conclude that ii is be-
cause the accomplished author of the ssmemo-
rial" in his expansion of heart, sspities the
persons gifted with such narrowneSS of mind
to arouse personal feeling against individ
ualS in Clearfield - | must confess, although
l am able to find no other s'reason" under
''fifthly," that this one is decidedly above my
comprehension, and l can only hope, if the re-
moval of the public buildings is likely to di-
minish the .spity'' that swells the palpitating
breast of the learned author of the ssmemo-
rial, that the people of Curwcnsville will de-
sist in their efforts, lest the large vacuum left
in his susceptible bosom produce collapse,
and Clearield county be left orphan How
terrible calamity But find another ssrea-
soa'' in :ffthly' that escaped me-that ssIherc
are six churches in Ciearfield''-and strange to
say this s.reason" is accompanied with the
candid wledgeDlent that ssthey were built
not alone by this borough, but by contribu-
tions from citizens of the county - l pre-
sumo there was no 'ssharp bhsiness tact" ex-
ercised by these innocent, honest, wealthy
men, in getting other people to build their
churches? They were acting then, doubtless,
as they are acting now, from principle, it be-
ing, for them, entirely too ss,haTp'' ssspecuia-
kOn'' to build either churches or court houses
at their own expense. But true il is that
there six churches in Cicarfeld, and equal
ly true it is, doubtless. that. like the hotels,
they are grand and magnificent structures !
And they are worthy, too, of boasting They
cost, | presume, an enormous sum OF money.
The whole six, perhaps, could not be built for
less than the cost of one of the palatial resi-
dences of these ''wealthy men - 1t would
have been better, perhaps, for the large heart
ed author of the .smemorial,'' if he had left
the s'churches'' ont of the argument, for he
cannot disguise the fact that there is not q
church edifce in your borough ut all common
surate with the sswealth" of your citizens. and
instead of toasfing over the cheap, uncomfort-
able structures used as churches, these s'weal-
thy men'' ought to hide their heads in shame
He winds up his ssfifthly'' in laudation of the
.spublic spirit and ssliberality" of, presume,
these same opulent citizens who pay SO much
fax, and own so much property, and get 9TH
people to build their churches. He might
have quoted, case in point, the subscrip-
tion raised within few days past, to defray
the expenses of printing his stmemorial' and
other documents. 1t was necessary 10 raise
some twenty or thirty dollars, and these slib-
eral,' public Spirited rich men, actually sub
scribed as high tro dollars each, and then
went round to the "poor laboring men and me-
chanics'' to raise the balance in twenty-five
cent subscriptions! What excruciating Glib
erality -
6. 1t is said ssremovals of county seats oc-
casionally become necessary and, may add,
this is especially the case when by removing
them the tax payers can save some forty thou
sand dollars of expenditure, without discom-
moding themselves, and in addition get bet
ter location. We come then to his ssscventh''
and last reason.
7. This consists of proposal ssthat COM
mittee of gentlemen of' your thorough, of
undoubted means will guarantee that q new
Court House shall be built for SIS, 900, with
out any increase of taxation !' What ssliber-
al'' and "public spirited" proposition! There
is no evidence of 'ssharp business tact'' in this
offer But how does it contrast with the pro-
posal of the people of Curwensville They
offer to build, not only as good Court House
as can be found in any of tfe neighboring
counties, but new Jail, (needed as bad as the
court house,) and to erect a first class Hotel
so that the people when they attend Court can
find comfortable and respectable accommoda-
tions. They intend, also, 20 erect Gas works.
of which the public buildings will derive ad-
vantage, and which will add to the comfort
and enjoyment of the strangers who may So