The Press., 1889-03-07
LOCAL roPICs-PENN,D AND sClssoRED.
STAFFORD SPRINGS MATTERS.

LOCAL TOPICS-PENN'D AND SCISSORED.
 STAFFORD SPRINGS MATTERS
 A point made by A. N. Nichols, at the close of Chaplain Fosters address at Oro- noco Hall last Thursday evening, was worthy of more elaboration than MT. N. could well give, beginning as he did while the people were leaving the hall. The reference was to the debt owed by the people to the prisoners of war who en- dnred so much, but were so generally loy- al, scorning the idea of purchasing relief from their helllike prison even by the concession of working upon southern forti- fications Their condition was pitiable, served with about half rations or less of raw meal, ragged, no water fit for use, only such shelter from weather as could be got by burrowing, Sc. 4O,0O0 men, all fee- bIe from starvation and exposure, many sick, and scores being carried out daily for burial, with only space of 15 acres on which to move about, jeered by their guards, shot down for the most trifiing of fense, how great must have been the temp tation to escape from this by, taking the traitorous oath of allegiance to the south ern confederacy! Yet these prisoners were doing big work for their country. The southern confederacy would have been glad to have exchanged prisoners, man for man, with the federal govern ment. It was cruel necessity that stop- ped this. An exchange would have put 5O,000 confederates back into their rauks, actually stronger and better fitted for ser vice because of their captivity under hu- mane keepers. It,would on the contrary have released to the government of the U. s. starved horde, fit for the hospital, the | Oravn for oOvfhir,rr kh kbov, Ror or,,,x, service. To have given the confederates their able-bodied men in exchange for the wasted prisoners from Libby, Anderson vile and Florence would have prolonged the war, Gen. Grant said, at least six months. Then did not these prisoners mo- bly, serve their country? and should not the fact be recognized with 8 pension in the case of every survivor? Mr. Nichols
 was at Andersonville at the same time with Chaplain Foster, and was witness of many of the scenes he described.
 - The firemen have had opportunity re- gently to show something beside the holi- day parade aspect of their assumed duties. It Is no joke to battle on a winters night
 with such fires as the two last have been. ) To turn out of a warm bed and cllmb upon ) ladders, directing streams of water under pressure requiring main strength continu- ously exerted, to keep the stream turned alright and retain the squirming hose un- der control, and that with the certainty al. most of getting drenching of the chilling liquid, which perhaps also quickly coats every round of the ladder with ice. Our firemen have done good work at every large fire. Have responded quickly, and , given the wisest of the spectators very lit- tie cause to grumble at the course of &C., | hox ko1 o% was necessary to act while deciding how to act.
 If our aqueduct system did not pay in any other way it would in solid comfort to every property owner for every dollar it cost. Who will not say that the feeling of ] security which steals over one aroused at
 midnight by fire alarm, when the in. l creased security against the spread of fires t comes to mind, is not worth all it has cost !
 Water is now got upon fires in from 5 to X 30 minutes earlier than previously, and in g ample quantity, and, better yet, no part of the village is out of reach of water. ! The question, Is it where the steamer can ? get water upon it? is not asked now, and we have the almost certainty that the - flames will be confined to the one building s in which they originate. The fire of Feb
 ruary, 1884, would never have got beyond n Rockwell's block, and probably would not have entirely destroyed that even, had we :, then had the facilities of today for put. - ting out fires. An ounce of prevention it worth pound of cure, and every fraction , of second of time gained in getting wa
 ter upon a fire is a considerable fragment . of prevention.
 Indifference on the part of the farmers , has probably killed the project of cream !, cry !n Stafford. We may say killed, as il
 is now getting very late to secure ice fol the coming summer; and it is hardly like ly that the project will be revived again [ unless new men shall take hold of it. f Farming in Stafford is decreasing in rela : tive importance as compared with other , industries. There are not many farmers . today who are getting an entire living from the soil. Teaming, road making y and various forms of supplementary work D are depended upon by many to eke out | the scanty subsistence given by farms O which yielded good profits to farmers of 6 r past generation. Many farmers are sell } ing their hay crops, which is most un
 natural way of making the farm pay, since
 it is only by feeding the produce to stock upon the farm and getting the benefit oi , enriching manures that farm can be
 kept up. It is clear that the farmers oi
 the present generation can't follow the
 plans of those of past days. Beef, pork
 grain, flour, etc., can be purchased
 cheaper than they can be produced al
 home. But we have good grazing lands,
 and with farms we'll stocked, and the ex. . crements returned to the land, we can
 make hay in Stafford, which is good and profitable crop, if not so generally sold from the farms as to continually exhaust
 the soil. The natural recourse then is to
 grass and stock keeping. And this az
 naturally leads to the consideration oi
 butter making. It is unlikely that the
 market will ever be over-glutted with good
 creamery butter.
 It has been disappointment that many
 farmers of Stafford and vicinity have seem. f ed indifferent to the success of the move
 for creamery. The indifference is prob
 ably only seeming, and perhaps has come = from over confidence that there would be . creamery, the benefits of which could be
 availed of after it became a success with.
 out taking any of the risk of making it g
 success. At least there has been an i'm. ? pression among some of the farmer work. CTS, as we'll as among those not farmers,
 who were ready to take stock, if needed, to
 help the thing on, that just that selfish
 view was being taken by some who might
 reasonably have been expected to be ready
 workers in behalf of the enterprise.
 In no department of industry in the state