The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1900-11-09
FRANKLIN, OHIO.

FRANKLIN, OHIO.
AS have been invited by the editor of The
| 1giS to write briefly some of my impressions
| it, regard b the improvements in Bel Air and
| as had the pleasure of spending few days
| in that town during the past summer. / SUBJ
init these few observations H ms do not know
| since left Hartford county am able to look
| at the town from an outside point of view
| more readily than could when | WAS resi-.
| dent of your neighborhood. My impressions
| now come by way of contrast with the place
/ of my present home. l will begin then with a
| few words about Franklin, and so come to the
! contrast.
This town contains about three thousand
| people. is situated on the Big Miami river, and
| is divided into two parts by the river, over
which handsome extension bridge stretches.
| The Fig Four" railway and the G. j. and NJ.
railway runs through the town; while the G.
| H. and D. of which Mr.. Hugh !. Jewett was at
one time president, runs within nalf mile
Of us. 7 e Cincinnati and Dayton Trolley
road runs through our main street; Dayton
being fifteen miles north of us, and Cincinnati
forty miles to the south. This line has cars
every h ali hour, and they are elegantly made
and kept. Our streets are shaded by hand
some trees. and are kept clean by the town;
the people are compelled To- Keep their cutters
free IRON grass. and the town Itself cleans the
allcy-wayS, the town hauls away the piles of
debris which are accumu lated, with the ex-
cei!.inn of ashes. We have strict and care
fu! Health Board that, il addition to its other
duties, sees to the carrying out of the rule
about the accumulation OF debris or the grow
OF grass i'll the streets. So that our streets
pea ance. We have five large paper mills, one
of them belonging to the American Writing
Paper Trust. large Bank building. the largest
dry goods store between Cincinnati and Day
ton, (Which means something in this State
which is full OF towns Of from two to ten
thousand inhabitan;s). We have four hand
some churches two OF them with large pipe
organs; and three other churches, of less i'm
posing archit, cture. We have quite a gIodly |
Der o. handsome residence and the gen |
era aspect OF the town is that OF a weIl-kept |
place.
in my 'st summers vacation, went into
Western penusS wanna. 70 the town where |
had lived until my sixteenth year. When ! |
WAS II boy, 1t was college town, and consist |
I'd thea % about fifteen hundred psoHle; and |
with large body oI stiid.nts and t!e families |
Of the professors IL had thon the air of Al
place of considerable cuitivatiDn- Since then |
the college has been removed; oil and gas
have been found in Tho hills round about; this |
coal yield has increased immensely; options |
OF the Pittsburg vein of coal, which lies at Il |
depth Of five hundred feet have been sold |
over nearly the whole OF the county; ana all |
classes of men have grown rich do MOI know |
any county where SO many men have money |
as Washington county, Pennsylvania Yet
our Old village, which now contains about |
three Thousand people, Siaiti, u me ry It's care
less and degenerate appearance. After the !
turnt and neatuess oi All ONO town, it seemed i
AS il all the streets and cutters were given over
to weeds and grass; the houses, in dozens OF |
cases seemed ready TO fall down: the trees
along the streets were uatrimm.,d the lightn-
ing rod on the college cup0la lay fiat across the
top of it. Yet the town is rich; but the people |
have not cared to spend their money III i'm
proVemcnts.
Then went to Bel Air and wondered If !
would find it compare so i'll with Il progressive
OHIO town. | was pleased to find that Bel Air |
was moving along III the right direction. Its |
houses seemed generally in good repair; trees
were shapely; the suburbs particularly were
most attractive, with the handsome new homes; |
its local papers are far and away ahead of the ]
average weekly in our Ohio towns both in
general appearance, workmanship, and the
general interest of the matter they have over
the whole county, its people and affairs much |
better than is general here; the stores seemed
tidy and well stocked. Above all, Bel Air has
that indetinable, yet very recognizable thing, |
that in these days we call ATTN osphere;" some
thing which newer places cannot have.
But 1t seems to me that still more attention
might be given to the Streets along the line of |
our Ohio plan of competing people TO clear
away grass and weeds The payemeuts are
nor as good as they might be; here the people
are forbidden to replace d WORKOUT pavement
with anything but concrete; so that little by
little the town has been almost completely
paved with this material. A similar plan
might be good for your town. The best thing
that could be done for Bel Air would be to
build trolley line from it to Aberdeen or
Havre de Grace; the effect of a trolley road is
almost magical rs that of the telephone
system, in binding communities together. 1t
would put you quickly in touch with great
portion of the county, and other improve
ments would follow. AT present you have
much reason to congratulate yourselves over
the great progress of the last decade. Bel Air
is ready TO greet the new century AS a live and
progressive community.