The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1905-02-08
REV. GEORGE B. SHOEMAKER.
Has NotForgotten His Coasting Days With
the Boys About McConneIIsburg.

cember and January have brought
us an abundance of snow, and
some quite cod weather. On
Tuesday last, we had very dis
agreeable day. The thermome.
ter did not get above twelve de-
grees below zero at any time dur
Ing the day, and the wind blew a
gale out of the northwest. Not
much business was done that
day, and all trains on the railroad
were very late, or else abandon
ed. "What did you do to keep
warm ?" Oh, we shoveled "Black
Band" Virginia coal into the
Round Oak furnace, opened up
all the heat pipes, and warmed
the whole house. In my study,
where visiting minister and my
self spent part of the time, we
shut off the heat at times, be-
cause we were too warm. This
is not joke, but fact.
The worst storm of the winter,
and, indeed, for some years, came
on Tuesday following Christmas.
The cold was not so intense as 1t
was during the storm of this
week, but there was more snow,
and it was more OF "blizzard"
than common blow. On this
day, we had the largest fall of
snow of the winter. 1t drlfted
until on the business streets it
was SIX feet or more deep. The
air at times was full of snow.
The Court House, a large brick
building, stands IN the public
square. The parsonage Is about
as far from it as the Methodist
Z church in McConnellsburg Is
from the Hall of Justice. Many
times through that storm we
could not see the Court House be-
cause of the snow in the air. The
wind blew the snow all off my
front walk; but, as if to get even
with me, it placed it in great
drifts in my back yard. The
memory of the toll incident to
path making, llngers with me yet.
From my study window, look
out upon the yard of my neigh
Dor, who has two lusty boys. He
also has hill or steep bank in
his yard. HIS boys own sleds.
Now, by some strange order of
things, that snow clad bank at
tracts his boys with their sleds,
and the fun they seem to have at
tracts other boys, until, at times,
the hill swarms with boys and
sleds, and boxes, anti boards, and
stabs of brooms-anythlng upon
which boy can manage to slide
down the hill, and mlrth and jol-
ity reign supreme. They go down
the bank, past the barn, through
the alley to the street, where they
turn abruptly to the right, and
go down the street to the foot oi
the hill. A wood pile, needing
attention, is for the time forgot
tea, and the boys work longer
and harder at the coastlng thar
they ever have or will at the wood
saving. And / say, "Whatls the
matter with the boys of to- day p
But my criticism is cut short, by
the memory of the past. see
the hill back of Eitemlller's barn
and the one just west of wher,
the postoffice used to be; ant
the field out by the old swimmin,
hole when the thick crust was OF
the snow; and the hill from Dal
F'ore's barn down on to the busi
moss street; and the ridge roaC
from about the place where tn
toll gate" used to stand, dow
around the curve, past the Peach
orchard read and then on dow
the straight run, over the bridge
on to Hays blacksmith shop.
awake to the fact that l am ther
with the other boys, and | yer,
much fear there was a wood pll
that needed my attention; but
like the one in my neighbor
yard, it had to wait. ! wonder
any OF "the boys" remem ber th
sled with cast iron runners owr
ed by Nat Dutield? How we u,
ed 20 envy him his piece of desi,