The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1910-12-23
PEOPLES FORUM.
Something About Bnuges, Etc.

j HVhhNAihhA Ah'pht AAAhENHf A-tNs
TO The Editor:
| am thinking of going into the
newspaper writin' business and am
sending you a sample of what ! am
capable of. ! don't want to sign my
name to my pieces, till | am sure
they suit both sides of politics, all
religions, churches, and the public in
every township-then you can print
my name. | haven't had a steady
job since the Main street State
bridge was finished You know
there was a half dozen of us promi-
nent citizens-such as you refer to
in your obituary notices as taking
great interest in public institutions"
(banks) "a 20 who put in more
than union time on that bridge job
telling the contractors how the work
should be done, trying to give the
state a square deal, etc. We didn't
draw no pay neither-just drew con-
clusions.
We were often questioned by pass
ing town people as to how we were
getting along with the job. Some
times the inquiries were puzzling.
For instance:
One morning Slocum Eberhardt
came along and wanted to know if
I'VE all had our hammers with us"
-'spose he thought we was doin'
the riveting. One another day
An out of town stranger came up
and asked what we was building a
four-track railroad bridge on a wag
on road for?" He must have been
a Democrat, cause Democrats don't
like the way we do things in Penn
sylvania. Then
; Along comes one of them know
= everything fellers, who had more
whiskers than gray brains and said
"the bridge won't be worth shucks
; unless the Torrey dam is put back
where it was" He said "the
damned ice always went out all right
when the dam was there"
With all our inspecting we made
mistake in the bridge. You know
S them iron plates that lap the cracks
between the stone sidewalks and the
concrete walks of the bridge, don't
you? Well they're the pesky things
r that have been the downfall of many
an upright person. They're the
S sliperest thing to step on that |
know of outside of benano skins.
0 I've sot on the bench on the stoop
of John Weaver's hotel and seen lots
e of men and wimen step onto them
armor plates, flop their wings and
r throw all their bundles in the air and
), into the Lackawaxen; others sot
d down quicker an madder than they
do when they miss a word at a
spellin' bee-what they said is un-
k tidy in print. Billy Reii says wear
rubbers." Rubbers are all right but
t they inspire too much confidence
! elf, NIT Ia Nhlr fT
S worse-and fall worse.
The other day l was walking VI
t the Main mud road with a friend
of mine. CThis is about the bridge
tool. We came to a grocery store
and my friend said come in here
till | git a couple dozen eggs-my
wife's going to make some holiday
t fruit cake" We went IN and my
friend said give me two dozen best
hens eggs" The man blowed up q
paper bag and put the eggs in it
My friend layed dollar bill on the
bar and was waitin' for his change
The man said Ten cents more
u please My friend asked what
for" Well" said the man, eggs
i are now So cents-they're always
, higher at holiday times, and these
| eggs are Pennsylvania and nearby
henery whites, fancy" The man
o also went on to tell how that "since
the New York bakers had quit usin
> rotten eggs, real eggs went higher
yet" My friend seemed willing to
take the mans word for it and com
menced feelin' in all his pockets for
the other ten cents which he found
he didn't find; so they compromised
by the mans takin' three eggs out
b of the bag and we were soon again
on our way toward the bridge. When
5 we got to the first end of the bridge
|, being a wise jay, evoluted a long
I step across the iron GYMNASIUM
: which was treacherously covered by
a puny fall of snow, but my friend
i well, say! He gave that armor plate
a severe test, right from the seat OF
: government! Up went his feet;
down went my friend, right on his
v pistol pocket! And the egg bag!
| Talk about scrambled eggs Talk
> about your rotten spots'-say!
. Just another word about another
- thing: If you're going on d. & II
train don't stand in John Heumann's
. window watching the train get ready
. to go-trying to finish your cigar
so you can go in the wimmen's cal
. where all the girls are, and theI
when the train starts, make a dasf
- across the street and an attempted
dash across the depot green plot
D. There's an invisible wire drawn
= across the green to keep the dog
u out-a drawn" conclusion tina
=, you'll go on a later train.
| see by the papers that genia
20 "Dick" Brown has been appointed
- head man on the fire apparatus, ant
- is to have the honor of carrying
10 brass horn in the fire parades. Now
seems as how "Dick" is a good car
penter he ought to fix up the from
= doors of the City Hall fire house
They look like they had been hack