The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1911-12-26

Myths, traditions ard old folk
stories are valuable for they indicate
a state Of mind, but deeds must Do
recorded and preserved. We are
judged by the written word and not
by the sayings of old
That North Carolinians have been
careless in preserving the written
word no one can deny. North Caro-
lima Governors lie in graves
and their deeds are forgotten. Many
Of the makers of our history, IL they
resided a few ~furlongs from certain
counties. are no longer recollected.
The traditions Of the Cherokee In
dian OF Western North Carolina have
never been heard Of by the greater
part of the cultured people OF the
state. The manners and custom OF
our precautionary ancestors, their
sacrifices, their passions, their hopes
n their aspirations, have passed
into a new life and the record in
most is a complete blank
Private letters, old newspapers, and
pamphlets are suffered to mould away
in forgotten garrets, serving as food
for rodents and kindling woo for
the ignorant.
We must give the highest praise
and honor. however, to the State His
torical Commission, to the State Lii
brary, to a few of the larger libraries
Of our educational institutions, and
to the late General ASSe--bly for their
efforts to preserve the written word.
Our rural libraries have served their
day and generation we'll in this re-
spect. they have carried the written
word to men, women and children,
but a century hence they will have
nothing to say Of the people they
have served. 1t is an excellent thing
to carry the word to the people, but
1T is equally as excellent to provide
a means for preserving the deeds Of
the race.
Therefore, my conclusion is that
wherever there is a good city library,
it should become also a county in
stltution, and wherever there is none
a county library should be formed.
The rural library law SHOULD be so
changed that the libraries may circu-
late from the county library and there
should be in charge Of the county
library a paid librarian whose duties
Would be to preserve the books and to
collect all letters, apers, pamphlets,
and domestic utensils of historic
value.
Every county in the State has a
history peculiarly it's own. AT some
time the voice OF some one man was
heard above the clamOr Of the day
and this voice helped to shape the
course of events of the State and the
Nation, but the voice and the man are
forgotten. In every county in the
State some advanced thinker worked
TOR public education or the improve
ment of public morals at a time when
to believe such doctrines in the South
was a mark of inferiority. Both the
thought and the thinker are forgot
ten, and when these aids to ciyiiza-
ton are mentioned today, we think
Of a few men whose names have been
recorded and preserved with the deed.
Every county has a legend, a tradi-
ton, and children hear of them but
rarely, and they are gradually dis
appearing, for the spoken word
sooner or later disappears. There is
not Doomsday Book for US TO refer
to, and e we close up a century.
we discard virtually all that is not
written, and the thoughts of the in
~dlViduals are merged into the thoughts
Of the race, and sometimes they are
recorded with names OF men living
remot from the origin OF the
thought.
In order, therefore, to preserve the
OF a man or a State. the
thoughts or deeds of each must be
recorded with the name.
me librarian Of each county could
Noop q hiHu Oh DOOnSday BOOK in
which may be recorded those in each
county whose names lead all the rest.
All egends and traditions could be-
noticed and the events of public sig
n~lficance could be preserved. Bv saw
ing b history of each county. the
history Of the State would be pre-
served, and old folk tales would then
give place to the written word. For
whatever is not written is lost. and
whatever is written is the law, the
rule OF conduct, and truth is UNEQUAL
70 error, II error comes down as the
written word and truth as the spoken
word.
H%
Circumstance.