The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1913-04-25
BURGESS McCARTYS ADDRESS
CONTINUED from Page One.)

time. And Honesdale used its own
dead self as stepping stones to higher
things"
The pioneers of our early industries
merit the highest praise for their in
dominable courage and persistency
under difficulties, their indefatigable
and untiring efforts to wrest success
from most unfavorable conditions and
their determination to place Homes
dale upon the map.
There are names so closely inter-
woven with this industrial struggle
that if mentioned here, would evoke
your loud applause, but the list would
be too long to name them all, and we
could not discriminate by mentioning
any number less than the whole. In
the past how well they have succeed
ed this celebration is the crowning
and conclusive proof.
Creative and constructive genius
have from time to time through all
the ages manifested itself in works
more or less enduring, symbols of the
age in which they were produced and
the conditions which made them pos
sible. The pyramids and obelisks of
Egypt display in their conception and
construction a knowledge of artistic
and mechaical skill which is the mar
vel of all succeeding ages, but no ben
eft has accrued to humanity by rea-
son of their eXistance, excepting to
arouse our curiosity or possibly our
admiration. To the present age, they
convey little meaning and touches no
chord of human sympathy.
The Coliseum and Amphitheatres of
Ancient Rome are marvels of archi-
tectural beauty and construction but
they were debased to the use of glad
iatorial combats to furnish a holiday
to the aristocracy Of Ancient Rome,
and to use as a place for Christian
martyrdom, but the race was not
made better or happier by their exist
ance.
Genius has been exhausted in the
construction and erection of monu-
ments to perpetuate the ambitions
and victory of petty conquors and
statesmen while the people are under
| the pressure of misused power.
And yet, neither the monument in
Trafalgar Square which commerates
the victories of Nelson on the Sea,
nor the column vendome to perpetu-
|
ever fed or clothed child, but let
such monuments stand through all
time as evidences of the different uses
which may be made of genius when
used in the different ages of the world.
The nineteenth and twentieth CEN
turies are not wanting in monuments,
but instead of preserving within their
walls the dead bones of departed
Il greatness and antique souveniers Of
ages past, you may see there, thou
sands of happy faces of skilled arti-
sans, mechanics and laborers operat-
ing and guarding marvelously con-
structed machinery in the production
of articles which make this world and
better and happier place in which
to live, and at the same time giving
these inmates an equal chance with
the most fortunate to profit by their
own efforts, and it is to celebrate one
of these modern monuments, the
Gurney Electric Elevator Works that
we are assembled here. Her industries
are the most valued asset of town
such as this, they are not only an as
set of the town, but a part of the town,
and that part from which all the
material wealth comes. Honesdale
then welcomes this new and most ex-
tensive industry to our town and as
part and parcel of the town and offers
her official greeting to those whose
efforts are the cause of the good for
tune of having such an improvement
to our wealth and the wealth of our
people.
However, much we would like to
speak in abstract and in generalities
the occasion calls for some brief
| sketch at least of the monument which
We are here to celebrate. The Gurney
: Electric Elevator Works is not with
} out a pedigree, reaching back over
} long years of time and several gener-
, ations of people. The evolutions, vic
isitudes and changes through which
this institution passed until it has
reached it's crowning time now, year
after year, changing its products as
occasion required, always ready to
adopt itself to the requirements of its
times, it toiled on, passing in time
from one management to another,
growing and expanding as it passed
down through good reports and evil
reports, through prosperous times and
times of depression. The names were
changed to the National Elevator
Works, and finally to the Gurney Elec-
trio Elevator Works, its present name;
then quietly, noiselessly, without a
ripple on the surface, under the guild
ance of a Master mind and a Master
hand, the product of this company
reached perfection and were shipped
to cities remote and far from home
By and by the plant was found too
small to fill the orders which came in
and the management was confronted
with the necessity of new and larg
er plant. The question then present
ed itself as to the possible location
within the limits of the town and one
of two things had to occur, the plant
had to have larger quarters or il