The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1918-03-22
IN MEMoR1AM
A Tribute to Thos. C. CASTOR By One
Who Knew Him Best.

AA1O11o Va 0SNo o0OB "hSh bAN "OA ~
was young and the morning stars
were singing the praises of the great
Creator, a cry of distress was heard
in thunderous Jovian tones from
high Olympus. 1t was taken up by
god after god and messenger after
messenger, until all the earth heard
and repeated it. Great Pan is dead!
Great Pan is dead! There shall be
sorrow on earth and there was.
Helios, the sun god,. paused in his
mighty race across the trackless
heavens by day and fair Selene,
queen of the starry night, stood still
over the spot where the Acropolis
was yet to be built, when glory
should be Greece and grandeur would
be Rome.
On the morning of Feb. %, 1918,
great shock was felt in our own
immediate community, and cry of
distress went up. Chief CASTOR is
dead! Chief CASTOR is deadi There
was sorrow in our midst; there were
tears in our eyes. The mighty had
/ Hfallen-the brave man, the good
man, the upright, conscientious,
fearless, tender hearted, faithful and
loyal public servant was gone from
the town he loved so we'll and served
so faithfully for about thirty years.
One had to know Tom CASTOR, to ap-
preciate him. He was not a church
member, but his heart was full of
true religion and the only kind of
religion that will stand the acid
test. He believed in, and practiced
the Golden rule. He was a better
man than the average church mem
Der. And a hundred times better
than his critics. No scandal ever at
tached itself to his name. His fame
as a highly efficient police chief was
nation wide. He was we'll and fa-
vorably known at the Secret Service
headquarters in Washington, D. c..
One of their big men told the writer
some years ago that Tom CASTOR was
the ablest chief in the South He
did more for Jackson in putting
down lawlessness among blacks and
whites than any dozen men who ever
lived in this community.
He was absolutely fearless in the
discharge of his duty. He was also
a stranger to graft, trickery or law
lessness-by himself. And neither
would he stand for a lawleSs act of
oppression by those under him, nor
take orders from those over him If
such orders involved the breaking of
the law by himself. 1t was known
of him by all men, that he would not
bend the pregnant hinges of the
knee, that thrift might follow fawn-
ing. And with this reputation made
in thirty years of public service, one
of the greatest compliments ever
paid to his honesty, integrity, ster-
ling worth and unquestioned eff
ing worth and unquestioned eff
cheney, was when the news was
broken to him that he was no longer
needed.
His was q. gentle, sweet soul. He
loved children, horses, dogs, guns
and nature. He did not drink nor
gamble but he wGs not sport in
any sense of the word just because
he loved trotting horse. He was,
however, a good fellow and he was
every inch man. Had he gone thru
West Point military college, with his
strong dominating character, he
probably would have been at the
head of our forces in France, where
Gen. Pershing is now. 44o nad the
elements of greatness in him. Had
he gone thru Harvard or Yale he
would not have been less than U.
S. Senator. Had he lived in the days
of good King Arthur, when knight
hood was in flower, he would have
been the kings favorite at the Round
Table. looked in the starry flrma-
ment and exclaimed "Ecce Deus!"
looked at stricken Tom CASTOR and
said "Ecce Homo!"
For Tom CASTOR was four-square
man, broad minded, liberal in his
views and so widely at variance with
the narrow-minded bigot and fanatic
that they could never understand
him. He lowered over them, as the
mountain towers over the plain.
May his good deeds of kindness live
after him and as flowers bloom over
his grave to mark where rests the
face since the smile has gone.--
Robert p. Evans, a former Union
City newspaper editor.
Taanherc of 0hinu Counfv