The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1952-11-21
HERE AND THERE

Saturday morning 1 walked
down the street in Manly Clio,
Pennsylvania, a coal mining town
nine miles north of Johnstown, and
asked an elderly and swarthy, Sla-
vic looking gentleman if he could
direct me to the newspaper office.
"It's over there, right up the
street and around the corner, in
front of the postoffice," he said
in broken English, and waved his
hand in a wide circle and no di-
rection in particular. His face was
grimed with the coal smut that
is the towns life bread.
Gall right" I said, "but where
is the postoffice.
Fright where it has always
been," he replied and smiled. "No
trouble at all to find it," and he
walked on.
Well this old boy looked well
fed all right, and he has been do
ing all right in this country for
many years, without having to
learn our language, or to read and
write.
On the street in front of the
Postoffice was a big sign across
a building: Hall of the United
Mine Workers of America" Old
John Lewis is a mighty big man
out there.
81 suppose Democrats are as
scarce up here in the Pennsylvan-
ia mountains as Republicans in
North Carolina" l said to the To-
cal newspaper editor.
"To the contrary" he said, "this
section and Philadelphia, were the
few spots in the state that re-
manned Democratic. But % years
ago, there were only eight Demo-
Gratis in this whole area. The min
ers union changed things"
This mans 63 years old, but he
was able to tell me that 1920
persons were drowned in the John
stown flood of 1889. It's big event,
never to be forgotten, and l could
understand how the vast rains
pouring down the rugged sides of
the mountains could fill up the
narrow valley into which is now
crowded a town of 10000 people.
l have also been to Galveston,
Texas, where 5000 lives were lost
in 1900 by a tidal wave. So it
always seems funny to me when
folks act scared about little wa
ter down here in Dare County. We
have never lost any lives in storms
and floods, but everywhere else
there have been big disasters.
A few years ago in Dayton, Ohio
Orville Wright readily pointed out
to me how high the water came
in 1913 on his office building, in
that flood over 700 were drowned.
One can get about nowadays. It's
easy to eat lunch at the Norfolk
Airport, and be in Johnstown, Pa.
long before suppertime, after a
long stopover in Washington, D. C.
Leaves had lost their autumn
colors, and now most all are off
the trees, here there winter comes
earlier than in North Carolina.
The scenery is a lot like our
own North Carolina Blue Ridge,
and it reminded me much of what
l saw three weeks ago when my
wife and / took a week end trip
in Western N. C. down the Blue
Ridge Parkway. We thoroughly en-
joyed the beauty of the N. C.
mountains at that time in their
colorful autumn best.
In Washington, D. c. I talked
to Fred Maloof about his mag
nificent new estate Oxson Hill, the
former home of Sumner Welles.
Due to the fog, and uncertainty
of plane reservations coming
home, l had to pass up his illvi-
tation to visit it.
In Washington, talked to Nat
allie Gould, the brilliant Manteo
girl who is doing a splendid job
with the NEA, and her mother,
Mrs. Eliza Gould who is spending
the winter in Washington. Ray
mond parent, son-in-law of the
Dewey Haymans is living just a.
cross the street. They all expect
to be home for Christmas.
l also had a chat with Walter
Karig, Navy Captain and Writer,
who l knew 80 years ago in Eliza
beth City when he worked for
rival newspapers in adjoining
buildings. He is a brilliant writer.
A few years ago he came to Roa-
noke Island with Mrs. Karig, and
one warm day left his coat hang
ing on a tree at Fort Raleigh
! while he went for a stroll up the
shore. He never found his coat
again. Someone had admired it
too much before he returned. I
invited him to come back and told
him he needn't fear he would lose
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