The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1957-04-19


form to the requirements of this
journals editor, who wanted me
to write him piece about the Is
lands decade of progress and inn
provement, ! cannot be sure that
there has been any progress or
whether what ! see around me
from the vantage of this hill is
indeed improvement. Or even
whether anything is very greatly
changed. They must have changed
elsewhere, especially in the edi-
tors immediate orbit, because ne
doesn't get down this way as often
as he used to, nor does he have
the time, when he comes, to tarry
in visiting like he used to when
he set down his Sea Captain tales
Change well, yes. 1t has
been some weeks now since i have
traversed the length of the Island,
from one inlet to the other, but l
hear of people being busy with
hammers and other tools of the
builder and it is likely that my
count is dated. But as / count
them there are now aatotal of %
tourist courts, or their eqaiva-
lent, where none was ten years
ago when / assembled this hill as a
temporary resident. All save one
of them are native-owned, which l
think of as being important i'll its
way.
But the Island has always been
hospitable and by such hospitality
got itself populated to start with.
Ships do not get wrecked on these
shores any more and it has been
81 years since there was an au-
thentic castaway come ashore from
a disintegrated ship. But i can bur-
row among my notes and come
upon reminders that virtually ev-
cry family on the Island came here
that way and from none was the
Islands hospitality ever withheld.
Change, to be sure, but am re-
minded of the tale that was fetched
to me some while back about the;
meeting of an Islander and an off
Islander on the ferry. The visitor,
who had been here long time ago,
thought that life on the Island
must be vastly changed, what with
paved roads, modern ferries, and
such. The Islander listened and
then he said that nothing was
changed. Shifted around some,
maybe, but not changed. The off
Islander required calculation, to
use word that I've been wanting
for some while to get out of my
system.
swell, mister, it's like this. Used
to it took US half day to come
from Cape Hatteras to the ferry
and half hour to cross the inlet.
Now it takes US half hour to
come from Cape Hatteras to the
inlet and half day to get on the
ferry. Nothing is changed. What
we need is a bridge.
1t is my considered judgment
that there will be bridge in due
course, but 1 doubt that it, will
change the island materially. When
it is built a great many people
will cross it, in both directions, and
l suppose there will be statisti-
clans stationed there to enumerate
them. Conceievably they will have
instruments that will determine
whether they have brushed their
teeth that morning or no and, also
concievably, it may be important
to somebody to know whether they
have brushed their teeth.
But somehow it doesn't seem
very important, this statistical ap-
proach to the Island. / suppose
they must have statistician as
signed now to the entrance of the
Lighthouse and he very likely
counts them patiently as they
wheeze upward. 1t was reported to
me, as an item of wonder, that a
lady, aged 81, made it to the top
while her son, a mere &C had to be
helped down from the halfway
point completely out of breath.
Maybe in time they will have a
gadget that will measure the
breath of these perpendicular Pc
destrians and flash red lights-or
perhaps mauve lights, since those
in authority hereabouts are now
addicted to pastel shadings-when
he gets short Of breath But