02 May 1884
Page 1
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This newspaper page contains 9 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
The Grafton Eagle
Location
Grafton, West Virginia, United States of America
Date
May 02, 1884
Page
1
A garbled newspaper fragment lists 260 November dates, civic districts, and corporation officers including John Deck and others. It mentions church services, pastors, and weekly prayer meetings across West Grafton with several Sundays and Mondays named, reflecting a busy local religious and municipal calendar.
The West Virginia era report recalls Austen Sheldon, a Pike County hermit who left his mountain cave for his birthplace in Connecticut. He spent forty-four years isolated, surviving on scraps, furs, and a garden, reading an old Bible daily, and sharing little human contact. The tale notes a fire, a chestnut mishap, and his wealth from cave visitors and fur sales.
An English lady aboard a voyage is followed by a monkey that seizes her two month old baby from the sofa. The captain orders a rescue as the monkey climbs the mainmast. After efforts to lure it down fail, the crew hidden on deck. The animal descends and places the child safely on the deck where the mother retrieves it unharmed.
A fragmentary essay describes the roustabout on Mississippi river steamers as a fixed, indispensable yet transient figure. It contrasts his harsh, menial role with the life aboard steamers and explores social snubs as sudden corrections of confidence, highlighting the uneasy dynamics between deck crews and passengers.
A long dispute over railway routes between Morgantown area factions nears a compromise. West Virginia & Pennsylvania Railroad surveys west side plans while B&O rails push east side. Lawyers report mutual concessions aimed at letting each company proceed. court adjourns to April 30. Transit work intensifies as right of way and new depot plans emerge in Parkerburg.
The Southwest Pennsylvania branch, built in 1871 and leased to the Pennsylvania in 1873, handles about 1,000 coke cars daily with $11 profit per car. The line, 75 miles long, cost around $26,304 per mile and supports a $962,000 bonded debt. It eyes Morgantown and Fairmont Clarksburg expansion as West Virginia & Pennsylvania railroad enters the state, facing B and Q opposition.
A proposed Chicago Parkersburg and Norfolk road would run from Parkersburg through Wood Calhoun Gilmer Braxton Webster Pocahontas and Greenbrier counties with branches to the mouth of Spring Creek Roane and Kanawha, plus a Charleston area spur to Braxton and Weston. Corporators named include A B White Jeane Scott A N Williams W J Gle n George Loomis and others. The piece also reprints a Charleston Democratic convention resolution urging tax reform and potential constitutional amendments, noting partisan debate and urging voters to study the language.
The article describes a backroom fight within the Republican faction led by Arthur and Edmunds, with Blaine’s defeat altering Maine and Vermont loyalties and boosting Arthur's position. It condemns Bourbon officials over a $300,000 state debt, arguing it was created illegally and must be repudiated, while noting Comptroller Lawrence refused a $35,000 appropriation and Georgia’s tax share of 8664.00.
A telegram urges Weol Growers to sort and wash wool in response to the new tariff of 4853. Instructions cover unwashed and tubwashed fleece handling, cleanliness, and storage. The piece also notes upcoming Republican National Convention voting totals and general political commentary.
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