USA > Pennsylvania > Cumberland County > Carlisle > Early history and growth of Carlisle > Part 6
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What days of laughter and happiness were the old ones! What amusing stories are heard among the many echoes of the years that are past ! Car- lisle delights yet in that son of its soil who was ambitious to be considered "in society," and who,
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being unmercifully snubbed by a party of officers, said wrathfully to a friend, "They are nothing but a lot of damned asymptotes, anyhow," the first
Residence of Dr. John C. Long
syllable of the geometrical term having evidently struck the speaker as appropriate to the occasion.
And what a conversational delight was our own Mrs. Malaprop, who pronounced a certain pea- cock's tail to be "the most beautiful foliage " she
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had ever seen, and who was so charmed with a man who called to see her husband on business, that she declared him to be "a perfect gentleman, because he held his hat ajar the whole time he was
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Yard at the Residence of Dr. W. Z. Bentz
talking to me." She was authority, too, for the wise statement that, "to have a successful party, you must invite people who congeal," and she deplored the death of a rising young physician "just when his business was getting so complicated."
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South College Street. Home of Dr. Morris W. Prince on the Corner
During the Civil War period the approach of the southern army caused the temporary departure of a number of citizens. One of these, desiring information, telegraphed
to a friend in Carlisle, "Is the Rebels went?" Almost instantly there flashed back the answer, "They is." "Is them Ginny cleepers flagrant ?" referred to a beautiful Virginia creeper twining its graceful course over the home of an acquaintance of the querist.
Whilst our most prominent local poet was usu- ally oblivious to the demands of a careful toilet, at times he astonished his companions by appearing in something fresh and striking. Once upon a
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summer day he sauntered under the trees, wearing a new straw hat around which was a broad blue silk band, and upon the blue there ran a narrower red one. "What do you think of my new hat?" he asked one of his cronies. "Well, Bellman, you seem to be dressed today with a great deal of abandon," was the ready retort.
Here is one of recent date : A Carlisle man, his wife and a married woman friend were in warm discussion. Talk waxing earnest, the wife, turn- ing to her friend and indicating her husband,
Old Corner of North and West Streets. Formerly the Shapley Home
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"Pa-ha-ta." Home of John W. Wetzel, Esq.
said, "Did you ever know any one so persistent and unrelenting in driving home a point?" "My sakes, didn't I marry one myself?" was the unexpected reply.
It is not what one has or is, but what one does, that expresses the worth of an individ- ual to a community. If we reflect but for a moment, we will realize that among Carlisle's priceless possessions are hearts that feel and hands that give, and that to an unusual degree there prevails here an animating principle of steady and lasting interest in the wel- fare of the people.
Of this fact a splendid evidence has very recently been made manifest. With deep gratitude it is learned that a son of
Oil Street Lamp
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Residence of Mr. A. F. Bedford
Carlisle, who had flown from the home-nest to spend his life as a lawyer in larger places, has made a magnificent bequest of more than one hundred thousand dollars for the mainte- nance of an industrial training-school in his native town. This school will be of the New Carlisle, and will perpetuate in a noble way the honored family name of the donor, Charles L. Lamberton, Esq., the while it radiates its beneficent influences throughout the years to come.
As all blessings are sweetened if shared with others, so do we rejoice in the gener- ous gift to the neighboring borough of Mount Holly Springs, of the Amelia S. Givin Free Library, which stands as a
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Gas Street Lamp
CARLISLE OLD AND NEW
memorial of the deep interest of a Carlisle woman in that industrial town.
And thus one might ramble on indefinitely through the quaint old town, questioning, recall- ing, and gleaning from a storehouse that is fairly bursting with its treasure of history and anecdote.
South Hanover Street-a Nasturtium-draped Wall
One would see, too, that with the passing years Car- lisle has not lost that which it has always claimed for its own-delightful homes, "life's best rewards and best defences." North, south, east and west, they stand in continuous and ever-increasing evi- dence of the prosperity and happiness of its people.
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Northward are seen the colonial homestead of the Hendersons, surrounded by its fine old trees, that has long been one of Carlisle's land- marks ; the spacious place of Judge Henderson's
"Cottage Hill" and Vine-clad Office of F. C. Bosler, Esq. family; the handsome residence of John W. Wetzel, Esq .; the beautiful homes of the Misses Colwell, Mrs. Ellen A. Parker, Mrs. Mary J. Rose, John Hays, Esq., and others, all set on fair lawns with trees and flowers and vines
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"Mooreland," the Johnston Moore Homestead
adding their individual charm to each place. Southward block after block of attractive homes. with surrounding sward and dividing hedge, lead to the beautiful residences of the Bedford families and Mr. John V. Harris. Eastward stands "Cottage Hill," the splendid place of the late James W. Bosler, now occupied by his fam-
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ily; while the adjoining office of F. C. Bosler, Esq., presents an excellent example of the possibilities of beautifying a business place. West- ward lies the favorite residential locality of the members of the College faculty, many of whom have built here their own lovely homes, while
Residence of Mr. John Lindner
further on stands "Mooreland," the family estate of the late Johnston Moore. This place fairly luxuriates in trees, the while a herd of beautiful deer roams at will through the private park. Nearby are the handsome residences of Hon. Edward W. Biddle and J. Kirk Bosler, Esq., with the fine corner place of Mr. John Lindner in
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Residences of the Hon. Edward W. Biddle and J. Kirk Bosler, Esq.
close proximity. And up and down the streets one sees homes-some old, some new, while some, alas! that have been cherished for generations, whose firesides have been associated with the past, and around which hang ten- derest memories of
Beelem Warehouse, which Preceded above Homes
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those who made Carlisle what it has been, have given way to the increasing business needs of modern times.
An almost singular love of the town, ancestral
Reception Hall in Residence of J. Kirk Bosler, Esq.
and dear, an immeasurable tenderness that has ever characterized its sons and daughters, has been charmingly typified by Bennett Bellman in
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THE BELLS OF OLD CARLISLE
In the sweetest of our valleys,
Where the sunshine gleams and dallies
Over fields all green or golden with their waving weight of grain ; There, afar in sunshine gleaming,
Like a vision seen in dreaming,
Lies a little town of old upon the plain.
Upon this wild frontier, Where the hardy pioneer Worshiped God in rudest temples, with rites simple and sincere, Oft came the solemn spell, As he heard the Sabbath bell Ring silvery through the silence, keen and clear.
And again, in later times, It may be its mellow chimes
Called our fathers from their homes within the valley to the town, Where, strong in right forever, They protested they would never Submit unto Great Britain, or bow down.
But since that long ago, Swinging slowly to and fro, The younger bells, outringing, threw their voices 'gainst the sky- The church and college bells, With their mellow, magic spells, In many a silent summer, now gone by. 156
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As some happy past appears, When our eyes are wet with tears, As memory forever, like the moonlight, casts its spells ; So, youth and beauty fled, And the dreams of youth, all dead, Come back to me with memory of its bells.
As some wanderer, weary, laden, Sees a glimpse of distant Aiden,
And from heaven hears the music thro' its golden gates ajar ; Or a wanderer, weary, lying In a distant land and dying, Hears the mournful, mellow music of the bells he loved afar ;
Thus in solemn silence, oft I can hear the mellow, soft Dim music, sounding ever of the distant bells, erstwhile; For a magic memory dwells In that tangled tune of bells That ring from out the past in Old Carlisle.
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Franklin Public School Building and a First-Prize Vacant Lot
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Civic Club Rooms
V OVE for the past has perhaps made easier enthusiasm for the present. However this may be, certain it is that when there swept over our broad land in recent years a great wave of appeal for civic improvement-a call to organize for the public good-Carlisle was as in the days of long ago among the first to respond, viewing the request as a national summons and at the same
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time as a local necessity. Quickly the realization seemed to dawn that she stood in need of some- thing more from her citizens than the paying of taxes and the obeying of laws. It was the heart- service from her children that she had come to lack-a service that they are in duty bound to render so long as they live within her sheltering arms. And so an association was formed whose purpose was to increase interest in the town of to- day and in all matters relating to good citizenship. This organization has become widely known as the Civic Club of Carlisle, and is a strong and impor- tant factor in the community life; with its constantly increasing membership numbering now more than three hundred men and women, it stands com- mitted to whatever will conduce to the betterment of civic conditions. This tends to create and maintain a splendid sentiment in favor of public beauty, cleanliness, sanitation, morality, education, esthetic cultivation and patriotism, such as shall uphold the standard of high ideals set so long ago.
Naturally, in both its direct and indirect influ- ence, the Civic Club has been one of the potent factors in the development of the Carlisle of to- day-a Carlisle that is abreast of the movements
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of the times in those broad civic lines which will inevitably be counted in history as among the interesting and valuable developments of the period in which we live.
The Club has organized the school children of the borough into an active League of Good Citizen-
*
*
こ
High School Assembly Room, Franklin Building
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CARLISLE OLD AND NEW
ship, whose aim is a clean town, clean homes and clean lives; it has expended many hundreds of dollars in carefully selected, well-framed pictures, which have been presented from time to time to the public schools, and which are developing a dis- criminating taste and judgment among the young ; it has held for some years an annual picture exhibit, and has encouraged a love of flowers by the distribution of flower-seeds among the school children, requesting reports of the result of the planting. That an A Vacation Garden interest in trees might be stimulated, premiums have been repeat- edly offered for both shade and fruit trees and awarded one year after the planting, many hun- dreds of children having competed for these prizes. Rewards have also been offered annually for well- kept vacant lots, for floral boxes, and for the plant- ing of vines, the Club having set an example in such public beautifying by the placing of vines, shrubbery and hedges upon the well-kept lawns of
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the public schools. An annual flower show was conducted for four years, which was not surpassed in Pennsylvania except by the exhibits of Philadel- phia and Pittsburg. Carlisle is fortunate in the
The Annual Flower Show of the Civic Club
existence of her exquisite private greenhouses, and the public-spirited owners of these cordially united with the professional growers in exhibiting the best results of the florist's art for the pleasure and benefit of the public. Musical entertainments,
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too, have been given both indoors and out, always of such a nature as to be of permanent value.
Knowing full well that the public school children of Carlisle could not have ade- FOR WASTE PAPER quate advantages with the school tax at the low rate that had prevailed, the Civic Club recently laid before the board of directors the unique petition that local taxation be increased. This request has been granted.
During a persistent and continuous effort for clean streets, the Club has presented to the town thirty-five waste- paper receptacles and has kept them in repair, has paid for GMG GLUB the clearing away of street litter when needed, and owns and operates a street
CARLISLE OLD AND NEW
sprinkler. Naturally the organization has registered unceasing protests against bill-boards, public dumps, unsightly business signs, unsanitary conditions, and careless disregard of existing laws and ordinances ; while the cleanliness of the market-house, the
Carlisle Kindergarten 1906-07
enaction of an anti-expectoration ordinance, the protection of food supplies from street dust and flies, suitable legislation for protection against mosquitoes, and extension of water-pipes into the homes of the poor, are all matters of public wel- fare, concerning which the local authorities have been importuned from the beginning of this civic awakening. The story of civic work elsewhere,
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together with information regarding local needs and progress, were brought before the public for more than a year, by conducting a weekly column in one of the town papers.
Among the Club's recent gifts to the town are artistic street markers made WEST HIGH STH after a special design, and the equipment of a schoolroom for a kindergarten. A woman's ex- change has been maintained in the Civic Club building for several years, and fills the niche pecu- liar to these institutions. It is in just such a place that one so often finds the "ordinary thing done in an extraordinary way."
Perhaps one of the most practical benefits to the community was the establishment, at a time when there was no savings-bank in Carlisle, of a savings- department wherein deposits were received of any sum from one cent up. This was conducted for almost four years, during which time thousands of dollars were cared for, until the opening of a savings-department in the town banks made a con- tinuance of the work no longer necessary.
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The best gift of all, however, is the trained visiting nurse, who is maintained for the solace of the aged and for the alleviation of the sufferings of the sick poor, ministering to those who otherwise
"Sent to calm Our feverish brows with cooling palm."
could not have the comfort of skilled nursing. "I was sick and ye visited me."
In small communities one almost invariably finds a dearth of high-grade public entertainments, since usually as a financial proposition expensive attractions cannot be made to pay. The unfortu- nate result is a series of ordinary or worse than ordinary shows, which become a matter of grave
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concern to thinking people, for it is a well-known fact that a large majority of juvenile court cases have been the direct result of immoral entertain- ments. Feeling that distinct uplift and safeguard are given to any town into which the best procur- able talent is brought, the Civic Club successfully maintains lyceum courses of a grade that is beyond criticism, as is plainly indicated by the following list of those who have appeared here and who are now booked :
CHARLES EMORY SMITH
JACOB A. RIIS F. HOPKINSON SMITH DR. GEORGE EDWARD REED
BERTHA KUNZ BAKER
DR. JOHN WATSON (Ian Maclaren )
J. HORACE MCFARLAND LEON C. PRINCE
MADAME KRONOLD
EDWARD BARROW
WILLIAM HARPER
THE KNEISEL QUARTETTE
DR. C. T. WINCHESTER
JUDGE EDWARD W. BIDDLE
GEORGE NEVIN BRANDON
NEWELL DWIGHT HILLIS
ELLEN BEACH YAW
MAUD BALLINGTON BOOTH
MAJOR JAMES EVELYN PILCHER
SENATOR J. P. DOLLIVER
This work is planned solely for the literary, musi- cal and civic benefit of the people, to whom it is
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a manifest advantage, and it may be said to the credit of the town that the best things invariably have the largest audiences.
As a propagan- dist the Carlisle Civic Club may be found in, per- haps, one of its most important rôles. Not only from Pennsyl- vania, but from many other states, have come nu- merous letters asking for advice and information touching matters of publicimprove- Home of Mrs. Walter Stuart Winner of several prizes for exterior window-box decoration ment, or perhaps kindly expressing appreciation of the inspiration received from the work done in this community.
A continually strengthening sentiment for mu- nicipal progress in Carlisle is everywhere in evi-
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dence, both on the part of individuals and of the broad-minded bodies of men into whose hands have been committed the administration of its affairs. "He who adds beauty to the world adds joy," is a thought that has been fully grasped by many present-day citizens of the town. They find delight in the broad streets and open squares that were
Humble yet Beautiful-a Small Boy's Civic Effort
bestowed upon their forefathers by the heirs of William Penn and in the splendid old colonial landmarks that are their heritage. They also rejoice in the fact that the handsome modern homes, the churches, the schools, the indus- trial buildings with their park-like surroundings, that are of this later period, are carrying their
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own messages to such as are willing to receive them.
Thus Carlisle has come again to its own. Not forgetting altogether the example and teachings of those who served in the past, its citizens of the New unite in spirit with those of the Old in recognizing that "the noblest motive is the public good."
Young Carlisle
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AFTERWORD
T HE tale, although imperfectly told, is fin- ished. Its omissions and exclusions are such that many will sigh for a pen that could have written in a more acceptable manner the history of Carlisle, -the narrative of its tradi- tions, events and local legends.
There is no pretense in these pages to literary merit. They have been prepared, and the pictures have been gathered, in a spirit of tender loyalty which will somewhat atone for the shortcomings of the work.
As the little volume starts upon its journey to the homes and hearts of the people of Carlisle and of its friends abroad, may it be accorded a kindly welcome and a gentle judgment.
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