The Ashburn Advance
September 10, 1897
The Valdosta Times says. Two young men in the Clyattville district,
Henry Weeks and Mitchell Hardee, are trying to find out who put tar in
the seat of their buggy one night recently, and when they find out to their
entire satisfaction there may be a small row in the camps.
The young men called on some young ladies one night recently, and while
they were in the house someone smeared coal tar over the seat and back
of the buggy causing them to ruin their clothing when they started home.
The tar was probably put on the seat as a joke, but the victims of it regard
it seriously.
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Irwinville had a fire that caused the utmost excitement there.
One week ago last Sunday night the store house occupied by W. R. Johnson,
and in which the postoffice was also located, was entirely destroyed, absolutely
nothing being saved from the building at the time. The stock was
valued at $1,800 and the building at $250 and was insured at the Aetna
for $1,500. As far as known no one had been in the store since the
night before, and all agreed that the building was set on fire, but by
whom could not be surmised, as it is not believed that either Mr. Johnson
or Mr. Lee, the postmaster, had an enemy in the place. Tracks were
found in a road a short distance away where a buggy had been drawn up and
stopped, and footprints tracked from there to the store return. The
footprints showed that they were made by some person who wore shoes one
of which had been half-soled. With this clue to work upon the officers
began a vigorous search, and found that the tracks led to the store of
Sol Johnson ( a brother of W. R. Johnson) at Mystic, and that Sol's shoes
made similar footprints. Before any arrest were made it is alleged
that he became aware that he was under suspicion, and went to his father's
house after night, and he and another brother, Jim, secured a two-horse
wagon, and while in the act of removing goods from the Mystic store to
a field were discovered by a negro who happened by his way for a doctor.
The negro thought that something might be wrong, and woke up a white man,
and the two followed the men to the field, where it is alleged the goods
from W. R. Johnson's store were found. The three brothers were arrested
and at a preliminary hearing in Irwinville were bound over to superior
court. Jim gave bond, but the two others are in jail. The Johnson
boys have always been considered model young men, and the affair has shocked
the entire community.
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OFFICIAL ADVERTISING
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SHERIFF'S SALE
Georgia - Worth County,
will be sold before the Court House door in the town of Isabella, Ga.,
on the first Tuesday in October next 1897, between the legal hours of sale,
to the highest bidder for cash, the following property to wit: two hundred
and ninety-three (293) acres of lot of land No. sixty nine (69) in the
7th district of Worth County, levied on the property of John Stewart, to
satisfy a tax fi fa for the year 1896.
H. S. Story, Sheriff.
September 8, 1897
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Mrs. J. R. Patton is reported very sick.
Thomas J. Shingler was in town Monday.
W. R. Dupriest is now clerking for W. A. Murray.
C. F. Foster, of Cordele, spent Monday in Ashburn.
J. W. Evans spent Saturday in Macon on business.
G. R. Houston of near Doles was in Ashburn Tuesday.
James Raney is having a nice barn erected on his plantation.
G. K. Rogers will go to Seville Sunday on a business trip.
Mrs. Cox and family spent Sunday and Monday in Isabella.
George and Charley Betts go to Oxford college next week.
Mr. Chapman was taking in the sights of Macon Saturday.
J. D. Ross of Luke was in town Monday, and favored us with a call.
J. J. Hall's barn near the Dougherty line was burned Saturday night.
Walter Whidby was meandering the boulevards of Sycamore Sunday.
Mrs. Burke will occupy the Ayers house, and conduct a boarding house.
Monroe Kilcrease killed a large rattlesnake on the Sikes place a few
days ago.
J. M. Roberts of Wilcox was here selling his cotton and trading Tuesday.
A. H. Ross has been re-sitting Wm. Shingler's turpentine stills this
week.
Cols. Davis, Bass, and Powell attended justice court at Doles on Wednesday.
Story Brothers of Arabi opened a grocery store this morning in the Tison
building.
Mrs. J. M. Gregory died of congestive chill Friday night at her home
near Acree.
'Squire McArthur is erecting a repair shop in the rear if Jesse Hickman's.
Miss Florrie Belle Cochran came up from Poulan Wednesday to visit her
brother.
John Fillyhaw goes to Mercer next week for his last term, as he will
graduate next year.
B. W. Comfort, the popular life insurance agent, of Albany, was a guest
of the Clyde Monday.
Mrs. B. W. Wells and little daughter, and Miss Deusion of Penia, are
visiting Mrs. L. O. Futch.
Mr. Jeffrey returned from New York Tuesday, where he bought an immense
stock of goods.
Prof. Francis Preston, one of Worth's educators, was a visitor at the
high school Wednesday.
J. Lawrence returned from Ty Ty, where he attended a successfully conducted
meeting.
Mrs. W. A. Murray and children were visiting Mrs. S. C. Cowan at Worth
several days this week.
L. K. Beal has contracted to build an addition 16 x 28 to T. J.
Shingler's residence 8 miles north of town.
Miss Jennie Belle McPhaul of Poulan went to Atlanta Monday to enter
Agnes college at Decatur.
D. A. Hobby and Miss Ella Ward will be married at the home of her father,
John T. Ward, Sunday.
H. Jefferey returned Monday evening from New York with two solid cars
of furniture and one of dry goods.
Up to last night at 6 o'clock Bass Bros. had weighed 159 bales of cotton
so far this session, and Raney 153.
R. N. Wiggins brought to town a large load of fine watermelons Monday,
and they sold like hot cakes.
Miss Ann Smith of Sycamore died Sunday, and was buried in the cemetery
Monday. Rev. Tinley officiated.
A. C. Forrester went to Moultrie Wednesday, probably with a view of
becoming a benedict in the future.
The pine thicket in the rear of R. P. Fain's residence would be
an elegant place for a new school building.
W. D. Ross of near Ross Lake, has been sick for a month, and is expected
to die at any time. Dr. Archer Griffin is attending him.
David Woodard of Unadilla was in town Monday, and has arranged to be
here three days in each week hereafter to buy cotton.
Miss Willie McLendon went to Tifton Tuesday to attend the wedding of
her cousin, Miss Pearl Green, which took place Wednesday.
Judge Hill returned from a trip to Montezuma Tuesday. While here
he was trying to hire a lawyer to "do up" a certain young widower.
A. D. Word had the little finger of his left hand taken off by the pile
driver on the tram road Wednesday. Dr. Turner dressed the wound.
Mrs. Langford, sister of Marshall Hallman, who has been visiting here
for the past two weeks, returned to her home in Cottondale Saturday.
Col. Bass attended Ordinary court at Isabella Monday, and had set aside
from the Cox estate a year's support for Mrs. Cox and minor children.
The first bank of Worth county was established in Sylvester this week,
and opened Wednesday morning with W. H. McPhaul president and J. S. Westberry
cashier.
Charley Teagle and R. T. Davis went out hunting Tuesday, and sent to
this office a lot of bats that they had killed, and tried to pawn them
off on us as prairie chickens.
Mrs. Lula Suggs, of Lafayette county, Fla., arrived in Ashburn Tuesday
afternoon, and immediately left for Doles, where she will visit her parents,
Mr. and Mrs. G. R. Houston.
D. L. Raney of Wilcox county was in town Tuesday bragging on a bob-tailed
mule was 32 years old on the 6th day of last May. He wants to enter
the nag in a colt show.
D. L. Raney says the postmaster of Amboy is six feet and three ax-handles
high, and at night his wife has to shut him up like a jack-knife to get
him to bed. We don't believe a word of it.
A dog belonging to Col. Davis was killed by that gentleman Monday night.
The animal showed unmistakable signs of being mad. It is not known
that the dog had bitten any other dog or stock on the place.
W. A. Murray and G. B. Gorday went to Irwinville on Monday to meet the
Irwin county commissioners and confer with them regarding the rebuilding
of the Lutierloh bridge. The trip was a futile one, for the board
would do nothing in that direction.
They do say that Andrew Forester went off to get married. Two
things we know: One J. J. Kilcrease drove back sixteen miles for
the rest of the goods he bought of Forester, and the other is, this
is a queer time of the week to be going to woe girls.
Col. Bass has joined the Georgia horse swappers' association.
At least he has swapped horses three times in the past month, and now has
the original animal and ten dollars to show for his trading proclivities
-- damages to veracity not considered.
J. M. Roberts has a goose on his place that he purchased in 1879, and
it was full grown then. It has passed through various trials, even
to being caught by eagles, but has passed through them all, and still imagines
itself as a gosling.
Rev. W. F. Roberts, of Crisp Ga., is in town this week, the guest of
his son-in-law and daughter at the parsonage. We understand that
the reverend gentleman contemplates buying property and locating here.
Jim Daniel, a white boy 17 years old, who was sent to the penitentiary
from Irwin county two years ago, and is serving time at Worth, has made
an application for pardon, and his chances for obtaining it seem to be
good.
Little Miss Agnes Barrett, who has been visiting her cousin, Mrs. Chapman,
for several weeks past, returned to her home in Augusta Monday. The
little lady is only eight years old, but made the trip alone in safety,
and had to change cars twice.
Sheriff Story was in town yesterday. He states that this county
has 14 misdemeanor convicts illegally held in private camps, all
of whom will so be returned to the county, with nothing for them to do
but to stay in jail until their sentences expire. Ashburn could work
these convicts to good advantage on the streets.
'Squire McArthur says he is thinking strongly of quitting marrying people.
Of five colored couples he has married during his term of office four of
them have agreed to disagree, and one of the men has been sent to the chain
gang for beating his wife. A ceremony for a white couple he agreed
to keep secret for six months, but it leaked out before he got home.
Charley Fowler of Newberry, Fla., is here on a visit to his brother-in-law
J. W. Walker, and may make his future home. In Alachula county, Florida,
where he has been living about thirty men have been killed in the last
two years, and not one murderer has been sent to the chaingang. We
don't blame him for desiring a change.
A year or two ago a Swede named Charley Swason worked in Ashburn and
married Frances Ross, a daughter of Sarah Ross of Ross Lake. He lived
with her but a short time, and then left for parts unknown. Last
Friday Mrs. Swason received the intelligence that her husband died about
a month ago in Parkerville, this county.
A party with cake and cream was given last night by W. K. Jenkins and
his lovely companion, in which the young folks broke away the monotony
of the hour and enjoyed a social gathering such as we seldom have in Ashburn.
The occasion was richly enjoyed and about twenty of us are indebted to
Mr. and Mrs. Jenkins for so nice an entertainment.
Chief Justice McArthur sent a cake to this office Wednesday addressed
to the local editor of the Advance. We are inclined to think the
'Squire sentenced this same cake to the calaboose for six months on the
7th day of April last, and it has just been released. If he baked
it himself he is a horrible cook. If it was a little longer would
we present it to the kid nine for a base-ball bat. But say, 'Squire,
if you have any fresh cakes you didn't bake yourself, trot 'em out.
Bill Jenkins astonished the natives Monday by appearing on the streets
triumphantly ensconced on the hurricance deck of a cart drawn by a dehorned
yearling. Sitting on the seat beside him was a pretty girl, and they
drove to the drugstore for a drink of soda water. All Bill lacked
of having a North Carolina, church-going turn out, or a tar-heel's outfit
on the way to see his wife's people was a dog and a tar bucket under the
wagon.
H. G. Moore of Erick was here Tuesday. He is seeking to locate
a large mercantile establishment, and is very favorably impressed with
Ashburn. In fact, had he been able to rent a storehouse here he would have
taken immediate possession. Dan Davis was out of town, or he might
have made arrangements to erect a large brick store. Mr. Moore is
a hustler, and we are inclined to think he will have a store here by the
1st of November.
J. C. Beard and G. M. Sims of Pike county were in Ashburn Tuesday seeking
farm locations in this vicinity. Both gentlemen are well-to-do farmers,
and would make valuable citizens. Mr. Davis, who controls the sale
of most of the lands around here was not in town, so they returned home
without making definite arrangements. Tyus brothers from the same
place were here on a like mission, and returned home for the same reason
without accomplishing anything.
Tuesday night Miss Aurena Evans entertained a few of her friends at
the palatial home of her parents. Among the guest were Joe Shingler
and Miss Kate Jenkins, Oscar Futch and Miss Esma Cox, George and Charley
Betts, Ed Horne and Legrand Gardner. Music and social converse made
the time speed merrily by untill 10:30 when a tea was served. The
spread was a delicious one, such as only a queen of caterers could supply.
All present were loud in their praises of their fair hostess for the admirable
manner in which they were entertained.
A party giving his name as T. F. Kimmel came to Ashburn last week and
began to solicit orders for clocks for a Kansas City firm. This week
he began delivering, and Marshal Hallman arrest him for peddling without
a license. He was arraigned before Acting Mayor Lawrence Wednesday
and plead not guilty. The evidence adduced sustained the charge,
and he was fined, together with costs, $12.50, which he subsequently paid.
Kimmel is evidently no stranger to courts, and carried with him a lot of
well-worn alleged supreme court decisions and newspaper clippings bearing
upon "soliciting and delivering" and "the original package" act,
but his schemes didn't work here. Men of his ilk had better steer
clear of Ashburn.
Messrs. Raney and Gorday say they are going to clean up the fence in
the lot adjoining the former's warehouse and the latter's store, and have
the same fixed up in nice shape for their farmer patrons to feed their
stock in without being disturbed by Ashburn razor backs and bovines.
If they succeed in keeping the pigs out of that lot they will have to enclose
it with Carnegie armor plate, and even then it might prove as ineffective
as the Irishman's fine tooth comb, which was sold to him as s genuine Jerusalem
overtaker, but when he tried it out on his boy's head the little ones squeezed
through, and the big ones either crawled under or jumped over. Now
if Raney and Gorday invent a fence they will turn an Ashburn town pig they
out to get it patented. There's millions in it.
The Cordele special of the 3rd gives the following account of the shooting
of W. H. Tripp, who at one time ran a livery stable here in Ashburn:
At the union depot last night just as the Shoo Fly train came into the
city W. H. Tripp was shot in the shoulder by young John Ray, making no
serious wound. The pistol used was a 38-caliber Smith & Wesson.
The difficulty arose over a matter of business between Tripp and the Senior
Ray. Young Ray, seeing his father in trouble, ran up and shot at
Tripp twice, only one shot taking effect, as stated above. Tripp
was taken to the office of Dr. Wallace, where the ball was extracted.
Ray was arrested on a charge of assault, with intent to murder, and placed
under bond for his appearance at the September term of Dooly superior court.
Ashburn Methodist church has the enviable reputation of being one of
the best churches in South Georgia conference, and the church has not lost
any prestige this year. The congregations are encouragingly large
and attentive. In fact, from the beginning of the year up to the
extreme warm days the attendance upon church services increased gradually,
and as the September breeze fans us, the attendance still promises to be
good. Not withstanding the withdrawal of five members in order to
join the Wesleyan church, the removal of three by letter and one by death,
there has been an increase in the membership of six. Every department
of the work of the church seems to be well organized and in splendid working
condition, especially the Sunday-school, which is under the wise superintendency
of J. W. Evans. This is a model church in a model town, in
the garden spot of the State, and in charge is the model preacher, Rev.
J. C. Flanders.
W. T. Christopher of Montezuma, publisher of the Georgia Planter, was
in Ashburn Monday and Tuesday, and was a caller at this office. Mr.
Christopher is seeking a location for a colony of Macon county farmers.
He is very well pleased with this section, as the land is as good as any
to be found in Wire Grass Georgia, cheap, and can be purchased in almost
any size tracts desired convenient to market, church and schools.
Moreover, there are many Macon county people already located here and doing
well, and the colonist would not come among strangers. Unluckily,
the party, Mr. Davis, who has the larger tracts for sale in charge, was
absent, and failed to see him. We sincerely hope the deal will be
made, for the colonist would prove to be a valuable acquisition to the
county. They are favorably impressed with this section because of
the high moral character of our people, and they desire to rear their children
where they will not be surrounded by the evils of the liquor traffic.
This section will be settled up in the near future, and we could find no
more desirable immigrants than the Macon county colonists. If proper
efforts are made we could secure them. Why not try?
There is a turning point in every life, and in every sphere of life
and livelihood there is a time when a change may be made for an improvement.
The public school of Ashburn is a public enterprise with the "prise"
heretofore left off. The teachers have worked faithfully, but citizens
have not taken enough interest in its upbuilding. But the turning
point has come. The idea of a graded school for Ashburn was advanced
by Rev. J. C. Flanders last week, and the matter took active movement at
once. A meeting was called and a graded school declared. It
was only necessary to secure a Primary teacher, as Mr. and Mrs. Passmore
could teach the intermediate and high school departments, and Miss Katie
Jenkins was employed and the school started Monday morning, with the promise
of the backing of the citizens of Ashburn. Moreover, we have the
promise of substantial support from Sycamore. Another meeting was
held in the academy Friday night, and a committee consisting of J. S. Shingler,
Dr. Thrasher, W. A. Murray, E. R. Smith and W. B. Dasher (the last two
of Sycamore) appointed to select a building site and draft plans for a
suitable building. The school opened Monday with about fifty pupils.
Rev. P. A. Jessup of Tifton was present and delivered a lecture that
surpassed any talk that has ever been made to the children of Ashburn.
His opening remarks were so full of fun and cute recitals that they placed
the children's eyes on the speaker, opened their ears, and prepared their
hearts for the message they received. A large crowd was present,
and no speaker was ever listened to in Ashburn with more interest.
Let all take an interest in the subject and make it second to none in the
State, and erect a building we can point to with pride.
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