Knowing The Names Of Things Around You
BY BILL FAVER
1 once had a professor who insisted that we
should know the names of the plants around us.
He said we knew the
names of the furniture in
our houses, the names of the
streets on which we lived,
~j and the make of automobile
we drove. We should foe as
well
educated about the out
of-doors and be able to
name the trees and the
plants and flowers we en
countered almost each day.
From a mother who was a flower gardener
and bird enthusiast I was able to know most of
the birds and a good many of the more com
mon flowers and shrubs. My grandfather
helped me learn about some of the hutterflies
and trees, salamanders and lizards, and mush
rooms and other fungi. Like most of the folks
who grew up in rural areas, these were the
things around us each day and we did learn
their names.
Some of those names were quite exciting,
too. SparkleherTy, sumac and sassafras were
among my favorites. We could find hirds in the
sparkleherry and sumac and forew the sassafras
roots for tea. Indian pipes, blood root, and wild
iris were special finds. Toadstools and mush
rooms of all kinds were there for a day or two
and then were gone. Humminghirds on the lan
tana, hihiscus. and althea were always exciting
and hutterflies came endlessly to the blue of the
butterfly bushes and the oranges of the ascle
pias.
It may not be necessary for us all to know
the scientific names of the many oaks and
pines but we should know a pine from an oak.
We should know a robin from a warbler and a
hawk from a woodpecker. So, whether we live
on Oak Street, or Pelican Place, or Lizard
Lane, we ought to know something about the
trees along our street, or the birds in the tree
tops, or the flowers and shrubs in our yards.
Our lives will be richer and more enjoyable
when we can take delight in knowing some
thing about our close surroundings.
PHOTO BY Bill FAVER
AMONG THE TREES and shrubs we may encounter are some of the sweet shrubs, or
sweet Betsy ( Calycanthus Jloridus).
MORE LETTERS
After 24-Year ' Review ' Period, State Agency
Allows 90 Days For Landowner's Response
To the editor:
In 1965, the North Carolina leg
islature enacted a law, NCOS 113
205, requiring that all citizens of
coastal counties file claims to own
ership of marshlands with the state
on or before January 1, 1970, or all
private rights and titles would be de
clared null and void and the marsh
lands would become the property of
the state. The legislature imposed a
four-year time limit during which
citizens had to learn of the law and
file claims. The legislature also
placed the burden of proof on pri
vate citizens. No such time limits
were imposed on the state. I feel cer
tain many people lost their property
to the state because they did not file
claims.
In 1969, my great-aunt filed such
a claim and documentation. A few
days later she received a letter from
the state acknowledging receipt of
the items and stating that they would
lie forwarded to the Attorney
General's office for "review and re
tention." She heard nothing further
and died 19 years later thinking her
claim was secure. She bequeathed
the property to me in 1988.
Then, out of the blue, on August
26, I received a letter from P. A.
Wojciechowski, Director, N.C. De
partment of Environment, Health
and Natural Resources, stating that it
has ... "taken several years to reach
review of your claim." My claim?
Several years? That claim was filed
24 years ago by a woman long dead!
Twenty-four years to respond to the
timely-filed claim of a citizen. This
is utterly absurd!
Even more absurd is that after 24
years of inaction, Mr. Wojciechowski
gave me 90 days to document owner
ship of the property back to the
Creation, or ... "your claim may be
denied." Actually, he said to docu
ment ownership back to a "source in
strument." Here is his helpful defini
tion of a source instrument:
"A source instrument is a grant,
deed, or other similar instrument is
sued by the State of North Carolina,
its agencies, or earlier governments
for the parcel or right claimed pur
suant to G.S. 113-205. Under the en
try and grant statutes in effect from
colonial times, the sovereign had no
authority to convey fee simple title
to lands beneath navigable waters.
Therefore, a Lords Proprietor's
Grant, a Crown Grant, a State Grant
or a Board of Education Deed are
insufficient to convey fee simple ti
tle to submerged lands."
Is this contradictory and nonsen
sical, or what? A source instrument
is a Grant by the State of North
Carolina? No, it clearly states that a
State Grant is insufficient. A deed
from a North Carolina agency? No,
a Board of Education Deed is insuf
ficient. A grant from an earlier gov
ernment? No, a Lords Proprietor's
Grant or a Crown Grant is insuffi
cient.
It does appear that a title exam
back to the Creation might be suffi
cient, but I'm not certain. It clearly
states that it has to be an instrument
issued by the State of North Caro
lina, its agencies, or earlier govern
ments. God may not qualify as an
earlier government, although He did
issue "governmental laws" in the
form of the Ten Commandments.
It has been 28 years since NCGS
113-205 was passed by the legisla
ture. That is 14 percent of the 204
years North Carolina has been a
State. And the review of claims
drags on...
Men have been to the moon seven
times, and we have explored the out
ermost planet in our Solar System.
And on... We have had the Vietnam
War, the Cold War, the Persian Gulf
War, the War on Poverty, the War on
Drugs, and Star Wars. And on... We
have had the Civil Rights Revo
lution, the Women's Revolution, the
Cultural Revolution and the Sexual
Revolution. And on... We have had
seven governors and seven presi
dents. Our current president was 18
years old at the time. And on... A
generation of children has been
born, matured and borne children of
its own. And on... The sun has risen
and set more than 10,000 times. And
the review of claims drags on, and
on, and on. How much longer?
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Time constraints are routinely and
arbitrarily imposed on ordinary citi
zens by both legislation and employ
ees of state agencies. I suggest that
time constraints should also be im
posed on state agencies. If I respond
to Mr. Wojciechowski within his 90
day mandate, how long does he have
to respond back? Another 24 years?
When will this insanity end? Years
ago, failure of the state to respond
should have barred the state from
any claim it may have had.
I urge all citizens of Brunswick
county who have received such un
timely letters, or who filed claims
but have had no response to call or
write Sen. R.C. Soles Jr.. Rep. David
Redwine and The Brunswick Beacon
urging legislation imposing time
constraints on state agencies to re
spond to citizens. It is the only way
to correct the inequity.
State government has become
worse than the federal government.
Susan Kelly
Ocean Isle Beach
Ferry Workers The Besf
At Helping Passengers
To the editor:
On Thursday, Sept. 2, I, along
with my husband, daughter and son
in-law arrived at the Southport-Fort
Fisher ferry in order to cross on the
12:10 p.m. ferry. Since we were a bit
early, we sat down at one of the pic
nic tables for a short while.
That is where I carelessly left my
pocketbook containing money, cred
it cards and keys. I did not discover
what had happened until after the
ferry had departed. Needless to say,
I was frantic! My husband spoke
with one of the crew, Sandy Mit
chell, who was more than willing to
assist. He phoned the office at
Southport, where Cynthia Rabon so
kindly went out to find my purse. It
was brought over to me on the very
next ferry by another cooperative
employee, Joe.
My sincerest thanks to all who
willingly helped and gave such
prompt service and attention.
Of course I was happy to have my
bag returned, but would like you to
know how greatly impressed we
were with the sincerity and kindness
of these employees. We can be
proud of them. They are the best!
Delores Vulpis
Calabash
Write Us
The Beacon welcomes letters
to the editor. All letters must
include the writer's address and
telephone number.Under no
circumstances will unsigned or
anonymous letters be printed.
Letters must be legible. We
reserve the right to edit libelous
comments and to shorten letters.
Address letters to The Brunswick
Beacon, P. O. Box 2558, Shal
lotte, N. C. 28459.
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A Change In The Breeze ,
And A Few Less Degrees
Did you feel it? Last Friday
night? When the wind shifted; the
humidity dropped; the air condition
er stopped clicking on every fifteen
minutes?
If you stepped outside a little he
fore midnight, you could have wel
comed its arrival. Like an old friend
pulling into the driveway.
It's fall! And if you ask me. not a
moment too soon.
Not that I dislike summer. The
fact is, I really enjoy hot weather:
Those searing, steamy days when
walking outside is like stepping into
a blast furnace. When everything
around you shimmers in the heat
and the whole world seems to crawl
along in slow motion.
There is something incomplete
about a summer that doesn't crank
up the heat into triple digits, at least
for a little while. But not forever.
Let's face it. This summer was re
lentless. I doubt anyone was sur
prised to hear that July was the
hottest one ever recorded since they
started keeping track of such things.
How hot was it? So hot that fire
hydrants were whistling at passing
dogs to beg for a shower.
(I heard that one from former
Governor Lester Maddox of Georgia
in his Underground Atlanta souvenir
shop, where he sold autographed ax
handles and told very bad jokes. Of
w hich he himself was the worst.)
Fall (or autumn, for you sophisti
cates) is one of my favorite seasons.
Along with winter, spring, summer,
garlic, basil, thyme and oregano.
Unlike other seasons ? which
someone always finds too hot, too
cold, too rainy or loo windy ? just
about everybody has some reason to
look forward to fall. That is, unless
you have to go back to school.
Even in my student days, I re
member fall ushering in a variety of
new adventures. That's when we
used to make the rounds of local car
dealerships to check out the new
models. Back when we were
shocked to see the new Porsche 911
display the unbelievably expensive
sticker price of SEVEN THOU
SAND BUCKS!
Here on the coast, as the tourist
season winds down, fall is the
chance for locals to get a day off
now and then, to take a walk on the
beach and to remember why we
work so hard all summer.
It's just the opposite in the moun
tains, where residents have to allow
a bit more time to get to work and
avoid all roads officially designated
as scenic, which will soon be
bumper-to-bumper with visiting
Eric ' ^
Carlson *
c* *
"leaf lookers."
Lynn looks forward to cooler
weather so she can fire up the oven
and bake some of her wonderful
bread recipes. I must also include
this on my list of fall attractions.
For a lot of guys, fall itself isn't
nearly as important as the other sea
sons it brings along with it. like
hunting season, fishing season and
football season.
Now I haven't been hunting in a
long time, but I can remember how
much I used to enjoy tramping
through fields with a shotgun cra
dled across my arm. waiting for
some rabbit or pheasant to Hush
from the underbrush in a valiant,
last-ditched effort to avoid our din
ner table.
Judging from the number of pick
up trucks I see rigged with dog
cages and deer stands, I imagine this
little touch of cooler air has a sizable
chunk of the male population think
ing about just one thing: opening
day.
Although I'm not much of a salt
water angler. I used to make an ex
ception every fall when the blues hit
the Outer Banks. During a serious
blitz, even an absolute idiot could
catch his fill by merely tossing any
old lure into the fray. Other times,
all you needed was a bucket to pick
up the trout that the blues chased on
to the beach.
Around here, the favorite fall
fish ? while just as plentiful ? seems
to be a lot smaller. But all those hun
dreds of people lining the piers don't
mind. Probably because spots taste a
whole lot better than bluefish.
Regarding the third season within
a season, I think football games are
like oysters. Both are available in
August, but they just don't taste
right until the weather gets cool. So
it's usually October before I get an
appetite for either one.
But something tells me this year
might be different. After the Red
skins scalped the Cowboys, the
Trojans sank the Vikings and the
mercury drop|>ed ten degrees, I got
the feeling I might fall right into this
new season. ..autumn-atically.
fj =g1
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