Page Four
THE NEW BERN MIRROR, NEW BERN, N. C.
Friday, July 17, 1959
THE NEW BERN MIRROR
Published Every Friday at 111 King Street,
New Bern, N. C., by the Sole Owner
j. GASKiLL McDaniel
-Editor and Publisher
One Year.
SUBSCRIPTION RATES:
$2.50 Six Months.
Entered as second-class mail at New Bern April 4,1958,
under the act of March 3, 1879.
$1.25
, MAKE OURS SMALL
One of the complaints most often aimed at small towns
is that everybody knows your business. If they don’t know it,
they guess it, or manufacture a choice bit of gossip from their
own vivid imaginations.
This can be pretty irritating, and in its crueler forms is
nothing short of vicious slander. But, human nature being
what it is, all of us as long as we live are going to talk about
our neighbors.
We’ll be happier, and our acquaintances will be happier,
if the bulk of what we say is kind, considerate and compli
mentary. Actually, there’s nothing much wrong with gossip
if it isn’t aimed at destruction, embarrassment and humiliation
of others.
There’s a mean streak in all of us, and in varying degrees
we get a semblance of pleasure out of discussing the faults
and shortcomings of the other fellow. At the moment, he may
be picking you to pieces too, which in poetic justice is what
you deserve.
However, sooner or later in a small town—or a medium
sized town like New Bern—there’ll be good things as well as
bad said about you. And, in turn, you’ll say some rather nice
things every now and then. If you aren’t too sinful on the one
hand, and too vicious on the other, the law of averages will
sort of even the score.
f
Of course, if you don’t want to be talked about you do
stand a good chance of getting some relief by moving to a
big city. There you won’t be talked about, for the simple
reason that the milling millions won’t be interested in adding
you to their conversation.
You’ll be a little fish in a big pool, unnoticed in the same
manner that all the other little fish are unnoticed. The fact
that prying eyes and wagging tongues won’t cramp your style
isn’t helpful to your vanity, however. Knowing that there’s no
one around to even care is rather depre.ssing.
We speak from personal experience. Having walked for
blocks and block in New York City without seeing the first
friend to say “Howdy” to, it didn’t take us long to wish we
were back on Middle street. To tell the truth, we even missed
the cold looks of those home town folks who, for one reason
or another, don’t like us.
Having someone look upon you with disfavor has its good
points. It serves to remind you that you wouldn’t get all the
votes in a popularity contest, and that maybe you aren’t per
fect, after all.
Besides, if you bump into your enemies often enough on
Main Street, and have a bright and beautiful morning tarnish
ed to some extent, you might get the ill feeling out of your
system for your own peace of mind.
Fortunately for most of us, in a town such as ours,
there’ll always be friends along the thoroughfare to exchange
greetings with. Day after day you’ll see the same familiar
smiles, and hear the same comments on the state of the
weather.
Over and over it will be the same, but it won’t grow
monotonous. If your heart is half-way right, and you love peo
ple. your life will be wonderfully enriched by trifles such
as these.
You’ll feel good inside too, when you speak to a stranger
and the stranger speaks back. The chances are you’ll never
see him again, but in one fleeting moment—with a word and
a look—you placed a glowing candle on his pathway to eterni
ty-
Yes, small towns afford an opportunity for neighborli
ness that a teeming metropolis never can. And in a small town
there’s less suspicion and distrust. Not that suspicion and dis
trust aren’t justified in big cities, considering the number
of guys who are ready to work you over for a fast dollar.
Small towns have such characters too, but word gets
around pretty quickly. Usually a shake-down artist has to move
on to some other locale after a short time, and is apt to head
for a larger place where the mortality rate for his pitch isn’t as
high.
All things considered, we’ll still take the smaller commu
nity. And when folks get nosey we’ll try to understand that
much of their curiosity is a genuine interest in their neigh
bor’s joy and heartbreak.
Historical
Gleanings
—By—
FRANCES B. CLAYPOOLE
and
ELIZABETH MOORE
PETITION of WILL: GASTON, for
PETITIONER, 1826.
-Thomo* C. Hooper vs Richard
Jones and wife, and John C. Stan
ly. Petition. Service and Subpoena
admitted April 10th, 1826.
To the honorable, the Judge of
the Superior Court of Law for the
County of Craven, the Petition of
Thomas C. Hooper.
Respectfully showeth unto your
honor, your petitioner, Thomas C.
Hooper, that Jeremiah Vail former
ly of Craven county was seized in
fee of two tracts of land, both
situate in said county and on the
South side of Neuse river, one
tract estimated to contain four
hundred acres, which had been
granted to Nicholas Rutledge by
patent bearing date the 27th June,
1746, lying on the South side of
Wherry Branch, beginning at a
red oak, thence South 53 degrees
East 200 poles to a stake, thence
North 37 East, 320 poles to a pop
lar and an ash, then to the first
station; the other a tract of 150
acres more or less, which had been
granted to the said Jeremiah by
Patent bearing date 15th October,
1775, beginning at a white oak,
Rutledge’s and Powell’s corner,
near Neuse road, thence running
along said Rutledge’s line. South
40 degrees. East 50 chains or 200
poles to a gum, then North 70 de
grees East 31 chains or one hun
dred and twenty-four poles, to a
white oak, Peter Hand’s corner,
thence along his line' North 48
West 80 chains or 320 poles to a
pine, said Hand’s other corner,
then South 70 degrees West 26
chains of 104 poles to a small white
oak in Mrs. Powell’s line, and
then along her line South 53 de
grees East 30 chain or 120 poles
to the first station. AND your peti
tioner further shows that the said
Jeremiah Vail being so seized as
aforesaid, departed this life some
time before the year 1776, intes
tate, and thereupon, the said tracts
descended upon the six daughters
of the said JEREMIAH VAIL, viz:
ELIZABETH, SARAH, MOLSY,
NANCY, MARGARET and NELLY,
who became seized in fee thereof
as tenants in coparcenary. AND
your petitioner further shews that
MOLSY one of the said coparcen
ers intermarried with a certain
Villoge Verses
GRATITUDE
Teach me, dear God, that life is worth the living.
That everyday should bring its own Thanksgiving;
Not one brief Thursday, named in late November—
Throughout each hour and week, let me remember.
Let me be thankful, all my whole life through,
Grateful, dear God, for little things You do.
The way you paint Your sunsets, in the flaming west,
Cheery songs you give to birds—music at its best;
Snowflakes, flowers and stardust, and kindly thoughts
You have a way of sprinkling in barren hearts.
I’m thankful for big things, yet countless blessings small
Perhaps more than we realize are the biggest of them
all.
—JGMcD.
JOSEPH LEECH, and died intes
tate prior to the year 1795, where
by her share and interest in the
said tracts descended upon and
vested in GEORGE^ MERRlCK
LEECH, her only son and heir at
law, and that NANCY, another of
the coparceners aforesaid also died
intestate, prior to the year afore
said, whereby all her right, share
and interest descended upon and
vested in her two sons, WILLIAM
TRYON HOWE, her only son by
her marriage with THOMAS CLIF
FORD HOWE, her first husband,
and ALEXANDER SCHAW, her
only son by her marriage with
ROBERT SCHAW, her second hus
band, and that, the aforesaid SA
RAH, MARGARET and NELLY, all
died intestate, and without issue
prior to the year last aforesaid,
whereby the whole of the said
tracts accrued unto and were the
common property of the aforesaid
ELIZABETH VAIL, GEORGE M.
LEECH, WILLIAM T. HOWE and
ALEXANDER SCHAW, the said
ELIZABETH and GEORGE being
proprietors each of an undivided
third between them. AND your
petitioner further shews that on
the 5th day of July, 1796, the afore
said ELIZABETH VAIL and
GEORGE M. LEECH conveyed unto
FRANCES LEECH, niece of the
aforesaid ELIZABETH, and sister
of the said GEORGE, all the inter
est which they could convey in the
said tracts so that the said FRAN
CES became proprietor in fee of
two undivided third parts thereof,
and shortly thereafter, viz. in the
year 1798, the said WILLIAM T.
HOWE departed this life intestate
and without issue, whereby his in
terest and estate there descended
upon his only brother, and heir
at law, ALEXANDER SCHAW, who
thence forth became proprietor of
and was seizpd in fee of one undi
vided third part thereof. AND
your petitioner further shews un
to your honor that the said ALEX-
(ConHnued on Page 7)
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