Our County—Its Progress and Prosperity the First Duty of a Local Paper. j. J. MII^ER, Manager. BREYAED, TRANSYLVANIA COUNTY, N. C., FRIDAY. JULY 5,1907 VOL. XII-NO. 27. Transylvania Lodge No. 143, UnightsofPjthias Regular ,c onvention ev- ery Tuesday night in Ma- sonic Hall. Visiting Kniglits are cordially in vited to attend. T. W. WlllTMlKE C. C. Brevard Telephone Exchange.. hours: Daily—7 a. m. to 10 p. m. Sunday—8 to 10 a. m., 4 to 6 p. m. Central Office—McMinn Block. Professional Cords. W. B. DUCKWOR.TH. ATTO RN EY-AT-L A W. Rooms 1 and 2, Pickelsimer Building. GASH for a year. All druggists sell them. H. 6. BAILEY, C. E. CORRECT SURVEYS MADE Maps, Plots and Profiles Plotted. Only the finest adjnsted instrn- ments used. Absolute accuracy. P. O. Brevard, N. C. OWertlnthofl^^ ness, Shorthand, «ng, Pe n m a n 8 h 1P, Enelish courses. sfraduatos in positions luilf or more of 1.0“*’ road fare paid. eood board at *2.60 to lerweek. Noya^^nj Enter any tlm^ course by mail H JO’i for It. In “The Land of the Sky.” ^ KeartlieSftpplilreCottalry. PrlncipaL ^SSYJXXXt W. 0« -{2® *Cro 3^© ©I> ©Sh J>© ©«• ■ ©J> ©£}• ©J^ JO*© ©rl- x>© J>© ©2> I ©J> ©I> • I 7^9 ; ©£]* ©2> ©J> ©J> J^© ojO- J>© ©J> • ty ©j> ©rj- rJ*o 02> mty J0-© ©2> ©J> D*© J3>© ©xj* JO'© • y> J^© ©lO* J>© ©I> ©J> jO*o ©jO- jO*© ©j;' J>© ©Xh J0-© ©J> JO-©' ©jO* J>® ©J> J>® ©I> x>© ©x> authorizing i-uui.l bonds for public iinpiovomeirt^. Marov Forsythe took the initiative in havin', Monroe take advantage of tliis now laTV, and that tovrn was the first in th? state to issue such bonds: Nor wns the issue small, $155,000 being voted at the first election. This sum v;as to be divided as fol lows: For street paving, .‘^40,000; for a high school building, ^^20,GC.O; fc sew’erage, $30,000; for a charit.v liG’pI tal, $5,000; for vrater and lig’j. $GO,000. No provision was made, you will cb sen’c, for such a theoretical improve ment as a street railway or a munici pal bridge. As to race track and summer garden—in those untried times of his first campaign such : suggestion would certainly have brought defeat to the free public utili ties champion of Monroe. Water and lights v/ere the only pub lic utilities or conveniences Monroe enjoyed previous to 18p8, and these under private ow’nership. With the granting of the w^ater and light fran chise Monroe had voted a tax of syj mills for ten years, the income from that source going to paj^ for street lighting and water for fight ing fires. The service w^as indifferent, although the pay was very good. Mayor Forsythe argued that if the franchise was profitable to the private company it would be more profitable to the municipality, and the plant v/as purchased. This absorbed the $60,000 of the bond issue that had been voted for tliat purpose. The move caused the three and one- fialf mill tax to be discontinued, but the newly purchased light and water plants were in such indifferent condi tion that they practically had to be built over. The rate to private users was continued as it had been pre vious to the purchase by the city and the profits devoted steadily to better ments. In this manner the city was saved the tax it had previously paid, but the people could not see the direct saving because their private bills were as large as ever. Some of them v,’ho had expected a miracle to follow on the heels of the acquisition of the water and light plants grumbled a lit tle, but as a rule they waited patiently for results. The bond issue had been carricd with onlj' eight dissenting votes, so pretty much all the popula tion of Monroe was committed to the movement. Finally tbe Improvements on the old plant have been finished at a cost equaling the original purchase price, and the city plant is “as good as new.” Hereafter when the current expenses and repairs have been taken care of and a proper sum charged off for In terest and depreciation the patrons of the Monroe light and water plants will be given the benefit in reduced rates, that biJJitg the announced policy of the municipal ownership mayor. In the matter of a school building $20,000 was voted by the city, but Vv’as found bj" the mayor to be far too small. By borrowing from the general fund and executing various financial turns the present school building was erected at a cost of $85,000. It is maintained at an expenditure of $20,000 j’early, and any child in Monroe or Ouachita county or the state of Louisiana can attend free. These departures from the accepted way of doing things at Monroe caused much comment and some opposition, but that was as nothing compared to the storm aroused when, in 1903, May or Forsythe announced his scheme for a municipal railway. There was no provision in the city’s charter which would permit such a move, but this did not daunt the mayor and his followers. They took the matter up at the ses sion of the Louisiana legislature for 1904 and had their charter 4jmended. Private corporate interests which had an eye on the street railw^ay franchise now" awoke to the knowledge that For sythe’s talk of a municipal railway W'as something more than bluff, and they began to fight him. Their chief objection to the movement was the alleged fear of a corrupt “ring,” which they professed to believe would domi nate politics once the city became en gaged In the operation of the various utilities. But the munlcipalj0,ownershlp cham pions won out. In addition to the orig inal bond issue, a special tax of 5 mills for ten years was levied for public improvements. This income was to be devoted to building a city hall, a city prison, a city market and a street railway. In order to realize upon the tax thus voted. Mayor Forsythe conceived the idea of issuing what he has called “cer- ti^cates ^ payment”—bonds in everj* thii2g except mime—predicated upon the tea year tax and other funds. He met Vt’Ith fierce opposition in this move, for the local “system” carried on a campaign against the legality of the “certificates of payment” and came near frightening the money markets into turning tliem down. Finally, after the construction of the street railway had been delayed more than a year, the city’s paper was ne gotiated, and work on what was des tined to be the first municipal raihvay in America was taken up. In connection with the municipal street raihvay Ihe city has expended over $40,000 in the acquisition of a park, fair and amusement grounds two miles above the city on the Ouachita river, to v/hich the car line extends. It is known as Forsythe park. There,^ are over 130 acres in the tract. v j It is an ideally beautiful site, but what uature has denied is being sup plied by art. Over 1,000 trees of many varieties have been planted. The park fronts on an artificial lake. On an island in tlie lake a pavilion or summer theater has been built, a bridge leading to it from the mainland. It is octagonal in shape and a very pretty structure, with a seating capacity of 1,500. The stage settings are hand some. The drop curtain is a painting from a local scene—a lane about a mile long just below Monroe, the posts of the fence on either side being growing catalpa trees. On the fair grounds, which have been inclosed, a standard half mile, eighty foot v/ide race track, a grand stand with a seating capacity of 2,00,0, mod ern stables and other conveniences are constructed. The track has perfect drainage, and races can be run in two or three hours after a hard rain. A municipal baseball park is a feature. Property values have increased three fold since this modernizing process be gan. Assessed valuation ISDS, $1,700,- 000; in 190G, $3,700,000. Chance for SylAan Valley News Readers. In order to test the Sylvan Valley News gre^t circulation and its supe rior advestlsing value, we have made arrangements with Brevard Drug Co., the popular druggist, to offer one of his best selling medicines at half-price to anyone w’ho will cut out the following coupon and present it at his store: COUPON. This coupon entitles the holder to one .50 ? pa( kage of Dr. Howard’s specific for the cure of constipation and dyspeps-ia at half- price, 25c. I will refund the money to any dissatisfied custoTner. BREVARD DRUG CO. TWENTY-FIVE CENTS. Dr. Howard’s specific for the cure of constipation and dyspepsia is not an unknown remedy. It has made many remarkable cures right here in Brevard and so positive is Brevard Drug Co, of its great superiority in curing dyspepsia, constipation, sick headache and liver troubles that it will, in addition to selling it at half- price, refus'd the money to anj^one whom it does not cure. If you cannot call at his store, cut out the coupon and mail it with 25 cents, and a 50 cent box of the spe cific will be sent you by mail, charges paid. Do not put it off. “One to day is worth two tomorrow.’’ jy 2-4 The suspicion is abroad that Col. Watterson*s tied-out candi date has slipped the bridle and scampered. Wonder what the feelings of the President were, when he no ticed that as soon as he departed for Oyster Bay, the Teddy bears ia Washington were marked down to 79 cents. Nearly all old-fashioned Cough Syr ups are constipating, especially those that contain opiates. They don’t act just right. Kennedy^fl Laxative Cough Syrup contains no opiates. It drives the cold out of the system by gently moving the bowels. Contains Honey and Tar and tastes nearly as good as maple syrup, ("hildren like it. Sold by Brevard Drug Co.