What Stocktonites Were Doing 90 Years Ago
All previous Rooks County dirt storms have paled into insignificance since the storms of Friday night and Wednesday morning. All the old-timers are unanimous in their opinion that they were the worst ever seen here. Word came to Stockton early Friday evening that all traffic had stopped at Colby and Goodland early in the afternoon. Dust filled the upper air here all day, but the storm did not strike here in all its fury until about 7:30 p.m. From then on until midnight, a high wind raged, and the air was filled with the minutest of dust particles. The storm followed an afternoon when thermometers registered in the high 80s. All day Monday, it looked as if another severe storm was on its way, but the community escaped with a sifting of fine dirt. Tuesday was a nice day, so the storm that came yesterday morning was a complete surprise. The atmosphere began to darken a little after 6:00 p.m., and by 7:30 p.m., it was impossible to see across the street. From then on until after 9:00 p.m., objects a few feet away could not be seen, and lights did very little good. The dirt in the air did not beat in quite as bad as in Friday night’s storm as the wind was not so strong, but it was bad enough, and general house cleaning was necessary again. The dust was so fine that it was forced through crevices in buildings, which had withstood ordinary dirt storms. The air was so heavy that breathing was difficult even inside the good buildings. Outdoors, the few pedestrians on the street had to feel their way along by the side of buildings, and motorists, in some cases, found it impossible to see their way even if their cars kept running. Some progress could be made by dimming the lights and going slow, but any going was dangerous at best. Cars had to be guided into garages by flashlights, and many cars around town were left standing all night.
On Tuesday night last week, robbers entered Oscar Hoar’s store at Woodston and carried out what Mr. Hoar estimated to be about $1,500.00 worth of miscellaneous merchandise, including meat, groceries, dry goods, work clothing, etc. On Thursday night, an unknown person or persons entered Swank’s Hardware but was frightened away by the burglar alarm before they had a chance to pilfer anything. Sheriff Ellett was called, but no definite clues have been discovered to date. It is supposed that the goods were trucked out.
Sheriff Ellett reported on the first of the week that he believed Rooks County was free of all slot machines, punch boards, marble machines, dice machines, and other similar devices since Attorney General Beck’s order against such devices was issued.
As We Think It: It is dangerous to go to the movies. A man in the eastern part of the state went to sleep and fell out of his seat, breaking his arm. This is not a preachment against movies—the same could have happened at church.
Up And Down Main Street: A Stockton citizen who has been pinch-hitting for George Washington for several years told us Saturday that it was the absolute truth and nothing else but that he milked two pints of pure dirt from his faithful cow before he got any milk on Saturday morning. * Harry Butler lost his way in the storm Friday night and didn’t get his bearings until he bumped his nose on an electric light and burned himself. * Olmer Adams said the only clean place in his house Friday evening was the refrigerator, but who wants to sit in a refrigerator? * Floyd Fleming says the dirt storm gave him quite a rest as there was a period of two hours that the dirt was so bad in his house he couldn’t see his wife.
From The Feminine Slant By The Office Cat: The fear of what the neighbors will say keeps more people good than the Ten Commandments. * Any smart-aleck expression used by a group of high school pupils sounds dreadfully objectionable to those who used an equally silly one a few years back.
The movie you’ve heard about for months is coming to town!!
“Sweet Music,” starring Rudy Vallee and Ann Dvorak, is showing at the Nova Theatre.
Miss Naomi Floyd, who underwent an operation for an infection in the region of her ear at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Concordia last Wednesday, is reported to be getting along quite well. She suffered a great deal of pain for several weeks before the operation, during which time she was taking treatments, and the operation was quite severe. Still, she is making rapid strides toward recovery at present.
Mrs. Harry Eades entertained several little tots last Wednesday afternoon in honor of her little son Alan’s third birthday. The youngsters had a good time playing and enjoying the nice lunch and balloons. Alan received many nice gifts, including a beautiful birthday cake presented by Keith Denio.
