Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

| PRRT2. ESTABLISHED 1887. MATTERS ABOUT FIRE DEPARTMENT. Though a Volunteer Department It Has Reached • A State of Perfection, and Without a Superior in the State. Doty First, Last and Always, Its Motto. It Has Made Much Progress During the Past Thirty Years of Its Existence—History of Its Organization. CONSISTS OF FOUR COMPANIES. With Sufficient Hose, Excellent Pressure. Plenty of Fire Hy drants and Well Trained , Men- No city in the great common wealth of Georgia can boast of a more ef ficient or better fire department, es pecially is this so when compairing the department of Rome with volunteer companies of other cities. This state ment is not made as an idle boast; no, deeds are what the Rome fire depart ment performs. The city at large takes great pride in the department, it being composed of men who are -ever ready to respond to the call oi duty, whether at night or day. That their work in the past has been ef ficient is amply evidenced by the record of the years gone by. The city has never suffer loss by any large conflagration althoughzm a number of occasions a large fire seemed more than a possibility. It is due to theef ficency of the fire department that the cost of insurance has been kept at -7~1 : - tw|jß|ft „ ' ' CHIEF J. B. OWENS. a minimum, and it is essential that the city gives this department every encouragement in the way of money and pharapbanalia. The Rome fire department is a volunteer one, but this fact does not in any way stand as a barrier to its efficacy. Indeed, the men who con stitute it are in many ways the equal to trained men who follow no other vocation eave that of studing how best to fight a fire. The department consist of four com panies, of able bodied men, seven horses, one truck, four hose wagon", two engines and 5,200 feet ot hose. There are 96 fire plugs distributed over the city and 29 alarm boxes. The Gaynor fire alarm system is in vogue and is in excellent working order With the exception of two drivers to each company, no member receives any pay whatsoever, not even the chief. It would seem to the uninitiated that such being the case, the department wonld lack supporters and workers. But this is not so here in Rome. The men recog nize that any good done the city or any service rendered it, is as much a protec tion to themselves as to others. Upon this broad principle the department was organized some thirty years ago. The first company to enlist its services to the city, was the Rainbow company No,l. Next came Citizens’Hook and Ladder No. 1; then Mountain City No. THE ROHE TRIBUNE. 2. Shortly afterwards a company was formed but existed only about two years. It was followed by fire company No. 4. Os these companies No. 1 has 1800 feet of hose, one wagon and an en- I gine; No. 2, two hose wagons, one en gine and 1900 feet of hose; No. 4, one wagon and 1500 feet of hose. The Book and Ladder company has one of the atest improved fire trucks, equipped with a full set of ladders, a hich are so - R B. M’ARVER. arranged as to be hoisted one over the ' other, until the height of the highest ' building in the city is reached. I A noteworthy feature of these com panies is that each individual company has, through its own effort, raised the money for the parapharnalia, and con sequently own everything pertaining to the department—the horses, wagons, hose and other devises used at fires— even the repairing of damaged wagons fall upon the individual companies. All this gives strength to the fact stated in the foregoing part of this article, that the department is an efficient one, and deserving of ail praise bestowed upon it. Is it, then, any wonder that the peo ple are proUd of the gallant and athlet ic fire laddies, for a better, trained or more exemplary set of men than the Rome fire department, under the lead ership of Chief Owens, do not exist in the state. Duty first, last and all the time is the motto. With a well equipped and ably man aged and trained and trusted set of men than Rome fire department will ever stand forth the leader of all simi lar departments in the South. J, B Owens, The present chief of the fire depart ment, J. B Owens of the firm of Can trell & Owens, leading shoe dealers, was born in Bartow county, Georgia, May 18th, 1853. He received a common school education at Cass Station and Stilesboro. His early life was spent at hard work upon a farm, which vocat on he pursued until 1879. That year Mr. Hr " W r-a' Ira?' GEORGE W. TRAMMELL. Owens removed to Rome and entered the employ of E. H. Cololough & Co., with which firm be was connected lor three years. Subsequently he was con nected with the firms of Shannon & SOUVENIR AND TRADE EDITION. Co., for two years, and R. H. West & Soo, for six years. In 1891, in co-partnership with A. F. Cantrell be entered the shoe busi ness under the present firm named, and in which business he has been eminently tpicessful. Chief Owens has been a member of the fire department for the past four teen years and has been one of its live and progress members. He seryed as second assistant chief in 1896, and in the middle of January, 1897 was elected chief of the depart ment Mr. Owens has taken a deep interest in the department and is one of its staunchest supporters. He is very popular among the boys and has made one of the best chiefs that has ever served. As long as the department is governed by such men, this feature of the city’s government will be ably administered. Capt- Charles N- Featherston The bar of Rome has long been char acterizedas one of the most noted in the state; some of the members have gained more than a local reputation and their names are household words. Among this class will be found the name of the above. Coming of distinguished ancestry, he is a worthy successor of his house. His father Lucius H. Featherston was a lawyer of distinction and at one time a judge of the superior court. Capt. Charles N. Featherston first saw the light in Heard county, Ga., October 25th 1839, and was also reared and educated in tha< county receiving the best education the schools afforded. Subsequently, he entered Emory college, Oxford. Ga , from which he was grad uated. During the late war Capt. Featherston enlisted as a private in the Seventh Georgia* regiment, but after the first year of service was on staff duty. He served faithfully the cause of the Con federacy until the close of the war, and came to Rome-in 1866 For twelve years thereafter, he was associated with Judge A. R Wright in the practice of law and since the latter’s decease has remained in the practice by himself. ———— - -—-1 mmp aft v.rifc- < -'Aw ■ ■■ s - Hp~ JUDGE JOHN P. DAVIS. As an attorney Capt. Featherston ranks with the best; as a man be is pos sessed of general sound judgment, un swerving integrity, firmness of purpose and character, and high sense of honor in the matter of personal and public obligation. As a member and chair man Os the board of roads and revenue, he has rendeied much valuable service to the county. Under the present admin istration of the board of which he is the guiding hand, the expenses of running the county’s affairs have been materi ally decreased. As long as such men are chosen-for office, the administration of the county’s affairs will be ably man aged. Capt. Featherston’s term of office has hardly begun and the next three years will show not only a master hand at the helm but a much better and health ier condition of county finance and a greatly reduced indebtedness. R, B, McArver, “A public office is a public trust.’’ In Floyd county th s truism is indeed applicable, inasmuch as the present Board of Commissioners of Roads and Revenues, seem to have adopted the saying by practically applying it. Among those who consider public office as such is Mr. R B. McArver of that body. His record as such has been an excellent one and deserves much com mendation. Mr. R B. McArver was born, and reared and educated in Floyd county, and with the exception of a period of several yeais -pent in the service of the Confederacy, has lived here all his life. He was educated by private tutors and w CAPT. C. N. FEATHERSTON. at schools at Cave Sprinv. He left school to serve his country, enlisting as a private in the Sixth Georgia cav alry. His comrades in arms often urged him to serve as an officer, but be declined, prefering rather to remain in the ranks. He was, however, for a short time color bearer of the major generals colors of the First Georgia brigade. His regiment was attached to the western army. He saw much active service in Tennessee, Georgia and the Carolinas, and surrendered with his command at Charlotte, N. C. At .the close of the war Mr. McArver returned to Floyd county, and shortly .afterwards engaged in merchandising, which he has pursued with marked suc cess. He is proprietor of a large mer cantile house at Coosa, and also post master and a&ent of the Southern raii- way at that point. In addition to these duties, he also finds time to personally conduct his farming interest. Besides owning a number of small farms, he is part owner and trustee of a large landed estate. Mr. McArver is a thorough business man of years of experience, as can be readily conceived by the above state ment of his c mmercial interests. This experience renders him a most valuable man upon the board of commissioners. As a citizen he is one of the wide awake and progressive men of the county, doing all in his power to for ward the interests of this section. It is more such men that Floyd county needs for officers. D. W. Simmons The board of commissioners of roads and revenues, or as it is more commonly known county commissioners, is one of the most important in the county for it is through the executive ability and sound business judgment of its members that the development, improvement and general welfare of the county de pends. Among those who constitute this board, none have taken a more active part in its transactions that 'the subject under notice. No wiser or better seleo. tion could have been made, for who could be more closely identified with the growth and welfare of the county than one born, reared and educated within its domains. Mr. D. W. Simmons was born in Floyd county in 18*2; grew up and was I educated here, and has lived here nearly all his life. The early experience of Mr. Simmons has particularly adopted him for hi 8 present work upon the board, and ren ders him a most valuable and experi enced man. Quite a number of years back, as an employe of the Texas Pacific in the bridge and construction department, Mr. Simmons acquired a most thorough knowledge of bridge and construction work, all of which he has brought to bear in the manifold duties of the office intrusted to him. Aside from his knowledge upon mat ters above stated, he is a man of sound business judgment acquired through practicable business experience. For more than a decade he has filled the duties of secretary and treasurer of the board of trustees of the state school for the Deaf at Cave Spring, his*present home. Mr. Simmons served as mayor of Cave Spring for about six years, and for eleven years, was postmaster. Through all the changes of administration, he was retained in office, filling that re sponsible position in a manner highly satisfactory to the government and the public. As a business man of Cave Spring he has demonstrated his ability to success fully manage and conduct a large mer cantile business and as manager of the Alliance store achieved success through his diligence and correct business methods. It superfluous to extoll the careful and paintaking manner in which he has ful filled the duties of the office. He seems to be the right man in the right place, and as long as such offices are in charge of like men, their duties will be per formed in a manner highly commenda ble and satisfactory to the people. George W. Trammell. Mr. George W. Trammell, commis sioner of Floyd county is a young man far and widely known for bis -general excellence and business ability. He is one of the successful business men of North Georgia, and for many years has been cosely identified with the growth of Rome and general advancement of Floyd connty. M”. Trammell for a number of years has been engaged in the manufacture of bricks in this city and has made a suc cess of which he may justly be proud. Under the firm name of the Morrison— Trammell Brick company a large busi ness is transacted, and a superior brick man ufaotured. But his business relations do not stop at the manufacture of brick. Under the firm name of Broach & Trammell, con tractors, a large and succossfnl business is conducted. This latter firm has con structed a large number of the business blocks erected here during the past few years and at present are engaged in work on the new N. C. & St. L. railway depot. Mr. Trammell was elected commis sioner in 1896, and has made a most ex cellent one. Dr W, C. Nixon, The citizenship of Floyd county is among the best in the South, inasmuch as it ranks in its midst men of brain, energy and talent. This is especially the case with those who constitute the Board of County Commissioners. This board represents the highest type of modern, progressive citizenship, and among its representatives is Dr. W. C. Nixon of thefßidge Valley district. He is a man far and widely known for his good citizenship and thorough business qualifications. Dr. W. C. Nixon is a Virginian by birth and was born upon his father’s plantation, Buckinham county, Sep tember 22nd, 1849. He was educated at private schools and the university of Virginia, at Charlottesville. At the latter institution he took a literary and medical course and was graduated in 1870 in both departments. Three years previous to entering the uni versity, Dr. Nixon studied medicine under Dr. E. P. Taliaferro a promi nent physician of Orange court house Va., and under his directions received a good training in the science of medi cine. In 1871, Dr. Nixon cast bis lot with the good people of Floyd county and entered into the active practice of his profession, meeting with much suc cess. The doctor heretofore has never held any public office prefering rather to devote himself to his pro fession. It was upon the urgent re- paces h| PRICE FIVE CENTS. quest of his many friends that he con sented to make the race for commis sioner,to which office be was elected in October, 1896. As a member of that body, he has made a most excellent and earnest worker, carefully watch ing every item of interest purtaining to the financial and other interests of the county. It has been his constant endeavor to promote the welfare of the county, and at the same time to cur tail the useless expenditure of the people’s money. In politics Dr. Nixon is a democrat of the staunchest type, believing that upon that faith depends the preserva tion of a truly democratic government the protection of the rights, liberties and happiness of the people; hence he has always remained true to his prin ciples. Plain and unassuming, he is of and for the people, whose aims, sentiments and aspirations he repre sents. Judge John P< Davis, Judge John P. Davis, ordinary of Floyd county is one of the most popu lar officials of the county. He is a Floyd county products, and was born near John’s Creek, January 18th 1862. He was educated at private 'Schools, G. W. SIMMONS. He has spent most of his life on a farm and short time taught school in the country. He was married to Effie T. Camp of Gordon county Ga., Novem ber 9, 1884. Judge Davis became prominent in politics while serving as assistant in the clerk’s office of superi orcourt under Mr. BeysiegeJ.in which capacity he served for two terms. In 1893, be was elected to the unexpired term of Judge H. J. Johnson and in 1896 was re-elected to a full term. This office be has filled in a most ex cellent manner, his ever present cour tesy never failing to leave a most formable impression upon the most casual visitor. In his administration of the affairs of the office he has also shown great ability, and his pleasing personality, good humor and uniform courtesy,have established him among the people of the county. CARROLLTON PAPERS, Four Live Journals That Bespeak That City's Enterprise and Prosperity, A town is very often judged by the newspapers, and such being the case Carrollton may well be counted one of the best little cities in the state. People's Advocate, The People’s Advocate is the only populist journal in Carrollton, and though established only about one year ago, has a large and growing subscription list. It is edited by J. T. Russell, with the Advocate Publishing company as proprietors. The Advocate is issued on ■ '"r ——, ■ X ■ Ojllfef ■ DR. W. C. NIXON. Wednesdays and consists of four pages, 17x24. ‘ ' The Carroll County Times, The Carroll County Times is one of (Continued on Page 16.)