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THE CHRONICLE, Clinton, S. C., Feb. 19, 1970—ft-B BBMSR '|r M 1 f ook eview DARWIN AND THE BEAGLE BY LENNART PEARSON Head Librarian Presbyterian College Darwin and the Beagle. By Alan Moorehead. 280 pages. Harper & Row. 1969. One of the fascinating things about Charles Darwin is that he really does seem to have been one of those men whose careers quite unexpectedly and fortuitously are decid ed for them by a single stroke of fortune. For twenty-two years nothing much happens, no exceptional abilities are revealed; then sud denly a chance is offered, things can go eith er this way or that, but luck steps in . . . and away he soars into the blue never to return. It all looks so inevitable, so predestined; yet the fact is that in 1831 no one in England, cer tainly not Darwin himself, had the slightest inkling of the extraordinary future that lay ahead of him, and it is next to impossible to rec ognize in the brooding, ailing figure of the later years this blithe young extrovert on the brink of his greatest adventure—the voyage of the Beagle. So begins this splendid account of one of the greatest voyages of the ninenteenth century, and from the point of view of its ultimate consequences for the development of scientific, social, and relig ious thought, one of the greatest voyages of all time. In 1831, Darwin, just out of Cambridge, and ready to embark on a career in the Church, was in vited to travel as ship’s naturalist aboard the Bea gle, a sailing ship about to leave on a long expedi tion sponsored by the British Admiralty. Encour aged by his uncle, Josiah Wedgwood (of the ce ramics family and whose daughter Darwin later married), he signed on with Captain Robert Fitz- roy, who was not much older than Darwin himself. Fitzroy’s mission was to map out the coast of lower South America and to fix accurately measure ments of longitude by a chain of chronological read ings around the world. As they went, Darwin explored the geology of the regions they visited, gathering and studying specimens of fauna and flora from South America, the Galapagos Islands, Tahiti, and Australia. It was his observation of the way various species seemingly had adapted themselves to the demands of a particular environment that led him to explore the idea of the survival of the fittest as a clue to the evolutionary process. What was finally pub lished twenty-five years later in The Origin of Species (1869) was to be to a large extent Darwin’s mature reflection on his experience with the Beagle. Alan Moorehead, author of The White Nile (1961, The Blue Nile (1962), and The Fatal Impact (1967), a book about the intrusion of Western civi lization into primitive areas, is well-known as a writer of discovery and exploration. This book is enjoyably written and lavishly illustrated with maps and pictures, including many drawings and wfcteficeflors by the Beagle’s artist. Rarely, in fact, do you find a book in which text and illustration are so well-fitted to each other. Highly recommended WAITING—SD-40 3001 waits in the peppering snow at Sevier, N. C., for southbound train coming down The Blue Ridge. Over The Rivers . Riding ‘The High Rail' • • BY BILL CANNON How many people have watched trains pass and secretly wanted to ride one of those grumbling diesel monsters as it tugged its load over the rails? It might be surprising if we really knew, for those machines on rails hold a fascination for lots of folks who never get a chance to set foot on one, much less ride one out on the high iron of a main line railroad. Railroad com panies just don’t normally let out siders ride, both from their own rules and from regulations be yond their control. However, let’s take a ride on the locomotives of a fast freight train, all legal and proper, mind you. You come along and go in print, and we can see the op eration ofa modern railroad from the track up. Climb aboard the SD-40 locomotive number 3001 of the Clinchfield in Spartanburg one cold morning, and meet the friendly Clinchfield trainmaster, Bob Rice, who will guide our trip. Sit down in your seat on the left side of the engine, and watch as engineer Homer Harvey widens out on the throttle con trolling his horses. Sit amazed as the engines get train 93 to rolling right along through the brisk, cool Carolina countryside. Mayo, Chesnee, Broad River Bridge (162 feet high and 1,380 feet long, steel. . .quite an air plane trip in itself), Harris, For est City, Bostic Yard. Trainmas ter Rice explains that the entire 277 mile railroad is under Cen tralized Traffic Control with the dispatcher controlling everything 1970 AUDITOR S NOTICE JiMisa Jennie V. Culbertson, Laurens County Auditor, wishes to urge all taxpayers to make their property tax returns in her office before March 1. >: x Miss Culbertson pointed out that it is absolutely necessary that returns be made on real and personal property, including motor vehicles. The prop- •j: er listing and paying of your taxes on your motor vehicles may save your driver's license. V V S Any change made in real estate during 1969-transfer of lands, new buildings and improvements on buildings, also any building destroyed by fire or for any other cause should be reported. 5 I l I 1 1 i s; It is also necessary that we have the correct mailing address of all taxpayers if you are to receive tax notices at the proper time, saving your self costs and penalties. We will be glad to assist you in any way that we can. from Erwin, Tennessee, home for the entire Clinchfield opera tion. Each train operates on signal indications set up by this one man armed with a foolproof machine. Up through the Valley of The North Broad River, up Vein Mountain, across Sand Fill, and into McDowell County, North Carolina, you hear the engines growl defiance at the grade and the 118 cars tied on behind the engines’ drawheads. Each man on the head engine calls out the- signals as they come into view as a safety measure, and the train hustles through the first tunnel of the road at Mar ion. A slow stop at the north end of the passing track for a meet with southbound number 92, and then Trainmaster Rice takes over the controls, knocks off the air brakes, and we are off to the races again. . .crossing the 107 foot high Catawba River bridge just north of Marion. Gliding through the edge of the mountains, the train faces an approach sig nal at the little community of Sevier, and into a side track 93 goes to wait for southbound 94. Single track railroads must “meet" trains somewhere, and since we both have long trains today, we must stay at Sevier for 94, and “he” is just coming through Green Mountain, N.C., many miles away. Gray clouds gather over the 3001 as it sits at Sevier, and as we leave and start through the hamlet of Ashford, at the foot of the Blue Ridge grade, snow be gins to pepper down over the snout of the big locomotive. Eighteen miles an hour is the steady speed as we go up the 1.2^ grade (1.2 feet vertically for every 100 feet along the track) through 17 tun nels, the shortest of which is 169 feet and the longest 2211 feet, some lined with concrete and come through solid rock. And they are not all straight either! After making four loops, running 29 miles to go 12 airline miles, and climbing some 1200 vertical feet, we pass under the Blue Ridge Parkway at the sidetrack called Ridge, and tip over the Eastern Continental Divide. Icicles hang long and dreary, and the snow is really falling. The engine cab is cozy warm with its heaters, and Mr. Rice explains the road’s peculiarities. The windshild wipers scrap snow back so that the countryside is visible, bleak and cold. Rice him self, a native of Erwin who grew up with the Clinchfield Railroad (his Father was an engineer for years), is fascinated and even a- mused that outsiders would be as interested as his guests today, and he himself makes the trip more interesting. Between Altapass and Spruce Pine, N. C., at one place the track goes up, down, and across the same river all within several hundred feet, and this is our “weird” introduction to the edge of Spruce Pine, the Mineral City of The East. Then on down the Toe River, past Kona where the 3001 heads into another passing track to let southbound number 22 pass us in the blinding snow. Shortly after the caboose of 22 passes, the little dwarf signal controllingTrains in the siding flicks to emerald green and the main line is our again. The not ches on the throttle ratchet rat tle as Rice coaxes the engines to life again, and off through towns named Huntdale, Green Mountain, Relief, (so named be cause it for years had the only doctor anywhere around) and Poplar, and then into the Gorge of the Nolichuckey. Here the walls climb many hundreds of feet on both sides of the river, and the railroad track is on a shelf along one side. Down past Lost Cove where the inhabitants lived for years with no modern conveni ences and depended on the Clin- field for transportation to town for groceries and supplies. Crossing the river again at Una- ka Springs, the train eases past Love Station into the big yard at Erwin. The engines are cut off, and switched over to the shop track for servicing. They will soon be on the way again north out of Er win, with new crew members, to make many more miles up the road. Climb down, and get that warm hotel room lined up after a good supper. The knock will come at the door all too soon in the morning for more riding. Pilot Life Sales Increase Sales by Pilot Life Insurance Company during the year 1969 amounted to $734,035,378, an in crease of 13.1 per cent over 1968, it was reported today by O. F. Furr, Clinton Superintendent. Of these sales, $283,315,090 was Ordinary Insurance; $425,- 736,164 Group Insurance; and $24,984,124 Weekly Premium In surance. The company’s share of servicemen’s and other federal employees group insurance pro gram is not included in the above sales. Total income from all sources for 1969 was $133,009,500, up $13,418,780 over 1968 marking the third consecutive year total in come for the company has passed the 100 million dollar mark. The company’s payments to living policyowners and benefi ciaries during 1969 amounted to $65,903,460 bringing total bene fits paid by Pilot since its or ganization to $630,981,537. Area 6 TB Directors Meet The 41 directors of the Tu berculosis and Health Associa tion of Area 6 will meet on Thurs day February 19, according to an announcement by the president. Rev. Neil E. Truesdeil of New berry. Mr. Truesdeil stated that the directors who represent Abbe ville, Edgefield, Greenwood, Laurens, McCormick, Newberry and Saluda counties will meet at 4 o’clock in the Greenwood Coun ty Health Department. Items slated for the meeting will include plans for the new year which begins April 1. He said the members of the Exective Committee will meet at 2:30 for a brief business session prior to the directors meeting. Young Receives Bronze Star Army Sergeant First Class Willie N. Young, son of Mrs. Emma L. Young, 404 N. Bell St., Clinton, received the Bronze Star Medal in Vietnam. Sgt. 1. C. Young earned the award for meritorious service in connection with military op erations against hostile forces in Vietnam while assigned as a technical inspector at the U. S. Army Depot near Long Binh. He also holds the Army Commenda tion Medal. The award was presented Dec. CONTINUED SCHEDULE Clinton Mill Office, Wed., Feb. 18—1 P. M to 5 P.M. Clinton City Hall, Friday, February 20—9 AM, to 5 P.M. Cecil McCoig Thomas McCoig TO MAKE YOUR CAR BODY LIKE NEW BRING IT TO: CECILS BODY WORKS Lodated At Corner of E. Caro. Ave and S. Woodrow St Clinton Mills. Lydia Plant. Wed.. Feb. 25-9 A.M. to 2 P.M. I I We Are In BODY WORK Clinton Mills, Clinton Plant lues., Feb. 24—9 A.M to 2 P.M — 4:30 P.M. to 6 P.M. 4:30 P.M. to 6 P.M. 'i Clinton Mills, Bailey Plant, Thurs., Feb. 26-*- 9 A.M to 2 P.M — 4:30 ?M. to 6 P.M. X i ¥ I I I I I I § v ^ And S PAINTING J Giving You A Total of | 26 Tears Experience COMMUCIAL - INDUSTRIAL - SUB DIVISIONS - ASPHALT I M/vfw.rs • paju/ms ton • pavimo • tmuHTtmutci FOR ESTIMATES CALL: 4517912 Stoney Point Greenwood, S. C. 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