Submarine Trouble

On Monday January 3, 1916 Bonnie Elmore wrote: Warm-Sultry. Got to work on time. Went by Mr. Raines for tobacco. Talked to Major Taliferro. Mr. Schick went west on #3 today. John Dillard came into the office today. Brought Mr. Schick some birds. Pres. Wilson returns to Washington from Hot Springs, VA on account of submarine trouble. I went up home for supper. gave papa 70 Cents. Came home on car. Again, it is anything but warm and sultry in 2010. (I think in yesterday's post, I was still using 2009...ooops.) It is in the teens at night and winds blowing 20-30 mph making wind chills near zero or below. I know that Taliaferro name is well known in Salem and even in Roanoke, I am guessing it may be some of the same clan. One boss, went out on a train and another came in apparently. Were birds a common gift? Did Mr. Schick collect birds? That just seems odd to me. Again, we have a World War 1 reference. I remember reading that, part of what drew the US into the war was the German submarines harassing American ships. I am guessing that is what Bonnie is referring to here and is what brought President Wilson home from a New Year's vacation early. Today we have pirates off the Somali coast who are capturing ships and crews for ransom and also a continued threat of terrorism on American airlines, this time coming from Yemen. Obama says that his administration is now focused on the terrorist threat. Why weren't we all along? It is much more of a threat to our country than Health care reform. I personally agree with recent statements from former Vice-President Cheney that the current administration does not realize that we are at war with the terrorists. I wonder why Bonnie gave his dad 70 cents? There is the street car ride home again. Good day at church today though the crowd was small due to the extreme cold. Also had a good time at the young adult Sunday School class party tonight. Back to work tomorrow. Fire safety events start to pick up. Roanoke County made it all the way through 2009 with out a fire death! Whew. The cold weather though makes for some scary situations as more people use wood stoves and things like Kerosene heaters. Please remember to keep combustibles 3 feet from the heat!