Assaulted And Shot.

William J. Turnbull of Duanesburgh Shot at His Brother’s Home — Assailants Were Caught.

William J. Turnbull, an old and respected resident of the village of Duanesburgh, was shot last Friday afternoon by two men whom he surprised in the unoccupied house of his brother, John L. Turnbull, and slightly wounded in the left shoulder. In addition to the gunshot wound, Turnbull was also dealt a vicious blow on the forehead, which stunned him for a moment, the assailant using the butt of the revolver to inflict this latter injury. Despite his injuries, Turnbull grappled with the assailants and endeavored to hold them, but becoming weak from his wound and the blow on his head, they managed to elude his grasp and ran away.

Dr. R. A. McDougall of Duanesburgh was quickly called and soon located the bullet in Mr. Turnbull’s left shoulder and removed it and dressed the injury to his head. The injured man recovered his composure very soon and was able to give an account of the shooting and a fairly good description of his assailants. This information was telephoned to the Schenectady police and the authorities of Amsterdam and other nearby towns.

Arthur Vosburg, 19 years, and Joseph Herrington, 21 years, both claiming Oneonta as their residence, were arrested at the home of John Eastman, two miles from Esperance, soon after midnight Saturday morning, charged with assaulting and shooting Mr. Turnbull. They were arrested by Constable Peter Hunt of Delanson and Wesley McDougall and Robert Little, of that place. They were taken before Turnbull, who is said to have positively identified Vosburg as the man who shot him. The two men were lodged in the Schenectady jail.

The prisoners were arraigned at Duanesburgh Tuesday morning and after both men had made statements, together with a statement by Vosburg’s father, an adjournment was taken until Friday morning at 9 o’clock. The accused men will try to prove an alibi.

****

BARN BUILDINGS BURNED

On Thursday morning of last week, about 7 o’clock, the main barn and shed on the John Vroman farm between Schoharie and Gallupville, formerly known as the Couch farm, were completely destroyed by fire, together with a lot of farming implements and one calf. The stock had just been turned out. Two calves were in the barn, but only one could be saved. The origin of the fire is unknown. It was only by hard work that the wagon house and dwelling, a brick structure, were saved from destruction. It happened that about forty men working on the state road near the farm were there to help, and a bucket brigade was formed that did effective work, saving the building above mentioned. The house and wagon house caught fire several times. The property was insured and the loss has been adjusted at $1,715.

****

TOWN PROMOTION—3

The previous article in this series suggested that the first thing to make a town grow is to get the townspeople to work to spread the good reputation of the town, as a business and residence center. This is fundamental, but it takes time to bring about results which come so largely trough mental attitude. Meanwhile, towns that are ambitious for speedy advancement usually get out and hustle for new manufacturing industries.

It is the feeling of men with experience in board of trade work, that almost any town having reasonably good transportation facilities can get new industries, if it is willing to work for them. But many efforts of its kind are ill judged.

Factories frequently move out into country towns to get cheap labor. If they do not require highly skilled help, the results may be good. If they do need skilled work people, the experiment is dubious. If a concern is not adapted to the locality and has to move on, it hurts the reputation of the town as a business center. The place is worse off than it was before the industry came.

Boards of trade commonly subscribe to press clipping bureaus, giving news of concerns that contemplate expansion. They follow lists of incorporation of new companies, and they send letters and circulars to all such openings. They find plenty of companies that would like a new location, but many of them are mere tramps that stay only while they get favors.

A concern that is substantial and means business will usually pay its own way. If it wants a factory, it should either pay a moderate rental, or pay installments on the value of the building so as to acquire it in time.

If a committee of business men will make a systematic effort to find industries worth securing, the things can usually be done. Hundreds of letters may have to be written, to all kinds of possible chances, before one reply is received worth considering. But clerk hire is not costly, and persistence wins out in the end. New industries might come here if our business men had the perseverance to follow up the matter to a conclusion. Too often, after circulars are sent out and a few letters written, a committee becomes discouraged and allows the matter to drift. In that case, the town that hangs on after others become disheartened is the one that gets the new business.