The Clifton Record (Clifton, Tex.), Vol. 100, No. 20, Ed. 1 Wednesday, May 17, 1995 Page: 1 of 44
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Clifton High School Graduating Class Of 1995
P*— By WM«'s Pnotofftphy
CHS Graduation Slated Friday Night
Names Of Valedictorian, Salutatorian Announced
CLIFTON — Clifton High School Principal Ronnie
Massey has announced the valedictorian and salutato-
nan for the 1995 graduating class
Ethan Roper was named valedictorian of the Class
of 1995. He is the son of Mr and Mrs Vic Roper
Salutatorian is Jerod Anz, sob of Rosemary Tuggle
and Hugo Anz. Jr
Graduation Exercises
Commencement exercises are slated for Cub Sta-
dium this Friday, May 19. beginning at 8 p m In the
event of.mclement weather graduation will be held in
Bettis Auditorium
Ethan Roper
Jerod Anz
SpecialGradual ion Section In This Week's Clifton Record
'\
The Clifton Record
— Serving Bosque County Since 1895 —
fv
TEXAS PRESS
ASSOCIATION
1994
® 1995, The Clifton Record
All Rights Reserved
50<t three sections ....plus supplements Clifton, Texas 76634 VOL. 100, NO. 20 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 1995
WAITIN' TO PLAY - Clayton Elliott on bass and Eddie Collins on
banjo are members of the contest winnin' band, Wyldwood. hail-
ing from Austin.
- Staff Photo By Carol Moulton
TNRCC Relaxes Permit Regulations
For Dairies and Similar Operations
i *
Commission Favors Changes Despite Objections From Several Area Factions
600 Music Fans Enjoy
Bluegrass Festival Here
40 RVs Camp On The Banks Of The Bosque River
By Ruth Shipley
fARNLY/llVING EDITOR
CLIFTON — So appropriately
named, the Bosque River Bluegrass
Festival, was a hit with music lovers,
who camped out on the banks of the
Bosque River, or came for the day Fri-
Other booths located throughout the
park sold funnel cakes and lemonade;
Jones’ Fashions booth with A1 and
Clara Jones of Walling Bend Park
showed their denim outfits and other
items; James and Frances Phillips of
Tyler provided their black-eyed pea
DOSque lUver, ur tunic iui uic uaj * *» IJ-ICI until uiuvn V.JV.V*
day and Saturday, May 12 and 13, at salsa dip andjalapena bread and but-
ni'A n:» n__l. TUah rm<i ♦Lie focfival ic
Clifton City Park
The breeze, and sitting in lawn
chain under the trees, made the day
Wyoyable and the sounds of each blue-
grass band performing at the gazebo
seemed like an old-time country re-
vival. These were the opinions of those
who attended the event.
Thurman Winnett, producer, wear-
ing his “Bosque River Bluegrass Festi-
val, Clifton, T»xas” T-shirt, was thrilled
at the response that 600 people enjoyed
listening to the bands performing once
on Friday night and twice on Satur-
day. Other music lovers enjoyed the
fellowship and campsites, and Visiting
throughout the park.
According to Janine Jones, festival
coordinator, folks came from Texas'
towns of Florence, Ft. Worth, Elgin,
Houston, Tyler, Lometa, New
Somerfield, and Palestine, not to men-
tion the states of Oklahoma and North
Carolina.
Other towns were represented, but
at preks time for The Clifton Recor'd,
the visitors' list was not completed.
Jones said, “Already reservations have
been made for camp sites for next year;
this is a great festival.”
Winner of the band contest was
Wyldwood Bluegrass Band from Aus-
tin, which went home with the first
prize of $300. Were they proud!
Clifton Chamber of Commerces vol-
unteers were busy serving breakfast
to 30. early risers, who enjoyed
scrambled eggs, bacon or sausage, bis-
cuit and jelly; the Chamber also served
meala throughout the day, plus a “Big
Red" Booth was on the park grounds.
ter chips. They said this festival is
family-oriented and they liked the
down-home atmosphere. Other booths
showed their T-shirts, among other
items.
Found on a “Honey” Motor Home was
this homemade license plate: “Tired and
Retired No Office, No Work, No Wor-
ries, No Business, No Prospects, and
No Money .” The real license plate bore
a North Carolina tag.
When Wayne Brown of Lometa, who
was practicing on his Gibson mando-
lin, was asked why he liked bluegrass
music, he said, "It’s the people’s mu-
sic, emotional with good melody and
great rhythm.” He commented that
the city park is outstanding for festi-
vals, and the people are “real friendly ."
Thurman Winnett and Janine
Jones were assisted at the festival
and days preceding the event by
Johnnv Outlaw, Clint Lee, Gary
See BLUEGRASS, Page 2A
By David W. Anderson
GENiaAl ASSIGNMENTS EDITOR
AUSTIN — A three-member panel
of the Texas Natural Resource Conser-
vation Comhussion rejected multiple
objections from concerned citizens and.
governmental entities and voted to al-
low deregulation of the permitting pro-
cess for Confined Animal Feeding
Operations. Chairman John Hall and
newly appointed Commissioner R.B.
Marquez voted in favor of the changes,
while Commissioner Pam Reed voted
against thp measures.
Approximately 25 persons signed up
to speak to the panel concerning the
regulation changes, with a vast major-
ity objecting to the proposals.
Clifton Mayor Truman Blum and
others were concerned that if the per-
mitting process is relaxed before ad-
equate monitoring systems are in place,
the river will suffer from higher pollu-
tion levels than those already present.
Several studies have shown increased
pollution in the river being directly
attributable to dairy operations in the
North Bosque watershed.
Clifton and Meridian are currently
studying long-range proposals for drink-
ing water, with the most feasible source
being the Bosque River. Further pol-
lution will make that operation even
more costly.
“I think its a step backward for our
part of the country," said Blum after
the ruling.
In recommending approval from the
commission, TNRCC staffers said that
“an appropriate set of checks and bal-
ances for permitting CAFOs by rule'
are in place.
Mark Alvarado, TNRCC public in-
terest council, told the panel that his
office had received several complaints
dealing with the impact on drinking
■ water for cities in Bosque County He
also noted the apparent lack of mean-
ingful public input if the regulations
are approved.
“I urge the staff to be mindful of the
citizens’ wishes, including those ex-
pressed here today by the cities of Clif-
ton, Meridian, Waco, Dallas, and
others,” said Alvarado.
In testimony from the floor, most
spoke out against approval of the pro-
posed changes.
“This is not going to improve our
water quality," said Travis Brown, at-
torney for Cross Timbers Concerned
Citizens, an environmental group based
in Erath County.
“A large number of citizens, as well
as governmental agencies, are con-
cerned about the quality of the water
if these rules are passed. Those in fa-
Court To Purchase Sheriff’s
Cruisers From Gloff Motors
By David W. Anderson
GENERAL ASSIGNMENTS EDITOR
MERIDIAN — Bosque County Com-
missioners’ Court considered bids from
three automobile dealerships before
accepting a bid from Gloff Motors, Clif-
ton. The court will obtain two vehicles
for the sheriff’s department in a lease/
purchase arrangement with the Clif-
Main Street Resource
Team Meets Next Tuesday
<
CLIFTON — All business owners are
invited to attend a resource team mer-
chant meeting on Tuesday, May 23. The
5:30 p.m. meeting will be held in the
Clifton Civic Center.
The Clifton Main Street Resource
Team will be interviewing Clifton mer-
chants to help form a better under-
standing of Clifton and ita businesses,
said Clifton Main Street Project Man-
ager Cheraina Vick.
"Please come, and learn about the
Main Street Program, and ita future
goals," invited Vick.
The team is comprised oflbias Main
Street Program Director Terry Colley,
Texas Historical Commission architect
Dick Ryan, tourism and product devel-
opment specialist Elizabeth Cooper,
marketing specialist Dawn Glover, and
urban design architect Michael
Spaekman.
“After a two-day fact-finding mission,
the team will present its findings in
the form of a three-year plan," said
Vick. The plan will be presented at a 2
p.m. meeting in the Civic Center on
Thursday, May 25. Both meetings are
open to the public.
CLIFTON MAYOR TRUMAN BLUM was one of many testifying
before the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission in
Austin last week. Blum and his associates tried in vain to stop
deregulation of concentrated animal feeding operation permitting
by the state agency.
- Staff Photo By David Worth Andarson
mt
vor, members of the agriculture Indus- '
try, are only concerned with making
money," said Brown
“Pay attention to what the people are
telling you," warned a member of the
Citizens to Save Lake,Waco group.
“I don’t trust your agency, 1 don’t
trust the permitting process, and I don’t
trust your enforcement. 1 do trust you
to bend to political pressures," said the
representative.
TNRCC staff members indicated that
the new regulations will be stricter in
enforcement of air and water quality
standards.
“If the rules are the most stringent
in the country but enforcement is not
in place, then Texas will have the most
stringent unenforced rules in the na-
tion," said Michael Field of the Brazos
River Authority
“We need to protect the quality of
the water If approved, we recommend
delay of implementation until funds for
monitoring the Bosque are in place,"
urged Field. Commissioner Reed ex-
pressed a similar opinion during the
discussion before the final vote.
Some of those present spoke in fa-
vor of the changes.
“Permitting by rule is a great con-
cept," said .John Johnson of the Texas
Farm Bureau. Spokesmen from the
Texas Cattle Feeders Association and
the Texas Association of Dairymen also
spoke in favor of the TNRCC proposal
Austin Attorney Ken Peterson said,
“This is not a political agenda, it is a
technical agenda," in voicing his sup-
port of deregulation.
Attorney Stuart Henry, representing
the Sierra Clubs “and various other
groups," noted that Peterson “partici-
pated heavily in drafting the rules,
while we were specifically left out
That’s bully politics
“You’ve got a lot of words, more rules,
no way to enforce them, and you've done
away with the neighbors' right to par-
ticipate in the process," said Henry.
In a previous hearing. State Rep
Arlene Wohlgemuth urged the TNRCC
to delay the relaxing of the permitting
process Wohlgemuth mirrored citizens'
concerns about funding for monitoring
and enforcement, and tack of public
input in the permitting process
She reversed her stand in a letter
presented to the panel but not read at
last Wednesday's hearing
"The extraordinarily poor condition
of the Bosque River warrants your cap-
ful consideration of options necessary
to improve the rivef's quality, includ-
ing the delayed implementation of
Subchapter K for the Bosque River, or
the temporary restriction of new and
existing CAFO expansion until satis-
factory water quality improvement is
achieved," she told the panel in an April
21 letter.
“I favor permitting by rule for CAFOs
as a way to shift resources from an
unwarranted and cumbersome permit-
ting process to monitoring, enforcement,
and compliance," read Wohlgemuth's
See HEARINGS, Page 2A
John A. Lomax Gathering — Tribute To AJIream
Gathering, Related Activities Planned May 21 In Meridian
By Joe Marchman
SPECIAL TO THE CLIfTON RECORD
MERIDIAN — As a boy in Bosque
County, just north of Meridian, John
A. Lomax heard the cowboys yodelling
to their cows as they moved along the
Chisholm Trail, “Get along little dogie,
get along.”
Lomax became interested in the cow-
boys' plaintive tunes, and began to col-
lect them. When he set off for college,
at the bottom of his trunk, tied with a
cotton string, he included a small roll
of these cowboy ballads. Thus, his mea-
ger cowboy songs, written out on
scratch pads and pieces of cardboard,
were the beginnings of a living Ameri-
can folk song collection that was to gain
for him the fame of universally being
considered the foremost authority on
American folk culture.
At college, Lomax showed the “bat-
tered’manuscripts” to his English pro-
fessor at the University of Texas. He
was informed that these tall tales of
Texas were pf little value when com-
' pared to the “classic sagas" and tall
tales of Beowulf. That, in fact, fron-
tier literature was tawdry, cheap, and
unworthy of his efforts.
Clifton Junk Vehicle
Ordinance Approved
John A. Lomax
(Photo Circa 1898)
Citx Pool To Open On Satin dux. Max 27
ton dealership. Bids received included.
• Gloff — $17,150 per vehicle. ^
• Orange Ford/Lincoln, Beaumont —
$16,733 per vehicle.
• Ted Arendale Ford, Arlington —
$16,574 per vehicle.
Bosque County Sheriff Tim S. Gage
told the court that the vehicles bid are
identical, with the exception of a
driver's-side spotlight installed on the
cars from Gloff. Gage estimated the
spotlight’s cost at $150, installed.
Noting that the other two bids must
have the cost of the spotlight added,
and the expense of travel to pick up
the vehicles, the court agreed to ac-
cept the bid from Gloff Motors.
Vehicles to be obtained are 1995 Ford
Crown Victorias with special police
equipment packages installed. The ve-
hicles are similar to those purchased
for the Clifton Police Department last
year.
Computer Purchase Okayed
Ths court agreed to spend $2,400 on
a new computer system for Precinct 2
Justice of the Peace Alvin James’ of-
fice. The system is similar to on,. pur-
chased earlier this year for Pet. 1,
Justice of the FVace Bennett Morrow's
office ,
See COURT. Page 2A
By David W. Anderson
GENERAL ASSIGNMENTS EDITOR
CLIFTON - The City Council
unanimously approved amendments to
the junk vehicle ordinance after the
third public hearing last week.
Philip E Harmon, owner of Phil’s
Wrecker Service, expressed concern
that the amendments will affect stor-
age of vehicles towed by his company
to his storage facility.
“I have a vehicle storage facility li-
cense. I am licensed by the State of
Texas and the Texas Railroad Commis-
sion," Harmon told the Council.
"I would like to be considered ex-
empt from the ordinance, due to my
being licensed by the state, the way
automobile dealers are exempt," he
said.
Harmon's main concern was with
vehicles left at his lot past the 45-day
limit imposed by the proposed changes.
Some vehicles remain longer due to
requests from law enforcement agen-
cies investigating incidents involving
the vehicles.
"You’re already complying now. The
vehicles being held longer are under
your shed, which is out of sight any-
way,” said Alderman James Heid dur-
ing the discussion.
"You’re okay with what you’re doing
even under the new ordinance," Heid
said. f
“The key is that the long-tefmers are
kept out of sight," added Mayor Tru-
man Blum. ,
Closing the hearing, the council ap-
proved the proposed ordinance amend-
ments, which become effective 30 days
after publication in this issue of The
Clifton Record.
Pool Manager Hired, Council
Updated On Plans
Clifton resident Joy Creech has been
hired as municipal pool manager for
the summer. Creech was one of two
applicants for the managerial position.
Creech noted that four lifeguards will
return from last year, including
Heather Henrichs, Ty Henrichs, Josh
Gregory, and Wade Morton. Potential
hirees include' Carrie Dixon, Betsy
Spitzer. and Casey Thiebaud. One other
application hfcs been received and is
being considered, but the manager did
not have the name during her report
to the Council.
Creech expressed the desire to hold
Red Cross Certification classes at the
pool in the future. Council members
encouraged her to proceed.
Two sessions of swimming lessons
are planned. More sessions will be
added if the need warrants, she said.
She also told the Council that Gennie
See COUNCIL, Page 4A
It was not until he entered Harvard,
while working on his Masters degree,
that he received the enthusiastic reas-
surances of Professors George Lyman
Kittndge and Barrett Wendell. At last,
armed with the support of his Harvard
English professors, he sent 1,000 let-
ters to newspapers in America’s south
and west seeking folk ballad material.
The response was overwhelming.
Now began the exciting, and often
precarious, career of this dauntless
ballad hunter With an ancient
Ediphone strapped to his saddle, he
travelled from Texas to Wyoming, writ-
ing down the songs of the cowboys
around.the campfires, along the cattle
trails, and in frontier saloons.
Lomax received a Sheldon Fellow-
ship from Harvard. The fellowship was
followed by grants from the
Guggenheim Foundation, the Carnegie
Foundation, and the Library of Con-
gress. This financial encouragement
expanded his adventures into the
dimly-lit alleys of New Orleans' Negro
section, into the dining halls of peni-
tentiaries filled with stripe-suited col-
ored inmates who sang wonderful
spirituals, and “sinful" work songs, into
the fields of cotton plantations, min-
ing towns, and the lumber camps of
the northwest.
John Lomax searched America’s
nooks and crannies for new songs He
See LOMAX, Page IA
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Smith, W. Leon. The Clifton Record (Clifton, Tex.), Vol. 100, No. 20, Ed. 1 Wednesday, May 17, 1995, newspaper, May 17, 1995; Clifton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth787981/m1/1/?q=california+crossing: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Nellie Pederson Civic Library.