Title: Evangeline Archer's Letters to the Editor and Such (1955 – 1979) – Part 3 of 5

Letters to the Editor can reveal the heart and spirit of a person and remind us of the issues of the day. This five-part series contains many of Evangeline Archer’s Letters to the Editor. All are from the Northwest Arkansas Times.

Oct 2, 1969
[Must have been before honeysuckle was known to be invasive!]
Bush ‘Suckle Anyone?
To the Editor:
We have a hundred or so more bush honeysuckles than we need. These are attractive shrubs, having inconspicuous bloom in early spring, followed by brilliant red berries in fall. The birds are very fond of the berries, which probably is the reason we have so many shrubs from the two we bought and planted.
They are useful for hedges or for individual planting, and transplant easily. We would like to give some of them away, to make room for other plants.
Mrs. Laird Archer
(442-4497)

Mar 25, 1970
Thanks In Order
To the Editor:
Not long-ago Mr. Ernie Deane wrote a letter to the editor in which he stated his opposition to a bill which would have allowed exploitation of our National Forests by commercial lumbering interests.
A recent report on this bill says that “In an unusual move 2-26-70, the House by a vote of 150 yeas to 228 neas refused to even consider (the bill) and thereby issued a stinging blow at commercial lumbering interests which had sought special concessions in national forests.”
We are indebted to numerous persons and numerous agencies for the removal, for the present, of a provision which would have permitted such a dangerous imbalance in our forest uses. But if we can express our thanks to only a few of these men it would help. Mr. John P. Savior (Pa.) and Mr. John D. Dingell (Mich.) were outstanding in opposition. They can be addressed House Office Building, Washington, D. C.
Mrs. Laird Archer
Fayetteville
(Rt. 10)

May 23, 1970
Vote on SST Is Near
(excerpts from her letter)
To the Editor:
Information just received from the Sierra Club says:
“In a matter of days, Congress will face a critical environmental decision: whether to continue funding the SST (supersonic transport). With its design now complete, appropriations are being sought to build a prototype. Mounting scientific evidence shows that building and operating the SST would be a tragic mistake for many reasons. Most alarming are the fears of experts that exhaust vapors left at high altitudes by the SST might upset natural meteorological balances, exposing the earth’s surface to excessive radiation. The fact sheet describes those fears and other hazards including the relentless sonic booms with which the SST threatens us all. If we don’t stop it this will become an irreversible commitment, necessitating a multi-billion dollar public subsidy of a project whose claimed advantages are mere illusions and whose actual advantages are trivial.”
Please write – those of you who are opposed to the waste of $290 million of your money, just as a beginning; money so badly needed for pollution control, urban mass transportation, etc., etc.
Mrs. Laird Archer
Fayetteville

Jul 13, 1970
Material Available
To the Editor:
Not long ago there appeared in your columns a statement to the effect that DDT may not be so bad after all and that we should not be too hasty in condemning its use.
This is of course the attitude promoted by some chemical companies whose pressures are felt even by some of the very governmental agencies which should be most receptive to the facts as established by scientific research, although the government itself has placed some restrictions on the use of DDT.
It would be well, before making any statements which might lead to dangerous permissiveness, to consult reliable information. One of many such is “Since Silent Spring,” available in our own public library.
Mrs. Laird Archer

Sept 9, 1970
Save The Oklawaha!
To the Editor:
Eleven of the most important national conservation organizations have joined together to form The National Coalition to Save the Oklawaha. They say:
“The Cross-Florida Barge Canal, perhaps the Army Corps of Engineers’ most notorious modern day fiasco, is still inching across the northern part of the state, 28 years after Congress authorized it to save war cargoes from the torpedoes of Nazi submarines … but a growing army of concerned citizens together with independent and government authorities have come to realize that the canal is and always was a colossal mistake.”
“Florida’s Governor Claude Kirk recently broke a long silence on the subject and withheld his support pending further studies. And at the federal level Interior Secretary Walter Hickel has promised to review the entire scheme and has asked the Corps for a 15-month moratorium on construction. But the army will not budge until it receives some sign from the White House, so we are asking you to write President Nixon expressing your opposition to the canal.”
Some of you may recall the article in the Reader’s Digest of January 1970, giving the grim details on this $210 million plus project. According to the above statement, there is still a little time in which to protest.
Mrs. Laird Archer
Fayetteville

Feb 18, 1971
Why Innocent?
To the Editor:
The TIMES of February 8 reported that “hundreds of acres of scrub timber were sprayed from the air in Carroll and Madison counties last year … and the program is continuing this year.” The use of 2,4,5-T causes birth malformations in rats and mice and is probably dangerous to man. A scientist reported that 2,4,5-T contains a substance, dioxin, which “appears to be a million times as potent a fetus-deforming agent as the notorious teratogen thalidomide,” as determined by experiments with chick embryos. There would be no expectation or intention on the part of this spray operation, of course, of causing wildlife to ingest enough of this chemical to disturb reproduction, or to allow it to penetrate to ground or surface water. But why we consider a chemical, against which we have been warned, innocent until it has been proved guilty, instead of guilty until it has been proved innocent, is hardly consistent with the respect we pay scientific research.
Mrs. L. Archer
Fayetteville

Aug 19, 1971
Fayetteville Garden Club Hears Contest Winner
(excerpts from the article)
The Fayetteville Garden Club met Wednesday, Aug 11 at the home of Mrs. Dwight Isely, with Mrs. Ralph Barnhart as co-hostess.
The program preceded the business meeting. Mrs. Irene Stearns introduced Ronald Simpson, a high school senior from Rogers. Ronald won a local conservation speech contest, went on to win in the district contest, and was one of three to speak at the state garden club meeting at Hot Springs where he placed first, winning a cash prize of $50.
His topic was “Air Pollution, Today’s Menace.” His talk was concise but covered five major points – What are pollutants? What causes pollution? What are the harmful effects? What are we doing? And What about Arkansas?
Mrs. Archer gave a discussion on Fayetteville’s city incinerator and the Air Pollution Code in Arkansas.

Feb 8, 1972
Remembering Mrs. Ella
To the Editor:
Those who knew Mrs. Ella B. Hurst remember her with affection and appreciate the tribute you paid her. She was a remarkable woman in many ways, one of which I remember in particular.
It was our Morgan saddle horse, Dan, which Mrs. Hurst borrowed each year to ride at the head of the Homecoming parade. Dan was quite tall, light bay, a beautiful and spirited animal.
I myself would not have ventured to ride him in town traffic, least of all in the excitement of the day, with the band playing. Dan was a fine horse, not mean in any way, but he had on several occasions shown me who was the stronger when his restive energy prevailed.
But to Mrs. Hurst this was just what she wanted. I used to hope that she would overlook Homecoming – but no. With side saddle and long skirt she would come for Dan and ride confidently off to the parade, leaving me to await her return with some apprehension for her safety.
The term “spirited” could have served both horse and rider.
Evangeline Archer
Fayetteville

#SaveMarkhamHill #PreserveFayetteville #KeepFayettevilleForested #MarkhamHillHistory

Photo is vintage image of a woman riding sidesaddle, like Ella Hurst and Joy Markhm used to do in the Fayetteville Homecoming parades in the 1950s.