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Letters to the Editor

We welcome your opinions and letters – with name and address. We will edit when necessary. Include your name, address and phone number for verification. Mail them to Bay Weekly, P.O. Box 358, Deale, MD 20751 • E-mail them to [email protected]. or submit your letters on line, click here

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Driving in the Fast Lane

Dear Bay Weekly:

Maggi Gunnels’ cautionary letter [Vol. xv, No. 16: April 19] about traffic on Routes 2 and 258 in Southern Anne Arundel County struck home with me. The first time I drove east on Route 258, I said, “I want to live here so I can drive down this road.” I moved to Churchton in 1991 and have commuted to Washington ever since.

The daily drive on Rt. 258, also called Bayside Road, has been a delight, particularly after leaving the frenetic frenzy of Route 4. Last week, a red fox ran across the road, fluffy tail with paintbrush tip flowing in the breeze.

But as Gunnels reports, the tenor of Rt. 258 has changed from country road to drag strip. Traffic volume has increased noticeably. And who are those people who fly by, dangerously passing on the right as 258 crosses Route 2?

In the past, it was common for Deale area folks to stop on the shoulder and help a slow moving turtle cross. What about the turtles? What about us? Who are these people?

—M.L. Faunce, Churchton

Remembering Hildreth

Dear Bay Weekly:

I appreciated the tribute to Hildreth Morton [Vol. xv, No. 17: April 26]. I greatly admired Hildreth and her Bittersweet Hill Nursery, starting from when I first met her when I was a child nearly 40 years ago. Bittersweet has always been unique, owing to Hildreth’s artistic soul. The casual beauty of Bittersweet Hill Nursery always gives me a sense of serenity and living as one with nature. Hildreth Morton was a lovely lady both inside and out. She embodied grit, determination, intelligence and independence all wrapped up in a beautiful, friendly, smiling demeanor. Visiting her at Bittersweet was always inspirational for me, as a gardener, an artist and as a woman.

— Jenny Clagett, Annapolis

… But with a Geranium

Dear Bay Weekly:

I just read Sandra Martin’s article on Hildreth Morton. It was beautiful … until the very end. Anyone who ever met Mrs. Morton, or anyone who knew flowers, would know that the flower she ALWAYS wore in her hair, was a geranium, not a hibiscus as stated in the article. I started to read the article thinking, here’s someone who must have really known Mrs. Morton, a great lady. But if you knew Mrs. Morton, you would know she most always wore a geranium in her hair, not a hibiscus! I felt that the writer wasn’t qualified to write the article. Please, if you haven’t already, post a correction in your paper.

— Shane Spindle, Arlington, Va.

Editor’s reply: I cannot retract what I have seen with my own eyes. I don’t deny geranium; but hybiscus sticks with me.

On Jug Bay, Leopold Did Right

Dear Bay Weekly:

Advocates for Herring Bay were pleased to read that Anne Arundel County Executive John Leopold has taken quick and decisive action to protect the Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary. Faced with the prospect of large-scale development that would have threatened the sanctuary’s watershed and habitat, Mr. Leopold has forged an agreement to purchase the site and preserve it as parkland. Securing this property is an important and tangible step toward improving the health of the Bay and its tributaries. We commend Mr. Leopold for his leadership on this issue and hope that the county council will help make the acquisition a reality.

—Kathleen Gramp:

President, Advocates for Herring Bay