Sunday Search: The Samuel Ardis Mystery

One of the first things I noticed when I initially began compiling my family tree was how many ancestors grew up not knowing either their mother or their father. One of the other examples that I have previously written about was that of Jacob Worth who remains interred with his fellow Union soldiers at the bottom of Mobile Bay having fallen victim to a Confederate torpedo while aboard the USS Tecumseh. This is a tragic tale but one which has the documents and facts by which we can determine exactly what happened. That isn’t always the case which is what I faced when looking at the life and death of my great great grandfather Samuel Warner Ardis.

The day following his early demise, on Monday, September 1, 1902, The Philadelphia Inquirer printed a story under the sensationalize headline “DEATH USED PHILADELPHIA AS A TARGET” with one of the many bulleted subheads stating “Element of Mystery in Case of Samuel W. Ardis Dispelled by Investigation”. Having been printed only a day following his death, the coroner’s inquest was still pending but the details suggested that heart disease played a factor. However, some of the details remained a bit fuzzy.   

To that point the investigation suggested that Samuel Ardis, who was employed as a clerk with the Reading Railway Company, was taken in by a stranger on his way home after falling ill shortly after his departure from work. Early the following morning, Sunday, the police were notified that Samuel Ardis had died suddenly at the house at some point during the night. When questioned later, my great great grandmother stated, according to the report that she was in “total ignorance of her husband’s movements since Saturday”.

While the autopsy later revealed, and was recorded on his death certificate, that the cause of death was pneumonia, we will never have a complete picture as to what transpired that night. The only facts that we know are that he died just over a month after his 3 month old son, Thomas J. Ardis, passed away and left his wife to care for their only remaining child, my great grandmother, Sarah Mabel Ardis, who turned three only four days after he baby brother died. In the span of just over a month, my great grandmother lost her father and her brother with her birthday falling in between. I can’t imagine what must have been going through her, or my great great grandmother’s, mind as all of this is happening.

We know a little but the mystery, and questions, still remain… Did he knock on a door or was he found and brought inside? Did he know the people / person who took him in? If so, how did they know one another? Did he know that he was sick? Did anyone notice at the office or was he seemingly ‘fine’? Why weren’t there any signs that this could happen? All these questions I want to have answers to but know that will probably never happen.

The Naïveté Of The Transition

Every time this happens I can’t help but think, well isn’t that cute! Governor Corbett did the same thing when he won the election in 2010 and not Tom Wolf (in sheep’s clothing) is doing the same thing during his transition. In summary, as was reported in The Philadelphia Inquirer on Wednesday, he “announced an ethics policy for transition-team advisers that includes an absolute gift ban, and said he would curb the practice of giving no-bid contracts to private law firms when he takes office.”

Even though this thought process and temporary stance is more prevalent the further left the politician is on the political spectrum, this isn’t a naïve mentality solely associated with one party over the other. Whether they truly believe this or not it all comes down to what the public wants to hear and, more specifically, what their base wants to hear. It is a moment during the political process when they believe in their invincibility allowing their political IQ to take a significant, albeit momentary, dip. I guess you could say that each politician has their Thomas More moment and this statement is just that for many political figures.

This seemingly simple act is indicative of the kind of grandiose politics that is to be expected in the current system and it is the reason why things are so polarized. Too many people now view politicians as a means to escape their current reality rather than changing their own station in life. Those politicians see this and know that the kind of statements and stances that need to be taken have to reflect a means of false hope. And that is all this really is as there is no way that this stance will hold and is probably why the letter released by the campaign specifies that that the ‘gift ban’ applies to the transition team with no mention of the staff that he will have in place once he takes office.

Whether we like it or not, politics is a game of give and take. Gifts and privileges are part of that game both of which are completely legal if they are declared. This give and take is the means to accomplish the political goals. What this distills down to is that every politician, no matter the words they speak or letters they release to the press, plays this game. So those who claim to not take these gifts are the ones that refuse to maintain any level of actual transparency. But they tell the electorate what they want to hear so the façade hold up.

Bringing Equality To The Courtroom

Pennsylvania House of Representatives

I have been keeping an eye on the state legislature for the past couple of weeks in the hope that actions would be taken to uphold previously passed legislation designed to curb the plethora of firearms regulations that are constantly being debated across the state under the public and media radar. While firearms preemption has long since been enacted, these state measures have largely been ignored by those who refuse to understand firearms and insist on restricting our rights. This week the Pennsylvania legislature took a step forward by providing additional means for citizens of the commonwealth to protect their second amendment rights. You can imagine my relief when I received the following email from the NRA Institute for Legislative Action:

After four years of effort, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives finally passed critical firearms preemption legislation. Yesterday, the state House voted to concur on the Senate amendments to House Bill 80 by an overwhelming 138 to 56 vote. HB 80, when signed into law, will strengthen the state firearms preemption statute to further ensure that firearm and ammunition laws are consistent throughout Pennsylvania.

State firearms preemption was originally enacted by the Pennsylvania Legislature to avoid the possibility of 2,639 separate firearm laws across the Commonwealth. However, over recent years, more than fifty localities have enacted gun control ordinances in violation of the current state firearms preemption law, creating a myriad of local gun laws that make compliance difficult for responsible gun owners. HB 80 will provide a way for responsible gun owners to hold these municipalities responsible for infringing on our Second Amendment rights.

Contrary to reports from the Philadelphia Inquirer and statement made by other politicians, this is NOT a means of weakening the laws that we all agree must be enforced against straw purchasers. That is NOT what this legislation is designed to do and this is not how it should be applied. We all agree that those who break the law should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Additionally, the vast majority of firearms owners support stiffer penalties for those who are found guilty of breaking those laws especially those found guilty of illegally purchasing firearms.

The problem lies in that those who support “common sense firearms legislation” don’t have any common sense when it comes to firearms or the second amendment. Law abiding gun owners are constantly going out of their way to accommodate state, local, and federal laws no matter how absurd they really are but this is not enough for the Bloomberg devotees. There are already enough laws on the books that we abide by, many of which we disagree with but follow, and we should not face further regulation and restrictions of our rights.

So, ignoring the liberal hype and media mongers, what is the real purpose of this legislation? Essentially, the law allows citizens of the commonwealth to bring suit against local and state agencies with the assistance of national organizations such as the NRA, 2^nd Amendment Foundation, National Association for Gun Rights, etc. Laws and regulations are ever changing in the commonwealth thanks to the actions of irrational hoplophobes and this strengthening legislation is a means to even the legal playing field as many of us do not have the means to defend our rights in the courtroom. After all, we are only looking for equality, the ability to exercise our rights without fear of the repercussions and a means of support if we are refused those rights and we are forced to fight for them. Of course, there is also this little piece of legislation in Pennsylvania law which can be found in Article I, Section 21 of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania which states the following:

“The right of the citizens to bear arms in defense of themselves and the State shall not be questioned.”