"I'LL MAKE THE ROSES BLOOM IN JANUARY," former Columbia Mayor Squaredeal Coy Downey promised when he ran for the office, and won, in 1978. Downey did not quite fulfill that roses in January promise, but he is responsible for a dogwood planting which greatly increased the dogwood population in town. The roses in late May, above, are on a vine which is over 40 years old, at the Rock House at the corner of Burkesville and Tutt Streets. It was originally growing at Mayor Downey's Pink House, which was taken by Cumberland Parkway (Squaredeal had the stick then; he was the shotcaller and he co-engineered the road to give it the graceful bend north of straight to hit his land). Mr. Downey is out of his semi-retirement. Despite his very active social calendar, he still trades, travels, reads, raises beagle hounds with good papers, hauls the Amish; and as most already know, "Coy sells good wood." He offers free advice to all officeholders who will listen. He is currently looking for a Columbia mayoral candidate to back in 1998.