North Carolina Newspapers

a Year Less Than 3c a Week ESTABUSHeFi916 Congressman Cooley Issues Report On Farm Program By H. D. COOLEY During the fifteen years I hav served on the House Committet on Agriculture, that Committe has been remarkably free of par tisan politics. During that fiftee years more legislation beneficia to farmers has been enacted b . the Congress of this Country than | had been enacted in all of th } ■ previous decades of our past his- [ tory. Having participated in th'‘ j preparation and passage of the i numerous bills which have mad ! ; possible the well-rounded farm ! program we now have. I naturall take great pride in my member ship on that great Committee Actually, I am the only North Carolinian who has served on the House Committee on Agricultur- in over one hundred and four years, and now by virture of my service, I am Chairman of the Committee. Our present farm program is a program of many parts. It has been tried and tested, and has ser ved the cause cf agriculture ex ceedingly well, both in time . of peace and in time of war. Under this prograrn the farmers of the Nation have enjoyed a higher de gree of prosoerity than they have ever before enjoyed.'The program on non-perishable basic commodi ties has been most successful. The part of the program that deals with perishable non-storable com modities has shown weakness and imperfection. Division, and Dr. R. E. Earp will be in the Johnston County Courthouse at 9:00 a. m. on Monday, August 1st, for the purpose of hearing any indivi- duais or delegations who might wish to present road problems. Taleot Contests for Farm Week One of the many entertainment; eatures of the 1949 Farm and I Home Week at State College,! August 8 to 11, will be a series ofj daily talent contests offering The men irjtfe^eture.are: Mr. Leon Woodruff, chairman of the Building Qomihiit66 ot-tlite Selma Baotist C!hurr*?i* w r t nrizes totaling ^160, says John W.it^ and Mr K au ^nuren, Kev. H. B. Land, "Joodman, assistant director of the! - ’ h ^ airman of the Building Fund State College Extension Service. ^ holds a carpenters square and a hand saw -n V T .u hand;-f/IrrLand;bolds the Bible and Mr Creech holds a There will be no limit on t^e . ... ' a bag 1-. CONGRESSMAN Unfortunately, our very valu able farm program was endanger ed and imjieriled in the dying hours of the 80th Congress, Poli tically ambitious men, inspired by an intemperate zeal to elect them selves to public office, brought terrific pressure to bear bn the Republican members of the 80th Congress. As a result of .this poli tical pressure, at daybreak- on Sunday morning,.- iJupe ,20, 1948, the; Republican ■ sjxpijjsiic^^s ‘ ” ‘ Bill was forced through the House of Representatives. Not even its sponsors understood its provisions, and this we now well know. When the searchlight of truth was play ed upon it, the farmers of Ameri ca knew it for what it really was. It was a yoke of thorns for the necks of farmers and if it should become the law of the land, it would bleed our farmers white and drive them into bankruptcy. lATien the 81 st Congress con vened in January, I became Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture. My very first of ficial act was to appoint a Sub committee to study and to inter pret the Aiken Bill, line by line and paragraph by paragraph, to the end that the truth might be known concerning its provisions When this study had been con cluded we set out to do two things. First, to repeal the Aiken Bill and to save the farm program which had served the farmers of the Na tion so well. Second, to strength en and to perfect that program, to implement, to supplemen, and to improve it in every way possible. elect to buy live hogs, it is plain to see that immediately the gov ernment would be in the hog rais ing business, in the feed business, in the vaccination business, in the slaughterhouse business, and in the storage business. Even afee; the hogs had been purchased, vaccinated, fed, slaughtered, and stored, they, would have to be sold in world markets- outside of the United States. To sell them back ino the American market would defeat the objective of the pro gram. If dressed hogs were pur chased we would still be faced with a gigantic storage problem. Pork starts to deteniorate in stor age after 10 or 12 months. So, it is plain to see that we might conceivably have .under such a program a billion pounds of spoil ed meat. This, added to 60^00,000 pounds, of rotten eggs an^ tons upon ton's of rotten potatoes and: other vital and valuable, fop^sutfs, might pltiipately, 4estrpv,.t. ■ " — ^ ^ this situation', we started'out to'"db something about it in the hope we might provide a different method; a more practical and more etfective method, of sup- oorting the prices of perishable commodities. We sought a method which would eliminate the future oossibility that tremendous quan- '.ities of foodstuffs might again be ^cumulated at a terrific cost, onlyj to be permitted to rot and decay I while millions of people were suf- ering from hunger. Our great Secretary of Agriculture came orward with a proposal that the 'aw be amended or clarified so as to permit the use of production '•ayment.s. Under this proposal Producers v/ould be required to nake every reasonable effort to ■:eep supply in line with demand. If, because of forces beyond their control, a surplus were still pro kind of talent entered, Mr. Good man said. He suggested su-ch things as choruses, solos, musical instruments, ballads', recitations, folk dancing and stunts. The North Carolina Farm Bureau Fed eration is donating the funds for the talent contest. Any farm group or individual may enter. Elimination contests each day will screen entries down to four to be heard on the, even ing programs of August 8, 9 and 10. The winners - of each evening show will copipete for final hon- . , . . ors and prizes on the evening of instrumentaLm the re- .August 11. ^ , novating of the .auditorium and A first prize of $25 and a seconc’F^® raising of the incmey necas- face-liftift-g;. full of moneyi-whicA members and friends contributed to the fund. The Selma Baptist Church justly proud of the committees ot which the two,men, standing by their pastor Are ctiairm.an. They prize of $15 will be at stake eap evening, including the final even ing.. Entries must be in by Aug ust 1. Persons interested shoul-’ notify M. E. Starnes, Extension Division, State College Station, Raleigh, N. C. Several Other entertainmen' features have been planned fo the week. Among these is a qui^ .show to be directed bv Bob Hawk nationally known radio quizmas ter, - ' Daytime programs at Fav'wv arid ;.Hom,e 'W’e;ek will- .bej-deyofed t' ^ases of farming and homemnk ing: Among the featured speakn- s are Secretary of Agricul ^u •' Charles F. Brannan and North Carolina’s own Harold D. Coole •. chairman of the House Agricul tural Committee. When we examined the uro gram on perishable commodities we found th.at it had proven to be woefully wasteful and expensive. On the potato program, alone, the government had sustained a loss of $408,000,000. On the price sup port program for eggs the govern ment had accumulated 60,000,000 pounds of powered eggs at a total cost to the taxpayers of .'584,000,- 000. In supporting the prices of wool, even a storable commodity, we had sustained a loss in excess of $80,000,000. Not only had the. government suffered tremendous financial losses, but commodities had been diverted from normal markets and away from the mouths of hungry people, only to decay and rot. Tons and trainloads of potatoes v.'ere actually destroy ed, permitted tc rot, or be fed to hogs. 60,000,000 pounds of pow dered eggs are now deteriorating in storage. If, under the present program the price of hogs should decline below the support level of $16.50 per hundred weight, it would then be necessary for the Secretary of Agriculture to step in and to buy either live hogs from the fanners or dressed hogs from the packers, and ho might be required to buy as much as a bil lion pounds of pork. Should he with a break in prices, the surplus would be permitted to move on into the market places to be sold “’or the best price obtainable. The government would then sten i*i and make up the difference be tween the average price which the farmer received and the price in dicated by the “price supnort standard” as fair and reasonable and just, and the production pay ments would protect the farmer, commodities at the lower price, and the consumer could obtain Thus, we would avoid the ex pense of buying, storing, shipping, and selling, and most important of all we would avoid the waste of valuable foodstuffs in the future. With these two propositions, irst the repeal of the Aiken Bill and second, the production pay ment program, we came before the House of Representatives last week the House took action. On our first proposition, we won a great victory. By an overwhelm ing vote the House of Represen tatives repudiated and repealed the Aiken Bill—the monstrosity which was threatening to destroy the farmers of this Nation. This action, which led to the repeal o'' the Aiken Bill, started in the House Committee on Agriculture. It was not the result of a coalition nor was it born of conspiracy. It was a forthright and open e'fort on the part of the 17 Democrats Boll Weevils Are On the Increase ;sary' for the; face-liftift'g;. Both committees have sj^nt.much time and' -energy in directing tjie work and raising the .Jn^pe'y. The Building Fund; Gommiftee has lead thb: church ip’*' a' plan for at least a hundred members to contribute fiftytcerit "a 'Week to the, building fund until the debtl? paid, and others to paj .as thes are able. As you enter.the i|stuble of the, hi^gh, you step iWon a ,large: tii» ■pass thi^ugJi' wo windowed swingingT doors. The first thing to takef.your eye in the auditorium are the pastel green ivory ceiling, pastel green walls. As you are looking at the ceiling, ,vou stand in awe at the [lovely lantern. The rest of the. Ilip-hts fuI-'-as, the auaitorimn, yd iVarket Opens,- $50 Average Valdosta, Ga.—Flue-cui'ed to bacco farmers started their golden harvest to market Monday anc' received an estimated $50 per hundred pounds on the 22 mar kets of. the Geiorgiai-Florida Belt The opening price this year ap peared to be slightly under that oi last year, when the belt-wide figure reached' a record $53.20 Early reports from the markets indicated opening-day prices average from $1 to $2 a hundred below the ,1948 opening. Department of Agriculture esti mates were even lower. ’They put general averages at typical mar kets from $45 to $50 a hundred. But, even so, this year’s bumper turn-out of quality leaf may more than Piake up for the differe^cc ystimatted-- yeabT- pnd the...a,'g7. :gpasp quSlity is said”'to be bettSf .J.1 1 - .1 A ’/» COMMANDER WILBUR D. PERKINS Legion Commander Wilbur D. Perkins, a stout jollyLf ^e left France and em- native of Selma, who has played barked at Hoboken, N. Y., and Santa Claus to hundreds of child-mustered out at Mitchell was recently elected ren, was recently elected com ■pander of American Legion Pos No. 141. Wilbur announced h^s irrival in Selma May il, 1896 in I home on East Railroad. From hat day until this he. ha^. beer interested m the town and h= Hayed a maior role in helping develop its-civic ciubs. -■-Iis father ®as 4he lat^.,D#vi4,-:'E>}: Perkins o' By JOHN E. PILAND County Agent The Boll Weevil infestation the middle cotton counties North Carolina, which includes Johnston has almost doubled the last ten days. The Boll Weevil migration is starting now and the average infestation of the coun ties is between thirty and thirty- five percent. This is to sav that out of 100 squares in the average cotton field at this time there are thirty to thirty-five them being punctured either partially or totally destroyed. Many fields that have not shown serious infestation up-to-date, are beginning to show heav.y infestation since weevils are traveling extensively from other fields. Indications from many John ston County fields where dust has been used are showing decidedly that Boll Weevil infe.station can be keot down by the use of pro- ■ler poisons and frequent dusting. A dusting every five days with at least ten pounds of 3-5-40 or twenty per cent Toxaphene is re commended to keep infestation down. We can still make a crop of cotton in Johnston County in spite of the Boll Weevils with just a fair break on the weather and proper dusting, it is believed. ’Th's cannot be however with Boll Weevils destroying thirty to fift^ percent of the squares as they form. (See C Page Four) lights are concealed in the ceiling. The aisles are covered with Alerander-Smith’s new Barbazin two-tone rose carpet. The chiirch has given above $1800.00 to’ missions and bene volent causes, while at the same time carrying on this large re novating program. The church D trying to uphold THE GREAT COMMISSION of our I.ord. Charlie Sfraughn Is With Insurance Co. Charlie Strau.ghn has resigned his position with the Town of Selma and Monday accepted work ■Vith the Durham Life Insurance Comoany of Durham: His territory embraces-Debit No 7 which in- •ludes Selma, Wilson’s Mills. Mic- I'o, Kenly, Lucama and Pine Level. Mr. Straughn went with the Town of Selma in 1937. In the oast 12 years he has served as chief of police, assistant chief, night policeman and tax collector. Indeliendents Lost to Selma Lions Cluh (See A Page Four I Children Must Report On 15 Books By August 4th to Be Eligible for Certificates The Reading Hour sponsored by the Selma Woman’s Club will continue to meet each Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 10 o’ clock. The attendance has been exceptionally good this summer, according to Mrs. W. B. Warren. Each child who reads and makes a record of as many as 15 'cooks will receive a certificate. The books must be read and the report record book given to Miss Edith Stafford, county library summer worker by Thursday, August 4th. All children cf the community are invited to attend regularly. Loaded Car Fenders Cause Accident Last Thursday Mr. Kermit Raper of the Stancil Chapel sec tion had his car loaded with peo ple who had been barning tobacco. Included in the load were some young people on the fenders of the car which blocked his view. With out seeing the wagon in front of him Mr. Rapers car plowed into the wagon. Miss Margie Lee Davis was one of the fender riders and got her leg scraped and bruised rather badly. The others on the car were not hurt. The wagon carried Bobby Davis Ralph Stancil, Billy Narron, and Preston Narimn. Billy Narron re ceived a brdken leg and is in Woodard-Herring Hospital. The Indenendant soft ball team ost its first game this season to the Lions on Tuesday night. The Kiwanis team defeated the I'F’Y, Julian Avery and R. E. Suber appeared in the Kiwanis line up for the first time and performed very well for the winning Kiwan- ians. .Mr. Avery batted from th- left side of the plate as well as the right. The Lions and VFW" meet at 7:30 Friday night and the Kiwan- mns and Independants meet at 8:30. Selma Boy Scout Gives Name of Bird The pic Last week’s edition of -lohnstonian-Sun carried the ture of a Strange bird, which ■John H. "Williams found while olowing on Sharpe street. Max Peedin, a senior patrol leader for Selma Boy Scout "troop No. 32, who is now studying birds to earn a merit badge identified the bird is a kingfisher. The bird breeds in coastal sand-banks, ac cording to Max. The Selma Scout has gone far enough' in hi; bird studies that he can identify from 35 to 4,5 birds in the field. To earn the Scout merit badge he is .studying for, it is necessary to know only 40 birds on sight. More leaf, mostly low, and''fair grade, turned up Monday than at the 1948 coening. Governmen' estimated leaf .prices were off ac cordingly—fi-om $4 a hundred fo' good lemon to $11 for low orange. Lots of fair to fine lugs also ap peared. They were off only an es timated $1 to $3 from last year’s opening. There is reported to be a bigger ratio of lemon lugs in this year’s crop than la.st but opening day of ferings were scant. The price, by government estimates, was down —$1 for good lemon and $3 for choice and fair grades. All of the .some 90 tar-paper and tin roofed warehouses of the belt were packed with tobacco— and tobapco men. The weathe was hot and white-collar buyers sweated it out with shirt-sleeved auctioneers, sun-browned farmers and warehouse workers. There was money-spending and festivity as the markets ended their five and a half hour sche dule and the steamy, hot day drew to a cto.'^e. Merchants were well stocked for the outpouring o f to bacco money and many leaf-sell ers didn’t lose any time beginning to spend. Busine.ss picked up, too, at en tertainment .spots. Sales moved briskly throughout the market day. "Volume generally was well ahead of last ye ar. The Denartment of y^griculture estimated that about 10 of every 00 at the markets were dissatis- ied enough with prices to turn their tobacco into the Stabilization Corporation under the govern ment loan orogram. This was a higher percentage than at last ■ear’s opening but the trend may change as the marketing con tinues. Only choice lemon lugs sold for less than the support price—$59 a hundred comnared with $60. This grade was estimated to be down $3 in price from last year. The average sunport price of $42.50 for all grades of tobacco is only $1.40 less than last year. The big .Statesboro market set what growers hope will be a belt- wise trend by turning loose $12,- 536 more than at the 1948 open ing day. The average price was off $1.41—from .$49.4140 $48—but f-e volume was up from 596,366 oounds to 640,000. (See B Page Four) Field, N. Y. Perkins returned to Selma after the war and applied at Ward-Earp Co., for work. He was "sent to the firm’s Zebulon store to dc book keeping. After one year the Ze- bulon store was consolidated with the Selma store and Perkins wept with S. G. Flowers of Zebulon, where he remained for two years. Jp. the tfall of .■I-9-32'4ie' -tobk-bexHE'f- _ . - , JE6ipmg weivk jwith the Pine LeVet" ;;^rciage was Laura Vinson, p'bw Oil Co,, where he was uhdei'Hhe oft-Mt&ai»-Eiiz:a..Jlate. .H. B. Hales- until hg .left in Seth vinsS’n' of Route 8, Siinitlf-^ne pSII -fef 3 'ield. He had f've brothers who'/ For the next few years Perkins lied when quite young. One sis-[did clerical work for several firms er, Mrs. Mildred Perkins Soencerjin and about Selma. In 1941 he" cow lives in Oakland. Calif. [wept with Clean-M.-Right Clean- Perkins ’ first attended school in'ers of Selma. For the past two a wooden building which was years he has been -with Slema located at the corner of Gree’c Cleaners and Dyers,' furnishing and 'Waddell street, the site now his own car, doing pick-up and occunied by L. O. Davis’ home, delivery service on a commission His first teacher was Mrs. Mamie basis. Candler, now living. He dues no' ■ecall who wa.s school suoerinten- ■lent. Supt. B. F. Hassell was in harge of the institution when ■ Perkins has always been stout and was called “Fatty” when a boy going to school. Whed, 14 years old he weighed 185 noiinds. "Vilbur reached high school. P-r- He has never put himself return to NEWARK Mr. and Mrs. Theodore Page of Newark, N. J., left Monday night returning home after visiting Mr. Page’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Page of 406 Sellers street, for 10 days. Sunday they visited Mr. and Mrs. John Wood of Sel ma. Mr. Page has made Newark his home since he was discharged from the army in 1945. kins graduated in a class of three m 1915. The other two graduates '■ere Stella Etheredge and Lola Gurley. Base ball was played at school when Wilbur was a young man, hut the game was called three base cat at that time. Perkins caught for the school team one season. He 'also played football, but that .game was somewhat di'- 'erent from the grid iron contests of today. He plaved guard in basketball. He did not have a great deal of time for work due to his domestic duties. At home he learned to cook, milk cows and d other household work. Young Perkins used to milk four cows every morning and deliver the milk to customers in Selma. When Perkins was a boy Selma used to have an annua! Water- mellon and Baby Show. He re calls the town would be full of people for these celebrations. He also spoke of Field Dav, that used to be held in Smithfield once a year. A male quartet comnosed o' Paul Horrell, and himself, won the championship for three con secutive years. Wilbur’s first job with a salary was working in Selma post office as clerk for eight months. rMs. A. Z. Pearce was postmistresses at the time. His next job was with Nowell and Richardson Co., which was located on the site now occupied by Floyd C. Price and Sons. He was a clerk in the stoi-e and worked under the late J, D. Jeffreys. After a year and a half he left to take a business course at King’s Business College iP Ral eigh. For the next 11 months he studied stenotyping and account ing. Upon returning to Selma he took a bookkeeper’s job with th“ Southern Cotton Oil Co., N. E. Edgerton was manager and W. H. Call was ca.shier of the company at that time. In June of 1918 Per kins resigned and volunteered for service in World War I. He re ceived his basic training at Fort McPherson,’ Atlanta, Ga., and was assigned to the base hospital medical corps. In August of 1918 he arrived in Brest, France and was assigned to a new base hos pital at Camp Keheron, 10 miles from Brest. The hospital was built especially for flu patients. In June, diet, but instead believes in let ting nature take its course. For several years he took the part of Santa Claus and made a handsome •St. Nicholas, to be loved by all children. On May 9, 1925 he married Miss Hattie Bryant Merritt of Orange County. The Merritt homeplace is located a mile and a half from Chapel Hill on the Pittsboro high way. Mrs. Perkins is a member of the faculty of the Selma High School. She is also active in civic and community projects. Wilbur became a member of the Edgerton Memorial Methodist Church when 12 years old. Rev. W. H. Puckett was church pastor at the time. For six years he was superintendent of the adult de partment. During the past six years he has been general Sunday School superintendent. He is a member of Selma Masonic Lodge No. 320 and was initiated in 1917. The same year he became a mem ber of Selma Chapter RAM No, 65. He was elected to the Com- mandery in Goldsboro in 1918. He took the Shrine in Durham in - 1918 .and was in the second class initiated by the newly organized. Sudan Temnle of New Bern. He is a past master of the Selma Lodge. Perkins is a member of Selma Chapter No. 209 of the Order of the Eastern Star and is a past natron. For five years he was dis trict deputy of Old Roval Fourth District of O. 1s. S., which com- nrised ten counties. He is also a member of the Junior Order of United American Mechanics. When the Selma Kiwanis Club was organized 25 years ago, he was one of its charter members. He is now secretary of the club, a oosition he has held for five years. Before being made commander of the local post of the American Legion, recently, Perkins served, as secretary and chaplain. He was the first commander of Selma Post No. 5955 of Veterans of For eign Wars, when it was organized. Perkins has always been musi cally inclined. When a young man he tried to develop his talent, but struck his "Waterloo in trying to learn the piano. He studied for eight months under Mrs. M. R. (See D Page Fonr)