B(>a wv)
.4> X * w j. i *
SKETCHES
By J. C. R.
liU!5 A?l) HIS PLEBS
Senator Bob Reynolds, recently re-,
turned from a tour of Soviet Russia
and now in the mid3t of a mile-1
a-rainute speaking tour for repeal of
the Eighteenth Amendment, sat at
a table in a. local restaurant Tues-I
day partaking of good old American
ham and telling his friends how
things look on t'other side of the
globe. By his talk, the bystander
could ea3ily assume that Buncombe's
pride and joy cares not a little bit
for the "land of whiskers." Pausing
between bites, the Senator addressed !
his companions something like this:!
"Boy3, I don't like Russia; I don'tlike
Russian vittlea; I don't like the
Russian language; I could never be
a Communist; I don't want to be anything
but just a plain, ordinary North
Carolina Democrat; I'll swear to you!
that 1 wouldn't trade your beautiful
little county of Watauga for the en- j
tire Soviet Union. I visited many
Russian cities, conversed with high;
officials, and mingled with common j
people, and during that tour of many j
hundreds of miles I failed to find one
single unemployed worker, neither did j
1 find one hungry individual, and, fur-;
thermore, not a drunk man did my
eyes behold from the time I left Manhattan
uutil I was again within the
shadow of the Goddess of Liberty.
Prosperity in a mis-managed, misgoverned
country," smiled Bob, "and
crime, poverty and economic chaos in
our own perfectly-governed America."
leaving me restaurant Senator |
Keynoias unKea amis ?iui a pis
nlng tori-driver and a grimy printer,
and ambled along up Main
Street- A couple oi homy-Hatch
farmers followed close behind, and
chuckled 'merrily as "their Bob"
tola em of his adventures abroad;
of hob-nobbing with dukes and
priuces and barons and stuff; of j
feasting on "gooey" conglomcrn- i
uufi, at glittering bonnnct tables;
of war-debts and recognition of
Ked Russia and the "New Deal."
jusi like a neighbor boy returned
from the big city . v . and the folks
who surrounded him were plentyglad
to have him back.
A deposed Democratic dictator,
raw as a piece of beefsteak and mad
aa the devil at everybody, leaned sullenly
against a telephone pole as Senator
Bob and his proletariat admirers
made their way to a waiting cor.
His brows were Arched and his mouth
was drawn into a sarcastic smile. An
innocent looker-on heard the disgruntled
politician mumble a bellicose
challenge to the beaming solon's congeniality.
something like this: "Imagine
a United States Senator walking
up street with a bunch like that.
nn,at .......l.1 if--,.,. -- o ? t-i-i.
t? xvdiu i 4UHA- ui lmiwui miiia
of such an outlandish performance?
Why the blinkety-blank** blank nincompoop
ought to lie deposed . . . he's
destroying the dignity of the office!"
But Bob Reynolds doesn't care
a bit what the gentleman thinks,
and the taxi-driver and the printer
and the farmers go about their
duties in an undisturbed manner
. . . just as if the remarks had never
been made . . . and thank the
Good Lord every now and then that
Senate or no Senate, honor or no
honor, glory or no glory?Bob Tlcy
nolds holds on to the "common
touch" like grim death to a skeleton
! And everybody should remember
that a man doesn't destroy himself,
politically or otherwise, as long
as he sticks to his friends!
OAfig TT1F. POPK. WATSON!
Just to prove that there's a nigger
lurking in the "repeal woodpile," a
brother editor down in the fiat country
puts the following question right
dab up to his readers:
"Are the majority of people in
North Carolina going to let James
F'arley, wet Catholic postmaster general,
dictate to them as to how they
must vote on any question, especially
a moral one?
FARM NOTES
Corn that was damaged by worms
and drouth was cut for silage by C.
A. Shaver of Stanly County and la
now in perfect condition for feeding.
Eastern Carolina cotton growers
report the crop being practically
picked out at this time. The growers
are picking, ginning and selling as
fast as the crop opens.
Good yields of Korean lespedezs
ore reported in Alexander County.
Lee Roy Preslar says he secured 254
bales of hay from less than five
acres.
I . *
'
WAI
An!
VOLl'ME XLV. NUMBER 17
rufeTewis says
he thinks officer
shot police chief
[Boone Boy In Interview with Uniiir
Paper. Tells stor> of Tragedy. Says
He Shot li? Self-Defense and Shows
Bullet Wound Received in Affair:
at Blue Goose. "They Ought Not to
Have Rushed Me." Soys Prisoner, <
Rufe Lewis, held in Caldwell Coun-I
ty jail on a charge of the fata! shoot- J
ing cf Hill Hagaman, Boone police-!
man. gave out his first comprehcn- \
oitc mtcivicw uuu lueaaav, wnen:
Louis H. Wilson of the Lenoir News- j
| Topic interviewed him in his cell in j
the bastile of the neighboring- coun-;
ty. Since Lewis failed to tell The'
! Democrat any details of what he re-1
membered to have happened, the
principal portion of Mr. Wilson's story
is published:
He said he would enter a plea of
"guilty in self-defense," and admitted
that he "shot kim in the arm and
shoulder," but said he thought that
Farthing, a Watauga County deputy ]
sheriff, shot him in the back."
Chief Hagaman, who died Octo-!
ber 10th from wounds allegedly in-1
flicted by Lewis* .32 automatic Colt,;
was raiding the Blue Goose filling
station in Boone for whiskey when
he met his death. He was accompanied
by Albert Farthing, a deputy.
Young "Lewis was told that his |
county citizens were saying that he j
wasn't sorry for Hagaman's death.!
"There's nothing to that," he said.j
"I thought I shot in self-defense and!
I am sorry he's dead."
He admitted being drunk and having
drank & pint and a half of whiskey
during the late part of the day,
and further that the filling station
housed 25 pints of liquor belonging
to him, "hut it was mostly for myself."
Rule, immaculately dressed, calmfflr.nti.ntipd
nn Pnn-o R>
HODGES IS GIVEN i
FEDERAL POSITION!
J
Second Frtrenagv Phun Comes to I
Wataugn In Form of FieW Manager j
for Federal Land Bank. Commission
Arrived Thursday.
Charles U. Hodges of Eocr.c, Route j
2, who for thirty ycar3 has taught
alternately in the schools of the
mountains and the "lowlands, ha; b?en
appointed general field manager for
the Salisoury branch of the Federal
I^and Bank, and his commission arrived
Thursday. Mr. Hodges has been
working temporarily for three weeks
and the lucrative position keeps him
in the Piedmont section most of the
time. The appointment is indefinite,
and the work calls for the supervision
of groups of from six to ten
appraisers.
Mr. Hodges received the second appointment
tn Watauga County under
the present administration, R. L. Clay
of Boone hvaing secured a dopu. y collectorship
some time ago. He is particularly
adapted to his new work, is .
a fine citizen and is receiving the
congratulations of friends on his preferment.
He has been active in Democratic
activities throughout his adult
life, and the appointment, which
came through Congressman Doughton's
office, is largely In appreciation
for his fine party record.
Abram Potter Passes
At Tamarack Home
Abram Potter, 85 years of age, died
at his home at Tamarack on October
ySrafl Funeral services were conducteu
on the following Sunday and interment
took place In the Maine
graveyard. A largo crowd of friends
and relatives were present to pay
their last respects to their aged neighbor
and friend.
Mr. Potter wm bcm and reared
in the Tamarack section and was
well and favorably known throughout
the county. He was a consistent
church member, having joined the
Baptist denomination during his
youth. "Uncle Abe," as he was called
by most everyone, was a good neighbor,
and was never known to speak
harm of his acquaintances. He was
an apt Bible student, and perhaps
read the Scriptures more often than
anyone in his community.
He was married to Mlas Selina
T'nilllnn TX/illroa Pruntv In T 3VS
and was the father of eleven children
and a large number of grandchildren.
Surviving are the following children:
Mrs. General Maine and Johni
nie Potter of Tamarack; Mrs. Enoch
Potter of Meat Camp; Mrs. Martin
i Potter of Jenkins, Ky.; Mrs. Omie
i Martin of Lodl, Va.; Mrs. Jake Potter
of Butler, Tenn.; Mrs. David Mart
tin and Clarence Potter of Shouns
. Tenn; Ira Potter of Ashland; Mrs
> Monroe Ward, of Rominger, anc
i Leonard Potter, of Morganton. Mrs
Potter died nine years ago.
a T
.AU Kjrl
independent Weekly Newsj
BOONE. WATAUGA COTJ1
I
Bridegroom 0
Meets Death
Of Jealous I
Don Wallace, resident of N;?rth |
Fork Township who on last Satur- l i
day took to himself a bride, Tues- !
day left a widow, when be expired j i,
la an Kli/ab.t!tton hospital from I
the effects of a bullet fired point J i
blank into the abdomen, allegedily ]
by Ferd Wilson, neighbor. 1 <
The shooting which occurred on
Sunday evening in the neighbor- <
hood in which both --oang men lived, . >
is believed by officers to have been | i
a result of jealousies existing be- i
tween the two on account of the
young lady, who twenty-four hours (
previous the dead man had prom- ; j
ised to love, honor and cherish. The j ,
tragedy took place, it Is said, near j
the Tennessee line, and from re- ; (
ports The Democrat is able to gath
er, no vvora vas spoken as a pre* j
iude to the shooting. ; 1
WTY. PERRY DIES J
THURSDAY; FOR 40
YEARS A TEACHER
Prominent Cove Creek Citizen Sue- F
cumbs to Brief Illness; Career Centered
About Church Work and the
Schoolroom. One of Founders of
Large High School. Funeral Services
Are Conducted Friday.
William Y. Perry, 6.3 years of age,
and one of the foremost citizens of' m
the Cove Creek section, died at bisllii
home last Thursday evening, after aa ai
illness which had not appeared serious y<
although he had missed going to his ai
work as teacher in the Cove Creek a!
High School for a few days. Reports m
are that his condition was such that c$
no particular anxiety was felt, and tl
that he bad talked to a neighbor over vi
the telephone p few. minutes before
death came. m
Funeral services ware conducted n<
from, f he Cave Creek Baptist Church in
Fritoy afternoon by the pastor,. 01
X A. McKaughan, and interment was sc
in the cemetery nearby. J<
Surviving are the widow and fourirti
children, Thelma, Maude, Don, Grady | pi
and John, all of whom reside in the ai
l Continued on Page 8)
Rev. Armburst Si
i
Declared Agai
A representative crowd, composed g
of citizens from the different sections c
of Watauga County, gathered at the tr
courthouse Monday to hear an ad- bi
dreas by Rev. J. H. Armburst, of A
North Wilkes bo ro, and to subsequent- hi
ly organize a citizens association for !ij
tne teaching of law observance, ouch H
as the one which the visiting minis- tl
ter heads in the neighboring county. R
Rev. Armburst was introduced to ir
his audience by Dr. J. D. Rankin, ei
dean of Appalachian College, and ira- ir
mediately launched into the discus- h
sion of the crime wave which is fi
sweeping the nation and the import- n
ance of the good citizens mailing a ci
solid front against the violation of
the laws of the land. He referred in
the outset to the slaying of Police p
Chief Hill Hagaman, and cited the t
tragedy as sufficient incentive to Wa- v
tauga citizens to organize themselves (
against the common enemy of law- v
lessness. The speaker then went into c
the organization which he helped to r
found in Wilkes and asserted that j.
the citizens' action came on the heels a
of a horrible record of crime?thir- v.
teen men had been murdered within v
twelve months, and that while his v,
mass meeting was being held a foul
murder was committed. ^
Only one murder has occurred In s
Wilkes since the formation of the orCongressman
Doughton <
Will Vote for Repeal
Washington.?Declaring that he
proposed to vote for repeal of the
18th amendment at the North Carolina
election November 7th, Representative
R. L. Doughton, who came
to Washington Tuesday, said that
he would issue a statement on the
prohibition issue soon. "I will vote
for repeal, but do not -want to be put j
in the attitude of trying to influence (
anyone on the question. It should
oe understood that this is not a ref
erenaum on repeal, dui simpiy leavi
tag the matter so that each State (
) may decide what it wants to do on ,
. the liquor question."
Mr. Doughton is busy attending ses- ;
. sions of a subcommittee of the Ways :
. and Means Committee of which he i
1 is chairman, preparing the revenue
. bill tor consideration of Congress
which meets In January.
'
\ DE
>aper?Established in the
s'TY. NORTH CAROLINA. THURSO.
if One Day
i At Hand I
lival In Love
}
W&Etece Is said to cutve con- i
versing ;vith a man named Potter,
when Wilson is alleged to have
walked up, silent and deliberate,
*t?d fired the fair?1 bullet into the
ibdomen of deceased. The missile
jawed through the liver and death j
wsarjei two days afterwards.
Officers from Boone searched the
:ountryr?ide for the fugitive* but up
until Wednesday noon, he had not
taen apprehended and there were
10 clues as to his whereabouts.
Wilson is about twenty-five years
lid and the son of Roby WQmhl
Both he and Wallace come from
Watauga families and are well ,
cnown in the western part of the I
;ounly. No
details as to the funeral of
ihe dead man were available.
ionasTlovill to f
FEATURECOUNTY
WIDE DRY RALLY;
ormer Congressman and State Sen - J2
ator to Be Trinclpal Speakers as!(
" Stage Final Ilotuid-up in '
County-wide Rally. Seven Commu- '
hlty Sj?eakings Announced for the
Closing Days of Dry Campaign. t
1
Charles A. .Jonas, former Congress- t
an and wheel-horse in the Repub-1 s
?an organisation in North Carolina, !l
icl W. R. Lovill, Democratic law- i
ir of Boone, former State Senator i
id aggressive partisan, will puff t
i the peace pipe of political agree- 1
tent, and furnish the oratory at a
)unly-wide. dry rally to be held in i
te courthouse in Boone, Friday, No- <
unber 3rd, at 7:30 p. m. Ij
Clyde R. Greene, publicity chair- <
an lor the uiys. in insking: the an- 1
Yuncement says the drys are swing- i
g into the last lap of their strenu- .
caiitpsJeii with t rslliss in various.. ;
Actions of the county, but that the <
>nas-Lovill fireworks will likely fur-|
Ish che high spot for the entire cam-1 \
iif,"- me i-uuiitj 1a ucmg y/iucty \
Ivertised and canvassed and it is j
(Continued on Page 8) <
(
peak As War
nst Lawlesness ]
Miization, said Mr. Arniburst, and ;
jnditions are clearing up. The folks
lean business, he said, and have the ;
acking of the bar association, tfce
merican Legion, the good, honest j
ard-work'.ng folks in every walk of
fe and greater than all, the -hurches.
e recalled recently having witnessed
le execution of a Wilkes man at
sleigh, and stated that his belief
i capital punishment had not abac1
as a result, and that such a crimsal
was entitled to no mercy. He said i
is organization had no political af-j
liation whatsoever, constituted,
icrely an aggressive machine against
rime, and was bearing fruit.
Mentions Prohibition
While stating that he bad no purose
of making a prohibition speech,
he minister expressed the belief that
ihen the flood gates of whiskey are
urned loose, there will be such a
'ove Ul U1IUC tlUU ICkW ILMilCAJ iu LUUI '
ountry has never before known. He
efralned from calling names but staed
that a jurist who would announce
. policy of leniency toward lawbreakers,
while the lav/ still exited,
van operating contrary to the oath
ie took when he v/ent into office.
Discussing briefly the beer situa-.
ion Rev. Armburst brought figures'
rom his home town police court'
(Continued on Page 8)
Condition of A. S. Harris
Is Pronounced Serious
Mr. A. S. Harris, manager of the
3painhour Store ,is a patient at a
Statesville hospital where Sunday evming
he underwent an appendix opsration.
His condition following the
iperation was said to be satisfactory,
>ut press time information is to the
iffect that the condition of the popilar
merchant is serious. His friends
lere await rurtner information witn
leep anxiety.
G. M. GOFOBTH DIES
George Mitchell Goforth, aged 80,
former county -agent and prominent
Caldwell citizen, died at his home in
Lenoir Saturday and funeral was held
Sunday. In the last active years of
his life Mr. Goforth was employed
its a fertilizer salesman and while engaged
in this work became acquainted
with numbers of farmers in Watauga
County.
MOC
Year Eighteen Eighty-E
\'f, OCTOBER 20. 1933
Pays Visit to Boo
SENATOR BOB REYNOLDS
REYNOLDS CITES
NEED INFLATION
lunior Senator Visits Briefly in Boone
Tuesday as Me Makes Hurried Tour
for Prohibition Repeal. Says Little
(talks Should Be Aided.
Senator Robert R. Reynolds spent
the noon hour in Boone Tuesday,
shaking hands with a group of friends
and briefly discussing national issues,
before leaving on the next lap
)f his whirlwind campaign for repeaJ
>f national prohibition. He spoke in
Sparta that afternoon at 2:30.
"The New Deal is going good,' said
he genial Bob when questioned by
rb.c Democrat, "but I am inclined to
he opinion that inflation of some
ort must eventually come. The high
ords of big finance are against any
nflationary move- -they have the
noney and naturally don't, want it
:heapened?but the farmer and small
lome owner deserve a chanco. to pay
off their mortgages with cheaper
nunc/, iiiuciy-iive per cent. 01 infi
lomrnon people are living under mortgages,
continued "Our Bob,' and they
yin't pay them under present conditions.
"Reducing the value of the
lollar appooxs io be a solutiGn, and
leitbeiv the State nor the Nation can
_?mjmp.r irnleaa the individual , citizen
;an unburden himself SBBRQHj H
Senator Reynolds, recently back
:rom Russia, does not believe in or
iphold many of ? the principles of the
3oviet Union, and when questioned
m the repeal situation in North Carina,
declined to make an estimate
us to the extent of the wet majority. I
He stated that the drya were sndiy
when they claimed advan.age
in rural sections. "The country
man is the best informed citizen wt
lave,'' he said, and added that he
expected theni to register repeal majorities
in most sections.
He expressed regret that he could
not speak in Boone, saying that he
had appeared here before and thought
it best to take his message into territory
in which he had not so ofter
Appeared.
He was accompanied by his secvetary,
Jolin3ton Avery, and pavid L.
Strain, former State campaign man
age r.
PRIZES GIVENAT
CLOSE OF CARNIVAI
Merchants Pleased With Progress o
Buy now Campaign. All Business
Houses Report Increase, and
Streets Are Thronged.
Boone's Third Annual Bargain Car
nival, conducted this year in connec
tion with the Buy Now Compaign o
the NRA was the most decided sue
cess in the history of the annual mer
chandising event, in the opinion a
all reatilers interviewed the first o
the week. Many reported sales fo
the week ahead of holiday business i
late years, and there was a geuert
reviva 1 of buying.
At the close of the event SaturJa
evening the streets were crowder
passage was difficult and intermitten
showers didn't dampen the ardor c
the crowd which assembled in froi
(Please turn to Page 81
Mrs. Holden Davis Dies
pvii :? 1 in
WUU TT 1115 LiUllg 11I1ICS
Meager information reaching T1
Democrat saya that Mrs. Holden Di
vis of the Silverstone community, die
there the last of the week at an ai
vanced age, and following an illne:
of many years.. No funeral detai
could be learned.
Mrs. Davis was the former Ml:
Ellen Mast, a member of one of tl
county's most prominent families. 1
her active years she took a leadli
part in church affairs, and was know
as a high type christian lady. H
host of friends throughout the court
will hear of her death with genuii
sorrow.
Surviving is the aged husband ai
several children.
DIRECTORS REAR *
FINE REPORT OF
R. AND L, SUCCESS j
Auditor from State Insurance Department
SubmUs Report Friday. Sayn ?
Local Ansoclarto". I** Fiae Shape,
and Has Earned Considerably Wore
Than Average. In Position to Set
! AaJd? Fond to Moot Emergeoctee.
James W. Hill, auditor for the State
Insurance Department, was present
at the Friday evening meeting of the
directors of the Watauga Building jn
and Loan Association, and m submitting
the report of kis complete audit
of the affairs of the institution, took
I occasion to commend the directors
'and secretary for the fine manner in \
! which the local Association has been
J managed. j
Mr. Hill especially complimented
the secretary, W. H. Gragg, and Mrs.
Carrie Horton Bingham for the ex- J
cellent condition of the books, ancC
explained the audit item by item, jas
different members of the director!
ate had their queries promptly and
satisfactorily answered.
Cites I^arge Earnings
Mr. Hill pointed out that the audit
indicated a five and three-quarter
per cent, earning over the past year
on stock in the association which he
| described as being far ahead of the
average for the State, and advised the
directorate that if should they see fit,
they arc in position to set aside several
thousand dollars at tliis time as
# reserve emergency fund, to be used "
I in case of some contingency. |
He also cited as an exceptional example
of business acumen, that of
seventeen pieces of property which.
J the Association had sold and subse1
auentlv bousrht. each . a
paying good returns on the investraent.
All the Association property la ^ '
rented, and according to recent appraisal
is worth today six thousand
dollars more than is invested therein,
flood Place for Money
Mr. Hill, whose business >t is to fcaB
find something wrong and tell the /id#
directors, il it exists, took occasion - ?!
to commend the management on evV "
: ery hand He pointed out that while aisli
'Ithere were arrcagee on >nstxllmo?iKjj$Sg^^|J
1 stock, that the sipn total of these .-rg&g >
' past dtre obligations was satisfactorily I
low, and the directors expresseu ine ~ ' ~j?5
collective belief that the most of
' these woyld be paid by the first of Jfl
the year.
i "There is no excuse for losing money
in the Watauga Building and
! Loan," said Mr. Hill. "It is thoroughly
solvent, well managed and a good J
place to put money. "In closing the
auditor advised consistent advertiaj
lug to even better acquaint the.p^oj
pie of this section as to the benefits
they may derive from being partners
- in this home-owning institution.
1 Prowlers Enter Store at
Blowing- iRock Sunday
! H. C. Hayes, prominent Blowing i
Rock merchant, lost about twentyfive
dollars in merchandise ana
Micuigc, wircu uumiuwu ptuiirs cutered
his store Sunday night. Entrance
was gained by boring a hole
through a window sash at the rear
of the building, and removing a stick
which held the lower sash down. The
window was then raised and an exit
was made by unfastening the front
j door from within.
Mr. Hayes had left only small
f change in his (.ash drawer and no
merchandise seemed to have been molested
save a number of flash light
batteries. A son-in-law, Mr. Robert
Hardin, and his wife were living in
an adjoining apartment, but did not
hear the intruders.
f Bloodhounds were brought to the
scene, but failed to follow the trail
any distance, indicating that the rob.
bers had entered a waiting automof
bilen
Miss Dayvault Becomes
Bride of Mr. Holshouser
y A wedding of unusual interest" in
1, this section took place in Concord on
it last Saturday when Miss Dessie Vir>f
ginia Dayvault of that city became
it the bride of Mr. Eubert Holshouser
of Boone.
Mrs. Holshouser is the daughter "
of Mr. and Mrs. A. J. Dayvault and
is extremely popular with a wide eirS
cle of friends throughout the State,
and was formerly a student at the
ie Appalachian State Teachers College
l- here, where she acquired a large clr:d
cle of friends. It was while a student
1- here that she met Mr. Holshouser.
is Mr. Holshouser is a son of Mr. and
Is Mrs. W. I. Holshouser of Blowing
Rock and has been one of the most
as successful attorneys in this city for
le several years. He is well and favortn
ably known throughout this section
ig of the State.
m Mr. and Mrs. Holshouser will make
er their home in Boone.
le Mr and Mrs. K. E. Sberrill and
Miss Katherine Bowling, of Lowell, J?
id N. G.. spent the past week-end with
Mr. and Mrs. Pete Justus.