| Published Mondays and Thursdays at
North Wfikosboro, North Carolina
Oct. 30, 1947
What's Wrong With
Our Civilization?
The above question is in the minds of
practically all thinking people. With a
terrible war closed there is threat of another.
When there should be prosperity
and plenty there is inflation and starvation.
Even in America, which for many
decades has furnished much of the world
with merchandise and food, there are not
enough products to go around and prices
are so high that many are deprived of
necessities. 7
Many agree that lack of production all
along the line of economic endeavor is to
blame for the ills of today. Europe evidently
didn't produce food at capacity during
the past year and is starving. In
America millions want homes, automobiles,
refrigerators, bathrooms and numerous
other things but can't get them because
of shortages or outrageous prices.
The delusion that we can get and have
something without producing is injurious.
In other words, work can solve many problems.
Too many want to live off somebody
else but are not willing to produce.
Oae
Some interesting comment on this subject
was contained in the following article
from Imperial Magazine:
"Numerous readers of these pages have
been trying to tell me in recent months
what they think is wrong with civilization,
particularly in the United States.
"One man says that we have once more
Become the victim of A delusion that we
can get something for nothing. From history
he recalls the speculation in Holland
tulip bulbs in the seventeenth century and
John Law's Mississippi scheme of the next
century. Each captured the public's imagination
and then collapsed disastrously.
"The mania that led to speculation in
real estate and common stocks in the
twenties is too recent for comfortable
contemplation, particularly the dreadful
depression that followed.
"Can it be that the co-called common
man has been seized with the conviction
that science and technology insure fabulous
production and consumption, without
work, or very little work? _
"My correspondent says .that a union organizer
told him that so long as half the
world is working, the other half need not.
My friend is so sick at heart that he has
put away all thought of soon again enjoying
the plenty that was once America's,
made so by the uncommon amount
of work on the part of more than half the
people.
"From a visit to a noted museum in
Dylestown, Pennsylvania, another reader
got the idea that the 26,000 tools and implements
on exhibition were a reminder
that work is the sovereign force in progress.
"The ingenuity and labor of these tool
builders and users insured their security
—and ours, too. We . are now weakening
the very foundations of freedom by our
cock-eyed conception of leisure as Liberty's
twin, he says, and adds that we need
to realize that our independence was mothered
by self-dependence."
_ i :
" ■ - :
"Dangerous directors, actors" are plentiful
in Hollywood, Menjou tells House
committee. Which is more dangerous,
Bing going into a croon or Lana going into
a swoon?—Greensboro Daily News.
• • • •< •
o —
Somehow we cannot string along with
Winston Churchill in his concern over the
movement to clip the power of the House
of Lords. Going all the way with the Labor
government of Britain is too much
to ask of us, but we shall not be utterly
dismayed if an anachronism or so is
trampled in the rush. —Greensboro Daily
News.
. — - , . :
From Red to Green
According to figures from the Wilkes
Triple A farm office, enough seed was
distributed during the year through that
agency to, seed 1©,000 acres in pastures.
Not bad for one year.
And the seeding of pastures in Wilkes
has been going on at that pace for years.
Within a few more years we can get
away from that obnoxious phrase—"The
red hill* of Wilkes." It will be the green
and fertile hills.
Nothing improves the appearance of
a landscape more than covering the red
hills with green grass.
And there is something more to grass
than beauty of landscape. Where you see
the green pastures you see modern and
comfortable homes, neat and inviting
churches, well clothed, happy and prosperous
people.
Where you see red, eroded hills, broom
sedge fields, gullied slopes and ugly landscapes
you see run-down homes, neglected
churches and poverty stricken people.
The well-being of the people in any
rural community is in direct relation to
the condition of the soil. '
EVERYDAY
COUNSELOR
V
By Rev. Herbert
Spaugh, D. D.
Hallowe'en is almost here, and with it
comes the time for gay festivities, pumpkins
and skeletons, donuts and cider and
—sad to say, vandalism!
Hallowe'en originated with the Druids,
an ancient Celtic religious order. The
Druids believed that on the night of October
31, Samhain, the Lord of Death,
called together the souls of all those who
died during the past year. The sinful souls
were confined in the bodies of goblins,
spirits and other spooks, the Druids believed.
The goblins and spooks were supposed
to practice all sorts of devilish
pranks, unless they were controlled. So,
as a means of protection the Druids lit
huge bonfires to frighten away the evil
spirits.
Eac^ Druid commupjty h^d an ,alt^r
that was kept burning for the protection
of the inhabitants. On Hallowe'en these
fires were extinguished and re-lighted.
The villagers carried home glowing embers
from the altar to kindle fires on their
own hearthstones.
Although the Druids abandoned the religious
ceremony when they were indoctrinated
with Christianity, traces of the
old rituals remained for many years. Thus
we have the evil witches, the fortunes and"
spookiness on Hallowe'en.
The Romans added the harvest festival
idea to our observance of Hallowe'en.
During, the Middle Ages other ideas were
added, and the custom arose on All Hallow's
Eve, the night before All Saints Day,
November 1, that the witches and goblins
were supposed to be abroad at their work,
because they would not have opportunity
on the holy festival of All Saints Day.
All these ideas are wrapped up in the
American celebration of Hallowe'en.
Pumpkins, corn stalks, apples, donuts and
cider—these are all traditionally American
and traditionally Hallowe'en. The
spookiness has likewise remained. Along
with it has come a relatively modern idea
; of carrying off gates, hiding rakes, breaking
lights, ringing doorbells, and damaging
property. This has brought Hallowe'en
into disrepute and has prompted civicminded
men and women to put into practice
the saying of Saint Paul, "Be not
overcome of evil, but overcome evil with
good." Thoughtful parents and leaders of
young people have realized that partyplanning
is the simplest solution to Hallowe'en
vandalism. Spooks and witches
can appear at parties, indulge in games,
amid decorations with pumpkins and
skeletons, and a good time can Jt>e had
by all. All of this takes a little time and
effort on the part of thoughtful adults,
but it's worth the price in character training
and also in property protection.
Being fore-warned is being fore-armed.
Are you going to have a Hallowe'en party,
or are you going to let your children and
young people go out and indulge in vandalism
and property destruction? Hallowe'en
naturally calls young people together
Let them have a good time at it
with clean sport and respect for Other
people's property.
A good Hallowe'en party is one antidote
to juvenile delinquency. A good
game or party book will be helpful.
By
D WIGHT
NICHOLS
et ftl
FLABBERGASTED—
The following letter from t&e
Public Opinion column of the
Winston-Salem Journal, and
written by P. A. Carter, is selfexplanatory:
Undisclosed Port
''Living in Raleigh, as I did
for about 12 years* I knew a
farmer dt good repute who had
an impediment of speech. He was
tongue-tied and could not speak
many words plainly. Rip wae one
of the words, and the beet he
could do was «*y, 'Yip yip,' for
rip up.
"On some occasion he was
burning brush on a plot of
ground in .order to make an enlargement
of his farm acreage.
A gust of wind caused him to
lose control of the fire, destroying
the brush, and getting into
broom sage by the farm and beyond.
With a pine top, he began
to beat the flaming grass and
this spread the fire. The farmer
hopped up on a stump, outdone
but not speechless, and said,
'Yip, yip (for rip up), by dod
yid and go to hell a yipping!
"Reports from Charlotte, N:
C. during the first four days of
the reign of ABC stores indicate
that the Queen City has gone a
yipplng for some undisclosed
port. What'* the answer?
COMPLETE SECURITY—
During the past ten years
there has been a tendency on the
part of everybody to seek social
and economic security.
As we have said before, the
only way to have complete security
Is to have a life term in the
penitentiary, and nobody wants j
that unless it 1« the man condemned
to die.
Now we want the government
to take care of us in old age, to
keep down our rent, to pay our
doctor and hospital bills, to pay
u8 when we don't work and to
tell how, much we get when we
do work. We want to shoulder
every responsibility onto the
shoulders on Uncle Sam.
The simplest way to get all
that is to be incarcerated.
Just ae surely as we look to
the government for all things
pertaining to security, we relinquish
Just so much of freedom,
and it is a bad trade..
If and when this craze for security
reaches thef place that we
shall have security in every respect
fully guaranteed, we shal}
have no more civil liberties that
the man with a life sentence in
the penitentiary.
PARK VISITORS
RISE IN NATION
Washington, Oct. 28.—National
parks and recreational areas
drew 25,265,229 visitors during
the travel year which ended October
1.
The National Park Service, reporting
this, said today that the
■
total is 17 per cent above figures
for lfr46.
Lake Mead recreational area In
Arizona and Nevada drew the
greatest number of visitors!—1,342,204.
The lake, backed up
behind Hoover Dam, is a favorite
recreation spot for residents of
the two states and of Southern
California. ' ' A
Th« Lincoln Memorial in
Washington with 1,326,760 visitors
took second place in the
popularity list.
Other leadera' were:
Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia
and North Carolina, 1,314,363
visitors.
Great Smoky Mountains National
Park, North Carolina and
Tennessee, 1,186,748.
Marion Elliott At
Family Shoe Store
Marlon E\lltot, who, recently
moved from Winston-Salem to
Wilkesboro, has accepted a position
as a member of the sales
personnel at Family Sho$ store.
Mr. Billot is well experienced
in the shoe business, having held
a position while In Winston-Salem
In the shoe department at
the Ideal store.
The average mean annut
perature for North Car
approximately 59 degre
varying for the moat part*
the State from 56 degrees to 65
degrees F.