GJljf fflarrrn firrord
Published Every Thursday By
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P 0 Box 70 • Warrenton. N. C. 27589
BIGNALL JONES, Editor
Member North Carolina Press Association
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Tributes Of Respect
When two citizens of a town
die within a few days of one
another after leading long and
useful lives, and other worthy
friends less well known are also
joined in the ranks of death, we
suppose the only thing that can
be done is to write of those we
knew best.
These two friends suffered
infirmities of old age and to
them death must have come as a
release and the entering of a
new life in which they may be
made whole. So we confine our
words to two persons whom we
have known long and well, Mrs.
Elizabeth Hunter Weston and
Walter M. Gardner.
Elizabeth Weston, or Elizabeth
l.unter as we older ones
spoke of her, was a grossly
underpaid employee of The
Warren Record whom we called
our society editor. She was also
the sister of one of the editor's
most admired and best loved
friends, Dr. Frank Patterson
Hunter.
Elizabeth loved people and we
suppose the work of compiling
those who came and went
and/or engaged in some social
activity was a work of love; we
hope so. During the week before
the paper was out she would
hurry down town on numerous
occasions, and often when we
went to press she would call to
. ask if we had room "for another
local?"
Advancing years slowed her
down but little and our later
recollections are of a slender
woman entering the office
holding her little dog, who did
not always believe that silence
was golden. She suffered from
cold and the cold days of winter
could not be nullified by her
rapid movements.
She was of an affectionate
nature and no doubt she loved
her little lap dog devotedly. We
think she may have loved us;
but there is no doubt that she
loved Emmanuel Episcopal
Church where she and her
family had worshiped so long.
She served it in the choir and on
altar committees and wherever
else she could be of service. She
was a good person and we are
happy that we had the privilege
of knowing her. Her children
rise to call her blessed.
We knew Walter Gardner for
perhaps 50 years, as a young
man moving to Warrenton with
his family and as a long-time
employee of the Warrenton
Grocery Company, and later as
operator of the Warrenton Insurance
Agency, which business is
carried on by his son, Walter
Monroe Gardner, Jr.
"Daddy," in after years my
young daughter would say, "Mr.
Gardner is certainly a nice
man," and when she returned
home from college she was
happy to greet him and talk with
him. She was right, "Mr.
Gardner was certainly a nice
man." He was friendly, quiet
and nice. We never heard of him
doing a mean thing.
A number of years ago he
retired and spent the rest of his
life quietly with his sister, "Miss
Mamie," who is pretty nice in
her own right. Some time he
would come down and we would
see him. It was sad to see him
grow old, but it was also a
pleasure to greet him and spend
a few minutes in conversation
with him. He always met his
friends with a smile and left
them with a smile. It is not the
rich and the powerful who make
life worth while. It is the simple,
the plain and the decent Walter
Gardners of this world who
perform this task.
We shall miss Walter Gardner,
recall his memory with
pleasure and are thankful that
we were privileged to know him.
Leigh Morgan, 11, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. Hayward Morgan of York, S. C., won
the Small Pony Championship and Grand Pony Championship awards at the Devon
Horse Show in Devon, Pa., earlier this month. Riding Mapleshade Crystal Clear, her
registered Welch liver chestnut pony, Leigh received 14 1 It points to receive the Wizard
of Oi Challenge Trophy. Leigh is coached by her mother, the former Betsy Read of
Warrenton. She Is the granddaughter of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas L. Read and Mr. and
Mrs. Hayward Morgan of Oxford.
Progress, Taxes, Automobiles
The budget hearing on
Thursday of last week demonstrated
that Warren County
citizens are not adverse to
paying taxes for needed public
services. The crowd was very
creditable and no doubt would
have been much larger if it had
been held at night or even better
on Friday night after The
Warren Record had been read
.by most of the interested
citizens of the county.
It is well that funds for the fire
companies were restored for the
rural render a marvelous
service to the county and since
their organization they have
saved the county hundreds of
thousands of dollars in out-buildings,
homes and thousands of
acres of timber. We are sorry
that no one mentioned the
money saved rural homeowners
in lowering the cost of their
insurance.
It is unfortunate that funds for
the purchase of land for a
consolidated school was not
restored. The school will be built
and additional land purchased in
the course of time but at a
higher price. On the brighter
side and of some evidence of the
county's progress were the good
manners demonstrated by commissioners
and citizens in ' a
situation where deep feelings
were present. Faults, as those
present saw faults, were pointed
out but not in an abusive
manner.
The budget has been adopted
and hopes for further funds
appears to wait on another year
and possibly another board.
Now it appears to us that it is up
to the Board of Education to
make the best of a bad situation.
When the State allotted
Warren County $1 million
dollars, which was set aside to
build a consolidated high school,
that sum of the money would
have been sifficient to build a
high school, or at least a very
nice consolidated high school
was built at Lawrenceville, Va.,
for that sum. Now it will .
probably cost three times as
much. The Board of Education
receives no interest on the
money promised by the state as
it is only turned over to the
board as it is used. Thus if the
start of construction is delayed
another year the loss to the
county would be $60,000 if
inflation continued at a 6% rate.
Under the circumstances, it
would seem that it would be the
point of wisdom to buy land for
which money is on hand and to
proceed to spend that million
dollars as fast as state and
environmental permission can
be obtained. We know that every
member of the Board of
Education is vitally concerned
with building a high school, but
time passes so fast and we trust
that the need for hurry will not
be overlooked.
The school is going to be built;
it is not a matter of if but when.
It is hoped that a federal grant
can be obtained; if not, by a
bond issue, which is slower; if
not the first time, then again and
again until a bond issue is
passed. There is no other way to
educate all the children of
Warren County and all the
children capable of being
educated must be educated.
Mostly Personal
People Want Better Schools
Artists To Spotlight People
By BIGNALL JONES
As I sat in my office
Tuesday morning my eyes
fell upon the front page of
"The Week," a Halifax
weekly paper, upon which
Helen Holt of Warrenton is a
staff member. The leading
story in this excellent paper
is "Big Tax Jump Seen."
The article from which I
quote in part was written by
Lee Hansley and Helen Holt.
A 69c valuation was
proposed in the budget that
was proposed by County
Manager Roy Lee-Ferret
and was 10c more than the
present rate "lowest in any
counties of the area."
Blamed for this increase in
part was the fact that the
county had been ordered to
build a new jail.
"Schools," the article
reveals, "have been plotted
$1,248,000 for current expenses
and $725,000 for
capital outlay. That money
is divided among three
school systems, Roanoke
Rapids City, Weldon City
and Halifax County schools.
"Of the current expense
funds for schools, county
coffers provide $1,153,000
and the remainder comes
from county ABC futds and
from court fines and
forfeitures.
"Debt service payments
Included in the budget call
for a $152,293 payment for
retiring school bonds, and
(6,905 in solid waste bonds.
"A $100,000 appropriation
is also included in the
budget for the county's
share of the first phase of a
countywide water system."
So much for the tax rate
and appropriations in our
neighboring county of Halifax,
at least for the time
being.
Roger Moore was on the
Board of Education from the
Littleton section of Warren
County as the Warren
County portion of Littleton
fl«d into Halifax County,
which was subsequently to
cost Littleton its high and
elementary school. Roger
on the eve of his departure
from the Warren County
Board of Education said he
felt that Littleton had made
a terrible blunder. He
confessed that he had voted
to have Warren County
section of Littleton annexed
by HaUfax County. "I felt,"
he said, "that Halifax
County was a much more
progressive county than
Warren." That was his
judgment at the time, but
not necessarily true. But I
have noticed as a general
rule that the most progressive
counties often have
the highest tax rate.Whether
this is a question of the
hen or the egg I do not know.
General Robert E. Lee,
who accepted the presidency
of Washington Col
lege in Virginia following
the Civil War, was asked
what he would teach the
young men of the South?
•'Self-Denial,"the great Lee
replied.
This remark occured to
me when a few days ago I
read a report concerning the
operational cost of motor
vehicles in America and
learned that in spite of pleas
for conservation of gasoline,
the American people are
driving more than ever, at
an ever increasing cost.
According to a UP! report
from Detroit, a Hertz
Corporation study shows
that "While the cost of living
rose 36 per cent from 1972 to
1976, combined car and
truck expenses jumped 71
per cent."
Fuel consumption went
from just under 100 billion
gallons of fuel in 1972 to a
record of 107.5 billion
gallons last year. Cars and
trucks covered a record 1.3
trillion miles on the nation's
roads at a cost of 25.2 cents
a mile. The average cost of
owning and driving a car is
20.1 a mile.
Not only does the American
motorist pay the cost of
oeprating his own car, but
he also pays the cost of the
operation of the trucks
through higher charges on
the items he buys, which is
to be added to the direct cost
of owning and operating
trucks and cars in America.
This direct cost is estimated
to be (325 billion a year, with
the average car owner
spending $1812 on his car.
That I am almost certain is
more than all the direct
taxes he pays, federal,
state, county and municipal
and is said to be more than
the money spent for groceries.
I have no idea that these
cerebrations are going to
render any great change,
but I hope that a few of those
who read this article will
realize that its not the
government but the people
who are responsible for
many of our ills. After all, as
the comic said, "The
government is us."
Fred Hurst, Jr.,
Is Rotary Speaker
Fred Hurst, Jr., Warrenton
native now with the
State Bureau of Investigation,
was the guest speaker
at the Rotary Club meeting
held at the Lions Den on
Tuesday night.
Program Chairman, Selby
Benton, introduced the
speaker. Col. Herman Andersen,
president, presided
over the meeting.
King snakes feed on other
snakes.
By SUSAN SIMMONS
Artist-In-Resident
Artists in our midst will be
spotlighting people in Warren
County who participate
in the making of art. The art
is of all forms; music,
crafts, literature—art in
general.
In the recent past the Warrenton
Arts Commission
had reacquainted Warren
County with such artists as
writer, Reynolds Price;
dramatist, Dwight Pearce;
and craftsperson, Sylvia
Bumgarner.
This week's artist in our
midst is Jackie Voting of
Kerr Lake. Jackie's work
will be on exhibit at the
Window Works Gallery
located in the Cash Company
windows on Main
Street, July 1 through July
14.
Jackie has been seriously
practicing the art of
painting for just a short
time. She has studied only
under Susan Simmons in the
Warrenton Arts Commission's
free painting classes
for adults. But her discipline
was well rewarded this
spring when her oil painting,
"Swan Lake," on
display at the Window
Works Gallery, won first
place at the Warren County
Home Extension Club Competition.
That painting then
went to Raleigh for the
district competition where it
placed second. In that same
competition Mr*. Young's
entwined wood sculpture
won first place in local and
district levels.
Jackie has been living at
Kerr Lake for six years.
Most of her inspirations for
paintings are of the lake
through its seasonal changes.
Andrew Wyeth is one of
her favorite painters and
like Wyeth she, too, has an
eye for detail as her
intricate works indicate.