Attend the Big Johnston County Community Chautauqua at Smithfield, N. G, June 9th to 13th
VOLUME 36
SMITHFIELI), N. C., TUESDAY, MAY 29, 1917.
Number 24
THE WAR REGISTRATION DAY.
Next Tuesday is the Day. Erom
Seven In the Morning Until Nine
at Night Are the Hours. Every
Male Person Between the Ages of
Twenty-One and Thirty-One Must
Register. A Jail Term Stares at
Those Who Refuse. List of Regis
trars.
Next Tuesday, June fifth, is one of
the notable* days of this year. On
that day every man between the
ages of 21 and 31 in the United
States, unless he is already in the
army or navy, must enroll under the
Selective Draft War Bill. No man is
excused within the ages named. It
matterB not if he is sick, he must
register. If he is on the roads or in
jail, he must register. If he is a
white man he must register. If he
is a negro, he must register. If he
is a native born citizen, he must reg
ister: Provided he comes within the
age limit ? 21 to 31.
If he is a foreigner, Jie must reg
ister. If he has been naturalized, he
must register. If he has declared his
intention of becoming an American
citizen, he must register. If he is at
school or college, he must register.
If he is a drummer, and happens to
be on the road, he must register: Pro
vided he is between the age limit ?
21 to 31.
The registration is to be carried on
at every voting precinct in the Coun
ty, State and Nation. The Registrars
must be on hand at seven o'clock in
the morning with the books ready for
the work to begin. They must remain
at the polling places until nine o'clock
at night when the books are closed,
and then it will be too late to get on.
The penalty for not getting on the
registration book is a year in prison.
You cannot register next day. It must
be done on Tuesday, June 5th, 1917,
between the hours of seven o'clock in
the morning and nine at night.
Another very important thing to
consider. Every man should be sure
to come to the polls early. It will
take sometime with every person, and
if the people wait as they do some
times on election days, there will not
be time to register them. They who
come too late should not blame the
registrars if they do not get on the
books. It is an important thing that
the people have to do. Perhaps the
most important they have even been
called on to do. It .is not calling any
man to war. It is only taking a list
of those between the ages of 21 and
31 in order to see who are to be
called to the colors. The Nation is at
war and every man is expected to do
his duty. He must serve his country
in some way. Let there be no shirk
ers. It will not pay. Uncle Sam will
find out if any man fails to register,
and he will be one of the first taken
perhaps. You must register.
Here is a list of the men in John
ston County who will register the
folks:
Clayton ? Chas. G. Gulley. Assist
ants, L. T. Rose and L. H. Champion.
Cleveland ? F. M. Weeks.
Pleasant Grove ? Claude Stephen
son.
Elevation ? J. Shep Johnson. As
sistant, J. Ruffin Johnson.
Banner ? Claude C. Canaday. As
sistant, John F. Hall.
Meadow ? J. M. Lawhon. Assistant,
W. V. Blaekman.
Bentonsville ? LaFayette Langston.
Ingrams ? Emmett Adams. Assist
ant, W. R. Keen.
Boon Hill ? C. W. Eason. Assistant,
Harry A. Watson. t
Pine Level ? N. B. Hales.
Micro ? W. N. Barden.
Beulah ? Paul D. Grady. Assistant,
Howard Watson.
Wilson's Mills? W. C. Wilson.
Oneals ? P. B. Chahblee. Assistants,
J. Willard O'Neal and W. E. Narron.
Wilders? T A. Wall. Assistant, V.
R. Turlcy.
Selma ? R. E. Richardson. Assist
ant, W. H. Poole, Jr.
Smithfield ? T. J. Lassiter. Assist
ants, J. N. Cobb and W. H. Byrd.
Go to the polling place early so
that there need be no rush. Let every
man between the ages of 21 and 31
go and register. If you are sick get
a card from the Sheriff or Clerk of
the Court and have some friend to
fill it out for you and send it to the
Sheriff at your county seat on or be
fore the registration day.
June fifth is the day. Don't forget,
but do your duty.
TORN ADO HITS .MIDDLE WEST.
The Death List in Mattoon, Illinois,
Placed at 47 While Charleston in
Same State 37 Are Dead. Five In
jured and Two Thousand Left
Homeless.
There are 47 known dead in Mat
toon, Illinois, as a result of Satur
day's tornado and a score of per
sons are reported missing, says an
Associated Press dispatch. Five hun
dred persons were injured, some
probably fatally. There were 496
houses demolished and 14G damaged.
At Charleston the known dead
number 37, with '25 missing.
The total deaths in various towns
is probably more than 100.
Stoically taking up the task of re
covering the dead, nursing the in
jured and housing and feeding the
homeless, Mattoon and Charleston,
swept Saturday evening by a tornado
that took a toll of more than 100
lives in central Illinois and north
western Indiana, Sunday night had
established systematic methods of
relief.
Sunday's sunrise showed that Mat
toon had lost 47 known dead, with a
score of persons missing and 500 in
jured, some of whom may die, in the
devastion of 140 blocks of homes oc
cupied by working men in the north
ern part of the city. The wind razed
496 houses and partly destroyed 146
more, rendering 2,000 persons home
less. These are sheltered with friends
in public buildings, and in a tented
refuge in Peterson park.
Charleston, lying 10 miles east of
Mattoon, with 5,000 population suf
fered a larger loss in proportion to
its size than Mattoon, the known
dead totalling 37, with 20 or more
missing. Scorcs were injured in
Charleston also and some business
buildings were wrecked, including
the Maple hotel, two railroad stations,
three grain elevators and a lumber
yard.
The twisting wind chose its vic
tims in spots, and reports from the
rural regions indicate that small loss
of life occurred outside Mattoon and
Charleston and only at widely sepa
rated places.
Sweeping through Modesto, south
of Mattoon, where much damage
was done, the storm rushed north
east, dropping down on the northern
part of this city. Leaving unscratch
ed the business section and barely
touching the industrial plants, the
whirlwind lifted its tenacles until it
reached Charleston.
There the tonado again gripped the
earth and tore away substantial
buildings, crushing out the lives of
two score more human beings amidst
fallings houses, the hurling of timbers
and the snapping of trees.
The storm fitfully wore itself^out
in the northwestern corner of Indi
ana, causing more havoc here and
there as it hopped along an erratic
course to its disappearing point.
OVER HALF UNMARRIED MEN.
Total of Bachelors Within Draft Age
Limits is 5,372,400, Hureau of Cen
sus at Washington Reports.
By a census bureau estimate Sat
urday classifying the more than 10,
000,000 men within the military draft
age limit, the number of single men
is placed at 5,372,400 and the number
of married at 4,545,900.
The estimate was prepared on a
basis of a normal increase in popu
lation since the 1910 census and on
the assumption that the ratio be
tween married and single men is the
same -as at that time.
The classification by chief occupa
tions is given as follows:
Agriculture, forestry and animal
husbandry 2,864,000; manufacturing
and mechanical industries 3,030,000;
no gainful occupations 500,500; trans
portation 967,000; trade 154,000; pub
lic service 144,000; domestic and per
sonal service 441,000; professional
service 335,000; clerical occupations
374,000; extraction of mineral 364,000.
The government, it has been stated,
will not exempt any particular classes
of industry from conscription but will
deal with cases individually. Individ
uals, however, whose work, is con
sidered necessary to preserve an
economic balance will be exempted.
Nearly every line of industry, it is
said, has appealed to the war depart
ment for exemption of its workers.
Some few classifications are not in
cluded in the figures.
t
TORNADOES SWEEP COUNTRY.
Tol! of Tornadoes In Four Southern
States Sunday 160 Lives, Over 500
Injured. Sections of Kentucky, Ten
nessee, Arkansas and Alabama
Suffer Deadly Visitation. South
west Kentucky Greatest Sufferer.
Reports last night and early today
from the sections of Kentucky, Ten
nessee, Arkansas and Alabama swept
by a series of tornadoes Sunday,
place the number known to have lost
their lives in the storm at ICO and
the injured at approximately 550.
Southwestern Kentucky, reports so
far received indicate, paid the heav
iest toll in lives lost. In Fulton Coun
ty, the southwestern tip of that State,
(56 persons were killed and more than
100 injured. In Alabama the mining
camps at Sayre, Bradford and Car
bon Hill reported 46 fatalities and in
Tennessee, Tipton, Dyer and Carroll
Counties reported 34 dead.
The property damage in Alabama
was estimated at about $1,000,000. No
accurate estimate of the monetary
loss in the other States is available,
wire communication still being badly
crippled and but little effort has been
made to appraise the damage thus
wrought.
The town of Clinton, where 25 per
sons were killed and 75 injured, re
ported the greatest loss of life in
Kentucky. Sixteen were killed on the
plantation of Sid L. Dodds, near Hick
man, and 13 persons lost their lives
in the vicinity of Bondurant.
Of the known dead in Alabama,
where the storm struck widely sepa
rated towns and areas extending
from Huntsville to .Tuscaloosa, the
majoritq lost their lives in small min
ing settlements aboi|t Birmingham.
Bradford, one of the mining camps,
reported 26 deaths.
In Mississippi County, Ark., across
the Mississippi river from the Ten
nessee and Kentucky Counties swept
by the storm, ten were killed.
Dyer County suffered the largest
loss of life in Tennessee. Near Dyers
burg seven were killed and forty in
jured. Other Tennessee towns report
ing casualties are Cates, Lake Treze
vant, Ore Springs, Sharon, Linden,
and Bakerton. ? Associated Press, in
today's News and Observer.
GENERAL NEWS.
England is experiencing a bee
keeping boom. Many persons are
keeping bees in order to save sugar
by substituting home-produced honey.
At present the demand is so great
that there are no more hives available
and dealers are at their wits ends to
meet requirements, says a London
dispatch.
Food producers and other shippers
opposing the request of the railroads
for a general 15 per cent increase in
freight rates began Saturday the
presentation of their side of the case
to the interstate commerce commis
sion. During the day's hearing sever
al trade bodies also submitted evi
dence on the side of the roads. Repre
sentatives of Western food produc
ers and jobbers, fruit jar and bottle
interests, natural ice manufacturers
of l^ew Jersey and Chicago and the
Colorado grange appeared in opposi
tion to any increase. Those who sup
ported the pk-as of the roads that an
increase is justifiable were the Chica
go traffic committee, the National
Industrial Traffic league, the Boston
Chahber of Commerce and a commit
tee representing Sioux City, la., com
mercial interests.
Seventy-six persons were killed
and 174 injured in Dover or Folk
stone, England, early Friday evening
in the most ambitious raid on Eng
land yet made by German aircraft.
Of the killed 27 were wmen and 23
children. Of the injured 43 were wo
men and 19 children. There were 16
aircraft in the raid, probably all air
planes as no Zeppelins are mentioned
in the report. Which of the places
suffered mob^ ?e?tiely is not disclos
ed by British official reports but 60
bombs Were showered upon one of
the communities. The bombs, which
were of large' size, cut a swath across
the city and killed many persons who
were in the chief business thorough
fare. At one spot in this street 16
women, eight men and nine children
were killed. The aircraft passed over
the community in four sections with
intervals between them, each drop
ping its share of bombs.
Canada bars skilled farmers from
army service.
THE DAY AND ITS DUTIES.
Strong Appeal Made by Governor
Bickett for Registration Day.
Urges That Two Days lk' Set
Aside as Consecration Days. He
Calls on Ministers and Urges That
Sermons Be Preached and Appeals
Made to Men to Do Their Duty.
On Saturday, Governor Bickett is
sued an appeal to all the people, as
follows:
"North Carolinians the fifth day of
June draws nigh. It behooves us to
put our house in order and be ready
for its coming. All peoples in all
climes have their eyes fixed on that
day ? the day whereon a mighty na
tion is to register its consecration to
selfless service in the cause of uni
ven.l justice and abiding peace. The
day is destined to loom large in his
tory, and will be forever linked with
a world wide acceptance of the rights
of men first declared at Philadelphia
and made secure at Yorktown.
"Happily in North Carolina there
is no longer division or debate. With
a faith that casts out fear we go
forth to register a stern challenge to
the blood red prestige of a band of
hereditary autocrats who have made
unto themselves and unto their peo
ple an Iron Image and call it God.
"But the registration in a single
day of all the men in the State be
tween the ages of 21 and 31 calls for
persistent and systematic work. I
therefore urge,
"That all ministers of the Gospel
of every race and creed call atten
tion at every service conducted by
them between now and the fifth of
June to the following duties of citi
zenship and commands of the law,
"That the registration books will
open at 7 a. m. on Tuesday, the fifth
day of June and close at 9 p. m.
"That it is important to register
early in the day in order to avoid
congestion in the closing hours.
"That the law applies to white and
black alike. Ministers and teachers
of the colored race arc resqucsted
to emphasize the fact that all colored
men between the prescribed ages are
required to register in precisely the
same manner as the whites.
"That no physical disability will
excuse a man for failing to register.
If he is between 21 and 31 years of
age he must register in person or
send his card no matter what his
physical condition may be. The ques
tion of exempting him from servico
on account of physical unfitness will
be determined at a later day. It in
no way affects the obligation imposed
upon him to register.
"That if a party willfully fails to
register he will forthwith be arrested.
Our people must be given to under
stand that they have no discretion in
this matter. If their names do not ap
pear on the registration cards when
they are canvassed a warrant will be
sworn out against them at once. I
sincerely trust that not a man in
North Carolina will be arrested for
failing to do his duty.
"That of the men who register on
the 5th day of June probably not
more than one out of 12 will be drawn
for service on the first call. But if a
man shows any disposition to avoid
or evade his responsibility he will in
all probability be the first man who
will be sent to the training camps.
In every conceivable aspect it will
pay the citizen to cheerfully comply
with the law.
"I urge every newspaper in the
State to call attention to the six
matters above mentioned in every is
sue of the paper from now until reg
istration day.
"I urge all traveling men, rural
mail carriers, physicians who prac
tice. in the country, all merchants and
bankers and employers of men, and
all landlords to call the attention of
their customers, employes and tenants
to the requirements of the law.
"I urge every man who knows
about registration day to deem it his
patriotic duty to see to it that every
man in his precinct is informed of
the requirements of the law, and let
each precinct in the State take pleas
ure and pride in seeing to it that no
man in that precinct shall be arrested
for failure to do his duty.
"I .surest that on Sunday after
noon, June 3, or on the night of June
4 there be held in every town and
'?ity in the State a patriotic rally.
Let there be music and flags, and a
great outpouring of the people and
V
A FURTHER RISK IN COTTON.
Old Crop Months at Former Top
Level, and Later Options on Un
equal td Basis.
With wheat practically eliminated
as tv speculative feature, interest in
the markets for the great farm sta
ples has centered in cotton, and the
leading southern commodity has
recently experienced some striking
movements. Thus, in little more than
a fortnight prices have registered an
extreme rise of nearly 250 points on
this crop and 300 on the next, with
May this week up to 21.50c., July
21.59c., October 21.27c., and both the
December and January option 21.38c.
In the case of May, the best figures
of Wednesday came within approx
imately 5 points of the top level of
last November, and July on Friday
was at a new high record, whilo the
later deliveries were also at an un
equaled position. As was to be ex
pected, reaction occurred from time to
time when profits were taken, but
the net gain for the week, as com
pared with the closing on May 19,
averaged about 70 points on this crop
and the same amount on the next.
It was contended by not a few peo
ple last week, when the increasing
strength of the market compelled at
tention, that a further rise in cotton
was warranted by legitimate supply
and demand conditions, and there
were intimations in some quarters
that prices might conceivably go to
25c., or even 30c., without Federal in
terference. No one suggested that
this would actually happen, but pre
dictions of still higher quotations
were not uncommon and the advance
has continued with comparatively
little interruption. The recent extreme
rise of 250 to 300 points has "not re
sulted wholly from speculation, for
there have been reports of a substan
tial trade demand and foreign inter
ests are credited with having bought
freely in this market. Yet speculation
has also broadened materially and
western operators who were former
ly conspicuous in wheat are said to
have played a prominent part in the
noteworthy upturn in cotton. An ear
ly dispatch from Chicago, forecast
ing a 5 per cent reduction in acreage
and stating that the crop condition
is the poorest in years, had a decid
edly bullish influence, while the Gov
ernment's regular weekly weather re
port was less favorable than had
been anticipated and had not a little
to do with the week's advance in the
later deliveries to new high levels.
Talk of a short crop grows more per
sistent in some quarters, and expec
tations of a record consumption are
strengthened by the large govern
ment purchases of cotton goods of
one kind or another. ? Dun's Review.
With the approval of President
Wilson, Secretary Daniels issued in
structions Thursday to Captain Ed
ward W. Eberie, Superintendent of
the Naval Academy at Annapolis,
assigning Thursday, June 28, as the
date for the graduation of the pres
ent senion class of midshipmen. This
class ordinarily would have been
graduated in June, 1918. The 203
members of the senior class have
passed their examinations and are
needed in the navy. They will be com
missioned as ensigns on graduation
and will be assigned to duty immedi
ately on small warships to be placed
in commission toward the end of
June and early in July.
then let some one briefly and clearly
state the requirements of the law.
"I do not ask that June 5 be made
a holiday. That question may be
safely left to the judgment of each
community and to those in charge of
the industries of the State. If a
field needs cultivating, if machinery
needs to be kept running in order to
meet the exigencies of the times
work ought not to be suspended in
order to make a holiday. But I ear
nestly trust that throughout the Stato
the day may be made one of conse
cration and prayer. I do urge that
every man who can spare time will
turn out on registration day and as
sist in every possible way in secur
ing a complete registration in every
precinct.
"Let the women and the children,
together with the older member of
the family go to the place of regis
tration with the boy who is to record
his name as a champion of justice to
all men and of peace for all time."
v
MARRIED MEN TO BE EXEMPT.
The First Call for Army Will Pass
Them Over. No Specified Industries
or Occupations Are Exempt. Two
Points Are Settled. In Case of Sin
gle Man With Dependent the De
pendent May Demand Exemption.
(Greensboro News.)
Washington, May 27. ? Married men
will be exempt from conscription for
the raising of' the first national army
of 500,000 men, according to a re
ported preliminary plan of the war
department. No specified industries
or occupations will bo exempt.
These are the two principal decis
ions reached so far by the officials
who conferred on the plan. All that
remains now is for the President to
ratify them.
The exemption of men with de
pendents and those needed in the in
dustries of the country has proved the
most difficult problem to work out in
a way to secure anything like justice
in operation. The difficulty of deter
mining whether or not a married man
was actually needed to support his
family at home was the considera
tion that finaly determined the offi
cials to exempt all married men. As
to men with other dependent rela
tives, such as an aged mother or
father, the decision will be left to the
local county or city board, subject to
appeal to the higher board in each
federal judicial district. Appeal from
the district board may, in turn, bo
made to the President of the United
States.
The question of industrial exemp
tions is even more difficult. For ex
ample, it is agreed among the officials
that the mere fact that a man is a
farmer, munitions maker, or even a
railroad engineer does not necessari
ly imply that he would be of much
more use at home than in the army.
Liberal Exemption Rules.
It may be possible to spare many
men from the farms and the factories
making war goods, and there will be
need for a considerable number of
locomotive engineers ? possibly for
all such engineers in the country un
der 31 years of age ? with an army
in France.
After consideration of the question
from every angle it was decided that
there is no industrial class that can
be exempted, as such.
It was determined that there is
no way to make general industrial
exemptions but to take up each in
dividual man and group of workmen
in a specific industry or a specific ag
ricultural community and decidc that
case separately.
In the case of a man with depend
ents, he himself may ask exemption.
He can appeal from the dicision of
the local board if it fails to exempt
him. It is not necessary for him, how
ever, to ask personally to be left at
home. A person dependent upon him
or any other persons may ask for his
exemption. On this point the rules
will be most liberal, for the reason
that many men who should remain
at home will hesitate to ask exemp
tion for themselves and many depend
ents may be too proud to ask that
their provider be excused from ser
vice.
In all matters of exemption the
widest discretion will be left to the
local boards.
GENERAL NEWS.
A Paris dispatch last Friday said
a number of Japanese gunboats had
arrived at Marseilles to aid the
French fleet in patrol work.
The navy is seeking 2,000 additional
doctors to furnish proper medical
care for the 250,000 men who will be
in the naval establishment when it
reaches full war strength.
The Austrian line gave way again
on Friday between Castagnavizza
and the Gulf of Triest, the advancing
Italian troops carrying another heav
ily fdrtified position and capturing an
additional 3,500 men. Their captures
in the offensive beginning May 14
now total 22,419.
New army medical schools will be
established at Fort Riley, Kas.; Fort
Benj. Harrison, Ind.; Fort Ogle
thorpe, Ga., and possibly Leon
Springs, Tex., for training the thou
sands of doctors who wilkbe needed
when the war armies are mobilized.
An official statement issued last week
says that 5,000 men are needed now
and that the services of 10,000 mora
will be required by th eend of the
year.