The Kings Mountain Herald Established 1889 Nonb Carolina i PUSS ASSOCIATE A weekly newspaper devoted to the promotion of the general welfare and published lor the enlightenment, entertainment and benefit of the citizens of Kings Mountain and Its vicinity, published every Thursday by the Herald Publishing House. Entered ha second class matter at the postolflce at Kings Mountain, N. C., under Act of Congress of March 3, 1873 EDITORIAL DEPARTMENT Martin Harmon .................................. Editor Publisher Charles T. Carpenter, Jr. Sports, Circulation, News Mrs. P. D. Herndon Society Miss Elizabeth Stewart . ... Advertising, News MECHANICAL DEPARTMENT Eugene Matthews Horace Walker David Weathers Ivan Weaver* Charles Miller Paul Jackson (? ? Member of Armed Forces) TELEPHONE NUMBERS? 167 or 283 SUBSCRIPTION RATES. PAYABLE IN ADVANCE ONE YEAH? $2.50 SIX MONTHS? *L40 THREE MONTHS? 75c BY MAIL ANYWHERE TODAY'S BIBLE VERSE Where there is no vision, the people perjsh: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he. Proverbs ?9:18. Valid Question? Probably the most valid question pos ed at the special city board meeting last ? Thursday night, when citizens with in creased power bills gathered to protest the increases, was this one: Is consump tion of electric power a fair basis for taxation? The inference in Ihe question was that the city's net profit on t hc? power distri^ bution operations is too great, and that the power consumers are paying too great a portion of live city's operating revenue which, on an equitable basis, should come from taxes, or some other source. The question- is bulwarked l>v ihe fact that the city ant icipatcs a profit, during the fiscal year ending next June, of a bout $85,000 from the sale of power to residential and commercial customers. Hunter Allen, .superintendent of the city's power department, has a mitigat ing answer. He says that, had the dis tribution system been kept in top physi cal condition in the past, and necessary improvements made on it in the future, the "profit" figure' would, not have been as great, If any. Somewhere between the two positions -probably lies tin* correct answer, but should ihe city's 1952-33 estimate of its reyenue and expense in this department In proved out by the operating figures, the profit w i.11 represent -lie of every dol lar the city collects in power bills. Ma5C Miller, the electrical engineer who made recommendations for putting the system in good shape and thereby to eliminate tl'u: trouble spots where some customers are getting low voltage and having other trouble due to over-loading and other de fects, did riot estimate the cost of these needed improvements, but copper wire, transformers, and other electrical equip-: ment are not cheap. The, city's budget for the current year has been set up. based on the ntns elec trical rates, arid it appears that little rate change could, be enacted without throw ing the budget 'badly out-of-kiPer. HoweVer, the question on whether use of eleeti'ieal. power is a lair basis of ,axa" t ion is one that could, well be considered and. examined by future boards, ot com missioners as they prepare forthcoming cit\ ouduets. t-'( >rt> -one. cept> on t-hj. d.?i las is'<|ttite a lot ei arid it is-rea ?soti-iblf' to as!>i.uiU' that i.io bt.Kine*. -? ci inditstivd i'-inii m the '-comuUistUN has v?\ er beet) blo^ed t?ysU?;iva ht'gj) peiveHt- . age net. ' ? :* ? It is quite v;o >d s to.ieai-i !nat three King- Mountain una I'liva! toads are on the pa\ ing Schedule-, for Kings Mountain far .behind in paved rural roads. Prior to the rural road .IhmhI pro gram, pa\ed ruial roads Were xion-e\i>t ent here. Highway C ommissioner. t ?ra liam promised in an address liei e that ?Kinus Mountain would no longer be a red-herded stop-child iri thls department and he ha> kept- hi- wot 1. ' li's'tcrr' t 1 " v \>un! V-'t.tx bills to ob , ,m the : tt : ;'w . p. ent ount. -'nefore i ho penalU applies others itke tV? pa* the.tn at the earliest possible date. The l-'t'er group undoubi edlv reasons that the smallest possible amount pavnble is boat. Though two per cent is not a gfe.it amount, it is a httie. Kings Mountain churchwomen should attend the program at First Presbyteri an church Thursday afternoon, when Mrs W. Murdock Mcl.eod. chairman of the United States Council of Chinch women, w ill make an address. Nurses' Home When the Kings Mountain hospital is blessed with a nurses' home, the physical plant will be virtuallys complete, until normal usage and growth dictates fur ther expansion, which, odds are, means some years away. Thus it is good news that prospects are bright for the construction of a 13 bed nurses' home in the near future. Nearby quarters for the nursing staff are considered essential to the operation of a hospital for several reasons. Suitable quarters for the nursing staff saves money by cutting staff turnover and a nearby location means that additional nurses are close by for emergency calls. Approval of the proposal by the North Carolina Medical Care Commission will mean that the state will furnish some of the funds' 'required to build the home. As the Herald understands it, pros pects are good for commission approval because of 1) need, 2) hospital owner ship of a site, and 3) in-hand funds to provide the local share of the cost. This happy situation is not enjoyed by many communities where the need is also recognized. Commendations are due the hospital board of trustees for their handling of hospital affairs and to in dividuals and industries who have do nated funds in order that the service of the hospital could be improved and broadened. ? . Grover Tragedy The disastrous fire at Grover last week was a tragedy for the owners of the property involved, and it could have been much worse. The fire could have spread to other buildings and virtually have wiped out the commercial section of t he community. Almost all fires are terrible; and sel dom does insurance, even if the coverage is heavy,, compensate fully for the losses. Though an insurance claim covers all the 'physical loss, it does not compensate for the loss of earnings during the re building. clr-tung up period, nor .in case of partial damage. for the extra expense in repairing the damage, Tlift Hrrtver t\ v wa.-. worse because in sttry nee. eovefage v.as negligible lor , all. non-i'Mstenf for ?some: Insurance rates . at tlrove.'" are hi'.'M, because there is in ? adequate fire protection. ( lene.rally speaking; ,it is- an old rule. Hint purchasers get what they pay for.-. Grover is a smalt community (VMoO pop ulation of : too. which means that many a husband has some gettin'-ready to do before September 1st bills are put in the mail, Unquestion ably, many a man, when he gets his bills, will yearn for the 102 degree days when only thoughts concerned how to keep cool. f-t All just signs of autumn.... f-t Already the emphasis is switching from keeping cool to keeping warm, and the stove merchants are reminding that people can keopi comfortably warm on coldest days for prac tically nothing down and a few cents per week. Credit Is a won derful institution. i ft With the. demise of summer ' will come the demise of the summer ant crop, which re minds that a piece of publicity ( on "A New Way To Control 1 Ants" might be arriving a little ' 1.1 te for the full season, but just in time for a part of the August reunion season. A Uni versity of Maryland scientist writes i "The insecticide, chlor- 1 dane. is the answer ly ttyg problem. It kills by direct con- ' tact, . and thus eliminates the use of poison baits and the ha /.tt'd u hieh always accompanies their Use; namely, that a child or pet may a vi, lent ally find ' atnl r.it them." \ 4 . f If the wholq, house ?'> over- i run., hero <.? : what to do. tile pro fessor' s.i\>: .".I'lep tie v i! per ? eh';>>r ? . ? n'?? u Yii't rtnuli-i- n :ni\ 1 iju.M (VI J.Y to 17. per cent ihlordarto emulsified coticen trav iivO gallons ot water1 spray .ill outside port ions' of fl building from the ground to IhC' first' f ;<.">< n" w invJow level. .ill win dow ami door frames;, steps, 'poreli od"ges anil sides, and all object* under the house, sUch as pillars and pipes, that may fonn a bridge Irony the ground to the house .over which ants can craw!. This type of treat ment has been fotind to keep homes, in the South, free of the IH'stiferous Argentine and other common .household ants. for an entire season." J-t It sounds like a good^bit of wofic. but I guess it wu'utld be worth it. ft Random notes: The Rerhware folk are getting ready for their biggest and best Bethware Fair. It's the fifth anniversary of the Fair promotion, as niee a' Community fair as is present ed anywhere. Next Wednesday the Rethware Pr ijuressive club will entertain program adverti sers at the annual barbecue, and those who have attended before won't mant to miss it . .. .Grovpr now has dial tele phone service, which makes our neighbor community the envy of many Kings Mountain citi zens... .but Carl Finger, who now lives in Cherryville where dial phones also are the order of the day. doesn't like 'em. Like everything else, each met hod probably has advantages and disadvantages .... But someday dial service will be in stalled here, as that is the pat tern of the industry. Just about everybody was wishing It would rain. It's funny how, after a series of cloudbursts, folks begin to wishing it would quit .indirect blessing of the power rate schedule changes: plenty of folk brushed up on their "figuring" for the first time in "years. Lucky Yqu by Dick Shaw -4 TV Tii*? Icri.^frty Smk? Lucky you? you got away with reckless driving Viewpoints of Other Editors ANY GROUP WITHOUT LEADERS LIKE SHIP WITHOUT RUDDERS Stanley News & Press Leaders are essential in all forms of human activity, al though there arc those who re sent arty sort of leadership. But where there is no leadership, the people flounder around like a ship at sea without power or rudder. . The Democrats went into con-, vention in Chicago last month with nobody in full charge. There were various groups with their own leaders, but none was in a position to control the cortvention. One group was determined to "put the screws" on another group, and it looked for a while like the convention would deve lop into a free-for-all. But calmer heads prevailed. Big Jim Farley, an able politician, could be seen circulating through the convention ' hall. There was Clinton Anderson, one-time secre tary of agriculture, at work, and it was evident that Sam Rayburn, able permanent chairman of the convent ion, was wielding power ful influence. Behind the scenes, the big political bosses, like Ar vey, of Chicago, and Francis My ?rs of Pennsylvania, sensing the leadership vacuum, went to work. Soon the convention was under control, and the fight which ivould have split the party, wide aperi was averted. This is an excellent example of how leadership is needed in con tentions, and what is true In con ventions is true in boards of di rectors. clubs, fraternal orders, and ofhef organisations \yherfl men and women meet together for some worthwhile purpose. We would not condemn the ma neuvering of political leaders at the conventions; rather we would encourage more men to seek to fit themselves to be leaders in the field of politics. After all, politics is nothing ?> ?>re than p? evading on other men to do n< leaders want them to-do. Some accomplish this end ?.rough the use of patronage and | money, but others do it through the sheer force of personality and persuasion. No ? greater opportunity exists than that which Is to be found in the 'realm of politics and, in direcily, government, and we lieed more young men learning the art. ' . - AIR-CONDITIONING (ConCord Tribune) This summer's heat waves have sold many a person the Idea that air conditioning is no longer a luxury. An immediate point is the re port that the North Carolina Ad visory Budget Commission will receive the recommendation of a long-range, plan to air condition all state buildings, including the governor's mansion. The cost is estimated at from 10 to 12 million dollars. "Air conditioning in the sum mes is just as necessary as heat ing in the winter," says George Cheiry, state superintendent of buildings and grounds. "It would pay for itself in a few years be cause in weather like this, we are losing two hours of work a day." Business and industry have al ready found that cooling a place in summer pays as well as heat ing it in winter. First were the theaters, which found that they could offset the usual summer slump by offering coolness as an added attraction. Then followed other entertainment places, eat ing establishments, stores, and Of fices. Many industrial plants havo also found that increased efficien cy makes air conditioning pay. This year has seen the greatest appeal yet made to home owners, for the purchase of air condition ing units to cool one room or an entire house. Authorities predict a boom in the next few years, rivaling anything ever seen in the way of home appliances and conveniences. ^vfevvtn?' Most persons are old enough to remember when winter meant a period of hovering around a stove or fireplace, suffering from the cold, treating "colds" and other ailments of the season, th: wing frozen water pipes, complaining about the inconveniences. Central heating systems and improved units have changed all that. It's only another step to con trolling the inside temperature and humidity in the summer as well as in the winter. That step will ne taken *\? a great many families within the next few years. On July 1 .farm wage rates, without room and bo&rc? averag ed 87 cents arflfriour for the coun try as a whole. The average in the South was front 54 to 6-i cents. 1 Gosey. Hospitalizzed In Germany. Beter Sgt; Harry G. Gosey. son of Mr. and Mrs. E. S. Gosey, of Kings Mountain, is improving after be ing hos|pitali/e52 than thev did during the cOm paraDie period of 1951.