Population
Greater Kings Mountain 10.320
City Limits 7.206
(fee figure fof Greater ring* Mountain U derived iron
UM 1965 King* Mountain city 'll rectory eensue. Tbe City
Unite figure In Irom the United Statee ceneue of 19S0.
1 P Pages
10 Today
VOL 66 NO. 33
Established 1889
Kings Mountain, N. CM Thursday, August 16, 1956
Sixty-Seventh Year
PRICE FIVE CENTS
Local News
Bulletins
HOMECOMING
Gamble Hill Baptist Church,
located between Gastonia and
Kings Mountain, will hold
homecoming services at the
church Supnday, according to
announcement 'by Rev. W. P.
Bumgardner, pastor. Picnic
dinner wil 'be served following
the morning worship service.
UNION SERVICE
Sunday night’s union ser
vice wil be held at First Pres
byterian Church with Rev.
James B. MoLarty, pastor of
Central Methodist Church, to
deliver the message at 8
o’clock.
ONE PERMIT
Building inspector J. W.
Webster issued a 'building per
mit Wednesday, August 8, to
Geneva Carroll to erect a house
on Tracy street, at an estimat
ed cost of $3,500.
TO ATTEND CONVENTION
Horace Brown, governor of
Kings Mountain Moose Lodge
1748, will leave for Chicago
Friday to attend the National
Moose convention to be held
next wek.
MOOSE MEETING
Members of Kings Mountain
Moose Lodge 1748 will hold
their regular weekly meeting
at the lodge on Bessemer City
road.
MATTHEWS IMPROVING
Eugene Matthews, Herald
mechanical superintendent, is
recuperating from a slight
stroke of paralysis suffered on
Tuesday, August 7. Mr. Matt
hews has not been hospitaliz
ed and Dr. John C. McGill, at
tending physician, said Wed
nesday Mr. Matthew’s is im
proving satisfactorily.
JAYCEE OUTING
Kings Mountain Jaycees will
hold their annual family picnic
at Lake Montonia on Tuesday
evening at 7 o’clock. Gene Mit
cham, Joe Hord and Ken Pruitt,
of the house committee, have
made the necessary arrange
ments with the assistance of
George Thomasson.
METER RECEIPTS
City parking meter receipts
for the week ending noon, Wed
nesday totaled $193.25, accord
ing to a report from city clerk’s
office. Street meters returned
$163.13, while off-street meters
accounted for $30.12, the re
port indicated.
CHURCH TO SPONSOR SALE
El Bethel Methodist church
is sponsoring an old-fashioned
homemade cake and ice cream
sale at the El Bfethel clubhouse
Saturday night at 7 o’clock p.
m. for church benefit.
REUNION
Annual reunion of the des
cendants of Nathan and Susan
McGinnis will be held at Carl
ton clubhouse, Cherryville, Sun
day with dinner to' be served at
12 noon. Surviving children in
clude Henkle and Henry Mc
Ginnis, both of Kings Mountain,
and Wiley McGinnis, of Cherry
ille. Mrs. Louis Sabettie is sec
retary of the clan.
CITY GETS CHECK
The City of Kings Mountain
has received a check for $6,
318.76, representing refund
from the State of North Caro
lina on intangible taxes col
lected1 by the state.
TAX PRE-PAYMENTS
City taxpayers have pre paid
a total of $18,665.53 in 1956
taxes, Tax Collector J W. Web
ster reported Wednesday after
noon. Both city and county tax
es are now payable at fully al
lowable two percent discount.
The discount rate drops to one
percent in September.
Polio Patient
Out Of Hospital
Bill Bagwell, 26, of Gaston
street. Kings Mountain’s first
reported polio case for 1956, has
been discharged by his physician
Dr. Paul Nolan.
Mr. Bagwell was admitted to
Kings Mountain hospital August
6, and discharged from the hospi
tal August 11.
Dr. Nolan stated Wednesday
that Mr. Bagwell’s case was of
the non-paralytic type.
GerberdingNamed
Recreation Head
New Members
Want Schools
To Take Stadium
Dr. W. P. Gerberding was elect
ed chairman of the nfewly appoin
ted City Recreation commission
at that organization’s first meet
ing Monday night in city court
room.
Mrs, J. N. McClure, the com
mission’s lone woman member,
was elected vice-chairman of the
organization. Gene Mitchfem, city
clerk had already been appointed
secretary-treasurer of the com
mission by action of the City
Board of Commissioners in a re
dent meeting.
Members of the commission ex
pressed dissatisfaction with hav
ing City Stadium included in the
list of recreation facilities they
are to operate. They contended
that the stadium should be turn
ed over to the city school system.
Fred W. Plonk, former mem
ber of the recreation commission
and present member of the City
School Board of Trustees, told
the new commission that an a
greement between the schools and
the city would not allow the
schools to accept the stadium un
til it is completed. The school
board has refused to assume re
sponsibility of the stadium stever
al time in past years.
This did not change the stand
of the commission members, who
stated that they did not believe
they should have the stadium re
sponsibilities, when the park play,
ed no part in the city recreation
program,
William Plonk, American Leg
ion Post 155 representative on the
commission, expressed the opin
ion that the city should charge a
fee, other than for lights, for use
of the stadium, if the city was
to retain responsibilty for it.
This idea was also supported by
Lions Club Representative Gene
Timms. He pointled out that
the stadium needed many repairs,
and that the commission should
riegard these repairs as one of the
most pressing items on its agen
da.
A major part of the meeting
concerned discussion of the finan
cial status of the commission, and
what revenues it could expect.
Jack White, who served as secrte
tary - treasurer of t h e former
commission, had been invited to
attend this meeting to give a re
port on the financial condition of
the recreation department. He
was unable to attend and will be
invited to attend the commission’s
next meeting, which has been set
for August 27.
“Kings Mountain is far behind
in recreation, and someone will
havte to pay to catch up,” Dr. Ger
berding stated in regard to the
local recreation outlook.
Continuing in the financial
vein, he added, “We have to know
if the city is willing to support the
type of recreation program we
need here.”
Shu Carlton, city recreation di-1
rector for this summer, gave the j
commission a report on the rec
reation progam fo the past three
Continued on Page Eight
TO GIVE RECITAL — Gordon
Beaver, minister of music at St.
Matthew's Lutheran church, will
present an organ recital Sunday
afternoon at the church. The re
cital will begin at 4 o'clock.
Beaver To Play
Organ Recital
Gordon Beaver, minister of mu
sic at St. Matthew’s Lutheran
church, will play an organ re
cital at the church on Sunday
afternoon, beginning at 4 o’clock.
The program will include: “Ah,
Jesus Christ With Us Abide,”
Bach; “Prelude and Fugue in G
Minor,” Bach; “Aria with Varia
tions,” Martini: “Concerto in F,"
Handel; “Andantino in G Minor,”
Franck; “Joyeux Noel,” and Van
Hulse; “Toccata in G,” Dubois.
In September, Mr. Beaver will
enter Union Theological seminary
in New York for further study
in organ and to obtain the degree
of Master of Sacred Music.
A graduate of Catawba Col
lege in 1952, he is an army vete
ran. He was a special teacher in
piano in the city schools last
year. He is a native of Landis and
is married to the former Peggy
Mauney, of Kings Mountain.
200 At Legion
Celebration
Some 200 Kings Mountain Le
gionaires ate fried chicken and
barbecue Saturday night at the
Otis D. Green Post 155. The post
celebrated payment of all debt
on its building with a mortgage
burning ceremony.
The food was free and the Le
gionaires happy as they ate hear
tily and watched the mortgage
formerly held by J. Bun Patter
son, who had financed the Legion
obligation, go up in smoke and
paper cinders.
Melton Kiser served as caterer
for the party.
The Legion building here has a
book value of $37,500, represent
ing an initial investment in the
building in 1949 of $17,500, plus
a later addition of clubroom facil
ities requiring $10,000.
W. D. Morrison is serving a
second term as Legion comman
der.
Morgan Thinks State's Pearsall
Plan To Be Model In Southland
Will other Southern states foL
low North Carolina’s lead in thfe
school integration problem?
State Senator Robert Morgan
says yes. Senator Morgan told
Kings Mountain Kiwanis Club
membfers Thursday night that
Florida and other states in the
South have already indicated in
terest in thfe Pearsall Plan, on
which North Carolina voters will
vote September 8.
However, somfe of the states
will not settle for as moderate an
approach as the Pearsall Plan,
Mr. Morgan added.
"I btelieve in the Pearsall Plan,”
Senator Morgan stated. “It is the
most moderate approach to this
problem facing us today.”
‘This plan is absolutely fair to
the Negrotes of North Carolina,”
he added," and protects them aga
inst invasion of the colored
schools by white students. It also
provides the same amount of tui
tion grants provided for white
students.”
The Pearsall Plan provides that
the State of North Carolina has
the right to grant educational
tuition grants to students to at
tend private schools. Thfese grants
would amount to about $140 pfer
student per school year.
It also gives the voters in a
given area the right to vote to
close the public schools in that
area.
For example, if Negro students
apply for admission to white
school, the local assignment law
would first be used to bar their
admission. If all other legal
moves failed to halt admission to
the white school, then the local
school board, either city or county
depending upon the location of
the school, could designate this
school’s enrollment area as a
“local option unit,” giving regis
tered voters in that area the
right to vote to close or continue
the public school.
In event that the school is clo
sed, the state would then make
tuition grants to the students of
the closed plant. These grants
would be used to pay tuition costs
in a private school.
A safety valve left in this part
of the plan provides that, if the
school board will not call an elec
tion, 15 percent of the registered
voters in the local option unit can
sign a petition requesting an elec
tion and the County elections
board will be required to call
such an election. Local option
units can also vote to reopen -a
closed school.
“We should vote for this plan
in order to give ourselves as much
Continued on Page Eight
City-Mauney
Litigation
In Gaston Court
Litigation involving exceptions j
to appraisal board findings in a i
condemnation action involving the
City of Kings Mountain and Paul
Mauney was beig heard by Judge
Hugh B. Campbell in Gaston Su
perior Court Wednesday.
Most of the morning session
had been taken in picking a jury
to hear the case, which deals
with the City taking 2.56 acres of
land belonging to Mr. Mauney
through a condemnation suit
nearly two years ago. The land
was used by the city in construct
ing a new sewage disposal plant
on McGill Creek.
At the time of the condemna
tion, an apraisal board consist
ing of Wray A. Pionk, F J. Nob
lett, and Hoke Coon set a price
of $6,500 for the property
Howevter, the city did not agree
to this price and appealed on the
grounds that the set price was j
“excessive.”
Mr. Mauney then filed an ap
peal saying that the price Was too |
low for the amount of property
taken.
City attorneys for the case are
J. R. Davis and Jack White of
Davis & White law firm of Kings
Mountain, and E. R. Warren of
Gastonia. Mr. Mauney is repre
sented by George Thomasson of ;
Kings Mountain and James Mul.1
lin of Gastonia.
Judge Hugh B. Campbell, newly j
elected resident judge of Meek- I
lenburg County, is the presiding
jurist.
Witnesses called for the city
Wednesday included Mayor Glee
A. Bridges, B. D. Ratterree,
Boyce Ware, and Haywood
Lynch. Other city witnesses on
hand included Sage Fulton, Dan
Huffstetler, and City Commis
sioner W. G. Grantham
No witness for Mr. Mauney
was called Wednesday, but Hal
Plonk and Wray Plonk were in
the courtroom awaiting a call to
testify.
Haywood Lynch testified that
in his opinion $300 was a fair
market price for the 2.56 aeries
in question. Mr. Lynch, a Kings
Mountain real estate dealer and
merchant, was one of the last
city witnesses to be called Wed
nesday.
H.W. Haskins, 44, i
Died Wednesday
Howard Walter Haskins, 44, j
resident of 606 West Gold street,
died Wednesday morning at 6 a. j
m. in Charlotte Memorial Hospi- j
tal following an illness of one
day,
A native of Oklahoma, Mr. Has
kins had lived in Kings Moun
tain for the past nine years. He
was an employee of Elmer Lum
ber Company, and a member of
First Baptist church, Pearland,
Texas. He was a veteran of World
War II.
Survivors include his parents,
Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton Bailey
Haskins of Pearland, Tex.; his
wife, Mrs. Hattie Mae Stewart
Haskins; four s<Jas, Andy, David,
John and Howard Haskins, Jr.,
all of the home; two sisters, Mrs,
Joe Benes, Jr., of Pearland,
Tex. and Mrs. Don Cote of Flint,
Mich.; and one half-brother,
Hamilton Haskins of Pearland,
Tex.
Funeral plans are incomplete
awaiting arrival of relatives.
New 74 Lane
OnNorthSide
The second lane of U. S High
way 74 to Shelby will be built
on the north side of the present
roadbed in the vicinity of Kings
Mountain, District Engineer E.
L. Kemper has informed the
Herald.
The added lane will be north 1
of the present roadbed from the j
west city limits of Kings Moun
tain to the vicinity of Harmon’s
Store at Midway, Mr. Kemper |
said. New construction will then
move to the south side of the
current roadbed, then cross to the
north again a short distance past
Buffalo Creek.
The Herald reported inadver
tently last week that the added
lane would be south of the pre
sept roadbed.
The improvements will result
in a four-lane boulevard with a
30-foot center strip.
TWO SUNDAY SERVICES
St. Matthew’s Lutheran
church is holding two regular
Sunday morning services dur
ing August, Dr. W. P, Gerberd- j
ing said this week. One service
is being conducted at 9 o’clock
and the second at U o’clock, j
Dr. Gerberding said the two- !
service arrangement is experi- j
mental to determine demand
for an earlier service during
summer months. Thus far, he
added, attendance has been ap- ,
proximately equal.
School Board To Act Monday
On 1956 Pupil Assignments
PAST MASONIC MASTERS HONORED — Past
Masters of Fairview Lodge 339. A. F. & A. M., were
honored Monday night. They were presented Past
Master's certificates and collaborated in confer
ring the first degree. Refreshments were served
by Kings Mountain chapter 123, Order of the East
ern Star. Past Masters honored are pictured. Back
row. left to right, are J. B. Simpson. C. J. Gault,
Jr., D. E. Tate. A. W. Kincaid, J. E. Herndon. Front
row, left to right, are S. A. Crouse, Bov«e Gault,
John H. Floyd, Percy F. Dilling, W. K. Crook, and
Paul Owens. (Photoby Pennington Studio.)
-<$,-«-:__
Registration Slow
For Special Vote
Voting Books
Will Be Open
August 18,25
Two Saturdays remain for
registering to vote in the Septem
ber 8 special election to deter
mine whether North Carolina
will change its constitution re
specting public school operation.
Election officials in Kings
Mountain spent a boring day last
Saturday, first day the registra
tion books were open. Mrs. J. H.
Arthur, West Kings Mountain
registrar (at Victory Chevrolet
Company), said she handled two
transfers, while Mrs. Nell Cran
ford, East Kings Mountain regis
trar (at City Hall) handled a lone
transfer.
Mrs. Arthur, added, however,
she’d held several telephone in
quiries about the registration for
the September 8 general election.
The registration books will be
open again on Saturday and al
so on August 25. The first Satur
day of September will be chal
lenge day.
Odds are against heavy regis
tration activity, for all previously
registered citizens are eligible, to
vote, provided they have not
changed residence. The registra
tion period will enable listing on
the voting books persons who
have become 21 years of age, or
who have otherwise qualified for
North Carolina and/or Cleveland
County citizenship, or who were
not previously registered.
Rules and law* governing genie
ral elections will apply. Absentee
voting will be permitted and ex
penses of the election to the coun
ty will be reimbursed by the
State of North Carolina.
The citizens will adopt or re
iect a constitutional amendment
an September 8 to provide educa
lion expense grants for private
schools and to authorize local
flections to suspend local schools,
rhe amendment, if adopted, will
make effective the so-called
Pearsall Plan, as adopted by the
General Assembly in recent spe
cial session.
In addition to this amendment
the voters will also act on three
others which were offered by ac
tion of the 1955 General Assem
bly.
These are:
1) An amendment to allow limi
ted necessary compensation for
members of the General Assem
bly.
2) An amendment changing the
late for convening of the Gene
ral Assembly from January to
Continued on Page Eight
TO HIGH POINT — Hev. A J,
Argo, for three years pastor of
First Wesleyan Methodist church
has been transferred by the Wes
leyan Methodist conference to
the pastorate of Hayworth Me
morial w e s 1 e y a n Methodist
church. High Point. Mr. Argo
will be succeeded by Hev. J. W.
Phillips, who served the Kings
Mountain church for seven years.
Phillips Returns,
Succeeding Argo
Rev. J. W. Phillips, former pas
tor of First Wesleyan Methodist
church, will resume this pasto.
rate as a result of assignments
at last weekend’s annual Wesle
yan Methodist conference.
Rev, A. J Argo, pastor of First
Wesleyan church for the past
three years, is assuming the pas
torate of Hayworth Memorial
Wesleyan church, of High Point.
The conference returned for
the third year Rev. Hoover E.
Smith as pastor of Gold Street
Wesleyan Methodist church.
Rev. Mr. Argo is completing
Continued On Pane Eight
! Many Receiving
Anti-Polio Shots
With some incidence of infan
tile paralysis in Cleveland Coun
ty, a large number of Kings
Mountain area citizens are seeing
that their children get Salk vac
cine shots and many parents are
taking the shots themselves.
In contrast to last year, when
the supply of Salk antipolio ser
um was in short supply and ra
tioned to doctors and public
health agencies, there is a quite
sufficient supply this year, ac
; cording to reports from medical
men.
The county health offic'e report
ed it administered about 100 doses
of Salk vaccine at last Friday’s
regular clinic in Kings Mountain.
The health office conducts a regu- j
lar public health clinjc at City1
Hall each Friday beginning at 2 !
o’clock and continuing until 4
o’clock. Health office officials an- i
ticipate another large demand |
for the vaccine again this Friday, j
The health office staff is also i
visiting county schools to admin
ister shots to school children now
attending summer sessions.
Dr. John C McGill, who repor- i
ted he was taking Salk shots him
; self, said Wednesday a person
| should receive at least two doses
| of Salk serum within a two week
j period. The third dose or shot
should be taken some six to sev
en months later.
A health office spokesman i
said the health office staff is ad ;
ministering the Salk vaccine free
of charge to any who requests it j
and regardless of where previ
ous vaccine had been obtained, or
i whether the serum is first, sec
| ond, or third dosage.
Byrd Resignation
Accepted By Club
j The board of directors of Kings
j Mountain Country Club Monday
, night accepted formally the re
signation of Mr. and Mrs, Earl
Byrd as club managers.
Jack White, psesident, named
a committee of five to make re
commendations for future club
management. The committee in
eludes P. M. Neisler, chairman,
Dan Finger. Jack Arnette, George
W, Mauney, and Grady Howard.
' Mr. and Mrs. Byrd came to
Kings Mountain in May 1954.
Telephone Company Will Construct
Seven More Trunk lines To Shelby
Southern Bell Telephone and
Telegraph Company has sched
uled construction of seven addi
tional twoway trunk lints to
Shelby.
Floyd Farris, manager of the
Kings Mountain and Shelby ex
changes said the new Installations
will bring to 18 the two-way trunk
lines serving the Kings Moun
tain Shelby circuit.
Work on the installations is
scheduled to begin October 29
and to be completed on or about
December 1.
"We believe," Mr. Farris said,
"that the additional lines will
eliminate virtually the busy sig
nal when Kings Mountain or
Shelby subscribers are calling the
other community.”
Kings MountainShtelby sails
are non-toll.
Board Expected
To Name Two
Needed Teachers
The study and adoption of rules
governing the assignment of pu
pils for the coming school year
will be the big item on the agenda
of the City Board of School Trus
tees, when the group gathers in a
regular monthly session Mon
day night.
Arnold W. Kincaid, chairman of
the board of trustees, said Wed
nesday that Supt. B, N. Barnies
and Trustee J. Ft. Davis would
submit plans to the board for
adoption.
“Mr. Barnes has asured me that
the list of pupil assignments will
be submitted Monday night,” Mr.
Kipcaid explained.
The plans are expected to in
clude methods by,which patrons
of the schools may petition for
reassignment of their children.
Mr. Kincaid added that lists of
pupil assignments will be made
available to The Herald for pub
lication in next week’s issue.
The board has been studying
assignment plans for the past two
months, including one plan re
commended by the North Caro
lina Attorney General’s office It
is not known if the recommend
ed plan will be accepted, or if
another plan may be adopted in
its stead.
Supt. Barnes was in Mars Hill
Wednesday, attending a State
Superintendents’ meeting, and
was not available for comment on
the assignment plans.
A spokesman in his office said
that the meeting would be mostly
routine business with the excep
tion of the assignment discussion.
Two tbacher vacancies remain
in the city’s elementary faculty,
and the vacancies are expected,
be filled Monday night.
Polio Is Fatal
To Bill Bowles
Telfair (Bill) Bowles, 31, first
class navy boatswain mate, died
last Friday in a Guam service
hospital of polio, after an illhess
of a few days.
He was the husband of the for
mer Doris Doster, daughter of
Mr. and Mrs. Rufus Dostter, of
the EJ-Bethel community. He and
his wife were married in 1950. Hie
was a 14 year navy veteran.
A native of Winchester, Va.,
he is survived by his parents, Mr.
and Mrs. Garvin Bowles, of Win
Chester, his wife, and two daugh
ters, Jeanne, 5 and Pattie, 3.
Funeral will be held later this
month at Arlington National ce
meterv. Washington. D C.
Kiwanis To Hear
Belgian Soldier
A former member of the-Bel
gian underground during World
War II will address members of
the Kings Mountain Kiwanis
club Thursday night.
Gilbert Leclercq, now a Gas
tonian and Burlington Industries
employee, will speak to the
Kiwanis club at the Woman’s
Club at 6:45.
Mr. Leclercq attached himself
to American forces when they
reached Belgium, was wounded
in the Battle of the Bulge, hos
pitalized in America and dis
charged from the army—though
he’d never been enlisted. He
hitch-hiked back to Europe, re
joined the american forces, was
again returned to America and
discharged. This time he married
an American girl and stayed.
He is a “ham operator, licensed
as Station K4IVX.
Program was arranged by Har
old Hunnicutt.
laycees Receive 1
Play Equipment
Playground equipment recently
acquired by the Kings Mountain
Jaycees has been received. It was
decided, however, that the equip,
ment will not be installed until
next season because of the limit
ed time remaining this year in
the outdoor program.
The Jaycees look forward to
providing as much material and
assistance possible to augment
the recreation program of the
city, a spokesman said.