Those ‘Good Old Days’—Or Were They?
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Two spooler tenders chatted on the
way to their second-shift job. Remarked
one of them: “Every once in awhile you
hear someone say, ‘Now, back in the
Good Old Days. . .’ or ‘Those were the
Good Old Days’.”
“Yes, I’ve done a little thinking about
that, too,” said the other. “Time has a
way of erasing the bad and keeping alive
memories associated with the pleasant
things.”
The discussion naturally moved to the
question: Were those Old Days so good,
after all?
Not worth a precious memory, when
you compare conditions in the industry
of 50 years ago, with today. For with
most people, their idea of “the Good
Old Days” means about the years 1910
to 1920.
BACK THEN, textile mills—like other
businesses—were not the same as today.
Nor were a lot of other things: Streets,
automobiles, appliances . . . working and
living standards in general.
Those of you who worked in textile
mills back in those Good Old Days will
remember the dark, musty mills, beggar
ly wages . . . living conditions so poor
that if a man’s house was painted, you
spoke of “the folks in the pretty house”.
And there was the antiquated ma
chinery with backward processes of
manufacturing, shoddy quality, slow
production . . . primitive working con
ditions.
Things are much better today. We
think these are the Good Days. Our
faith in the future leads us to believe
that each passing age will be better
than ever.
Treat Feet Right
And Enjoy Life
DON’T PRESS YOUR LUCK
PoUo Epidemic Could Come
Gaston county could have a polio epidemic this year.
The grim reminder comes from the local chapter of the
New March of Dimes, in cooperation with the Gaston
County Health Department.
The heart of their message: Get polio protection now!
Go without delay to your family physician, or to your
county health department, to get the vaccine for members
of your family. And get the vaccine for yourself.
An educational campaign in
progress aims at alerting all
citizens to a concern for this
health problem. As part of the
program, Boy Scouts will help
the local unit of the National
Foundation and the Health De
partment to contact every
household in mid-April. They
will distribute a “Stop Polio”
leaflet which contains tacts
about the disease, a vaccine rec
ord chart, and a list of Gaston
County Health Department
clinics where the vaccine is ad
ministered.
“There were several bad epi
demics of polio in various areas
of the United States last year.
We are genuinely concerned
about the prospects for 1960,”
says Fred E. Upchurch, chair
man of the Gaston county chap
ter of the National Foundation.
He points out that the number
of cases throughout the nation
is higher this year than at the
same time last year, with a larg
er percentage of paralytic cases.
And North Carolina is leading
this list.
“We have been warned that
the polio virus we are getting
in this part of the country is
now — and will be — stronger
than ever. This hardier strain of
virus is causing more nerve
damage to its victims,” notes
Mr. Upchurch.
RECORDS SHOW that the
virus Ls strikinp tho.'je who
have not been vaccinated. The
local Foundation chairman
points up these facts:
• In Gaston county, 56 per
cent of the population under 40
years of age are not fully polio-
protected. Those not protected
at all comprise 39.6 per cent.
Children under 5 and those be
tween 20 and 40 years make up
most of the unprotected group.
• Last year, two Americans
in three had not been inoculated
against paralytic polio. A tragic
result of such neglect the year
before was that polio epidemics
broke out in six states. In the
Detroit area alone, 876 persons
were afflicted, and 23 died.
• Especially alarming was an
and Leader
in Six Essential
METALS
PLASTICS
increase in the rate of occur
rence of paralytic polio—44 per
cent above that of 1957. More
than half these cases involved
pre-school children, most of
whom had not been inoculated.
• Do you realize what a polio
epidemic would mean to Gaston
county alone in terms of
human suffering and economic
loss? It typically costs a chapter
$50,000 a week to attempt to
take care of an epidemic in its
county. And it costs the victims
much more over a long period of
time.
Lost Something?
Have you lost some small
piece of personal property
lately? If so, and if your
stray item went amiss in or
around the mill, maybe it
turned up at the Industrial
Relations office.
Every now and then, there
are lost-and-found articles turn
ed in to the IR office, and al
though bulletin board notices
are posted, some items are not
soon reunited with their own
ers. For example, there was a
ladies’ wristwatch which went
unclaimed for several months.
And in recent weeks, folks in
the IR office waited long for the
owner of a pair of sunglasses.
OTHER ITEMS frequently
turned in are keys, pieces of
jewelry, and manicure tools with
no ownership identification.
If you have misplaced an ar
ticle of personal property and
have reason to suppose it might
have been recovered around the
mill, inquire at the Industrial
Relations office. If your item
has been added to the lost-found
collection, identification is all
that’s needed to reclaim it.
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The way you treat your feet
determines—to a great extent—■
whether you will enjoy good
health and live on a high level
of efficiency in all activities of
life. Moreover, good foot care
is a giant step toward preven
tion of accidents both on and
off the job.
In passing along these remind
ers, the National Foot Health
Council reviews ten basic rules
that can set you to walking on
happier feet:
1. Wash frequently. Bathe feet
once or even twice a day. Dry
them thoroughly, and dust with
foot powder.
2. Change often. Never wear
the same shoes two days in a
row. If at all possible, change
shoes, socks or hosiery once or
twice a day.
3. Trim correctly. Cut your
toenails straight across and not
shorter than the end of the toe
itself. Use a nail-type clipper
but be careful not to cut down
the sides.
4. Wear right. Wear shoes with
flexible soles and uppers, and
pick the right shoes for the right
occasion to support your feet in
action.
5. Fit right. Get the proper
size shoe and the right shape.
Avoid pressure. Wear socks or
hosiery one-half inch longer
than your longest toes.
6. Exercise. Limber up your
feet at intervals to stimulate
nerves, muscles and the circula
tion. Wiggle your toes. Elevate
feet and legs two or three times
a day to aid blood circulation.
7. Keep dry. Don’t get your
feet wet, and don’t let them
stay wet from perspiration.
Wear overshoes in damp or
stormy weather.
8. Walk right. Cultivate good
posture sitting, standing, or
walking. Keep your toe position
forward.
9. Don’t neglect. Examine
your own and your children’s
feet frequently, to guard against
infection and defects. Minor sore
spots and little aches may grow
into big troubles and make you
feel sick all over.
10. Take care. Don’t be a
“bathroom surgeon”. If your feet
need attention, consult a podi
atrist or chiropodist for advice
and professional treatment.
ANSWERS
Textile Terms
1_^; 2—H; 3—D; 4—1; 5—F;
6—E; 7—B; 8—G; 9—A; 10—C.
fir^ston^
APRIL, 1960 PAGE 8
There were only
46 stars then
when Scouting started
rn 1910, now
there are SO.
And just as America
has grown, so has
Scouting. At the
end of 1910, there
were 61,000 boys
in Scouting—now
there are five million.
1910-1960 GOLDEN JUBILEE,
BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
In National Guard
Edgar Dodgen, son of Mrs.
Rose Dodgen of Weaving (cot
ton), has been in a National
Guard training program at Fort
Jackson, S. C., since November,
1959. His term of service will be
completed in mid-May.
Edgar worked in Weaving
(synthetics) before joining the
Guard. His address: Pvt. Edgar
A. Dodgen Jr., NG 24995766; Co.
B, 14th Battalion; Third Train
ing Regiment; Fort Jackson,
S. C.
FIRESTONE TEXTILES
P. O. BOX 551
GASTONIA. N. C.
POSTAL MANUAL
SECTION I34.I
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CHAPEL HILL, N. C.
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