I
The news in this publi
cation is released for the
press on receipt.
THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA
NEWS LETTER
Published Weekly by the
University of North Caro
lina for the University Ex
tension Division.
JULY 4, 1928
CHAPEL HILL, N. C.
THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA PRES§
VOL. XIV, No. 34
ditorinl Boardt E. C. Branaon. S. H. Hobbs. Jr., P. W. Wager. L. R. Wllsfn, E. W. Knight, D. D. Carroll, H. W. Odum.
Entered as second-class matter November 14. 1914, at the Postoffice at Chapel Hill, N. C.. nnder the act of Angrast 24. 1911,
MOTOR-BUS TRANSPORTATION
travel by motor bus I
The revolution which has taken place
in transportation in the last few years
is so close to us that it is bard to gauge
its extent or its import. Not only has
the automobile replaced the horse and
buggy for local travel but a nation-wide
system of bus lines cares for a huge
volume of long-distance travel. A net
work of good roads in every state fur
nishes the basis for an excellent inter-
urban and cross country motor pas
senger service.
The service is an improvement over
that of the railroads in several partic
ulars. The schedule is generally more
frequent. It is a cleaner mode of
travel. It follows usually a more at
tractive route as well as one which can
reach more points. The railroad must
necessarily- avoid rapid changes in
altitude or deviations from a straight
course. The bus suffers no such limita
tions. Tnat the motor bus has cut
heavily into the passenger business of
the railroads is unquestioned, but this
has not necessarily meant a financial
loss to the railroads. The local pas
senger service is often the least prof
itable phase of a railroad’s business,
and the establishment of parallel bus
lines has enabled some railroads to
discontinue unprofitable accommodation
trains. In some cases motor bus lines
are operated by the railroads as exten
sions or feeders.
The most profitable aspect of rail
roading is generally the freight busi
ness and in so far as the bus lines have
enabled the roads to concentrate
freight the result has been a gain for
them.' The electric roads which were
engaged mainly in carrying passengers
have of course suffered by the competi
tion of the bus lines, and many of them
have gone out of business.
Less Heavily Taxed
The bus lines are not subjected to
as heavy taxes as the steam and elec
tric railways have been. In this state
they pay a nominal franchise tax, a tax
of six percent on gross earnings, and
of course the regular gasoline tax.
The railroads on the other hand have
to purchase a right-of-way and pay a
heavy property tax on it annually as
well as their franchise and profits
taxes. Furthermore they have to
build and maintain their own tracks,
whereas the buses operate over roads
built and maintained by the public.
These are not arguments for the higher
taxation of bus lines, but they do sug
gest that with these advantages
the motor bus rates might be kept
moderately low—or at least so where
there is a good volume of traffic.
The table which appears elsewhere
in this issue shows the number of motor
vehicles operating as common carriers
in each state and the miles of route in
each state. Altogetherithere are over
34,000 such carriers and the routes
over which they run aggregate 262,000
miles. This latter figure is almost
exactly the same as that of the total
rsilway mileage in the United States.
In addition to these 34,000 buses
operated as common carriers there are
over 39,000 private carrier buses in use,
mainly school buses, sight-seeing buses,
and buses operated by. hotels or in
dustrial establishments to carry their
own patrons or employes.
Freight Service
No less phenomenal thanjthe growth
of the motor passenger service has been
the growth in motor freight service.
According to the National Automobile
Chamber of Commerce there were on
July 1, 1927, 272,000 motor truck fleets
in the United States engaged in hand
ling freight. While there'.;is an increas
ing use of motor trucks for long hauls,
short-haul trucking predominates.
Manufacturers, wholesale dealers, and
others find it profltableito ^maintain a
fleet of trucks to distribute their prod
ucts rather than suffer the delays and
risks of shipment by rail. This has
also cut into the railroad’s business,
hut again it has been one of the less
profitable lines of its business which
has been disturbed. The short-haul
trade is less profitable to^the railroads
than the long-haul trade, and they
still have an abundance of the latter.
Instead of injuring the railways, in
many cases at least, the loss of
some of the local passengerjandjfreight
traffic, has been a welcome relief. It i
has relieved a congestion that was be-1
coming serious. No doubt there are
some roads which have suffered during
the readjustment, but the reorganiza
tion of travel facilities and distribution
processes in the interest of speed, con
venience and economy will benefit
everybody in the long run. The auto
mobile has caused or is causing more
revolutions—both economic and social
—thdn are generally recognized.
93 MILLIONS IN SCHOOLS
There are at present 6,-529 school
buildings in North Carolina us^d by the
public school system, at an appraised
value of $93,892,071, which is an in
crease of 10 percent, or of $9,360,843,
over the previous year, according to
State School Facta.
This increase in the value of school
property is partly due to the stimula-1
tion afforded by the state in providing
the three special building funds of,
$6,000,000 each, according to School'
Facts. These funds have enabled
county boards of education to borrow
money for the erection of the buildings
with not less than five rooms, at a rate
of interest not always obtainable by
local bond issues. The result has been
that these funds have aided in the
school building activity of several coun
ties rather than complete any partic
ular county program.
The number of school buildings in
the state has decreased steadily since
1904-1905, due to the fact that larger
and more modern buildings have been
replacing the one, two and three-rocm
school houses of former years. As a
result, where there were 8,239 school
houses in 1906, there are now only 6,629
school buildings. Good roads, which
have made pqssible many consolida
tions, have played a large part in'ithis
decrease.
This is especially true with regard to
rural schools for white children. For
there are now only 3,763 of these rural
schools, whereas in the year 1918-1919,
the year when there was the largest
number of rural schools for white
children, there were 6,632 of these
schools, or 1,796 more than at present.
The number of school houses used
for colored children remains about the
same from year to year, although
slight increase has been shown in the
last few years. There are now 2,422
rural schools for colored, compared with
2,393 in 1926-1926 and 2,261 in 1904-1906.
Modern Buildings
The average value of each school
building is an index to the type of school
buildings now being built. In 1926-
1927 the average value of each school
house was $14,380; in 1920 it was
$3,990. The average value of each
colored school building has increased
from $978 in 1920 to $3,898 in 1927.
There are now seven counties which
have more than $1,000,000 each invested
in school property. These counties are
Buncombe, Robeson, Forsyth, Gaston,
Mecklenburg, Johnston and Rutherford,
LET THERE BE LIGHT
America still has faith in govern
ment by consent of the governed;
in the unlienable rights of man to
life, liberty and pursuit of happi
ness; in equality of opportunity; in
government of the people, by the
people and for the people. But
America’s problems multiply. The
clouds gather on the horizon nor do
they readily disappear. We must
see that the ideals of America are
not lost in the clouds and that the
clouds themselves are dispelled.
There is that which will dispel the
clouds and at the same time reveal
anew the glory of the ideals of
America. The mystic power that
drives away the mists and resolves
the difficulties of the hour is light.
What America needs; what the
whole world needs is light—the
light which leveals humanity to
itself and makes democracy some
thing more than a shibboleth. For
the betterment of American citizen
ship, flat lux.-let there be light, and
let it be abundant.—Will C. Wood,
former State Superintendent of
Public Instruction, California.
of contemporary Negro authors. And highly charged atmosphere, A
the story is convincing and satisfying, j tolerance, charity, and patience. A
It is vivid, factual and objective. It mellowed, bitterness. A mature vision
has the advantage of being artistic and | of racial cooperation, race develop-
activity, attract capital, bring to pass
material results and, finally, build
personal character, more than fifty
years of aimless existence by the same
community of people.”
This is the sentiment of John W.
Greer, Secretary of the Chamber of
Commerce of Coffee County, Georgia,
originally uttered several years ago,
and so often reiterated that finally it
kindled the imagination of the whole
county with the outcome that an of
ficial Five-Year Program for Coffee
County, adopted over a year and a half
ago, is now reported to be well on the
way to realization.
The organizer did not withdraw into
solitude and there work out a plan
which he thought would be good for
everybody. His method was quite
different. He inspired the people to
make their own program. Three
hundred and twenty-two citizens from
every part of the county, organized into
twenty-five committees, worked on it
over a period of eight weeks under the
general direction of the Chamber of
Commerce.
The major purposes of the program
as outlined at the beginning are: “To
make the county more profitable and
and pleasant for those who live in it
it does not confuse or identify racial
traits with cultural forms. Presenta
tion in this form also eliminates the
common liabilities found in the human
factors of prejudice, limited observa
tion, and inadequate knowledge.
The turn of a century, the rise of an
epoch, the aftermath of a conflict, the
: stirrings of a social process—these are
always of importance in their elemental j
I significance to people and nation. This
is particularly true of the Negro. In
no aspect of the American scene has
recent transformation been more
marked or development more ac-
;celerated perhaps than that in which
' the intellectual Negro has played his
] part. To say that it is an unusual rec-
; ord is commonplace. Professor Robert
E Park has referred to this renais-
, sance as a new philosophy of life, a
rational basis of new hopes, new at-
I titudes and new racial and social traits.
: It is important, therefore, he thinks,
• to judge Negro literature as an ‘‘in-
j tegral part of a single tradition, and as
a unique collective experience.”
Dr. Locke has well referred to the
new expression as a sort of composite
picture of the new Negro mind and
spirit reflecting its influence upon
Negro life. It is, of course, not en
tirely new. It is a development, a
summation. It is old and it is new.
It is exceptional and it is also repre
sentative as may well be seen from the
remarkably large number of younger
Negroes who have felt the creative
urge. From every state, in every walk
of life they have tried. They have
failed and they have succeeded.
One may look at the picture and re
port some of the things which be thinks
he sees there. Literary portraits re
flecting a new realism. A new frank
ness and courage to face facts without
fear, excitement, or apologies. Pride
and artistry in the rediscovery and
interpretation of a rich folk-background
of the race. Acclaim of youthful
authors, valued and valuable, but not
infallible or supremely mature. A
remarkable quantitative achievement,
yet expecting a qualitative' sequel. A
new understanding of the challenge to
achieve universal, as well as racial,
standards of excellence. Race con
sciousness and urge alongside integral
participation in American life and cul
tural development. A race and a na
tional epoch. The promise of balance
ment and understanding. A new out
look and with it a new zest, well tem
pered by the twin forces of opportunity
and obligation.—Howard W. Odum.
A COUNTY GEOGRAPHY
A master’s thesis recently submitted
to the Department of Rural Social-
Economics at the University is entitled:
Economic and Social Founda
tions and Possibilities of Caldwell
County, North Carolina. It is the
work of Columbus Andrews, a former
teacher in Caldwell county.
It is a comprehensive survey of the
history, geography, resources, institu
tions and problems of Caldwell county.
Part One, which deals with the economic
and social foundations of the county,
is mainly descriptive. It includes a
chapter each on historical background,
natural resources, population, agricul
ture, industry, schools, churches, other
I institutions and agencies, and present
town-country relationships. In the
last-mentioned chapter particular at
tention is given to the relation of
Lenoir, the county-seat, to the rest of
the county. The survey reveals that
Lenoir is not qualifying fully as a trade
and culture center and that there is
not complete harmony between the
town and the countryside.
In Part Two an effort is made to
point out the possibilities of the county.
Under the head of economic possibili
ties are listed: (1) sufficient production
of staple foods and feedstuffs to make
the county self-feeding; (2) the develop
ment of local markets; and (3) coopera
tive activities such as cooperative
creameries, cooperative credit agen
cies, and cooperative power plants.
The social possibilities of the county,
it is pointed out, are infinitely greater
chan the economic and vastly more
difficult to realize. The newspaper, the
church, and the school are recognized as
the agencies which must foster the
socialization of the county. A sug
gested school program includes: (1) the
to induce others to make their homes | poise in an over-enthusiastic and
with us; to improve morals; to advance
completion of the consolidation pro
gram; (2) equalization of educational
jpportunity; and (3) a county-wide li
brary service. The program for the
church includes consolidation of rural
churches within denominational lines,
pastors’ homes with a few acres of land
adjoining, and a ministry trained for
and devoted to rural work. The news
paper should be the promotion organ
for all phases of economic and social
advancement.
The full thesis will not be published,
or at least not at present, but Mr.
Andrews has condensed the descriptive
part of his work into a county geog
raphy supplement, which is being pub
lished through the generosity of two
Caldwell county citizens and will be
available for use in the schools of the
county.
In 1924 there were no counties having
investment of $1,000,000 in school
property.
In the city school system, Asheville
ranks first among the eight larger cit
ies in value of school property per
child, with $485.66. High Point is
lowest in this group of cities in this
respect, with an average of $181.77 per
capita value of school property. The
total value of the school property in
these eight cities is as follows; Ashe
ville $3 680,792; Winston Salem $3,662,-
600j.Raleigh $1,826,467; Charlotte, $2,-
689,990; Greensboro, 600,000 Dur
ham, $1,647,897; Wilmington, $919,931,
High Point, $1,029,633.
In the second group of cities, two,
Salisbury and Gastonia, are in the $1,-
000 000 class. In this group Salisbury
has’ the largest amount, or
vested for each child enrolled Hen
derson has the smallest amount based
pupils enrolled, or only $102.
education; to increase wealth; to reduce
taxes.” The major outline of the
actually adopted plan includes fifty
specific objectives under these general
departments: Development of spiritual
activities; county-wide welfare work,
educational advancement; publichealtb;
recreation and amusement; highways;
industries; commerce; balanced farm
ing.
■Tt was accepted as a foregone con
clusion that the working together of
all the twenty-five committees would
result in a common understanding of
the problems of all the people, which
would in itself be a long step forward.
“On the first reading, the average
person is inclined to smile at what he
would term an ‘impossibility,
said
BUSES AS COMMON CARRIERS
Number of Vehicles and Miles of Route, Jan. 1, 1928
Lawson Kelly, President of the County i of steam or electric railway companies
Chamber of Commerce; “on the second 1 which total 6,181 miles.
The following table shows the number of buses operated as common car
riers, together with the mileage of the routes, in each of the slates on January
1, 1928. The table is prepared from information supplied by the National Auto
mobile Chamber of Commerce.
There are in the United States 7,102 companies operating 34,424 motor
vehicles over 262,846 miles of route. Of the total number of vehicles, 29,936
are buses and 4,488 are touring cars. About one percent of the lines are
operated by steam railroad companies, about four percent by electric railway
companies, and over 95 percent by independent motor carriers.
The states are ranked according to the mileage of routes, Texas, the larg.
est state, leading with the greatest mileage, 19,799. Missouri is second with
14,468 miles, and Ohio third with 13,716. The small state of Delaware has a
total of only 227 miles. New Jersey has the largest number of vehicles in
operation but most of them serve very short routes.
North Carolina has 116 companies, all but eight of which are independent
They operate 672 vehicles over routes
reading his smile will fade, his heart
will awaken with a new hope; and on a
third reading he will say: ‘It’s a big
job; but it can be done and it’s none too
big’for Coffee County and her 20,000
people to put over.
Mr. Greer is not new at unifying the
consciousness of a county. He has
helped to develop five-year programs
in several Georgia counties. Several
years ago, he wrote a little book,
“Looking Ahead: A Business Romance
with a County Plan,” which contains
specifications and justifications for
county-wide thinking and action, and
constitutes a much more definite work
ing program than it is possible to sug
gest in this brief item.—The American
.City-
COUNTY PLANNING
“A five-year period crystallized in
^ popula-
rectify
the'roindsof an entire county popula
tion will harmonize
mistakes, wipe out persmal
abate business jealousies, pay debts,
strengthen weaknesses, engender hope
re-establish faith, create desire, awake
negro self-expression
The.untouched picture of the Ameri
can Negro’s cultural development dur
ing the decade immediately following
the Great War has nowhere, so far as
I know been presented so directly and
effectively as in the story of selt-ex-
oression revealed in the major writing
Department of Rural Social-Economics, University of North Carolina
Number
Rank State of vehicles
Miles of
route
Number
Rank State of vehicles
Miles of
route
1
Texas
.. 964....
.19,799
25
Arkansas
292....
. 4,648
2
Missouri
.. 778...
.14,468
26
Louisiana
491...,
. 4,347
3
O-iio
. 2.026....
.13,716
27
Iowa
252....
. 4,045
4
Kansas ...
.. 413....
12,388
28
South Dakota
100....
. 3,636
6
New York
..2,912....
.12,239
29
Maine
262....
. 3,66-3
6
Oregon
,. 844....
.10,167
30
Idiho
113....
. 3,300
7
Pennsvlvania...
..2,663....
. 9,900
31
Maryland
834....
. 3,249
8
Michigan
..1,968....
. 9,225
32
Florida
622....
. 3,229
9
Massachusetts..
..1,657....
. 8,896
33
Arizona
278....
. 3,032
10
Oklahoma
... 426....
. 8,636
34
West Virginia
479....
. 2,631
11
Colorado
.. 669....
. 8,337
36
Nebraska
193....
. 2,494
12
Indiana
.,1,204....
.. 7,906
36
South Carolina
162....
. 2,222
13
California
...2,319....
.. 7,202
37
Utah
222....
. 2,101
14
New Jersey ....
...3,673 ...
. 7,096
38
Connecticut
631....
. 2,082
16
Minnesota
... 671...
.. 6,781
39
Mississippi
93....
. 2.033
16
■Virginia
... 599...
.. 6,208
40
North Dakota
71....
.. 1,903
17
Illinois
..1,695...
.. 6,834
41
Montana
89 ..
.. 1,870
18
Tennessee
... 487...
.. 6,695
42
Wvi/ming
62....
.. 1,671
19
Georgia
... 306...
.. 6,472
43
Rh( de Island
269...
.. 1,639
20
North Carolina.
... 572...
.. 5,181
44
New Mexico
146...
.. 1,400
21
Kentucky
... 604...
.. 6,103
45
Vermont
108...
.. 1,866
22
Wisconsin
... 622...
.. 4,966
46
Nevada
132...
.. 1,281
23
Washington ....
... 729...
.. 4,739
47
New Hampshire..
60...
.. 409
24
Alabama
... 217...
.. 4,643
43
Delaware
76...
.. 227