No list of colorful New Semians
would be complete if it failed to
include Captain Tom Daniels—the
South’s first football star and a
disabled hero of World War I.
, He was a rip snorter in his day,
but Father Time toned him down
in the sunset years. A man with a
million mellowed memories, he was
quite content to let all others
scramble for the limelight, while
he thumbed through glory to spare.
Actually, Captain Tom was an
old hand at military service even
before the advent of 1917 and his
distinguished moments of bravery
on the batttlefields of France.
He joined the Naval Militia of
the North Carolina State Guard in
1892, and worked his way up until
he became'a lieutenant command
er. For 16 years he was command
er of the North Carolina Naval Bri
gade, and retired in 1915 with the
rank of commodore.
He saw active duty in the Span
ish American War. When World
War I broke out, Daniel’s rank was
too high for him to get a chance at
active sea duty, so he enlisted in
the second training camp at Chica-
mauga Park, Tenn.
He remained there from August
until November, and was commis
sioned a first lieutenant.
His valor earned him the Croix
de Guerre, and never let it be said
that he didn’t receive this high
French decoration the hard way.
On the morning of August 19, 1918
he lost an eye and sustained- se
vere head wounds, but continued
to fight. A.,^h;ttered shoulder,
more head wounds and the loss of
an ear felled him for good in the
afternoon.
He was taken to a hospital at
St. Die, and later transferred to
a series of hospitals at Baccaret,
Vittelle, Doulon, Tours, Sawana
and La Boule. Eventually he was
sent back home for further patch
ing up at Hampton, Va., and. Cape
May, N. J. Finally, on May 24, 1919,
he was discharged with the rank
of captain.
In due time he became grand ex
alted ruled of North Carolina Ellks,
and later State Commander of the
American Legion. He served con
tinuously as secretary of the New
Bern Elks Lodge until his death.
It Was college football that first
brought Daniels national fame, and
revealed the stamina and spunk
that was to stand him in good
stead when his life was at stake.
He was the star of the first foot
ball game played in the south.
Playing halfback at Trinity (now
Duke) he led his team to a 20 to Of
victory over the University of
North Carolina. The year was 18M.
He ran roughshod over oppon
ents until 1893, and was picked as
the greatest hdfback in the coun
try by the nation’s top sports writ
er, Casper Whitney, writing in
Outing Magazine.
Whitney was a forerunner of
Walter Camp and Grantland Rice,
and his evaluation of Captain Tom
was equivalent to later All-Ameri
can selections. He captained Trini
ty’s 1891 eleven.
Auburn latched onto him to
coach that school’s first football
team against the University of Ala
bama, in 1893..Somebody suggested
that the coaches be allowed to play,
but it was a bad day for Alabama
supporters when such an agree
ment was reached.
Daniels had a field day, scoring
most of the points, as Auburn went
on to win by a margin of 32 to 22.
Spuming offers to play professional
baseball, he came back to bis na
tive New Bern, coached a number
of high school football teams, and
eventually went off to war.
Such is the Tom Daniels saga—
a story of thrills and agony, brav
ery beyond mortal comprehension,
and at long last a place in the shad
ows where he could watch others
as they too vied for fame and a
place in the sun.
The NEW BERN
PUBLISHED WEEKLY
IN THE HEART OF
EASTERN NORTH
CAROLINA
5^ Per Copy
VOLUME
NEW BERN, N. C„ FRIDAY, AUGUST 22, 1958
NUMBER 21
IN PLANE VIEW—This is the glimpse of New Bern that
pilots and passengers are treated to when they fly over
this historic first State Capital, in the Land of Enchanting
Waters.
„ For many it’s^the only sifibt of the town, they ever get,
as they hurry to Florida vacations or head northward to the
homes they left in quest of rest and sunshine.
John Baxter, a flier himself, put his long experience
as a photographer to good use in making an excellent
photo of his home town.
Without diffculty you should be able to identify some
of our best known landmarks. Columbia is the gem of the
ocean, but New Bern—uninUmidated by,fj)ii9 stqrm dangers
of its unprotected shoreline, is the gem m the Neuse and
Trent. , ,
None Happier Than Judges
Over Air Conditioned Court
It’s a shame that Judge William
J. Bundy of Greenville and Judge
W. H. S. Burgwyn of Woodland
can’t be here in their heavy black
robes for the September term of
Craven Superior court.
Having complained bitterb^ in re
cent weeks about the suffocating
SUNDAY SPEAKER—Rev. Gra
dy Wilson wilt bring the final
message of the Christian Business
Men's Crusade et 3 p.m. Sun
day, in the New Bern High
School Auditorium.
Associate evangelist with Bil
ly Graham, he is widely known
for his own ministry on radio
and television, and each night fol
lowing Dr. Graham's main serv
ice he directs the counselors in
their personal talks with the
hundreds who respond to Gra
ham's invitation.
heat in other courtrooms, they
would thoroughly enjoy the air
conditioned comfort now on tap at
our own county courthouse.
Instead, these two comfort-loving
gentlemen will have to find a cool
spot elsewhere, while Judge Clif
ton L. Moore of Burgaw has the
honor and aboye all the pleasure
of being the first Superior Court
jurist to get goose bumps here.
No one would ever accuse either
judge,; Bundy or , Burgwyn, of ever
being at a loss for words—on or
off the bench. And, If they’ve been
quoted correctly in the state pa
pers, they were particularly articu
late in their lamentation about the
heat they’ve encountered this sum
mer.
Maybe this was a bad year for
North Carolina’s Superior Court
jurists to start wearing robes. The
garments are supposed to add dig
nity to the scene, and that is as it
should be. But when the mercury
soars into the nineties, dignity
suffers. If suffers most, of course,
in a courtroom where the only
breath of air stiring emanates from
the strong vocal outbursts of at
torneys burdened with weak cases.
Even with air conditioning.
Judge Moore won’t get much relax
ation on his trip to New Bern. In
cluded on the calendar are three
murders and a manslaughter trial.
Other cases involve forgery, em
bezzlement, arson and fraud, rob
bery, escape, assault, larceny, aban-
We Bet You Couldn't Nome
Magazine Most Popular Here
It is doubtful that one New Bern-
ian in a hundred could name the
town’s best selling magazine.
Leading by a comfortable margin,
according to a survey by the Mir
ror, is TV-Guide. Although it is
published weekly, this little maga
zine . moves more copies per issue
than any of the top monthlies.
Next to TV-Guide, the Saturday
Evening Post has the strongest
newsstand circulation here. Other
good sellers are Ladies Home
Journal, Redbook and the various
confessions magazines.
Contrary to what you might have
imagined. Life is not a heavy mov
er in these parts. Giving it a real
challenge is Look, but neither pub
lication is setting the world on fire
as far as local sales are concerned.
And despite the great prestige
that has been built up for Readers
Digest, another of the smaller mag
azines—Coronet—is. selling almost
as well.
What about the news magazines,
such as Time, Newsweek and the
like? Well, despite the internation
al turmoil and spectacular events
that are happening at home and
abroad, they are far down the line
in popularity, as far as New Bern-
magazine buyers are concerned.
Comic books continue to hold
their own. especially Walt Disney’s
cartoon characters and that old fav
orite, Super Man. Incidentally, Dis
ney has no less than 60 titles in
the comic boote field.
donment and non-support, assault
with a deadly weapon, speediog
and drunken driving.
Facing trial for murder are Doris
Dillahunt, who claims self defense
in the shooting of her husband,
Norris Dillahunt; William Chad
wick, who has confessed the blud
geoning of Marvis Foy; and Hardy
Brock, charged with the fatal stab
bing of Cedric Sheppard.
'Twenty-one motorists are charg
ed with operating an automobile
while under the influence of whis
key, and are scheduled for trial
during the second week of the
two-week term opening September
2.
Included in the group are Charlie
L. Hester, Ronald Sherman, Noah
F. Rowe, Jr„ William Elmo Toombs.
Kenneth Eugene Miller, James Lee
Suggs, Warren D. Strickland, Arn
old F. Jarman, Lula Wiggins Smith,
John White Miller, John C. Hardi
son, Cecil Ervin Smyer, Clifton
Heath, Eric Collymore, William
Harold Hockaday, Garland Vance
Kirkman, Arturo R. Maldonado, Jr.,
Edward Ray Hickman, John Lan
caster, John Earl Harris and Joseph
Allen Perry.
10 DOWNING ST. SHAKY
London, England—^The wqlrld-
famous No. ' 10 Downing Street
needs a major structural overhaul
as soon as other quarters can be
found for the Prime Minister, ac
cording to a governmental com
mittee spokesman.
Also recommended for renova
tion were Nos. 11 and 12. The
foundations of the house, which
were built In 1686, are unstable.
The renovation cost was tentatively
estimated at four hundred thous
and pounds ($1,120,000).