■n“
The NEW BERN
5 Pfei ’
VOLUME
NEW BERN, N. C., FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10, 1958
NUMBER 28
Passing years have done*little to
erase the memory of Monsignor
Michael A. Irwin. Protestants and
Jews, along with parishioners at
St. Paul’s Catholic church, knew
him well as a familiar figure on
the local scene.
Much of his more than half a
century in the priesthood was spent
in New Bern, and during those
years he became part and parcel
of the town. Few recalled that he
was a native of Portsmouth, Va.
Everyone who krfew him was
aware of his great love for music.
What many didn’t know was that
the Monsignor was an accomplish
ed violinist, who once played In
Norfolk’s St. Cecelia orchestra un
der the direction of Anton Kerner.
A non-paid community organiza
tion, composed of 30 to 40 musi
cians in the Norfolk and Ports
mouth area, the St. Cecelia orches
tra presented numerous .perform
ances in the Old Dominion.
Father Irwin’s favorite compos
ers were Beethoven, Chopin' and
Mendelssohn, but his tastes were
as broad as that big body of his,
and his khowledge of music ex
ceptional. He leaned strongly to
ward any good concerto.
He credited Father Julius at
Belmont Abbey, in western North
Carolina, with his basic musical
training. Later at Norfolk, he stud
ied under the great Hernrah Sing-
erhoff, a German who was not only
a famous teacher but a musician
of world note.
Monsignor Irwin’s happiest hour
of earth came at the age of 84,
when a golden jubilee celebration
was held here at the time of nis
‘ - fiftieth anniversars^^n the ptiest
. hood.
At his- request the observance
was delayed several months to co
'incide with the dedication of St
Paul’s handsome new auditorium
Priests from 10 states—New York
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massa
chusetts, Maryland, West Virginia
, Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina
and South Carolina—were here.
Included among, high ranking
Catholic leaders present for the
occasion were four bishops and
eight monsignors. Never before in
all history, nor since, has there
■ been such a gathering here. More
than 150 priests were seated to
gether at lunch -ki the spacious
auditorium.
Father Julian Endler of New
Bern’s St. Joseph’s Catholic church
served as toastmaster, with the us
ual complimentary speeches by vis
iting dignitaries. Incidentally, Fa
ther Julian’s twin brother. Father
John Joseph, was here.
They looked exactly alike, and
, even close friends had extreme
I difficulty figuring out just who
was who. There were two other
brothers in the family, and they
were priests also.
1 Solemn high mass was said by
Monsignor Irwin in the auditorium
that morning, in a religious cere
mony that is as rare as it was im
pressive. Seldom indeed are there
enough priests available to hold
the- offices for this type of mass.
One of the priests participating in
the ritual was a native New Bern-
ian. Father Laurence Newman.
Although the Monsignor had a
keen sense of humor, he could
wither his parishioners with biting
language when he considered it
advisable to take them to task. No
Protestant parson ever took the
hide off his squirming congrega
tion more completely than did
Father Irwin when he verbally
flogged his flock.
Some good Catholics complained
among themselves that he kept
them too long at mass. Such com
plaints, of course, are made by
Protestant church members too,
when they are forced to linger
in their sanctuaries.
However, the Monsignor was just
what he was, and nobody could
have changed him. We’ll remember
(Continued on back page)
SEEING IS-BELIEVING—You’’^e been hearing a lot in re
cent day^ about the alligator that Heber Coward, an em
ployee of the city, picked up in hi^ street sweeper after
Hurricane Helene departed. Coward has no idea where he
got the critter. All he knows is the alligator was inside the
sweeper when he emptied it. The surprise hitchhiker
thought it was quite a joke, and laughted heartily while
Billy Benners snapped this pose for The Mirror.
Autumn Is Always an Awful
Folks to Get in lail
New Bern’s law abiding citizens
could hardly" think of anything
worse than spending the hot days'
of summer in jail.
It seems to be different with the
criminal element. Autumn for them
is the awful time to be behind
bars, and virtually all of the ha
bitual lawbreakers are managing
to stay free and happy at the mo
ment.
Only a fraction of the cells at
the Craven county jail are filled,
and it’s been that way ever since
the first hint of frost. Even the
number of weekend drunks has
been at a minimum.
It would be nice to think that
the folks who make a habit of
straying from the straight and
narrow are turning over a new
leaf—a fall leaf so to speak. Or
maybe in this harvest season they
are doubly aware that what a man
sows he is bound to reap.
Whatever the reason. Jailer Ed
Daugherty and his assistant, Smok-
ey Miller, have had a siege of
pheasant lonesomeness. “If this
keeps up. I’ll be out of a job,”
says Daugherty, “but I’d gladly be
out of a job if it meant an end to
crime here.”
Neither Miller nor Daugherty,
nor anyone else, can explain why
breaking the law runs in cycles
like this. For raesons 'beyond the
comprehension of reasonable and
reasoning mortals, robberies, as
saults and even murders come in
bunches. As the saying goes, when
Hoop Sales Drag,
Due to Saturation
Hula-hoop sales here have been
tremendous, but the market is fad
ing faster than a bargain dress
after the third washing.
It isn’t a case of waning populari
ty. The saturation point has been
reached in New Bern. Everybody
who wants a hoop seems to have
one, That’s the news from inform
ed circles. Hula circles, that is.
it rains it pours. This just happens
to be one of" those fortunate dry
spells, and a cloudburst could come
any time now.-
, Boredom gets lots of New Bern-
ians in trouble, and it’s that way in
the rural areas too. Apparently it’s
hard to get bored when autumn
arrives, even though so-called nor
mal humans who never have to
face a judge are invariably melan
choly during September, October
and early November.
Law enforcement officers sub
scribe almost unanimously to the
theory that the moon not only con
trols the ocean’s tide, but impels
the potential criminal to act up.
Meuse and Trent Rivers Can
Pour Dollars Into New Bern
more turbulent Neuse, is a likely
spot.
Summer seems a long time off,
but it isn’t too early to start plan
ning for a future of outstanding
water events. Some of our past pro
motions have been fairly note
worthy, but with better organiza
tion and wider support on the lo
cal level we can really do things
to attract State and national recog
nition.
Those 73,000 boat owners will be
on the move again before you
know it. When they put into port,
it would be nice to have them
tie up here for awhile.
No further away than Kinston
there are more than 100 boat own
ers among the employees of the
DuPont company plant. Quite a
few use the Trent and Neuse here,
but far too many go elsewhere.
All of them spend money on
their jaunts, in varying degrees.
They will spend more, as will oth
er boat owners, when New Bern
has more to offer them.
Visitors to a town invariably
spend money. Raleigh is well aware
of this fact, and its tourist and
convention association figures con
servatively that the Capital City’s
tourist trade is worth a million
dollars annually.
Speaking of millions, the Flat
Rock Playhouse in western North
Carolina has been going strong
each summer for 12 years, and had
its millionth customer on August
New Bern’s exposed location at
the junction of the Neuse and
Trent has its disadvantages when
hurricanes hover on the horizon,
but a river city has its good points
too.
There were 73,000 outboard mo
tor boats operating in North Caro
lina last year, not to mention the
great number of yachts large and
small. With the inland waterway
in close proximity, many of these
boat owners can be enticed to vis
it us.
Whether they cruise here in their
craft, or haul it here on a trailer,
they’ll take to the idea if this
picturesque First State Capital be
comes well known as a center of
water sports.
Most of our thinking when tour
ists are contemplated is aimed at
highway traffic. This is understand
able, since no one would be rash
enough to predict that water traf
fic will ever challenge the stream
of automobiles that passes through
our town.
But boating is big business in
the Old North State( and it’s get
ting bigger every day. A high per-
cen^ge of the Tar Heels who own
these boats live a considerable dis
tance from any body of water that
can serve their yen to ride the
waves.
Naturally they’ve got to head to
ward the coast country in many
instances. New Bern, with its plac
id upper Trent and its slightly
Ordinarily they’re amply sup
ported in this contention by crime
statistics, but we’ve had plenty of
wonderful moonlight lately vidth
very little misbehavior of a type
that gets participants incarcerated.
All this is in sharp contrast, of
course to doings on the interna
tional scene. While New Bernians
addicted to thieving, violence and
general disorderliness are behav
ing like approximate little Lord
Fauntleroys, high government of
ficials in America, Russia'and way
points are calling each other things
that are more in keeping with the
preliminary mouthings that evolve
into a back alley brawl.
Kid glove diplomacy, for better
or worse, has been dispensed with
in favor of antics that are patheti
cally reminiscent ‘of children wax
ing furious over a disputed game
of hop scotch.
Long experience has taught Jailer
Daugherty and Jailer Miller to be
realistic, so they’re biding their
time until the spell of saintliness
wears out. It’s bound to come, and
will come even sooner if the law
breakers start to acting up like an
ambassador, a Secretary of State
or some other dabbler in the om-
nious mess that faces the world
today.
Imagine what would hhppen, if
somebody walked into a beer joint
tonight, and talked as recklessly as
a statesman talks nowadays. Some
body is going to get that reckless,
maybe a lot of somebodies. That’s
why the Craven county jail isn’t
for sale yet.
21. .
Incidentally, this millionth cus
tomer, Mrs. Arthur Leanhardt of
Pelzer, S. C., was attending the
Playhouse for the 39th time in
four years at the time.
Tourists who like a town and its
attractions come back again and
again, and they bring other tour
ists. That’s food for thought, and
New Bernians shouldn’t overlook it.
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