F*ew things, as • many of you
know, could ever be more sicken
ing than the* realization that you’ve
lost a wallet, a purse, a pOuch or
an envelope containing what to
you is a considerable amount of
money.
And the feeling of sudden des
pair is heightened, if the currency
so quickly vanished from your
possession belonged to someone
else. In that first instant of utter
dismay, you forget all else, includ
ing the petty problems that were
worrying you before bad luck in
the form of a personal, catastrophe
befell you.
It has hapened to us twice in
a iifetime. In the first instance,
the money was never recovered,
despite all sorts of identifications
enclosed. Maybe it’s a sad commen
tary on human nature, but we nev
er expected to get it back. The
pattern of behavior that most mor
tals abide by is “finders keepers
and losers weepers.’’
Our second loss came last Satur
day morning. While walking just
two blocks to make a deposit at the
bank for someone else, we dropped
a pouch stuffed with money and
endorsed checks. The loss was dis
covered three or four minutes later
at the bank.
Retracing our steps, and hoping
for the best while fearing the
worst, we soon came face to face
yyith the faat tb«t someone had
'iick(
picked the pouch up. The street
was crowded with pedestrians, and
somewhere in the throng was a
• fellow human whose honesty, or
lack of it, :was of prime concern
td us.
What we did immediately is
what everyone else should do in
similar circumstances. All local
banks were notified to stop pay
ment on the checks in the pouch,
and they promised to let us know
without delay if by some miracle
the pouch was turned in at that
particular bank.
And, of course, the police depart
ment was, alerted, in case some
body turned the money in at City
Hall, or a happy free spender
showed up somewhere to arouse
suspicion. Having done that, we
peeked into trash containers along
the street, figuring that the aver
age dishonest persons would pock
et the money and get rid of the
pouch and checks as quickly as pos
sible.
Within- thirty minutes, the tele
phone rang. It was Johnnie Green
at the Branch Banking & Trust
Co., who when notified of the loss
had said, “All you can hope for is
that somebody who is honest pick
ed it up.’’
Johnnie had good news to tell.
“That lionest person found it,” he
proclaimed. It developed that the
“honest person” was N. E. Mohn,
who lives on Pollock street, a block
and a half above us. He turned the
pouch in at Branch Bank, where
the deposit was picked up and soon
got to its rightful destination.
First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.
Thus, in less than an hour, there
was enough bad luck and enough
good luck to fill anyone’s cup to
overflowing., Mr. Mohn, a staunch
Baptist and a remarkably vigorous
man for his age, did exactly what
those who know him would have
expected him to do.
Permit us to say that we were
considerably more grateful to him
than one man was to his own parti
cular benefactor in the waning
days of the Great Depression here.
The story is true, if thoroughly un
believable.
The man in question went to a
New Bern bank to cash a govern
ment check for $140. He especially
asked for a $100 bill, saying he
had never had one. He left with
•the bill and two $20 bills, and came
back an hour or more later to ac
cuse the bank teller of failing to
(Continued on Page 3)
The NEW BERN
N. c.
CAROLIIMm
5 Per Copy
VOLUME 3
MEW BERN, N. C., FRIDAY, AUGUST 19, 1960
NUMBER 21
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IN DAYS'OP':,'YORE^New.^Berfi was
port a century ago, with vessels large and small '|ropping
anchor at the junction of the Neuse and Trent. Our thanks
to Dr. Charles T. Baker, a keen student of history, for the
i^ puUtsbtag-.ibe rtare pictar»[
this early era. Times change, but our rivers remain—ever
flowing eastward, to the sea.
Sky-Watching Was Popular
For New Bernians This Week
When thousands of eye-straining
New Bernians got kinks in their
necks, butterflies in their tummies
and vague-but unmistakeable mis
givings in their hearts this week,
it wasn’t because of what was hap
pening in town, the state, the na
tion and the world.
much less than 25 years, but be-1 They say, and with what appears
lieve the human race in its entire- to be strong points of justification,
ty is destined for self-perpetrated that Man in his persistent eager-
extinction. 1 ness to reach out to the intriguing
Nor could the gazing they did
toward Heaven be interpreted as
a common and simultaneous urge
to thank' their Maker for past and
present blessings while seeking
additional undeserved benefits
from on high.
Man’s awe-inspiring accomplish
ment, rather than God’s marvelous
handiwork in the realm of outer
space, was generating mass scruti
ny that rivaled the sky scanning
Halley’s Comet aroused on its last
visit hack in 1910.
This was no periodically return
ing comet, soaring above the earth
and visible at 75-year intervals, but
a 10-story tall, aluminum-coated
sphere that was showing up every
couple of hours, plus a few min
utes. Uncle Sam had made it, and
dubbed it the Echo Communica
tions Satellite.
Old timers, impressed like ev
eryone else, said that Echo could
n’t hold a candle to Halley’s spec
tacle of a half century ago. Count
less citizens who weren’t around
to witness the comet, and won’t be
living in 1985, aren’t going to have
occasion to dispute that contention.
Some of'the more apprehensive
mortals in these parts are actually
of the glum opinion that never
again will human eyes feast upon
Mr. Halley’s famed extravaganza.
Not only do they expect to be
among the departed themselves in
mysteries of other bodies in space
has hopelessly over-extended him
self. Instead of solving his prob
lems here on earth, these apostles
of doom reason, he has multiplied
them a thousand fold, and issued
his own death warrant in the form
of unleashed atomic power and
missiles that are lethal beyond be
lief.
NEW BERN’S GINGER ARMSTRONG
Seeking More Jlonors
Time will provide the truth, and
Time might be running out. As far
back as we have writings and rec
ords, prophets of every generation
have been predicting the end of
the world. Their predictions failed
to materialize, but even the most
optimistic earth dweller in our
generation will admit that we’ve
laid the foundation for destruction
sufficiently comprehensive to oblit
erate all life from this globe that
gravity holds -us on.
Meanwhile, summer is still with
us in the Land of Enchanting 'Wa
ters, and happenings less ominous
are occurring here. One of the top
events of the week is scheduled
for tomorrow at New Bern’s Shrine
Auditorium, where the North Car
olina Baton ’Twirling Championship
and the National Open will be
held.
Sponsored by the New Bern
Lions club, this major attraction
gets underway at 8:30 a.m. and
continues for the remainder of the
day. Seventeen cities in the State
are going to be represented, and
there’ll be additional entries from
South Carolina, Virginia, Tennes
see, Florida, Louisiana, Maryland,
Pennsylvania and Ohio. There are
eight local entries. ,
Shirley Crutchfield of Roanoke
(Continued on Pago 8)
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