LOCAL NEGRO GETS
30 YEARS ON
MURDER CHARGE
Willie Jeffries
Pleads Guilty To
2d Degree Murder
Willie Gray Jeffries, Roanoke
Rapids Negro, was sentenced to
not less than 25 nor more than 30
years at hard labor in State prison
by Judge Henry L. Stevens when
he submitted to a second degree
murder plea in Halifax Superior
court Tuesday morning as he was
about to go on trial for his life
for the murder of Roosevelt Wil
liams here on the night of No
vember 8.
Jefferies, through his attorneys,
Jos. P. Pippin and the firm of
AJlsbrook and Benton, entered a
plea of second degree murder,
which was accepted by Solicitor
Ernest Tyler and Judge Stevens.
He had been scheduled to be tried
on a first degree murder charge
which, had he been convicted,
would have carried a mandatory
death sentence.
The fact that the Negro had a
serious leg wound, result of his
trying to escape Roanoke Rapids
officers who attempted to arrest
him following the shooting of Wil
liams, caused the solicitor and
judge to consider the second de
gree plea, it was believed.
Jefferies shot Williams during
an affray involving several Ne
groes in the Mitchell’s sawmill sec
tion near here on the night of
November 8, 1941. When officers
came upon the scene to arrest
him, the Negro raised the shotgun
he had used to shoot Williams, as
if he intended firing on the of
ficers. He turned and fled, how
ever, and the officers opened fire,
wounding him in the leg. He re
mained in a local hospital for sev
eral weeks before being transfer
red to the county jail for safe
keeping.
Judge Stevens, who is a former
national commander of the A
merlcan Legion and makes his
home in Warsaw, is presiding over
a two weeks mixed term of Su
perior court This is Judge Ste
vens’ first assignment in this
county.
NO BLACKOUT
(Continued from Page One)
tion for the local blackout test",
officials said, “has caused us to
postpone the blackout here. When
the first blackout test for Roanoke
Rapids is held we want to be fully
prepared for it. We hope to have
our first blackout just as if we
were actually experiencing an air
raid. By this we mean that resi
dents should be instructed thor
oughly as to what to do in the e
vent of a raid. Each family should
have a single room in their home
prepared and ready for use in the
event of a blackout, to which the
whole family could retire while
the air raid is on. This room
should be especially prepared for
air raids, with windows and doors
properly blacked out so that lights
could be used without being seen
BURTHROAT?
SOOTHE IRRITATED
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get one dose relief for coughs
due from colds with Mentho-Mul
slon. Satisfaction guaranteed or
— money back. 60c & $1.00.
ITH0-MULS10N
II
MATTHEWS
DRUG CO.
Roanoke Rapids, N. C.
I»
from the outside of the dwelling.
“Another reason for the post
ponement of the blackout was the
fact that the local mills, which
wish to cooperate in the blackout
as completely as possible, have
not received materials for blacking
out their windows and are not ful
ly prepared to cooperate in the
first test. Officials of the mills
plan to completely black out a
long with the rest of the city and
if this is to be done they must
be allowed sufficient time in which
to prepare for the test’’.
Local residents, members of the
defense council said, will be given
plenty of advance notice as to ap
proximately when the blackout
will be held, but all preparations
must be completed before an ac
tual test of the city’s blackout de
fenses is held.
DANCE FRIDAY
(Continued from Page One)
to aid in the fight against infantile
paralysis, while the other half will
go to the national infantile paraly
sis foundation to be used for the
same purpose.
Halifax county this year is ex
pected to contribute heavily to the
infantile paralysis fund, and the
"march of dimes" campaign, which
usually precedes the holding of
the President’s Ball, is proceeding
smoothly, Lion officials here said.
Contributions to the “Wishing
Well” phase of the campaign are
very good, it was said.
Judge Doesn't Like
'One-Eyed' Jurors
Judge Henry L. Stevens, pre
siding over a two weeks term
of Superior court in Halifax,
doesn’t like what he terms
“one-eyed jurors”.
At Wednesday’s session, one
of the jurors listening to testi
mony in the Jones-Beale rape
case, a capital offense involved,
let out an audible yawn.
Judge Stevens rapped for si
lence.
“Alright, you jurors," he
counseled. “Keep your eyes
open. You are listening to ev
idence, and we don’t want any
one-eyed jurors in the box
while a trial is going on.
There was an audible com
motion as the “twelve men
good and true" straightened up
in the chairs.
Society To Meet
Women’s Society of Christian
Service will meet Monday evening
at 7:30 in the home of Mrs. J. C.
Wells, Hamilton Street.
; MADAM EDWARDS
50c GIFTED PALMIST 50c
Has just opened her parlors on the Weldon Road. She
guarantees to read your entire life—past, present and future. She
asks no questions, but will tell you what you want to know, giving
dates and facts of business, love, health and family affairs. Tells
who you will marry and when. If the one you love is true or false,
what part of the country is luckiest for you and just what to do
to be successful in life. She never fails to re-unite the separated,
cause speedy and happy marriages, overcome enemies, lovers
quarrels, stumbling blocks and bad luck of all kinds. Since a child
she has been gifted with strange and mysterious powers, she
guarantees to bring about every desire and ambition of your entire
life. She does not tell to please, but will tell you the truth, good
or bad, on all affairs of life.
SATISFACTION GUARANTEED
On Weldon Road Just Outside City Limits
Roanoke Rapids, N. C.
CLIENTS BOTH WHITE AND COLORED
FIVE TRUE
BILLS ARE
RETURNED
A Halifax county grand jury
this week returned five true bills
of indictment against J. Winfield
Crew, local attorney and former
banker, charging him with false
pretense and embezzlement, the
latter carrying four of the indict
ments.
Judge Henry L. Stevens of War
saw, presiding over Halifax coun
ty Superior court this week, to
day was scheduled to hear affi
davits from attorneys for the
prosecution giving their reasons
for wanting a court order issued
transferring the case to another
county for trial. The request for
a transfer was made at the Wed
nesday afternoon session of court
by attorneys for the State who, in
their request, stated they did not
believe the State would get a fair
trial if the case was heard in
Halifax county.
-r_1 Ct-nimvio ffflVP thp attorn
eys until 2:30 this (Thursday af
ternoon) in which to file their
affidavits, but when the Herald
went to press, this action had not
been heard from. Attorneys for
the State were requested by Judge
Stevens to make copies of their
affidavits for the benefit of de
fense attorneys, and defense at
torneys, who sought to have the
case heard in Halifax county and
were expected to file affidavits
showing their reasons for not
wanting the case transferred, were
requested to do likewise.
One of the indictments, charg
ing false pretense, charged that
Crew “falsely and fraudently re
presented to Holliday and Whit
field of Enfield that he owned
certain lands which he did not
own, and that the Enfield firm
lent him sums in the amount of
$5,000 on the land.
The other four indictments of
embezzlement charged that Crew
secured “fraudently and falsely”
from Mrs. Martha J. Massey of
Roanoke Rapids sums of money
in the amount of $800, $2,000, $315,
and $715, totaling in all $3,865, and
converting it to his own purpose
and use.
The action taken by tne gTana
jury in returning the true bills of
indictment is the latest in a series
of court actions taken since the
case opened several months ago.
Each presiding judge in a Halifax
county court has been called upon
to take action in the case, and
court officials now believe the
case will eventually be broughl
to trial in Halifax or an adjoin
ing county.
Crew was in the courthouse
Wednesday when the request was
submitted for transfer, being al
I home on a leave of absence. He
is stationed with an air corps
unit in Texas.
FIRST AID COURSE
The First Aid Course, sponsored
by the Red Cross, began its class
Work Monday night under the
leadership of Miss Thelma Ellit
About 30 ladies have enrolled for
the course.
VOTE IN
BONDS
FOR CITY
A smattering of local residents
Tuesday went to the polls and
voted by almost 100 per cent to
authorize the City of Roanoke
Rapids to issue bonds in the a
mount of $16,000 for the purpose
of paying the cost and acquiring
the right-of-way for an underpass
under the Seaboard Air Line Rail
way, and an additional $12,000 in
bonds for purchasing of and im
proving lands for cemetery pur
poses, city election officials an
nounced yesterday.
With only a little over 100 voters
casting ballots in the bond elec
tion, officials in charge had an
easy time of it in counting and
tabulating the vote. For the rec
ords, the following is an official
tabulation:
121 votes were cast for the or
dinance authorizing not exceeding
$16,000 in bonds for the City of
Roanoke Rapids for the purpose
of paying the cost of acquiring the
necessary right of way for the
necessary construction by the state
of an underpass under the tracks
of the Seaboard Air Line Railway
across Roanoke Avenue at Roa
noke Junction, and also the coat
of damages to property caused by
such construction, and a tax for
said bonds, while 14 votes were
cast against the measure.
12 votes were cast for the or
dinance authorizing not exceeding
$12,000 in bonds for the City of
Roanoke Rapids for the purpose
of paying the cost of purchasing
land and improving the same for
cemetery purposes, and a tax for
said bonds, while 9 votes were cast
against the measure.
In the voting, North Ward pre
cinct, which has the larger regis
tration, cast the larger amount of
votes. Here the official tabula
tion revealed that out of a total of
2,858 voters registered, 74 cast
ballot in favor of the first ques
tion and 8 against, while 78
votes were cast in favor of the
second question and 3 against. In
South ward precinct, where 2,087
voters are registered, 47 ballots
were cast in favor of the first
question and 6 against, while 44
voted in favor of the second ques
tion and 6 against. Thus, the first
question was carried by a vote of
121 to 14, and the second by a
total vote of 122 to 9.
In Uncle Sam’s Navy all sea
men can buy cigarettes, candy and
ice cream from the “Canteen” at
practically cost price.
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