Christmas
?
BOONE
is 1 h e Christmas ^
shopping center of ^
Northwest Carolina W 1
VOL 53, NO. 21
HEARING IS HELD
ON SCRAPPING OF
LOCAL RAILROAD
Narrow tillage Officials Aver
Heavy Losses in Evidence Submitted
to Interstate Commerce
Commission Examiner: Boone
People Offer Evidence
Examiner Schutrumpf. of the interstate
commerce commission, conducted
a hearing in Johnson City
Friday on the petition of the Linville
River Railway to abandon its
line between Cranberry and Boone,
which had been put out of commission
in the August 13 flood, and
W. R. Lovill, Clyde R. Greene, Dr.
B. B. Dougherty, Albert Watson.
James H. Councill and State Highway
Commissioner Gordon Haekett
appeared for the people of Boone in
their contention that the petition of
me narrow-guage carrier should be
denied.
Attorney Turney of Washington.
D. C., handled the evidence for the
railway, and presented evidence bySuperintendent
Blackwell. Mr. Fisher.
executive vice-president; Mr.
Whisnant, the traffic manager, and
Mr. Morgan, engineer with the C.
C. & O. Railway, the latter testifying
that a survey of the stormtwisted
tracks indicated that $150.000
would be required to re-establish
rail service into Boone. The
local delegation presented Mr. Allison,
former superintendent of the
load, and veteran railroader, who
stated that the road could be re-established
the way it was originally
built for $13,500.
A detailed audit of the operating
revenue of the line was submitted
by railway officials, which indicated
that save for- two years, the Linville
River Railway had lost money
every years of its existence; that the
losses were increasing year by year,
and that the stockholders were unwilling
to invest further funda.in a
losing venture. It was stated that
the original investment in the Linville
River line and interest on
game at 4 per cent, was $800,0000,
and that allowing $53,000 for the
salvage of the line, there would
still result a loss to the comoany of
$747,000.
In the course of the hearing it developed
that the Cranberry Corporation
.a holding company, hold the
stock of the Linville River Railway,
the ET & WNC Railway and the
ET & WNC Motor Transportation
Company, and objectors to the discontinuance
of the railway emphasized
the taking of less than carload
(Continued on page four)
Mrs. R. H. Greene
Dies in California
Mrs. E. J. Farthing has received
news of the death of Jier sister-inlaw,
Mm. R. H. Greene, which occurred
at San Diego, Calif, on November
26.
Mr. and Mrs. Greene, whose home
is at Humiston, Iowa, had gone to
California for the winter, hoping
nua. \jieciics neuiin wouic improve.
They were there about a
month when she suffered a .second
stroke of paralysis. She died eleven
days later.
Mr. Green has many friends ar.d
relatives in Watauga county, as
he was reared here. He has made
his home in Iowa, however, for a |
number of yars.
Passion Week Movie
Will Be Shown Here
There will be a talking motion pic- '
ture of the Passion Week of Christ j
shown in the demonstration school'
auditorium at .1 v>. m. and in the |
hi?*r? *-c>'ool auditorium at 7:30 n. m. 1
- on Mondav December 9. "Golonthn"
is snenrexed hv tbe P.-T. A. Soecial
free tickets will be given out by
the merchants.
McNUTT HPATtS NFW
DEFENSE FUNCTIONS
Washington, Dec. 4.?President
Roosevelt last r.ieht placed Federal
Security Administrator Paul V. McNutt
in charge of the health, medical
welfare, nutrition and recreational
aspects of the nation's defense
activities.
The White Hodse announced Mr.
Roosevelt's approval of a national
defense council order transferring
these functions from the national
defense advisory commission, where
they were under the jurisdiction of
Defense Commissioner Harriet Elliott.
Opening E?
/ATA1
An Independent
BOONE, W.
F?'
Speaks Here Friday
MRS. L. H. MARTIN
WAS IN PARIS
WHEN CITY FELL
Mrs. Martin to Describe Occupation
of French Capital; Is
Noted Lecturer
Mrs. L. H. Martin, who has spent
tile past five weeks in I.onnir \MC
iting with her parents, Mr. and Mrs.
J. E. Shell, will deliver a lecture at
I he Baptist church in Boone Friday
evening at 7:30, from the subject.
"Conditions in Paris Before and
After the Fall of the City." The
general public is invited to attend.
The lecture has been arranged by
Mrs. John Conway, president of the
Woman's Worth White Club, who is
a friend of Mrs. Martin.
Mrs. Martin and her husband
were in Paris in the days preceding
the occupation of the city by the
invading Gel-man forces, was present
for a month after its fall, and
brings a most informative and entertaining
lecture to the people of
the city. She has been living in
Europe for the past seven years and
is a recognized authority on the conditions
prevailing prior to and since
the spread of totalitarian government
over the continent.
Mrs. Martin has been so well received
by the public since her visit
in Lenoir that it has been necessary
for her to lecture twice daily to
meet public demands. The Woman's
Club feels most fortunate in
having secured her services.
BROKEN TOYSARE
FIXED FOR NEEDY
Matinee at Appalachian Theatre
Nets Truck Load of Toys for
Christmas Party
The broken toy matinee conducted
on Thursday morning at the Appalachian
theatre, at which time the
kiddies of the community and county
were asked to bring a broken or
discarded toy instead of ticket money,
produced a small truck load of
toys, which Manager Trotter will
have repaired and refinished for
needy children at Christmas time.
The gifts will be distributed at a
special Christmas party at Appalachian
which will be announced later.
The matinee also brought in $5.46
in cash which win be used partly
to buy paint and other matreials
with which to revamp the toys. Mr.
W. H. Gregg contributed a large
number of unfinished novelties,
which swelled the total of toy receipts.
Anyone yet desiring to supply
toys for this purpose should leave
them at the theatre or at The Democrat
office.
Sports Club Draws
Number New Members
The Appalachian Sports Club,
which was started at Homecoming
Day exercises at the college in October,
now has 20 members, according
to Mr. Paul Winkler of
Morganton, president of the organization.
The club is for 'he purpose of assisting
needy athletes in pursuing
their courses at the local college, and
dues are $1.00 or more per year.
Julian Yoder is secretary of the club
and G. P. Hagaman, treasurer. All
former students of Appalachian College
or of Appalachian Training
School are eligible for membership.
dition and <
EGA
Weekly Newspaper?Est
ATAUGA COUNTY, NORTH CAJ
i NEWLY ELECTED
COUNTY OFFICERS
SWORNLNMONDAY
Grady Greer Named Chairman
of the Board of Commissioners;
New Group Lauds Rcc?-,l
-c ? d 1 i
I v?u vi iftcuiiii^ ouuru; L.ierK
of Court Administers Oath to
New Officers
The government of Watauga county
passed into the hands of those
elected on November 5, Monday,
when Clerk of the Court Austin E.
South administered the oath of office
to the three members of the
board of commissioners, to the register
of deeds and to the county surveyor.
Grady Greer. Bert Mast and Ira
Edmisten are the new county commissioners.
the last named being the
only incumbent to take the oath of
office. Messrs. Greer and Mast succeed
Eller McNeil and Coy Billings,
who have served the county capably
and efficiently for ten and eight
years, respectively.
Miss Helen Underdown, register
of deeds, who led the Democratic
ticket in the election, was sworn in
! again, after 12 years incumbency,
and Charles Thompson resumed his
tenure as county surveyor.
Gordon H. Winkler, elected to the
house of representatives, will be
sworn in in Raleigh when the legislature
convenes in January.
To Publish Audit
One of the last acts of the retiring
board of commissioners was to
order the publication of a concise
audit of the condition of the affairs
of the county in the local newspaper
in its issue of December 12.
Greer Named Chairman
Grarly Greer was elected chairman
of the board of county commissioners,
and no business other
than that of a routine kind came up
for consideration by the nc-w board.
The following resolution^ signed by
thr? nx*u/ 1 ?norv-J momkorc "??e
ed in appreciation of the splendid
services rendered the county by Mr.
(Continued on page four)
Naval Recruiter
Leaves Wednesday
Chief Signalman Reinhardl, U. S.
navy, leaves this afternoon after a
three-day stay at the local postoffice,
where he conducted a temporary
naval recruiting station. No
men from the county were enlisted
but a number came for information.
Any of those who desire to enlist
later or others may do so at the Lenoir
postoffiee where Mr. Reinhardt
will be stationed until Saturday
noon.
Attention is called to the fact that
recruits need not now wait for a
long period of time for a call after
having signed up. They are accepted
and assigned to duty just as soon
as the papers are completed, it is
explained.
BANKS WILL BE SECRETARY
TO GOVERNOR BROUGHTON
Governor-elect J. M. Broughton
announced Monday night that Thos.
A. Banks, young Raleigh lawyer,
would be his private secretaryBanks
will formally assume his
duties January 9, when Broughton
is inaugurated, but in the meantime
he will aid the governor-elect
in making preparations for the
! change of state administrations.
GRlDBAMpT
MONDAY NIGHT
' Russ Hodges and Other Sports
! Authorities to Be Present
at Annual Event
The annual Appalachian football
banquet will bo held at the college
cafeteria next Monday evening be!
ginning at 8 o'clock, at which time
| Coach R. W. "Watkins will award letI
ters to the varsity men and a footj
ball captain for next year will be
elected.
Buss Hodges, sports commentator
from WBT, Charlotte, will deliver
the principal address, and there
will be other well-known guests,
including representatives from various
state newspapers.
A special musical presentation
will enliven the program, Johnny
Thompson and his orchestra will be
present, together with George Farthing's
famed string band. There
will bo a dance feature by little Miss
Geek of Blowing Rock.
jift Directoi
DEM(
ablished in the Year Eighte
iOLINA, THURSDAY, DECEMB
Tobacco Br
As Burley
250,000 Po
SANTA CLAUS TO
SPREAD CHEER AS
CITY IS LIGHTED:
Annual Christmas Opening i
Spectacle Draws Large Crowds
to City; Parade to Usher in j
Season: Gift Merchandise Now '
On Display
The Christmas shopping season otficially
gets under way this (Wednesday)
afternoon when Santa Clau-j
will appear with his bag of gifts, and
when the holiday lights will be
turned on throughout the shopping
district.
The Boone Merchants Association,
with the co-operation of the city officials
and the New River Light and
Power Company, started work Mon- :
day morning stringing the big ropes
of evergreens on each side of King
street through the principal part of
the town, and placing the hundreds
of vari-colored lights in the decorative
greens. Tuesday evening the
vork had been almost completed,
I and the work is expected to be com- ]
pleted well in advance of the opening.
The Christmas opening will take
place, that is, the lights turned on
at dusk this evening, and Santa
Claus will head a parade througn ,
town in which the Appalachian band |
is expected to participate. Gifts will ,
be distributed by Santa to the hun- ]
H rnrl c r\f philrlrmi riilm iienolli? l-?
vf V.vu uj. viuiUlt-tl-XUU luuuujr guui,er
on these occasions and there will .
be a good time for all the young- \
stcrs.
The stores of the city are remain- j
ing open 011 Wednesday evening, (
and u little later night hours will be ,
observed every day.
h. p.dougherty i
dies wednesday j
-?-?- i
One of Town's Most Aged Citi- 1
zens Succumbs to Short Illness; 1
Funeral Plans Incomplete
Hiram P. Dougherty, aged 82
years, one of the oldest citizens of
the city, died at the home Wednesday
morning after a few days' illness
with a heart ailment.
Funeral details had not yet been
arranged at press time, but the services
will be held at the Boone Baptist
church, it was said.
Survivors include the widow, the
former Miss Nancy Hayes of Johnson
county, Tenn., two sons and one
daughter: Arthur and Charlie
Dougherty, Miss Fannie Dougherty,
el* of Boone. Two sisters also sur
vive, Mrs. Mary San Its of Bristol,
and Mrs. Sarah Perry of Beaver
Dam township.
Mr. Dougherty was a son of Col.
Anthony Dougherty and Mrs. .Deborah
Dougherty and had spent the
most of his life in Beaver Dam
township. He had lived in Boone for
j the past 13 years. He had been a
member of the Baptist church for 63
years, and lived the life of a good
I Christian citizen.
Details concerning the funeral will1
appear in the next edition of tfs
paper.
A TUBERCULOSIS SEAL
should be placed on every card and
letter mailed between now and
Christmas. Protect the health of
| our people while extending Christ- j
1 mas greetings.
More tnan 150,000,000 gallons of .
crude oil are moved daily to U. S.
refineries.
H wiun??pv9n
I wiwiimm i
ry ~ Trad
3CRA
:en Eigh'? tight
ER 5. 194!*
m
in- s Averaj
Market O
unds Auclic
+
Merchants To Give
Prizes To Tobacco
Growers Every Day
The Boone Merchants Association
has announced that begin- j
ning today with the opening of
sales on the local tobacco mar- ;
ket, two valuable prizes will be j
given to some farmer, who disposes
of his weed on the local
warehouse floors.
The first prize will be a hat.
given to the farmer who has the
basket of tobacco which brings
the highest price per pound, and
the second prize, a rug, goes to
the farmer offering the largest
basket of tobacco. These prizes
will be given each sale day dur- 1
ing the week, and may be con- j
iinued through the season, it is
said.
TWO WATAUGANS !
IN FIRST DRAFT
First Men to Enter Military Scr-|
vice to Report December 11;
Go to Fort Brags;
Two Walaugans have been selcct'd
for induction into the army by
he local selective service board and ,
will be reo.uired to report to the
lonrd at 7:30 a. m. on December 11.
William Sholton Penn of Zionville,
md Claud Woodrovy Bentley of
/alie Crucis, have been notified to
lppear at this time and they will
>c sent to Fort Bragg for a year's
nilitary training as provided under
:lie selective service act.
At the same time the local draft
ward announces that questionnaires
lave been mailed out to all those
nolding numbers from 196 to 245,
/. C. Howell calls attention of the
-egistrants to the statement on page
one of the questionnaire. Wilful
failure, he says, on the part of the
registrant to truthfully fill out and
return the blanks on or before the
date shown on the front page is
punishable by both fine and imprisonment.
Womanless Wedding Is
Arranged By Lions Club
A rehearsal following the regular
meeting of the Boone Lions Club
Tuesday night, marked preparations
for a negro womanless wedding to
ur given u: Liu' [i[iuuu;111ini meaure
December 16.
Proceeds from the matinee and
night performances will go to the
benefit of a local blind clinic for the
needy in Watauga county, and all
members of the civic club have
pledged their support to the occasion.
Dr. W. Amos Abrams, president
of the local Lions club, together
with Mrs. Cullen Johnson, have appointed
a cast for the humorous
production, taking in such characters
as J. O. Cook, Richard Kelley,,
Gene Wike, Edwin Dougherty. Jim !
Councill, Dr. Robert King. Dr. O. W.
Southard, Dr. Abrams, Dr. D. J.
Whitener, Dr. J. H. Wolfe, Wade E.
Brown and E. Ford King, along with |
a number of other members selected
to serve in the bridal party. j
At the regular meeting Tuesday
night, various members of the or-1
ganization pledged support to the
ilind stand in the post office by buy- j
ing Christmas cards and magazines i
from Miss Hodges' abundant supply. I
The stand, established by the local )
unit, has been operated during the j
past year, but had not proved fi- j
nancially satisfactory until recent j
legislation in the organization j
oiuugnt me stana 10 me witn a new i
supply of merchandise, and reorganization.
MANY LICENSES SOLD
Forty-three automobile licenses
were disposed of Saturday at the
newly-opened bureau at Cook-Nichols
Motor Co.. and on Monday 17
were sold. Motorists in this region
are most appreciative of facilities
having been provided for securing j
their tags in this city.
e At Home
HP ?SECTIONS
L. Jl m 18 Pages
$1.50 A YEAR
*e 20 Cents
pens Sales;
ned Today
L ARGE CROWDS
ATTEND AUCTION
Larger Baskets and Higher
Grade Leaf Generally Reported
on Loeal Floor; Higher Average
Given Than Last Year:
Sales Every Day Till Saturday
The Mountain Burley Tobacco
Warehouses opened their first
sales of the second season of the
venture here today (Wednesday)
and figures given the press
shortly before noon indicated
that the leaf up to that time
had brought an average of 20
cents per pound, or 1.8 cents
more than the average quoted
on the opening sale a year ago.
The highest basket of tobacco
sold for 32 cents, and there was
very little of the lowest grade
weed on the floor at the opening.
By the time the sales close this
afternoon, estimates of Jones Brothers
and Coleman, operators of the
hurley houses, indicate that about
250,000 pounds will have been sold.
Large numbers of tobacco farmers
and townspeople mingled with the
crowds on the warehouse floors during
the process of the initial sales
and a large string of trucks stood
in the driveways unloading tobacco,
as sales were completed and the
weed moved to the prize rooms on
the lower level of warehouse No. 1,
and trucks continued at noon to arrive
from different sections of the
burley belt. With the two large
houses, farmers are able to unload
their tobacco promptly, and there
will be scarcely no delay in getting
the weed sold. Sales star- daily at
9 a. m. except Saturday.
Farmers expressed themselves as
being pleased at the amounts of
their checks and the courteous treatment
they received from the warehousemen.
EMPTY STOCKING
FUND IS STARTED
Seventy-five Dollars Realized
From Tobacco Ball for Aid
to Indigent Children
The empty stocking fund of the
Tuesday Night Club was enhanced
by seventy-five dollars as a result
of the second annual tobacco ball,
held last Saturday evening, and the
m-ney will be used to provide confections,
fruits and toys for destitute
children of the community on
Christmas morning.
A large number of people gathered
from this section and the surrounding
territory for the ball,
which was described as one of the
nicest affairs of the kind ever held
here. Stubby Taylor's well-known
orchestra provided the music.
Any person desiring to help fur
mcr wiin me empty slocKing fund
should give their donation to any
member of the Tuesday club or
leave it at The Democrat office.
Western Union Has
Lengthened Hours
Mr. H. W. Wilcox announces that
a simplex printer is now in operation
at the Western Union office and
that with the new method of handliner
mnceaffoc Inntrnr InMire
""b * ' *s?* v v
been established, from 8 a. m. to 8
p. m. If business should justify it,
even longer hours can be arranged,
it is said.
Mr. Wilcox states that when special
occasion demands, a direct hookup
io distant points can be arranged,
and when there is special press
movement, the office can, on short
notice, arrange to handle this business
at such hours as are necessary
to transmit same.
The Western Union management
hopes that the co-operation of the
people will be such that the improved
ser\icc may be continued.