it Weekly 1 1 KHGSI1C since Christmas _ business than any day during the holiday shopping season . . . Most retailers optimistic over the prospects for business during the rest of the year . . . Tax list ing gets under way in county, and citizens being urged to make an accounting of their posses sions as of January 1, so's 'twill be known how much goes down on the official cuff . . . Greeting Federal income tax agents on the streets, just a few jumps ahead of the State tax man . . . D. C. Mast of Sugar Grove and J. Frank Wilson of Vilas renew their subscriptions . . . both had first subscribed for the home town gazette on its ment in 1888 and had madt an nual renewals since that time . . . There are a good many of these, charter members of the Democrat's circle of readers, and we always particularly enjoy their visits . . . Hundred dollar bills showing up often in the channels of local trade these days . . . Marion Thomas, re cuperating from a recent illness, visits in town and plans to open his income tax office . . . Sixty degree weather of last week supplanted by sub-freezing tem peratures. ? ? ? DEMOCRAT GETS IKTIMA TIOH that the Ku Klux Klu Is liable to be setting up shop In this city some of these days, the report isn't true . 4 . who "Jined" organisation way in its hey dey, we defi nitely do not welcome its re turn ... lis record of terrorism of on-American activity, and is should _ cussedness should not appeal to the people of Boone and Watauga county. We sub mit there is no place here for such a group. They don't fit in with the local pattern of liv ing. and if there is such a movement on foot, public opin ion should provide an effective bar to its activity. JIM TAYLOR heading the March of Dimes, which gets un der way this week, and makes appeal for whole-hearted sup port of the annual campaign to provide funds for the relief of those suffering with infantile paralysis . . - The need is report edly greater than ever before over the 'nation, while her* in take slices out of the polio fund . . . We should welcome the op portunity of giving liberally to this cauee, the worthiness of which * cannot be brought into question >. . All of us can slice a bit from usual contributions of questionable worth, meet our polio quota, and still keep the personal budget in line. Let s give generously to thfe little children ... to those who were stricken . . , Left help 'em to walk again' . . . Jim Rivers, who re cently spent a while with us, wondering at the growth of the town during the sixteen years he has been away . . . Jim's "Boon* Sketches" which used to occupy this same space, have taken a place in the traditions of the mountain region, but he re fused a guest privilege during his vacation . . . The platinum color ed minks being husbanded by Lawrence Payne as the start of Boone's first fur-farming ven ture . . . The advertising custom er who Ions-handed the brand name "Lord Calvert", and the printer came up with "lard colored" ... Ed Payne, who worked with the State highway department maintenance divi sion, from the time of its estab lishment, enjoying his retire ment . . . Democrats trying to figure out a ticket for the Deluxe Jackson day dinner, and Re publicans eyeing the Lincoln day ditto, as the first local signs that 1990 is another good old rough and tumble election year. BARTER THEATRE paoy appears at College day evening, and students and townspeople overflowed into the aisles to witness the Invalid", with Fred MR. fcORTERITELD, himself) ? ?-itly on tbelningry side in those depression days, when tha chickens hrd failed to show Xfo the pot.. . . and a lot of tr actor acquaintances in the east had gone on an enforced diet . . ? lleconceived the idea of s bringing "flesh and blood" stag* attraction* to the folks in the re gion of^A bingdrm, ^ Va, on a bar an equivalent in "vittlaa", and ggf (Continued en page touzj fisk? CHRISTMAS AT PMSOJN CAMP A section of the dining hall li ife* Stela . their Christmas dinner. Tha feast consisted oil tato salad, creamed corn, snap beam. nn College of AgricultuH and Engineering in 1931 with bachelor of science degree in agrioultural economics. i In 1935, Cook Joined the Farm Security Administration as a county supervisor in North Caro lina. During the next six yean, he served in Haywood, Bun combe, Cherokee, Onslow and Carteret counties. He went to work for the THA (then known as the FPHA) in 1941 as a project manager at Jacksonville and Camp Lejeune, and the New River area. On April 1, 1946, he was trans ferred to Virginia as , housing manager for Williams Court Apartments and Barlow Place. Cook became housing manager at Broad Creek Village on April IS, 1948. On July 1, IMS, all seven pro jects in Norfolk County. Parts mouth and South Norfolk wan combined under one head, mafc it the second largest single up In the as sistant general housing BtTtLDIHQ RECORD | Construction activity, bolster ? by over 1 1,000,000,000 man public spending than in 1948, readied a new all-time roeoriL The nation invested for public and private construction the re cord total of $19,300,000,000. ac cording to the Office of Domes tic Commerce of tbe^nM ?el 2&2S. in itnree per otol SECRETARY pi*. A \ ? .nd /Teld . of additional specific sug Stultr A. Harris, raoaolly re named secretary of the Chamber of Comnwrct, and pmidtnl of Echoes of the Blue Ridge. Inc. Digest of Message By the President Washington ? Here is a digest |of President- Truman's major re commendations to Congress in his State of the Union message: DOMESTIC T ? :e? ? "Make some chaiytas in our tax system which will re duce present inequities, stimu late business activity, and ; moderate amount revenue." He said . gestions will be made Business ? "Close the loc holes" in the anti-trust law* as to bar "monopolistic merger. He promised to send the law makers later a "series of propos als to assist small businesses and to encourage the growth of new enterprise. /'Farm ? Pass the Braanstn Plan with its system of production payments; provide mandatory price supports for products which are major sum ess of farm in come jnd are not adequately covered. Labor ? Replace the Taft-Hart ley Act with "a law that is fair to all and in harmony with our ideals." Expand the social secur ity program to provide higher benefits and greater coverage. Improve the unemployment com pensation program to ? supply more Jobless aid. Set up a labor extension service to encourage education in labor relations. Health, education ? "Establish a system of nodical which will enable all to attori fcood medica, Housing ? Extend rent controls! _______ Assist coupeiH^? I nulla dwelling! wnicn m fatyinUf rfn afford. ''IT" Military ? rvfce in LAflaMIe | Economig^Keep the _ Recovery Program going; ' "crippling" cuts in fundi ssrff W'"-'" American t+chn , , aid to underdeveloped nations. Approve U. S. membership in International Trade Organiza tion. ussrssrissfa^js passed that of any previous net except IMS. ' jyTt :? ?.?, ? ; {75 Job Hunt For Gunmen Stats, Federal, County Officers Trail Armed Fugitive*, Bettered To Be "Desperate"; Bloodhounds, Airplane, Used as Officers Establish Roadblocks Around die County - Forty State highway patrolmen, with a number of county officers and FBI amenta, were working Tuesday evening in the moun tains west of Sugar Grove in an effort to apprehend two gun men, believed by officers to be members of a car theft ring. A cordon of law enforcement agents encircled the county dur ing the afternoon and night, and all automobiles and trucks were stopped at the roadblocks. Rifles, shotguns and machibe guns are being carried by the officers, who are of the belief that the fugitives are desperate men. Bloodhounds had been used during the after noon and attempts were made to locate the gunmen from an 1 air plane which Constantly encircled th$ area in which they were hid ing- - ECHOES BLUE RIDGE TO BE FEATURE OF NEXT SUMNER Charter Centennial Corpora tion Is Amended; Signtfi , cant Happenings in This Area To Feature Pageantry; Civic Groups Represented. The Watauga Centennial, Inc., has changed Its name to Echoes of the Blue Ridge, Inc., and has been given a certificate of amend ment to its charter by the secre tary of State. Its main purpose will be to put on a public pro gram, similar to the historical pageant presented last year dur ing the centennial celebration, designed to include significant happenings in this section. The program will be staged June 29 through July 4 in Boone. President of the corporation is Stanley Harris. Other officers In clude Wayne Richardson, vice president; Mrs. R. D. Hodges, Jr., treasurer; and Mrs. Leo K. Prit chett, secretary. The committee to decide on the type of pageant to be given and work out the details includes Robert Agle, chairman; Mrs. R. D. Hodges, Jr., Mrs. B. W. Stal lings; DempsT Wilcox and Her man Wilcox. The committee on publicity and grounds consists of Bernard Dougherty, chairman; Mrs. Leo K. Pritchett and R. D. Hodges, Jr. A director for the pageant will be chosen at a later data. It is expected that work will begin on developing the pageant and (Continued on page four) Scott Sets High Goals For State This Year Raleigh ? The State's Chief Executive has celebrated his first anniversary in office by setting ambitious new goals for 1950. Governor Scott set his sights for the year ahead in North Car olina in a State-wide radio broadcast last night. The fireside chat was beamed from Scott's office in the capitol. The Governor in his talk rt-| quested that: 1. Private utilities companies and the REA cooperatives extend service to 00,000 additional cus tomers during the year. 2. Telephone companies "ac cept at their goal the installation of 80,000 telephones, tat both town and country, during the 3. The Highway Commission finish 10 miles of paved roads and 30 miles of stabilized roads every working day of 19&0. Also, the Governor called for more diversified farming, mm conservation of soil, more eco nomy and efficiency in Stata government, and a revltalizctkm of church life. On the road program issue, Scott asked the Highway com mission also to continue work on the primary system "to ttMiJM that North Carolina's arteries of traffic may again ra the Number One position tat I The Governor pointed out But to provide funds for reaching this goal the "Council >t State will be asked to approve The Chief Executive mmmi in his address that "North Car olina enters the new year in sound financial condition." Hs ??the [out thattheM this week to general ???! and general nmd collections were down last month compared with December at 1948. , The manhunt, which to the most widespread in local enforcement annals, began Tuesday morning at 7 o'clock when Patrolman R. B. Parker of Boone went to the vicinity of Willowdale Church on <21, where a 1949 Mercury auto mobile had been wrecked and abandoned, following efforts to destroy it by fire. It was said that a passing truck had pulled the car from the ditch before the officer arrived. After exchanging gunfire with Mr. Parker, the men disappeared into the woods several miles from the scene of the accident They were said to have used a 22 rifle and a shotgun. When help ar rived, the men were trailed into the woods with bloodhounds and a rifle was found in a thicket. POLIO VICTIM # Emma Lh Dollar* of Dwp Gap. a patlanl at tha Aibifill* Ortho pedic Hospital sine* aha was itrickan with spinal poliomyelitis in Saptambar 1MB. Ska would lika to thank har many friends .or thalr gifts and cards received oy har at Christmas. Sha spant Christmas waak-aad with har par ents. Mr. and Mrs. E. H. Dollars of Daap Gap; Burley Prices Averaging $45. ? ? i ? Sales of Burley tobacco on the floors of the local warehouses ara proceeding this week, with the al lotted poundage being offered at each auction, and Koscoe Cole man, local warehouseman, ex presses himself as being pleased with the prices brought since the post-Christmas opening. Wednesday's sales will bring the season's poundage to three and a half million pounds, and receipts of the weed remain steady. Monday and Tuesday's average was slightly above f48 per hundred. Mr. Coleman states that al though full auctions are being conducted, there is plenty of floor space always in on* or more of the three big warehouses, and that farmers positively do not have long waiting periods before their crops can be unloaded. In moat cases, the grower can get a sale the same day, pocket his check and return nome. Wilson To Establish Hatchery in Boone Messrs. Lawrence and Clyde Wilson of Wilson's Feed Store, left Sunday for Springfield, Ohio, to take delivery on complete Buckeye incubating equipment, which will be put in service at the local store. The equipment will have a ca pacity of 11,780 eggs, and Mr. wilsop hopes to be able to take care of ail orders with quality baby chicks, hatched in Boone. It is expected that the new enter prise will go into operation next week. . Florida Judge To Visit at College The Honorable George E. Holt,1 president of the Circuit Judges Association of Florida, will visit the campus of Appalachian State Teachers college next week as the guest of the college. Be will spend all day January 13 on the campus. . :j Judge Bolt will lecture at the chapel hour, and to various classes during the day and even ing, on the new State of Israel, which he visited recently as ? member of a study toor at the American Christian Palestine Committee. The wrecked en, ktattM ? rtoitB in Birmingham, Ala. con tained i cawed -off shotgun, ? typewriter, two movie proleo tor?, on outboard motor, artmng machine, notary teals ham North Carolina and Georgia,. A quanity of pennies and nlrheti were found, an electric drQL sledge hammers, and a short wave radio receiver. T Jcnnaa plates were said to have bees stolen in Georgia. While about 7S men in all, join ed in the hunt, headquarters tat the direction of the search wm established at the intersection of highway 194 and a dirt road. SHP and FBI agents, officers at Burke, Caldwell and Watauga counties, as well as members at the State prison department were conducting the search. FINAL PLANS BEING SHAPED FOR FUNDS TO WAR ON POLIO County Chairman Sets Up Organization by Township* in Effort To Get Adequate Aid for Polio Victinw; Names of Those Appointed. The 1050 March of Dimes ge(p under way In Watauga County and throughout the nation Mon day, January 16, and will con tinue until the end of the month. During that two-week period, citizens of Watauga County, like their fellow Americans in all parts of the country, will help write the answer to the threat of polio epidemics next summer by providing for continued care and treatment of polio patients at 1949 and prior years. Terming the 19S0 March of Dimes the most critical in the history of the National Founda tion for Infantile Paralysis, Mr. Jim Taylor, county campaign di rector, said that the fund-raising machinery is all set to launch the greatest March of Dimes ever un dertaken. "It is imperative," Mr. Taylor said, "that all know the serious ness of today's polio situation. Mors than 40,000 cases were re ported during 1949, the worst po lio onslaught in the history of the disease in this country. "Thanks to public support of previous annual appeals of the National Foundation, prompt and effective aid was rendered the stricken. But as cases after case developed, chapter after chapter of the National Foundation found itself without funds. Financial aid was rushed to them from the organisation's epidemic reserve fund. So great was the drain that millions of dollars earmark ed for emergency assistance dwindled to the vanishing point." Consequently, Mr. Taylor point ed out, if the Watauga County chapter is to continue providing services to polio patients in this and other communities, everyone must "hit the line hard" during the campaign January 18-11. "Toward that end, Mr. Taylor said, "we are organizing commit tees on a widespread front Vol unteers are being enlisted from civic, fraternal, business, labor, school, sports, women's club and social fields. Workers will be briefed thoroughly as to the prob lem and the desperate need for an enormously successful 1950 drivs." Cttin| the high coat of polio, Mr. Taylor disclosed that during the height of the recent epidemic season the National Foundation was spending March of Dimes funds at the rate of 1100,000 per day to pay patient bills alone I He said that it la estimated 17,000 of those stricken in 1949 will re quire continued aid in 1960, in addition . to victims from prior years who also still need help. "Obviously," Mr. Taylor said, "there's a tremendous Job of work ahead of us. I am confident though, that all the people in Wa tauga County will do their utmost to meet the challenge during the coming March at Dtmas " ? Mr. Taylor announced that the following persons will serve aa committee beads in their respec tive townahina: