BOONE 1*M POPULATION in WATAUGA DEMOCRAT An Independent Weekly Newspaper ? Established in the Year 1888 WATAUGA COUNTY 1W0 POPULATION lt(S4l J of paeamount import* no? I Summer laaorta w fiHW SIXTY-SIXTH YEAR. ? NO. 18 BOONE, WATAUGA acco sale each Monday morning, start ing November 30. Boone merchants have made ample provisions for the Christ mas trade, and the lines they will display will likely be the Urges' ever shown here. Burley Grading School Is Slated Tobacco is the t>ig cash crop on many Watauga farms, but in many cajes it could bring more money if it was sorted and pre pared for market more carefully. Mr. Roy R. Bennett and Mr. Harold Nau, Extension Tobacco Specialists, will work with farm ers in Watauga county on Friday, November 13, on the preparation of tobacco for market and show ing the difference in varieties. Grading and stripping demon strations will be held at Roby Vines' farm, near Bethel school, Friday morning, November 13, starting at 9:30 and at Tom Ward's farm in the afternoon at 1:30. Each of these farmers has grown thirteen different varieties of burley tobacco this year. The tobacco specialist will assist with grading and weighing as many of these varieties as possible. Weather During thif first week of No vember, forest fires continued their destruction. There was no relief from the lack of rain. Tem peratures reached a low for the winter with a minimum of 16 de grees on Saturday, according to | Dr. Arnold Van* Pelt. Daily re ports are : Max. Min. 6 p.m. Date 65 37 45 Nov. 1 70 33 43 Nov. 2 67 33 47 Nov. 3 65 38 47 Nov. 4 50 32 35 Nov. 5 40 25 35 Nov. 6 35 16 29 Nov. 7 Precipitation: Nov. 6 ? Trace of snow. Over 80 per cent of the Strate gic Air Command personnel is | Reserve. i D. Charles Mast Taken By Death ^ D. CHARLES MAST D. Charles Mast, 86, of Sugar Grove, farmer, died at his home at 10:30 o'clock on Thursday morning, November 5, after a re latively short period of illness. Mr. Mast was born in Watauga County on Cove Creek January 30, 1867, son of Finley P. and Rhoda Smith Mast. Mr. Mast was a member of Cove Creek Baptist Church where he attended services dur ing his life. He was teacher of the men's Bible class for many years and up until the time when poor health caused him to relin quish this activity. Surviving are Mrs. Tom C. Baird, sister, Valle Crucis; Dave P. Mast, son, Sugar Grove; Mrs. Joe P. Phillips, daughter, Detroit, Michigan; seven grandchildren and eight great grandchildren. Funeral services were held in the Cove Creek Baptist Church, the institution closest and dearest to him throughout life. The Rev erend Harold Songer, pastor, of ficiated. He was assisted by the Reverend Cecil Glenn, Perkins ville, and Rev. Mr. Bush, Henson's Chapel Methodist Church. Masons of Snow Lodge, No. 363, had charge of the burial ser vices. Dr. J. T. C. Wright ied the order through a vfery impres sive ritual in placing to rest one of the oldest members of the lo cal lodge. Health Council To Meet TonigKt A meeting of the planning com mittee of the County Health Council is called by the president, Dr. John Martin, for Thursday evening, November 12 at 7:30 p. m. in the court room, for perfect ing plans for obtaining a Health Center for Watauga County. Grant Of $10,000 Is Made To Hospital Stanley A. Harris, chairman of ] the building committee for the ' Watauga Hospital, has announced I a grant of )10,000 toward the im- < provement of the local hospital. 1 The program includes a new i Nurses' Home, a beautiful 21-bed I brick structure erected with the 1 cooperation of the North Carolina Medical Care Commission, a new : furnace for the hospital, a mod ern diagnostic x-ray unit, to- i (ether with steam tables so that i patients meals may be served hot. i The Nurses' Home it rapidly i nearing completion and the new furnace and oil tanks have al ready arrived. The Nurses' Home, including furniture, will cost < about 184,000. The other improve ments are estimated at $2',000 The 110,000 grant from Duke Endowment is on the condition that a total of 1104,000 be raised, i Including this tlO.OOO from : Duke approximately $101,000 if either in hand or definitely pledged. It is up to the people of Watauga County and friends of the Watauga Hospital not only to pay up the present pledge, but some $3,000 additional' must be .secured. The original plan was to Hiave the funds on hand by Nov ember 1st, but the committee found it neceisary to apply for an extention of time. The Duke Foundation, with their usual con sideration, hat extended the time limit to May 1, 1954, and has ad vised us thai their $10,000 will be available either on May 1, 1954, t?r anytime between now and May 1st that we can advisc^hem our $94,000 has been secured. (63,000 of this is coming from the N. C. Medical Care Commission. G. K. Moose, chairman of the Board of Trustees of Watauga Hospital, has expressed his ap preciation to the people who have so generously^ contributed, and especially to the N. ?. Medical Care Commission and the Duke Foundation for their help. It is hoped that as many people in the county as possible will contribute to this building fund, so that the other $3,000 may be in hand in the near future. If the present heating plant should break down, as has been expect ed, before the new furnace is in stalled, it would be a serious handicap, and certainly the pro posed x-ray will add greatly to the efficiency o^that department at the hospital. TEvery citizen in Watauga County ought to have a little part in this program. Twelve individuals and firms have given $1,000 each. If all of us would contribute on the basis of our ability there would be no dif ficulty in completing the fund. It is our hoipital. Let's have it the very best. Surry Farm Agent Speaks To C. Of C On Area Effort N. M. Smith, Surry County Agent, addressed the regular monthly luncheon meeting of the Boone Chamber of Commerce Tuesday in the Gateway Restaur ant, and advocated full support of a proposed organization com prising nine northwestern North Carolina counties. The organization, with repre sentatives from each of the coun ties, would promote agriculture, industry, and tourist attractions on a area basis in Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Forsyth, Surry, Stokes, Watauga, and Wilkes Counties. ? ? Mr. Smith said there are many projects needed for the develop ment and promotion of the area that cannot be handled properly on a county basis, and declared that the entire section needs to organize and advertise its advant ages in the agriculturtl, industr ial, and tourist fields. Amongt the needs he cited were a large a'rea area livestock mar ket, grain storage facilities, a bet ter forestry program, more his torical markers, and industrial plants that will employ more men than women. President H. W. Wilcox presid ed at the meeting, and Mr. Smith was introduced by Clyde R. Greene. Harvey E. Deal Dies On Friday Harvey Eugene Deal, of Sher wood, died November 6 at Wa tauga Hospital, following a long illness. He was 8# years of age. Funeral services were held Sunday, November 8 at Henson'j Chapel, conducted by the Rev. R. A. Taylor of Gastonia, and the pastor, Rev. Busch. Mr. Deal was a prominent citi zen of the Cove? Creek lection, where he had been active in civic and religious affairs. He was a Justice of the Peace for many years, and had served as Sunday School Superintendent and teach er. ? Survivors include his widow, Mrs. Nellie Deal; two sons, Lt. J. M. Deal, USN, Charlotte; and Lester Deal, Sherwood; and a half-sister, Mrs. Mary Combs of Vilas. Scout Council Meets Tuesday The Old Hickory Cotincill met Tuesday at Winston-Salem at Ardmore Methodist Church. The annual council meeting was held at 4:30 p. m. The banquet was held at 6:30 o'clock. ? Attending from Boone were: Dr. and Mrs. Lawrence Owsley, who is vice-president of Watauga district; Mr. Cecil Miller, finance chairman; Mrs. B. W. Stallings, : district commissioner; and Rev. J. T. Shackford, district chair- ; man. ? "Messiah" Again To Be Broadcast The Appalachian College Choir i under the direction of Mrs. Vir ginia Wary Linney has received an invitation from the Mutual 1 Network for it* annual presenta tion of excerpts from the Christ mas portion of Handel's Messiah, i The broadcast this year will be on Sunday, December 6 at 12 to 12:30 Eastern Standard Time. The local performAce will be Sunday night December 13 at 8 o'clock at the Baptist church in Boone. Annual Christmas, Burley Edition * To Appear On 26th The annual burley tobacco optning and Christinas (hop ping edition of tho Democrat U scheduled to be published. November 21. ? Advertising aolicitation and other work will atari on this edition during the current week, ft the end that the add ed pages will bo completed during next week. The publisher would greatly appreciate the full cooperation of the advertisers in this ad vance promotion. Burley Auctions To Star Moriday, November 30th Ten Wataugans In Draft Call Following is a list of those who have been chosen by the draft board to fill Watauga county's miliary induction call for No vember: Harold E. Steelman, Owen T. Tilley, James M. Miller, Albert P. Harmon, James E. Wilson, Ir vin E. Stevens, Norman D. Hold er, Robert H. Ward, Jerry G. Cof fey, Edward J. Hayes. Mayor Proclaims Education Week With a world-wide struggle now going on between the forces of democracy and totalitarianism, and with our government engag ed in an action with other peace loving nations of the world to preserve the democratic way of life, it is appropriate and most imperative for all of our schools to emphasize the important posi tion that education plays in "Gov ernment Of, By and For the Peo ple." This year, the North Carolina Teachers Association in coopera tion with the National Education Association, the American Leg ion, the United States Office of Education, and the Notional Con gress of Parents and Teachers is making a special effort to empha size in our schools the responsi bility and obligations of citizen ship. This is indeed an appropri ate program at any time in our schools, but it is particularly noteworthy this year when so many of our young men and wo men are paying the supreme Sacrifice. I endorse this program, and I want to urge that all of our citizens join with the teachers of our schools in the ceremonies de signed to impress firmly in our minds the true significance of the American Way of Life and the true meaning of "Government Of, By, and For the People." Therefore, I, Gordon H. Wink ler, Mayor of Boone, N. C., do hereby proclaim November 8-14, 1953 as AMERICAN EDUCA TION WEEK. Over 4,000,000 Visit Parkway Roanoke, Va? Nov. 9 ? The Blue Ridge Parkway has had nearly 4,000,000 visitors this year ? an increase of 18.4 per cent over the same period last year. Officials estimate that between 300 and 500 thousand mofre peo ple will visit the scenic drive this year before it closes. This year's visitors generally were better behaved, less inclin ed to violations and less liable Jo have accidents, parkway officials report. With half a million more visitors in 1953, records show 23 fewer court cases and the acci dent total reduced by 12. Parkway visitors came from nearly two dozen foreign coun tries and from nearly every state. As usual the states along the Eastern seaboard sent the bulk of visitors, but Ohio and Illinois were close on their heels, Narth Carolina led all states with Tar Heels accounting fir one-third of the almost four mil lian visitors. This is a 17; per cent increase in North Carolina visi tors over the same period in 1952. FIRST CHRISTMAS SEALS? Miss Helen Underdown. local chair man of the T. B. Christmas Seal Sale, is shown selling the first sheet of seals in the county to Postmaster Lyle Cook at the post office. Mrs. Frances C. Francis, executive secretary of the Alleghany, Ashe, Watailga Tuberculosis Association, is seen in the center. The three urged everyone to buy Christmas Seals this year to help fight tuberculosis.? (Staff photo by Joe Minor.) One Of 3 Escapees Is ! Returned To Prison; Weston To Play At UNC Pageant PAUL WESTON, Hammond org anist of Todd and Boone, who will play for the University of North Carolina Beauty Pageant Wednesday and Thursday of this week. Mr. Weston, who op erates the Paul Weston Studio in Boone, at one time was employed by the Sheridan Hotel chain as musician, and more recently play ed the musical scores for Wa tauga County's Centennial in 1949. COST OF LIVING UP The cost of living set another new high record for last month, according to the Labor Depa'rt ment's Bureau of Labor Statis tics, which announced that its consumer price index reached 1 1 5.2 in mid-September, a rise of two tenths of one per cent over the record August level. This was the seventh straight monthly in crease. Disaster Loans Can t Be Made After Dec. 31 The authority for making dis- 1 aster loans to?rmers in Watauga county will expire oij December 31, it was announced by Jen nings B. Robinson, County FHA Supervisor. The purpose of this program is to provide emergency credit to assist farmers in those areas that have suffered a serious nroduction disaster as a result of floods, storms, drought, etc. Any farmer in a disaster area who has suffered significant dam age* as a result of a production disaster is eligible to receive a disaster loan provided he is un abley to obtain credit from com mercial banks, cooperative lend ing agencies or otht>r responsible sources, to continue hit farming operations. Disaster loans may be made for the purchase of feed, seed, fertili zer or other essential farm and home operating expenses. Each applicant must certify in writing that he ha* suffered dam age as ? result of a disa-ter und that he is unable to obtain the loan applied for from other credit sources. Applications for these loans may be made at the county of fice of the Farmers Home Ad ministration in the County Court houae. One of three prisoners who es caped from the state prison camp near Boone last Thursday was recaptured at Mount Airy Mon day night, according to a report by Etrgcbe Holla'ft",' camp stew ard. Wayne Joycc, 23, of Pilot Mountain, was nabbed in a re staurant in the edge of the Surry County town by state highway patrolmen about. 24 hours after he had fled from a wrecked car Synday night at Sparger's Orch ard, near Mount Airy, Hollars said. A Mount Airy ambulance driv er carried two other occupants of the car, Raymond Gunncll and Jay Bennett, both of Mount Airy, to a Winston-Salem hospital and then notified sheriffs officers af ter the men said that two of tr.e escapees, Joyce and Leonard Tho mas, 17, of Mount Airy, wore in the car at the time of the acci dent, according to a report from Mount Airy. When captured Monday night, however, Hollars said Joyce told officers that he had left Thomas and the third escapee, O. G. Bene ficld, 21, of Burke County, in Richmond, Va., Saturday where the three had driven a 1948 Hud son automobile stolen Friday at gun point from Walter Winebar ger, farmer of the Meat Cainp section, about nine miles north east of Boone. Joyce left the Hud son at a Richmond used car lot, and stole another car from the lot, the one that was wrecked near Mount Airy, he said. Hollars said the men reported nick last Thursday, and when he , opened the door of the infirmary ( to let the cook in with their lunch, they rushed him, overpowered him and took his pistol. Then they locked him in the infirmary, and went to the camp office, where they pulled the safe to the mid dle of the floor, tore the telephone from the wall, and fled into the mouhtains. Hollars said hi# Smith's 38 Special was the only gun taken. He also reported that the camp bloodhound, reported poisoiM by the escapees Thursday, had died three days before the esrape, but did not discount tlm possibi lity that the men haa the dog poisoned in planning their es cape. Carter J. Farthing, camp super intendent, was in Boone getting the mail at the time of the es cape. In Raleigh, Prisons Identifica tions Officer J. D. Wilson said the three convicts have records as trouble makers. It was Bene' field's fourth escape and the third break for Joyce, he said. Joyce was serving Jthree sen tences, 16 months from Surry County for driving drunk and driving after his license was re (ContiQued on page lour) Coleman Envisions High Prices The first sales on the floors of the Mountain Burley Warehouses will be held on Monday, Novem ber 30, it was decided at a meet ing of the Burley Sales Commit tee last week. Sales will be held in Boone on Mondays, Wedncgdayi and Fridays, it is announced by R- C. Coleman, president of the Moun tain Burley Warehouse Co., who says that a full set of buyers will be on hand for the auction!, rep resenting the seven big tobacco companies. Maximum competi tion, says Mr. Coleman, means maximum price. ? "With the quality of tobacco I have seen in the tri-State burled area," says Mr. Coleman, "if the farmers can get their tobacco stripped right, graded right, and delivered to the warehouse dry, they are going to get the very best price." Warehouses will be open to re ceive tobacco on and after No vember 16, and the first sale in Boone will be at Farmers Burley no. 1. Mr. Coleman says, "Let me em phasize what Joe has already said. Keep your tobacco barn at tight as possible from now until tobacco is stripped. Every tim* the tobacco gets in case it turns a little red, and the redder it gets, the lower the price; and .every time fog drifts into the barn the tobacco will go into case. It is important, too, when pos sible thai you start to strip the tobacco when you think the wea ther is going to clear. Tobacco stripped at the beginning of a rainy spell is likely to get too damp, and wet tobacco never brings a good.' price." Mr. Coleman assures the many hundreds of farmers who bring their tobacco to Mountain Burley Warehouse that they will receive every possible courtesy and g?t the best price possible. Last Rites Held ' For Frank Greer Frank Scott Greer, S9, of Vilas Route 1, died at his home on Sat urday, November 7. He had been in ill health for some time. Funeral services were held Sunday, November 8, at the Mount Lebanon Baptist Church, conducted by the Rev. Lawrence Hagamun and the Rev. Ronda Earp. Burial was in the Danner Cemetery. He is survived by his widow, Mrs. Mary Crcer; two sons, Char les J. Greer, Charlotte, and Ron ald Greer, Vilas; four daughters, Mrs. Alma Leviner, Charlotte, Mrs. Mabel Greeifc, Kannapolis, Mrs. Bruce Kelly, Wilkesboro, and Mrs. Pearl Coffey, Hickory; I wo half-brothers, five half-sist-< ;rs, and eleven grandchildren. ? a 2700 Chest X-Rays Are Made Here An x-ray survey has just been completed in Watauga County with a total of approximately 2700 pictures taken by the bus located on Main Street. It in im possible at this time to give the total number of pictures taken by the bus located on the college :ampus. Much credit for this sur vey is due the volunteer citizen* and college students who man ned the buses. This survey was made possible Dy the State Board of Health and the Tri-County Tuberculosis As sociation, making it possible for nany persons, including those whose work required an annual :hest x-ray, to get this at no cost. U. S. JOB CUTS A total of 209,866 civilians lost M their jobs in Government em ployment in the last fourteen months, leaving a total of 2.401, )12 civilians working in the ex ecutive agcncies. at home and abroad, as of September 30th.