AWARD WINNER In 1808 and 1967 the Democrat won 10 State Press Assn, awards far General Excellence, Excellence in Typography, Local News, Adver tising, Columns and Photographs. VOL. LXXX— NO. 25 WATAUGA DEMOCRAT An Independent Weekly Newspaper . . . Eightieth Year of Continuous Publication BOONE, WATAUGA COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1967 BOONE WEATHKX US7 HI Lo Saow Free. X Dec. 12 48 37 .22 | Dec. 13 95 28 Dec. 14 30 39 M Dec. 19 40 34 Dec. 16 40 24 Dec. 17 62 25 Dec. 18 56 37 fr. 40 PAGES—4 SECTIONS 10 CENTS PER COPY KtUtBKtiSr » Wm. J. McCormick NORTH CAROLINA EDUCATION HE WAS BORN in an animal shelter—a stable, midst the dumb creatures of His Own creation, in an obscure village, the Child of a young simple peasant Jewish maid—the spouse of a carpenter. His relations were inconspicuous, uninfluential and had neither training nor education. He grew up in another village where He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty; then for three years He was an itinerant preacher, but in truth The Messiah, teaching the gospel of love. He never visited a big city nor travelled two hundred miles from the place of His birth. He never held an office. In infancy He startled a King; in childhood He puzzled the learned doctors; in manhood He ruled the course of nature by walking upon the waves as if pavements and hushed the sea to sleep. He, Himself, had neither wealth or influence, but possessed dauntless courage, which faltered only once, in the Garden of Gethsemane, and then for only a moment when He cried “Abba, Father, all things are possible to You. Remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will.” His only weakness was human sympathy and, if He ever faltered again, g was on the side of mercy and pity. He never had a family or owned a house. He didn’t go to col lege but all the schools put together cannot boast of having as many students. He never wrote a book, and yet all the libraries of the country could not hold the books that have been written about Him. He never wrote a song and yet He has furnished the theme for more songs than all the song-writers combined. He never practiced medicine but He went around healing the multitudes without medicine and making no charge for His services, and He has healed more broken hearts than all the doctors that ever lived. He did none of the tilings one usually associates with greatness — He had no credentials but Himself, yet every seventh day the wheels of commerce cease their turning and multitudes wend their way to wor shipping and to pay homage and respect to Him. The names of the past proud statesmen of Greece and Rome have come and gone; but die name of This Man abounds more and more. Time has spread 1900 years between the people of this generation and the scene of His crucifixion; at the time He was thirty-three years old and the tide of public opinion had tamed against Him because His teachings of righteousness were contrary to their ideas. He was betrayed by His own disciple. His friends ran away. He was tamed over to His enemies and went through the mockery of a trial. The thirty shekels for which Judas sold Him were worth $18.36, but don’t forget, we have often sold Him for less. At the instigation of the Jews, the Romans nailed Him to a cross between two thieves. While He was dying, His execution ers gambled for His clothing, the only property He had on earth. When He was dead He was laid in a borrowed grave through pity of a friend, and rose on the third day from the dead, and ascended, as St. ,— ^uke has put on record, from the summit of the Mould of Olives, in adoud into the infinite expanse of the Heavens. With this Resurrection He has left to us a legacy that we will never have to face tomorrow alone. This God-Man, He Who died with a spear through a breast bruised with our sins, Whom we honor today, went through ail this—This Man Whose soul was tempered by a large charity that proceeded from a Divine understanding and an Infinite power of compassion. Yes, He still lives. Herod could not de stroy Him and the grave could not hold Him. Nineteen hundred years have come and gone and today He Is the Central Figure of the human race and the Leader of mankind’s progress. All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, an the parliaments that ever sat, aU the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man on this earth as much as That One Solitary Life. He stands forth, today, upon the highest pinnacle of heavenly glory, proclaimed by God, acknowledged by Angels, adored by Saints and feared by devils as the Living Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Such, in brief, is the story of the most Remarkable Personality die world has ever known, our greatest teacher. Says 1,320 Watauga Citizens Holding Government Positions How many Watauga County residents are holding down gov ernment jobs at the present time? How does this compare, relative to population, with the number on government payrolls in other areas? According to the latest fig ures, a larger proportion of the working force is to be found in public jobs—Federal, state and local—than in most parts of the United States. Approximately 1 out of every 4 who are employed works for a governmental agency. This is exclusive of those in the armed forces. The occupational data is based upon national surveys of gov ernment employment, conducted by the Tax Foundation, the Bu reau of Labor Statistics and others. They show that the number of persons so-employed has risen much faster in recent years than the working popu lation as a whole. Since 1960, more than three million people have been added to public payrolls, bringing the total this year to 11.5 million. In Watauga County, the fig ures, indicate, some 22.6 per cent of the working force are public employees. This is above the proportion in the rest of the United States, Mentally Retarded People In Watauga Should Be Aided BY BARBARA BARNETT Menially retarded children can and should be helped. Today more than ever, men tal retardation presents a great er problem to the nation, state,, and last, but most important, the community, because here is where the problem arises. With Jobs being increasingly avail able, the mentally retarded per son must get help from some one in order to remain Unpro ductive community. Within our County of Wa tauga, the following statistics were gathered and received from the Governor by the N. C. Council on Mental Retardation Committee. About two years ago, Watauga County had the following number of retarded people: Mentally retarded under 6 years, 10; mentally retarded between 6-21, 176; mentally retarded over 21, 98. These figures will give the citizens of Watauga some gen eral idea of the need for classes and programs designed es pecially for these people. To day Watauga has only about 3 or 4 such classes. That is cer tainly not enough to provide for these people in the right manner. Services for them must be made available in order to make a step forward in a posi tive direction. One such class is being of fered to the retarded “train able" children on the Appa lachian State University cam pus. Here, (aider tbs super vision of Qualified teachers and issistants, children are leani ng to care for themselves, earn personal hygeine and get ilong with others their own age. The mentally retarded “edu :able” child is also receiving lome instruction, but at a cer aln age group classes stop. The teenage retarded person must itop his education, and no cour ses of higher instruction are jfTered to him. He must there tore, go off to a neighboring ;ity or stay at home. This can se Impossible to do, especially luring the winter months when jad weather arises, preventing level. The young teenager can not go to a regular high school ind try to learn as students with normal learning capaci ties can. He would become frus (Continued on page three) where the average if 15.7 pe cent. In the South Atlantic State it is 17.9 percent. It is estimated that there ar now approximately 1,320 loci residents in government jobs as compared with the 997 list ed in 1960, following a surve by the Commerce Departmen Most of the change has bee in state and local governmei employment, it is pointed ou rather than in the Federal sec tor. They have been expandir rapidly, with the result thi their payrolls are now aboi three times the size cf tl Federal. The Tax Foundation finds thi education has become the mo: costly function of state-loc: government, accounting for oro half of their personal servic outlays. The growing emphasis on ed cation and the increase in tl number of children call fc more and more teachers. It is noted that the numb* of teachers doubled in the fir 50 years of this century, gt ing from 430,000 in 1900 913'000 in 1950. Since then, in only 17 yean the number has doubled agaii bringing the number of teach ers to 1,800,000. County Offices Will Be Closed Dec. 23-2 The Watauga County Cour house will be closed for tl Christmas holidays on Dei 23 and Dec. 25. The Court house will also be closed < New Year’s Day, Jan. 1. Response Best In Years I ft; - • *, C$' ’ m Announce WinnersYule Decorations Contests 1 ’I :;SV Watauga Garden Gub Council Sponsors Event The Watauga Council of Gar den Clubs, in announcing win ners in the Christmas deco ration contest, would like to thank all who entered. The re sponse was the best in years, sponsors said. However, due to lack of adequate lighting, the judges felt that a great many decorations were miss ed. OUTDOOR Winners in the outdoor cate gories were: Live and Growing Lighted Trees—large—1. Mrs. Jim Jones, 2. Mrs. Tom Winkler, 3. Lewis Wilson and 4. Miss Cynthia Stiles; small—1. Lee Anderson (twintrees),2, Vaughn Roten and 3. Kenneth Mathes. Front Doors—Traditional, Religious—1. Mrs. Frank Hag* aman and 2. Mrs. Hoyle Davis; Secular—Mrs. Norman ben hour. Garage Doors—Mrs. W. C. Richardson. Entrances—1. Mrs. Johnny Barnett, 2. Mrs. Eric DeGroat and 3. Mrs. Fred Mast. Roof and/or Chimney Dis plays—1. Mrs. Perry Greene, 2. V. A. Stevens and 3. Mrs. Ben Bos worth. (Continued on page two) \ ABC And Police 1 Arrest 3 Men State ABC officers working with the Boone Police Depart ment arrested three men on charges of illegal sale of tax paid liquor Saturday night. I | Chief of Police Red Lyons said an ABC officer from Hen dersonville, Gay T. Lyda Jr., r bought liquor from three sus s pects that night. He identified those arrested as J. O. Cook, e working for a business on South ] Depot Street; Friday Teague, lo cated on the Blowing Rock Road „ in Boone; and John Winkler, who y was approached at a firm at the intersection of Hardin and East n King, he said, it :, They will be tried at the next - term of Superior Court, g it Lyons said that two officers it with ABC in Hickory joined in e investigations running for three weeks prior to the arrests, it THE FIRST CHRISTMAS tree put up in Watauga County Hospital, which opened this year, was furnished and decorated by the Blue Ridge Garden Club. It is found in the main lobby on first floor. Until last week, a tree on third floor was attracting much interest. Staff members had cleverly decorated it with syringes, cotton balls, bandaids and other hospital materials. (Staff photo) Officers Secure Return Of Loot From Boone Robbery nt fho f i r-l I.vnns wont tn Wilkpfi Tnim. rt ^ i UU IDin cicvuiv VJ K1 writer, an adding machine val ued at $300, a corporate seal and a small electric heater are amoTC Items returned to Greene Buick-Pontiac, Inc., at Boone, Police Chief Red Lyons said Monday that a suspect has been charged with the Dec. 8. break Former NYC Boys Charged _ With Entering Building r The Neighborhood Youth Corps building on West King r Street was broken into last ** week. Police Chief Red Lyons said ° he received a tip that “sus picious looking characters * drove up close to the building, * opened the truck of the car and “ got something out." Lyons said he went to investi gate and saw footprints leading through the soft dirt into the ) creek beside the building. . He waited until two boys, e whom he identified as former Neighborhood Youth Corps en * rollees, came out. n They were taken to Watauga County Jail. Lyons said he and Deputy Clyde Tester crawled through the culvert under West King and found evidence that entry had been made from the culvert into the N. Y. C. building. The Chief said the boys will face charges of breaking and entering in the next Super ior Court. Meeting Postponed The regular monthly meet ing of the Watauga County Com missioners will be postponed to Tuesday, Jan. 2. Normally they would meet the first Monday, which la New Year’s Day next year. said a parking meter ticket is sued in Hickory and bearing the license number and make of the vehicle owned by the suspect was found inside the building at the point of entry. “A warrant has been issued for Kenneth D. Phillips, age26, of Route 1, Parlier,” he said. Officials in Wilkes County came in on the case when checks forged on Greene Buick-Pontiac began showing up in North Wilkesboro. Cashed at super markets there were checks made out in the amounts of $91.67 and $91.76. A personal checkbook belong ing to the owner, G. C. Greene, and Mrs. Greene was taken as well as the company checkbook, a small stapling machine, a postage meter rented from the Post Office Department and ap proximately $400 in mechanical tools owned by Bud Cornett. Lyons said Greene stopped payment on the checks when be discovered the book was miss ing, although the officer said as many as 10 or 12 could have been cashed. Seven checks are known to have been cash ed. With The Northwestern Bank keeping him informed as soon as the checks began showing ty for photostatic copies and visited one of the supermarkets to get a description of the for ger. He said Wilkes County Sheriff Hoke Wiles checked around for a car and person fitting the descriptions and al so found out where the sus pect lived. (Continued on page three) Democrat To Close Monday The Watauga Democrat will be closed next Monday for Christmas. The newspaper office will be open as usual this week up to noon Saturday. Boone Stores To Observe Yule According to lrformatioo re ceived from the Boons Cham- A her of Commerce, most stores % will be closed only on Christ mas Day next week. Most are plaosiiw to napm . ;i; for busings* on Tussday, Dec, ’ ■ as ■ T f i‘

Page Text

This is the computer-generated OCR text representation of this newspaper page. It may be empty, if no text could be automatically recognized. This data is also available in Plain Text and XML formats.

Return to page view