BOONE
Home of Appalachian State Uni
versity, in Boone, Blowing Rock
and Linville Scenic Triangle.
WATAUGA DEMOCRAT
An Independent Weekly Newspaper . . . EightyFirst Year of Continuous Publication
BOONE WEATHER
19W Hi Lo Snow Pr«c. '(7 HI Lo
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VOL. LXXXI—NO. 11
BOONE, WATAUGA COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 1968
10 CENTS PER COPY
20 PAGES—2 SECTIONS
Cost-Price Squeeze Holds Down Net
Watauga Farmers Have Income Of $6,206,000 In ’67
Despite the yearly ups and
downs connected with agri
culture, farming continues to
be big business in Watauga
County.
Most local farmers held their
own last year and a number of
them made out better than be
fore, even though income in
many parts of the country fell
considerably behind 1966.
In the face of setbacks in the
New Courthouse
To Be Dedicated
At Open House
The new Watauga County
Courthouse will be formally de
dicated next month.
Tax Supervisor Claude Dan
ner said an open house will be
held from 2 to 5 pjn. Sunday,
Oct. 20, in the county facility.
James Marsh, chairman of the
construction committee, said
that plans for the ceremonies
are still incomplete but should
be set in the next few days.
Marsh will work closely with
the County Commissioners in
outlining the dedication pro
gram for the $450,000 court
house.
Volunteers
Are Now Needed
By Red Cross
Mrs. Lois Miller, chairman
of volunteers for the Watauga
Chapter of the American Red
Cross, has issued a call for
more volunteer help in this area.
Volunteers must be between
ages 16 and 65. They will serve
in the local hospital, the blood
programs and other health pro
grams in this county.
Mrs. Miller said of the volun
teers, “They are bound together
in one primary motivation—the
desire to serve their neighbors
in one way or another.” ’
Anyone interested in helping
with the volunteer program is
asked to call 264-8826 or 264
2722 for more information.
form of lower prices for crops
in general and higher costs for
the things that had to be bought,
local farms stood up well in
comparison.
The findings are based upon
a national survey made by the
Standard Rate and Data Ser
vice and upon reports issued
by the Department of Agricul
ture and others.
The figures for Watauga
County show that local farmers
had a gross income in the past
year of $6,206,000 a gain over
the previous year’s $6,087,000.
That represented total re
ceipts, before deductions for
taxes, labor costs, interest and
other operating expenses.
The bulk of it came from the
sale of farm products, with the
rest of it consisting of govern
ment payments and “income
THE COUNTY’S KING CROP, burley tobacco, is progressing toward the November market
opening in Boone as growers harvest the leaf from river bottom and hillside plots. Much of
the county’s total allotments will be cut and cured for late market sale, but the appearance of
teepee-like bunches is as much a part of autumn in the mountains as the multi-colored leaves
soon to abound in the area. (Staff photo)
Called “Major Step Forward”
Search For City Manager Ends
After several months of
searching for the right man,
Boone’s City Council last week
named H. Neal Blair Jr. to
fill its new office of city
manager.
The Council received plaudits
from Leigh Wilson, Assistant
Executive Director of the North
Carolina League of Municipal
ities, who said:
“We extend our heartiest con
gratulations to the citizens of
Boone on this decision to em
ploy a professional city ad
ministrator to supervise your
growing operations .... Your
decision will mean better plan
ning, higher efficiency, and a
better future for your commun
ity.
“The League of Municipal
ities looks forward to working
with your new administrator in
improving your service to the
citizens of Boone,” Wilson con
cluded.
An engineer in the Water and
Sewer Department, City of
Greensboro, for 14 years, Blair
has been employed for $9,600
per year, according to Jim
Constitution Week
Is Noted By Mayor
In support of the Daughters
of the American Revolution, who
are commemorating Constitu
tion Week throughout the
country next week, Clyde R.
Greene, Mayor of Boone, has
released the following pro
clamation:
Wheras, Sept. 17,1968, marks
the one hundred eighty-first an
niversary of the adoption of the
Constitution of the United States
of America by the Constitutional
Convention; and
Whereas, to accord official
recognition to this memorable
anniversary, and to the patrio
tic exercise that will form a *
noteworthy feature of the oc
casion, seems fitting and
proper; end
Whereas, Public Law No, 915
guarantees the issuing of a pro
clamation each year by the
President of the United States
of America designating Sept.
17 through 23 as Constitution
Week,
Now, therefore, I, Clyde R.
Greene, by virtue of the auth
ority vested in me as Mayor of
the City of Boone in the State
of North Carolina do hereby
proclaim the week of September
17-23, 1968, aa Constitution
Week in the City of Boone and
urge all our citiaens to pay
special attention during that
weak to our Federal Constitu
tion and the advantages of Am
erican Citizenship.
Holshouser, attorney for the
Town of Boone.
A Greensboro city council
man added his congratulations
while expressing thanks of the
Gate City administration for
Blair's work with them. Wil
liam Folk Jr. also said that
Blair’s years of experience in
municipal government well
qualify him for his new re
sponsibilities here.
Mayor Clyde Greene said “We
have looked long and hard for
a man with a working know
ledge of city government, as
well as the professional train
ing needed for a top-flight ad
ministrator.
“We feel very fortunate to
have found such a man and we
are especially delighted to have
a man who also knows our com
munity."
The Mayor added that em
ploying a professional admin
istrator is a “major step for
ward in having our city govern
ment functioning in a way that
will bring the greatest benefit
to all our citizens. It is high
time that we started operating
our city government on a pro
fessional basis, without regard
to partisan politics and political
patronage."
A native of Watauga County,
Blair is the son of Mr. and
Mrs. H. Neal Blair Sr. of
Deerfield Road, Boone. He at
tended local schools and Ap
palachian State Teachers Col
lege before studying at N. C.
State University
After a four-year tour with
the Air Force and the Adjut
ant General Department in the
Phillipines in World War n,
he was employed by Southern
Mapping and Engineering Com
pany in Greensboro for seven
years. He then entered on 14
years service with the City
of Greensboro.
He and Mrs. Blair, the for
mer Eugenia Vernon of Stone
ville, are parents of a daughter,
Linda, who is now Mrs. Richard
Sain of Wadesboro.
Asked about his new job, Blair
said “It’s great to be back in
Boone, and we’re really looking
forward to working with the
people here.
“We know that all of the pro
blems can’t be solved over
night, but it’s a tremendous
(continued on page two)
H. NEAL BLAIR JR.
in-kind,” which is the value of
the home-grown products used
on the farm.
An estimated 43 percent of
the income from farm market
ings came from the sale of crops
and 57 percent from sales of
livestock, poultry and dairy pro
ducts.
For the farm population of
Watauga County, the gross re
ceipts were at the rate of $1,002
per person.
While the average American
farmer has been able to boost
his production through more in
tensive fertilization and the in
creased use of tractors and
other mechanized equipment, he
has not succeeded in turning this
gain into added net income.
The cost-price squeeze has
been against him. Inflation has
driven up the cost of virtually
everything he has to buy, but
the prices he obtains for his
products have not been keeping
pace.
In the past year, as a matter
of fact, with some exceptions
for livestock, there has been
a general decline inthatdirect
ion. The year’s huge crop pro
duction forced prices lower than
before.
Democrats Ahead In Registration
11,327 Watauga People
Are Qualified To Vote
Six Ballots
To Be Marked
November 5th
Six ballots will be available
to Watauga County voters in the
Nov. 5 general election.
According to J. D. Winebar
ger, chairman of the County
Board of Elections, “There’s
more interest in people wanting
to vote this time.”
Currently there are 11,327
voters registered In the county.
Of these, 11,226 are white and
101 are Negro, he said. The
Democrats number 5,812, Re
publicans have 4,140 register
ed and 1,375 are listed as in
dependents, Mr. Winebarger
says.
In the May 4 primary, 3,852
voted in the county’s 16 pre
cincts.
UNUSUAL
The top ballot will be the
national presidential ticket
bearing the names of Democrat
Hubert H. Humphrey, Republi
can Richard M. Nixon and Am
erican Independent George C.
Wallace.
Winebarger says that the 1968
ballot is unusual in that it
carries the name of a third party
bidder. There has not been a
third party nominee since Strom
Thurmond of South Carolina op
posed Harry Truman and
Thomas Dewey for the Presi
dency.
Other ballots will be for the
County Board of Education, State
Senator, District Court Judge,
State Representative and County
Commissioners. There also is
a constitutional amendment bal
lot.
House seat from the 44th
District is sought by M. Ran
dolph Phillips, a Democrat,and
Republican incumbent J. E.
Holshouser Jr. Each party has
slated three nominees for coun
ty commissioner. Other elec
tions are uncontested.
The school board election
will be on a non-partisan basis
this year because of a change
in state election laws. Accord
ing to Winebarger, the change
came about because of the feel
ing that schools and politics
should not mix. Five men are
to be named to the school board
from the list of 10 nominees.
On election day, each pre
cinct voting place is staffed by
two judges, a registrar and a
secretary if needed, along with
two markers and a doorkeeper.
Each party is allowed a watcher
at the polls, however the Demo
crats seldom post one, Wine
barger says.
The registration books are to
open Saturday, Oct. 12, and
remain open the following three
Saturdays between 9 a.m. and
6:30 p.m.
Watauga County Republican officials Cecil Miller Geft) and Mrs. Ralph Greene are pictured
with Congressman James Broyhill after the weekend rally. Miller is County Republican Chair
man. Mrs. Greene is vice-chairman. (Staff photo)
Nationwide Disorder
Deplored By Broyhill
At their first post-primary
rally, Watauga Cotyity Repub
licans deplored nationwide dis
order and dissent with the ad
ministration’s policies.
Congressman James Broyhill
said ‘‘In the 10th District, the
people are asking for new lead
ership.
“It was 15 years ago that
Dwight D. Eisenhower assumed
Dr. Lawrence
Named Official
Travel Group
Dr. C. Ray Lawrence, Boone
optometrist and Executive Vice
President of Horn in the West
has accepted membership on the
Cultural Affairs Committee of
the North Carolina Travel
Council, it is announced by
Mark R. Sumner Chariman of
the new committee, who is also
Director of the UNC Institute
of Outdoor Drama.
In a letter to Dr. Lawrence
Mr. Sumner says:
“This is a new committee
of the Council and will be
charged with developing a pro
gram to identify and encourage
cultural assets of the State,
particularly those institutions
whose activities support the
purposes of the Council. It will
be one of the duties of the com
mittee to seek means of in
creased communication between
the Council and State-wide cul
tural organizations and agen
cies.’’
The committee members
were named by Roy A. Stevens,
President of the North Caro
lina Travel Council.
his role of leadership in a time
of crisis. We lived eight years
in peace.” He went on to say
Republican administration was
‘‘a time of orderly progress
when the American people had
trust in themselves and in their
leadership in high places.
‘‘Today ... we have tur
moil; we have problems, ” Broy
hill said. ‘‘By the tens of thou
sands American boys are
wounded; our cities are centers
of despair; the administration
tells i there are more poor
now tna.. wheathey started (War
on Poverty).”
Calling for ‘‘a resounding
Republican majority from Wa
tauga County” Broyhill cited
lawlessness in view of an 88
per cent increase in crime in
the last eight years and said
Nixon would support the “belief
that respect for the law is the
foundation of a free, well-order
ed society.”
He said a new president would
appoint three or more Supreme
Court justices and “Nixon would
pick men with experience.”
He charged that the admin
istration has squandered the
resources of America: “High
interest rates are a direct re
sult of the administration’s poli
cies . . . inflation robs the
paychecks of every American.”
And on grounds that Repub
licans are working for changes
beneficial to the people, the
Congressman said:
Increased Congressional con
trol of national spending is need
ed.
Republicans would work for
decreased taxes.
That the party’s attitude is
not to favor the criminal over
the victim of the crime.
Rep. Broyhill stated that a
return to the Eisenhower al
liances is needed “to withstand
the increasing tide of communist
aggressions throughout the
world. The United States can no
longer be the policeman of the
world.”
And of the prospect of the
Democrat’s re-election, he said
it would mean “more programs
. . . throwing more money at
the problem.
(Continued on page two)
Democrats To Open
Local Headquarters
Local Democratic campaign
headquarters will hold its for
mal opening Saturday noon at
the headquarters office on King
Street in the Art and Auction
Gallery Building.
State and local candidates will
be present at the opening but
local party worker George Tbo
mu said Inst It was not certain
who will be present as there
is to be a party rally in Thomas
rille the same day. James Dugg
er is chairman of the Watauga
County Democratic Executive
Committee.
The Democratic Woman will
serve refreshments.