Our Aim: ?
A Better Murphy
A Finer County
Olhrrnkp? ^tant
the leadinc WEEKLY NEWSPAPER in WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA, cover.nc a large and potentially rich tekr.tory
Dedicated
T o Service
For Progress
VOL 53 ? NO. 26
MI RPHY. NORTH CAROLINA TIICRSDAY. JANUARY 22 .1942
5c I OPY? $1.50 PKK YEAR
YOUTH IS HILLED j
BY "VET' UNCLE
PLAYING AT WA R
Grover Keasler Fatally
Shot When Kinsmen
Loses His Footing
Tin- war claimed its first victim
in this section last Friday when 21
Tear old Grover Keasler was fatal
ly shot by his uncle. Jeff "Martin,
as the latter showed the nep'.iew and
a small (Troup of friends "how he
shot Kie Germans" in the First World
Tile tragedy occurred in a store
near the victim's home in the Rang
er section Young Keasler was shot
through the neck, and died Satur
day. Jan. 18.
The victim, his uncle, and several
friends were standing about the store,
discussing the war. Martin is a World
War veteran, and his nephew asked
him to "show us how you used to
shoot 'em." Picking up a gun, Martin
dropped to one knee and pretended
to draw a bead on an imaginary
enemy.
Martin took it for granted that
rhe gun was not loaded, and put on
finger on the trigger. Then, sudden
ly. one of his feet slipped, and caus
ed the trigger hand to tighten, in
voluntarily. As he struggled to regain
his balance, the barrel of the gun
came in direct line with his nephew,
find then eame a discharge which
sent a bullet directly into the throat
of the victim.
Young Keasler was rushed to a
Murphy hospital, where Herculean
efforts to save him proved vain. The
uncle is all but prostrated with grief.
Funeral services were held Sunday
afternoon at Maggie's Chapel, with
the Rev. Will Hedden officiating.
Townson Funeral Home was in
charge of arrangements, and the fol
lowing were pallbearers:
Messrs. W. Hogan. Don Hughes,
Ham Stalcup, Francis Crisp. Calvin ;
Hughes and James Stalcup.
The deceased is survived by his pa- j
rents, Mr. and Mrs. Verlin Keasler, |
two brothers and one sister. The lat- ?
ter is Miss Eva Nell Keasler. of!
Murphy. The brothers are J. B. Keas- j
Jer, of Murphy and Mav Keasler. a!
member of the U. S. Navy now sU- j
tioned at Norfolk.
C. W. Savage Improve*;
To Return Home Soon
The many Iriends of Mr. C .W.
Savage, who recently underwent a
serious operation in an Atlanta hos
pital, will be glad to lcam that he
came through with flying colors and
is convalescing rapidly.
It will be necessary for Mr. Savage
to remain in the hosptal for a few
weeks, after which he probably will
return to Murphy and resume resi
dence at the Regal hotel. Mr. Sav
age and his brother, Will, owned the
hotel and sold It only a fen- days
before 'Xtim" went to the hospital.
Mrs. C. W. Savage has been at
her husband's bedside every possible
minute since he entered the hospital.
? ? o
Boy Scouts Plan Trip
With Overnight Camp ;
Sixteen Boy Scouts, including four
new members, held a meeting at the j
Murphy school auditorium Monday
evening and planned a camping trip
from Friday afterncon until Satur
day night.
Five of the Scouts were out with 1
a truck Tuesday afternoon, collect
ing paper from homes. A -<"?ular day I
for collection will be set. and all hav
ing waste paper arc asked to leave
their nrmes and addresses with the J
Chamb * Commerce office, on the
juare.
Scout membership has increased so
much t.hr.1 a third patrol may be i
formed, iu addition to the Fox and
raxthir sroaps already organized.
Coleman Orders Ban
Against All Visitors to
County Jail Inmates
Every prisoner held in the County
jail will suffer as a result of the
break last Sunday morning. Patton
Coleman has put a ban on all social
eaiis uiiii! iftrr Aoril term of the
Circuit Court.
Heretofore friends have been al
lowed to take cigarettes and other
p.ilts to those incarcerated. From now
on. all such gifts will have to be left
with Jaiier Coleman, who probably
vrill open all wrapped packages and
| examine the contents to see that no
files, pieces of metal which might be
made into keys, or other contraband
i . bfclilrt SOlUKKiC-d in.
I "Members of the immediate fami
lies of prisoners wui be admitted on
regular days only." said Coleman?
anri ther^ will be no more private
| visiting at any time. I will be right
! there, watching what goes on."
' Coleman declares he is certain that
i a file was smuggled into the two
prisoners who escaped. He says he
also believes a taxi-cab was waiting
foi them, to speed them out of
town.
Man, Wife, Friend
Plunge to Deaths
Near Turtletown
Missing from tlieir home since Jail.
2; the todies of Setli Whir tie, 28, and
his pretty young wife, Dorothy, were
found Inst week at the bottom of a
400 foot ravine near Turtletown. With
them was the body of John Butler,
48. Whittle's employer, with whom
; they lived in the mountains.
The three had plunged to their
death from a twisting mountain road,
leading off the Kimsey Highway.
The Whittles and Butler had been
seen by a guard on the road about
three o'clock the afternoon of Jan
uary 2. It is thought likely they were
on their way to Turtletown. where
they bought their groceries and where
Mrs. Whittle had an aunt. It was
raining that afternoon and fog had
settled over the mountains.
About 10:30 Saturday morning the
wreckage of a car was seen at the
foot of a deep ravine. Part way down
tha steep slope lay the body of Mrs.
Whittle, and at the foot, some 400
feet below, were the bodies of Butler
and Seth Whittle.
The car apparently had turned over j
and over, bouncing over the rocks,
until but little was left of it. The i
occupants had been thrown near the ,
car. which as it finally came to rest j
had passed over Whittle's body.
Due to the cold weather the pest
two weeks, the bodies were in a fairj
state of preservation.
The slope down which the car
plunged is treeless, with nothing to ,
stop a falling object. i
Agricultural Leader
Visitor at Folk School
Dr. H. C. Taylor, Director of the
National Farm Foundation with f
headquarters in Chicago and Mrs.
Taylor were the week-end guests of
Mrs. Olive Campbell, at the Folk 1
School In Brass town.
Dr. Taylor has held Agriculture
progressorships in Wisconsin Unlver- '
sity. Northwestern U and the TJni- '
versity of Vermont. He also served
eight years as a D. S. Government
official having headed the office of
Farm Management, and the Bureau
of Markets and Crop Estimates.
o
Louis Shields Attains
Dean's List at U. of N. C.
Lotiis Shields, son of Lee M.
Shields, and a Junior at tne Univer
sity of North Carolina, where he is
studying pharmacy has won the sip
ns.1 honor of being named on ths
'Dean's list" for the past quarter.
The "Dean's list" comprises stu
dents selected for unusual scholastic
standing.
BABY IS SCALDED
TO DEATH ON HIS
THIRD BIRTHDAY
Tiny Willard West Falls
into Boiling ater in
Kitchen of Home
Thiol' year old Willard West piling- !
ed 10 a horrible death ai the home
of his parents. Mr and Mr Prank
West, of Andrews, last Thursday
morning. The tragedy seemed more
terrible, if possible because It came 1
on the baby';: birthday.
luivtlc Willsrd sind Is!!
into a bn.-in of boilim; water and,
received third degree burns which
caused Ills death after two days of
?- 1 1 f fori n rr
Fund al services were held Satur- |
nay. January* 17, and the baby was,
buried in the Red Marble Cemetery. 1
with To?uson Fiuirrdl Home- Inj
i liarge of arrangements. Besides his 1
parents, the child is survive.; oy i
three brothers and one sister.
Tlie tragedy occurred early in the
morning, with both his parents only
a few feet di.-tant yet powerless to
save him. His mother, rising early,
had placed a big basin of water on
the stove to lieat, and it had gotten
boiling hot when Mr. West came into
the kitchen to get his breakfast be
fore going to his job with the TVA.
To make more room on the stove,
Mrs. West removed the basin on wa
ter and placed it, on the floor.
Little Willard. playing about tlie
kitchen toddled over near the spot,
stumbled, and. before his parents to
catch him. had plunged into the
water.
He was immersed only an ir.otant,
bur that was enough. His tender ba'oy
f.esh was terribly bumed, and though
he was rushed to a hospital in Mur
phy, he died January 16.
War Relief Quota
Here to be Trebled
In Red Cross Drive
i With money still coming in. Joe
' Ray, chairman of the Red Cross War
Relief drive reported Thursday
' morning that a little more than $1.
800 had been collected. The Murphy
chapter's quota was only $1,000.
Ray pointed out that this $1,800
represents collections made from
'locals", and does not include dona
tions made by TVA workers. The lat
ter are expected to total several
thousand dollars.
TVA donations will come direct to |
Chairman Ray, but will be allotted j
by him to the various counties in !
which the contributors reside. A
large portion of these funds will
thus go to Clay County and to near
by counties In Georgia and Tennes
see. Nevertheless, Ray expects Mur- |
phy's share to bring the local total
to nearly three times the amount of ,
the quota.
Notable among the contributions j
was one from a soldier who read of
th p drive in The Scout. Gilbert J.
Amos, member of the Quartermaster
Corps and stationed at Fort Braes, i
sent Ray a money order for $10.
"That donation" said Ray. proves
that Amos is not only 100 per cent 1
patriot, but also 100 per cent lover :
of his home section. Incidentally, it ,
i?. a striking compliment to the In- :
fluent? of The Scout." ,
Following is a new list of con- 1
Iributors who had turned In their
donations by the time the Scout I
went to press. Other contributors. ;
whose donations are coming In stcaJ
i'y, will bo announced next week. ;
Those donating during the past two 1
weeks, and luted below, are buslnc-.
concem<-. whoso employees contribut
ed 100%.
They are:
Appalachian Veneer plant. .Tohn- '
son's Market, Western Auto. Mur- ,
phy Laundry. Gulf Oil Co.. Murphy'
Continued on back F?gc
Best Tourist Season
In Years is Predicted
Due to Car Shortage
Shortage of autos and tin's should
(jive Western North Carolina the best ;
'ourlst season in years, according to
Chamber of Commerce heads from
uk entire snilwri ?'ho met at :4 !
i.mquet in Ashevllk' Tuesday night
It was pointed out that visitors \
v. ill no longer find it advisable to '
-.top over -night and then drive on.
H'^tead. tliey probably will pick out i
a locality and stay there.
Joe Ray. President of the Murphy ,
Chamber addressed the gathering
and assured Ashevilli. that Murphy '
w n< r I in Oeorsia. Prom the coop- I
? ration we have been getting' in ex
plained. "it seems as if some ot you ;
iolks think we a:-e lurnners'.
Ray told of the advantages Murphy
now offers tourists. "We have pro-!
E.essed a lot. and we have just, I
Started" lie said "Make no mistake I
about u. Gentlemen. Murphy Is the!
< omtng town of North Carolina.'
Restaurants Begin
General "Overhaul"
To Meet New Laws
The cafes and restaurants or Mur
li'.iy a if boinc rearranged, rc-outfit
tctl and generally reorganized as a
result of a visit, this week by a State
Inspector for the Department of
Health. As a result Murphy will have
eating places to rival any in North
Carolina.
Tr is likely that some of the cafes
will bo out uf business because of the
considerable expense accessary to
comply with new and stringent regu
lations regarding sanitation. The
larger places, however, readily agreed
to comply with every suggestion. Some
of the changes required had already
been planned before the Inspector
came. and were being held up only
by short-age of materials and labor.
One of the improvements to be
made at once will be the sterilization
of every glass, cup, and dish every
ume it is used. This will call for rc
p'acement of most of the dish-wash- 1
ing equipment. Under former rules,
in effect less than a year ago. it was i
necessary for a restaurant to have
only two big basins for dishes; one;
ft.t washing, the second for rinsing
Under the new rules, three compart- :
ments are needed, the third being for
sterilization.
Another new requirement is tha; |
every restaurant wash room be kept i
supplied with hot as we!! <ts cold wa
ter. Closed dust proof stors.ge cab
inets, required a year ago will oe
done away with.
Many other requirements have been j
made, all of which be costly, and
will require the junking of other 1
equipment, that is almost new. How
evri , the proprietors of the better
eating places promised to co-operate
100 per cent.
Junk Depot Offered
By Farmer Federation
A Red Crass pile for the collection
of scrap metal and old rubber will
be maintained at the Murphy ware
house of the Farmers Federation. ac
cording to mangager Meu'n Propst.
When the accumulation is sold the
proceeds will be turned over en
tirely to the Red Cross.
Truck of Dewey Fain
Destroyed by Flames
A truck, owned and onerated by
Dewey Fail-., colored, and loaded wi'h
furniture caught on fire and b'imed
Sunday night, Jti-t th's side of nan
er. Dew ey is employed by Mr. Morcer
F?in but at the time he was opernt
ir. : his own truck independently.
It happened about 9 o'clock Sun
day night and the furniture, iucki
ly, was unloaded before it was dam
aged.
TWO BREAK JAIL
BY WAY OF ROOF;
HAD OUTSIDE AID
Clarence Cornwell and
Beri Beasiey Given
File by Accomplice
Facing piobable life terms and
possible sentences to the electric
chair. two prisoners escaped from
the County Jail early Sunday morn
ing only to be recaptured Tuesday
v. itli new crimes added to the charges
already against litem.
Tllf* WfeWfgfg h W Wtww <U?y V. 1
year old escaped Georgia convio.t.
hcltt lor midnight lobbery durinu
which he shot out the right eye of
CS yrar old Al'.rn ChvcTir.bv .if *hr
Libertv section: and Clarence Corn
w< 11. l!3 year old TVA worker of
P-. averdam, charged with robbing
Mr and I^ichsrd Cornwell ?tm1
and uncle who raised him ,ol $87 at
tin point of a mui in their Beaver
dam home. The fugitives were re
taken at the head of Beavcrdam. as
they hid in the woods.
Before being caught, the two had
broken into the school house at Suit
and looted the storage room of food
k< pi there fo children's lunches
Surprised in the school house by
' John Johnson, a WPA worker, they
knocked him down and ordered him
to "lie still for ten minutes" during
' which they made a new get-away.
New charges of Jail-breaking, de
j swoying Government property, rob
bery. ami assault will be lodged
, against them. Jailer Coleman also is
j considering prosecution of three otn
! er inmates of the jail on charges
lol being accessories before and af
| Tor the fact, in the escape.
The escape of Cornwell and Beasiey
; was affected after patient effort, and
with the aid of a visitor, and per
haps also of a "trusty" who was al
l-wed free range of the lock-up. It
was made possible originally, by the
smuggling in of a file by some visit
or.
Several wrecked stills were stored
in the lock up, and Cornwell. said
to be an expert locksmith, got a
piece of copper pipe from one of
ihom. Ho hammered and filed this
into a massive key which would un
lock the door to the "bull- pen" where
he. Beasiey, and three other prison
ers were confined.
Even with the key made, how
ever, help was needed because it is
physically impossible for a man in
the bull pen to reach the lock. The
key had to be handed to someone
futside the cell.
(Continued on back page)
; Mrs. C. S. Patton Dead;
Burial in Peachtree
A life long resident of Cherokee
1 County. Mrs. C. S. Patton. 81 years
: old died on January 12th. and wa
buried from the Peachtree Baptist
| church. She had been ill for several
j months. Funeral services were "con -
] ducted by The Rev. Barker and ta -
I terment was in the Peavhtree cemc
| tery with Town son Funeral Home In
! charge of arrangements
Mrs. Patton is survived by one
j daughter, Mrs Frank Farmer and a
on. Clyde, both of Murphy. She al
! so leaves two sisters: Mrs. tnez
Tiughrs. of Murphy and Mrs. Nina
? Brittain, of Mavyville. Tenn.. and
; tome grandchildren.
o
Dickey Will Contest
Settled Out of Court
The ccurt con'es!' started by Fred
' Picfcey Jr. in an elf ? f-o break the
r ? ?. I in Circuit
by com
T - 1 '? " *1,000, With
t i-o remainder of the estate, going to
\T Maixie D . widow of the de
cca d. t"nr' ? the tern* of settle
ment, young Fred rece.ves $5,000.