A,e Pilot Clovers Dninswick County r^sixTEEN NO. 38 THE STATE PORT PILOT Most of The News All The Time A Good Newspaper In A Good Community 6-pages today Southport, N. CM Wednesday, December 31, 1947 PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY SI. 50 PER YEA* Lj Expansion Lram Mapped I for Brunswick Lay Commissioner J. [Bridge r Promises Ear i\ction On Soldier Bay - jjjjettown Paving In ffa County MEN'S BEACH ROAD INCLUDED fiaion Of Paving Of jrtr Road Also Plan With Contracts To Be Let Early In New Year fhivav expansion program ^-sivu'k county estimated jh. ? cost more than 5300, 4e majority of the program ? jt bettering farm to raar Kjjj? has been announced A Br: :iors. highway com ner tor the Third division. ,'slans call for hard sur ? e;Jht miles of the Orton i" connecting a new four-mile a of hardsurface leading ,:;-e jtmcti"a of highways 17, c at Woodburn toward Ipjr: This work is expected K - with. n a month, or when tCal :t tails can be worked L- 1 contracts have been se 1 pevs for the work have nade by the Highway de pwt. ami a date for letting contracts will be announced Bridgers said. 17 other projects, bids for t will probably be announ ? month, have been sche I to include more than 20 i : har Surfacing in lower Bridgers said. f stretch connecting Hold iSiich with Highway 17 ami t- connecting Soldiers Bay I GnSi-ett. >wn are included in i::er schedule. It Holden's Beach issue tic nearly a year ago when py owners, reporting they l faced with a fuel, food and t. supplies shortage, appeal 's tile Highway Commission > '? Hor,-?.> i!k' Atlantic way Bridgers promises y ictior. these two stretch ^ road. Se Soldiers Bay to Grisset : stretch connects the lower f of Brunswick's rich farm k with highways now leading I markets. Bridgers pointed I 5: eight miles from highway k*ard Orton will be met with rial miles of pavement t"; from Scuthport toward Bridgers said. Irief New$ Flashu KS TO MEET rs of the Southport ?i Club will meet tomorrow ts-iay i at 1 o'clock at the unity Center Building. ' NEXT WEEK * the first Thursday night tte month falls on New the regular monthly meet the Southport Parent ?rs Association will be held *eek later on Thursday, Jan L PWU ALL REOPEN of the Brunswick county white and colored reopen yesterday following the holi The past few days of dry. fT weather has enabled the way fgrces to get about all dirt roads In good condi ' and few. any 0f the buses ^Ported as having had dif "y in getting through with loads of children. ??% V D0th' "f New York, have been the past week In South ami arc very much pleased things They did not see a *h'le at Southport, but the J toW them plenty about ?and the 25 inches of snow , ? in New York just after . -ft there. Mr. Horvath is a , ":;t Sales Consultant in VTk Bi>th he and Mrs. are very much int?fested I _ iCheck, Good Idea Sent In For Whittler's Park Project i I Siler City Man Believes That Register Or Bulletin Board Might Prove Attractive Feature From Siler City comes a nice letter, a check for $5.00 and a good idea with regard to Whit- j tier's Park in Southport. The sender of the check and ! writer of the letter is T. L. I Smith. He says he has been noting with keen interest the ! plans for repairing the benches | at Whittlers Park and says i that he is expecting to enjoy some of the benefits there- i I from. Mr. Smith then goes on to | tell of his idea, backed with a ; $5.00 check to start things with. He said: "There is another fea- i ture that I would like to sug- j gest, and that is a Visitor's | ! Register or Bulletin Board. | Some of the fellows that like Southport and Whittlers Park live up-state. In fact, they live throughout a lot of states. When we come back, as we all hope to do sometime, it would greatly interest us to go through the register and see the names of the friends who have been there during our absence. "And, he continued, "the re gister's list of names would be advantageous if there was ever a need for repairs. We would like to be remembered and to have a part in things, instead of being left out, as I was dur ing the recent rebuilding." Mr. Smith concluded by say ing that if the fellows here did not think well .of the Registery or Bulletin Board Idea, his check for $5.00 could just be turned over to the YVhittlers Park fund, to be used as need ed. Community Christmas Tree Successful In Two Towns Plenty Of Presents And En tertainment Help To In sure Success Of The Com munity Christmas Tree Here And At Shallotte PLANS FOR NEXT YEAR BEING MADE Community Christmas Tree Fund Being Started And Money Paid In Will Be Used To Purchase Presents Wholesale According to reports, both the J Shallotte and Southport Com- 1 munity Christmas trees were a ! great success. R. E. Bellamy, whoj was here Monday, said that for; the tree at Shallotte there was a i wealth of presents and a large ' crowd turned out for the -.relehra- 1 tion. It is understood that the Shallotte folks already have plans for a bigger and better Com munity Christmas next year. At Southport, thanks to the ! leadership of Mrs. Helen G. Bra- 1 gaw in securing presents and donations with which to purchase others, a considerable number of j presents were left over. These j were distributed later among colored families of the town, I where the expectations were not ' so great for a big Christmas. The tree used at Southport was one of the live cedars on the courthouse and Episcopal church lawn. Charles Trott pinch hit for ! Santa .Claus, whose plane was, grounded in New -York by the snow storm. While the great mass) of presents were being handed | out a large number of the young j people sang Christmas Carols, I with others accompanying on > string instruments. t Persons responsible for the I event are especially appreciative of the help given by practically! all of the Southport people and | by Jimmie Briggs, of Raleigh; j Todd Furniture Company and the Ideal Laundry of Wilmington, j These people made especially gen jerous donations. For next Christmas Mrs. Bra jgaw is already starting a saving [fund, planning to purchase pre sents at wholesale and to have t them for both white and colored i children. A larger and more pro fusely decorated tree will be se I cured and set up somewhere, I either near the City Hall or on ithe Garrison lot. Chosen Winners In Farm Contest Mr. And Mrs. Grover R. I Gore Selected As First Place Winners For Bruns wick In Better Farming For Better Living Contest j Mr. and Mrs. Grover R. Gore, , of Shallotte, were named Bruns I wick county winners in the Bet ter Farming for Better Living contest which was sponsored this year by an electric power com pany which serves a portion of this area. . There were about a dozen en- j tries in the contest, and although several of the contestants failed j to complete their work and did | not keep records of their achieve- 1 ments, it was felt that the re sults of this first year's efforts j were well worth while and will provide a helpful foundation for a bigger and better contest next year. County winners competed for i regional prizea, and region win 'uers for the sweepstakes award. (Continued on page four) Piggott To Open Packing House Dallas Pigott, who has been j a member of the Hardee anil Pigott seafood producers and j shippers for the past ten years ha 4 sold out his interest to >Ir. Hardee and is preparing to I go into business for himself. He has purchased the >1. H. Hart house and will take over | there tomorrow, January 1st. ! Mr. Hardee will continue op- j erating the house that he has j been using for the past fifteen years. Mr. Hart has not teen reach- ' ed for a statement as to his j plans - and it is not known if hi- will continue In his seafood business. It is reported, how- j ever, that he also plans to sell his four boats. Free Seed Oats Offered Farmer Iowa Man Thinks New Strain May Prove Adapt able To This Section; Makes Unusual Offer To Local Man Very much interested in Bruns- j wick county farm lands, being as- j sociated with New Jersey people ! who are now planting two 100 acre blueberry farms near South port, B. M. Graham, farmer, stock raiser and ice cream manufac turer of Debora, Iowa, made an interesting proposition to a re- I presentative of this paper this j week. Mr. Graham said: "We have a \ new variety of oats in Iowa and | they seem to be the best. They produce an average of somewhere around 100 bushels per acre." He went on to offer: "If you think these oats will grow here I will send you 10 bushels. You can place them with some farm- 1 ers for seed. The profit from the sale of tne seed, if there is any, can be turned over to the Salva tion Army." In other words, Mr. Graham plans to give ten bushels of the new Clinton oats, paying the freight on them himself, and ask ing nothing except that the seed produced be sold among Bruns wick farmers, this in order that they can get started with this variety of oats. If the farmer with whom the seed is placed makes any profit from the sale of the seed he grows he can simply donate it to the Salvation Army, after deducing his ex ( Continued on page four) Young Naturalists Visit Southport Norman McCulloch of Raleigh and John Carr of Greensboro are spending this week at Southport, st udying birds, inscct and reptile : life. Both of these young nat- ' uralists spend much of their time , out of school at Southport or j some other point looking for the ] things in which they are interest-, ed. McCulloch says that the rattle snake "Brunswick" acquired here by the State Museum, two years ago, has grown and is doing well. Local memory of "Brunswick" is that he was unusually talented in sounding his rattles. He kept up a continuous performance all of the time when anyone was in sight or hearing distance of his cage. I Lane Groupings Are Set Up For Car Inspections No. 28 To Be Located At Lumberton Will Service Brunswick, Columbus^ And Robeson Counties THIS MAY WORK LOCAL HARDSHIP Motorists In This Area Not Required To Have Vehic les Inspected Until Lane Is Opened Inspection of motor vehicles in North Carolina will get underway on January 12 but the two lanes which are of special interest to owners in this area will not go into operation until a later date. Lane No. 28, to be located at Lumberton and with J. S. Edger ton of Red Springs as supervisor, will serve Robeson, Columbus and Brunswick counties. Motor vehicle owners must have their vehicles inspected once dur ing 1948 and thereafter twice each year. However, local resi dents have no immediate concern over the new program and can wait until the lane for this area is opened before they need ta do anything other than get their ve hicles in shape for inspection. Leland Woman Dies Thursday Mrs. Lorena Bergman Died At Her Home Following Extended Illness; Funeral Services Saturday Following a long illness Mrs. Lorena Bergman, prominent resi dent of the Leland community and charter, member of the Wood burn Presbyterian church, died at her home Thursday. Funeral services were held Sat urday afternoon from the Wood burn church with the Rev. J. D. Withrow officiating, assisted by the Rev. Woodrow Robbins, Bap tist minister. Burial was in the church cemetery. Surviving Mrs. Bergman is her husband, E. A. Bergman; one son, G. R. Innis, of Leland, and two daughters, Mrs. Nellie Ste ward and Mrs. Cora Jenkins, both of Charleston, S. C. A number of grandchildren and brothers and sisters also survive. Active pallbearers were Joe Williams, Billy Raftery, Charlie Skipper, Odell Evans, K. B. Dress- j er, and Dan Willets. Honoraiy pallbearers were Dr. Warshauer, Dr. Farthing, Dr. Barefoot, Linwood Krankle, Mar vin Powell, Will Adams, Glas gow Hicks, Robert McDougal. Fred Futch, Sr., Carl F. Strunch, Dawson Jones, W. L. Paden and T. F. Turner, G. D. Ellis, Eu gene Evans, J. A. B'odine, Leon Todd, Wilbur McKeithan. Boats Hit Large Shrimp On Monday Shrimping apparently picked up this week, possibly due to the ex isting clear, cold weather. Catch es ran as high as 10 and 15 bu shels to the boat, the product be ing large and of fine quality. Jf the break for the better is last ing it will mean a lot to the boatmen, buyers and the shrimp pickers. Twelve months oi sieu studded happiness is our New Year wish for you. Declares Oil Lease Papers Have Been Fully Completed Local Man Gets Duty On Lightship Worth Ward, who began ser vice with tlie Coast Guard here at Oak Island 22 years ago, is now stationed on the Frying; Pan Lightship, 33 miles off Southport. He is now Chief Motor Ma chinest Slate on the ship. His unexpected assignment to the vessel came about several months ago as a result of his desiring to be near his family. There is a catch to the assign ment, however. In common with other members of the lightship crew, he has to spend two solid months on the ship and then gets one month ashore with his family. The only contact his family can have with him while he is on duty is through the once- a- month mail and over the ship to shore phone on rare oc casions. Samuel W. Evans Dies At Freeland Funeral Services For Aged Columbus Citizen Held Monday Afternoon At The Home Samuel Wesley Evans, 77, pass ed away Saturday night at 11:15 o'clock at his home in the Free land community following a lin gering illpess. Funeral services were conduct- 1 ed Monday afternoon at 2 o'clock from the residence by Rev. Otto] Edwards of Loris. Interment fol lowed in the Little Cypress Ceme tery near Freeland. Surviving are his wife, Mrs. Annie B. McKeithan Evans; four sons, S. R.t Troy O. and Harry C. Evans, all of Freeland, and Harvey Evans of Jeffersonville, Ind.; four daughters, Mrs. O. D. Pruitt and Mrs. Elroy King, both of Freeland, Mrs. Austin Long of (Continued on page four) Representatives Of One Of Interested Parties Says His Company Has Papers In Hand Giving Drilling Rights UNNECESSARY TO RECORD AGREEMENT Representative Declares This May Be Done At Any Time During Per . iod Of Lease Prior To Beginning Ope rations A story in this paper in the j late summer told of one of the major oil companies securing a j lease for oil drilling rights fori five years, on a huge tract of | Brunswick county lands. The pa- j pers for this lease are known to ' have been drawn and were sup- 1 posed to be signed by all parties, j However, these papers have j never been filed for recording at the courthouse and official con firmation of the deal has there fore been unobtainable. A few days ago during a con tact with the representative of one of the interested parties who was in town at the time, an in quiry was made regarding this deal. He stated postively that the lease was made. Asked regarding the recording of the papers, he said: "They will be recorded when and if the com pany decides to drill for oil. They have the papers and it is not ne cessary for them to be recorded until they are actually ready to start something." These papers are known to be for a five-year period. The com pany can start drilling, if it is decided to start, at any time within that period. However, the longer they wait before starting! the less time they will have tol carry on before the present lease expires. It is understood, however, that the lease carries an option for renewal, if desired. This same party made the statement that oil is known to exist throughout two-thirds of the United States. However "In many areas this oil is located too deep to be brought up by present day methods," he said. YV. B. KEZIAH Our ROVING For 1943 a lot of the tobacco ( acreage that Brunswick county ? farmers depended on in 1947 is out. Twenty-seven per cent of ; last year's crop acreage, taken from this year, looks to be a ' severe cut. But this cut was de signed to keep the crop in line with the worlds need for tobacco and thereby bring the growers better prices for what they do| produce. The acreage cut has j both its bright and dark sides and the dark sides look a great deal l^ss dark if you give the bright side its rightful considera tion! With a smaller acreage less fertilizer will have to be bought, Itss work will have to be done. On the acreage that is planted the better land will be used and more attention will be paid to u better quality of tobacco. There is no good reason why the 1948 reduced acreage should not yield j just about as much money as the 1947 crop did. And if > this rea sonable expectation should prove to be correct it will go without saying that the percentage of profit to the growers will be much greater, especially if they act wisely in handling the land that is taken out of the tobacco producing column. Tobacco, while being our great est money crop, is also our most costly crop to produce. It take# a lot of time and money. We have many other crops that can be produced atf almost a fraction of what it costs to grow tobacco. The situation is one that creates many individual problems for the farmer, but none of these prob lems are unsurmountable. We are not attempting to hand out free advice to our farmers. They get too much of that as it is. This is merely expressing the belief . (Continued On Pag? 6) Local Group Is After Symphony Small Group Of Southport ! Music Lovers Will Make j F.ffort To Raise Funds 1 For Concert By North Carolina Symphony Or chestra A local group will begin next : week a campaign to raise the necessary $750.00 guarantee for < the appearance of the North Car- j olina Symphony Orchestra for,; two concerts in Brunswick county in the early spring. Tentative plans call for an af- , tcrnoon performance at Shallottc (Continued on page four) Fishing Boats Still At Work After a fine spring and sum- ? mer, local menhaden boats had 1 poor picking during October, Nov- i ember and December. Some of the boats which joined the fleets 1 at Beauford during that period are understood to have done well, j Monday, with* a marked change : In the weather, fish were locatcd i near Southport. Some of Ihe boat- 1 men say that if the weather holds' out they may have a period of j good operations on these fish. Benefit Games Friday Night For Teachers A double-header basketball program has been arranged by Principal H. T. Sanders for the Southport high school gym nasium Friday night, beginning at 7:30 o'clock, the entire pro ceeds from, which will go into a fund to help members of the Waccamaw high school faculty replace their personal property lost in the fire of December 21. Spccial tickets are being printed for this event, and sev eral hundred will be offered for sale. It is expected that many of them will be purchas ed by persons who have no idea of attending the contests, but who wish to help the teachers replace some of their lost pro perty. For those who do plan to see the contests, plenty of action is in store. The promising South port high school girls team will test their strength against a hand-picked group of start of former teams, and a battle royal is in the making. The Southport high school boys will go up against a team built about three of last year's stars who are here for the holi days. They are Franto Molly check, one of the neatest little left-handers ever to wear the colors of Southport high; Skip py Stiller, a big, rugged guard who also can shoot; and Jim my Russ, a slick ball-handler and all-round good floor man. Many dyed-in-the-wool cagc fans will welcome a chance to see these girls and boys in ac tion, and a big attendance is expected. Lighting Contest Winners Chosen Xmas Decorations About City Were Not So Numer ous As In Previous Years But Some Were More Novel Than Ever First prize for the best home decoration in the annual Christ mas Lighting contest sponsored by members of the Southport Woman's Club went to Dr. and Mrs. Roy C. Daniel, with the se cond place award going to Mr. and Mrs. Joel Moore, whose home is almost directly across the street. First prize .for the best living Christmas tree went to Mr. and Mrs. H. B. Smith, second place going to Miss Margaret Park hill. Among ' the colored citizens of the community, Clie decorations of Alberta Roseboro, teacher in the primary department of the Brunswick Training School, was adjudged winner. There were fewer decorations this year than in years past, but some of this year's efforts em bodied new ideas. For instance, the decoration at the home of Mrs. W. M. Wells featured a Santa Claus cut-out from whose mouth there was being emitted a constant stream of bubbres, which reflected colorful lighting effects as they floated away into the night. The C&ndles in the doorway de corations at the home of Mrs. W. S. Wells featured electric candles which simulated burning tapers. Numerous other decorations showed that much time and hard work had gone into their produc tion. Many A And B Drivers Fail To Obtain Permits Last-Minute Rush Fails To Afford Opportunity For AH Persons Whose Name Begins With First Two Letters To Qualify ENFORCEMENT WILL BEGIN TOMORROW Patrolmen Directed To Be gin Spot-Checking With $25.00 Set As Mini mum Fine For Neg ligence At one time Monday more than 50 "A" and "B" automobile driv ers were waiting at the court house to take their examinations ! to get driver's license. According to all that can be learned a great many residents of this county | whose names begin with those ; letters have failed to obtain their | new credentials. j A statement made in Raleigh Monday by L. S. Rosser, commis sioner of motor vehicles, indicat | ed that of an estimated 150.000 I persons whose surnames began I with those letters, only about j 115,000 have obtained their new ! license. Mr. Rosser's statement was accompanied by the assertion that the highway patrolmen will begin spot checking drivers beginning tomorrow, January 1. Persona whose surnames begin with A. and B. and who are caught driv ing without a new license after , today will be hauled into court and fined not less than $25.00 for each offense. Persons whose names begin with C. or D. may begin getting theif license tomorrow. Aged Resident Of Supply Dies Samuel G. Varnum Pastes At Age Of 90: Funeral Services Being Held This Afternoon Near His Home Samuel Galloway Varnum, 90, Supply, died Tuesday morning at 6:30 o'clock after a long illness. Funeral services were held this afternoon at 3 o'clock at the graveside in Holden cemetery, near Supply. The Rev. Bert Ben nett officiated. ' Active pallbearers were Son ,Long, A. L. Dixon, R. L. Varnum, i Clyde Dixon, and Lee Galloway. Mr. Varnum is survived by two I daughters, Mrrf. Mary Fisher of |Leland and Mrs. Ida Thornton of ' Wilmington. Southport Lady Dies On Sunday Mrs. Annie G. Peacock Died At Home Of Daughter (n Chase, Md., Following Heart Attack Mrs. Annie G. Peacock, 63, widow of the late Wesley L. Pea cock. native and lifelong resident of Southport, died Sunday at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Ann Danz, at Chase, Maryland. Her death followed a heart attack sustained a few days previously. She had spent the past sum mer here with a daughter, Mrs. W. R. Bomberger, going from here to visit the daughter in Maryland. In addition to the daughters. Mrs. Danz and Mrs. Bomberger, Mrs. Peacock is sur vived by two sons, Charles L. (Continued on page four) Social Hour Is Planned Sunday Commission Named To Aid With Promotion Of Soci al Life Of Trinity Meth odist Church The Rev. L. D. Haymau met Sunday afternoon with members of a newly appointed commission for the promotion of social life within Trinity Methodist church and plans were formulated for a social hour in the church annex Sunday evening following tlw worship service. It was the opinion of the new pastor that it is particularly ap propriate that a program ot this nature be held on the first Sunday evening in the New Year. Plans call for an informal gath ering to which all persons, whe ther old or young, will be wel come. Refreshments will be serv ed, and it is hoped that those present may spend an hour is pleasant fellowship together.