EDITORIALS
CAPITAL PUNISHMENT, RIGHT OR WRONG?
»•
There are 11,000 prisoners in North
Carolina prisons today. Would the num
ber be larger if the state did not have
the capital punishment system? This is
a hard question, and it comes up every
time a prisoner is executed, his life tak
en for a crime he has been convicted
of committing.
Eleven of our 50 states do not have
capital punishment. Thirty have gas or
electrocution system, and nine still cling
to the hanging plan, one being Utah.
There are no statistics saying that crime
is less in those states that still have
capital punishment, and it is only a
matter of argument or opinion that
crime has decreased or increased in the
11 states which have abolished the tak
ing of life for crime.
Whether it is right or wrong, good or
bad, a deterrent or not a deterrent to
crime, capital punishment is thought of
in the light of a particular crime. In one
instance we may say the convicted per
son should die; in another we take
the opposite position. Who is right, or
who is wrong, will always be a matter
of one’s own conscience.
One thing is evident: perpetrators of
criminal acts never seem to consider the
consequences until after the act.
JUST FISHING
(Heard In Columbus County Courthouse)
A young stalwart was doing the
spring plowing while his next younger
brother sat in the middle of the field
“fishing.” A motorist pulled up at the
end of a row and inquired what the boy
was doing out there with a fishing pole.
“Oh,” the plowman replied, “he’s
sort of adled, not just right in the head,
we pay no ’tention to him, sits out there
and fishes every day.”
' About that time the young fellow
looked at his watch and exclaimed:
“It’s time for dinner. Wait here just
a minute while I row out there and get
him.”
A zoo is where animals look through
the fence at some very strange creat
ures.—Wall Street Journal.
HELP FIGHT THE HEART SCOURGE
supporters ot tne Heart fund will be
knocking on your door soon to ask for
your help in fighting this greatest of
all menaces to human life. Heart trou
ble takes more lives, we are told, than
any other single malady. Only through
research can the ravages of this killer
be checked. One never knows when and
where it may strike.
For this reason, and many others,
your contribution to this cause will help
bring success m the never-ending battle
to remove the scourge.
The size of your gift is not as impor
tant as the gift itself. The larger the
better, certainly, but do make a contri
bution. What you give could revert to
your own benefit and, thereby, reduce
suffering and privation of others who
depend on your health and strength at
a time when they can’t provide for
themselves.
SECRETARY ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY
Secretary of Defense McNamara is
doing nothing more than assuming the
responsibility of his office when he de
fends those subordinates who censor
speeches prepared for delivery by gen
erals and admirals.
Right or wrong, Mr. McNamara is
boss of the Defense department and he
must shoulder mistakes of the depart
ment just as he is due credit for what
ever success his policies may achieve in
the long-run. There is no room in the
department for a man whose work the
Secretary is not willing to defend with
word and deed.
Mr. McNamara has been called be
fore a Senate group on charges that
underlings have been cutting out refer
ences to Communism in these speeches
and the high brass is irked because of
the deletions. One complaint has it that
the generals and admirals do not like
for their speeches to be altered by offi
cers or civilians with lesser rank or po
sition. The inference is that the censor
ing underlings are not as well blessed
with gray matter as the top brass is.
Well, it might be interesting to learn
■who wrote the speeches in the first
place. It is the accepted practice among
military officers to call in the speech
writing aide for a briefing on the pro
posed speech and then the aide gets
down to the writing part.
Some officers have been known to
tell the writer only where the speech
is to be delivered without suggesting
the type of contents of the speech, the
line of thought or what he thinks
should be said on the particular occas
ion. When he gets the proposed speech
and it doesn’t suit him, the ol’ boy
blows up, wonders why he can’t get a
speech writer who knows how to write.
But when the ghost job is finally
worked out to his taste, the speech con
cluded and resounding applause en
velopes him, who wrote the speech ?
Does he, on returning to his office, call
in the aide and remind him that it was
a good job? Perhaps once in ten.
FANNIE VANN SIMMONS' SAUSAGE
Henry Belk in Goldsboro News-Argus
Once a favorite high school debate
topic was resolved that anticipation is
greater than realization.
You have friends who practice the
anticipation pleasure. One will come in
to possession of a bottle, say, of prime
Nash County brandy. It is added to the
souvenir shelf. It is shown to visiting
friends who would understand. Or may
be a proud father puts aside a pint of
prime bourbon when his son is born
and drinks a toast with it the day the
son has his 21st birthday.
Well, yours truly has come into own
ership of some prize souvenir sausage.
Years and years ago when the General
Manager, little Marie and I were visit
ing Fannie Vann, now Mrs. Fannie
Vann Simmons of Kenly, and her
The State Port Pilot
Published, Every Wednesday
Southport, N. C.
JAMES M. HARPER, JR. ........ Editor
Entered as second-class matter April 20, 1928
at the Post Office at Southport, N. C., and
other Post Offices, under the Act
of March 3, 1879.
SUBSCRIPTION RATES
Brunswick and Adjoining Counties
and Service Men . $2.00 per year
Six Months ... $1.50
Elsewhere in United States — $3.00
Per Year;—6 Months_$2.00
mother, Mrs. Portia Vann, at the old
home place at Beaman’s Cross Roads,
Mother Vann served, on a loudly groan
ing table, some sausage the likes of
which never have I come across since.
It was pure pork homemade.
The other evening when the GM and
I were going to Kenly to talk before
the Pierian Book Club, Mrs. Simmons
asked us to come early and have din
ner with her. Sassy like, I shouted to
the GM to tell her to have some of the
same kind of sausage her mother used
to serve. And she did. Sausage which is
a balm in Gilead and prepared by her
youngest sister (there were 14 children
in the Art Vann family) exactly accord
ing to the recipe of her mother.
The younger sister, “Parker,” still re
sides at the old Beaman’s Cross Roads
plantation. Nowhere else we know of
could you find such sausage. It is pre
pared from pure lean pork choice piec
es. It is boiled thoroughly until well
done. Then it is placed in a glass jar,
grease is poured on to seal it and the
jar is processed in boiling water in a
pressure cooker. This gi^es double in
surance that all its goodness will re
main behind the glass until doomsday
if not used before then.
Fannie not only serveg such sausage
from the old home larder, but she gave
us a jar of it to bring home. We have
added it to our souvenirs. Every week
or so we shall pick it up, examine it,
imagine how wonderful is its flavor
and start our gastric juices to flowing.
Good grammar, as we get it, is un
derstandable language.
“Don’t Worry! I’U Be Back In A Little While!”
Time and Tide
Continued From Page One
Authority was here to investigate plans for declaring these build
ings surplus, and offering them for sale on the basis that they
be moved by the purchaser. A regular little community on pil
ings, situated in the middle of the river, and with no takers.
A big hanger-type shed had been erected on the waterfront
and Lewis Spaulding had started building boats for Lewis J.
Hardee; two trucks nad jammed together at Brunswick River
bridge and tied up traffic for an hour and one-half during the
rush period; and progress was being made on the construction
of the Brunswick Cold Storage plant at Shallotte.
Camellias were in full bloom for Valentine Day at Orton Gar
dens in 1952. That was a front page story in our issue for Febru
ary 13, for that year, and there was a beautiful photo or Orton
mansion. A Superior court session had convened on Monday and
had adjourned before noon the same day.
There had been an act of good neighborliness on the part of
Shallotte basketball fans who had come down with their team to
play the first game in the new Southport gym. Volunteer work
men were doing last minute touches to the building, including
erecting the goals, and the Shallotte folks had pitched in to help.
The starting time was a little late, but the games were played
on the new home court.
Bouncing Log Spring (now Boiling Spring) was in the news
and on the front page of The Pilot five years ago this week.
Jack Riley of Carolina Power and Light Co. was being given a
guided tour by the late Bill Keziah, and the CP&L photographer
had caught the scene—and loaned us the photo.
There was an added note re the spring: Keziah had received
the gift of a big old-fashioned gourd dipper for use in scooping
up samples of spr ing water he always insisted that visitors drink
while there on a visit. There also was a story about a visit from
an airline pilot and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Harry Donnell of
Greensboro who said they would like to live in Southport.
Letter To
The Editor
Greensboro, North Carolina
February 5, 1962
The State Port Pilot
Southport, N. C.
Gentlemen:
Please renew my subscription
to The State Port Pilot. I
thoroughly enjoy each week’s edi
tion. I especially enjoy Eugene
Fallon’s most informative articles
of history of Brunswick County.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth H, Fuller
GIRL SCOUTS IN
Continued From Page 1
Girl Scouts celebrate their
Golden Anniversary during 1962
and the purchase of cookies from
them during this sale will give
an added impetus to both local
and district programs.
MORE ENTRIES
Continued From Page 1
ter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Ft.
Gray. Her talent is singing. Sh$
too, is a senior at Shallotto. She
is 5 feet, five, with brown hair
and eyes, weighs 125 and her
leadings are 34-24-38. Miss Gray
has appeared on Wilmington TV’s
“Variety Showcase’’ and the lit
tle lady is handy with crayons,
charcoal and pen strokes on
drawing-board.
NEW EDUCATIONAL
Continued From Page 1
Pastor at Antioch is the Rev.
James C. Alley. Lawrence Rich
ardson is Superintendent of the
Sunday School.
O’BRIEN RETIRES
Continued From Page 1
daughter, Mrs. Elizabeth O’Brien
Keith, and her son, Jack, live
with him here in Southport. Mrs.
O’Brien died last year.
O'Brien says that he has no
plans about what to do with his
time now that he has retired.
"I haven’t been able to get use
to the idea yet,” he confessed
Monday. An avid golfer, he said
that he is very much pleased that
two golf courses, one at Oak
Island Estates and the other at
Boiling Spring Lakes, are under
construction. He admitted that he
may be able to spend as much
time playing as he always has
wanted to.
Garald is a native of Loris,
S .C. He has been in Southport
E. W. Godwin’s Sons
“EVERYTHING
TO BUILD THE HOME”
Phone RO 2-7747 — Castle Hayne Ro**d
WILMINGTON, N. C.
on numerous occasions to assist
with the operation of the local
bank during vacation periods and
other emergencies. He is married
and has one child, and he and
his family plan to move to South
port sometime within the near
future.
OFFICERS SEEK •
(Continued From Page One)
eral eye-witnesses to the events
which led to McMillan’s death,
and that Willie McMillan had ad
mitted “tussling” with the older
man, leaving him unconscious on
the ground. The suspect said that
he had “snatched” the deceased
man from a porch in a dispute I
over a dollar, and claimed that |
Not Exactly News
General Wesley Guest brought us his copy of the February
2 issue of Life Magazine, which had a double-page spread, in
full color, of a shrimp boat scene at Key West, Fla., in which
three Southport men are identifiable. They are Monroe Potter,
Wayne Potter and Billy Potter. The photo was taken last winter,
and it shows the men seated on the stern, of an unidentified
trawler from McClellansville, S. C.The sa.ie of large-size
palmettos to the landscaping features of Brunswick continues,
and Floyd Kirby, Jr., told us yesterday that he plans to use 15
of these impressive looking shrubs to beautify the grounds about
his store on U. S. Highway 17.
As a climax to the observance of Boy Scout week, the Shal
lotte Troop set up camp on the vacant lot next door to the Red
& White Saturday. The boys and their leaders spent a chilly
night sleeping out, and none of the adults who stepped out in
the cold of winter Sunday morning failed to have a greater ad
miration for the Scouts and their fortitude under the pressure of
natural hardship . . . And speaking of weather, how about wak
ing up Monday morning and finding that it had snowed heie
during the night! Not much, we grant you; but enough to cover
rooftops and the ground in some sheltered areas. We hear that
there was more up in the Northwest community^
' 'Everyone who has been around the waterfront very much has
seen hungry seagulls swooping in behind shrimp boats in the
hope of picking up a choice morsel of rejected seafood that had
been tossed overboard. Tuesday we saw something new in this
connection. A man was discing the big field across the road from
the Richmond Galloway home at Supply, and flying in its wake in
much the same manner that they follow an inbound boat, was
a big flock of gulls. Obviously they had hopes of finding bugs,
and other little goodies, worms, field mice turned up by the plow
ing operation.
Gene Fallon had made a trip with Harold Greene and they got
back to town just at lunch time. “I’m going to be your host at
lunch today,” Harold announced, and Gene was glad. He was
glad, that is, until Harold handed him a can of Metrecal. “Drink
it,” directed mine host. “That’s what I’m going to have.” And
Fallon drank it . . . This is no new noise from us, but let us
say one more time how much we like the present fomat of the
Perry Como Show. We especially like the “Parade Of States”
feature, and are looking forward to the night North Carolina is
in the spotlight.
"The Devil At FFour O’clock” is the weekend sljow at Holiday
Drive-In at Shallotte. Frank Sinatra and Spencer Tracy are two
reasons why it is a good one . . . Here in Southport the weekend
attraction will be “Back Street.”
H. L. WILLETTS IS
Continued Prom Page 1
mail carrier, is district chairman.
Chairman Willetts said there
the older man held an open knife
in his hand at the time.
Leonard said that Willie Mc
Millan was being held under $10,
000 bond under a warrant charg
ing him with assault in which
deadly weapons were engaged and
engaging in an affray contribut
ing toward the death of the de
ceased man.
Brunswick County Coroner
Lowel Bennett said that an autop
sy on the body of the deceased,
being performed at Wilmington,
-‘‘•has not been completed as yet.”
were around 300 persons in at
tendance, and he said that they
were urged to get behind good
candidates and to urge them to
file for office in time to partici
pate actively in the Primary
Election to be held in May.
Candidates for county offices
must file on or before April 13,
he reminded his fellow Republi
cans.
Douglas Vance Long, 52, and
his son, Douglas Alton Long, 22,
both of Rt. 4, Whiteville, were
arrested last Tuesday by Shal
lotte Police Chief M. L. Gallo
I way, following a disturbance ol
j the town’s main street.
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W. P. JORGENSEN, Sec’y-Treas. SOUTHPORT, N. C.
j
FINANCED BY 8AVIN03 AND LOAN