Rutherford
County Offers
Unequalled
Opportunities To
Manufacturers
and Others
VOL. XII— No. 43.
C. E HUNTLEY .
VINDICATED OF
UGLY CHARGES
Gar Bursin and Lee Philbeck
Held Under Bond to Su
perior Court.
Parties Were Arrested Charg
ed With Conspiracy to
Burn a House.
At a hearing here Wednesday af
t -noon before Mayor V. T. Davis,
C irence Huntley, charged with con
cpring to burn a certain dwelling
v ise here was vindicated. At the
ie time Garfield Burgin was
ound to the November term of the
Superior Court under SI,OOO bond.
,e Fhilbeck, who waived prelimi
nary hearing, was released Wednes
. v morning under $2,000 bond.
The charges against the trio was
"conspiring together to burn and
des 3y a certain dwelling house lo
cated in Forest City with intent and
purpose to collect insurance, and the
said Clarence Huntley and Lee Phil
beck dyl conspire with and together
to employ one Gar Burgin to set
fire to said building."
In order to vindicate himself Mr.
Huntley demanded that a trial be
held Wednesday, after Mr. Philbeck
had waived preliminary hearing.
C. O. Ridings acted as solicitor,
while Thomas Moss appeared for Lee
Philbeck and M. L. Edwards for
Clarence Huntley. Before hearing all
testimony Mr. Ridings announced
that he would not ask that Mr. Hunt
ley be bound over to Superior Court,
as there was no evidence that he was
coimtcted with ffie ■=■
Mr. R. A. Smith, the first witness,
who resides in the house alleged to
have been the one marked for burn
ing, stated that he saw Philbeck and
Burgin pass near midnight. Chief C.
R. Price next went on the stand and
related briefly what Burgin told him
Saturday.
Gar Burgin was next placed on the
stand and told of meeting Philbeck
Friday morning, who asked if he
wished to make some easy money.
On inquiry it developed that he had
a house he wanted burned, stating
at first that it was located at Hen
dersonville. He agreed to the propo
sition, but said he had no intention
of burning the house. His plan, he
said, was to pretend that he would
burn the house, find out its location
and who the house belonged to, and
trap the conspirators. He said he
did not see Huntley, or talk to him.
Lee Smart next went on the stand
and said Burgin told him that some
one wanted him to burn a house, and
that he thought he would find out its
location and catch the crooks. Walter
Settlemyer, told of Burgin's visit to
tl'e barber shop Friday, and told him
he had an offer to burn a house.
Each of the witnesses testified that
Huntley had nothing to do with
-he transaction. At this point Mr.
Ridings announced that he would
not ask that Ivlr. Huntley be held.
Attorney M. L. Edwards, counsel
101 r * Huntley, requested that, in
further interests of his client, oth
-1 witnesses would be allowed to ap
peal. Mr. G. 8.. Harrill was the first
witness, and testified that Mr. Hunt
had no interest in the house.
The property, according to Mr. Har
»H, belongs to Mr. Boyce Wilkie,
and the Industrial Bank holds a
Mortgage on the house, while an
insurance policy of" SI,OOO is held
the bank. This testimony was in
troduced to show that Mr. Huntley
had no interest in the property.
Crockettßßutlerr r George Blanton
° n d Hope Harrill testified as to the
.eood character of Clarence Hunt
ley. Lee Philbeck, who had earlier
5: the day waived hearing and was
on $2,000 bond, was plac
°u on the stand, and stated that Clar
ence Huntley had nothing to do with
; te conspiracy. His name was used
!n the conversation to give color to
l ho trade, and had been used with
out the knowledge or consent of Mr.
Huntley.
Mayor Davis then set the bond of
(Continued On Last Page)
FOREST CM COURIER
FOREST CITY— "ONg OF THE TEN BEST PLANNED AND MOST BEAUTIfrUI> ||STIES IN THE U. S. A." U. S. DEPARTMENT-OF AGRICULTURE SURVEY
Terrific Electric Storm Does .
Much Damage Monday Night j
! Crops, Telephone and Electric
Lines Damaged Barn
Burned Near Ellenboro
—Baby Shocked.
I
; The severe electric storm of Mon
day night did much damage over the
county. The rain, which fell in tor
i rents about nine o'clock, and again
at midnight, was a welcome relief
I from the heat of the past twenty
four hours, and was hailed with glad-
I ress by many. While the rain broke
I the long drought from which crops
jwere suffering, it also did much
! damage to the crops.
j
'} The lightning played havoc with
the telephone and electric lines in all
parts of the county. Poles carrying
.telephone lines were blown down;
j li:.es were broken in many places
by trees and branches of trees fall
ing on them. The telephone and pow
er company's crews were busy Tues
day in repairing the heavy damage.
Telephone service in some parts of
the county was demoralized tempor
jarily. Tuesday morning the Ellen
boro line was out of order. #
i /
j At midnight Monday a scene of
confusion greeted the passerby on
Route No. 20, from the Cool Springs
school to West End. The road was
; almost blocked in some places by
!the electric wires and poles which
were blown down. Emergency crews
working Tuesday night cleared the
highway. A car belonging to Mr. E,
Baber was damaged by a falling
!
telephone post, while parked near the
"Cool Springs High school. The dance
hall at the Dutch Grill was destroy-,
way along a number of roads in the
county were cluttered with advertis
ing and bill boards, which were
blown down by the heavy wind.
; A small fire in the Spencer Mill,
at Spindale, resulted when a line
leading into the mill was hit by light
ning. The fire was quickly extin
guished, and before any consider
able damage was done. Several mo
tors and transformers were burned
out, which placed part of the town
| , I
in darkness, and interferred tempor
arily with the operations at the
Spindale mills.
j The principal damage wrought in
tl\e Avondale-Henrietta section was
to the growing crops. Corn was
broken down and tlown over, while
| even cotton and smaller crops suf
fered heavily.
j The eighteen .months old child of
Mr. and Mrs. Will Putnam, of near
Henrietta, was severely shocked
Monday afternoon about three o'clock
The cljild was on the porch, in its
j cradle, when lightning struck pearby,
Daily Vacation Bible School Henrietta-Caroleen Baptist Churches
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The above pictures show the groups of children taking part ip the Vacation Bible. School activities
t the Henrietta aqd Caroleen Baptist churches. This school was held at fas|tlfc churches Iron
nd during the ten days a total of 415 children were enrolled, 209 at Caroleen and 206 at Henrietta.
PUBLISHED IN THE INTEREST OF TORllft CITY AND RUTHERFORD COUNTY
IK is
* v ""^-•! j ' •
' !■■■■■> '"■■■ j•• ■ -« st, 'fckkil
? '4 A.
-> •* v % -"• " ' . ;• - Vi \
Mr. A. "C. Alexander, of Waverly'.
Hall, Ga., who was recently nomi-j,
rated by the Democrats of thej
Eighth Senatorial District, of Geor-j
j.ia, as a candidate for the State s6n-»
ate This nomination is equivalent to'
election in Mr. Alexander's |jgi;rict. j
Mr. Alexander is a native of Jftuth
erford county, and is a brother of the V
late Hon. J, F. Alexander, .of fforest
C ty. He is engaged in the* Maabsr
business Jn Georgia. .
MASS MEETINdfSF:;
HELD MONfgp
"Rutherfordton, July 29i.—^SHroXf'
iirately two hundred people"*»pnd-;
ea the mass meeting, h|t4
c» urt houfee here
to # discuss ways and meg re- 1
-cornty leryi '
commissioners were In attendance, j
Mr. W'„ W. Hicks was elected chair-j
r an. A j£ew suggestions, practical;
and otherwise, were made as to ]
methods to pursue in reducing the
county's tax A cofirimittfee, !
consisting of one member from each J
township, was appointed to study !
the matter and make further recom- J
mendations at a later dat£. I
v ; 1
j
injuring the child. It was rushed to j
Dr. Wiseman's office, and given'
medical attention. It regained con-,;
scioijsness after about thirty minutes..
* J
A barn belonging to Mr. Charles;
Davis, of the Walls community t was ;
struck by lightning and burned Mon-,
day afternoon at three o'clock., A•,
mule in the barn was burned to
death. Mr. Dayis' loss is about $500..
Vefy little roughage and feed was
in the barn at the time.
Heavy damage to crops, especial
ly corn, was reported", irom Sulphur
Springs township and in Golden Val
ley.
FOREST CITY, NORTH CAROLI THURSDAY, JULY 31, 1930.
NOMINATED FOR STATE SENATE
AUCTION SALE OF
THE FAIR GROUND
PROPERTY TODAY
| Harrill and King Selling A
gents—Will Also Sell Val
] jpf uable Rutherfordton
Property.
, ■ -SMI ——. ~,
l&arrill and King, real estate deal
ers will sell at auction on Thursday,
Jn|y 31, (today), some of the most
variable property in Rutherfordton,
sljgt) the Rutherford County Fair
Gfbunds, near Spindale. This real es
tate is the property of the old Ruth
erford County Bank and Trust Com
pany, and is being sold by order of
tfte liquidator, John D. Biggs.
\Jhis property includes the build
ing formerly occupied by The Ruth
erford County Bank and Trust Com
pany, and all the equipment. Locat
ed in the heart of the business sec
tion of Rutherfordton, this building
[presents a fine opportunity for some
'investor, as it is the most valuable
I piece of property in the town. This
! property will be sold at eleven o'clock
Thursday moi*hing.
I same day, at two o'clock,
■tfi£ Rutherford County Fair.Ground
vfrill be sold- This Apiece of property
includes about five hundred acres of
land, wie race track and grand stand,
the exhibition Hii and the stock and
poultry barns. In addition, some of
the faP* ground land along the high
,%y fes been subdivided into lots
and wnall fafms. Included with this
property is also, an eight room, two
story building will be sold.
I'| A GIRL AND A ROY.
i -
en Monday, July ZBtn, a lOvely lTt-
S tie daughter, weighing 7 pounds.
I Mother and baby both doing nicely,
f Born, to Mr., and Mrs. Horn,
i July 29, a fine boy.
j SHELBY GIRLS MISS
"•QUAKE BY 4 HOURS
! Shelby, July 29.—Two girls,
i Misses Nancy Suttle and Kathleen
j Hord, missed the earthquake dis
i aster in the Naples section of Italy
'by about four hours, according to
■ cabled information received by their
; i elatives here. Misses Suttle and
; Hord fcre on an European tour with
one of Miss Boyte's parties out of
, Charl&tte. • ,
i •
OPENING FURNITURE STORE.
i
Messrs Clyde Hardin and Carl
Huntley will open a new place of
business here Saturday morning.
They have purchased a large bank
rupt stock Of furniture, and will
(•pen up in the old Cooper stand.
Fred E. Webb Dies
Tuesday In Atlanta
Passes In U. S. Veterans' Hospital—Death
Shocks Entire County—Funeral To
day (Thursday) At 10 A. M.
J. H. THOMAS IS
1 CRITICALLY ILL
Suffers Stroke Thursday Af
ternoon at Sale—Condi
tion Critical.
I
Mr. J. H , Thomas suffered a
stroke of paralysis Thursday after
noon while attending a sale of prop- J
erty of the Farmers' Bank and Trust j
Company, of which he was at one time
president.
Mr.. Thomas was standing in a lo
cal grocery store at the time he was
stricken, falling to the floor immedi
ately afterwards. He was rushed to
his home and medical aid summon
ed. It is feared that his condition is
critical. He has been in ill health for
some time.
Mr.. Thomas came to Rutherford
county from Kentucky in 1910 and
organized the Caroleen Savings Bank
at Caroleen. In 1915 he helped or
ganize the Farmers' Bank and Trust
Company, which was consolidated
with the Caroleen Bank. The same
year Mr. Thomas and his associates
acquired and merged with the First
National Bank of Forest City. Later
on another National Bank was
formed in Forest City and this was
also merged with the Farmers' Bank,
which at one time was the strongest
the teulff ®H!WSg
Mu., Thomas was also connected
with several large lumber compan
ies and one of the outstanding busi
ness leaders of the county. ,
For the past several months, on
account of ill health, Mr. Thomas
has not been taking an active part
in any business.
Improving.
As The Courier goes to press in
formation to the effect that Mr.
Thomas' condition is slightly improv
ed was received.
MR. E. 0. THOMAS
HEADS BOICK CO.
President ancKGeneral Mana
ger of Thomas Buick Co.
at Asheville.
Mr. E. O. Thomas, general mana
ger of the Forest City Motor Co.,
has entered the automobile field at
Asheville and has been made presi
dent and general manager of the
Thomas Buick Co., in that ef
fective July 21. Formal opening of
the new company was held last Sat
urday in the newly decorated show
rooms on Cox street, Asheville, in
' conjunction with -the first public
Showing of the new Buick eight. Mr. j
Thomas expects to remove hi? family'
to Asheville in the early future and)
i
make his home in that city.
The Forest City Motor Co., will)
continue in business in this city, aS|
heretofore, With the samfe person-j
nel, except that Mr., Thomas will!
devote practically all of his time to j
the Asheville concern, but retaining |
his interest in the business here.
Mr. Thomas is thoroughly versed
in every detail of the automobile
business and in addition Is possess
ed of a genial personality that makes
friends for him wherever he goes.
His many friends here are assured
of his immediate success in his new
field of endeavor. L , \
Mr. J, V. Ogburn* of Smithfield,
joined family here lor
Jon 68* jgfc I
» I'". 1 I
■* * 1 I. ■g.nnjr ri n \
16 Pages
96 COLUMNS
SI.OO Per Year in Advance
Mr. Fred E. Webb, aged ,43, died
Tuesday morning at 8:20 o'clock in
Atlanta, Ga., where he had been
since July 18, undergoing treat
ment. He had been in ill health for
some time, and on July 18, entered
the United States Veterans' Hospi
tal in Atlanta, for treatment. His
death was caused from a complica
tion of ailments.
He is survived by his widow, Mrs.
Minnie Carpenter Webb, two child
ren, Lois and Fred, Jr., his mother,
Mrs. Mary A .Webb, and one sis
ter, Mrsi„ John W. Daniel, of Lin
colnton.
Mr. Webb had been prominently
identified with the business life of
Forest City for a number of years.
He was connected with the Rein—
hardt Drug Company, of this city
for about fifteen years, and sold his
interest in that place of business
in 1926. He was one time director
of the First. National Bank, of this
city, and prior to that was a direc
tor in the Farmers' Bank. After the
consolidation of tnose two banks
'he again became director in the
Farmers' Bank. At the time of his
| death he was a director in the For
; est. City Building and Loan Associat-
I ticn, and a member of the City
j Council.
1 ML,.. Webb was a member of the
1 Forest City Methodist chuaeh, where
!he joined a ntfmber of years ago.
' He served in the World War as a
l
j soldier in the Thirtieth Division, and
! was a member of the Willis Towery
j Post of the American Legion. After
"being discharged from the army in
1 1919 he returned to Forest City., He
j was married to Miss Minnie Carpen
j ter, of Cliffside, in June, 1925.
Mr. Webb was born July 29, 1887,
and died July 29, 1930, death claim
\ ing him on his birthday.
( In the passing of Mr. Webb, For
; est City loses one of its most .prom
| inent and useful citizens. He was a
» man of many fine qualities and pos
] sessed a warm and kindly disposi
j tion, these excellent traits bringing
,to him scores of warm and admir
| ing 'friends. He . was generous,
friendly and honest to the core and
' stood ever ready to help a friend or
any one in distress. His popularity
jwas attested ih the last race for Ciljy
■ Councilman, he having been given
i a large vote after having been per
suaded by his friends to enter the
race. They wanted him on the
j board because they knew ha was
[eminently qualified fo£ the place and ~
! would give his duties in this posi
: tion the same honest efficient
! service that he rendered in every
' walk of life.
i The cutting off of hi 3 useful career
j just in the prime of a most prom
ising life will be a great loss to
j friends and the community at large.
!The Courier most sincerely joins the
j*?cst of friends in extending condol
| ences to the stricken family.
Funeral Arrangements.
! . Funeral services for Mr. Fred E.
i Webb will be h£)d this
| (Thursday) at ten o'clock, at the
| Forest City Methodist church. Rev.
I M, F„ Moores will be in charge of
[ the service, assisted by Dr. W. A.
; Ayers. Immediately after the ser- J
.vice here the body will be taken to
J Pleasant Grove Methodist church for
j interment.
j The active pallbearers will got
t JBmBF& W g