PAGE FOUR THE CONCORD TIMES PUBLISHED MONDAYS AND THURSDAYS Entered as second class mail matter at the post ffice at Concord. N. C. f under the Act of March t, 1879. ' J B. SHERRILL. Editor and Publisher W. M. SHERRILL. Associate Editor Special Representative: FROST. LANDIS & KOHN New York. Atlanta. St. Louis, Kansas City. San Franeisco. Los Angelee And Se**-tle WHY HAS IT FALLEN FLAT? Chief Justice Taft of the United States Supreme Court in thp cqurse of an ad iress the other day remarked that the idministration of criminal law in the United States had fallen flat. That s a serious charge from the head of the high est tribunal in the L nited States, but who is there to deny it ? The most serious aspect of the situa tion is not the fact that the administra tion of the law has fallen down. That is serious, of course, but the most serious j aspect deals with-a remedy for the trou ble. Why are the courts falling down? That’s the question that challenges ev *rv right thinking man in the United States. Is the jury, the judge, the coun ty, State, or federal officer to blame or are all to blame? The manner in which many cases are disposed of, it seems to us, has much to do with the matter. Take the case of Conley Robinson, of Charlotte, for in stance. * Several weeks ago this young lawyer went on a rampage to the home of an ac quaintance. He was looking for his wife ar for some one whom he thought knew something about his wife. He went arm ed and he proceeded to shoot up things when he got there. Without any provo cation whatsoever, so far as evidence at the trial showed, he shot the owner of the house he visited, and only the strength and ability of the man he attacked pre vented Robinson from committing a more serious crime. And what happened at the trial? Why he paid a small fine, another small amount for damages to the man he at- and was given, his freedom. Would that have happened to a man less well known? Would that have been the fate of the average defendant at the bar? The fact that Robinson is well known and holds a laW license should have play ed no part in the trial, but apparently it did. The presiding judge did not let the matter go to the jury. He directed the verdict, under which Robinson paid the fine and damages. The charge was re duced so he would not be convicted of a felony, which would have meant the loss of his citizenship and his law license. What does the average man think when he reads of such cases as this? Are siich cases calculated to bring about more respect for the law? Is there “even handed justice” in such cases? The judge presiding may have known something the public didn’t know, but that seems hardly likely. There is no way to get around the fact that this man went armed to the home of a neighbor and proceeded to shoot that neighbor. There is no evidence that the neighbor did anything to provoke the attack. Yet, there is no trial on the more serious charges, and Robinson gets off lighter than does the average man charged with intoxication or possessing liquor. Is this calculated to create respect for the law? we ask again. When every man at the bar is treated the same way we may be faced with a crime situation much less serious than the present day one. MUZZLING THE NEWSPAPERS We learn from the Raleigh News and Observer that Solicitor Brassfield advo cates muzling newspapers because some of them are not run in accordance with his ideas. In his official capacity, as prosecuting attorney for the State, he goes into court and suggests that editors before express ing their views on law enforcement or on the officials should obtain the approval of the solicitor. “The views of Solicitor Brassfield,” says the News and Observer, “are in line with those of Premier Mussolini, who has set himself up as an overlord of the - Italian newspapers, but utterly contrary to the basis principle of American gov ernment. The solicitor isn’t alone among North Carolina officials, who have'adopt ed the Mussolinian view, the mayor of Shelby last week giving instructions to the editor of the Cleveland Star on what he should say about municipal affairs. The Star editor told the mayor that he would continue as editor of the paper notwithstanding the change in municipal administration, as he did not understand the job of being mayor with it the duty of editing the local paper.” Most of these officials, it will be re membered, take exception to newspaper articles when these articles criticise them. They take the position that simply be cause they are holding office and are rep resenting the public they should deter mine what the public should and should not read. It has been our observation that most public officials in this day \and time have all they can do if they cardy out the du ties they inherit when elecUd to office. No doubt in many instance! thfi public suffers because its officials talce too much _ time trying to run everybody else’s busi ness. Big men do not feat criticism and any man elected to office should expect to be criticised, for he is only human and is certain to make mistakes. Thomas Jef ferson was severely t riticised but that did not change him from his sane view on the vital principle of representative government. He had more power than is enjoyed by a dozen officials now, but he was too big to try to use that power to muzzle the voice of those who opposed him. That’s the attitude of big men. Said Mr. Jefferson on this point: ‘‘The basis of governments being the opinion of the people, the very first ob ject should be to keep that right, and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a governmnt without news papers or newspapers without a govern ment. I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter" CABARkud DISTRICT FAIR. The local fair is nc* longer a county project. It has been so successful during the past four years and has grow r n to such proportions that it is now the Ca barrus District Fair,, embracing nine counties. In the fair district are Cabarrus, Row an. Mecklenburg. Stanly, Union, Iredell, Anson, Davie and Montgomery counties and in planning for the 1927 event fair officials have kept in mind the people of these counties. The program has been so arranged as to provide such things as will be of interest to persons in all of the nine counties. The Cabarrus fair is the biggest fair in the State of North Carolina. It has passed the experimental stage. After the first fair even the most enthusiastic supporters could see no definite future for the enterprise. “You will never have this much success again,’’ many of them said. But the fair has grown from year to year and is more like a State Fair now than anything held in North Carolina. It attracts more people, offers a greater va riety of amusements, carries more prem iums and exhibits than any other fair in the State. Its horse races have become known throughout the South and now for 1927 the officials have secured some of the best dirt track auto drivers in the country for the closing day. The fair has been a success, we main tain, because the people have been giv en their money’s -worth. When a special feature is added for a day there is no ad vance in price. The fair has been bigger each succeeding year but the price of ad mission remains the same. The people know when they leave home just what it will cost to get in, regardless of any special program on that particular day, and that puts them at ease. They know they will get what they pay for and they know just what they will have to pay for it. We predict now that the 1927 fair will be by far the greatest in the history not only of the local fair but of fairs in North Carolina. Certainly the program cannot be excelled. There will be more exhibits than ever before, more livestock will be on display than formerly .and the races and free attractions promise to eclipse all others. Persons from the counties embraced in the district are especially urged to at tend and feel that they have a part in the fair. Their presence in the past, in in creasing numbers from year to year, has made the district fair a possibility, and they should attend, this year with a feel ing of personal pride since they have played no small part in making the fair the biggest in the State. SAYS MORE HOMES NEED OF NA TION. Mr. Josephus Daniels, addressing the National Building and Loan Association, in Asheville, stressed the need of more home-owners and less tenancy. He also warned against tendency to assume debts except for permanency. In appraising the work of the associations Mr. Daniels said: “If a man who makes two blades of grass grow where one formerly grew is accounted a public benefactor, what shall be the appraisement of an association that finances the building of half a mil lion homes in one year? There may be some objections by the caption in calling all houses constructed through the good offices of the building and loan associa tion that many homes. It is true enough that a house does not make a home, but is it not true that there must be the shel ter of a house for the lares and penates of a home? “Therefore, every building for a fam ily must precede the founding of a home, and experience has proved that, though the exceptions are many, the home nest or fireside is the citadel of happiness and patriotism. “The heart of the nation is in the home and if your association cannot claim the credit for creating the conditions that make the home the citadel, certainly it provides the buildings in which the spir it of the home burgeons and from which go influences that make a better world with more and more comforts for those privileged by the aid of your organization to become owners of houses where the, blessings of home convert a building into Iffrr NifrfU U■ ■ U- sjfci the nearest approach to a heaven on earth. “In a day of easy credit, governmental agencies and individuals are so prone to go into debt that it wquld be well to de clare that the philosophy of ‘pay as you go’ ought to be adopted by many in our day. It certainly ought to be the practice of government and individuals as to ev erything except that which looks to per manency. Borrowing money even for bread and butter, not to say luxuries, is sure to bring the ‘misery’ foretold by Mr. Micawber. It is equally true that strict adherence to the principles as to home owning by citizens and for ne'eded per manent improvements would check the wheels of progress and deny homes to many families in the years when they can afford most happiness. “It is only 18 years ago that this State really recognized agencies of comfort and gave them direction and supervision—on ly 18 years, though, of course, a number of associations functioned successfully before then. Then, the assets of the as sociations were $4,352,888.03. The last annual report showed the assets had in creased to $85,715,009.09, an increase of the 18 year period of more#,than $Bl,- 000,000.” HOW TO MAKE MONEY ON REAL ESTATE. Eight maxims on how to make money handling real estate were recently for mulated by a prominent New York real tor. They were given to the public by The New York World as follows: Never buy for cash. The successful operator invests just as little of his own funds as possible, glad to pay 6 per cent, interest for the use of money that he ex pects to bring profit. And mortgage in terest is deductible from your income tax. Buy when others aren’t buying freely —don't wait for a boom. Buy property monopolistic in character that will increase in value because it can’t be exactly duplicated, such as wat erfront near a great city or a business corner in a thriving neighborhood. Buy where things are going to happen in the future, not where the neighborhood is built up and changes are unlikely. Don’t take things for granted, such as statements that bridges make high val ues or that proximity to a railroad station is an asset. Transportation facilities make values, but not necessarily for property almost on top of a bridge or sta tion. After asking questions and comparing values in the neighborhood and judging all future possibilities, then have the courage of your convictions to stay by your guns. Know when to sell—you never get poor taking a profit, but don’t sell until you are convinced values have approached a temporaly peak at least. Don’t retain indefinitely property that is unimproved. Either sell or put a build ing on it that will produce enough to pay taxes and carrying charges. COST FOR HIGHWAYS MOUNT ING RAPIDLY. Expenditures for highway construction and maintenance which twenty years ago consumed only a negligible portion of the national income now amount to more than one-sixth of the etntire public bud get, according to figures recently made public. In 1925 more than a billion and a half dollars were spent on roads, compared with $79,000,000 in 1904. In 1923 the per capita expenditure by State and local governments for road buildings and maintenance was $12.03, or 20.5 per cent, of all disbursements. Between 1909 and 1914, when the use of the automobile became general, about 250,000 miles of road were built and since 1914 more than 500,000 additional miles have been constructed. In 1904 expenditures for rural roads, exclusive of city streets, were only $79,- 700,000, as compared with $1,035,600,000 in 1921. Expenditures for roads are ex ceeded only by payments for education and protection. The total income for highway purposes in 1904 was $79,600,- 000, while in 1921 it had increased to sl’- 149,400^)00. In 1904 the local governments supplied more than 96 per cent, of the revenues for construction and maintenance, while in 1925 State governments supplied 37 per cent, the Federal Government 10 per cent., and local governments the remain der. PEOPLE STAYING AT HOME. Reports from various resorts in this section of the country bring the informa tion that people are not flocking to the seashore and the mountains. It is pos sible to get reservations at all of the pop ular resorts, it is said, so light has been business so far this season. Last year and the year before hotel rooms at well-knowtj summer vacation points in this and adjoining States could not be secured except by thosfc who made reservations in advance. iThe sultry weather of July and August of 1926 and 125 sent hundreds from their homes. But things are different this year. Peo ple are content at home, whe/e the aver age person is m6re comfortable than anywhere else. There has bien rain of- THE CONCORD TIMES ten enough to, moderate temperatures, especially at night, and people are not going to leave home in great numbers until the weather becomes more unbear able than it has been so far. And there's another reason, too, per haps. It is cheaper to stay at home and maybe money is not so plentiful this year. At any rate the resort people are feeling the effects of the combined reasons and business with them is none too good. THE SPEED COP. Wilmington Star. All honor to the men who are endeavoring to make the highways safe for the sane and sensible driver —th£ speed cops who have interpreted their duties as something bigger and liner than dragging people before a trial magistrate and taking their money. Such a man is Motorcycle Officer Hankinson of Columbus County. Daily Mr. Hankinson patrols the magnificent ribbon of concrete that stretches across his County, an integral link in North Caro lina's Main Street that connects the Mountains with the Sea and helps materially in making all North Carolinians neighbors, and Mr. Hankinson is paying his employers big dividends in the good will he, is creating fdr Columbus. Was a time when the speed officer was an in dividual to be feared and the average motorist would go to any extreme to evade him. That condition, however, is now happily a thing of the past. Today the speed cop is the motorists’ best triend-*-their counsellor. As a rule he dislikes very much to make au arrest but he never falters in his duty and if oue can’t obey the State's driving laws one must suffer the consequences. Mr. Hankinson patrols a section of highway that invites speeding yet his tactful methods have Drought about a respect for the law that would never have been obtainable through the process of arrest. The Wildcat Highway is almost curveless in Columbus, its even surface andabsence of hills anti curves seems to call to the driver for speed and more speed yet Officer Hankinson has been able to build up a respect for the law that makes the fust driving fool ashamed of himself. The Hankinson method can't be improved on. He makes friends with everyone with whom he comes in contact and in this manner he gains their confidence and respect. One doesn't have to talk with him but a few minutes to realize that arrest ing persons is his most unpleasant duty. The result is that few arrests are made and visitors from other sections go home with a favorable impression of bis County. It creates in them a de sire to .revisit the section. Mr. Haukinsou is handling the situation in Co lumbus admirably. He is keeping the tail lights burning on cars through suggestion rather than because of fear, and he is keeping motor car horns in condition because the driver doesn’t like to dis please him. Seldom does a car pass him unless the driver throws up his hand in friendly salute. It is this sort of condition that makes it possible for mothers to bundel the children into the family car and take them for a drive with the knowledge that the highways are safe. The motorist who has ridden through Columbus and enjoyed the road conditions as he found them can thank Mr. Hankin sou. He is responsible. ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI. Rocky Mount Telegram. The New Yo/K Times has sent a special corres pondent into the recentdly devastated flood sec tions along the Mississippi river to present to the public a true picture of conditions there. His reports of his findings fail to present a picture that is as pleasant as one might desire. The homes are wrecked, people are without crops, economic conditions are rather terrible. A more trying situation has never been known along the father of the waters. Perhaps it will be years ere another such flood is known, but that there will be other floods is a certainty. One of the greatest handicaps possible to these people is the feeling of dread that must be ever present. Their crops have been wiped away, their homes ruined. What, they must say to themselves, is the need of our attempting to rebuild, /mother flood will again erase the effects of our labors. Our homes, the product of years of toil, cannot stand the waters, swirling in great swollen torrents over all the land. And hope is gone. The problem is none the less acute next year than it is now. Maybe there will be no flood next year. Maybe the people will have sufficient con fidence in their government to begin rebuilding what has been swept away. And tue responsibility is passed to congress to evolve some scheme for preventing a repitition of the greatest disaster of the generation. Engineers, we believe, have said that dykes and bulwarks can be built that will keep the water in place. It will cost much money. Considerable time will be required to build the dykes and banks-against the menace of the flood water. tet the federal government owes this debt to the people who cannot defend themselves. It is the purpose of government. If the next congress fails to take action it will have, seemingly, have broken a trust with the people. HOW TO MAKE MONEY ON REAL ESTATE. Winston-Salem Journal. Eight maxims on how to make money handling real estate were recently formulated by a prom mentNwo York realtor. They were given to the public by The New York World as follows: Never buy for cash. The successful operator invests just as little of his own funds as possible, glad to pay 6 per cent, interest for the use of money that he expects to bring profit. And mort gage interest is deductible from your income tax. Buy when others aren’t buyfng freely—don’t wait for a boom. Buy property monopolistic in character that will increase in value because it can’t be exactly dup licated, such as water-front near a great city or a business corner in a thriving neighborhood. Buy where things are going to happen in the future, not where the neighborhood is built up and changes are unlikely. Don’t take things for granted, such as the state ment that bridges make high values or that proximity to a railroad station is an asset. Trans portation facilities make values, but not necessarily for property almost on top of bridge or station. After asking questions and comparing values in the neighborhoond and judging all future possibili ties, then have the courage of your convictions to stay by your guns. Know when to sell—you never get poor taking a profit, but don’t sell until you are convinced val ueshave approached a temporary peak at least. Don t retain indefinitely property that is un improved Either sell or put a building on it that will produce enough to pay taxes and carrying o n «. r^os, LIGHT PUNISHMENT. High Point Enterprise. Ga " sentenc ® d Acree, the school principal found guilty of woman fldgging to a year s imprisonment of the crime with which he was charged! Possibly the law of Georgia limits the judge more narrowly than that of North Carolina iS cases of this sort. In this state, Acree could have Suk f °« an aßSault on * woman, even without the complicating fact that he conspired with others and went secretly at night to break m the home of his victim and to remove her by force to the place of her pain and humiliation. A year in prison is so mild, indeed, for a violator of many cardinal points in man’s code of decency in force throughout the.civilised world, that the action of the Georgia judge appears a very poor use of his opportunity to rebuke the klu«kerism rampant in several sections of the South and nowhere much worse th*n in his own state. If it were only as easy for people to raise taxes gs it ia for legislatures !—Atlanta Constitution. When they shoot that rochet to the moon, wo have a few friends to dominate as passengers upon it.—Cincinnati Times-Staiv SPIRITUAL OR MATERIAL. Lexington Dispatch. The personal newspaper of the Pope at Rome last week declared that America had the lead in material things, but that Europe is the spiritual leader. The view more frankly presented is that Europe, as represented by the Pope, i 3 right and America is wrong. The Europe the Pope had in mind is Roman Catholic. The America he had in mind was Protestant America. He could not have considered Mexico, Central America or the average South American state where Catholicism prevails as material leaders. The “spiritual" Europe the Pope comprehends in his statement plunged the world into war thirteen years ago. Trade and possessions and the jealousies that were anything but spiritual were no doubt at the bottom of that disaster. The de sire for power and the fear of the powerful sent millions to their death —in “spiritual" Europe. America, the “Material,’’ finally was pulled into that , mess, but she went only on the bold pro nouncement that she was willing to give of her full resources but would ask no material thing in return. She not only gave of her men as fast as they could possibly be trained—and no such record in training was ever before made —but she furnished her material resources, mouey, loud, clothing, ammunition, without restraint. She did ask that Europe accept her spiritual ideals of peace. In return she is accused of being the Shyloek of nations, by those who accept the Pope's comparison, while “spiritual" Europe continues to quarrell over the spoils of conflict. In "spiritual’' Italy the world's, outstanding tyrant today holds sway. England is Protestant, so hardly “spiritual’’ Germany is in the same category. Even the Pope would hardly term Russia a spiritual nation, and Rome has sometimes pronounced France a little flippant. Even the boundaries of “spiritual Europe" must be a little restricted. The Vatican’s mouth organ was specifically speaking of American “educational" motion pic tures as undesirable for showing in Europe to the children of the faithful but it seemingly took occasion to cover a lot of territory. Certainly a lot of things had to be overlooked in drawing any such distinction. PREVENTION IS BETTER. Lexington Dispatch. Someone will have to lose at least $150,000 on account of the alleged forgery of notes in the name of the county boards of Wilkes county. The taxpayers of the county may be saved from loss if it can be proven the notes were forged without the collusion of the county officials —but somebody will have to pay, and the likelihood is that innocent people will be the losers. It is well and good situation should have been discovered in time to keep the public treasury from being saddled with a big debt for which it received nothing. But prevention is a much better remedy than this. Under the new coun ty government laws much more definite checks and balances are provided. In some counties un der the old system there were at least three boards that could issue notes, and in most o£ them at least two county boards could pledge the credit of the public. Now only the board of county com missioners may issue notes and under strict re quirement that all such transactions be placed on the records of the county. If they fail to follow the law the individuals composing the board are themselves personally liable for the debt so in curred. __ Under the old system county boards could make debts without placing them on the minutes where all might see the record, and this resulted in the piling up of heavy obligations without the tax payers having opportunity to know about it. The intentions of the officials may have been- to create ligitimate debts, and the money may have, all been properly spent in many instances, but the actual borrowings were concealed from public view for political reasons. Debts were thus piled up in order to temporarily keep tax levies down and hoodwink the voters. The new way is immensely better, and if the voters are on guard to protect their own interests they will give it a fair chance. YOU SHOULD HAVE YOUR LIGHTS TESTED. Wilson Times. A number of our garage men and members of the Carolina Motor Club and autoists, feel that the article published yesterday afternoon on the front page of the Times entitled, “No law to compel owners to have their lights approved," may not be clearly understood and have requested us to call attention to a careful reading of the article so that every one may realize what trouble he is likely to encounter should he fail to have his lights prop erly adjusted. The purpose of the law is to protect one person from the transgression of another, and while the head of the article tells the truth regarding having your lights tested, if your lights upon examination by officers of the law are found not to have been tested, then you are liable to a fine as the result of these directions on your part and the article so states. Reading further in the head it says. “However owners of cars having glaring blinding or illegal headlights are subject to a fine and ar rest. with a jail term of more than ten days." These glaring headilghts have been the bane of every motorist on the road. How many times have you had to stop your car, and get out on the side of the road when it was impossible to tell the location of the other car until in a very few feet of you? * These glaring headlights have caused many an accident, and for that reason motorists of the state secured passage of a bill through the last legislature making it a misdemeanor to have glar ing headlights and if these glaring headlights cause an accident, or it is found that you have glaring headlights then you are liable to punishment as indicated above. lor the sake of all then one should .how his lights tested and since the law on the sbject and our people have been testing their lights and they are thrown down on the road rather than into the eyes of the driver of the other care, the change is noticeable and you can drive with so much more ease and safety. It only costs seventy five cents to have your lights properly adjusted, and if that saves you a fine and an accident, then why not take thia precaution and be glad of the privilege. The officers of the law have the right to go to your car, and if you have not the slip pasted there on stating that you have had your lights tested they can arrest you and make you prove that your lights are all right, for under the law it is up to you to prove that they are properly adjusted. WHAT'S A TOWN WITHOUT A NEWSPAPER American Press Nobody knows just how many weekly newspapers there are in the United States. Probably there are somewhere in the neighborhood of 10,500 weekly publications that can legitimately be called news papers. A large percentage of these are published in one-paper towns. Consider, then, what those towns would be with out their newspapers. What is the aggregate worth to the nation of these papers? Are any other newspapers or publications ap preciably interested in the future of these towns? Will other papers take a stand for the betterment of these communities, for town and rural coopera tion and development, for community betterment, for the growth jpf business and for new enter prises? Can the grocers, the hardware merchants, the bankers, the dry goods dealers, the clothiers or the other retail merchants get along without their community newspapers? The home newspaper is the mouthpiece of the community. Through it the town makes its bid for recognition. It is one of the town’s best as sets. Every day weekly newspapers are doing their best for their communities. W T hat would your town be without your news paper? Lsdy Actor says having a husband is a full time job. And hew about being one?—Florence (Ala.) Herald. Th* fat woman who—2o years ago—was fair, fat and 40, is now sleek, slim and 60—Indiana -.11- XT— pous ivews. Thursdav il MR. *HR EUr ;\ Raleigh News heti % recent tactics j K J VPr of . ! nd *'r. Barton, bo; ,""? Cdt r* U SJ" v ' **» off. When Mr \ Vh O MI hi* k overlordship 0 f the 1w r going so far as to rati ' , PsrS under certain'”^ 1 tl«> went into print with , tit, 'N for himself and no to-lake the sting Os their associate by tesri h:S the strained theoiv - region is adequate H the business on * ’ ®H be allowed to UniTOTitr tk»t MB •« ”,H young women x£ i i