Established 1899
Hickory, N. C., Is Good Enough For Me.
The Hickory Spirit -Was In
Evidence At Annual Banquet.
MR. JOHN A. McRAE'S ADDRESS
Practical Discus- 1
sionof Com mis- (
sion Form of 4
Government
The Hidory spirit OO,VJ! like
champagne at the annual n.inqaei •
ot' the Chamber of Commence ]
held at the Hotel Huffrv on the j .
evening of Thursday, Jan. 12. jJ
Covers were laid for upwards of 1 1
150 members and the scene was j 1
a brilliant one i
President \V. H. Nicholson of
the Chamber presided At his 1
right was the guest of honor and
speaker of the evening, Mr. 1
John A. Mcßae, of Charlotte, i
Then came Mayor J D Elliott ,
and next Mr. Mason, of the ag
ric-iicural deiurm;it oi' tie '
Southern Railway. At the left ;
of the toastmaster Mr. W.
J. Shuford and next came Secre ]
fary A. K. Jo>. Tnen Judge YV. ]
B. Councill. 1
After the prayer by Rev. J. D.
Harte, Mr. Joy puiled otf a talc
ing feature. Every guest was >
still standing and was asked to
open his paper napkin. On this ,
was printed verses compos
ed by Mr. Joy, and which
were sung to the tune of Dixie,
Dr. J. H Shuford playing the
accompaniment on his vi din,
while Rev. J. G. Girth, Dr. W. 8.:
Ramsay, Mr. Jesse Warlick and
ochers led in the singing in
which all the members joined
heartilv. The verses were as fol
io vs:
HICKORY ,N. C., IS GOOD ENOUGH
FOR ME.
Old Hfak'ry's the best in the Old North
State,
There's room for you if you're not too
late, |
Come along! come along! come along! j
come along!
There's no use talking, we set the pace;
We're sure enough winners in the .
friendly race. j
Come along! comealorg! come along!
come along!
(CHORUS)
Then three times three for Hickory»
Hurrah! Hurrah!
Then three times three for Hick-o-ry,
We never say die in Hick-o-ry.
Come along, come along, come along
with us to Hick'ry.
Come along, come along, come along I
with us to Hick'ry.
We point with pride to nineteen ten. j
We'll never be classed as a "might-;
have-been." !
Come along! come along! come along! |
come aiong!
So, we'll all join hands for the years to
come,
Resolved to make our old town hum,
Come along! come along! come aiong!
come aiong!
Photographs were taken of the
brilliant dining-room as the ban
quet began.
A Gridiron stunt, the credit
for which is due to Mr. W. J.
Shuford, was the reading of
telegrams from former Hickory
boys. These brought down the
house especially those from ex-
Sheriff J. W. B^ckwelder and
Mr. Bob Rosebo.ough. A Aest
ern Union boy w::*? seen thread
ing his way through the long
dining room at inn? vals and the
"wires" he brought in were
signed for and read by Mr. Shu
ford. The best past of the ban
quet was Mr. A. C. Link's face
every time a new t .digram was
torn open. Antic ~. pat ion of a
coming keen enjoym- rit was writ
ten on every linea:r.o:it.
Everybody wore tne blue but
ton, "Hickory, N. C., is Good
Enough for Me."
Thd first telegram read as fol
lows :
Washington, D. C., J:»n. 12.1011.
Chamber ot' Commerce, Hickory, N.
C. —Have iust . eceived a;»j atton
of ten million dollars to and
deepen Catawba Rive r. Bo '.j lira
in# ten fc*t of water should bo able to
jtly between Charleston s..id Hickory
m two year*. Immense po. aibiiitie*
for your entn : section.
E. Y. '.Vt bit
Chlicir*n Ory
rOR FLETCHER'S
O ASTORIA
THE HICKORY DEMOCRAT
The second was from Wilming
ton, L)el., and read:
Please secure 500 feet frontage on
Catawba River. Will move Dupont
Powder Works to Hickory—employ ten
thousand men. PaulMurrill.
Dr. Nicholson said:
RETROSPECT AND FORECAST.
This lius a very pleas-
work to me in many
respects To see you people
j' iuing hands and pulling for
ti:e up-building of our city has
been a sight worthy of special
mention and enough to do a
patriot's heart good. /It lias
beeu an instructive year. We!
have learned as never before
whom t-»c-ali on in crises and
who are really working for the
general uplift of the city and
section.
We have on fi• e a list of;'
names that we call the roll ot
houor.mt ii who have responed
to every call, men who have
vouched for sums of money
subscribed, men who love their
town and dare back up their
devotion by pledging their all
for the general welfare. I
would that they could be read
here and ulazon'd on these walU
so lhat all might pee that there
iare heroes of peace more to be
aln/ired than those of war be
cause they have done it on a
sober second thought.
Gentlemen, we have met tu
celebrate the birthday of the
Chamber of Commerce, to re
view the past and forecast the
future, to exchange congratu
i lations on a year of substantial
j progress and to urge each
other on to still greater ichieve
| ments, to seal the union of
efforts of the pa*t year with a
solemn covenant to get even
closer t- >gether this year. We
have demonstrated anew the
fact that in union there is
strength. In the beginning
•iof the year mauy of
j visions of wh»t should be and
i now we look back ' upon our
j dreams realized in a great
j measure. A year ago we
nailed to our mast the banner
of pio.jjress on which was in
scribed HICKOITY DOES
THINGS. Has Hickory kept
her pledge? - j
Gentlemen, we have done so
many things that 1 got asham
ed of calling on you so often
to write your names and 1 am.
sure /ou got tired of my visits.!
So had to call in Mr. Joy and;
now it becomes indeed the tid
ings of joy Jto every one that
enjoys the prosperity of our
home citv.
You ask what has the Cham
| ber of Commerce done? Go
out some sunny afternoon and
watt h the whirling current of
s the old Catawba as it splashes
1 and eddies around you triple
giants of cement and stone a
waiting the superstructure of
steel. Ahk the retiring board
I of commissioners ot Alexander
and Catawba counties if IHe k-
Spit. Fit
Hines, Ala —ln a letter from this
i place. Mrs. Eula Mac Bradley says:
1; "I tned to spt up ail 1 ate. I wa»
-i.irdani s le«;dv ail the time. My
J neidachcU, a»d I coule hardly dr»i
* lrojal Since taking Jirdai, this has
en irely q'lit, and now I feel p lite fit
,vii». Bndlev sufkred from nervous in
dijr s'.ioo. I ard'i: d ulda up the netv
ou» tr%te ti, and r'.renjjtbens ti.e wj
' m n.y const:tut.on That's why Car
dui, helped Atft. Hradicy and whj it
j will help yoa. Try »l , «
HICKORY, N.C., THURSDAY. JANUARY 19. 1911.
ory has been doing anything
Ask Mr. S-If if Hickory was
d dug anything when he was
called upou ever and anon to
exhibit his patriotism and
patience as-well as legal skill
bv going hither and yon to
-atisfv the objections of county
attorneys. Gentlemen, that
great bridge crowns the spas
modic efforts of 15 years. Jt
is not an easy thing to raise,
SII,OOO to build a bridge and
road against the protest of the
powers that be.
Did you hear anything of
that largest and most enthu
astic good roads meeting ever
held in the state? This meet
ing was suggested by tlje
talented editor cif the Demo
crat and successfully brought
t> a conclusion by tne Cham
ber of Commerce on Nov. 3rd.
No greater fo. ward step has
been taken any where than the
inauguration of the Salisbury
to Asheville state highAay
movement.
' Did you ever hear anything
about the C. & N. W. shous
and how all the towns beat *s
until came to a show down
and a pay down? If you have
not, you will when the aollector
comes around.
But time fails me to tell of
the pVeat Fair in which Hick
ory and Catawba county out
did themselves, these beautiful
streets, the new cotton mill,
ihe knitting mill mill, the new
depot that is to be and the
creamery which Mr. W. J.
Shuford and others have so
wisely steered to success and
made you pay 40c. for your
butter and glad to get at that,
for it is worth it.
Above all the Chamber of
Commerce has c ultivated the
union of feeling and efforts — j
brought our business men.!
professional men and others
in itutimate touch with each
other. Ithas exemplified whai
united, organized effort can
do.
Gentlemen, the past is be
hind us. What shall the
future be? You have done
.well and it only remains for
you to prove worthy of the en
comium by doing better this
ytar. Work for the building
of an interurban traction line,
i the Salisbury to Asheville State
j Highway, a beautiful and san
• itary city, and above all and
beyond all, the Hickory Spirit
that will proclaim, wherever
you go, East or west Home is
best, "Hickorp, N. C., is good
enough for me" Dream af
Hickory, think of Hickory,talk
Hickory —then indeed will be
i brought to pass the saying,
t Hickory Dws Things.
Now allow me to express my
: pleasure at seeing you here;
i and to you visiting gentlemen
• I wish to extend a most cor
. dial welcome, assuring you
thht while we boast of Hick
ory's merits we are not un
-5 mindful of the fact that there
; are other places almost as
i good
I CASTOR IA
Vw lafcato u4 OhObm.
Dm KM Tm Mm Ahnpßwflt
r
Another telegram came as fol
lows from Denver. Col:
Secure option on ten thousand acres
of land for largest nursery in the world.
Got my start in Hickory and made a
great mistake when I left.
Herbert Chase,
And this from Chester, S. C.:
.Will build C. and N. W. railroad
through the mountains to the coal
mines. Should be able to deliver coal
to barges on completion of deepening
of Catawba River.
L. T. 'Nichols.
The city of Hickory*
Mavor Elliott said: "We do
not like to brag on ourselves but
we think we have one of the best
towns in the State. We have 4999
inhabitants according to the last
census, and a Few people outside
of town. We have about 2500
just outside of the corporate
limits. If a man gets off the train
and walks across our streets he
thinks he is in a City. We have
everything that makes a citv
water works, sewer system,
electric lights, the finest schools,
graded school, aU kinds of
schools. The speech of the Presi
dent of the Chamber of Com
merce shows what our people
can do when we get them stirred
up and you cannot tell when they
are goin£ to stop."
Oar Sister City of Newton;
May she be soon joined to her bisr
brother by a great Highway. By
a gentleman who was to Hickory
a friend in need.-
Mr. W. C. Feimster said:
This splendid feast of yours
makes me feel insignificant, but
being a part of Catawba county
tnaK.es me feel that I am related
to Hickory, and what my friends
have said for Hickory I can say
for Newton. The only difference
is that there are not quite as
many of us. But it is only in
numbers that you are ahead of
us, for we, following the spirit
of Hickory, organized a little
club for Newton, and the first
I man I had a communication from
wai the President of yourCham-
I ber of Commerce, and he said.
4 *Let us join hands, not only for
Hickory but for Catawba coun
ty." 1 pledged him that I was
his brother and I am here tonight
representating a sister town. I
hope he wril see further progress
with ilickory and Newton joined
together by that splendid road
which we must have. *
! We are going to show you
I what Newton can do, because wt
have ju3t as good water anc
sewerage, and the same light*
that you have. We are going to
be led on by th 11 light by which
Hickory, Newt »n and Catawba
county haye gone forward.
Mr. Mcßae was introduced by
Judge W. B. Councill, who said:
I esteem it a source of great
honor to make my first public ut
terance as a private citizen before
tl\e Chamber of Commerce of the
city of Hickory, and an additional
honor was conferred upon me in
having been chosen to present to
you tonight a gentleman who is
here for the purpose of enlighten
ing us upon the question of city
government,who perhaps has giv
en the subject as much thought,
and I believe is capacitated to tell
us as much about how to run a
city government as any man in
North Carolina.
We have with us a Scotch-Ir
ishman, a long, lean, lank, rug
ged—and I think a very good
looking young man. You car
judge for yourself when he get*
up. He has been city attorney
of Charlotte, but I think he hails
from old Robeson county: Mr
Jno.A. Mcßae,of Charlotte, Mec
klenburg county:
Change of Heart
Sevierville, Tenn. —"I never did
believe in patent medicines," write!
Mrs. Martha Hown, of this place,
"until I took Cardui. and it cured me.
For six months, I could not do any
thing. Now i do all my housework,
and it don't tire me. Doctors tailed,
dut Carbui saved my life." The ben
efit horn taking Caniui is not confine*
to one part of the body. Cardui im
proves the whole womanly system. I
helps headache' backdche, fallinj
feelings' and female Weakness. Tr
it. It will help you. Price 91. 11
MR. MCRAE. ]
Mr. Mcßae began his speech \
by saying he felt somewhat like
the school teacher who appeared 1
before an old time school com- J
mittee and in answer to a ques- \
tioh as to the shape of the earth '
said he could teach it "either
round or flat." The speaker '
didn't know whether the majori- J
ty of the banqueters were com- •
mission or non commission men. '
Continuing he said: 1
As I look upon the faces of the 1
strong, stalwart men here to
night, I realize that it is a big
fact that Hickory has a commer- 
cial organization which is pulsat 1
ing with energy that will make )
it one of the greatest towns in
North Carolina. (Applause.) c
Mr. Mcßae told of the incept
tion of the modern idea of com- t
mission government at Galveston c
after that town was storm-swept f
several years ago. In debt and a
with sickness prevalent, a better V
government was imperative. So t
hve men were selected and in a 5
tew years had saved hundreds of f
thous mds of dollars. £
The city of Houston thought t
that if it was good for Galveston, t
it would be good for her. She
elected a mayor and four com- r
missioners. The mayor is paid s
$4,000 and the commissioners v
$2,400 each, and devote their en- r
tire time co the city. Des Moines, t
Ja., has adopted it and other ci*- *
ies. Hundreds and thousands of f
dollars have been saved and no t
city has gone back to the old l
way. c
In Germany, governing a city
is as much a business as running c
a mercantile establishment, or a i
manufacturing business. A man £
qualifies himself to be mayor of
the city. He gives his mind and 1
body to ' the job of running a *
town. The inexperienced man e
must start out with a small sala- c
ry. It is the ambition of all the \
young men in Germany to become I:
the Mayor of Berlin. I do not t
know whether we could carry it 1
that far, as it is somewhat con- i
trary to the Torra of our govern- '
ment. We elect our own officers
to rule over us. We prefer this, i
and for this reason I believe we 
cannot go to the same extent as 
Germany. 
A few years ago in Charlotte, a s
committee of 100 men was ap- '
pointed to draft a charter that \
was suitable for Charlotte. This
100 men was composed of some 
of the ablest men in city affairs.
Messrs. J. P. Caldwell. E. T. :
Cansler, T. C. Guthrie, and men 
of that character, were selected.
They went to work and re
commended this plan to provide
, for a mayor, who should devote
lis entire time to the govern
ment of the city. But this mayor
vas not to be elected bv the peo
ple but by the Board of Alder
men, who should not receive a
salary and should not be required
to devote their entire time to the
city, but should be required to
meet at least once a month and
have as many call meetings as
: thev chose. Some objected, say
■ ing that the people's liberties
were about to be taken ftorn
> them. A few said, You Will not
\ allow the people of this city to
[ elect their own mayor. With
l that hue and cry the measure was
> defeated. I believe, in the long
j run it is better for the people to
. elect their mayor by popular vote
r than to have him chosen by the
board. The great mass of the
people are In favor of this, and if
\ they do make a mistake they will
i correct it next time. While on
j the other hand if they put this
power of election in the hands of
. a few men it might result in
. "something disastrous.
1 SAFEGUARDS.
1 Mr. Mcßae dwelt on certain
3 safeguards. The referendum,
f which upon petition, gives the
3 people the right to vote upon a
Solves Big Mvstery
"I want to thank you from the bot
tom of my heart," wrote C. B. Rader,
of Lewisburg, W. Va., "for the won
| derful double benefit I got from Elec
s trie Bitters, in curing me of both a se
vere case of stomach trouble and of
[ rheumatism, from which I had been
1 an almost helpless sufferer for ten
years. It suited my case as though
made just fox me." For dyspepsia, in
digestion, jaundice and to rjd the sys
ri tem of kidney poisons that cause
, rheumetism, Electric Bitters has no co
lt qual. Try them. Every bottle is gaur.
g anteep to satisfy. Only 50c at C. M
y Shu ford, Moser & Lutx, Grimes Drug
8 Cp» • _
Democrat and Press, Consolidated 1905
measure which the city is about t
to adopt; and the initiative, i
which, upon petition, allows the 1
people to pass a law which the \
governing body did not favor.
It tends to a mayor from c
being arbitrary. t
Mayor Rice, of Houston, Tex., t
who spoke in ChaHr.tta, told Mr. i
Mcßae he did not be i jve in these r
He said it made the people trem- 1
ulous about doing their duty, and i
handicapped the commission in t
putting its best judgment into
effect. ~ - i
On the other hand Mayor r
Gibbes,of Columbia, C , tohi v
Mr. Mcßae, that-*he firmly Re
lieved in these safeguards. '
Though they were seldom re- a
quired to be used, yet th?y we;*e a
there and if a few man who had -
the absolute g tveraing of the
city should form a ring or clique P
for parson el benefit, then thxie a
safeguards would enable the oeo- s
p!e to put a stop to their authori- t:
ty. Tnat is one of the questions *
you will have to thresh out At t:
first I was oppised to these safe- a
guards, but I believe now that u
they are a wise thing, certainly P
to begin with.
Mr. Mcßae also spoke of the °
recali, whereby upon petition of
sav 25 per cent of the registered 0
vote, an unsatisfactory officer P
must stand for re-election, and 0
give the people a chance to say t
whether he shall continue in of- a
fice. The time that commission- v
ers would devote to the city, is a a
problem the people must work v
out. £
I remember that in Columbia, o
one commissioner is a hardware i
man, one a lawver,one a jeweler
and another an insurance man. 6i
Mr Mcßae spoke of -Char- p
lotte's municipal troubles. Our
Aldermen, he said meet once ev
ery month; they have to have
committee meetings almost every E
week; nearly every day
boiy is in electioneering with
them trying to get them to push
for a certain thing; every few y
weeks a special session is held.
They are not paid one penny.
The Mayor does get a good salary, r
and he is the first mavor that has r
ever been able to run to run the s
city on its income, and it is due I
to the fact that he is right there £
all the time. All through the €
week the alderman are thinking i
about their daily work. 1
A measure is brought up; they 1
do no: know anything at out it cr 1
what they should do. I have t
I seen them pass an ordinance at '
one meeting and repeal it at the \
next; pass an ordinance and re- i
peal it within the next month— i
not because they were not honest i
and sincere, but simply because i
those men were over-worked and
had not time to consider what |
was best. Now instead of that
suppose we had one man who
could give all his time, or say 1
three or four men give part of
their time to it; suppose we 
would have them meet round the ;
table in the counsel chamber, '
they would have more time to 
consider a matter; they'd consider
it better; there would not be as
much confusion, and the city and
the people would get the benefi.
of it. Some time ago a man had
personal property in McDowell
county and he wa3 taxed for it
in Charlotte. I took the position
that the personal property was
taxable only in McDowell. He
had paid his taxes there, but it
took me about five months be
fore I could get the matter
straight. I went a dozen times
before the board; he went a
i dozen times, I called them up
over the 'phone a dozen times,
i A few commissioners would dis
pose of this at once.
HEALTH.
The health of* a commnity suf
fers under the old system. The
speaker related a striking in
. stance in which Harvard Univer
sity, when physicians were non
plussed, employed a scientific ex
pert in New York city to try to
, locate the cause of a deadlv epi
demic of typhoid fever. He
sent his agents to the campus.
. He never appeared himself. He
[ discovered that every single man
i that had drunk milk that was
i produced at a certain dairy had
i
Medicines that aid nature are always
" most effectual. Cbamberlaiu's Cough
~ Remedy acts on this plan. It allays
" the cough, relieves the lungs, opens
* the secretions and aids nature in re
storing the system to a healthy condi-
I tiion. Thousands have testified to its
superior excellence. Sold by all dealers.
typhoid fever. No one else had
it. He analised the milk and
found tlfat it was contaminated
with tvphoid germs..
I think in this modern age that
one of the duties of the mayor is
to look after the health of the
town. A mayor cannot do that
if ha is not paid a salary. It
might cost $2,500 S3OOO, SISOO
1000, yet it may save human
iives and thousands of dollars to
the people of r.n icity.
Mr. McEae was about to re
mark that the same applied to
malarial fever he vtfas told
we never had an> of that here.
Mr. Mcßae estimated that in
Uiiarlotte $25,000 worth of time
i vear is IJSL in aimless running
ifter the aldermen, trying to get
:hem to do something.
He favored an industrial de
partment in city schools and an
igricultural branch in county
schools. Ha closed with a beau
;iful description of the vision
:rom his own home at sunset
;ime of Elizabeth college campus
md Independence Park, and
lrged the beautifying of city
sarks.
Mr. Howard A. Banks spoke
>n what the press could do for
-own and county. It is the voice
>f the community, telling of op
portunity, needs, and being the
>utlet for a city's anger. It helps
;o get railroad shops for Hickory
ind oil mills for Newton. He
a?a3 about to sav that there was
i vice versa to this, and there
vas something the community
jould do for the press, when the
pell rang.
rhis wire from Philadelphia:
Secure option on lot 400 feet front,
>OO feet deep, 200 feet high. Have just
jersuaded John Wannamaker to build
mmense department store for Hickory.
\m anxious to get home again.
Gordon H. Cilley.
rIICKORY 30 YEARS--AGO AND
TO-DAY.
Mr. A. A. Shuford failed to
respond to his name, but this is
tiis speech:!
Mr. Chairman and Gentle
men:—l will ask you to pardon
me for making reference to my
self. If Mrs. Shuford was here
I wouldn't dare say what I am
going to say. 31 years ago I liv
ed "a three-room house; but we
added a room for every baby
that came. Now we live-in a
14-room house. This is typical of
the towns growth. - 30 years ago
the population was less than
1000; the census report will soon
tell us what our population was
in 1910. The doctors tell us it
is much larger now than a year
ago for natural reasons. 31 years
ago the old Presbyterian church
was the best church building in
town. You all know what we
have today.
At that time there wasn't a
brick building in town. Neither
were there any street lights nor
electric lights for the homes. 31
years ago we hadn't heard of a
telephone. The manager of our
exchange here tells me they give
between 3000 and 4000 connec
tions a day.
31 years ago the pay-roll for
labor here was abou4 $4000.00
per month. Now it is about
$500,000.00 per year.
Now we have two strong bank
ing institutions doing-a big bank
ing business. Then you may
say there was no banking done.
What little was done was done
in Charlotte.
30 years ago there wasn't a
manufacturing enterprise here
worth mentioning. I will not
cite to you tonight what we now
have, as you all are doubtless
familiar.
CATAWBA.
The next toast: Catawba Co.,
by one of the manner born:
Mr, A. A. Whitcner said: It is
rather mysterious, to me, why a
subject of this character should
be assigned to any one.
I have been undertaking to
solve, if possible, the reason why.
You know every man is desirous
to fathom and undertake to delve
into that whicli is hidden or mys
terious. I be-:f-"e that it was the
ancient and philosophic Pythago
ras, who was imbued with al-
S most initiate ambition to learn
Continued on page 3
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