A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER DEVOTED TO THE BEST INTEREST OF THE PEOPLE OF McDOWELL COUNTY.
ESTABLISHED" 1896.
MARION, N. C, THURSDAY, JULY 3, 1919
vol. ; XXIII UO. 44
PLE CEREMIES
OF PEACE TREATYifiT VERSAILLES
x Signature Affined in Historic Hall . Where Nearly Half Century
i Before, Humbled Franec Acknowledged Defeat at
Hands of Her -German Adversaries."
; Versailles. World peace was- sign
ed and . sealed in the. historic hall of
mirrors "at- Versailles, but .under cir-
" "Cumstarices which somewhat dimmed
the "expectations of "those who had
worked and - fought during long years
, -of .war and months of .negotiations for,
, its - achievement; - - ' -
- The absence 'of the Chinese .dele
gates; who at the last moment were
v unable to reconcile themselves to the
- Shantung settlement, and "left the
( eastern empire-outside ther formal pur
views of - peace, struck ; the first dis--cordant
note in .the assembly. A wTit-
'"ten protest! which' General Jan Chris-
- tiah Smuts lodged ith;his signature
."was ' another - disappointment i tov the
makers of the treaty; 'crS-U-
- But,- bulking largerj was the attitude
- of Germany- and the - German plenipo-
"tentiaries, which left them, as evident
: .fromthe- official program of the day
(and from the expression of. M.; Clemen--ceau,"
still outside any- formal - recon-.-
ciliation and made actual restoration
to regular --relations and , intercourse
J s with the allied nations dependent, no
'upon the ; signature of the' "prelimi-
naries v of peace' today, but -upon- rati
- .flcation by the national assembly
.j To M. Clemenceau's " stern warning
an his- pening remarks that they
I would be -expected ;and heldj to db-
serye. . the .-.treaty - provisions legally.
4 and- compfeteiyi.the Geraianidelegates,;
1 through: Drv Haniel von Hainlhausen,
$ replied ; af ter - returning to.' the hotel
I that, had' they known . theyr would be'
i treated on a different status after sign
ing; than the allied, representatives, as
shown by their separate "exits before
the; general body of I the -conference,
they never would have signed. -. ' -
As a c ontras t with the Franco-Ger-
rman -peace session of 1871; held in the
same ? hall there were present - today
grizzled French veterans of the Franco-Prussian
war. . They replaced the
Prussian guardsmen of the previous
ceremony and . the" Frenchmen today
watched the ceremony with, grim sat
isfaction. . . j : :
1871 Conditions-'Reversed. '-
The conditions of 1871 were exactly
reversed. . . Today the disciples I of Bis
marck sat in the Is eats of v the lowly
while the white irnrble statue of 'Min
erva, the goddess of war; looked on
Overhead of the frescoe4 ceiling,
were scenes from France's ancient
wars. ' : ' " -".-:. - ' '
.Three incidents -were - emphasized
by the smopthnesi jr ith. which ' the cer
emony was: conducted, i The flrstof
these 'was th'ex failure of .the Chinese
i delegation to sign.: The second 'wss
I the protest submitte d by General ; Jar
J Christian Smuts, "who declared the
j peace uns tisf ac tory. The third, un
( known to the general n public, came
i from . the Germans. When the pro
, gram 'for . the ceremony was- : shown::
jto; the "German delegation," Herr yon
Haimhausn, of . the . German delega
tion, went to Colonel Henry, French
. jllaispn off icer, and ? protested. Ho
- said: ,vj';3:::.:--;i ?::r::&0
,"We cannot admit that the German
: delegates should enter th hair by ; a
different door than .the entente dele
, gates,, nor that milita honors should
be withheld. Ilad rwe known there
would be such arrangements -before,
the delegates would, not have come."
-; After a conference with the French
loreign. minister ,it was decided, as a
compromise; t0 render military hon
ors as the .Germans left: Otherwise;
t be program was not "changed. 4 7 -
An hour; before the signing-of the
treaty, those .assembled in theliall had
"been ufgod , to take ' their seats, but
their eagerness to see the historic cer
emony, was s o keen that they, refus e d
to keep their seats, and - crowded to
ward the center of the hall, "which Is so
long that a" good view was Impossible
from; the distance. j3veiLi with" opera
glasses , the correspondents and others
were- unable to observe satisfactorily.
The seats were in no way; elevated;
consequently there' was a general
, gcranble for standing room.
MM JIGfllia
The. delegates " of - the minor . powers
made their way with difficulty through
the crowd to .their places at the table
Officers and civilians lined the wails
and filled t the aisles. President Wil
son's" arrival 10 minutes . before." thl
hour for signing was greeted by a
faint ; burst of applause frori the few
persons" who, were .able o see him. , ,
-The German correspondents werf
ushered "into the hall .shortly before
3", o'clock and were given standing
room in a window at ' the rear of th
correspondents section. . . ...
When Premier Lloyd George arriv
ed many, of. the delegates sought auto
graphs from the members of the coun
cil of four, and they busied themselves
signing copies of the official program
until the Germans entered the rooiu.
At 3 o'clock a hush fell over the halt
and the 'crowds shouted for the offi
cials who were standing to sit down,
so as not to block the view. The del
egates showed" some -surprise at' the.
disorder, which did not cease until
all f the spectators had either seated
themselves or found places against
the wall.-.. " ' ' ' ' . - -
Xt' seven ' minutes past' 3 o'cloci
Dr. Hermann--Mueller, .the"-- Germsn
secretary for -foreign affairs, and Di,
Bell " the . colonial secretary - wen"
r
shown into the halL and ' quietly too
their eat3, at; the: left -nd of tbeX7'
shaped , table. .They showed - compo'
suret-and .manifested none or the txni
easiness which. Count von Brockdorif
Kantzau, head - of a the German peaci
delegation, displayed when handed thi
treaty at Versailles. . . . ' :
M.--Clemeneeau,; ; a.s president-of . the
conference, made a brief: speech, in
viting the Germans to sign the treat?
and there" was a tense pause. . Wil,
liam Martin, master of ceremonies, af
ter ar moment's .idelayr - escorted thi
German, plenipotentiaries to the signa
tory ; table, where - they signed th
treaty, the .'protocol aixd the Polish un
dertaking. '- . ' .
"After the Germans had signed, Pres
ident Wilson followed by the : othei
American delegates, made his way ti
the table and he and the athers speed
ily affixed their signatures! Premiei
Lloyd: George came next with the Eng
lish delegation. ' The British domin
ions followed Canada, Australia, Nen
Zealand South AJtrlca and India, ii
the order named. , . . - : ' . ;-
A murmur . of surprise - passed
around : the hall ; when ; it -became
known . that General .Smuts, represent
ing South. Africa, signed -under pro
test ' and . filed a - document " declarini.
that the peace was unsatisfactory.'
M. Clemeneeau and the French del
egates were the next , in line for thi
signing, : and , Baron - Sonninq. and the
other Japanese' delegates. The . Ital
Jans came after the - Japanese, anij
they, in turn, were- followed -by th
fepresentatives of the smallerpowera
.During? the attaching of the signa
tures of. the great powers ; and thi
Germans a battery of moving, picturi
machines - and cameras clicked awaj
so audibly that they could be heard
above the general disorder.;,
v ; Cannon Boom. -T-At
3 : 45, the Jbooming of cannon1 ia
celebration : of the peace ; broke thi
monotony in the hall of mirrors, when
the .crowd had tired . of the almost end
less ;aigaino-F: ; : ; : . . ;
China's failure .-to - send her del
gates to the ceremony created . much
comment. The - vacant seats ' of thet
Chinese were noted early in the pro
ceedings, but it was expected that tha
delegates would arrive later. Then
the report was circulated official!
that the Chine s e would not s ign with
out Teservation on Shantung,- and
would issue a statement this evenini
on ' their , position. If. r Clemencean'i
announcement that th ceremony' wai
atan end mada it clear 'that China in
tended to ihave no part in the day's
cerem6niei nad that she must be dealt
with by letter i if the signatories ar
willing to grant- her the privilege cj
making the reservation, : '
-.V S i n gers Meet' in M arjonV.;-i -
-The McDowell County Singing
convention convened at the oqrt
house in Marion last :7 Sunday and
had a most enthusiastic aod en
joyable alPday occasion. AJarge
and enthusiastic Audience attended
the singings Quite a number of
choirs took part and all showed
careful, training and much practice.
Old time songs, "quartettes and
solos, : were rendered in a most
pleasing manner. "' - ' . ;.
At the close of the pfogram each
choir was presented with a box of
delicious candy.
Another convention will be" held
on the. fifth Sunday in August.
The following choirs and leaders
were present and took part in the
singing. Clear Creek,' with H.t5.
QuinD as leader, Clincbfield, O. J.
Jenkins, leader; Old Fort, H. R.
Freeman, leader; Carlyle,. W M.
Edwards, leader; Bethlehem, C. C.
Silver,' leader; Hankins, J M. Ed
wards, leader; Cherry Springs,
C. E. Gilliam, leader.. v .
The annual election, of- officers
was made at the afternoon session.
John C Burnett was re-elected
president; Jos. M. Kanipe, Vice
president, and H. S.; Quin seQre:
tary.and treasurer. ; A contra jtee
composed of thev following :was
elected: W, W. Hollifield, -R 'S.
Silver L Pyatt and J.
Jenkins. ' . : ; : - ' -
:;;f Richa
-wediirg of '"much-- interest- to
iheir many " friends in - McDowell
county was consummated .at -the
home of the bride's - parents,- Mr.
and Mrs. VV. A. B.; Ghirrison, in
Broad River township on -Sunday,
June 22, when Mr. Eric K. Rich
ards, of Tampa, Fla., and Miss
Lydia Morgan Garrison were unit-'
ed in marriage. : The marriage was
a quiet affair, being witnessed by
onlv a few friends and relatives of
the contracting parties. The cere
mony was performed at 10:30 a." ra.
by Rev. C. A. Millef former "pas
tor of .the Wilkey Baptist church.
" The "parlor was beautifully deco
rated with daisies, ferns and coses.
The bride was dressed in a trayel
ing suit of' gray flannel' and silk
georgette, with hat to match and
carried a boquet of daisies. .. The
groom was in uniform.L J
The groom is "a son of Mr. A.S.
Richards of Tampa. He recently
returned from overseas, ' haying
served in Nthe U S. army about
twelve months. "'' ' ' -;; :J "
; Immediately following the cere
mony, the '.happy couple left for
Black Mountainjnd boarded train
No. IV'for Tampa, Fla., where
they wiUlnake their future home.
They have ahost of f riends through
out this section who extend them
hearty congratulations and ' best
wishes for a long and happy wed
ded lifel v ;
Old Fort Store Burglarized '
Burglars entered "the store of the
Bryson-Snyder comDany at Old
Fort Sunday night and took a lot
of merchandise,- including shoes,
Hirts, clothing, etc. - The entrance
T7&3 made- through a, window.
Bloodhounds were taken to the
scene and two men were trailed as
far as the tunnel west of Old Fort.
At this point the dos lost the trail
and it is believed the men wanted
must have caught a freight train,
making their escape.
PUBLIC-WELFARE OFFICER
County Superintendent of Public
Welfare to Be Elected Soon
' ; His Duties. "
VThe law requires that the coun
ty board of education and the
board -of county, commissioners
shall jointly . elect and pay from
their resDective funds, - a' county
superintendent of public welfare.
The salary is left at the discretion
of these two; boards. It is urged
that bompetent men be secured in
each county. There is a vast work
to be done and thepeople are will
ing to pay a man for his services
if he is such a man as can give the
service? When trained men can
not be secured, a suitable young
man of energy and good judgment
who can and will . quickly " learn
should be secured. Natural talent
and capacity are more than minute
training just at this time. .
The county superintendent of
public welfare has the opportunity
to be'ohe of the" most useful of-'
ficials in the county. There are
certain specific things that hemust
do everywhere. After these are
done there e. all manner of ways
in which ha may be useful to the
community,- aod his success and
usefulness wil. depend upon his
own'skili, energy, ..Jnitiative and
capacity for leadership. Every
community has its own - peculiar
problems, and .with the advice : of
thecounty Hord of charities and
public "welfare the . county super
intendent must study .ways and
Lmeans of s'olving them. His " du
ties are: " :
1. To act as probation officer to
the county juvenile court, if there
be but one court in the'eouhty, and
if.ciorer to be the chief probation
officer. Ia this capacity he must
be in touch with all the neglected,
dependent or delinquent children,
and under the direction of the court,
investigate their surroundings and
seek means of protecting them -in
their own homes or on probation,
or of getting them into - suitable
homes or institutions.
2. To act as chief school attend
ance officer of the county, to whom
will be reported by the school of
ficials all children in their respec
tive districts who are not attend
ing school as provided by law. In
all these relations he is: the next
friendof the child and must work
alwaysln his behalfl He must find
out Why parents re not sending
their.children. to school and seek to
remedy the cause. ,
3.' As probation officer and as
school attendance officer looking
out (or neglected and truant child
ren he will tome in contact with
the homes of such children. Many
of thesebomes,;and no doubt most
of them, are homes of poverty
neglect orshiftlessness, and often
objects of charity. He must know
when charitable help is needed and
whenlt should be withheld, and
other means used. This naturally
makes hira the most suitable per
son to advise the public officials re
garding.the distribution of the poor
f unds,la4 under the direction o f
the county commissioners he should
investigate every case where ap
plications for relief are made. Of
ten unworthy persons are cn tbo
rolls and worthy 'persons will not
apply because of the stigma attach
ing to the matter. He should bo
able from first-hand knowledge to
recommend who should be helped
and who should not be.' In many
counties the poor funds have grown
enormously and there are but few
instances where this is managed
systematically, either for the best .
interest of the poor or for the in
terest of the taxpayers.
4. He should know of the blind,
the deaf, the crippled and the sick
children of. the county and see that
proper care and attention is given
them, and if they are subjects for
institutional care or training that
they be sent to the proper places,
5. He will visit the county home,:
the prisons, the jails, and make re
port tothe State Board on their
condition and assist in making sug
gestions for improvements. Pa
roled -prisoners in the county wilt
be referred to him, and he will as- '
sist in reporting the cases of insani- .
ty and feeblemindedness, and in
getting them in State institutions
and in helping them in their own
homes after they are discharged.
6. In short, he will investigate
the causes of distress in any and
every form and assist in relieving
them, and cooperate with the coun
ty and city officials and all private
agencies , and persons preventing,
unworthy charity and securing
worthy help. -
7. He will study the subject of
recreation and amusement and seek
to introduce -wholesome agencies
and to suppress bad ones and. to
keep out the vicious. He will en
courage the establishment of play
grounds and games, and aid the
officials in the enforcement of the
laws against vice and bad conditions
generally. . ." , -
- 8. He will cooperate with the
churches, the schools and all other
agencies and "persons who are seek
ing to make a; better, and. cleaner
community. During the six months
when the schools are in operation
the enforcement of the attendance
laws, will consume much of his
time, for this must be done wjth
tact anddiscretion and. with a view
of helping parents to see the error
of.not doing thejr best to keep the
children in school. The poor, toe
sick, the afflicted will , always be
with us, and it will be his duty to
understand how far these causes go
towardsxtruancy at school, "and to
seek to remedy them.
A joint session of the County
Commissioners and County -Board
of -Education sbalPbe held not later
than July 15th,' 1919, for the pur-,
pose of selecting the County Su
perintendent of Public Welfare.
It is sincerely, hoped that these
boards in McDowell County will
carefully scan the duties of the
County Superintendent of Public
"Welfare before they go into joint
session and look over the county .
and select the best and most suit
able man for the position. The
field of work extends .throughout
the entire county and presents a.
splendid opportunity to do the
greatest possible good. " This mat
ter should not be considered light
ly or passed upon without mature
reflection.
The Fourth will be observed in
the usual quiet manner in Msrion.
The banks and : practically fill tbo
stores and other phecs of bc::cc::,
it is understood, will ba closed for
the day and a large number of 11s
rion people will spend the dsy cut
of town, V -
V.
r-
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