A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER DEVOTED TO THE BEST INTEREST OF THE PEOPLE OF McDOWELL COUNTY. "
ESTABLISHED 1896.
MARION,, N. C, THURSDAY, JULY 10, 1919
VOL. XXIII NO. 45
EDUCATION BOARD MEETS
N. F Steppe Re-elected, County
' Superintendent Board
- "v. Out ofJQebt. ; "
The County Board of Education
met in its office on -Monday and
transacted the usual routine .of
business. At 12 o'clock the board
went into session to elect a county
superintendent and N. F. t Steppe
was re-elected unanimously.
It .was decided that the summer
schools shall be permitted to open
on .Monday, July 21st. No .school
will be expected to suspend for
fodder season, unless it be. very
necessary.
Supt. N. F. Steppe had all .re
ports for. the previous year's work
in readiness for the board's inspec
tion. The enrollment and attend
ance for the past year has been
very good. The epidemic, however,
interferred seriously, reducing the
average attendance somewhat be
low . that of the year previous,
which was the best in the. history
of McDowell county. .
The financial statement showed
the finances of the county in very
excellent condition. : Two years
ago the board started out" with a
heavy indebtedness. The board
now finds itself clear of debt, with"
shown in the Treasurer's' report in
this issue: : :rv- ' ?
' Tuuast two years five special
tax disidclrhi
ftcn honrl icnp ftmnnntiTTtttST-
OOO have been carried. Four new
buildings have been erected and
two others have been enlarged.
i hnm atA or. nrocftnr. innr mil in.
ings under course of construction.
In all of this work the people - of
the county have co-operated in a
very admirable spirit. They have
aided very materially in the erec-
tax elections and bond elections
have been carried almost unani
mously, reflecting the sentiment in
A a. Yr cASAnia
At present there are four State
high schoolsin theconnty. Under
the new law ii will be possible for
.additional ones-to i be added. TSev-
eral districts are quaniving jor
classification in this list. V '
Plans are being worked out for
the continued development and im
provement'of our schools. Better
trainingof teachers is being arrang
ed for, making it possible for
teachers to better qualify .them
selves without having to go.to great
expense ' o f attending summer
schools at a distance. It is the
policy of the t board to do every
thing possible that will, contribute
to the' progress of education and
' the general oplif t of the people of
the county. With the increase in
the school term, and the raise in
teachers', salaries it is expected that
the coming year will be the great
est in the history-of McDowell
County in matters of education.
Dr. Cullom Here Next Sunday.
Dr. W. R. Cullom of Ealeigb,
will preach at the First Baptist
church next Sunday morning. Dr.
Cullom is one of the strongest men
in the State and wc. must give him
a good hearing.: Come early for
Surjday School and stay over for
the eleven o'clock preaching ser
vices, v
J. T. Bowden, Pasto rr -
Order Reducing Army May Make
Present Congress Act
Washington, July 5. Theques
tion of a permanent military policy
probably will be forced before the
present session of Congress By Sec
retary Baker's order reducing the
army to 233,000 officers and men
by September 30. Military ex
perts here believe only speedy
passage of the army reorganization
bill will prevent demoralization of
the military establishment.
The. recent army bill makes man
datory the continuance of the four
new staff corps; chemical warfare,
motor transport, tank and air ser
vice none of which was provided
for in the national defense act.
Officers and men must be drawn
from the line and from the regular
staff personnel to provide the nec
essary overhead of these branches.
"A return to the status of 1908,"
was the prediction of . one officer
concerning the effects. In that
year companies could muster only
35 men and - regiments were fre
quently under the charge of one
major and one captain. y .
sThe general -staff is already at
work on some program which will
come within authorized expendi
tures, and yet permit the retention
of a skeleton establishment which
may be expanded : for war. r v v
Primary , troop - requirements
which must be met. include: v
Garrisons for the" Philippines,
Ha waii and the Panama canal, con
servatfvely figdreoat-SOtOOO men.
grjfeZXSi .for the southern border,
now maintal'nrOjOQaforce
of 8,000 on the Rhine, and for tne
time being at least; 8,000 men for
Siberia.': "- : ''""J "v-
These total 96,000 officers and
men and do' not take into consider
ation the hundreds of small garri
sons needed at home army posts,
which is estimated at 20,000 with
a further addition for the coast de
fenses. War department plans ap'
proved as late as March provided
58,000 officers and men ' for the
coast defenses. ;. v.;.-., :- s
The 23,000 temporary officers
who have applied for permanent
commissions in the regular army
must be discharged forthwith be
cause of the lack of money. "
- I Death of W. N. Peoples.
Mr. W. N. Peoples, of Pom pa v
no, Fla., died at the home of
J. V.. Kir by here last Saturday
afternoon about 1 o'clock of can
cer." Mr. Peoples was 66 years old
and is survived by bis wife, who
was before her marriage Miss
Hattie Smith of Charlotte. Mrs.
Peoples is " a sister to Mrs! J. W.
Kirby of this place; ; -
-Mr. Peoples had been a sufferer
of cancer for a - number of years
and following a recent .operation
came to Marion three, weeks ago
for treatment under his , nephew,
Dr. G. S. KiVby, booing that the
climate would prove beneficial.
The deceased was a member of the
Presbyterian church. : He was city
tax collector in Charlotte for a
number of years and was held in
high esteem by a" large circle of
friends there." The remains were
taken to his old -home at. Steetle
Creek, Mecklenburg county, for
interment.". ' .
Miss Hannie Holler has returned
to Hickory after spending a few
weeks here with her parents.
MUST ATTEND FULL TERM
MRules GoverningSchool Attendance
in tne Mate tnecwe juiy i;
Rules Governing Absences.
The State board of education - an
nounces that school children in" North
Carolina must attend the full term of
their - district. The enforcemnt of
this law is in" the hands 61, State Su-
f)erintendent Brooks, Roland F. Beas
ey, commissioner of public welfare,
and . Dr. , Watson, secretary to the
State board of health. The law is ef-.
fective July 1. . ; ,
The Greensboro News bureau, Ral
eigh, says. -.. . .,y.; -
"In defining the school age . fbe
tween eight "and. 14 the superinten
dent begins with the eighth and ends
with the 14th natal day. The commis
sion, then determines that children be
tween these ages must attend contin
uously for a period equal to the time
when the public school in the district
in which" the child resides s all be in
session.' v. If the school in . such district
runs six months, the child must at
tend that length; if more, even ".10
months,the. attendance must be con
tinuous." If the child attends a pri
vate school, it must go for a term as
long -as that of the public .school, pro
vided in the district ip which the child
resides. Attendance records must be
kept by that school and it must make
reports ' o that character exactly as
the public schools. If it fails or re
fuses to keep these records, attend
ance on these schools shall not be1 ac
cepted in lieu of attendance on the
regular schools. Instruction by pri
vate tutors ; will be-v accepted Jf his
quaUfications are approved Sy the
county superintendent of schools and
the State board of examiners. The
time of such instruction- must equal
that provided by the public. schools.
"The next most important feature
of the rules issued is that governing
the excuse of absences. , The teacher
in charge shalLhave the right to ex
cuse pupils for temporary absence for
the following reasons: - - - . -,.
' " ( 1 ) r Illness of r the, child that inca
pacitates the child from attending the
schools, , but a v physician'scejrtificate
must attend the child if it isontinu-
aUvabsent for illness. In cases where
it is. inconvenient to sret the certificate
the teacher s must investigate ; the - ilP
Iiess and . if dissatisfied with the evi-dencVf-iiinrsa-iaust-rcport
the cas
es to the county health ofticgr---
"(2) Illness in the family wherZit
is apparent - that the chikPs services
are needed in the home and wherev
er there is danger of spreading Con
tagious disease if -attendance was'
not- interrupted. . V- ,
"(3) Death in the immediate fam
ily. " r -
(4) Quarantine in which-isolation
is the order of the local or the State
board of health. - : ' "".
"(5) Physical incapacity, which
snail be interpreted to mean that 4
such defects make it amicult for the
child to attend -school; - :' . '
; "(6) Mental incapacity, interpret
ed to ( mean feeble-mindedness, or
such nervous disorders to make it
either impossible for. such chifd to
prone ; Dy scnoo or impracticable for
the,, teacher- to Instruct properly -the
normal pupils of the school. In such
easels the defects are to be reported to
the proper authorities for treatment.
"(7) Severe weather- that is dan
gerous to health or safety of the chil
drenr - -. - - -
- "(8) Distance from the - schools,
two and a'half miles vf rom the near
est ;school being considered an; excuse !
duty- to', furnish transportation,
v " (9) Poverty is an excuse, but it
must be reported, such indulgence to
be reported to the county - superinten
dent of public welfare! v In some cases
of this character the - county- board of
education may order aid to the family
from the incidental fund, i; i i y- - .
f (10) The completion of the course
of study in the. district shall be an ex- i,
cuse. - ' .. , ' ..:y. :- . .
."More difficult to regulate is the
section .of the compulsory act. which
provides .that 'the immediate demands
of the farm or home' in - several sec
tions of th State shall in X certain
seasons of the year - be a cause for
non-attendance.." , r - : : -(
"The State board of education, re
alizing the difiiculty of administering
this feature from Raleigh, leaves it, to
the' couirty boards . until further no
tice. It recommends that where the
demands of the farm -are serious
enough to, require the .immediate
services of the child and such- assist
ance cannot be obtained . elsewhere,
and where- sickness T in v the Jiome or
other cause, calls . for the ; child be
cause assistance cannot "be .gained
otherwise, the ;. county , -boards may
excuse. -Very broad powers .are con
ferred on. them. '(A full report on
each and every case arising under this
section V must be made to the; State J
suprintendent in order -that the .State
board of education may : determine to
what extent this section of the law is
appealed to. ; ; - 7'-'.--'
"The commission suggests in eer-
tain places in which farming: condi
tions demand the work of children1 at
the regular. school hours, schools
might open an hour earlier and .close
about noon or 1 o'clock, v " . ; . -"Defining
truancy is likewise a
hard job for "the commission', but it
f makes it as- easy f or the layman . as
possible by .- holding that .wilful : ab
sence from "schoolone day is truan
cy. The parents rwill be firsts appris
ed - of this conjduct, and if that fails
to bring results, reports will be made
to the attendance , officer. The cause
will be investigated and if this wilful
truancy continues the child will . be
carried before the . juvenile courts,
which have jurisdiction' in such cases.
r "There are other-causes which may
take "the offending child before the ju
venile courts. 5 When tHe conduct of
the pupils" is such as to menace the
welfare of other - children at school,
the offender becomes - a case : for 'the
courts. . ,.-.. . : -'"
"The- county superintendent of pub
lic .welfare is the chief attendance of
ficer and enforcement of the law is in
his hands." - "
Plans for Highway Improvement.
Chairman-Frank - Page, of the
State Highway Commission, spent
some time here Monday in con
ference with the Husrh F. Little,
chairman of the county highway
commission. Mr." Page stated that
he:will have a state engineer on
the highway beginning at the
Burke con nty line tnis week, and
that the fcentral highway :will" be
dividcd into four section oiie from
the Burke county line to the C. C.
& O'. dtj.one from the C. C. &
CL depot to the court ,house hill,
one from the city line. to Old Fort,
and from Old Fort to the Bun
combe county line. The road be
tween the C. C. O. depot and
-Main street will be concreted and
t - i - ' j-m
on; the section of road between
Curtis creekand'Old Fort.N : v
J Glen wooaS townshi p has secured
- :. -
an order rrom tne . county com-
rniisro ne rs to-is? u e $ 1 0, 000 00 in
bonds f o r bu i 1 d in g a lTd impjov i ng
the roads in that township. The
township commissioners have ap'
plied to the county highways com
mission for a hjchway through
this township and it has been S. or
dered that an engineer ' look into
the matter-at once ;
;The Broad R) ver commissioners
were before the county commission
Monday and announced their readi
ness to issue bonds, for - road : con
struction and improvement through
that township. : - T
Officers "and;; Directors of Building
. - and'Loan; Re-elected. ,
.The annual meeting of the stock
holders of the McDoweliBuilding
and Loan Association was "field at
the courthouse last Monday night.
The meeting was well attended and
the report of Secretary eal was
highly pleasing to the "stockhold
ers: The association has , had a
good year and is steadily growing.
Mr. Neal re ported that at the close
of the year June 30 the number of
share iii -force totaled 5,745 and
that 300 or more applications had
already been received for shares in
the new series, ;-v;
Officers and directors oft the as
sociation were re-elected as follows:
ThomasMorris president; R. F.
Burton, vice-president J ErNeal,
secretary :i and .treasurer; X). v
Hudgins attorney; J. L. Morgan,
Geo?IWhite, J. Q. Gilkey, G. S.
KirbySW.rM Sweeney, Thomas
Morris RV F. Burton, D. E. Hii(l
girisjrENealnclJr Mf yler,
directors. " - J;' v . ,
Services at St. "John's nest Sun
dair at 11 a. m. and 8:30 p; m.
STATE N EWS0F TH E WEEIt
Items Concerning Events of In
terest and Importance Through
: out the btate.
Major Westall, U. S. army avia
tion instructor, made a successful
flight across the Blue Kidge from
Asheville to Morganton last Thurs
day; . , '
The Southern Labor congress,
which meets at Asheville August
20, has invited President Wilson ta
attend and he was also asked to de
liver an address.
Actual work is soon to be start
ed on the Norths Carolina Ortho
paedic Hospital Home and; School ,
at Gastonia. The plans and spec
ifications will within a week be
placed in the hands of the contrac
tors by R. -B. Babington, of - Gas
tonia, prime mover of the institu
tion for the care of crippled, or
phaned children of sound "minds
It is the intention of Mr. Babing
ton to award the contract just as
quickly as possible, " and, by the
middle of August he hopes to see
the building under, process of con
struction.
Farmers' Institutes. Begin.
Beginning the latter part of
.Iiitrr anriPAVimnf aIit' C7 inofif nfnn
- -:. - . . , ' " --..,- - -
m uu vvuuuviou . yjjf iuui jai iicjv
of Extension specialists in 45 coun-;
liae rtf maetarn anr niadmnnt '
m ill l-k-k nnnrlntrnn hn -fnn . nnniin.
Vf w vv. u tiuu ivu U1UU v o-i u
Carolina. These institutes wjlf: be
held under the supervision'- of ther
Uou n ty n arm and Home JJemon- .
stration Agents :;invthe different
counties, and will be under the di
rection of Mr. T. B. Parker. The.
institutes are' conducted coopera
tively by theState Department of
Agriculture,the Experiment Sta
tion, and-the Agricultural Exten-
cimn Va.nmn .
This year an effort wilrhe'niade
to promote the general agriculture
of the entire State. As outlined,
by Director Parker, the aims of
tha i net. ifnt-.AC rA-'lVfnrA fArt.ilft rl
better cultivated farms, a diversi
J . ..... -4 .I'".. .
f ication of c rops, C more pu re-bred
livestock and, finally, an enlarged
community spirit which means
better schools, better . home sur
roundings, and a more highly prof-
,Thft institntps whirh have been
arranged for McDowell county by.
Mr PrVp.r nrA s follows: .
Dysartsville, August 18; Stroud
town, August J9. : ; '
.v : .'-' v . t
Cotton' Crop Lress. Than Last Year
fr- A cotton crop of: about l,000t
000 bales smaller .than last years
is forecast for this year by the de
partment bf. agriculture in estimat
ing prospective oroduction at 10
986,000 bales.
, ' Acerage this year shows a cut of
8.7 pet cent from last year's, , the
.decrease being 3,247,000 acres
the total" being 33,960,000.' The
agitation for a reduction in acre
age which the department of agri
culture says occurred in every cotton-growing
State, the scarcity and
high price of labor and unfavorabler
weather caused the heavy decrease
- A nlnrr mill ' mirfln' ftt. ; It If'n-
wood school house baturaaymnnr
July 12th, followed by an ice cream
supper. Admission 15 and 0
cents. "The proceeds will bo used
for tne oeneiis oi uieuwuuu xaik
School, v