12
THE STATE JOURNAL.
Friday, July 4, 1913.
Road Building Day
Something New in North Carolina
Will Be Practiced Next Week Be
tween Rutherfordton and Chimney
Rock.
ACCORDING to a special in the
Charlotte Observer, one of the
most unique and public-spirited
things in the way of good roads
building will take place on Friday
and Saturday, July 11 and 12, in the
section of Chimney Rock, when about
1,000 mountain people will assemble
and work for two days on the Char-lotte-Asheville
automobile highway
from Bat Cave to Rutherfordton, a
distance of twenty miles. These peo
ple will make no charge for their la
bors. Their act is only an expres
sion of their desire and determination
for good roads in their midst. They
will come from every direction over
the mountains within a radius of
from twenty to thirty miles bringing
their axes, well sharpened, with them
and give their services for two days
as a free-will offering.
Rutherford Voted Bonds.
Some time ago the county of Ruth
erford carried a $250,000 bond elec
tion for good roads, and these bonds
will be sold as soon as possible. The
survey of the automobile highway
has already been made, and most of
the distance it follows the old road
leading from Asheville to Ruther
fordton through Hickory Nut Gap.
On last Fri'day Messrs. C. F. Watson,
C. M. Golland, and W. G. Harris,
commissioners of Rutherford Coun
ty, together with Mr. J. C. M. Valen
tine, chief engineer, and Mr. C. H.
Moore, assistant engineer, went over
the survey before giving their final
approval. The road is to be built on
a four per cent grade. It is under
stood that the contract will be let
sometime this week.
When the commissioners and en
gineers reached the gap and learned
the intention of the mountaineers,
tHey agreed to furnish all their road
plows, drags and picks, together with
dynamite which will be sufficient to
remove the rocks and heavy obstruc
tions in the road. They also agreed
to be present and give any assistance
that they could in the work, and to
start in at once with their plows and
drags all along the road so that it
will be ready for the people to work
upon.
Colonel Patrick Promoter.
This movement has been started
and promoted by Col. John T. Pat
rick, of Wadesboro, who recently
moved to Chimney , Rock for his
health, and is living among the
mountain people as if he had always
been one. He talks good roads to
them all the time and has them talk
ing; in fact, if one wants to see a
community alive on the subject of
good roads, Chimney Rock is the
place to go. The women discuss it
as much as the men and with as much
intelligence as if they were road en
gineers. They know the value of
good roads and that is sufficient.
Last Sunday Colonel Patrick made
a twenty-mile tramp over the moun
tains stopping every person he saw
and visiting every house telling
them about the road-working picnic
they are going to have and telling
them to come. That is the way he
does thirrgs. He never asks a man
to do a thing, he simply tells them
he wants to do it, and he does it. One
of his visits was to a Sunday-school.
He went in, took charge of it, and
preached a sermon. His text was
"Love thy neighboV as thyself." He
told them that if they loved their
neighbor they would want to do
things for him. and that one of the
best things they could do was to
build a good road in their midst.
While there he organized the meet
ing by appointing a colonel and five
captains to go out and work for the
good roads working-meeting.
Divided in Sections.
The twenty miles of road will be
divided into five divisions of about
four miles each. These divisions
will be as follows: First division
will be from Bat Cave to the bridge
across the Broad River at the Chim
ney Rock school-house. The second
division will extend to the Edgerton
bridge, the third to the Cole Creek
bridge, the fourth to Knalb Creek,
and the fifth to Rutherfordton.
A colonel and five captains will be
appointed for each division. The col
onel will look after his men and di
vision and the captains will solicit
help among the mountain people.
Some honorary prize will be given to
the captain who gets the most help.
The colonel for each division will ap
point a major and quartermaster
and five commissaries. The major
and quartermaster will look after
the grounds and see that the proper
amount of utensils are brought.
Carnival of Fun.
The idea of fun, which is Mr. Pat
rick's favorite word, will be carried
out. Every two miles along the
route there will be a barbecue and
picnic, and it will be the duty of the
commissaries to look after this, to
gether with the assistance of a dele
gation of ladies that will be appoint
ed along the route on entertainment.
Prominent speakers will be there to
give talks to the people on good
roads. An invitation will be extend
ed to Governor Craig, Dr. Joseph
Hyde Pratt and many others. Some
representative of the United States
Government will be there to deliver
a talk. "Everybody is invited to at
tend this picnic," said Colonel Pat
rick, "either to work or look pretty."
Those who want to work will get
their dinner free, and tliose who
want to wear diamonds and do noth
ing will be charged a small amount
for tickets which will entitle them to
help eat the dinner and witness the
fun-making.
The amount is charged the visitors
to help defray the expense of the
barbecues and dinners that will be
served. If there is a surplus, it will
be turned over to a good roads fund.
Speech-Making and Races.
The crowds will begin to assem
ble Friday morning, and work will
start in as soon as they come. On
account of the fact that many will
come several miles over the moun
tains, the full crowd will not get to
gether until Friday evening. They
will camp along the side of the road
Friday night, rising early Saturday
morning and starting to work at 4
o'clock and continue unitl 11 o'clock
when there will be four hours of
rest and fun. There will be speech
making from prominent men of the
State, sack races, egg races and po
tato races by the mountain people
and almost every form of amuse
ment. "We expect to pull off one
of the biggest things ever done in
North Carolina," said Colonel Pat
rick, "and all we want is for the
people to come to see us work and
have fun." After the four hours'
sport they will start in to work
again and continue until 6 o'clock.
These two days' work will make a
good road from Rutherfordton to
Asheville by July 13. Already there
is a good automobile highway from
Charlotte to Rutherfordton going by
way of Kings Mountain and Shelby,
and this small connecting link will
make a good passable road from
Charlotte straight through to Ashe
ville. An effort will be made to get the
Seaboard Air Line to run an excur
sion to Rutherfordton July 12 for
the purpose of carrying people to the
good roads meeting and picnic. An
invitation will be given to the Char
lotte and Asheville automobile clubs
and also to the Greater Charlotte
Club to come with large delegations.
Tar Heels at Gettysburg.
A special to the News and Obser
ver from Gettysburg under date of
July 1 said:
"About, one thousand North Caro
lina Confederate Veterans have ar
rived to attend the semi-centenial
celebration. They came in on spe
cial trains yesterday and to-day, and
it is said others are on the way. They
stood the trip very well and all are
well. There are, on an average,
about eight to a tent and the accom
modations are very good, taking ev
erything into consideration. The
State Historical Commission, ap
pointed by the Governor, yesterday
marked the different places on the
battlefield which the North Carolina
troops occupied and which will prob
ably result in the erection of monu
ments in the different places. The
commission, all of which are here, is
composed of the following:
"Judge Walter Clark, Judge W. A.
Montgomery, Hon. W. J. Peele, Hon.
J. Bryan Grimes, Secretary of State,
and son, and J. A. Long.
"Miss Nannie Randolph Heath, of
Washington, daughter of General
Harry. Heath, will be the guest of
Colonel Benehan Cameron and Gen
eral Julian S. Carr, who is in com
mand of the State veterans, to-morrow.
"The chief surgeon of the camp,
an army surgeon, is a native North
Carolinian, Dr. Van Poole, of Rowan
County. His assistant, Dr. Fitz, is
also a North Carolinian."
Watch the date on your label.
Week End and Sunday Excursion Fares to
VIRGINIA BEACH AND NORFOLK, VIRGINIA
Via Norfolk Southern
The New Casino provides every modern facility for the
amusement and entertainment of visitors.
Free Dancing, Real Surf Bathing, Sea Food Meals
SEASON 1913.
FROM
To To
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2
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2 5
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2 50
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2 75
3 50
3 00
3 50
3 75
3 30
2 80
2 10
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1 75
1 50
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$2 90
2 90
2 90
2 90
2 90
2 90
4 05
3 55
2 65
2
2
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2
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90
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65
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