Harren Record
Published Every Wednesday By
Record Printing Company
P O Box 70, Warrenton, N. C. 27589
HOWARD F JONES GRACE W. JONES
Editor President
THURLETTA M BROWN
News Editor
ENTERED AS SECOND-CLASS MATTER AT THE POST OFFICE
IN WARRENTON, NORTH CAROLINA. UNDER THE LAWS OF CONGRESS
Second Class Postage Paid At Warrenton, N.C.
SUBSCRIPTION
RATES:
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Historical ID Tags Needed
A member of the Warrenton Rural Fire Department who
was on the scene last week when "Nebraska," ante-bellum
log home built by the daughter of Francis Scott Key, burned
posed a good question in the fire's aftermath.
"Why doesn't someone let the fire departments know
where these historic homes are located?" he asked.
He had asked his question because firemen, who had fought
hard to contain a blaze that had a great head start, allowed
the home to burn to the ground when it was obvious that the
structure would never again be fit for habitation.
It may have been possible, had firemen known of its
historic value, to salvage something of the house. When fire
men contained the blaze, the back end of the house had been
burned away, but the front wall was virtually intact.
The fireman who asked the question reasoned correctly
that a photograph of the house made at that point may have
been of some value, and certainly to historians and others in
terested in the county's early architecture, such a photo
graph would have been worth taking.
Although not marked by an historical marker, "Nebraska"
was of real significance to today's scholars. That it was un
marked, and its value unknown to firemen, suggests that
more needs to be done to identify these endangered struc
tures.
Letting the county's firefighters know where these historic
buildings are located could increase the chances that some
thing might be salvaged in the event of fire. It certainly
seems a project worthy of consideration.
As Others See It
Silliness Of Changing Change
In The Watauga Democrat
It's pretty well documented that Congress has a problem with
money. But a credit-card mentality is but one part of the problem;
another is that Congress just doesn't like the way money looks.
Members of Congress are apparently bored with the nation's
currency; a majority of senators and representatives have signed on
the co-sponsor legislation to redesign America's change.
The weight, size and shape of the coins would remain the same, as
would the "heads" adorning coins?although the portraits of Lin
coln, Jefferson, Roosevelt, Washington and Kennedy would be
replaced by new ones. But gone would be the familiar Lincoln
Memorial on the penny. Monticello on the nickel, and the eagle on
the quarter, replaced by flags and themes celebrating the Constitu
tion and the Bill of Rights.
It's by no means certain that the coins will in fact be changed any
time soon, or at all, given the shifting political priorities and
positions of Congress. Too, the memory of the last change in coinage
ordered up by Congress?the ill-fated Susan B. Anthony dollars
which the government could hardly give away?must still be fresh in
some minds. And there certainly has been no great public outcry for
new nickels or redesigned dimes?although there is a small but per
sistent movement to eliminate the one-cent piece.
Come to think of it, perhaps Congress should put the whole idea on
hold for awhile. After all, it's got no business redesigning quarters
until it figures out how to pinch some pennies.
Looking Back Into The Record
October 21, 1949
The Commodity Credit Cor
poration will purchase from War
ren County's farmers, for $46.50
per ton, cotton seed to be stored
as an additional measure to sup
port the price of 1949 cotton seed
at 90 percent of parity.
The job of renovating and mod
ernizing the Norlina depot has
been practically completed and,
where not many years back stood
a dingy little station in which per
sons stood around a potbelly
stove tryihg to keep warm, or
passed boring time under lights
too poor to read by, now rests an
attractive station which both
railroad men and other citizens
view with pride.
Miss Catherine Read, daughter
at Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Pettus
Read, became the bride of Julian
Walker Farrar, son of the Rev.
and Mrs. Walter Gaston Farrar,
on Oct. 15 at 4 p.m. in Zion
Methodist Church.
October 23, 19C4
During September, Warren
County had 19 deaths and 35 live
births, with the "stork" making
almost twice the visits as the
"Grim Reaper," Dr. Robert F.
Young, health director, said this
rldbw?* decided hit at a
horse show here?will
again be featured in the Warren
ton Rural Fire Department's
Show-deo to be held Sunday at
Currin's Arena on the eastern
outskirts of Warrenton.
The Warren County Chapter of
the Daughters of the Confederacy
won two top awards?one for out
standing historical work done in
schools and the other for im
aginative programs for youths?
at a recent state convention held
at Wrightsville Beach.
October 2S, lt7?
In a brief called session on
Monday afternoon, the Warren
ton Board of Town Commission
ers repealed an ordinance mak
ing it mandatory for all town
citizens to place their leaves in
bags or boxes and place them at
the curb of the street.
The Warrenton Tobacco Mar
ket will close at the end of sales
today, boasting total sales for the
year of 7,122,663 pounds, George
W. Shearin, sales supervisor,
said.
Richard C. Tunstall, son of Mr.
and Mrs. Melvin D. Tunstall of
Rt. 3, Warrenton, has been ap
pointed department supervisor in
the new Resistor Network Opera
tion at Corning Glass Work's
Bradford, Pa. plant.
The Warren County Scene
The tranquility of autumn is reflected in this photograph of a
Warren County farm pond taken early on a misty morning.
(Staff Photo by Phyllis H. King)
Here and There lJ^d
Two New Books Arrive
A pleasant part of newspapering has to do with getting your name
on publisher mailing lists, and thus coming into possession of new
editions of books sent for review purposes. Not only are the books
often valued additions to our library, but they offer food for thought
as well as column fodder.
Two have been sent to me within recent weeks which I consider
worth mentioning.
The first is actually a revised and enlarged edition of Bill Neal's
Southern Cooking, first published in 1986 amid the applause of food
critics and lovers of good food in all parts of the country.
This new edition is brimming over with some 25 recipes of new
dishes most frequently requested by Neal's readers and some of the
hallmark dishes of his Chapel Hill restaurant, Crook's Corner.
You'll find in the new book a recipe for shrimp and grits, which
is about as Southern-sounding a dish as you are likely to encounter,
and which has won the praise of New York Times reviewer Craig
Claiborne. The revised edition?which another reviewer said "(mixes)
the best of the South's classics . . . with a contemporary, light ap
proach to cooking"?also contains recipes for many traditional dishes
such as crab cakes and tomato aspic that have graced southern tables
for generations.
The second book coming to my attention was The Old Farmer's
Almanac, a periodical published each year since 1792 and perhaps
best known for its accurate long-range weather forecasts.
According to legend, sale of this almanac was boosted in 1816 when
an erroneous prediction for "snow in July" actually came true in New
England. The cold summer of 1816?which was caused by volcanic
dust from the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora in the East Indies
resulted in widespread crop failures but gave the almanac con
siderable publicity.
In 1943, at the height of World War II, a copy of The Old Farmer's
Almanac was found on a Nazi saboteur captured on Long Island, and
federal authorities threatened to stop publication of the almanac for
fear the enemy would be able to use the long-range weather forecasts
to advantage. The editor mollifed the FBI by promising to print only
weather "indications" for the duration of the war.
The almanac contains a wide range of information, ranging from
historical anecdotes and folklore to consumer trends. There are
recipes, predictions on clothing fads, and even this little-known
geographical fact: "Southernmost Canada is not only south of nor
thernmost Pennsylvania, it is within 138 miles of being as far south
as the Mason-Dixon Line."
And finally, in the fashion of The Reader's Digest, the almanac is
a treasury of good quotes. One of my favorites, found on Page 189 of
the newest edition, suggests: "You don't want to marry a man you
think you can live with. The one you marry is the one you can't live
without."
Speaking of matrimony, a friend of mine who shall remain
nameless stopped by the r rfice last week and said he wished to place
the following advertisement for a mate in our classified section:
"WANTED?Woman who can cook, dig worms, clean fish, and owns
boat and motor. Please send picture of boat and motor."
'Extra' Hour Drawing Near
How would you like to have an extra hour of sleep next
Saturday night?
That will be the effect of the shift from Daylight Savings Time
to Eastern Standard Time, which will occur at 2 a.m. on Sun
day, Oct. 29.
Before going to sleep on Saturday night, Oct. 28, "fall back"
by setting your clocks back one hour. At 2 a.m., for example,
it will really be 1 a.m. under Eastern Standard Time.
"Standard time" was developed by railroad concerns who
wished to standardize their schedules. Daylight Savings Time
was developed to allow farmers more daylight hours for their
c no res.
Eastern Standard Time will be in effect here until the return
of Daylight Savings Time at 2 a.m. on Sunday, April 1. Before
going to bed on Saturday, March 31, you will need to "spring
forward" by setting your clocks ahead by one hour. On April
1,2 a.m. will become 3 a.m. and the extra hour of sleep gained
the night of Saturday, October 28 will have been lost.
Thurietta
Brown
Barnum Was Right
Every year about this time, my mailbox becomes filled to the gills
with mail order catalogues, all promising to provide the perfect gift
for that special person on your Christmas list.
The catalogue offerings are selected to appeal to shoppers with
varying amounts to spend. Neiman Marcus, for example, has
outrageously expensive items, most of them well outside my an
ticipated income for the next millineum. Spencer Gifts and others
contain more reasonable items, some even offered as "six-fer"
specials.
But, according to my Uncle Allen and Aunt Lola, who visited last
weekend on their way from the annual convention of the National
Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) in Baltimore, Md., the most
outrageous "gift" of all (for that person who already has everything)
could be bought in the exhibit hall there. The item: a full-size,
reproduction of the innermost sarcophagus of King Tutankhamen!
Marketed to funeral directors as an alternative to the plain old
everyday casket (Who'd be caught dead in one of those ordinary, four
cornered things?), the sarcophagus is available from Pyramid Enter
prises, a Nevada concern. Designed by an aerospace engineer, each
unit is hand-sculpted. Over 3,200 feathers cap the back of the unit;
over 4,000 chevrons adorn its front. _ .
The text of the marketing piece for the 91-pound unit reads like the
gown-description portion of a bridal news story:
"The neck is adorned with a two-strand necklace of beads. A broad
collar depicting the gems of lapis lazuli, turquoise and camelian spans
the chest and wrists. The crook and flail are crossed and held in each
hand. The entire sarcophagus is tastefully lined and padded with ex
quisite, quilted, gold Qiana. The six handles supplied are in the shrpe
of rings, symbolizing the Egyptian sign of eternity. Hand-etched on
the base of the sarcophagus is a beautiful Egyptian scene..."
King Tutankhamen's solid gold sarcophagus was discovered in 1922
by Howard Carter. Made of 296 troy pounds of gold and inlaid with
rare gems, the real thing has an estimated value of more than $2
million. It is on display in the Cairo Museum.
The Pyramid Enterprises fiber-composite reproduction?available
in polished brass, polished gold or satin gold finishes?costs a
mere (?) $8,000?retail.
Says the company's marketing piece: "As an object of art, the
sarcophagus is a work of true beauty. As a casket, with the life-like
facial features, the focus on life is emphasized and remembered,
rather than death, and symbolizes the pride and respect you owe
yourself and your loved ones."
And here's the kicker: "Whether you consider your sarcophagus
for personal treasure or public display, you can be assured of the
ultimate in uniqueness, quality and everlasting beauty."
Yep, that's right folks. The sales hype is that you buy this thing
now, put it on display in your living room and then, when
the time comes...
Currently, only the male model is available, but the engineer is
working on a female model. One day, you can own the pair!
While the whole idea is really too outrageous and overly rich for
my blood, the Pyramid Enterprises unit is probably just what some
rich Texan or Shah is searching for to round out his Christmas list.
As for me, however, I'm content with plants inmy living room and
more reasonable items for my Christmas list.
But the folks at Pyramid Enterprises know: There's probably a
"Tut-buyer" born every minute!
Notes From
All Over
Diane
Davis
Important Item Overlooked
From time to time, in the course of writing news stories, I tend to
overlook some of the important facts, thus forgetting to include them
in an article.
That happened to me last week. After interviewing Mrs. Elizabeth
P. Harris, I wrote a story about the Child Support Enforcement Agen
cy, where she serves as supervisor. During the interview, I asked Mrs.
Harris about the caseload each of the agents In the office handles.
She told me that there were only two agents, not three as I had first
thought.
Ms. Delphine Sumler, who is Mrs. Harris' hard-working assistant,
does not handle a caseload, so to speak, but keeps the office running
smoothly by knowing what's going on and what's not. Mrs. Harris
told me this, and inadvertently, I forgot to put Ms. Sumler's name
in the article.
I'm sorry about the omission in the story. For those of you who know
Ms. Sumler, you also know that she is a hard worker. Just because
she doesn't carry a "caseload" in the state's definition of what a
caseload means in the Child Support Enforcement office, it doesn't
mean she's not an important part of the agency.
For those of you out there looking for a different way to package
gifts, talk to Mrs. Pat Schuster.
She'll show you how to wrap your gifts in a balloon. <
Now, how does she do that, you might ask? Well, it's something
that I cannot explain very well. She has this machine that enlarges
the opening of the balloon to a certain diameter so she can place items
down inside.
Really neat, you might think. And it is. The balloons end up look
ing like big Easter eggs filled with all sorts of things. And the way
she arranges the items is fascinating.
To open a gift, the balloon has to be popped.
It's different, that's for sure. )
And just when I thought all the gift ideas were the same . . .the
wheels in the minds of Warren's citizens are turning.
WARRENTON TOBACCO MARKET
/BnB>
Money
Average
Stabilization
Percentage
Wednesday.
Oct. 18
426.361
$730,666.19
? 171.77
73,389
17
Tuesday,
Oct. 24
410.666
?896.707.B3
$169.69
141.869
36
TOTALS
8.036.165
? 13,617,997.1;
#168.21
448,030