Page Two
MEMORIAL
DAY
Memorial Day reminds us of the terrible wars the
world has suffered ... of sorrow, devastation, pov
erty ... of those who left this community to battle
for a better life . . . and of nine who can never return.
Curtis C. Critz
Eric F. Davis
Richard J. Hoyle
William C. Moss
W arren G. Face
Joseph R. Pearce
Louis Poythress
Charles V. Whitley
Albert G. Wiggs
The Fight Not Won
Once again the hunt for school teachers is on. Wakelon
School, for so long minus a public school music teacher,
finds itself again without one. Other schools in the com
munity are encountering similar difficulties in completing
their teaching rosters for the coming school year.
The school teachers have been given an increase in
salary which will entice more of our college students to the
teaching profession, but that proposition is a long term one.
Men and women who are graduating from college this June
have not for the great part prepared themselves to teach,
and the full benefit of higher salaries for our educators will
not be realized for some years, possibly not until the times
are normal once again.
We must give our school boards and our faculties fullest
cooperation during the next school term, and that coopera
tion must start during the so-called vacation period. The
fight for better schools, at least in our community', has not
ended with the salary increase granted by the 1947 state
legislature.
To be specific, we must be prepared to make contribu
tions, chiefly of time, to obtain a better athletic plant at
our local school. We must be prepared to offer subsidies, if
they are required, to coaches and music teachers. Other
improvements, not to be realized in the near future, are
needed. Our children are our salvation, and our schools
are their salvation.
Need for Aggressiveness
The newly elected mayor of Zebulon and his board of
commissioners will have their first business meeting next
Monday. All of the citizens of Zebulon, whether their sup
porters or their opponents in the recent election, will be
watching their actions closely.
A trend apparent to all observers has been in being for
the past several months—that of putting new blood in public
office. This trend is the opposite of that found during the
war, when public sentiment favored incumbents; a policy
of keeping tried and tested public servants in office was
generally followed throughout the nation.
The political fate of the new officials—in the town, in
the county, in the state —will be determined by their actions
during the next two years As one local citizen expressed it,
“The new crowd got in by saying they would do something.
If they do it, they will all be reelected next time. If they
don’t, they’ll get beaten.”
One important item which must be considered imme
diately by the mayor and commissioners if they are to do
their duty is the adoption of the 1947-48 municipal budget.
Last year this budget was adopted and published two months
after the legal time limit had expired—and that action came
only after long prodding by the local newspaper.
Only by prompt and proper action will our officials
retain the favor indicated by the electorate in April.
The Zebulon Record
MEMBER NCPA AND APA
Editor Ferd L. Davis
Publisher Barrie S. Davis
Entered as second class matter June 26, 1925, at the port office
at Sebulon, North Carolina, under the act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription rate: $1.30 a year. Advertising rates on request
The Zebulon Record
— Mrs. Theo. B. Davis —
The Russians are said to be
treating cotton plants with chem
icals that make possible the pro
duction of lint colored in the boll.
Only a few colors have so far been
managed: green, yellow, rose, and
brown. But they are said to be
color-fast. Think of the confusion
if cotton-pickers got the crops from
different fields mixed. The cloth
woven from it would probably be
a hit-or-miss plaid.
%
Never have I seen so many hems
coming out and down as are being
looked after these days. The main
trouble is that once a hem has
been put in, worn and washed or
pressed a number of times, the
mark of it is there to stay. The
only way to make the changing
look right is to make the new hem
exactly half the width the old one
was; or if facing has to be done,
be sure the stitches at its top are
along the old hemline.
If you dislike having to hunt all
through the pages of a magazine to
find on disconnected pages the
columns of a story, you might try
the method one woman says she
uses. She begins on the first page
and reads straight ahead, as in a
book. No matter if it’s an adver
tisement or part of another story
All the editors had the same
idea about last week s rains We
saw no less than four of our ex
changes that called the rain a
“multi - million dollar” shower.
Well, we like to be conservative;
so we just called it a “million
dollar” rain.
David Massey is either a glutton
for punishment, or likes to grow
tobacco. He was in the shop last
Saturday telling about the several
acres he and his son set last week,
a total of about ten. And they were
back at it again Monday, setting
another acre on his father’s place.
If you didn’t get up to last Wed
nesday’s baseball game between
the Rotarians and the Scouts, you
missed something special. Not
many of the Rotarians, old men
that they are, fell flat on their
faces; but enough of them accom
I guess that at one time or an
other everybody has fun with the
telephone. Usually it’s just a wor
risome “Guess who this is” that
consumes time and patience. But
some years ago it took the follow
ing form:
A young gentleman, so our story
goes, possessed a voice which had
not yet changed. It was pitched
at a sweet soprano and was often
mistaken when heard over the
telephone as that of a girl.
, Picking up the telephone, our
hero would dial a number.
“This is the telephone company,”
he would say when someone an
swered. “We have had reports of
trouble in Zebulon and we are
making a routine checkup. Will
you say ‘hello’ into the mouth
piece.”
Always glad to cooperate, the
person called would say “hello”.
“Now repeat ‘hello’ about three
This , That and the Other
Seen and Heard
Fun with the Telephone
or article, she does not worry, say
ing when she does come to more
of what she was reading she can
make the connection in her mind.
I couldn’t keep up with anything
that way; but that reader does
have the advantage of knowing
when she has finished reading all
that is in her magazine.
Once more the birds have eaten
nearly all our cherries, unripe
though they were, and in spite of
my best efforts to frighten away
the eaters.
Don’t come near me calling birds
“our little feathered friends” un
till I am in better humor. I’m
leaving out the second letter of
the word, and am calling them
feathered fiends.
When the cherries on our four
young trees began turning red I
began a campaign of protection.
Before I made much headway the
birds had eaten all the fruit from
two trees. I placed a length of
brown rope and two old ironing
cords, one brown and black, one
black and white, on the branches
of the trees that still had cherries.
They looked scary; in fact, they
scared me when I forgot about
them and saw them unexpectedly.
They scared Leary, who yelled as
loudly as a five-years-old could.
They scared his mother, whose yell
was ladylike, but sincere. But they
did NOT scare the birds.
plished similar deeds for you to
have had bellylaughs a-plenty.
Around the Record office we’re
treating compositor Andrews with
new respect these days. After Bob
by Bridgets had held the elderly
Rotarians hitless for two innings.
Andrews got a hit —and what a
hit! It was only good for a single,
but the bat broke half in two, and
the big end just missed sending
Willie B. Hopkins back to the hos
pital again.
Willie B. declared he had a sore
throat, and could not play for his
fellow Rotarians; but he did decide
to umpire. Right after H. V. An
drews almost conked him. Dr. Ben
Thomas, playing second base, tried
to throw a Scout out at home plate.
He threw the ball high; but Willie
B. is a pretty tall man, and it al
most decapitated our esteemed
chief of police.
Willie B. says that next time, no
feet from the mouthpiece.”
“Hello!”
“Now, if you don’t mind, about
six feet away.”
“Hello! ! ! !”
Usually about this time the pa
tience of the person called was
running short, and the telephone
was slammed down on the hook
with a resounding bang. But on
one occasion, a doctor in town was
called. The doctor was in a very
cooperative mood that evening
and cooperated throughout the
test.
He said the hello’s three feet
away, then six feet away, and ev
en repeated it with the telephone
behind his back.
Chortling, our hero asked:
“Now, once more, if you Will.
Stand on your head and say
‘hello.’ ”
Undoubtedly the good doctor’s
face blanched as he gasped:
Friday, May 30,1947
Mr. Needham Pitte came along
and helped my husband place a
piece of small rubber hose on a
high branch of one tree. That made
no difference.
I tore a piece of an old sheet
into narrow strips and festooned
them back and forth around what
cherries were left. And I give
you my word I saw with my own
eyes what follows:
A catbird paused only an in
stant, then gave a harsh cry and
dashed in, grabbed a cherry, and
flew off.
A thrasher sat for a minute or
two on a nearby trellis, then hur
riedly flew by the tree, picking
a cherry in passing.
A redbird sat on a twig of the
Delicious apple tree, considering
the situation. He finally alighted
on the ground, hopped under the
cherry tree, then flew up into the
lower branches where he feasted
without much sight of white
strings.
A robin stood on the ground
peering at the tree. He stood on
one foot and scratched his head
with the other, (so help me, he
did), then he, too, went under the
tree first and up it next,' to feast
on forbidden fruit. A mocker gave
the final insult when he swung
back and forth on the string of
cloth as he picked a cherry.
I give up! And we have not had
one pie yet.
matter how sick he happens to be,
he’s going to play and not um
pire. It’s safer, he says.
The Rotarians struck out more
often than they got hits; but that
third strike was hard for the Scout
catcher to hold. More runs were
scored that way! Finally the teams
decided to change the ground rules
so that when a man struck out he
was out, regardless of how far the
ca*eher had to chase the last strike.
If you’re not too busy with your
store or your tobacco next Wed
nesday afternoon, come out at 4:30
and see another ball game between
youth and age—and we do mean
age. Those fellows you see limp
ing up and down Main Street
haven’t been in an automobile ac
cident; they played ball Wednes
day.
As Dr. Thomas said yesterday,
“I haven’t been making calls to
day; I’ve been making crawls!”
“Good Lord, lady, how do you ex
pect me to do that?”
A salesman who has been call
ing on Zebulonians during the
past week has riled quite a few of
the housewives. He represents
himself as a veteran in various
states of disability caused by (1)
years of internment in a Jap pris
on camp; (2) wounds suffered
while battling for the glory of de
mocracy in Europe: or (3) inju
ries sustained-while in the Army
which caused him to be discharg
ed but provided him with no com
pensation.
This so*-called veteran sells
magazines to accumulate points to
pay for a college education. He
prefaces his spiel with: “Lady,
don’t you want to help t disabled
veteran?”
One lady in Zebulon explained
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