Newspapers / Zebulon Record (Zebulon, N.C.) / April 23, 1948, edition 1 / Page 2
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Page Two The Letter Got Results We have recently been forcibly reminded of the parable of our Lord in which a foolish servant was condemned for not having used wisely a sum of money entrusted to him by his master. The people of North Carolina are now aware of the sorry state of affairs which long permitted millions of dol lars of the people’s money to stand idle in North Carolina banks, serving chiefly the purpose of the enrichment of the fortunate few in order to advance the campaign of the self-proclaimed “rich man’s candidate.” Despite almost universal criticism of his conduct, the Treasurer of North Carolina failed to take any action which might correct the situation, and, incidentally, effect a saving for the taxpayers of North Carolina, apparently be ing adamant in his belief that a few wealthy supporters might offset at the polls the influence of North Carolina’s millions of little men. Action more direct than criticism of the State Treasur er therefore was necessary. The following letter was sent last week by the editor of The Zebulon Record to Mr. Charles Johnson: We notice that you have turned over to a Republican leader of this State certain data relative to where you have deposited funds belonging to the people of North Carolina, and the condi tions under which they were deposited. We would not wish to impose an undue burden on you, having read that you went to a lot of trouble in compiling this data, but you undoubtedly kept a copy of this compilation, and we would appreciate it if you will furnish us with such a copy. If you have the time to spare, we would also appreciate your explaining briefly what steps you took to get the General Assembly to direct that all State funds, with the exception of those necessary to pay current operating expenses, be invested in interest paying bonds, after the Federal Reserve Board direct ed that interest could not longer be paid on demand deposits. And, again, if you have time to devote to it, please point out which of the deposits listed have been carried as inactive deposits—that is, have been permitted just to lie in the banks, insofar as the taxpayers are concerned, without any withdrawals over a long period of time. What, in the light of your experience, has been the length of time required to convert a government bond into cash, and what loss, if any, is involved in turning government-interest paying bonds into cash. Mr. Johnson’s reply was unsatisfactory. The requested figures were disturbing. Both the reply and the factual in formation are presently being carefully studied. The visible results of the letter, on the other hand, have been gratifying. Almost immediately after the release to the press and radio of the letter to the State Treasurer, Governor Cherry called an executive session of the Council of State. The Council of State thereupon directed Mr. Johnson to invest $15,000,000 of the idle cash of North Car olina taxpayers. % The effect of this action on the pocketbooks of the peo ple is even more gratifying. If, as stated in the original press release of the action of the Council of State, the fif teen million dollars returns 1.8 per cent interest, $270,000 is saved the people of North Carolina each year. Admittedly $270,000 is a small sum in comparison to the millions of dollars of State money on deposit in North Car olina banks, but it is a lot of money to us ordinary folks. For example, $270,000 would provide a ten-dollar a year raise for 27,000 North Carolina school teachers, enough to buy a pair of good shoes, even in these days of inflation. $270,000 would do a lot of other good things. It would provide North Carolina with 27 such buildings for vocational agriculture students and veteran farm trainees as is now being erected at the local school —after months of effort by the Wake County Board of Education to find the necessary funds for its construction. $270,000 would provide home economics students with 2,000 electric stoves for five years on the same basis as the newest range placed in the local home economics building. (A local citizen had to donate the stove in this case; no state or county funds were available for the purchase of this range.) $270,000 would even diminish to some extent the sales tax, a levy about which Mr. Johnson has said nothing can be done. But the most striking use to which $270,00 might be put this year—and the use which most impresses and appalls the free voters of North Carolina —is the attempted pur chase of an election. The Zebulon Record Ferd Davis Editor Barrie Davis .. Publisher Entered as second class matter June 28, 1925, at the post office at Zebulon, North Carolina, under the act of March 3, 1879. Subscription rate: $1.50 a year. Advertising rates on request The Zebulon Record Mrs. Foster Finch was kind enough to check the hot mill, cake recipe by the one she kept when it was first printed in this pa per; and she says it is correct as given last week, except that the original called for two tea spoonsful of butter. So it goes: One cup sugar, one cup flour, one teaspoon baking powder, two eggs, one-half cup boiling milk with the butter melted in it. Any flav oring preferred may be used, and you may or may not use the pinch of salt. W-ill some one who knows more than I tell me whether flour may be mixed in an angel food cake with an electric mixer, or if it must always be folded in by hand. I do better on devils food than angel food. By Carl E. Bjork Should I be seated for some time, and think hard enough of certain characters, there are sev eral who produce some form of acid stomach within-me. There was one undertaker. His name was Gerald, and he surpassed other embalmers in do ing the worst thing at the best moments. I had one mortician who fell through the floor of a front porch because he was too headstrong and insisted on carrying one end of a huge casket. Kind friends lifted the heavy box from his prostrate form. And another who failed to place planks about the rim of the sandy grave, into which the sober pall bearers plunged with their late relative; one grotesque combina tion of scrambling and clinching. But Gerald came to me one day requesting that I bury from a town church a fellow towsnmen of whom I knew little save his name and age. Very deftly, and with skill, I ad vised Gerald not to bolster his nervous tantrums with spirits; no, not even a few sips. He solemnly promised to be stone sober. Came the day of the funeral, and from Gerald came the odor of divers liquors and breath sweet eners. During the funeral services, he retired to the basement. We went out the other Sunday to see W. O. King, who was kind enough to show us around his farm. King, who has served the Whitestone A. F. & A. M. Lodge as secretary for some time, pur chased the old Stanley Horton homeplace about ten years ago, and has made the farm a joy to behold. We were certainly impressed with his methods and his equip ment. Diversification has a real meaning for this farmer and his wife, who grow their own food— and plenty of it! He discussed at some length, with Mrs. King agreeing, the ad vantages of rural life over city life; they have both experienc ed city life with all its pleasant ness (Mr. King is the son of a former Durham city engineer, and she—to use her own words—is a “city girl”). We’ll have to go along with them This , That and the Other Seen and Heard It is with real gladness that I mention the plant exchange which will be held at the Woman’s Club at the May meeting. They will not hold a flower show this spring, but plan to resume this later. Knowing Zebulon gardeners as I do, it is safe for me to say there will be many, many flowering ulants and shrubs at the club house for giving to those who want them. Every person who is interested in growing flowers is plants and shrubs at the club others. If you do not have any thing to exchange, you are the one most wanted there; for those whose gardens are well on the way want to help you begin. The date is May 18. You will find further mention of this from week to week until the appointed day. Bjork’s Tips Sometime while the service was in progress, there appeared one of the casket bearers before me to inform me that Gerald was about as sunk in gin as he ever was. After some consultation, I asked him to find three certain men in the church. To these I gave in structions to lock Gerald in the church basement, and we would get along without his professional aid for the remainder of the day. Thus we carried the casket to the cemetery, and thus we set it in its place for coverage. And after the usual handshak ing and visiting among many kin, all returned to their respective homes. Gerald sobered up enough in a few hours, and was loosed from his prison. In fact he sobered up enough to swear that he would have more than words with me. Somehow or another, time cooled the incident, and at the very next funeral with Gerald, I rode in his car and we had to act ually push it qpt of several mud holes while he insisted on steering it for us. Yet Gerald was to his profes sion what some apples are to an orchard; just rotten in a small part. Three names in this weeks headlines: (1) Harold Stassen. I heard Stassen at a Baptist Convention in Pittsburg. He is a in their belief that they are en joying life to its fullest just nows it was a pleasure just to look over their farm. To 'have and hold must then be wonderful. - L. R. Temples told of an inter esting experience on his farm the other day. He noticed a group of guineas acting peculiarly in a hon eysuckle patch, and decided to in- i vestigate. There he found a guin- ' ea nest with 36 eggs in it. “I’ve found guinea nests with i over 40 eggs in them,” Mr. Tem ples said, “but every single one of those three dozen eggs were ; good.” i In our opinion that’s something of a record in these parts. < Having printed Old Gold and i Black, Wake Forest student news- i paper, for a dozen years or so, we ] had had a splendid opportunity to ] observe the students in action. i Friday, April 23, 1948 The paragraphs above were written before tonight Wednes day. Just as I had finished the supper dishes and was coming to the typewriter our phone rang. My nephew, Ross Nichols, was calling from Rustburg, Virginia to tell me of the death of my sis ter’s husband, Giles Thomas of Gladys, the oldest member of our family since our mother died. I was not eighteen when Giles and my sister were married; and tonight, thinking back through the years it is good to be able to say that not once since he be came my older brother did he ever say or do one thing that might wound or hurt. More and more I am realizing that memories may be pleasure or pain; paradise or purgatory. —Mrs. Theo. B. Davis Deacon in his local church, and thoroughly active there.. Somehow he occupies the liberal trend in his party, which carries a true measure of progress for the ordi nary citizen. He may be the next President of our nation. I believe that he would make a better chief executive than the other Repub lican candidates. (2) John L. Lewis. Frankly, John L. was not in the error during this recent miner’s fracas. The decision, all in the miner’s favor, shows that the op erators have admitted their fail ure to play fair with the men who toil beneath the earth. He has done the wrong thing often as far as national expediency is concerned, but rarely as far as his fellow miners are. (3) Charlie Johnson. His family down Pender way throughly believe that he is to be the next Governor, and quite a few Burgawans have spent money on him. Yet even in Burgaw, wh ch he rarely visits, there are many who question his success. Despite the effort to dislodge the accusation, most still think of him as the “machine man.” One cheerful aspect of the spring atmosphere beside turned soil, pretty trees and blooming flowers, are the new homes being erected in Zebulon and vicinity. They add a cheerful and opti mistic cosmetic to the face of the town. One thing has impressed us through the years: the intense in terest in student politics. Just this week they have concluded a campaign in which stunts and deals have been pulled which make mere laymen like ourselves gasp. If you think Wake Coun ty politicos take their politics se riously, you ought to see some of the Baptist students in action! They put all their energy into their task, whether they are for some candidate or merely ag’in him. We might even go so far as to say that the school has served as a training ground for some of our ablest politicians of today. Cer tainly the list of Wake Forest men who now are active in this phase of public life is long and impos ing: To mention only a few, they are J. M. Broughton, “Stag” Bal lentine, J. Wilbur Bunn, Brandon Hodges, Leroy Martin, the elder and younger R. N. Simms.
Zebulon Record (Zebulon, N.C.)
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April 23, 1948, edition 1
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