1— ..i, I, „ „
. j MARCH |
l I W R moS?h SS I
j i
VOLUME 18, NO. 6
Red Cross Campaign Fund Drive Opens Saturday
House Would
Outlaw Closetl
Shops lu State
Many Liquor Bills Before
Body; Cherokee Bill
Turned Down
By Staff Writer
Raleigh—(Special)--With a deif
inite affirmative vote, the house
of representatives Tuesday pass
ed and sent to the senate a bill
to outlaw the closed shop in
North Carolina.
The vote followed more than
two hours of debate during which
opponents of the measure plead
ed that the record of labor in
North Carolina “does not war
rant this slap in its face.”
Other opponents asserted that
the bill would have no effect on
the great majority of North Caro
lina industries and hence would
be “nothing but an idle gesture.”
29 Proposed Liquor Laws
| The perennial row over liquor
has resulted in introduction in
the general assembly of 29 pro
posed laws.
The bills range from one offer
ed by Senator George Penny of
Guilford calling for a state-wide
referendum on the prohibition
question to one sent forward by
the Wake delegation providing j
for a referendum in Middle Creek
township in Wake on the sale
of wine and beer.
A public hearing on the pro
posed state-wide referendum has
been scheduled for March 4 and
5 by the joint finance committee.
Prior to the hearing, a hill similar
to the Penny measure probably
will be introduced in the .house.
Among the other 21 measures
related to liquor is a bill that i
would prohibit beer and wine ■
sales without elections in Ashe.
and Transylvania counties.
Another would provide for an
election in Alleghany county j
along with some others on the
of wino and b°r.
Cherokee Bill F > >med
Opposition resuited in an un
favorable senate committee re
port for Rep. Dan Tompkins’ res
olution memoralizing congress to
» emancipate the Eastern Band of
\ Cherokee Indians.
The senate education commit
tee voted an unfavorable report
after 10 Indians from the Cher
okee reservation voiced their pro
test at an hour-and-half hear
ing. Senator Parker arranged
for the public hearing and made
the motion for the unfavorable
report. Only Swain’s Senator
Baxter Jones voted against the
Parker motion.
Truck Hearing Started
The joint utilities commission
opened this week the first in
what probably will be a long
series of hearings on a bill to
rewrite the truck laws and de
fine, classify and regulate motor
carriers.
Chief opposition to the measure
(Continued on i~age 4)
Mail Service Is
Curtailed Here
Because of condition of the
highways blocked by snow drifts
mail service in some sections has
been curtailed for a short time. •
Obids and Oval routes out of
West Jefferson were blocked for
two days.
Several others out of West Jef
ferson and Jefferson were par
tially curtailed from some sec
tions of their routes. All of them
made efforts to make the com
plete rounds, however.
The mail from North Wilkes-1
boro was slightly delayed for
two days and had to detour some
because of the snow drifts in the
highway.
Tax Deputy To Be
Here March 3, 4
John N. Smoot, deputy col
lector, of Lenoir, will be at West
Jefferson Monday and Tuesday |
to assist taxpayers in filing State I
Income Tax returns, it was an
nounced this week.
Mr. Smoot will be located at
Mrs. Tugman’s here, and will ■
work from 9:00 a. m. until 4:00
p. m. each day. Those who de
sire to contact him may reach
him there.
She Dost
$2.50 a Year in Ashe County
County Has Week
Os Severe Winter
Weather And Snow
DRIVE CHAIRMAN
H. D. Quessenberry, chair
man of the Red Cross Cam
paign Fund Drive.
Grass And Clover
Seed Available In
AAA Farm Plans
Farmers Again Reminded To
Complete Plans For 1947
Practices Before Mar. 8
Melvin Campbell, chief clerk
of the AAA office announced
that beginning next week farm
ers would be able to obtain grass
and clcffer seed under the pur
chase order plan through the
AAA office. It was explained
that this would be handled sim
ilar to the lime and potash. The
farmer will be given a ticket at
the AAA office for the kind of
and amount of seed his farm is
approved for. This ticket is then
to be taken to the seed dealer
where the seed may be obtained
by the farmer paying a small
part of the cost.
‘‘The farmer should see that
the kind and amount of seed he
expects to use this year is en
tered on his farm plan. Com
munity Committeemen have the
farm plans in each community
and will assist farmers in exe
cuting them. It is necessary that
a farm plan be made before seed
can be furnished,” Mr. Campbell
said.
He said that he again wanted
to remind the farmers that the
1947 plans are now in the hands
of the community committeemen
and that they must be complet
ed now.
“The county's program for the
year calls for $100,338.00 for im
proved farm practices, but in or
der to get this plans must be made
by the farmers and must be com
pleted before March 8,” he con
cluded.
Ashe County Boys And Girls
To Celebrate 4-H Club Week
March 1-9 will be celebrated by
the 536 boys and girls in the 4-H
Clubs in Ashe County along with
the rest of the country. Os these
536 members, 262 club boys are
planning to. or have already
started work on 174 crop pro
jects and 131 livestock projects.
The main objectives for Ashe
County’s 4-H Clubs during this
week will be to:
1. Acquaint parents in every
community with what 4-H mem
bers are already doing.
2. To encourage 4-H clubs to
inventory in their community
those young people eligible for
membership and to stimulate
every 4-H member to enroll at
least one new member. The
national 4-H goal is 3,200,000
members for 1950.
3. To use National 4-H Club
Week for the announcement of
the 4-H club calender of 4-H
events for the year on a county
WEST JEFFERSON, N. C.
Travel Badly Hampered;
Schools Are Closed; Few
Accidents Reported
Following snow which started
a week ago Wednesday morning,
Ashe county has experienced a
week of bitter winter weather,
with the temperature dropping
to as low as two degrees above
zero and scarcely rising to -as
high as thirty. Added to the low
temperature has been daily snow
blizzards. As a result many of
the county roads are still im
passable and some sections of the
main highways are covered with
ice and snow.
An official reading of the
measurement of the snow, which
fell Wednesday a week ago, was
nine and one-half inches, and
with the low temperature much
of this still remains on the
ground. Slight blizzards almost
every day since then have added
some to the original snowfall
which has been whipped by
winds to leave some spots totally
bare and to drift as much as
(Continued on Page 4)
AllrStar Teams
To Play Tourney
Games Tonight
Schedule Postponed Until
This Week Due To Con
dition Os Roads
Highways blocked with snow
and ice caused the officials of
the Northwest all-star tourna
ment to postpone their scheduled
games until this week. Playing
will be resumed tonight and con
tinue through Saturday.
Last Wednesday. Riverview
Wildcats and the Boone all-stars
were scheduled to play but Boone
failed to show up and the game
was postponed.
The Y. M. C. A. boys from
Fries, Va., however, were able to
come and won an easy victory
over the Jefferson all-stars, 51-
22. Pack was high scorer for the
lads from Virginia scoring 16
points, and Dixon led the pace
for the Jefferson boys by scor
ing 8.
In the second game Wednes
day night the Mt. City Jaycees
defeated the Elkland all-stars,
46-34. Stout, of Mt. City, led
the scoring with 14 points.
Tonight’s schedule is as fol
lows: 6:00, Hollar’s Inc., vs. Mill
er’s Creek; 7:00. winners of Riv
erview-Boone game vs. Crump
ler Rebels; 8:00, Mt. City Jaycees
vs. Fries, Y. M. C. A.; 9:00, Blow
ing Rock vs. Mocksville Millers.
Friday, 7:00, winners of Thurs
day night’s 6:00 and 7:00 games
will play; 8:00, winners of 8:00
and 9:00 scheduled games will
play.
Saturday at 8:00, Friday night
winners will play.
I basis.
4. To encourage outstanding
| citizens in every rural community
t© volunteer as local leaders,
advisors, or sponsors of the var
ious 4-H Club activities.
“During the war the 4-H Club
launched itself whole-heartedly
into the war effort. Clubs began
to function more efficiently. The
members began to realize their
importance to their country and
strove to do their very best. Last
year more cattle, swine, vege
tables, eggs, and field crops than
ever before were produced as
, 4-H club production reached an
all-time high,” O. M. Fulcher,
assistant county agent said.
“Now that the war is over, the
4-H Clubs can truly say that they
did their share to help win it.
■The peace is yet to be preserved
and a 4-H Club will do its part
by keeping steadily at the task of
(Continued on Page 4)
THURSDAY, FEB. 27, 1947 $3.00 a Year Out of County PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY
The Red Cross Is On The Job Serving Veterans
C\_ll
■ of
Blllfc.. ,k<,
During the fiscal year the Red Cross expects to spend $80,900,000 in behalf of
servicemen at home and abroad and for veterans and their families. This service merits
your generous support.
ASSISTANT AGENT
O. M. Fulcher, who has be
gun work as assistant county
farm agent in Ashe county.
County Guernsey
Breeders Are To
Meet On March 7
H. D. Quessenberry. county
agent, announced this week that
a meeting of all Guernsey breed
ers of the county would be held
at the community building on
Friday. March 7 at 7:30 p. m., to
discuss the possibilities of a coun
ty unit in connection with the
State organization.
Mr. Quessenberry stated that
this meeting was being called be
cause of the interest of the
Guernsey breeders of the county.
“I would like to insist that all
breeders of Guernsey cattle,
even though they only have one
or tw r o registered animals, be
present at this meeting to help
decide the need of an organiza
tion and whether or not we
should go ahead with it at this
time,” he said.
T. F. Cooley, manager of Klon
dike Farm, at Elkin, is expected
(Continued on Page 4)
Schools Expected
To Re-Opeu Mou.
Ashe county schools which
were closed on Wednesday of
last week because of the heavy
snowfall are expected to re
open on Monday provided that
the roads over which the buses
travel, can be cleared.
B. H. Duncan, superinten
dent of schools said yesterday
that the highway department
had done some work on these
roads, and in some cases, be
cause of the constantly drift
ing snow, this work had to be
done over again.
He pointed out that provid
ed that there was no more
sleet or snow, most of the bus
routes should be open for
travel by Monday.
Burns Fatal To Bryan Blevins;
Home Destroyed By Fire At
Phenix Creek Tues. Morning
Farm Planning
Meetings Have
Been Postponed
Revised Schedule Announced;
Unfavorable Weather Is
Cause Os Change
The farm planning meetings
scheduled to open on Monday
have been postponed because of
the unfavorable weather and the
impassable condition of many of
the roads and will open on Fri
day evening if the weather per
mits. H. D. Quessenberry. county
agent announced yesterday.
At these meetings farmers will
I have an opportunity to discuss
production, price and the market
| outlook for important crops of;
this section.
. Representatives of all farm
I agencies of the county including
J. T. McLaurin, soil conservation
ist, Thomas H. Sears, FHA sup-
I ervisor, representatives of the
AAA office are expected to co-
i operate with the county agents in
these meetings.
In addition to the discussions,
a sound motion picture will be
presented.
The revised schedule is as fol
lows:
Friday, February 28, Helton
i school, at 7:00 p. m.; Monday,
I March 3, Riverview school, at
7:00 p. m.; Tuesday. March 4,
Green Valley school, at 7:30 p.
I m.; Wednesday, March 5, Idle
wild, at T. E. Hartsog’s, at 7:00
p. m.
More Ashe Farmers Urged To
Use Contour Strip Cropping
James T. McLaurin and Roy R.
Beck, of the Ashe unit of the
New River Soil Conservation Dis
trict, this week stressed the
importance of farmers making
plans for the current year, to in
clude more contour strip crop
ping.
It was pointed out that con
tour strip cropping was first
started in this county around
eight years ago. And from the
first few who then saw the need,
the practice has grown to such
an extent that more than 600
farmers will be strip cropping
parts of their farms this year.
“We hope that more and more
farmers will start this practice.
So far not one gall or gulley has
appeared in a field where strips
of the correct width are on the
exact contour and all natural
draws have been kept in per
manent grass of adequate depth.
Invariably farmers report in
creased crop yields within a few
Funeral Will Be Held This
Morning At Scott Ceme
tery At Phenix Creek
Fire took its first victim of the
year in Ashe county on Tuesday
afternoon, when severe burns
sustained by Bryan Blevins, 21.
son of Mrs. Rhoda Blevins, earlier
in the day, proved fatal. He
died at the Ashe county hospital
at 4:45 o'clock.
As far as it could be deter
mined, the fire, which totally de
stroyed the Blevins home at Phe
nix Creek, below Jefferson,
around 7:30 o’clock, Tuesday
morning, originated when a coal
burning heatrola exploded set
ting the wooden structure ablaze.
Both Bryan and his mother, the
only occupants of the home at the
time, were able to make their
way out. But shortly after
wards, thinking his mother had
re-entered the building, Bryan
went in again in search of her.
It was then that he was severely
burned before he discovered she
was not on the inside. A motor
ist passing by, brought the injur
ed man to the hospital imme
diately, when it was found his
burns were critical.
The building and all of its fur
nishings were totally destroyed
and were without insurance cov
erage, it is understood.
Funeral service will be held
today at 11 o’clock at Shelter
church. Burial will follow in the
Scott cemetery.
In addition to his mother, the
deceased is survived by two
brothers, Allan Blevins, Jeffer
son; L. H. Blevins, Charlotte, four
(Continued on Page 4)
years after changing from solid
field cropping to contour strip
■ cropping.” McLaurin said.
i Strip cropping, combined with
■ contour tillage, crop rotations,
i winter cover crops, and grassed
waterways has been proved by
both experiment stations and
farmers to be very economica'
and effective and one of tho most
practical means of conserving
soil and water on cultivated land.
I Mr. Beck pointed out in discuss
. ing the practice.
“Contour strip cropping di
vides the length of the slope
checks the momentum of run
off water, filters out the soil be-
J ing carried off. and increases the
absorption of rain water by the
soil. This is accomplished by the
1 multitude of obstructions offered
by the dense close-growing crops
in alternate strips, which by
slowing down the rapid flow of
water cause it to spread and soak
(Continued On Page 4)
«««imi
Need Is Great;
Cooperation Os
Everyone Asked
H. D. Quessenberry Is Chair
man: Initial Gifts
Are Sought
Ashe county's Red Cross Cam
paign Fund Drive will officially
open on Saturday, March 1 with
H. D. Quessenberry as drive
chairman.
The county's quota has been
set at $2330 and the cooperation
of everyone is asked in raising
this. Special letters for initial
gifts have already gone out and
a number of workers will also
make solicitations, it was an
nounced.
Sharpe S. Shoemaker is co
chairman with H. D. Quessen
berry and other special aids in
clude Mrs. Ward Ray. Miss Lenna
Gambill. L. P. Colvard and Rocco
Cutri.
Mrs. W. G. Vannoy, chapter
chairman said that since 65 per
cent of the funds raised would
remain in the local chapter, she
felt like Ashe county people
would be most anxious to sup
port the drive. "Knowing the
large number of men in service
and veterans aided by the Red
Cross, should be an incentive to
give,” she declared.
Drive Chairman Quessenberry,
a veteran of World War 11, said
that he believed that all families
of men in service as well as all
others knowing of the invaluable
service rendered by the Red
Cross should give their whole
hearted support to the campaign.
Schools will not make special
drives as in times past, but have
been asked to raise some con
tributions.
A number of special worker*
have been named for the county.
They include: Mrs. V. C. Lillard,
Creston; Mrs. J. J. Miller, Todd;
James Graham. Transou; Mrs.
Mathew Reynolds, Grassy Creek;
Mrs. Claudia Johnson. Warrens
ville; Mrs. Fred Graybeal, Fig;
Bruce Graybeal, Fig; Mrs. Ed
Eller, Lansing: Mrs. Bryan Kirby,
Sturgills: H. H. Burgess. Obids;
Mrs. E. V. Pierce. Crumpler; and
W. S. Watson, Beng. Other work
ers and committees are to be
named within a short time Chair
man Quessenberry said.
Clothing Drive
Still Underway
I Needs Os European Countries
Cited; Some Collections
Already Taken
, In an effort to aid the hundreds
of thousands in war-torn Europe
that are suffering from lack of
clothing, a drive to collect
| clothes is now being sponsored
by the three churches here. Some
' collections were made over the
I
week end, but because of the un
favorable weather, the drive is to
be continued to enable more peo
ple to make contributions.
Those who have clothing to
give and have not turned theirs
in are asked to contact Rev. Hoyt
Wood, pastor of the West Jeffer
son Methodist church. Rev. E. W.
Powers, pastor of the West Jef
ferson Baptist church, or Rev.
W. P. Boyle, pastor of the West
Jefferson Presbyterian church,
j It was pointed out that use
■ ful clothing that has as much as
1 six months’ wear is needed. When
! it is all collected and sorted it
will be shipped abroad.
Movie Will Be
Shown At Rotary
,
A moving picture pertaining to
. the dairy industry will be given
I by Harvey Payne at the Rotary
■ meeting tonight. “John Martin
■ and Son" is the title of the movie
i which is produced by the Nation-
I al Dairy Products Corporation. J.
I Lester Segraves will be in charge
of the program.
Raymond Francis was guest
speaker at the club last Thurs
day and spoke on “The Life of
George Washington.” giving not
only highlights of his life as a
statesman, but as Washington,
the man. The speaker was in
troduced by Hoyt 'Wood. Earl
Davidson was in charge of the
program.