PROGRESSIVE
LIBERAL
INDEPENDENT
VOL. L, NO. 49
FRANKLIN, N. C, THURSDAY, DEC. 5, 1935
$1.50 PER YEAR
POLL RESULTS
DRAW INTEREST
Surveys of Public Opinion
Indicate Close Race
In 1936
(Special to The Pre-Mconian)
WASHINGTON, Dec. 4. Official
Washington is displaying great in
terest in Presidential polls these
days. The one that has attracted
the most attention is the poll re
cently completed by newspapers
served- by Publishers Autocaster
Service, which, reflecting as it does
rural and small-town opinion ex
clusively, is regarded as highly
significant. If there were a wide
variation between, the results shown
by the different efforts to get at a
cross-section of national political
views at this time, Washington
might not be so interested, but
when the Autocaster poll, the Lit
erary Digest poll, so far as its
preliminary results have been dis
closed, the Gallup noil, and the
poll taken a short time ago by
Robert J. Lucas, all agree within
a fraction of one per cent," and
everv one of them shows a mark
ed decline in the strength of Presi-.
dent Roosevelt's support, the total
effect is impressive.
All the oolls anre in giving Mr
Rnosevelt- still the best of it, by
approximately 53 per cent to 47
per cent. Even the roost opti
mistic of the Administration's po
litical soothsayers are now conced
inc more or less openly that it
looks as if it would be a close
election in 1936. However, a lot
of things can happen in a year
From Ham On
Some of the things which the
President's friends are hoping will
happen are a strong up-swing in'
business conditions, the failure ot
the Opposition to develop real
leadershio and a subsidence of the
thifd party agitation. The latter
contingency, as things look now,
can probably be dismissed as un
likely to be strongly enough con
centrated anywhere to affect the
electoral vote.
As to leadership in the Repub
lican Party, something may develop
at the annual meetimr of the Re
publican National Committee to be
held here this month, which will
clarify the issues upon which the
Onnnsition will make its stand. The
v r r - ,
man who succeeds in putting for-1
ward a program on which all Ke
nublicans can unite will certainly
show evidence of leadership. How
to overcome the political effect of
the AAA without losing great
blocks of farm votes is a puzzle
to which no Republican political
leader has so far given the ans
wer.
The stroneest element in Mr
Roosevelt's favor, as matters now
stand, is that business is definitely
improving and that all the signs
point to further improvement. The
stock market boom is not regarded
here as dangerous, bovernor ce
des of the Federal Reserve Board
pointed out the other day that it
(Continued on Page Eight)
'Over the Top'
Legion Post Wins Award
In Membership Drive
... X
The Macon countv post of the
American Legion is the proud pos
sessor of a service certificate
awarded to it for "going over the
top in a membership drive launch
ed October 1.
Receiot of the certificate was
announced this week bv A. R. Hig
don, post adjutant. G. A. Jones is
post commander. The citation was
sent to the local cost bv J. M.
Caldwell, North Carolina depart
ment adiutant.
A quota of 32 memberships, new
and renewals, had been set for the
post, and it turned in 33. Sixteen
of the memberships were reported
by Boise Hall, who thereby quali
fied for an American Legion foun
tain oen award.
The local post, which several
months ago purchased the Allman
building on West Main street, has
fixed up a room on the second
floor fof a meeting hall.
Warm Springs Greet Their Illustrious Guest
HylPI Bp:: '"''wl
Keep smiling
SHOP EARLY
Only 16
Shopping Days
tiU
Christmas
GOAL REACHED
BY RED CROSS
200 Memberships Reported
In Annual Macon
County Drive
The Macon" county chapter of
the American Red Cross this week
reached the goal of 200 member
ships set for its 1935 roll call, it
was announced Wednesday by the
Rev. J. A Flanagan, chairman of
the chapter. ,
Reports by roll call workers dur
ing the week brought to an even
200 the number of memberships
turned in since the drive started
on Armistice Day. A few reports
are still to be received and it is
hoped the number of memberships
will climb still further, the roll
call, however, officially ended on
Thanksgiving Day. The Rev. Frank
Bloxham, rector of the Episcopal
churches in Highlands and Frank
lin, was chairman of the member
ship campaign this year.
21l Raited
Of the 200 memberships reported,
76 were from Highlands and 124
from Franklin 'and rural communi
ties in the county. Most of the
memberships were at $1 each, but
a few were for larger sums, the
total amount of cash raised was
reDorted as $216. Fifty cents of
each membership fee will be re
tained by the local Red Cross
Chanter for use in the county,
while the balance will be sent to
the national organization.
..New Member
Followine is a list of new Red
Cross memberships reported during
the past week:
HIGHLANDS - C. F. Kedden,
Mrs. C. F. Redden, Frazer Redden,
the Rev. C. R. McCarty. Mrs. C.
R. McCarty, Mrs. Lyman Zachary,
J. E. Hicks.
FRANKLIN M rs. C. C. Herbert,
Jr.; Mrs. L T. Sloan, Gordon
Moore, George Carpenter, r. w.
Porter, Sr., Miss Elizabeth Slagle,
Mrs. H, O. Cozad, Miss Margaret
Cozad, ' Dr. Gillespie, Mrs. Pearl
Franks, Philip H. Bryan, Mrs. Phil
ip H. Bryan, Ralph Womack, Carl
Slagle, Will Waldroop, Ben Harri
son Miss Amanda Slagle, William
Reeves, J. L. Beshears, L. O. Cope,
Mrs, Jack Sanders, Mrs. T. W.
Porter. Sr.. Mrs. Joseph Ashear,
Mrs. M. A. Rogers, Harold Sloan,
Lester Henderson, Mrs. U1 a.
Rtwurn Sr. Moses Blumenthal.
Trof" Horn, Harley Cabe, Mrs.
Elizabeth Guffey, Miss Florence
Stalcuo. Dr. W. E. Furr. E. E.
Sypher, Gilmer A. Jones, R. S.
Jones, Mrs. J. W. C. Johnson.
COUNTY Mrs. Matt Liner, Ut
to; Mrs. Dave Howard, Aquone;
C. N. West, West's Mill; A. L.
McLean. West's Mill: Dr. T. L.
West. Tr.. West's Mill: Carl Sor-
rells Sunday school class. Wests
Mill.
w a t?m spbtnoh On Patients in the Warm Snrinff Foundation here.
look forward through the. year to the arrival of their illustrious toastmaster,!
President Roosevelt, for their Thanksgiving Day dinner. Photo shows the
joyful greetings of the little folks upon the arrival of the President last
weak, for his annual sojourn with them over Thanksgiving.
BOARD CHOSEN
BY FEDERATION
Plans for Opening Local
Store on Dec. 14
Announced
Named
Town Fire Chief Succeed
ing John Cunningham
Derald Ashe was elected chief
of Franklin's volunteer fire depart
ment Tuesday night by the town
council following the resignation
earlier in the day of John L Cun
ningham, who had held the posi
tion since June 1. The job car
ries a salary -of $10 a month, fire
men's insurance benefits and pay
ment of telephone rental by the
town.
Prior to Mr. Cunningham's ap
pointment .to the job Mr. Ashe had
been fire chief for four years.
WP A WORKERS
HAVEPAY-DAY
139 Men on 4 Projects Get
Checks; Others To Be
Paid Soon
TWO CONVICTS
HAKE ESCAPE
Two convicts who escaped from
the state convict camp near here
Sunday were reported still at large
today.
The escaped men were Dorus
Sisk, 25. of Cherryville, and Olin
Fereuson. 31. of Rocky Mount, Va.
Risk who was reported to have
escaped twice before, was original
ly sentenced to three to five years
for burglary, but the sentence had
heen increased to 10 years. Fer
guson had served all but a few
months of a five-year term for
burglary.
The two men were missed when
nrisoners were checked into their
quarters Sunday night. The pris
oners, both of drade r rank, are
believed to have obtained Grade A
uniforms and "walked off." Grade
A uniforms are not striped.
Two men answering the descrip
tions of the escaped convicts were
reported to have had breakfast with
a farmer in the Cartoogechaye sec
tion Monday morning. Later they
were tracked south to the Skeenah
section, and it is thought possible
that they fled to Georgia.
Dorothy Blumenthal, 14,
Struck by Automobile
Struck by a car while on her
way to school Wednesday morning,
Dorothy Blumenthal, 14-year-old
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Moses
Blumenthal, was knocked down and
suffered a cut on her forehead.
The wound was treated at the hos
pital and the child returned to
school. Mrs. F. M. Tessier was
reported to have been driving the
car. The accident occurred at Por
ter and Palmer streets,
Today was pay-day for 135 labor
ers and four foremen on Works
Progress Administration projects in
Macon county. The payroll, the
first recened here since the WrA
nroeram was launched about the
o -
middle of October, was estimated
by Frank I. Murray, manager of
the Macon county reemploymet
office, at $2,757. Another payroll,
for workers on other WPA pro
jects, Mr. Murray said, is expected
about Monday.
With 883 men and women now
employed on 19 WPA projects in
the county, the full monthly pay
roll will amount to more than
seventeen thousand dollars.
Those receiving pay today were:
30 men and iereman on road pro
iect at Liberty: 30 men and fore
man on road project at Rose Creek ;
50 men. foreman and subforeman
on auarrv project at Riverside, and
25 men and foreman on road pro
ject at Clarke s Chapel. These
were the first WPA projects to
get under way in this county.
Wage ScaU
Laborers on WPA projects are
paid $19 a month; semi-skilled la
borers, including truck drivers, $27
a month, and foremen, $48 a month.
They are required to work 130
hours a month.
Mr. Murray received a telegram
Saturday from Mrs. May Thomp
son Evans, state supervisor of the
National Reemployment Service.
stating that Macon county had
been one of the first to complete
the task of transferring men and
women on relief rolls to reem
ployment lists and to put them to
work on Works Progress projects.
The task was completed last week
and emergency relief virtually stop-
Ded bv Saturday. A few workers
are still at the relief office, how
ever, to handle off ice matters. Mrs.
G. A. Tones, former head of the
relief office, is now in charge of
women s work under the WrA and
has moved her office from the re
lief headquarters in the Osborne
building to the WPA headquarters
in the former W. L. Higdon resi
dence on Main street.
With Lawrence Ramsey as man
ager, a store and warehouse will
be opened by the Farmers Federa
tion, Inc., in the Franks building
on East Main street on Saturday,
Dec. 14, it was announced Tuesday
by James G. K. McClure, of Ashe
ville, president and general man
ager of the federation.
Organization of the Macon
county branch of the federation
took place at a meeting of the
stockholders in the courthouse Sat
urday afternoon. More than 300
persons were present, representing
all sections of the county. A board
of directors of 10 members was
selected at this meeting, being ap
proved unanimously after it had
been proposed by a nominating
committee consisting of A. L. Ram
sey, E. V. Ammons and J. W.
Hastings.
Board of Directors
Members of the board are Jim
Holbrooks, W. D. Barnard, E. B.
Byrd, Jim Young, Bill Higdon, J.
Vinson. Take Addington, Jerry
Franklin, Carl Slagle and E. B.
)eHart.
Immediately following the meet
ing of the stockholders the direc
tors held their organization meet
ing and elected Carl Slagle as
chairman.
Meeting again oh Tuesday after
noon, the directors approved a lease
of the storeroom in the Franks
building formerly occupied by the
Ledford Furniture store: elected
Lawrence Ramsey as manager of
the store and Mr. DeHart as as
sistant manager.
Mr. Ramsev. a well known far
mer of the Iotla section, was until
recentlv superintendent of the Ma
con county prison camp. Mr. De-
Hart was formerly a clerk in the
local Do&toffice and for a while
operated a feed and grocery store.
The store leased by the federa
tion was vacated by the Ledford
Furniture company Tuesday. The
Farmers Federation is expected to
begin stocking the store during the
next week. The federation will
sell feeds, fertilizers, seed and
staple groceries. It also plans to
buy farm products from members.
479 Shares Subscribed
R: Church Crowell, vice presi
dent of the federation, who has
been in Macon county for two
months soliciting members, report
ed Tuesday that 479 shares of
stock, common and preferred, had
been subscribed. A goal of 400
shares had been set for the coun
ty.
Another meeting of the Macon
county stockholders of the federa
tion has been called for 10:30 a.
m. the day the store opens in
Franklin. , The meeting will be,
held in the store. Mr. McClure
urged that all members attend. Be
fore and after the meeting the
(Continued on Page Eight)
Relief Ended
In her telegram to Mr. Murray
Mrs. Evans complimented him on
the prompt and efficient manner
in which he oreanized the reem
ployment office for launching the
WPA program, .
Ledford Furniture Store
In New Quarters
The Ledford Furniture company
moved its store Wednesday from
the Franks building on East Main
street to the Cunningham building
on the public square. The store
formerly occupied by the furniture
company has been leased by the
Farmers Federation, Inc., which
plans to open a store and ware
house there on Saturday, Dec. 14.
Dr. Townsend To Speak
Saturday in Asheville
A number of Macon county resi
dents are expected to go to Ashe
ville Saturday to hear Dr. Francis
E. Townsend, originator of the
Townsegd plan of old age pen
sions, speak at the Buncombe
county courthouse at 2 p. m. An
admission fee will be charged.