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Published every Thursday by the FrankHn Press
At Franklin, North Carolina
vol lxiii ' Number forty
WEIMAR JONES.... r"ir Editor-Publisher
Entered at the Post Office, Franldin, N. C., as second class matter
Telephone No. 24
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R
The Bell Is Ringing
FCFNTLY, on Sunday, the church hells in
.Franklin, Macon County; and throughout the
land rang from 11:55 a. m. until 12 noon. I hey
rang to call the people to prayer for world peace.
National events and the international scene have
brought about the return of an old tradition. In the
early days of this country and before in the coun
tries of our ancestors, in times of need or emergen
cy when the people were needed the church bells
rang to call them together. Sometimes action was
needed; sometimes the problem seemed almost be
yond the ability of mere man to solve, so the call
was for prayer.
Today, nationally, we are a mass of conflicting
forces and interests pushing and pulling against
each other, leaving the individual bewildered and
confused as to where he should turn. He cannot
find a group that is considering today's problems
with the view of settling them for the common
good, but, instead, each asks, "How will my special
interests be affected?" The "isms" communism, fas
cism, commercialism, and all the rest are at work
throughout the various phases of our everyday life
to promote their special group above the rest. Un
fortunately, in most cases, even, these special inter
est groups are controlled by domineering men who
through "executive power for the sake of effici
ency" slyly take care of their own selfish interests.
Internationally, Whild the patterns differ, the re
sult, as it effects you and me is pretty much the
same. Fortunately, here in America we are still al
lowed to raise our voice in praise or criticism, but
the individual's small voice is usually drowned out
by the loud blare of one or more special interest
groups.
When the church bells rang they sounded a call ?
a call to you and me to turn our ears away from
the platitudes of ambitious leaders; to turn our
backs on selfish groups and unite, each as individ
uals of the same worth, in striving for world pcacc.
The answers to today's problenVs will not come
from the lips of any one leader, nor from a smalL
group of successful businessmen, industrialists, mil
itary leaders, politicians- or churchmen.
\V hen the answers are found, they will come from
the hearts of thousands of common folk who have
decided to turn their backs to the crys of any spe
cial group and work together in everyday life for
i he good of man. Prayer together would be a great
force in bringing this about.
That is why when the bell rings as it should time
and time again in the future ? you and I should ans
wer the call to come together to meet the crisis.
The call will be for us.
A Dangerous Situation
Cement is scarcer than hen's teeth, but in writ
ing editorials, when an impulse hits you, you better
tend to it.
We realize that, due to the difficulty in obtaining
cemcnt at present, this is not an opportune time to
suggest to the town officials that they build a side
walk, but having the impulse, we would like to call
it to their attcntibn. They can take action on the
matter when' the supply of cement increases.
From Lee Poinderttcr's filling station to the city
limit in East Franklin the traffic, both automobi.e
and pedestrian, is very heavy. Particularly is this
true along t'he stretch from Poindexter's to the in
tersection of the Dillsboro and Highlands highways.
Since there is no sidewalk along here people are
either forced to walk in the highway, dodging a
constant stream of automobiles and trucks, or walk
on the shoulder of the road. Whcne\cr it rains or
in the winter ev6n on sunny days which thaws the
ground, the path along the should is very muddy
causing the people to take their chances on the
paved highway.
Unless something is done someday a pedestrian
will be killed, or a car will swerve to avoid hitting
someone who is walking on the highway and cause
a bad wreck in which several people might be killed
6r seriously, injured.
A sidewalk would be cheaper.
? i ii ? ? ?
LETTERS i
SCOUT LEADERS LIKE AREA
Editor, The Prese;
A cordial "how-do-you-do", a hearty hancUhaM, taking time
to pleasantly tell a stranger how to find hla way to Aquone, or
gowg out or the way to do a favor, may be the way, the one
way to lead a itranger to like your town or your county or
your state. People like friendly people, and friendly people seek
out and like to be with other friendly people. From what some
of the Scout people tell me, Macon County folk seem to be a
wealthy sort, wealthy in friendliness ; not to mention wealth in
worldy goods and other kinds of possessions.
Within the last few months some seventy-five to one hun
dred stout-hearted Scouting men from four states have become
personal admirers of the Nantahaia mountains and the people
who live in and around them. These men have come to your
town, to your county, and to your mountains and found whole
some and friendly people "there. They have seen the beauties
and grandeur of the Nantahalas, have tasted the sweetness of
Maccn County sourwood honey and luscious country hams.
They have come to like your country, not because one, but
many of your people made them feel welcome and at home.
It started something like this; Back about a couple of years
ago, Mr John Alsup, Mr. E. W. Renshaw, Mr. Qllmer Jones, Mr
Burt Slagle and others met Mr. Herbert Stuckey, who Is a
regional officer of the Boy Scouts of America, and found that
he was interested in promoting Senior Scouting camps tor the
young men of the South, where they could enjoy the thrills
and adventures of the Carolina mountains. These men of
Franklin made Mr. Stuckey feel at home. They took him to
the Rotary club. They made him feci that Macon county
people believe in the .Boy Scout movement as one of the na
tion's most valuable movements for youth. They found out
that Mr. Stuckey was making a study of various mountain
areas for potential Senior Scout trail camping and hiking.
Without any frills Of make-be-ileves your men there showed
genuine and consistent interest in a worthy cause.
Mr. Stuckey Is just one a.. long thousands of people who
happen to go to your town, but he got a rather special feeling
that there is a genuine and sincere hospitality amongst Macon
County people- When I gq into a store and make a purchase,
piay^e only of a pair of socks, the salesperson says "thanks,
come to see us again"- Well, Mr. stuckey was invite^ back to
Franklin, and he got the feeling that the Rotarians and the
other men meant it. The Chamber of Commerce, the U. S.
Forest Service offered to cooperate. Mr. Clint Johnson of the
Forest Service volunteered and took him to see many of the
outstanding areas of the Nantahalas,'' such as; Wayah Bald,
Whiteoak Bottoms, Nantahaia Lake, Santeetlah Lake, Joyce
Kilmer Memorial Forest and other beauty spots.
Mr. Stuckey's heart was warpied by your people and he, with
other members of the regional Scout staff, aocepted Mr. Gilmer
Jones' hospitality In offering his treasured "High Haven" camp
for them to use for one week last year. An expedition of prom
inent Scout leaders from North and South Carolina, Georgia
and Florida was organized under Mr. Stuckey's leadership.
They went to "High Haven" on Wayah Bald and conducted a
.series of experiments and trail hiking projects in June last year
and July this year Men in thes* expeditions came from many
walks of life. Among them was a -Florida judge, a Georgia tax
commissioner, a state health olficer, an air force officer, na
tional directors of Scouting from New York, a representative
of the national museum, and several Senior' Scouts who were
selected on an honor basis to participate.
In these expeditions the men have studied the Appalachian
Trail in the Nantahalas, the lakes, the mountain peaks, the
streams and the entire environment. They have particularly
been interested in the wholesomenass of the people In these i
areas. They used "High Haven" camp as a base for operations.
They learned to love that spot. The people of Macon County
and adjoining counties will be interested in knowing that these
expeditions have led to the recommendation that Senior Scout
units of all scout councils in the sixth region (North Carolina,
South Carolina, Georgia and Florida) make use of certain spots
in the Nantahalas (with proper clearance) as Senior Scout
hike and trail base camps. The specilic spots on their recom- 1
mended list include the following; "High Haven" camp, White
oak Bottoms, Standing Indian mountain, Wayah Crest, Swim
Bald, Cook Place near Fontana Lake, Fontaaa Lake itself, and
an area next to Joyce Kilmer Forest.
As time conies and goes you may be seeing crews of Senior |
Scouts (young men 15 and up) treklng into the Nantahalas with 1
their compact pack sacks, pup tents, adventurous hearts and
ravenous appetites to explore the many mountain peaks as I
they stand as guardians of the peoples of the valleys and the I
little people of the wild forests, to hike the enchanting Appa- '
lachian Trail and absorb the splendor of your lovely land.
Thus a ripple on the waters becomes a bounding wave. The
grand spirit, the homey hospitality and the sterling friendli
ness of your people are wooing many strangers to your town
and countryside. Scouting leaders and Senior Scouts like your
, country and they like you.
JON JEFFERSON.
Atlanta, Ga.
POETRY CORNER
Conducted by
EDITH DEADEWCK ERSKINE
Weaverville, N. C.
Sf'" wrr.l by Ashe; ille Branch, National League of American Pen Women
TAPESTRY
The still blue wonder of the sky.
At Autumn-earth's clear color-cry I
The pine trees stir in soft amaze
At the changing beauty of her days . . .
Only the butterflies, born of fall,
Dec.n it not unusual?
Driitlng, dreamy here and there
Like painted wings on the painted air.
' BESS HINSON HIKES,
Highlands and California.
ALCHEMY
First love Is like the dawn
Full of joy and singing
Plum boughs and nectar cupf
White blossoms clinging.
Last love is like the night
Silent and complete
Life seasons it with sorrow
To keep the nectar sweet.
MARIE H ALBERT KINO,
Ashevllle, N. C.
? Others' Opinions ?
"TWO DRINKS DON'T HURT ME"
If you are one of those "two-drinks-don't hurt- me!" guys,
here's something to think about:
The 1948 edition of "Accident Facts", statistical yearbook of
te National Safety Council, shows that one out of every five
drivers involved in fatal motor vehicle accidents In 1947 had
(?en drinking.
Special studies Indicate that drivers who Indulge In only a
lew drinks are three or four times more likely to have an ac
cident than those who refrain from drinking If they drive. And i
drivers who are heavy drinkers are OS time* more likely to <
have an accident. i
The yearbook also points out that one out of every four adult '
nrdestrlans killed in traffic accidents last year had been drink- i
ing. I
-The Newi-Herald, Morf anion, X, 0, 1
Nantahala Forest Pays
Off In Crops Of Trees,
Game, Water, Tourists
By CHESTER S. DAVIS
(EDITOR'S NOTE; The
following article, which ap
peared recently In the Win
(ton -Salem Sunday Jjuraal
Sentinel, waa written aJt^r
Mr. D?ri? bad spent consid
erable time in this and ad'
joining countits studying th;
NantahaU Forest and the
results of forest conserva
tion and multiple-use.)
In the past it has been cus
tomary to think of our rfljU.;
tain counties as being bits ed
with a great wealtn ot natural
resources. However, when you
get down to the cold business
of inventorying those natural
resources the result is disap
pointing.
The soil of the CarU.ua
mountains is suitable for pro
ducing a crop of trees and n,l
much else. There is good farm
iana on tne narrow valiey flojrt
and along the mouths of tin
larger coves, but the acreage
of arable uuid in that tum_Ku
country is limited.
Of course you have the moun
tain scenery i.nu lae mouut-ii,
climate and the tracery o
streams which drain the neavj
rains off the land. When you list
these things? not forgetting tnt
native-born mountain p.o^le
you have come close to catalog
ing the natural resources of
Western North Carolina.
But the test of any region 1
not so much Its resources as it
Is the way in which those re
source# have been used- Until
rather recently the wealth oi
our western mountain counties
has not been used wisely.
Because the country was re
mote aad difficult to penetrate
it wasn't until the last years o?
the 19th century that the lum
ber companies appeared to lo^ i
the timber.
Clean Out Forest
Working on the then-prevail
ing philosophy that the co^n
try's stock ot commercial lum
ter was unlimited, these com
panies cleaned oat tra?t aitti
tract. They cleaned them out to
the last saw log and, in theii
operation, smashed and trampl
eu down the seed stock of tne
future.
For a time it was boom. Saw
mills and lumber crews provided
employment and the muuntaii.
people had cash in their pock
ets. Then, when most of the
land had been cut over, it was
bust. Where the timber was
gone those people were left t_
their hill -side farms and to tht.
slim diet of mountain scenery,
mountain climate, rain ano
rivers.
In the days before the auto
mobile put wings on the itcnin
feet of the American tourist, the
scenery and climate had little
commercial value. Inadequate
transportation prevented indus
try from making use of the
abundant flow of gin-clear
water. ? ,
Admittedly this is an over
simplified presentation. But it
serves to explain why, at least
until 25 years ago, the western
counties of North Carolina
were accurately described as the
Lost Provinces, the poverty-rid
den country cousins of this state.
The day when the counties of
Piedmont and Costal Carolina
can look down their noses at
the mountain folk is over. Now
when we look to the west there
is something like envy in our
eyes. Our country cousins are
doing very nicely for themselves
and making the most of the na
tural resources available to
them.
Four National Farests
How did the change come
about?
There are many answers to '
that question but in any ans- J
swer you are bound to hear a
good deal about the quiet, ef- ,
fectlve work which has been
done by the men of the United
States Forest Service.
In 1911, congress, disturbed by
the condition of the nation s
navigable streams, authorized
the establishment of national
forests In the Eastern United I
States. In 1924 the legislators
passed the Clarke-McNary act
and gave the Forest Service the
power to buy cut-over &nd
worn-out lands and to use this
acerage to produce timber.
Year after year the men In
green purchased tracts of land,
frequently after commercial
companies had logged and left.
Working jig-saw fashion, these
tracts gradually were built In
to national forests.
Today there are four national
forests In North Carolina: the
Coratan on the coast, the Uw
harrle in the Piedmont and the
great Plsgah and Nantahala Na
tional Forests In the mountains.
(For administrative purpose,
the Croatan and the Uwharrle
are handled as parts of the
Plsgah Forest).
Million Acres
These four forests blanket
jomethlng like one million acres
of Carolina tlmberland. Their
size alone makes them impor
tant to the economy of this
itate. But ilze U only a part of
the story. A visit to the Nanta
ult National Forest will con- 1
vtnce you on that score.
mo JN?.iuihaia loicst Wad
eotaullshed as a purchase unit
in 1911. it became a national
iOi cot by Pre^luentlal proclama
tion In 1920. Today the Nanta
nala forest covin all or parts oi
tne seven counties lgoeled in
the southwestern to* Of this
state.
At the present time 377,000
acres are publicly owned- most
of It purchased in the $2-10
an-acre price range. However,
the Nantahala (orest is scatter
? ' o er a gross area of 1,366,
000 acres.
? The Nantahala is not a wild
erness. Home 60,000 people live
within its boundaries and their
iarms, homes and villages are
considered "non-purctuu^oie' oy
the Forest Service. The pur
chaseable land-land suited to
timber use and little else? totals
something like 918,000 acres, in
ume the Nantahala forest will
approach that size.
E. W. Renshaw, supervisor of
.ne Nantahala, was born in the
Clearwater country oi Idaho and
raised In the shadow of a pon
derosa pine. Educated as a for
ester, Mr. Renshaw spent his.
early years In the service work
,ng in tne forests ot Idaho,
iJKe most men from the horse
uid -cattle country, where rope
ourns are an occupational haz
ard, he would just as soon ap
pear in public without his shirt
as without his soft-leather
gloves.
Backed by a staff of 32 reg
ular employes and from 10 to
>0 seasonal workers, Mr. Ken
ihaw runs the show in the Nan
tahala. It is a big show. There
s fire protection, the mainte
nance and operation of ten fire
.owers, 250 miles of road, 320>
niles of trail and 305 miles of
telephone lines. Except during,
?.he depression, when tnere were
jarrels of WPA dollars and
amps full of CCC manpower,
.his work has been done by
keleton crews frequently ft
.ianced .by what must have
eemed to be a phantom budget.
Fire and Other Problems
Fire protection is essential.
Jefore tne forests of the South
ern Appalachians were estab
ished troni 30-50% of the for
ested land burned over annual
ly. Today this loss has been cut
o less than one-tenth of one
per cent. But fire protection rep
ssents only one phase? a nega
.ive phase at that? of the Forest
Jervice program.
Mr. Renshaw puts it this way:
"Forests like the Nantahala
were created In order that the
?and resources could be used
or the best advantage of the
greatest number of people. Over
.he years this general goal has
oaken the shape ot a loiu
jronged program. The four
.rongs are:
"1. The protection of the for
ast watersheds.
"2. The growing and harvest
ing of the forest crop,
"3. The restocking, managing
and harvesting of the annual
crops of fish and game,
"4. The preservation and de
velopment of the forest's recre
ational possibilities."
These are more than lofty
ideals. In the Nantahala Na
tional Forest each phase of this
multiple-use policy is backed by
a program which presently is:
producing results. Take water
shed protection as an example:
The Nantahala forest blankets
a country of heavy (50 to' 100
inches) annual rainfall. Some
thing like 6,000 tons of water Is
drained off every acre of land
In the forest each year. This
water provides one of the great
resources of Western North Car
1 olina.
Power Dams Built
The Nantahala Power and
Light company, a subsidiary of
the Aluminum Company of
America, has built a number of
power dams within the Nanta
hala forest. More recently great
dams have been raised In this
same area by the TVA. Today
there are some 30,000 acres of
man-made lakes In the forest.
They range from lakes of lees
than 100 acres (Queens Creek
and Sapphire) on up to such
sprawling giants as Fontana
(almost 10,000 acres) and Hl
wassee (7,000 acres).
As sources of power (planned
potential of about 600,000 kilo
watt hours) and as tools for
controlling floods along: the
Tennessee, Ohio and Mississippi
Rivers, these mountain lakes are
Immensely valuable. They will
remain valuable just as long as
their watersheds are protected
and they do not fill with silt.
This Job of protection is
handled by the Forest Service.
When the work began the serv
ice knew little or nothing about
the water-absorbing ability of
forest cover. To find the answers
and learn the techniques of In
telligent watershed management,
the Service launched a unique
experiment In the Coweeta
mountains near Franklin, seat
of Macon County.
The fundamental research
under way at Coweeta already
has provided Information which
(ContlBMd on Back Paf?)