(lit* Jfitnnkiin
nttit
?hr Migltlnnits JKattfruatt
Entered at Poet Office, Franklin, N. C.. as second class matter
Published every Thursday by The Franklin Press
Franklin. N. C. Telephone 34
JONE8
Editor
I 8. SLOAN Business Manager
J. P BRADY News Editor
MISS BETTY LOU POUTS Office Manager
OA&L P CABE Mechsntoal Superintendent
PRANK A. 8TABRETTE Shop Superintendent
OA VXD H 8UTTON Stereotyper
CHARLES E WffiTTIN OTON Plfisfiisn
SUBSCRIPTION RATE8
Outside Macon Couwtt Insxbs Macon Couwtt
One Tear $3.00 One Tear ?1J0
Six Months . . . 1.73 SU Months 1.73
Three Months 100 Three Months 100
We Call It Freedom
(Excerpts from a talk by the editor to the Ahoskie,
N. C. Rotary Club, March II.)
Secrecy in the conduct of public affairs is just
one phase of the purely negative side of a big ques
tion. The real issue in America today is the thing
we call freedom.
We in North Carolina should be peculiarly in
terested in freedom, because North Carolina has an
extraordinary tradition of freedom.
It was North Carolinians (and South Carolin
ians), many of them back- woodsmen who weren't
even enlisted in the army, who gathered at Kings
Mountain, and there broke the back of Toryism,
and turned the tide of the American Revolution.
It was North Carolina (along with Rhode Is
land) that refused to ratify the Constitution of the
United States, until the first ten amendments, which
we know as the Bill of Rights, had actually been
written into the Constitution.
And it was North Carolinians, remembering the
tyrannical rule of some of the Colonial governors,
who carefully limited the power of their executive.
They refused to give him the power to veto legis
lation. North Carolina still is unique in that respect.
In the federal government, and in the government *
of each of the other 47 states, the chief executive
may veto a piece of legislation, may force a second
look at it, a reconsideration of it, by the legisla
tors, who then can enact it only by a vote greater
than a bare majority. This executive power of veto
also has the effect of forcefully calling public at
tention to a piece, of doubtful legislation. But in
North Carolina there is no such check on the legis
lative branch; in this state, when the two houses
of the General Assembly approve a bill, it becomes
' law. For that reason, legislative secrecy, always
V?ad, obviously is more dangerous in North Caro
lina than anywhere else in this country.
The freedoms those early North Carolinians de
manded he written into the Constitution ? free
dom of religion, of speech and the press, and of as
sembly ; freedom from unreasonable searches and
seizures ; and the right to a fair trial by a jury ?
are fundamental. But today there is a disturbingly
large body of evidence that these basic freedoms
are in danger.
The point can be made without referring to Sen
ator McCarthy and his methods.
Aren't our basic freedoms in danger when an
other United States senator, hiding behind his Con
gressional immunity, can publicly make preposter
ous charges, without a shred of evidence, against a
man like Karl Warren? Walter Lippmann, one of
the most intelligent, one of the most careful and re
sponsible, one of the most scholarly commentators
in the world today, points out that Senator Lan
ger's charges against Warren were unsupported
and unexamined. Yet seven of the ten charges,
made publicly, if they were proved would call for
prison terms. Lippmann commented :
"We have gone as far as we can go without en
dangering profoundly the peace and order of this
country. . . . This is an intolerable outrage. It
violates the first principles of our law. . . . This
lawlessness on the part of a senator is a threat
against the power of the law to protect the liber
ties of our people."
And remember? it was only Karl Warren's rep
utation and stature that kept the charges from
harming him ; a lesser man would have been de
stroyed.
Aren't our basic freedoms in -danger when the
United States government seriously considers legal
izing what it already is doing without legal author
ity?wire tapping? For' if wire tapping is not an
invasion of the freedom from unres^onable searches
and seizures, without a warrant, what would con
stitute such an invasion?
I
Aren't our basic freedoms in danger when there
#
is plainly to be seen a growing trend among Amer
icans to spy on their neighbors, and report every
conceivably suspicious word or deed to the F.B.I. ?
Does that sound like America ? or Soviet Russia?
Aren't our basic freedoms in danger when you
and I ? plain, average citizens ? find ourselves stop
ping to think, l>efore we voice an opinion, if that
opinion by any stretch of the imagination could be
interpreted by someone as subversive? Ask your
self: "Do I think and speak with as complete free
dom as 1 did ten years ago?" And if you are in
doubt about the answer, ask yourself this question:
"Would I be as quick today, as I would have been
back in 1944, to insist a Communist on trial be
given all his Constitutional rights?" Would you
not hesitate for fear of what someone might say
about you?
And what is perhaps the greatest danger of all is
the fact we are becoming accustomed to these
things, coming to accept them.
Why are some of us .so frantic in our search for
Communists, real and imagined? Why are so many
Americans ready to toss overboard the safeguards
that are basic in the American tradition of free
dom? There is an ancient Anglo-Saxon axiom that
it is better that nine guilty men go free than one
innocent suffer. Why are we reversing that ax
iom today? Why do so few of u$ .stop to ask our
selves: What shall it profit America to win the
contest with Soviet Russia, if, in so doing, we lose
the one vital thing that differentiates America
from Russia?
Isn't it because we are afraid? afraid of the mili
tary might of Soviet Russia? afraid of her .spies?
afraid, most of all, of Communist ideas?
t
And isn't our fear, in the last analysis, a confes
sion that we have last faith in America ? that we
are afraid the American tradition and the American
way and the American system are too weak to
stand up against Communism?
* * *
This American freedom of ours is indivisible. If
we surrender any one of these basic rights, we shall
soon lose the others.
How long, for example, do you think we would
keep the other freedoms if freedom of religion were
taken away ? for democracy basically is a religious
concept.
How long would we keep the others ? and how
much would they mean? ? if we lost freedom from
unreasonable searches and seizures^ and the right
to a fair trial bv a jufv?
And how long would the other freedoms last,
once we had lost freedom of speech and of the
press? Without those two, we not only could not
vote intelligently, on candidates and policies ? in
our ignorance, we could and almost certainly would
be persuaded to vote away ? to legally abolish ?
those other freedoms?without knowing what we
did. ... It has happened in other countries.
What do YOU have at stake in freedom of the
press, you business men, you farmers, you profes
sional men?
I suggest to you that that freedom ? the freedom
of information, and of the press to disseminate it ?
is the freedom that in a very special way under
girds and makes possible all the others. 1 suggest
that your stake in a free press is far, far greater
than that of newspapermen. For if freedom of the
press were wiped out, all we would lose, as news
papermen, would be our businesses ? and there are
other businesses. But you, as citizens, would lose
your freedom ? and there is no substitute for that !
? * *
What I have been trying to say is this:
Our basic freedoms are in jeopardy today. Our
freedom is indivisible ; if we lose one, we lose all.
Freedom of the press, is the weapon with which
you, as citizens, can protect the others. And that
freedom is endangered bv secrecy: it is but a step
from one to the other. Finally, the problem is not
one for the press alone, but for all good citizens.
Others' Opinions
SIMILAR
(McDowell News i
The merchant who doesn't advertise has nothing on the man
In Jail. He isn't doing anything either.
CENSORS AND SHAKESPEARE
(Washington Post)
Since Eve's day we have known that censors stir more inter
est in the forbidden f.ruit than all the world's press agents
combined. But the thought has seldom been so well expressed
as by Henry Percy Boynton in a letter to the editor of the
Atlantic Monthly. Mr. Boynton's father owned many sets of
Shakespeare and could recite many scenes from memory. "I
once asked him about the background of his Shakespearean
interest," Mr. Boynton wrote. "He answered that at Oberlln
College, In his day, reading of Shakespeare was strictly pro
hibited, as tending to Incline the youthful mind toward the
stage and Its Iniquities. The result was that he departed from
college knowing most of Shakespeare's plays by heart."
WHISTLE vs. HORN
(Winston-Salem Journal)
News that two more railroads have abandoned the honking
horns of diesel-electric locomotives and have re-lnstalled other
warning devices .recalls that year before last the Southern Rail
way started to substituting the old type of whistle for the blast
of the new locomotive horns. Southern has experimented with
several types of whistles and has adopted one which sounds
much more like the traditional whistle of the steam engine.
Changes are being made from the horns to whistles for two
reasons:
1. The loud horns grate on peoples' nerves, so people say.
2. Yet, contradictorily, the horns don't have the carrying
power that the old-style whistle possessed. You could hear the
shriek of the whistle for miles. That means better warning
for motorists, pedestrians and cows on the track.
Perhaps psychologists could profitably explore the real rea
sons why some people prefer the whistle to the ham. Maybe
Its a yearning for traditions, reluctance to part with the mem
ories of long ago. About the only thing left of the old wood
burning locpmotlve, with billowing puffs of smoke from the
stack and steam hissing and sizzling from the boiler, is the
whistle. And that was lost at first and had to be retrieved
from the dleselizars. Perhaps in another generation people will
forget their nostalgia for whistles and then the railroads can
experiment purely on the basis of the most appropriate sounds
for warning purposes.
It is difficult to accept the premise that the shriek of a
whistle actually is preferable to the honk of a horn. If that
were so, we would find that automobile manufacturers would
find it expedient to Install whistles rather than horns on
new cars.
It must be remembered that the car can become accustomed
to almost any kind of noise. In railroad towns, the jingle, the
rumble, the roar and the shriek of locomotives don't bother
people. In fact, such noises are music. Tfte story is told that
one man, who lived near the place where a fast passenger
train passed each night at 2:36 a. m. and sounded the whistle
as it roared down the tracks, was able to sleep right through
all the noise. But one night the train was late. No shrieking.
No lumbering. The man sat upright in bed and broke the sil
ence. He said, "What was that?"
The whole difference between construction and creation is
exactly this: That a thing constructed can only be loved after
it is constructed; but a thing created is loved before it exists.
? Gilbert K. Chesterson.
Babbl in" About ?
Chain Letter 'N Courting
? ? J. P. Brady
Boy! the things that wind up '
on a newsman's desk . . . reams i
and reams of literature, pub- i
iicity, and just plain hokum 1
from all over the world. Most of
it is given a hasty once-over
(happened to toss a check in ,
the wastebasket one time) and
promptly pitched into the of- ,
fice catch-all, good ol* FILE 13
(64 cent word for wastebasket).
While pouring over this kind
of stuff this week, I happened^,
across a letter, addressed to me,
and mailed in Franklin. At first
glance it seemed destined for a
just and timely death in FILE
13 ? but wait! Let's look at this
again, we say to ourselves.
It's a chain letter, but un
doubtedly one of the most un
usual and surely the most
unique I have ever encountered.
Now, I'm just as gullible as the
next person when it comes to a
chain letter, and, although they
are in violation of the law, I
have never been able to resist
one since, when in college, I
was fortunate enough to receive
1,204 pairs of ladles panties
all silk yet. I never did find out
who put me in the chain. Come
to think of it, I never did ques
tion it. After all, 1,204 pairs of
panties weren't to be sneezed at
back in the post-war years and
I rolled along on a wave of
popularity for several weeks.
But back to this new chain
letter. Here 'tis:
Dear Friend:
This chain letter was started
by a man like yourself, in the
hope that it might bring relief
and happiness to tired business
men.
Unlike most chain letters, this
does not cost anything. Simply
send a copy of this letter to 5
of your businessmen friends
who are equally tired. Then,
bundle up your wife and send
her to the man whose name is
at the top of the list, and add
your name to the bottom of it.
When your name comes to the
top of the list, you will receive
16,478 women ? some of them
will be dandies.
HAVE FAITH . . DO NOT
BREAK THE CHAIN.
One man broke the chain and
got his old lady back.
Sincerely,
A Tired Businessman
P. S. As of this writing, a
friend of mine received 183
women. They buried him yester
iay and everyone said he had a
smile on his face for the first
time in years.
Well, that's it . . . and if any
one can come up with one bet
ter I would like to see it.
Unfortunately though, I must
break the chain.
I checked with the income
tax boys; 16,478 women can't be
listed as dependents.
* * ?
To use a little of this atomic
age lingo, things were "reai
gone and crazy" over at Frank
lin High School this past week
The young ladies over then
have been indulging in some
brand of "reverse courting"
They call it "Twlrp Season'
(what ever that is) and ]
frankly watched with moutt
ajar.
Now get this: the girls weri
asking the boys far dates; wen
promising to cover the cost o:
sjiid dates; were opening door
for the smug males; and sorn<
girls even carried their boj
friend's books to and fron
school.
Naturally I was intrigued b;
the idea.
"Times do change, don't they?'
I remarked to Principal Ralpl
L. Smith.
A look of futility and a re
signed shrug of his shoulder
gave me the answer.
Anyone for chess??
? * *
Three Franklin men recentl;
had to leave town to land t
big string of fish, but their trl]
to Lake Placid, Fla., seems t<
have been well worth thi
trouble.
These intrepid anglers weri
R. Roy Cunningham, Bol
Oalnes, and Walter Gibson
They were guests of Law.renci
Simmons, the former residen
of the Holly Springs Commun
ity, at Lake Placid.
All of them hooked some nlci
flippers, but for the sake o
eternal peace, I've got to tel
that Roy hooked and landed ;
seven-pound big mouth bass.
If you've got time to drop ii
and wet a hook verbally witt
Roy in the Main Street ston
he frequents (between cups o
coffee), he'll give you all thi
glory details of his do-or-dli
battle with the bass.
News Making
As It Looks
To A Maconite
? By BOB SLOAN
I
The other day I heard a man
comment that signing your
name could be either the most
pleasant or unpleasant thing
that you do. If you are endors
ing a check payable to you, h?y4j
said, it was the most pleasant,
but if you were signing a check
for some one else it was the
most unpleasant.
I said that I felt that there
was one exception at least to
that. When you sign the check
to pay your Income tax it should
be listed among your most
pleasant duties. Certainly you
get more for your tax money
than any other money you
spend ? and I think that applies
whether you have a Democratic
or Republican administration ! '
Also it is one of the times that
you have the chance to take an
active part in the government
we live under ? with all Its faults
the greatest government on
earth. No other government is
doing as good a job of render
ing service to its people and
we should all feel proud to
have a part in its support. I
know that it is fashionable to
cuss the government and to
consider it some antagonistic
body that we are in a constant
struggle with, but I don't be
lieve that deep down inside
many people feel that way de
spite the many propaganda
forces that try to sell that line.
THIS IS OUR GOVERNMENT.
Our forefathers fought that
we might be a part of It. When
we regard it in another light I
am reminded of a man who is
in a struggle with his own con
scious. Such actions bring up
the sight, for example of a man
demanding better schools, bet
ter roads, better police protec
tion, better public health serv
Continued On Fage Eight
Do You
Remember?
(Looking backward through
the files of The Press)
50 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK
Franklin is now connected
with Waynesville by telephone,
the Waynesville Telephone
Company having completed
connections last week.
The Nantahala Company sent
a case of locust pins of their
manufacture to Raleigh last
Monday to go with the North
Carolina Exhibit to the St.
Louis Fair. |
There was an old time quilt
ing at Mrs. Susie Leach's last
Friday. It was the occasion of
Mrs. L's fifty-ninth birthday.
None were invited except elder
ly ladies. They met and stitch
? ed and quilted, and talked of
settlement affairs, and ate a
? fine dinner. It was a reminder
> of "ye olden times".
We learn that Mr. E. D.
Franks has been appointed
? carrier on the Rural Free De
I livery route to commence April
? 1st.
, 25 TEARS AGO
\ The town board last week ad
vertised for bids for the town
? hall to be erected on the city's
[ lot just north of the Baptist
i church. The hall will be 38 by
70 feet and will face on Iotla
, street.
? Airplane models are tested in
' a wind tunnel. They might get
, a dandy tryout in the N. C.
? senate chamber.
i The first week in April has
been suggested as Clean-Up
f Week. If the citizens of Frank
lin have any pride In the town
? they will cooperate with all
j concerned In making Franklin
spotless.
It Is understood th*t the
s county commissioners have as
signed the ladies' rest room at
the court house to the county
agent for an office. The fact
y that Mr. Sloan is single prob
j ably had nothing to do with
j this assignment.
3 10 YEARS AGO
g
Mr. James L. Young, of Hick
ory Knoll, who has been a
e faithful Sunday School superin
3 tendent of Hickory Knoll
'? church, left last Friday for a
J six-months' vacation with his
1 brother, John, in the state of
" Washington.
e Rev. and Mrs. J. F. March
f man, Mrs. Sam Gibson, Mrs. F.
j E. Brown and Miss Jarvis Led
j ford, spent three days last
week in Charlotte attending the
^ H.M.U. Convention.
l Members of the Christian En- /
e deavor recently enjoyed a pic
f nlc supper and song service on
b Sunset Rocks, with the Rev. L
b H. Smith as program leader.
(Highlands Highlights).