CIRCULATION
V'1
U?H
217*
I i ? ?
* '? ' ?
gty* Jftaconian
The worship most ac
ceptable to God comes
from a thankful and
cheerful heart.
? Plutarch
Franklin, N. C., Thursday, May 16, 1957
Price 10 Cents
Fourteen Pages
Mystery | H|>ere Did They Come From?
Where did the Mf footprints in the large flint rock on Ellijay come from? Folks have a lot
of theories about them, bat no one really knows. The prints are clearly outlined in the stone,
which was first found in thfe Indian Camp Gap. About 30 years ?go the late Jake Henry broke
the large rock open in the hope of finding something inside. His efforts yielded nothing. Four
years ago his son, Tom Henry, sledded the rock down the mountain to his home. For purposes
of photographing, the footprints were outlined wi'.h chalk. What's your theory? An Indian look
out rock, maybe, the prion mad* by the moccasins of countless warrior lookouts?
To Give Free X-Ray Service
Mobile Unit Coming Here
A mobile X-ray unit from thrt
N. C. Tuberculosis Association Is
coming here to fill an eight-day
schedule over the county.
The service will be free, accord
ing to officials of the district
health department, whicb is spon
soring the unit's visit.
Here's a schedule of times and
places:
Highlands: May 17 and 18
from 11 ajn. to 5 p.m.
Onllasaja School: 'May 21,
11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Franklin High School: May
22, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Franklin Hosiery Company:
May 23.
Oowee School: May 24, 11 a.m.
to 5 pjn.
Otto School; May 25, 11a.m.
to 5 p.m.
Nantahala School: It aja. to
4 p.m.
In June, the mobile unit will
return here for five more days,
four of them in Franklin. On the
1Mb, It will set up at Van Raalte
plant, to serve the Bast Franklin
area, from 11 a.m. to 9 pjn. The
19th through th? 22nd It will
operate In the downtown section
near the county jail.
Teen Center Plans
Square Dances Each
Saturday This Summer
As a money-raising project,
the Franklin Teen Center will
sponsor Saturday night square
dances during the summer, with
the first one scheduled for June
1.
The dances are to be held at
Slagle Memorial Building, It was
decided at a board of directors'
meeting Friday night. Profits
will go toward operation of the
center, which has a place to
meet but few furnishings to go
Into the building.
The once-a-month meeting of
the center's board of directors
was changed from the first Fri
day in the month to the first
Wednesday. The meetings will
be held at 8 p. m. at the cen
ter. Parents are invited.
'Play Ball' Cry
To Boom May 25
A cry of "play ball" will boom
over East Franklin the after
noon of May 25 as the Little
League and Pony League teams
open their 1957 seasons.
Plans for an opening day cel
ebration at the East Franklin
field are now being made by of
ficials of both leagues. Robert
C. (Bob) Carpenter Is president
of Little League and E. O.
Crawford heads the new Pony
League.
On opening day, the Little
League Reddys and Jaybirds
will play at 4 o'clock. The Rex
allites and the Cardinals, Pony
League teams, are slated to
meet In the second game of
the double-header.
Schedules for both leagues
are now being prepared and
will be ready for publication
next week.
AT BIG LAUREL
A number of district commit
teemen from Macon County
plan to be on hand tomorrow
(Friday) afternoon at the Big
Laurel camp for the monthly
Smoky Mountain Boy Scout Dis
trict committee meeting. It will
begin at 5:30.
FORMER BUSINESS TEACHER ?
Annual Dedicated To E. T. Williams
Franklin High's annual. The
Laurel Leaf, Is dedicated to Wwln
T. Williams, a former biplness
teacher who resigned last year
to go Into the insurance business
In Franklin.
In according the honor to Mr.
Williams, the annual staff wrote:
"His interest In the entire stu
dent body and his willingness to
work for the school will be great
ly missed at Franklin High
School."
Appreciation also Is expressed
by The Laurel Leaf to Dr. and
Mrs. Furman Angel, "the school's
most loyal and helpful supporters,
whose contributions, both moral.
physical, and financial, have been
of Immeasurable help . .
The 112-page annual arrived
here Friday and la now being
distributed.
Miss Mildred Burch was editor
in-chief of the 1957 edition of
the yearbook.
Serving on her staff were Lewis
Cabe, senior editor; Joann Burrell
junior editor; Prances Tallent,
sophomore editor; Scotty Byrd,
freshman editor; James Stuart,
sports editor; Pat Cloer, activities
and features editor: Alex Cabe.
photographic editor; Jean Phil
lips, copy editor; Shirley Cruse,
art editor; Launa Baker, circula
tion manager; Harvey Linda Bry
ant, assistant circulation man
ager; Joan Thomas, advertising
manager: and Jo Ann Cunning
ham, assistant advertising man
ager.
PAPER CONTEST ENDS
The Franklin Press subscrip
tion contest among Rural Com
munity Development Organiza
tions In the county ended yes
terday (Wednesday). Since sub
scriptions in the contest could
be mailed up to midnight last
night, the results will not be
known until today. The winners
of the community prizes, total
ing $100 In cash, will be an
nounced In next week's Press.
CARELESS PICNICKERS
A fire, believed to have been
started by careless picnickers,
burned about two and a half
acres In the U. 8. National For
est in the 8keenah Gap area
Tuesday night of last week.
? ~ ? T ' ?m?t? tt*
Ml 88 .Mildred Bond, editor of Pnuiklln Web's yearbook, The
Lratel Leaf, and the jeutook adrlsor, Mrs. Anne p. Bid die
(right), look over one of the 'ST editions, following their artiral
Frldey.
Big 'Franklin Precinct Divided Into 4;
New Registration Ordered For County
Bill Taking Local Officials
Off Fees Passes In Raleigh
A measure ^klng courthouse
officials off fees and putting them
on salaries and setting up a sep
arate tax collection office, was one
of two Macon County bills passed
last week by the general assembly.
The courthouse measure will
take effect Oct. 7 of this year.
Within the mlnlmums and maxi
mums set forth In the bill, salaries
of the officials are to be set by
the board of county commission
ers. The breakdown, with mini
mum and maximum for each po
sition. follows:
"sheriff, $5 .000- $6, 000; sheriffs
travel allowance, >1.800; full-time
deputy. 12,400-12,700; Jailor-depu
ty, $1,800 plus jailor's fees.
Register of deeds. $3.800-$4.500;
register's assistant. $1.800-$2.400.
Clerk of Superior Court, $3,800
$4,500; clerk's assistant. $1,800
$2,400.
County accountant-tax super
visor-tax collector (one job). S3,
800 M. MM; deputy tax collector.
S2.400-S3.600.
The second bill passed last week
deals with Highlands. It permits
the town to charge a "reasonable"
admission fee to the Highlands
Biological Museum there. The land
deed conveying the land on which
the museum Is located had speci
fied there was to be no admission
charge.
Two other pieces of Macon
County legislation still are In
the assembly. One Is the "fish
bill", which would exempt a pri
vate fishing lodge on the Nan
tahala River frorri a state law
which prohibits placing obstruc
tions In public streams. This
bill has passed the Senate and
Is In committee In the House.
The second bill relates to High
lands' power plant and Its fi
nancing. This bill has not yet
passed either State or House.
Tommy Gnuse Is Recipient
Of Medal For R.O.T.C. Work
Harmon Thomas (Tommy)
Gnuse, son of Mr. and Mrs. H.
H. Gnuse, Jr., of Franklin, has
been named recipient of the
Chicago Tribune Silver Medal
for outstanding military
achievement, scholastic attain
ment, and character.
He is a U. S. Air Force R.O.T.C
cadet at Duke University and
is now completing his freshman
year. He holds the rank of ?lr
man second class.
Tommy, who is majoring in
engineering, earned the award
for his outstanding work in the
photographic laboratory of the
R.O.T.C. unit, according to an
announcement from the Depart
ment of Air Science at Duke.
He was awarded the medal
Monday (May 13) at the an
nual combined Navy-Air Force
R.O.TC. review at the univer
sity.
While at Franklin High
School, Tommy worked as sports
editor and photographer on
The Mountain Echo, school
newspaper.
Tommy Gnuae
ON TOWN SQUARE ?
Franklin Chamber Seeking
New Location For Booth
The Franklin Chamber of
Commerce wants a "coming out"
party for Its Main Street In
formation booth.
President Verlon Swaf ford and
his directors would like to bring
the booth out of hiding In Its
picturesque setting across the
street from Nantahala Power
and Light Company and relo
cate It on the Town Square,
where It could be seen by tour
ists.
They're working toward that
end this week.
President 8w afford already
has received permission to use
the square from W. E (Gene)
Baldwin, chairman of the Ma
con Board of County Commis
sioners.
However, Mr. Baldwin feels
the final decision should be
made by the Town of Franklin,
which maintains the square as
a parking area.
So President Swafford Is
ready to take the rtramber's
SEE NO. 2, PAGE 10
The big Franklin voting precinct, containing ap
proximately 40 per cent of all the voters in the coun
ty, Saturday was split into four precincts.
The action was taken by the Macon County Board
of Elections.
The board also ordered a new registration of vot
ers, county-wide ? the first since 1942.
In a third action, the second floor of the court
house was eliminated as a voting place.
Generally speaking, the three new precincts ere
aWi Hv th* hoard embrace the
New Town Groups
To Take Office
Newly-elected officials In
Franklin and Highlands are to
take office this month.
Mayor W. C- Burrell and his
six-man board will be sworn in
on the 24th in Franklin. The
aldermen are A. O. Cagle, Dr.
J. W. Kahn, E. C. Shook, H. H.
Gnuse, Jr., William P. Bryant,
and J. Frank Martin, who won
the sixth seat Wednesday of
last week, following a recount
of votes. He and Prelo Dryman
had -deadlocked at 312 votes
each until the official tally
turned the seat over to Mr.
Martin, 316 to 311.
In Highlands, Mayor V. W.
McCail and his five town com
missioners are scheduled to take
their oaths of office at the
board's next regular meeting on
May 20. The commissioners are
L>. W. Rice, Tudor N. Hall, Ed
ward Potts, L. C. Billingsley,
and Curt A. Wilson.
Biennial elections were con
ducted in the towns Tuesday of
last week.
With the exception of the
Martin-Dry man recount, the
votes received by the Individual
candidates are unchanged.
southern, eastern, and far
northern parts of the former
Franklin precinct.
Dates and other details for
the new registration will be an
nounced later.
Union Precinct
Hereafter, all voters (within
the confines of the old pre
cinct) who live from Cartooge
chaye Creek south to the
Smith's Bridge precinct line will
vote at Union School. This will
be known as the Union Pre
cinct.
All who live In the area east
of the Tennessee River (and
west and south of the Mill
shoal, ElUJay, and Smith's
Bridge lines) will vote at the
East Franklin School. This will
be known as the East Franklin
Precinct.
The third new voting area is
from the Trimont divide north
to the Burningtown and Cowee
precinct lines. Voters in this
section, to be known as the
Iotla .Precinct, will cast their
ballots at the Iotla School.
What remains ? the area from
the Tennessee River west, from
the Trimont divide south, and
from Cartoogechaye Creek north
? will comprise the new Frank
lin Precinct. For that area, the
Agricultural Building was de
SEE NO. 4, PAGE 10
F. F. A. Chapter Is Going After More
District Honors Friday And Saturday
Franklin's live-wire Future
Farmers of America Chapter,
which already has a wall cover
ed with ribbons and awards,
will be going after still more
honors In Asheville Friday and
Saturday, when some 500 F.FA
members from 25 counties gath
er for a giant rally.
Competition between chapters
for district awards will feature
the rally and the Franklin
FJA. is ready to battle for its
share of the glory, according to
Wayne Proffltt, vocational agri
culture teacher.
The chapter as a unit will
compete in a chapter contest,
a cooperative activity competi
tion, and a crop Improvement
event.
Two teams also are register
ed. The ritual and parliament
tary procedure team Is compos
ed of Frank Nolen, Riley Henry,
Bill Fouts, John Killlan, Bud
Shope, and Richard Setser. On
the dairy judging team are Bud
Shope, Bunny McClure, Howell
Miller, and BUI McCall.
Individuals who will compete,
and their fields, include: Bud
Shope, dairy achievement;
Frank Nolen, farm mechanics; >
Bill Fouts, forestry and public
speaking; Wayne Gregory, su
pervised farming.
Late News
and
Briefs
I I
installing pump
Power was off at Intervals
Monday, Tuesday and Wednes
day In the Highlands road sec
tion of Bast Franklin while a
Nantahala Power crew wired in
the pump at the town's new
Hlgdon well.
? ? ?
HIGHWAY CLOSING
Beginning Monday, Maconlans
traveling east to Ashevllle must
detour around Balsam Moun
tain, where US 19A-23 Is being
r?1nrot.AH THp H Afniir frrtm
Sylva Is via US 441 and 19
through Cherokee and over
Soco Gap Into Maggie Valley.
The Balsam-Wlllets link will
be closed 90 days.
The Weather
The week's temperature* and rainfall below
are recorded in Franklin by Man won St ilea,
U. S. we?ther observer; in Highlands by
Tudor N. Hall and W. C. Newton. TV A
observe? ; and at the Coweta Ifydrologic
Laboratory. Readings are for the 24-hour
period ending at 8 a.m. of the day listed.
FRANKLIN
High
Wed.. May 8
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
HIGHLANDS
Wed., May 8 68
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
COWETA
Wed.. May S 74
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
77
72
75
73
84
84
84
70
69
68
76
78
76
7S
73
7S
83
S3
?a
Low Rain
39 .00
42
44
36
48
57
57
54
.00
.00
.61
.09
.00
.00
.02
.00
.00
.00
.78
55 trace
50 .13
.00
.05
37
40
44
55
54
53
38 .00
40 .00
45 .00
58 .61
51 ii
52 .SO
SS .00
53 SO
Information Booth . . . Partially Obscured