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AUGUST 1, 1957
Congratulations!
Congratulations to Franklin's ina\'or and alder
men for acting so promptly on the water situation.
At a called meeting last week, the hoard voted
to add two wells to the town's present seven. That's
an increase of more than one-fourth. With luck, the
two additional wells should .provide. 25 per cent
more water. And that would amply take care of the
rather acute need for a margin of safety.
The decision, however, to dig two wells is not a
final, long-time solution; nobody knows that bet
ter than the town officials. And we hope, with the
immediate problem taken care of, the present board
of aldermen will work out a long-time plan. It
might be to continue to dig wells until the demand
reaches a certain point ; it might be to build a filter
plant on Cartoogechaye Creek or some other stream
when it is needed ? rather, somewhat before it is
needed; it -might be to supplement wells by tap
ping springs and/or adding protected watersheds.
We should have a definite plan now, even if we
put it into effect gradually.
While it i.s true that this hoard cannot commit
future boards, once a long-time .program is work
ed out, it could be submitted to the people in an
advisory referendum (as was done on one-way
streets). Approval by the voters in such a refer
endum would tend if hot to bind future boards, at
least to guide them.
Biggest Room
(Frederick, Colo., Farmer & Miner)
The biggest room in the world is the room for improvement.
Are They Qualified?
(Forest City Courier)
Word comes that one third of the physicians now on the
already short staffs of the state's mental and tuberculosis hos
pitals stand to lose their jobs next July 1.
The State Board of Medical examiners has announced its
Intention of not renewing the limited licenses of foreign born
physicians. >
Limited license has been granted on a year to year basis to
doctors who are not graduates of medical schools approved by
the American Medical Society.
Dr. Joseph J. Combs of Raleigh, secretary of the board of
inedlcal examiners, said the board felt that the emergency
Which led to the Issuing of these licenses had passed.
That doesn't seem to us" to be the test which should be ap
plied. If these foreign-born doctors are rendering good and
efficient service, we see no reason to cut them off. If they
are not competent then they should be dismissed irrespective
of the' need.
Letters
The Press In Puerto Rico
Dear Sir and Staff:
w. I would like to drop you a few lines to let you know how
much I appreciate getting The Press down here in FuerU
Rico.
We have quite a few boys from Western North Carolina
down here, and they all said they were going to subscribe for
The Franklin Press when they get back to the States. We
all enjoy reading it here in Sub Unit No. I, Vieques. P. R.
CPL. WILLIAM C. VAN HOOK
1 U. S. Marine Corps.
Likes Column
Dear Mr. Jones: ,
All Tarboro readers who saw your column yesterday in the
Greensboro Daily News (reprint of the July 18 Strictly Per
sonal column about a trip east) must have been gratified, as
I was, by your kind mention of our little town and our trees.
Such a comment, spread across the state, helps the tree
lovers here just that much more in the fight against that so
called "progress" that would leave our streets bare and deco
rated only with parking meters!
Thank you!
(MRS. I JACQUELINE DRANE NASH
Tarboro, N. C.
July 25. 1957.
'Franklin Is Wonderful'
Dear Editor:
FRANKLY, FRANKLIN IS WONDERFUL _ We found out
Wednesday of last week when we were near Franklin with a
great problem. Thirty young people were stranded in a brok
en down school bus. three miles from town, and it was rain
ing.
Several men were contacted at the First Baptist Church
and they set into operation the answers to our problems, and
went the "second mile" in providing more than our needs.
The personnel at Burrell Motor Company went beyond the
call of duty and had the bus ready, after we'd had a perfectly
wonderful night's sleep in the homes of some wonderful citi
zens of Franklin.
We continued our trip on to Atlanta with grateful hearts
to God for our experiences at Rldgecrest Baptist Assembly
and for a wonderful people in Franklin, North Carolina.
DOYLE MIDDLEBROOKS.
Pastor First Baptist Church.
Austell. Ga.
Cowee Gap
Editor, The Press:
I would like to say a word or two in regard to Cowee Gap,
between Franklin and Dillsboro.
First, let me say I was born here in 1883, and my father
and grandfather lived in Macon County before me? and I have
never heard this gap referred to as "Watauga": it has always
been "Cowee Gap".
In the beginning of the 19th century, my great-grandfather,
Demsey Raby, moved with a large family from Burke County,
N. C. to the Shoal Creek section of Jackson County. My grand
father, Elijah Raby, having purchased or entered lands in
Macon County, moved from Jackson to Macon about 1850.
Coming up Tuckaseigee River to Webster, he went up Savan
nah Creek and through Cowee Gap; then down Watauga
Creek, via Franklin, and down the Little Tennessee River to
Cowee Creek, and up that creek, following Caler Fork, to his
new lands.
There my father, J. H. Raby, was born. He, in turn, went
back through Cowee Gap to Savannah Creek to marry Can
dace Webb. And he and my mother lived at the old place on
Caler Creek. So my grandfather, my father, and I lived in
the foothills of the Cowee Range.
Furthermore, after I grew up, I had the privilege of being
in close contact with my father, until his death in 1945. We
had free range for our stock hogs, sheep, and cattle; we dug
ginseng; we hunted turkey and 'coon; and last, but not least,
we had many fine fox hunts. (I can almost hear those hounds
now! i So I know the Cowee country, and I was closely asso
ciated with those who knew it before me. And I do not recall
one time hearing Cowee Gap called "Watauga Gap".
Let me cite a few other things:
The Rocky Face mica jntne, once operated by the late Noah
Littlefield, was located about a mile northwest of this gap
The Dalton government distillery (of which my father was
bondsman about 60 years ago) also was nearby. The Cald
well and Tatham Lumber Company had a milling operation on
Dalton and Cowee prongs of Cowee Creek, and built a road
from it to a point near the gap. All this was 55 or 60 years
ago. And all these were referred as being near "Cowee Gap".
And when the late T. W. Angel, during the many years his
livery stable hauled mail and passengers between Franklin
and Dillsboro, had a break-down, it always was either "this
side" or "beyond" COWEE Gap. (I think his son, Zeb, will
back me up in this.)
J. M. RABY
Franklin, , ?
Route 4.
AS A NEGRO SEES IT
Civil Rights Legislation vs. Genuine Progress: The True Picture
(EDITOR'S NOTE: Mr. Lee
fe the well known and often
quoted editor of a Negro news
paper, The Newark, N. J. Tel
egram).
By DAVIS LEE
Writers from throughout the
world have visited the South
during the last 12 months to get
a close-up glimpse of the so
called race issue. The large
publications in our country
have sent their best staff re
porters into the various South
ern states, but not one writer
has gone to the core of this is
sue, and presented a truthful,
factual, Intelligent analysis.
Practically every article has
dealt with the social aspect, the
feelings and reactions of Negro
and white people of the region
covered. The mixing of the
races or resistance to it, has
been the dominant theme.
There is more to the Negro
and white relalonshlp in the
South than Jim Crowism, than
political and social equality or
the mixing of Negro and white
lckls In the same classroom.
Nothing has been said about
the economic opportunities that
Negroes enjoy, or the businesses
which they own, the security
which they enjoy, the desire on
the part of most Southerners
to help worthy and enterprising
Negroes get ahead.
No one seems to be concern
ed about the best In the South,
but only with the worst. Not
one writer has come up with the
fact that a Negro is a clerk in
a white drugstore in Rosedale,
Miss., and that two Negro
share-croppers have $10,000
each on deposit at the Valley
Bank in Rosedale.
None has pointed out that
Negro mechanics work at the
Ford and Buick , garages in
Cleveland, Miss., and enjoy the
same privileges and pay scale
as the white employes.
Or that Negro customers com
pletely take over the two banks
in Port Gibson, Miss., and get
more courteous consideration
than do the white customers.
Not one writer has pointed
out that Mississippi has thou
sands of top-notch Negro busi
nesses, and that Negro progress
Is keeping pace with that in
other States.
None has pointed out that the
Negro-owned Safe Bus Co.,
Winston-Salem, N. C., is the
largest owned Negro bus com
pany in the world; that Ne
groes in North Carolina own
700,000 acres of farmland and
that there are ' more Negro
farmers in the state than in
any other state in the nation.
North Carolina is the only
8tate in the nation that em
ploys Negro specialists in agri
culture extension work. There is
a state staff of 16. There are
49 county agents. 22 assistant
agents, and 51 home agents
with 10 assistants. In the state
are 41 farm managers who
manage farms for white owners.
A lot has been written about
integration in the schools of
the state. However, the fact that
the Negro schools, in most in
stances, are better than the
white has not been mentioned
or that Negro teachers receive
higher pay than white.
For instance, in Warrenton,
N. C., John Graham, the white
high school principal, gets $5,
550 a year. John Hawkins, the
Negro high school principal, gets
$7,085 a year. In the county are
66 white teachers who draw on
an average of $351.43 per month.
There are 149 Negro teachers
who draw on an average of
$352.25 per month.
The Negro in North Carolina
eats ? better, dresses better, lives
better, and enjoys more indi
vidual respect from white peo
ple than does his Northern,
Eastern, and Western counter
part.
Much is being written at pres
ent about civil rights legislation
and opposition to its passage
by Southerners in the House
and Senate. Those not familiar
with the facts will get the im
pression that the Southern
block is against the Negro.
Nothing is further from the
truth. These Southerners have
done more, and will do more,
for the Negro than will those
from other sections.
For Instance, Congressman
Boykin, of Alabama, sent a Ne
gro to law school; so has Con
gressman l. Mendel Rivers, of
South Carolina. Congressman
Pylcher, of Georgia, spent over
$6,000 In cash to defend Lieu
tenant Saunders, a Negro youth
of his home town. Senator Tal
madge has Negroes running his
farm and so has Senator East
land. ,
There ts not one Southerner
in Congress who was not either
nursed by a Negro or now has
Negro servants back home. The
so-called civil rights advocates
cannot lay claim to the above
facts. And all of them com
bined have not done as much
for the Negro as has any one
mentioned here.
The intelligent Southern Ne
gro Is not concerned about what
Southerners say against him,
he Is concerned about what
they do for him. and what
they do speaks louder than
what they say.
The South abounds in stories of
Negro success and progress, and
in every such story white peo
ple have made a substantial
contribution, and those writers
who invaded the South for the
real story, missed it by a wide
margin. For every Instance of
Injustice, exploitation, and de
nial of constitutional guaran
ties, they could have found 10
of opportunity and progress.
They could have placed the
facts In focus so that the world
could have received a clear pic
ture of conditions. What an op
portunity they missed!
!
"If You Can Keep Your Head When All About You
Are Losing Theirs ?"
F/RsrS
\ jt n ? > k
_
STRICTLY ?
Personal
? ? ?? * ? By WEIMAR JONES
We wouldn't recommend this !
way out, but we are sure there i
are hundreds of Macon County <
women who feel like doing what i
one in Los Angeles did.
The story is reported by The 1
Smithfield Herald:
There are days when most
VIEWS . . .
By BOB SLOAN
The people who served on the
jury in the Clinton. Tenn. trials in
which segregation problems were
involved deserve to be commended.
They apparently looked at the
facts and tried to reach a fair
and unbiased decision in declaring
seven of the eleven persons,
charged with contempt, guilty.
That "they- did' not kow tow to
the Press of the North who are
eager to proclaim that In such
a trial you cannot get conviction
(and there have been cases that
lend weight to that statement)
in a segregation case againt ' a
white person before a jury in the
Southern states.
These Jury members also show
ed that they were not afraid of
running the risk of being called
"nigger-lovers" in order to render
what they considered a fair and
impartial verdict based on the
facts. The fact that some were
acquitted and some convicted
shows this.
? ? ?
Soon, some 4000 children will
be starting to school here in Ma
con County. Assume that at least
$10 will be the average amount
of money spent outfitting each
child and $40,000 could be added
to the gross of the total volume
of business done here. That is if
we all use our head and trade at
home. If we spend the money
here we have a chance to handle
It several times. If we go to near
by cities to do our shopping we
lessen the amount of money in
circulation here. And the less
there is here the harder it is for
you and me to get hold of some
of it. SO LET'S KEEP OUR
MONEY AT HOME BY TRADINO
AT HOME
One of the best features in our
paper is, I think, the church page.
Not only does it render a com
munity service by the hour of all
church services in the county 'as
near as we can get them), but
an inspiring message is offered
each week.
This Is made possible by the
combined efforts of The Press and
merchants of Franklin. Have you
ever stopped to think how many,
many different causes the mer
chants of Franklin lend their aid?
housewives would like to get rid
3f the monotonous chores of
washing dishes, cooking three
meals, sweeping floors, clean
ing windows and washing baby
diapers. Surely there must be
some way out!
A woman out in Los Angeles
found tt.
Blonde 20-year-old Nancy
Joyce Stoner, mother of two
small girls, got tired of wash
ing diapers and keeping house.
But maybe she didn't choose the
best way out, for she landed in
court on charges of arson. It
seems that she set fire to seven
stacks of diapers in various
parts of her three-bedroom
home, then piled her daughters
into the family car and drove
away. A neighbor shouted that
her house was on fire.
"That's good," she said. "Call
the Fire Department."
When she appeared In court
she told the judge: "I've been
doing housework and baby
diapers for so long I Just got
fed up and blew my stack."
Now the house has to be re
painted Inside and the floors
h^ve to be repaired. But Mrs.
Stoner feels relieved." "I'm still
doing diapers and Housework,"
she told reporters, "but I don't
feel as nervous as I did before
the fire."
The reader may surmise that
Mrs. Stoner was brought up In
a progressive school, where chil
dren were encouraged to give
way to their emotions rather
than control them. Nobody has
said what Mr. Stoner thinks of
the whole affair, but our guess
is that if Mrs. Stoner is "less
nervous than before the fire,"
Mr. Stoner is more nervous.
And he will probably leave no
Stoner unturned in trying to
help his wife with the house
work.
? * *
We here in the mountain region
have our own peculiar ways of
putting things. Books have been
written about the mountain idiom.
The one thing, though, that puz
zles the outlander most is an ex
pression that Is in no way unusual
English.
The thing that leaves the visitor
popeyed more often than any
other is to hear a person, who
lives right at the foot of a moun
tain and who looks at mountains
In every direction, comment:
"I think I'll go to the HWUtV
tains."
DO YOU REMEMBER?
Looking Backward Through the Files of The Pre?
65 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK
(1892)
Mr. Alfred Morgan, an experienced newspaperman and one
of the best printers in Western North Carolina, has been em
ployed in this office as foreman of the Scout. (Before removing
to this county, he was foreman of The Franklin Press), one of
the neatest papers published in the state. Our patrons can
expect improvement, at least in the mechanical get up of the
Scout. ? Item reprinted in The Press from the Cherokee Scout
at Murphy.
Capt. and Mrs. W. J. Neville, of Walhalla, S. C., are visiting
the family of their daughter, Mrs. J. S. Sloan.
The Methodist Church has recently undergone repairs out
side and inside at a considerable expense. The most of the
cost has been paid by W. R. Johnston.
25 YEARS AGO
(1932)
The State Highway Commission is planning to start work
soon on improving N. C. 28 west from Franklin to Wallace
Gap. It is expected this section will be paved, since the
stretch between Wallace and Glade Gaps already has been sur
faced.
The Macon County quarterly singing convention was held
here Sunday at the courthouse and attracted more than a
1,000 people from the surrounding area.
The Franklin Garden Club's fourth annual show was pro
nounced a success this week, despite the long drought which
cut the quality and quantity of flowers.
10 YEARS AGO
A tentative proposal that the Town of Franklin obtain a
watershed and pipe water to town by gravity, with a view to
ward a long-time solution for the town's chronic water prob
lem, grew out of a discussion at Monday night's meeting of the
board of aldermen.
Trustees of the Franklin .Cemetery Association have pur
chased a 16-acre tract on ihe Murphy Road, adjoining the
cemetery and more than doubling its size.
Twenty-seven men were laid off here this week by the
maintenance division of the 8tate Highway Commission.
Maintenance Supt. Joe Setser said he was told to trim hLi
payroll by approximately $3,000 a month and the cuts were a
rntnH