/
MOORE COUNTY’S
LEADING NEWS-
WEEKLY
rgPI Tf TT
THE
A Paper Devoted to the Upbuilding
VOL. 11, NO. 11.
CHICAGO GUNMEN
KILL BROTHER OF
WILLIAM A. LAING
Prominent Southern Pines Resi-
dent Rushes to Bedside on
News of Fatal Shooting
>^:arthaoe
MAHUEY
ABER0E£>«
^ IN EBLUPP
PILOT
FIRST IN
NEWS AND
ADVERTISING
of the Sandhill Tof North Carolina
Aberdeen, North Carolina
F'-iday, February 13, 1931.
Governor Says Reorganization of
Highways Assures Tax Relief
FIVE CENTS
He-
On Visit Here
PROMINENT PHYSICIAN
Dr. George C. Laing of Chicago,
brother of William A. Laing of South
ern Pines, was fatally wounded by
wo bandits who entered his Chicago
residence and at the point of a gun
robbed him of his money and watch.
The shooting took place on Thursday, |
February 5th, but Dr. Laing survived
until Tuesday night of this week. His
'>rother left Southern Pines for Chic
ago on Monday upon news of the phy
sician’s serious condition.
According to a special despatch to
The Pilot from Chicago, the two ban
dits had surprised Dr. Laing at his
residence and ordered him to throw
up his hands. They searched the
apartment and were on the point of
departing with such money and jew
elry as they found when Dr. Lai.ng
reached in a drawer of his desk for
a revolver. Hearing the sudden move
ine of the men wheeled about and
lired. Dr. Laing was hit but return
ed the fire from his own gun and hit
one of the burglars in the shoulder. |
Laing was hit in the right arm and
ihe lower part of his right side. |
One of the bandits was picked up :
two blocks from the scene of the I
>hooting and was rushed to head-1
quarters where he was found to be |
Figures Show Moore County
Would Benefit by $47,642 Re
duction in Property Tax i
j
A table released by Governor Gard
ner today (Friday) shows that Moore ;
County taxpayers will receive relief ^
from taxes to the extent of $47,642
if his proposed plan for highway re
organization is enacted into law. The
figures aro as follows: Tax for over
head taken off, $2,371; tax for main
tenance taken off, $35,157; tax for
equipment taken off, $10,114; total
$47,642.
The table shows in itemized detail
the tax relief that each county will
receive by reason of the State’s as
suming the complete burden of the
maintenance of county roads. The fig
ures are based o nthe expenditures of
each county for the year ending June
30, 1930, as compiled by the survey of
the financial operations of each coun-
oy’s road fund. The data for this sur
vey were gathered from the official
records of the county accountants,
county road superintendents and town
ship road commissioners, etc. The sur
vey was made under the direction of
the United States Bureau of Roads
and represents actual transactions f jr
one year, as nearly as information on
file in the county offices permitted.
The table shows, under the appro
priate heads, the tax relief for expen-1 -
ditures for salaries, convicts, main-1 Former Governor of New York
tenance, equipment, and gas and oil,
and the total tax burden which will
be removed from the counties when
the entire cost of maintenance is as
sumed by the State.
J
I
PAGE ENDORSES|Fire Hazaru^ aces Salety of
GOVERNOR’S ROAD ' * P«son Population
CONTROL PROGRAM
Former Head of Highway Com
mission and Leslie R. Ames,
Engineer, Support Move
WOULD DECREASE TAXES
Pilot
Shall We Burn Them?
ALFRED E. SMITH
A special dispatch to The
says:
“While the road program suggest
ed by Governor 0. Max Gardner has
drawn some scattered opposition, lead
ing authorities on highways of North
Carolina and the nation have indicat
ed unqualified approval of the plan.
“Among those known to favor the
new plan are Frank Page, former
chairman of the Highway Commis
sion, under whose direction the high
way system of North Carolina grew
to atract national and international
attention; Leslie R. Ames, former
State Highway Engineer; and ex
perts of the U. S. Bureau of Public
Roads.
“The federal bureau, it is pointed
out, conducted a survey of the county
road system in North Carolina and
has expressed ppproval of the admin-
An article in The Pilot this
week taken from ^he Prison
News, and written by a prisoner
who seems to know, admoni^’hes
the State of North Carolina that
the state is holding over the
heads of every inm'ate of the
penitentiary a threatened death
sentence that should wake a pro
test from every quarter of this
nation.
Continued Use of Central Prison
Is Sorry Comment on
State’s Intelligence
By A Prisoner
The gradual expansion of the
State’s Prison ifito a number of units
located in various sections of the
State, has resulted in the main build
ing of the system at Raleigh taking
upon itself the name of “Central Pr.i-
on,” and this antiquated, unsanitary
and thoroughly disreputable pile of
bricks, stong and mortar is the sub
ject of this complaint. The building
was erected about the year 1880,
which fact alone should be sufficient
The Raleigh prison is built to evidence that it has long since serv-
prevent people from getting out
at any time. It is built substan
tially in that respect. It is also
built, except for the outside
walls, of that fine old long leaf
pine which bums like oil. It is
built compactly. Those within
its walls are confined by iron
doors and bars and locks to
their individual sections.
A holocaust at the Raleigh
prison that would tell the world
of a death roll of severial hun-
A 1 C *4-1^ XT’ J istration plan as it will be submitted
fernitll ii/llClOrSeS I to the General Assembly. Officials of
Gov. Gardner’s Plan ^^e bureau have expressed the ofia- ; dred people WOUld be a great
. i ion that the plan is not only feasible
I
but that it will result in a substan
tial saving.
“Endorsement of these individual
Gives Views on Government
Simplification
bit of news to flash around the
world. But the possibilities are
there this minute as they have
one and one-half million dollars ! ization of the state government was county roads will be better mamtam-
and agencies, proponents of the Gov-1 been for years and <as they
(By Hugh W*. White) i plan point out, establish the promise to be unless SOme posi-
That Governor Gardner has the ' practicability and workability of the | tive step is_ taken quickly.
The figures do not include the sum i Yight idea in his ,proposed reorgan- Program. ^They ^ prison writer serves no-
i tice on North Carolina. In event
the state
the ghastly
iield on a charge of assault Pending ' ^7” “ " 'couiit^ ic party in the last election, to the the proposed program is the fact I crime. The responsibility is on.
the outcome of Dr. Laing’s injuries. | figures represent only the re- i Sandhills Daily News yesterday. ' ^ » wi'l make jnosfible the relief j tile shoulders of every Citizen,
’ 1.1 Smith arrived in Pinehurst ves- taxes averaging soine 10 1-2 of the state as a unit, and of the
This charge was changed to murder
when the news of Dr. Laing’s death
reached the police Tuesday night. Nel
son has steadfastly refused to divulge
the name of his accomplice, who made
good his getaway after the shooting.
The 'vounds received by Dr. Laing
were not at first thought to be dan
gerous, and the sudden turn for the
wor.'^e in his condition the forepart of
this week prompted the Chicago po
lice to suipect that the bullets fired
by the bandits had been poisoned.
These are now being analyzed by
chemists attached to headquarters
there.
Dr. George C. Laing has been a
prominent Chicago physician for
some time, enjoying a large prac
tice. His brother, whose riding sta
bles play an important part in the
winter life of the Sandhills, left hur-
I edly for Chicago Monday when re
ports of his brother’s condition were
less favorable. Another brother also
lives in Chicago and has been with Dr.
lief which property will receive from : Mr
the maintenance of county roads bv 1 terday morning from New York, to I cents on each hundred dollars of va!-1 state government as tne tempo-
the State. ^e a guest in the W. H. Tpdd home uation m the counties. A total of ap- rary authority for a contmuation
The amounts of taxes taken off
range from $355,489 of expenditures
in Mecklenburg County, all the way
to $6,580 spent in Clay County.
The table shows that the 47 coun
ties which maintain their*, roads
over the week-end. He was accompa*.- P^oximately $6,000,000 can be li^^ ed , of the danger.
ied South by Mr. Todd and William j the land owners of the State i Possibly an injunction mighi:
F Kenny, close friends of the ex- under the proposed program, it is as- | issue from the COUrt to forbld
e^overnor.
In commenting on Gardner’s plan of
reorganization, Mr. Smith said that
he has studied the proposed scheme
(Please turn to Page 8)
Local B. & L. Has
Successful Year
(Please turn to Page 8)
serted. 'any further confinements in that
“In the face of the logical and 'death trap which is already over-
clear-cut reasons for the plan sui- | crowded. Such an injunction
mitted, opposition has found little j would have the backing of tne
upon which to base its claims, and is ; people to the extent that the
believed to be rapidly breaking down.’’ i prison doors at Raleigh would
; close at once and forever.
Earnings of Near Seven Per Cent
Reported to Stockholders at
Annual Meeting
The annual stockholders’ meeting
of the Aberdeen Building and Loan
Association was held in the high
school auditorium January 29.
Gratifying reports of the past
year’s operation were made, and it
Ringing Appeal Is Made for Support of
Work of Committee on Unemployment
Local Author Points Out Existence of Crisis and Endorses Re
lief Plans Worked Out by Southern Pines
Committee
Red Cross Nears
Quota In County
Workers Hope to Bring Cam
paign to Close by End of
Next Week
ed its usefulness and should now be
relegated to the scrap-heap. Its pe
culiar style of architecture forbids an
economical alteration into a modern
prison building, and to continue to
utilize it in its present condition
means an annual loss of thousands jf
dollars to the State in the items of
heat and guards alone. But what
should be of considerably more im
portance to the people of the State
of North Carolina than this matter of
mere dollars and cents, is the fire
hazard which this old building con
stantly presents.
The recent fire at the Alabama
State Prison which consumed an en
tire wing of the prison building, hap
pily without any loss of life, causes
all of those who are in any way con
nected with the North Carolina insti
tution to shudder at the very thought
of the result of a mid-night fire
breaking out in either wing of this
tinder-box. And the memory of the
disastrous fire several months ago
at the Ohio State Prison with the
alarming loss of life resulting there
from, still obsesses many here.
Veritable Fire Trap
The opinion that the Centra^! Pris
on builoing is a veritable fire trap
seems to be unanimous but as is the
usual custom of the human race when
it’s the other man's troubles of men
ace, very few people appear sufficient
ly interested to make any move to
remedy the defects, particularly when
there happens to be some expense at
tached. Mr. George Ross Pou, the
Prison Superintendent, has long real
ized and urged the necessity of erect
ing a new and modern plant. Govern-
! or Gardner calls the present prison
i quarters a fire trap and his appoint-
j (Please turn to page 4^
By Struthers Burt
We happen to be facing a crisis.
It is not a Southern Pines crisi'5.
Laing through his fight for life. Mrs.! was evident that this is one organiza- Southern Pines is probably better off
W. A. Laing and her sons Noel and
■\Villiani A. Jr., are in Southern iPnes,
- tending? the winter at the Park View
tion that apparently goes on its way j than most of the rest of the country,
despite the depression. A total of ! Our hotels are well-filled, we have no
$100,000.00 paid in on stock is withm j factories, the sunshine is good, and,
Hotel. Noel Laing is one of the whips \ $1,000.00 of the total one year ago. ! on the surface, life goes on as pleas-
■ f the Moore County Hounds. The failure of stockholders to with- : antly and to all appearances as pros-
draw these savings despite talk of | perously as ever. But nation-wide de
CONTRACT FOR HIGHWAY
those receiving the charity, and which
establishes a vicious precedent; you
The Red Cross association of the
county will close its work the last ot
can create work and so maintain self-' week, but it is necessary to pro-
respect in the up-until-then unemploy-1 a little moie money^to make up
ed; or you can pretend the situation ; the $2,000 asked for
doesn’t exist until ,at length, it is ,
forced upon you. The results of the 1 far, but it is desired to make up
Over thre‘.'-
fouiths of the sum has been provided
Southern Pines Wil!
Discuss Charter Change
Commissioners Will Hold Public
Hearing Next Wednesday
Night
last are not always pretty, neither are
the full contribution expected.
Pine-
have
they very safe. One of the several re - i hluff, Niagara and La eview
suits likely to happen is illness. When ^ beyond theii piopoitiona e a
people are wea':, worried, and starv-1 lotments, which
is
better than the
)hard times was justified by the rate i pression is nation-wide depression | ing, an epidemic finds them easy vie-, communi les aye e. ^
' tims. Moreover, the more intelligent | ly Moore county fills its quota with-
NO. 74 LET THIS WEEK I of earning which was maintained at and Southern Pines can no more hope
I approximately 7 per cent, to be exact to escape its share of it than it can
The contract was let at Raleigh i 6.93 per cent. When it is remembered
this week for the hard surfacing t>f | that this stock is non-taxable, it is
Route No. 74 of the State Highway | seen that this is equivalent to 10 per
ystem. This is the stretch from the { cent on a taxable investment.
Montgomery county line toward Car- j The nineteenth series opens this
"hage, a distance of 13.22 miles. i month.
Br<;wn Paving Company of Lexington ' The following directors weie elect-
na^ the low bidder with a price of j ed for 1931: Robt. N. Page, G. C. Sey-
>248,865. mour, M. H. Folley, H. A. Gunter,
The State Highway Commission let! Theo Berg, F. D. Shamburger, Mur-
expect not to be part of the United
States. How do you face an industrial
depression—that is, if you have any
backbone and any vision? Why, with
head up, a determination to do more
out any hesitation and the Red Cross
woikers have no doubt now as to th ?
outcome. However, they urge every
body to lend a hard on as liberal a
a man is the less he refuses to
starve? If others won’t help him, he
is very likely to help himself. At xll
events you can’t wash your hands of
such a situation. It just can’t be done.
The most famo*us historical occasion
work than ever, and a generous hand | on which this was tried, proved for all ^ places to step to the fiont.
in your pocket for those less lucky | time the folly and selfishness of
than you. That’s the only way to figlrt | such a proceeding,
a depression, and the sooner you face | Nor is the present time one in
The town commissioners of South
ern Pines have invited the residents of
the town to meet with them at the
City Building next Wednesday night,
February 18, at which time they will
discuss the matter of a change in the
town charter, the proposition being
whether the mayor and commission
ers shall be elected for tw^o years ’n-
stead of one as at present.
The commissioners realize that this
is a matter of importance to every
resident of the city and desire to s.'-
scale as possible especially those com-; cure as full an expression of public
munities that have allowed the small-
DR. MILLER WILL PREACH
IN ABERDEEN SUNDAY
j opinion as possible, therefore they in
vite the public to attend the meeting
next Wednesday night and air it.^
view^s.
It is said that the proposed change
would not affect the present incum-
it that way, the sooner its over, and which to quibble nor excuse your own ; re»-nlar nreachinc ser- bents as the regular caucus and elec-
XI fcVo vnnv harifl hv inventing, I Iheie Will be regular pieacnmg sei
that F ^ Preebyterian Church of! tion comes in May.
33 projects^ on Tuesday, among them ! doch M. Johnson, Dr. 3. M, Medlin, the sooner you can take your hand inertia or lack of vision by inventing, i
’ne new bridge across the Cape Fear | T. D. McLean and D. I. McKeithen. . out of your pocket with a sigh of le- or listening to this story or that. If | morning and
River at Lillington ,the cost of which j At a meeting of the board of direc-, lief. you think the Committee on Unem- ^ Atlanta,
■u to be $74,605. T. A. Loving & | tors Tuesday night the following of-| These are facts. There are over 2.-j0 ploynient is making mistakes, tell ^•
' ompany of Goldsboro were awarded ! ficers for 1931 were elected: pre&i- people registered with our unemploy- them so. Talk it out with them. 1
ji . . . •: "NT T>o«.o. IVTaTTVr nf tVlPSe ai'C hcaClS TVlAv’ll hp P’lf
this contract.
FATHER OF MRS. RALPH
PAGE DIES IN BOSTON
News has reached here of the death
of J. W. Tuckerman of Boston on last
Friday. Mr. Tuckerman was engaged
in the insurance business there and
was well known in the Sandhills, hav
ing visited here several times. He is
survived by a daughter, Mrs. Ralph
Page of Pinehurst, who was on the
way to his home at the time of his
death, and a son, Wnlard H. Tucker
man.
dent, Robt. N. Page; vice-president,
G. C. Seymour; secretary-treasurer,
D.’ I. McKeithen; attorney, Murdoch
M. Johnson; loan committee, G. C.
Seymour, H. A. Gunter, F. D. Sham
burger.
METHODIST PASTOR’S FAMILY
JOINS HIM AT I ARSON AGE
The Rev. W. C. Ball has returned
with his family, Mrs. Ball and two
children, from Asheville. Mrs. Ball
and children have been spending some
time with her parents. Dr. and Mr-?.
Bown of Asheville.
ment bureau. Many of these are heads They’ll be glad to hear what you
of families. The total number of peo-1 have to say. Remember the job is new
pie, therefore, on the edge of starva- to them. They’re not professional em-
tion, and it’s actual starvation, num- ^ ployers of the unemployed. They are
ber somewhere between 700 and 900. merely unrecompensed men and wo-
Of these 250 registered, at least 200 men, giving a great deal of their time,
are honest, hard-working people who , to a depressing and thankless job. If
want work and can’t get it. I wian ' they weren’t doing it, you’d have to
everybocy could hear the stories I’ve be doing it.
A bill has been introduced in the
legislature having for its object the
extension of the city limits of South
ern Pines to include the present town
of West Southern Pines.
sermon at the
morning service. Dr. Miller is Educa
tional Secretary of the General As
sembly’s Home Missions and is wide
ly known through out the South. The j DELEGATION CALLS ON
church is very fortunate in having
Dr. Miller at this time and it is hop
ed that a large congregation will at
tend the service to hear him.
FORMER GOV. AL SMITH
heard.
Now what are you going to do
about this? There are three methods
to deal with such a situation. You can
use straight out charity, which is no
more or less than the dole system, and
which is bad for a locality, bad for
Furthermore, I have investigated
the situation myself very carefully
and if my word is good for anything,
here are the results.
I think the committee has been or-
(Please turn to Page 8)
JOHNSON INTRODUCES BILL
Senator Murdoch M. Johnson of
Aberdeen introduced a bill in the State
Senate this week to amend prese it
statutes relative to redemption of land
from tax liens.
A delegation from the state legis
lature passed through Aberdeen this
morning on its way to Pinehurst r>
invite former Gk)V. Alfred E. Smith
of New York to address the legisla
ture this afternoon or tonight. At the
time >pf going to press the result of
their visit had not been made known.
The delegation was headed by Gov
ernor 0. Max Gardner.
/