Page Two
THE PILOT. Southern Pines. North Carolina
Friday, April 11, 1947, ^
THE PILOT
PUSUSHEO EACH FRIDAY BY
THE PILOT, INCORPORATED
SOUTHERN PINES. NORTH CAROLINA
1941
JAMES BOYD
Publisher
1944
KATHARINE BOYD, - - - EDITOR
VALERIE NICHOLSON ASST. EDITOR
DAN s. RAY - - General Manaoer
BERT PREMO - - - -ADVERTISING
'CHARLES MACAULEY - - CITY EDITOR
MARY BAXTER - - SOCIETY EDITOR
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3001 ed. Keenly interested in all that
So North Carolina has joined went on around hiin, enjoying
the rest of the fraidy-cats. the full his devoted family
„ c:r,mp friBuds, he was yet deeply
It was this statp’s Ceaselessly aware of what lay
how It seemed against this state s jje had the builder’s spirit,
tradition of good sense n^ to keen imagination,
say plain ordi^ry courage. May-. potentialities,
be It IS to be expected of the bis
urban states, whose makeup is
compose uav^ all Eorts of Want and to work for what he
strains, and who have all sorts of
problems within their borders to ^
be afraid of communists, but not
North Carolina. Not our steady ^ of Southern Pines whose
level-headed Anglo-Saxons our
Scots of the pine barrens and v-gVer
the mountains, our country-folks, i ^
They aren’t* the kind to be afraid. | During Frank Buchan s years
, . .L^'as postmaster his efforts were
done It, ]ust the,—,
Let’s Give Youth A Square Deal
Against Delinquency Temptations
i concentrated on his work. Under
his management the Southern
ENTERED AT THE POSTOFFICE AT SOU-
THERN PINES, N. C., AS SECOND CLASS
MAIL MATTER.
AMERICANISM
Communism is a danger to
America, but not as great a dan
ger as we make out, and not only
because its disciples are so rela
tively few in our country. .
75,000 at the most. The danger
from communism is mild compar
ed to the real danger that faces
us . . . the danger that we w^ll be
untrue to our American heritage.
Not long ago a liberal organi
zation was the target of a com
munist attack. With typical man
euvers the communists tried to
infiltrate and take over the or
ganization, twisting its slogans of
equality, justice, world brother
hood for their own ends. What
happened? At the first outright
attack, many of the affiliated
chapters withdrew. Uttering loud
cries of ‘‘Down with commun
ism, America forever!” the chap
ters quit cold. Here was the per
fect chance to fight communism,
but to do so they had to stand
by their guns and show that their
slogans were more than just
words. And their actions showed
only too clearly that they weren’t.
They didn’t really believg them
and they were scared. Just the
way our country is scared now.
And if we are really like that,
we Americans, there is reason to
be scared. If we are ready to give
up our slogans of equality, frater
nity, liberty, justice because all
of a sudden they sound too ex
citing, too impassioned, too dan
gerous, we are going to be in a
bad fix. If we stop being a dar--
ing adventurous people and be
gin to hide behind Un-American
Activities Committee and anti
subversive laws instead of de
pending on our Bill of Rights and
our own good sense and courage,
then we are in far graver danger
than from communism.
Lately before the UnAmerican
Activities committee, appear
ed a familiar figure; horribly fa
miliar. Hamilton Fish, former
representative from New York
and former convicted dilly-dallier
with Nazi agents, was listened to
with respect by the senate com
mittee, this only two years after
the end of the war.
How can this be in a country
that is so worked up over “Amer
icanism”? How can it be that the
large group of obvious fascists,
whose wartime trial for subver
sive activities was halted, has
never been brought back for
trial? How can it be that Tal-
madges. Bilbos, McKellars, Ran
kins become leaders in our gov
ernment? How can it be that a
man like McKellar, the known
head of a corrupt political ma
chine, can pillory such a public
servant as David Lilienthal? How
can one of our greatest cities have
as its mayor a man who has been
convicted and should be serving a
jail sentence?
It is the American people them
selves who should be brought up
before the UnAmerican Activities
committee, for it is their forget
fulness of what is American that
is the danger. Blinded by
greed, we have laid waste the re
sources of our beautiful land; wo
have let petty politics and selfish
interests dim the vision of that
heritage bequeathed to us by the
bounding Fathers; the great slo-
gahs under which and through
which oue country grew are be-
comiim aifc words.
Acr^ tie pages of our his
tory theV, march, the great words
of the Ai^rican spirit. Written by
our leaders, spoken by statesinen,
sages, soldiers, preachers, sim
ple countrymen, these bright
banners of the spirit have led
eople since the founding qf
They tell of the
e justice, courage,
of liberty for one
has been America.
there is
touch us,
at home
words do
in
if
:m,
ce
t
But they’ve
same. Their representatives in
the legislature have gone on rec pjj^gg office became one of
ord as favoring a comrnumst-^
hunt. It is tir^, proc ai country. During the war years it
Represeritative handled, with no loss and no con-
communist to stand up and be millions in funds
counted. enormous quantity of
It may be time^ Mr. Kerr, but mail. Its rating was consistently
is it reasonable? A communist high.
who has so little sense that he j while the post office was
will stand up, at the invit^ion of pj-ank Buchan’s immediate inter-
the legislature, and let himself gg^.^ j^is affection embraced the
be counted cannot be a very dan- gjj^jj.g section and his knowledge
gerous individual. What earthly local affairs, of people high
good would it do to count such prominent or obscure,
come-ons? All this talk of count- ^gs amazing.
ing does is to send this menace How often in answer to a ques-
flirther underground than it iSi^tigg one hear the phrase:
already, while disfranchising the ^n^gk Frank Buchan; he can tell
communist party, as Edgai you”,. And he always could.
Hoover, for one, has pointed out, whether it was about some phase
would make it just that mucn of early history or about negro
harder to spot the enemy within gpjj,j.jggjg or state politics or an
our gates. inquiry about some poor sick old
Such as he is. And he is an man, Frank Buchan knew the an-
enemy: a very real one, a very gwer. And, if it was a question of
tough one. He is disciplined, he jjelp and advice, none was more
is an indefatigable worker, he is readily given or more valuable,
unscrupulous, he is out to make j His interest in his colored
trouble everywhere. He sincerely friends and his kindness to them
thinks the world would be a ^i^gs an example of Christian
un- better place if communism were j brotherhood. His understanding,
everywhere accepted and he will jjis tolerance, his fairness, and his
use any means for such an end. hatred of falseness, arrogance.
The end itself would mean the meanness, showed the true dem-
overthrow of democracy and the ggrat.
rights of man. | That was the sort of man he
The communist is a dangerous |was. And the sort of impression
individual. Because of that fact, jje made? It is hard for an old
J. Edgar Hoover lists as an important factor in juvenile law
lessness the breakdown of the American home. This phase of
the question is also in the hands of those who are concerned
about this problem in our own locality.
Not long ago Superintendent of Schools Philip J. Weaver
spoke before a group in West Southern Pines on this subject.
Opening his talk wjth the arresting remark that “there are no
delinquent children, there are only delinquent parents,” he
held his audience at a high pitch of interest by his eloquent
appeal for better homes and greater parental concern over
children’s welfare. His audience was so impressed with his
remarks that he was later invited to speak also before the
West Southern Pines Parent-Teacher association.
The problem of juvenile delinquency to be found everywhere
in our land is ours also, and we have citizens who are con
cerned with it and are doing their best to handle it. There
is not a doubt that our school people are on the right track.
The program they are trying to carry out deserves the supfjprt
of us all.
we are fools if we don’t fight
him, but we are greater fools if
we don’t fight him right, and that
means keeping our shirts on,
studying all the facts and plan
ning our attack where it will do
the most good. The point of that
attack is definitely not a com
munist witch-hunt and the time
to start such a thing is definitely gympathy.
and devoted friend to write of
that: Kindliness first, and cour
tesy; a vivid originality of phrase
and turn of wit that made listen
ing to his stories an utter delight;
a world of hard, clear, common
sense; keen understanding of
human nature; a rugged rock-
hewn look that covered quick
not at the precise moment when
our representatives at the Mos
cow conference are racking their
brains to find some way of work
ing out with Russia and the other
big countries the problem that is
Europe. This sudden attack of
terror at home is surely a very
poor way of backing up a “get
tough with Russia” policy, while
as an exhibition of rtlliness, stu
pidity and timidity it is beyond
words depressing.
There have been few among
us whose passing from our midst
will be felt as the loss of Frank
Buchan.
PULL OVER. pLEASE!
'The three-car automobile acci
dent on May street last week
draws attention to the fact of this
through traffic highway in our
town and the danger which it
represents to our citizens.
There are dozens of 25-mile
speed limit signs scattered along
it, but they seem to have little
effect on the speed of cars and
trucks. Anyone who has to cross
May street frequently will testify
to the many close escapes he has
had.
Jhere is only one way to stop
speeding and that is to arrest the
drivers. A highway patrolman at
each end of route 1, as it enters
town, is what this town needs,
in the opinion of many citizens.
But there are a few who op
pose such drastic measures. They
profess to fear that Southern
Pines will be hurt by adverse
publicity if arrests are made.
“We will be known as a police-
trap for speedsters” said one.
That is possible. On the other
hand it is also possible that we
would become known as a town
that values human life, a town
that believes in law enforcement
and is lined up with those forces
which are trying to reduce the
dreadful death toll of our high
ways.
It it comes to a choice between
publicity through motor acci
dents and violeiit death or pub
licity through law enforcement
the decision would seem to be
an easy one.
And, after aU, the publicity
angle is a rajher unimportant one
when it comes to saving lives.
TRIBUTE
Frank Buchan was one of the
finest men I have ever met, and
I have lived in many places and
met many men. I am proud in
deed to be able to call him one
of my dearest and best of friends.
I shall miss him beyond measure
and so will the town of Southern
Pines.
Generous with his time, his
energies, and all he had, far-
visioned and quick to see what
was good and to act upon it, no
man had more to do with the
progress and the beauty of Sou
thern Pines, no man ever did
more kindly acts. No man was
ever more modest about them.
He leaves behind him a legion
of those whom he helped in one
way or another. He leaves behind
him in the hearts of all who knew
him well a love that time will not
erase.
Struthers Burt.
FRANK BUCHAN
“I feel that I have lost my best
friend,”
The phrase was on many lips
on Tuesday as the people of Sou
thern Pines and Moore County
joined in sorrow over the death
of Frank Buchan. It was on the
lips of some Who, one would have
said, scarcely knew him, but so
deep was his affectionate interest
in his fellowmen that the warmth
of his personality reached out and
enfolded every one in the mantle
of his friendship.
!He died on the first day of
spring. Under the warm sun, the
blooming things in the country
side he loved spread their blos
soms in the soft air, in the prom
ise of summer coming.
It was as he would have wish-
Steve Court
Cameron, N. C.
March 8, 1947
The Pilot
Dear Editor,
I was reading with great inter
est, in The Pilot of Friday, Feb
ruary 28, a letter concerning the
ABC liquor stores, from “A Wor
ried Mother,” Pinehurst.
May I speak of liquor, first,
from what Our Lord says in the
Good Book, and second, from a
practical point of view?
If you will turn to First Corin
thians, chapter 6, verses 9-10,
you will see that no drunkard
shall inherit the kingdom of
God! '
Our Lord says definitely that
those who would put a cause of
stumbling in the wa/y of a weaker
brother will be punished.
In the course of my many
years’ teaching, I had opportun
ity to see the hardships and suf
fering of the children when the
father or mother, or both, were
drunkards, but I will only men
tion one' case. There were two
little sisters in my room, whose
father was a drunkard. They
came to school in below-zero
weather in ragged clothes, and
thqir shoes and stockings worn
right through to the ground! It
was pitiful and tragic to see the
way they would cringe when any
adult cange near them.
Then what happened. Prohibi
tion came into effect, and boot
leg liquor was out of the father’s
price range so he stopped drink-
In the first three months of 1947,
juvenile delinquency cases
brought before' Clerk , of Superior
Court John A. Willcox totaled 22
—the exact number of all those
heard during 1946.
This may look as though juve
nile delinquency is on a sharp
upgrade in Moore county, but
this is not the case.
It means that juvenile delin
quency is bqlng better and more
efficiently handled since the ad
dition last July of a special child
welfare worker to the welfare
department staff; and that many
more cases are being taken care
of.
Miss Sarah Catherine Mclnnis,
the new case worker, has as her
main job the investigation of all
school truancy cases, with their
coittributory causes. She keeps
busy, but even so Moore county
has a smaller number of cases in
proportion to the population.
However, before we start con
gratulating ourselves, saying like
the Philistine, “Thank God, we
are not as others are,” let us take
a look at the cases which have
already thiS year come up before
Judge 'Willcox.
Parental Neglect
In four of the cases, it was the
parents who were on trial, charg
ed with neglect, for violating the
state law which requires them to
see that their children attend
school until the age of 16.
In other truancy cases, num
bering 14, it was the children
who were tried, as the parents
had been unable to get them to
go to school.
Two cases were listed as “un
controllable,” and there were 10
listed: as “delinquency,” involv
ing both truancy and uncontrol
lability along with a variety of
other forms of wrongdoing.
Two juveniles were tried for
forgery, one for aiding and abet
ting in the wrongdoing of some
one, else, one for arson.
Checking with Mrs. Walter B.
Cole, welfare superintendent, we
find that these represent only a
small number of actual cases, be
cause every angle is tried, and,
a solution found if possible, be
fore a case is permitted to come
to trial. Often a revision can be
made in home conditions which
produce child crime; or the en
vironment can be changed entire
ly, with the children placed in
foster homes.
Undirected Energy
“Those aren’t bad children,”
says Mrs. Cole, who has probably
seen more of the seamy side of
life in our county than anyone
else you could name. ‘‘They are
simply undirected. Often both
parents work, trusting the chil
dren to look after themselves,
get themselves to school, behave
themselves after school—and the
kids, hunting the kind of excite
ment which appeals to them more,
just don’t do it. In many of the
Negro cases especially — and
white and Negro cases run about
fifty-fifty—the father has van
ished, the mother has gone to
some other state to work and the
children are in the care of grand
parents who are unable to look
after or control them.
“You can’t always blame pa
rents, for often they themselves
are ignorant, handicapped or be
wildered before the complexities
of making a living and coping
with adverse conditions.
“Children crave excitement,
and some sort of release for their
boundless energies and inven
tiveness. Where proper channels
are not presented, they find the
wrong ones, and the first thing
ing. In three months’ time the
transformation was nothing short
of a miracle!
The children had nice little
lunches to bring to school, at
tractive warm clothes, dainty lit
tle patent leather shoes and
socks, with rubbers for stormy
weather. And best of aU, the chil
dren began to tell what happy
times they had when they went
to the parks and beaches with
mother and father.
Yet some wiU argue for liquor
for its source of revenue. Our
Lord says ‘The love of money
is the root of all evil.” Is reyenue
from an evil that traffics in hu
man souls, worth it? •
Very truly yours,
Helen H. Farnham
you know there’s a delinquency
case on your hands.
“Where home conditions can’t
be remedied, or the case is too
serious to entrust to a foster
home, there is no recourse but
the state training schools, and
these are very crowded. The
waiting list is miles long at Sam-
arcand for white girls, Jackson
for white boys, Morrison for Ne
gro boys—and of course there is
no place at all for Negro girls.
Recreation Needed
“Proper recreation for children
is the chief solution and the one
which seems hardest of attain
ment. If there is some place for
them to go where they are wel
comed, something for them to do
after they get there—something
to provide the joys they crave,
and to give them that necessary
sense of ‘belonging’ and of
achievement, their temptations
are far less.”
This is a subject which, of
course, has received national at
tention since the release of many
controls during war days brought
an upsurge in juvenile crime.
Many communities including
Southern Pines, inaugurated
youth programs, with centers for
youth activities, and many others
have them on their calendars of
plans.
A Washington matron, shock
ed at radio programs of murder
and crime listed as juvenile pro
grams, so pushed a program
agaifast them that 35,000 names
were placed on petitions in 44
states to investigate the perni
cious influences, not only in
radio but in comic books and
mystery movies; and, v<|th a con
gressional bill in the making for
their investigation, some radio
men got very busy. On the Col
umbia Broadcasting system a top
night show was moved last month
to provide a good spot for “The
Eagle’s Brood,” a series of radio
casts on juvenile delinquency de
signed to wake up the whole na
tion.
However, Mrs. Cole does not
list these agencies as more than
mildly contributory, placing the
lack of good home and commun
ity influences far at the top.
Volunteer Program
In our county the Boy Scout
program has had a fine start and
is doing well, thanks to the en
ergy and vision of a number of
volunteer leaders, busy men who
give freely of their time to help
make good citizens for the mor-
rpw. Cub Scouting, which be
gins even earlier in the boy’s
life, is also getting under way.
There is no Girl Scout program
here.
All these are needed, and are
of value—but their value will be
immeasurably increased when
the leaders make a determined
effort to see that children whose
delinquency would come under
welfare department jurisdiction
have the advantage of them. We
know there are difficulties in the
way. A boy does not become a
Boy Scout, nor if he does, is he
a good one, without parental en
couragement and too many pa
rents are ignorant or indifferent.
In fact, in their ignorance or
indifference may, according to
evidence gathered from all sidesi
be found the crux of the problem,
placing too great a burden on
schools, organizations and com
munities.
The schools, working under
financial and staff limitations, ap
pear to be doing as good a job
as they can. In fact, the parent
who is really interested in his
child’s welfare finds help on all
sides.
Larceny Case
Stirred by a recent local case
in which four local Negro, boys
from nine to 13 years of age were
involved in a series of larcenies,
the Pilot made inquiry of J. W.
Moore, principal of the 'West
Southern Pines school, to see
what ideas he had on the situa
tion; and it turned out he had
ideas a-plenty, and well in ac
cord with those of Mrs. Cole.
Going on the principle that
“the devil finds work lor idle
hands to do,” he has done his
best to provide a balanced recre
ation program for his young
charges at the local Negro school;
and the results are already show
ing up ill healthier attitudes and
good behavior. Believing in a full
program of cultural, athletic and
social activities, he has Cooper
ated in the formation of a Boy
Scout troop under E. M. Gentry,
shop manager; basketball teams
of bd|th boys and girls which
played a full series of inter
school games; a play yard with
swings installed, and other equip
ment planned and hoped for.
A school band, with good in
struments and uniforms, is his
cherished dream for the school,
where he has found much musi
cal talent. This he believes
would be a source of pride not
only to the students but to the
whole community.
School authorities, welfare
workers and volunteer leaders
struggling along without paren
tal cooperation cannot get very
far, no matter how fine are their
intentions. Parents working and
worrying, and failing to support
community efforts, are also at a
standstill. The ideal is coopera
tion between community and pa
rents in behalf of every child—
not just your own, but your
neighbor’s as well.
The agencies which are work
ing together to make our town
and county a better place to live
must receive the support of every
citizen if our youth is to have a
fair deal.
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