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It
VOTE TUESDAY
FOR
WATER PLANT
EXPANSION
ILOT
VOTE TUESDAY
FOR
WATER PLANT
EXPANSION
VOL 30—NO 41
14 PAGES THIS WEEK
Southern Pines, N. C. Friday, September 2, 1949.
14 PAGES THIS WEEK
TEN CENTS
Coble Announces
Bond Issue Roads
For Moore County
'Back Road" To
Bragg Reservaiion
Will Be Paved
A list of 32 hardsurfacing pro
jects for Moore county under the
$200,000,000 road building pro-
North
Board of Health
m U8iT
gram, was announced Wednesday I
by District Commissioner George
Coble. ’
It includes one of especial im
portance to Southern Pines—^the
1.9-mile stretch of road from
Connecticut Avenue extension to
the Hoke County (Bragg reserva
tion boundary) line.
Information from Mr. Coble to
The Pilot was that he plans a
conference with Army officials
soon, with a view toward getting
the entire length of the road
hardsurfaced. The part within the
reservation, something over 18
miles, is under Army jurisdiction,
not that of the state.
Mr. Coble is the first of the 10
district commissioners to an
nounce the list of secondary road'
improvement projects for his dis
trict, thus leading off the accel
erated roadbuildihg program
sanctioned by the statewide June
4 election.
Connecting Link
While all the projects on the
list are important to this coun
ty, the Fort Bragg road is of great
interest here, as it forms the con
necting link and short-cut for
Fort Bragg and Pope field per
sonnel living in Southern Pines.
Its present condition makes their
daily commuting a considerable
hardship, and has prevented more
of the Army people from moving
to Southern Pines, as many have
said they wish to do.
The day the roadbuilding an
nouncement was made, the High
way Commission also reported on
low bids for projects in 28 coun
ties, to be built under the regu
lar road program. These include
three structures on the county
road between Carthage and Glen-
don, in Moore, low bidder was
((!lontinued on Page 8)
Ishmael Hill Is
Drowned As Car
Plunges Into Lake
Ishmael Hill, about 23 years old,
a bookkeeper for the Mid-South
Motors at Aberdeen, met a swift
and tragic death shortly before 2
a. m. Thursday when his car
plunged from the road near Aber.
deer into a five-foot-deep lake.
Traveling south on US High
way 1, HUl apparently lost con
trol of his car as he approached
the ornamental lake of the For
est Hills development, on the east
side of the highway.
An unidentified motorist, trav
eling behind him, saw the car
plunge into the lake, drove quick
ly to a nearby service station and
put in an ambulance call. The
Powell Funeral home at Southern
Pines responded, also the South
ern Pines Fire department, bring
ing floodlights and the resuscita-
tor.
The car, which was upside down
in the water, was pulled out at
once but Hill’s body was not re
covered imtil about 6:30 a. m. des
pite prolonged effort to find it.
Thrown out of the car through
the top as the car struck a drain
pipe and overturned, he was found
some 12 feet away by Richard
Kaylor. It was apparent that he
was dead and the resuscitator was
not used.
The aid of Kaylor, Scout lead
er, qualified lifesaver and life
guard, had beep enlisted by his
father. Southern Pines Resident
Fireman Frank Kaylor, about
daybreak. Richard brought up
Hill’s body on the third dive.
Coroner Hugh P. Kelly render
ed a verdict of death by acciden
tal drowning.
Young Hill was the son of Mr.
and Mrs. Avon Hill of Clayton, Rt.
1. He had been employed by the
Aberden company since February,
and had been rooming at the
home of Mrs. Brickman. '
The body was sent Thursday to
Clayton. Funeral plans were not
known here at that time but it
was believed services would be
held at Clayton today (Friday).
ALFRED CHISWELL
DR. J. W. WILLCOX
Mobile X-Ray Unit Will Be Here Next
Week; AH'Citizens Asked To Pay Visit
The mobile X-ray unit shown
above will be in Southern Pines
and West Southern Pines all next
week; Tuesday, Wednesday and
Thursday on East Pennsylvania
avenue at Broad street, and Fri
day and Saturday at West South
ern Pines.
Staffed by technicians' of the
state department of health, the
unit will offer free X-rays to all
the citizens for detection of ac
tual cr incipient tuberculoses. The
X-ray is quick and clothing need
not be removed.
Object of the sponsoring agen
cies—^the state and county health
departments—is 100 per cent cov
erage of all residents of both rur
al and town communities, and
everyone is asked to present him
self for the X-ray. He will re
ceive a written report within two
or three weeks. The Moore Coun
ty Tuberculosis association is
paying for the survey out of funds
given by Moore citizens in Christ
mas Seal campaigns.
With the unit above are shown
Alfred G. Chiswell, left of South
ern Pines, a staff member of the
state department of health, who
has assisted in setting up the pro
gram here, and Dr. J. W. Will-
cox, health officer of the Moore-
Hoke district.
Two units (with an auxiliary)
have been supplied Moore county
for the countywide survey, which
will take until October( and one
has al:|o been suppylied Hoke
county, which is having a sur
vey at the same time.
More than 200 persons were sur
veyed on the opening day, last
Friday, by the units stationed at
Gaines store and ' Harris Cross
roads, and 300 or more the next
day. On Saturday, one unit was
stationed at Jackson Springs, and
the other at the highway prison
camp, -where all the prisoners
were R-rayed.
Attention, Kids-Wednesday Will Be
First Day Of School In Town, County
LABOR DAY
The Labor Day holiday will
be observed by a general
suspension of business Mon
day, wilh the closing of all
stores. Stores -will also ob
serve the usual Wednesday
closing next week, according
to word from the Merchants
association.
City and counity offices
will be closed. General deliv
ery and stamp windows at the
post office will be open only
until 10 a. m., though incom
ing and outgoing mail will be
worked as usual.
County commissioners will
meet Tuesday instead of Mon
day, and recorders court will
be held Tuesday also. The
jury trial session, usually held
the first Monday, will be on
'the second Monday, Septem
ber 12, instead.
Sandhills Tennis
Tournament Opens
Here Next Week
Summer’s running out, kids—a
few more days, a Labor Day
weekend of holiday fun (and that
last swim) then with Wednesday
comes the opening of school in
both the town and the county.
The Southern Pines school will
open at 9 a. m. Wednesday, and
also on Thursday, for shortened
sessions lasting only until noon,
according to Supt. P. J. Weaver.
Friday will be the first full day
of school, with the regular hours
observed—8:15 a. m. to 2 p. m.
with a 25-minute recess for lunch.
Classes should be in full swing
by the following Monday, with no
more holiday in prospect until
Thanksgiving.
A full complement of teachers
awaits the onrush of young peo
pie, from first graders embarking
on a brand-new experience to the
high school seniors tasting the
joys of their superior estate for the
first time.
Teachers’ meetings will be held
Tuesday in the elementary school
library. Elementary teachers will
meet at 3 p. m., and will be joined
at 3:30 p. m. by the high school
teachers for a joint session. The
high school teacshers’ meeting will
be held at 4 p. m.
The Sandhills Open Tennis tour
nament, sponsored by the newly
formed Sandhills Tennis associa
tion, will start at 10 a. m. Satur
day, September 10, on the local
courts, with full daytime and eve
ning schedules for both the first
and second days.
The event will continue
throughout the week, with fin
als Saturday, September 17.
Trophies will be awarded in all
events—men’s singles and dou
bles, women’s singles and doubles,
mixed doubles, junior girls’ sin
gles and doubles and junior boys’
singles and doubles. A minimum
of six entries will be required for
the holding of one event.
The complete schedule will be
announced next week, according
to Angelo Montesanti, Jr., of the
tournament committee. Other
members of the committee are
Frank de Costa, Harry Lee Brown,
Jr., and Francis Stubbs, of South
ern Pines; Robert Page, Jr.,
Aberdeen; Colin McKenzie, Pine-
hurst, and P. A. Wilson, Vass.
(Entries will be welcomed from
(Continued on page 8)
CONTROLS OFF
Rent controls have been
lifted in Moore county as of
August 30. according to in
formation received here
Thursday by Harry Menzel,
chairman of the local rent ad
visory board, from the area
office in Fayetteville.
The removal of reslridtions
effective since early in the
war was made by Housing Ex
peditor Tighe E. Woods. Ma
chinery for the controls,
though placed an inactive sta
tus, 'will remain in place for
use again if needed.
Warning was issued that the
controls can be returned at
any time if too many rents go
up too fa^, creating undue
hardships.
Some rents, however, -will
certainly go up, as many in
equalities have been noted in
this area. The removal is ex
pected to correct these "■with
in reason," as the oldi law of
supply and demand goes again
into force.
Here^s What Youll Vote On
ENGINEERS' REPORT ON WATER PLANT
Mr. C. N. Page, Mayor and Board of Aldermen
Southern Pines
Gentlemen:
We wish to bring up to date and summarize lOur various recom
mendations which have been made from time to time, including
observations from yesterday’s meeting with your board, Mr.
Butler and my associate, C. P. Mason, and myself. As a matter
for the record, all of us present yesterday agreed that:
(1)
(2)
(b)
(0
(d)
(e)
(f)
(3)
That the Town should now construct approximately 18,500
feet of 12-inch, 10-inch and 8-inch water mains on Ridge
street,, Morganton road, Wisconsin avenue, Stevens street,
Gaines street, Hardin street. New Hampshire avenue. Pee
Dee road, Central drive, and from the plant to distribu
tion system for the purpose of increasing pressure, and
more particularly providing a separate line into the Town
so that you would not be out of water in case of failure
of the one line which is now the only feeder from the
plant. A disaster of this kind was barely averted in recent
years.
This phase of the project is considered vitally necessary,
and is estimated to cost $130,000.
We also unanimously agreed that the Town should now
renovate, repair and modernize the existing waterworks
plant which was constructed 25 years ago, at which time
the population was approximately 750. During this time
, there have been no material improvements. While this
plant has served its purpose quite well we must remem
ber that it can not last forever.
Some of the necessary improvements are:
(a) New pumping system and new pumps which will reduce
cost of pumping by $800 annually and also provide an ade
quate amount of water for any foreseeable emergency.
Provide adequate storage space for chemicals, means of
regulating the feeding of these chemicals, and at the
same time reduce the amount of hand labor involved. At
present these chemicals are fed in concentrated quantities,
and this cannot beij-ectified without the installation of
new equipment.
The present plant (designed 1924) did not provide for
mechanical flocculation and mixing, which is a phase
of treatment now demanded in all purification plants.
This deficiency may be the cause of certain infrequent
periods when the treated water tests indicate a high bac
teria count.
The present manually controlled operating tables are most
inconvenient and to some degree unsatisfactory. All
modern plants now have hydraulically operated tables.
Due to inadequate storage space it is now necessary to
have certain materials, working tools, and equipment kept
out in the open. Thus additional storage space is needed.
The roof on the clear water reservoir will fail within a few
years unless repairs are made. There is also needed a
revamping of the piping system connecting with this res
ervoir.
The capacity of the plant must be enlarged now or in the
immediate future. In this connection it is well to remem
ber that it will require approximately 12 months from
the date of preparing to let the construction contract until
the new plant could be put into operation.
The rated capacity of the plant is one million gallons per
day, but this can not be depended upon at 100 per cent
every day in the year. •
There have been several days in 1949 when the water
consumption was 800,000 gallons per day.
It is, therefore, very important that the Town should rem
ember that:
When you consider l2*months for letting the contract for
construction and
When consumption has doubled in the past 15 years, or
7 percent increase per year, and
When there should always be a factor of safety to pro
vide for emergency, additional water users, small plants,
or small industries, and
If there should be a long dry period, or ^extensive fires
there would be an unusually heavy demand for water.
Under these circumstances and contingencies you are faced
with the fact that this plant needs to be both modernized
and enlarged at this time, if you* are to adequately provide
health and safety measures for the Town.
In view of questions in your mind as to the necessity for im
mediate enlargement of the plant—separate from improvements
thereto—and a similar suggestion by Mr. Butler whom you em
ployed to check our work, we have tried seriously to devise some
means by which we could submit a plan for making urgent im
provements now and deferring the enlargement feature a few
years-hence.
In the first place, according to all records, this could not be de
ferred more than two years for letting the contact, or three
years for operations of the new plant.
In the second place, as you will remember from our discussions
yesterday, we and the others present were wholly unable to
draw any definable line, between the two phases of work. Even
if we could do so, there most certainly would be an increase in
cost of at least $20,000 which would result from. doing the
work in two stages instead of one. •
Moreover, we can find no way in which necessary alterations
can be made in the present plant without first constructing the
new features with which to treat the water during these alter
ations.
(5) We are happy to report that your raw water supply is ex
cellent and adequate; the line from the reservoir to the
plant will suffice for many years; that the wash-water
tank is adequate for the enlargecj plant, and that the clear
water reservoir is adequate for the proposed enlarged
plant.
We have studied the possibility of the needs for another
elevated steel tank. We have proposed the distribution
lines so as to feed into a new tank for some future date.
The elevated storage now is below normal requirements.
But with the present clear water reservoir, additional
proposed large water mains and the new pumping system,
this new tank may be deferred for many years.
With estimates of $130,000 for the distribution system;
and $15,000 for miscellaneous expenses and engineering,
$130,000 for alterations and enlargement of the plant;
we believe that the entire cost of this project will be close
to $275,000.
Raleigh, N. C. August 23. L. E. WOOTEN AND COMPANY
(a)
(b)
(0
(d)
(6)
(7)
Board Members Ur^e
Voter’s Approval In
Water Bond Election
REV. R. L. HOUSE
Richmond Pastor
Accepts Call, Will
Come In November
The Rev. Robert Lee House,
pastor of the First Congregational
church of Richmond, Va., has ac
cepted the call to the pastorate
of the Church of Wide Fellow
ship and will assume his duties
here November 1.
He is a native of Franklin
county. North Carolina, a gradu
ate of the Franklin High school
and of Duke university, class of
1929. He received his B. D. degree
at Duke in 1929. During his stu
dent days he preached at Hanks
Chapel, near Pittsboro, and since
that time his ministry has been
in Virginia.
He served the First Congrega
tional Christian church at New
port News,. 1931-36, and during
that time was for a term presi-s
dent of the Eastern Virginia con
ference of Congregational Chris
tian churches. During that period
he was married to Miss June Joy
Hyatte.
Editor, Officer
He was pastor of the First
Christian church in Portsmouth,
Va., for three years, and in Feb
ruary, 1940, went to the Rich
mond church. In addition to his
services there he has been editor
of the Christian Sun, a weekly
publication of his denomination;
has served as treasurer of the In
terdenominational Foundation for
Religious Work in ^tate Institu-
(Continued on page 8)
Tuesday Will Be
Voting Day Here
Southern Pines voters will go to
the polls at City Hall 'Tuesday be
tween 6:30 a. m. and 6:30 p. m.
to vote “yea” or “nay” on a ques
tion gravely affecting the future
of the town. '
The town board, after prolonged
study of the water plant situation
here, and the securing of engi
neers’ recommendations and esti
mates, is asking voters to approve
a bond issue of $275,000 for mod
ernization and expansion of the
water facilities here.
Facts contained in the engi
neers report, shown in an ad
jacent column, indicate that
the presenlt plant and equip
ment have only a little wl^ile
to go before drastic measures
must be taken. As Mayor
Page points out, a year and a
half have been consumed in
making the survey, another
year will be required to con
struct the plant annex, in
stall new machinery and build
the needed water lines.
The engineers have given the
present plant only three years of
continued usefulness, based on
water use increase averages over
15 years.
Consistent Increase
- In these 15 years, they point
out. Southern Pines’ water con
sumption has doubled, at a con
sistent rate of about seven per
cent a year. There is no reason to
believe this graph line will level
off in the foreseeable future.
Town board members are unan
imous in their view that the im
provement is of extreme urgency,
not only for the present but for
hoped-for development in the
next 25 years or more.
From Glouscesler. Mass.,
To-wn Board Commissioner
telephoned this week to say,
"Please urge the citizens of
Southern Pines to give this
bond issue their full approval.
FRONT PAGE NEWS
The unusual volume of
front-page copy in connection
with the bond election, rat-
has crowded some other front
ing an outstanding position,
page stories into The PilolFs
inside pages.
This implies no lessening of
their importance or value. It's
just that what Bob Harlow
called "some sort of bond elec
tion for some -water pipes"
here is the most vital maitter
to come before this commun
ity in a good many years.
It's The Pilot's job to inform
the voters fully, and we are
trying to do just tha't.
Readers are asked' to per
use all inside pages carefully,
for ne-ws which otherwise
have rated front page space.
It is most important that they
do so, not only for the prog-
gress of the town but for their
own immediate health and
safety. |
"As a taxpayer of many
years' standing, and a to-wn
commissioner almost that
long, I feel this is the most
vital issue which has been
presented to the voters in
many years and that they
cannot fail to endorse it."
Said Mayor Page, “Aside from
the vital need for expansion.
Southern Pines cannot feel very
proud or very safe as long as ob
solete methods of water purifi
cation ara being used. When the
present plant was built 25 years
ago, hand methods were the best
we had for mixing chemicals and
feeding them into the filter. These
methods are now outdated. They
are inefficient and obsolete. The
bacteria count cannot thus be
kept uniform or safe.”
What Town Will Get
The bond issue -will provide for
18,500 feet of new water lines, in
cluding a second line from the
plant into town by way of West
Southern Pines. This wiU serve
the double purpose of opening up
whole new areas for water ser
vice and provide an auxiliary line
in case the other needs repairs.
It -will provide new pumps and
pumping machinery, automatic
flocculation (mixing and filtering)
equipment, and sufficient storage
space for supplies and equipment
(Continued on Page 8)
LeVs Clean Up Those Old Bills
As “Pay Your Bills” week
opens here (September 1-10) it
was revealed that a survey of 42
merchants queried at random last
week reported that they were
carrying a total of $211,279.28 on
their books.
Most of these represent past
due accounts, The survey was
made just as September bills
were about to be sent out. Many
accounts, in fact, are long, long
past due.
The merchants queried repre
sent less than half of those in
town, including professional men
and others who extend credit,
and the total might reasonably
be estimated at $250,000 or more,
according to Harry Fullenwider,
acting manager of the Merchants
association. That’s a lot—too
much!
The Association is sponsoring
“Pay Your Bills” week hopeful
ly-hoping that the load the mer
chants are carrying will be whit
tled down by at least 10 per cent.
They are anxious for old ac
counts of several months’ stand
ing to be cleared off, so they can
start the new season with confi
dence.
They owe money, too, they
want to pay. They need new faU
stocks. They want to keep their
credit rating in order, and would
like to see their customers keep
good ratings too.
That’s good business for every
body in town. ‘