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PAGE TWO THE PILOT—Southern Pines, North Carolina FRIDAY, MAY 7, 1954 Atlanta Editor Sees Change Coming Southern Pines North Carolina “In taking over The Pilot no changes are contemplated. We will try to keep this a good paper. We will try to make a little money for all concerned. Where there seems to be an occa sion to use our influence for the public good we will try to do it. And we will treat everybody alike.”—James Boyd, May 23, 1941. County Home: Number One Problem Last week’s Pilot carried the story of the County Home. It is a story that could probably be duplicated in a good many counties of the state, for North Carolina is still way behind in facilities for taking care of its sick, old, and mentally-afflicted. In judging the rights and wrongs of the local situation, this point should be emphsisized. Moore County is, sad to relate, not particularly exceptional. It is said, for instance, that one of the privately-operated, out-of-county nursing homes to which indigent county cases are now being sent, is hardly up to state standards. There are probably others. Under such circumstances it could be understood that county officials might feel that to send old people from the Moore County Home to some of these is sending them from the frying-pan into the fire. The local situation, then, probably reflects the general one, but, of course, what Moore County people want is not to reflect existing poor con ditions but for the county to be a leader on the road to improvement. A good many counties are going ahead, taking better care of their people and still balancing the budget. Moore County ought to be able to do so, too. Whatever is done will need public support. It will be recalled that when the county was al lotted a new health center by the state, the commissioners turned it down. They questioned the need and disliked the expense. It took a del egation of citizens, backed by medical men and health-minded people in general, to get them to change their minds. However, when the wishes of the people were clearly under stood, they did reverse themselves and the pres ent fine health center is the result. It may take a similar effort to get the County Home problem solved. If that is the case, we are confident it will be forthcoming, and that it will be received in a friendly spirit by the au thorities. With cooperation and goodwill, spark ed by the desire to see Moore County a leader in health and welfare, a^ she is in other fields of endeavor, it should be possible to find a sat isfactory solution for what is now a most un satisfactory situation. Record Of Law Enforcement The three-man race for the sheriff’s nomina tion in the Democratic primary May 29 stands out this year because it is the only contest with more than two candidates and because it in volves three widely known and highly respected residents of the county. R. G. Fry, Jr., whose father was once sheriff of Moore, Wendell B. Kelly, who had a long and praiseworthy record in the State Highway Pa trol, and Sheriff C. J. McDonald, the incum bent, who has held the office of sheriff with distinction for a quarter of a century, are all natives and lifelong residents of Moore County. All are men of high character with many loyal friends. The county is fortunate that three such men are candidates for this important office. Each of these candidates, as an individual, is worthy of support by voters of the county. But as The Pilot looks toward the primary, we feel constrained to advocate the renomination of Sheriff McDonald—for the simple reason that we can see no reason why he should not con tinue to serve in the office he has held so capably and so long. As we look back on Sheriff McDonald’s most recent term, to which he was elected in 1950, we find in several cases evidence of his abilities and a record that shows no slackening in his shrewd and energetic investigation of law breaking and his dignified maintenance of law and order. In these cases, the sheriff had the valuable cooperation of his deputies, the State Bureau of Investigation, the Army Intelligence and municipal police officers of the county, but it was he who had the central responsibility that was successfully met. An explosive case in which law and order was maintained by the sheriff was the fatal shoot ing of Carthage Police Chief Bunn Cameron. Also coming to mind are: the arrest and sen tencing of three white paratroopers charged with raping a Moore County Negro woman; the case in which the sheriff and a deputy were physically attacked by two crazed young men, now in State Hospital for the insane, who were subdued without firing a shot; the success ful investigation of an armed robbery of the Foster store at Vass, for which three men were sentenced and all the stolen money recovered; the capture and sentencing of the armed robber of the Wiley Gaines store in upper Moore Coun ty; the arrest and sentencing of four youths who were accused of shooting at a house from an automobile; and the most brutal murder case in the county’s history, solved with little or nothing to work on, as the investigation began, in cooperation with the Southern Pines police department-^the murder of Louise Dowd Mc Laughlin by Melvin Morrison. Renomination of Sheriff McDonald will be the county’s best recognition of his fine service through the years. In Remembrance Of A Loving Heart A person is known and admired for leadership in a community, or for his good influence; or he is sought after lor his wise arvice, his in tellectual grasp; or a person may be famed for his outstanding ability in his profession, his suc cess making him a model lor others to follow. Sometimes, and it is not as often as might be thought, a person is known for simple kindli ness and love, for a warm heart. The death of Josie Atkinson leaves a big gap in this community. Her unselfish devotion to those to whom she ministered during her life time, and the great warmth of loving-kindness that hung over her set this simple, sociable, cheery woman in a special niche. The High Point Enterprise, the newspaper of the town where Mrs. Atkinson, as Josie Me-' Craney, first served as a nurse and superinten dent of nurses, had this to say in an editorial that deserves to be reprinted here, where Mrs. Atkinson made her home. Epecially ^n its ref erence to her influence on student nurses does the editorial strike a pertinent note. To Mrs. Atkinson made her home. Especially in its ref- they were people in pain and trouble. Her at titude, exemplified in all her nursing career, that kindness and tenderness and sympathy are the basis of nursing, might well stand as a guiding star for the profession. The editorial is entitled “Craney,” the af fectionate nickname by which she was then known: Every now and then a community is priv ileged to know and observe someone who, by generous nature and devotion, revital izes confidence in the essential goodness of mankind. Such a one served well here in another day when Mrs. Josie McCraney ministered selflessly as a nurse and later as superin tendent of High Point Hospital, back in the early 1900’s. Many years ago she had given up her work here to help in the rearing of prphan- ed nieces and nephews, two sets of whom she raised for relatives who died. Later she married her sister’s widower, the late J. W. Atkinson, who died two years ago, but her generous nature kept her busily engaged doing for others to the day of her death. Rarely has this or any community known one with a finer penchant for service to others. Her life was an inspiration to throngs of younger women who went into nursing largely because of the happiness her life exemplified from losing herself in ministering to suffering humanity. The Enterprise expresses the sentiments of this community, so many of whose people have been touched by the lovely influence of this gracious woman. She will be long remembered for her kind and loving heart. And who is to say that is not the best way of all to be remembered? A Gift To Mothers On Mother’s Day Next Saturday, the day before Mother's Day, the Moore County Maternal Welfare Com mittee will hold its annual Tag Day drive. Funds from the drive go to supply such extra medicine and supplies as may be called for through the prenatal and well-baby clinics of the county health department, with the major amount raised for the support of a free bed for needy mothers at the Moore County Hospital. This organization thus carries On, though in somewhat changed aspect, the work started in 1935 by Elizabeth Woltz Currie, to whose mem ory the maternity ward at the hospital is dedi cated. The fact that there has been a change in the work of this committee is, in a way, indicative of its success. It was started at a time when the maternal death rate for Moore County was shockingly high, in fact, one of the highest in the nation. A special nurse was employed, through the encouragement and with the fin ancial help of the committee, to take full charge of the work of establishing prenatal clinics, and setting up a modem system of ma ternity care among the needier women of the county. Inestimable help was given by Moore County physicians and public support was gen erous. By all these means was established a service that brought results. The death rate dropped within a few years, while the system set up in Moore County was used ^s a model for similar work in other localities. Mother’s Day is the time to think of mothers. What better gift, what better remembrance, than, in gratitude for a mother’s love, to make help available to other mothers who are in need! By RALPH McGILL in The Atlanta Constitution What the various southern state legislatures are doing, as they busy themselves with plans to carry on school segregation without legal compulsion, is ad- miting segregation by law is fin ished, either this year, next, or within the next few to come. It is. There is no need beating about the bush. It, therefore, seems important that we discuss the problem as rationally as pos sible. There are those who insist that segregation protects the integrity of both races. There are others who believe, with deep sincerity, Negroes are better off under it. Conceivably this might be argued with some logic. It does not mat ter. The world, in the throes of a social revolution which began with the coming of the industrial revolution, and which was tre mendously accelerated by two great world wars, has moved on. Segregation by law no longer fits today’s world. Southern legislatures, busy with plans to maintain, some form of segregation without legal compul sion, are wise to face that fact— though there are questiions as to the wisdom of some of the pro posals they make. Policy As a matter of fact, segregation has been on its way out for a good long time and has been breaking down at the edges for more than a generation. Surprisingly few Southerners, or Americans of oth er areas know that for some years Negroes have been attending, and graduating from, medical, law and ether professional schools in state universities in the South. In the field of employment, seg regation has for some years been changing, and in many other fields it also shows the signs, and influences of our time. Two great forces have been at work on segregation and the prob lem of face. One is secular, and the other religious. The Chris tian of today cannot help but wince at the full implications, and the jarring clash of his creed, with discrimination against any person because of color. To send mission aries to colored peoples and then to argue that because O'f the color of skin the two may not, if they choose so to do, worship the same God together is an impossible con tradiction. Indeed, it is this very fact which causes our Communist en emies to be able to present us in a bad light before the Oriental and Asiatic peoples. They can say, with some truth, that our claims to Christian brotherhood and democracy are hypocritically un true. Christianity cannot well afford to be on the wrong side of a moral force, as it was in some areas when it defended slavery. The other influence is secular. Segregation implies inferiority. There are those who argue that it does not. But, those segregated believe it does. There are those who say the fish never feels the hook. But, unfO'rtunately, it is not possible to ask the fish. Across two great wars now we, along with other free peoples, have preached the rights of men every where to be free and equal—we have enco'uraged long-oppressed peoples to rise. They have done so, and to date the Communists, with great shrewdness, have ex ploited successfully many of these 'nationalistic revolutions. Change An end to segregation—when it comes—will not, of course, force people to associate socially. That will remain, as now, personal choice. But, it will bring on change—and this is what state legislatures in South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Virginia, and Alabama are, or will be, consid ering. They consider not how to retain legal segregation—which they see soon ending—but how to effect it without legal compulsion. Their great opportunity is to do so without violence or rash deeds which later will have to be un done at great cost. So, while it is true that much of the push behind ending segrega tion is political; and that many Of those in both parties urge it hypo critically, it does not change the basic fact—segregation is on its way out and he who tries to tell the people otherwise does them great disservice. The problem of the future is how to live with the change. Music. Sweet Music Music has had a heyday here abouts, these last few weeks. The grand tlimax was the N. C. Symphony concert pronounced the best yet by most of those who heard it. Adding to the pleasure of mem bers of the Civic Club Music Ap preciation group, most of whom were there, was the fact that they had heard recordings of many of the compositions played and had studied them, under the guidance of Sara Hodgkins, who conducted the class. "This is a new venture of the club and one that, we are told, has been outstandingly successful. The club was lucky, they feel, to have had the help of Mrs. Hodg kins. And we agree with them. Sara also heads the Music Edu cators groups, music teachers of the county, who brought down Dr. Newman, music professor of Chapel Hill, to describe his meth ods of teaching, a few weeks, ago. Another outstandingly successful event in the growing appreciation and enjoyment of music. She Swept The Strings When is a harpist a ringer? If you said ‘‘when was,” we could answer: “at the N. C. Sym phony concert here two weeks ago.” The tall fine-looking girl who played her harp so gracefully had rushed down from Raleigh, on a hurry call from Director Swalin, to fill in for the regular player. The latter had to leave sud denly because of a death in the family. Dr. Swalin remembered Pamela Kellam, up in Raleigh, who had played with the group five years ago, and telephoned: “Come.” And Pam came; loaded her lovely harp into a trailer and trundled it down in time for the afternoon’s rehearsal. All serene, but Composer Na thaniel Burt put in some anxious moments. “That harp part is pretty impor tant in my overture,” he said, “where ‘the muse sweeps • the strings.’ ” Another Good One Another musical “best yet” was the school band concert last -flveek. We aren’t exactly including them in the same paragraph with the state symphony, but, who knows, some of the players may be there some day. Get the musical bee in the bon net young enough and well enough and no telling where you may end up. Anyway, it is heartening to see, or rather, to hear the improve ment in the school band. Watch Out! Folks from HighfaUs came down to the Commissioners’ meeting in Carthage Monday to ask for a deputy sheriff for up in their section. “WIe need one.” said Andrew Appanitis, spokesman for the delegation. “We need him for baseball games and dances and such. But maybe not full time And not anything too serious. He’d be more of a scarey man,” said Mr. A. Inter-County Warfare The HighfaUs folks have had a h£U‘d time working out some way to make the cars on the highway slow down when they go by the school. They come roaring across “Cur rie Speedway,” as the long bridge is called up thataway, and don’t pay any mind to slow signs. “We had some of those Coca Cola slow down school signs,” the folks said, “but somebody stole ’em and carried ’em off to Chatham County.” Keeping the Chair Fired Up “You* gentlemen got any par ticular problems?” asked Perhaps- Almost - Republican Governor SeaweU, sticking his head in the dcor of the commissioners’ room Monday. “No particular ones,” answered Commissioner John Currie. “It’s all problems. . . in capital letters.” Commissioner Jim Pleasants claimed the biggest problem they had to deal with was keeping Chairman Gordon Cameron’s pipe going. * “And then # putting him out when it gets going too hard and shoots sparks on him,” somebody else said. If You Want To Be Fancy If county commissioners take definite action about the County Home problem, it will mean mak ing a major decision, one way or the other. They say the views of the chairman, Gordon Cameron, in such matters always carry great weight. Would such a decision be call ed: “Cutting the Gordon knot?” Our Face Was Almost Pink Almost had a bad slip-up in the Maternal Welfare drive story about Tag Day in West End. That’s where they have the Community Chest system; ahd a good one it is, too. The Tag Day contribution is allotted from their yearly drive. But the “take” for the Maternal Welfare might not have been so generous this year if Dixie Ray, at the linotype machine, hadn’t spotted a typographical error. Seems we had typed out that in West End the Tag Day contribu tion is included in the Communist Chest. At that, we could always have quoted Senator McCarthy when they asked him about the Com munist votes that helped elect him in Wisconsin. He said: “Well, they vote, don’t they?” Well, they give! Only they didn’t. Why Mr. Lippmann! Last week’s Pilot carried an edi torial entitled: “The Nightmare in Washington.” Tuesday’s Walter Lippmann column politely left off the “The”, but there it was again: “Nightmare In Washington.” No; we hasten to say the Lipp mann piece was NOT a reprint of the Pilot editorial. And nobody needs to get sarcastic about “great minds ... ”, either. But it does look as if great minds and little ones were all thinking alike about the McCarthy nightmare. Mr. Lippmann’s column is not the first on this subject. When he says: “The confidence of our peor pie has been profoundly shaken; our prestige in the world and our claim to be the leader and defend er of free peoples have been hurt by McCarthy as they never were hurt by the worldwide apparatus of the Communist propaganda,” he is saying what he and other wise men, notably Joseph C. Harsch of the Monitor, have said often before. But he puts his fin ger on the sorest spot when he says: “The heart of the damage is the fact that the government has allowed itself to be intimidated by an ambitious and ruthless dema gogue.” All Americans must hope that the words of warning from these wise men will be taken seriously and the nightmare in Washington stopped in its tracks. Or we might as well say: “in his tracks.” The Public Speaking Enjoys Pilot Overseas To The Editor: A note to say hello and to tell you how much I enjoy The Pilot. I get it a week late, but’s it’s still good news to me. All my buddies read it and like it very much. We want you to know you put out a mighty fine paper. It sure will be nice to' get back there and pick one up for a dime. I really miss all the nice people in Southern Pines and that won derful little town. Hope to see you all before too long. Sinrprplv CPL. TOMMY KOONCE Pangua, Austria My address is: Cpl. T. J. Koonce RA 250180181 Co. E, 350th Inf. Regt. APO 541, Care of P. M. New York, N. Y. Self-Recognition - Needed To The Editor: One thing that is desperately needed here in the South is an adult education program specifi cally aimed at one ne^—the need to enable Southern Republicans to recognize themselves for what they are. Then a man like Senator Len non, who arrives in Washington apparently seeking a place on the McCarthy committee, and brazen ly announces to the world that he considers McCarthy a great American, then spends most of his time voting right along with the Republicans, could run as a Republican. And people who want to vote for candidates of this stripe—the “Democrats-for Eisen hower” and such like—could vote as Republicans, without obscuring the issues by claiming to be Dem ocrats. In this way, the Republicans could field stronger candidates, the Democrats could be more hopeful that their candidates would continue to act like Demo crats after election, and a much more healthy political situation would inevitably result. Sincerely, RUSSELL E. POWELL Southern Pines. Likes News Coverage To The Editor: I just want to compliment The Pilot on its news coverage. I read in there where I could get a book about North Carolina by writing to Raleigh, N. C., so I wrote, and today I received a beautiful book with the picture of the lumber yard across the highway from my old home in Vass. My wife, Margaret, read about a bill your co^ngressman fromi the 8th district had introduced in Congress in Washington, D. C. She wrote to him and received a nice reply from him today. Thanks to the Dear Old Pilot! In his reply. Congressman Deane wro'te: “This will acknow ledge receipt of your letter sup porting by bill, H. R. 1820, a bill making it unlawful for any per son having a wife and children dependent upon him to flee to an other State or foreign country for the purpose of avoiding the responsibility to provide for their support and maintenance. “I have been pleased to turn over your letter to the House Ju diciary Committee, tp which my bill has been assigned, and the Committee will extend your let ter careful consideration and study. ..” ED GSCHWIND Kansas City, Mo. ‘Tests For Alcoholism’ To The Editor: Who has asked himself, “Am I an alcoholic?” An article in the current issue of “Inventory,” bi monthly publication, of the N. C. Alcoholic Rehabilitation Program, outlines so^me self-administered tests designed to help anyone an swer that question and decide whether he needs treatment. Under the title, “Tests for Al coholism,” the author suggests that a person who takes the de tailed tests and answers the ques tions honestly can have a basis for deciding whether he is purely a social qrinker or one who has crossed tne border-line into prob lem drinking. The knowledge that one is a problem drinker need not create a feeling of hopelessness. Recog nition 01 the problem is the first step toward treatment and rehab ilitation. The “Inventory” article points out further that alcoholism can be successfully arrested so long as one recognizes and ac cepts the fact that he has the ill ness and sincerely desires help in recovering from it. Copies of the current issue of ‘ Inventory” may be had free on request to S. K. Proctor, Execu tive Director, Alcoholic Rehabili tation Program, Box 9118, Ra leigh, N. C. INTERESTED CITIZEN Is This America? Is this America or some sort of strange Alice - In - Wonderland? And what kind of Jabberwocky is going on in our midst? I won’t mention his name be cause that’s what he’s gunning for with his wild claims and charges. It’s getting so that chemists are afraid to do tests in their labora tories for fear the litmus paper will turn Red and cause them to be accused of guilt by associ ation, \ Well, it’s bad to be Red but worse to be Yellow. Where is our old American gumption and grit? We weren’t such sissies on the afternoon of Pearl Harbor day as we are rapidly becoming under the malevolent influence of this one who shall be nameless. • Were you afraid we wouldn’t win THAT war? The war we aren’t going to win is the One that makes every American afraid to think, afraid to speak his own mind, afraid of his fellow Ameri can, afraid even of his clergy. The Kremlin couldn’t possibly think of a better way to soften us up and make us come apart at the seams. It’s part of their psychological plan for conquering the free na tions. But it probably never oc curred to them in their wildest dreams that they could get a member of the U. S. Senate to do it for the m. Isn’t it about time that somebody investigated HIS loyalty? Or at least examined his head? Paranoia is no respecter of persons—’not even Senators. CONSTANCE J. FOSTER Pinebluff The PILOT Published Every Friday by THE PILOT, Incorporated Southern Pines. North Carolina 1941—JAMES BOYD—1944 Katharine Boyd Editor C. Benedict News Editor Dan S. Ray Gen. Mgr. C. G. Council Advertising Mary Scott Newton Business Bessie Cameron Smith Society Composing Room Lochamy McLean, Dixie B. Ray, Michael Valen, Jasper Swearingen Subscription Rates: One Year $4. 6 mos. $2; 3 mos. $1 Entered at the Postoffice at South ern Pines. N. C., as second class mail matter Member National Editorial Assn, and N. C. Press Assn.
The Pilot (Southern Pines, N.C.)
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May 7, 1954, edition 1
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