VOL 31
SMITHFIELD, N. C., FRIDAY, OCTOBER 4, 1912
Number 32
ONE DOLLAR PER YEAR. EDUCATION GOOD ROADS GOOD HEALTH PROGRESS
FIVE CENTS PER COPY.
MR. EDGERTONS LETTER
When Johnston County was an in
fant it thought as a child. It acted
aB a child. There was no necessity
for business systems because there
was but little business to be trans
acted. The entire time and services
of a man was not required in any of
fice. There was no use, therefore,
in paying for his entire time. The
plan then was adopted to pay him
for whatever part of his time that
was required to perform the vari
ous duties of his office. They reas
oned that he* should be paid well be
cause he would have to leave his
w'ork one or two days in each week
and look after the business of his
office. The fees, therefore, were not
fixed on a basis of the actual work
to be performed but were made lar
ger because of the little work to
done and the inconvenience to
the Officer in leaving his work and
going to Smithfield to discharge his
duties as a County Officer.
We have passed the juvenile
stage in every department of devel
opment with the one exception of
our County Government. We are
farming differently. We conduct our
schools differently. We are manu
facturing more extensively. We are
using better roads. Time has evolv
ed better and more business-like sys
tems in the management of all our
industries—except our County Gov
ernment.
wneu I 1UUH UjJUII tut! ICSUUl
ces of our County and behold her in
her onward march toward the front
rank; when I observe her in her
young manhood appropriating every
jneans and device for a better and
more perfect system of schools,' mod
ern roads, better churches; When I
see the intellects and business abil
ity of our citizenship take first rank
at every point, I am forced to con
clude that the people have advanced
phead of their County Government.
I have no pet scheme. 1 have no
axe to grind. I have no one to re
ward, or whom I wish to rebuke.
I plead for a change in the conduct
of our County’s business system in
keeping with the progress we have
made in every other department of
our development. Time would be
cruel to evolve only such improve
ments as would tend to enhance in
dividual interests. Time and neces
sity have joined hands and are now
demanding that Johnston County en
joy the benefits of modern, practical,
business-like County Government.
I can go no further until I state
that there is and has been no County
that has had better Officers, or that
has adhered more closely to the sys
tem required by law than lias the
Officers of Johnston County. They
have done ten thousand things that
the law did not require them to do
which meant great good to the peo
ple. No change or system will im
prove the efficiency of the individ
ual or guarantee greater fidelity.
We need our best men in Office.
They should be paid for their services
They should be paid well. They
ought to be paid more than the
same individual w’ould get in other
employment for the reason that the
dll tips nro rnr^rp PYaotinp* and more
responsible and should require the
very best that is in a man. The cost
of a campaign, the legitimate ex
pense, is heavy. The sacrifice one
has to make in giving up his other
business and assuming the discharge
of the duties of a political office, the
duration of which is always exceed
ingly uncertain, is considerable. The
pay should be commensurate.
In two other letters, heretofore, I
have tried to show why changes
Should be made. I am now trying
to show how they can be made. I
do not believe the plan that I shall
suggest will turn anything like the
amount of money into the Treasury
that some think ‘ will. I think
the amount turned in will be small
if the Officers are paid a reasonable
Balary. i have no desire to see the
Pay of the Officers reduced greatly.
I just want to see a better system
and our County adopt the manage
ment that others ha*ve tried satisfac
torily. i have taken some interest
ih this mattter and have made inves
tigations which assures me that no
' ounty which has adopted the salary
*)stem would consider a return to
fhe old antiquated fee system,
if we have the plan of paying our
ffleers a salary it would, of course,
Necessitate the services of a County
Auditor. As suggested in a former
letter he should be required to audit
and publish an ITEMIZED statement
of every receipt and disbursement of
each and every “Fund’' in Johnston
County derived by taxation of the
people, except municipal corpora
tions. He should be charged with
the responsibility of seeing that
no money is paid out of the Treas
ury except such as is authorized by
law. He should be, ex-offficio, pur
chasing agent of the County and pur
sue a business-like and equitable
course in making such purchases as
are required. We should have one
Treasurer and his books should be
open to public inspection at all
times.
I have only briefly outlined a
few things I would suggest. I have
written these letters at the request
of the Editors of The Herald. They
are, as has already been said,, based
upon some observation and much ex
perience. I am ready to join forces
with all Democrats who favor the
adoption of any of the plans outlin
ed, or any other plan, that will
mean advancement.
I shall write no more, unless it
shall be in defense of what I have
already written. Let the leaders,
if they desire, begin the movement.
We will follow.
Respectfully, *'
W. A. EDGERTON.
Selma, N. C.
Send in The Names At Once.
Mr. Z. L. Leniay, Chairman of the
Democratic Executive Committee of
Johnston County, wants the names of
all the township Executive Committee
men at, once. Be Sure when you send
in the names to name the chairman’
and secretary.
He also wa«ts the names of all the
Democratic nominees for Justice of
the Peace and Constable. This is
importantt and it is hoped that those
who have not already done so will
■ end in these names at once.
.Four Oaks .\e\i"S.
Dr. Smith h s traded his Flan
c r to Mr \lcnzo Parrish, of
L>„ n, f r a Fo d.
Mr. E. I,. Strickland has purchas
ed a new Ford car from Mr. Alonzo
Par- i h.
Quite a number from here at
tended the Primitive Baptist Asso
ciation at Benson on last Saturday
t id Sunday.
Miss Leora Edgerton, of Ksnly,
visited her sister, Mrs. Dr. Smith,
last week.
Mr. Chas. I. Pearce, of Smith
field, was a visiter in town on last
Friday afternoon.
Dr. Smith returned on Tuesday
night from Datta, S. C., where he
had been to see a patient. He
made the entire trip on his Ford
car and reports no trouble, whatev
er.
Mr. Ernest Johnson, of Smith
field, was a visitor in town last
Sunday.
Mr. Robert Johnson, of Smith
field, v'as a visitor in town Sunday.
Mr. Louis Levinson, of Fayette
ville, was a visitor in town Sunday.
My! but the “home-fellows” don’t
have much of a chance.
Mr. Ed Matthews, of Smithfield,
was a visitor in town. Tuesday to
see the “Alabama Minstrels.”
Mr. E. B. Sanders visited friends
and relatives in and around Clay
ton last week.
Miss Golda Creech, of Buie’s
Creek, and her friend, Miss Pau
line Hilburn, spent last Saturday
and Sunday here with Miss Creech’s
mother, Mrs. Laura Creech.
Messrs. Bryan, Kivett, Parker
and Hardy, from Buie’s Creek, were
visitors of F. Hunter Creech Sun
day.
Mr. Hubert Lee happened to the
misfortune to get his hand cut
very badly in their cotton gin Fri
day morning. Dr. Smith was called
in to .dress the hand. He reports
that Mr. Lee is doing nicely and
will soon be well.
Mr. Dalton Lee made a record
trip the other day. He carried a
patient, whose teeth were badly
torn up, to Smithfield. From the
time he got on his car here until
he pulled up at Dr. Holland’s office
it took him just fifteen, minutes.
Four Oaks, Oct. 2, 1912.
’ Hon. Tom Settle, the Republican
candidate for Governor, will speak in
Smithfield next Monday, October 7th,
at noon,
FORECASTS VICTORY
New York, Sept. 30.—With the
Republican party from one end of
t.he country to the other torn asun
der by the activities of the Bull
Mocse candidate, and with Demo
crats working in complete, almost
blissful harmony, indications a*t the
present time, thirty-six days before
election day, point to Democratic
victory at the polls in November.
In undertaking the most elabo
rate Presidential canvass ever made
by any newspaper, the Herald in
structed all of its canvassers and
all of its correspondents to “Get
the truth.” For more than a
month reporters have bean working
from coast to coast.
In the eleven States where these
straw votes were taken—New York,
Connecticut, Deleware, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ohio, In
diana, Kentucky, West Virginia and
Wyoming—Governor Wilson ran
first in nine. The Bull Moose can
didate was first in Connecticut and
third in all but Ohio and Wyoming.
In Ohio he polled 9 42 votes,* as
against 818 for the Bull Moose tick
et. Governor Wilson received 1,914.
The fifth in Ohio is a lively one.
■"Herald reports show that if the
Bull Moose candidate can show as
much strength in November as be
developed at the recent primaries,
President Taft will lose his native
I State. As in all States near the
Ncrlitern border line, the farmers
are very hostile to the President.
In Pennsylvania, one of the piv
otal States in the great contest,
tnere are indications or a ctose liguu
New Jersey and New York are
placed in the Wilson column.
Figures obtained in the voting
contest show that the Bdll Moose
j candidate is pulling the great bulk
I of his strength from the Republi
cans. They show that Governor
Wilson is winning mere from the
Republicans than he is losing to
the Bull Moose ticket. For instance
while 4,150 Republicans, who four
yeans ago voted for Tiaft, will this
year, according to their statements,
vote the Bull Moose ticket; only
678 Democrats will swing to the
Bull Moose. Debs loses twenty to
the third termer. Out of 24,895
votes polled in the eleven States
named, the Republican loss from
1908 is 5,997, while the Democratic
gain over 1908 is 2,254.
Should the ratio thus far slmw1
in tl: ■> voting contests contin ’.e,
it would indicate that Governor Wil
son you Id carry more States than
were ever before carried by a Pres
idential candidate. It should be
pointed out, however, that the bal
lots have not yet been taken in
some parts of the country where the
President is regarded as strong.
Staid old New England is wob
bling. Maine shows a tendency to
be for Wilson. Connecticut seems
at the present moment almost cer
tain for the New Jersey Governor.
Vermont and Rhode Island are in
the balance, both wih Wilson ten
dencies. Massachusetts is placed
in the Wilson column. New Hamp
shire alone of the New England
States is given to the President.
None to the Bull Moose candidate.
Indiana and Illinois are witnessing
spectacular fights. In Indiana the in
vestigators place Wilson in the lead,
with the Bull Moose running second
Illinois is a veritable hot bed of
uncertainty. The Bull Moose leads
in straw ballots thus far taken. Gov
ernor Wilson does not appear to
he stronger than he was during the
primaries. In the four great Stages
between the Dakotas and the coast
Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Oregon,
; and Washington, the situation is
found to be most interesting. The
great army of “new” voters number
ing more than 200,000, will deter
mine the result in Washington. The;
are regarded a«< friendly to the
Dull Moose candidate.—-New York
Herald.
big circus coming.
I Spark’s big circus is coming to
Smithfield. Friday, October 25th, is
the day«> It is claimed that they hav<
a solid train of twenty cars, nearly
400 people and 20 or more animals,
domestic and foreign. This is the
biggest show that has come to Johns
tap County in many years and no
! doubt a largo number of people will
be here on October 25th.
GOV. KITCHIN COMING
—
Saturday, October 12th, is to be
big day for Sniithfield.
Governor, Hon. W. \V. Kitchin, will
On that day our distinguished
be the guest of our town, and make a
speech in the interest of his cand
idacy for the United States Sen
atorship.
The Kitchin Campaign Committee
for this county, with Mr. L H. Allred
as chairman, is planning for a big
barbecue, and also to have a brass
band here that day. The peopl% of
the county regardless of their choice
for senator, will delight to honor our
Governor, and it is expected that a
great crowd will be here from every
section. Governor Kitchin is one of
the finest speakers in the State and
never fails to entertain his auditors.
A challenge has been made to
Senator t'iuimons, through his cam
paign manager for this County, Mr.
W. M. Sanders, to be here and meet
the Govrnor joint discussion.
Let the people turn ouj, and hear
the Governor's address.
A Race In Picking Cotton.
A few days ago Mr. Oscar Stanley, j
who boards here and goes to school ^
made a visit to Mr. Archer Barbour,
of Clayton township. On Mr. Bar
bour 's land lives Mr. Oliver Moore,
who has the reputation of being the
best cotton picker in that section,
i Mr. Stanley and Mr. Moore decided
to race one day in picking. Last Fri
day was the day selected. They be
gan early and picked until dark.
Mr. Moore picked 510 pounds and Mr
Stanley 504.
M UlnDH
Associatioral Meeting.
—
The BaptistWcmen of the Johns
j ton association will hold their usual
; missionary meeting at Clayton on
j Wednesday October 30th 1912. The
'women of every church as well as
the members of the missionary socie
ties wiii be asked to attend.
Boy Killed By Fall.
Wadesboro, Sept. 30.—Lester Horne
1 a fifteen-year-old boy, fell from a
scaly bark tree near Peacliland Sat
j urday and was killed instantly. He
I was alone, but the body was found in
a short time. He fell a distance of
1 fifty feet and his skull was fractured.
Speaking at litui -da Church.
Mr. 1). C. Smith informs us that
1 arrangements have been made for
some good singing and speaking at
■ Betheoda Baptise church first Sun
day in October morning and after
; noon. Mr. L. H. Allred will speak
! there at 11 o’clock.
Her Majesty The Hen.
I Cotton is king in the South, but in
the West and other sections of the
country a strong pretender to the
throne is the hen. Eighteen billion
eggs, valued at one and seven-tenths
cents each, was the extent of her in
j dustrial labors last year, making the
chicken business greater than the
steel business. The annual per capita
: egg allowance for 1910 was two hun
dred eggs were laid in one year for
every man, woman" and child in it.
and if every one consumed his por
tion it cost him $3.40. »
The hen gave work, profits or en
joyment to every class of man in the
country and to practically every man
of everv class. The dealer from
. whom the farmer purchased his chick
i en feed, the farmer himself, the mid
dlemen who handled the eggs, the
railroads and their employes who
^hipped the eggs in 6,500 full capacity
freight cars, the retailer and the
purchaser at the corner grocery.
Great is Biddy. May she reign for
ever.—Richmond Virginan.
EDITOR CHAMBLISS TO PREACW
Receives and Accepts a Call to the
Pastorate of Wilson Baptist Church.
Wilson, Sept 30.—Rev. T. W. Cham
bliss, editor of the Charlotte Chron
icle, preached in the First Baptist
church of this city last Sunday, morn
ing and evening, and after the even
ing service there was a. conference
held and Mr. Chambliss was called to
the nastorate which he accepted.
will' tender his resignation aa editor
of the Chronicle and If accepted
return, to Wilson at once. _ l
GRADED SCHOOL OPENS
The Turlington Graded School
opened Tuesday with an enrollment
of 238 pupils. The higher gradees
are full and the lower grades are
similarly numerous. The Third and
Fourth grades enrolled some 70 boys
and girls. This made it impossible
for the teacher who has charge of j
this room to do successful work,
consequently the grades had to be
divided, and the Fourth Grade will
come in the morning from 8:45 to
11:45. The Third Grade will come
from 12 to 3.
The pupils have enterend on their
work fully determined to do good
work. They have had a vacation
of over half a year and are well
rested. They should do good work
at once. Parents are earnestly urged
to make the children study their
lessens at. home. Unless they do,
the teachers cannot possibly teach
them with any measure of success, i
The i 'me at school is too limited to
permit long preparation of lessons.
It is also evident that the par
ents must cooperate with the
teachers. Home training precedes
school training, no teacher can I
possibly instill in the child Ideas j
(f order, industry, work, self-respect)
ill the mind of the child, if it is I
permitted to do as it pleases at
home.
In the higher grades the respon
sibility of their work is thrown as
much as possible on the students
themselves. They are sufficiently
old to realize the need of work. '
Corporal punishment or other pun-!1
iishment is useless in the case of*
the adult student. Non-adults should
be encouraged in their studies' by i
tiie parents rather than forced. We!
urge on the parents an occasional
visit to the school, an occasional
discussion of their work with thV
boys and girls. We urge also the;
prompt attendance of the children,;
the rare permission to stay at home,)
or be absent from school. In only f
the most urgent cases should par
ents interfere with the right and;
the duty of the children to study. j
We have before us a splendid ■
year. Let us parents and teachers
make it the beet in the glorious an-!
nals of Turlington Graded School.
A. VERMONT.
News From Benson.
Hew on, Oct. 2.—News was re
ceived here today that Mrs. Z. B.
Stewart, of Chapel Hill, died yes
terday morning. Mrs. Stewart be
fore her marriage was Miss Lizzie
Campbell, of Sanford. She was a
woman of rare culture and refine
ment and was liked by all who
knew her. Mr. and Mrs. Stewart
lived in Benson till about one year
ago when they moved to Chapel
Hill and had made that place their
home since that time. She leaves
a husband and two small children,
besides a host of friends, to mourn
her loss. Her remains will be laid
to rest in the church yard at San
ford tomorrow afternoon.
Mrs. Brazilla Stewart, wife of Mr.
W. A. Stewart, who lived about
four miles south of Benson, died
of malarial fever yesterday about
noon. She was about 50 years of
age and for a long number of years
had been a consistent member of j
the Prim it vie Baptist church. She |
was a sister of Mrs. M. C. Benson,
of our town, and Mr. D. B. Hen-1
ning, of near town. She leaves a
husband and several children to
miss her. Her remains were laid j
to rest this afternoon at the family i
burying ground.
Eleven Couples Admitted Their Guilt.
Walking up to the ticket window of
a moving *cture show in Wilmington
Eel., an excited individual informed
the young woman ticket seller that
his wife was In the theater with an
other man, and that he was going to
kill both of them as soon asthey came
out. The stranger’s declaration was
heard by several' persons, a crowd
collected and there was much excite
ment for a time. The ticket seller
notified the manager of the theater,
who mounted the stage and announc
ed that a man was outside waiting to
kill his wife and the man who was
with her. The manager advised the
couple to leave the theater by the
rear exit, and within two minutes
eleven couples had hurried from the
theater by way of tho back door, Ex.
REPUBLICANS MEET
The Republicans of the county met
;<-re yesterday yand held a conven*
non in the court house to nominate
candidates for the county offices and
die legislature ticket. Short speeches
tvere made by Messrs J. C. Stancil
md A. L. Barefoot after which the
.invention was organized by making
Mr. A. L. Barefoot chairman, and Mr.
R. D. Langdon and Mr. H. B. Pearce
Jr. secretaries.
The principal contest of the conven
tion was for the nomination off Sher
iff but it resulted in Mr. J. T. Cole's
nomination . The votes on first bal
lott were C. R. Stott 23 J. S. Jet
frays 27 J.T . Cole 57.
Mr Robert Fitzgerald of Pine Leve
was nominated tor Register of deeds
d Mr. Sam ii. Massey of Smithfield
lor treasurer. Dr. George Parker of
Benson wos nominated for Coroner
Vann Penny, of Elevation, for
surveyor. Messrs. E. F. Pearce, of
Boon Hill, A. F. Barbour, of Eleva
tion W. J. Morgan of Meadow,Berry
Godwin, of Pine Level, and D. M. Lee
of Cleveland, were named for county
commissioners. Mr.. Phillip Lee, of
Ingrams, and Mr. Walter Batten, of
Beulah were nominated for the
House.
The attendance was much smaller
than for several years, and the del
egates seemed very much disorgan
ized and restless, there being much
passing in and out of the court house
during the entire session. The fact
that the party in the county is split
over Taft and Roosevelt was very
evident in the convention yesterday.
A count at the opening of the con
vention showed only 123 persons in
attendance. Another count about mid
way the proceedings showed only fifty'
present. Later a few others came
back.
Several of the nominations seemed
to go begging, as there was more de
clining of nominations than ever be
fore in one of their Johnston County
conventions. No nomination was
made for Judge of the Recorder’s
Court. Mr. J. D. Parker the only Re
publican lawyer in the county, de
clined to be nominated, saying that
conditions in the convention indicat
ed that he would not be elected if he'
made the run.
The ticket named at the convention
ymsterday is doomed to the certain
defeat that hr>3 been their lot’in the
years gone by.
The Fuller Stables Improved.
Mr. -F. H. Parrish has completed
the job of repairing the old Fuller
stables. They are remodeled all over
He enlarged the stables making ce
ment foundations and floors, recover
ed the entire building putting in
several skylights, built two offices
and a rat proof grain room and har
ness rpom which are nicely paint
ed, besides a njule pen and a cattle
pen and a large number of stalls for
horses. The old Fuller Stables are
now some of the best and most con
veniently arranged stables in the
county.
The Persimmon Crop.
There Is a large persimmon crop
In this section this year. Almost
every little tree is loaded with the
fruit. We never saw larger per
simmons that those on the trees now.
They are almost as large as small
apples. The worth of the persimmon
crop to hogs is underestimated Far
mers could raise an almost unlimited
quantity of them by setting in pro-'
per places the little trees which come
up voluntarily for the hog raiser. Did
it ever occur to you that it would
pay to save the persimmon crop?
Where trees are out of reach cf hogs
and there are children to pick up the
persimmons, it would pay to go tc
the trees two or three times a week
and gather the persimmons which
have fallen.
PARKER-PIERCE.
Mr. and Mrs, A. L. Parker, of
Asheville, announce the engagement
and approaching marriage of their
daughter, Helen Vinson Parker, to
Mr. Char’es I. Pierce, of Smithfield.
The marriage will take place at the
home of the bride’s parents, 67 Chest
nut street* the latter part of October.