VOLUME 41
SM1THFIELD, N. C., FRIDAY, MARCH 17, 1922
NUMBER 21
MR. L. G. STEVENS
CHOSEN AS MAYOR
Commissioners Select Suc
cessor to Mr. Chas. A.
Creech, Resigned
At a call session of the town
hoard of commissioners Tuesday, Mr
T.eon G. f-tevens vis chosen as May
or to fill out the unexpir *d term of
Mr. Cha.Jes A. Creech, resigned. Mr.
Creech was elected mayor last May
by a good big majority and has pev
formed the duties of his office Well.
Since his election, however, he has
been made district agent for the
Insurance Company which he repre
sents, which position requires him to
be out of town frequently. In view
of this fact he tendered *his resigna
tion.
The Commissioners are fortunate
in their selection of Mr. Stevens to
succeed Mr. Creech. Mr. Stevens is
the son of Judge W. S. Stevens and
a law partner with Mr. Harry P.
Johnson. He is a young man of fine
judgment and business ability and
will undoubtedly make Smithfield a
good mayor.
MAM WITH MANY WIVES
WANTS TO BE A PREACHER
Will Become An Evangelist When He
Completes Sentence—Marries
13 Wives In Ten Years.
INDIANAPOLIS, Mar. 15.—Isaiah
Moore, indicted by the grand jury
here on a charge of bigamy, grand
larceny and embezzlement, wishes
to become an evangelist when he has
completed his term in prison, if he is
convicted, he said. Moore is said to
have confessed to having 13 wives.
“I have always wished to enter
the ministry and when I am releas
ed from prison I hope to become an
evangelist,” Moore said shortly be
fore he was indicted by the grand
jury.
In an interview Moore said that he
believed that several bogus checks
which he had signed were being held
in David City, Nebraska, Fayette
ville, N. C., and Wilson, N. C. How
many others are out, which he said
were fraudulent, he said he did not
know.
An automobile which he said he
had used in courting Miss Amelia
Cofal, of Becker, Minn., whom he was
to have married yesterday, is in
pawn at St. Paul, he said. Diamonds
and other jewelry, he said, had alsc
been pawned in that city.
The grand jury indicted Moore od
the evidence presented by Miss Har
riet Evans, of Mexico, Ind., school
teacher and one of Moore’s many
wives.
Two more wives were added today
to the list of matrimonial ventures
of Moore.
“I have kept a pretty good record
of my marriages and I am sure there
are only thirteen,” said Moore.
Moore told the police in the orig
inal list of eleven marriages he had
neglected to include one at Denver,
Colo., where he said he was married
under the name of James Vaughan,
and also one at Ridgeway, Maryland,
where he gave the name of Harrv
Forbes. He said he couid not romem
her the names of either of the wives.
“I have always been subject to
severe nervous disorders. Petting
and affection have caused my ner
vousness. I would get tired of one
woman and would desert her. Then
I would feel the need of affection and
would get married again,” Moore said.
Moore is said to have married all
of his thirteen wives in the last ten
years. He lived with his first wife
but a year after their marriage, he
said.
Open Air Theatre.
North Carolina College at Greens
boro is planning for the construction
of an open-air theatre in Peabody
Park. The site which has been' se
lected has a pond in front of the nat
ural stage which forms an excellent
sounding board. A triple row or
hedge will be planted behind the
stage in such a manner as to form
a back entrance. Special arrange
ments are being made for seating the
audience. A number of the com
mencement exercises each year are
held out of doors and the new arrange
ments will be welcomed.
TO TEST VALIDITY OF
LOAN FUND BONDS
Agreed Case Is Submitted To Judge
\Y. A. Devin in Court
At Raleigh.
racts m an agreed case to test the
validity of the act passed by the Gen
■ eral Assembly in 1921 providing for
a $5,000,000 loan fund for school
house construction were submitted to
Judge W. A. Devin by Attorney Gen
eral Manning yesterday. The case
will be given precedence through the
lower court, and in the Supreme
Court in order to expedite judicial
action.
Question of the legality of the act
under which the bonds were author
ized was raised by the prospective
purchaser, the Fidelity and Guaran
tee Trust Company, of New York.
The sale of bonds had already been
negotiated by State Treasurer Lacy
when the trust company held up the
matter with the insistence that the
courts determine the validity of the
act.
Under the terms of the act, the
State was empowered to borrow five
million dollars and lend it to coun
ties or school districts for school
house construction to be repaid to
the State in 20 annual payments,
with interest at 5 per cent. The bonds
were to be retired in like manner.
Application was received for more
than the full amount of the issue,
and the State Board of Education or
dered the bonds sold in December.
Question arises against the bonds
on account of the fact that the Su
preme court has held that a school
house is not a necessary public ex
pense, and that taxes cannot be
levied without a direct vote of the
people concerned. The act provides
that the money borrowed from the
fund shall constitute a lien on the
public school found of the county or
school district borrowing, and that
sufficient tax shall be levied to guar
antee payments.
Scores of school houses have been
built, or partially built, throughout
the State in anticipation of the sale
of the bonds, and the time when the
loan fund would become available.
Supt. E. C. Brooks some time ago
notified county authorities to hold up
on construction until the courts set
tled the matter.—News and Observ
er, March 15th.
GROWERS HAVE ANOTHER
CHANCE TO SIGN UP
Tobacco Association Re-opens Cam
paign in N. C.—To Add
75,000,000 Pounds.
North Carolina tobacco growers
are to have one more chance to sign
up for co-operative marketing, ac
cording to an announcement from
Raleigh headquarters of the Tobac
co Growers Co-operative Association.
The campaign for signers reopened
this week in North Carolina with the
state divided into five sign-up dis
tricts in charge of experienced cam
paigners.
The association now has a combin
ed membership of more than 65,000
growers and many of these have vol
unteered to assist in the final effort
to add 75,000,000 pounds of‘tobacco
to the total signed up in North Car
olina.
Reports showing how the Kentucky
burley growers have solved 'all their
problems and made large sales at sat
isfactory prices, have stimulated in
terest in co-operative marketing in
North Carolina, and several counties
which were not active in the past are
now anxious to “sign up for prosper
ity.”
This sign-up district is in charge
of A. O. Alford and includes the fol
lowing counties: Sampson, Moore,
Lee, Hoke, Robeson, Harnett, Bladen,
Columbus, Brunswick, Pender, Dup
lin, Johnston and Onslow.
Mrs. Steidley’s Meeting.
Attendance is increasing at all
hours of worship. Interest is also
increasing, quite a number of pro
fessions of faith having been made
already.
Three services a day will continue
until next Tuesday evening. Mrs.
Steidley will speak at all hours of
worship on Sunday. At 3:30 Sunday
afternoon, the services will be for wo
men only. All girls over fourteen
can attend. D. H. TUTTLE.
Mrs. Nathan Strickland, of Rocky
Mount has been spending several days
in the city wfith Mrs. W. S. Stevens.
SELMA WANTS A
NEW R. R. STATION
The Citizens Petition The
Corporation Commission
For Some Relief
The town of Selma petitione|l the
Corporation Commission yesterday
to direct the Southern Railway and
the Atlantic Coast Line Railway to
tear away the old passenger station
and build a new one in keeping with
the growth of the town and increas
ed traffic at the important junction
point. The railroad demurred on the
plea of poverty, but it is likely that
the Commission will order a new sta
tion.
With a total of 18 passenger trains
per day, and a transfer traffic heav
ier than many very much larger
towns in the State, the petitioner
claimed that the present old wooden
depot is entirely inadequate for the
traffic. In the white waiting room of
the station there are seats for only
13 people, when it oftjen ‘happens
that several hundred passengers are
waiting there for trains.
Practically all of the travel be
tween Western and Central North
Carolina, and the Southeastern and
Northeastern sections of the State
changes from the Southern to the
Coast Line at Selma, it was pointed
out. At most seasons of the year
traffic is heavy, and at no time are
the accommodations of the station
adequate to meet the demands.
Complaint was also made of the
sanitary conditions of the station.
The railroads have recently started
to install water and sewerage in the
building, but this step was opposed
by the Selma delegation yesterday
on the ground that if that were al
lowed, the railroads would claim
that enough had been done. General
Superintendent W. H. Newell, of the
Coast Line, offered to install one
more seat in the station, if the com
munity were superstitious about the
number 13.
Selma was not to be put off, and
insisted on its demand for a brand
new station, which they are likely
to get as soon as the Commission can
find the railroads with the $31,000
needed to build it. Selma was rep
resented by Mayor C. A. Corbett, C.
P. Harper, W. L. Gordon, and Dr. I.
W. Mayerburg. The Coast Line was
represented by T. W. Davis, assis
tant general counsel and Mr. Newell.
—News and Observer.
FINDS $75,000 WORTH
OF BONDS IN COAL BIN
Station Agent in Virginia Has Been
Burning Costly Fuel Lately.
WINCHESTER, Va. Mar. 15.—The
corner of a Liberty bond protruding
from the door of the stove in which
he was shovelling coal led to the
discovery by R. A. Mitchell, railroad
agent at Waterlick, of about $75,000
in bonds, concealed in the station
coal bin. Some of the bonds were
registered in the name of officials of
of the Grottoes, Va., state bank and
part at least of the cache was be
lieved to represent loot secured from
that institution when it was burglar
ized June 30, 1921.
Two-thirds of the bonds recovered
were registered, the remainder be
ing railroad and industrial issues.
Mitchell said he had been scooping
up “papers” with the .coal for sev
eral days and he was speculating
today as to what may have been the
intrinsic cost of the station fire
during the recent coal spell.—News
and Observer.
To Attempt Circle of Earth in
A Sailboat, 46 Feet Long
An attempt to circle the earth in
a sailboat, 46 feet long and of 12
tons displacement, will be made by
four Austrian sportsmen. The first
leg of the journey will be by way of
Gibraltar to New York.—Dearborn
Independent.
He Landed the Job.
A manly boy of 15 entered the
office of a New York merchant and
asked for employment. He gave sat
isfactory answers to a few questions,
and then the merchant inquired,
“What is your moto?”
“Same as yours,’’ the boy replied;
“just what you have on your door—
Push.”
He got the job.
| NEW DRUG FIRM
GIVEN A CHARTER
Clement Byrd President Of
Company;— Bragsdon
Johnson, Sec. & Treas.
With an authorized capital stock
of $100,000, the Byrd Laboratories,
Inc., was recently chartered by the
secretary of State. Mr. Clement
Byrd, of Greensboro, formerly of the
Byrd Drug Co., of this city, was
chosen president of the corporation
at a meeting of the directors held
recently, and Mr. Bragsdon Johnson
was elected secretary and treasurer.
Mr. John B. Johnson, of Dunn, was
made vice-president. Mr. B. Johnson
who has been with the Davis Stores
since his discharge from the army
after the war, has resigned his posi
tion here and will go to Greensboro
to assume his new duties about April
1.
The company will market Byrd’s
headache remedy and other patent
and proprietary medicines. It has
opened offices at 350 South Elm St.,
in Greensboro.
Mr. Byrd, the president of the con
cert!, has been devoting his t:me to
the sale of his headache remedy since
severing’ his connection with the Byrd
Drug Co., several months ago, and
the success of his efforts has war
ranted the organization just effected.
CRIMINAL COURT PROCEEDINGS
Many Cases Disposed of; Murder
Case, State Vs. Satterfield Be
gan Yesterday Afternoon.
Criminal court has been going on in
Smithfield since last Monday morn
ing, Judge* Thomas H. Calvert pre
siding. The cases which have been
disposed of are as follows:
State vs. Jerry Stancil and G. C.
Watson. They were tried by Judge
E. H. Cranmer and sentenced to 12
months on the roads but took an ap
peal to the Supreme Court which
found no flaw in the ease. They were
resentenced by Judge Calvert.
William Stancil, assault and tres
pass. Fine, twenty dollars and cost.
Willis Benson, John Benson and
Alridge Benson plead guilty of as
sault with deadly weapons and were
fined twenty-five dollars each and
costs. The total cost is between
four hundred and five hundred dol
lars.
Larry Aycock charged with the
murder of Boss Pierce, adjudged not
competent to make a defense.
Joe Eason, colored, larceny and
receiving stolen goods, four months
on the roads.
W. E. Wallace violation of the
school law, fined one dollar and cost.
David McLamb, assault. Judgment
suspended on payment of cost.
Sid Holder, larceny and receiving
stolen goods, eighteen months in the
State Prison.
Henry Jernigan, larceny of an au
tomobile, sentence not less than fif
teen months and not more than thirty
months in the State Prison.
Robert Hines, larceny and receiv
ing stolen goods, two years on the
roaas.
E. H. Jackson, larceny and receiv
ing stolen goods, two years in th#
State Prison.
Paul Jones and Fred Atkinson lar
ceny and receiving stoldh goods. Paul
Jones 12 months on the roads, Fred
Atkinson 16 months on the roads.
Lester White, retailing liquor,
guilty but not yet sentenced.
James Coats, R. A. Beasley and D.
E. Coats, charged with having on
hand too much booze. The last two
not guilty. James Coats found guil
ty but not yet sentenced.
At two o’clock yesterday the court
began with the case of K. J. Satter
field, of Cleveland township, charged
with killing Richard Starling with a
jug a few months ago.
GERMANY’S FLOATING DEBT
IS 277,320.000,000 MARKS
BERLIN, March 14.—It was an
nounced to-day that the floating debt
of Germany on February 28 was 277,
320,000,000 marks.
The total debt of Germany on Feb.,
10th, amounted to 259,127,311,000
marl^s, which represented an increase
of about 3,500,000,000 marks since
February 1.
MORE THAN TWENTY DEAD
AS RESULT OF STORMS
i Scores Injured; Damage to Property
Reported Heavy; Storms Swept
Part of Four States.
NEW ORLEANS, March 14.—At
least twenty-three persons were kill
ed and many others were seriously
injured as a result of a series of
storms, at places reaching propor
tions of tornadoes, which visited iso
lated sections of Louisiana, Missis
sippi. Arkansas and Oklahoma last
night and early today.
The heaviest loss of life reported
was at Gowan, Oklahoma, a village
15 miles east of McAlester, where 12
persons were killed when a torna
do swept through the foj-eign sec
tion of the village last night. Many
others were slightly injured.
Six negroes were killed when the
storm passed through the north
eastern section of Jefferson county
and the southeast section of Lonoke
County, Arkansas, early today; The
storm in this section left a trail
of wrecked buildings for 20 miles.
■ Several were slightly injured here.
Nineteen others were seriously in
jured and scores/suffered slight in
juries. Property damage there is es
timated at $100,000. Fifty buildings
were completely demolished and 200
people left homeless.
Eight homes were demolished at
Sunrise, a village two miles north
of Baton Rouge, La., and a negro
w«man and her child were killed.
Four others were slightly injured
there early today.
l wenty-nve persons were injured,
a number seriously, when the storm
struck Corinth, Miss., today. More
than 150 homes were levelled. The
storm swept a path more than 100
feet wide, razing every building
in its path. Reports from outlying
districts tell of considerably prop
erty damage. A school building in
which were 1,000 children barely es
caped the path of the storm.
An aged negro was killed and sev
eral slightly injured and a score
of houses were destroyed at Arkan
sas City, Ark., early today.
Only meagre details are available
from the sections visited by the
storm on account of the damage to
wire communication and it is feared
the death total will be greatly in
creased when complete returns are
available. 1 'ttle efforts have been
made to estimate the property dam
age, in addition to destroyed homes
and other buildings, includes dam
age to crops and destruction of live
stock. Rivers and small streams in
practically all the sections visited
by the storm, which was accom
panied by heavy rains, are swollen
and some apprehension is felt on
this score.
The storm was accompanied by the
usual freaks, the most outstanding
of which as reported from Rennet,
Ark., where a twelve-day old infant
was blown from a bed on which it
was lying across the yard where its
clothing held it suspended to a pick
et fence until the storm abated. The
baby’s parents were seriously injur
ed.—News and Observer.
PROPOSED TO BUY
NEW FAIR GROUND
Directors Offer To Purchase Two
Hundred Acres of State
Prison Farm.
Proposal for the purchase of two
hundred acres of ground from the
State Prison farm was presented to
the directors of the Prison at its
monthly meeting here yesterday by
Colonel Albert L. Cox, representing
the directors of the State Fair As
sociation. A full membership of the
Prison Board was in attendance and
no action was taken.
Removal of the State Fair grounds
from the present cramped quarters
to a new location a mile further out
on the Hillsboro road is under con
templation by the directors of the
Fair Association. No definite plans
have been announced. The matter
of purchase of land will be again
presented to the Prison Board at its
nefxt monthly meeting in April.
Colonel Cox presented the matter
in some detail yesterday, and it is
regarded probable that if the Asso
ciation determines upon a new loca
tion for the Fair, no difficulty will
be encountered in obtaining a site.
Only routine business was trans
acted by the Prison Board yesterday.
—News and Observer.
POU TO OPEN DEM.
STATE CONVENTS
Will Deliver Keynote Ad
dress; Well Equipped for
This High Honor
WASHINGTON March 13.—Con
gressman Edward W. Pou. of the
Fourth North Carolina Distinct, is t>
be the tempoiary chairman of the
Noi-th Carolina State Democratic
convention when it convenes in Ral
eigh on April 20, and occupying that
position will deliver the key note ad
dress of the 1922 campaign. The po
sition of high honor has been ten
dered to him by Democratic State
Chairman, J. D. Norwood, of Salis
bury, and Congressman Pou has ac
cepted.
In point of service Congressman
Pou and Congressman Claude Kit
chin, who unfortunately has not yet
recovered in full his usual vigorous
health, are the ranking members of
the North Carolina delegation in the
House of Representatives. Of all
the men who came to Congress in
EDWARD W. POU
j
both the House and Senate from the
result of the 1900 election, there are
only in service Senator Simmons,
Congressman Kitchin and Congress
man Pou.
Congressman Pou comes to the po
sition of temporary chairman of the
Democratic State Convention of
North Carolina equipped and quali
fied to deliver the kevnote address.
During the period of the World War
under the administration of Presi
dent Woodrow Wilson, Mr. Pou was
the chairman of the great committee
on rules of the House, formulating
and reporting out the rules under
which most of President Wilson’s
great lights in th<- He use were con
ducted.
It is the test mony of men who
were associated with him at that
period of his career that there was
no member of the House who pos
sessed in a greater degree the confi
dence, respect and affection of Persi
dent Wilson than did Congressman
Pou. President Wilson found that
he could always depend on the
member from the Fourth North Car
olina district, and Mr. Pou’s wide
popularity with his colleagues, plus
his fine legislative ability and gener
alship, made him an invaluable and
most powerful aid to President Wil
son during the stormy war years of
that notable administration. When
other men fell away from support of
President Wilson Mr. Pou was one of
those who stuck the closer to him.
In this connection there comes from
sources which are most reliable that
one of those rare times when Presi
dent Wilson showed deep emotion
was when he i-ead the magnificent de
fense which Congressman Pou had
made of his friend on the floor of
the House in his able and notable
speech on the subject of the Repub
lican conspiracy against the Presi
dent. And it is said by those in
touch with the events of those days,
that Mr. Wilson held Congressman!
Pou in the warmest regard and had
reason to do so. —Edward E. Britton,
in News and Observer.
Dr. R. S. Stevens, of Princeton, ,
was in the city Tuesday.