VOLUME 41
SM1THFIELD, N. C., TUESDAY, AUGUST 29, 1922
NUMBER 68
INDICATIONS OF
BUSINESS TREND
Developments in Industrial
Conditions Have Differ
" ent Effects
NEW YORK, Aug. 27.—Both indi
cations as to the trend of business
and finance and opinions as to fall
prospects, have shown marked divers
ity during the past week. Settle
ment of the soft coal strike is gener
ally expected to be reflected in a
sharp gain in production, a figure as
high as nine million tons a week be
ing mentioned as likely to be realiz
ed in the immediate future. On the
other hand it is pointed out that the
government’s scheme of priorities
must remain in force for some time,
particularly until the needs of the
northwest have been taken care of, so
that the steel industry is likely to
feel the restriction imposed by fuel
shortage for some weeks to come.
The 20 per cent increase in steel
wages, meanwhile, is interpreted as
indicating that steel manufacturers
expect to be able to dispose of all
their available production this fall
at favorable prices. Whether steel
prices will rise materially above pre
sent levels, however, remains to be
seen, since coal prices have already
touched scarcity levels and some ob
servers anticipate a decline as the
scarcity is relieved.
As* far as the jailroad strike is
concerned, financial quarters have not
entirely abandoned hope of a set
tlement and do not seem alarmed
over the prospects of a finish fight.
Car loading statistics show the roads
are continuing to move a volume of
freight comparing favorably with the
best performances of the year. On
the other hand, it is recognized that
a car shortage during the fall is in
evitable.
Arguing from the increase in wages
in coal and steel industries which are
symptomatic of a shortage of com
mon labor, and the higher prices of
coal and steel products, some observ
ers conclude that he country is en
tering a period of “inflation.” What
is probably meant that something like
of a boom short-lived or otherwise
is to be bred of a general rise in
commodity prices.
Opinion on the matter is, however,
divided. Those who refuse to sub
scribe to this view point out that the
present increase in prices is due to
abnormal situations arising from thf
strikes and that as such the higher
prices are likely to be temporary.
Such critics also emphasize the
fact that certain commodities, such
as rubber, are cheap and are likely
to remain so. In addition, they mam
tain that with grain prices at ex
isting low levels, the farmers’ pur
chasing power will remain moderate,
and conclude that no great boom is
possible until the farmer can take
part in the movement. They also
point to Europe’s low-purchasing
power and the general consumers’
resistance to high prices.
According to this view, the situa
tion is likely to continue to show a
marked lack of uniformity. Short
ages and high prices in some com
modities and industries are expected
to exist alongside of quiet markets
and moderate prices.
Sentiment in the grain and cotton
markets has been affected somewhat
during the past week by the adverse
developments in the Europan situa
tion and the resultant weakness in
the exchanges of Germany and the
continental allies. Wheat has hover
ed just above the dollar mark with
the weather conditions and crop
prospects little changed. In cotton
hot, dry weather in the southwest
and boll veevil damage in the other
growing areas have induced private
crop estimates to place the condition
at about 60 per cent, and the proba
ble yield of 11,000,000 bales, which
is some 500,000 bales below the
last government estimate.
The next government report will
be published September 1.
Little, if any change, has been ap
parent in the money market.—Asso
ciated Press.
The professor: "Let us take the ex
ample of the busy ant. He is busj?
all the time. He works all day and
every day. Then what happens?”
The Bright One: "He gets step
ped on.”—Life.
HARDING SIGNS LICENSE
FOR LANDING OF CABLE
Grants Permission to Western Union
to Land and Operate Cable
to Barbadoes.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 25.—Presi
dent Harding today signed a license
authorizing the Western Union Tele
graph company to land and operate
at Miami B ach, Florida, a cable ex
tending from there to Barbadoes,
where it connects with the line of the
Western Telegraph company, Ltd., a
British concern, to Brazil. Announce
ment to this effect was made after
official notification had been receiv
e ’ that the Argentine government
1 ad accepted the renunciation by the
Western Telegraph company of its
n onopoly rights in that country.
The effect of the Argentine govern
ments’ action it was explained, open
ed up South America to the all Am
erican, Western and Western Union
companies with equal privileges in all
the South and Central American re
publics.
“One of the conditions of the issu
ance of this license,” said a state de
partment announcement,” was that
the Western Telegraph company*
should surrender exclusive privileges
which it enjoyed under concessions
in South American countries, while
the All-American Cable company like
wise renounced similar privileges
enjoyed by it it in countries of the
west coast of South America. Both
•ompri?? have made such waivers
and sarsfact. ry expressions have
been receive 1 from the South Amer
ican governments concerned regard
'ng *he action taken by the Western
Telegraph company to that end and
by the All-American Cable com
pany.
“This occasion marks the success
ful culmination of efforts made to
remove obstacles to the entry and
operation of ca'oles by American
companies presented by monopolies
enjoyed by British cable companies
in countries of the east coast of
South America.— W:' nington Star.
$5,000,000 IN SHORT
TERM LOANS ARE SOL I
RALEIGH, Aug. 25.—Five mil
lions worth of short term loans on
which the state a year ago paid five
ninety five were sold today for a
year at four per cent and two mil
lions three hundred thousand in
school bonds went in serials from
27 to 46 at par and a four thousand
dollar premium.
The B. J. Van Ingen company of
New York, which has gobbled up
fifteen millions of these bonds, took
the five million note today and the
two million plus bond issue.
State Treasurer Lacy did his brag
financiering this time, he executed a
piece of prophecy that was almost
uncanny when the state jumped up
and cracked its heels together on
getting money at five ninety five.
; Everybody laughed at Lacy when he
put an enabling clause in that act^
which gave the state the right *o*
take up these notes after the first
year. By the trade today the state
saves forty-seven thousand five hun
dred dollars. Incidentally there is a
trifle more advantageous sale-of long
term bonds than the state has made
before.—Greensboro News.
MAY PASS BONUS BILL
IN SENATE TOMORROW
WASHINGTON, Aug. 27.—Passage
of the soldiers’ bonus bill by the Sen
ate before adjournment Tuesday so
as to clear the way for possible leg
islation growing out of the coal and
rail strikes is the plan of Republi
can leaders. A night session was in
prospect tomorrow with disposition
at that time of several of the pend
ing amendments to the measure.
Proponents of the amended House
bill believed it would be approved
as reported by the finance commit
tee, except that probably the Smith
McNary land reclamation bill, which
has been approved by the appropri
i ate committees, would be added as a
| land settlement option for the vet
| erans.
Father (at his son's rooming
j house at college): “Does young Mr.
Jones live here?”
Landlady (wearily): Yes, bring
j him in.”—Pithy Paragraphs.
-—
Every person is born with brains,
but they are without value unless de
veloped.
FORD PUNT CLOSE
FOR UCK OF COAL
! Hundred and Five Thousand
| Employes Will be Thrown
Out of Work
DETROIT, Aug. 26.—One hundred
and five thousand employes of the
Ford Motor Company throughout the
country will be without jobs after
September 16.
In addition, several hundred thou
sand other workers employed in in
dustries furnishing materials for
the Ford plants will be affected.
Henry Ford gave these figures to
day in announcing that his three big
motor plants located in Detroit sub
urbs and his assembling plants
throughout the country would be
closed on that date because of the
coal shortage.
The announcement was the most
severe blow that industrial Detroit
has sustained since the industrial
depression of two years ago. It
means, according to Mr. Ford, that
75,000 men employed in t he High
land Park, River Rouge and Dear
born plants of the company here
will be without work. Thirty thou
sand no.w working in the various as
sembling plants scattered through
out the country also will be thrown
out of employment.
How long the machinery in the
Ford plants is to be stilled will de
pend entirely upon the coal supply
of the future, the Detroit manufac
turer said. The statement issued
by Mr. Ford announcing the pro
posed shutdown was the story of
his losing fight during the last few
months to insure a fuel supply suf
ficient to keep his workers at their
machines.
Mr. Ford declared he “had not
the remotest idea” when the plants
could be re-opened. It was an
nounced that the normal daily con- j
sumption of coal in the Ford indus
tries was 3,800 tons and officials said
it would be impossible to do more
“than keep the furnaces and ovens
warm.” *
Only a comparatively small num
ber of the employes of the Ford
plants will be retained in service
during the shut-down, it was an
nounced. Crews sufficient to keep
the furnaces warm will be held, how
ever.
Mr. Fords statement in part fol- |
lows:
“The coal situation has become
impossible. For the last several I
weeks we have seen a situation ap i
proaching that we feared would force j
us to close. We greatly regret hav j
ing to take that step.
“We wish to keep’ enough coal on
hand to keep our furnaces and coke j
ovens warm; to let them get cold
would cause us a loss of hundreds j
of thousands of dollars. At the |
: rate we are getting coal now, Sep- |
tember 16 will mark the time when
we will have only enough coal left
to keep our furnaces and ovens
warm.
“Our reserve stock by that time
will have been completely exhausted.
We, therefore, will close down the
entire jdant on Septembr 16.
‘Last night we wired 900 houses
that supply us with material to stop
shipments, and this morning letters
and telegrams were sent out tr
about 1,000 more.
“We appreciate the great loss it
will mean to these hundreds of sup
ply houses, but it also will mean a*
tremendous loss to us. At present,
we are producing 5,200 cars a day,
end we can sell 5,300 a day. Wo
have to close down at a time when
we art doing a greater business
than ever before in our history.”
Effect of the Ford shut-down will
i he felt on industry in every part of
j the country, according to officials of
! the company. The number of work
■ er- employed -by firms supplying the
, Ford Company with various parts
’ and raw matei'ials, including iron
! and steel, was variously estimated
j at from “several hundred^thousand
| to three million.”
; Announcement was made recently
, that Mr. Ford had installed oil
' burning furnaces at one of his
plants as an experiment, and the
i hope was held by many workmen
' that the Ford company would weath
er coal shortage. It developed to
day, however, that only the fur
naces in the machine shops had been
PAY HOMAGE TO THE
MEMORY OF COLLINS
While Thousands Kneel At
Coffin of Dead Leader
War of Hate Goes On
I
DUBLIN, Aug. 27.—With impos- |
ing military honor the body of :
Michael Collins, Ireland’s warrior i
statesman, was borne this evening
through the streets of Dublin and
placed on a catafalque before the main
altar of the great Cathedral. Here j
tomorrow morning a solemn requiem j
mass will be celebrated for the re- j
pose ef his soul.
Sunday’s total suspension of civic
activities permitted the people to
render unrestrictedly their homage
to the memory of their beloved lead
er. Not from the metropolis alone
but from the country districts nearby
there streamed to the city hall where
the body lay in state, countless j
thousands to gaze upon the features ,
of the man to whom, more than any
one else the people had looked for
a peaceful settlement of Ireland’s
woes.
They came by train, by donkey cart,
by jaunting car and on foot; they
choked Dublin’s streets, yet without
disorder formed in line, awaiting
their turn to enter the cathedral
and pass before the coffin. They
knelt before the coffin, beneath the
flickering candles, and prayed for the
eternal happiness of Michael Collins
and for the advent of peace in their
unhappy country.
The war of hate and ambush goes
on. Today’s newspapers reproduced
a striking portrait of Collins from a
painting made by Sir John Laverly
as a memento of the signing of the
treaty between Ireland and England.
He is seen sitting with folded arms,
his handsome, intellectual face in re
pose, his manner debonnaire. Un
derneath are printed complete de
tails of what the news editor calls
“Dublin’s latest shocking sensation.’’
Here is the incident in brief. It
is a tragedy of the “yellow lane,” a
peaceful suburb of Dublin, where last
evening young people and children
were playing. Suddenly from the
city appeared a large open automobile
traveling swiftly. Seven or eight
men were passengers; some of them
seemed to be struggling. The car
stopped a few hundred feet down the
lane and a man got out and went to
a gate leading to a field.
The struggle in the car became
violent. Two men were trying to get*
away but were held and were carried
to the gate. They were moaning and
protseting. One was heard by wit
nesses to cry out “but what is it for.”
This is what little Irish children
saw yesterday while the nation
mourned for Michael Collins.
There are ambushes and sniping,
where innocent civipianpl including
women are wounded and some killed.
The main fighting in the field is over ;
but the sudden attack on Bantry, 1
southwest of Cork on Friday by a
force of so-called irregulars, shows
that the revolution is still in prog
ress and that Richard Mulchay, the
new commander in ch'ef. has much
to do before it can be said that peace
and order have been restored
throughout Ireland. — Associated
Press.
AUSTIN ENTHUSIASTIC
OVER COTTON ASSOCIATION
W. H. Austin, president of the
N. C. Cotton Growers’ Co-operative
Association, is very much encouraged
over the outlook for the cooperative
marketing of cotton after a confer
ence in Atlanta with representatives
from other Southern states.
Mr. Austin was in Raleigh Wed
nesday to attend a meeting of the
executive committee of the cotton
association,, and declared that the
plans of the North Carolina associa
| tion for handling its cotton met
with the enthusiastic endorsement
i of co-operatives from other states.
< (inverted into oil burners.
The Ford plants, in the aggregate,
constitute Michigan’s greatest indus
I try, from the standpoint of employ
| ment, and as such are among the
i largest in the country. Business
men and manufacturers here were
unanimous that the closing of these
plants might have far-reaching ef
fects on the national economic situ
ation.—News and Observer.
CO-OPERATIVES HAVE
SUCCESSFUL OPENING
Close to 750,000 Pounds of Tobac
co Delivered to Warehouses
in East Carolina.
GOLDSBORO, Aug. 24.—Close to
750,000 pounds of tobacco was de
livered to the co-operative warehous
es of eastern North Carolina at their
opening today andthousands of mem
bers of the 'tobacco Growers’ Co- '
operative association witnesses the
starting up of the marketing ma
chinery of the giant organization,
went home satisfied it is declared
of its certain success.
Admiration for the fairness, speed
and accuracy ofthe new method of
grading, weighing and paying for
tobacco was expressed by growers
on every market visited today by T. |
C. Watkins, Jr., manager of ware
houses, and C. B. Cheatham, assist
ant manager of the leaf department,
who were at Goldsboro, Smithfield,
Bailey, Wendell, Zebulon and Fre- !
mont.
In spite of warnings to the farm- ]
ers not to rush tobacco good de
liveries were made today. Smithfield
handled close to 100,000 pounds for
th egrowers. Fremont 50,000, Golds
boro 35,000. Rocky Mount 16,000
pounds with Kinston, Farmville,
Washington, New Bern, and many
smaller points not fully reported at
the close of the day.
WANTS GOVERNMENT
TO OWN POSTOFFICES
WASHINGTON, Aug. 27.—Gov
ernment ownership of postoffice
buildings in every city and town in
the United States, where none now
i sowned, has been proposed to Con
gress by Postmaster General Work,
with the approval of President Har
ding.
The President’s approval, adminis
tration officials said today, was
raised upon reports showing that
the plan, once put into effect, would
mean a saving to the government of
approximately half a billion dollars
within the next ten years.
Administration leaders in Con
gress, regarding the undertaking as
an important business reform, and
designed to check “profiteering in
rentals,” were prepared, it was said,
legislation to provide for a national
postal Lull.:.ntr program.
In a letter to the President out
lining the program, the Postmaster
General explained that the depart
ment now pays in rentals annually
about $12,000,000 and that when
many leases recently expired own
ers of buildings demanded and ob
tained substantial increases.
The Postmaster General declared
that with the adoption by the gov
ernment of the plan suggested “prof
iteering in rentals would be checked
and shameless speculation on the
part of those who sought to prey
upon the government would be
abolished for all time.”—Associated
Press.
UNDER $10,000 BOND
FOR BURNING BUILDING
WINSTON-SALEM, Aug. 26.—The
Nissen block, located in the center of
the business section of the city, was
almost completely destroyed by fire
this morning about 3 o’clock. All
business concerns located in this
building were destroyed, the total
loss being estimated in the neighbor
hood of a quarter million dollars.
The fire threatened to destroy the
business section of the town at one
time.
William E. Chatman, a young boy,
18 years of age, is charged with caus
ing the fire. He was given a hear
ing this morning before Judge Kirby,
in municipal court, the judge holding
him for an investigation by Superior
court grand jury. His bond was fixed
at $10,000.
The youth states that he set fire
to the building because of a griev
ance he had against W. W. Smoak,
whose business was located in the
Nissen block. Mr. Smoak declares he
knows of no reason why the boy
should have become aggrieved at him.
—Greensboro Daily News.
Insurance Man: “And if you have
any kind of a fire, notify us imme
diately.”
Shopkeeper (feeling the business
depression): “Next Thursday.”—Life.
Mr. T. S. Ragsdale, Jr., spent the
week end in Wilson with friends.
CO-OP TOBACCO
MARKET 1ST WEEK
Nearly One Million Pounds
Delivered to Association
In Eastern N. C.
RALEIGH, Aug. 28.—Close to one
million pounds of tobacco were de
livered to the Cooperative markets
of Eastern North Carolina last week,
at their opening, according to lat
est returns which describe heavy de
liveries at Washington, New Bern,
Richlands, Kingston and other big
receiving centers where the sign up
of the Cooperative is particularly
heavy.
Rejoicing, prayer and thanksgiving
featured the day in a score of mark
ets when the long cherished hope of
the farmer to control the marketing
of his own product in a fair, orderly
and profitable way, became at last a
reality, following years of struggle
and organization.
Visiting Goldsboro, Smithfield,
Zebulon, Wendell, Bailey and Fre
mont, T. C. Watkins, Jr., director of
warehouses for the Association and
C. B. Cheatham, assistant general
manager of the Leaf Department,
found almost universal enthusiasm
and satisfaction among the grower
members, which were confirmed by
telegraphic reports from a dozen
other markets.
In celebration of the day, the
doors were thrown open to new sign
ers throughout the belt, and more
than 250 new members hastened to
join the Association.
At Richlands, where more than
50.000 pounds were delivered, 46 new
members joined the Cooperative, 38
came in at Kinston, where close to
100.000 pounds of tobacco were han
dled on the first day, 40 from New
Bern, 24 at Washington and 39 at
Smithfield, where 100,000 pounds
were delivered, and 70,000 pounds
were graded, weighed and stored for
shipment.
Three farmers en route to Wilson
with tobacco from Cumberland coun
ty were, invited to visit the Coopera
tive warehouse at Smithfield. So
pleased were they with the table of
advances and the system of Coopera
tive sales, that they drove their
loads of tobacco into the Association
warehouse, signed the contract and
have returned to Cumberland county,
enthusiastic members of the Associa
tion, with their first advances in
cash, their participation receipts and
the knowledge that they will receive
further payments and the highest
dollar for each pound of tobacco
which they left with the Association.
Members of the Association are
being urged to save their fodder to
deliver at their convenience and in an
orderly manner, and satisfaction is
being expressed on all sides by those
who do not feel obliged to rush their
tobacco to market and do not find it
necessary to drive long distances to
secure the highest price.
The cooperative markets will be
open for deliveries on Mondays,
Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays
until the machinery is sped up at a
later date to meet the increasing de
liveries which are expected as the
farmers’ crop is prepared for mark
et.
The fact that present payments
are based on a conservative cash val
ue was made clear to members de
livering tobacco on the opening day.
Final payments, according to Aaron
Sapiro, Attorney for our Association,
will amount to over three times the
first cash advance, if the first suc
cessful sales of the Association are
an indication of the prices which its
leaf department will continue to se
cure.
SOMNAMBULIST DIES
AS RESULT OF FALL
SAVANNAH, Ga„ Aug. 27.—Walk
er Hodkins, 18, son of Henry 8.
Hodkins, walked out of a third story
window of his home while asleep last
night and crushed his skull on a
brick pavement. He died within a
short time.
“That locomotive factory that clos
ed for lack of orders has started up
cgain.”
“Yes, they’re making whistles for
the jazz orchestras.”—Life.
| Mrs. M. R. Stevens spent last week
; in Raleigh.