THE ENTERPRISE IS READ BY
OVER 3,0<M» MARTIN COUNTY
FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEEK
THE ENTERPRISE
THE ENTERPRISE IS READ BY
OVER 3.000 MARTIN COUNTY
FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEEK
VOLUME XLIX—NUMBER 39
Williamaton, Martin County, North Carolina, Tuesday, May 14, 19/6
ESTABLISHED 1899
'Five Schools lii
County End Term
Friday Mornin
——«—
Lone Graduate To Receive
Diploma Here That
Morning
CfQ
Informal programs wilV nmiH1
the closing of five county white
schools on Friday of this week,
education leaders explaining that
no formal graduation exercises
had been planner! since all elev
enth grade pupils are scheduled
to return for a continuation of
their studies in the newly added
twelfth grade. However, three
youths are slated to graduate this
year, one each at Williamston,
Bear Grass and Robersonville.
Buster Old will receive his di
ploma without ceremony during
the chapel exercises at 9:15
o’clock. There’ll be no commence
ment address and the young man
is to receive the sheep skin from
Principal Sam D. Bundy who will
also present the special awards,
including the athletic trophy,
home economics, scholarship, wo
man’s club cups and other awards.
Winners of the awards have not
yet been announced.
Had the old schedule of gradua
tion been followed, the loca' high I
school would have offered 31 j
young men and women as candi
dates for graduation, or about one
of the largest classes in its his
tory. I
No formal announcement has
boon made, but reports state that
several teachers in the local
schools along with a goodly num
ber throughout the country have
resigned, including Professor Sam
Edwards who is going to La
Grange as principal.
Other white schools scheduled
to end the term on Frida' of this
week arc, Oak City, Hamilton,
Hassell and Farm Life. The
schools at Jamesville, Roberson -
ville and Everetts close next Mon
day and Bear Grass completes its
schedule on Friday of next week.
All colored schools in the coun
ty are slated to close next Mon
day.
According to a report from the
superintendent’s office, 124 boys
and girls were in the eleventh
grade in the various county
schools this year, as follows: Bear
Grass, 11; Farm Life, 11; James
ville, 15; Oak City, 23; Williams
ton, 31, and Roberson ville, 33.
The colored high schools report
ed 45 in their eleventh grades,
Parmele, 24, and Williamston, 21.
Rains Aid Farm
Work In County
Fairly heavy showers falling
last Sunday morning and night
greatly aided farm work in this
area, numbers of farmers stating
that tobacco after taking a heavy
beating in strong winds last Sat
urday was looking decidedly bet
ter at the present time.
Their growth held almost at a
standstill by cool weather last
week, tobacco plants started add
ing size rapidly following the
rains, and indications now are that
a large portion of the crop will
have been transplanted to the
fields by the middle or latter part
of this week.
With the coming of warm
weather, general crop conditions
are expected to be about the most
favorable during the next few
days of any at corresponding seas
ons in recent years.
-«
Mate Finances Are
Reported Growing
Finances of the States are con
tinuing their wartime improve
ment, according to a summary
made by the Bureau of the Cen
sus. An outstanding feature in
state finances was a one-year up
swing of 215 percent in post-war
reserve funds, shown in a prelim
inary report by the bureau cover
ing twenty-five states which ac
counted for two-thirds of the fis
cal 1944 aggregate of the forty
eight states. The report showed
these balances at the end of the
fiscal year: Post-war reserve
funds, $463,000,000, as compared
with $147,000,000 a year earlier, a
rise of 215 percent. General funds,
$681,000,000, against $659,000,000
a year before, a gain of 3.3 per
cent. Highway funds, $326,000,
000, with $288,000,000 » pear pre
vious, an increase of 13 2 percent.'
.1
j Report Five Wrecks
On County Highways
| IMPROVING
V. . .._y
■BPii ring Duke hospital sev
eral weeks ago. Little Miss
Peggy Harrison who has had
nearly 150 blood transfusions
in about five years, was re
ported Monday to be improv
ing gradually. However, her
condition will not yet permit
an operation tentatively
scheduled for her, it was
learned today.
Last reports state that she
is able to sit up in bed during
short periods.
Her mother, Mrs. E. C. Har
rison, and Mrs. Roy Harri
son and Mr. Clayton Cowin
visited her last Saturday and
also visited Elder B. S. Cowin
who is undergoing treatment
for his eyes in another Dur
ham hospital.
Lift Embargo On
1 Freight Shipping
In This Section
—
Regular Train Srlirdiilen
! Are l{t'Hiiiiiril After los
ing One Dav Here
-»,—l
The embargo placed on most
freight shipments by the Atlantic
Coast Line Railroad Company last
Thursday night was lifted at 12:01
Monday morning following an an
nounced truce in the strike at
soft coal mines. Action taken to
offset as much as possible the
rapidly dwindling supply of soft
coal caused very little inconven
ience to shippers in this immedi
| ate area. The local freight train
serving territory between Rocky
j Mount and Williamston is resum
i ing its regular schedule today
J after remaining idle Monday,
j However, some shipments were
handled by the “wood" train
which ordinarily serves the pulp
mill without making any stops be
tween Rocky Mount and Ply
mouth. Two carloads of merchan
dise were handled at the local
station yesterday by that train,
and no interruption of any conse
quence was to be noted in the in
coming freight. However, most
of the freight reaching here was
in transit when the embargo was
ordered and possibly freight ship
ments will be lighter during the
next two or three days.
Outgoing freight, with the ex
ception of that not covered by the
embargo, was held in the station
Friday, Saturday and yesterday,
but it is moving today.
While rationing was not insti
tuted in this section for electrici
ty, drastic action was taken in sur
rounding territories to curtail the
use of power and conserve fuel.
Warning that the relaxation might
be temporary only, the Virginia
State Corporation Commission
yesterday allowed amusement
houses and centers in Virginia to
operate on a half-time basis along
with regular business and indus
try. At the same time, light and
piower consumers in this section
are being asked to conserve pow
er and light to the greatest possi
ble extent until the present emer
gency is past.
-«
Mrs. Davenport
Dies In County
a
Mis. Sallie Davenport died in
the Martin County home at 5:00
o’clock Monday morning follow
ing a long period of declining
health. Her condition had been
serious for about two months.
About 85 years of age, Mrs. Dav
enport entered the home in June
of last year from Robersonville
Township.
Funeral services are being con
ducted at the home this afternoon
at 3:30 o’clock and interment will
follow in Potter’s Field there.
She is survived by a daughter,
Mrs. Becky Pilgreen of this coun
ty, and a brother of Pitt County.
ENTERS HOSPITAL
In poor health for months, Mr.
N. S. Riddick was removed to a
Washington hospiia; last Saturday
in a Biggs ambulance for treat
ment. Reports reaching here late
Monday afternoon stated that his
condition was critical.
Several Hurt In
Series Of Wreek^
In Martin County
—*—
Three Victims Are Remov
ed To Hospitals For
Treatment
Five persons were hurt, three of
them badly, in a series of high
way accidents in this county last
week-end, according to reports
coming from highway patrolmen
and local police. Four of the vic
tims were removed to hospitals
for treatment, last reports reach
ing here stating that all of them
are recovering but that one and
possibly two of them would con
tinue as patients in the institu
tions for some time.
Mrs. Minnie Scott of 1415 Ninth
Street, St. Petersburg, Florida,
and Philadelphia, received head
injuries when the car in which
she was riding turned over on
Highway 17 at Corey’s Cross
j Roads last Friday morning at 8:30
o’clock. Mrs. Scott was removed
| to the local hospital and was re
I leased the following day. Mrs.
Edith Scott Stewart, driving a
1938 Plymouth sedan, was not
hurt.
Reporting the cacident, Patrol
man W. E. Saunders stated that,
Mrs. Stewart, driving north on
No. 17, apparently tried to avoid
striking a chicken, that she ran
off the road and lost control of the
car which turned over. Damage
to the machine was estimated at
$150.
I Little Miss Dorothy Jean Cart
wright, six-year-old daughter of
Mrs. Ethel G. Cartwright and a
granddaughter of Mr. Ross Gur
ganuR, suffered a broken thigh
and other injuries when she start
ed across the highway in front of
her home between Williarnston
and Everetts last Saturday after
noon at 5.15 o’c'ock and was
' struck by a car driven by Wilbert
i Henry Whitehurst, 305 Church
| Street, Elizabeth City. Starting
on an errand to a neighbor’s
home across the highway, the
child was struck by the car bump
er and knocked possibly twelve
or fifteen feet. Accompanied by
Everett B. Jones, also of Eliza
I beth City, Whitehurst, driving a
j 1042 Plymouth tudor, told Patrol
1 man W. E. Saunders that he was
! traveling about fifty miles an
hour, that he saw the gi' l running
into the highway, sounded his
horn and slowed down. The ve
hicle was not running very fast
when it struck the child. White
hurst entered the child in Brown’s
Community Hospital and returned
later to see how she was getting
alo; j.
Rev. John Forbes, colored evan
gelist of Pantego, received dan
gerous chest injuries when his car
collided with one being driven by
William David Gurganus at the
intersection of Haughton and
Main Streets here Sunday morn
ing shortly after 10 o’clock. Re
moved to a local doctor’s office,
the minister was said to have had
his chest bone broked and he was
removed to a Washington hospital,
one report stating that possibly he
would have to undergo an opera
tion there.
Driving south on Haughton
Street, the minister did not stop
at the intersection and plowed in
(Continued on page eight)
- «
Hitler Birthplace
Is Relief Center
What was once one of Nazi
dom’s most prized “shrines"—the
birthplace of Hitler in Braunau,
Austria—s now being used as a
distribution center for American
Red Cross clothing and U. S.
Army food parcels.
Requisitioned by military gov
ernment officials, the building
serves as headquarters of the
United Nations Displaced Persons
Committees, caring for released
concentration camp personnel and
laborers who have not yet found
their way home. Poles, Baltic re
fugees, Austrians, and Jews of all
nations stream daily into the cen
ter. The upper two floors have
been converted into a memorial
for victims who died in German
concentration camps. J
Making Extensive
Search To Cheek
On Tuberculosis
—*— i
Estimate*! 495.000 People
In Nation Victims of
The Disease
(i uL i JiFWWig m a series
of articles prepared by the North
Carolina Tuberculosis Association
and sponsored by civic organiza
tions.—ed.)
In many communities through
out the country a search for a cer
tain disease is being carried on to
day among apparently healthy
people. There is good reason for
this.
The disease is tuberculosis and
tuberculosis often has no outward
sy 'ptoms in its early stage. Peo
ple may be losing their health and
giving the disease to others before
they know they are ill.
We know there are approxi
mately half a million people in
the United States suffering from
active tuberculosis. This figure is
based on careful surveys which
have revealed that the ratio of
persons with tuberculosis to the
deaths from tuberculosis is slight
ly more than nine to one.
If 55,000 people die from tuber
culosis a year—as they did in 1944,
the last year for which complete
statistics are available—and there
are nine cases for every death,
then 495,000 people have tubercu
losis. About half of these cases
are known to health authorities
and are under medical care either
in hospitals or at home This
means that nearly 250,000 people i
with tuberculosis are not known1
to health authorities, are not re-1
ceiving proper care and many do '
not even know they have the dis- 1
ease.
Because of the two-fold health
hazard of the unknown case of
tuberculosis—-the hazard to the in
dividual and the hazard to the
community—it is important to
find these unknown cases.
To find them, X-ray examina
tions are being made of apparent
ly healthy people. X-ray pictures
of the lung often reveal the pres
ence of tuberculosis before any
outward symptoms appear to
warn the individual of his illness.
By X-raying large groups of peo
ple who are seemingly healthy,
unknown cases of tuberculosis
may be found.
With the mobile equipment
available today which uses minia
ture film for taking X-ray pic
tures, the examination of groups
of people—for example, workers
in an industrial plant—can be
made in a remarkably short time.
From 60 to 120 persons can be X
rayed in an hour on the miniature
films used with mobile or port
able units.
Miniature films are used to
‘screen out’ doubtful cases, not for
final diagnosis. If the miniature
film reveals suspicious signs of
tuberculosis, a thorough examina
tion is made which includes other
X-ray pictures.
Mass X-raying examinations are
an effective method of finding un
known cases of tuberculosis. As
soon as the cases are found, steps
can be taken to provide treatment
fur the individual.
Measles will be discussed in the
next article.
Few Registered
For May Primary
—$—
Judging from reports from four
of the thirteen precincts in this
county few new names were add
ed to the registration books in
this county for the primary on
Saturday of next week. The four
precincts reported 121 new regis
trations, the number hardly
equalling the losses sustained
when old registrants moved away
or passed on to their reward.
The four precincts reported new
registrations as follows: James
ville, 31; Williams, fl; Williamston
No. 1, 41; Williamston No. 2, 43.
The estimated strength in the
four precincts reporting their re
gistration is 2,711 votes.
An unofficial report heard fol
lowing the close of the registra
tion books in Pitt County last Sat
urday stated that several thous
and names were added o the vot
ing strength in Greenville’s pre
cincts alone.
Saturday of this week, the reg
istration books will be opened for
the challenge of any names placed
on the books during the recent re
gistration period or found there
from previous registrations.
Everetts Colored
School Building;
Burned Yesterday
Pupils Rarely Escape From
Wooden Structure
Ahead Of Fire
Starting apparently Iroffl
fective flue in the attic, fire de
stroyed the five-room colored
school building in Everetts short
ly before noon, reports reaching
here stating that the approximate
ly 140 pupils present barely es
caped from the wooden structure
ahead of the fire.
Workers at a near-by mill dis
covered the fire but not until it
burned through the roof, the ceil
ing falling in a short time after
the children were instructed to
leave the building.
Williatnston’s fire fighting
equipment was called for, but by
the time the truck reached there
the building had almost burned
down. The firemen poured water
on surrounding buildings and re
turned home within an hour.
Principal Ernest Owens report
ed to the office of the superin
tendent that one of the teachers
had prepared refreshments for her
pupils in the lunch room, that she
was washing the dishes when the
fire started in the attic over the
room.
When the fire was discovered
there was sufficient time to re
move hardly anything from the
building, and books and furniture
I were almost a complete loss, it
1 was learned.
J The value of the building could
not be determined immediately
I but it was insured for $2,51)0. No
; insurance was carried on the
| books or furniture.
Tentative plans had already
been drawn for repairing and en
, larging the building, it was
learned. New plans will he pre
pared possibly for an eight-room
structure.
Principal Owens immediately
made arrangements to continue
classes in a church and a lodge
! building in Everetts with the
! term closing scheduled for next
Monday.
♦
Japanese Women
Asking Questions
——<s~
How curious are Japanese wom
en about American women?
A Red Cross worker on the is
land of Kyushu,said these are the
: questions Japanese women most
often ask her:
Do all American women wear
slacks?
Do you carry your baby on your
back?
Are all American women able
to drive jeeps?
How do you like Hollywood?
Have you ever been in the
movies?
•Do you wear two-piece bathing
Suits?
Do you have your hair set twice
a week?
Do you collect match box cov
ers?
Another point of curiosity, the
Red Cross worker said, is size.
"The Japanese gi,ls sidle up to
me and measure their heights
against mine by sweeping motions
of their hands. They want to see
if I were as tall as they thought,
or if they were short?”
Bank Deposits In
South on Increase
Bunk deposits in thirteen South
ern states, according to an Asso
ciated Press summary, now total
$22,779,850,000, In 1941 the de
posits totaled but $8,(i4(i,881,000,
and in 1933 they were $2,763,734,
000. The account says further:
“Farm prices are up now and
defense industries have poured
millions into Southern coffers, but
a lot of those war-built industries
are continuing operations on civ
ilian production and the agricul
tural outlook is anything but dim.
Fiscal experts foresee no appre
ciable slump this year, and pos
sibly none in 1947. They point
out that deposits on December 31
were approximately $4,000,000,000
more than on the same 1944 date."
Six of the thirteen states which
the Treasury department lists as
“Southern” have more than $1,
000,000,000 on deposit, and Texas,
where cotton and oil mix, has $4,
934,773,000. Others in the billion
dollar class are Virginia Georgia,
Florida, Tennessee and Louisiana.
Warning Issued To
County Dog Owners
Vaccinate Nearly
^00 County Dogs
In Recent Months
-a.
Plan To Kill Stray Dog!*;
Indictment Of Owners
Is Considered
-»
Completing recently a schedul
ed round-up for the vaccination of
all dogs in Martin County against
rabies, the authorities pointed out
this week that possibly five hun
dred or more canines had not been
included in the vaccination list,
and declared that drastic action
could be expected in due time to
make the anti-rabies drive 100
percent effective.
After discussing the situation
this week, the authorities, includ
ing the collector who headed the
drive and law enforcement offic
ers, issued a warning to all own
ers who have not had their dogs
vaccinated, appealing to them to
comply with the law at once. Dogs
j that were not immunized against
rabies in one of the scheduled
clinics may be vaccinated by
either one of the licensed veterin
arians in the county at their of
i fices in Robersonville and Wil
liamston.
j The authorities plan to allow
I about two more weeks for owners
to comply with the law. Plans
have not been completed in detail
for the final round-up, but the
! authorities are considering shoot
ling all stray dogs and indicting
j the owners who have not had
j their dogs vaccinated by the early
pail of June. Records will be
taken from the tax books to check
up on the owners, and dogs run
ning loose after June 1 will fall
into the stray class.
“We realize that it is dangerous
business to attack a man's dog,
but we consider the health of
children and the general public
more important, and consequently I
we are making every effort to
make the anti-rabies di ive as ef
fective as possible,” a spokesman
said.
Several dogs, apparently es
caping the round-up last year,
have gone mad and were killed in
the county during recent weeks.
No dangerous results followed,
possibly because the anti-rabies j
drive had had its effect. For sev
eral years, few persons have
found it necessary to take the Pas
teur treatment in this county.
Prior to the inauguration of the
anti-rabies drive, a fairly sizable
number found it necessary to take
the treatment.
To date approximately 2,500
dogs have been vaccinated in the
county, as folows: Dardens and
Angetown, 130; Jamesville, 170;
No 90 Filling station, 75; Manning
and Gurkin’s store, 13*1; J. Eason
Lilley’s store, 78; Corey’s Cross
Roads, 98; Paul Lilley's store, 40;
W. S. Bailey's itore, 71; Jenkins’
store, 43; Beddard’s farm, 22; Will
Roberson’s farm, 5; Dr. M. A.
Sehooley’s office. 250; Oscar Ed
wards’ farm, 85; Bear Grass, 161;
Cross Roads, 72; Everetts, 75;
Parmele, 43; Gold Point, 89; Rob
ersonville, 251; Hassell, 50; Coun
cil’s Filling station, 51; Hamilton,
40; Smith Brothers’ store, 53;
Whichard-James School, 45, and
Oak City, 288. In addition to that
number about 75 dogs were vac
cinated by special arrangements.
-a.
College Alumni
Organize Club
On Tuesday night, May 7, a
small group of N. C. State College
Alumni met in the agriculture
building and organized a State
College Club and discussed the
needs of State College. General
Alumni Secretary H. W. (Pop)
Taylor helped organize the club
and led the discussion on the
needs of the college.
Officers elected are as follows:
President, C. U. Rogers, Wil
Jiamston; Vice President, J. Gil
bert Smith, Robersonville; Secre
tary and Treasurer, C. J. Good
man, Williamston; and Reporter,
V. B. Haiti, Jamesville.
It is estimated that more than
forty State College Alumni are
living in Martin County.
The next meeting is to be held
on May 29. All State College
alumni are urged to attend.
ROUND-UP
\-‘ >
After a weekTir^RJlffH^
tively little activity, business
increased slightly on the
crime front in this county last
week-end, state, county and
local police reporting five ar
rests.
One was detained for lar
ceny and receiving, one for
public drunkenness, two for
drunken driving and one for
assault.
The ages of the group rang
ed from 19 to 40 years, and
two of the live were while.
Poppies Will Be
Sold In County
Saturday, May 25
-. «>——
Story Rebind Every Poppy
IVla«le Ry Disabled
Veterans
There is a story behind every
one of the little red poppies which
the citizens of WilliamsUm and
Martin County will wear in honor
of the war dead on Saturday, May
25, Poppy Day.
Each popy is different and has
its own story, explained Mrs. John
A. Ward, president of John W.
Hassell unit of the American Le
gion Auxiliary, which is complet
ing preparations for observance
of Poppy Day here.
The poppies have been received
at American Legion headquarters
here from Fayetteville llositul
where they were made by disabl
ed veterans of both world wars.
Mrs. Ward told about them as they
were being sorted, counted and
made ready for distribution.
''As they are made by hand, no
two of the flowers are exactly
alike,” she said. "Some come from
the hands of men who were hurt
28 years ago in the battles of the
first world war. Others have
been shaped by young veterans,
injured in Europe or in the Pacific
in the second conflict, who made
poppies this year for the first time.
If we could know the stories of at]
those veterans, old and young,
they would make an epic of ser
i vice and suffering for the security
of America.
“Making the poppies has two
important benefits for the dis
abled veterans,” Mrs. Ward con
tinued. "First, it enables them
to earn money. The American
Legion Auxiliary pays them for
every poppy they make. To ac
tually earn some money again is
an encouraging experience for
these men, after long months of .
helplessness. Most of them send
the money home to iheir families.
"Second, the work is valuable
as occupational therapy. It occu
pies their hands and minds and
helps them get weli.
"i hope everyone who puts on a
poppy on Poppy Day will look
closely at the little flower nr.d«
think of the men who make the
poppies, what they have been
through and what they are still
enduring because of their war ser
vice. Then it will he understood
that the poppy is not just a ma
chine-made tug, but a carefully
shaped symbol of remembrance
made by the disabled in honor of
their departed comrades.”
-*
Purchase Lots In
Fair Ground Here
F. P. Wood and George Norris,
Edenton builders, recently pur
chased seven lots in the fair
grounds subdivision here, presum
ably for the construction of homes
for sale. It was also learned that
the two men had taken an option
on twelve additional lots in the
real estate development.
The purchasers have not an
nounced their plans.
Local School Board
To Meet Thin Evening
Meeting tonight, the local school
committee will study teacher ap
plications and handle other busi
ness in connection with the opera
tion ot the schools here next term.
Chairman R. L. Coburn announc
ed this morning.
County Young Man
Studying In High
School In Berlin
New (>[ School Established
By Army For American
Servicemen
--»
£o The Enter
prise).—Williamston, N. C., is rep
resented in Berlin District's new
GI high school by Private First.
Class Jesse H. Rogers of RFD 3,
one of the 630 soldier students
earning extra credits.
Pfc. Rogers, the son of Mr. and
Mis. John Haywood Rogers, and
a member of Co. L 310th Inf. Regt.
78th Division, is studying Live
stock and Business Arithmetic un
der the capable instruction of one
of the GI teachers who have vol
unteered their time in order to
serve as a teaching staff in the
school.
Much of the credit for the es
tablishment of this novel school is
due Captain Lloyd C. Lieuranre of
Arcadia, Indiana, School Com
mandant. Captain Lieurance is
responsible for arranging class
schedules, selecting instructors,
and designating the text books to
be used in the courses.
The Secondary School in the
McNair’s Barracks, which also
houses American Headquarters
for Berlin, offers twenty courses
in six fields of study; agriculture,
business, mathematics, languages,
history and sciences, with Ger
man teachers handling technical,
language, and science classes, and
; American instructors giving
I courses in history and business.
For the 11 week course in the
School the equivalent of one high
school credit is earned, a credit
which may be used for further
USAFI or high school study. A
! certificate of credit is given every
‘student upon completion of 40
hours of work. Whether these
i credits can be used to obtain a
diploma from his school at home
depends on the school’s acceptance
I of the Army credit.
Classes are held in the after
noons, five days a week, with
iliite hours devoted ter classwork.
Homework is done on the GI's own
I time as it was done in the school
, at home.
This Army high school, set up
| in a land far from their homes
may well be termed one of the
best things to come to Berlin, for
it is giving American occupation
troops a break they did not expect
—an opportunity to complete
studies interrupted by the war.
-*
Britain Is Growing
More Food Now
-®
I Before the war, Britain was our
j Biggest buyer of farm products.
Will she buy more, or less, now?
Prewar Britain, about the size of
Iowa and Indiana combined, pro
duced more food than those two
I great farm states combined. Brit
ain produced more wool than Tex
as and Wyoming combined, more
milk than Wisconsin, more vege
tables than California, more sugar
beets than Colorado, more pota
toes than Maine and Idaho com
bined. v
During the war Britain increas
cd this high level of production
by more than two-thirds, despite
bombing, labor and machinery
shortages. As a result she im
ports now about one-third of her
food instead of some two-thirds
befoio the war. Now, according
to Country Gentleman, it looks as
though Britain will maintain
much of that, increased produc
tion, and buy less from us than
before the war.
-«
4
British Birth Rate
Drops In Past Year
A drop of almost 60,000 in the
number of live births in England
and Wales during 1945 from 1944
is shown in the provisional vital
statistics issued in London. The
year’s total of 6115.544 represents
a birth rate of 16.1 for each thous
and persons, as against 744,843 or
17.5 per thousand during 1944.
The fall in births, says the report
summarized in the New York
Times, began toward the end of
the first quarter of last year and
it is assumed that the heavy ex
odus of troops following D-Day
was responsible. A total of 487,
916 deaths, including non-civil
ians. set a new low record death
rate of 114 in a thousand. Th«
previous lowest was 11.5 in 1942,