THE ENTERPRISE IS READ BY
OVER MOO MARTIN COUNTY
FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEEK
THE ENTERPRISE
THE ENTERPRISE IS READ 81
OVER 3.000 MARTIN COUNTY
FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEEK
VOLUME XLIX—NUMBER 103
Williamston, Martin County, North Carolina, Tuesday, December 24, 2916
ESTABLISHED 1899
Mail Schedules
Delayed By Big
Christmas Rush
—<*>—
Eighty Thousand Stamps
For Christmas Cards Sold
By Local Office
Burdened by an avalanche of
greeting cards and Christmas
packages, mail schedules in this
area have been delayed somewhat
during recent days. However,
with more help and with heavy
overseas mailings, the postal ser
vice is expected to clear all chan
nels on or before Christmas day.
Unofficial reports state that sev
eral carloads of packages and sec
ond class matter destined for this
section of the State had accumu
lated in Rocky Mount last Thurs
day, that in some terminals in
Virginia as many as thirty cars
were on sidetracks waiting atten
tion.
Schedules in and out of the of
fice are requiring double trips
and deliveries on Thursday and
Friday were delayed as much as
several hours. However, first
class matter has been moving
fairly rapidly or on about a nor
mal schedule.
The local post office through
Friday, the 20th, handled record
cancellations, the peak having
been reached on Thursday when
14.301 pieces of letter mail, mostly
greetings, were dispatched. Up
until Friday, the office had sold
approximately 80,000 one and one
half cent stamps, postal authori
ties declaring that greeting cards
handled during the past few days
represented approximately 85
percent of all the letter mail
handled. After handling 8.000 let
ter cancellations on the 16th, the
office pushed on toward the peak
Tuesday when 13,700 pieces of
mail went out of the of fice.
More than 1,000 greetings were
collected on each of the three
rural free delivery routes iro a
single day, postal authorities de
claring that the Christmas card
business so far this season is pos
sibly 10,000 pieces ahead of the
volume handled in the corre
sponding period last year.
Improper addresses are proving
a problem in the local office
where more than 400 were ruled
undeliverable early Friday. Most
o£4he greetings are addressed to
children' without streets or num
bers and in care of no one. Sent
as second class matter, the cards,
after so many days, will be rele
gated to the waste basket, for
there is no provision for their re
turn to the senders.
Very few packages were sent
through the local office to mem
bers of the armed forces overseas
this year as compared with the
mailings last year and especially
those of the year before.
The local office has several ad
ditional workers for the Christ
mas rush, and will remain open
until 6:00 p. m. Christmas eve, No
carrier or window service will be
offered on Christmas day.
Farmers Asked
To List Acreage
Each farm owner in Martin
county has been requested by the
government to prepare for pres
entation at the time of his regis
tration for 1947 tax listing a list
of each crop acreage, including
tenths of acres of truck. This in
formation will be kept confiden
tial and has no relation to taxa
tion, being used, instead, for tire
purpose of agricultural education
and safer guidance for county
agents and farmers generally.
The list should show the total
acres cultivated by tenants on
separate farms, acres in improved
pasture, woods, idle and other
lands. A report is also asked on
the number of breeding age hogs
sold or slaughtered in the past 12
months and the number of torts
of fertilizer to be used during this
crop year.
• — i
Large Number Real Estate
Transfers Made in County j
Real estate transfers in this
county this year reached a record
number and are believed to have
represented an all-time high
value, according to a review of
land deeds recorded in the regis
ter of deeds office since last Jan
uary 1. In addition to the land
transfers, the records show a rap
id return to the construction of
homes for sale. It is estimated
that nearly 100 homes have been
built and sold in the county so far
this year.
No accurate record of the
amount of money involved in the
transfers could be had, but ac
cording to the records the proper
ty carried a value of nearly one
million dollars, or $932,6*13.50. to
be exact. The law does not re
quire a record of the actual con
sideration advanced in a land
transfer, and while a good idea
of the amount may be gained
from the amount of revenue
stamps placed on the deed, quite
a few of them are without stamps.
One of the transfers involved
nearly 10.000 acres of timber
lands, but the deed lists only $100
consideration, more or less. While
the listings show less than a mil
lion dollar valuation, the true
worth or money involved in the
transfers will, it is conservatively
estimated, approximate three or
four million dollars. Some of the
transfers listed1 the amounts as
high as $94,000.00, but a majority
of them merely listed “$ 10, more
or less.’’
By actual count there were 529
land transfers in the county this
year up until December 20. Quite
a few of the transfers represented
town lots in Williamston and Ro
bersonville. The following fig
ures show the number of trans
fers, by townships, the first fig
ure representing the number of
transfers and the second showing
the given amounts: Jamcsville, 54
and $67,363; Williams, 17 and
$26,505; Griffins. 10 and $9,735;
Bear Grass, 14 and $42,300; Wil
liamston, 270 and $285,725; Cross
Roads, 18 and $27,165; Robcrson
ville. 60 and $305,425.50; Poplar
Point, 4 and $48,500; Hamilton, 48
and $35,209; gnd Goose Nest, 34
and $64,586.
County Has Few,
Holiday Weddings]
But Record In 1946
-»
Double Wedding Fails To
Muterinlixe Reports Re
ceived Here Stall*
Although Cupid1 made more |
progress than he did a year ago,
pre-Christmas weddings in this
county did not come up to the
number anticipated in this post
war period. It is true that more
marriage licenses have been issu
ed in this county so far in 194(5
than in any other year on record,
hut the pre-Christmas season is
apparently to show a decrease in
the marital business.
Licenses were issued to two
young Bertie County brothers by
Register J. Sam Getsinger on the
17th to wed two sisters. It was
reported, however, that one of the
couples was a bit superstitious |
and chose not to have a double
wedding.
Since the 10th of this month
thirteen licenses were issued,
seven to white couples, including
one who holds the plans a secret,
and six to colored couples:
White: Clifton Braddy of Pal
myra and Lillie Hathaway of
Hobgood, Herman Nathaniel Li 1 -
ley and Doris Lucille Jones, both
of RFD 1. Jamesville, Geo. G. Ed
mondson and Grace Jenkins Rob
erson, both of Robersonville,
James Russell Edmondson of
RFD 3, Williamston, and Hilda
May Wynn of RFD 1, Roberson
ville, Roy L. Bowen of Merry Hill
and Rosa Leigh Dunlow of RFD 3,
Windsor, and Harvey C. Bowen
of Merry Hill and Hazel C. Dun
low of RFD 3. Windsor.
Colored: Turner R. Howell of
Everetts and Ncda Virginia Bon
ner of RFD 3, Williamston, Er
nest Jenkins, Jr., and Velma Lee
Collier, both of RFD 2, Roberson
vule, Earl Cortez Eobcisoii and
Ollie Mae Williams, both of RFD
3, Williamston, James H. Hunter
and Doris Iora Andrews, both of
(Continued on page eight)
Car License Sale
Holding Its Own
The sale of 1946 motor vehicle
tags at the local bureau of the
Carolina Motor Club in Harrison
and Carstarphen’s insurance of
fice is advancing fairly rapidly,
the managers said late Friday. Up
until that time 1,414 tags had been
sold, 1.060 for cars, 184 fur trucks
and 170 for trailers.
Up until the same date a year
ago, the bureau sold 1,458 tugs,
1,070 for cars, 197 for trucks and
191 for trailers.
COLLECTIONS i
v
Placed at $133,128.00 as of
Saturday, December 21, tax
collections for the current
year in Martin County are
running approximately $14,
000 ahead of those reported
in the corresponding period
of 1945, according to Tax Col
lector M. L. Peel. Well over
half, or 4,000, of the tax pay
ers in the county, have settled
their accounts, leaving $71,
643.43 to be paid. The collec
tor explained that 440 more
taxpayers had settled their
1046 accounts than had paid
up the 1943 accounts up un
til December 21, a year ago.
Tax List-Takers
Named In County
——«—
Making preparations for the
county’s 1947 tax year, Tax Sup
ervisor M. Luther Peel this week
named the list-takers for the ten
townships. The supervisor and
possibly representatives of the
board of eounty commissioners
wili meet with the list-takers in
the courthouse on the morning of
December 30 to go over the plans
for the new tax year.
With one exception all the list
takers are succeeding themselves.
Mr. Jesse F. Crisp is to handle
the listing in Goose Nest Town
ship. succeeding Ruppert Rawls
who is attending school.
Other appointments for the
townships follow:
O. W. Hamilton, Jamesville; C.
L. Daniel, Williams; W. Tom Rob
erson, Griffins; Wheeler Roger
son, Bear Grass; O. S. Anderson,
Williamston; Buck Ayers, Cross
Roads; H. S. Everett, Roberson*
villt; L. G. Taylor, Poplar Point;
L. R. Everett, Hamilton.
Asks To Be Sent
To Reformatory
Motherless and all but ignored
y his father, a small Martin
County colored boy a few days
ago called Sheriff C. B. Roebuck
and asked to be carried to a re
formatory. The boy, while not so
keen on entering a training
school, explained that he had no
place to go, and that he was anxi
ous to have a roof over lus head
and something to eat Christmas.
The case was referred to the
welfare department, but it was
learned that the institution was
receiving no more inmates before
Christmas.
Without parental guidance, the
lad wanders around, picking up
things in homes and stores, one
report said.
The Influence Of
One Solitary Life
Cited By Writer
Affected Life of Men More
Than All Armies, Navies
And Parliaments
An unknown author, possibly
during a Christmas period, some
time ago recognized the value of
One Solitary Life, and penned his
appraisal. Distributed by the
Army and Navy department of
the YMCA, one of the agencies of
the USO, the appraisal, no doubt,
will prove timely at this Christ
mas time. It follows:
“Here is a man who was born
in an obscure village, the child of
a peasant woman. He grew up in
another obscure village. He work
ed in a carpenter shop until He
was thirty, and then for three
years He was an itinerant preach
er. He never wrote a book. He
never hald an office. He never
owned a home. He never had a
family. He never went to col
lege. He never put His foot in
side a big city. He never travel
ed two hundred miles from the
place where He was born. He
never did one of the things that
usually accompany greatness. lie
had no credentials but Himself.
He had nothing to do with this
world except the naked power of
His divine manhood. While still
a young man, the tide of popular
opinion turned against Him. His
friends ran away. One of them
denied Him. He was turned over
to His enemies. He went
through the mockery of a trial.
He was nailed to a cross between
two thieves. His executioners
gambled for the only piece of pro
perty He had on earth while He
was dying—and that was His coat.
Wtien He was dead He was taken
down and laid in a borrowed
grave through the pity of a friend.
“Nineteen wide centuries have
come and gone and today He is
the centerpiece of the human race
and the leader of the column of
progress.
"I am far within the mark when
I say that all the armies that ever
marched, and all the navies that
ever were built, and all the par
liaments that ever sat, and all the
kings that ever reigned, put to
gether have not affected the life
of man upon this earth as power
fully as that One Solitary Life."
Community Sing
Christmas Eve
A community sing will be held,
weather permitting, Christmas
Eve at 8:30 p. m. on the Presby
terian Church lot adjoining the
Nativity scene. The singing will
be led' by the combined church
choirs of the town and the public
is invited to participate.
It is planned to rope off a sec
tion of the street to accommodate
spectators.
Russell T. Roebuck, local musi
cian and choir director, will be in
charge of the sing, it was an
nounced,
GREETINGS )
____?
v.
Despite their repeated use
down through the years, the
holiday messages appearing
in this edition of The Enter
prise and wishing for all a
joyous season still have a new
note and carry a renewed
hope. Without them, surely
something important in the
year's events would have
been overlooked.
Aside from business and
every-day dealings, Williams
ton's merchants and other
business operators pause to
express in these little mes
sages their best wishes for an
enjoyable holiday season.
Read and note the messages
appearing in today’s issue,
for, after all, what’s more im
portant thain the knowledge
that someone wishes for you
and yours a Very Merry
Christmas.
Political System
Needs Repairing,
Writer Declares
—«—
Win. Umstead To Succeed
J. W. Bailey; Senator
Leaves Large Estate
A system that permits the elec
tion of government representa
tives with opposite aims and poli
cies is in need of repair, Jennings
Perry, New York columnist,
wrote in commenting on the rec
ord of the late J. W. Bailey in the
United States Senate. Perry, ex
pressing the hope a liberal would
be named to succeed Mr. Bailey
in the Senate, penned his thoughts
before Wm. Umstead was ap
pointed by Governor R. G. Cherry
to the position made vacant by
Mr. Bailey’s death on Sunday, De
cember 15.
Mr. Bailey, according to re
ports, left an estate valued at ap
proximately a quarter million
dollars.
Perry’s comments on the late
senator's record follows: I
The death of Sin. Josiah W.
Bailey of North Carolina reminds
qs that our electoral system, par
ticularly as it operates in the
South, often doesn't make sense.
The good Senator (he liked1 to
be called Josh by his colleagues
and—in election years—bv his
constituents) won his seat in 1030
on a point of party regularity. His
opponent, the crafty Sen. Furni
fold Simmons, had, two years
earlier, made the unwashable
mistake of supporting Herbert
Hoover. The Sirnmins mistake
was doubly damnable, of course,
for not only had he lent a hand to
a Republican, but the economy
under that Republican President,
had gone over the precipice. Want
and fear had begun to ramble
everywhere. Bailey had the ad
vantage of being able to ride in
on the first protest wave against
a planless, do-nothing Adminis
tration.
It might have been expected
that he would have put his shoul
der to the wheel of governmental
reform, that by the time Franklin
Roosevelt arrived the new North
Carolina Senator already would
have hitched his traces short for
the desperate pull that yanked
this country out of its hell-bent
depression. After all, had he not
campaigned against that “blun
dering Hoover,” against the
“wool-headed Republicans?”
I suppose that, since he was
elected before Roosevelt, Sen.
Bailey considered himself exempt
from loyalty to the great leader
of his party and to the invigorat
ing program he—and the times—
brought to it. (Other pre-Roose
velt Southern Senators— George
of Georgia, Glass of Virginia, for
instance—were capable of that
rationalization.) At any rate, as
events proved, Sen. Bailey would
have found the atmosphere in
Washington far more congenial if
the Republicans had remained in
power after 1932. For almost from
the beginning of the Democratic
Administration, the man who had
been elected on the first wave of
(Continued on page eight)
Attempt To Rob
Shop Is Foiled
Working liis way up the side of
a shed to an adjoining building
and reaching the roof, some one
attempted to enter the Proctor
Shop on Main Street here during
last Wednesday night, according
to information coming from the
police department.
One light, to a sky light on the
building roof was partly removed
wdien the robbery attempt was
foiled possibly by officers while
making an inspection of the back
lots. Officers are of the opinion
that the person removing the
light thought he was over the H.
D. Peele Jewelry Company store.
The attempt followed by slight
ly more than a week a series of
robberies yet unsolved here.
Market Here Ha ndles Ha lf
Million Bags 1946 Peanuts
Before closing for the holiday |
on the 23rd, the local market had !
handled approximately half mil
lion bags of peanuts, according
to conservative estimates made
last week-end by independent
buyers and cleaners. It was also
estimated that between 85 and 90
percent of the crop has already
moved to market, that only scat
tered activity is to be expected
in the market next month. Re- 1
ports from the farms indicate that
between 98 and 99 percent of the
crop has been harvested.
Peanuts moved to market rap
idly on Friday and Saturday be
fore the scheduled closing, farm
ers explaining that their tenants
were anxious to sell their crops
and settle their accounts before
Christmas.
While the price trend continu
cs to hold between 8 1-2 to 10
cents, there was a slightly strong
er tone in trading transactions
during the past few davs, but
most of the sales were averaging
right at 0 1 2 cents.
No official figures are available
at this time, but reliable esti
mates indicate that less than
three-fourths of a crop was pro
duced in the county this season.
In some areas, production was
just about normal, but in others 1
it averaged hardly five bags per 1
acre, and in still other sections'
quite a few farmers did not even
dig their crops.
The market here has been pa
tronized by growers in nearly [
every producing county in this
state, and fairly large shipments
have been received direct from
farmers in South Carolina and
Virginia.
Farmer Hears From
War Camp Prisoner
N
[ NO I'AI'FK FRIDAY
v*
Following tlir delivery of
this edition, The Enterprise
will immediately start mak
ing preparations to suspend
all operations until Saturday,
the 28th. This edition goes to
press in advance of the regu
lar schedule and there'll be
no second paper Christmas
week, making it possible lor
The Enterprise force to enjoy
a week-long holiday, the only
one in the year’s schedule.
After nnjoying a few days’
rest, the force plans to return
on the 28tli, reopen shop and
make ready for the next edi
tion of the paper on Monday,
December 20.
Record Crops Are
Reported In 1946
While tobacco and peanut pro
duction was no* up to expecta
tions in this county, American
farmers, as a whole, harvested the
biggest crops in history this year.
Closing the book for 1946, the
Agriculture Department reported
that 1946 crop production was 7
percent above last year, 2 percent
above the previous record of 1942,
and 26 percent above the 1923-32
average.
Corn and wheat both lopped
previous records.
The corn crop totaled 3,287,927,
000 bushels, compared with the
record harvest of 3,228,000,000
bushels in 1944.
The wheat crop totaled 1,155,
715,000 bushels, compared witli
last year’s record of 1,108,224,000.
Average corn production from
1935 to 1944 was 2,608,499,000
bushels; average wheat produc
tion, 843,692,000 bushels. (Wheat
and corn average 35-40 bushels
per ton.)
--*-•
Enfield Man Wins
New Automobile
G. L. Taylor of Enfield, holding
number 3044, won the new 11)40
Ford automobile at the drawing
at the Kiwanis Club Christmas
dance in the local gym Friday
night at 11 o’clock.
Second prize in the benefit
program was won by Duck Hardi
son of Williamston with the num
ber 3120. This prize was a new
Bcndix washing machine.
The third prize, a Philco radio,
was won by Miss Kathryn Taylor
of Williamston with the lucky
number 1025.
The event Friday night was the
last of the kind scheduled for this
year in Williamston.
I
Recalls Kindness
Shown During His
Day On Tin* Farm
——&
(Gradually Slur^ in^s. Formrr
Prisoner Wauls To Coim*
Hark To Slates
Slow starvation and tragedies
reported on an extensive scale
after a general fashion have lit
tle effect on one's consciousness,
but recently Farmer Lester Bry
ant received a personal letter
from Gerhard Richard, former in
mate of the German prisoner of
war camp here who had the good
fortune of working on the Bryant
farm one day, in which conditions
in war-lorn Germany arc related
first hand and which brings those
conditions into clearer focus.
Richard’s story is best told in
his own way, as follows:
“Dear Family Lester Bryant:
‘1 don't know if you are able to
remember of my person. Oner l
was an American prisoner in the
state of North Carolina and was
in the prisoner camp of Williums
| ton, —you, dear Mister Bryant of
ten came to the prisoner Camp
and received some German pris
one rs.
"So one day I came on your
farm in order to build a fence for
your mules. You brought us with
your nice car to your yard. First
1 thought we had to do on, the
fields, but we stayed near to your
house. We were at that time four
prisoners together. The one of us
you take into your dwelling and
there he had to decorate tin walls
and the ceiling one of youi rooms.
That German came every day to
you and it was he, you liked best.
At that day he leaved you and
Williamston in order to go to
Camp Butne.r and from there to
Germany. ...
The otlier one thut lake your
mules, leaded them to the field
that was situated at the farm and
plowed the ground. So it rests
two man who stayed by the
stables. Those two guys were an
older prisoner and I. Then you
brought some hammers and nails
and we started our work with you
together. Till noon we had fin
ished the fence. We were very
glad to find an American farmer
like you. because you were a kind
man. But your wife, your daugh
ter and son were kindly to all of
us too. A1 noon we were leaving
our job and were invited to dine
with you together. Wc were very
surprised.
After dinner we went back to
the work and now we built the
two gates. We tv. o prisoners
weren’t carpenters, but both ones
(Continued on page six)
Possible To Rule
0 u t Diptheria
In All Children
—®—
Early Injections Immunize
The Child Against The
Disease For Eife
The months when diptheria is
most prevalent are November,
December and January. But
there need be no diptheria
months at ail. it parents of young
children take certain fundament
al precautions against the disease.
Science has gone far toward con
quering diptheria, but it cannot
complete the job without the co
operation of parents.
At birth, 85 percent of all chil
dren haw immunity to diptheria
derived from the mothers. This
immunity disappears at six to
nine months. Most cases of the
disease occur between the second
and fifth year. It is of the utmost
importance that children in this
age group be protected against
diptheria. It would be ideal if ail
were immunized as routine prac
tice between the ages of six
months and two years.
Many children exposed to
diptheria escape il altogether. A
simple skin test, called the Schick
test, is used to find out whether
the antibodies which prevent
diptheria arc in the blood. If not,
there should be no delay in start
ing immunization “shots” to pre
vent any possibility of contract
ing this highly infectious and
dangerous disease.
Diptheria toxoid or toxin anti
toxin is injected under the skin,
usually in three doses at inter
vals of three to four weeks. If a
Schick U st taken six months later
docs not show immunity, the in
jections should be repeated. Im
munity gained in this way lasts,
as a rule, for years. It is also im
portant to have the injections
given immediately when anyone,
of whatever age, not known to be
immune, is exposed to the disease.
Sometimes diptheria injections
cause a string reaction which ap
pears like a mild case of the dis
ease itself. There may be fever,
vomiting and joint pains. While
the reaction is seldom severe, the
doctor should be consulted if
these symptoms appear.
The danger signals of diptheria
are a severe sore throat, fever,
yjiffht r I . j I 1 i i>. «■ v •!£•)} ]nrr r.oina jfj
the back and limbs. There may
be convulsions in very young
children. In the event of these
symptoms, cull the doctor at once.
If there is difficulty in breath
ing, rush the patient to the near
est hospital. It is important to
begin treatment promptly, us the
danger of dcatli increases with
each hour of delay.
The wise mother who has hud
her children immunized will not
need to worry about diptheria.
New Firm To Open
Creosoting Plant
Messrs. Wallace Tarkenton and
Marion (Monk) Cobb arc rapidly
completing' plans for opening a
j new industry here on or about the
first of next February, it was
learned this week.
With a building already under
construction, the two young men
plan to operate a creosote treat
ing plant and offer a general
wood preserving service, it was
stated. The plant is being located
in the old fair grounds property
just across the road from Rober
son’s Slaughter House.
Designed to meet a growing
need, the plant will specialize in
the treatment of fence posts «uut
will treat all kinds of building
materials agauist decay and ter
mites.
Much of the equipment for the
plant is already available and
other materials are being moved
to the site.
No cost estimates were made
available, but the plant will be
modern and constructed to meet
appioved specifications.