North Carolina Newspapers

THE ENTERPRISE IS READ BY * OVER 3,000 MARTIN COUNTY FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEEK THE ENTERPRISE THE ENTERPRISE IS READ OT OVER 3.000 MARTIN COUNT1 FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEEK ESTABLISHED 1899 VOLUME L—NUMBER 23 Williamston, Martin County, North Carolina, Friday, March 21, ll> 17 Henry A. Wallace Answers Truman’s ^ Greek Loan Plans Says President is Ushering In A Century of Fear With His Plan In a public address last Thurs day night. Henry A. Wallace, for mer vice president, declared. “President Truman has ushered in a Century of Fear." "I say this can be the century of the fulfillment of the Ameri ^ can dream.’’ Wallace, who was speaking over the NBC network, was refer ring of course, to Truman's new foreign policy. He called it “a reckless adventure” in which Tru man was "betraying the great tra dition of America and the leader ship of the great American who preceded him.” Wallace’s advice: "As one American citizen I say: No loan to undemocratic and well-fed Turkey. No loan to Greece until a representative Greek Government is formed and can assure America that our funds will be used for the welfare of the Greek people.” The man who held three high positions under FDR and was fir ed from one of them by Truman for publicly differing over IJ. S. policy toward Russia, declared flatly that the loans proposed by the President “will bring the world nearer to war.” He said; "Russia may be poor and un prepared for war, but she knows very well how to reply to Tru man’s declaration of economic ^ and financial pressure. "Who among us is ready to pre dict that in this struggle Ameri can dollars will outlast the griev ances that lead to Communism? 1 certainly don’t want to see Com munism spread. I predict that Truman’s policy will spread Com munism in Europe and Asia. You can’t fight something with noth ing.” Truman’s speech before Con gress marked “a turning point in American history,” Wallace said. "It is not a Greek crisis that we face, it is an American crisis. On ly the American people fully aroused and promptly acting can prevent disaster.” He said Truman proposed, “in effect, that America police Rus sia’s every border. There is no re gime lo reactionary for us, pro vided it stands in Russia's expan sionist path. There is no country too remote to serve as the scene of a contest which may widen un til it becomes a world war.” Wallace said he was for aid for all deserving people, “but if aid to the people of the world is our objective, why did the President and Congress allow UNRRA to die?” He also asked, “How does support to the undemocratic gov ernments of Turkey and Greece aid the cause of freedom?” He described Turkey as a na tion "which fought us in the first World War and which in this war refused *o help the United Na tions,’ which 'iattefied herself oil the Germans and the Allies by offering her vital supplies of chrome to the highest bidder,” making a quarter of a billion dol lars in the process. Turkey, he said, “was a haven for Nazi leaders at the war’s end,” and many Allied divisions "were immobilized throughout the War because we never knew on wiuuh side this same Turkish army (which the U. S. A. is proposing to help) was preparing to fight.” Greece urgently needs eco Tu an “has made it clear that (Continued on page eight) •-* Baseball Group To Meet Here Monday Meeting in the Thrower Appli ance Company store here next Monday night, club presidents of the newly created Martin County Baseball League are expected to formally adopt a schedule for the season, and agree on playing rules and regulations. Other business will also be handled at that time. Arrangements for launching the season next month are fairly will advanced in some; of the league communities, and rosters will start shaping up shortly, one club president announced yes terday. Registration Books Open Saturday for City Primary Books for the registration of voters for the municipal primary election to be held here on April 1-4 will he opened by Registrar John E. Pope in his office on Washington Street Saturday morning. The books will be held open each Saturday, March 22 and 29 and April 5 from 9d)0 o’clock a. m. until 6:00 o'clock p. jn. Registration may be effected on any other days during the period by special appointment. On April 12 the books will be hold open for the challenge of any names improperly entered. An unofficial review of the reg istration books shows that there are 569 names already listed, but the owners of at least 95 of them have passed away and at least an other ninety have moved away, reducing the list of eligible vot ers at the present time to about 384 .persons. The present regis tration dates back to 1821. but the books have been brought up to date possibly two or three times since that date. meaning that the names of deceased persons and of others moving away were not transferred from the old to the now books. Those who have participated in a town election since 1921 will likely find they are properly re gistered. However, to make cer tain of their eligibility they should check with the registrar during the designated period. It should be carefully noted that a person who participated in a county, state or national election in the past and who has not reg istered for a town election here will not be eligible to participate in the primary unless he gets his or her name on the registration books during the next two weeks. One may have participated in a county, state or national election, but he must be registered on the town registration books to par ticipate in a town election. Award Contract r or Church At West End -»- <s Plan Completion Of $6,500 Church Early In May ■ -■ <t Clumli Hail 11h Be^inuinp; In Sumlay School Oignn od Two Years Ajjo A contract for the construction j of a $(i.500 church was let to Builders Rufus Hardison and Jimmy Gurkin by the West End Baptist Church building commit tee this week. To be located on the Martin properly just across the road from the old fair ground, the building will be 50 by 32 feet [ in size. It is to be finished in as- 1 bestos siding. A lot, 116 by 200 j feet, was purchased by the mem- i bership some time ago, and the religious group, draw'ing interde nominational support, has about $4,500 in hand. The leaders*are hopeful that additional funds can be raised by the time construc tion work is completed in late April or early May. Rev. W. B. Harrington, serving the membership as pastor at the present time, met with the build ing committee, Messrs. David Keel, Cecil Newbern and1 Tom Phelps, the early part of this week when plans for launching the construction project within tlie next ten days or two weeks. "We hope to complete the build ing in about four to six weeks,” Exum Ward, speaking for the building committee, said yester day. The West End church had its beginning in the organization of a Sunday School in Roberson's ■ ''i’H'use Cafe in Api i!,,,! 1945. Members of Williamston s Memorial Baptist Church, includ ing Mr. J. C. Anderson, and Dr. W. R. Burrell, pastor of the 1 luonunuea on page seven i ! SCHOOLS CLOSE Reaching epidemic propor tions in this district during the past few days, influenza forced the closing of the local schaoU- s "jtfVednesday, the local committee—R. L. Coburn, R. fl. Goodmon and C R. Clark—announcing that classes would be resumed at the usual hour next Wednes day morning. Absences climb ed from about an average the latter part of last week to 225 Wednesday morning, the big increase calling for quick ac tion that day. Reports from local physi cians indicate there is a large number of influenza cases in the community. So far the disease has not materially re duced attendance in other schools in the county. As far as it could be learned no in fluenza deaths have been re ported in this section. During the flu epidemic, the local recreational center will be closed, it was an nounced. POSTPONED v. The regular monthly meet ing of the local parent-teach er association scheduled for next Monday night has been postponed until Monday of the following week, March 31, it was announced following the emergency closing of the schools here on account of an influenza epidemic. A playlet planned by Miss Byrum’s sixth grade will be staged in the high school for the meeting March 31, it was announced by the program committee chairman. Grand Jury Files Quarterly Report In Court Tuesday —<*>— Condition of County School IIiihhcm Reviewed for Jury By Superintendent ♦ ■— Serving as foreman for the second time since it was made in to a permanent body a few years ago. H. S. Johnson. Jr., of Ham ilton, filed for the Martin County Grand Jury its quarterly report in open court Tuesday. The re port reads, as follows: We have passed on all bills of indictment presented to us. We visited the Clerk of Court’s Office and found it to be in ex cellent condition with all Guard ian accounts filed. We found the Register of Deeds Office in excellent shape and all bonds in ordt ... .... The Sheriff's Office and Tax Collector's Office were visited and found in good condition with all records up to date. We visited the Office of the Superintendent of Schools and found it in excellent condition. Ml. Manning. superintendent, met before the grand jury and gave satisfactory explanation as to why some of the suggestions by the last grand jury had not been complied with. He has agreed to carry out all these suggestions. We checked all Justices of Peace reports and found them ail filed with the Clerk of Court and fines submitted to the Treasurer. We visited the County Jail and found it to be clean and well kept. We found 7 colored in mates (male) and two white in mates, 1 male and 1 female. We visited the County Home and found two white male in mates and three white female in mates. five male colored and two females, colored. In the T. B. Ward we found three white males and one white female, three male colored and two females, colored. We found porch columns were unrepaired and suggested same be ^paired as soon as possible, to the County Home. We visited the Prison Farm and found 69 inmates and every thing in good shape. We visited the schools in the (Continued on page seven) Major Legislation Passed This Week In The Legislature Beveruge Laws Muddled From One End of Stale To The Other Their pay exhausted, legislators in the State’s General Assembly arc now down to business, work ing hard and passing major legis lation without delay. Beverage legislation is in one big mess now, the legislators finding it dif ficult to rewrite the old laws ap parently phrased by and in the interest of the beverage industry. Among the major legislation passed during recent days was the budget revenue bill, calling for record expenditures. The 30 percent teacher salary increase is now fairly certain to be support ed by sufficient funds. The Buggs Island Resolution, pledging the State’s backing for the Buggs Island Flood Control project, was passed by the Senate Wednesday. The Joint Appropriations Com mittee turned back opponents of the four-year medical school at Chapel Hill Thursday by refusing jo relegate the school to the back ground in the Good Health Pro gram. The Senate Tuesday refused to invalidate the right recently won by women to sit on juries. A proposed bill calling for the painting of highway patrol ve hicles a distinctive color and to remove patrolmen from the beck and call of sheriffs’ and police departments received a favorable I report this week from the Senate j Public Roads Committee. The | measure, introduced by Senator W. W. Neal of McDowell County, is regarded by many as a move to weaken law enforcement, and eliminate cooperation among the various law enforcement agencies. The Senate this week passed a stricter road safety law, requir ing reissuance of drivers’ licenses every four years at. a cost of $2, fixing the speed law at 55 miles an hour on open highways and 35 miles an hour in residetial sec tios. The law also calls for ve hicle inspection every six months at a cost of $1. Minimum fines for drunken driving would be fix ed at ¥100 oi 30 days in jail on the first offense, $200 fine or u 0 months road sentence for the sec ond offense, and $500 fine or one year on the roads for the third of fense. A $25 minimum fee for speeding or reckless driving would be fixed for the first of fense, $50 fine or 'imprisonment for the second and subsequent covictions. Speeding at more than 75 miles an hour would be punishable by a line of not less than $100. The biennial Budget Revenue Bill met its final General Assem bly test Wednesday, moving with out opposition through its third reading in the Senate. The hill, which moved through both houses just as it was report ed by the Joint Finance Commit tee, anticipates the. collection of $164,171,000 in gcat .tri-maa11 w enue during the ensuing bien nium. Collections of $92,372,800 are expected during the coming fiscal year, and revenue of $91, 796,800 is anticipated during the 1948-49 fiscal year. (uonunuea on page eignt) ■.-—it*"'-——--'—...-. Mrs. LuJa Leggett Passes In County —♦— Mrs. Luia Coburn Leggett, (iti, wife of Luther G. Leggett, died at her home neai Spring Green in Martin County Wednesday after noon at 4 o’clock. She had been in declining health for several years. Funeral services will be conducted at the home Friday at 3 p. m. by Elder W. E. Grimes, Primitive Baptist minister of near Greenville. Burial will be in the Leggett family cemetery. Mrs. Leggett was born and spent her entire life in the Spring Green community. She was a daughter of the late James W. and Susan Coburn. Surviving are one son, Luther G., Jr., and two daughters, Mildred and Gladys Leggett, all of the home; two sis ters, Mrs. Vinony Ange of James ville and Mrs. Katie Leggett of Spring Green; two half-sisters, Mrs. Erma Leggett of Hopewell, Va., and Mrs. Beulah Rawls of Roberson vilie. ARMY'S FIRST FOUR-JET BOMBER READY FOR TEST JUST BEFORE IT TOOK OFF in flight tests made, according to officials, at high speeds, the Army’s first four-jet bomber is shown at the Muroc, Calif., field. A significant aeronautical development, the XB-45„shown against a background of assorted planes, has a wing span of 89’A feet; is 74 feet long and 25 feet from the ground to top of tail. The jet propulsion engines are arranged in pairs in a single nacelle in each wing. (International) | Five Districts Go Over Top In Red Gross Drive According to the latest avail able information five of the seven districts reporting so far have gone over the top in the current Red Cross Fund Drive, boosting the total to date to $2,080.62. Fund Chairman Claude B. Clark, Jr., stated Thursday noon that the drive is now only $410,110 short of its goal. He predicted that the campaign would go well over the tup and explained that any sur plus would be applied on the | quota for next year. Three very encouraging report-; ' were received this week, one from Mrs. J. Eason Lilley, Grif fins district chairman, one from Mrs. R. J. Hardison, chairman of the Williams Township drive, and one from James Faulk, principal heading the drive in the Williams Lower School District. Assigned a $225 quota, Griffins raised $269.05, or $44.05 in excess of the original goal. Raising $61.119,, Williams Township ex ceeded its quota by $21.39. Aided by seven canvassers, Principal Faulk raised $45.01 in the Wil liams School district, or $17.51 in excess of the goal. The drive is well under way in all other districts, but no late re ports have been received. Chair man Clark is fairly certain most of the canvassers will complete the task over the week-end. Unit President Addresses Club —+— Addressing the regular meeting of the local Woman’s Club last Tuesday evening, Mrs. Jesse Moye, Fifteenth District presi dent of Farmville, reviewed brief ly the courageous leaders who or ganized the first women’s clubs, and declared that although they ^■fc'.-yrvT to. tveny clubs w uu'i p, .'.hi not take their membership seri ously. “In order to become better citi zens, we should become more con cerned about existing conditions in the world today,” the speaker said, briefly outlining a course of action: “First, we should study the problems confronting the United Nations and keep ourselves in formed as to the progress the or ganization is making We need to form opinions of ou> own. We cannot work for world peace if we are confused. “We should not just say we tired of hearing about atomic en ergy and leave it go at that. It needs our thoughtful and prayer ful consideration. "We should read and find out what is going on in Washington. We should learn to be tolerant and broadminded. A person should, not be hated just because he is a Republican or a Demo crat. “We can let our congressmen know what we like or dislike, and we must work for things we think worth while.” Concluding, Mrs. Moye said, “Often women are very ignorant about their own town govern ment. We do not necessarily have to run for mayor to have a voice in matters in our town. Wo men should always voig and try to support the right person.” County Liquor Sales Set All-Time Record road m:\itiM. District Highway Engineer McKiin, meeting with the Martin County Commission ers and delegations from Griffins, Williams and Ham ilton Townships, explained the latest developments in the road construction pro gram as it affects this county. District Commissioner Mer rill Evans was unable to at tend on account of other pressing business. Engineer McKim explained that the Griffins road project would be let possibly in June and not later than July, that it would make the turn at the big pine at Kmitliwick's Creek. Officers Conduct Raids On Alleged Liquor Retailers —$— One Victim Apparcntl) Was lYlaiiiifaclui’iiiK And Kctuilin^ Martin County ABC Officer J U. Roebuck, assisted by Sherifl C. B. Roebuck, Deputies Murray Holloman and Roy Peel and CpI W. T. Simpson handled a series ol liquor raidts in the county Iasi week-end. For the most paid : very little activity was found on the illicit liquor retail front tlial | night, the dealers either expect ing a raid or selling out ,before the officers could make their rounds. Visiting LeRoy Andrews in U '''a11 ruii:.'. at1 • ers found only one pint of white liquor, hut there were empty bot tles and a four-gallon stone jug, recently emptied. Quite a few potential ce. Aimers were present, The officers then went to the Lester Biown home, but found nothing. Continuing into the Ro bersonvdle ire#, the. officers food nothing at Anderson Webb’s Moonlight Service Station or Park near Robersonvillc. There was a large crowd present. Sunday morning several of the officers went into Hamilton Township and found half a pint of white liquoi at Jake Ward's. A well-worn path was followed from Ward’s home to a field, the officers, linding a steaming 50 gallon oil drum, live fermenters, and 100 gallons of beer. On Tuesday of this week after the court had recessed foi Judge C. Everett Thompson’s funeral, Officers J. II. Roebuck, Peel and Holloman, assisted by Constable Paul Holliday of Jamesville, raid ed in the Free Union section and captured a 100-gallon capacity copper still and poured out one hundred gallons of beer. Trials for the alleged liquor law violators will be held in the county court on March 31, Officer Roebuck said. According to officers, the sale of illicit ilquor lias shown a grad ual decline in the county in re cent weeks. —o — Sales Tor Fourth Quarter In 1()46 Nearly $300.00(1 K\|MMlllillll‘«‘S III ill!' lYl'iml $61,907.25 lliislicr I lian Previous Kcconl Liquor sales in Marlin Count.\ reached an all-time high figun during the three months ending last December 31 when the torn county-maintaineet stores report ed a gross income of $279,578.90 The sales were $81,907.25 in ex cess of the previous record re ported m the corresponding period of 1945 when the gross in come amounted to $217,871.85. The fourth quarter business | boosted sales for 1948 to $799, 004.95, an amount more than hall as great as the total income re ceived from peanuts produced ii ! the county during the period. Tin ! sales were just about seven timer larger than those reported for the | fourth quarter, ten years previ ! ously. While regular business was experiencing a decrease dur | ig the period, legal liquor sales pushed ahead to break all previ ous high records and confuse tin. I economic situation. Taking in $279,578.90 during the period, the county immediately turned and sent $208,932.37, or nearly three fourties of the total to the out-oi'-stac distillers. Nearly $8,000 was spent in handl ing the sales, leaving an operat ing income of $04,090.08. It is conservatively estimated that the legal liquor store sales represent about one-half the amount spent for intoxicants in the county. On that basis -t is an Lull during the period was in ex cess of half million dollars, the fi gure including amounts spent for legai1 liquor, illicit liquor, beers, wines and cordials. While the county was spending (Continued on page eight) THE RECORD SPEAKS . Motoi ists traveled through the eleventh week of the new year without serious ue i - dent, members of the High way Patro' reporting only two minor mishaps during the period. There is a fairly definite trend downward in the num ber of accidents, number in ! jured and property losses. The que-stion is, Can or will the trend be maintained? The following tabulations offer a comparison of the ac cident trend: first, by corres ponding weeks in this year and lust and for eacli year to the present time. lllli Week Accidents lnj'd Killed Uaiu'ge 1947 2 9 0 $ 490 1948 5 4 9 1,499 Comparisons To Date 1947 31 29 3 8,959 1918 30 24 2 9,020 Trial Of Criminal Docket Dra^s To A Close Thursday Several Chart's Dismissed Aik! Other (discs Arc < iontinued After dismissing a few charges and. continuing several others the Martin County Superior Court finally completed the trial of its criminal docket and recess ed for the week. Next Monday the court will consider about two dozen divorce actions and a few civil case-;. The d :cket. scheduled to have been cleared in a single day, was finally wt rn to a frazzle by long, drawn-out evidence. It was one of those creeping courts which, in 1 addition to spending more than a i day trying an assault case, ex perienced two unexpected- inter ruptions. The tribunal recessed for Judge C. Everett Thompson's funeral Tuesday afternoon., and most of Wednesday afternoon was given over to two Craven County I attorneys who came here to argue a restraining order. Incidentally, Judge J Paul Frizzell, the presid ing jurist, said that in all his years on the bench he had never heard a similar action. Both the defendant and the plaintiff claim ; ed a- piece of land, and' one of them claimed damages without j injury. The Leonard Boston assault ease turned out to be the stumbl ing block for a reegss in the mid dle of the week. Starting work ; on it Wednesday morning, the court heard evidence during the i remainder of the day, and at nightfall the defense still had other witnesses to offer. The case, charging Leonard Boston of the Free Union section with a-saulting his brother-in law. Joe Jefferson, was strictly a family affair, involving husband, wife, brother-in-law, sister-in law and the plaintiff's children. The v\ ife testified in behalf of her defendant brother. The sister-in law, father-in-law and one of Jef ! ferson’s own children supported her uncle. But Jefferson had an able witness in his son, Joseph. The youngster told what happen ed when the father came home from his work on the afternoon of February 2ti and found all the food he had prepared at lunch gone, allegedly eaten by the de fendant. The little fellow held his own on cross examination. I Jefferson, telling the court that he had asked his brother-in-law to stay away, told that his wife was an invalid, that he had to do | the cooking and most of the house work. On February 2b he cooked dinner and supper in the middle of the day. When he re turned from tiie field about 5 o’clock that afternoon he found the defendant there and the food gone. The children said they did j not know what became of it. Sus picion centered on the brother-in law. A few curse words were ut tered, and Jefferson alleges Bos ton moved toward him with an open pocket knife. Jefferson said k il, Jiy.'.ue and ediif. imf^WnffiTi”"' i that night. | Boston, bits of unfavorable evidence about his activities j creeping imo the case as it was being aired before the jury, did not take the stand. Taking the case at 11:07 Thurs j day morning, the jury returned a .vernal of guilty, against Boston twenty minute! later The- case was discussed openly and frankly for thirty mil ates before Judge Frizelle sentenced him to the wuuunvu (Irilcliei* Shoe Co. Opens Saturday —®— Completely remodeling the store building next to the Enter prise office, the Critcher Shoe Company will open for business Saturday morning at 9:00 o’clock, it was announced today by Miss Helen Johnson, manager. The new firm, owned by Mr. U. A. Critcher. is handling several of the leading shoe brands and will also carry men’s, ladies’ and children’s accessories. An un usually large stock of shoes lias been placed on the shelves, but I the manager explained tliat de j liveries had been delayed on sev j eral orders. Mr. Ralph Parker, experienced merchant, has been employed as salesman.