■SV *jm i ■ THE ENTERPRISE IS READ BY OVER 3,000 MARTIN COUNTY FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEEE THE ENTERPRISE THE ENTERPRISE K5 READ HI OVER 3.000 MARTIN COUNT! FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEEB VOLUME L—NUMBER 52 Williamston, Martin County, ISorth Carolina, Tuesday, July 1, 1947 ESTABLISHED 1899 Changes In Highway Law Effective Todav Call For Regular Auto Inspection And New License -o Krt'iilatioiis More Severe On Speedsters And The j)| Drunken Drivers A condensation of the highway safety act, passed this Spring by the North Carolina General As sembly, has been released by Car olina Genera! Assembly, has been released by Carolina Motor Club President Coleman W. Roberts in an effort to aid the public ‘‘in comprehending the full and far Y’teaching effects of this highway safety legislation.” Including a number of long time legislative objectives of the Motor Club, the new acts'calls for regular inspection of motor ve hicles, renewal every four years of drivers’ licenses, and a 55-mile per-hour limit on North Carolina highways. Tire act, which went into effect on Tuesday of this week is here condensed: The purpose of the act is ex plained by quoting from the act itself. “Each of the citizens of the State of North Carolina has the right and privilege of using the ~ streets and highways of the state either as a pedestrian or motor ist or both, without needless ex posure to accident, injury. or death on occasion by the reckless or otherwise unlawful operation by others of vehicles over or upon said streets and highways." To bring aoout a greater safety on the highways the Legislature has by this act made into law new regulations that it feels will ac ^ complish the purpose of this act. First, there is to be a regular inspection of motor vehicles made by inspection stations operated by the Department of Motor Ve hicles. Unless these stations is sue to each owner a certificate of approval the inspected car may be taken from the highways until such times that its defects have been corrected. The inspection stations will be located as conveniently as possi ble for the motoring public. During the year of 1948 each motor vehicle, trailer and semi trailer registered in the State of North Carolina shall be inspected one time by the Department of Metor Vehicles. Starting Janu- ! ary 1, 1949. and each year there after each vehicle must be in spected semi-annually. The own- i er is to pay for this inspection. The inspection fee for the first year is to be $1, thereafter fori each inspection the fee will be 75 cents. Second, there has been provid-1 ed for a renewal of driver’s li censes every four years. The li cense is to be renewed only after ! an examination at the time of re-1 newal and renewal of a driver’s1 license may be refused if person applying is determined to be men-1 tally or physicially unfit to oper-1 ate an automobile. The tests to determine the fitness of a person 1 may include road tests, written or oral tests, tests of vision, as the ' department may require. After renewal of the license, the operator’s license will auto matically expire on the birthday of the license in the fourth year following its issuance, and a new license will not be issued until the operator has again passed the (Continued on page eight) ROUND-UP County and local officers virtually had a vacation last week-end, the records show ing: that only two persons were arrested and temporari ly detained during: the period. One of the two arrested and jailed was found unconscious ly drunk on the highway and the other was called to an swer for issuing a worthless check. One was w hite. The round-up was about the smallest, if not the small est, on record so far Hus year. r HOLIDAY I ■\ A general holiday will be observed on Julv 4 (Friday) by business firms and offices, including the post office, banks, town and county of fices. A few, including press ing clubs and the Enterprise office, will extend the holi day observance for the re mainder of the week-end. Business, in general, will re sume activities as usual oil Saturday, the fifth. Two Distilleries Destroyed Friday In Martin County -- - O) AB<] Officers Roebuck and 1'eel Find More Sugar Beer In Raids Molasses is gradually being dis carded as an ingredient in the manufacture of illicit liquor in this county, ABC Officer J. H. Roebuck stating this week that the manufacturers are gradually changing over to the sweetening since it was removed from the ra tioning list a short time ago. How ever, the officer pointed out that the manufacturers are gradually working off their supply of mo lasses, that at one still, raided last Friday, half of the beer found was made with sugar and the other half had molasses for its base. Raiding in the Bear Grass sec tion that morning, the officers captured a 5U-gallon capacity cop per still and 150 gallons of sugar beer. The plant was fully equip ped. Returning to the same section that afternoon the officers found and wrecked a 50-gallon capacity oil drum used as a still. They poured out 150 gallons of sugar 1 beer and 150 gallons of molasses I beer, destroyed the six ferment I ers. A few weeks ago the officers were raiding in that section and : found a site where a manufactur er was setting up for business. They withdrew without wrecking the plant. The operator, appar ently realizing the officers had visited the plant, deserted it and is believed to have gone into busi ness in a new location. It is thought that one of the plants destroyed last Friday belonged to the man who had deserted the equipment a few weeks ago. Jaycee President Gets Key To City ——®—— A precedent was set here last Friday afternoon when about a fourth of the members of the local Junior Chamber of Com merce formed a welcoming com mittee and greeted the state presi dent of the Junior Chamber of1 Commerce, Ed Ellis of Charlotte, at the western city limits of the city. A large "key to the city" was presented to the visitor by Mayor Robert H. Cowen. They key, about two feet long, bore the in scription, "Welcome — to Ellis — Williamston Jaycees” and was painted white, and was decorated with a large bow of ribbon. Jay- ! eee photographer Lawrencej Lindsley made pictures of the 1 ceremony. Following the official greeting, the state president, accompanied by Mayor Cowen and club presi- j dent, Ernest Mears, and chauf- j feu red by Jaycee Blue Manning was escorted through the Main Street business section, along with the rest of the committee, to the home of Jaycee and Mrs. John Miller, Jr., where a refreshment hour was held. According to old timers here, is the first time that an out-of tuwn visitor has been welcomed into Williamston in such a man ner, and probably marks the first time that a key to the city has been presented. Anyway, it was the first official presentation of a kej- to the city by the new mayor, j New Bookmobile For Rural Library Service Pictured above is the new bookmobile recently placed in service in Martin, Beaufort and Ilvde ( (unities bv the rural library service. The new machine with i*- special body is able to carrv more books and a better service is offered the bookmobile patrons in the rural areas of the three coun t|ps The bookmobile made its first run in this county justa short time ago and will return shortly on the regular summer schedule. -T Former Resident Of County Died Friday Mornin ——*— Funeral Held Sunday For Finest L. Glover In Seotluml Neck '"JQ Ernest Linwood Glover, a form er resident of this county for a number of years, died in a Rocky Mount hospital last Friday morn- j ing following u long period of de clining health. His condition had been serious for about ten days. Mr. Glover, 71 years old. moved to Martin County a number of years ago from Bertie and located j on a farm near Oak City. He was | a diligent woiker. an * 'despite riis~j advanced years he labored long and hard during the war years to furnish food for a needy world, having already given one son to j his country during the early part I of the war. About two years ago he retired from the farm and lo cated in Scotland Neck to enjoy his remaining years. Mr. Glover was a member of the Skewarkey Lodge here for a number of years, and through it he made many friends and ac quaintances who enjoyed his com pany. Funeral services were conduct led in Scotland Neck Sunday aft ernoon at ■).,io o clock by Rev. M. (Continued on page eight) Father Of Local Resident Passes L< c V. Spruill, father of Mrs. A J. Manning, Jr., of Williamston, died at his home in Edenton last Friday morning at 7:45 o’clock of a cerebral hemorrhage suffered a week previously. He was 58 years old. Funeral services were conduct ed Saturday afternoon at 3:00 o'clock in the Quinn Funeral Chapel in Edenton by Rev. E. L. Wells and interment was in Beav er Hill Cemetery. Surviving besides his daughter here are his widow, the former Miss Minnie Belch; three sons, Vernon L. Spruill of Kinston, Roy H. Spruill and Howard Spruill of Edenton, a daughter, Mrs. Clyde Adams of Edenton; three brothers, J. G. Spruill. C. U. Spruill and F. R. Spruill, all of Edlnton; one sis ter, Mrs. Charlie Lane of Eden ton. and nine grandchildren. Make No Changes j In Police Force, — m Entering upon his new duties as 1 Williamston’s chief of police with authority to hire and fire, W. T. Simpson, former corpora! on the North Carolina Highway Pa trol, said this morning that he was making no immediate changes in the police force. Definite plans for operating the department are now being lormulated, it was explain ed. Officer John Roebuck, the old est member of the force, is leav- [ ing the department to accept an- ! other position. No effective date for his resignation has been de termined, one report stating that it -would be left entirely with the oilicer. Merge Town Offices Of Treasurer - Clerk I PRESIDENT I s* J K. I). Worrell, local town commissioner and an active member of the Lions Club since its organization here, was installed as president ol' the organization last Thurs day evening. He succeeds II. I’. Mobli". under whose presi dency the club made much progress during the past year. Brother Of Local Resident Passes Funeral services were conduct ed Satur day afternoon at 2 o'clock in Raleigh for If. A. Adams, brother of Mrs. Carlyle Langley, who died at his home in Myrtle Beach at 7:30 Thursday night. Burial was in Montlawn Memorial Cemetery, Raleigh, by Rev. K. J. Agsten, Presbyterian minister. Mr. Adams had been in declining health for a year and his condi tion had been serious for the past1 four- months. He was 03 years old.; Surviving are one son, Capt. Carlton R. Adams of the U. S.! Navy; four sisters, Mrs. Carlyle Langley of Williamston, Mrs. Ruth House, Mrs. Kdmon Lovvorn and Mi’s. S. T. Marbury, all of Shelbyville, Tenn.; two brothers,' J. C. Adams of Daytona Beach, Fla., and George W. Adams of i Shelbyville; two grandsons, and one uncle. Before retiring on account of declining health, Mr. Adams own ed and maintained studios in Dur - ham, Asheville, Henderson, Wil son and Wilmington. -o Lightning Fires Large Pack Barn -o Started by a bolt of lightning, j fire destroyed the large pack , house on Farmer J, A. Everett's 1 tarm in Goose Nest Township last Saturday afternoon. Large quan tities of corn and hay and a siz able number of tobacco sticks were burned. Reports reaching here stated that only a few other f items of property were lost. No estimate as to the amount of the loss and if insurance was j carried on the property could not be learned here immediately. To Fill Position At Next Regular Meeting July Till S»‘>«‘ral Ypplicalious (im'ii Attention A| A Special Session Last INi^lii In a special meeting last night Williamslonk town board olCoin town treasurer and clerk and con sidered several applications tor the position without making an appointment. The group, voting four to one to combine tin1 of fices, is expected to fill the posi tion at the next regular meeting I on Monday, July 7. Offered as: a progressive move J in town government, the merger, ' it was pointed out, imposes the duties of town clerk and treasur er upon the appointee- who is to | be recognized dnolfieially as | towm manager with authority to collect taxes, issue licenses, i e-j ceive complaints and work as an] intermediary between the public j and the town hoard. While the merger supporters j are reasonably certain that the I combined offices will collect ad-I ditional revenue sufficient to oil" I set the costs, it was pointed out that the $250 propon-d monthly salary plus tlx increase in pay al lowed the office of chief of po lice will call for an increase of $3,100 in the current fiscal year appropriations. II was also point ed out that while Uie new posi tion and other salary increases will be reflected in the budget j figures, no increa e in the 1947 48 tax rate will hardly be neces sary. The proposed changes will pro vide the office with the services of an assistant clerk. The plan, it was pointed out, is working very successfully in other towns the size of lids one, and the proponents of the merger are anxious to give it, a trial here. Applications, considered last night, mentioned salary agree ments as high as $275 per month, buit it, was definitely declared that no more than $250 and pos sibly less would be allowed. Several other business matters were discussed at the special two (Continued on page eight) si»i:i;i) limit > The speed limit for automo- ' biles operating on the high ways of North Carolina was increased from 50 miles per hour to 55 miles per hour to day, July I, inaccordance ! with legislation passed by the State General Assembly dur ing its 1047 session. While the speed limits have gone up, penalties for ex ceeding them have risen pro portionately. Speeds between 55 and 05 mph bring a fine of I < S25 while drivers going be yond 70 mph will he fined SUM) for first offense, if they i arc caught at it. i Jaycees Install New Officers At Meeting Friday ♦ -- \\ heeler Manning Siicrcods Ernest Wears To The Club IVesuleney I The second annual ladies' and | installation night banquet and dance of the local Junior Chamber of Commerce was held last Friday j evening. The dinner was held at the Woman’s Club hall, where ap proximately 125 Jaycees, wives and guests enjoyed a delicious chicken dinner that was prepared and served by the ladies' of the Macedonia Christian Church. President Ernest S. Meats pre sided over the meeting, while Jaycee J. Paul Simpson served very capably as toastmaster. James Bullock led the singing and he also introduced the out-of town guests. Invocation was of fered by Exum L. Ward, Jr. Representatives from the Jay cee organizations in Washington, Goldsboro, Robersonville, Bethel, Greenville. Rocky Mount, Wilson, Tarboro, and Charlotte attended the affair. Mr. and Mrs. Gene Kimball represented the local Ki wanis Club, Lion and Lioness K. i D. Worrell and Lion and Lioness II P. Mobley attended from the local Lions Club and the local Woman's Club was represented. All the guests were welcomed to I the city bv Mayor Robert H. Cow on while a special welcome to the ladies was extended by Jaycee Edgar J. Gurganus. Jaycee Blue Manning was pro gram chairman, and the program ; included vocal selections by Miss ! Fi ances Jarman and Mr. 11. M. j Peel, accompanied at the piano i*>y Miss Mar.v Warren. Rescue Clemmons, colored piaruit, pro vided piano music during the evening. Each lady present was given a miniature corsage, and during the evening, gifts were presented to the holders of lucky numbers. The installation of the new of ficers for the new fiscal year was j performed by Buddy Redmond, eastern vice president of the N. C. Junior Chamber of Commerce of Goldsboro. The following Jaycees were inducted into office; presj J dent, Wheelei M. Manning; vice | president, Exum L. Ward, Jr.; j secretary. Thud Harrison; treasur I or, Oswald D Stalls; sgt,-at-ai ms, [John Miller, Jr, directors. Paul Simpson, Wallace Tarkington, Dan Pci lo, Clarence Griffin, T. F. Davenport, Jack Edmondson, state director, Ernest Meats. Jaycee Clarence Griffin intro duced the .speaker of the evening, Ed Ellis of Charlotte, president of the North Carolina Junior Cham bi i of Commerce. Mr. Ellis made an enjoyable but limited talk con cerning the progress and scope the Junior Chamber movement throughout the nation, pointing out that this is the only civic club exclusively for young men, be tween the ages of 21 and 35 in clusive. Mr. Ellis gave brief re ports concerning the recent na tional convention that was held at Long Beach, California. The club presented gifts to the state president and the eastern vice-president, and the outgoing local president, Ernest Meats, presented a gift to the local club, (Continued on page eight) -4. Sufficient Ruin Fulls In County Following a long, dry spell, the elements reversed the order and emptied suffieienl rain in this sec tion during the past lew days. Scattered showers had fallen pre viously and great relieved the dry season, but the order really chang ed last Thursday when 2.22 inches of rain fell during a greater part of the afternoon. Farmers declare that sufficient rain has fallen for the present, at 1 least, and in some areas too much rain has fallen to insure good crops. 'J’he wet season is not yet 1 serious, but small patches of to- ; baceo on certain types of soil are , said to have wilted slightly. Declaring that his land was soaked for the first time this seas- < on by the rain early Sunday eve ning, one farmer near here said 1 a short time later that lie planned < to reset some of his tobacco Mon- t day. j Tobacconist Returns F rom European T rip ---N HEADS JVYCKKS Wheeler M. Manning was installed as president of the Williamston Junior Chamber of Commerce during a formal program, lie succeeds Ern est Wears who has ably serv ed the organization in that capacity during the past year. Seriously Hurl In Cycle Accident Jasper Eugene Browder, 20 year-old loeal hoy, was critically hurt in a fall from his motorcycle at the Washington Street railroad Classing near the Williamston r^pnnu »>ill last ev « ing at 6:10 o’clock. Suffering from a severe fracture on the right side of his head, he was re moved to the local hospital for treatment. The young man, a veteran of World War II, was riding into town when the train cleared the highway and traffic started mov ing on the highway. Apparently he applied brakes and lost control of the machine. One report stated that he fell under the motorcycle and that the machine skidded down the road about thirteen yards with him undei it. Elbert Rawls, vvitni accident, picked to, up and carried him pital. The young man partially gained consciousness early morning, and his condition sang young to the it i And Kcliirn Ity Air While the enonomy of foreign nations is in the throes of uncer tainty and is struggling for sur vival, the outlook for the expor tation of eastern North Carolina tobacco is not altogether discour aging, according to W. Iverson Skinner, member of the W. I. Skinner Tobacco Company firm here, said yesterday following a business trip to Kngland and sev eral countries on the continent. The first local civilian to make the trip across and return by air, Mr. Skinner returned home last Friday, declaring the trip was all 1 ight but admitting that he would travel by boat the next time busi ness called him to that part of the wolid. Reaching London after thirteen and one-half hours' flying time, Mr, Skinner soon gained a favor able impress-ion of his British hosts, "Large signs, reading, 'We work or we want,' were posted nearly everywhere, and the Brit ishers are really working trying to save their economy,” Mr. Skin ner said. "The British don't want loans. I hey are anxious to develop stand on their own founda non and hiiild up liouar exchange to maintain a place in world trade. ' M Skinner continued, pointing out that the government is now forced to take drastic steps to build up dollar exchange. It has been pointed out that the orig inal amount allotted in the loan to Great Britain for the purchase of tobacco has been further re duced by 21) percent, that the duty on tobacco has been upped from $7 to $11 per pound, and that con sumption is slated to fall 25 to 30 percent. "The British are manu facturing cigarettes at the ratio of 02 percent from empire tobacco and H pt ii-ent from American to bacco, but lire people prefer the regular Amer ican brands,” the to bacconist went orr to say. '■'1*1 io British uro a determined people, but apparently they have a *big 11 uggle on their hands. They lost a big block of assets when they were forced to move much of their heavy industry out of the country during the war. Now those countries don’t want to give up the industries, making it that much harder for England to maintain a favorable exchange," he said. Food and clothing are still ra tioned in England two year after the war. Most of the people are getting enough to eat, but that’s just about all, according to Mr. Skinner. Cuing into Holland to contact business associates in Amster lam, Mr. Skinner said that con ditions there were a bit similar to those in Britain. Food in the tote Is and restaurants is better than that served in similar insti tutions in London, but the fare in ndividual homes is possibly no letter than that in London. Am ilerdam streets are crowded with \merican-made automobiles, and he modern city has the appear incc of our own. That country is truggling to maintain a spot in vorld trade, but its future is not my too certain with the East ln lies question still unsettled. Conditions in Belgium, while (Continued on page eight) HUKvSOYl The first cotton blossom found in (hr fields of the county this season was dis played last Saturday by Far mer Lester R. Meeks, KFD I, Roliersonville. Coining a lit tle early, considering tlie sea sons, Hu: 'oloaauui naa a pret ty pink. Unofficial reports indicate that the acreage planted to the crop has beei\ increased in Uit county Uu> year.