THE ENTERPRISE IS READ BE
OVER 3,000 MARTIN COUNTS
FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEEK
THE ENTERPRISE
■«r ....
THE ENTERPRISE IS READ Bl
OVER 3.000 MARTIN COUNTS
FAMILIES TWICE EACH Will
VOLUME LI—NUMBER 25
Williarnston, Martin County, North Carolina, Thursday, March 25, ]()lf{
ESTABLISHED 1899
First Political Races
Develops In County
A. Corey Entering
Contest For Seat
* In State Assembly
—• ■ —
Clias. H. Manning An
nounces for Judge Of
Recorder’s Court
Comparatively quiet for almost
two years, politics began taking
on life in a big way in the county
this week when two contests de
veloped over night on the strictly
local front. A Corey definitely
announced fa ra seat in the State
House of Representatives from
this county, Edgar Gurganus, lo
cal attorney, having tossed his
hat into the ring a few1 days ear
lier. County Commissioner W. M.
Harrison, representing the Grif
fins-Bear Grass District, filed with
the board of elections this week
his notice of candidacy to suc
ceed himself, W. Tom Roberson,
Griffins Township man, having
filed for the office last week.
Supporters of Mr. Harrison’s
candidacy pointed out yesterday
that Griffins had had a represen
tative on the Martin County
Board of Education for a number
of years, that the present mem
ber, Mr. George Griffin, had two
more years before his current
term expired.
While one or two other contests
are probable, no opposition has
been announced and it is general
ly believed there’ll be no compe
tition for the major offices such
as register of deeds and treasurer
this year, and that Commissioner
John Henry Edwards will be an
unopposed candidate for commis
sioner from the Williamston-Pop
lar Point district.
Attracting little attention at
first, the announced plan of Com
missioner R. A. Haislip to retire
as a member of the County Board
at the end of the current term
brought action over night when
t-itizens in Hamilton and Oak City
brought out candidates, good and
able candidates, too. Meeting in
Hamilton last evening, a group of
interested citizens advanced the
candidacy of Henry Johnson, Jr ,
retiring foreman of the Martin
County grand jury and a well
known business man of Hamilton.
Abiding by the wishes of the
meeting, Mr. Johnson said last
night in announcing his candidacy
that he would be glad to serve las
county to the best of his ability.
Apparently unaware of the de
velopments in Hamilton. Oak
City citizens this morning ad
vanced the candidacy of Nat
Johnson, another well-known
county business man and mayor
of Oak City, giving the people of
the county an opportunity to vote
for two candidates for county
commissioner from the Goose
Nest-Hamilton District.
He has made no announcement,
but Forsty Martin is planning to
file for county commissioner from
the Jamesville-Williams District
to succeed Commissioner Joshua
L. Coltrain who is also planning
to retire at the expiration of this,
his eleventh term.
Cnas. H. Manning, local attor
ney, filed this week with the
county board of elections for
(Continued on page eight)
| HOLIDAY
V— ■ —. .—s
All mercantile establish
ments and banks and some
heavy industry will observe
next Monday—Easter Mon- !
day—as a holiday, in accord
ance with an agreement
reached by the business men
at a recent meeting. The post
office and other federal of
fices will not close for the
day, since it is not a nation
al holiday. There'll he no
holiday for the schools be
cause so much time was lost
during the cad weather back
in February.
Beginning the first Wed
nesday in April, the stores
will observe each Wednesday
afternoon as a holiday until
. markets yj. .
Idle summer.
i
ANNOUNCES
V*
Charles II. Manning, local
attorney, this week announc
ed his candidacy for judge of
the Martin County Recorder’s
Court.
Will Start Seine
Fishing Next Week
No official information could
be had, but according to reports
leaching here the operator of the
Jamesville fishery plans to start
operations there next week. It
was said this morning that the big
seine had been tarred and made
ready for use, and that workmen
were preparing the flats and
other equipment.
During the meantime, individ
ual fishermen are making fairly
large catches w ith their drift nets,
Hugh Martin stating this morning
that they were dipping up from
fifty to seventy five each drift.
Quite a few perch have been tak
en and some rock fish have been
r' but no shad have been
trapped so far.
High water has delayed operat
ing plans at the fishery, but the
Roanoke is just about back in its
banks today and it is likely that
operations will get underway
about the middle of next week, if
not before.
Very few fishermen have been
reported on the river at,this point
so far, hut they are expected here
within the next few days with
their dip nets from all parts of
eastern Carolina.
The last several seasons have
not been very favorable lor fisher
men, but they are anticipating
better luck this year.
o
Heavy Rainfall
In This Section
—i—
Following the record-breaking
rainfall for 19-17, precipitation
continues heavy in this section,
according to Hugh Spruill, keep
er of the official rain gauge on
Roanoke River here. With the ex
ception of February, 1939, more
rain fell here last month than in
any other February on record.
During the first two months of
this year, 9.86 inches of rain fell
here, precipitation for the first 23
days in this month boosting the
total to 13.62 inches.
Rain fell on twenty of the twen
ty-nine days in February, and on
eleven t of the first t-/epty-three
days in this month.
■o
Wreck Two Liquor
Plants In County
-o
Raiding in two townships the
early part of this week, ABC Of
ficer J. H. Roebuck and Deputy
Roy Peel wrecked two liquor
plants and poured out a small
quantity* of poor quality sugar
beer,
Monday morning the officers
d< slroyed a Jd-galibh oil d'rU'ifVns
td for a still at a plant in Bear
Grass Township and poured out
100 gallons of beer. That after
noon the officers poured out fifty
gallons of beer at a plant in Wil
f. rra Ti wn sbij, but they were
unable to imd the utii
i
Proposing Cancer
Control Clinics
In Ten Districts
Dr. I. M. Proctor Chosen
To Hea<l New Division
State Health Boar^l
A cancer control program un
excelled in any other state got
well underway with the appoint
ment of Dr. Ivan M. Proctor, Ral
eigh gynecologist, as director of
the cancer control division of the
North Carolina State Board of
Health. His associate is Mildred
Schram, Ph. D., Philadelphia.
Announcement of the appoint
ments was made by Dr. Carl V.
Reynolds, secretary of the State
Board of Health. He said the new
members of his staff have been
given offices in the Health Build
ing in Raleigh and reported for
duty on March 1.
The new director of the cancer
control division is a specialist in
obstetrics and gynecology, a field
of medicine in which he has prac
ticed in Raleigh for more than a
quarter of a century. He has been
interested in the problem of can
cer control in all its aspects for a
long time and, for the past five or
six years, has given much of his
time to making an extensive study
of cancer. This has included vis
its to Georgia, Virginia. Pennsyl
vania, and New York where he
observed the work done in their
clinics. Prior to the war. he did
post-graduate work in London,
Berlin, Prague, and Vienna. He
has published numerous articles
on cancer of the breast and can
cer of the uterus.
Dr. Schram, formerly of St.
Louis, comes to North Carolina
with many achievements to her
credit. From June, 193J, to Janu
ary of this year, she served as an
executive officer of the Donner
Cancer Foundation of Philadel
phia, which was formerly the in
ternational Institute of Cancer Re
search. The Foundation sponsor
ed projects in several parts of the
world before the war interfered
with its work. Dr. Schram
! achieved considei.a-blo n.nown for
her work in planning and organiz
ing a series of cancer prevention
clinics in Philadelphia. These
were tested first in five teaching
hospitals and then increased to 11
in number and introduced into a
group of non teaching hospitals.
Dr. Schram was a delegate to
the International Cancer Congress
in Madrid in 1933, a guest of the
Research Institute in the Royal
Cancer Hospital in London, and
one of 11 American women cited
by the American Cancer Society
for notable service in the war to
bring cancer under control. She
arrived in Raleigh the first of the
month and expressed herself as
being highly pleased with the
North Carolina program.
The financing of the cancel
control division’s program is a co
operative effort. Funds have
been made available from three
sources, an appropriation by the
1947 General Assembly, an appro
priation by Congress and allocat
ed by the United States Public
Health Service, and a grant from
the North Carolina Division of the
American Cancer Society, of
which Dr. Thomas Leslie Lee,
Kinston, is chairman, and Mrs.
George E. Marshall, Mount Airy,
is commander.
Creation of the cancer control
division was authorized by a bill
enacted by the 1945 General As
sembly. It remained, however, for
the 1947 General Assembly to ap
propriate funds for a cancer con
trol program. The program is to
(Continued on page eight)
r
I
VALUATIONS !
v -»
Preliminary estimate!) ad
vanced this week by Tax Sup
ervisor M. Luther Peel point
to an assessed property valu
ation increase of more than
one and one-halt' million dol
lars. Nine of the ten town
ships reported gains, Wil
liamston showing some over
half a million dollar increase i
in its listings over those for
1947.
Most of the increase in sev
eral townships outside James
ville and Williamston is
traceable to new automobile i
■’"TiSflWp! I'M Ul' HliHP'suid.
Post Office Almost Ready
To Extend Carrier Service
Postmaster W. E. Dunn an-1
nounced late yesterday that the ]
local office is just about ready to i
extend its delivery service to just j
about every street in town and to
the expanding development on
and just off North Haughton
Street. "In fact we are ready to
inaugurate the expanded service,
but all the homes have not been
numbered and only a few of the
patrons to be served on the ex
tensions have provided recept
acles,” Postmaster Dunn said, ex
plaining that the expanded ser
vice would be delayed until the
houses are properly numbered
and containers art provided for
the mail. Equipment for handling
the mail has been placed in the
post office and a carrier has been
employed, it was learned.
It is Postmaster Dunn's under
standing that the town is to num
ber the houses, including those
outside the town, but the work
has been 'clayed, he said yester
day. Some months ago the town
agreed to mark the streets outside
town along with those inside and
most of them now have markers,
but as far as it could be learned
no action has been taken to num
ber all the houses. The postmast
er said that the houses must be
numbered and receptacles placed
before the service could be ex
tended, that possibly the patrons
on the extensions could handle
the house numbering themselves
or have it done.
It is estimated that the propos
ed extension, calling for a third
carrier in the delivery system,
will serve approximately 1,500
patrons.
Sustsests Material
For Stopping Mold
In Tobacco Plants
- ■ m
Formate Proved Sin.ssful
Where Properly Used,
Agent Sumner Says
Pointing out the importance of
: having plants ready at the right
season, Assistant County Agent
Jesse Sumner is advising farmers
to be ready to combat the blue
mold in their plant beds this seas
on. Formate, possibly the most1
successful agent in warding off
blue mold, is available in suffici
ent quantity to meet all needs
this year, it was learned.
The agent suggests the follow
ing plan foi combatting the mold:
There are several materials us
ed to fight Blue Mold. The most
recommended material is Fer
rrtate.
Formate may be applied as a
spray or as a dust. At current
prices, the cost of the material
for the spray treatment wiii be
from $1.50 to $2.00 per 100 square
yards for the season. The dust
treatment will cost about 3 times
as much. The spray is simple to
prepare but takes longer for mix
ing and applying than for apply
ing the dust.
When Should Treatments Be
gin? Either treatment is a pre
ventative rather than a cure and
should begin before blue mold
appears in the plant bed. Make
the first application when the
plants are about the size of a
dime.
How Often Should the Treat
ment Be Applied? Twice a week
until plants free of blue mold are!
assured for transplanting (usual- j
ly 8-12 applications. Applications
of spray or dust that are washed
off by rain should be repeated as
soon as weather will permit.
How Much Fermate is Needed
for Spraying? About 2 pounds
per hundred square yards.
Preparing the Spray. Use 1
pound of Fermate to 25 gallons of
water (5 level tablespoonfuls per
gallon). Place the required
amount of Fermate in a fruit jar,
add a little water, close lid and
shake until the Fermate powder
is thoroughly wet, stir the wetted
Fermate into the full amount of
water and the spray is ready to
use, keep the spray mixture well
stined while spraying, mix a
fresh batch of spray for each ap
plication.
How much Spray Mixture Re
quired to Cover Plants? First 4
applications about 3 1 2 gallons
per 100 square yards, increasing
(Continued on page six)
father Allowed
To See His Child
In u Norfolk, Virginia, circuit
court Monday, Robert B Nelson
was permitted custody of lus child
at short intervals during two of
the summer months,
it ha.-> been runUnttary lor tire
child to visit in the home of its
grandmother in an adjoining1
county two months each summer,
Judge Ta>lot granted Mr. Nelson
custody of the child each week
from 12 noon on Saturdac until 7
o'clock p . ' : the I
candidate:
William M. Harrison, Bear
Grass farmer, this week filed
lo succeed himself as a mem
ber of the Martin County
Board of Commissioners from
the Griffins-Bear Crass l)is
trict. VV. Tom Koberson,
Griffins farmer, filed for the
position a few days ago.
Installing Heavy
Kails On Branch
Owing to tin: heavy traffic now
moving over the; Tarboru Plym
outh branch of the Atlantic Coast
Line Railroad, the company is re
placing the light rail which has
been used on the brunch for many
years with heavier rails. The old
rail weighs only 70 pounds per
the new rail weighs
yard while
100 pounds.
Although
the appropriation,
created recently for the improve
ment of the road running from
Tarboro to Plymouth, was not
large enough to install new rails
over the entire route. 100 pound
rails are now being laid from Par
meie to Wiiliamston A Second
appropriation will be made just
as soon as the rails are available
and the heavier rails will be in
stalled from Wiiliamston to Plym
outh.
A construction crew has install
ed the heavier rails from Parmele
to the city limits of Rqbci sonville
and a representative of the Coast
Line said yesterday the entire
project would be completed as
quickly as possible.
Rivw* Now A bon l
Within Its Ranks
After holding to flood stage
since February 10, tin Roanoke
River is now gradually dropping!
to a point within its banks,
Bridgekeeper Hugh Spruill .• tot
ing yesterday that all indications
at that time pointed to a lulling
stream.
The high watei has interrupted
the fishing industry to some ex
tent for about two week, and log
gllit ii 1 Li i ,I., lai i i ,"yti t '&
handicapped by high water.
The stream, reaching a high
point of about 13.fi feet at one
lin'.e last month, Las ranged Dorn
a point iust above flood stage of
ten feet to eleven feet since Feb ’
vuavv . |
4
Superior Court
(loses Two-week
Term Wednesday
Only Hirer Cases Keaelietl
The Jur> During The
Seeontl Week
Most of its cases having been
continued for one reason or an
other. the Martin County Superior
Court closed a two-week term
shortly before noon yesterday.
Comparatively few cases were
removed from the calendar, and
only three cases reached the jury
this week.
The big damage suits growing
out of automobile accidents, were
continued for the term when At
torney James, representing the
insurance company, could not ap
pear on account of illness. Sever
al other cases were continued on
account of the illness of Attorney
K. L. Coburn.
The cases of Dalton A Brown
and wife against D. L. James, and
I). L. James against D. A. and S.
J. Brown were settled by agree
ment. In the first case it was
agreed for the defendant to pay
the plaintiff $525.69 rent for cer
tain property for the years, 1946,
1947 and 1946. In the second case
it was agreed to sell the land for
partition on October 2 of this
year. As soon as the consent
judgments were signed by the liti
gants, Judge R. Hunt Parker of
Roanoke Rapids, ordered adjourn
ment for the term, the jury hav
ing been dismissed a short time
before.
Giving notice of appeal in the
damage suit brought by Mildred
Ray against Grace Maynard, the
defendant was required to post a
$1,200 appeal boud anil a cost
bond in the sum of $200. The de
tense was allowed sixty days to
perfect the appeal, and forty-five
days were allowed for the count
er appeal, the $500 judgment al
lowed by jury last Monday to
bear interest at the rate of five
percent.
In his suit to recover wages
from E. L Early, Jasper Rogers
was given a .judgment in the sum
of $24.05. The case was called
and the defendant went out to
get a witness. When he returned
Judge Hunt Parker, presiding,
was charging the jury.
In the ease of Roy Lee Vander
ford against Verble Jones, an
agreement was reached, the plain
tiff recovering $150 as his share in
the proceeds from the sale of 26
barrels of corn, less $115 allowed
for attorney’s fee.
A compromise was noted in the
ease of William N. Taylor against
C S. VanLandingham, the court
dismissing the action and taxing
the defendant with the costs.
A referee was appoitned in the
ease of R S. Critcher against An
drew Roberson, the issue concern
ing the dividing line between two
lots. (’. W. Griffin was appoint
ed referee by the court and each
of the parties to the action are to
pay $50 to pay the referee and
stenographer. The referee is to
submit his findings to the court
not later than June of this year.
Considerable time was spent
hearing a motion in the case of
Lyna J. Taylor against C. C. Tay
lor, the plaintiff appealing to the
court for appointment of a referee.
The proposal was opposed by de
fendant s attorney, Paul D. Rober
son, who explained that all the
facts were available Judge Pui k
ei listened attentively to the argu
ments and suggested that the ease
be placed in the hands of a referee
(Continued on page eight)
IHISY
s*
A
I
J
Despite unfavorable weath
er and flood waters existing
for nearly lwo months, there
has been much activity on the
Roanoke River during the
current month. Ifridgekecper ,
llugii Sprill said yesterday j
that he had opened the bridge
for eighty boats up until early
that morning.
Xfosl of the openings wen
tor log barges and tug boats,
the bridgekeeper staling that
quite a few oil boats were in
cluded in the number. As
far as it can be learned the
openings this mouth will set
a new record. i
Downward Trend In
Legal Whiskey Sales
c: VM3II) VTK
A. Corey, Jamesville man
ami county surveyor, yester
day announced lus candidacy
j lor the State House of Rep- ,
resentatives from this county.
Senior (lass To
Present A Play i
The senior class of the local
| high school will bring the O/.arks
to town on Tuesday, March 30, in
a throe-act comedy called "Hill
billy Courtship.”
I The play appears to hold a
great deal of fun in store for all. I
It is the story of a flower of the
Ozurks. her "feller'' and their ma
trirnony crazed parents. When
Ma Peppin and Pappy Stilsbv, ;
feudists of the old school, have
Wash Jeddo, the mountain nitwit,
to "writ to the "weddin' buree" ;
for mates, things really start pop
ping. Complications set in for j
good when the Triffet "gals", I log.
Mountain's contribution (V) to ra :
I dio bring their manager home j
with them to sign up more hill
billies for his radio torture (par
don) show and Ma set.-, her "head
fer that man" Louis Cattoro is
"yoost-a in love with a love” and
sur-i e ’tis Bridget O’Flarinigan i
who is after getting a man. (These
poor specimens are from the wed
ding "Buree.”)
The characters are Luke Stils
by, m love with a mountain flow
er, Ben Bunting; Kmtny Peppin,,
the flower, Lola Hecle; Ma Hep
pin, mother of tlu flower, Mary
j Lou Coltrain; Lulua and Seedie
Triffet, hillbilly canaries Lucy
Roberson and Margaret Ward;
Sol Silverstein, their managci 1)
1 B. Rogerson; Wash Jeddo, the
mountain nitwit, Kugenc Corey;
Louis Cattoro, temperamental
Italian, John Wobbleton; Happy
Stilyby, father of Luke, John Gur
kin; Bridget O'Klannigan, a wild
Irish rose, Dorothy Heele and
Reverend Hosewell the preacher
[ man, Clayton Savage.
Charge* Man VV ills
Larceny of Auto
-m.—
Harmon Roberson, 11)-your-old
Williams Township man, was
bound over to the Martin County
Superior Could for the alleged
temporary larceny of a 1937 Cliev-1
lolet eai belonging to James Dan
iel Lilley. Justice John L. Has-1
sell, holding the prliminary hear
ing, required bond in the sum of
$100.
At the preliminary hearing, the
defendant maintained that Lilley j
lent him the ear that Lilies' gave!
him the ear keys and that he
drove it away from in front of a
local theater la I Sunday night.
lionnly liny In llmailcusl
Willi I nii rrsily limit
"■-*■ ■■■1
Dili Pei I, son of Mr. and Mrs.
W. Oscar Peel of this county, will
broadcast over the national hook
ifli Friday evening of tins week
- : i e ' . Fiu ■ ■ i :,x ,, c vys pi
Choir, it was learned here yes
tei day.
The choir, offering a special
the Chesterfield Supper Club,
broadcast beginning at 7;00
O cluck f'didaj ' . ,
Total of $4083,630
Spent For Liquor
Sinre July In 1933
Sales In Fourth Quarter ol
Last Year S62.675.60
Less I lian In 1046
Legal liquor sales, while holding
to large figures in the fourth quar
ter of last year, are decreasing
sharply in this county, according
to an audit report released just a
few days ago by the Martin Coun
ty Alcoholic Beverage Control
Board. Handling $279,578.90 in
sales during the quarter ending
December 31, 1948, the four legal
liquor stores in the corresponding
months of 1947 handled sales in
the sum of $216,903.30, a decrease
of $02,675.60, and unofficial re
ports point to a fairly steady de
cline in recent months.
While the sales reflect nothing
like a depression, the decrease in
income from liquor sales clearly
indicate that things are tightening
up a tut on the economic front in
this section. Pr ofits for the fourth
quarter of 1947 dropped to $49,
944.28 as compar ed with $65,803.36
reported in the last quarter of
1946, a reduction of $15,859.09 in
net income.
Reports for the first quarter of
this year will not be available for
several weeks, but up until this
quarter the decrease in October,
November and December show
the bigge-.t downward trend in li
quor sales since the stores were
opened in July. 1935. But even
with the drop, the sales in the last
three months of 1947 were about
five times greater than they were
in the cor responding months of
1935. It is now fairly evident that
the peak in sales was reached in
the last quarter of 1946.
Then- 1 ■ possibility that the
economic situation caused a shift
from store liquors to the moon
shine brands, reports from the
ABC Enforcement Bureau stating
that illicit liquor manufacturing
flared up a bit during the period,
and apparently is on the increase
now.
At the end of last year, the ABC
hoard hud total assets of $134,
387.59, including $59,414.28 in cash,
$74,959.66 in inventories, and
$13.65 in fixed assets. Liabilities
were listed as follows: accounts
payable, $70,014.38, including $62,
438.04 due distillers, $7,128.59 ac
crued -.ales tax, $29,932,12 due the
county and liquor store towns;
$22,441.09 for law enforcement;
and $12,000 surplus.
Of the $216,903.30 sales, $161,
368.01 was spent for the liquor.
Expenses, including $3,960.00 for
direct store expenses such as
salaries of employes and $1,897,01
for administrative costs, amounted
to$5,857.01 or 2.09 percent of the
total gross income.
The profits pie, figured at $49,
944.28 for the last 1947 quarter,
was divided as follows: Martin
County, $23,945.70; State of North
Carolina, $18,4356.78; reserve for
law enforcement, $1,575.38; Town
of Williumston, $3,207.10; Town of
Ruber sonville, $1,690.73; Town of
Oak City, $719.05; and Town of
Jamesville, $369.54.
Profits for the fourth quarter m
1946 and those in the correspond
(Continued on page six)
r
III V>T MCTIM
Mack Davis, well known
Jamesville tanner, was badly
hut believed not critically
hurt in a dynamite blast on
liis farm last Saturday. Few
details of the blast could be
learned here, but one report
stated that the farmer was
blow nit; out a ditch with d.v
n.unite, that he laid several
sticks near a slump. He then
jir.iM t. a ,r» era!' - sticks. <ti ;
explosive1 in the ditch, went 1
back to the stump and sat
down. The three sticks at '
the stump went off with these "
planted in the ditch, blowing
the farmer into the air, injur*
i»S his te« eyes dftd ta?e,
:T’W¥FS'. .*, ■