Booster Days In Williatnston Today, Tomorrow And Saturday
THE ENTERPRISE IS READ BY
OVER 3,000 MARTIN COUNTY
FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEEK
THE ENTERPRISE
THE ENTERPRISE IS READ BY
OVER 3,000 MARTIN COUNTY
FAMILIES TWICE EACH WEE*
VOLUME LJII—NUMBER 57
William Hon, Martin County, North Carolina, Thursday, July 20, 1050
ESTABLISHED 1399
Fifteen Cases In
County's Court
Monday Morning
Several Road Sentences Arc
Imposed; Fines Amount
To Only SI 25
In a short session last Monday
morning, the Martin County Re
corder's Court handled fifteen
rases and continued several
others. Road sentences were again
in style while fines, imposed by
the court, amounted to only $125.
Two jury trials were scheduled,
and both were continued after
the twelve jurors reported for
duty. In one of the two cases, the
defendant explained that a wit
ness, J. H. Gray, Sr., was in
Georgia and the case was set for
trial on August 14. In the second
(ase, the defendant. Garland
Thomas Roberson, did not report
for trial, a letter addressed to
him, having failed to reach its
destination. The defense attorney
waived claim to a jury trial and
the case will be heard next Mon
day. The case, charging Chas
Curtis with drunken driving, has
been pending for months. The
court instructed the clerk to pay
the jurymen.
Proceedings:
Pleading not guilty of non-sup
port, Booker T. Lloyd was found
guilty and drew six months on
the roads. The judgement was
suspended upon the payment of
the costs and $3 a week for the
support of. his child. He appealed
and bond wasjixed in the sum of
$250.
Charged with larceny of a
watermelon, Ben Biggs and Gro
ver Jones were found not guilty,
the defendants claiming they paid
for the melon.
Judgement was supended upon
the payment of the court cost in
the case charging Roy Clayton
Pilgreen, P.FD 1, Robersonville,
with speeding.
Julius Latham, charged with as
saulting a female, was adjudged
not guilty After officers had
served a warrant on him in the
case, Latham ran away and for
that he was fined $25, plus costs.
Charged with violating the li
quor iaws, John Bonner and Oli
ver Rogers pleaded guilty. Bon
ner was sentenced to the roads
for six months, the court suspend
ing the road term upon the pay
ment of a $50 fine and costs. The
defendant is to have no liquor in
his possession during the next
two years. Rogers was sentenced
the roads for sixty days.
George Green was sentenced to
l lie roads for sixty days for as
'oulting a fema... The road term
\ as suspended upon the payment
•f the court costs The defendant
to drink no liquoi dunng the
text two years.
Pleading guilty of assaulting a
entale with a deadly weapon,
Jasper Page was sentenced to the
'oads for eighteen months. In a
second ease, charging him with
lie same offense, Page was sen
cnccd to the roads for eighteen
nonths, the sentences to run con
currently.
McKinley Latham, drunk and
lisorderly, was sentenced to the
oads for three months, the road
orm was suspended upon the
lay men t of the cost, and he is
o drink no liquor during the next
wo years.
Pleading guilty of careless and
ccklcss driving, L. H. Rawls was
med $25, plus costs.
William Wesley Carter, plcad
ng guilty lit operating a motor
chicle without a driver’s license,
v us fined $25, plus costs.
Judgement was suspended upon
he payment of the court costs in
he eases charging Raymond
lichard Miller of Rocky Mount,
inward Henry LaMarr, Jr., of
vvuimiiueu on page eignii
BARN FIRE
The first tobacco barn: fire
of the season in thin county
was reported a few’ day 4 ajo
between Jainesville and Dar
dens. It was on the Davis
farm.
So far as it could be learn
ed here there have been no \
other barn fires in the county
this season.
new barn constructed, it was
.Mrs. Davis is having a
reported.
Liquor Still Operators Are
Hampered by Heavy Rains
While crops were materiall
| damaged, the illicit liquor mane
facturing business was all bi
washed out. The rams hampere
the firing apparatus and th
swamps overflowed with watei
j However, the first day withoc
rain and the operators were bac
in business - on a limited scab
at least.
Raiding in Robersonville Town
ship, near Gold Point, ABC Ol
fieer Joe Roebuck and Deput
Roy Peel wrecked a plant equip
ped with 50-gallon capacity o
drum still.cThey tore down a 30
gallon capacity fermenter an
poured out 300 gallons of suga
mash. Not far away, the officer
wrecked a second plant cquippe
with two oil drum stills and fou
150-gallon fermenters. They p>our
DAD CHECKS
N.
Worthless checks, written
in gmouts ranging from $1 to
$50, are in circulation in
numbers in this county, ac
cording to reports coming
from the sheriff's office this
week.
“We are serving, on an
average, a warrant a day,
charging the issuance of
worthless checks," Sheriff M.
W. Holloman said yesterday.
The surprising part about
the medium of exchange, ac
cording to the sheriff, is the
large number of worthless
checks accepted in good faith
by retailers from strangers.
y cd out 150 gallon!-' of beer.
-I Before the big rain Friday af
ternoon, the two officers invaded
d Bear Grass Township and took,
eja 100-gallon capacity copper ket»
tie. The plant was fully equipped,
t the officers wrecking three 200
t gallon fermenters and pouring
t, out 100 gallons of sugar mash.
While the manufacturing end of
- the illicit business was virtually
- idle, retailers were continuing
f operations, possibly with surplus
- stock. Three retailers were arrest
1 ed in the Parmcle area, it was
J reported.
1 In and around Williamston,
r liquor retailing has been waning
s a bit following the extensive raids
1 conducted by local police a short
r time ago and the heavy fines im
- posed in the county court.
j|Yoong Nan Held
On Forgery Count
Oliver Rogers, a young local
I
colored man, was bound over to
the superior court by Justice R. T.
Johnson last week-end for alleg
edly forging his father’s name to
a $35 check.
He was given a hearing before
Justice R. T. Johnson who found
probable .cause of guilty and re
quired bond in the sum of $200.
The bond was arranged.
Charged with being drunk on
the highway, Thurman Williams
was sentenced to the roads for
thirty days in Justice Chas. R.
Mobley’s court Tuesday evening.
The road term was suspended up
on the payment of the costs.
Drunk and disorderly, LJllic
Berry was sentenced to serve ten
days in jail by Justice J. S. Ayres
last Saturday. It was the second
jail term in recent weeks for the
defendant.
List Promotions
In Guard Uni!
Officials of the local unit of th<
National CJUSFd today listed som<
promotions and called attention t<
J the fact that there«re several va
cancies in the unit at present wit!
a likeliiiood that more will de
velop when the national progran
of expansion is approved.
Raymond S. (Dink) Cherry ha
been promoted to Sergeant Firs
Class while James Rodgcrson
George Bunch, Leroy Moorfe, A1
ton Pleasants and Jesse D. Gur
Manus have been promoted to ser
Meant. Bud Beach has been pro
moted to Corporal.
In seeking recruits, the guard i:
directing its appeal especially t<
young men fn the draft age, 19 t<
25. Men in the National Guarc
are not eligible for the draft. Join
ing the guard gives a man ;
chance to train at home as long a1
possible, it was pointed out, ant
in event he is called to duty ht
will be in a unit of his own ehoos
ing with his friends and home
folks. Furthermore, they add, ht
has a good chance to learn some
thing before actually being callec
up with a better chance to takt
care of himself and to get promo
tions in the army.
Anyone interested in learning
more about the guard set up i;
asked to contact E. S. Peel, Jr.
at his home or at his law office.
Rome Building
Going Forward
Constructing work is progress
ing rapidly on new homes here
for Mr. and Mrs. Jim Critcher on
Liberty Street, next to the Rip
leys, for Mr. and Mrs. R. J. Brock,
Jr., on East Franklin Street, for
Mr. and Mrs. Raleigh Harrington
on Lee Street, for Mr. and Mrs.
Bill Howell, corner of Vance and
Lee Streets, for Mr. and Mrs. Bill
Sessoms, corner West Franklin
and Lee Streets, for Mr. and Mrs.
Wheeler Manning on School
Drive, and for Dr. and Mrs. G. G.
Himmelwright on Woodland
Drive.
Work is also progressing on a
four-apartment house on Sim
mons Avenue. A. J. Manning is
the builder.
Mr and Mrs. John Wier and
son recently moved into their
new duplex in the pines at Mar
tin Heights, West Main Street.
Several other home building
projects are pending but it is not
known if the new restrictions
will affect them.
Georgia Markets
Opening Monday
. Tobacco markets in .the Geor
gia-Florida belt will open the new
season next Monday, giving far
mers in other belts a good idea
about the 1950 price trend.
Robersonvillc tobacconists, in a
half-page advertisement in this
paper, announce arrangements
. to have a direct broadcast over
! Station WRRF from the Moultrie
t market from 2:00 until 2:30 o’clock
Monday afternoon. The broadcast
is being sponsored by Jim Gray
' and Andy Anderson and Sher- j
wwl Roberson will bewnaster of!
ceremonies on the sponsors' ware- :
I house floor in the Georgia town. I
Have Openings
In Civil Service
—•—
Local Secretary Julian Jackson
of the Civil Service Commission
announced several job openings
this week, including teacher po
sition in the Bureau of Indian
Affairs, Quaterman Transporta
tion, Occupational Therapist,
Physical Therapist, Pharmacist,
and cotton warehouse examiner,
j Salary schedules run from $3,100
to $4,600.
Interested parties are directed
to contact Mr. Jackson, secretary,
at the Williamston post office.
— ■ —■
Marriage Licenaea .ire
laaued In Paal Few Daya
Marriage licenses were issued
in this county during the past
few days to three couples. One of
the grooms, Robert Brown, is 73,
and his bride, Louise Grammar,
is 10 years old. Both are of Oak
City.
The other two licenses went to,
Gene Henry Payton And Barbara
Ann Matheny, both of Plymouth,
and to Thomas Harden and Mary
Ellen Ward, both of Williamston.
Continuea III In
The Hoapital Here
Mr. B. S. Courtney continues
ill in local hospital where he has
been a patient for almost two
weeks. He was reported some
brighter this morning, but his
general condition was reported
little changed.
Farmers Dispose
Of Excess Crops
In Marlin County
Ajiririiltim* Authorities Set
No Keusou Just Now to
Lift Yield (lurhs
Martin County farmers in fairly
large numbers exceeded their
acreage allotments, but nearly
all of them moved to destroy the
surplus and bring their plantings
into line to escape penalties, ac
cording to unofficial information
coming from the office of the
county agent this week.
The excess plantings were limi
ted for‘the most part to fractional
acres, meaning that the farmers
did not deliberately plan to gi
beyond their quotas. However
there are a few—possibly halt
dozen—who chose to exceed their
allotments by about an acre with
the intention of paying the mar
keting penalties.
Approximately fifteen percent
of the tobacco farmers planted jr
excess of their allotments, but al
but a very few chose to destroy
the excess. As a result there’ll be
few red marketing cards in the
hands of Martin farmers next
month when the markets open
it is estimated that the farmers
planted all of their 11,450 to
bacco acres allotted them, but
disease cut the fifure back pos
sibly several hundred acres.
It is apparent that the 1<J,250
peanut acreage allotment has
been exceeded, but in that case,
too, the surplus is limited for the
most part to fractional acres. A
few farmers planted ten or more
excess acres for oil, and just
about all of them have advised
the Production-Marketing Ad
ministrative office that they
planned to hog the surplus down
or offer it for oil.
While a few farmers are said
to have planted cotton in excess
of their allotments, the total acre
age planted to the crop in this
(Continued on page eight)
Fees And Fines
Amount io $2,769
— ■ •
The fee system, including court
cost and fines, accounted for
$2,760.63 income for the county
last month, according to reports
filed by the court clerk, register
of deeds and sheriff.
Register of Deeds J. Sum Get
singer reported $510.55 in fees de
rived from paper recordings, is
suance of marriage license and
delayed birth and death certifi
cates. The court clerk reported
$2,020.37, including $695 in re
corder’s court fines. The sheriff's
office reported $228 71 collected
for serving papers.
Attcndihr Intrrjn nlialr
Camp Thin Week
The Northeastern intermediate
Camp of the Disciples of Christ
for the Albemarle Area opened
at Fisher’s Landing on Monday
and will continue through lunch
on Saturday. Attending from the
Williamston Christian Church are
the following: Betsy Roberson,
Dick Manning, Maeanna Willard,
Lelia May Goff and Mrs. John L,
Goff, who will serve a counselor
and quest leader.
THE RECORD
SPEAKS . . .
Except for the fata! touch,
motorists on highways and in
streets in this county are con
tinuing to pile up a formid
able accident record. There
have been 76 accidents report
ed by the highway patrol in
the county, but not one of
them has proved fatal so far
this year.
The following tabulations
offer a comparison of the ac
cident trend: first, by corres
ponding weeks in this year
apd last and for each year to
the present time.
28th Week
Accidents InJ’d Killed Dam’ge
1950 3 0 0 $ 1,350
1949 3 0 0 400
Comparisons To Data
1950 76 38 0 $18,125
1949 62 27 2 14,005
President Calls
I For Billions To
Push War Eiiort
Ilomr Front Controls Kill
ed Out Hut Way Paved
To Draft Manpower
| The United Stales, at the re
quest of President Truman in a
message to Congress yesterday, is
rapidly moving toward an all-out
effort to support the Korean eon
flict and maintain a retaining
wall for aggressors. The Presi
dent called for ten billion dollars,
partial home front mobilization,
the removal of all legal limits on
the size of the armed forces, and
went ahead to empower Secre
tary of Defense Louis Johnson to
call to active duty “as many Nat
ional Guard units and as many
units and individuals fo the Re
serve forces of the Army, Navy
and Air Forces as may be requir
! ed."
At the same time, the President
said there will be no price con
trols or rationing now, but the
Chief Executive said he will not
hesitate to call for them if there
is need.
Mr Truman laid down his pro
gram in a .r>,500-word message to
the Senate and House, reporting
in detail on what has happened
in Korea and why the United
States again is fighting thousands
of miles from home.
“The attack upon the Republic
1 of Korea,” the President said,
"makes it plain beyond all doubt
that the International Communist
, movement is prepared to use
armed invasion to conquer inde
pendent nations. We must, there
fore, recognize the possibility that
armed aggression may take place
' in other areas.”
The President said the increase
m the size of the armed services
and the extra supplies they need
will require additional appropri
ations. Hence in the next few
days he will “transmit to the Con
gress specific requests for ap
propriations in the amount of ap
proximately $10,000,000,000.
At home, Mr. Truman said,
there must be “substantial redi
rection of economic resources" to
insure that defense needs will be
met without fringing on infla
tion and its resulting hardship for
every family.
Accordingly, the President pro
posed:
1. That Congress pass legisla
tion now providing priorities and
allocations for materials needed
for national security, to limit use
of materials for non-essential pur
poses, to prevent hoarding, and
I to requisition or seize materials
i required fur defense.
2. That all government agen
cies review their programs wi'l
[an eye to lessening the demiXcl
for services and supplies vital to
j defense.
11. That 'i.ixrs he boosted more
sharply than he has recommend
ed before in order to combat in
flationary pressure.
He said that at “an appropriate
time,” as soon as necessary stud
ies are finished, he will present
! Congress a tax program based on
I the principles that (A) the nation
] must try to pay for the greatest
1 amount of needed spending out of
! taxes, and (B) the tax system
must be balanced to distribute its
burden fairly
Mr. Truman heretofore has urg
ed mainly higher taxes on cor
porations and on upper bracket
incomes. ;
Yesterday I c told Congress that
heavier taxes will lessen the need
| for general economic controls and
j that a balanced tax program
I would help check profiteering.
4. That there be further re
straints on credit* expansion —
along lines of curbs he directed
the day before for federally as
sisted housing.
The President told the Federal
Housing Administration and the
Veterans Administration to de
mand higher down payments and
to cut down on building programs
generally in order to provide
mere building materials for de
fense purposes.
In his message yesterday, the I
President recommended that Con
gress authorize more controls to
curb the expansion of privately
financed tea! estate credit.
5. That Congress authorize pro
duction loan guarantees and di
rect loans to boost production.
(Continued on Page Seven)
Advance
Drainage
Preliminary Work
About Completed
In One Districl
—«—
Srekinji IVlitiout* In Kok!
And ('ollir Swamp
Drainage Arras
- - . _•
Convinced that proper drainagi
is vitally necessary, a goodly nura
her of Martin County farmers ari
advancing plans for launching
sizable drainage projects in sev
eral sections of the county.
One project, serving a limiter
area in the Farm Life section oi
Griffins Township, was reccnth
completed, another is well ail
vanced in the Hear Grass area
and still another for the Ross
and Collie Swamp drainage areas
in Robersonvillc Township is wel
m its preliminary stage.
In addition to the district
drainage projects, seventy-si>
farmers during the six months
ending last June 1, laid 13(i,00C
feet or niore than twenty-dvr
miles of drain tile on their farms
scattered ail over the county. The
farmers say, according to Howard
F. McKnight of the Soil Conser
vation Service, the drainage work
paid big dividends during recent
heavy rains. Most of the farmers
while explaining that the ex
' ccssivc rains damaged their crops
declared that had it not been for
the tile their crops would have
been ruined.
The Farm Life project, com
pleted just recently under the
supervision of the soil conserva
tion personnel, possibly more than
paid for itself during the heavy
rains that started falling on the
sixth of this month. Highway en
gineers admitted that large sec
tions of the newly improved road
in that area would have been lost
had it not been for the drainage
canal. The project was financed
by voluntary contributions ad
vanced by eight farmers and is
about two miles long.
Preliminary plans are just a
bout complete for launching an
extensive project designed to
serve the drainage area along
Hear Grass and Turkey Swamps.
The project will benefit just a
liout all of Hear Grass and a part
of Cross Roads Township. Maps of
the project have been completed,
titles to land holdings have been
searched and assessments arc
scheduled to be announced within
a short time. The project has run
the court gantlet and it is likely
that bids on the* work will bi
called for the latter part of Au
gust or early in September.
The Hear Grass Drainage pro
ject is expected to cost approxi
mately $50,000.
Interested parties are circulat
ing petitions in Robersonvillc
Township for the Ross and Col
lie Swamp projects. A prelimi
nary survey has been completed
and plans have been discussed by
farmers in public meetings.
The Robersonvillc project is de
signed to drain approximately
34,008 acri's, including 0,000 in the
Ross Swamp area. It is estimated
(Continued on Page Eight)
Report Points To
Tobacco Increase
Despite iippurent reductions
caused by hail, wind and exces
sive rams, flue-cured tobacco pro
duction for the current year is
still estimated to be in excess of
1!)4L) production, according to a
report just recently released by
the U, S. Department of Agricul
ture.
It is estimated that farmers in
the flu-cured areas will produce
one billion, one hundred and fifty
million pounds us compared with
a billion and hundred and fifteen
million pounds lust year.
Right at 1,51)5,800 acres were
planted to all types of tobacco
in the United States this year as
compared with 1,630,300 acres
planted in 1049.
The Burley production is ex
pected to drop from the 560 mil
ion pounds produced last year to
101) million estimated pounds this
;eason.
Plans For
Programs
I ABOUT HAI,1
v—-----,
About half of the tobacco
crop in this county will have
} been harvested by the early
part of next week, according
! to reports reaching here. A
few farmers arc almost up to
their tips, while others have
only harvested the first and
second pullings.
Outside those areas where
the crop was all but wiped
out, the tobacco outlook im
proved considerably since the
last big rain on Friday, July
14. The harvest is going for
ward rapidly and farmers de
clare they haven't sufficient
barn room to meet the de
mand. However, the curings
are turning out very well,
; but they arc of light weight.
Tobacco Support
Price 45 Cents
I —**>
An average loan rate of 45
i cents per pound for 1950 flue
cured tobacco was announced by
the Department of Agriculture re
cently.
The average loan rate for last
| season was 42.5 cents per pound
Both averages were based on 90
per cent of parity as of July 1,
of the crop year.
! Loan rates by grades for 1950
lerop flue-cured range from $70
per 100 pounds for top grades
I down to $10 per 100 pounds for
1 nondescript grades.
An estimate of 392,960,000
pounds of tobacco for the 1950
crop m the Eastern Belt was
made Wednesday by the Federal
Agriculture Department. Produc
tion last year was 3711,4110,000
pounds.
For all flue-cured tobacco, the
department estimated produc
tion this year of 1,150,000,000
pounds, an increase of 35,000,000
pounds over last year.
The estimates were made as
of July I or prior to the continued
rains in Eastern North Carolina
which have damaged crops con
siderably.
Will Attend Club
Meeting Tonight
Several prominent persons, af
filiated with Kiwnnis activities ini
! the Carolina* district, will he here |
for the meeting of the local cluh
| tonight. Among those scheduled
to participate in the program are.
t Orin Crown, governor of the Cm
jolinas District, and l.t. Governor
j L. T. Fountain of Tarboro. Gov
lernor Crown is dean of students,
University of South Carolina at
Columbia. He is recognized as
a brilliant speaker and an out
standing figure in Kiwanis Inter
national.
Herb Hcnnig, secretary-treas
urer of the Carolina* District, is
also scheduled to be present for
the meeting tonight
Financial Status
Of The Country
The National deficit for the
year ending June JO was $3,122
102,357, according to figures is
sued by the Treasury depart
ment. The .mm is about $2,300
000,000 less than was anticipated
by the administration estimates '
made public on April 20.
The government went in the
hole for the year for the eigh- I
teenth time in the past twenty
years by spending $40,100,835,- ,
1014.82 while taking in only $37,
1044,733,557.37. 1
I The federal debt stood at $257,
370,885,385.01 at the year’s end,
June 30. The treasury had $5,517,
087,091.05 in cash on hand at
the time.
In spite of the improved show- ;
mg as contrasted with admini
stration estimates, the deficit was
about $1,311,000,000 greater than
that recorded for the previous
year. Secretary of Treasury Sny
der said the main reason was a
$1,201,000,000 decline in revenues.
Likely To Relain
Crop Control For
The Coming Year
l,ary«- NiiiiiIht
In Have <i 1 lu'ir
Allotment*
Although most anything can
happen, prominent agricultural
leaders see no valid reason for
tearing down crop controls and
throwing production schedules
wide open in 11)51
There is a possibility that op
ponents to the control program
and the price parity support plan
are trying to use the Korean War
as a wedge to cut farmers adrift.
When there is no war threat,
the farmers are condemned for
piling up surpluses and appropri
ations to support the parity price
formula are reluctantly made
available by the Congress. When
war threatens, there are those
who would demand increased
production with no guarantee
that the farmer will be protected
if unwanted surpluses are created.
The nation's farmers are ready
to work for all-out production
to support the war effort and
provide adequate food and feed
in peace time, but just as indus
trial giants are given certain as
surances, the farmers believe they
should not be sacrificed.
A report from Washington on
the possibility of lifting control
reads, in part:
The United States, despite the
fact that it has built up surplu.
stocks of many agricultural com
modities during the past several
years, is not as well prepared
from a food and fiber standpoint
for another world war as it wa.
when it entered World War 11.
As a result, barring a sudden
change in the war situation which
appears extremely improbable al
this time, all government effort!
to curb the output of major
American farm products will be
dropped in 1951. In fact, between
now and planting time for next
year, growers may again be en
couraged to increase their pro
duction, rather than curtail it.
During the past year, there has
been a great deal of adverse pub
licity on the price support pro
grams for potatoes, eggs, and
(airy products, which admittedly
lave cost the American taxpayer
nany millions of dollars Al the
lame time, the federal govern
ment began piling up slocks again .
if corn, wheat, and cotton, wjth
;>i 11 ions of dollars invested m
hese stocks.
As a result, tin Department of
Agriculture began an extensive
migrain last year, which spread
,o most major products this year,
0 substantially curb production in
in effort to halt furthci drains
hi the Treasury for the farm
mice support program. Congress
tightened up production control
laws and executive agencies did
heir best to dispose of the rapid
ly glowing surpluses, either
ihroad or through relief and
liuritahle agencies m this coun
try.
Almost overnight, however, the
iituation has changed Today, as
1 result of the Korean hostilities
mii plans to step up mobilization
n event they spread to a far
greater war, government authori
ses are assessing our agricultural
itockpdcs and are finding that
ivlnle they appear adequate, they
ire actually below tile levels
vhich existed before I’earl liar
jo r.
II it were not for one extremely
mportaiit but unknown factor, of
ieials would not be too worried,
■lut this factor- the weather—
low 'ooms so serious that growers
if wheat, corn, cotton, and live
stock will almost certainly be
urned loose to produce just as
much as they can next year.
(Continued on page eight)
MACHINERY
Machinery dealers are mak
ing plans to meet the demand
this fall, reports from t|e
freight station here stating
that two solid carloads of
farm implements were un
loaded yesterday and that
other shipments had been re
ceived in recent days.
Prices, while described as a
bit high, are holding fairly
firm, it was stated.