Newspapers / The Messenger (Gatesville, N.C.) / Nov. 8, 1916, edition 1 / Page 1
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RSS“ 1 ^M^aBCSSCllyCl; tJ^L VOLUME 1 Gatesville, N. C., November 8, 1916 Number 2 New Business!! WILLEYTON PUBLIC SCHOOL Furniture! Furniture! Furniture! C. G. ELLIS, GATESVILLE, I C. Largest stock of furniture ever brought to Gatesville at one time. Bought direct from fac tories and shipped in car loads. Bought for cash and wilt be sold cheap. Solid Oak Suites $35.00. Same as sold at other places for $50.00. In fact all prices from one-third to one-half lower than elsewhere. HOW DO WE DO IT? Plenty storage room—small expense. Special Attention Given to my Undertaking Business Some Interesting Facts About Bates County Glean ed From the 1910 Census. The land area of Gates County approximates 229,760 acres, of which area 136,748 acres is in farms including improved fields and woodland in farms. As every Gates County man knows the alluvial soil of these farms is rich, easily worked and highly produc- tive. Now it is very interesting note the rank of the county compared with other counties to as of the State with respect to the things which concern these farms and their owners, expense in la bor and money, products and re turns. This should be no idle study to the people of Gates County, but one of vital interest, because upon these very condi tions and the efforts of her peo ple to better them must rest the material weal or woe of the Coun ty, for Gates is strictly a farming county and must remain so, and whatever conceins her farms is of vital importance to her people. The following facts collected as a study in the U. N. C. Sum mer School will help you to know your own county. It will be well to preserve this copy as oth er articles will appear from time time using these facts as a basis for comparison. How Gates County Stood in the 1910 Census Year as Compared With Other Counties in the State In the year 1910 Gates County stood 30th in farm tenancy a- mong the counties of the State. This means that 29 counties of I the State had a smaller percent age of tenant farmers. Twenty- eight out of every 100 farmers (28.2%) in the county are tenants. There are 225 white tenants and 181 negro tenants. This is to say that more than one-fourth of the farms of the [county are run by renters. More than one-half of these renters are share tenants (51.6%) and only six counties in the State have less percentage. The total number of tenants in the County being 406, and the number of share tenants 210. Tile total number of tenants for the State is 187,287; share tenants 80,215, making the percentage of share tenancy in the Stater 74.7 per cent. Since 42 farmers out of every 100 in the State are tenants, it will be seen that Gates County is below the average in this particular. To understand the effect of this condition of our farming sys tem one has to note the tenancy of tenant forming, which is in evitably toward a lowering of farm efficiency. Some of these farms are owned by non-residents, some by professional men or merchants; at any rate the farm lacks the personal supervision of the owner interest of Farmer in the lond.” who would have the Tennyson’s Northern doing “his duty by On the other hand they are run by renters, some of whom never hope to own a foot of land, and who year after year, plant a money crop to pay rents and to spend for the supplies they do not raise, most often to the neglect of permanent soil efficiency and farm betterment. This practice holds even more emphatically in the case of share tenancy (more than one-half the total number of tenants in Gates County are in this class. Fortunately for the county, however, the average is already, less than the State average, show ing that tenancy is decreasing in Gates and ownership farming in creasing, and this is a step in the right direction. A significant fact in this con nection is this: While the num ber of negro farm owners ,268) is of course much less than the number of white farm owners (763), yet negro farm ownership is increasing more lapidly than white farm ownership. Sixty out of every 100 negro farmers in the county own their own farms, and since Gates ranks 26th in this particular, twenty-five coun ties in the state have a smaller percentage of negro farm owners The round number of negroes owning their farms is 268, of white farmers 763, since twenty- eight and 2-10 per cent of white farmers are tenants, this number represents less than 75 per cent of white farmers owning their own farms. Farm ownership sometimes in volves mortgage indebtedness, and this accounts in part for the large percentage of debt on the farms in Gates County Out of every 100 farms owned by white men in the County 25 are mort gaged, and out of 100 farms own. ed by negroes 44 are mortgaged. Each of these ratios exceeds largely the State average which is 17 out of every 100 for white farmers and 41 for negroes. Now there are two classes of folks who mortgage their farms: Those who are paying for a home which they hope to make com fortable and supporting for their families, and those who have fail ed in farming ventures through inefficiency or indifference. Since farm ownership is on the increase it is probable the former class will swell the percentage of mort gage indebtedness and the next census will show the debt on the decrease. The conclusion naturally to be drawn from these facts is in favor of the live-at-home farm owner, who plants such crops as he needs for home supplies and such as he needs to meet the expense of supplies he cannot raise, while his personal attention is given to improvements that will make his farm more and more efficient. Naturally one might suppose that the richer the farm and the higher its rate of productiveness, the fatter would be the pocket book of the owner, but the facts show the fallacy of this hypothesis In crop producing power North Carolina varies from $42.02 per acre in Scotland County down to $4.83 per acre in Alleghany County. Thirty-five counties have a larger yield than Gates, which is $17.64 per acre. The United States average is $16.41 and the State average is $15 31. Gates County beats three of the banner counties of the United States in this respect, the lowest of which, Whitman county, Wash ington has a per acre crop pro ducing power of £14.00. The per capita wealth of Gates County is $302. The average of the State is $322 United States is average for Illinois for Iowa £3386. and for $994. is $2655 the The and Now while Gates has a per acre crop-producing power of $17.64 and Whitman County Washington has a per acre crop- GATESVILLE SCHOOL BUILDING producing power of $14 00, Gates has a per capita wealth of only $302, and Whitman County, Washington, a per capita wealth of $2414. Alleghany County, N. C , has a yield of $4.83 per acre and her per capita wealth is $560. Evidently the money made on the farm in Gates County is not retained and does not enrich the' farmer. Where does this money go? The compass of the article does not admit a consideration of this question. Doubtless our farmers who read this article will have reached a conclusion upon this subject before our next issue, in which tills question with others of like interest will be treated. Island. Miss Ella V. Knott of Stovall, N. C., has accepted the principal- ship of the Wiileyton school in place of Miss Darke who resign- ed because of the mother. The Gatesville schools played a death of her and Sunbury game of base ball on the latter’s diamond on the 28th. Score was 8-7 in favor of Gatesville. The first meeting of the Teach ers’ Association for white teach ers will be held in Gatesville on the 11th day of November. This is on Saturday before some of the schools open. We want, however, to urge every teacher to attend this meeting. If you School News (White) A petition has been signed by 71V patrons of school district No. 4 Haslett Township, and will be presented to the Board of Coun ty Commissioners at their next meeting asking for an election in the district for the purpose of voting a special tax for the sup port of the school. They expect next year to build a new house. The two schools near Roduco have been consolidated and the consolidated district is now erect ing a nice two room house pre paratory to opening the Fall term with two teachers. The ladies of the community are deeply in terested in the project and are helping to finance the matter. The new building is being erect ed near Roduco, which is near the center of the new district. The following schools opened on the 30th of October: Hobbs- ville, Trotville, Muddy Cross, Acorn Hill, Wiileyton and Bos ley. All of these schools will have a six months teim. The remainder of the white schools will open on the 13th day of No vember. Miss Bribing Parker of Wiiley ton has accepted the work at Bosley in place of Miss Viva Rector who resigned to accept a position in the school at Knotts live out of the County come to the County in time to come to Gatesville on that date. Every progressive, wide awake teacher is interested in these meetings and will do all they can to foster the professional teacher spirit. 1 regret to have to write that a few teachers do not have this spirit and it will be the purpose of those in authority to drop them from the list of Gates County teachers. The Reading Circle will be organ ized on that date and we want to enroll every teacher in the County. The Compulsory Attendance Law will be enforced in Gates County beginning Nov. 27th. The law requires that all children between the ages of 8 and 12 must attend school regularly foi four months each year. Failure to keep these children in school for four months beginning Nov. 27th makes one amendable to the law. Negotiations are under way to secure Karl Jansen, the noted Swedish lecturer and entertainer, to visit some of our schools dur ing the winter. If Mr. Jansen should come to the County and you have an opportunity to hear him you will be greatly pleased. The school in District No. 1, Hall Township, known as “Chunk School” will be consolidated with the school located at Eure church. Two teachers will have charge of this school and in the near future another room will be added to the building and a third teacher employed. The question has often been asked this Fall whether school books would be changed or not. They will not. School can be bought from L. A. tree and Co., Sunbury; Sykes, Hobbsville; and books Roun- W. A. R. M. Riddick, Gatesville. A new library has been ordered for the school at Acorn Hill. If YOUR school wants a library and will raise £10, the State will give $10 and the County $10 and the County will furnish a book-case. Gatesville High School has or dered a supplementary library, consisting largely of reference books. The Chautauqua held in Gates ville last month was a success in every way. The attendance was large and the Civic League real ized more than $200 profit which will be used toward improvement of the school property. School Attendance Let me urge upon every parent to place their children in school the day school opens and keep them there until it closes. Your child missing a day or two days each week cannot make progress in their work. Absence from school on the part of any child has a tendency to retard the pro gress of every one of his or her classmates. The absent child misses an important lesson and when he or she goes back to school the other children have gone over that particular lesson which it is necessary to under stand in order to comprehend the next lesson or subject. Absence then not only affects the absentee but all of the class. See toit that your children are regular in their attendance. A Beautiful New Home For Sale Large corner lot, 8 rooms and out-buildings, ,Good school, 3 churches and excellent neighbors, cheapest insurance, electric lights and phones. If you desire a home of these and other advantages. Call to see us and give the prop erty personal inspection. Cross & Costen, Real Estate Buy No Pig in a Poke Buy a fence that has shown its prac tical worth in years of use. Large, heavy wires, flexible hinge joints, quality of steel of exactly propor tioned hardness to be right for the purpose. Thoroughly galvanized. AMERICAN FENCE SUNBURY PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL Is made by tne largest steel making concern in the world, whose broad experience and unequalled facilities for manufacture enable it to produce the best fence that is offered. We can show you this fence in our stock and explain its merits and superiority, not only in the roll but in the field. Come and see us and get our prices.. R.B.G. Cowper & Son, Inc. Gatesville, N. C.
The Messenger (Gatesville, N.C.)
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Nov. 8, 1916, edition 1
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