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ELIZABETH CITY, NORTH CAROLINA, FRIDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 31, 1020
NO. 299
VOLV.
New Year's Day
Is Sadly Changed
jr Otherwise, According to the Way
, You Feel About it Anyway it's
Much Dryer and Less Hilarious
- New York, Dec. 31. New Year's-r-
ion what it used to be. This.
is in a small way attributable tq the
addition to the Constitution ol some
dry reading matter. In still greater
.degree it is because the internation-
. al obsession for celebrating whenev
er Father Time takes a fresh start in
piloting the earth around the sun is
thousands of years old. The man
ner of observing the day has changed
greatly through the centuries.
The urge to give presents at least
once a year was felt even before
Christmas and Santa Claus came in
to the scheme 6f things. The an
ient Greeks, Chinese, Egyptians and
Romans tendered their gifts to one
another on the first day of the year.
Kings got into the habit of receiving
extra gifts from their subjects on
these days and liked it so well they
began extorting larger and larger
OBums. This practice got so .bad in
' Rome under the Caesars that Clau
dius called a halt.
It spread to other countries, how-
ever, and the English had their New
Year's celebration, spoiled annual-
i? by the rapacious sovereigns until
iueen Elizabeth's modest demands
of her subjects cut gifts down to a
minimum, in those days the cele
bration of New Year's Day became
worldwide. With variations to suit
V all nationalities, It consisted every
where of eating, drinking and mot
toy merriment.
' ' rhrlstnnher Columbus, so far
as is known, was the first white man
to Jubilate on New Year's Day in the
Western Hemisphere. While his
ships 'were undergoing repairs on Jan
uary 1, 1493, he enjoyed a sumpt
uous dinner with two savage mon
; archs on the island of Haiti. After
this meal, history says, the discov
erer of 'America had his first smoke
of tobacco. Whether he enjoyed it
is not recorded, but he left it to a
later generation, Str Walter Tta
leigh is generally credited with the
function, to introduce tobacco in
Europe.
The Pilgrim Fathers and the first
families of the older states of the
Union enjoyed a quiet holiday as
each year came around. They feast
ed, but not until they had attended
, religious services. In the 19th cen
tury people with big houses and flow
ing sideboards held open house on
New Year's Day and from all about
friends came afoot, on bicycles and
in surreys and stanhopes to pay vis
Its and to sample the contents of
wine cellars. Then they went off
to call on other friends. Popular
maidens in those days witnessed traf
fic Jams in front of their homes, so
prevalent was the penchant for short
'calls on young women during the af
ternoon of the year's first day. This
custom began to pass out quietly in
the dawn of the 20th century and
with the coming of automobiles and
cabarets. It was succeeded by the
"Nothing but wine" habits amid the
thousands who frequented cafes and
grill rooms in the cities on New Year
Eve.
For 25 years up to the dawn of
1920 and the era of war-time prohl
- bltlon, the celebration in New York
became noisier and more expensive
each refer. Thousands used to crowd
, Into places of merriment, while
Broadway was packed with a surg
ing throng of merrymakers with
squawkers, clappers, bells, ticklers
and confetti.
Every hotel and most of the res
taurants were Jammed with gay di
ners. In 1908 it was estimated that
. one million dollars was spent in the
white-light district on New Year's
Eve. After that statisticians gave up
trying to figure out the sum.
The din and probably the cost of
the celebration was greatly dimin
ished under war-time prohibition In
the New Year's demonstration of
1920. Old timers said all the "gln
P"r" had departed with John Bar
ycorn. The rupld of 1921 will be the first
to t c his bow under Constitution
al i ": !,;!.ition. Jn New York he will
( 1 !' ( tlnn's have r' " 1.
LYNCHINGS WERE
LESS NUMEROUS
Number Was Sixty-one For
1920 as Compared With
Eighty-three For 1919 Says
Tuskegee Report
Tuskegee, Ala., Dec. 31. Lynch
ings were less numerous in 1920,
than last year, the Tuskegee Insti
tute records show.
Sixty-one persons, including eight
white men and one negro woman,
were lynched in 1920 as compared
with 83 last year and 64 in 1918.
Authorities prevented lynching
in 56 Instances this year, of which
46 were in the South. Armed forces
were used to repel mobs on 14 occa
sions. In four instances mobs were
fired UDon. Seven attackers were
killed and a number wounded.
Lynchings by states are: Texas,
10; Georgia, 9; Mississippi, Alaba
ma, Florida, 7 each; Minnesota and
North Carolina and Oklahoma, 3
each; Arkansas, Kansas, Illinois,
Kentucky, Missouri, South Carolina,
Virginia, West Virginia, one each.
Splendid Program
At First Baptist
A splendid Christmas program was
given in the First Baptist annex
Thursday night under the supervi
sion of Miss Mahala Meekins.
Following was the program:
Prayer
Welcome by the pastor
Recitations by William Cooper and
Doris Cartwright
Christmas Carol
Recitation by Pauline Dean
Solo by Shelton Twiddy
Recitations by Ruth Williams
Miriam Williams
Story by Miss Inez Reid
As the audience passed out
and
the
door each person handpd the sex
ton, as he stood at the door, a cjin
a f Christmas and New Yeai's
greeting.
Every member of the Sunday
school was presented a box of choco
lates.
PROMINENT ODD FELIX)W
HERE JANUARY FIFTH
Superintendent Charles Baird, of
the I. O. O. F. Home at Goldsboro,
will be here on January fifth to in
struct the two I. O. O. F. lodges in
the ritualistic work of the order.
ROYAL
ARCANUM
ELECTS ITS OFFICERS
At a meeting of the Royal Ar
ctium Thursday night the following
oinrers' were elected for the year
11-21:
Noah Burfoot, regent; W. H.
ZnrMer, secretary; F. M. Cook, col
ltcior; James ,0. Fearing, treasurer.
SCOUTS OFFER SERVICES
At the last meeting of Troop Five,
Doy Scouts, the boys planned to help
cut wood and do other needed work
In town. "Just call on us," they
say, "and you will find willing
workers."
There will be a special hike Sat
urday. New Year's vDay, at 8:30
a. m., returning by dark. Scouts are
asked to take axes.
On Sunday afternoon the troop
will leave the Y at two o'clock for a
walk, returning by dark.
('MARGE IS CONSPIRACY
ChlraKO. Dec. 31. The charge
under which It 's hoped to extradite
the White Sox baseball players in
dicted on the charge of throwing
games in the 1919 World Series Is
conspiracy, State's ' attorney an
nounced today.
Conspiracy, says the State's attor
ney. Is s felony, and felony Is an ex
traditable offense.
DE VALERA
BACK HOME
Earn on De Valera,
President of the' Irish Re
public, has arrived safely
in Ireland, according to
an announcement given
Associated Press represen
tatives by his secretary in
New York today.
ATTEND FUNERAL
MRS. ELLEN F. PARKER
J. E. Moran, Miss Hilda Moran
and J. W. Wilcox went to Chowan
County Friday to attend the fun-;
eral of Mrs. Ellen F. Parker, which
took place from the home of her son,
U. w. I'arkerr rne lunerai was con
ducted at eleven o'clock FriJay
morning and interment was made in
the Parker family burying ground
in Chowan County. j
Mrs. Parker died Thursday after
an illness of several months. She
was 71 years old and the.wldow of
the late Luther W. Parker, who for Memorial Baptist church, under the ''
many years held the office of sheriff, direction of. Mrs. L. E. Skinner, with Auckland, New Zealand, Dec. 31.
in Chowan County and was promi- Mr8. P. G. Sawyer as plunhil, whose Australia lost her tennis laurels here
nent in the public life of the county untiring efforts had produced an ela- today to America und the Davis cup,
and section. She Is survived by borate and beautiful entertainment emblematic of the world's team ten
four daughters, one son, at whose weij worth going far to see. : nis championship, will repose under
home she died; and one sister, Mrs large number of the grown-up the stars and stripes for the next
P. A. Tarker, of this city. Other rela- an(j younger members of the Sunday year at least.
tives in, this city are three nieces, 8Chool took part. The stage decora-i This is the fourth time 'that Am-
Mrs. J... W, Wilcox, Mrs. James E.
Moran and Mrs. George Wright. I
BESTCITY BOY 1
FORGING AHEAD
1
Fleetwood Dunstan Is Now(
With One of America's
Largest Financial Concerns j
An Elizabeth City boy who is fast second scene showed Santa Claus Douglas, Ariz.. Dec. 31. Lieu
rising in the world is Fleetwood an,i tue Court of Slumberland; the tenant Alexander Pearson, winner of
Dunstan, the son of Mr. and Mrs. t li i r d Santa Claus Plan3 a Surprise, last year's air race across the con
W. E. Dunstan, of this city. Bearing Among the leading characters tinent, today received-official author
a first lieutenant's commission at the were Kjng winter, Santa Claus, It y to attempt a flight from Jack
close of the world war he returned QUeen 0f Slumberland, Dream Fairy, Bonvillp, Fla., to San Diego, Cal.. in
to college, finished tils education and Little Dream Fairy, Mirth, Love, 24 hours, more or less,
struck out for himself. He landed a Hope, Joy, the King's page, Spring, He will leave Jacksonville Febru
loh with the Mercantile Trust & Summer, Autumn and Flora. Be- ary 22 and plans to make the trip In
Deposit Company, of Baltimore, Md., gije8 these, there were lively little three laps with only forty-five mln
and after holding that position for nr0wnies and a chorus of beautiful utes used In making stops.
18 months, he has now. accepted a )ittle Fairies. An aviator win also start from
place with the Bankers Trust Com-' ne court of Slumberland with San Diego for Jacksonville the same
pany, of New York City. This Is fairies on either side of the Queen's day. The flyers will stop only at
one of the largest financial concerns
in that city, and is located on Wall
Street, in the very heart of the big
financial district.
Such positions are not picked up
every day, or by youths of only
dinary attainments, and young Mr
Dunstan's friends here will learn
with pleasure of his rapid advance
ment in the business workl
CLOSE AT SIX O'CLOCK
SATURDAY
EVENING
Although all over the country the
Western Union offlces are observing j
regular holiday hours on New Year's!
Day, Mr. Sykes, of the local offlce,l
will keen Rework Wing just as i
usual all day, but the office will
close, at six o'clock In the evening.!
Those who wish to send telegrams1
am nulcprl to show tholr annreclation I
of Mr. Sykes' courtesy by getting
message In as early as possible.
Jap
an Has Scheme
For Aerial Defense
ToUIo, Dec. 31. ( Correspondence
of The Asar-iiited Press) The Navy
Department has prepared a Rcheme
for aerial defence according to
which by March next the Yokosuka
naval port will have f2 seaplanes, 11
balloons, n airplanes ami a train-.
Ing airplay. Forty seanlanes will
be based at Kure, 52 at Sasebo and advertisement appears ln corrected
100 at Maizuru. Arrangements are(form , t0(jay-g paper.
also being made to carry ono or two
aeroplanes on each warship attached
to the battle fleet. National aero
plane workshops are being establish
ed near Hiroshima and large train
ing aornrtrnma U'ltl ha Inrntarl at.
t- I 1 nnn4 . 1
L,aKe iaamiiiguuia, u iu.k" huuhu
lagoon about 30 miles from Tokio.
Training will commence here when
the English naval Instructors from
England arrive next spring.
BURNED TO DEATH
IN HOTEL FIRE
Fort Worth, Tex., Dec. 31. One
man was burned to death In the fir
whlch destroyed the Mansion Hotc".
and damaged nearby buildings hen
today. The' loss Is estimated t n
quarter of a million dollars.
EAST CHICAGO
; IN QUARANTINE
i
i j
Seventy-four Cases Small Pox
Reported Yesterday 12,000 '
! Persons In the QuaranLne j .
Area
Chicago, Dec. 31. Half the city
'of East Chicago, Indiana, is under
I quarantine , as the result of an out
! break of an epidemic of small pox.
Yesterday 74 cases were re
ported. About 12,000 persons are couflned
ir. the quarantine area, which is in
habited mostly by foreigners.
CANTATA WAS
OF HIGH ORDER
Beautiful Stage, Lovely Cos
tumes, Exquisite Music, and
Parts Well Taken
The Christinas cantata, "King
'Winter," was presented before a
1110St appreciative audience Thursday
evening in the annex of Biackwell'
tlons were artistic and beautiful,
with holly, cedar, electric lights,1
icicles, snow, tinsel and all that goes
to make a beautiful Christmas stage I
settlng. The costumes were beauti-
ful, elaborate and varied.
The curtain rose on the first scene
showing the king seated on his
snow throne, wiih his court and his
first and second kinder-chorus on
either side. This first scene depicted
The Proposal of King Winter; the
throne, mounted tier fashion, with
the entrance of the exquisite Dream
Falry ani her attendant, Little
(Dream Fairy, was especially lovely.
Tne musiC itsclC was exquisite and
or-;wag beautifully rendered.
The last scene showed the entire
cast of characters beautifully group
ed. P. G. Sawyer, as King Winter,!
requested his subjects to close their
evening of gladness with a song to
the Gracious Giver of all these cheer-
fi niMB,. nr thn fhrWmn.HHo
and altogether they sang:
"Kind Father who hath blessed
us
And filled with love our days,
To Thee in glad thanksgiving
Our grateful hearts we raise."
Killed Attempting
. , i r i
Dig Bank Kobbery
Springfield, Tenn., Dec. 31. An
unidentified man entered the Peo
ple's Bank here today and got $50,
000 In bonds. He stood off the bank
officials, and then dashed out, shoot
ing one officer in the leg as he ran.
The man then took refuge In the
company storeroom, where the police
'killed him.
milium i imit.m s ah
Through a typographical error in
the quarter page advertisement of
tho 11. c. Bright Co., Elizabeth (Jlty
jewelers, the word "Jewelry" ap-
peared ln lne nrg ilne place of
the proper word "inventory." The
WILL VETO RESOLUTION
Washington, Dec. 31. President
Wilson, in the opinion of those high
in official circles, will veto the reso-
utlon reviving the War Finance Cor-
,1 - .
farmers.
FORMER EMPEROR IS
SCARED O' STRANGERS
Doom. Holland, Dec. 31. The
former German Emperor William
has personally engaged a private de -
tectlve to keep an eye on strangers
in the village of Doom. This is In
addition to the state police who
guard the House of Doom. ,
.
Hunter Sawyer has returned to
New Yor after a visit here.
t t ))t l)t
HOLD-UP ON
NIGHT EXPRESS
New Bern, Dec. 31.
Two negroes held up the
'Norfolk - Southern pas
senger train on the Neuse
river bridge shortly after
midnight last night, climb
ing over the tender and
covering the engine crew
with revolvers.
The robbers were cap
tured by an army officer
aboard the train.
AMERICA WINS
CHAMPIONSHIP
In International Tennis Con
test and Cup Will Remain
Urj,der Stars and Stripes
During Next Year
erica has won the cup.
Australia has won It six times;
Great Britain, five.
William T. Tolded, of Phlladel-
phin, and William Johnston, of San
Francisco, composad
team.
the' American
Pearson Plans
j Quick Flight
Houston and El Paso, Texas.
The distance irom Jacksonville to
Houston Is 804 miles; that from
Houston to El Paso, 6G0 miles; and
from El Paso to San Diego Is 615.
I
Minifpi-e I Tr(r
U I & v
No Sunday Funerals-
Say Sunday Funerals Compel
... , .
rolks to Work Who Other-
wise Would Not
r McKeesport, Pa., Dec. 31. The
local Ministerial Association today
' launched a movement against fun
jerals on Sundays, claiming that Sun
, day funerals compel persons to work
who otherwise would not.
Irish Emigration
Is Falling
Off
Dublin, Dec. 31. The emigration
From Ireland during the first ten
months of this year is about half
what It was for the average of the
correvpontl'iiR ton months of tho flvo
years preceding tho war. There
were altogether 12,762 emigrants of
whom 7 808 were women.
were 4i368 emigrants from
There
Ulster.
Seventy-eight per cent of the eml
grant8 wtnt to lne Unlted states,
PLOT ATTACK ITALIAN AUMY
Home, Dec. 31. A plot of the
Extremo Nationalist party and an
archists to Jointly attack the Italian
i army operating against Flume has
'been discovered at Milan, according
to newspapers here. Seventeen ar-
rests are said to have been made
, , ,
Mfl0nal
il
,ounci
To Govern Fiume
Trieste, Dec. 31. Establishment
of the old national council of Flume
aS 8 nrovlH,oa, government over the
clty was announced here today.
(.pniivA rTii.i.inv ri.rn
DAWK JAM'AUY FIFTH '
: I
The dance which was to be given
tonight by the Carolina Cotillion Club
will be given on Wednesday night,
January fifth, instead, in the Rob-
Inson Hall, at 8:30. Music will be
furnlBhed by the Meyer-Davis or-
chestra of Washington, D. C.
TWIDDY CASE TO
HIGHER COURT
Probable Cause Found and Of
ficer Who Killed Spencer
Must Answer Murder Charge
In March
Policeman George Twiddy
was placed under a bond of
$1,000 for his appearance at
the March term of Superior
Court by decision of Judge
Spence in recorder's court here
this morning, upon a charge of
murder i:i the sccoiid degree,
: uu'.b.e cat. so having been
i'uuiRi tor investigation and
action by the higher court.
Twiddy shot Henry Spencer,
colored, while assisting in a
raid upon the latter's home on
North Harney street by Fed
eral officers for illicit liquor.
The only two witnesses called up
on the stand this. morning were Po
liceman John Webb and Edward
Levis, a negro who was present at
Spencer s home shortly after the
shooting, and who testified that he
had helped to put the mortally
wounded man to bed.
Webb stated upon the stand that
upon the night in question he ac
companied Federal officers John R.
Williams and J. 11. Ferebee, Police
man Twiddy and Captain W.. J, Shut
nions to the Spencer home for the
purpose of making a search for
liquor. He testified that he, him
self, walked past the house while
Twiddy went around to the baok,
and the other members of the raid
ing party went in the front way.
Webb said that he then circled back
around the house, and that he heard
Twiddy order Spencer several times
to stop, and hold up his hands.
Spencer, he stated, asked Twiddy
with an oath what lie was doing
there. Then, Webb declared, he
heard fwo shots fired, a second or
two apart, and as he turned the cor
ner of the house, he saw Twiddy
in the act of stepping from tho
porch. Spencer was standing near
Irv. and he said that he heard the
negro declare that he was shot.
Webb also asserted that Twiddy told
him that he (Twiddy) had shot
Spencer. Evidence presented by
Webb which tended to show that
Spencer bore a bad reputation was
Anally admitted by Judge Spence,
who refused to sustain an obJecUon
to it on tho part of the State's at
torneys. Webb testified that on tho night of
the shooting he did not see the still
which is alleged to have been found
on the kitchen stove in thp Spencer
house, and that ho had uot seen It
since. He told the court that the
shooting took place some eight or
ten minutes after Twiddy went
around to the back of the house. No
evidence was introduced to show
that TWiddy served the search war
rant upon Spencer, wl:lcb he is un
derstood to have carried, befcro the
shooting took place. Edward Levla
the negro who was the second and
last witness called upon the stand,
testified that he saw Spencer's
wounds, one in the chest, on the left
side, and the other a few Inches bo
low It In the abdomen. He also
verified Spencor's subsequent death.
Lottie Spencer, the dead man's wi
dow, was also present, and was
sworn in at the beginning of the
pnrt)
but she was not called up
on the stand.
WILL REFUTE
CHARGES MADE
Florida Congressmen Deny Al
leged Discrimination Against
Negro Voters There
Washington, Dec. 31. Members
of the Florida congressional delega
tion announced today that they ex
pected to go before the House cen
sus committee next week and re
fute charges of discrimination
against negro voters of that State
made before that committee by rep
resentatives of the National Asso
ciation for the Advancement of Col-
ored People
Officials Killed
By Bold Bandits
Cleveland, O., Dec. 31. W. W,
Sly, president, arid George F. Fan-,
ner, vice president of the Sly
Foundry Company of this city were
killed by bandits who escaped today
with the payroll after holding up
' the men at the company's plant.