North Carolina Newspapers

Number 3 ? BREVARD, NORTH CAROLINA, JANLARY IS, 1931 & / VOLUME XXXVI Bank Situation Far From / Any Practical Settlement NEW BANK MAY OPEN OR BREVARD DANK MAY BE RE -OPE? In Plans for New Bank May Avert Its Final Organization SENTIMENT SEEMS TO LEAN TO OLD BANK Support of New Bank With drawn Because of Injec tion of Question In again, out again, gone again! Such, in short, could well describe the situation in Brevard concerning the banking business. One time it is a new bank that is to do business here. Next, the Brevard Bankng company is to re-open, and resume business. Then, the Pisgah Industrial Bank is to be converted in to a commercial institution, and fill the town's needs, and this is followed immediately with assertion that a na tional bank is the one certain bet. Charter has been issued to the Transylvania Banking company, by the North Carolina Corporation com- ' mission, and this charter is said to be in Brevard now. Some reports are to the eflxct that this organization will begin business at once. No confirma tion of this report has been made, however, to the press. Many conferences are said to have been held, seeking basis upon which the Brevard Banking company can be , re-opened, as many of . the closed banks in other towns and cities arc doing. This plan has the support of some of the leading business men of | the community, and its advocates i seem to outnumber by far the number j of people who favor the establishment of the new bank. A week ago it was different, as j sentiment seemed almost solid for j establishment of a new bank, to be a j real.*Wmmuri%~i^?*trtion, with j banking as its only purpose. This sen- ? timent seems to have been crystalized at the mass meeting held in the coun ty court house Friday evening Decern- : ' ber 19. At this meeting Oliver H. Orr was named to appoint a commit- ; tee for the purpose of organizing the . bank and obtaining applications for j stock in the institution. Mr. Orr named J. H. Pickelsimer, C. R. Me- i Neely, Frank D. Clement, W. W. Croushorn, J. W. Glazener, H. A. ; Plummer and Roy Long as constitu- | ting the committee. I In the progress of the work of this (Continued on page five) SERVICE MEN WANT~ CASH SETTLEMENT More Than 100 Men In County Would Draw Thi? Much Needed Money Word has been received in North Carolina that members of congress from North Carolina unqualifiedly favor cash payment of veterans ad justed compensation. The statements issued by the two senators and eight of the ten mem- 1 hers of the house of representatives . come on the heels of a resolution ask ing congress to enact legislation pro viding for the immediate payment in cash of former soldiers' adjusted com pensation certificates and addressed to the North Carolina congressmen by the Charlotte Hornets' Nest post of American Legion Chat has taken the initiative among Carolina Legion posts in a campaign for the enact 'ti&k of the resolution in the state Ittyhture. j Ex-service men in Transylvania county are said to be unanimously in favor of the cash plan of settlement now for all adjusted compensation certificates held by the men who were in the war. Officers of the Monroe Ailsnn Post, of the American Legion, most emphatic in their advocacy Wvi the proposed cash settlement plan. There are 52 members of the Legion in this county, and the officers could speak only for those who are mem bers. They did not hesitate, however, in asserting that they knew, through conversation with ex-service men not affiliated with the Legion, that all these are in favor of the cash settle ment. There are more than one hun dred ex-service men in the county. Officers of the Legion here assert that Jhe plan would not only relieve j the terrible situation confronting i many ex-service men, but would go j farther and do more in relieving gen eral business depression than any oth- ] , er plan known. These certificates 1 must be paid by the government with- ; in the next few years, anyway, it is ! .pointed out, and the payment now would mean ' so much more than it ?-could ever mean in the future. The -money would be scattered in every t (Continued from page one) CHARTER ISSUED TO NEW BANK HERE Transylvania Banking Co. Is1 Name ot New Brevard Corporation i j retard News Bureau Raleigh, Jan. lb. Itaicifjh, .lan. 12. ? The Transyl vania tanking Co., of Brevard was issued a charter of incorporation by Secretary of State J. A. Hartness on January 9, with an authorized cap- j ilal of f 100,000 and permitted to be gin business when $25,000 or 250 of \ the shares of stock, par value $100, ; has been paid in. The certificate of incorporation was executed by W. W. Croushorn, before W. E. Breese, notary public, and was examined and approved by the N. C. Corporation Commision, as indicated by the certificate of R. O. Self, clerk. The incorporators, all of Brevard, I with the number of shares of stock of each, follow: J. S. Silversteen, 60 shares; R. W. Everett, 30 shares; J ; M. Allison, 60 shares; Henry N. Car- 1 rier, 20 shares; N. J. Schain, 40; shares; W. W. Croushorn, 20 shares; ^ Daisy H. Macky, 20 shares. The Transylvania Banking Co. is , authorized, under the banking laws of North Carolina, to do a general , commercial and savings banking business. The corporate existance is fixed at sixty years. MAYOR SAYS HE IS BLAMELESS IN THE CITY FUND MATTER Asserts Duty of Protecting All Funds Was Upon Fi nance Committee Mayor T. W. Whitmire issued a statement Wednesday concerning the finances of the town of Brevard, on deposit at the time of the closing of the Brevard Banking company, and ' for which the town held no colalteral. The mayor's statement is in refuta- ! tion of charges that have been made ; - 3f his official acts, and makes plain j that the duties of looking after the f finances of the town are placed in | the hands of the finance committee of i the board of aldermen. Mayor Whitmire declares that he discharged his duties to the letter, and cannot be held responsible for the failure of another member of the official family to perform his duty. | The mayor's statement follows: 'Editor Brevard News: "Following up some remarks made about me in regard to the town's money, which was unsecured when the bank closed, will say I want the public to know just what the duties i jf the mayor are, in a town under j the aldermanic form of government. ! " 'It shall be the duty of the mayor : to preside at all meetings. It shall be the duty of the mayor to appoint a finance committee, one of whom shall be elected chairman, to look after the finances of the town, to approve all settlements of the treasurer and to look after the finances of the town.' "Said finance committee was duly , appointed and chairman elected. I presided over the meeting in which Mr. Shipman promised to put up the :ollateral for the town's deposit, which was drawn up in writing and said agreement was published in your last week's News. "I want to state frankly that I car ried out my part of the transaction to the letter and I have no apology to make to anyone. I make this state ment because I have been told by a friend of mine that he heard a re mark made a few days ago on the street, stating that if Mayor Whit mire had taken more interest in the town's deposits and less interest in the public dance halls that the town would have been better off, financial ly. As stated above, I discharged my duties to the letter as to the town's deposit ? I discharged my duties to the letter as to the public dance halls, which are a violation of the city ord inances ? and so long as said ordin ances remain on the books and I am mayor of the town, there will be no public dance hall inside the incorpor ation of the Town of Brevard." LOCAL BILLS ON TWO DAYS OF THE WEEK Brevard News Bureau Raleigh, Jan. H. The General Assembly, as is the custom and to me?t the requirement that it convene daily, will hold brief sessions each Saturday, when only locarl- bills -hoH be wtrcrduceit S!?d v nft; stnta-wide mepmres will be consider ed, and on Monday nights, thus per mitting the legislators to spend w<k>1: iendi at home. istron(} mmt ni? tit Vx li?HsV1LtllWii URGES ECONOMIES Calls for Lower Taxes on Real Estate and Higher on Gasoline | 10 PER CENT CUT IN SALARIES OF OFFICERS) i Consolidation of Counties One Question of Interest to Small Counties Brevard, News Bureau I Raleigh, Jan. H. A reduction of 10 per ccnt in the salaries, wages and fees of all em ployes of the state and its divisions, the counties and the cities and the in- 1 stitutions maintained by them, ap- ! Paving to all who have not been cut that much since December 1929, and exclusive of those receiving less than j !t>?>0 a month, effective July 1, 1931, and for two years only, was asked by Governor Gardner in his message to the Legislature Friday last. Governor Gardner pointed out that ? practically all citizens are now on i educed incomes, that the employes o t the state and its units get their pay regularly and that 85 cents will buy as much now as did $1 in 1928. He estimates that $4,000,000 annu- ! ally will be saved and demands that this saving be reflected in the taxpay ers bill. Some new and important changes, others expected, are included in the Recommendations made by Governor Gardner. Some of the important ones follow: Abolishing the present Highway ' Commission as constituted by dis" tricts, making it a state-wide body of j a chairman and four commisisoners at large. Increasing the gasoline tax to six cents, two cents of which, with an additional $500,000 a year, to be de voted to county roads, which the state commission should take over for maintenance. Erection of a new Central Prison on Cary Farm, near Raleigh, increas ing agricultural and industrial ac tivities among prisoners, taking over I county prison camps and handling j all prisoners in the state system. 1 Authorizing no additional bonds lor permanent improvements this session. Reduction of taxes on property to] reflect the appropriations made to ' the counties by the state. Remove the tax free gasoline ex- i emptions, requiring tax from all us ers of gasoline, including counties, which will receive their pro rata por- | tion of the refund in maintenance of county roads. Establish a central purchasing agency for all state departments, in stitutions and agencies, saving he predicts, $400,000 a year. Consolidation of administration of i three higher institutions of learning, University, State College and "N. C. i College for Women into a State Uni versity. Introduction of "short ballot" to apply to all offices created by statute, ' thus leaving the Governor, I-ieuten- ; ant Governor, Secretary of State, ? Auditor, Treasurer, Attorney General and Superintendent of Public In struction to be elected by the people. I Concentration of county authority \ in one responsible agency, board of : county commissioners, proper super- J vision by the state of public money, accounting methods and settlements of officers handling public funds. Mandatory consolidation of some of the 100 counties and an act permit ting counties to consolidate in oper- j ation of common jails, county homes, I health departments and convict I camps. I Enact the bill drawn by the Educa tional Commission, providing for a uniform eight months school term,1 eliminating expensive and arbitrary ( district lines and decreasing spending ' (Continued cm page five) HIGfcWAY nn (\\n\ir i uuvai^u i>voii io THE COMMUNITY Many Men Employed by State Highway Commission In This County $30,000 TO BE SPENT FOR LABOR IN FOREST Horseshoe Project Employing : Many Men ? New Bridge Under Construction Highway construction in this im mediate section is proving a great boon to the laboring people, this work being carred on at present on all [ sides of the town. The State Highway forces, under Ernest Webb, are making fine prog ress on 284, where sixty men are em ployed in quarry and on road work, j This work is on the eastern division ; of 284, with the project of hardsur facing this highway from the South j Carolina line to Brevard. i The Federal government is plan ning the employment of several men on road work and building trails : through Pisgah National Forest. C. S. Dunn, forest ranger, in charge of !l the government's activities under Mr. Mattoon, Asheville, has announced that $30,000 will be spent for labor, alone on these projects. R. L. Cans- ' ler is in charge of the road work, and announces the government's pol icy of employing only married men or ' men wit^i dependents, providing cap- ' able help of this kind is available. ' The wage rate is 25 cents the hour, minimum, eight hours a day. The pol- 1 icy of the government in giving pref- ; erence to men with families in em- I ploying labor has brought forth much favorable comment here. Down at Horsheshoe bend, the State Highway forces are at work, rebuilding a portion of the highway I and building a new bridge far below | the present structuce. The work there | will result in elimination of a bad j curve leading onto the bridge on the I Hendersonville side. About seventy five men and several teams and j trucks are employed on that job. Then to the south of Brevard, on , Highway 28, work has been going on for some time, relocating the highway in maViy places, and hardsurfacing the entire stretch from the Jackson county line toward Cashiers. Large forces it is said will soon be given ! employment on that work. The Carr Lumber company, run- ; ning five days a week, eight hours a day. is maintaining its large force;1 that went to work the first of No-!1 vember, after a complete shut-down.'! Men are employed both in the mills, I ? yards and in the woods. The tanneries here and at RosmanjJ are giving part time employment to ; ( a number of men. The cotton mill is still idle, al- , though plans have been in the mak ing for the past two weeks for re- , opening that plant. Work at the ( mill would result in great relief to the unemployment situation here, as the plant has been down more than a j year now, the employes, unable to find work elsewhere, have endured the hardest part of the period of de pression. If present plans are vcaT- j ized, the cotton mill will soon be in,( operation. Work on the highways, however, is , proving the real boon now, because it I is giving employment to men who j 1 had no work at all in other lines of j" industry. ij PROGRAM ARRANGED FOR LEE-JA CKSON CELEBRA T I OS ' ( 1 Lee-Jackson Day will be observed < next Monday with a most appropriate ' program, to be presented at the High I School building. The public is invit- < od to attend. Exercises will start ati! 10:15 o'clock Monday morning. ! Members of the U. D. C. are request- ; ed to meet at the school building at 1 10 o'clock. 1 1 Mass Meeting Called for Tuesday Night by Ministers of the Town Brevard Ministerial association is- 1 sued a call Wednesday for a mass . meeting to be held in the county J court house Tuesday night of next week, at 7 o'clock, for the purpose of discussing plans for adoption of "The Golden Rule Debt Paying Plan." By request of the association, Mayor Whitmire attended the session, and( was asked to preside at the meeting next Tuesday, evening. Rev. J. H. ? West, Rev. R. L. Alexander, Rev. Paul Hartsell, Mayor Whitmire and James F. Barxett were named on the program committee to arrange de-J tails of the mass meeting. The purpose of "The Golden Rule Debt Paying Plan" is to enable the people of Transylvania county to pay one another and each other ac counts due in checks that are not to be deposited until a certain numbev of endorsements appear on the check, and is not to be usrd for any other :pu i | >? a n- ? payjng debts. Or towns and cities "are using? thi.- and similar methods, and resiilt= obtained have been nost satisfacfni-u. Hemlevsonville has lon<r been usii^; this plan, which was made necessary i through closing of all the banks in j the sister city. The committee on ar- 1 rangements for the mass meeting here | Tuesday will have men \yho are fa- ? miliar with the plan on tfte program i to explain its workings. i] Roger Babson.. statistician and noted j writer, was the originator of the ( idea, which has been adopted through out the country. Babson declares the ; present crisis appeals to the spiritual, j1 inasmuch as anything that causes ' human suffering is a matter calling1 for the best efforts of the church.]; Hence the fact that the call for this : mass meeting here is at direction of the Ministerial association. All people of. the county are urged to attend the mass meeting, and it is especially desire<r that each commun ity in the county have representatives at the gathering here next Tuesday evening. It is believed that great relief can be Qbtained t5y-qug)j adoption of "TJie 'Golden Rule *D(?bt . Rsr-'ng PJaji;" | Very besffrtiuS'it and suppofi^if ? [interested crtizehs should be "given to the movement. . J General County Court Is Abolished By Legislature COURT ABOiiSMD ON LAST SATURDAY Rep. W. M. Henry Present ; Bill to Kill the General County Court Brevard News Bureau Raleigh, Jan. li. Transylvania county's general, county court was abolished in sh<5r; order by the North Carolina Genera' Assembly Saturday morning, n i more than an hour having elapse.: from the time Representative W. M Henry, of Brevard, introduced the ' bill in the House before it became a law, enacted by both houses and reached the enrolling office. It is considered likely that other county courts, particularly the one in Buncombe county, which, in 1928, was placed under the general act permitting county commissioners to create county courts, will be abolish ed by this General Assembly. The Buiifombc court, although apparent ly functioning satisfactorily, was provided by including Buncomba ! county under the general act by Re put lican legislators, while the county' waii in charge of Republican com missioners and the officials named were Republicane. Representative Ed S. Loven, of Av ery, introduced a bill which repeals Ouper 376, Public Local Laws of 192?, the new bill preventing the Avery board of education from leas ing sc!:ool property, which the pre vious act permitted. TAMPERING WITH FIRE TRUCK SAID TO BE DANGEROUS i Some One Exposed Town to Great Danger by Malicious Damage to Engine Tampering with the fire truck by some one some time last Saturday night or Sunday morning, which re sulted in putting Brevard's big de fense completely out of business for more than an hour, has caused much speculation among fire company offi cials, town officials and the public. Dan W. Merrill, who has charge of the truck, goes by the station twice ?ach day, starts the motor in the truck and tests it out, as a precau tion, so he will know that the big fel low is always ready to go when the alarm is sounded. Last Sunday morning Mr. Merrill tvent to the station, as was his cus tom, and tried the truck. There was nothing doing. Mr. Merrill began a search for the trouble, resulting in finding that the gas had been re- ? moved from the tank, wires discon- ! lected in the engine and the rotary I irm taken from the distributor. It look the popular foreman more thai! in hour to locate the trouble and make repairs. One theory is that some property ; mner intended to have himself a firs'. I :lass fire. The Brevard Fire Depart ment has a habit of extinguishing fires in rapid manner. This man .vanted his fire to be a real fire, un molested by the activities of the Bre vard bunch of fire-fighters, hence. ;he thing to do was to cripple the :ruck and make it impossible for the fighting boys to reach the fire until its :onsuming flames had made his in surance policy a thing certain and sure. Firemen and many citizens have been heard to express the belief that this act is the most dangerous and malicious thing ever done in Brevard. With recent high winds half the bus iness section of the town could have been destroyed before the engine could have been put in commission for fighting the flames. W. W. WOODLEY. JR., LIQUIDATING AGENT Mr. W. W. Woodley, Jr., of Eliza beth City, has been named as liquidat ing agent for the Brevard Banking company, and arrived in Brevard Tuesday, entering upon his new du ties Wednesday morning. Mr. Wood ley iB a man of wide experience in financial affairs, of pleasing appear- 1 ance, and possessed of peculiar abil ity to handle the aggravating situa tion now facing him. It is likely that Mr. Woodley will J move his family to Brevard. He is at J present living at Pierce-Moore Hotel. There is but little work that Mr. j Woodley can do until the report of , the bank examiners has been submit ted to officials at Raleigh, inspected ? there and returned to the agont here, '.phis report-is c pec ted to.be com | pfeted- "within-.* row days, and submit- ; ted to the authorities at Raleigh. A ' ropy of the report, it is v,*:!! hy | filed with the clfcrk of t!:e court. LOCAL TRIBUNAL TOSSED ABOUT BY VARIOUS FORCES Climax Is Reached Wednesday When Judge Declared the < Act Unconstitutional ADJOURNED TO MEET UPON CALL OF JUDGE Was Campaign Issue, Abol ished by New Board, Now by Law uenerai county cuurt of 1 ransyl ^ania county is abolished, says Rep resentative Henry, now in the legis lature from this county. The county court cannot be abol ished by special local legislative en actment, says Judge English, without violation of Article 2, Section 29, of the State Constitution. The court, which has been the most widely discussed phase of coun ty activity since its creation on July 1, 1929, was a major issue in the re cent political campaign, and was oik of the first objects of attack by the new county commisisoncrs when the board assumed power on December first, 1930. The county commission ers abolished the county court by res olution, to become effective on Janu ary 1, 1931. Then, at the same meet ing, the commissioners, again by res olution, set the salary of the judge pf the county court and the solicitor it S5 a month, effective January 1, 1931. Again it was abolished by legisla tive enactment, as above stated, on last Saturday. Yet Judge English adjourned court' Wednesday morning, subject to the ?all of the judge when, and if, sucb :all is made, the jurors then serving must return for jury duty. The attorney general of North Carolina assisted Representative Hen ry in drawing the bill that" was to ibolish the court, according to word ?eceived here from Wm. E. Breese. This act would of course preclude settlement of the matter by opinion rrom the attorney general, since it is relieved that the Supreme court of tforth Carolina will finally say wheth :r or not the county court is abol shed. County courts are created under itate law providing for such courts. Many counties in the state have long iad these and similar county courts. The old board of county oommission ?rs created the court under the law of ( Continued on page five) BARREL SYSTEM IS ADOPTED BY BOARD Many People Suffering ? Ail Churches to Help In Great Work Rev. R. L. Alexander, of The As sociated Charities, announces that ;he organization, assisted by the churches and other groups, are plan ning to place barrels about the town for the purpose of receiving what ?ver articles of fond and clothing any >nc will donate for the relief of the lecdy of town and county. This plu:i s bringing splendid results in other towns and cities, and it is believed ivill result in great benefit to this immunity. Need for immediate action is great, for there is acute suffering among :he poor just now. It is believed that nany people of the town and county would make donations of food and Nothing if they knew just where to place such articles. This plan of plac ng barrels about the town solves this problem, as well as b.ing constant reminders of the need felt in the town ind county. Mr. Bob KilpatHck is preparing vhe carrels, which will be placed at the grocery stores and meat markets of :he town. Placards will be ccked to ;he barrels, urging people while mak ng purchases to buy some article o< food for the poor and place same ia the barrel. Mayor Whitmire has an lounced that the town forces will jather the food from the barrels, and take it to the central point at the Chamber of Commerce rooms, from which place distribution will be made ;o the needy. The Ministerial Association, in ses sion Wednesday, voted hearty approv al of the plan, pledging fullest meas ure of co-operation of the churches. All ministers o fthe town will explain the dire need of liastV action in their Sunday messages to their congrega tions. % Not only is food needed, but thero is great demand for clothing, shoes and bed clothing. These articles are to be assembled at the Chamber of Commerce rooms. ? and distribattd from thfH: placb';'aS is the case with the food; Distribution will be made (Continued iru jnujt five)