Page fou?.
THE FRANKLIN TRESS, FRANKLIN, N. C.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 1ZZJ
TI12 Franklin Press
PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY
S. A. HARRIS.. ..Editor
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Entered at the post-office at Franklin, N. C,
for transmission through the - mails - as- second
class matter.
Foreign Advertising Representative
THE AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION
THE FRANKLIN PRESS PLATFORM
Extension of the sewrer lines.
Beautify the school grounds.
Two hundred summer cottages.
A sewage disposal plant.
More official activity in the sale el sur
plus power. , , . ,i i
The construction of basmes blocks.
Plant trees along the State highway ef
the county. ....
Make a white way el Warn street.
An excellent school library,
" Courteous treatment for visitors.
Improvement of covnty read connecting
with Stale highway.
A fish ladder at tie MKmal eW
Co-operation, vim, push, work-everything
for the good of Franklin and .Macon county.
New court bouse and jail combined.
How About It?
Attend the farmers rally on March Stfa.
. , .-.
There is quite a difference between a hard
working voter and a hard worker.
.
It is safe to say thai Al Smith is not lean
ing on a Reed.
More work and less growling is what this
Those who believe that the county agent
does not need a stenographer should go with
him for one week. In that case they would
follow the example of the wise man and
change their minds.
Can March 5th be made a day of regenera
tion in the farming industry in Macon county?
Or are the old ruts so deep they will con
tinue to keep the people in bondage? It's up
to the farmers.
Summer is coming and Franklin will again
be short of water, unless something is done
at once. When the town burns the voters
.will have no one to blame but themselves,
since they prohibited the town board from
installing an adequate water supply system.
A dairy .farm, on 'the eastern bank of the
Little Tennessee river near town is in pro
spect. , Not long now until dairy cattle in
Macon county will graze on every mountain
side and in every valley. And when that .day
arrives the matter of tax money will not be
so important.
' Jesse Slagle is now full time care taker of
the Wayah Bald Game Refuge. It is safe
to say that he will play no favorites when it
becomes necessary to make arrests for viola
tions of the refuge regulations. However,
the people of Macon county are so interested
in the success of the refuge they are- hoping.
that no arrests will be necessary.
- ,
It appears that the Burningtown news pub
lished in last week's Press contained some
errors as to neighborhod guests, etc. The
person who sent these items in is not a regu
lar correspondent of The Press and is unknown
to the editor. However, the items were
regularly signed, otherwise they would, not
have been published. The Press regrets caus
ing any of the good people of Burningtown
any embarrassment. We would like to "have
a regular correspondent from Burningtown
and in the absence of such no more news
from that section will be published unless the
writer is personally known to the editor. We
published the Burningtown items in good
faith and. they appeared as innocent happen--Jagg-cL-thp-iieiffhhorhond
'
not bring in the returns it' should.
Wc believe in giving every man his dues
and it appears to us that many citizens of the
county are not thinking clearly along the lines
of tax reduction, in that they are placing the
blame for what they consider high taxes on
the shoulders of the present commissioners.
To some extent the commissioners may be to
blame, but we hardly think so. Today we are
facing depressed conditions and consequently
tax money is harder to get than it was two
years ago. Hence a great number of citizens,
are blaming the present county government for
all their ills. Take for instance the letter of
Mr, McCrackenpublished in last week's Press.
One of the things that seemed to stick in his
gizzard was the . fact that the county agent
has a stenographer. Well what of it ? The
county agent's services are absolutely necessary
to the welfare of the farmers and if this of
ficial' is to spend . all his time doing clerical
work he can not render, the best service to
the , county. We dare say that the county
agent does . more work than any other man in
the county and he keeps his stenographer
busy assisting him. We understand that Mr.
McCracken was at one time county agent of
Macon county, but we yet have to hear of
anything striking that he did in that capacity.
Mr. McCracken also seems, to be a little out
of sorts becausce beef cattle are' not plentiful
in Macon county. The county agent is just
as willing and has been all along to help the
people in growing beef cattle as he is tcuaid
them in growing dairy cattle. Many of Macon's:-farmers
have quit growing beef - cattle
and are now engaged in the more profitable
indu stry 7 of selling - cream. Th e scrubs that
Mr. McCracken used to buy at a low price
in this county are now scarce and this fact
is evidently pinching. Hence his wail about
beef cattle can readily be understood.
Be that as it may, if , the people want a
change in county administration, we have no
objections, but we warn them now that what
ever the result of the election in November
their taxes can not be lowered to any con
siderable extent, if any.
Others9 Comments
. . . . . . '. . .
li the people warn io save mrcc ui iuui
thousand dollars a year, make the sheriff a
salaried officer. - " a
'
Seed potatoes, stock beets and sweet clover
are going to sweeten up Macon county con
siderably. ''
Time and money that are going to be spent
in Macon in getting absentee votes would tend
the bigest farm in Ihe county.
'
Thdse who believe ihat a political change
will be a panacea for all the ills that confront
them are due fr a sad disappointment.
.
Labor, plus headwork, contentment and pros
perity. Labor,' minus headwork, sorrow and
adversity. .
- '
When Wayah Bald Game Refuge is stocked
with California or Mexican quail the man
who dares shoot trac should be sent to the
toads.
'
At the meeting on March 5th the farmers
can discuss politics to their hearts' content
and also get valuable information that will
be of some use on the farm.
Read the letter of Mr. C W. Teague on
'this page. "Nail Keg Farmers" can talk
politics louder than any other species of the
igenus" homo.
The fact that citizens of . the county are
writing letters to their local paper is a good
sign. ,lt is only when people go to sleep,
remarks the Brevard News, that danger stalks.
rage Mr. wentworth. Unc acre ot good
land, plus corn, cequals $25 profit. One acre
of good land, plus strawberries, equals 8
times $25. Hence the pyramids.
.
The candidate for representative who Dledtres
himself to change the road law to make the
"county, instead of the township, the road unit
will get the votes.
Isn't it possible that we have too .many
citizens in this county who ' intend' to brint:
on the millennium at the ballot box next
November? Also too many who wear patches
on the seats of their trousers?
One citizen of Franklin voted here last
election. He was also voted as an absentee
both at Balsam "and at Sylva. But even that
is not so raw as voting dead men like they
sometimes do in Macon county.
J. C. Ledbctter and Wade Reece are to be
congratulated upon their decision 'to construct
a modern garage in Franklin. The location
they have chosen is an excellent one for the
purpose and their venture should meet with
the success it deserves.
r'OR THE farmers of Macon county, Mon-
r lay, March 5, is -expected to be -a , big
Alay and a very important one. On that day
the farmers and others will meet at the
court house to -discuss questions of vital inv
portance to the tillers of the soil. Dr. R. Y.
Winters, director of the state experiment sta
tion, has been asked to speak. Other experts
along various lines will also be present. Among
the questions to be discussed are: Marketing,
seeds, the cannery, the organization of an
agricultural council and 4-H club work. The
s meeting will also be thrown open for discus
sion of any other subject, pertaining to agri
culture. Now that the timber products of Macon
county are nearing exhaustion it is vital that
the farmers prepare to meet this emergency
by depending upon what the farms can pro
duce without reference to the forests. At the
meeting on March 5 much valuable informa
tion can be obtained along these lines. At
any rate it will do harm to attend. A special
invitation 1scxtended to air members of the
4-H' club.
The county agent reports 'that men, women
and children all over the county are manifest
ing an intense interest in this meeting and
that a large number . of people are expected
to be present. The fact that such interest is
being shown indicates that the people of the
county have realized the importance of
seeking steady sources of , income other than
those of the forests. In this respect the local
creamery has partly solved that problem while
the cannery is also expected to be a wonderful
help. Meetings like the one above mentioned,
and not politics, will solve the problems of
the farmers.
The Other Side
DURING RECENT weeks The Press has
received several letters lambasting the
county government, but we have yet to re
ceive one praising 'the progress made under
that same government. The question of low
ering the taxes seems to be the gist of all
letters received. This is an end devoutly to
be desired and if some one will write a letter
explaining how this is to be done, The Press
will be glad -to give such letter publicity. The
letter writers so far have touched upon a few
small expenditures that they think could be
eliminated, but even with these expenditures
checked our taxes could not be lowered more
than 5 cents on the hundred dollars. Most of
the bonded indebtedness of the county was
caused by the demand for good roads and that
is where most of the tax money goes. True
the citizens are paying more taxes now than
they did a few years ago, but who is willing
to turn back five years and live under condi
tions then existing? . Of; course those who
"live off the highways are still in need of roads,
but roads can not be built in a day. Now
that the highways are completed, it is neces
sary to improve the feeder roads or else the
money already expended on the highways' will
r. -lERCHANT'SiDE
...PfHIS 'buying athbme" idea has two sides.
fail to shout their wares', cannot complain
when buyers, Wanting something, order it
from a catalog whefe they can see instead
of tramping over the town to find if Mr.
So-and-so has it.
We know of business men in Mt. Auburn
who think it is a crimee to send money away
from town for merchandise, 'to patronize the
products of out-of-towA concerns when local
plants and merchants have similar 'things to
sell.' These same men, however, neglect to do
what is first done, by the mail order people
advertise. The Tribune has talked of keeping money
at home for many years. Most . merchants
and business men have agreed with us. Some
of them, when approached for advertising grin
and suggest, that the public knows all about
them. Others, ;, keenly, appreciating the ad
vantage of keeping their name before the
people, give us advertisements large or small,
as the circumstances happen to be.
No cross word puzzler will have to perplex
his brain, to discover who is going to get
the most of the business of the people of Mt.
Auburn. Alt. Auburn, Illinois, Tribune.
it should be? And arc we, as citizens, doing
all wc can for its betterment? And arc wc
keeping up with the trend of advancement?
I dare say we are not. Conditions do not
look as good to me as they did twenty years
ago, when the Tallulah Falls railway cleared
forest, which was almost untouched by the
ax and most every farmer had more or less
livestock on the farm and looked to his own
grain bin for his meat and bread and was
practically out of debt. How does that con
dition compare with that today ? The most of
cases we cater too much to the other fellow's
game instead of playing a game of our own.
The farmer in most cases has apparantly lost
interest in the farm and home arid gone off
after other employments in - an effort to make
money faster. Has he succeeded ? No, hi
condition gets- worse everyday. He has eaten
up and worn out all the country's resources
within his reach and to help out his project
has sold off practically all the livestock and
everything that was loose around the place
that would bring money.
v We have another type of farmer; I call him
the "Nail-Keg Farmer." You will find him
usually around public places, and especially
around country stores, sitting on a. nail keg:
or goods box. He is a good talker and can
tell you how to grow corn and potatoes, but
when he goes home at night he usually carries
a bag of flour or piece of meat, or something
that' could be produced on the farm. I just
make mention of these things, for sometimes
you have to jolt a fellow pretty, heavy, in
order to get his attention. But there is too
much reckless dealing and waste, too little:,
regard for debt and economy, but this day
with its advancement suits me to a "T."
I don't Want to call back twenty years. There
are the finest opportunities today for the man
on the farm in constant pursuit of a well-thought-out
system of farm management of
any occupation I know of, and should be more
pleasure and happiness, especially to a man in
Macon county as back of this our marketing
conditions, .have been so bad. But now since
we have these three organizations, namely:
The Farmers federation, creamery, and can
nery, the three exactly meet the farmers' needs.
Th federation, a place to buy our necessities,
such as we can't produce at home; the can
nery, a place to cash our cream, which by our
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uwu cacmchcc wc www wc can mane aumc
mnnov- with iint nmner f tnrt Mimprv
AIRPORT PROGRESS
FRANKLIN is to be congratulated upon
the public spirit of Messrs. T. W. Porter
and Charles Morgan of that place whoA' it is
announced, have determined to provide Frank
lin with an airport which by all . accounts
will measure up to a very high standard.
They have located a field that is very at
tractive for the purpose in mind and they
propose to put it in excellent condition and
also to build , an aerodrome large' enough to
accommodate three planes. It is hoped that
the Town of Franklin will arrange to light
the field at night and, whether this is done
immediately, it can be taken for granted that
it will be done' in time. 7 T" r
This is a fine example of' community spirit
and it represents also a service which reaches
far beyond the immediate community. It- is
generally agreed that the chief handicap to
the development of flying' in America at" the
present time is the lack of airports, well de
veloped, well marked and well lighted, in all
secti($is of the country. ' So important is this
mountain region to aviation that it is. highly
desirable that there shall not be one but
numerous fine landing fields throughout this
section. Asheville undoubtedly appreciates the
urgent necessity of a first class airport here,
and plans to this end ought to be pressed
with as little further delay as possible.
Asheville Citizen.
Letter
I
OUR MACON "COVNTY
(By C W. Teague) v
WANT- to ask the farmer " citizens . of
Macon county : Is our Macon county what
stimulated from this . fine manure we obtain
from this dairy herd. So you see' these or
ganizations go hand in hand, and I insist that
we, as a body of farmers, wake up and grasp
this opportunity for such an opportunity miy
never knock at our doors again. Let thefl
other fellow haul the poles, acid wood and
cross ties.- Let's stay at home, with the old
lady and kiddies and make happy home lovers
of them, and milk the cows, feed the , pigs,
save the manure and grow vegetables for the
cannery, then wc can soon proudly say, "I
owe no man."
, The condition of our county today is a fair
representation of what we are. It is just wfyajt
we make it and one is the definition of the
other. So I say, "Let's go." Let's wear out
the front, of 'our trousers going forward instead
of . the rear sitting around. ' .
. Let me insist again that we take- to new
life and . rhake our Macon county what it is
capabje of being so that instead of blushing
! . !- 1 . . Ml 11 . ... 1
wun cmuai rasbiueiu we win Diusn ywitn pride
...t.' ; u "A .
wncii wc aiy wc arc irum iviacon counxy.
f' BOOSTS FRANKLIN'S AIRPORT .
316-27tb St., Union City, N. J.
Feb. 18, 1928.
Editor Franklin Press,
tt XT. i. r
j i cihk.1111, iNuriii Carolina.
Dear Sir:
The citizens of Franklin are to be con
gratulated on their aim to start preparations
for an air pert. The site selected is a bit
narrow lor pianes with a high landing speed,
naiiafllialcr. ....11 . . A 1- 1 . 1 i .
uui mvu uititas, iv win acivc II1C planes Ilia I
are likely to be used there at present, or in
the near future.
Early in 1927 the Pitcarin Aviation compatfy
of Philadelphia, Pa., was granted the air mail
rnntrnrt frntn Nput , Vnrtr tr Atlonto
due to start operations September 1st of that
year, but were delayed due to the fact that
the department of commerce did not have the
lights all installed for night flying. The lights
"arp-nnw rntnnlptpd anfl
vwrH' - jvivu
uled to start operations April 1st, of this year.
The contract calls for a nine-hour service
between New York and Atlanta, making
stops at Philadelphia, Pa.; Washingtown, D.
C; Richmond, Va.; Greensboro, N. C, and
Spartanburg, S. C.
The air; line distance from Franklin to'
Spartanburg is about seventy-five miles, and
can be made in the average plane in onu
hour, thus giving a ten-hour service from
Franklin to New York for passengers. One
can readily see the advantages of an ah- port
at Franklin, making possible an aerial taxi
service connecting Franklin with the New York
route as well, as other cities near there, and,
eventually, an air mail route leading from
; Franklin, aUhpugh ? that Avill be years to come.
Keep up the good work in aviation, boost
t to the'lirAit; thdse that cannot be farmers
.may make good aviators.
-Yours truly,
" V JAMES A. CRAIN. .