AMERICA
First, Lait an d
?5 Always
The St.lv a Herald
THE SYLVA HERALD
Dedicated Ta Pimi? Im
Serrkf T? Ji
AND RURALITE ? CONSOLIDATED JULY, 1943
V^L. XVIII NO. 33 , SYLVA, N. C., WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 5, 1944 $1.50 A Year In Jackson and Swain Conntiai fa C*pj
Smelter At Webster
Due To Start Soon
Former Teacher Of1
Sylva Is Jap Prisoner
W. Carr Hooper, Has Lived
In Philippines For 12
Tears, Was Taken In Fall
Of Manila.
' W. Carr Hooper, former resi
dent and native of Jackson county,
fa being held in an internment
?amp in the Philippines by the
Jfaranese. Mr. Hooper is the son
of Mr. and Mrs. Vance Hooper, of
Bast LaPorte.
Mr. and Mrs. Hooper are in good
health and getting along as well
as could be expected, according to
a letter just received from Alvin
Aurell, of New York, who has just
returned to the States from tne
same camp.
Mr. Hooper was formerly 'super
intendent of the Sylva graded
school, and about 12 yea^s ago, he
and Mrs. Hooper, the former Miss
> tiuth Williams, of FayetteviHe,,
Tenn., went to the Philippines,
where Mr. Hooper was employed
by the government to teach Eng
lish. About six years ago he be
came associated with the Singer
Sewing Machine Company as pay
master and held that position when
Manila fell about two years ago.
The first direct letter from Mr.
Hooper was recently received here
and was written from Santo Tomas
Interment Camp, Manila:
"We have been allowed to com
municate to you the message that
both of us are well and are as
?omfortably quartered as possible
tinder the circumstances. We read,
work on assignments, carve, do
gardening, knit and engage in
various activities. We have medi
cal and hospital facilities, - ~ L
"Kindly relay our message to
Ruth's sister, Mrs. Atlee Moore,
Fayetteville, Tenn., and tell .her
that when possible Ruth will need
shoes, dresses, etc.
"Piease give all my friends my
regards and best wishes. Best of
health to each of you and our love
to all."
The latest word from Mr. Hoop
er and wife was ttfroughv^* friend,
Alvin Aurell, who^arrived in New
York December-ft^st. His letter to
Mr. Hooper's parents:
"I know that you are waiting
anxiously for /some news about
your people who are in Manila and
I am sorry that I could not get
around to waiting this letter ear
lier, but as you can imagine I have
? (Continued on page 8)
John A. Parris
Is Back On Job
At London Office
UP Correspondent Lands
In London On Christmas
Day, After Six Weeks At
Home*
John A. Parris, Jr., U.P. corres
pondent in London, has returned
safely after a sjx weeks rest period
in the United States. His mother,
Mrs. John A. Parris, received a
cable saying that he landed in Eng
land on Christmas day. He was
well and happy to be back on the
job.
While he was home Parris spent
most of his etime speaking at dif
ferent clubs and schools, and spent
a lot of time in Washington be
fore ^turning to England.
His Dook, "Spring Board to Ber
lin," has been released and he has
sent a number of autographed cop
ies to his friends in Sylva and
Jackson County.
W. C.*T. C. Will
Resume Classwork
Monday Morning
Western Carolina Teachers Col
lege is scheduled to resume classes
Monday morning, -thus bringing to
an end, the Christmas holidays.
The extra two weeks was taken
as a means of conserving coal, col
l^ge pjfl&cjals anpouneed, _ . v
2-Inch Snow Fell
In Area Sunday
The first snow of the season fell
early Sunday morning, covering
the area about two inches.
By noon the mercury had climbed
to 36 and the rain, together with
the higher temperatures, soon turn
ed the snow into mush. The rains
continued throughout Sunday night
and Monday morning only slight
traces of snow were seen in pro
tected spots.
Traffic early Sunday morning
was handicapped, but highway
crews were soon on the job and
main thoroughfares were soon
o^oned before the snow started to
melt
'44 BusinessDepends
On Collapse Of Axis,
Says Roger Babson
i
Famous Statistician Pre
dicts 10% Increase In
Retail Sales During 1944.
By Roger W. Babson
Babson Park, Mass. ? Most firms
are booked to capacity. If any
more business were offered thsgr
would not be able to handle it for
many months. This is rougMy my
forecast for 1944. The Babsonchart
Index of the Physical Volume of
Business for the final quarter of
1943 averaeed 141 compared with
150.7 for the same period of 1942.
The all-time high was reached in
December, 1942, when my Index
ptnnH at 155.6. It is not possible
that this record can be exceeded in
1944.
COMMODITY PRICES
War developments will influence
commodity prices during 1944. The
collapse of Germany could result
in a sharo, though temporary, re
action in leading wholesale indexes.
If the going in Italy or elsewhere
should prove unexpectedly hard ?
indicating a longer war ? prices,
should firm. Cattle and hogs may
bring lower average price* Soy
bean and com prices face the test
of large marketings. They will do
well to hrld. Increased imnorts of
coffee coc^a and sugar will hold
down their prices.
Continued heavy demand is indi
cated for moct industrial commo
dity. To what extent efforts t?
roll back food prirrs to September
15, 1942, levels will tcceed is pro
blematical. Mounting over-all
shortages, unprecedented demand
and necessity for maximum output
will tend to maintain strong up
ward pressure on most prices. Ad
vancing parity prices, storage', in
surance and black markets further
tend to keep .prices high. Subsi
dies will be granted certain pro
ducers during 1944.
INVENTORIES
Businessmen should watch the
Government's policy of disposing
of its huge inventories of consum
er merchandise. With supplies at
a much higher level than in World
War I, retailers, wholesalers and
manufacturers should insist there
be no dumping on domestic mar
kets. This could smash prices.
Flooding the expert markets could
make it difficult to rell goods abroad
at a fair profit. I hope a substan
tial portion of our surplus will be
given to the peonies of Continental
Europe and China.
SALES PROSPECTS
I forecast that retail dollar sale*
will average 5 to 10 per tent high
er in 1&44 than in 1943. Sales
volume of consumer goods will
again start to climb as smaller
companies get the okay on postwaT
merchandise. I expect some de
cline from 1943 in the physical vol
ume 6 f retail sales d ie to scarcity
of goods and less employment. Sub
stitute merchandise has sold well
but manufacturers and wholesal
(Continued on pags |)
Part Of Sylva's Efficient Volunteer Fire Department
This picture, although made sometime back, .sn , a. . % . i t..e o.,iv.i vo.uii.ier mo u?,??rknieni and
their truck in front of the fire station here. Reading from left to right: D. M. Tallent, David Dills,
Roscoe Dills, now in the navy, Ray Cogdill, chief, Woody Hamptons?now in the at my, Charlie CampfgHr
Bart Cope and ?aul Womack.
Merchants Urged
To Get Sufficient
Rationing . Tokens
All retailers of rationed feeds
pwn<j?d by the^local
War Price and Rationing Board
that they have only until January
8 to apply for their initial stock
of the new one-point red and blue
rationing tokens which will be
vsed as "change" after February
27. ?
Forms on which retailers will
apply for tokens are already on
hand at the local board. They
should be presented to the bank
which will supply tokens in un
broken boxes of 250. Tokens are
slightly smaller than a dime and
are made of a vulcanized fibre.
After February 27, all red and
blue stamps in book 4 will have
the same value of 10-points each,
regardless of what figures may be
printed on them. Tokens will be
issued as "change" from the fixed
10- point value of each stamp, and
the tokens will be valid indefinitely.
Webster Principal
Commissioned As
Ensign In Navy
Robert Paul Buchanan, high
school principal of Webster, has
been commissioned an ensign in
i the U. S. naval reserv", it w^s an
nounced by the Raleigh Office of
Naval Officer procurement.
Ensign Buchanan is the son of
] Logan A. Buchanan of Cullowhee.
I He is a graduate of Western Caro
lina Teachers College.
Well Known Rail
road Man Retires
J. E. Ballinger, well known pas
senger train conductor on the Mur
phy Branch of the Southern, reti^
ed last werk after serving the rail
road continuously for 42 years.
H: started his railroad work as
brakoman in 1901, and was promot
ed to freight conductor in 1905.
Eight years a^o he was made pas
server conductor.
Mr. BalHrger plans to make his
home in Weavervill? with his dau
ghter, and raise chickens and tend
a garden.
Ovid R. Jones Visit*
.Parents In Sylva
Ovid R. Jones, aviation ordnance
man third class, son of Mr. and
Mrs. Frank Jones, of Sylva, has r -
turned to the air base at Norfolk
after spending a few days during
the holidays with his parents.
Pe*ty Officer Jones volunteered
in December, 1942, and completed
his boot training at Bainbridge,
Md., before being sent to the air
base at Jacksonville, Fla. After
several months' training there he
was transferred to Atlantic City
N. J., and is now stationed at Nor
folk where he will be assigned to
sea di^ty.
Sylva Had Lowest Fire
Loss In Years In 1943
Officials ?
Conservation Of
Water In Sylv#
The snow and continued " rains
over the week-end have tended to
bring1 the Sylva water supply\near
er the normal stage, yet town of
ficials urged that all leaking
spigots be checked and all waste
water eliminated.
The long dry fall has brought :
the supply to a low point, and i
R. C. Allison, town clerk, said J
that every precaution must be |
taken to conserve _ihe supply until ,
the reserve it built upT
No Arrests Made
On New Year's Eve!
The entire holiday season was ;
one of the quietest ever observed j
here, as far as reports from peace j
?fficers w$re concerned.
No arrests were made on New J
Year's Kve, which, according to ,
Sheriff Leonard Holden, was one
of the quietest he ever remembered
in the county. Very few people
were on the streets for the arrival
>f the Now Yerr.
Petty Pfiirer Pel as 1). Sutton, j
who has been ill in a hospilal in '
the South Paci^c, is now hom: for
a rest period before entering a
Naval Hospital for further treat
ment. He is with his wife, the
former Evelyn Jarrett, at th:ir
home in Dillsboro.
Fire Department Here, All |
Volunteer, Has Set Up
Excellent Record.
One of the best records in many
years was made by the Sylva Fire
Departm nt in 1943. The lowest
fire loss in many years, purchase of
war bonds, and active participation
!n other war campaigns were ac
complished.
Between January first and March
10, no calls were made by the fir:
department here, which is compos
< d of trained volunteers who give
of their time throughout the y^ar
to the protection of property.
The present department has six
teen active members, * thr:e hon
orary and five members in the arm
ed forces.
The total damage done by fire
vi'hin the corporate limits of Sylva
during 1043 was less than $100, it
was estimated yesterday, as rec
ords were checked for the year's
losses.
The report of the- department
shows that seven day calls and
three night calls were made dur
ing the year.
The first call was on March 10,
to the Sylva Laundry, little or no
damage.
May 5, night, trash dump, fire
in woods. No damai?'',
June 1. day, woodshed, owned by
H. E. Lawrence burned, with slight
damage, and home was saved.
June 10, day, hillside of Dr.
Wilks, no damage.
Four calls were made extinguish
ing blaz? of burning baled waste
paper at the Mead Corporation.
These calls were on June 22, Sept;
(Continued on page four)
Tuckaseigee Baptists Sunday School
Convention To Meet Sunday At 2:30
? 1
REV. H. G. HAMMETT
Rev. H. G. Hammett, pastor of
the First Baptist church of Way
nesville, will be the principal
speaker at the Tuckaseegee bap
tist Sunday School Convention at
the, Cullowhee Iiaptist church on
Sunday afternoon at 2:30.
Mr. Hammett's topic will be: " A
Sunday School Victory For 1944."
The singing of the meeting will
be led by Jennings Bryson, who
will also be responsible for special
music of the program.
The devotion will be in charge of
Rev. A. C. McCall. A report from
all the Sunday schools, and special
recognition of pastors, delegates
and visitors will be made.
Clarence Vance will offer a New
Year's Resolution for the conven
tion.
Lt. Roy Tutherow, of Asheville,
visited his grandparents, Rev. and
Mrs T. F. Deitz, last week. Lt.
Tutherow is spending a 30-day
furlough with his family, after
seeing service in the South Pacific
area for the past nine months.
Huge Smelter To Use
4 Tons Raw Ore Per
Hour, To Burn Coke
Pvt. Paul Cooper,
Of Whittier, Is
Well Of Wounds
v
Pfc. Ea^l Cooper, A Broth
er In Soitith Pacific, Is
Suspicious^Of Number 13.
Pvt. Paul T. Cooper, son of Mr. !
and Mrs. P. M. Cooper, of Whittier. !
was wounded on November 11th,
iccording to a telegram received
from the War Department. Anoth
er message received about ten days
later notified them that he was
back in active service. His mother
and father received Christmas
greetings and a radiogram from
him. Pvt. Cooper entered the ser
vice on February 12, 1942, and first
went to Fort Bragg, from there he
was sent to Florida, th n he was
stationed at Hammer and March
Fields in California, from there he
was sent into foreign service.
He has not been home since he
entered the army. "
Mr. and Mrs. Cooper have anoth
er son, Pfc. Earl Cooper, who is
serving with the Ferry Command
somewhere in the South Pacific.
Pfc. Cooper has been in service
for two years and has not been
home since he entered the army.
Earl entered the service on Friday,
13th, his call numbr was No. 13113
and there have been several other
instances where the letter 13 has
been attached to him. He is rather
superstitious and does not care
for *13" but sO'f^rlt has no! caused
him any bad luck.
Methodists Will
Honor Members
>fow In Service
On Sunday morning the service
roll of the men in service who are
members of the Sylva Methodist
church will be dedicated at the
morning service at 11 o'clock.
The families of these boys are
asked to sit in a group and be the
honor guests at this service.
Sgt. Thad B. Deitz, of the coast
artillery guard stationed at Pana
ma City, Fla., returned to his base
last week after spending the
Christmas holidays with his par
ents, Rev. and Mrs. T. F. Deitz,
at Beta, and his wife, the former
Miss Dorothy Baker. His enlist
ment *1ias extended over a period
of 14 years.
Smoky Mountains Nickel,
Cfirome and Iron Company
Are Completing Building
Plant.
' v ' >?.
The 4-ton-an-hour smelter at
Webster is scheduled to be in op
eration within thirty days, accord
ing to Jay J. Miller, general man
ager here of the Smoky Mountains
Nickel, Chrome and Iron Com
pany. }?
The smelter is 48 feet high, and
is built on the place near Webster
known as the Wilson property. The
smelter will be heated with coke,
and will consume four tons of raw
ore per hour. The ramps from the
tunnels to the smelter have been
completed and high tension power
lines are going in. The motors and
fans used in operating the smelter
will all be electrical. Heat will
be generated to 4,300 degrees, it
was said.
The entire output of the smelter
will go direct into war work, Mr.
Miller said. . ?
The process of smelting the ore
is a process developed by Mr.
Miller's father several years ago
at a similar mine in Pennsylvania,
No1 details of the process could be
discussed by Mr. Miller.
Actual construction started on
the smelter on September f;th, and
with favorable weather, plans are
to have it operating within the
next thirty days.
Other officials of the company
here with Mr. Miller includes
James JoK?son, a director, and P.
M. Ames, chief chemist.
The smelter is on property near
the old Consolidated Nickel Com
pany mine.
Jackson Singers
To Meet On 16th,
Savannah School
Plans are being made for a large
crowd at th regular monthly sing
ing convention, which will be held
at the Savannah school, on Sunday,
January 16th, at two o'clock.
Robert N. Jones, president, said
arrangements had been made to
hold the convention at the Savan
nah school every third Sunday dur
ing the year.
A large attendance was present
for the December meeting, with
five quartettes, three singing class
es and a trio providing music for
the ^afternoon. All singers in the
i district are welcomed, and the pub -
' lie in general is invited to attend.
First Mica Mined In
State Was In Jackson
County 77 Years Ago
RALEIGH ? Reports of surveys
of North Carolina's deposits of
mica, feldspar, and kaolin, a co
operative project by th2 state and
the United States Geological sur
vey, are almost ready for publica
tion and distribution, according to
Dr. .Tanner L. Sturkey, state geol
ogist. These reports, of which four
are now in stages of near-comnle
tion, are an outgrowth of the vital
role mica is playirg in mechanized
warfare.
This state today produces more
than 70 p r cent of our domestic
rr.ica. Formerly mica was imported
from India where it was produced
and from which it was transported
more cheaply than possible to mine
here. The war stopped that supply.
Used For Insulation
Mica is one of nature's triumnhs
in the realm of insulation. The
vast electrical industry, its ramifi
cations in radio radar),
at present depend on it. No other
insulation has been discovered or
d vised that will do the same sort
of job that mica does, and it will
split into sheets of any desired
thickness.
Mica is believed to have been
mined by the Indians for orna
mental purposes. R mains of exten
sive workings of ancient origin are
reported to have been found. D. B.
Sterett, in his Geological Survey
Bulletin, of which he has publish
I cd several, says,
Early Activities
"Modem mica mining in North
Carolina was begun in 1867 by L. E.
Persons, of Philadelphia, previously
of Vermont. Mr. Pearson's atten
tion was directed to Jackson coun
ty by some one in Philadelphia who
had seen a mica crystal exhibited
at the state fair at Columbia, S. C.f
fn 1858, by D. D. Davios, of Webs
ter. Tn the autumn of 1SK7. Mr.
Pearsons went to Jackson county
and lrarned from Mr. Davies the
location of favorable prosrrc s for
mica in Jackson I and Haywood
counties, which h? soon opened."
The Big: Ridge mine is generally
considered to be the first mica mine
to be developed in North Caro
lina.
For the last 40 y^ars North Caro
lina has produced 60 per ccnt of
the mica mined In the United
States. The 1940 production, last
year for which production figure#
have been relased^amounted to
approximately 1,000,(1(190 pounds of
sheet and punch mica.
Little Study Made
Prior to 1941 no geological ex
amination of sufficient detail had
been made to Indieat? the real im
portance of North Carolina as a >
producer of mica. Dr. Stuckey ^
points out. The same is true witll 1
respect to feldspar and kaolin.
I