Newspapers / The News-Record (Marshall, N.C.) / Dec. 19, 1924, edition 1 / Page 1
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THE ONLY NEWSPAPER PUUL1L" . ) IN MADISON COUNTY VOL. XXI CONVICT CALIP NEAR MARSHALL Road Force of 140 Men in Stripes and Some Thing of What They Are Dom A VISIT TO THE camp : The people of Marshall and Vicinity have for nearly a year had within a short distance of the town some three miles what Is usually known as a convict camp a road force made up Of men who have been convicted of violating the laws of the State and are serving their terms out in what ia usu ally called the penitentiary or State prison. . These men are under certain officers , and guards and are made to work to interest of the State in build ing highways. Since this force has been in the County, our readers may be. interested to know what has taken place. In the first place, the camp itself had to be built to take care of 140 convicts, twenty guards, four officers and the families of the officers. , This particular camp is under the supervision of Mr. W. E. Raines, formerly of ; Wake County, and Mr. L. H. Cham pion of near Charlotte, as. su pervisors, Mr. 'J. A. Odom, Steward; and Mr. A, N, Mc Millon, night Corporal. A casual visit to the camp and a look at the men at their work does not give one a prop er exception of the magnitude h task of caring f or and 6ing for these cares of the SWte and the proper utilization of this other wise wasted man uower. On a special' invita- -tionfrom Supervisor Raines, we' took a trip this week not only J - to the camp, but toaij . tne ae- "Bartments of "the camp "and were really surprised to see the inside of the camp. .We were first taken to the dungeon in which are four cells for those who misbehave. Had you ever thought of what provision is made for these men to bathe or -to have their clothes washed! There was a concrete floor and shower baths and a window through which the washed and mended clothes are passed to those who bathe, A large iurnace and a 60-gallon pres sure tank provide : hot water - ior bathing.- : In the commissary a sul ficient supply is kept on hand to insure its being fresh. Two thousand pounds of meat and 25 " barrels of flour, -canned .goods and so forth was the 'supply on hand. Part" of the Vjteeat was . native . and . part - western fat -, v? n ' Irt-tKe , kitchen two immense fanges are used for cooking for the convicts, - while one ;. " smaller range is used for- the r - officers and guards, the cooks being convicts who know how ' to cook in large quantities, For instance, 950 biscuits was one item. The menu consisted for the meal we saw consumed, i coarse or whole gram hominy, - bacon,' bread, molasses, coffee, and biscuits. The mess hall dining room was well lighted ''' and heated and the meals well - served. Regular hours and . f ye9Fj. is the ' rule." At-aCer-' ""uua hourtfceylf lile in and are seated at the tables. I At a -signal frpm the. officers they all '1 begin eating, the food having - - previously been placed- at their places, except that as thetarfl began a receptacle .chaining ?bout a btzshelpf "ot ' biscuits w3 cjried ' In by the; cooks. ,---J.Jf " 3y man leaves the table, """""without sufficient food we ere ' ; told thatilj is his own fault, i.s ,, ' it is the purpose to give all a sufficient quantity 01 wen pre . pared food. .The meals are ! 4 varied, beef being served twice a week, coffee twice a day and to on, and fish occasionally,- The meal finished, a wcrJ from the officers in charge r -! the convicts are counted i they leave the disirj room fcr their bunk room a place we had visited while the meal was in progress. All these 140 men have their recreation from sup per time until eight o'clock when they are ordered to bed, a guard watching them while they sleep one guard serving from six P. M., until 12 o'clock at night, then another for the next six hours. : The management does not allow the men to gamble. The bed room fs well heated with stoves and the men are provided with five blankets each. The bunks or mattress es are arranged side by side on a level, one tier some four feet above the other. At six o'clock in the morning, the men are called up, given breakfast and marched to their work. BLASTING ROCKS This particuler force is con structing a highway along the French Broad river toward Asheville. - When the work was begun in January last, the number of men. was about half the present number,, and a gi , ... LI LI Li ; Li LI LI LI LI in . n n Li , - ' , - ' - i I 4 1. i - - LI 4 4 I hi i ... Al 1 iTl 1 (CtoprrtcHt, mo A MARSHALL, N. gantic task confronted them blasting solid rocks fofa great part and filling in the side of the river, on which as a foun dation, one of the finest hard surfaced roads in the State is to be built, connecting the paved street of Marshall with the city of Asheville, a distance ot 21 miles. The force which we have attempted to describe has the 'building of the foun dation work of the road from Marshall to the Buncombe County line; JYom Asheville a force is at work meeting this force and it is hoped that the two forces will meet in about a year and a half and that the road may be complete in about two years. ' The premises are kept in a most sanitary condition, run ning water and modern con veniences being provided in the bed or bunk room as well as m the other parts of the camp. . LATE NEXT WEEK On account of Christmas, the Dec. 26 issue of the News Record will hardly, reach our subscribers before the first of the following week. . THE PUBLISHER. 11 jj inniitiiiiii IHRISTMAS fa a day of cheer because we make so. We bestow gifts upon those who are dear to us by ties of blood or mendship, we contribute to the happiness of children and turn kindly thoughts upon the unfortunate. Each year sees a greater tendency to assist these latter with something more substantial than thoughts. In all parts of America, and we assume that the same is true of other portions of the civilized world, there is manifested an increasing desire to help. . , Few communities, towns or cities lack organized efforts for the carrying of real Christmas cheer, to every destitute family, every hungry wayfarer, and especially to every child of poverty; that the latter, at least, may not regard the day, its symbols and promises as things of empty significance. This is in accord.'. ance with the teachings of Him for whom the day Was named, and evidences the growth of spirituality in the world. , How littte we know, of how well off we are! How we mag' nify the trivial things of lifet How prone we are to forget the securities and liberties of American citizenship! flow hard it is to realize that the elements of trap happiness lie within ourselves and not within what we possess. But we, are be ; ginning to know, and the spirit of Christmas is anj important . element in our teaching. Right sentiments soon crystallize into ' . actions. The phrase, "Merry Christmas,,, upon all lips is an J incentive to make it merry, hence the season becomes a time . to forget strife and gloom and to spread peace and joy. ; Is the old-fashioned Christmas passing? If so, a better one. is taking its place. Modern arrangements may have done away with the yule log, but we still have the holly and the ever green. They are but symbols. The tender emotions in our hearts count for much more. We can' blend our voices and attune our souls to full jubilee on this festive occasion, which ; commemorates the most important announcement of all time, that of the religion of peace and love. Merry Christmas! CISC. 19, 1924 LAY TRAIN RAILS BY ELECTRICITY New Equipment Employed for Speed in Rail road Work Do. (Special) An electric rail-laying train which takes up old track and replaces it with new, is a recent application of electricity to the railroad industry, , says the North and South Carolina Pub lic Utility information Bureau. A? fifty-five horsepower elec tric generator, driven by steam froci the locomotive boiler sup plied working power .for the railwaying train. A traveling craije, which moves along rails running along the sides of the cars and between them handles the material. , When the train reaches the track to be replaced, the old traek is loosened and lifted out -- CTHS PUI5LI5HERV ... , k, HV ; CONFEDERATE PENSIONS NOW IN THE OFFICE OF CLERK OF SUPERIOR COURT IN MARSHALL of the way by the crane. (It lays a new length in place, de posits the old length on board and moving forward one track length at a time, it repeats the performance as often as nec essary. An experimental train now in operation consists of nine cars, and lays more than one half a mile of track in an eight hour, day. It is also equipped with special lights for night work. . Burning cotton stalks will kill few weevils but will destroy much valuable humus and organic matter. Plow under the stalks instead of burning' them advise agronomy work ers at State College. it I. t Jit inUIC 1000 LET THOSE WHO CLAIM PRESENT THEIR CLAIMS The pensions for the Confed erate veterans of Madison County are now in the office of the Clerk of the Superior Court at 'the courthouse in Marshall. Mr. W. West, the efficient and accommodate ing clerk, will be glad to de liver these pensions to anybody presenting proper claims for them. They are for Confeder ate veteran and their widows. - In this connection, it may be interesting to our readers to know how many pensioners of each class are now in Madison. There are in Madison County at the present time 104 people entitled to pensions as follows : 3 First class, who draw $15 a month. 1 Second class who draw $75 semi-annually. 1 Third - class who draw $67.50 semi-annually. 99 Fourth class, of whom 59 are widows, who draw $60.00 each semiannually. Quite a number of the pensions have already been delivered, but there are yet quite a num ber who have not yet present ed their claims. RaUigh NeWspa- per in Favor of State-Wide Ban ! on Fire Crackers Custom Termed "Heathenish Chinese Invention" in Editorial. (By BROCK BARKLEY) Raleigh, Dec. 14. A State wide ban on the sale of fire works is being aggitated in Ra leigh as the towns stage a de fensive against a fire works bombardment by a consider able part oMts male school population. . - A couple .... of merchants lo cated beyond the city limits did their Christmas shopping for fire' works early with the result 'that boys are making life miserable for, their elders. The two newspapers have been broadcasting the complaints of the citizens, and The Raleigh Times has been moved to apply for State aid. , .- ; -" In an editorial advocating a law to prohibit the sale of fire crackers anywhere in the State, The Times opens as follows.;. . "With a Federal Government which advises against , the use even of Christmas trees,' a State which talks fire prevention at all- seasons and a local man agement of affairs which bans the use lof shingled roofs, it does look as if something might be done about the use of a heathenish : Chinese invention by school children to greet the approach of Christmas, f; "The city law prevents both the sale and shooting of fire crackers but It fails to reach merchants located beyond the corporate limit who have been (Carried to Second P&e)
The News-Record (Marshall, N.C.)
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Dec. 19, 1924, edition 1
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