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MAMIAUU M. C.. JULY . ISti
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SfakttW Knob fa MaBo County
The Worst Road And The lest Folks
By MAN LEY WADB WHLLMAN
New.
MTKn.IJCR KNOB Driving
wait free the lowlands, you like
the highway. Mostly they're four
lUM, .tnding orex height and
Hckiag through hollows, with big
signs about your tU money at
work. TfcwjrY a pleasant river of
pavement, as far as Asheville. But
beyocg Asheville, into Madison
County 'Bloody Madison" it
used to be called, and its folks
wear the name like a proud medal
well deserved the road list a
pleasant bard-topped river say
mere. It's a lean, wriggling snake,
scrambling over mountain called
Walnut and Hurricane, steep up
and down. Ifs snaky-tricky too,
and if you doot know what you Ye
driving on, it can be snaky-mean.
It can near about wriggle you off
its shiny back, up against the
mountain's hard jowl to one side
or down, down into your long home to want to look for a figbt."
bt banjo-pick
r. Uot to ha happy - be aays,
-80 ha t. fat to or eat by what
they call this road, you'd be bet
tar Off stay inf."
Other come around. You sit
with them oa the porch, farina:
toward U.S. 00-70. Behind bhe
house t big country that's what
high country was in, say , 1800.
There' talk about hunt and
f rorks, bow to lead your own rifle
shell o that the bullet will go
you akn it, knock over a
or bear or wildcat or. if
you're bad shoved, knock over a
mean man who's fixing to knock
you over.
"The mean one are the moat
part gone,'" says Ob ray. Them
that gave Madison the name of
bloody. They're dead in the midst
of life, or if they are still living,
It's In prison. Not much of that
rough crowd any more, except
few young boys getting big enough
on the other
Ttiere's a fairly new and fairly
nice bypass around Marshall, the
county seat, that's two miles long
and one street wide beside the
French Broad River. But get be
yond the bypass, back on U.S. 26
70, and folks ay, "This here's the
worst road to be called a U S.
highway anywheres in this here
land of liberty."
Natural Folks
Your friends welcome you back.
They're trie natural people, not
out of Lil Abner or John Pox Jr.
The men are long and lean as old
home-made rifles, or as chunky
as boulders. There are women so
ugly flies light on them, and oth
er women as pretty as ever you
saw m a picture show. They break
the hills for their daily bread and
build their homes in the rock.
"A man's plumb got to be hap
py here," aays Obray Ramsey. He
has Indian eyes and his cheeks
bracket to a ready grin. They say
he's the best rifle shot in these
parts, a ad you know he's near
"Anybody wants a fight up
here," allows another, "he'll find
somebody to nroommodate him,
sooner or later."
In front, the lean, steep road is
rough with patches like an old
beat up pair of pants. Yonder on
Hurricane, there are two passing
lanes in eight miles. Here on
Walnut, none. Other side of the
road, a lofty plunge down to the
Laurel River. Beyond, a long look
toward crouch-backed mountains
one the line between Carolina and
Tennessee. A car howls past and
down, around one cup-handle bend,
around another that all but flings
it back the way it came.
"Look at that fellow hang on
his steering wheel, " says Obray,
squinting his Indian eyes. "He'd
better hang onto it, else he'll take
wing and sail up among them
service trees."
You"re polite enough to say it's
not much of a road at that.
"Never call it a road, call it a
trail," a voic bids you. "It might
could do for moccasins. Maybe for
with all six bores
the brake, lever
w
a A kTi&p 1
A truck lurch, down, swaylaf
like a runaway elephant An
other ceases up,
shifting from gear to powerful
fear.
"My idea of nothiac to do rs
drive s big track through hers,
drawls a man with a week's black
whiskers oa bis square face
They jackfcntf a a
band," say Obray, who's watched
it happen many time. They
quash on the rocks or they fall
down yonder." Far below, tea
river rushes with a bright shout.
Spring turn to summer a you
watch, the sentinel trees are
strong with leaves.
"Pick roe a song one time," you
ask Obray.
Sinfs And Play
He picks banjo, plays old aonf
you ask for, and sings them, hlfh
true-pitched. He picks and sinfs
one or two you've never heard,
only heard about. Song of true
lovers parted forever, songs of
death in lonely places with none
to hear a plea for mercy.
"I wish 1 was on some tall
mountain,
Where the ivy grows as
black as ink ..."
Again a big truck, on the slow,
dogged upward crawl, and behind
it a dawdling procession of cars
that dare not try to pass.
"This here's the prince of places
for a car to heat up, slowing that
away," comments one of the
group.
"I've given a many a heated
car water," node Obray. Hi fin
gers on the banjo strings are skill
ed as a surgeon's:
"She cam down the
stair.
Combing back her yellow
hair.
And her cheecks were as
red as the rose . . .
"Thr mMi a qfafa fml-k '
ventura. "They must be getting
ready to fix this highway."
"Jus nach It," amend. Obray.
Patch aususshirea, alee a fellow
fctght fall all the way through to
Communist China." Ha sing:
"Another ha waa her,
Vm awry to tail,
And she left me a warning,
ae war. of farewell ..."
lis had quit an election in
SM senna County last fall. The Re
publican, won every county office.
This present gathering Is of Dem
ocrats. They call the Republican.
Badrcal, as though Grant were
in the White House, W. W. Hold-
en in the State House, and Kirk's
militia looking down honest men's
throats.
"It's getting right hard to han
dle this part of Madison County
for the Democrats," remark Ob
ray. "The politicians talk so much
about giving us better roads.'"
Worst Roads
"Should ought to talk about bet
tar roads," offers another. "Ain't
no worse roads, no where on this
earth."
They flower at U. S. 25-71),
sled and scabbed with clumsy
mending. It looks like an un
made had for goblim.
i
Mr. Harry Waldrup
MISS RANDOLPH
BECOMES BRIDE
OF H.S. WALDRUP
rnrr moth proofing
1 n l l storage till fall
EVERY GARMENT SANITIZED, HOLD PROOFED,
SblW PROOFED
HVAr. Htm Uetef XMAVWN-TtV' 1 a
Yaw Rah. War
mmm J-.
Of Oa
Rncantly We, AdUled A Big
Ts HmndU Up To A fall
All Year Heavy Soiled Clothe
Edwards Cleaners
MARSHALL, N. C.
FOR COMPLETE PICK-UP Jt DELIVERY SERVICE
CALL 649-2461
Hot Sprinas News
R. C. K1HBY, Correspondent
nvgm 1
"On time somebody wanted to
ernor and came up here to
Obray remembered. "That
I told the folks, first thing
he'd ay was to promise us better
Sura enough, he did. It
was like the birds singing. I war
rant he was puzzled why every
body laughed so hard at him."
There's talk about the gover
nors North Carolina used to have.
The name of Kerr Scott is spoken
kindly. They recollect that Scott
got hard top on some roads here
and there, and electric lines up
among the eternal mountains.
People hare bright lights and wa
ter heaters, and deep freezers
stored with meat of their own
killing, deer and bear and ground-
rs a car,
opposite. .Ohio
shag nJjam
BBBBBBBB - T f. IT. "am aBBBBBBBBaWBBBBBBBl BBBBBL 1 , V
sf'Bs. atV ) V I They
4 . HrW"'.'g
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n n 11 n n
The Field Offices Of The
Asheville Production
Credit Association
(Formerly Located In Home Electric Building)
ARE NOW LOCATED
In The
New Office Building
Next Door To Fire Dept., and City Hall
On Main Street - - - Marshall
See Is For Your Short and Intermediate
Farm Inane
Ceremony Held Saturday In
Bethel Baptist
Church
Miss Rebecca Jane Randolph and
Harry Stanley Waldrup were unit
ed in marriage Saturday, July
24, 1966 in Bethel Baptist Church
by the Rev. T. S. Henderson.
The bride is the daughter of
Mr. and Mrs. Lot Randolph of
Mar Hill. She is a senior at
Western Carolina College. The
bridegroom is employed in Shel
by where they will live, after
three years U. S. Army service.
Ho is the son of Mr. and Mrs.
racy Waldrup.
bride wore an Empire or
gown with lace appliqueat
a veil attached to a coronet,
traa given in marriage by her
T PeMsKonTr attendants were Mm.
one and an older one. Mlliam Jarvi. sister of bride.
m across to you and Ob- .. : JlM feobinaon. Brides-
ray and the others, maidl were MrB. jerry yVebb and
"Isn't there any other way to Miss Lucretia Waldrup, sisters of
get over this mountain ?" asks , the bridegroom. Mrs. Jiitisn Da-
Mrs. Lloyd Price and daughter,
Selma are visiting in Monroe, Va.
this week.
The Kenneth Haggett family of
Springfield, Va., are the guests
yf Mrs. Mona Swarm at this time.
Mm. Carol Anderson and chil
dren, Andrew and Hannah are
upending two weeks with ber moth
er, Mrs. Pauline Cooper of Rocky
Mount.
Mrs. O. W. Grubbo is steadily
improving m St. Joseph's Hospital
and is expected home in a few
days.
A covered dish supper will be
served at the Presbyterian Church
Thursday night. Rev. Ted Finley
and wife, Missionaries to Mexi
co, will show films of his work in
Mexico. Mr. Finley is a native of
Madison County.
7
"ft
Term
We invite you to visit lit in our
Modern Headquarters
CLOICE PLEMMONS
Branch Office Manager
Office Hours: 8:30 a.m., to 5:00 p.m., Every Monday
Complete Office Schedule To Be Published Later
the older man, half-truculently,
half-plaintively.
"Why, yes, sir," says Obray,
and his voice is bland. "You
might have thought of it for your
own serf."
"What way's that?"
"You could fly," says Obray,
the very soul of helpfulness.
The young man barks a laugh.
The older one crinkles this mouth.
"Jast Sit Here"
"I was afraid something like
that," he mumbles, and looks at
you and Obray and the rest. "Let
me ask you," he says suddenly,
"how do you mountaia people live
up here? What do you do?"
"We don't do a damned thing,"
Obray informs him. "We just sit
here on the porch."
Back go the Ohioans, getting
into their car and creep windingly
toward the top of Walnut, where
they'll creep windingly down the
other side, now up there, now
down there. Maybe they'll be able
to breathe again when they get
near Asheville.
I The sun slides toward those dis
I hint western mountain. The fore
taste of evening is in your mouth.
A bird sings, "Sweet-sweet-eweet-sweet-peaches!"
Everybody looks
at U. & 26-70. No signs here
abouts concerning your tax dol
lars at work. Maybe because they
aren't working on that stretch of
U.S. 25-70. ,
"Well now," says a wide-hatted
man, wipe got pretty badly hurt
by the Republican sweep, "we get
ue another election next year."
"And lit be trying to gat the
Democrat vote out," says Obray.
"T'm going to tell the people about
better schools."
"And better roads?" you sug
gest, anrf owray grins at you as
if you'd taken leave of the last
Hck of sense you ever had.
Beat Folks
"I might be wise not to do that,"
he says. "You knew, Madison is
supposed to be the meanest coun
try in the United State. I
wouldn't want any Madison Coun
ty voter to think I waa trying to
tell him a He." Obray looked off
somewhere. Touts hereabout has
vis and Miss Charlene Harrison.
They wore pink peau de soie
gowns and carried -nosegays of
summer flowers. Saundra Wal
drup was flower girl.
Gary Waldrup was his broth
er's best man and ushers were
Wayne Ballard, Gary Randolph,
brother of the bride, Jerry Webb,
William Jarvis and Wayne May
aer.
A reception in the Raadolph
home followed, with the bride'
parents, assisted by Mrs. Wayne
Taylor, Miss Sandra Duck, Miss
Rosalind Duck, Miss Linda Duck,
Miss Kathy Randolph and Mrs.
Lester Goddy.
Renew Your
Subscription To
The News-Record
1,450 TROUT
RELEASED IN
COUNTY WATERS
In accordance with previously
approved plans, the Wildlife Re
sources Commission has completed
stocking 1,450 trout averaging 8 to
10 inches in length, in the waters
of Madison County. These
ish were produced at the Federal
sh Hatchery locates) near Pis-
Forest. Madison County
a.ajndPJsh Prrteeters Bay-
ond Ramsey and Clyde HunU-
nger directed the release of the
fish and solicited assistance from
members of the local wildlife club
and other interested sportsmen.
The Wildlife Resources Commis
sion points out that the coopera
tive effort of all those interested
in the State's fish and game re
sources will be required to bring
about better fishing, the favorite
outdoor recreation of so many
Americans.
Renew Your
Subscription To
The News-Record
Mrs. John Worley
Passes Saturday;
Funeral Monday
Mrs. John Worley, 80, of Hot
Springs Rt. 1, died Saturday, July
24, 1966 in her home after a long
illness.
She was a resident of Madison
County for 60 year.
Surviving are a son, Henry Wor-
. it . c : r.. 1 . . U a
lev oi not opiiiias ftv, x,
daughters, Mrs. Homer Allison
Hot Springs Rt 1, Mrs.
and Mrs. Ira Brown of
rt I. ,-v j4 IH UUKI . afemsn.es iuuuib
Greene ville, Tenn.; seven
dren. f
cervices were new u ji
on Spring Creek, of which she was
ated and burial was jr ' Ji church
cemetery.
Bowman Funeral Home was in
charge.
A -i YT
'Tl . r
the subject:
"Love is fair and love is ehaitnjgg,
And love is pretty when it is ne
When love (rows older, love
grows colder
And fsdes away like the
morning dew. ..."
Help Your Child To The Best
Possible Education,
Contact Your Madison County
WORLD BOOK - CHILDCRAFT
REPRESENTATIVE
DAVID M. ROBERTS
P. O. Box 32
Phone 689-3881
MARS HILL, N. C.
Co good
targe Eskimo family
holds up to 595 pwnds af frozei food!
is backed by G.L's reputation
for quality!
17.0 co. ft CHEST
Alto 12 and 23 cu. ft. sizes
WILD'S Sat SERVICE
Main Street Marshall, N. C.
been known to kill liar."
Touching the ban, he changes