Newspapers / The News-Record (Marshall, N.C.) / Dec. 14, 1983, edition 1 / Page 1
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4 THt NEWsHP^KD MARSHALL NC 28753 lOTM SERVING THE PEOPLE OF MADISON COUN . . _ _ 4 _ !^U 82nd Year No. 50 PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN THE COUNTY SgAT AT MARSH ALL, NC v WEDNESDAY, December 14, 1983 1 5* Per CODV Upper Laurel Winners UPPER LAUREL RESIDENTS were honored Dec. 3 at the annual awards lun cheon of the Western North Carolina Com munity Development Assoc. Those receiving awards were, from left: Lucille Burnette, Sandy Chesi, Lisa Chesi, Renee Ponder, Carol Bailey, Michael Tipton, Jeff Bailey and Vernon Ponder. Marshall Police Quit Officers Resign Following Gunter Dismissal The resignations of two Marshall policemen left the town without a certified police officer for several days last week. Officers Jasper Tread way and Edward McLean gave mayor Betty Wild notice of their resignations following the Dec. 5 town meeting at which Wild announced that Carlie Gunter, a member of the town police force for 18 years, would not be rehired. On Friday afternoon, William Beasley received cer tification from state law en forcement officials in Raleigh. Beasley was sworn in and reported for duty on Friday night. Mayor Wild reported that the town's new police of ficer would be patrolling the town from 10 p.m. until 6 a.m. Over the weekend, Beasley was assisted by former police officer Warren Edwards. Wild said that Edwards was work ing in a "night watchman's capacity" and was not ap pointed as a member of the force. In one of her first acts as mayor, Wild announced that she had terminated the town's entire police force At the time the force consisted of Carlie Gunter, Jasper Treadway and Edward McLean. Both Tread way and McLean were deputies for Madison County Sheriff E.Y. Ponder. Gunter was the town's only full-time officer. He had served as assistant police chief when Faye Reid was the town's police chief, but had no official title at the tmem of his ter mination. The Madison County Sheriff's Department and the N.C. Highway Patrol were assisting with law enforce ment in Marshall while the town was without any police. Mayor Wild reported on Mon day that both the sheriff's department and Highway Patrol would continue to assist until the force can be fully staffed again. -- On the day following the an nouncemnt that Gunter would be terminated, Wild and the board of aldermen met again at Town Hall to discuss the decision. Aldermen Ed Niles and Sammy I.unsford voted to fire Gunter while board member John Dodson opposed the firing. After the Tuesday meeting, the mayor said that she did not need the approval of the aldermen to fire Gunter. The mayor maintained that the town charter gave her the authority in police matters. On Monday, Wild said that she hopes to hire another full time policeman once a audit is completed of the town's finances. "We can't do anything until we know how much money we've got." she said. Marshall's newest police of ficer was introduced by the mayor at last week's town meeting. Wild said that Beasley is a Madison County native who formerly served as a sheriff's deputy in Texas. Beasley was given temporary certification by the state law enforcment officials. He will have one year to complete his certification training. Rumors have been cir culating that Gunter plans to challenge his dismissal. Con tacted on Monday, the former police office declined com ment. Conservation District Elects Metcalf Emery Metcalf was elected Chairman of the North Carolina Area I Soil & Water Conservation District Associa tion on Nov. 1, 1983 during the t annual fstt rrfeetWff'St' Lake Junaluska. The Area I SWCD Associa tion consists of the 16 western SWCD's in North Carolina. The Districts are responsible for carrying out a soil and water conservation program in their respective counties. Metcalf is currently the chairman of the Madison County Soil k Water Conser vation District. He has served on the district board for the past 9 years. Before being elected as Area I Chairman, Emery had 1 previously served as vice chairman of the association for the past two years. Metcalf lives in the Long Branch section of Madison County. EMERY METCALF Marshall Seeks , Payment Schedule Marshall will try to work out a payment schedule for a $37,000 bill owed to the N. C. Employment Security Com mission (ESC) for unemploy ment benefits paid to former town employees. Marshall mayor Betty Wild announced that the town would be forced to pay the bill at last week's meeting of the board of aldermen. Most of the money owed to the ESC stemmed from unemployment benefits paid to workers on a Housing and Urban Development rehabilitation project in the Rollins section in 1981 . ( Continued on Page 8) Farm Bureau Federation Holds Asheville Convention ASHEVILLE - Policy deci sions covering a wide range of farm problems were com pleted Wednesday by voting delegates to the ,48th annual j#f,h\ epr.WH' of fthfi North Carolina Farm Bureau Federation. John Sledge, who was unanimously re-elected presi dent of the organization, said the approved resolutions become official state Farm Bureau policies for 1984. Resolutions dealing with na tional issues are forwarded to the American Farm Bureau convention for consideration. Sledge also announced that membership in the state organization now stands at over 225,000 member-families. Re-elected to serve with Sledge for another one-year term were Vice Presidents D. Gray Faulkner of Henderson, and Atlas Wooten of Green ville. Also elected as Vice President was S. E. Johnston of Fletcher. Delegates, representing every county Farm Bureau in the. state, unanimously ap proved a resolution outlining certain basic rights for farmers "to protect American agriculture from exploitation and discrimination." This in cludes: ? The right to own farm property without government interference. ? The right to pass on farm property for the purpose of farming without confiscatory estate taxes. ? The right to use all necessary tools, both mechanical and chemical, unless otherwise proven without doubt to be harmful to the public. ? The right to have access to all markets by all types of transportation without restric tions, slowdowns, or stop pages by any individual, organization or union. ? To have access to world markets, free from all em bargoes or restrictions, unless proven by Congress that these embargoes will be in the best interest of the United States. If Congress decides an embargo is necessary, the price support on embargoed commodities should be 100 percent of pari ty ? To be free from farm pro ducts being used as a political tool at home and world-wide, resulting in great loss not only to the farmer, but to the United States as a whole Delegates also went on record supporting farm legislation and programs for agricultural commodities that will assure adequate food and fiber for consumers and pro vide an opportunity for farmers to make a profit. Among other policy posi tions, voting delegates: ? Opposed any action which would reduce the ability to the Farm Credit System to serve farmers. ? Supported the year-long effort to make 1984 a special year of soil and water em phasis in North Carolina and to make the public aware of conservation assistance available. ? Recommended the exten sion of the Milk Law, and con tinued support of the concept of the N. C. Milk Commission and the principles on which it was established. ? Supported the flue -cured tobacco lease and transfer program as defined in the recently passed legislation. ? Recommended that infor mation on agricultural pro ducts so important to the economy of North Carolina be displayed in all information centers situated along our highways. Mr. and Mrs. Samuel T. Franklin, Jr.. Henderson were selected as Farm Bureau's "Young Farmer and Rancher Family of the Year" during the Ashevilte convention. The Life and Times of Jeter Conley Pritchard By JOE MORGAN Last Part of a Series I Jeter Conley Pritchard was born in a two-room cottage beside the railroad tracks among the poor folks of Jonesboro, Tenn. on July 12. 1857, His father was a carpenter and his mother was the daughter of a farmer. Ear in his life, his mother cted that young Jeter |would succeed in life. When he was still a toddler, occurred an incident which she based her diction.' One afternoon, ter began crying lustfully continued far into the lit. After all her efforts to lit him at ease had failed, she ved that the child's gaze fixed upon the mantel. , Pritchard took down a liny clock from the mantel give it to tha child His ceased immediately r knew that such i\ future Mitchell County Sheriff and U.S. Marshall, were play ing along a roadside when a troop of Confederate cavalry came upon the scene. Jeter and George threw rocks at the approaching soldiers causing the horses to buck and stopp ing the advance momentarily. The officer in charge yelled for them to stop and offered that he wished a hundred men of such fortitude so that he could make short shrift of the war. Jeter's father served in the Confederate Army. When the war was over, young Jeter hoped against hope that the next train would bring his father back. The father never returned, having succumbed to dysentary in Mobile, Ala Jeter attended the village school in Jonesboro for two or three terms. This was all the schooling his mother could af ford at the time. Jeter would At he was ap ? could spare, ten cents in money, a fried chicken wrap ped in a bandana and her blessing. Jeter loved his mother with a zeal bordering on worship. After getting settled in his work, he tenderly cared for her until the day of her death. He provided an education for his sisters, though struggling with his poverty. His mother died in Bakersville in the ISTO's in middle age and was buried on a knoll overlooking the village. The town of Bakersville is linked with his destiny. While Jeter was on his way to a com munity gathering, afoot, for lack of other means of transportation, Jacob Bowman, a prosperous lawyer of Bakersville, and his attrac tive daughter, Melissa, whisk ed by in a handsome surrey drawn by spirited horses. Later, the daughter graced Jeter's home as his second wife, during his term of office Democratic ing as a "true blue Republican". While serving in this capaci ty, he had many thrilling ex periences. On one occasion, he was in Raleigh on some business connected with his duties, and Governor Alfred M. Scales handed him a cir cular that offered a reward for the arrest of a desperate character, thought to be in Mitchell County. Scales remarked t6 Pritchard that he could earn the reward by ar resting and delivering this prisoner. Pritchard located the party and, after a tough tussel, hand-cuffed him and started by train from Marion to Raleigh with the prisoner. Arriving at the first station on the way, a mob bent on rescu ing the prisoner met the train. Pritchard backed the prisoner into the second clasa coach with drawn revolver and at the same time told the mob that at the first move violence on their part he'd I the prisoner before I take, him This pritchard deliv? to Governor S officers, had been captured He was taken to a nearby boarding house in Bryson City for first aid treatment. Prit chard and four others were selected to guard him. A young girl informed Pritchard that Redmon's wife had slip ped him a pistol and that he kept it concealed under his pillow. By a conventional ruse, Pritchard distracted the attention of the prisoner, sud denly lunged to his bedside, managed to wrest from the prisoner's hand the pistol which he had snatched from under the pillow. By a hair's breath, Pritchard escaped death. While still a resident of Bakersville, Pritchard mar ried August Ray, a graduate of Asheville Female College She was the daughter of a well-to-do farmer who lived in Madison County. Afler his marriage, he moved to a farm at Kay in the White Oak sec tion of Madison County, near Hill. While he became said to him, "Pritchard, you're too kind hearted to be sheriff; you could not drive away and sell for taxes a cow belonging to a widow and hungry little children. You're better suited to represent your county in the State Legislature." Thus, Pritchard was dissuaded from running for sheriff. This proved to be the next important step in his career. Sooner than expected, op portunity knocked on his door. In the ensuing county cam paign the Repulican nominee for State Representative, une qual to his opponent on the stump, was being chewed to pieces. The Republican leaders persuaded their con didate tp withdraw and let Pritchard take his place. When Rollins notified Prit chard of his selection, he was in the field plowing. Rollins loaned him the money with which to buy a suit in which to make the race. He proved more than a match for his hard hitting Democratic oppo nent and was elected to repre sent Madison County in Hie He and JETER CONLEY PRITCHARD lallv unsuited for farming ?re handising Due to his ? his nature, he wai lot Ciiirtomers, so his mercanlile went unrf pavlnj beavtir /tuto (til) operating the little ? 'ii' law by da> to tr te at n ht n th \ty?srm ylai >wil a ihisk > > stU | at (h< page* a< le read h'BHel ibnt't P* tl) .
The News-Record (Marshall, N.C.)
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Dec. 14, 1983, edition 1
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