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ASSOCIATION
Published Every Thunday al Retford, N.C 28376
119 W. Ehvood Avenue
Subscription Rates In Advance
her Year ? 15.00 6 Month* - S2.75 3 Month* - SI.50
PALL DICKSON Pub Ihher-Editor
SAM C. MORRIS General Manner
LAURIE TELFAIR Reporter
MRS. PALL DICKSON Society Editor
Second Claw Postage Paid at Raeford. N.C.
THURSDAY, MARCH 9, 1972
(pinion end mmmrnfu/T
by Paul Dickaon
It was 25 years ago tomorrow, Mar. 10, 1947, when the National Guard
unit here was inspected and officially recognized after the second World
War, and I guess it makes me something of an old timer to remark that
time sure does fly. This unit, Battery A of the 677th Anti - Aircraft
Automatic Weapons Battalion, was among the first line units in the state
to be organized after the war, if not the fust, and it had three officers and
forty - one enlisted men on the day of its inspection for Federal
recognition. I will not go into who they were, except for Clarence M.
Willis, who was the first to enlist and who is the only original member still
in the National Guard. All the others have faded away, as General
MacArthur would say, but Clarence goes right on. So for him, here is a
happy anniversary wish, and a wish that he could have 25 more.
Another thought in connection with that National Gaurd unit comes to
my mind and that's the fact that of all those 44 people, of whom many
had served in the war, all were volunteers and there was no draft blowing
on their necks.
.... And from wishing a happy anniversary to Sergeant Mtyor Willis
and the National Guard unit, it is but a step to the very serious subject of
the more than 70,000 young Americans who have chosen to flee their
country rather than serve in its armed forces during the undeclared war in
Southeast Asia. These men are mostly in Canada and Sweden, but many
are elsewhere, as fugitives and as men without a country.
The solution would at first thought appear to be simple and obvious:
"These fellows made their bed. Let them lie in it."
From the point of view of all those who were drafted or volunteered
and served in World Wars One and Two. and in Korea, it is certainly the
obvious reaction. To many who have been drafted and sent to Vietnam,
and to many of the families of those who have been sent there never to
return, exile may seem too good for those who refused to go.
Of course, there was a national unity during the world wars. We knew
then and wc still know that the Kaiser had to be stopped, as did Hitler and
Hirohito and N^ussolini.
?this national unity of purpose has not existed during the war in
Southeast Asia, and in fact a national policy on the Vietnam war has never
been declared. Dissent has been loud and public and at times highly
placed, and the only ones who have become criminals for dissenting have
been those who would not serve when called up for the armed forces.
In previous wars a national policy was stated, loudly and clearly, and
when the nation was at war dissent at any level was not tolerated. We were
in a fight for national survival, right or wrong, and we knew it.
Now as 1 remember, most of the American people felt our leaders were
right at the time we gradually got involved more and more in Vietnam,
but never enough of us. apparently, for Congress to declare war or for
Presidents F.isenhower, Kennedy or Johnson to ask for it. As time went on
those who felt we should not be there got louder and louder, until for the
last several years "out" has become the word, and we have actually lost
some respect for our Armed Forces for doing the duty that we sent them
to do.
Well, soldiering has been tough these past few years, what with a soldier
(or sailor, marine or airman) not knowing what his country was trying to
do and* never being allowed the singleness of purpose: killing the enemy,
which every American soldier in every previous war had to justify his
actions.
There are many who argue today that it took as much courage for a
young American to defy tradition, disgrace his family and friends and give
up all hope for a normal future by refusing to serve as it did to submit and
take part in a war he thought was wrong.
These are strong arguments, and 1 am no oracle. I don't hear any of our
public leaders offering much in the way of a sensible, simple solution,
either. It is my opinion, though, that if we are to retain our national
posture and the ability to back up any statement or policy, we must
protect and defend our right to demand military service from our young
men when our leaders decide we need it. and if these leaders turn out to
have been wrong, then these young men. called in error, must be casualties
and part of the cost. Errors by our national leadership cost us in many
ways which are less obvious, anyway.
Sadly, but certainly, we will need our young men again, and we will not
then allow them to decide individually whether or not the cause is just. So
my leaning is like Stephen Decatur's "Our country, right or wrong." While
the cost is high, it would not be in our national interest to forgive anyone
who refused to serve or deserted.
Browsing in tho filos
of Tho Nows-Journal
25 years ago
Thursday. March 13.1947
The fosthumous Bronze Star Medal for
"merltorloui achievement and dauntlen
courage In action against the enemy In
I wo Jlma" was awarded In Raleigh
Saturday to Marine Pfc. Albert F. Smoak.
son of Mr. and Mrs. R.A. Smoak of
Ashley Heights.
? ? ?
Delegations called on the county
oommtaatoners of both Hoke snd Moore
Counties at their meetings last weak in
Iho interest of getting the rued from Vaa
in Moore County to Lobelia In Hoke
County rebuilt and surface treated.
? e ?
Pvt. Angus J. Currle is spending a
furlough with his parent!. Mr. and Mrs.
Rex Currte.
The Good Health X-ray clinic was
finished last Friday when Mr. Satterwhite
aet up his machine at the community
church at While - Tex Mill and X-rayed
131 additional folks, makings grand total
of 3234 for tha whole clinic.
'According to Mao this worked wonders in China"
'by LAURIE TELFAIR
It's Near Enough
To Make Her Smoke
Cheryl Walker, who works here setting
copy prepared in various states of
legibility into neat inches of news, feels
like she is losing out on all the benefits of
giving up smoking since she doesn't
smoke anyway.
She was reading in The Reader's Digest
of all sorts of incentives companies are
giving to get employees to stop smoking,
she complained, and even if she worked
for a place that had such a program, she
wouldn't be eligible. It's enough to make
her go out and buy a pack, she said.
First off, there are the bonuses she is
losing since she can't give up smoking
Some companies are paying a cash bonus,
she said she read, to employes who can
quit the weed.
Well, that doesn't hurt her so much
since it's not likely that many companies
in tobacco country are interested in
promoting non - smoking. What really
upsets her is all the money she can't save
by not giving up smoking According to
the magazine, you can save S150 or so a
Puppy Creek
Philosopher
Dear edilar:
A lot of columnists who didn't get to
make the trip to China have been
complaining that nobody has found out
what actually took place over there, if
anything, but they were looking for the
big things when they should have been
looking for the little things
For example, on his return, Walter
Cronkite, in summing up some of his
impressions which didn't include what
went on at the summit talks since he
couldn't find out any more than you and
me what went on there, said he couldn't
get over how clean the streets of Peking
were, and contrasted them with the
streets of New York and other big cities
where 1 understand it's considered
unsanitary for children to play hop -
scotch.
He pointed out also how 200.000
Chinese turned out one day to shovel the
snow off Peking's streets.
Well. I'll tell you. If 200,000 New
Yorkers tackled their streets some
morning it'd make a difference too.
But what I wanted to know, and what
the television reporters never thought to
ask. is, what would those 200.000 able -
bodied Chinese have been doing if they
weren't shoveling snow'' Don't they have
regular jobs?
Also, the reporters and the other
visitors too couldn't get over the
immensity of the ancient Chinese Wall,
the 20 - foot ? high, 40 ? foot ? thick
monstrosity running for thousands of
miles over mountains and through valleys
and built over 2.000 years ago by
300,000 slaves.
If you'U give me 300.000 slaves whoU
work for a bowl of rice a day. and 50.000
other slaves who're growing and
delivering that rice at the same rate of
pay. no telling what 1 could build ...
maybe a paved highway to every house in
the country and a rock fence around
every farm and ranch, provided
somebody would furnish the
wheelbarrows and the whips.
But that was ancient China. How about
modern China? I don't know a thing
about it, lame as the reporters who've
been there, but there must be some
people over there who. looking out the
window from beneath their warm cover
on a winter morning, sure hate to see it
snowing.
Yours faithfully,
J.A.
year by not smoking. Just put the money
you would spend on tobacco products
away in a piggy bank or something and at
the end of the year, you'll have a nice
little nest egg for a vacation or something.
Of course Cheryl doesn't spend that SI SO
now. but that's different from getting
SI SO in a lump sum. As any woman will
tell you. not spending money in the first
place is vastly different from saving it.
And last of all. Cheryl, who
demonstraied a mean heel ? clicking leap
- will never be able to star in a television
anti ? smoking commercial as the heroine
who kicks the habit.
It just doesn't seem fair somehow.
As a non - smoker raised in cotton
country, the whole elhics of a tobacco
economy has seemed unusual to me.
Since coming to North Carolina. 1 have
learned that there are some very nice
people growing tobacco. 1 never really
gave much thought before as to just who
produced the vegetable leaves what
evenually ended up rolled between thin,
white sheets of paper but since for some
years I've agreed wholeheartedly that
smoking was a had thing. 1 suppose that 1
would have generalized that to the
presumption that those who grew
tobacco were bad people. That ought to
demonstrate the dangers of generalizing
from one conclusion to another.
I must say. however, that 1 still do find
the 4-H award for tobacco production to
be incongruous, particularly in the light
of the long standing efforts to educate
young people on the evils of smoking and
the general support among the young that
the now ? discontinued anti ? smoking
commercials generated.
It was largely through the efforts of
our children that my husband finally quit
smoking after about fifteen years of
puffing. They heckled him and harassed
him about smoking, announcing solemnly
that he would surely die a premature
death and leave them orphans if he
continued to smoke, and finally he quit.
He did announce that, since he had
dearly loved to smoke, if he ever caught
either of the ktds with a cigarette in their
hands he would break all their fingers.
After nearly two and a half years of
non ? smoking, he says he still dreams of
the pleasure of a cigarette. If he ever faces
the situation in which the doctor
announces grimly that he has only a
number of months to live, he says the
first thing he'll do is borrow a cigarette
According to some experts ?? both self ?
proclaimed and otherwise - there are no
adverse effects of smoking pot so maybe
someday folks around here will be
growing manjuana instead of tobacco.
I would say off - hand that that was
impossible, but then, a year ago. I would
have said the same thing if someone had
told me that President Richard Nixon
would go to Red China.
STORIES BEHIND WORDS
by William S, Panfitld
HAM
We call an amateur or bungling
performer, especially one who overdoes
his performance, a "ham." The
expression comes from the theater.
During the latter part of the 19th
century, comedians in minstrel shows
used ham fat to remove the burnt cork
from their faces They used ham fat
because it was cheaper than cold cream.
Other actors contemptuously called
any blackface minstrel man a
"hamfatter," a name that was shortened
to "ham." The name was borrowed from
theater parlance and put to general usage.
People & Issues
C.Iil h jb BLUE ? ? ?
JJ. DINNER ?? A huge crowd turned
out for the JJ festivities in Raleigh last
Saturday. With numerous contests up for
a decision in the May 6 primary, there
were plenty of hospitality rooms as well
as candidates and their supporters to
greet the JJ people.
From reports over the state it appears
that nine weeks before the primary Pat
Taylor has the edge in the governor's race
with Skipper Bowles in No. 2 place. In
the U.S. Senate race it appeared from
reports that Senator B. Everett Jordan
still holds an edge with Rep. Nick
Galiftanakis working hard to narrow the
gap
However, it must be remembered that
the JJ dinner is largely attended by the
"pros" in politics and that the average
voter seldom attends the festivities.
Another thing to remember: great
changes can take place in political races in
nine weeks.
There was some talk about the
presidential primary but until the entry
deadline is passed and you know just who
will be in the running it's pretty hard to
get opinions on who will be the leaders.
SECOND PRIMARIES - It now
appears that there may well be several run
- offs in the second primary to be held on
Saturday, June 3.
It is not expected that any of the
candidates will get majorities in the
Democratic races for governor, lieutenant
governor or possibly in the contests for
insurance commissioner or commissioner
of labor.
The law is out ? dated which sets the
second primary four weeks after the first
primary instead of two weeks.
The four weeks was started in the
horse and buggy days. Now in these
modern days of transportation and
communication, two weeks would be
ample time, much less expensive and
tiring on the candidates and the general
public.
NIXON & MAO - While we feel that
President Nixon had a very worthwhile
trip to China, we doubt very much that
his 1972 publicity kit in his campaign for
reelection will include a picture with
Nixon and Mao Tse - tung clasping hands.
THE RIGHT OF SUFFRAGE -
Writing on the right to vote. Prof.
I
Emeritus Coates of the UNC ? Chapel Hill
said recently: "The poor man white man.
the black man. tire woman ?? black and
white, the 18, 19, and 20 ? year old
dtizens can claim their basic human and
political rights in North Carolina today
because there were men throughout the
centuries who have stood up to be
counted for them. The payoff for these
long historic struggles for the right to
vote and hold office comes at the
registration desk and on election day."
Professor Coates. one of our truly great
North Carolinians, is quite right in what
he has to say about the rights gained by
men and women through centuries of
struggle. Now, almost as important as the
right to vote is to be informed about the
issues and the candidates. We like to see
big turn ? outs on primary and election
days. But very important in the suffrage
process is intelligent participation. It is an
unhealthy situation when people are
herded together, hauled to the polls and
told how to vote when the people have
not familarized themselves with the
candidates and the issues involved.
However, today there is but little
reason for any registered voter to go to
the polls unfamiliar with his obligation
and responsibility with information so
easily gained through the newspapers,
radio and television.
Today, we feel that we have a far more
enlightened citizenship than ever before
and it's a dwindling number who can be
influenced on how to vote enroute from
their homes to the ballot box.
BUSING - School integration is here
to stay it appears that a great majority of
the people are against busing children
unreasonable distances to achieve a
certain ratio of whites and blacks.
We would hope that the Federal Courts
would wake up to the folly of the
unreasonable decisions which have been
handed down before it becomes necessary
to amend the U.S. Constitution to
protect the children from their harsh and
unreasonable decisions.
With a couple of new judges on the
U.S. Supreme Court, we hope for more
realistic decisions which will make a
constitutional amendment on the matter
unnecessary.
Letters To The Editor
Response to School Board Policy
There is in me a strong feeling of
admiration, love, and pride for the people
in Hoke County. Having been born in an
adjoining county and living in Hoke
County for a number of years - my roots
are deeply embedded there. I don't think
a day passed that I did not feel extremely
grateful that Hoke County had not made
the scene of some type of disturbance
and I deeply feel that one of the main
reasons this has been prevented resulted
from the fact that there are a large
number of sincere, honest, and dedicated
people who are involved in many. many.
areas throughout the county.
Though I feel that the Public School
System is the best system we have. 1 also
feel that the School Board made a grave
error in its decision of "unwritten policy"
to her qualified people from teaching in
Hoke County schools should they be
educating some of their children in other
educational systems. Qualified child
loving, experienced teachers arc hard to
come by. The children are missing out.
All three races!
Anne Smith
SUPPORTS BOARD
Dear Editor:
Below is a copy of a letter from our
Jaycee chapter. This letter was sent to the
Chairman of the Hoke County Board of
Education on February 26. 1972.
Dear Mr. Huff:
We viewed with great concern the
recent action of the Hoke County School
Board regarding employment of teachers
whose children are enrolled in private
schools. We agree wholeheartedly with
the decision. We feel that if a teacher
does not have faith in our public school
system, he or she should not be employed
b> that system. We sincerely urge you to
stand firm on this decision, the only fair
and just one.
Sincerely,
Winford Rogers, President
Hoke County Jaycees
Now when out School Board and
Superintendent Abcrnethy arc under
attack for this decision, we have decided
to make our support public. Wei
commend Mr. Aberi^Vr and,|he School
illenWw
Board for the excellenWway in which
they have realistically faced problems in
the last four years. They have made wise,
realistic decisions when many others were
burying their heads in the sands of the
past. Whether it be by taking an anti -
busing stand or resurting to private
schools the old system of education,
separate and unequal, is dead and can
never be resurrected.
Sincerely.
Robert Taylor, Internal Vice President
Hoke County Jaycees
Just One Thing After Another
By Carl (Kicrch
Some time ago I wrote something
about the experience I had down in
Wilson when I was running a newspaper
down there. I had written a rather bitter
editorial about Jack Dempsey, and the
next morning a man came into the office
and introduced himself as Mr. Dempsey.
It gave me quite a shock until he
explained that his name was Jim
Dempsey and that he lived in Wilson.
Referring to that episode, here comes a
letter from Charles W Allison, in
Charlotte
"I know exactly how you felt, because
when I was a child I whipped a little
mongrel puppy, whereupon my brothers
informed me that I was subject to arrest.
All throughout the day they kept telling
me that, and it worried me considerably.
The next day, upon hearing the door bell
ring, I ran to answer it and found
standing there a policeman, who seemed
to me to be about ten feet tall. Needless
to say. a thousand goose pimples quivered
up and down my spine. You can imagine
how relieved I was to learn that he was
merely looking for a young girl who he
thought might be working at the house."
* * *
Remember the little trick about
counting the "e's" in the sentence on the
back of the Camel cigarette pack?
The sentence went: "Don't look for
premiums or coupons, as the cost of the
tobaccos blended in CAMEL Cigarettes
prohibits the use of them."
Very few people come up with the
correct count the first time. There are
eleven "e's" in the statement
? * *
One of Tom Henderson's "Plain Tales
from the Country".
Sitting across the aisle of the train
from the minister of the gospel was a nice
- looking middle - aged woman, dressed in
becofning black. The minister felt
constrained to go over to a vacant seat
alongside, to offer his condolences
"Madame," he said, "I notice you are
wearing black."
"Yes," she answered, without show of
annoyance.
"1 am a minister of the gospel," he
continued, "and I felt it my duty to come
over and extend words of sympathy."
"Sympathy!" she sniffed, "don't talk
to me about sympathy. I had just paid a
lawyer fifty dollars to get a divorce, when
the skunk up and died "
* * *
Most people have no real conception as
to how much a billion is. I came across
the following recently A clock, ticking
60 seconds to a minute. 60 minutes to an
hour. 24 hours to a day. and 365 days a
year will tick a billion in approximately
36'A years. That's 86,400 licks a day and
31,536,000 a year
? ? ?
Fishy? I know it will sound that way
when I tell It, but it is the truth. There
See JUST ONE THING, Page 11