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NATIONAL NEWSPAPER
Ca/to&tta
PRESS
ASSOCIATION
Published Every Thursday at Kaeford, N. C. 283 76
119 W. El wood Avenue
Subscription Rates In Advance
Pet Year S5.00 6 Months - $2.75 3 Months - SI.SO
PAUL DICKSON Publisher-Editor
SAM C. MORRIS General Manager
LAURIE TELFAIR Associate Editor
MRS. PAUL DICKSON Society Editor
MARTY VEGA 1 Reporter
Second Class Postage at Raeford. N. C.
THURSDAY, MARCH 6. 1975
As We See It.
by Laurie Telfair
With five years of effort behind them to organize a volunteer fire
department, the West Hoke group has suffered another setback.
The truck they have gone into debt to buy and convert into a tanker
- pumper will not meet the state standards for certification.
This is the second truck the department has obtained. The first,
acquired as surplus through civil defense, is unrepairable, department
officials say. So now, they must try for a third truck.
They estimate $30,000 or more for a new truck and equipment.
West Hoke firemen came to the county commissioners this month
for help and advice. They got plenty of advice, including the suggestion
that they seek to enlarge the fire district to a four-mile radius.
This would increase the tax base to give the department rtlore
potential for re-paying equipment loans.
There are eight fire districts in the county. Five - North Raeford.
Stonewall, Hillerest. Puppy Creek and Rockfish - are in operation,
while three - West Hoke. Pinecrest and Tyler Town - are still struggling
for certification.
Some of these districts, Tyler Town in particular, encompass a very
low tax area and receive far too little in revenue to meet the. sky high
costs of equipping a fire department.
In such cases, the residents of the area would be better served by a
merger with the nearest organized district. It is certainly worth
considering.
It is, of course, disappointing and frustrating for West Hoke firemen
to work year after year toward certification and sec the goal slip away
each time. Hopefully, they will be able to overcome their difficulties
and become certified.
*******
The large number of gun thefts in the county prompts some thoughts
on keeping weapons.
Since guns are obviously desirable to thieves, extra care should be
taken to keep them under lock and out of sight.
Guns in the hands of responsible owners should pose little danger to
the community. Stolen guns in the hands of thugs are quite a different
matter.
Browsing in the files
of The News-Journal
25 years ago
Thursday , March 2, 1950
The Aberdeen & Rockfish railroad
bus hit a Ford coupe being driven by
Ben Townsend of the Rockfish section
Tuesday morning at the railroad
crossing between Rockfish and Arabia.
Dr. J.H. Hilton, dean of agriculture
and director of experiment stations al
North Carolina Slate College, will speak
to Hoke county farmers and their wives
at the Hoke County High School next
Tuesday night as a guesl of the Hoke
County Farm Bureau.
Funeral services will be conducted at
the Raeford Presbyterian Church al four
o'clock this afternoon for Peter A.
Webb, Jr., 27, who died at two o'clock
yesterday in aTarboro hospital.
From Poole's Medley:
Change and change again is almosl
everything, including people, but there
is no change in righteousness nor good
and bad.
Wright G Goodman, a highly
respected colored man bf Antioch
township, died February 22 and was
buried Saturday afternoon at Bridgers
Grove.
The Hoke High School girls
basketball team, which has come
through with a very impressive record
this year, winning 17 and losing 6. will
go into the annual American Legion
Invitational Basketball tournament as
one of the top - seeded teams.
Mrs. Neill A. McDonald is Hoke
census chief for 1950.
15 years ago
Thursday, March 3, 1960
Snow fell in most of Hoke County
from mid ? morning to mid ? afternoon
yesterday and was followed by sleet and
freezing rain until sometime during the
night, leaving a fairly general blanket of
from four to five inches of snow with a
thick crust of ice on top.
Sheriff D H Hodgin said yesterday
that Dave Barringlon had been
employed as a deputy sheriff of Hoke
County under the ruling passed last
month by the county commissioners,
and that Charlie Proctor. Raeford
policeman, had been employed as jailor.
Mrs. Mary E. McKenzie of 310 Harris
Avenue in Raeford. was advised this
week that she had been named crew
leader in Hoke County for the I960
Population and Housing Census, to be
taken starting August I.
From Rockfish News:
It was to cold Tuesday a.m. the
members of the Nail Keg Club were not
out very early.
'Smelts like he's burning the toast again'
Tin Chrtttlan Sc?nc MoniKv
r
by Marty Vega
Inside Dope On Rate Hike
So now we hear the price of postage
stamps may go up again, but then
maybe not. yet they claim they need
increased revenue to meet their
operating costs. How's anyone to know
what to believe?
Well, you can believe me. I didn't let
any grass grow under me. No, sir, not
when my old friend Ferm Fencesetter is
now a highly placed White House aide.
Ferm would be sure to have the inside
dope front the Oval Office so I put the
call through.
"Ferm, what is the President's
position on the increase in postage from
ten cents to thirteen cents? The public
is fed up with rising prices, and this is
going to be unpopular".
"Now, hold on. The media is
distorting the overall view. I can assure
you, and I have this on the very highest
authority, the President is unalterably
opposed to any plan which would
ultimately raise the price of stamps".
"Swell, Ferm. we're glad to hear it."
"In fact, the administration is so
firmly committed to this, it is proposing
a 3c tarrif on the barrel of stamps...."
"Ferm, stamps don't come in
BARRELS'"
"What? Oh. er. wait a minute. I don't
have my notes with me. Call you right
back".
Fuming, I drummed my fingers on
the desk until the phone rang.
"Yes. I have all the figures here, you
are correct. Stamps are not presently
available to the general public in barrels,
however, as part of its continuing effort
to improve service, the Department is
closely examining the advisability of
providing stamps in barrels, as an added
convenience for its customers".
"Ferm, I'm losing my patience with
you" I hissed.
"Of course. Now, as I was saying, the
President's position remains unchanged.
He and his top advisors have devoted
careful study to this vital question, and
it is his belief, after a thorough
examination, that by imposing a 3c
tariff now. the American people can
avoid a big increase in prices later".
"You see, the President firmly
believes we must find a way to reduce
demand, thereby reducing our
consumption, if we are to avoid a crisis.
The tariff will discourage a lot of
unnecessary stamp licking, which will
conserve our present resources. Let's
face it. we're a nation of stamp lickers,
we love our stamps, but we're just going
to have to revise our thinking", Ferm
said emotionally.
"The President has great faith in the
American people when sacrifices are
needed. People will see the wisdom of
his decision, and show their support by
not writing any more letters".
"Oh yeah? Why should we?"
"Well, you know, long distance is the
next best thing to being there, ha ha
ha".
"Ferm, do me one more favor".
"Certainly. Always happy to be of
service".
"Remind me never to call you again
for anything."
Puppy Creek
Philospher
Dear editor:
I don't know what it is about going
to Washington that robs a man of his
knowledge of human nalure. but
something does.
Right now. with filling stations selling
you all the gasoline you want, with oil
companies' storage tanks brimful, with
ocean tankers hanging around waiting 10
find some place to unload, and with the
Arab oil countries cutting back on
production because there's no place to
go with the stuff and you can't store it
in a tent, it leaks, a lot of people in
Washington are worrying over the
possibility of the Arabs' refusing once
more to sell us any.
How can Congressmen, as interested
as most of them are in their personal
fortunes, think that the Arabs aren't
interested in money also? When you can
get $ I 2 a barrel for oil that cost you
25c to produce with somebody else
doing the work, you aren't going to shut
the door in the face of your best
customer. Oh, you might shut it once
just to get the price up from S6to $12.
but there's bound to be some Yankee
horse-trading or you might say
camel-trading sense under those flowing
Arab robes.
And of course, there's still some
old-fashioned ingenuity left in the U.S.,
outside of Washington anyway. Sooner
or later somebody is going to work out
a useable source of energy not
dependent on oil. and the Arab leaders
sitting there on their bountiful pools
may wind up like a man I knew a long
time ago.
This man. when he was young, was
told by his father: "Son. you see that
wood lot out there? Hold on to it.
There's going to come a lime when fire
wood is gonna get scarce, people will
have to have it to stay warm, and a man
with a good supply can charge what he
wants for it. Son, it'll make you rich."
Them sheiks better remember that
times change.
Yours faithfully,
IJi.
Bicentennial Notes
Churches Founded Early
(Reprinted from the Hoke County
Jubilee souvenir program compiled in
1961.)
"Within a few years after their arrival,
the settlers picked out their meeting
places for worship and later organized
their churches. All of the pioneer
churches in the county were
Presbyterian.
Longstreet Church was started in
I7S8. The Yadkin Road, established
before 1756 and located near
Longstreet Church, was an old buffalo
trail. It is said that buffalo traveled east
to spend the winter and west to spend
the summer each year. When the Rev.
Hugh McAden, Longstreet's first
minister, came to the area, the people
had not had a minister for twenty years.
Longstreet has had three houses of
worship. It is now in the section of
Hoke County acquired by Fort Bragg
and is no longer active. It is perpetuated
through a scholarship fund for
ministerial students at Davidson College.
Bethel Presbyterian Church is the
oldest active church in the county. It
was organized in 1776. It has had three
buildings. During the Rev. Hector
McNeill's pastorate. General W.T.
Sherman and his troops camped on the
church grounds March 9-11, 1865.
Antioch Presbyterian Church was
organized March 10, 1833. When the
first church was built, a gallery was
constructed for the more than thirty
slaves who were communicants of the
church. The church grew and a second
structure was dedicated Feb. 19, 1882
and is still in use. It is in a splendid state
of preservation and is considered one of
the most beautiful churches in this area.
Sandy Grove Church was an
outgrowth of Longstreet. It was
organized in 1855. Its early mementos
were destroyed by Sherman's raiders
during the Civil War Sandy Grove was
discontinued after its property was
taken by the United States Government
for the Fort Bragg Reservation. Most of
the members moved to Raeford, many
of them to be near a school."
North Carolina's delegate to the
Continental Congress, Joseph Hewes,
played a decisive part in the signing of
the Declaration of Independence,
according to Dorothy Horton McGee in
"Famous Signers of the Declaration."
Despite instructions to the delegation
from the North Carolina Provincial
Congress on April 12, 1776 to concur in
any vote for independence, Hewes did
not favor breaking ties with England.
John Adams, writing in 1813 to
William Plumcr, recalls: "The measure
had been upon the market for months,
and obstinately opposed from day ttr'
day. Majorities were constantly against
it. For many days the majority
depended on Mr. Hewes, of North
Carolina. As described in the Prologue,
while a member (Samuel Adams), one
day, was speaking, and reading
documents from all the colonies, to
prove that the public opinion, the
general sense of all. was in favor of it,
Mr. Hewes, who had hitherto constantly
voted against it, started suddenly
upright, and lifting both hands to
Heavens as if he had been in a trance,
cried out, 'It is done! And I will abide
by it.*...."
Soon after, the vote for independence
was taken and Hewes, as well as another
North Carolina delegate) John Penn,
voted in favor. They signed the
Declaration of Independence on Aug. 2,
1776.
CUFF BLUE...
People & Issues
J-J MEETING-The Democrats'
Jefferson-Jackson Day dinner and other
festivities in Raleigh last Friday and
Saturday were quite successful from
most every standpoint. The large
banquet hall at the Royal Villa Motel
and Convention Center was filled with
some 900 in attendance for the S50 per
plate dinner Saturday night.
Senator Robert C. Byrd of West
Virginia gave a rousing speech for the
Democrats' program to bring the
country out of the recession, but when
queried at his news conference about
deficit spending and the ever-increasing
national debt in days of prosperity as
well as in times of recession, his answer
was that it would probably be three or
four more years of deficit spending
before we would have a chance to work
towards a balanced budget, frankly, a
meaningless answer!
LEGISLATIVE DINNER-The third
annual meeting of former House and
Senate members along with a goodly
number of incumbents was held Friday
evening with about 200 in attendance,
former Associate Justice of the N.C.
Supreme Court could claim the record
of legislative service reaching back the
farthest - 50 years to the 1925 session
when he represented Alleghany County
in the State House.
CANDIDATES-Three of the
potential candidates for governor were
very active around the JJ festivities. Lt.
Gov. Jim Hunt. Jr., regarded as the
front runner, a coveted but sometimes a
dangerous place to be, was very much in
evidence. Two other gubernatorial
aspirants, telling the people they were
running, but that it was too early to
announce were former State Rep. Ed
O'Herron, Jr. of Charlotte and former
Rep. and State Senator Hargrove
(Skipper) Bowles of Greensboro. This
brings to three the number of active
potentials, each of whom for weeks has
been letting it be known that they are
ready to serve.
With the primary 14 months away it
looks like a hot race is shaping up for
governor.
Terry Sanford who is running for the
Democratic presidential nomination had
a hospitality room and received a
standing round of applause when
introduced at the JJ Dinner.
INTEREST RATES--Say what you
please, but to tny way of thinking the
thing that would do more to curtail the
recession in somewhat of a permanent
way would be to Iowa interest rates to
six percent for the little man, and the
average man. Venturesome projects like
the Investment Trusts have gone broke
financing would necessitate a higher
interest.
But the little man. and the average
citizen, with a good reputation and
character who needs to borrow to build
a home, or venture out in a small way,
available money at six percent interest is
what this country needs.
If the banks and savings and loan
associations ate to lend money at six
percent, they could only pay about 4
percent.
Letter To The Editor
To the Kditor:
I am responding lo the letter
published in this column last week
which criticized the Indian Hducation
Act Program. I have been closely
involved with the program since its
beginning and have served as the
Chairman of the Parent-Student
Committee for the past 2 years, a
position I have been re-elected to for
the 1975-76 program. This committee is .
made up of parents and students from
throughout the county with every area
represented. These committee members
were elected in open meetings at which
all members of the Indian community
were invited. At these meetings
suggestions and ideas for the 1975-76
program were also presented. The
1975-76 committee then met and drew
up proposals for next years program.
This program was then presented to all
interested persons in a public hearing
held in the Hoke County Courthouse.
At that time anyone could have
changed, with the majority support of
the group, any part of the program. This
was not done, rather the program when
put to a vote was passed "unanimously"
with not one single no vote recorded.
During the past two years, and in the
program for next year, the
parent-student committee has worked
very hard and diligently to provide the
best possible program for the benefit of
ALL the Indian children. The funds we
receive cannot be divided and an equal
share given to each Indian student,
rather we must use the funds to try and
help fulfill special needs of the students.
One of the best services we can provide
Is guidance and counseling services.
Someone qualified to work with the
students to lower such things as the
drop out rate, truancy, low
achievement, delinquency, etc. The
monies spent for salaries to provide such
has to be translated into services
rendered. To me, the IEA program is
receiving more than its money's worth
in this area.
As to students being turned down for
services, this is not a decision made by
either Mr. Danford Dial, guidance
counselor, or Mr. Louis Oxendine, home
visitor. When someone applies for
services under the program of
Community Services (glasses, clothing,
shoes, inedical or dental aid) the
application is screened by a special
committee, made up of members of the
IEA Parent-Student Committee. The
entire Committee has set up certain
guidelines by which applications arc
judged. Each application, within these
overall guidelines, is judged on its own
merit and then a decision is made by the
sub-committee, not by the guidance
counselor or home visitor.
I, speaking for the IEA Committee,
deeply resent the implication that we
have been dishonest in administering the
program. The program's meetings,
minutes, budget, and records arc public
records and can be reviewed by anyone.
The program's financial records are
audited each year, as arc all school
records, and these will show that no one
has personally profiled by the program.
I personally feel that if a person wanted
to be a "brave" he would have spoken
out at the area meetings or the public
hearing, where his ideas and suggestions
could have helped shape and guide the
program. I feel that if one was "truly
concerned" about the welfare of the
Indian students, he would push and
encourage IhelEA Program, not yttack
and try to destroy it. In these-tinres
when we need to be united, I have no
sympathy or patience with those who .
would divide. ~
Sinoerely,
Robert Taylor. Chairman
IEA Committee
SENATOR I'ROXMIRE-Senator
William Proxmire, the maverick
Democrat from Wisconsin, is sending
tremors through the world of banking
and finance in an attempt to bring
about lower interest rates. We
understand that Senator Proxmire has
some of the big men in finance shaking
in their boots. "I'm going to call Arthur
Burns up to Capital Hill and ask him to
justify what he's doing in keeping
interest rates high," Proxmire said in a
recent interview. "If we can drive those
interest rates down, people will be able
to buy houses and to buy cars, and that
will help to create jobs - We're going to
be aggressive. We're going to investigate.
We're going to get down into the
nitty-gritty. We're going to fight for
competition and for consumers," said
the Wisconsin senator.
BICENTENNIAL-As we prepare for
the Bicentennial, it is well to note, some
of the events that led up to the signing
the Declaration of Independence 200
years ago come July 4, 1976.
Two hundred years ago this month,
March 23, 1775 to be exact, Patrick
Henry, the young 39-year old Virginia
agitator and champion of the common
people made his famous speech at the
second revolutionary convention, when
he cried out: "The next gale that sweeps
from the north will bring to our ears the
clash of resounding arms! Our brethren
are already in the field! Why stand we
here idle?- I know not what course
others may take; but as for me, give me
liberty, or give me death!"