ikv
MM-113
euw - journal
0a/io?mci
PRI
ASSOCIATION
Published Every Thursday si Rsefocd, N. C. 28376
119 W. Elwood Avenue
Subscrlptson KsMs la Advance
Per Year - $5.00 6 Months - $2-75 3 Months - $1.50
PAUL DICKSON Publisher-Editor
SAM C.MORRIS General Mansfer
LAURIE TELFAIR Associate Editor
MRS. PAUL DICKSON Society Editor
MARTY VEGA Reporter
Second Class Postage at Raefotd, N. C.
THURSDAY, MARCH 20, 1975
As We See It
by Laurie Telfair
A band of enthusiastic supporters of public housing met last week
with state and federal government housing experts to discuss ways of
bringing low income housing to Hoke County.
The outcome of.the discussion was inconclusive, although perhaps
there were some gains made.
Neither official quite grasped at the beginning that here was an area
with absolutely no provisions for decent housing for low income groups
and, furthermore, with no working machinery for acquiring housing.
This situation is, 1 am sure, unusual in this day, even in
predominately rural areas.
This is something Hoke Countians should face immediately. As more
than one person at the meeting pointed out, there are people in the
county, and relatively large numbers of people at that, who are actually
suffering this winter for lack of a decent place to live.
Without getting in to the philosophy of welfare, it is a fact that there
are people here who. for reasons that may or may not be their fault, do
not have a large enough income to secure a decent house.
The rents they pay for the hovels they live in range from zero to
about S45 a month, plus heating and lights. As any homeowner or
apartment dweller knows, this is not enough money to purchase a
livable place.
And it won't be enough money to cover the costs of a low-rent
unit either. In case anyone has missed it, public housing is subsidized by
the tax payers at some level of government.
This is an unpopular concept. But it ought to be faced squarely
before the public discussion proceeds.
There are two alternatives. Hoke Countians can accept the task of
providing decent housing for their fellow citizens, even for those who
can't afford it, and quite possibly even for some who don't deserve it.
In doing so. they might hope to perhaps cut their losses in other areas,
such as medical care or a reduced crime rate or school dropout rate.
Or they can reject the burden and let things go on the way they have.
In the short run, this may be the less costly. But it is probably more
expensive in the long run.
If the decision is to proceed, then steps should be taken immediately.
As one person said, if we're ever going to get started, let's get started
now.
There will be federal money available during the next three years
under the Community Development Act of 1974. Residents should
insist that city and county officials take the proper steps to at least
apply for aid.
Already S67,785 has been set aside for Hoke for housing assistance,
according to a Department of Housing and Urban Development
announcement. This money will apparently be lost this year, since
neither the city nor the county plans to qualify for funds under the act.
It appears that the first, and easiest step to take is to reappoint
members to the Raeford Housing Authority. It is understandable that
the city council would prefer not to take on the housing burden for the
entire county. But the organization is there, already chartered, with
authority to extend to a 10-mile radius. It seems a waste of energy to
organize and charter another governmental body to do the same job.
At any rate, let's get on with it.
The additional courses at Hoke High are good news. Adding to the
skill levels of the vocational courses and upgrading the college prep
program seems to be a two-pronged attack at the same goal, to prepare
students for advancement beyond high school.
The added variety should be popular and worth while also.
What probably won't be popular is the requirement that seniors stay
at school all day. Yet, again, it seems to be the right answer. It is a
relatively painless way to encourage students to get the most benefit
from their school years, by learning as much as they can while they are
there. This has never been particularly embraced by students at the
time, but they usually change their mind as the years roll by.
Stories Behind Words
By William S. Penfleld
Funny Bone
The bone of a person's upper arm,
like ao many parts of the body, bears a
Latin name. This bone, from the
shoulder to the elbow, is called
"humerus," the Latin word for
shoulder.
The humerus has a large end or knob
it joins the forearm at the elbow.
At the back of the elbow a nerve rests
against the knob. A blow at this spot
produces a sharp , tingling sensation.
Although It la somewhat painful, a
parson often laughs after he has received
such a blow. A pun on "humerus"
resulted in the expression "funny
bone," a common name for that part of
the humerus where the nerve rests.
'We're in sad shape, but so far we look like a winner*
>
n
by Marty Veya
The Christian Science Monitor
Good Plan Crumbles
My neighbor, Sally, caught me at the
wrong time Sunday when she knocked
on the door. Particularly because she
knocked on the front door. Usually she
knocks on the back, see, then we know
it's Sally. But when a knock comes at
the front, well, it could be the paper
boy, which is okay, or it could be the
landlord, which isn't okay, because then
a general alarm is sounded to hide the
four cats inside somewhere, then scatter
the three on the patio, so when the
landlord waves the lease under our noses
which says 'Postively No Pets', we just
stand there with innocent looks, see?
But back to Sally. As soon as she
came in. she handed me a paper with a
long list of names and reached for her
pen.
"Have we signed you up yet to
support the ERA?"
"No. but I've been using that new
detergent for equal rights they sent
around".
"You mean Era? That's baseball soap,
dumbie".
"How's that?"
"Earned Run Average.
"Oh, my mistake. I won't use it
anymore".
"So how about the ERA?" she
persisted.
"Look, 1 haven't had time to study it.
I'm working on the EIB".
"What?"
"Expert Infantryman's Badge. What
do you think I'm doing with all these
books?"
"I see the books. Why don't you
Puppy Creek
Philosopher
Dear editor:
While I've never been able to get a
telephone I could call somebody else on
but nobody could call me on ~
something 1 have long desired - I believe
that if the telephone people set their
minds to it they might develop such an
instrument.
The reason I say this is because of an
article I read in the news last week
showing how smart the telephone
people are. As 1 understand it, they have
succeeded in reducing the rate on long
distance calls and getting more money
for them all at the same time
Under a new rate schedule allowed by
the Federal Communications
Commission, the Bell system has
announced that a call can now be dialed
from coast ? to ? coast for as little as 22
cents.
Obviously that's a bargain. Where else
in the world could you get somebody to
string a wire from Raeford to
Fayetteville and let you talk over it for
22 cents?
Of course there are some restrictions
on this. You can talk for 22 cents all
right, but for only one minute. Talk
longer than 60 seconds and the rate goes
up immediately. If cattlemen and car
manufacturers were as smart as
telephone people they wouldn't be
losing money today. How many men are
there - we won't count women,
everybody knows the answer there -- in
the United States who can limit a long
distance call to one minute? Garry
Cooper is the only one I can think of
and he's not here anymore.
The way it looks to me, this one -
minute - for ? 22 - cents deal is like
selling an ice cream cone to a kid for a
penny for the first lick, but charging 24
cents more if he eats the rest of It. I
take my hat off to- the telephone
people. The know something about
human nature, not to mention finance.
Youri faithfully,
M.
throw out all these empty toilet paper
spools?"
"Those are NOT empty toilet paper
spools! That's an expended 60mm. heat
rocket, the M-72 Lau. It's just collapsed
now."
"Well, what about those rolled up
newspapers? If you don't need them, 1
can use them for logs."
"I certainly do need them. That's a
40 mm. grenade launcher."
"Have you completely lost your
mind?"
"Mine? No. we've already done the
Claymore mine, that's fairly easy to
understand..."
"Are you cra/.y?"
I closed my book and took a big
swallow of coffee before answering.
"Look, you've heard of wives with
husbands in law school, right, they stay
up all night, making coffee, and drilling
their husbands so they can pass the bar
and land a big job for $20,000 or so a
year, right?"
"Yeah, so what ?"
"Well, if Dave can pass his EIB, hell
get promoted to Spec. 4 and get a $18 a
month raise".
"Isn't that just peachy'' What are you
going to do with the S18?"
"I dunno. Maybe buy a steak or fill
the tank in the car".
"How long have you been at this?"
"What day is it?"
"You're wasting the whole weekend
on this. What's really on your mind?"
"Okay, you know me too well. If I
keep this up, 1 figure I might get
nominated for Military Wife of the
Year. The winner gets to go to Hawaii, 1
think".
"Forget it. You haven't got a
chance".
"Oh yeah? How many other wives
can max on the SO caliber machine
gunners test? Huh? Hull? How many?
"I don't care if you can drive a tank
and fire at the same time. You don't
have a chance. You've been seen
regularly going in and out of the Speedy
Cleaners with fatigues".
"You mean...
"Yep. Now when you start washing
and ironing and starching, then you can
think about your contest."
"I never wanted to go to Hawaii
anyway".
r
Browsing in the fil
of The News-Journal
25 years ago
Thursday, March 16, 1950
W.P. Saunders, president of Robbins
Mills (N.C.) told The News-Journal
yesterday that the old White Tex plant
was at present being readied for
operation as a throwing mill next
month and the plant would employ
more than 100 persons in the activity.
Samuel R. Smith, 64, merchant and
former town commissioner of Vass, died
at the Chase convalescant home in
Southern Pines Thursday night where he
had been a patient for several weeks.
From Poole's Medley:
Any good business man is justified in
making a debt when it is to his best
interest. It is better to do business on
borrowed money than not to do any
business at all.
? ? ?
Operating revenues before expenses
of $29,481.753 for 1949 were reported
today by President Louis V. Sutton to
stockholders of Carolina Power and
Light Company, compared to
$26,229,996 for the previous year. This
was a 12 percent increase over 1948.
15 years ago
County School Superintendent W.T.
Gibson, Jr., said yesterday that he had
received a petition for the board of
education from residents of the
Mildouson School district asking that
the school there be closed after the end
of the present term and that the
children be brought to the J.W.
McLauchlin Elementary School next
fall.
o|Mr.
Miss Linda Phillips, daughter
and Mrs. W.P. Phillips of Raeford 4frd a
member of the rising senior class at
Flora Macdonald College In -Red
Springs, was chosen in the recent
?tactions president of the Christian
Aaodation.
CUFF BLUE i ? ?
People & Issues
JUDGE VAN NOPPEN ~ Had a letter
a few days ago from an old friend and
one - time colleague in the State House,
Leonard H. van Noppen, Chief District
Court* Judge of the 17th Judicial
District whose home is Danbury in
StokesCounty,
Judge van Noppen gives a different
angle to some of our comments on the
court decisions which we are glad to
print in our column this week:
"Dear Cliff:"
"The King Times-News carries the
news commentary column which you
write, and of course you are so familiar
with the government and politican scene
in North Carolina that it is interesting
and widely read.
"You raised the matter of the Courts
entering a "nol pros" in a great number
of cases in a county adjoining your own.
You questioned if the officers had made
that many charges which were without
proper foundation or if the Courts were
not doing the right thing about the cases
involved. It is likely that neither is the
case. Because of the fact that Highway
Patrolmen must spend most of their
time on the highway promoting safety
the system they use is to give merely a
citation to a motorist if the traffic
violation is not of a very serious nature.
Most of the motorists who receive such
minor charges are given the opportunity
to pay off in advance if they desire to
plead guilty, and as a result the cases
never come on for trial in a courtroom.
Many of the motorists who receive such
citations are from other States and over
a period of time a number of them have
failed to come to court, or to pay off by
waiver on the citations, and the warrant
cannot be served on the out of State
motorists, and when the District
Attorney has accumulated several of
these cases he takes a nol pros at a
particular court session - on the
recommendation of the officers
involved. Sometimes a motorist is given
a citation for failing to have his drivers
license with him, and he shows up in
court with the drivers and the State
takes a nol pros. Often a wife will
charge her husband with abandonment
and non - support, and then they go
back together before the date of trial, or
else they enter into a deed of
separation, and on the recommendation
of the wife, as prosecuting witness the
State takes a nol pros. It is a rare thing
indeed if the State takes a nol pros
when the person who has signed the
warrant or citation is not willing for this
to be done.
"You feel that the courts in recent
years have been falling down on their
responsibilities, and that the courts do
not enjoy the respect of the people as
much as formerly. I will not argue the
point, but I do suggest to you that the
State courts are bound by the decisions
and rules of the United States Supreme
Court, and as you know during what has
been called the "Warren Years" the
Supreme Court had a decided tendency
to overly protect the rights of the
individual and at the expense of society
as a whole, and of Ihe victims of the
crimes. The present court seems to be
making decisions which recognize the
right of the general public to be
protected from criminals. Recent
decisions have been favoring the work
of law enforcement officers, and this
will help to promote the image of the
courts.
"You are concerned with the bill in
the General Assembly to take away
from the people the right to elect
judges. If this passes I doubt that it will
personally affect me, because I only
want one more term. But I suggest to
you that by losing the right to elect
judges that the people would gain the
right to have judges who have the
education and training to serve. And the
measure would retain for the people the
right to vote out a judge who is not
responsive to the will of the people.
Judges without legal education are not
qualified to pass on civil litigation with
the complicated rules of civil procedure
and rules of evidence, and all of our
judges ought to be able to preside over
any type session of court. Some politics
will be involved in any type selection of
judges, but the so ? called "Missouri
Plan" has very little politics - this being
the plan which is being considered. I
feel sure that you favor the merit
selection of Justices of the Supreme
Court, and the Court of appeals (Judges
of Court of Appeals), but I suggest to
you that it is better for the judges of all
courts. All judges should be learned in
the law."
ASSOCIATE JUSTICES -- In last
week's column we speculated that N.C.
Court of Appeals Judge David M. Britt
might be a candidate for Associate
Justice of the N.C. Supreme Court in
"1976" when Justices Lake and Moore
would be stepping down due to
mandatory age retirement for Supreme
Court Justices. We were in error in that
Justices Lake and Moore were elected
for eight year terms in 1970 and their
terms will not expire until December
31, 1978. The only two Justices whose
terms expire in 1976 are Justices
Huskins and Branch, and their ages arc
such that they would be able to seek
re-election in 1976.
Raleigh Report
School Boards Invited
By David Parnell
Members of local school boards Irom
across North Carolina have been invited
to meet with the House Education
Committee in Raleigh April 3-4.
Board members will meet with the
committee at 3:00 p.m. April 3 in the
legislative building. The next day they
will meet in three study groups.
The Education Committee is seeking
input from local board members for its
deliberations on future educational
needs in North Carolina. Committee
members want to hear directly from the
people who know firsthand the needs
and problems of local school systems.
They also want to hear about the
strengths of the systems.
A lot of people bought North
Carolina-grown Christmas trees last
year. Producers received S3 million tor
their 1174 crop.
The Fraser fir, considered by many to
be the finest Christmas tree, is well
suited to our mounlains, and this gives
North Carolina great potential for large
scale commercial production.
A bill introduced in the House would
give our producers a competitive edge
by seeking lo make fine trees better
through research. The bill would
appropriate S84.604 in each of two
years to the North Carolina Agricultural
Experiment Station to enable the
station to expand its Fraser fir research
efforts.
Purpose of the research is to develop
trees "genetically superior in quality,
growth rate, and pest resistance," and to
develop practices which "enhance
quality and reduce production costs."
Another proposed House bill may put
North Carolina among the leaders in the
search for inexpensive heating and
cooling systems powered by the sun.
The bill would appropriate $55,000
at research funds to North Carolina
State University at Raleigh for
development of more economical solar
energy systems. Present solar energy
systems are too expensive for the
average homeowner.
Plans call for a model system to be on
display at the state fair in October.
Some of the finest engineers in the
world are within 30 miles of the Ceneral
Assembly, at the three universities and
the Research Triangle. The state has
sunshine more than 50 percent of the
time. We ought to be taking advantage
of this enviable situation.
This bill would provide seed money
to begin the job.
Copper has become a valuable metal,
and the nature of its use by utility
companies makes it susceptible to theft.
Copper wire has been stolen from
storage areas and even from operating
lines.
A House bill would make it unlawful
"to purchase copper wire, copper pipe
or scrap copper from certain types of
vendors without recording certain
information ...."
The "certain information" required
by the bill would permit law
enforcement officers to trace the seller
if the copper proved to be stolen.