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The Hoke County News - Established 1928
VOLUME LXX NUMBER 16 RAEFORD, HOKE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA
,
- journal
25
The Hoke County Journal - Established 1905
S8 PER YEAR THURSDAY, AUGUST 17, 1978
Around
Town
BY SAM C. MORRIS
Robert Gatlin had better pur
chase another rain gauge if this
tropical season keeps as it is now.
The rain comes even if the sun is
shining and the lightening was
terrific Monday afternoon. But
even when we have had an abun
dance of rain, it seems just a few
miles from Raeford it is dry.
As has been said "we can all talk
about the weather, but we can't do
anything about it."
^ ? * ?
Earl Fowler, manager of the
Raeford- Hoke Chamber of Com
merce is back from a three weeks
vacation in Germany and Italy. He
and his family visited the Beach
family in Germany and it would be
assumed after talking to Earl that
it was a nice visit.
If you take time to talk with
Fowler he can give you the latest on
the value of the dollar and even
though he has some humor in what
he says it is not funny when you
start to realize what he is saying.
So stop by the chamber office or
stop Earl on the streets and listen to
him for a few minutes.
* * *
Ken McNeill was by the office
and was telling me about his trip to
Williamsburg, Va. He stated that
he rode most of the rides at Busch
Gardens, except the roller coaster.
I believe it is called "The Mon
ster."
He did say that it was like a
weekend at home, because he saw,
besides Luke McNeill and his wife,
Dr. and Mrs. Julius Jordan and the
Clyde Upchurches.
* * ?
A book came to the office
?Tecently and during a break in my
work, I picked it up and started
looking at the pictures in it. When 1
saw Rockfish Creek, it slowed me
down long enough to check who the
author of the book was.
The title of the book is "Speak
Softly to the Echos" by Art Gore.
Turning to the book cover flap it
said that the man was born in
Raeford and we all know him as
Arthur D. Gore, Jr. He is a brother
to Mrs. Charles Hostetler.
Charles Blackburn in his column
"HOKUM" is writing about the
book, so I believe it would be well
worth your time to turn to Page 2
and read what Charles has to say.
I don't know when the library
will get the book, but if you would
like to see it come by the office.
? * ?
Jay Jenkins, assistant to Presi
dent Bill Friday of the University of
North Carolina, was by the office
last week. Jay was in Wagram
about the time 1 finished high
school and later became a news
paper man with different North
Carolina papers. He was the
Raleigh correspondent for The
9 Charlotte Observer for many years.
" We have bumped into each other
many times since the thirties and it
was good to see him.
He is a relative of John Charles
McNeill so he and Blackburn had a
long talk about the poet. So maybe
we will be reading more about the
man from Wagram in the coming
months.
* * ?
While on the subject of John
Charles McNeill, a letter came in
last week requesting information
about a book that was mentioned in
The News-Journal write-up recent
ly. The letter was from the Rev.
Zane Grey Norton of Charlotte,
who is a native of Hoke County. He
is a brother to Alex Norton of the
Hoke County Sheriffs Depart
ment.
The request of the Rev. Mr.
Norton was forwarded on to him.
? ? *
A billfold was turned in to the
office last week and didn't have an
ID card in it. It was found at the
McLauchlin School Park and will
be returned to its owner if they will
^come by and make proper identifi
pcation.
By the way some money was in
the billfold.
? ? ?
Plans have just about been
(See AROUND TOWN, Page 1 5)
Sheriff Alerted To PCB Spills
SBI Investigates
Airplane Sabotage
The State Bureau of Investiga
tion and the state Department of
Agriculture are probing into the
possible sabotage of a crop-dusting
plane owned by Farm Chemicals,
Inc., of Raeford.
The plane dusted about 100
acres of cotton near Falcon in
Cumberland County in early
August and an unidentified chem
ical that was apparently added to
the plane's gas and oil tanks caused
damage to the crops. The inves
tigators have not determined
whether the crops were damaged
through engine exhaust fumes or
whether the chemical was also
added directly into the craft's
pesticide spraying containers.
Shell Oil Company in Houston,
Texas, is testing the chemical
additive to determine its identity,
although S.B.I, tests have been
delayed while priority is given to lab
work on the recent P.C.B. spills
reported along the roadside of
numerous counties.
The agriculture department is
testing samples of the chemical to
determine if the proper pesticide,
galecron, was improperly mixed or
if something had been added to the
compound.
The single-engine Cessna valued
at 543,000 had been spraying the
cotton crops with what was thought
to be galecron as a part of a
three-year trial boll weevil exter
mination program sponsored by the
state and federal governments.
President of Farm Chemicals
Alfred K. Leach said the plane's
engine, valued at 517,000, was
beyond repair and he expects to
have to scrap the craft.
A spokesman from the Agricul
ture Department said it is too early
to tell whether the damaged cotton
crops will result in a loss to the
growers. About 16 of the 100
affected acres were seriously in
jured, but it is hoped that only the
foliage was hurt.
The plane reportedly made
spraying runs on Monday, July 31,
parking at night at an airfield in
Wade. On August 2, Eddie Owens,
the plane's pilot experienced engine
trouble and flew to the Laurinburg
Maxton Airport to determine the
cause. After discovering a liquid
that he could not identify in the
fuel, he contacted the Scotland
County Sheriffs Office.
County Board Okays
Equipment Purchase
At a special meeting last Wed
nesday the Hoke County Board of
Commissioners accepted a low bid
of $66,248 from Carolina Equip
ment of Raleigh to purchase a piece
of heavy equipment for the county
landfill.
The load-crawler will be used to
bury garbage at the landfill. Al
though the landfill is operated by
the City of Raeford, the county
pays for 75 percent of the costs.
It was thought earlier that the
board did not have enough bids on
the equipment, but the commis
sioners later learned that they only
have to have one.
Commissioner Danny DeVane
cast the one dissenting vote, saying
he thought the county needed more
competitive bids. County Manager
James Martin quoted prices sur
rounding counties had paid for
similiar equipment, and all were
considerably higher than the lowest
bid solicited by Hoke County.
"We only have one machine at
the landfill now and if it breaks
down it will cost us $3,000 a month
to cover the trash there," Chairman
John Balfour told the board.
The board also accepted a low
bid of S5.570 for a pickup truck
from Hoke Auto Company for use
at the landfill.
The city has to okay the bids,
too. And the city manager got
approval from the councilmen indi
vidually over the telephone last
week rather than call a special
session.
In other business in local govern
ment, the county commissioners
last week delayed acceptance of the
new South Hoke Community Cen
ter until several minor details are
completed at the building.
The center cost about 5100,000
and was financed through federal
funds. The board is expected to
accept the building later this week,
after the work has been finished.
The building is located behind
South Hoke School.
Hoke School Board
Allows F ord
To Supply Cars
The Hoke County Board of
Education voted Monday night to
allow the local Ford company to
re-enter the driver education pro
gram and supply cars for the Hoke
school system.
Younger Snead, manager of
Hoke Auto, approached the board
in July to request that Ford not be
allowed to re-enter the program.
He reminded the board members
that during the recession Ford had
pulled out of the program and
Chevrolet had come up with the
extra cars needed for the program.
"I stuck with you in the crunch.
When times got hard, during the
recession. Ford pulled out and you
came to me for all of the cars. I
helped you then, and I believe you
have let me down now," Snead told
the board last month.
Autry told the board in the
Monday night session that he had
investigated and learned that the
decision to pull Ford out of the
driver's education program was
made by the local manager. The
Ford dealership here is owned by a
concern in Asheboro, and is now
under new management.
Board Chairman R.L. Gibson
told the board that he believed it
would be only fair to allow the new
man a chance at the program since
he had no part in the original
decision. A unanimous vote ap
proved the motion to allow Ford to
provide part of the six cars used in
the schools annually.
Also in last month's session, the
board heard a request to include
travel pay into the salaries of the
assistant superintendents. The in
clusion of the travel expenses into
the salaries would eliminate record
keeping and would also re-imburse
the full amount expended in travel
for the school, Autry told the
New Banker
JOINS BANK -? Gene Miller, the
new city executive officer of the
Raeford Southern National Bank,
began his duties here last week. He
succeeds Freddie Williams, who
resigned from the bank earlier this
month. Miller is a graduate of
Appalachian State University and
is married to the former Martha
K. Simms of Laurinburg. They
have two children and attend the
First United Methodist Church.
board. Autry also said that he was
told by state officials that such a
move would be unethical. The
board delayed making a decision
on the matter. It was not brought
up in the Monday night session,
and following the meeting, Autry
said he did not intend to mention it
again unless he was instructed by
the board to re-Open the subject.
In other business, the board
approved raising the amount of
travel expenses to the new state
levels. Superintendent Autry ex
plained that the travel allowance
had increased from 15 cents per
mile to 17 cents per mile and the
daily allowance for living expenses
had also increased, but the local
system could not begin paying the
increase until the board approved
the measure.
Autry presented the board with
calendars for the school year.
Although school does not officially
begin until September 5, orienta
tion day is planned for Wednesday,
August 30. Busses will run that
day. although students will only be
in school from 8 a.m until 10:30
a.m. School does not officially start
until September 5, the Tuesday
following Labor Day weekend.
Teachers will report for their first
workday on August 23. The school
year will end June 13, 1979.
The board also approved a roster
of new teachers and aids for the
coming school year. Decision on a
school health policy was delayed
until the next meeting.
STOLEN TRACTOR -? This 535.000 farm tractor was stolen from Parker
Equipment Company in Laurinburg over the weekend and ended up in
Hoke County Sheriff Dave Barrington's yard early Sunday morning. The
driver, who was being chased by deputies, fled on foot after the machine
crashed into a tree. A reward has been offered for information leading to
his arrest.
Tractor Plows Up
Barrington's Yard
It wasn't a very good weekend for
Hoke County Sheriff D.M. Bar
rington.
He worked late on Friday, had to
get up early Saturday, came down
with a 24-hour virus that night, and
early Sunday morning, while Rae
ford slept, a large farm tractor that
had been stolen in Laurinburg
plowed through his yard at about
40 miles an hour, flattening 75 feet
of chain link fence, a persimmon
tree, and his prize tomato plants.
The air-conditioner was running,
and Barrington said he was so
sound asleep he didn't know any
thing had happened until one of his
deputies knocked on his door.
Things could have been worse,
he admitted Monday as he inspect
ed the damage to the lawn of his
North Magnolia Street home.
"If he hadn't turned when he
did. he would have come right in
my bedroom window", the sheriff
said.
He was thankful his house and
family had been spared. There was
about S500 damage to his yard,
according to his estimates.
It wasn't anything personal. The
culprit on the tractor probably
didn't know whose yard he was
invading. He was just interested in
getting away from the law .
Deputies J.W. Jones and R.C.
Hart had spotted the big machine
on the N.C. 21 1 cutoff around 2:30
a.m. Sunday. They gave chase, and
the tractor accelerated across U.S.
401 -bypass, going out of control
after heading down Fulton Street:
The tractor knocked down a
hedge belonging to the sheriff s
mother, who lives right behind
him. and then came on through his
yard, slamming into a tree. The
vehicle was traveling at top speed
when it hit the tree. Barrington
said, and the impact tore off the
wheels. The driver jumped out of
the cab and ran before deputies,
following on foot, could catch up
with him.
As they later learned the $35,000
tractor belonged to Parker Equip
ment Company, a John Deere
dealership in Laurinburg. No ar
rests have been made in the
incident. A reward has been offered
for information concerning the
theft.
Hoke County Sheriff D.M
oX:n?on,said this week h's
office has been alerted by the
(SB?) , Keau of '"""Ration
J, ' to be on the lookout for
waste scavengers" that have
i ^ymping toxic chemicals
along North Carolina roads, but
so far there have been no spills
reported in this county.
Local officials are apparently
not involved in the investigation
hI V5 * mi,e sPin aIong a
deserted road on the Fort Bragg
Mihtai7 Reservation near here.
Hoke County Health Depart
ment officials said they have not
been contacted concerning the
spill, which is believed to have
occurred June 29 on Manchester
and King roads between the
fbrd0^ ty line and Rae
susPected chemical
spills have been discovered on
the reservation.
Sheriff Barrington urged res
dents to keep an eye out for
u trucks rid?ng on the
shoulder of the road with their
ythlTi?&en Jhis is how more
than 250 miles of state roads
have been contaminated with
a chemical considered
dangerous to humans.
State officials said last week
when the spills were detected
that a professional "waste scav
enger may have dumped the
chemicals for a client seeking to
circumvent new federal toxic
waste disposal rules that went
into effect August 1. Approved
d^Posal of PCBs. which are
used to insulate transformers
now cost up to $3 a gallon.
. , or polychlorinated bi
phenyls, began showing up in
Alamance and Johnston coun
? ii i ?rst this month. As
spill locations were plotted, thev
appeared to be following a
a|9n8 rural routes that
SS * h ol Interstate highways
85 and 95. the main north -
Carolina?*"* 'hr?U8h Nor,h
State environmental officials
have advised Fort Bragg's en
vironmental officer to keep
people out of the area of the
spill.
"We advised them as a
temporary measure to cover the
chemical with sand until we
decide what to do with it." said
Jrithmfh RamSey< an engineer
with the regional natural re
SOp~j? office in Fayetteville.
rLBs are used in the repair
and manufacture of electrical
?f,n^0rnierS at P'ants through
out the state and have caused
liver cancer and nerve damage
in animal experiments. It is
DDT Ped.m?re t0xic tha"
DDT. People who have been
exposed to high doses have
developed hea|th prob)ems
eluding acne - like skin rashes
swollen limbs, runny eves and
discolored fingernails.
Under state laws the polluter
o??UniShed bvfines ot uP
to $5,000 per violation, forced
clean up the discharges and
sentenced to six months "n
prison. There are federal penal
ities, too. P^iiai
Officials estimate that it
could cost as much as $1 million
(See PCB SPILLS. Page 15)
FENCE FLATTENED - A stolen tractor crashed through a fence around ,
Sheriff Dave Barrington 's yard early Sunday morning, knocking down a young
persimmon tree and plowing through hit garden.