WHEN RICH POLITICIANS BEGIN WORRYING ABOUT "THE PORE FOLKS", WATCH OUT!
By Jack Rider
One of the oldest axioms of
politics is that when rich, poli
ticians begin worrying about
“The Pore Folks” those "Pore
Folks” had better watch out be
cause they are just before get
ting the shaft, and1 deeply.
' Such a rich politician who has
been expressing solicitude for
“The Pore Polks” of North Caro
lina is rich-as-cream-Dairy-jpluto
crat Ralph Scott, who is also an
uncle to the governor as well as
a senator in the general assem
bly.
Over the weekend Scott ex
plained his solicitude for “The
Pore Folks” while trying to help
jam through his nephew’s tax
bill in the general assembly
which is also trying to help
“The Pore Folks” by putting
an extra two-cent tax on each
gallon, of gasoline used by “The
Pore Folks”, which has already
been “promised through” the
general assembly, and by put
ting a five-cent tax on each .pack
of cigarets smoked by “The
Pore Folks.” Not to mention a
one-cent tax on any cheap cigar
that a prosperous feeling mem
ber of “The Pore Folks” might
feel called to light up on a pay
day.
What Rich-As-Crea m-Seott av
ers, and) alleges, is that an un
holy alliance of diabolical East
ern North Carolina .politicians is
trying to hurt “The Pore Folks”
by joining a coalition that wants
to reduce his nephew’s smoke
tax from five to two cents per
pack and substitute for that a
one-cent per bottle tax on “The
Pore Folks” champagne, some
times called soft drinks, but
more often called “Coke” or
“Pepsi” or just plain pop.
So let us take a little look at
this rich politician’s concern for
“The Pore Folks”.
First let us see what these
Milk-Peddling Scotts are in favor
of and what they are against:
For; the extra two cents tax
on gas, which has given North
Carolina the highest gasoline
tax in the nation. For; the five
THE JONES COUNTY
NUMBER 6 'frtENTON, N. C., THURSDAY, MAY 29, 1969 VOLUME XVH
Jones Central Grads Get Scholarships
Having Total Value of Over $82,000
IS
£ ^ ,r.
Guidance Counselor Sue Park
er Banks of Jones Central High
School reports that the graduat
ing class of 1969 has been award
ed more than $82,028 in finan
cial assistance.
Beatrice Andrews, daughter
of Mr. and Mrs. E. P. Andrews,
Trenton, Route 1 — Prospective
Teachers Scholarship. Miss An
drews plans to attend Atlantic
Christian College.
Dalton Ange, son of Mr. and
Mrs. Mack D. Ange, Cove City,
Route 1 — Educational Oppor
tunity Grant and National De
fense Student Loan from UNC
Chapel Hill.
Jay Bender, son of Mr. and
Mrs. Virgil Bender, Pollocks
ville—Vardell Scholarship from
St. Andrews Presbyterian Col
lege.
Carol Cauley, daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Roy L. Cauley, Dover,
Route 2, a Meredith College
General Scholarship.
Sue Cauley, daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Roy L. Cauley, Dover,
Route 2, a Meredith College Gen
eral Scholarship.
John Creagh HI of Pollocks
ville — University of North
Carolina — OH Scholarship.
Tony Criscitiello, son of Mrs.
Vera C. Morris, Maysville —
George W. Harriet Scholarship.
This scholarship is given by Mrs.
Harriet in memory of her husb
and who was a former superin
tendent.
Deborah Haddock, daughter of
Mr. and Mrs. A. E. Haddock,
Trenton, Route 2 — a Grarat-im
Aid from Meredith College.
Sylvia Hargett, daughter of
Mr. and Mrs. Harold Hargett, Jr.
Trentop — Duke University
Scholarship, Student Loan and
Grant-imAid.
Janice Jones, daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Nolan D. Jones, Mays
ville — Escheats Scolarship and
National Defense Student Loan
from UNC — Chapel Hill.
Judith Jones, daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Aiken Jones, Trenton
— Prospective Teachers Scholar
ship, and from the University
of N. C. at Greensboro The Na
tional Defense Student Loan and
an Educational Opportunity
Grant.
Michael Koonce, son of Mrs.
Amelia L. Koonce, Trenton,
Route 2 rr Wake Forest Univer
sity Scholarship, Educational op
portunity Grant and National De
fense Student Loan.
John Mallard, son of Mr. and
Mrs. A. H. Mallard, Pollocksville
— Educational Opportunity
Grant and Nation* Defense Stu
dent Loan from University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
James Moore Jr., of Trenton,
Route 2, — Winston-Salem State
University Scholarship and
Johnson C. Smith University
Scholarship.
Rodney Scott, son of Mr. and
Mrs. Lanwood Scott, Pollocfcs
ville, Route 1 — Mittrey Amon
Courie Scholarship. This scholar
ship is given .by the Nick F.
Courie Family of Kinston in
memory of their son. Scott plans
to enroll at East Carolina Uni
versity.
Cecelia Simmons, daughter of
Mrs. Clara Bell S. Brimage, Pol
locksville — Educational Oppor
tunity Grant and National De
fense Student Loan from Uni
versity of N. C. at Greensboro
and also from North Carolina
State University an Educational
Opportunity Grant and a Nation
al Defense Student Loan.
Storma Thomas, daughter of
Mr. and Mrs. Herber J. Thomas,
Pollocksville, Route 1 — Wake
Forest University Scholarship
and National Defense Student
Loan.
Leslie Strayhom Jr., Trenton
— Grant-in-Aid from East Caro
lina University; Educational Op
portunity Grant and: National
Defense Student Loan from UNC
— Chapel Hill.
TWO JONES ARRESTS
Two arrests were reported
during the past week in Jones
County. Paul Meadows of Mays
ville was booked for 'being pub
licly drunk. John Cleveland: Eu
banks of route 1 Maysville was
arrested for larceny.
DAWSON OFF VIETNAM
Feraonneilman Second! Class
Jake A. Dawson, son of Mr. and
Mrs. J. D. Dawson of Route 1,
Pollocksyille, and husband of
the former Miss Dorothy A. Tol
er of Route 4, New Bern, is
serving aboard the cruiser USS
Saint Paul off the coast of Viet
nam.
JERKINS WITH APOLLO 10
RECOVERY FORCE
Seaman Apprentice Roger G.
Jerkins, son of Mrs. Verna Smith
of Route 1, Trenton, is serving
aboard the communications re
lay ship USS Arlington, a unit
of Task Force 130, for the man
ned flight of Apollo 10. The
ship’s mission is to serve as
the major relay station for com
munications of the primary re
covery units. The Apollo 10 mis
sion was one of the final steps
before reaching the ultimate
goal of the Apollo program, to
land men on the moon for limit
ed observation and exploration
and assure their safe recovery
upon return to earth.
Welfare Department Issues Releases te
Further Explain System and Functions
By Mrs. Zeta Burt,
Jones County Welfare Department
There is probably no other
Agency in Jones County whose
functions are less understood
than those of the local depart
ment of public welfare.
Some attitudes toward public
welfare, and this widespread lack
of real understanding of how
it functions on a day-today bas
is, .provide a realm of contro
versy probably unequaled in any
other public venture at the pres
ent time,.
The problem was pretty well
summed up recently by North
Carolina Welfare Commissioner
Clifton M. Craig when he said,
“Our nation at present is in the
midst of a social revolution as
evidenced by . the rioting in the
streets of our cities and the vari
ous demonstrations being held
in many {daces. At no time in
our history is it more import
ant for the public to understand
really the problems of the poor
— for it is the responsibility of
the public through their elected
local, state and national repre
sentation to determine the type
of programs that will be offered
in the future and to help allev
iate some of the shortcomings
of the programs in the .past/’
This newspaper in a series of
articles will attempt to provide
the factual information on the
public welfare programs in. our
county and how they are admin
istered and financed.
The first article appearing to
day will be on how public wel
fare is organized statewide and
how the local department fits
into the .picture.
Public Welfare in North Caro
lina is a State supervised and
county administered program.
What makes it even more com
plicated is that moat of the ser
cent per pack tax on dgarets,
one cent per cigar tax on all
sizes and prices of cigars. For;
a two-per cent tax on all in
surance premiums. Against; an
additional one-cent sales tax to
be divided on a per capita bas
is with the cities and counties of
the state.
The latest figures indicate a
per capita income in North Caro
lina of $2439, which is some
thing in the order of a $9756
per year income for each fam
ily of four in the state. But let
us not use these figures of af
fluence, since the concern of
the Scott Family is not for the
average working, tax paying citi
zen but is for “The Pore Folks.”
Persons with family incomes
of $3000 per year and- less are
categorized as poverty-stricken
by federal, state and local au
thorities on such matters, which
is an income per family of $57
per week or less.
The consumption of cigarets
last year in the United States
was 137.5 packs per person, so
in a family of four that adds up
to an annual consumption of 550
packs of cigarets per year, or
10.5 packs of cigarets per fam
ily per week. The five-cent1
Scott -tax would hit “The Pore
Folks” a 52-cent per week lick.
It would be impossible for an
additional one - cent sales tax
to hit such a hard lick.
The per capita use of gaso
line last year in North Caro
lina was 400 gallons or 1600 gal
lons for each family of “The
Pore Folks”. That is a 30.7-cent
per week lick at the average
family since whether it is used
in their family fivver or in some
one else’s the cost of it is tack
ed onto the things “The Pore
Folks” have to buy.
And for the latest year the
per capita consumption of soft
drinks in North Carolina was
just over 600 bottles, which is
1.6 per day or 44.8 per week
for a family of four, and as any
progressive math student can
quickly determine this would
add another 44.8-cents to the
tax package being prepared for
“The Pore Folks” up in Raleigh.
Anyway the taxing-pie is slic
ed; whether the Scott way or
the unholy alliance way which
the Scott’s aver and allege there
obviously is no merit in the mal
arkey being spread around that
anybody has any concern for
“The Pore Folks.”
What it is, is the oldest device
known to political science: Di
vide and conquer, or divide and
tax.
This ancient and not honor
able device works in this fash
ion. Let us levy a heavy tax
in this session on gas, and cig
arets, and perhaps soft drinks,
and'in the next session we’ll pay
our taxing respects to milk, and
advertising, and medicine and
fertilizer.
The very plain and ugly truth
of the matter is that far too
many politicians ignore the fact
that everybody shares in what
ever benefits there may result
from the expenditure of any
tax dollar, and in view of this
every citizen and every com
modity of trade should be tax
ed in exactly the same ratio.
Anything else is certainly im
moral, and possibly illegal.
But politicians have used such
whipping boy industries as whis
ky, tobacco and a few other so
called “luxury” items, lulling
the natives into a tax-paying
coma on the premise that some
how such so-called luxury tax
es are soaking the rich more
than the poor.
The absurdity of this ought
to be clearly visible to anybody
with passing intelligence. A rich
man can smoke no more cigarets
than a poor man, drink no more
booze than a poor man, and
all things being equal can
probably bum no more
gas than the poor man since he’s
able to keep a newer car in bet
ter repair that ought to be more
gentle on the gas tank than the
poor man’s rattletrap.
Jones County School Superintendent
Rooks Resigns, Replaced by Joseph
Collins of Apex; Franks Promoted
John E. Rooks, superintendent
of Jones County Schools, has
JONES CASE DISMISSED
Donald Ray Coombs and Lin
da Dawson Coombs filed a case
versus Jake Dawson of Pollocks
ville but the case was dismissed
since neither the plaintiff or
the defendent appeared for the
hearing.
LEATHERS AT OKINAWA
Seaman Apprentice Isaac Lea
thers, grandson of Mr. and Mrs.
Otis Mack of Route 1 Pollocks
ville, is serving with Patrol
Squadron 28 at the Naval Air
Facility, Naha, Okinawa.
ED MITCHELL TO VIETNAM
Army Private First Class Ed
ward L. Mitchell, 20, son of Mr.
and Mrs. Eddie R. Mitchell,
Route 2, Trenton, was assigned
April 22 to the Americal Divis
ion in Vietnam.
vices offered are Federal pro
grams established by congress
and the majority of the funds
to support these programs are
supplied by the federal govern
ment. More federal funds come
into North Carolina through the
State Department of Public Wel
fare than through any other
state agency, including the edu
cation and highway departments.
Recent reports have indicated
that this state appropriates a
Continued on page 5
resigned effective July 1. Ha
plans to return to the Waka
County School system.
Rooks stated that he had en
joyed his work in Jones County
and that the “cooperation of
the board was as good as he
could ask.”
Joseph Speight Collins hag
been chosen to succeed Rooks
as superintendent. Collins is cur
rently a school principal in
Apex. He is 39, married, and has
four children. He received his
B. A. and M.A. from East Caro
lina University and has dona
advanced work at Duke Univer
sity.
In other education changes, C.
C. Franks, principal of Jones
High School,, has been appointed
director of Jones County’s Titla
IV project.
In order to accomplish com
plete desegregation of Jones
County Schools the 1969-70
school year, Jones High School
will be converted to a junior
high school for grades 7-9 and
Jones Central High School will
be for grades 10-12.
Suceedifng Franks at Jones
High School will be William A,
Fennel who is currently serv
ing as principal at Great Falls
Elementary School in Rocking
ham.
Fennel earned his B.A. and
M.A. degrees at East. Carolina
University. Penuel is married
but has no children. His wife is
also a teacher.
i