THE FLIGHT
OF A SPARROW
SYNOi
The day X met the lady I mar
ried I - was wearing a pair of
khaki britches — standing in the
middle of my wardrobe.
That was a long time ago, and
for many of the years that came
after my station in economic
life was little better, a cut above
the thread bare.
As I mull over those years,
recall the avejsities and the dis
appointments I knew. I marvel
1 didn’t chuck the whole thing.
1 say that because I am no
means a strong man; weakness
put me in khaki.
Yet, I didn’t chuck it. Instead,
I worked, without much plan, at
whatever the day brought Rely
ing, I suppose, on the basic
justice of life. What else was
there to do, if a person was not
to make a shambles of another’s
trust?
My life, during the late 40s on
into the 50s was a life of bluff
and shy hope. I was without
formal education worth the
name, I had no trade, no pro
fession, no nothing, not even a
healthy body, only a mind that
sometimes worked. Not much.
Except the lady. The lady was
there each day, every day, all
day — and all night. In those
early years when fear of failure
would grip me in garish night
mare, I would awaken in a chat
tering sweat and always on my
shoulder there would be the
pat of solace and the word: “It’s
all right.”
And nothing would go back
to sleep.
* * *
In time God sent the girls.
And sometimes I would won
der what in the world would
come of them—and of the lady,
dependent as they were on a
reed whose weakness they could
not suspect. And whenever a
practical realization of tneir
slight chances came into focus,
I would rush to my work, almost
frantic.
Maybe tomorrow, I would
mumble, but it’s not going to
happen today! And it didn’t hap
pen that day nor did it happen
the next.
I prayed, first, to live long
enough for the tykes to remem
ber their father. And then I
prayed for time enough, cour
age enough, to see them through
their schooling.
And God heard. But God not
only listens, I learned. He also
talks. Not talk, right out, you
understand, but the sort of talk
that is born in a man’s mind —
the meaning of equity. One
asks the Almighty only for the
opportunity to do: For the mus
cle, the axe and the woodpile,
life, I learned, is a do-it-yourself
— with God’s help.
* * *
Your Honor, I place in evidence
Exhibits A, B, and C; the lady
and the girls.
You will recall my promise,
made so long ago from the bow
els of a towboat on San Francis
co Bay; In return for mortal
strength I would thereafter, do
the best I could do. You remem
ber. These exhibits, then, are
offered as the fulfillment of
that promise. Whether they
represent the best I could have
have done, You, Sir, as the
Judge, will know. They are what
I have done.
* * *
Was it Design that placed
the lady there, that day so long
ago, or chance? I rather think
it wasn’t chance at all. Nor
chance that I was there, Certain
ly I am the equal of a sparrow.
And that, I think, is the ■
answer.
Congressman L. H. Fountain Pays
Tribute to Work of Jaycees
ing membership in 6,400 cl
ters all across our state and
tion.
Last week I had the privilege
of paying tribute in the House
of Representatives to an out
standing group of young men
who have given intelligent and
profound thought to human need
and to the biulding of a better
world.
I have reference to the Unit
ed States Jaycees who celebrat
ed the fiftieth anniversary of
the founding of their great ser
vice organization.
.The young men of America
organized the Jaycees because of
their great yearning to serve, to
grow, to learn, and to exempli
fy the true meaning of the bro
therhood of men.
Organized on a national basis
in 1920, the Jaycees, then titled
“U. S. Junior Chamber of Com
merce,” grew at a phenomenal
rate.
Our young men quickly rec
ognized the worthwhile qualities
of this new organization and
flocked to join. By 1930 there
were 15,000 members; by 1040,
64,000; by 1950, 1214,000; and
200,000 by 1960. In 1970, there
- *— T-- ’--id-,
*p
1a
The Jaycees are; * "
tional : ,
thousands.
ciety.
We must remember, too, that
over two million men have pass
ed through membership in the
Jaycees, making individual con
tributions during their years of
membership and becoming' im
bued with the high ideals ex
pressed in the Jaycee Creed,
which is as follows:
t'* ; s .
We believe: That faith in God
gives meaning and purpose to
human life;
That the brotherhood of man
transcends the sovereignty of
nations;
That economic justice can best
be won by free men through
free enterprise;
That government be of laws
rather than .of men;
That earth’s great treasure lies
in human personality;
And that service to humanity
is the best work of life.
This valuable creed surnam
es the faith and confidence the
Jaycees have in God, in human
ity, and in America.
The principles enunciated in
the Jaycee Creed are truly the
foundation stones upon which
our state and nation were built.
They are the foundation stones
of every community which
wants to move ahead.
Though we seem to live in
an age of negative thinkers,
the Jaycees are refreshingly
positive in their efforts to up
grade our society. At a time
when far too many in our socie
ty advocate change through
force and destruction and spend
most of their time criticising,
the Jaycees stand firm for pro
gress and enlightenment through
constructive action
The Jaycees are a fine ex
ample for all to follow —
both young and old alike. They
are not content to rest easy, but
strive always for improvement
in the quality of life, not just
For themselves but for all Amer
icans.
Let us be grateful for these
roung men, more than 300,000 —
who constantly plan and work
to make all of our communities
better places in which to live
and work.
I am proud to salute the Jaycees
of North Carolina and the na
tion. I wish them every success
in the years ahead and am con
fident that they will go on to
even greater successes in their
second fifty years.
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The same thoughtful consideration and
complete dignified service is accorded all
regardless of the cost of the funeral selected.
Underwater Observation Tower
By mid-March, when Expo "70 is in full swing near
Osaka, Japan, an underwater observation tower will
be operating in Shirahama, a popular hot-spring re
sort a hundred miles to the south. Visitors will reach
the tower by monorail and then descend into the
observation area to enjoy a breathtaking view of
myriads of brilliantly-colored fish swimming in their
natural habitat.
The 64-foot tall tower is being erected 300 feet off
shore on a foundation of solid rock. The observation
room about 20 feet below sea level is encircled with
windows. Lights will be placed in the ocean floor to
provide easy viewing, day or night. The entire project
is costing about $350,000.
The Hitachi Shipbuilding and Engineering Com
pany, builder of the underwater tower, has already
received orders from six other Japanese coastal re
sorts and Singapore. Inquiries have come from Hawaii
and Florida and from as far away as Turkey and Israel.
33SS55SZSSSSSSSSSS5S5SSSSS3SS2
SENATOR
SAM ERVIN
* SAYS * j
Confronted with a new na
tional mood and changing prior
ities, the President’s State of
the Union Address eloquently
presented the challenges of the
new decade. The Address, how
ever, did not blueprint propos
ed solutions to our problems.
The Chief Executive said he
would propose his remedies in
a dozen or more special messag
Continued on page 4
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