North Carolina Newspapers

VOL. XXXIV, No. 18 SHELBY, N. C. FRIDAY, FEB. 11, 1927. Published Monday, Wednesday and Friday Afternoons. By mail, per year (in advance)_.$2.5C By carrier, per year (in advance) |3 Ot The groundhog may win every other day, but his weather does not prevail every day. * * * IIow do the Shelby schools rank by the national standard tests? Head Dr. B. A. Stevens test report in today’s Star. • * • A steady enrollment gain is shown in the city schools of Shel by with the total enrollment figure moving up to a new mark. * ♦ * Fifty years ago—a half century, mind you—six Cleveland county folks attended a wedding in this county. This week they gathered together again. Two of them were the bride and groom of 1877. A full account of the gathering in this is sue. • • * Isn't there a home somewhere in Cleveland county that might be cheered, up by the gurgles and cooing of a four-months-old baby, or maybe two babies? Twins over at the Shelby hospital are looking for a home, and they are healthy and intelligent. * * * The cigarette ban at Boiling Springs may be lifted. A bill seems to have been introduced in legisla ture to that effect according to this paper. Representative Falls, home to at tend the funeral of his father-in lam, says the Australian ballot bill, v#ritten by him, will not be so (Jjstly as opponents state. In the gleantime Senator Tom Fulton, of Kings Mountain, is at home with a sore nose. » * *, • Marriages are ^>n tip? increase here, the jail gu<fcst lfst is dwindling' and hotels are overflowing—a part of The Star’s interesting news" A* * * Petty thieves about Shelby bor row cars for the night, take gaso line from others, and on occasions pick up a few overcoats. * * * Some startling K. K. K. news conies down from the Forest City section where several warrants are said to be out for prominent people. mOVEMS BUI JAIL 115 BUI ITS GUESTS ter First Time In Kany Weeks Colored Folks Outnumber White Guests In County Bastile Business and morals appear to be on the upgrade in Shelby. Central hotel, uptown commer cial hostelry, announces that for several nights now guests have been so numerous that extra cots have been called into use. On the same day comes the news from Sheriff Logan that the guest list at the county jail is the smallest in some months. Crowds Decrease Only eight or ten people are in th-3 county jail now while dnly a few weeks ago the capacity came very near being taxed when Kings Mountain officers ran in 10 prison ers at one time. Yesterday when one white pris oner received bail it was said that for the first time in several moons colored prisoners outnumbered white prisoners. Only two white men are in jail now—unless others have registered over night—and no white women are now “doing time.” The total of colored prisoners runs around six or seven. Senator Fulton At Home With Red Nose Tom Fulton Misses Several Days In the Senate While he Gives Nose Chance to Get Well. ' From Kings Mountain comes the news that Cleveland county’s newly elected State Senator, H. Tom Ful ton. is at home nursing a sore nose. To he explicit Kings Mountain Herald says: “His nose is long and fed and of the Barney Google do slRti. He Saya ihat it is not capital bootleg hut a rising. Anyway he is 'Forming the capital while treating it.” Friends of the senator will he (dad to hear that his ailment is not considered serious and hope that lie "ill be hack at his post in the sen otc within a short time. To Sell Lunches And Drinks At Station Hus Station Master Griffin has fitted up a lunch and cold drink stand in the central bus station in the corner of the Courtview Hotel building. The station interior has been, remodelled and improved and lu the process, Mr. Griffin has had fitted up a counter and glass en closed shelving where lje will sell lunches, hot and cold drinks and sniokes to the many customers that tome and go. Nearly 2,800 Children In School. 55 Students Make Honor Roll. Girls Hold Lead. _ ) Enrollment in the Shelby city j schools reached a new high mark during the fifth school month just ended. The total enrollment now is j 2,782 as compared with 2,660 during j the fourth month. With this enroll- j ment the average attendance is 04 ‘ per cent. Morgan school leads in numbers with 528, while the Marion school , is first in attendance and the high ! school second. Enrollment figures for the month follow: School Enroll. Washington _160 Marion __ 275 Sumter__ 253 Jefferson __205’ Morgan 528 LaFayette __361 High School __461 Colored school___449 Average Attend. 20 Totals ___2,782 The Honor Roll. 98 95 93 92 91 97 90 94 Fifty-five high school students attained honor roll distinction dur ing the month. Of the number 47 were girls and eight were boys. The ninth grade led with 20 students and the eighth grade was second with 17. The honor roll follows: Grade 8-1—Minnie K. Allen, Eve lyn Ray Gibbs, KaifiTeen King, Mag gie McGowan, Mildred McKinney, Lalage Sperling, Aileen Webb, Ray mond Hord. Grade 8-3—Juanita Cline, Mary Fay Dellinger, Elide Gidney, Eliza beth Gidney, Marietta Hoyle, Sara Hoyle, Ruth Hamrick, Helen Rob erts, Rachel Wells. Grade 9-1—Lula Agnes Arey, Mary Sue Borders, Gladys Colquitt, Mary Frances Carpenter, Madic Gillespie, Burties Gettys, Virginia Hunt, Virginia Jenkins, Dorothy King, Ruth LaughrWfge, Ada Laugh ridge, Pearl Lybrand, Mae Ellen McBrayer, Madge Putnam, Dorothy 1 Putnam, Mary Faye Pcnninger, Eli i zabeth Riviere, Alex Gee. Grade 9-2—Robert McDowell. Grade 10-1 —Wilt ram Webb, Billy : McKnight. Milan Bridges, Lucille Bridges, Kate Bridges, Martha ; Eskridge. Minnie Kmg, Sara Rich ! bourg, Lallage Shull, Viola Walker, | Kathleen Young. Grade 11—Margaret Blanto, ! Irene Bridges, Elsie Greene, Alice | James, Maude Rollins, Madge Spcr ! ling, George Richbourg. Husky Twins Want Gcod Homes Here They’ll Even Agree to Be Split up Just to Get a1 Home and Proper Care. This could be a little sob story, | but the hope is that it may prove ‘ one of good cheer—a story that ! will bring happiness to two little i homeless tots, who as yet know : not much of the world, and joy into j some home where a child’s laugh is now missing. Four months ago a loyal mother breathed her last at the Shelby hos pital and in passing on into eter nity she left with the world twins, two dimpled, cooing bits of human ity too young to realize their plight. Will they never know a mother, or a mother substitute? What will the unfolding years bring to them? It is a question for somebody to ans wer. For four months how the twins* a boy and a girl, have been at the hospital. The father finds himself barely able to keep up and feed the other children at their home in the county. So that of recent weeks J those twins, entitled to the birth-, right of opportunity just as much as any other children, have been charges of the walfare department. In brief, the big idea is this: Will some couple adopt the youngsters, one or both of them ? Such may be done by applying to Mr. J. B. Smith, county welfare officer. The motherless Jack and Jill are under his supervision now and he says that if both cannot be placed in the same home he will agree to place them in separate homes. They may be obtained, he savs. j either by adoption or juvenile court order. “Perfectly healthy ! Sound as two silver dollars,’ that’s what staff surgeons at the Shelby hospital j say of twins. Intelligent, healthy, | kicking, cooing four months-old babies looking for a home. With the passing of a week or so ' may The Star record the fact that someone has given a home to them ? I Better see ’em anyhow. They’re j cute. Tests In Shelby Schools j Reveal Interesting Data Local Schools Show Superiority In Some Departments. Exnert Sayc Not Enough Money Spent. Equipment Inadequate. Editor’s Note: A testing pro grom in the SueJpy public school to ascertain .how the lo cal schools rate with nationVj standards has just been com pleted under the supervision of Dr. B. A. Stevens. North Car olina University extension ex pert, and his report shodld be of considerable interest to Shelby school patrons. The Star today publishes below interest ing parts of Dr. Stevens* ^re port, citing whp;t tests show to be the high points and weak nesses of the local schools. To the end that taxpayers and school patrons of Shelby may be more reliably informed of the ef ficiency of their school, a program of measurement insofar as the ele mentary grades are concerned, has been undertaken this year. The measurements so far have been completed in only the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh grades. Meas urements in the primary grades are being taken. In the measurement of the edu cational status of the children of the upper elementary grades, com monly callechthe grammar grades, the instrument employed was the ! Stanford achievement test. This device should in no way be con fused with any of the various so called intelligence tests. The so i called intelligence tests are in I struments which have been used | for the purpose of determining the native or inborn mental capacities or endowments of an individual. They probably measure only a nar : row segment of intelligence. The ; Stanford Achievement test is strict ly an educational scale for measur ing the extent to which pupils have profited by instruction in the fun ; damental subjects. It indicates that ! the children in the various grades i can do rather than to attempt an analysis of what each child is ea I pable of doing. 1 The Advance examination of the : Stanford achievement test is a com j posite of nine specific measures of ■ pupil performance, j The following table gives the facts concerning the Shelby schools as revealed by this measurement survey: Fourth Grade. Average grade rating: First test i 4.4; Second test, 4.1; Third test | 4.2; Fourth test, 4.4; Fifth test, 4.." Sixth test, 4.1; Seventh test, 4 i Eighth test, 4.4; Ninth test, 4.6 • Composite 4:3. National standard 4.3. Fifth Grade. Average grade rating: First tes* j 5; Second test, 5; Third test, 6.1 [Fourth test, 5.1; Fifth test, 4.9 I Sixth test, 5.1; Seventh test, 5.1 Eighth test, 5.4; Ninth test, b Composite 4.0. National standard, 5.3. Sixth Grade. Average grade rating: First test, i 5.7; Second test, 5.7; Third test, 5.S 'Fourth test, 5.8; Fifth test, 6.2 | Sixth test, 5.9; Seventh test, 6.6 j Eighth test, 6.2; Ninth test, 5.9. I Composite 5.9. I National standard, 6.3. Seventh Grade. Average grade rating: First test, 7.6; Second test 6.8; Third test, 6.5; Fourth test, 6.5; Fifth test, 7.0; | Sixth test, 6.3; Seventh test, 6.4; Eighth test, 7.6; Ninth test, 7.1; Composite, 6.8. National standard, 7.3, An analysis of these data re veals at least three interesting facts. First, with the exception of the fourth grade. which is just at standard, all of the grades run a trifle under standard. Second, the position of each grade with respect to the standard grows progressively worse. The fifth grade is in a less commenda ble position than the fourth, but is better off than the sixth grade, and likewise, the sixth grade is weaker with respect to its standard than is the fifth, but it is in better shape than the seventh grade which is one half a year retarded. Third, there is a remarkable de gree of uniformity of performance in all nine tests. In no one or more subjects does one find undue weak ness or, on the other hand, undue strength. Certain subjects are not being sacrificed for the sake of showy attainments in others. Familiarity with the local school situation would prompt one to venture several possible explana tions of these three circumstances. In the first place the grades stud ied are, with the exception of the fourth grades, a bit below standard because of a rather general condi tion of low standard schools in North Carolina and S. C. Shelby’s olina and South Carolina. Shelby’s rapid growth in recent years has brought many children into the schools from small, weak, short i term schools where opportunities have been less favorable than in Shelby. This condition also in jart. perhaps largo part, explains the second condition observed—the prof|.-essive weakening of the grades. One, two and three years in the Shelby system more readily overcome the handicap of a lack of^ opportunity suffered by the young er children than th"y do the more serious shortages of the older chil dren entering the system. An edu cationally retarded child, entering the second grade, has a better chance of coming up to standard performance by the time he reach es the fourth grade than has an older child who entered the fifth grade and two years later finds himself in the seveistn grade. After a period of rapid growth such as Shelby has experienced it is evidence of good teaching that the grades are in as healthful a condition as the survey shows. Fact three adds weight to the opinion that a skillful staff of teachers is at work in the schools of the city. One of the highest .'-.ills in teach ing is the maintenance of a wise balance between the various sub jects. This has very evidently been quite uniformly practiced in Shelby for a number of years. Familiarity with the Shelby schools cannot help but lead one to believe that there is another force at work helping to produce th" trace of weakness we find in pupil achievements. Thor- Is clear evi dence that Shelby is not spending , a sufficient amount of money on its schools to guarantee a firm hold on its present rather precarious rating. The schools are well staff ed with competent teachers, but the best of teachers, like any train I ed artisans, are not fully effec tive unless supplied with the best of modern tools and equipment. | The Shelby schools are notice j lacking in adequate first-class : equipment and supplies, such as , classroom libraries, school libra ries, illustrative materials, visual education equipment, work bencher, ! tools, consftruction materials, etc. To secure part of the badly need ed supplies and equipment children and teachers are finding it neces sary to divert their attention from the real business of the school in order to raise money through a variety of uneducative devices. While the children and teacheis are doing this port /f the citizen of Shelby are congratulating them selves because of the fact that the local school costs are lower than in any other city in the state. If this low rating of costs in Shelby is due to wise economy, well may we congratulate ourselves. There is no advantage in spending money just for the notoriety it may bring. If, on the other hand, the low rat ing is purchased through a denial of rightful opportunities to Shelby’s children we have little basis for self-congratulation. The best and most certain wealth that Shelby or any city has is its children. If it dis tributes its opportunities to them grudgingly, it need expect little from the future but grudging re turns. One other rathei unusual fact brought to light by this survey was the remarkable amount of uni feriority in the accomplishment of the children of the different schools. No one school showed marked superiority over the others and, on the other hand, no school showed a noticeable inferiority. In general it would appear that a child can transfer from one school to an other without serious embarrass ment because of the varying stand ards between schools. A pupil from the fifth grade of the Morgan . school would be quite at home, so I far as scholarship is concerned, in the Marion school Sumter school, Washington school. Jefferson school, or LaFayette school. The conclusion one should form from this study is that insofar as ; the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh j grades are concerned, the taxpay-| ers of Shelby are getting a bettor , return from their outlay for schools than results in other cities would indicate that they are entitled to. A ] devoted, self-sacrificing staff of j remarkably public-spirited teach- ■ ers is Shelby’s saving grace. Why | not meet them half way with the j eafeh support which will make the Shelby schools second to none in the accomplishments of its chil dren. Mauney and Willis carry one of the best lines of bread, cakes and crackers to be had at any price. Fresh every day. adv. Insurance. once illegal as gambling, has become a great fi nancial power. One company has assets of more than two billion j dollars. i Opposition to Australian Hallot t'laims It Would Mtfin Big j Cost To State Raleigh—Supporters o fthe Falls Rroughton Australian hallot bill finds that the opposition had called Upon the economy program to bear witness against them. Lobby talk placed the cost c f • the secret voting proposal at “a quarter million dollars an elc Lon” and legislators were being warned against undertaking any sue!' thmg in “this era of econ omy.’' Representative B. T. Fall* branded the estimate as a couple hundred thousand dollars or more too high and he set out in search 1 of actual figures. He said he would he prepared to show when his bill comes up for consideration in the legislature that the cost will not he materially greater than that of the present system. The necessity for private booths in which to vote and the contem plated plan of having “markers” | tit the polls were used by the op position in setting up their figures. ’ They counted the pay of thd mark | ers and the expense of rigging up the booths. “It wouldn t cost a quarter mil : lion dollars if they made the booths out of mahogany,” declared ;Mr. Falls, who pointed out that the booths usually are light, | cheaply constructed, box-like j structures. The Australian ballot bill has encountered the most active and hard working opposition of an> other legislative proposal. When j it came up for hearing before the joint elections committee a couple weeks ago there was not a soul present to speak against it. The proponents of the bill were jubilant over the outlook, but pretty soon they discovered that i the opposition was o nthe ground ! just the same. And for the last j week or so lobby work against the bill has been carried on so suc 1 cessfully that it is now regarded I as doubtful that it will get through the legislature in any sat isfactory form. The original bill as introduced by Representative Falls and Sen ator J. M. Broughton is being ma terially changed in the hope if winning the support of legislators who have raised objections to particular features. For one thing, the provision in the original bill for the virtual re peal of the absentee voters law is being stricken out. And then, for the sake of the “ignorant.” pro vision is being made for the em ployment of “markers” to help any one mark his ballot who may need help. The markers’ were put in to win the support of the champions of the illiterate voters but now the opposition has harped on the ex pense of their hire. Boiling Springs To Play Highs Tonight The strong Boiling Springs bas ket ball quint will play the Shelby Highs in the new gymnasium here tonight. A fast game is ekpected as the Baptist boys are credited with having a speedy quint that will give the locals considerable trouble and perhaps a defeat. Gagers They Are. Playing a return game with the Highs here last night Kings Moun tain checked up a second victory over the locals 18 to 6. Only on oc casions did the locals flash any thing like wining form against the machine-like quint that tonight will enter the state race with the odds favoring them going far to wards the state title. Stowe, flashy forward, again led the Kings Moun tain attack. The line-up: Shelby (5) Mauney (1) Lee (2) Beam (1) Gillespie Gold Shelby subs: Pos. F F C G G K. M. (18 Stowe (6), McDaniel (2) Cole (2) Falls (6) McDaniel Coble (1); Bridges and Wall. Kings Mountain: Ledford (2); eJnkins, Herndon, Goforth, Wright and Cranford. Charlotte Degree Team Comes Here The crack degree team from the Charlotte Masonic chapter will come to Shelby Monday night, Feb ruary 14, to put on the two final degrees in the chapter here, it is announced. The Charlotte degree team is ore of the best in the country and all chapter members are urged to at tend. Warrant For Dr. Duncan, Forest City, In Klan War Asheville Klansmen Accuse Dr. A. M. Duncan And Others Of Taking Klan Paraphernalia There. Asheville, Feb. 10.—The moun tain klnnsmen are agdin at war. Seals of the Asheville klan No. 40, the ordinal parent organization here of the Ku Klux klan, a filing cabinet and 80 robes and hoods; were taken from the hall of the or der on the third floor of a drug store building on Pack square early tonight in what members of klan 40 say was an unauthorized raid on their personal property led by I>r. A. M. Duncan, of Forest City, titan of province No. .'1, working under Judge Henry Grady of Clin ton, grand dragon of the .state, whom the outlawed klan 40 has re fused to follow. Warrant Issued. A warrant was issued shortly after the occurrence for I)r. Dun van by R. W. Henderson, member of klan 40, who with a group of oth er members of this organization declare that six ur more pnrties thought also to be members of klan 40 favoring the Grady faction, as sisted Dr. Duncan. Warrants for them are to be issued tomorrow it was said. The warrant for the Forest City physician will be sent to the sheriff of Rutherford county ut Rutherford ton to be served by him, according to the magistrate. I'se Automobile. Those taking the property, it is i declared, drove up in a largo auto mobile and gained admission into the hall through a local member. After loading everything in the na ture of robes and other parapher nalia into the car, it is said to have driven off in a hurry and made its way out of the city before the ne cessary court action could be taken to stop them. Six Who Attended Wedding Years Ago Return For The Fiftieth Anniversary Borrow Car And Abandon It On Deserted Street The ear borrowing habit still prevails about Shelby. Wednesday ■ night Miss Fay Lutz parked her Ford roadster near the Central | high school building while attend j ing a rehearsal of a senior dnss 1 play. Returning some time later the car was found to be missing and a ; search was instituted. Thursday night officers contin ued, making a search of the town i hoping to find ths» car parked somewhere and during the night Officer Bob Kendrick found the car abandoned on a street in West Shelby. Such temporary larceny has oc curred in Shelby several times and [ local officers have the idea that I youths of the town are taking the cars, going to ride, and later after I the trip is over abandoning the j cars on a deserted street. City Asked To Reduce Power Rate Considering a Blanket Accident In surance Rrte on City Employ es and Trucks A delegation of citizens repre senting the Fallston Light and Fow ler company appeared Tues. night ! before the city father and asked 'that this rural light company be furnished power at a lower rate. The Fallston company secures its power from the city and contends that at the rate charged, there is no profit in the distribution and re sale of the power to the patrons along the line. The city has so far declined to make any reduction. The salary of the city engineer has been reduced since the public improvement work is about com pleted for the time being. A blanket accident insurance pol icy to cover any damage which might be sustained by any city em ployee while in the line of duty, also to cover any damage which city trucks might do to persons or property. No policy has been pur-' chased, but the rate is being look ed into. Water will be furnished to the golf course at Cleveland Springs to water the greens during a sum mer drought. The water will be measured through a meter and the j monthly bill presented to the alder- j men for action. Other than the above, the board | spent the remainder of its time passing routine bills for payment1 and discussing various subjects. Cheaper At $2.50 Than $1 Years Ago In renewing his paper for a year, J. M. Hunt of Shelby Route 2 writes the following unsolicited letter which is great ly appreciated: “Dear Star Ed itor: You will find $2.50 for which please renew my sub scription to your noble paper to Feb. 1st, 1928. Please don’t let me miss a copy as I do enjoy reading it very much. I think it is the best paper I ever got for the money. I took it when I lived in Rutherford county and got it for $1 a year once a week. It is much cheap er now at $2.50 a year every other day than it was then at $1 once a week.” Six people now living: in this section attended a wedding 60 years ago. Tuesday of this week, 50 years later to the day, the Bix dined together, and two of them, by the way, were the bride and groom of 1877. That’s an oddity in this day and time when the divorce courts func tion over time and in many cases the blushing bride and her lesser half do well to live together in peace and harmony 50 days, much less 50 years. Added to that the golden cele bration was held on the spot where the couple began married life to gether just a half century ago. The house isn’t the same, but it is on the same spot, and from that home have come fine children and many good deeds. Mr. and Mrs. W. W. Washburn were the bride and groom and it was their golden wedding anniver sary that was attended by Squire Cling Eskridge, Mr. S. A. Wash burn, Mrs. Victoria McAfee, and Mr. E. B. Hamrick, they also being present at the wedding 50 years ago. The late Rev. G. M. Webb, fath er of Judges J. L. and Yates Webb, performed the ceremony, while the ministerial seat at the celebration was filled by Rev. John W. Suttle. A full account of the golden wed ding day of one of Cleveland coun ty’s commissioners and prominent business men and his faithful wife may be found on an inside page. City Water Test Is Is Equal To Any G. M. Ridenhour of the State Board of Health who has been in Shelby for sometime overseeing the water plant and instructing the pump station men in its operation, says in his daily tests of the water it measures as high a standard as any in North Carolina. No other city water supply in North Carolina is any better and the tests made here by Mr. Ridenhour and at Ral eigh by the state chemist show that the water is as pure and wholesome as any in the state. To Sell Property If Assessments Are Not Paid For Paving ting hard streets in Shelby on which street assessments arent paid are likely to be greatly embarrassed shortly if these assessments are not paid, said Mayor Weathers and City Clerk Mrs. Oscar M. Suttle this morning. Notices were sent out in December and January to all property owners on which the past due assesments have not been paid, and some have responded, but not enough to pay bonds already due. To meet these bonds the city must either collect now or secure a loan of $15.000 or more to meet bonds due, Mayor Weathers says this should not be necessary as the mi ney is due the town by the prop erty owners who have paved streets in front and unless these assess ments are paid, the property will he advertised for sale. Heretofer it has not been necessary to press col lections after a sufficient number of property owners had paid to meet bonds, but this year a larger amount of bonds than ever are due and few property owners have paid. No date has been set on which to advertise property for sale but this will have to be resort ed to in order to collect enough to meet the bonds unless there is a willing response in the next few days. SEEK TO REPEAL ANTI-CIGARETTE BILL AT SCHOOL Bill Now in Legislature Would Lift Cigarette Ban at Boiling Springs. 3-Mile Limit. Cleveland countys “three mile limit’ almost as famous as the pro hibition three-mile zone along tha American coast stands a chance of being repealed. It will be remembered by citizens of the county—although some nev er knew it—that a cigarette ban prevails at Boiling Springs, site of the well-known Baptist high school. Owing to this ban cigarettes cannot be sold within three miles of the institution. Now comes along the semi-start ling information that there aro those who seek to lift the ban. The news is learned from Kings Moun tain where Editor Puge, prominent Baptist, is making a fight against the repeal of the ban, urging Bap tists Of the Kings Mountain as sociation to work against the bill in the legislature. Information is to the effect that the cigarette bill has already pass ed the house and must be held up j in the senate if anywhere. Senator Tom Fulton is at his Kings Mountain home with a sore nose but it is said that he has written Senator Whitmire asking him to hold up the i*Vl. Just who introduced the bill or sponsored it is not known, but Edi tor Page in a front page editorial in the Herald says in part: “Will 25,000 Baptists who own this great school sit idly by and al low a few merchants and residents of the town of Boiling Springs to bring this curse any closer to our boys and girls? Will not the mer chants who have accumulated about out school to make a living from the school re-consider and withdraw their petition for the repeal of the Boiling Springs anti-cigaretto law?” Petty Thieves In Daring Roles As They Rob Officers High Sheriff and Another Officer Have Gasoline Taken From Tanks on Antos. A wave of petty thievery seems to be moving about the Shelby sec tion. The thieves though taking few things of the grand larceny class exhibit considerable nerve in that they have added a few officers to their string of victims. One night recently Sheriff Hugh Logan had about 10 gallons of gas taken from the tank of one of his automobiles that he was unable to get in a garage. For some time Officer Bob Kendrick has been of the opinion that somebody else has been burning some of the gas from his car. Recently, it is said, he heard a noise about his car dur ing the night and dashed out to in cestigate. Nearby he found a can and funnel, it is said, but the thief had taken to cover. Next to gasoline the thieves seem to have a special hankering for ov ercoats. Sometime Thursday nigh someone removed the heavy ovei coat of Mr. Russell Laughridge, ~af sistant postmaster, from the ha rack in the foyer of the Courtie hotel. One overocat, it will be r< membered, was Stolen from one t the local churches only a few weel back. Woman Drops Dead At Morning Work Mrs. Katherine Seism, wife of Rufus Seism dropped dead this morning at 8:30 o’clock at her home on the George Sperling plantation two miles north of Shelby. Mrs. Seism had been sick for some time with leakage of the heart, but was up this morning about her daily chores when the end came. Deceas ed was 66 years of age and a mem ber of Pleasant Grove Baptist church where the funeral will take place Sat. 2. p. m. Surviving are her husband and three sons, Arthur, Gaither and Frank Seism. Marriages Holding Up Over Cleveland The usually dull matrimonial month of February even with groundhog weather isn’t so dull after all. In fact, if Register Andy Newton keeps selling license Feb ruary ma yestablish a record. Through February 9, Register Newton had sold license for eight marriages, one shy of one per day. License for the following two couples were issued Wednesday: Clemmie McCoy Wright and Novel la Green; Everett L. Lackey and Lula Selma Elliott.