I
A weekly newspaper devoted to the promotion of the general welfare and published
for tlu> enliphtment, entertainment and benefit of the citizen' of Kings Mountain
ami its vicinity, published every Thursday by lh«* Herald Publishing House.
? Entered as second class matter at the post office at Kings Mountain. N C„ 2**Ob;
{ under Act of ( onpress of March 3. 1873.
editorial department
Martin llarmon . Editor-Publisher
Dick Woodward . Sports Editor
Miss Elizabeth Stewart .Circulation Manager and Society Editor
Miss Libby Bum h . Clerk
MECHANICAL DEPARTMENT
Paul Jackson Allen Myers Monte Hunter
Douglas Houser Arnold Conner .Norman Camp
TELEPHONE NUMBER 739-5441
SUBSCRIPTION RATES PAYABLE IN ADVANCE - BY MAIL ANYWHERE
ONE YEAR •• $3-50 SIX MONTHS - $2.00 THREE MONTHS $! 25
PLUS NORTH CAROLINA SALES TAX
TODAY'S BIBLE VERSE
Ami let im not In trrartt in fell Auing: fur in <lue season m shall rr„,t, ,/ ».< hunt nut. Gala I ions 6:9
How Much Relief. Where?
The city commission is going to Is* in
the comparatively happy position, as it
compiles a budget for litfrl-B.!, of an
ticipating a minumum of $100,000 ad
ditional spendable revenue, as represen
ted by likely profits on its sales of nat
ural gas during the vear beginning July
1.
The city is calling the remainder of
revenue bonds outstanding, either Tor
payment at May 1 or October 1, but
whichever option the bondholders ex
ercise. it makes minor difference to the
city, for the cash is already in hand to
pay the bonds, accrued Interest and call
premiums.
The $100,000 figure is gleaned from
last year's operating profit and estima
tes of operating profit for the current
year. m
Mayor Glee A Bridges indicated re
cently the commission likely would pass
some of the new cash directly to citi
zens, both in the form of rate cuts to
natural gas customers and in a possible
tax rate cut.
The question to be decided is how
much the commission thinks it can spare,
viewed in the light of 1) fact there has
never been enough prospective revenue
for the city to schedule all needed pro
jects ( not to mention those merely de
sirable!. and 2) memories of the first
post-war General Assembly of 1947,
which found a healthy surplus provided
more legislative headaches than the pro
blem of struggling to find revenue.
Relict, of course, is right.
One gas customer, remembering some
sizeable bills during the very cold win
ter, offered the opinion the gas system
was being paid for too quickly. It was
his idea that rates should have been
pared already.
And the Mayor himself had a heady
information report the same day when
informed a projected water line, to pro
vide sufficient service in gallons and
pressure w ould cost roughly $40,000. En
gineering report on the latter hasn't yet
been detailed as to accuracy.
Meantime, the city is committed to
launching construction of a sewage dis
posal plant not later than January 1,
1967. No educated guesses on cost of t his
project have been provided, though fi
gures in the $300,000 — $500,000 range
have been tossed about.
Direct relief to citizens is, neverthe
less, possible.
There has been no long-term borrow
ing since 1954. During that period, the
city has reduced its bonded debt by ap
proximately $300,000 to $490,000, a com
paratively small figure when compared
to a taxable valuation of $13 million, the
fact that the general obligation bonds
bear low interest rates, and the annual
budget (exclusive of the gas operation)
Is in the $850,000 range.
Principal relief, apparently, should ac
crue to residential gas users, who find
heating bills in very cold weather very
damaging to their personal budgets.
Meantime, it should be noted that a cut
of ten cents per $100 valuation would
pare city gross revenue potential bv
$13,000.
Meantime, there is thinking among
some administration circles that the city
would do well to eliminate the bulk of
its privilege license schedule, returning
only about $6,000 per year. The reason
ing is that the city desires more tax
paying, utility-using businesses. In other
words, the city should be saying it is a
privilege to have these firms here, not
charging a tax for the privilege of being
a Kings Mountain business citizen.
The boiled down questions: How much
relief can be given and where?
While congratulations are being spok
en to Ralph Flow and Howard Broad
water on their promotions by Foote
Mineral Company, to become effective
May 1, friends of the Flow family regret
that Mr. Flow’s becoming general sup
erintendent of the Kimballton, Va.. op
eration will necessitate the Flow fam
ily’s leaving Kings Mountain.
A best bow’ to Mrs. Charles D. Blanton.
Jr., newly elected first vice-president of
the Women’s Auxliary of the North Car
olina Pharmaceutial association.
Campaign Costs High
When Robert W. Scott announced he
wouldn't be in ihe gubernatorial joust
for the Democratic nomination, he gave
one very practical reason, among others.
He had not obtained sufficient pledges
of financial support to obtain the min
imal $400,000 necessary to conduct a ser
ious campaign the long length and
breadth of North Carolina.
Asked about the statement when he
visited Kings Mountain. Mr. Scott re
plied. "I find I made a mistake for it re
quires nearer to a million dollars."
Just a few days later a press report
noted that Gubernatorial Candidate Dan
Moore’s bill for billboard advertising
alone totaled .$00000, that being exclu
sive of radio and television time and
newspaper space, and also exclusive of
travel expenses, salaries to secretaries,
mailing and printing costs, and rent on
campaign headquarters.
In other words, running for governor
requires large sums — not for the so
called business of buying votes, but for
promoting votes. Vote-buying onetime
was, but has been relegated to the ash
heap, due to unbearable cost, demise of
the poll tax as a prerequisite to voting,
and increased incidence of public ed
ucation.
Should campaigning cost as much?
Perhaps not.
A candidate apparently must either
be well-endowed in his own right or be
the recipient of heavy contributions, but
the fact of the high cost of campaigning
is lact.
Nor do the state headquarters expen
ses tally much of the additional funds
spent in behalf of candidates for the top
office at the local level. Politics is an
expensive hobby.
Education Opportunity
Dr. Robert Benson, president of Gas
ton Community college, makes a good
case for the benefits soon to be offered
by the two-year liberal arts institution
now under construction on the Dallas
Gastonia highway.
The academic offering will compare
to the curriculum generally available at
the larger four-year colleges and univer
sities, both public and private, and ag
reements are already extant that full
credits will be honored by the four-year
institutions when Gaston students en
roll to complete work toward degrees.
Dr. Benson points out that 25 percent
of today’s college enrollment is in junior
college and predicts it won’t be many
years until the total is 75 percent.
A big advantage to the many with
limited finances is cost. A college educa
tion for $200 per year, plus textbooks, is
an unusual bargain. Meantime, the col
lege will offer self-help jobs, some schol
arships, plus references for part-time
work to private business and industry.
Another benefit of the new college is
for adults to begin college work, or to
continue interrupted college work, via
night classes.
It is anticipated that many Kings
Mountain area citizens will avail them
selves of this new educational facility.
Nearly 38 Yean
While none has the right to expect
it, perhaps, not only Jack White, can
didate for the North Carolina Senate,
but many, many Kings Mountain citizens
had hoped he would bo home free, as
far as the Democratic primary was con
cerned.
That possibility was eliminated with
the filing ten days ago of Charles C.
Heath, former City of Shelby natural gas
system manager and mnv an engineer
ing consultant in the same field.
The record shows that this area of
Cleveland County has not had a citizen
in the General Assembly since the ses
sion of 1927 — which by swearing in day
will have been 38 years.
Many feel it’s time for the long dry
spell to be broken, without regard to
candidate qualifications.
At the same time. Kings Mountain
candidate, Jack White, has the qualifi
cations to represent Cleveland in the 50
member Senate, with the education and
practical experience sufficient to make
him a forceful lawmaker.
!|~martin's
MEDICINE
•y MARTIN HARMON
Inqrrdimtu: bit* of nnr* j
I irindnm, humnr, and comment*
I Dirertiom»: Take ireekln, i,
l*>x*ihle, but avoid
ovt rdrumqe.
On a resent Sunday. Baxter
Wright was in Asheville visiting
hi> son B. T. Wight. Jr. B. T. re
marked to his fathei that a class
ified advert i- -men t in the paper
advertised a “clean" 19*»t Chevro
let lor sale. lie needed r. second
car and suggested the two find
the address end look it over.
mm
The oddiess was in Biltmore
Forest Baxter hadn't previously
iH’en in that section and when he
saw the many handsome and
' mammoth homes, said to his son.
That address must be a mistake,
for you won’t find any lft»4 model
automobles in this area.” They
i-ontinued their trek, however,
found the address and there was
; the \>1 Chevy forked in the drive.
They were ins|*-cting •!, found it
indeed was elean. when a lady
emerged from the house. She
said she no longer needed the
Chevy as he*- friend had given
' her a new Ruick. B. T. asked the
. price and said he would return
next day to complete the transac
tion.
mm
The lady continued talking,
said she was r stenographer at
one of the <-oiinty government of
fices. She hid muted into the
Biltmore ’Anrest home a* a com
panion to an elderly widow, the
friend who had given her the
Huick. The lady had died, and
left the stenographer her entire
estate, which Baxter guessed to 1
be consiiierable
One of the most interesting,
personalities I have met recently:
is Gordon Kibbler a friend of
John II. Moss. Mr. Kibbler, a vio
linist. was a dance band musician
in the twenties, played with Paul
Whiteman and Fred Waring and
later formed his own l-and. He
said initially all hands had six
instrumentalists. Then it became
a race to set* who would have the
largest. Mr. Kibbler was the first
to have a 30 piece orchestra. For
saking the maestro’s rale in 1931.]
Mr Kibbler spent the next ten
years as a booking agent with the
NBC agency and booked the big
name bands thioughout the na
tion.
m-m
He knew virtually cil of the
big names in the popular music
field. Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey,
Glenn Gray. Hal Kemp. Kay Ky
; zer, Larry Clinton. Glenn Miller,
Benny Goodman. Guy Lombardo
and many, many more, including
. the Kings Mountain native, Hor
ace i Rudy * Rudisili, for many
j years a pianist with Jan Garber.
Our conversation brought back
many pleasant memories, includ
ing my first dance to a big
“name” band. I was a youngster
of 16. Hubert Adcrholdt, Snooks
McDaniel and I went to the old
Charlotte Armory to hear Guy
Lombardo's Royal Canadians. It
was a banner right.
The twenties and thirties are
j often referred to as the "Golden
Era of Jazz” and there was as
much truth as poetry in the word
j “golden”. A two-night engage
i ment at a college campus usually
cost the promoters about $5,000.
and, according to Mr. Kibbler,
Kyzeps final radio contract with
American Tobacco Company I Ky
• zee's Kollege of Musical Know
i ledge sold Lucky Str>l:est was
i for a cool SS.GOO.OOO. Mr. Kibbler
- laughed, “Kay completed the con
tract and retired. I don't blame
him." The Ky/ers live at Chapel
1 Hill, where Kyzer got his start
with a UNC campus hand, as did
Hal Kemp.
I
Rotating some details of the
conversation to C. E. Dengler, I
found that Mr. Dengler, who liv
c-d near Reading, Pa., was a
neighbor to the Dorsey brothers
lie says their father was also a
dance hand man in the days be
fore electric lights. The dance
hall was lighted by smokey gas
miner’s lamps.
1
Mr. Kibbler's business today is
Miami Beach Vacations, Inc.,
which arranges promotional va
cations for baseball clubs, super
markets and ether firms using
that type of promotion to attract
people through the turnstiles and
to the food islands.
He and John first met four
years ago and a couple of West
ern Carolina* teams are using
the Kibbler services for opening
night promotions this weekend.
Mr. Kibbler and John had a
dinner engagement in Charlotte
and I didn’t get to talk with him
as much as I wished.
/ MA,y3oi
Prescription for • Healthy State
Social Secmity
Details Needed
You should get in touch wi.JB
your social •orvrity office well a
head of your planned retirement
date so that you can find out
what proofs, if any. you will have
to supply. This will enable you to
begin your payments as *0011 a*
possible after your retirement
This is especially important t-.
the person about to retire, a«
cording to Lex G. Barkley.
manager of the (iastonia, N. C.
social security office, since the
largest part of his retirement in
come may be his roda! security
payment. Mr. Barkley indicated
that when you check ahead of
time it is usually only a mattci
of bringing in your social aecun
ty card, proof of your age and
proof of your earnings for the
last year. Proof of your age can
he a birth certificate or some old
record that shows your age. Prod
on your earnings can be your \V _*
form (Withholding Tax Stall
menti or, if you are self-employ
ed. a copy of your FYderal Income
Tax Return your Schedule C or K
Your cancelled check or some n
ccipt is also nci>dc<I to show tin
return was filed with the Internal
Revenue Service.
Proof of age will also he re
quired for any eligible depen.i
ents. Mr. Barkley stressed the ini
IHirtance of applying for benot
2 to 3 months before your pia>^
ned retirement date, even if you
do not have the proofs readily a
vailable. Me indicated the social
security office will oe able to
help you determine whore to lo
cate proofs anti the nest proof
for you to gbt.
Viewpoints of Other Editors
HARD MAPLE
Farmers call it the hard maple
— that dignified tree of the wood
land family thet gives its sap to
man. Some call it the rock maple
and others the sugar maple, but
the name is not important.
The huge, gnarled, rought-bark
od trees in the sugar grove re
mind one of elderly patriarchs!
that look with tolerance on the
foinles and blunderings of man
kind. Somehow a hard maple is
a sacred tree to the countryman:
he regards it as the Norsemen
think of their Yggdrasil. That fa
bled ash is important in history'
and legend but no ash ever yield
ed sap that could become sweet
syrup.
In 1791 wh'*n Thomas Jefferson
travelled to Vcrmopt, he was so j
Interested in the hard maples and
their sweet products, that he or- 1
dered 60 trees transplanted to his
estate in Albermarle County. The
trees did not grow. Jefferson did
not realize that a hard maple
wants highland ground, studded
with granite locks, and on a
south slope where Mai eh breezes
can play tag in warm sunshine
after a frosty night.
Rich soil and easy living is not
good for either a hard maple or
a man.
The maple that produces the
most syrup has its roots in rocky
soil; it fights for the nourishment
that brings sap, blossoms and
leaves.
And when the time of autumn
has come and the flaming glory
of the foliage lights a bonfire on
the countryside, one thinks of the
struggle that c tree has made to
achieve its great moment. And a
man. if he will, can look to a
hard maple oa the hillside, and
take courage.
It is always the struggle a
gainst odds that brings the best
in achievement.
Boston Herttld
I
TRAFFIC AND
DIPLOMACY
When in Rome, do ns the Rom
ans do unless you’re a diplomat.
The exception to the rule is
spotlighted by the growing feud
between Washington and other
capitals throughout the world
over the abuse of the special pri
vileges and immunities which tra
dition and custom have decreed
for the striped pants set.
To improve the traffic situation
and traffic safety in Washington,
D. C.. the State Department no
tified he foreign diplomatic corps
there that cars with diplomatic
tags should not violate traffic
laws or he violations would be
subject to the regular rules which
are enforced for motorists in
general.
Enforcement of traffic regula
tions where diplomatic cars are
| involved, however, has brewed a
1 storm of increasing intensity with
1 repercussions against United
| States diplomats stationed in oth
' er countries. To stem the tide of
possible incidents involving U. S.
diplomatic personnel, the State
Department ha sissued orders for
their strict compliance with local
regulations.
On the same basis that charity
should begin at home, diplomacy
ought to start with good public
relations reflected in Obedience to
local laws. If the diplomats can't
agree to ahid** bv such a small
thing as local traffic >meulations.
it’s hardlv anv wonder that little
progress is being made on the big
issues over which the world is di
vided.
Wichita Faffs (Texas) Times
SPHINX ON THE LABEL I
Noodle and other cicken soups
are in hot water in America. Ar
gument proceeds angrily on the
amount of chicken they should
contain. This news will be receiv
ed in Britain with sympathy and
some surprise. The Americans are
generally thought to have Taken
a much tougher line than we do
in this matter of laying down
how far the ingredients of tin.
bottle or carton and of other
enigmatic goods should be made
plain and in detail for the bene
fit of prospective buyers. There
have been changes in recent
years in reaction against tradi
tional reticense. But many people
still find it hard to explain why
some producers of good stuff
should not be proud to proclaim
exactly what it is made of. Why
do they so often seem to t>e coy
about sailing under their own
colors?
Margarine is still capable of a
rousing a pleasant little contro
versy about whether its “g"
should be hard or soft in collo
quial speech. But all reasonable
men or women will agree that it
Is healthy and millions find it
most palatable. From time to
time, however, those* who make
it publicly confess that they are
cross because they are not allow
ed to call it butter
Lawyers and other experts may
say what they will; ordinary folk
take butter and cream to come
from cows. They know, too, that
the nice sticky spre*ads which
they and their children hc*ap on
to the butter 01 the margarine
cannot, as a general rule, be ex
pected to consist largely of fruit
Still when they read such state
ment as “farmhouse Burbleherry
jam” they wouid much prefer to
have more space and emphasis
given to informing them how
many burbleherries are to bo
found in a pound and what else is
there.
The convention of wrapping it
up in flowery words is far from
being limited to the things we eat
and drink. It is not so long since
questions were asked about the
meaning of “all wool,” and other
well-aired phrases in the clothing
line. Happily the curious custo
mer is not left in the dark as
much as he used to be. But he
continues to ask himself how long
he will have to wait liefore all
manufacturers come to regard it
at a point of honor to put in the
forefront of their appeal to him
a factual rendering of what they
have to sell.
The Times (London>
TEARS AGO
THIS WEEK
Items of news about Kings
Mountain area people and
events taken from the 1984
files of the Kings Mountain
Herald.
Wilson Griffin, Kings Mountain
druggist, is to be installed as
president of the Junior Chamber
of Commerce at the cltfb’s annual
ladies’ night banquet at the Ma
sonic Hall Tuesday night.
Registration books open Satur
day for the first time for the May
29 primary election at all the 28
county voting precincts.
SOCIAL AST) PERSONAL
Annual May Day festivities will
be held Monday night at 8 o’clock
at the high school ball park.
Telephone
TjUK
■t
P. B. HOUCK
If you’re typical of telephone users in the
South Atlantic region, you turn to the Yellow
Pages an average of 56 times a year.
•
At least that's what was shown in a Yellow
Pages usage study conducted recently in the
four-state region of North and South Carolina. I
Georgia and Florida.
The study, conducted by an independent re
search organization for the Bell Telephone Sys
tem, found that in nine out of ten cases, when
you look something up in the Yellow Pages, you
take some action: a visit, telephone call or letter.
Of those interviewed in North and South Car
olina, Georgia and Florida, 69'< said they use
the Yellow Pages.
While men and women were found to turn to
the Yellow Pages the same number of times,
men used it more frequently — averaging 69.2
references to 43.1 for women. Men’s uses were
for business or work 65% of the time, while
61% of women’s uses w-ere for personal reasons.
39% for work or business.
Heavy usage was reported in all age groups
from 20 to 49. after which usage was found to
trail off somewhat. Of those 20 to 29, 73% used
the Yellow’ Pages 62.8 times each. In the 30-39
age group, the figures were 81%, and 63.2 uses.
And in the 40-49 category. 72% reported usage
averaging 75.3 per year.
Usage also was found to grow with income.
Eighty per cent of these making $7,500 - $9,999
a year averaged 76.3 uses, and of those with
annual incomes of $10,000 or more 76% con
sulted the directory 80 times per user. The study
w as conducted among adults 20 years and older.
tar Information and
enrollment forms
HEALTH MSUMNCT
tor pMpfe 65 or ever
your
in
AND TEL NO.
HURRY! OKN BNROUJHMT AML RD4MV $0 ONLY!
4S7-S37S
IAMSS M, WHDRR
312 S. Thompson St
Shelby. M. C.
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