Pace t-MISaOB'BEBALD-'
Overcome with illusion of wealth
AetHitl!! rm la deM!
Aad tor A brand new ear. of all tfaiaca-
1*7# bMB walldnf around tailing najraalf
Oat I did it for tba nobleat of raaaona - to
halp tba fOC aeonomy, to laap a local
buatnaaa in bualaaaa bacauaa It la tba
Amarlean thlngto do. (Hm precadtag rtiould
be playad to tba tuna ef "Battla Hymn ot
Ttia RapubUc 'j
Iha truth od It la, I waa orareoma with tba
notion that I hare tuddaaly bacoma waatttay.
I maan If you baar that aftoo toough you
begin to beUere It The klda next door aay
"Ooah. Ta’U are rich" whanarar we bar
becue a fteak.
All of tbia walrOiaae Ut upon my head laat
Thuraday momtag wban I aroaa, remem
bered It waa my wife's and my flat waddbig
amdranary, and was struck with groat
waves of guilt causa I didn't bava nary a gift
to bestow upon my batter half.
"What would you tike to have?” I aakod.
"You don’t hare to got me anything,”
answered Dorlha.
'Kxpaet me to beUera that?” I shot right
back.
"Okay, than get a storm door to go on the
back antranee," aha aald.
So, after droppiag off the aideat daughter
at bar Job, I drove poat haato to tbs storm
door store. After strolUag eaaually through
mt, a
Brooks recommends
hourly wof^e increase
Today. Commlsstoner of Labor John C.
Brooks commended the action of the N. C.
General Assembly tnereadng the state
minimum wage from 12.00 to 12.10 per hour
effective July 1, 1277. He estimated the In
crease wni directly affect approxlmiUaly
30,000 North Carolina workers.
The blU passed on June 8, 1*17 seto the
state minimum wage at 82.10 an hour, the
same as the current minimum wage under
the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act
(Wage-Hour Law). It further provldesx that
the state mtnlmum wage will Increase to
82.90 an hour on the same day that the
federal minimum wage equals or exceeds
82.90 an hour.
Brooks said the United States Congress Is
currently considering legislation which
would Increase the federal minimum to 82.90
later this year. The federal minimum wage
^^es to Induatrtos and business engaged In
Interstate commerce, but exempts retail
enterprlsea grossing less than 8280,000 a
year. Any employer covered by the federal
law Is not subject to the state law.
Brooks said the approximately 3S.000
North Carolina worksn who win be affected
by the change In the state law July 1 are
employed mainly In retail and wholesale
trade establishments, service-oriented
bualneasea food service and other small
bualneas establishments which have four or
more employes, but which gross leas than
8290,000 a year.
Kany North Carolina workers continue to
be exempt from both the state and federal
miidmum wage laws, such as employes of
small farms, state and local government
employes, some domestic workers and
youths under 18 yesus of age.
Brooks halted this latest action as a major
step forward In providing a better living
standsird for a substantial number of the
state's cltlxcn who need it most.
For Information concerning the specific
coverage of the state Minimum Wage Law,
contact the Employment Standards Division
of the North Carolina Department of Labor,
Bl»-788-2142.
R€f\D€R DIMOGUe
Thanks one and all
To the editor.
Our town meeting on Juim 18 wi
success because so many people put forth so
public who attended and parUc^iatad In tt
a great activities of the day.
The coverage and publicity given by tl
much effort. I would like to pubUcly thank Ktaigs Mountain Mirror-Herald and radio
everyone who had a part
endeavor at an ole tlmey town meeting.
We would be amiss If we did not exprei
gratitude to the merchants and Induatrlt
providing prises, the various committees W. NORMAN KINO
that worked long hard hours and the general Town Meetli« Ctair
station WKMT created much Interest a
erdhuataam, which helped 1
special event the success It «
KM has a crime watch
Toths Edttcr,
After raadliig about the cittaaiw of Kings
Mouitaln wanting a eommunlty watch
program, I had batter lot aomsons know ws
do have one. Bettar known as COPE
(atlsana On Patrol In Bmargenelea), we
use our own time and gas and ears to try to
cut down crime In Kings Mountain.
If you wOl chock the Dacamber issue of the
Kings Moiaitatoi Mirror-Harald, you wUl see
the crime rata waa down I beliavs 86 percent
over the previous year. We have only a few
members stOl actlvs simply because wo did
net get any of the credit due m. We, with the
halp of the Police Department, put on a
proram "How To Make Tour Homs
Secure” about a year ago. Only about 70
citUena came, then we had a program,
"How To Bay No To A RapUt” and again
about 80-70 people came, most of them COPE
members and poUca offleers. Another
program about "Child Abuaa”. Again only a
tba salaaman would
think that here waa a guy I can't fool around
with. Ha knows what ha is about), I asked
about thla storm door and that
The upahoot of tt eras that the osily storm
doors they had wars of the left-handed
variety. I don't know about you, but all of my
Ufa I've I
My well-modulated voles suddenly
became stpicnky aa I apologlsad for taking
up the aalaaman’s time, eurtdad and got tba
TOM
MclMTYRe
The next thing to croaa my mind waa roes
I called the roaoa store. "How much a
roses these days?" I a*ed.
"How much you got in your savings s
count?” tba rases person aafced.
'T don't have a savings account.’"
"Maybe you’d Uke a potted plant. A amaU
potted plant.”
"Wait a mlnuta! I could probably get a
toan at the bank tor the roass.”
"Oome by tomorrow, than. I got no roaas
today."
Thwarted again.
Itsraa Ricardo Motftalban. "... a luxury
car you can afford ..." he was saying in his
rich Bpanlab-Amerlcan accent.
"What do I know about ustury ears?” I
asked him. "I drtva a 1888 Mustang.”
Ricardo sneered at me. muttered
something to hla native tongue that I
woulihi’t have to nerve to repeat at a Lottla
Moon Circle meeting and faded away.
"What could tt hurt If I just looked at soma
cars?" I asked myself. Dropping Into
Grttfin’s to fortify myself and bolster my
courage I had a ti^ hot cocoa on the rocks.
I roared out of there Uka a lion, then timidly
eitered the chroma, steel and tinted wind
shield jimgie known aa Nation Chavrolst.
J. T. MoGtnnis came out to walk through
the lot with me. As 1 looked at tbs cam and
moso cloesly at the stichsr prlcea on th
window I was careful to Uda my face so J. T
woulte’taaalsras going into cardiac arrasl
JiMt to be safe I took tha phons number car
tar the KM Life Baring Osw out of my walls
ard held it between my thumb an
"Interestad in a r
Tom?” J. T.
knew I had been too qidck and too loud.
Tha upshot of It is. elthsrJ.T. McOlni
one helluva aalesmsui or, as I said beta
s. I
grandeur. Tha next thing I knew 1 eras
signing away on a btach of papers.
“WeU. how do you like tt?" I beamed at tha
wife, "irs your anniversary present.”
"Bift. an I ashed for was a storm door,”
site said.
Anyhow. Dortha loved tha car.
But. she soil wants a storm door. too.
Untapped gas resources
Vast supplies of natural gas remain to be though Preddent Carter and his enargy
found and produced in this country, even advisors have claimed that natural gas "hi
AMHIICJIfS UNTAPPED NATURAL BAS SUPPLY
m OF TK PROSnCTIVE SOHMEnS ME UNiniCKD BV DRIUINC
or THE OENTIFIEO FSMIFtAaLE AREAS WC
'O VHmiAUy UNEXPLORED DUE TO FEDERAL
CONTROLS. LEAVING 3000000 SO. Ml. UNTESTED.
OF THE lOENTlFCO FAVORABLE AREAS HAVE
PRODUCED ALL TIC NATURAL GAS USED M
THE NATION'S HISTORV. FROM ONU 50.000 SO. Ml.
CONSUMER FUEL BILLS WILL SOAR HIGHER
IF AMERICA TURNS ITS BACK ON HUGE SUPPLIES OF US. NATURAL GAS
★ Federal policy plara favor imporU of foreign liqtHfied gas and manu
factured ayntiwtic gas costing up to S5.50 per miSian BTUs of heat.
ir New American natural gaa can be produced lor S2.25 to S2.50
per million BTUs. at todays coat of exploration and drWng deeper
d it."
K map showing the dlstrlbutlan of
sediments prospective for oil and gaa in the
United Statas has bean Issued by the PltU
Energy Oroigi, DalUe, Tbx. to refute claims
of tha Administration that no more natural
gas can be found. The map is based on
studies commlaalcned by the National
Petroleum Council, and from U. B.
Geological Burvey information.
Oft and natural gas production has been
eatabllahad in only about 90,000 square miles
(leas than 2 percent of the 8,000,000 square
mllea Identified as having oil and gas
potential. Tremendous quanUtlas of new-
natural gaa are expected to be produced
from then percent of the untested, potential
sediments aa natural gas prices rise to the
market value of other fuels.
Geologlata have known for years that huge
quantities of new natural gaa either actually
• exist or probably exist in environments
where artlflcally low prices for gas have
prevented the drilling of walls. They fall into
“ these general categories:
1. Low-Production areas where wells may
. produce slowly for many years, or require
expensive epecial recovery treatment,
neither of which is economic under past
price regulation. The Forth Worth Basin of
Texas, is such an area, where unregulated
prices have provided the Incentive to in
crease drilling acttvlty by 800 percent in tour
yeara, swelling gas supidy by 8000 percent
In parts ot the area.
2. Deep Oeologle Baslnal Areas where the
largest reserves of natural gas have long
been expected to oome from depths below
19,000 feet. In 1*78 only KM such deep well*
were drUled (1 percent of the total ot 80,879
wells) due to uncertainty of gas prlcea
sufficient to provide an Inveatment return.
8. Frontier areas at remote distances from
existing pipelines, where no Immedtote
market la available and long term In-
veetment for develiqiment has not been
justlfted by low gas ^ces.
4. Bpecial Oategory Areas, such as the
Texas Gulf Coast where 109,000 Trillion
citolc feet ot gas has been calculated to exist
in high-pressure, hot salt water. Only 10
percent of this gas would supply the needs of
the entire nation for 200 years.
It la enough to make the few still trying just
give up, but we won't, because Khigs
Mofsitaln Is our town and we want to make tt
a better, safer place to live.
Who do you think put up the eigne on aU
maki roads leading into town? COPE did.
Who holds coffee breaks and jrard sales to
help needy people or people who lose
evarythingln a fire? COPE does. Who is stlU
trying to raise money to pay forth* CPR film
tor th* aty of Kings Mountain to use? OOPS
ia Any eitisan who wants to help in any way,
w* would appreelat* it.
Just contact me. at T88-aBB4. LuclUe
Mathason at 7aB-8ll7 or any COPE member.
W* should aU work together for a safer
community.
BETTr JONEB
President COPE
Big week for calamaties
This waa a big week in our state’s history
- tor calamattsa, death and disaster!
The Battle of Echo* was probably the
biggest battle ever to occur in Western North
Carolina, yet few people today have even
heard of it. It took place on June 2T, 1790,
during th* French and Indian war.
A mixed force of British and Colonial
troop* (ntostly Indians from New York
state) were ambushed and routed by several
thousand Cherokee braves in a mountain
pass near Franklin, in Macon county.
€D
SMITH
MIERMHIillLD
lieaTHCASOLIAA
***L*SOATKINi
M Av«. FMm ns-
•I W.M veertv euf-ef-
On July 1. 1888, tha Battla of Oettysburg
began near that town In Pennsylvania. North
Carolina troops played a lar^ role In that
pivotal, three-day atruggle. Among tha
casualties that first day was Henry K.
Bivgwyn, the famous •'Boy Colonei" of th*
26th North Carolina Regt. Burgwyn died in
action at th* age of 21.
Ill have more on Oettyeburg next week.
On June 28, 1864, Union troops under
Colonel Oeorge W. Kirk captured Camp
Vance, a tiainlng camp tor Confederate
draftees near Mor^nton, in Burk* County.
The Oonfederatas, mostly imtralned and still
unarmed, were taken by complete surprise.
ICrk's Union cavalry also destroyed a
large amount of mUitary suppUas and
railroad equipment In Morganton.
On June 28, 1689, Bir Waltor Raleigh's
second expedition reached North Carolina.
One of the three small ships, the "Tiger”,
was wrecked and sunk near Ocracoke, the
second known shipwreck on the Carolina
On June 28, 1*43, the tanker "William
RockefeUer” was torpedoed off Cape Hat-
tsras. It was th* tenth vessel sunk by Oer-
man eubmarine* during that month. For th*
first six months of 1942, in fact, "resldsnta of
coastal North Carolina were eloaer to tha
war than were most of our troops overseas."
During th* whole of World War II, a total of
79 AlUed vessela and three Oerman sub
marines would be sunk off tha North
Oarollna ooast. A total of 8M Allied seamen
Ota June 21, IBBT, in OastoBia, former
governor R. Oregg Cherry died, in
to hU torm as Oovemor (1949-49) Cherry
served aa mayor of Oastonla, and la balh
houses of th* state legislature.
Hs term aa Oovemor saw expansion of
state-owned mental hospitaU and health
facUltt**, and a sixty percent inereae* in
expenditure for schools.
-oOo-
On June 28.1888. Frankie BUver got a new
leas* on life, though a short one. Her hmglng
waa postponed for two weeks by a Burke
Ctaunty court.
Scheduled to dl* tor th* murder ot her
husband Charlie Silver, Fmnkl* Imd earlier
escaped from jail, but was quickly caught by
Sheriff John Boon* (sippoeedly a nephew or
grand nephew of Daniel Boone). She waa
hanged In Morganton on July 12, th* first
woman executed In North Carolina.
Some Tar Heel tolkloristo beUave that a
ballad based on her crime and death became
the origin of th* song "Frankl* and Johnny.”