Newspapers / The Asheville Banner (Asheville, … / July 30, 1931, edition 1 / Page 2
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Page Two THE ASHEVILLE BANNER Thursday, July 30. 1931 The Asheville Banner Published Every Thumb By BARRETT'S PRESS. Ina. Subscription Rates by Mail One Dollar Per Year I. O. BARRETT. Editor i Pledging to unfurl the old Asheville spirit In the hearts and lives of the community and the people. To do our duty as a newspaper, fighting upward and onward. To stamp out ani mosity, hate and an ?islre to kill, injure and retard the progress of Asheville. To give Ashe ville and Western North Carolina a patriotic and unselfish paper. THE BANNER BORN FOR A PURPOSE For four good and sufficient reasons, The Ashe ville BANNER Is born to fill a much needed place - .1. n a ntintitiiA Wootnm North Carolina a' " " -3 should look first to the absolute and positive the citizenship thereof. 1' '"'V,' ,, . ti. t ...,,,.,, t-, ff he iV. Then, there is another side, that offers still PUBLISHERS HONOR UNION PRINTERS The highest tribute yet accorded any branch of Organized Labor, came at the annual convention of the Southern Publisher Association held re cently in Asheville. Never before have the pub lishers seen fit to compliment the strength of the Typographical Union and its allied crafts by so magnificently placing a million dollar value on their own "fighting chest," a fund created by the Pub lishers for the purpose of offsetting losses In the event of labor troubles. The Publishers have a right to create this fund provided they believe the Southern branch ef the Typographical Union strong enough to be of such huge proportions In Big dollars and tattle cents. It is peculiar how different eyes can look at the same object and see it at different angles and ef fects. For Instance, the writer during the past twenty years had had an occasion to bring four daily papers into the Union. The view or object gained, as seen by so doing, is that Union printers are as essentially a part of the equipment as are type eases, linotype machines and presses. The word essentially is used advisedly for the reason that a publisher catching mails and serving adver- The name of the paper is its policy; BANNER." Dealing friendly, but fearlessly, on al matters Of human Interest eminating in bur com munity, or otherwise affecting our community from the outside. The BANNER, according to the repu tation of its editor, will be a Banner for the boost ers. It will boost the interests of Organized Labor, Haywood Road, Asheville as a whole and the people therein, contending for the progressive advance ment Of all. ' Yet on the other hand, there may be firms and individuals, cliques and clans, as weir as politicians, who are a detriment to the community's best interest. The BANNER from time to time, will reveal such as these to public scorn, and be lieve that In an act of so positive for elimina tion, that we are boosting. The BANNER for the best interest of the community. The boosting and building of Haywood Road has become something akin to a fervent religion in the life of The BANNER'S Editor. This writer is accredited with having written the first story and started the agitation for a Tobacco Warehouse in Asheville. Now that the public re sponse has made possible the success of this move ment, we shall lend great assistance to every grower Burley Tobacco in Western North Carolina, The BANNER will present the principles of Or ganized Labor as those principles should touch and effect the lives of the employees, the employers and the public. It will also reveal fairly the em ployer's attitude that from these the. public will ba given -an opportunity to shape its own thought after having had the plain facts in the matter re vealed. What Is done in Asheville during the next two years is of momentous import to the public w elfare and general good'. Therefore, The BANNER will present the news of Asheville and Buncombe Coun ty, not only telling its readers what happened, but In some Instances The BANNER will tell its read ers why It happened. Plain cold facts, mating all sUlKe, old and young, T'-h. and poor, high and low. There will be no special privileges fc: ''"' ''!- ,vtaJ the facts are known to make the story .'.n.plete. t u (njuafllTho HANIj&R rh:iinrininK I the best of every deal, and it is planned to have something in the way of news each issue, that is worth the whole of the year's subscription price. Unfurl the Banner of the old Asheville (Spirit in your life, your business and your home, and the good old days of Asheville will return to you and yours. TAX THE IDLE MACHINERY There has been enough talk, perhaps too much, on the subject of taxation that places the burden and Its responsibilities directly upon the shoulder! of the working man. The Working man, that is, those classed as wage-earners, do nut have the money with which to pay taxes, and therefore, the battle ends in a lost cause, even before it is won. If you want milk, you have got to depend on the cow, and if you want money, you've gut tu turn to the nionied element to get it. America with its states, cities and count-leu must turn to the inonied element for a system of taxation, it it hopes to re cover without great loss and perhaps, rebellion and revolution. If prosperity means so much to Amcrh,a, theu there must be a value tremendous and incalculable placed upon turning wheels, through which and by which prosperity can continue. Then, in that event, is there not a damage also incalculable in its huge proportions as one finds the great barrier, idle w heels, suuiding in shops and mills of the country? Can America as a government of the people, by the people and for the people, hope to ever eliminate this barricade without placing a special tax upon Idle machinery to carry the Nation, the State and the Community, through lis time of depression? The wage earners constitute SI per cent of the world's buying power. Every manufacturer of every commodity must acknowledge that iiis existence lies In the spending power made possible through the money of the wage-earners of the country Until such a time as the manufacturers acknowl edge this and adopt a pay roll suitable to meet this purchasing power, there hangs heavily upon the conscience of America a responsibility to the work ing people. The wage earners of America are by no manner of means responsible for this depres sion, yet they are forced to carry the brunt of its burden, while the employers, unburdened and un hurt are allowed to wait in peace and tranquility the return of prosperity. The Banner unhesitatingly recommends to th United States Government that It adopt a system of taxation on Idle machinery at a raw? that will ,t Into dividend when idle. The country and the go forward. Neither can accomplish still or being Idle. When the wheels work, and the pay rolls absorb vdble every approach of any and bresslon. Tax that idle mach- i victory for your Nation tSyriBion, and that is the object of consolation which' 'the publishers have day by day, and hour by hour; that every man is in his shoes, on the job and there are positively no night sweats or early morning worries about the question of catching mails and fulfilling the publisher's obligations to the advertisers. In some rare instances among publishers, there are evidences of fear, real, big, black, grizzly bear fear on the part of the publishers toward the Union. In other instances, there is just a downright desire to crush and hold down and enslave men who work for wages. Such as these vow, swear and declare on Bibles as high as the Holy sky, that they will not recognize the Union and as a rule, they don't recognize it, and prove it by working non-union men instead. Even though it is necessary to pay, what is generally termed "scab" labor, more' money iian the Union men would do the same amount of work for. Then, too, there is another class that do not yet understand the principles and motives of Organized Labor, and in this instance, they are to be pitied for the loss, which might otherwise be saved, had they a "hind-sight" and a "fore-sight" sufficient to get a real bead on the existing truth of the whole situation. . . When Editors and Publishers have Union men on their job, they can sleep late mornings and go out at night and even take a little fishing trip oc casionally, with all the safety and assurance that his every obligation to his advertisers and readers is being carried out. This, however, is the result of an existing contract between the Unions and the publishers which is invariably and entirely carried out by the printers In every instance. .They 'are satisfied with it, before they sign it, and they carry it out to the letter. When there is trouble In a Union shop, the odor "possum" comes from the other side, and not from the printers. This will hold true in ninety-nine and nlne-tfriViis per cent among publishers, not oftVf ''in the South bul throusVu at the entire nation. To this paper, a contract with the Typographical - I -' - . "nntract with a the old Asheville spirit, will carry specTaTlTcicWj flre ln9urance clffiy' for protection to Tts equip men ana women prone to see ineir community eei ment. Should it burn up, the insurance policy Is there for protection; yet, should there arise emer gencies; big papers, special editions, "extras" and other contingencies which place value upon de pendability, then this is what the printer's Typo graphical Union offers the publishers. Dependa bility that reaches into every avenue of emergen cies, and what greater protection a publisher needs than this, is hard to reduce to a comprehendable understanding of his whims, isms, and sklsms. The Publishers' Association as an organization have the same rights to protect their interests as do the printers, pressmen, lino'ype operators, mail ing clerks and stereotypers. Both have the unalian- a.ble right, to organize for the interests of the home in which each live; both printers and pub lishers. After all, what can there be to any man's efforts in life, save to make things happier and sweeter and more enjoyable in the home? Anyway, to alleviate such possibilities, it now appears that the Southern Publishers Association has increased its "fighting chest" to the sweet tune of a million dollars, but It is apparently not to be sung to the tune of "Home Sweet Home" for the printers. lust THE AIR-WAY, THE HIGH-WAY, THE RAIL-WAY WHICH? Each tomorrow holds its own secret story of the future. It has ever been thus and, generation after generation has found Itself, standing midst raging battles of perplexity, while waiting for the rising sun of a new day to shed its rays of mystery and light upon a confounded people. Transportation Is as essential to the progress of the future as the rising sun is to the beginning of a new day. Transportation classifies American in dustry, business, banking and education and no people can go forward without its momentum. The weakness of human fancy sometimes leads people in communities into a dangerous situation Tho airplane is a fancy and will be for the next fifty years. Safety to life, sufficient business, de sirable routes, landing ports and other requisites necessary to a successful conclusion will require another half century for its completion, certainly to a point anywhere near the Idea, or even the de sirable. Une air has its place in commerce, freight and passenger travel, but today, It Is but the hope of a sprouting plant whose flower Is yet to bloom on those of far-distant tomorrow. Today every motorist, pedestrian, school child and friend of a parent thereof, Is beginning to look with deep concern to the shadows on the highway. Shadows that carry with them fear and horror in tho dashing speed of the big heavy motor bus as it passes relentlessly on Its way. Like a greyhound In a chase over the hill, comes the big bus or truck swooping down and around the curves or Into the tralght-away with their usual terrlflo speed. A noticeable peculiarity that is fastly characterising the bus driver, Is his apparent acknowledgement that he Is accommodating all elements of humanity In the operation of his bus. In reality, he Is fastly becoming, because of this attitude, the very es sence of dread, fear and constant horror to the motorist, pedestrian and the rural life. Car toonists, and others who have caught this signifi cant fact, have portrayed the selfish rrecd shown on the highway, giving warning as to the danger to life unless curbed. Prior to writing this, the writing took a motor bus trip in order to gather first hand and positive information as to their sys tem of operation and herewith produces his dis coveries : While passing through one cc'inty alone, eleven times the1 bus was brought to.suuden stops, throw ing Its passengers, more or less forward, and other wise joggling them around. These eleven cows, innocent creatures that they, were, felt they had a right to the highway and were wandering! around thereon at different points. The bus in question had been driven, according to the speedometer, a distance of more than 200,000 miles. Tet, even at this age and condition, It had the ability to pro duce its forty-five and fifty miles an hour and a capability of greater speed, plus an apparent de sirability to drive at a rate of speed necessitating the use of from sixty to a hundred per cent of he highway. Especially is this true in that part of the road necessary to round curves or when approach ing traffic. We found at the end of our journey that passengers from other sections had been delayed due to the fact that a wandering cow in another state had walked out in front of the bus, causing it to severely injury three or more people. In directing these criticisms, let It be known that this paper has no fight upon the bus, save to the extent of endeavoring kill the "hog" in the plan of operation. It appears at some points, that a few men will get together and organize a little corporation; buy old worn-out busses and put them on the highway, filled, if possible, with hu man life, at a cost so low, the bus rate becomes much less than the railway rate and the public In a great measure are accepting It as transportation, swallowing the bait without calculating the cost This paper maintains that bus companies Bhould exist, but under approved methods whereby there may also exist the highest element of safety to public life. Bus companies like railroads, should be under strict regulations, and we have been look ing with some degree of hope for that forward governor who would propose a test for drivers and a man furnished by the state to check and okey the car, and the driver, before turning him out with life, solely in his own hands to make schedule on the highway. This word schedule, becomes vastly Important because already the highway has Its cross-country schedules and, irrespective of what happens to man or beast, that schedule must, if possible, be made. Perhaps, It was schedule and the significance of the word schedule that sent Jim Watson, North Carolina farmer, back to his Mc Dowell County home a corpse; perhaps,' it was schedule that was responsible for the serious in jury of Jim Watson's brother and others who were more- fortunate than Jim, because they were riding as pasie.7ieci cx, Vfc Ulg bus that came swooping down around the curves to make Us schedule. The highway is a by-way for all elements 01 iHinianity and should not, therefore, be comman deered or mastered over, by those who utilize Its existence for a profit unto themselves. In the be ginning of highway creatio'i, there was little or no thought at all of their commercial use. Perhaps, that is why State Highway Departments built our little thin, narrow roadbeds, such as would be in accordance with the requirements of the automo bile, the farmers' wagons, and not, by any means, in accordance to necessary specifications required for the heavy pounding and road-killing weight of the big heavy bus and truck. In short, the hour has arrived for action. Pro gressive states and foresighted Highway Commis sioners are called upon to ponder seriously the question of the value which, they themselves, place upon life in the permission of this Increasing traffic and growing death trap. Already, this paper and others have expressed great hope that the newly elected Highway Commission of North Carolina would build special or exclusive roads for the mo tor bus and truck. It is believed that this could be done out of a special gas tax based upon cost of construction of a roadbed with sufficient magni tude to withstand the constant pounding and im pounding of the fast running heavy bus. Then, too, this would put several hundred men to work and do much to eliminate depression within the confines of the state. This writer knows of one little town that Is located off the railroad, whose need of transporta tion has apparently cause this beautiful little village to crown the bus as king."""Of course, we would not say definitely, but we do believe that this little town is blindly selling its soul to the motor bus. While on this bus in this little town, cars were parked to the right and left and in the center of tho street, leaving "one-way" tifflc only. It was In one of these "one-way" spots that the bus stopped for several minutes; took off passengers and climbed to the top to Becure their baggage and from whence he entered the local station to spend several min utes. During this period of time, horns of visitors, strangers and travelers were blowing with a ter rific madness, yet, not an officer nor a citizen of that town approached the bus with a request that (hey unlock the traffic Jam. This little town has a newspaper, but whether or not this paper is blind, indifferent or Just careless about the civic welfare of its town, we cannot judge according to their comments on the situation. In taking a trip, passengers themselves should look to the welfare of their safety by considering the capability of the driver and the stability of the bus by a proper comparison of the sam,e light In which they view the record of the engineer on nis great sxeam engine drawing his passenger coaches. People should begjn to wonder why va rious slates allow busses t operate without suf ficient Inspection. The present dangerous and monopolizing situation as it exists on the highway has developed Into a problem for the people to solve. Especially Is this true sine it Is believed that a higher value of life exists today than in the past Statistics reveal that the value of life has increased, rather than decreased and, if this be true, who Is to be held accountable, the bus operator or state officials? Phone 1779 AND GIVE YOUR NAME TO BE PLACED UPON OUR SUBSCRIPTION LIST NOW! 8 Months FOR i 45c THE NEWSPAPER THAT YOU WILL ENJOY IS THE ONE NEWSPAPER YOU NEED THE ASHEVILLE BANNER OFFICE 454 HAYWOOD ROAD : - 1 11 I J I i 1! 1 'I f
The Asheville Banner (Asheville, N.C.)
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July 30, 1931, edition 1
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