lo o dm o bile Monday 11 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
iail6&>M0UWTAm
MIBROB'HEIUllJ)
15*
VpL. 86
NO. 3
'^Cleveland County^s Modern Newsweekly^
KINGS MOUNTAIN, NORTH CAROLINA 28086 THURSDAY, JANUARY 16,1975
»ILEWSKI REMEMBERS - Seated in the comfort of his
ttfffie at Duplex International in Kings Mountain Andrew
Mil^wski recalls his uncomfortable teen years under Russian
Photo By Gary .Stewart
gun sin labor camps. “You worked and produced your quota or
you didn’t get your one meal each day,” be said.
Under Russian Guns
Jy GARY STEW ART
Staff Writer
Wfth talk of a depression
1st around the comer, many
n#icans are speaking of
^imes. But times here are
compared to the way
i-born Andrew Milewski
flings during his teenage
lewski, vice presidait of
!x International and now
mg in Gastonia, was just
rs old when his family
lany others like them
as,' taken captive by the
•laijans in World War Two.
le ^ent over two years in a
ibon camp working 12 hours a
ay and living on one bowl of
lupjand a pound of bread.
Affer being released from
le pabor camp, he spent
ion|is roaming Russia in
Jarch of Polish forces and
fter joining that group
Imost died as a result of
creating.
'^ilewski was bom in
is^n Poland, about 50 miles
om the Russian border. It
asjhere he and his family
ime under Russian power in
139.
he recalled, “there
ere bands of communists
forming around the area.
When the Polis: forces were
defeated these small bands
went around the countryside
harming everyone they had a
grudge against. It was like
someone here in Kings
Mountain that didn’t like the
chief of police or someone else
in authority going out and
torturing or murdering he and
his family.
“Then the Russian troops
came in and stopped all of this
and we were sort of left alone
until Feb. 10, 1940. It was
about 6 a. m. when we heard a
knock on the door and three
soldiers with frosted bayonets
and red stars, and two secret
service police with their
pistols came in and scared us
up from our beds and lined us
up against the waU. They
searched the house and
premises and told us to pack
up.
“They said we could only
take what we could carry,” he
went on, “so we packed little
suitcases. In about half an
hour we were outside and
there was a horse there, and
sleigh and a military driver.
When we looked down the hill
toward the other houses in the
village, the same was hap
pening to everybody.”
Milewski, his family and
neighbors were taken about 50
miles away and there they
were locked in cattle trucks
which had benches on each
side, a stove in the middle and
a hole drilled in one end of the
floor for bathroom purposes.
“The farce about the whole
thing,” he said, “was that
there wasn’t any fuel for the
stove. The first day was very
cold but we didn’t light the
stove. But the next day we had
to start chopping up the
benches that were supposed to
be for sleeping quarters to
make a fire.
“We stayed there for about
three days,” he recalled, “and
no food was provided. Then
the truck took us away and
you got to think ‘where are
they taking us’. The only thing
the Russian police told us was
‘forget the past. There’s a
future ahead of you
somewhere in Siberia. And if
you work there, we will feed
you but if you don’t you will
die.’”
Milewski said in eadi truck
were old people, women and
children, and young boys. The
adult men had been taken
prisoner of war.
(Please Turn To Page 9A)
UF Raises $6,728
The 1975 Kings Mountain United Fund cam
paign reports totals to date of $6,728.82 from five
of the 10^visions. The 1975 goal is $35,100.
Mrs. Becky Seism, UF secretary-treasurer,
said the divisions donating thus far include:
Advance Gifts ($190), Commercial ($80),
Correspondence ($135), Industrial ($4,443.82) and
Schools ($2,180.)
Marvin Teer and Bill Bates are co-chairman for
the campaign.
rys’ Committees Meeting
Tonight At First Baptist
Ilfys” ste{^ed up the tempo of their
this week against “wets” with
^B^ntment of two more members to the
i^ization’s steering committee and
>PJintment of seven chairmoi of major'
'Hijiittees.
®91y Dixon, Ex-Mayor and contractor,
John C. McGill, medical doctor,
joined Dr. Charles Edwards, Rev.
yde Bearden, Rev. Gene Land, Supt.
)nqld Jones and J. C. Bridges on the
^ng committee which has called a
ing of all committees, and all other
(ested citizens, for Thursday
Jht) at 8 p. m. at First Baptist
■ch,
Committee chairmen are Rev. Russell
Fitts, program; Charles L. Alexander,
finance; Hall Goforth, transportation;
Scott Moss, youth; Rev. Kelly Dixon and
M. L. Campbell, voter; and Donald
Parker, publicity.
Public activity on the part of the
committee favoring legal control of
alcoholic beverages was negligible, if
any. There were no pronouncements
. from leaders of the group.
Registrars Margaret Rayfield and
Ruth Hord remind voters that final
registration day is Feb. 17th. Mrs.
Rayfield, West Kings Mountain Precinct
registrar, is continuing to open the
pollbooks at her home on Waco Rd. near
Spectrum Plant while pollbooks are open
to East Kings Mountain Precinct voters
at Mrs. Herd’s home at 527 Katherine St.
To vote in the Mar. 18 rrferendum on
question of legalizing sale of wine and
beer for off-premiees consumption and
establishing ABC stores, a citizen must
be 18 years old and have resided in the
city for 30 days.
Kings Mountain voted “dry” in two
previous referendums: 13-0 in 1874 only a
few months after the town was chartered
and on June 13,1967 by 1,411 to 1,091 as a
record-breaking 2,511 went to the polls.
Estimated Cost $200,000
FHA Grants City
$90,000 For Plant
By TOM McIntyre
Editor, Mirror-Herald
A grant of $90,000 has been
approved by the Farmers
Home Administration toward
construction of a natural gas
peak shaving plant in Kings
Mountain.
The announcement was
made by Rqj. James Broyhill
to Mayor John Henry Moss
this week.
The aonroximate cost of the
plant, to be located on Deal
St., is $200,000, which leaves
$110,000 for the city to muster
through revenue bonds.
Commissioners approved the
sale of bonds for up to that
amount for the plant during a
meeting last August.
“We expect to advertise for
construction bids on Jan. 30,”
Mayor Moss told The Mirror-
Herald this week. “We should
receive those bids by Feb. 19.
Construction should take no
STtOr^* '■ ' n 90 ,s, b?., .•Lc'-jld
it taKC longer the city will
include in its contract a
penalty clauseof $50 per day.”
The peak shaving jdant,
which will be augmented
during the peak periods ac
cording to demand, is ex
pected to produce about 25
percent more natural gas for
interruptible customers. With
the increase those customers
will not be “interrupted in gas
service” quite as much as
before, according to the
mayor.
Propane gas will actually be
manufactured at the plant for
inclusion in the natural gas
system.
In Monday night’s com
missioners meeting approval
of an amendment to the city’s
ordinance governing mobile
homes in Kings Mountain. The
amendment, introduced by
Public Works Director Black
Leonard, calls for all new
mobile homes being situated
within the city limits aixi the
one-mile perimeter to be in
stalled with hurricane straps.
The straps, metal bands,
would anchor the mobile home
to the ground to prevent
damage and possibly loss of
life in uncommonly high
velocity winds.. Kings
Mountain is not considered to
be geographically situated in
a hurricane area, but high
(Please Turn To Page 2A)
TALKS ABOUT DOGS - George W. Moore of the Cleveland
County Health Department aiq)eared before city com
missioners Monday to explain about the county-wide dog
quarantine whichwent into effect Wednesday and runs through
Feb. 13.
Through Feb,13
Dog Quarantine
Now Underway
Cleveland Clounty’s, month
long dog quarantine began
Wednesday.
Any dog found running
loose, with or without tags,
will be subject to being picked
up and possibly destroyed.
Citizens Urged
To Give Blood
Give a pint of blood to the
blood bank Monday and help
save a life.
That’s the plea of Red Cross
volunteers who remind
citizens that January is
National Blood Month and this
time of year our blood usage
exceeds the number of pints of
blood collected.
Blood Program Chairmen
Bill Grissom and Lyn
Cheshire also point out that
blood is free to patients but
that “we are morally obliged
to replace the blood that we
use.”
The Charlotte regional Red
Cross bloodmobiie will return
to the Community Center for a
one-day visit Monday and
donors will be processed from
11 a. m. until 4:30 p. m.
Free transportation will be
provided by placing a
telephone call to the Com
munity Center, 739-3549 and
free baby-sitting service will
also be available at the
Center.
Processing of a donor
requires about 30 minutes and
includes an examination
period.
Persons 18 years to 65 may
donate blood and civic clubs,
industrial plants and churches
are invited to provide donors.
“Cleveland County’s blood
program is operating now at a
deficit”, reminded the co-
chairmen, meaning “we’re
using much more ))lood than
we’re collecting.”
“We are able to receive
blood when we need it because
we are members of the Red
Cross Blood Program”, said
Grissom, “and encourage
everyone to come out in
record numbers Monday to
support the blood give-in.”
county health Richard Steeves
announces.
The four dog wardens in the
county will be increasing their
work day to 12 hours during
the quarantine and law en
forcement officers county
wide win be participating,
said Steeves.
The unleashed dogs will be
deposited in the county animal
shelter and if he bears an
identifying tag, the owner will
be contacted and can reclaim
his mutt by paying a $2 fee and
$1 per day for each day the dog
remains at the shelter.
Pets will be kept at the
shelter for five days, and after
five days will be destroyed.
The dog’s owner can also be
charged with a misdeamenor
and upon conviction may be
fined from $10 to $50 and-or a
jail sentence from 10 to 30
days.
Steeves said the quarantine
is a necessity. “The health
department doesn’t want to
destroy any one’s pet if the
owner will take care of the
animal”.
Following the quarantine, a
rabies vaccination program
will begin and a real
tightening of dog control laws
will be in effect.
He said dog traps will be
used in areas where dogs
running loose are a problem.
The traps do not injure the
dogs and will be used only as a
last resort, he explained.
Prepare
Economy
Policy
By TOM McIntyre
Editor, Mirror-Herald
City Commissioners are
studying and evaluating the
current economic crunch in
r^ards to developing a policy
in order to cope with the
decline.
During an executive session
of the board Tuesday af
ternoon, commissioners
reviewed reports on each city
department and its personnel.
A directive from the mayor’s
office was issued several
weeks ago to all department
heads to prepare reports in
dicating where expenses could
be trimmed.
Mayor Jdm H. Moss said
today “We do not have a
policy as yd; and we have no
idea what form of economic
cutback the policy will in
dicate, whether it is paring the
departmental budgets to the
bone or trimming employe
rolls.”
Moss said the board wishes
to keep the city budget in
balance with the general
economy of the community.
He cited cutbacks by utility
customers slowing down the
projected revenue and a slight
slowdown in tax receipts as
the reason for the policy study
at this time.
Tax receipts to date are
running about 80 percent, or
four percent less than last
year for this same period.
Two weeks ago the dty
electrical department laid off
one employe and transferred
another to the public worics
department. Those have been
the only actions by the com
missioners as far as “trim
ming employe rolls is con
cerned,” according to the
mayor. He added that if there
are further employe layoffs it
will probably be of a tem
porary nature.
In conjunction with the
policy studies a series of
supervisor seminars are being
held here this month and next.
The workshops run from 9-
10:30 a. m. and are used to
instruct department heads on
methods of obtaining
maximum effficiency.
Workshops are planned Jan.
16, 21, 23, 28 and 30; Feb. 4, 6,
11, 13, 18 and 20.
Employment SC
Representative
Here Four Days
A representative of the
Employment Security
Commission will be available
at Kings Mountain Com
munity Center four days each
week.
Franklin Ware, manager of
the Shelby office, said his
representative will spend all
day Tuesdays, Wednesdays
and Thursdays and until noon
Fridays assisting Kings
Mountians in obtaining
benefits.