VOLUME XVI NO. 32
DARE WELFARE BOARD NAMES
MRS. THEODORE S. MEEKINS, JR.
NEW SUPT. OF PUBLIC WELFARE
Resignation of L P. Davis Accepted Last Fri
day and Mrs. Meekins Appointed On Same
Day. Mr. Davis’ Resignation Leaves Co.
Vets Service Office Vacant
The Dare County Board of Pub
lic Welfare last Friday accepted
the resignation of I. P. Davis,
Superintendent of Public Welfare
here for the past fifteen years,
and appointed Mrs. Theodore
Meekins, Jr. ,of Manteo, as his
successor. Mr. Davis’ resignation
is to become effective “about the
15th of February,” and Mrs.
Meekins, who is fully accredited
and qualified to hold the superin
tendent’s position, will take over
her new duties at once.
The action of the Welfare Board
in apponiting Mrs. Meekins to the
superintendency was unanimous.
She has been employed by the
board as a case worker for the
last few years and is fully ac
quainted with all the details of
the work of the office. Welfare
Board members are Dr. W. W.
Johnston, chairman; Mrs. Royden
Tillett of Wanchese; and Walter
D. Perry of Kill Devil Hills.
The future plans of Mr. Davis,
widely known in this area as
“Ike,” are not as yet definite. He
will accept a position as Superin
tendent of Public Welfare in an
other county "tn the state. He has
been interviewed by welfare
boards in Hertford and Duplin
counties, and both jobs have been
offered to him. On February 8
he will go to Johnson county for
an interview concerning the Sup
erintendent’s position there.
Thereafter, Mr. Davis says, he
will make his decision about
which job to accept.
Mr. Davis expressed regret a
bout leaving Dare county, saying
that he “would rather live here
thtn anywhere else in the world,”
but explained his dtcision to leave
as being motivated by the more
attractive financial offers he has
been tendered in other positions
similar to the one he has served
in here. e
Vacates Two Positions
Mr. Davis also has served here
as County Veterans Service Offi
cer, an office which is filled by
appointment of the County Board
of Commissioner. When Mr. Dav
is’ successor in this 'position is ap
pointed, it is expected that the
commissioners will consult with
representatives of Dare county
American Legion and Veterans of
Foreign Wars Posts, as wtll as
with Steve Alford, District Ser
vice Officer for the North Caro
lina Veterans Commission, whose
office is in Elizabeth City.
DARE SOLDIER IN
KOREAN FIGHTING
Pvt. Julian Austin, Jr., Has Been
Through the Whole Korean
Campaign with the United
States Second Infantry
Division
Many Dare countians have fol
lowed the news accounts in recent
months about the rough going the
embattled 2nd Infantry Division
has encountered up and down the
Korean peninsula. ‘A circum
stance, unknown to most of them,
that might have heightened their
interest in the 2nd’s campaigns
had they known of it, is that Jul
ian Austin, Jr., son of Mr. and
Mrs. Julian Austin, now of Eliz-
City and formerly of Hatteras,
has been with the 2nd in all the
long gruelling campaigns. A vet
eran of overseas service in World
War II; Pvt. Austin was recalled
to service last August and has
been overseas several months.
Young Austin’s address is: Pvt.
Julian Austin, Jr., ER 53020014,
Company L, 38th Infantry Regi
ment, 2nd Infantry Division, C|O
Postmaster, San Francisco, Cali
fornia.
According to the last letter re
ceived from Pvt. Austin, written
from somewhere in Korea on Jan
uary Ist, 1951, the newspaper ac
counts of the troops’ suffering in
Korea have been, if anything, un
derplayed. Pvt. Austin said that
he received no mail from his par-
See AUSTIN, Page Eight
LAST WEEK’S WEATHER
Figures provided hr U. S. Govt
Meteorologist A. W. Drinkwater
High Low Rain
January 25 56 44
January 26 40 31
January 27 64 27
January 28 63 46
January 29 68 52
January SO 52 40 .28
January 31 62 41
axbty Ha wk, N. C.
THE COASTLAND TIMES
PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN THE INTERESTS OF THE WALTER RALEIGH COASTLAND OF NORTH CAROLINA
MARCH OF DIMES
CHAIRMAN CALLS
RESULTS ‘FAIR’
Mrs. Balfour Baum, campaign
director of the March of Dimes
fund-raising drive in Dare coun
ty, gave on Wednesday of this
week a report on the results of
the drive so far.
Only Colington, where the drive
was under the chairmanship of
Mrs. Lewis Meekins, has finished
its drive and turned in its report
to* the county chairman. Mrs.
Baum reported that the Colington
campaign netful $27.25 for the
county fund.
Bridge Party and Dance
The bridge and canasta party
held on January 22 at the Fort
Raleigh Hotel resulted in the col
lection of $27.50 for the March
of Dimes, Mrs. Baum said. The
March of Dimes Ball, held last
Saturday night at the Manteo
school gymnasium, grossed $96.60,
of which $54.50 was clear.
Mrs. Baum said that mail-col
lections, although coming in ra
ther slowly, have been fairly sat
isfactory thus far. She urged
all persons who have not yet done
so, to return their March of Dimes
cards as soon as possible. On the
whole the drive was progressing
fairly well, the chairman stated,
with the exception of collections
from the public coin boxes in bus
iness places—this type of appeal,
she stated, has been almost whol
ly ineffective this year.
MAY TEST-DRILL
LAND FOR OIL
NEAR EAST LAKE
There’s a lease on file in the
public records in Registrar of
Deeds Melvin Daniels’ office in
Manteo that could conceivably
turn out to be one of the most
important documents that ever af
fected this county. There are, to
be sure, a number of rather im
portant “ifs” involved—the “iffi
est” of them all being “If there
should turn out to be petroleum,
in quantity to make production
pay off under a certain tract of
land near East Lake.” The land
is known as the “George Pollock
Tract.”.
Last August a paper was not
arized in Pasquotank county
which gave McCarthy-Warde As
sociates a five year “Oil & Gas
Lease” to 4,800 acres of a 9,600
acre-tract near East Lake owned
by O. F. Gilbert and wife of Pas
quotank county. Tre lease itself
! s a long, complex paper, well
lubricated with “ifs” itself. An
interesting clause of the lease
states that “If no well be com
menced on said and on or before
the 15th day of February, 1951,
See TEST, Page Eight
County Youth Council Adds
Youths to Executive Board
Executive Board Pledges Assistance Eo Education De
partment’s Fair. New Council Officers
Chosen. •
Youth members will sit on the
Executive Board of the newly
formed Dare County Council for
Services to Children and Youth,
and will work with the adult
Council member in each commun
ity. Thus will one of the strong
est recommendations coming out
of the Mid-Century White House
Conference on Children and Youth
be put into practice in Dare Coun
ty.
At its first meeting last Sat
urday, the Executive Board of the
Council made plans to amend its
Constitution to make youth parti
cipation official.
“We know that we must plan
WITH youth in order to plan well
FOR youth,” said Mrs. David
Stick, President of the Council,
“and this means every step of the
way, frpm the top down.”
The youth members will parti
cipate temporarily until the next
general meeting of the Council
this spring, when such amend
ments can be made. This will mean
that there will be 17 youths and
17 adult members (one each from
the communities on the Council
and 3 youths and 6 adult mem
bers of the Executive Board.
The Board showed further
STUMPY POINT PUPILS IN DARE TRAVEL
27 MILES TO ATTEND ENGELHARD SCHOOL
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For lack of a bridge across Croatan Sound, the elementary and high
school grades of Stumpy Point chose to attend school at Engelhard
in Hyde County, 27 miles away. There are many ties of blood and
social relationship between Engelhard and Stumpy Point. Intermar
riage in many families of the two communities have brought them
close together, and a large share of the business of Stumpy Point
goes to Engelhard. The picture shows the bus about half way to
Engelhard at the bridge over Long Shoal River which divides the two
counties. (Photo by Aycock Brown.)
Eight Men Leave Here for Pre-Induction
Examinations in Raleigh Friday Morning
Three More Eighteen-Year-Olds Register for the First
Time During Month of January. AH Are High School
Students.
Eight Dare countians between
the ages of 19 and 25 will catch
the 6 a.m. bus in Manteo Friday
morning to go to Raleigh for pre
induction examinations to deter
mine their fitness for service in
the armed forces, according to in
formation from the office of Rob
ert Ballance, chairman of the Dare
County Selective Service Board.
Some men in the group have been
deferred previously, but have
been re-classified recently.
The eight men are: Freddie H.
Reber, 19, Nags Head; William
B. Blackmond, 20, Manteo (Ne
gro); Edward W. Ashby, 21,
Manteo (Negro); Leonard F. Gag
kins, 20, Hatteras; Murray L.
Farrow, 23, Frisco; Louis H. Mid
gett, 25, Manns Harbor; Sherman
Scarborough, 25, Manteo (Ne
gro) ; and Cafrdll- W. Berry, 23,
Manteo.
The young men will undergo
physical examinations at the in
duction center in Raleigh on Fri
day, and then will return to their
VIRGINIA BEACH
PROPOSES TAX
ON BEACH CAFES
Considerable opposition among
hotel and restaurant owners be
gan to appear in Virginia Beach
last weekend to the 3% tax on the
proceeds from hotel rooms, sum
mer-leased apartments and public
dining facilities which was pro
posed for enactment at the Janu
ary 15th meeting of the Virginia
Beach Town Council.
James G. Kontopanos, first vice
president of the Virginia Restaur
ant Association and owner-opera
tr of the Normandy Restaurant in
Virgina Beach said, “I have been
assured by Walter Wirt, execu
tive secretary of our organization
See VIRGINIA, Page Eight
fa'th in the youth of Dare by
recommending no provision to
exc ude the youth members of
the Board from holding office,
realizing that in the future a
youth member might well quali
ify for the Presidency as well
as other offices.
In making plans for the future,
the Executive Board committed
the Council to the support of the'
annual county-wide fair to be
held this spring under the spon
sorship of the Education Depart
ment. “We would like to know
that every community is behind
its school in this project,” said
Mrs. Dennis Evans, Board mem
ber and Supervisor of Elemen
ary schools, “and think that the
Council member in each commun
ity can stimulate such support.”
It was felt that arranging for
transforation to Manteo, and ac
tual help with the children’s part
in the show, could be ways in
which each Council member could
cooperate.”
“We need more county-wide ac
tivities in which not only the chil
dren but the adults can mingle
and take ntrt In serious ns '>'dl
as recreational activities” VYs.
See COUNTY, Page Eight
MANTEO, N. C., FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 1951
homes, awaiting possible call for
induction at a later date.
New Registrants
Three young men who reached
their eighteenth birthdays this
month have registered with the
Dare board during January. Al!
are high school students. They
are: Floyd Lee Basiright, son of
Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Basnight of
Mashoes; Jack White Cahoon, son
of Sheriff and Mrs. Frank M. Ca
hoon of Manteo; and Pete Poole
Daniels, son of Mr. and Mrs. M. P.
Daniels of Wanchese.
BROWN and CAMP GIVE NAGS HEAD “FOX HUNTING’’ WIDE PUBLICITY
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AYCOCK BROWN’S INAUGURATION OF FOX HUNTING in Dare County has gotten a lot of public
ity. It centers chiefly about activities at Nags Head aad this sport has been given national publicity rec
ently by Charles J. Parker, director of the Department of Conservation and Development’s Advertising
Division, by Raymond R. Camp, noted outdoor editor of the New York Times, and by Aycock Brown,
free-lancing publicist and news director of The Lost Colony in Manteo.
In the February 3 issue of Colliers Magazine, Camp’s article “Listen to the Music of the Hounds,’’
was illustrated with a three quarter page color photograph by Ralph Royle who came to Nags Head on
December 17 to shoot a fox hunting campfire scene which was captioned “Postchase get-togethers like
this can be the major reward for true fox-hunting fans.” In the picture around the fire surrounding Tull
Lennon and two of his hounds is Wayland Sermons, Al Mater, Julian Oneto and Guy Lennon.
When Oscar Wilde defined fox hunting as the ‘unspeakable’ in full pursuit of the uneatable” he
was crying out against a symbol, then exemplified by a white stock collar worn under the pink coat of
-nobbish horsemen who pursued foxes as a social diversion,” wrote Camp for Colliers. Wilde had never
sipped from a jug around a communal fire in the Carolina hills while the shifting music of the chase re
bounded from a score of living instruments . . . Had he known these things of course, literature would
have been loser to the extent of one undying epigram.”
The biggest fox hunt of the year at Nags Head is held during the Valentine season. A hundred or
more hounds and 50 or more persons took part in the hunt last year and as a result of publicity the event,
one that is strictlv lacking in the “pink” but is conducted on an informal basis with the hunters riding
to the hounds in jeeps or stock cars rather than on horseback, will attract even more people and hounds
this year.
The lavout of photographs taken during the hunt last rear has been published in newspapers
threvjbmrt. North Carolina and Virginia and as far west and north as Cincinatti and New York during the
past few days. The photo layout is by Aycock Brown.
SCHOOL INCOME
AGAIN EXCEEDS
amt ALLOTTED
Auditor Criticises Methods
In Which Records Are
Kept In Dare County
The audit of the County schools
of Dare, which covers the 12
months period ending June 30,
1950 has finally been turned in.
The delay it appears having been
caused by the lack of sufficient
records to enable the auditors- to
prepare their exhibits properly.
We have long been told in Dare
County about the wonderful of
fice work that has been done for
the schools which appears to cost
about $7,000 a year, beside the
$3,600 a year for someone extra
to travel the county and super
vise the schools. It appears the
recommendations of the wonder
ful office work is something of
a myth. Here is what the audit
says:
“The records made available to
us were not being maintained in
accordance with instructions pre
pared by the State Board of Edu
cation. Neither was the suggested
accounting system being properly
used. These exhibits (the audit)
were prepared from the meager
records made available and in
some cases it was evident that
receipts and disbursements not in
cluded in our compilation for lack
of information and sup
porting data. In several instances
the persons purporting to keep
these records were no longer af
filiated with the schools and
therefore are not available to se
cure necessary information.
“No statements of the records
or disbursements were prepared
for the Avon and Rodanthe
schools, as we were advised that
if there were any records main
tained, they could not be located
at this time.
“We suggest that special at
tention be given to assure that ;
See INCOME. Page Eight 1
PROGRAM FOR DARE COUNTY
PROPOSED SCHOOL BUILDING
GIVEN GO - AHEAD BY STATE
Mrs. Mabel Evans Jones, Board of Education
Member, Releases Details of Program Ap
proved for Six County Schools. Architects
Visit County.
A WELL-KNOWN FIGURE
IS GONE FROM MANTEO
■ Ji Hr
i . JraPi
% JBii
EBER R. WESCOTT, 54 years
old passed away in the Elizabeth
City hospital Wednesday morning
after a severe illntss of several
days, following a heart attack and
a siege of pneumonia. He was the
husband of Mrs. Naomi Daniels
Wescott, and the son of the late
Capt. Joseph and Louise Wescott
of Manteo and a lifelong resident
of Manteo.
Mr. Wescott suffered a heart
attack Wednesday night, January
17. Dr. W. W. Johnston, District
See WESCOTT, Page Eight
Single Copy 7*
According to Mrs. Mabel Ev
ans Jones, member of the board
of education, the state approved
program for Dare county includes
the following construction and re
modelling work, which is to go
forward as rapidly as govern
ment controls on building mater
ials will allow:
ROANOKE COLORED
SCHOOL—a new 4-room building
erected, with modern water,
light and heating systems; the old
building will continue in tempor
ary use as an auditorium and
lunchroom, and it will undergo
some remodelling.
MANTEO HIGH SCHOOL—a
three-or-four-room primary an
nex is to be erected north of the
present structure, with the pres
ent primary and elementary sec
tion remodelled for the high
school~~3epartment; it is hoped
that a home economics depart
ment and some type of vocational
training department can be in
cluded in the remodelling work.
When construction is completed,
the south part of the building will
contain the high school depart
ment, and the north part will
house the primary and elemen
tary denartments.
WANCHESE—a central heat
ing unit will be installed, and the
building will be remodelled to
make it a model lower elementary
school.
KITTY HAWK—the building
will undergo some remodelling, a
heating plant will be installtd and
there is a possibility that a new
all-purnose room will be erected
(the all-nurpose room, according
to Mrs. Jones, is the one part of
the program that has not receiv
ed unoualified state annrovaD.
MANNS HARBOR—is to re
ceive a new heating plant and new
lunchroom.
CAPE HATTERAS CONSOL
IDATED SCHOOL—the tentativ
ely planned building is to receive
ohout two-thirds of the total fund
allocated to Dare count”-.
Representatives of B. W. Stev
enson A Son, architectural firm
rnsoongible for nlnn-ning the Dare
county school building u”OPTam,
ware.in the county on Tuesday.
and Thursday of this
weah for on-the-spot work on
boiHinir nroeram as annroved by
the state.
MANNS HARBOR
NEW RECREATION
CENTER OPENED
Friday, January 26th was the
opening night for the Manns Har
bor Recreation Center at the Com
munity Building.
The Center, instigated by the
Dare County Council for Servic
es to Children and Youth, and
sponsored jointly by the Ruritan
and Women’s Clubs of Manns
Harbor, will provide supervised
activities for persons of all ages
each Friday night from 7:30 p.m.
to 10:00 p.m.
Entertainment
The first session was opened
under the capable direction
of Bob Smith, county farm agent,
who showed moving pictures and
called figures for the Virginia
Reel and square dances. Refresh
ments were furnished by the Wo
mens’ Club
The Center is now soliciting
games, old or new, such as par
chesi, jig-saw puzzles, monopoly,
Uncle Wiggly, etc. Anyone wish
ing to contribute to this worthy
cause should contact Mrs. Belen
Daniels, Mrs. Guv Mann or Huff
Mann. All contributions of any
tyne will be picked up, and they
will be greatly appreciated.
HIGHWAY DEATH
TOLL, 1951
Killed January 26 through
January 29 ” I 5
Injured January 26 through
January 29 nt
Killed through January
29 thia year — go
Killed through January
29 last year 68
Injured through January
29 this year
Injured through January
29 last year 799