Newspapers / The Coastland Times (Manteo, … / Feb. 24, 1956, edition 1 / Page 1
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VOLUME XXI NO. 34 SPECULATION WILD ON REPRESENTATIVE RACE IN DARE CO. A Lot of Rumors While It Lasted, But Representative Etheridge Sets Some to Rest. For the past few days a raft of speculation in Dare County has had to do with the question of who might represent Dare in the Gen eral Assembly next year; and im mediately following along with the big Kitty Hawk school row it was rumored that the Kitty Hawk com munity would endeavor to send a man of their community to Ra leigh. Names of Walter D. Perry and Capt. Will Lewark of Kill Devil Hills were both mentioned as pros pective candidates. Mr. Perry, who served four years on the County Board of Education said he had given such requests as had come to him to take on this task no consideration whatever. Rumors circulated strongly in Manteo during the past several months that Melvin R. Daniels, Dare County Register of Deeds was grooming the popular young attorney Wallace Gray, a Cape Hatteras native * for this place, particularly if veteran Represent ative R. Bruce Etheridge didn’t want it again. Other rumors said that Mr. Etheridge would groom County Attorney and Manteo Mayor Martin Kellogg Jr. to take his place provided he doesn’t run. Mr. Etheridge says this is not correct. He also says he expects to be a candidate as usual, and will make announcement soon. Another citizen who was said to be looking toward Raleigh is M. Keith Fearing, long established business man of Manteo, and still another rumor said Lawrence Swain, member of the Board of Commissioners might be a candi date, but Mr. Swain is now a can didate for Manteo postmaster, and stands third on the eligible list. Those who know him do not be lieve he would consider running with Mr. Etheridge in the field, See POLITICS, Page Five ODD TURN DEVELOPS IN RACE IN MANTEO FOR POSTM'STERSHIP New Rating Puts Clerk Shannon At Head of List and Acting Postmaster Jones Below Bottom The race for postmaster of Manteo appears to be of much in terest locally and many requests have come to this newspaper for a report on its status to date. So far as can be learned at this time, this race has taken an odd turn, for while the President is Repub lican, and the party faithful had looked forward to early appoint ment of Acting Postmaster Ray W. Jones, a recent turnabout in the ratings has left Mr. Jones clean off the list of applicants, and the three eligibles now are all listed as Democrats, with Post office Clerk Benjamin Shannon number one on the list. Numbers two and three on the list are the brothers Swain, Ralph and Lawrence in order named, and if either of the three should win the appointment which is due (un less another upset occurs) within 60 days, the Postoffice will still remain in the Democratic column. The new investigation and rating followed complaint some time ago, made by Earle Green of Manteo, one of the candidates disqualified in the first go-round. Mr. Green contended he had not received proper credit for his service in the armed forces.A civil service invest igator came to Manteo, and made a thorough canvass of the town, among other things questioning the businessmen as to the business experience of the candidates, but particularly on “community accept ability’* of the various applicants. Naturally, there is Democratic elation at the idea that the post office may not get out of the Democratic column, and much Re publican disappointment because the only candidate of the party asking for the office should be dropped from the list of eligibles. Os course there .is many a slip between the cup and the lip, so we will see what we will see. DARE COUNTY NCEA UNIT TO MEET IN WANCHESE SAT. Dr. N. H. Shope, Supt. of the Elizabeth City schools will be guest speaker at a meeting of the Dare County unit of the North Carolina Educational Association on Saturday morning, February 25, at 10:30 o’clock, according to R. H. Stone, president of the Dare unit and principal of Manteo School. The meeting will be held in tKe Wanchese school. THE COASTLAND TIMES hJBUSHED WEEKLY IN THE INTEREST OF THE WALTER RALEIGH COASTLAND OF NORTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR PLAYS HOST TO HEART PATIENT Kb I ' ■Br / II Jr Chapel Hill.—Little Laura Hunt of Henderson, who recently un derwent heart surgery to correct a congenital defect, is shown with Governor Luther H. Hodges, who congratulated Laura and her par ents, Mr. and Mrs. James D. Hunt, on the child’s good recovery and urged all North Carolinians to support the 1956 Heart Fund Drive. The Heart campaign, which will go on through February, is conducted by the North Carolina Heart Association, an affiliate of the American Heart Association, through chapters and committees in local commu nities. Old Days In The Coastland Running Back For 90 Years Recalled In Reminiscenses And Old Tales Told by Capt. Joel Van Sant An Entertaining Narrative by Yacht Captain Well Known in Eastern North Carolina, Recalling His First Visits to Hyde and Dare Counties* By CAPT. JOEL VAN SANT When I first came to North Carolina in nineteen and one, the War between the States had ended thirty six years before. It was just about as far in the dim and misty past as World War I is now. Many' men were then alive who had fought the battles of that terrible fratricidal war and many younger men who had as boys lived through the great drama of constant danger and slow starva tion inside the lines. I liked the people of the Albe marle and the stories of the war they told. I wish that I had the talent to retell them the way they deserve to be told. I was cabin boy on the schooner yacht “Rosina” out of Philadelphia and we were to spend the winter anchored in Wysocking Bay in Hyde County. We anchored there the first of November and settled down for the winter. It was a bleak place, a one sided harbor and poor holding ground. The sailors left as soon as they were paid and a week later, the captain discovered the cook tieing a hang man’s knot in the jib halyards, so as soon as he packed him, I rowed him ashore and stayed with him, as per orders, until he was safely aboard the mail wagon. After that, the only time that we had a cook was while they were earning enough money to pay their fare back to Norfolk. It was part, of my duties to row ashore in the dinghy every day for the mail and to pick up some of the smaller and lighter provisions, eggs, Monkey and Parrot baking powder, Arbuckles coffee sixteen cents per pound, and ■some penny peanut bars for the captain. On my first trip ashore, Mister Pugh, who kept store at Last Chance, asked me, “How do you like Hyde County?” “I like it fine what I’ve seen of it,” I said. “Well son, seeing it is one thing you’ll never do. I was born and raised here and I ain’t seen it yet. As far back as I can remem ber it’s always been hid under two foot of mud.” It was oftpn a long and hard pull rowing out to the yacht, and a dreary foot slogging walk from the landing in the mouth of the Cotton £anal to Last Chance an<( on to the post office at Mister Watson’s store, so when right aft er Thanksgiving I heard the good news that we were tp sail up to Elizabeth City for the Christmas holidays, I was in favor of start ing right then; but that idea was veteod by the owner who was try ing to hide from process servers and a breach of promise suit. He Got A Black Eye The yacht was to be hauled out on the marine railway for painting at Elizabeth- City, so about the first man that I met ashore was Mister Snell, who managed the boat yard. It was where the Coast Guard Repair Base is now located. I had met a couple of boys on Main Street the day before, Sun day, and was introduced to one of them. I do not remember his name, but he sure throwed a I wicked right hand haymaker. I I had a very muddy sailor suit and a black eye to prove it. Mister Snell liked to talk and I loved to listen to him so we got along fine. He had helped build the ironclad “Albemarle” down on the Roanoke and was very proud of it He was still “sure certain” that the Albemarle would have sunk or destroyed the entire Yan kee fleet if that “Yankee Cushion (Lt. Cushing) hadn’t snuk up on her in the dark and sunk her.” Mostly his stories were of mur der and arson in the night or of small sharp clashes of armed men, of buffaloes and bushwhackers, of ambush and assassinations, of blind brutal hate and sometimes of heaven inspired mercy and devo tion. Some of his tales were hard to believe but I am now of the opinion that he was very conser vative in his telling. Another man who was a good spinner of yarns was Charlie Mann. He had as a. boy lived in Elizabeth City with his grandpar ents during the war, or part of it, and was making his home at that time, 1901, in Cambridge, Mary land. He was about fifty years old and was mate on a bay bout out of Oxford, Maryland. “Strong Drink and Weak Wirnmen” They were bound for New Bern to load lumber but the captain had tarried too long among the flesh pots of Poindexter Street and had spent his charter money on “strong drink and weak wim min.” So they were waiting here until the captain sobered up enough to mortgage his home up in Oxford for a large enough sum to pay back the charter money. Mr. Mam’s Tall Tale One evening when I dropped down to see the mate I carried See OLD DAYS; Page Five SOCIAL SECURITY FOR DARE COUNTY SUB. TEACHERS Beginning April 1, 1956 all sub stitute teachers will be covered by Social Security. All persons who have been substituting in any school of Dare County, and all who are considering doing substitute work, should immediately apply for a Social Security number and should notify the principal of the school as to his number when se cured, according to Mrs. Mary L. Evans, school Superintendent. MANTEO, N. C., FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 1956 HEARING TUESDAY BEFORE JUDGE ON DARE SCHOOL ROW Kitty Hawk Petition For Restraint of Dare Board of Education In Elizabeth City Feb. 28 There is much interest in the forthcoming hearing set for Tues day morning of next week at 10 a.m. Feb. 28th before Judge Bur gwyn in Superior Court in Eliza beth City, to hear the petition of the Kitty Hawk school Committee, that a permanent restraining order be issued to estop the Board of Education of Dare County from continuing with the program for school buildings which they have approved. This legal action is the result of a dispute in the Kitty Hawk area growing out of the failure of the Committee to get approval for erection of a high school in the District. In connection with this action, the Kitty Hawk PTA met last week, and by resolution expressed unqualified endorsement of the action of the Committee, contend ing, with the Committee, that legal action was resorted to in order to achieve the ends of the Committee only after all other appeals and methods had failed. They contend that they hope in this manner only to get the needs of “the Kitty Hawk school district properly and fully—to the attention of the State Board of Education for their con sideration.’* The resolution is lengthy, and has already received considerable publicity, but the Kitty Hawk PTA says the relief sought in this action is “with malice toward none.” TWO MANNS HARBOR MEN BOUND OVER TO SUPERIOR COURT Charged With Theft of Boat Equipment; Using Virginia Tags Cost Money . . Nowadays. Albert Warde of Manns Harbor had in his charge some motor boat equipment belonging to H. B. Culpepper of Durant Island. He found it missing. A motor and pump, a battery and six gallons of gas in all, and estimated to be worth $286. Following activity on the part of Deputy Sheriff Clarence Hassell of Manns Harbor, two young men, Amos Crain and Hubert Ambrose found themselves in court Tuesday, charged with taking the articles. Crain pleaded guilty, but Ambrose claimed innocence and had Attorn ey Wallace McCown to represent him. Judge Baum found probable cause, and bound them over to Superior Court. Willie Crain sign ed the appearance bond. Motorists living in Dare County continue to find it costly to keep on using Virginia tags. In some parts of the county where patrol men seldom appeared, it was cus tomary to keep on using old tags on cars bought in Virginia. In fact, in many instances, titles were never exchanged. Now that Patrol man Arthur Fields is active, cases involving improper tags are com ing up every week. This week Hobson Willis Jr. of Frisco paid $lO and costs, and Dennis Lee Crees of Wanchese paid $5 and costs for using im proper plates. George Albert Wise, colored, continued to ignore a court order requiring him to support his fam ily. The' Judge gave him 24 hours to raise some money or to go to the roads to serve a two-year sen tence. Robert Ashby and Annie Black bottom were each charged with assaulting the other. What the fight was about it nos recorded, but both were found guilty and each paid $lO and costs. POSTMASTERS OF DISTRICT ARE TO MEET IN GREENVILLE J. Knott Proctor, Postmaster, Greenville, will be host to the First District Postmasters which will be held Saturday, March 3rd, in Greenville. The meeting will start at 12 Noon at Respass Brothers Barbe cue Place. Lunch will be served at 12:30. The meeting will follow the lunch. All postmasters are urged to attend, according to Mrs. Maude M. White of Buxton, Chairman First .District Postmasters. DARE COUNTY UNIT NCEA AT WANCHESE SATURDAY The Dare County unit of the North Carolina Education Associa tion will meet Saturday morning, February 25, at 10:30. Dr. Shope, superintendent of the Elizabeth City schools, will be the featured speaker . LET THE ALLIGATOR RIVER BE LIKE OTHER NORTH CAROLINA BRIDGES—FREE. There was a time when residents of the Southern Albemarle area were desperate for a bridge oyer Croatan Sound and one over Alligator River, or thought they were They eagerly took the bait when harassed minor highway officials suggested they might get one or more bridges if they would be willing to submit to a toll-bridge, something which doesn t exist anywhere else in North Carolina. Many people said for sake of get ting a bridge, they would be willing to pay tolls. s ESTIMATED COSTS OCRACOKE ROAD WOULD BE $460,000 Figures Run Over the $300,000 Allocated For Project Last Year The modern road that the High way Commission proposes to build down Ocracoke Island would cost about $460,000, Chief Engineer W H. Rogers, Jr., said in Raleigh Wednesday. Rogers said the contract bids received in Tuesday’s letting amounted to $261,984.50 and rep resented only a part of the actual cost of the road. He said that purchasing of the stone, hauling it by barge from the mainland to the island and stockpiling it plus engineering and contingencies cost would run the total cost of the road to $460,000. The stone, alone, fdr the six inch compacted stone base will cost about $175,000, Rogers said Only $300,000 has been set up for the Ocracoke road, he said. As planned and drawn up, the project would consist of 10.68 miles of grading, structures and paving from Ocracoke Village northeast toward Hatteras. The road will be trenched out of the beach and cut through sand dunes, with stone used for a six inch deep compacted stone' base 18 feet wide. The job also calls so: paving the road with a bituminou surface treatment. Several creosoted timbe bridges will be built in the sane dune area so that high ocean an sound water will go under th bridges rather than over the road ENTHUSIASM SHOWN BY COMMITTEES OF PIRATES JAMBOREE Continued enthusiasm in the sec ond annual Dare Coast Pirates Jamboree is being shown through out the county according to infor mation received from various com mittees. During the past week two large-scale committee meetings have been held. The second meeting, last Friday night, was down at Hatteras at the Atlantic View Hotel. Scotty Gibson, Hatteras committee chair man, presided. Following this meeting it was reported that the committees there had planned a full schedule from early morning until late at night on Friday, Ap ril 27, opening day of the big va cation season launching event. The events planned for Hatteras in clude fishing contests, the world’s biggest salt water fish fry, a col orful exhibition of the Ocracoke Island banker ponies by the only banker-pony mounted Boy Scout troop in • the world, beach buggy races and a water-carnival type of dance at the Blue Marlin Fishing docks during the evening. Monday this week George Crock er entertained the Dare Beaches and Roanoke Island committee members in the Nautilus Room of Beacon Motor Lodge. The meeting was marked by large attendance and refreshments were served the group. Reports from sub-commit tee members were made. This in cluded those in charge of costum ing, decorating, prizes and souve nirs, the big Pirates Ball, lobster feast, model plane contest, beach buggy obstacle races, jalopy races, treasure hunt and other special attractions. It was announced that Dr. Sylvester Green, vice-president of Wake Forest College, would be the theologian conducting the re ligious services on Sunday morn ing, April 29, and reports also in dicated that the boat racing com mittee was arranging for bigger and better races even than the successful races last year. This week Dare County Tourist Bureau issued several hundred special announcements about the See JAMBOREE, Page Five HENRY T. PEELE TO TAKE OVER COAST GUARD STA. Chief Warrant Officer, Henry T. Peele, native of Frisco, Dare County, will take command of the Coast Guard stations from Little Creek to Oregon Inlet on retire ment of CWO Ben Wroten on April I. Mr. Peele, was for a time in command of Ocracoke Lifeboat Station, and is now in charge of Little Creek Station. Wroten will continue to live at Virginia Beach. r now P a st for entertaining further this sort of defeatist attitude. There is no need for whimpering and whining, and offering to accept just any sort of bone that may be tossed to this glorious part of North Carolina. It is unworthy of the officials of the great state of North Caro lina to suggest to the people of this part of the state to whose economy the Alligator River bridge is now vital and essential—completely necessary—that they be penalized; that they and their visitors from other parts of the state and elsewhere be the only people who are penalized in this ’manner. Why should the people of Eastern North Carolina pay twice for essential highway facilities? Why make us pay when all other bridges are without toll? In a sense all bridges are toll bridges in that they are paid for by the users of gasoline, who pay taxes. No one should be held up here for extra tribute before they can cross the bridge, when they are not held up anywhere else in N. C. The late Governor William B. Unistead proved for us that it is not nec/ssary to unjustly impose toll bridges on us. Shortly before his lamented death, he found the means to build the Croatan Sound bridge toll-free. That bridge is now well on its way to completion, and with good luck, is expected to be serving the public, come next Christmas. We thought there was great demand for this bridge, where ferries were so often inadequate, but in our opinion this demand will be small as compared with the clamor that will go up, in a short time after its completion. The clamor will be by an eager public, still anxious for the uninter rupted shorter route back and forth along U. S. 64. The dis tance will never be shortened between our seashore and the Capital of this state, until the Alligator River bridge is built. The demand for this bridge will be not largely on the part of local residents. It will come from hundreds of thous ands of new visitors. We will have thousands demanding this bridge instead of hundreds now. And we believe we will have a Governor and other officials with equal good sense to see that anything other than a toll-free bridge would be unworthy of this great state; that it would be an act of rank discrimination against the residents and tourists of this state, and more especially against the people of the Southern Albemarle, who sad to say, have had to fight con stantly all the way, to keep their needs before the public and to awaken public interest and support in their plight. The needs and the times will demand such a bridge. Let’s have a toll-free bridge. Let’s quit whining and whim pering, and apologizing and telling our people it’s the only kind of bridge we can get. Let’s talk up the subject from a business standpoint. Let’s stand on our feet and show all concerned that it is a good investment, a profitable business for North Carolina to continue to tell the world: “come to see us, we don’t penalize you.” Let’s say to our own folks. Here’s the bridge needed to fill our greatest economic need. Use it; develop this region; make it pay off; make your counties worthwhile to North Carolina which so long has helped us carry our school and other burdens. Let us carry our part of the load; let us create more property to yield income for public purposes. The bridge will help build indus try; ti will create employment at home. The next time anyone pops up with the weak-kneed plea for a public toll-bridge, and thereby shows himself willing for our people to be penalized and gouged, let’s shout him down, and proceed with the commonsense busi nesslike proposition of proving what we all know: That a toll bridge is a blot and a backward step; a black mark on the intelligence of a people; an indication of a lack of prog ress, and absence of vision and pride. On the other hand let us show that a free bridge is a good investment; that it will bring on so many benefits in the long run that it will cost nobody anything. No area so important, whose pros pects for development and advancement are so great camaf ford a toll bridge to penalize and hold back the advancement of its people. No state can afford the stigma of thus penal izing its people. If the Croatan Sound bridge can be built free, then the Alligator River bridge can be free, and it should shortly become a reality.—VlCTOß MEEKINS. STUMPY POINT CHANNEL TO GET IMPROVEMENT Stumpy Point is not yet dead as a fishing center. The chajuiel got filled in a lot, due to the hurri canes, and the many shrimp, oyster and fishing boats that go in and out from the Lake Worth docks have been handicapped. But Con gressman Herbert Bonner has been advised that the Corp of Engineers will spend some $40,000 to dredge out the channel to a depth of sjc feet. Facilities at this area, and at the other end of the community have been enlarged and improved recently by private interests. Stumpy Point has better means than ever of handling and process ing fish. Many fishermen from other counties now use it for their port of operations, with good roads going north and west, it offers easy access to markets. With completion of the Croatan Sound bridge, next year there will be a fast way to get fish to Nor folk, and for shipment to Northern markets. MANTEO P.T.A. TO OBSERVE FOUNDERS DAY TUESDAY \ - Manteo PT A will meet Tuesday, February 28th, at 8 > p.m. in the school building. Mrs. B. J. Baum* Whs arranged the special Founders Day program to be presented and the history of the PTA will be an interesting part of it. x Single Copy 70 CHICAMACOMICO PEOPLE URGE JULIAN GRAY TO RUN FOR COMMISSIONER The three villages which com prise the precinct of Chicamaco ' mico namely, Rodanthe, Waves and Salvo, which represent about half the population of Kinnakeet Township; now think it is time they had representation on one of the county Boards, and several people have been urging Lieut. Julian L. Gray to run for County Commissioners in ths forthcoming primary. For several years now, the vil lage of Avon has been the resi dence of both of the township’s members on the Board of Educa tion and County Commissioners, and many think turnabout is fair play, since it is rumored that James W. Scarborough, County Commissioners of Avon, does not plan to offer for re-election. Chica macomico precinct has supported many candidates from Avon, and now hopes for a return of the 1 favor. Like Mr. Scarborough, Lieut Gray is a retired Coast Guards man. He retired in 1955 after having, served long. His career has taken him to New. England, Flori da, Colorado and many other , states, beside his war service in i the combat zone of the South Pacific. Mr. Gray is a native of I Salvo, the son of the late Cyrus t Gray, and is the husband of Mrs. r Bethany Gray ,who is a daughter ; of the late Capt. John Allen Mid gett of Rodanthe.
The Coastland Times (Manteo, N.C.)
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Feb. 24, 1956, edition 1
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