PAGE TWO
THE COASTLAND TIMES
Published Continuously at Manteo, N. C., Since July 4, 1935
THE WEEKLY JOURNAL OF THE WALTER RALEIGH COASTLAND OF NORTH
CAROLINA. FOREMOST REGION OF RECREATION AND SPORT, HEALTH-
FUL LIVING AND HISTORICAL INTEREST ON THE ATLANTIC SEsROAHD
Entered as Second Class Matter at the Postoffice in Manteo, N. C.
Subscription Rates: Yearly $3.00; Six Months, $1.75; 3 Months, SI.OO
PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY BY TIMES PRINTING CO.. INC. AT
VICTOR MEEKINS Editor
CATHERINE D. MEEKINS Secretary-Treasurer
FRANCIS W. MEEKINS Advertising Manager
VOL. XXIII MANTEO, N. C., FRIDAY, MAY 23, 1958 NO. 47
A VOTER WHO CALLS FOR A CLEAN-SWEEP TO
PROTECT THE INTERESTS OF DARE PEOPLE
(Editor’s Note: Our editorial this week is an unexpected guest
editorial, a feature seldom seen in The Coastland Times. It is se
lected from numerous letters that have come to this newspaper
to cheer it on in its fight for better county government. It is written
by a brilliant woman, a former teacher, a native, and property own
er of Dare County, who is now employed by the Government. She is
a resident of Atlantic township, the section of Dare County which
has been most heavily penalized in the recent New Jersey raid on
real estate run by the Dare County Commissioners. It most nearly
represents the tone and feeling of many letters we have received,
and being a beter job of writing than we can do. we welcome the
opportunity to print it.)
For weeks I have been reading with gusto your clarion
calls to the voters of Dare County urging them to assume
their responsibility toward their county government. Yet,
I did not awaken to the magnitude of what had been hap
pening to me and other property owners in Dare, until after
the arrival of a postal card announcing my 1958 property
tax evaluation. I have been aware of my county taxes pro
gressively growing greater each year, but to the extent of
graft and mismanagement behind this, I have been indif
ferent. I feel indebted to you for shocking my attention in
this matter.
Reference is made to three listings which are repre
sentative of all the listings on that card, a masterpiece of
recorded dishonesty and stupidity:
Listing (a) A portion of land inherited from my father,
who had divided a tract into portions as nearly alike as pos
sible as to size and otherwise as slices from the same pie,
was evaluated. Each heir’s portion carried a different eval
uation. My portion carried an evaluation twice in amount
of that of the next in size. Sheer dishonesty, carelessness
and unfairness.
Listing (b) Seventeen years ago I built a garage near
one of my beach houses. My evaluator evaluated this beach
weathered garage, having had no repairs, at 33 1/3% higher
than its cost. What would any woman—or man for that
matter— give for a formula of perpetuity enabling her to
suffer 17 years of rigid wear and tear and come up 331/3%
better. Preposterous.
Listing (c) So far as I can learn from those on the
scene, no evaluator has entered anyone of my beach cot
tages to check furnishings. They were occupied all last sum-1
mer and boarded up all last winter. Nevertheless, my evalu
ator evaluated my furniture in them at 80% of its original
cost purchased over a period of 23 years, a great deal of
which was bought second hand. Just how there could be any
kind of honest evaluation under those circumstances is be
yond my comprehension. A piercing of the side walls by an
eye-beam, I suppose. Something like guessing hdw many
beans in a bottle of beans. However, one can see there are
beans in the bottle. Ridiculous.
What can we do to correct this miscarriage of fairness
to us? Plenty! We can march to the polls in a body and se
lect a new and more competent corp of county officers. Men
with a realistic approach to a vital facet of our daily living.
In the interest of our economic health, we will have to do
so, here and now. Four years hence will be too late. Then
the trend against us will have been set.
The only industry of any scope in Dare is the tourist
industry. This exists because of the Atlantic Ocean, there
fore our beach frontage is our greatest asset. Our tourist
industry is in the toddling stage and needs no strong-arm
tactics. The small profit percentage wise is known to every
operator struggling to float there. Since I have owned and
operated vacation rental houses on the beach for a long time,
I can speak from experience. From each dollar of my gross
income 50# goes for operating expenses, and 30/ for minoi
repairs and replacements. If I realize 20% of my gross in
come as profit, I feel fortunate. My places are now debt free,
and I am situated so I can keep the cottages filled continu
ously during the vacation season. Obviously this added tax
burden will absorb most of that measly 20%. It is no bo
nanza.
Normally vacation summer home owners in our area
have more than their share of discouragements. They are
plagued by frequency of hurricane threat, erosion, and ex
cessive deterioration. Is it not inept to add confiscatory taxes
to their woes if we expect them to remain in our midst and
to enlarge their investments? Let not the citizens of Dare
imagine that tourist’s places or summer homes will spring
up rapidly, increasing our taxable wealth, where the natural
forces are so discouraging and the county government so
grasping. Individuals shrewd enough to acquire capital for
such investments are usually shrewd enough not to walk
into such a bear trap. Colonists already located in our midst
are not going to endure supinely such tax abuses and not
hit back. They are too resourceful. Doubtless they are doing
some tall thinking at this moment.
Such problems will be resolved in due time as life’s
problems always are. However, it is unlikely they will be
resolved to the advantage of Dare’s citizenry, unless we. take
the bull by the horns and settle them ourselves at the bal
lot boxes, NOW! Otherwise, chances are, the beach will be
set back twenty-five years, become shabby and impoverished
while back areas of the county dip into the dire circum
stance of a ghost region—understandable by all of us as
we have a ghost village in our midst.
Granting our only unique natural resources are the At
lantic Ocean and its borderland, we must admit the ocean
and its frontage at the north of us are equally unique. This
is a region ripe for development. And if our sister county
is on its toes, it will immediately set in motion plans to siph
on investment capital, earmarked for our parts, to their
ocean-bordering land. Our 1958 tax evaluation is a good sell
ing point for them to use to discourage those who cast their
eyes southward.
Usually when a manufacturing interest selects a loca
tion of operation in a state, the state government grants it
a tax moratorium, and rightly so. I am not advocating a
tax moratorium for the beach interests; however, I am ad
vocating a tax equalization. Each square of usable land, ex
cepting ocean bordering lots, should be evalued as to its
immediate usefulness and demand. Each brick, each cement
block, each piece of timber of equal age in buildings should
have equal evaluation regardless of land location. This is
county foresight
’ The lame brain, known as our evaluator, from New
Jersey and his mentors in Dare courthouse definitely had
. THE COASTLAND TIMES, MANTEO, N. C.
no such business foresight. Apparently Lame-brain pre
sumed he should evaluate property located in eastern North
Carolina, Dare County in a comparative manner with that
of Atlantic City, New Jersey. The county grafters to get
more cash to piddle out for their enjoyment believed this
was a bright idea. Our beach progress is 50 years from At
lantic City and the way things are set now, county wise, it
is apt to be farther away in a short time.
Judging from performance and results, I disclaim that
our courthouse bright-boys are our top-notchers, intellect
'uall'y. So we as citizens should bestir ourselves immediately
to search for candidates who represent our upper level of
thinking. We need a whole new slate. Our candidates should
be carefully screened in our minds for our best in honesty,
courage, above average education, business acumen—indi
viduals who have succeeded in some business venture — and
youthfulness—an alert and agressive outlook.
Definitely our incumbent county officers do not meas
ure up in those requirements. There may be those amongst
the group who did not actively operate against us, they did
not actively help us either. In most part they have proved
to be a lazy, conniving set of betrayers who were entrusted
by the people with a vital duty. Apparently they are so medi
ocre and selfish they could not perform it adequately. Let
us appear at the polls en masse and vote solidly AGIN ’EM.
It is unwise for us to rely completely upon the incum
bent party for our slate of candidates. If there are some
amongst us who disbelieve in a two-party system of gov
ernment, he better catch up on his reading to learn about
Russia. Russia the land of the one-party government where
the man who toils is victimized. Our opposing party is duty
bound to resuscitate itself, to select and to back for us
staunchly its finest, to aid each of us in forming a rich
slate of candidates. Thereby enriching Dare County in its
turning point of behavior in government—l hope, I hope!
WHY SHOULD AN HONEST MAN BE AFRAID OF AN
AUDIT?
For many years, there had been a clamor from the cit
izens of Dare County for an audit of the county’s books.
Several tiiries a motion was brought before grand juries to
recommend audits. One man was very determined there
should be no audit, and for many years he stalled any rec
ommendations on the part of the grand jury. He used to
meet them in the hall and tell them how foolish it would be
to raise taxes and waste the money, when everybody in the
courthouse was honest. And he would always be ready with
a grand jury report crudely written out, just as he wanted
it, and usually it was obligingly signed.
Finally, by legislative enactment, an audit was forced
on the county in 1947, and this same man was found short
several hundred dollars. Save for the fact that he has had
other troubles in handling money, this doesn’t suggest he
was dishonest, or meant any dishonesty. A shortage of
money can often mean that a man is incompetent. As much
money is lost, perhaps through incompetency as through
dishonesty.
We don’t question the perfect honesty of the Register
of Deeds, but he is doing something which is mighty sus
picious, and which shows the Commissioners are not all on
the job. We refer to his monthly reports, and those of other
county officials. The reports of other officials list the
amount of money turned in. But the Register of deeds makes
his report according to the minute book, in this manner:
“The Register of Deeds made his report which is on
file.”
Now can you imagine a more stupid entry on a public
record? It doesn’t say how much money was reported, it
gives no record of any receipt from the County Treasurer
that any money has been paid in; it doesn’t tell where the
“file” is. If anyone knows where the file is, the reputed “re
port” could be removed, altered, or destroyed at any time
by whoever knows where it is. Whenever the books are aud
ited again, there is no record to trace.
Parenthetically speaking, it may be mentioned that the
budgeted cost for the operation of this office, to the tax
payers, over the budgeted receipts is in excess of $6,000 a
year. Surely this is no record for good management-
But our subject is, “Why should any honest man be
afraid of a public audit?” There appears to be only one rea
son why an honest man should be afraid of an audit, which
is that an audit might reveal him to be incompetent, and
that is what we consider the present occupant of this of
fice to be.
History may be repeating itself, for all we know. Some
body is keeping the Commissioners from having regular
county audits. The last one was two years ago. Who is
afraid? Who doesn’t want the people to know? We make
this charge, that the reason there isn’t an audit is that some
one or more officials don’t want the public to see what an
audit will reveal. If they don’t want it seen, then there is
something against the people’s interests in it. Are these men
worthy of the further support of the people?
COMMISSIONERS BACKING WATER.
Commissioners of Dare County are beginning to back
water a little from the tax valuation mess they brought on
themselves, when they hired Appraisal Associates, a cou
ple of Passaic, New’ Jersey men for $22,000 to value the
property.
Cornered between angry citizens and the forthcoming
primary in which they expect the people to re-elect them,
they now admit occasional mistakes, and at least two mem
bers of the five have said they didn’t know the nature of
the deal when it was put over; one member says his town
ship was cruelly discriminated against; another member
says if the appraisers had followed “the perfect formula,”
he worked out and gave them to go by, they wouldn’t had
any trouble.
Desperate to save votes, with election only a week off,
the commissioners this week are running house to house
in a body, in Atlantic township, where they did most dam
age; now reducing valuations of property. Many people
may be pacified in this manner, but they might remember
but for pressure and publicity, this wouldn’t have been done.
If a commissioner had a perfect formula, where is the
point in not doing the job at home, whereby most of the
$22,000 could have''been saved, as well as thousands of ex
tra dollars that will now probably be spent to straighten
up the mess.
A word to the wise: It has been proved that a few cer
tain people in the courthouse have been untruthful, and
some dishonest. Hence it is good reason to take for nothing
the word of such people.
SINCE IT is highly questionable that Dare County has
got full value for its $22,000 appraisal job, it might be worth
while to stop payment in full for this job until the earned
value of the contract might be legally determneid.
IF THERE IS A FIGHT TO BE DONE, FIGHT. One never
wins a battle by remaining behind the Yalu and letting the
enemy come in closer every day. You can’t fight with sweet
words; polite terms won’t help. You cannot chase a.possum
out of the hen house with sweet talk- Stomp the varmints,
stomp 'em in a businesslike way!
SOME IMPRESSIONS
OF ROANOKE ISLAND
HALF CENTURY AGO
By EARL DEAN
There are still a good many folks
around today who can well remem
ber the days when the way to Fort
Raleigh was along a winding,
sandy trail through an almost vir
gin pine forest.
In tlpse days a trip up to the
north end of Roanoke Island was
something of a journey taking bet
ter than an hour’s time. Visitors to
Dare County who wanted to see
the site of the first English colony
in America usually hired a horse
and cart and set out for Fort Ra
leigh early in the day. There was
usually plenty of time In which to
relax and enjoy the scenery on the
way up.
Such a visitor was the late Col.
Fred A. Olds, the well-known Ra
leigh historian of a couple of gen
erations ago, who made a trip to
Roanoke Island in the summer of
1901 for the sole purpose of seeing
what Fort Raleigh looked like.
On his return to the State Capi
tol he wrote the following sketch
of his visit to Old Fort Raleigh as
it appeared 57 years ago:
“The center of the attractipn
there is Fort Raleigh. Along roads
of white sand, beneath pines with
which the bright green of the holly
is mingled, the way lies to The
Fort. To the right, after going a
little distance, rises in long lines
the 1 dunes, vast mounds of sand,
the creation and sport of the winds.
Looking from the top of these one
can almost see to the eastward the
sea, green and heaving,' and the
curl of its breakers, and borne by
the soft east wind comes the faint
thunder of the surf, like a distant
echo. At one’s feet lies the tawny
waters of Roanoke Sound, yellow
as gold, three miles in width, arid
so shallow that nearly the entire
distance can be waded. Looking
westward the thickly-wooded is
land seems to lie at one’s feet, like
a vast green carpet.
‘•‘Descending from .the heights
the ride to Fort Raleigh is resum
ed. Past houses, some modern,
others gray with age, the road
winds. Presently there appears a
small sign bearing the words “To,
Fort Raleigh.” It points eastward
to a pine thicket, and thence 100
yards away is the fort site.
“Surrounded by a fence of pine
rails, with a rustic gateway of
little upright poles, is the ruin. In
its center stands a severely simple
monument and low posts of gran
ite, a foot high, mark the vener
able earthwork. The outlines are
perfectly plain. The greatest
height of the parapet above the
ditch is some two feet. Almost an
acre is enclosed by the fence, and
the fort covers little more than a
fourth of this area. The colonists’
log huts surrounded the fort,
which was their refuge in time of
attack by the Indians. Within the
limits of the enc’osure are live
oak, pine, holly, dogwood, sassa
fras, water oak and wild cherry
trees. Up the trunk of one great
live oak clamor. 4 a wild grapevine,
and at its feet is a shoot of Eng
lish ivy. The monument, or memo
rial stone, faces westward, and
bears this inscription:
‘Near this spot in July-August,
1585, colonists sent out by Sir Wal
ter Raleigh built a fort called by
them the New Forte in Virginia.
These colonists were the first sett
lers of the English race in Amer
ca. They returned to England in
July, 1586, wth Sir Fracis Drake.
‘Near this place was born, on
the 18th day of August, 1587, Vir
ginia Dare, the first white child of
English parents born in America,
daughter of Ananias Dare and
Eleanor Dare, his wife, members
of another band of colonists sent
out by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1587.
On Sunday, August 20, 1587, Vir
ginia Dare was baptized. Manteo,
friendly chief of the Hatteras In
dians, had been baptized on the
Sunday previous. These baptisms
were the first known celebrations
of the sacrament in the territories
of the thirteen original states.’
“The land here has never been
in cultivation, and to this fact is
due the marvellous preservation of
the ancient earthworth. In America
316 years seem a very great lapse
of time, but this little earthwork
SALVATION ARMY IN THE MOUNTAINS
kir JI Bu .mH
One of the little known lervices rendered by The Salvation Army
in the Carolinas is a Mountain Mission located 40 miles northwest of
Asheville. The outpost is commanded by Capt. James Henry, shown
above fitting a pair of sturdy, high top shoes on a mountain boy. Capt.
Henry, who uses a horse for part of his work in the rugged mountain
area, is assisted by three other officers and several workers.
IB-
-I- ■■ .
RACE TROUBLE IN MASS.—In
Boston two negroes are held ’for
trying to stab to death two white
brothers during a. series of race
riots in this area which accuses
the south of intolerance.
FAST FLIGHT—A jet fighter
plane set a new record at Los
Angeles by 200 mph, flying at a
spebd of 1,404.19 miles per hour
at a height of 40,000 feet.
HEAVY FIRE LOSS—Defective
or overheated oil-fired heating and
cooking equipment caused 50,700
fires in 1956, resulting in property
losses of $36,500,000, according to
the National Fire Protection Asso
ciation. “We urge people—for their
lives’ sake to use only units tested
and aproved by nationally recog
nized testing agencies,” says the
NFPA.
which, thanks to the care of the
Roanoke Colony Memorial Associa
tion, is still visible' today. It is
evident that the fort was made up
of two row’s of upright palisades,
or logs, between which earth was
packed. The palisades soon decay
ed, but the earth retains its out
line plainly.”
Another interesting sidelight on
the Dare County of long ago comes
from the pen of one Professor
Charles R Taylor who was a resi
dent of Roanoke Island 50-odd
years ago and principal of the
high school at Wanchese in 1901.
He wrote:
“Much of the beautiful scenery
of the Elizabethan Age has passed
away. To the east lies a long and
well-nigh barren strip of sand that
marks the boundaries of the ocean.
Along the coast at nearly regular
intervals are the life saving sta
tions, W’ith here and there a village
inhabited by fishermen and oyster
men, and where many life savers
have their homes.
“All these banks, within the
memory of their old men, were
covered, with scarcely a break,
with a dense forest. These have
all been swallowed up by small
mountains of moving sand, Roa
noke Island was also heavily tim
bered.
“Another change that has taken
place within the memory of the
fathers of this generation is that
the island is farther from the
mainland. The marsh from Croatan
and that from the south end of
Roanoke Island nearly met, only a
narrow creek separating them.
This was when the w’aters of the
Albemarle sought the ocean by
way of Nags Head Inlet. A stoim
closed this inlet and these waters
then sought to pass out to sea by
way of an inlet south of Roanoke
Island. Their force removed the
peaty marsh and opened up the
wide gateway as it is now.”
MRS. HODGES’ FUNERAL
HELD AT ENGELHARD TUES.
Funeral services for Mrs. Mattie
Estelle Swindell Hodges, who died
Sunday morning in a Norfolk his
pital after an illness of two weeks,
were conducted at 2:30 Tuesday
| afternoon from the Engelhard
: Christian Church, Barry Funeral
Home, directors. Rev. W. F. Wi
biral and Rev. Angus Cameron
conducted the services, and burial
was in the Fulford cemetery
I Mrs. Hodges was born at Engel
i hard Feb. 6, 1900, and was the
; wife of Charles D. Hodges, and the
i daughter of the late Henry and
' Martha Gibbs Swindell. Beside her
i husband, she is survived by three
I sons, Marvin H. of Poplar Branch;
Brice and Reginald of Norfolk;
three sisters: Mrs. Lydia Harris,
Mrs. Bertha Gibbs, of Engelhard
and Mrs. Emmett Sadler of Swan
Quarter. One broeher, David Swin
dell of Engelhard.
FRIDAY. MAY 23, 1958
LION KILLS GIRL—A lion in the
Washington zoo, pulled a scream
ing 2’4 year-old girl through the
bars of its cage and killed her.
SHIP SUBSIDIES—The Govern
ment last year paid sl4l millions
to shipowners to assist in keeping
the country’s merchant ships go
ing.
AIR CRASH—Sixty five people, in
cluding eight children were killed
in the crash of a Belgian airliner
at Casablanca . . . Two Navy jet
fighters crashed in the air at
Miami, killing four.
FRENCH CRISIS—Torn by do
mestic strife, political troubles, and
uprisings in its colonies, the Re
public of France is having a hard
time keeping its Government to
gether?
IMPROVED ‘SERVICE
BEING OFFERED NOW
BY ROGERS BROTHERS
The Rogers brothers, Bill and
Edward of Kitty Hawk, recently
completed a hard winter’s work
in establishing an improved groc
ery store at Nags Head.
They bought the long-established
firm opposite the Nags Header ho
tel, completely remodeled it and
built a brick front, making it one
of the most attractive business
houses along the beach. Appropri
ately enough, the name is Rogers
Grocery and Shell Service. They
are offering a complete stock of
groceries, meats, vegetables, frozen
foods, etc., as well as antomobile
service and minor repairs. During
the busy season, hours will be 7
a.m. til 10 p.m.
NAMED ON DEMOCRATIC
COMMITTEES IN STATE
Citizens of Dare, Hyde, Tyrrell
and Beaufort, named on commit
tees at the State Democratic Com
mittee in Raleigh on Thursday, are
as follows ,
State Executive Committee:
Beaufort: John Winfield and Mrs.
Scott Topping; Dare: R. Bruce
Etheridge; Currituck: Mrs. Dudley
Bagley; Hyde, Mrs. Dick O’Neal;
Tyrrell, Mrs. Borden McCleese.
Congressional Committee: Beau
fort, Bernard Voliva and J. L. Pat
rick; Dare, C. R. Evans, and Mrs.
T. A. Basnight; Currituck, Dudley
Bagley and Wilton Walkey, Jr.;
Hyde, M. A. Matthews, and C. M.
Swindell; Tyrrell, C. E. Morris
and Charles Cohoon.
Judicial District Committee:
Beaufort, Heber Winfield and-
James B. McMullan; Hyde, Keith
Dunbar and Macon Howard. Dare,
Martin Kellogg, Jr., and Victor
Meekins; Currituck, Walton Griggs
and S. A. Walker; Tyrrell, Lem A.
Cohoon and Colon Snell, i
Solicitorial Committee: Beaufort,
W. C. Dudley and Mrs. Essie B.
Waters. Currituck, W. B. Wood
house and W. W. Jarvis, Jr. Dare,
Robert H. Midgett and Milton
Perry. Hvde, Gilbert Tunnell and
Herbert Rhem. Tyrifell, J. H. Swain
and R. L.
“JOCK” TILLETT, NATIVE
OF WANCHESE DIES
James Byrd Tillett, 64, husband
of Mrs. Carrie White Tillett and
son of Woodsey D. and Mrs. Celia
Daniels Tillett, died in a Norfolk
hospital Friday morning.
Besides his wife, he is survived
by a son, Capt. James Burton Til
lett, USAF, Mountlake Terrace,
Wash.; seven sisters, Mrs. Earl
May of Norfolk, Mrs. Margie
Stowe, Mrs. Juanita Ballance, Mrs.
Iva Inez Owens and Mrs. Shawnee
brothers, all of Wanchese; Mis.
Mary Swain of Brigantine, N. J.,
and Mrs. Sophia Brumsey of Bel
haven; three brothers. Douglas Til
'ett of Norfolk and W. C. Tiillett
md Herbert Tillett, both of Wan
chese; a grandson, James Bruce
Tillett, and several and
nephews.
Mr. Tillett was a native of Wan
•hese and had been a resident of
Norfolk area for 40 years, residing
nt 118 Pinewood Rd., Virginia
Beach. He was a member of the
Virginia Beach Methodist Church
and of Churchland Lodge 276, A.F.
& A.M., and was a veteran of
World War I. He was quarantine
inspector, U. S. Public Health
Service, for 37 years.
The .funeral was he’d Sunday.
Entombment was in the Forest
Lawn Mausoleum.
AVON PERSONALS
Rev. Andrew Stirling, evange
list, will preach during a revival
at the Avon Assembly of God
Church June 1 through June 8 at
7:80 p.jn. nightly. Mr. Stirling is
district sunt of the Assemblies of
God churches in N. C. The public is
invited,