The Clinton Chronicle
V-
Vol. 68 — No. 52
Clinton, S. C., Thursday, December 28, 1967
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Wasson Proposes Homestead Exemption
State Study Shows Laurens Assessments Vary Widely
Owners of identical $10,000
home^ in Laurens Gounty
may be paying as little as
$4.20 in county taxes or as
much as $119.70, according
to a recent study.
Robert C. Wasson, chair
man of the State Tax Com
mission and a former state
senator from Laurens Coun
ty, had the study conducted
to illustrate what it means
when there is no uniform
rate of assessment.
He said he does not consi
der Laurens CdM&ity to be un
usual in the state but he
points out that 28 counties al-j
ready have begun or com
pleted reassessment pro
grams. He selected Laurens
County for the study because
he is familiar with the Coun
ty.
Wasson’s study shows that
assessment on real estate in
Laurens County could vary
from six tenths of one per
cent of market value to 17
per cent.
He said the average county
assessment of real estate in
South Carolina is five per
cent. In Laurens County, for
example, the owners of each
of the 110,000 homes would be
taxed on the basis of a $500
assessment if a five per cent
ratio were used. At the rate
of 70 mills (7 per cent) they
would each pay $35 a year in
taxes.
It doesn’t work that way in
Laurens County. There are 13
separate boards of assessors
in the county and the County
Board of Equilization is com
posed of the chairmen from
the district boards.
Each of the 13 boards uses
building permits as the basis
for their assessments in their
particular geographical area.
However, there is no agency
which follows up on the in
formation provided in the
building permits.
Wasosn would like to see a
uniform assessment rate of
10 per cent placed on all
taxable property. All auto
mobile, airplanes, boats and
farm machinery will be as
sessed at the same 10 per
cent ratio beginning in 1970.
Wasson has been quoted as
saying he would like to apply
the same figure for industrial
plants. All new plants are
assessed at 9.5 per cent.
However, Wasson realizes
the idea of doubling the as
sessment to 10 per cent onj
real estate would be a politi-j
cal impossibility. But he
hopes to gain favor with an
idea to provide a $10,000
homestead exemption and
then increase the assessment
ratio to 10 per cent. The ex
emption would apply to all
owner-occupied dwellings.
Anyone who owned and
lived in a home valued at less
than $20,000 would realized
a tax reduction.
In the Laurens County ex
ample, the owners of the
$10,000 homes would pay no
taxes because there would be
a $10,000 exemption. The own
er of a $20,000 home, assessed
at today’s average figure of
five per cent, would pay 70
mills on a $1,000 assessment
— or $70 a year in Laurens
County.
Wasson’s proposed exemp
tion would reduce the base
value to $10,000. The 10 per
cent assessment ratio would
provide the same $1,000 as
sessed valuation as before —
and taxes would remain at $70.
On a house with an actual
value of less than $20,000 the
taxes would be reduced and
on a home of more than
$20,000 taxes would be in
creased.
Wasson says that the
homestead exemption is
equitable in that a home is a
necessity and is non-income
producing. The exemption is
used in many states.
In addition to the uniform
rate and the homestead ex
emption, Wasson believes it
is necessary that assessment
be taken out of the hands of
the counties in order to re-'
move local political influen
ces and that assessment of all
property for taxation be done
by the State Tax Commission.
He says a system of ap
peals and a system of re
gional or county assessors
would have to be established
but he believes this is the
step that must be taken if
the constitutional require
ment of “a uniform and
equal rate of assessment” is
to be realized.
Debutantes
Featured
Fourteen girls will be
presented tonight in the
Clinton Debutante Ball.
Their pictures and an
article about tonight’s
event are on page 9 in
today’s Chronicle.
Also featured in to
day's Chronicle is a page
devoted to information
about the Jacobs Block
ing Trophy which origi
nated in Clinton and is
being continued bv Wil
liam P. Jacobs III and
Hugh S. Jacobs of Clin
ton. See page 10.
Vance:
Chapel To Be Razed
On Thornwell Campus Tex *^ e
Prospects
Brighter
$
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The
Lighter
Side
By DONNY WILDER
Chronicle Editor.
I’ve learned not to try to
bluff my way through names.
Naturally, I learned the hard
way.
Having been away from
Clinton for several years,
there have been times when
it has been hard for me to
put names with faces.
When I first returned to
Clinton, a couple! of times I
tried to ’ bluff my way
through. Someone would say,
“I’ll bet you don’t remember
me.” Most of the time I re
membered but sometimes I
wasn’t certain but I’d still
reply, “Sure, I do.”
A few weeks ago a local
lady cured me. We went
through that routine and then
she said the phrase which I
had been dreading: “OK,
what’s my lame?” : > V
I had no earthly idea and <
could feel myself physically V'
shrinking — in addition to
blushing furiously.
That’s the day I learned. I
won’t forget that lady’s name k:
any more and now, if I don’t
know, I flat-out admit it.
I was telling Horace
Payne about that experience
recently and he could sympa
thize with me. -
He said that some time
ago, he was trying to wiggle
Writing out a receipt for a
fellow he was supposed to
know, he thought he had the
problem licked when he ask
ed the customer, “How is it
you spell your last name?”
The fellow replied,
“S-M-I-T-H.”
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THORNWELL CHURCHES—The
Memorial Chapel, above,' which has
stood on the Thornwell Campus since
' 1906 is being torn down. It has been
i
replaced by the new Hartness-Thorn-
well Memorial Church, shown below.
The chapel took the place orf the. old
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Thornwell Church which burned on
Thanksgiving Day, 1904. The chapel
shown above cost between $9,00.0 and
$10,000 to build. The New Hart-
ness-Thomwell Church cost about
$431,000. (Photos by Bill Quarles)
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Clinton Has
Quiet Holiday
The Clinton area had a rel
atively quiet Christmas.
Police Chief B. B. Ballard
reported that the holidays'
were “the quietest we’ve had
in a long time.”
There were seven arrests
during the holidays, all on
charges of drunkenness or
traffic violations. There were
no major automobile wrecks
reported.
There were two fire calls
over the holiday weekend, j
one to a grass fire on N. i
Adair Street and the other
^’bitten Village where a fan
motor caught fire/ I
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Activity in the last quarter
of 1967 makes prospects
brighter for the South Caro
lina textile industry , in 1968,
the president of the South
| Carolina . Textile Manufac-
urers Association reported
today. •
| Robert M. Vance of Clin-
I ton, also president of Hinton
, Mills, said - there had been a
noticeable uptrend in the tex
tile business during the
fourth quarter after a sharp
decline throughout most of
1967.
!
“Despite several uncertain-
! ti"* that could change our
outlook drastically, we antici
pate this upturn continuing
, in 1968,” Mr. Vance said.
I
“ProPts, which were down
nearly 33 per cent in 1967,
should improve, although no-1
where near 166 levels. Sales
volume should he near that of
1986. The work week and em- j'
ployment will grow. Uapital
investments to maintain our
•evel of modernization will
continue, though still at a'
somewhat limited pace.
“Military procurement has;
become fairly, stabilized and
our inventory position has!
greatly improved. We expect
this to continue.”
Vance said it appears most
of the industry’s capital ex- j
pension during the coming i
year will be in the man-made
fiber field. He cited one 1
leading industrialist, who
said he knew* of $239 million
in new construction and ex-j
pansion in textiles either
orojected or on the planning
hoards for 1968 in South
Carolina, with $219 million of j
this total in man-made fiber
producing plants.
After two record years, j
capital investment projects
announced in 1967 by South !
Carolina textile and related
firms amounted to about
$35 million. Vance said. Many f
companies postponed plan
ned capital improvement
programs after it became
evident the business ’down
turn would continue through 1
most of 19'’ 7 , he said, and
others he'd up plans pending
restoration of the 7 per cent
investment tax credit.
Reviewing 1967 in the South
Carolina textile industry,
Vance said there were these
“plus" factors: !
-—The fifth industry-wide
pay raise in less than five
years came in September, i
offsetting much of the loss of
overtime pay suffered during ,
midyear cutbacks. As of Oct
ober, the S. C; Employment
Commission figures showed I
the state’s textile payroll at
a rate of more than $710 mil
lion annually, compared to
$679 million in December I
1966.
—Total textile employment
was 148.800 as of October, i
200 above the total la^t De
cember and 3,100 above
April’s low point. Vance not
ed that more than 15 per cent
of South Carolina textile em-1
ployees now are Negroes. He
said that during 1967 the
Equal Employment Oppor
tunity Commission singled
out for praise the South Car
olina textile industry for its j
success in providing job op
portunities for Negroes.
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PURPLE HEART — Mrs. Louise
English Blackwell receives a post
humous Purple Heart award for her
son who was killed Nov. 19 in com
bat in Vietnam. Roy James (Jimmy)
Blackwell Jr. was killed during the
21-day battle at Hill 875. Presenting
the medal is Major Robert H. Mackie
of the Presbytterian College ROTC
staff. The presentation ttfok place
at the Blackwells home on Sloan
Street. (Photo by Bill Quarles)
Bedridden Young Man
Keeps In Touch ; Via Radio
By BILL QUARLES
A non-drinking, bedridden
young man has accepted the
Alcoholic Anonymous credo
as his own:
“God give me the serenity
to accept the things 1 cannot
change; the courage to change
ihe things 1 can; and the wis
dom to know the difference.”
Ed Wellmaker, 24, son of
:vlr. and Mrs. J. E. Wellmak
er of Teak wood Drive, has
used that as a basis for a
sunny disposition and hungry
interest in life despite being
bedridden.
Ed was born with a spinal
b fia (open spine). Until he
was 12 years old, he wa^
able to get around in a wheel
chair but his joints stiffened
and for the past 12 years, he
has been confined to bed.
His father is a night super
visor at Clinton Cotton Mill.
The Wellmakers have been
living in Clinton since Oct. 25
of last year.
Better known as KMM-
9222, Ed keeps in touch with
the outside world through his
Cobra Citizens Band radio. “1
must admit that sometimes I
get very lonely, but I am al
ways able to find someone to
talk with,” said Ed. On many
occasions while living in
Greenville, Ed played the role
of a middle man as he re
layed^ messages from con-
structicn workers,. who were
operating smaUed radio units,
lo f’eir home office.
Ed has correspondence with
one operator in Antiqua, an
island in the West Indies? and
with ’’another in Liberia. Ed
is usually in touch with all
local operators plus all those
passing through.
He has many other inter
ests. He plays the ukulele, the
electric Organ, and sings, all
in a prone position, of course.
He also is learning how to
play the guitar through an
educational television pro
gram. Ed says that there is
some good in all music, but
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ED WELLMAKER ... At Radio Controls
he favors gospel and folk
music.
Ed who has a largo vocabu
lary and. a very keen mind,
has only eight years of for
mal education from a private
S. C. Hearing
Slated Jan. 12
The annual public hearing
of the South Carolina Con
gressional delegation has
been scheduled for Friday,
January 12, Congressman
John L. McMillian, Chairman
of the delegation announced
today.
The hearing will be held in
the Senate Chamber of the
State Capitol in Columbia
and will begin at 10:00 a.m.
Anyone desiring to appear
should contact Congressman
Wm. Jennings Bryan Dorn,
Secretary of the delegation
at 124 Federal Building,
Greenwood.
Both U. S. Senators and
all six Members of the House
of Representatives are ex
pected to attend.
tutor. He has gained most of
his knowledge from reading,
listening to others, and watch
ing television.
His two favorite reading
sources arc the dictionary and
the encyclopedia. Ed’s tele
vision preferences are quiz
|shows. From past television
sh6ws. he has established a
storehouse of knowledge', but
he is now concerned with the
rapid decay of television ma
terial. No longer are the quiz
shows difficult, interesting, or
challenging, he says. The
iquestions seem'simple tq Ed.
CotyMy Tax
| Deadline Monday
Monday is the deadline for
payment of Laurens County
taxes without penalty.
Effective Jan. 1, a one per
i cent penalty is schduled to
go into effec(UY^ c ~
On F^b. 1, the penalty i*
increased to two per cent of
the tax bill and on March 1,
it goes to 3 per cent.
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