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V Growing With Clinton The Clinton Chronicle Clinton, S. C, Thursday, October 19,1967 Vol. 68 — No. 42 IRS Article Stirs Storm (See Page 18) $2.9 Million Structure Proposed Response Is Favorable Courthouse Plan I ••• m* By DONNY WILDER Chronicle Editor A recommendation for a $2.9 million new Laurens Coun- iPr* j lil: cmtp- whether to proceed with the work for the current court- long time . . . Laurens Coun proposal. house and that, too, is going ty }g 0 n the move and we However, State Sen. Wil - to be expensive. And even if have ^ move ahead with lt .. liam (Bill) Dobbins of Joan- we renovate the current COST ty courthouse got a general- na told the gathering, “If the courthouse, we will be faced " ly favorable reception Tues- voters say they do not wish with this same problem 10 As an example of how much day night at a public unveil- to proceed with the new years from now when the the new courthouse may mean ing of the proposal. courthouse plans, then we arc courthouse will still be over- to taxpayers in dollars-and- About 75 people attended going to have to do something crowded and outmoded. I be- cents, Plaxico said that a the meeting and only one per- to improve the current court- lieve that building a new person owning a $12,000 home son publicly questioned the house. If we do not get the courthouse would be the most and one automobile probably validity of the proposal. PROPOSED COURTHOUSE — Above is an architect’s drawing of the proposed new Laurens County Courthouse w'hich would be located at the corner of Highway 76 By-Pass and Garlington Street in Laurens. The 91,000-square-feet building would cost approximately $2.9 million. At the right rear of the courthouse is the Rescue Squad head quarters. In Clinton B&PW Contest Mrs. Pitts Is Named 'Career Woman Of Year L. jO. Thornley still has his Indian Hill Myna bird. The bird is a good talker but it doesn’t make doughnuts. The wording of a recent classified advertisement in The Chronicle made one wonder. It read: “For Sale — Indian Hill Myna bird. Good talker. Also a donut-making machine. . . James P. Sloan, a collector of newspaper bloopers, glee fully pointed out the double entredc to the Chronicle edi tor. A check with Mrs. Thorn- ley revealed that both the Myna bird and the doughnut making machine are still for sale, although the Thornleys have received several Calls about both, Nb one, however, has called to ask for a Myna bird which makes doughnuts. 1 :3sm A widow who sent three sons through college while also making major contribu tions to the ciyic and religious life of Clinton has bebn named “Career Woman of The Year” in Clinton. Mrs. P. M. Pitts, secretary of the Greater Clinton Cham ber of Commerce for the past 14 years, has been selected in the competition sponsored by the Clinton Business and Pro fessional Women’s Club. The announcement was made' today in conjunction ****’*"' with B&PW Week activities. Mrs. Pitts will be honored later at a special banquet. In this contest, each civic club was invited to nominate a candidate. All nominees were judged on the basis of how they had furthered Jtheir career*, Thjeir 1 parl^ipatidn in religious, civib ind commu- •P’vX* R. L. Plaxico of Clinton, chairman of the Laurens County New Courthouse Study Committee, presented the re port at the meeting held at the current courthouse in Lau rens. Highlights of the report in clude the following committee recommendations: —The new courthouse would be located at the corner of Highway No. 76 By-Pass and Garlington Street. This 20-acre site would cost about $65,000 and would include land owned by the Todd Estate, the City of Laurens, and M. E. Wil liams. —The building itself would have about 91,000 square feet of floor space and would house all county agencies, including the sheriff’s office and county jail. It would have 468 park ing spaces. —The estimated total cost would be $2,963,500. Plaxico emphasized that this is the Mrs. Pitts is a member of corn plete cost—including fur- the board oi directors of the n jt ure> paving and everything Laurens County Mental Health else needed in connection wit h Association and is a past president of the local B&PW organization. She is an active member of the project. —Based on the 1966 assess ed value of the county ($17 the Broad Street Methodist “ nanc ,‘ n e 01 thi * pro j; cct would call for a 15-min Church where she served as superintendent of the Chil- tax levy increase. Plaxico not- .&.V dren’s Division of Church ed that the assessed value has School for more than 10 years. ju m Ped $2 million in the last She is a past president of the year and is now about $19 mil- Wesleyan Service Guild and Hon. However, he said there is chairman of the social com- is the possibility that the as- mittee. She also is a substi- sessed value increases may be tute pianist at the church. be offset by increases in con- She assisted in the organi- struction costs over the next zation of Cub Scout packs couple of years, during the 1940s and served as REFERENDUM r a den mother for seven years. Laurens County voters ^ill Mrs. Pitts received her ele- go t 0 the polls on Nov. 14 to mentary education at I^ng cast their <b&1 i 0 t s | n ^ • *• j Branch, attended high school referendum cJncernirfg The B&PW nomination 4ays, Pa | con , r, a nd summer th / courthoUse “Always a quieL modest sessions a t the Institute for TpiUi™ much new courthouse, we will have sensible course to follow. It to proceed with renovation would serve this county for a Heres Break-Down Of Courthouse Plan This is the location of offices and rooms in the proposed new Laurens County Courthouse: FIRST FLOOR (entrance from front)—court room (seats about 250) large meeting room, eleva tor, board of education, witness room, grand jury room, county solicitor, court stenographer, county delegation, petit jury room, attorneys conference room, holding cell for prisoners awaiting trial, judges’ chambers, law library, probation officer, juvenile and domestic relations court, probate court, clerk of court, auditor, treasurer, supervisor, regis tration board, agricultural stabilization, Farmers Home Administration, county agent, soil conserva tion. LOWER LEVEL (entrance from rear or side) — canteen, custodian’s area, magistrates court, room for IBM equipment, county mapping room if needed, large record room, health department, wel fare department. JAIL (located to rear of lower level) — Would house 50 prisoners (10 women and 40 men), sher iff’s office, glassed-in radio-control room which has view of all entrances, drunk tank, matron’s office. The jail includes facilities so that juveniles may be held separate from the adults. Roof of jail is con structed so that a second story may be added with a minimum of expansion cost. RESCUE SQUAD Building — located on cor ner of site, behind the jail. pay about $15 more per year in taxes toward construction of the courthouse. The proposed general obli gation bond issue is figured on the basis of 20 years. The only voice of opposition heard at the meeting was that of former State Sen. O. L. Long of Laurens who asked why cost estimates of reno vating the current courthouse were not available. Sen. Dobbins answered that the delegation’s chief concern now is whether the citizens want and are willing to pay for a new courthouse. If the citizens vote against the pro posal in the referendum, he said, architects will immedi ately begin to study problems involved in renovating the current courthouse. Long said that he believes the current courthouse can be rcnqvated into a fine building and that the courtroom “could be a showplace in South Carolina.” Shelton J. Rimer, noted mo bile home producer who lives near Yarborough’s Mill, said, “I wholeheartedly approve of this plan. If we renovate the current courthouse, that’s still not going to bring in the sher iff’s oftice and others that should be located in the court house. This project could cost me considerably in tax mon- eybUt cvePyTBWg^worthwKTIe" costs money and Laurens County must go first class be cause we’ve got a first class county.” X: MRS. PITTS Sign in. (he courthouse of fice of Jennie V. Culbertson, county auditor: ‘‘If you want something that will seem to last forever, get a mother-in-law.” . Three Words Then there’s this poem, en titled “Three Words” by Douglas Malloch: There are three words, the sweetest words in all of hu man speech— More sweet than are all songs of birds, on pages poets preach. This life , may be a vale of tears, a sad and dreary thing— Three words, and trouble disapears and birds begin to sing. , - . . woman, she has done much chamber of Commerce Exec- nity activities. The candidates W ork behind the scenes be- u tjves at the University of also were judged on the basis y 0 nd the call of duty without >f or th Carolina in 1954-55. credit. Her devotion to her A w jdow since 1939. Mrs.- work and to the elected offi- p iUs has reared three sons: cers under whom she serves Mark, a graduate of Clemsqn is excelled by few women in who is now associated with public places of responsi- DuPont in Aiken: Thomas, a bility.” Presbyterian College gradu- She has served as secretary ate now with the Atomic En- of the Chamber of Commerce ergy Commission in Lynch- of their personalities, their interest in others and their desire to be of service to The judges were se- businessmen of the Plaxico stressed that this will be strictly an advisory referendum, telling the coun- t y’s legislative delegation Gaston Named Trustee At PC; McSWeen Elected Hi ! Cl l!'f! icp IjJ jrijfci j] V i. al- J1 j Eerdihaha Jacobs, Jr. ‘50 others, looted city. Mrs. by both the the B&PW. Both clubs cited her effi cient management of the ex panded Chamber of Com- Pitts was nominated Lions Club and New Clinton Brochure Available Three and all the roses bloom, the sun begins to shine. Three words will dissipate the gloom—and water turnTo^ Musgrove w * ne - 1- The brochures, presented by Publicity Chairman W. R. A new brochure about the Clinton area has been issued by the Greater Clinton Cham ber of Commerce. The new brochure, featur ing Bailey Memorial Hos pital and Presbyterian Col lege on the cover, was pre sented Tuesday morning at a general membership coffee meeting of the Chamber of Commerce at Hotel Mary since 1953. She also has been secretary of the Merchants Division of the Chamber of Commerce since 1956 and also has served as secretary- treasurer of the Greater Clin ton United Fund for the past 10 years. In addition to these’ profes sional activities, Mrs. Pitts, has been a member of the American Legion Auxiliary since 1940 and served two terms as auxiliary president. She currently is Community Service chairman and a mem ber of the auxiliary’s Consti tution and By-Laws ComKiit- tee. She is past secretary and a director of the Ridge District, S. C. Division of the United burg. Va.; iEd, a former (pin- ton High School and Univer sity of South Carolina footba 1 ! star who is now secretary of thp USC Gamecock Club. Mrs. Pitts has three grand sons j and a granddaughter. Yeargin Wins Football Contest Elise Yeargin of Route 7, Greenwood, is this week’s winner of The Chronicle’s football contest. Second place went to Boot- sie Fuller of 1000 Elizabeth St.. Clinton. LBJ Action Hits Plant At Joanna President Lyndon Johnson has allowed to lapse a trade agreement clause which will directly affect the production of Greenwood Mills Plant No. 15 at Joanna. A Greenwood Mills spokes man told The Chronicle Wed nesday night, ‘‘The jobs of the people who work at that plant probably are not in jeopardy. However, this comes as a blow to us and Preisbjlterian umni have kn&rne* Dr. ' J. 0 f Clinton, vice-president of Newton Gaston of Chester as Jacobs List; Edward Tim- an alumni representative to merman ‘50 of Greenville the board of trustees and vice-president of Peoples Na- William C. McSween of tional Bank; Richard Infin- as president-elect Alumni Associa- J. H. DARR Rev. Darr To Address Convention The Rev. J. H. Darr, pas tor of Clinton’s First Baptist Church, will deliver the an nual convention sermon at the state Baptist convention Elise picked 15 winners out it may be rough for some of which opens Nov. 14 in Col- of 20 games and Bootsie had 14 winners. Elise wins the $25 first Daughters of the Confederacy prize and Bootsie wins second of which she has been a mem- priz oof $10. her for the past 21 years. She is-T-a past president of the local UDC chapter. This week’s contest appears on page 24 in today’s Chron icle. Three words will cheer the saddest days: ‘I Love You?” — Wrong, by heck! It is another. sweeter phrase: ‘Enclosed find check.” Don’t Forget Flu Shots The Tuberculosis and Health Association of Area 6 has issued a reminder to peo ple who are 45 and over to get a flu shot. The U. S. Public Health Service, in predicting a sub stantial number of cases of A2 type influenza, recom mended immunization also for individuals 1 with chronic illness and for patients in nursing homos, chroinc dis ease hospitals, and compai- ahle etn iron menu. Anderson, are available at the Chamber of Commerce office and will be placed in the tourist Welcome Center on S. C. 17 in Horry County near the North Carolina line and in other centers as they are opened. The brochure features gen eral information about CHn- ton’s history, industry, in stitutions and industrial cli mate. Also at the meeting Tues day, Tourist Committee Chairman Louis M. Stephens reported that the x four “Welcome to Clinton” signs are being repainted and ad ditional information included on the signs. Col. Powell A. Fraser of Presbyterian College was fea tured speaker at the meeting, outling progress of PC a dc:- . tlopmcUi pi Chronicle Adds .»f . . > Capitol News Bureau The Chronicle this week adds a special news service column written by Capitol News Bureau. The Capitol News Bureau will furnish The Chroncile with ty column each week dealing with news from Columbia, New York and Washington. Pramac Associates, Inc., of Columbia, will be in charge of the news bureau. Pramac also is involv ed in public relations, advertising, market analysis and consulting services. Henry Chandler, a native of Clinton, is vice- president of Pramac. Prior to joining Pramac, he served as personal assistant to U. S. Senator Strom Thurmond and in the last election served as Thur mond’s state campaign manager. The first article from the Capitol Newa Bureau appears on page 18 in today’s Chronicle. the people to readjust to whatever new process we may be forced into.” The Joanna plant produces virtually all of the. typewrit er ribbon cotton cloth in the United States. President Johnson allowed to elapse an “escape clause” which provided higher tariffs church since on the type product manufac- that, he was tured at the Joanna plant. In allowing the clause to elapse (Oct. 11) Johnson said he reaffirmed ,‘‘the adminis tration’s basic support for a program to eliminate any unnecessary barriers to the freer flow of trade.” Greenwood Mills Executive Vice-President J. B. Harris, Jr., was quoted as saying, umbia!^ Darr will speak at the con vention’s opening session at Township Auditorium. The session will conclude on Nov! 16 after an address by Gov. Robert McNair. A native of Sumter, Darr has been pastor of the Clinton 1946. Prior to pastot -ef <. the First Baptist Church of Georgetown for four years and held pastorates in rural churches in Sumter County for 10 years. He attended the University of South Carolina and is a graduate of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is a trustee of the Bap tist Courier and is pastor- Stud- Greenville of the PC tion. Results were announced today of the mail-ballot elec tion to chose a slate of offi cers to help direct the PC alumni effort for the coming year. They will be installed in special Homecoming cere monies this Saturday and of ficially take office next Jan uary. Dr. Gaston, Chester medi cal doctor and 1929 graduate, becomes one of three alumni- elected trustees. Bill Mc Sween, an officer of the Canal Insurance Company who finished PC in lj)39, will serve next year as president elect and then automatically assume the presidency of the Alumni Association in 1969. The current president-elect, who will move up to pres ident next year, is Furman B. Pinson, Jr., 33 of Greensboro, N. C., a vice-presdient of J. P. Stevens Company. Presbyterian alumni also elected the Rev. Frank Har rington ‘57, pastor of North Augusta's Fairview Presby terian Church, as vice-presi dent; and F. Marion Frazier ‘47, Winnsboro pulpwood dealer, as secretary-treasurer. The new state directors of the Alumni Association are: South Carolina directors — Subscription List Updated ‘‘We were already at a dis-J advisor of the Baptist ent Union at Presbyterian tinct disadvantage due to much lower wage rates paid in foreign countries which make this type fabric., This will permit those countries to bring in this fabric at even lower pi ices thun ^vti bt- loie.' The Chronicle is attempting to bring its subscription list College. Other offices include up to date. moderator of Southeast Bap tist Association; member of S. C. Baptist General Board, scription for Southeast Association; given 30 Anyone who is one month or more in arrears in sub payments will be days in which to ger ‘55 of Charleston, vice- president of Infinger Trans portation Service; and J. Hugh McCutchen ‘41 of Kingstree, Williamsburg County supervisor. Georgia directors—William T. Ozmint ‘51 of Atlanta, eastern regional sales mana ger for Rexall Drug Com pany; and David R. Vaughan ‘53 of Depatur, executive vice-president of Balanced Financial Planning Inc. North Carolina ^ (director — Albert F. (Pete) Sloan ‘55 of Charlotte, vice-president of Lance, Inc. Laurens Voters ( Reject Proposal FonCity Hall Laurens voters Tuesday re jected a proposal for a $425,- 000 city hall-community cen ter. In a light voter turnout, 446 persons voted against the pro posal and 213 voted in favor. There are nearly 5,000 regis tered voters in Laurens. The proposed complex was to include a new city hall and renovation of '■ part of the old Central School building as a community center. City Hall Site Has Been. Cleared The City of Clinton last week cleaned up the lot which has been purchased as a site for the proposed new city hall. Weeds and underbrush were cleared from the lot to make it neater and to assist in the survey work on the Broad Street lot. Preliminary plans are still moderator of Laurens Baptist bring their payments up to to be drawn for the proposed Association, member of the date. If the payment is not city hall and construction S. C. Baptist General Board made by Nov. i5, the suu- work isn’t expected to start from Laurens Association, "Scriptioii will be cancelled. foi at least a year. ip* 7 Vi '