The Clinton chronicle. (Clinton, S.C.) 1901-current, December 19, 1968, Image 21
WEATHER
(Dec. 19-23)
Hitfh: 60 Low: 24
(Dec. 20) (Dec. 18-19)
INDEX
Classified 6
Deaths 7
Editorials 28
Society .... 2
Rainfall: 1.23 ins.
(Dec. 22-23)
Vol. 70 — No. 51
Clinton, S. C., Tuesday, December 24, 1968
and mighty kings knelt together to witness the miracle of His Birth in the
manger . . . and choirs of angels sang in the heavens, heralding a new
era of hope for all mankind. May the glorious inspiration of that Holy
Night when our Saviour was born kindle long-lasting happiness in your heart.
Two Questions
3rd Courthouse
Referendum Planned
Ttie Laurens County Legisla
tive delegation is planning to hold
another referendum onconstruc-
tmn of a new Laurens County
Courthouse.
The referendum will ask:
(1) Do you favor issuing bonds
in the amount of $1.8 million for
the purpose of building a new
courthouse 0 Yes— No—~
(2) If you favor the issuing of
the Ixuids, do you prefer Cen
tral Elementary School site ;
the Todd property—- .
The Todd property referred to
is located near the Laurens
County Fairgrounds and across
from the Garlington Street Ele
mentary School in Laurens.
The county currently has op
tions on both pieces of property.
The Central Elementary School
site has about 7-1/2 acres. The
Todd property encompasses a-
bout 20 acres.
The delegation also has gone
on record as advocating that the
present courthouse either l>e
given to the Laurens County His
torical Commission or some
similar group and maintained
with private funds and gifts or tie
sold.
A statement by the delegation
says, The only concrete posi
tion we have taken is that if a
new courthouse is built, no tax
irmney will tie used to maintain
ttie present building."
The previous referendums
within the past 13 months have
failed to produce a majority in
favor of construction of a new
courthouse. In a referendum held
in connection with the November
General Election, Laurens
County voters cast 4,959 votes
in favor of Proposal No. 1; 1,399
votes for Proposal No. 2 and
4,440 votes for Proposal No. 3.
Proposal No. 1 called for con
struction of a new courthouse on
the Central Elementary School
property. Proposal No. 2 called
for renovation of the current
courthouse and construction of
a county office building. Proposal
Safe Robbery
At Baldwin
Nets $L000
Thieves netted about $1,000 in
a safe-cracking Thursday, Dec.
19, at Baldwin Motor Co.
No. 3 was a rejection of the
first two proposals.
The State Attorney General and
a bonding attorney ruled that tie-
fore bonds could tie issued, a
majority vote must tie secured.
Ttie new courthouse proposal re
ceived only a plurality.
On Nov. 14, 1907, Laurens
County voters rejected a pro
posal to spend $2.9 million on
a new courthouse to tie located
on the Todd property.
The vote was £,730 to 561
against the proposal
The delegation statement says,
"After careful consideration, we
have decided once again to have a
referendum, to tie held just as
soon as legislation can tie passed
in the next session of ttie Gen
eral Assembly, starting on Jan.
14, 1969. Another referendum is
mandatory tiecause Article 10,
Section 5, Paragraph 5, of the
Constitution of South Carolina
provides ■•. . .thatthelimitations
imposed by this Section shall
not apply to Laurens County, such
county being hereby expressly
authorized to vote bonds to an
amount not exceeding twenty per
cent of the value of all taxable
property within the limits of Lau
rens County as valued for taxa
tion by the State; the proceeds
of $uch bonds to lie applied to the
construction or maintenance of
roads, bridges and public build
ings within said county. . ."
The delegation statement also
says, "Another question fre
quently asked is just who will
lie housed in the new courthouse.
The new courthouse would pro
vide space for all offices now in
the courthouse plus space for the
Sheriff and his staff, the Tax
Assessor and his staff. We are
presently paying rent in the about
of $215 per month for office
space for the Tax Assessor. The
Laurens County Welfare Depart
ment, the Laurens County Health
Department will not tie housed
m the new courthouse.
"In projecting the needs of our
county over the next twenty years,
the architect says we need some
53,000 square feet of space.
There is some 13,000 square feet
of usable space in the present
building.
“In conclusion, we need the ad
vice and counsel of every tax
payer in Laurens County. We
welcome your suggestions as we
attempt to solve this major
problem. It is our opinion that
if we are to carry on good gov
ernment for our county, we must
provide the necessary space
for our dedicated county officers
to carry on their work. - '
* * *
Christmas Music
The Christfnas music pre
sented by the Broad Street Me
thodist Church junior and adult
choirs Sunday, December 15, will
be broadcast at noon today, De-
cemlier 24th, over Radio Station
WPCC.
MDW
BY DONNY WILDER
Editor, The Chronicle
Persons mentioned in this column usually are
your friends and neig-hbors. However, this one
concerns someone you probably don't know'. The
Rush Hamrick family of Shelby, N. C.
One of the enjoyable aspects of Christmastime
is getting notes from people you’ve known in**
other times and places. And the most imagin
ative cards usually come from the Hamricks. Get
ting on their Christmas card list is a wonderful
achievement.
Rush is a drug wholesaler in Shelby and his
wife, Grace, is a former newspaper editor. They
have two sons at the University of North Carolina.
They design their own Christmas cards and have
them printed, centered around a theme of the big
event in their lives during the year. The cards are
alw'ays warm, entertaining and nostalgic.
Weersmg's Administration
Increases Assets At PC
The past five years under
President Marc C. Weersinghave
produced more total assets for
Presbyterian College than all the
previous 83 years of its history,
roundup of his five-year record
shows.
Business office figures put the
1968 assets at $9,659,970 com
pared with $4,825,850 when Dr.
Weersing first took office in 1963.
That’s an increase of more than
100% in PC's most productive
five-year era.
The accelerating patterns of
progress during this time have
retouched the campus face with
new buildings and full coeduca
tion, expanded curriculum, more
students, and a bigger and better-
paid faculty.
Endowment is up 70% since
1963 to $2,275,960 in the latest
audit And plant value, now bear
ing a $6,671,850 tag, has soared
150% on the strength of four new
buildings--Greenville Dining
Hall, Richardson Science Hall,
Clinton Hall for women and Geor
gia Hall for men. Besides capi
tal development, nationally cited
alumni support has sparked a 1159
increase in the Annual Giving
program, which hit $142,900 in
the 1968 audit Current opera
ting funds from the supporting
synods of Georgia and South ;
Carolina were recorded at
$154,720 for the past year, up
28%.
Full coeducation came in 1965,
with the first women's dormi
tory, and pushed the female popu
lation from a handful of day stu
dents to the current 210. This
accounts for some of the 43%
enrollment increase from 504
five years ago to 720 under more
selective admissions standards.
Curriculum development has
brought a new department of fine
arts, elementary and special edu
cation added to the education de
partment, physical activity for
women, a revitalization of pro
grams in economics and busi
ness administration, in psy
chology and in modern foreigh
languages, and expansion of sum
mer school.
Faculty members increased to
keep pace with the students and
program. Their number moved
from 29 in 1963 to 43, not count
ing the athletic and mUitary de
partments. Faculty salaries en
joyed a 66% rise over this period,
with the average nine-month pay
of a full professor going from
$7,850 to $13,000.
There have been no fancy inno
vations, but rather changes to
add vitality to the traditional lib
eral arts program. Even the
schedule caught some revamping
in the shift to the five-day week
and the earlier first semester
ending before Christmas.
Much of the five-year review
speaks of money. These have
been years of intensive fund-
raising activity as Presbyterife!
College came to grips with tht
economic challenge confronting
private colleges. And even now,
as he begins his sixth year since
coming to PC from the pastorate
of the Spartanburg First Presby
terian Church, President Weer
sing works overtime on the open
ing phase of a new South Caro
lina Synod drive to raise a mini
mum $2 million for Presbyter
ian College by next June.
* * *
Chrismon Tree
For the convenience of any
who would like to View the Chris
mon Tree in the new sanctuary
of St John’s Lutheran Church,
arrangements have been made to
have the church open the Sunday
iminediately after Christmas,
Dec. 29, in the afternoons irote
3:00 to 5:30 and in the even
ings from 7:00 to 9:30.
DR. WBJBR8ING . . . Endowment Up 70 Per cent
Assistant Police Chief Horace
Horton said the thieves took about
200 50-cent pieces and about
$900 more in cash after cutting
open a safe with a cutting torch
belonging to Baldwin.
The thieves jimmied a door at
the back of the building and went
into the paint shop. From there,
they broke out a window glass
to get into the mechanical de
partment and then entered the of
fice where the safe was located.
Horton said the theft was re
ported about 7:30 a.m. Thurs
day.
The following morning, break-
ins also were reported at Pitts
Service Station and Whiteford’s
Drive-In but no large amounts of
money were reported missing,
according to Horton. He said he
does not believe the two Dec.
20 break-ins are connected with
the Baldwin safe robbery.
* * *
Supply Bill
Meeting Set
For Jan... 6
The 1969 Laurens County
supply bill will be the topic of
discussion at an open meeting
Jan. 6.
The meeting will be held in the
Laurens County Courthouse and
will start at 10 a.m.
The Laurens County Legisla
tive Delegation has requested that
county department heads submit
their budgets for the next fis
cal year at this meeting.
This year’s card is no exception. It is centered
around a picture of Rush and Grace and their two
sons in front of the “Old Well” at the University
of North Carolina. Rush and Grace met at UNC
and now their sons are going to college there. All,
naturally, are rabid UNC supporters.
This year’s poem entitled ‘Noel . . .’ ends like
this:
“From under the Old Well as the old year ends
and as we recall the message from Luke,
Thoughts instinctively turn to you—Our friends—
Merry Christmas—Happy New Year—Beat Duke!”
Rush, a man with a mischievous sense of hu
mor, had to undergo abdominal surgery a fe*w years
ago but even that ordeal left him undaunted.
When surgeons raised the sheet to start operat
ing, they were greeted with a message from Rush.
He had written in red across his stomach, “Cut
along dotted line . .
★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★ ★
Christmas Edition Also
Features Debutantes
Today’s Chronicle features Christmas greetings
and notes of appreciation from Clinton-Joanna area
merchants. It also includes stories and pictures
concerning Christmas.
Featured on page five in today’s Chronicle are
pictures of the debutantes who will be presented in
Clinton Friday night.
Because local athletic teams are enjoying the
Christmas holiday schedule break, there is no
sports page in today’s Chronicle.
★★★★★★★★★★★★★ ★★★★