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i _ 7"" Djibouti naval base N?v?i Bam Which Guards frMSh Somallland It Important. if TWO warships from Prance have steamed Into the beet harbor on Africa's northeast coast^-DJlboutl, capital of French Somallland. Their arrival established a uew naval base lu this smaJl colony on one of the hottest coasts In the world. Troops also are reinforcing the relatively small garrisons, which bold their patch of Afrl6a for Prance. They are responding to the governor's appeal for aid, sent out after rumors that Italian troops were massed along the border which the Prenoh colony shares with Ethiopia,* The role of a naval base adds one more to the long list of Djibouti's uses, says a bulletin from the Washington. D. C? headquarters of the National Geographic Society. It is the only good port On 2,000 miles or more of northeast African coast. It is the terminus of the Franco-Ethiopian railroad, which taps the rich commerce of the Ethiopian highlands. It was the sole outlet from that region until new Italian highways were completed. It is the center for administration of French Somallland. The only northeast African port comparable In usefulness to Djibouti is Italian Massaua. 400 miles to the northwest In Eritrea, and 'that has no railroad extending far inland. The French Coast of the Somalis, Is what the French call their small colony, and Indeed It Is little more thau a bite into the coastline. It reproseuts only one-tenth of one per cent of the African territories under French rule, which amounts to almost half of the Dark Continent. With an area of 5,800 square miles, French Somallland Is the smallest by far. of the three portions Into which the realm of the Somalis was divided by European powers; the British protectorate is ten and a half times as large, the Italian 33 times as large. Throughout the French colony there is no river of importance to refresh the parched land. Temperature is high humidity low. The seasons change only from "bearable" to "unbearable" as the monsoon dies down and its freight of scant rainfall ceaBes to relieve the unbroken bake-oven heat. Few gardens are productive except those underseas; fishermen search the gardens of black, red and white coral for iish to accompany their fermented bread of durra (grain sorghum) meal. For France, however, he barren little share of Somaliland plays a big role. It stands guard on the Strait of Bab-el " Mandeb, the dangerous "Gate of Tears" where the Red sea _ narrows to .100 miles and. commerce could be easily strangled by a hostile hand. It Is the only patch under the French tricolor on the entire coast of northeast Africa, the only one between Tunisia in the Mediterranean and Madagascar in the Indian ocean over 5,000 miles away. Djibouti is a coaling station for shuttle ships that weave Madagascar, French Indo-China and distant Pacific possessions into the empire^ tapestry with Marseilles and the motherland. Moreover, French Somaliland is the sole safeguard for French Interests In a part of Africa turbulent with native Teuda and the conflict of European ambitions as well. Italian conquests in Ethiopia have cleared a broad band 1 of "Roman Empire" across the Eastern Horn of Africa, from Eritrea to the Italian Somaliland coast, and crowded France and Britain oat to the tip. Only four years the tiny French colony ceded 309 square miles to Italian sovereignty in Eritrea. ' Of the 46,000 inhabitants, fewer than 2,000 are European. Only half are Somali natives, and a fourth are Danakil, of the tall and boney black tribe whose members dominate the coast to the north as the Somalia do to the south. Since the French laid claim to the now abandoned port of Qbock. across the Gulf of Tadjoura from Djibouti, as early as 1867, they have made little efTort to colonize or to exploit the hard-baked country. A few bales of cotton, some coffee, the few hides and skins that black nomads of the desert interior can spare from their meager flocks?even irrigation has been able to extract no more from the land. The water is more productive. Pearl divers defy the sharks, with hopes of a fortune In the next oyster. Salt has been mined since 1912, and the salt lake of Assal, blue in its black setting of volcanic hills, is one of the few -beauty spots. The landlocked harbor of Djibouti was made Into a port after 1888. Ten ;years later, after an agreement with Menelik, then Negus of Ethiopia, the railroad started its slow pentratlon of the hinterland, replacing the camel caravans by which the wealth of Ethiopian highlands, had been transported by night through the menaced' area of. desert heat and native bandits. By .R902, the rails had reached Dlredawa. By 1917, they reached Addis 'Ababa, the capital. " . J v. Trains now operate over the 486mile track -with 'Wiling*" twice weekly in each direction, making the trip trcm DjAoutT'tnAddis Ababa in 68 hours. "Expresses" improve their schedule by running at night Others atop for meal time and bed time at stations. T^e, sleeping can have a variety of naattrees-oovered easy chair's instead of berths. Inoome from the railroad and the Indrt of Djibouti to the chief wealth that French Somaliland yiudUf; HI#' in the railroad were granted jhf ftsMt to Italy in 1925. ' j Firestone Designs " New Champion Tire lulr^ucetl to the motoring public a few weeks ago, the new Firestone Champion Tire, a product of years of apeedway exeperleuee and laboratory research, has already won the recognition of American motorlata as one of the truly great safety contributions in the .history of the motor car, according to J. C. Glllls, manager of the local Firestone Auto Supply and Service Station. "Although smartly streamlined and ultra-modern In appearance, with a revolutionary new Clear Grip tread pattern, most of the major structural advantages of the new Firestone Champion Tire are uot outwardly apparent," explains Mr. Oillis. "Headlining these new structural features is a revolutionary new type of cord called "Safdfy Lock." It Is constructed of fine quality cotton fibre, tightly twisted by a new process into strands of high tensile aU-eugth. Treated by the famous Firestone patented process of Gum-Dlpplng, the "Safety Lock" cord is still further strengthened and each fibre Is locked In every cord, each cord is locked In every ply and the plies are. locked together to form the body of the tire. The result is a much stronger tire body that provides the utmost in blowout protection. In addition, the new Gear Grip tread is Inseparably locked to the Safety-Lock cord body. "Because of the stronger cord body, tread thickness has been increased without danger of separation. This feature, aided by the use of a new and tougher tread stock provides a substantial increase in non-skid mileage. The Gear Grip tread of the new Firestone Champion Tire is distinguished by a "gear-toothed" design and has six circumferential tread bars. Each tread bar has 576 sharp-edged, angled shoulders of safety to counteract skid tendency In any direction. Every revolution of the new Gear Grip tread bring a total of 3,456 of these sharp-angled non-skid elements Into play on each tire. Thus, the Gear Grip Treads on a Bet of four Firestone Champion tires brings a total of 13,824 non-skid angled edges in contact with the highway, during one complete revolution of the wheels. "Even after thousands of miles of tread wear, Firestone Champion Tires retain their superior non-skid qualities, Insuring maximum protection against skidding. The scientific design of the Gear Grip Tread also precludes rhythmic contact of non-skid elements with the road surface and, consequently, provides a new degree of silent operation. Road noise even when traveling over worn brifck pavement is negligible." The Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce Is preparing a guide book on trade-In values of second-hand airplanes. Seal Sale Four Cents Per Capita V ' 1 1 'v Twelve tuberculosis cases from Kershaw county were admitted to hospitals last year. Eleven of these went to the South Carolina Sanatorium for treatment and Instruction. Because the sanatorium at State Park serves every county In South Carolina that does not have its own tuberculosis hospital, the general rule of the iustltutlon Is that p&tlenta either leave the hospital at State Park at the end of elghten months care or begin to pay at the rate of one dollar per day. Very few patients are able to meet tbla expense because of lengthy illuess and the financial losa the family has sustained because of heavy expense or reduction in income if the patient has been one of the family's wage earners. Four Kershaw county patients now at State Park are due to return hoine from State Park sometime during this XfifiT .because the eighteen months' period provided by the state will have transpired. Bet's consider what will become of these four people when they do come home. In case the recovery has been, sufficient, there will be a chance tcf do light work if a suitable Job can be found. No doubt some will still -be unable to work for many months so these will have to remain in the home with family or relatives. Should the patient still be a spreader of disease germs, the members of the household will need to use precaution to prevent the spread of infection, and this is one of the instances when the Kershaw County Tuberculosis associa-^ tlon's program can y be of service through teaching. It would be much safer for the family as ^yell as fori the community if the county had a J 1 J _ I - ?-sssgm custodial homo wIntro cases that coutiuue to bo spreaders of disease ovon after prolonged treatment could bo cared for. This Is one of the dreams of the local Tuberculosis association. Until Kershaw county has adequate facilities for the care of tuberculosis cuses who are either on the waiting list for udmission to the sanatorium or have returned home because their time has expired, the program now being carried on by the Tuberculosis association is invaluable 'aud this explains the reason that In each issue of the paper, the two hundred or mpre persons who received Christmas Seals In the mall and have not yet been heard from, either by a contribution or the return of the seals to do something about It right away, If possible. It Is almost time to make the ttnal report to the State association. At present the gross seal Bale figure Is thirteen hundred aud ninety-two dollars. The goal was two thousand. While this amount Is not yet reached, the president of the association, Harold Funderburk, takes pleasure In announcing that the sum on hand Is about seventy-two dollars ahead of what It was this time last year, indicating increasing Interest in and appreciation of the program. You wiy also be Interested In knowing ''that Kershaw county is among those whose gross sale Is four cents por capita. Richland, Georgetown and I^ancastor counties have raised five cent per Capita. Darlington and Charleston counties have reached six cents per capita. The Kershaw County Tuberculosis association is wondering if there are not enough Interested citizens who want Korshaw county to be at least in second place to J^rlng our total up to Ave ceuts per capita. One dollar from three hundred people will accomplish this. mmmmmmmmmmammmmm?mmmm?mmmmmmmmmrnt PI8QAH NEWS Pisgah. Fob. 1.?On Jauuary 23, W. j F. 1 taker was -Riven a surprise birth| day dinner. The guot^p were his i brothers and sisters wKh their, families, his children with thoir families 1 and tils mother-in-law. Brothers prosout were C. L. Daker, of Sumter; A. L. and I* It. ltaker, of Bishopville, sisters present were Mrs. Mamie Hatfield and Mrs. H. L, Robert son. of Bumter; Mrs. H. W. Hawkins and Mrs. 10. B. Price, of Uishopvlllo. One sister, Mrs. C. H. Ives, of OJub, Florida .was abaout. Three of Mr. Baker's children were absent. Roy and Carl whose families were present and Kva, a nurse at the Veteran's Hospital at Long Island. Children present were Mrs. R. C. McLeod, of Rembert; Mrs. J. H. Campbell, Jr., of Stateburg; Mrs. S. O. l#enelt\ of Herathv; Llla, CU J., Furman and Thomas. There were I t Hona-lu-law and two daughtors-ln-law, and five grandohildren and more than twenty nieces and nephews, two sisters-in-law and three brothers-in-law. Three Plsgah girls were recently honored at Hillcrest High School. Lillian Shivar of the ninth grade was elected vice-president of the Dunbar Literary Society A, and Lila Baker of the tenth grade secretary of soclety II. Society A la com pound of members of grades nine and eleven and Society II Is composed of members of grades eight and ten. Anna Llese ltoss, a senior and Llla Baker, a Junior were made members of the "Beta" club. Only members, who have attained a high average of the tenth and eleventh grades are eligible for membership in this club. Mrs. J. J. Hatfield spent last week with relatives here. She was a guest at the birthday of her son-in-law, Mr. W. F. linker. Mrs. J. T. Md^eod, of Boykln, spent a few days of last week with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Dennlin. Mr. and Mrs. W. T. Baker and child ren with Mr. and Mrs. S. O. L<euotr? of Horatio, spent Sunday with Mr. and Mrs. Hovey Hoberson and fainITyT srxoiroorir. ?? There was a deacon's meeting at the home of Dr. Moore on Tuesday night. A shipment of 262 pounds of vaccine and serum left Miama, Fla., Saturday for the earthquake striken areas of Chile, on board a Pan-American clipper,being given preferance over other express and passengers. New LOW COACH FARES W Effective January 1&th Example farea from Camden, 8. C. New York $12.62 ; Philadelphia 10.87 Baltimore 8.00 Washington 7.05 Portsmouth 5.20 Richmond 4.95 Jacksonville 5.25 Tampa 8.45 St. Petersburg 9.00 West Palm Beach .... 9.76 Miami ...i..v. 10.80 tike fSllrer Meteor" Streamlined \ Stalnleee Steel Ooach Train. J. L. CARTER, D. P. A. Arcade BuIldlnf, Colombia, S. O. -t r ' ; 1 I PRESCRIPTIONS I Open from 8 a. m. 'til 8:15 p. m.; Sundays 9 a. m. to I 11 n. in. j 12 m. to 1 p. m.; 3 p. m. to 7 p, m. j We give the utmost care in filling your prescriptions j ?using only what the doctor orders. Two competent Pharmacists. Prices Reasonable. j I I)ePASS'DRUG STORE I Phone 10 We Deliver j j r M m M k, M **? J A IIIJH (<Ii f 1 Stronger Cord Body [More Non-Skid Mileage pUtiI FLOYD ROBERTS 1939 National Raca Champion Champion mm drinn, wham wrf Una ad wmmm of victory depend on dra safety, (mow (in conitructlon and that la why they aelect and bay Flraatooe Tint for their racing cars. TRIPLE-SAFE CONSTRUCTION FlRESTONE triumphs again! This time with the new Firestone Champion, the tire that sets the safety standards for 1939- This new tire provides a combination of safety features never before built into a tire. It is a completely new achievement in safety engineering. From the experience gained on the speedways of the world and in the Firestone laboratories, Firestone engineers have developed a * revolutionary new type of cord body called Safety-Lock, which provides amazingly greater strength. This outstanding achievement makes possible the use of a thicker, tougher, deeper tread which assures much greater non-skid mileage. Because of this dew Safety-Lock Cord body and Gear-Grip tread; the modern streamlined Firestone Champion Tire establishes completely new standards of. blowout -protection, non-skid safety, silent operation and long mileage. > The Firestone Champion Tire embodies the famous Firestone Triple-Safe construction?you get the exclusive and patented Firestone construction features of Gum-Dipping, two extra layers of Safety-Loch cords under the tread and Gear-Grip tread design. Never in all the history of tire building has there been such a triple-safe combination to protect you against the dangers of blowouts, punctures and skidding. 5 Come in today and. equip your Car with a set of hew Firestone Champion Tires ?* the only tires node which are safety proved on the speedway for your protection on the highway, . Lhtea # Tk? Vole* of Flrotteae with Ktckard CtmAi, Mfryoral Spook* ond Alfred Wotloostola, Monday ovoafaf* ^rer Nationwide N. f. C. Jtod Network, UtfM to Tke Firestone Vole* *1 the Form?Iverott Mtfefcett Interflow* a Chomplo*- ftnwf ooeli week dor log booh Hour. So* locol paper for station and tip*. I T?r??fotte champion | 5.25-17......$13.^5 5.50-16......... 5.56-17......... 13-95 6.0O-16. 15.7? 6.oo- is $!*?! 6.25*16 1755 6.90.16 lf.H 7 M.4? 7 JO-16. MJ6 TimioM mi mti | 5.2 5-17.Si I.IO 5.50-16. 12.50 5.50-17. 12.55 6.00*16. 14.1t 1 < 00.1T. ***** I 6.00-18 .$14?IS *25-16, 15.80 6.50-16, 17*4* 7-00-15, 1S,S* >-06-16. fire stone CONVOY I i i I ?50-21...WfcM ^4.75-19-.. I*H " 5.00-19... : 5.25-17... tAK 5.25-18... ??*? I 5.;o-i6.$I0.45 J.10-17. 10.50 &oo-i?. ll.M 6.24-16. 13.15 6.XM6, 14.^ i - ? - ' TWCT mew wpwwiww^r tow -, .,.-,5j CITY FILLING STATION DAVIS' SERVICE STATION RED STAR SERVICE STATION MARION'S SERVICE STATION