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McCORMICK MESSENGER. McCORMICK. S. C.. THURSDAY, MARCH 2, 1939 Rjigora Fills Needs In Blouse or Bolero Pattern 6285 Angora is all the rage and you, too, can be right in style with the help of your knitting needles. If it’s glamor you are after, make the bolero, so lovely fbr evening wear at any season; use white, black or a pastel shade. The blouse, with its smart ribbed ef fect, is just the thing for wear under a suit. Pattern 6285 con tains directions for making blouse and bolero in sizes 12 to 14 and 16 to 18; illustrations of it and of stitches; materials needed. To obtain this pattern send 15 cents in coins to The Sewing Cir cle, Household Arts Dept., 259 West 14th Street, New York, N. Y. Please write your name, ad dress and pattern number plainly. ’ AMERICAN CREED MfYUR nation was founded upon the principles of responsible citizen* ship and has grown great upon that foundation. Personal freedom and equality of opportunity under the pro tection of the law have been—and, I fervently hope, always will be—an abid* ing creed and a zealously guarded way of life of the American people.”— Cordell Hull, U. S. Secretary of State, Why do you use Luden’s for your cold, Mary? NS WE If They offer relief-—plus an alkaline factor! LUDEN'S 5« M1NTHOL COUGH DROPS Seeking Pleasure Pleasure is very seldom found where it is sought.—Johnson. Head colds do make you feel miserable. Do this for relief: Put 2 drops Penetro Nose Drops In each nostril. The astringent like action of the ephedrlne and other medication relieves congestion, permits freer nasal breath ing. Soothing; cool ing, quick-acting to relieve irritation. PENETRO drop! An Unworthy You love a nothing when you love an ingrate.—Plautus. CONSTIPATED? Conditions Duo to Bowels nvlgoratlng- hcxUchea. bilious MB with const It* Ing Sluggish If youtElnk an Uxatirea act alike, lust try this all vaaatabla laxative. So mild, thorough, ro- dependable relief froth Ion. tired feeling when 117III nut Dielr t«t a 25o box of NB. from Tout VVltnOUT RISK drugfclxt. Make the test—than ■ not delighted, return the box to us. We will ■•fund th« purobasn 8w C Nil Tablets today*, i always canny„ HQU1CK RELIEF FOR ACID 1 INDIGESTION WATCH tUc SfftecMs You can depend on the spe cial sales the merchants of our town announce in the columns of this paper .They mean money saving to our readers. It always pays to patronize the merchants who advertise. They are not afraid of their mer chandise or their prices. Two Americans Have Been Called "President-for-a-Day" But Their Right to That Honor Is Doubtful By ELMO SCOTT WATSON <£> Western Newspaper Union. N INETY years ago this month the United States had a President for one day—that is, it had if you believe the inscription on a statue which stands in Plattsburg, Mo. His name was David Rice Atchison and the statue was erected in 1928 because many Missourians believed that he was entitled to the distinction of being listed among the Chief Exec utives of the nation even though that claim to fame is based up on a technicality. Here is how it came about: Technically, President James K. Polk’s term of office expired on March 3, 1849, and, according to custom, his successor, Gen. Zachary Taylor should have been inaugurated on March 4. But March 4 came on a Sunday and because of this fact Taylor did not take the oath of office until Monday, March 5. According to the familiar story, based upon a contemporary statement in the Congressional Globe, on March 3 George M. Dallas, vice president under Polk, announced in the senate, over which he was presiding, “The close of pny official term being near at hand, I conform to an established and convenient practice by withdrawing from the deliberations of this body.” Thereupon Senator Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri moved that his colleague, Senator David R. Atchison, be appointed president of the senate pro tern. Since the terms of President Polk and Vice President Dallas expired on March 3 and the term of President-elect Taylor did not begin until March 5, when he was inaugurated, it has been contend ed that Atchison was legally President for that one day, Sun day, March 4, 1849, even though he was not sworn in. This claim was based upon the presidential succession act, passed in 1792, which provided that in case of the death, removal, resignation or inability of both the President and the vice president, the presi dent of the senate should act as President until “the disability be removed or a President shall be elected.” An early edition of the Bio graphical Congressional Direc tory, 1774-1911, backed up this claim by saying about his elec tion as president of the senate pro tern “This office made him President of the United States during Sunday, March 4, 1849, as General Taylor was not sworn into office until the following day,” and the official Missouri manual for 1928 declared that he was “technically President of the United States until after the for mal inauguration of President Taylor March 5.” Not Legally President. However, a later edition of the Directory took the distinction away from * him by eliminating any reference to his having been “President for a day.” It says that he was “re-elected president pro tempore of the senate March 4, 1849, but this falling on Sun day, he did not qualify until Mon day, March 5, 1849, and was therefore not legally president pro tempore on Sunday, March 4.” Therefore he was not legally President of the United States, either. Most historians support that view of the matter. They base their opinion upon the provision in the Constitution which requires that the President’s oath of office shall be taken “before he enter upon the execution of his office” but not “before he shall become President.” John Marshall, fa mous chief justice of the Su preme court, once declared that “the term of the actual Presi dent will expire and that of the President-elect commence at 12 in the night of the third of March.” Therefore James K. Polk was President until mid night, March 3, 1849, and on DAVID R. ATCHISON the stroke of that hour Zachary Taylor became President even though he did not take the oath of office until two days later. ' Atchison’s friends claimed for him not only the honor of having been President for a day but also that he was “the only President who had never been elected to either that office or the vice presidency; the only President from a state west of the Missis sippi river and the only President who never signed his name as such.” The claim in regard to the vice presidency is somewhat more valid than that of “Presi dent for a day.” It was based upon these facts: When Franklin Pierce became President in 1853 Atchison was still a member of the senate. William R. King, who was elect ed vice president with Pierce, died in Cuba before he could be sworn into office and act as pre siding officer of the senate. At chison was chosen president pro tempore, which made him pre siding officer of that body and as such was “acting vice presi dent.” As for the statement that he was “the only President from a state west of the Mississippi” that, of course, was no longer valid when Herbert Hoover was elected in 1928. As a matter of fact, Atchison had a career distinguished enough to guarantee his being remembered, even without the claim that he had been “Presi dent for a day.” Bom at Frog- town, Fayette county, Kentucky, on August 11, 1807, he was named for David Rice, a pioneer Pres byterian minister in that state, because his father, a man of strict religious convictions, hoped the boy would become a clergy man. However, young Atchison chose to become a lawyer and studied for that profession. A Famous Senator. Admitted to the bar in 1830, he began practicing in Liberty coun ty, Missouri, and at the age of 27 he was elected to the state legislature. When he was 33 he was appointed judge of Platte county and within the same year he was appointed United States senator. For 14 years, from 1841 to 1855, he was one of the best- known members of the upper house of congress. Upon his re tirement from public life he de voted his time to agriculture and died in Clinton county, Missouri, January 26, 1886. Despite the fact that the “Pres ident for a day” distinction has been given to Atchison and a ZACHARY TAYLOR monument erected to him mainly because of it, he was not the only man for whom that claim could be made. In some respects it could more justifiably be ap plied to Thomas White Ferry, a United States senator from Mich igan, when a situation similar to that of 1849 arose in 1877. When Vice President Henry Wilson died in November, 1875, Ferry was chosen president pro tempore of the senate and as such was “acting vice president.” He presided over the Hayes-Til- den electoral contest, at the im peachment trial of W. W. Bel knap, secretary of war, and at 16 joint meetings of the two houses of congress. In the ab sence of President Grant, he fur ther discharged the duties of his temporary office by formally opening the Centennial exposition at Philadelphia on July 4, 1876. Grant’s term of office expired at midnight on March 3, 1877. Normally, his successor, Ruther ford B. Hayes, would have been inaugurated at noon on March 4. But again March 4 fell on a Sun day so Hayes did not take the oath of office until Monday noon, March 5. So by the same proc ess of reasoning which gave Atchison the distinction of being “President for a day,” Ferry, who was “acting vice president” was also a one-day President. At least one dictionary of American biography makes the assertion that Ferry was “President of the United States for the time inter vening” between the end of Grant’s term and Hayes’ inaugu ration. So if you are one of those who believe that David R. Atchison of Missouri was “President for a day” you should accord the same honor to Thomas White Ferry of Michigan! Again it may be said that the man thus honored needs no such dubious distinction to make him memorable. For Ferry, like At chison, had a distinguished ca reer. He was born in Mackinac, Mich., June 1, 1826, the son of a Presbyterian minister who had established a mission to the In- RUTHERFORD B. HAYES dians on the island of Michilli- mackinac. The father later moved to Grand Haven, Mich., where he acquired extensive holdings of timberland and en gaged in the lumber business. Young Ferry grew up under frontier conditions in that region with little opportunity for secur ing an education. For a time he was a clerk in a store in Elgin, 111., then returned to Grand Ha ven to work for his father and brothers in the lumber business. Showing an aptitude ror politics, he was elected a member of the board of supervisors and county clerk of Ottawa county on the Whig ticket when he was only 21 years old. Two years later he was sent to the state legislature as a Re publican and in 1856 to the state senate. Four years later he was Michigan’s “favorite son” for the nomination as vice president and running mate with Abraham Lincoln but he lost out to Hanni- val Hamlin of Maine. When his term in the state senate ended he returned to the lumber business, although for eight years he was a member of the Republican state central committee. A Lincoln Escort In 1863 Ferry was appointed to represent his state on the board of managers of the Nation al Soldiers’ cemetery at Gettys burg and the following year he was elected to congress. He served as a member of the con gressional committee which ac companied the body of the mar tyred Lincoln to Springfield, 111., for burial and in 1866 he was a delegate to the loyalist conven tion in Philadelphia where he fur ther increased his reputation by his able speeches. Elected to congress three times as a representative, he was later advanced to the senate where he served two terms. During Ferry’s service in the senate he was chosen president pro tempore and after the death of Vice President Wilson was “acting vice president” which, as previously stated, led to the claim that he was “President for a day” between the administra tions of Grant and Hayes. He was a candidate for re-election to the senate in 1882 but his efforts to win a third term resulted not only in his defeat but also in dis aster to his lumber business which finally was placed in the hands of a trustee. After this double disappoint ment, Ferry went abroad and spent three years in travel. He resumed his business operations upon his return but failed to re cover his former prosperity. He never married and lived with an aunt until his death in Grand Haven on October 14, 1896. Samuel Johnston tiiven tmmgh authorities on ooi stitutional history will not allov David Rice Atchison and Thomas White Ferry the distinction ol being “Presidents for a day,” they probably will admit that there was another man who has a right to that title IF the claim is made with certain reservations. His name was Samuel Johnston and he came from North Caro lina. “Never heard of him!” you ex claim. Probably not, but the fact remains that he was an American President for just one day, July 9, 1781— but, let it be added imme diately, he was “Presi dent of the United States in Congress Assembled” or “President of the Continent al Congress Under the Articles of Confedera tion.” And that is very different from “President of the United States of America.” The Articles of Confederation were adopted by the Continental congress on November 15, 1777. They did little more than put into definite written form the principles on which the new na tion, bzought into being by the Declaration of Independence, had theretofore been conducted. But, at least, they were a start toward a framework of government; Two days later these articles were sent to the various states with a plea for their speedy adop tion. Some of the states assent ed to this readily enough, some ratified the articles with certain reservations, while others, led by Maryland, held back until their views in regard to disposing of western lands should be agreed to. Finally on March 1, 1781, the Maryland delegates to congress, John Hanson and Daniel Carroll, placed their signatures on the document. At this time Samuel Hunting- ton of Connecticut was President of the Continental congress, hav ing been chosen to that office on September 28, 1779. There was no new election of a President when the articles were finally ratified on March 1 and on July 6 President Huntington gave no tice to his colleagues that the state of his health would no long er permit him to serve in that office. Declined the Honor. So on July 6 congress chose as his successor Samuel Johnston of North Carolina. Evidently John ston didn’t care for. the honor, for on the following day he of fered his resignation, offering “such reasons as were satisfac tory,” according to the contem porary record, and his resigna tion was accepted. Thus he be came the “President for a day” of the Continental congress and, in accordance with the hianner in which such officers signed doc uments (although there is no rec ord that he signed one) was “President of the United States in Congress Assembled.” On July 10, the day Johnston resigned, Thomas McKean of Delaware was chosen Presi dent of con gress and served until John Hanson was elected as his successor on November 5, 1781. Han son was elect ed for a def inite term of one year and served from November 5, 1781, to No vember 4, 1782. fact and because it is said that the Articles of Confederation, “the first Constitution of the United States,” did not come into effect until his election, the claim has been made that John Han son, rather than George Wash ington, should be regarded as the “first President of the United States.” John Hanson Because of this This theory was pretty effec tively demolished during the Washington bicentennial celebra tion in 1932 when the Carnegie Institution of Washington issued an article by Dr. Edmund C. Bur nett of the institution’s division of historical research which bore the title of “Who Was the First President of the United States?” After considering all the evi dence in regard to Hanson’s right to be considered the first Presi dent, Doctor Burnett says: “The evidence is conclusive that no president of the Con tinental congress, by whatever name it may be designated, whether ‘the congress,’ as it first called itself, or ‘the United States in congress assembled,’ as it came later to be called, was ever President of the United States. And this is true for this best of reasons, among others: because no such office as President of the United States existed until it was created by the federal constitu tion, framed in 1787 and adopted in 1788. “There is therefore only one rational conclusion that can be reached, and that is, that George Washington was the first Presi dent of the United States.” TIPS to Crardeners Helping Seeds Along T HE first step toward insurina germination of seeds is propef planting. In exceptionally dry weathei however, even properly planteq seeds may not germinate. It i$ advisable in such a case to pre pare the dry soil for the seed. Wai ler freely, as though you had a frop growing. Allow the water to soak in and when the soil has good moisture content, begin your planting. You must be careful, of course, not to plant in wet, muddy soil. Excessive rainfall, on the other hand, may make the soil so moist as to cause rotting. If seeds have not germinated within a reason able length of time after planting, a few of them should be dug up and examined. If rotting is indi cated, another planting must be made. While few vegetable seeds re quire special treatment to assist germination, numerous flower seeds can successfully be treated, according to Harry A. Joy, flower expert. He advises as follows: Nick the seed coat of lupin, moonflower and morning glory; remove the tough outer coating of nasturtium, mo- mordica, castor bean and sand verbena; soak canna lily, job’s tear and sweet pea seeds in water for 12 hours before planting. Man's Effort Art is the effort of man to ex press the ideas which nature sug gests to him of a power above nature, whether that power be within the recesses of his own be ing, or in the Great First Cause of which nature, like himself, is but the effect.—Bulwer-Lytton. HOW TO RELIEVE Simply Follow These Easy Directions to Ease the Pain and Discomfort and Sore Throat Accompanying Colds !■ To ease pain amt discomfort and raduca fever take 2 Bayer Tablet*—drink a gloss of water. Repeat In 2 hours. 2a If throat la re from cold, crush and dissolve 3 Bayer Tablet* In % glass of water... gargle. THE SIMPLE WAY pictured above often brings amazingly fast relief from discomfort and aora throat accompanying colds. Try it. Then — see your doctor. He probably will tell you to con tinue with the Bayer Aspirin be cause it acts so fast to relieve dis comforts of a cold. And to reduce fever. This simple way, backed by scientific authority, has largely sup planted the use of strong medicines in easing cold symptoms. Perhaps the easiest, most effective way yet discovered. But make sure you get genuine BAYER Aspirin, IS^OR 12 TABLETS S FULL DOZEN 2S« Maliciousness Be thou as chaste as ice, an pure as snow, thou shalt not e*- cape calumny.—Shakespeare. 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