Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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PACE FOUR THE NEWBERRY SUN FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 8§tt« 1218 College Street NEWBERRY, SOUTH CAROLINA O. F. ARMFILLD Editor and Publisher Published Every Friday In The Year Entered as second-class matter December 6, 1937, at tht postoffice at Newberry, South Carolina, under the Act of Congress of March 3, 1870. SPECTATOR What did the Southern Democratic Party accomplish? It polled about six thousand votes—nearly twice the vote of the long-established Republi can Party. But it required strength of character to resist the sneers, ar guments and appeals of the New Dealers. Furthermore, there is proof that the New Deal Managers in many places not only offered New Deal tickets, but argued against the Southern Democratic ticket, at the ballot box. Then there is proof that some Southern Democrat tickets were not even counted. There are com plaints of that which may result in criminal prosecution. But , What else happened—or didn’t happen ? Probably 250,000 cittizens register ed; 76,000 voted. Where were the others ? Throughout the State, in both daily and county papers, the New Dealers urged and begged the people to vote, to support the indis pensable man of the war and peace. Never before did “regular” Demo crats make such a campaign. Meet ings, barbecues, rallies—every kind of appeal, was used. Result: 250,000 registered; bub 76,000 voted! Perhaps the Solthem Democratic campaign had some influence, even negatively. It looks that way. Again In 1940 Mr. Roosevelt—without any campaign in South Carolina— polled 95,000 votes; in 1944, with every possible effort for him, he polled 65,000 in South Carolina. He lost 30,000 votes in spite of all the campaign! Perhaps the Southern Democratic Party had some weight there, too. Many a man felt a little hesitant about making an open break with the New Dealers and regulars, but he agreed with the Southern Democratic Party—and ust stayed at home! The opposition to Mr. Roosevelt in South Carolina is not 6000 or 12,000 votes, but 170,000 votes. Governor Olin D. Johnston appar ently ran far below Mr. Roosevelt. He must have been very liberally scratched, if he dropped 20,000 below Mr. Roosevelt. A government such as ours rests on the ballot box and the courts. Corruption or intimidation undermine the very foundations of popular gov- emment like termites eating away the sills of a house. In our recent I usually made by the national Demo- election the State had certified the! cratic slates in South Carolina. In right of many people to vote. Many i 1924 it was 26 to 1, in 1932 it was were for Mr. Roosevelt, some were 1 50 to 1, in 1936 it was 60 to 1, and for Mr. Dewey, others for Mr. Byrd,' and a few for two or three other nominees. It is the essence of a citizen’s right that he cast his bal lot without suggestion, without soli- ciation, and surely without intimida tion, or any form of coercion. Need I say that all votes should be count ed? But what do we find? Men are persuaded, or virtually coerced, into l voting for a candidate, or, else, re frain from voting. Some of these irregularities are connived at or condoned, in some communities, by a considerable num- . ber of men who stand well in the j public esteem. But so serious is bal lot-box corruption that the cases should be prosecuted. If local senti ment in any community so operates that juries will not bring i nconvic- tions, it might be necessary to in voke Federal urisdiction. At one time the thought of Federal inter vention in our State and local elec tions was peculiarly repugnant to our people, but we have outgrown all that and have heartily endorsed the program of Federal control, whether by Act of Congress. Executive inter- ventien, or judicial assump>ion. It follows, then, that those who endorse the Federalization o fall our life would not obect to trials in Federal Courts for local wrongdoing, since the indictment would charge them with violating the Civil rights of others, as prescribed by Federal law. in 1940 it was 22 to 1. Even in 1928, when several traditionally Demo cratic Southern States gave majori ties for Herbert Hoover, the Repub lican candidate, this State went 10 1-2 to 1 for A1 Smith, the Democratic nominee”. We South Carolinians will become more an dmore independent because there is no longer any fundamental issue which distinguishes one politi cal party from another. After nearly twelve years of Democratic control we have done nothing to change Re publican tariffs or to maintain the South’s policy of segregation. It is inevitable, then, that when one partv is the same as another people will feel as much at home in one party as another. Of course we old-time Democrats still like our label; we resent being called Republicans. But just as we Americans of the South in foreign lands become accustomed to being called yankees, so, in course of time, we can become accustomed to forget distinctions without dif ferences. I estimate that at least 250,000 citizens registered to vote, but not 100,000 voted. The official vote ap pears to have ibeen labdkit 80,000. Even if 20,000' votes were overlooked, that would still be only 100,000. Where were the other 150,000? I estimate the total of the regis tered voters by the number in various counties whose lists I bought. Some one has pointed out, I think the enterprising Associated Press manager in Columbia, that Mr. Roo sevelt polled 95,000 votes in this State in 1940, but 65,000 in 1944, in spite of the most hectic campaign for his re-election, and in spite of the tremendous pulling power of the war. It must be assumed that the equally hectic campaign of the oppo sition bore fruit. I quote The Charleston Evening Post of November 10th, “Political observers in South Carolina are not apt to miss the significance of the fact that minority groups in the State rolled up the largest support since the turn of the century in the in Europe in 1918. Twenty-six years Presidential election of 1944. have passed and it is timely to re- It was the largest vote not only fleet on the issues which brought numerically, but relatively. The pro- i about the war. At bottom there portion, on the basis of incomplete , was one issue; that is, the war | returns, was approximately 7 1-2 for I sprang from the German Zeal to cx- the Roosevelt-Truman ticket to 1 for pand. Germans have been taught the combined vote of the Southern ! that they are a superior people and I Democrats, the Republicans and the j have the right to impose their will ; Prohibitionists. on othe rpeople. If Germany had A7 1-2 to 1 victory would seem to j ever been able to persuade Great jbe overwhelming, but it represents Britain to go along with her, nothing an impressive decline from showings i would have stopped her. Even in this Do we need more hydro-electric plants? Specificalky, do we nfeed more plants which require the di version of thousands of acres from agriculture and lumbering to form lakes? I was one of the enthusias tic advocates of the Santee-Cooper. I had fallen under the hpell of T.’C. Williams, father of the project. It looked like the best thing that could be done. Perhaps it was the best thing as that time. In my zeal I remarked to a textile man that with great power com panies and so much power we should build cotton mills in the lower nart of the State. His reply surprised me and impressed me. He said that the diesel engine enabled the mills to provide their own power economi cally and that industry could be in dependent of great power companies. An expert tells me that steam pow er has been made so efficient that it is more serviceable than the diesels. Well, that being so,—and I’m no engineer—why have an upheaval and a tremendous waste and dislocation by taking a hundred or two hundred thousand acres from cultivation, or other potential productive use, for the sake of power which engines can produce on two or three acres of ground ? Another Armistice Day turned our minds to the jubilation in all coun tries following the hush of the guns war, only Britain’s determined stand saved the world from the Germans, for the Russians were with the Ger mans. Perhaps two factors saved the world from the Germans: Brit ain’s opposition, and (2) the utter stupidity of Hitler’s attack on Rus sia. Whether Russip could have thrown the Germans out without American supplies, I do not know. If the total of Lend-lease to all the world is about $30,000,000,000, and we have had to spend $200,000,000,- 000 on ourselves on an armed force probably a fourth as large as Rus sia’s, it stands to reason that Rus sia was not entirely dependent on us, though we helped her at a criti cal time. What lesson, if any, have we learned from the two great world wars? Certainly it is celar that ag gression must be nipped in the bud. Then we might as well face the truth, that we cannot remain neutral in a world war. Of course our “neu trality” in this war was entirely a wrong name because we were never neutral either in thought, or deed. We had ample warning of the de velopment of a spirit of aggression, but no nation of Europe would chal lenge the Japanese when they invad ed China. Then Hitler took posses sion of the Rhine land—which really was German. No one challenged that. Then Italy overran Ethiopia —and that was that. Then Hitler seized Checho-Slovakia—and the Na tions growled—but did nothing. So Japan fed <fn her conquests and grew bolder; Italy, began to swell; finally Hitler wanted evervthing, and was ready to take it—and virtu ally took everything he reallf want ed. At the bottom of the trouble was the lack of confidence between Eng land and France, together with Rus sia and the limited States nursing dreams of peace. Of course we wanted peace, but peace can’t be had by wishing it. We have peace in our towns and cities; at least no one can seize your house and stock and keen them. But it is the strong arm of the law which protects us, which deters the aggressor and safeguards us. If we had no agency or instrumentality to enforce peace, or to maintain our rights, we should live in a state of robber civilization, like the turbulent days of the marauding nobles of feu dal Europe. The lesson is clear; we must be vigilant and ready to protect civili zation from the greed of predatory powers. And we should remember the dead and the maimed, our illus- c^WILD- LIFE SOUTH CAROLINA If PROF FRANKLIN .SHERMAN • cieMsoN COULME-MPT or zootoov IN DIES ON WEST COAST some- News has been received here of the death of Lawson B. Kibler, for merly of Newberry, in San Francis co, who died suddenly last Sunday, November 5. He was a member ox ! the family of five daughters and four son* of the late D. W. T. KiB- SQUIRRELS ally reddish along flanks; Consider the squirrel family of times mainly black in mammals. They are rodents, having snout almost always grayish long incisor (front teeth) and no frosty-white, eye-teeth (canines), as is true of rats and mice. All the squirrel family have tail bushy, and they are our only rodents which have it so. All readers of course know the grav squirrel which is a typical mem-1 — . ber of the family. From this well I 7. Southeastern flying squirrel, when a young man to oecome known member of the family, let us Our only species of “flying” squirrel, ! salesman and at his death was en- proceed to the others. There are discussed in previous article. gaged in war work seven species in South Carolina: I. Woodchuck, or ground-hog. n. ---- o fj rst color, yet * er ant i Julia. Ann (Barre) Kibler of or I Newberry. I He is survived by his widow, Mrs. 6. Arkansas fox squirrel. Not a Stella Kibler, and two sisters, Mis. native. Mr. Chamberlain of Char- Alma Bryant of Orangeburg and leston museum records that it has’Miss Gussie Kibler of Newberry, been introduced on coasta. islands, of and a number of nieces and nep- Charleston county; a subspecies heWs in. South Carolina (variation) of fox squirrel.. 1 He removed to San Franciaco Pecans! Pecans! Pecans! Bring us your Pecans. We buy every day in the week; any amount, any size. in one of the All of our squirrels are gnawers war plants there. He was a x. »,uuu^nu^n., vr Kivu.iu-wvB. It an d feed chiefly on nuts, seeds, etc,, er of the late Dr. James M. Kibler is of this family though it dens un-, though wil eat bark, other vegetation of Newberry, and was also derground. Common in our moun- ; a P<* ■ will devour eggs and young cousin of Dr. W. P. Houseal or co- tains, sparingly in the Piedmont; birds. lumhia. occasionally climbs into low trees. 2. Eastern chipmunk, also called “ground-squirrel.” Common in our mountains and upper Piedmont, we have record of it at Anderson and Abbeville, but not farther east. Size of rat with reddish, stripes of black and whitish on back. Dens under ground, occasionally climbs into bushes or low trees. How far east does it occur? 3. Southern red squirrel. Found only in our higher mountains, and known as chickaree, and commonly called “boomer.” Smaller than gray squirrel and chiefly reddish along back. 4. Southern gray squirrel. A ■common game animal, well known to all; found throughout the state. A Mr. Brooks near Greenwood, has (or did have) a colony of white (albino) gray squirrels on his place. 5. Southern fox squirrel. Decid edly larger than gray squirrel, usu- trious men who died on land and) sea in our service, a sacrifice to the cause of a better world. As Lincoln said, “It is for us to see to it, that those gallant boys shall not have suffered and died in 66 LIKE TO SWAP NIGHT CLUBS, PAL? "Sorry, chum—no ringside seats. You sit in the mud, see? “You got a floor show of lizards and mos quitoes crawling over your face. “You got a nice little 4-piece orchestra of jap mortars, Zeros, machine guns, and your best friend screaming in the next foxhole. “Come any time, pal. The show goes on all night. For a long time. There’s never a cover charge. Not even for the flag they put over you when they carry you out.” We're all human. We all l>ke to go dancing or see a show or buy an extra suit or dress occasionally. But this war still has a long way to go. There are still 75 million Japs who don’t believe in surrendering. So during this 6th War Loan, how about putting all that luxury money into something a little more permanent—an extra $100 War Bond at least—to help get this thing really over and bring those boys of ours home? It'll hurt. But not as much as the Jap bayonet in your neighbor’s stom ach. You gei something back—in ten years — $4 for every $3 invested. He doesn’t. BUY m L*-".ST CUE EKTEM KOO WAR BOND TODAY! THIS MESSAGE SPONSORED BY NEWBERRY COTTON MILLS It will look like any other “fighting freight” you see rolling on the Southern Railway these days. ■ ' But this will be the last train heading off to war. Then, “tomorrow” will begin...a glorious new era of peace and freedom for war-weary people every where. Then, tents and uniforms from Southern textile mills will become gay frocks for laughing, carefree girls. Then, strong Southern steel that made massive tanks, will build bridges and skyscrapers. ■ ' •. * • • ,»■ .. • Then, gleaming Southern aluminum, miracle plastics and vital chemicals will go into the countless new products of the post-war world., • And then, the Southerri Railway will he ready with the matchless efficiency, and dependability Which h?s been devel oped in the “testing laboratory” of total war. Yes!... it will be a great day for the South ... and for the Southern Railway... when that “last train” pulls out. For it will mark the beginning of a new-found peace and pros perity in a Southland of unlimited opportunities. » . , ' ... .f »v " * President SOUTHERN RAILWAY SYSTE . i