University of South Carolina Libraries
Wi' tin 1218 College Street NEWBERRY, S. C. 0. F. Armfikld Editor and Publisher PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY Entered as second-class matter December 6, 1937, at the Postoffice at Newberry, South Carolina, under the Act of Congress of March 3, 1879. SUBSCRIPTION RATES: In S. C., $1.50 per year in advance outside S. C., $2.00 per year in advance. COMMENTS ON MEN AND THINGS BY SPECTATOR The City of Sumter will have a reduction in the tax-millage, I’ve read: three mills will be taken off. Charleston County, the City of Beaufort and now the City of Sumter—are re ducing taxes. The Capital of the United States and the State of South Carolina will please take notice. jp* V: • A letter has come to me from a gentleman who seems to kno\* something about the power busi ness. I quote the letter: “I have followed with much interest your comments about) the fight that is going on be tween South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. and government power proponents. Thinking over all I have heard over the radio about the electric utility business in South Caro lina—and other states too, there are a few thoughts that I want to pass along that nobody is talking about. We hear it said so often that since government has entered this and that busi ness that private operators have boosted their production and cut rates too. Why have electric utilities extended lines into rural areas and also reduced rates since such programs as REA and Santee-Cooper came into being? The answer seems to me that not because of, not in spite of, government agencies having come into the electric utility field, but simply because of the good old American way of doing busi ness—supply and demand have worked through the profit and loss system for expansion. Just about ' the time govern ment was entering the electric power business, hundreds of manufacturers in the United States began to mass produce all kinds of electrically operat ed gadgets at prices that people could pay. And what happened? The home that formerly paid a “light” bill (for lights only) be gan to pay an electric service bill where the ‘(light bill” formerly was about $2.50 per month for about thirty kilowatts of electricity, the electric ser vice bill is now about $12.00 for about 600 kilowatts. Therefore, because of greater de mand, the production has in creased to fill it; and from what I read in the papers, few sections of the United States have suf fered a shortage of power. As water pumps, ranges, wash ing machines, water heaters, re frigerators, etc. were improved and sold in huge quantities the makers of electric line materials improved their products also and made it possible for power lines to be built with lighter, stronger wire, fewer poles, cross arms and insulators. This of course made it possible for electric utilities to build longer lines to serve fewer customers than formerly, and still cut rates per kilowatt, I can remember back in 1933 that the utility operating in low er South Carolina offered a sub stantial rate reduction to resi- dental customers who would use more power per month. Of course we all admit that any utility is a monopoly, but there are legally constituted “um pires’’ to regulate them. We all will admit also that a utility, or any other business for that mat ter, operated by government, will always have the “edge” on simi lar concerns run according to all the rules of the game of Ameri can business. There are certain water power projects that have been financed by independent companies and I do not know of any that have been able to charge off any part of the cost of construction to naviga tion, rei lamanation, irrigation or recreatioa. Money for the con struction was furnished willing ly by investors and not extracted from all people for the benefit of those in the water power area. Likewise, taxes constitute a con siderable sum of the overhead in any operating company, which is not the case under government operation. The REA Program has help ed many a farm family and therefore still can do much good for many more, provided that a program is used as originally in tended. Likewise public power projects can perform good ser vice if not used to destroy exist ing taxpaying businesses. As I recall, when Santee-Cooper was being promoted the idea was that the low cost power produced would be sold as much as pos sible through operating compan ies in the area.” Certainly a very calm and col lected man is that writer; and he seems to have summed up everything well. On the other side, listen to this: “The electric companies in the Southwest area made offers to guarantee to the public all bene fits of savings that might re sult from use of governfent hy dro-electric power instead of company-produced steam power. The companies guaranteed to build all the lines that might be needed to distribute the power. Their offers would savd a proposed expenditure of $200,- 000,000 in tax funds and every possible public benefit would result from acceptance of these offers. But. NO!—such a sensible. B Afa&Afcmyy M s/iif mas/ it. WATCH YOUR SAVINGS GROW YWM Haw* ■ • _ You get “more for your money” in an insured savings account at this friendly associa tion. Substantial • dividends paid on savings. Come in and open your account now—and watch your savings grow! (M»> W^k 1* 1 Ymt 1* 1 Y«*n tn } Vaan ts 10 30 35 $ 360 530 1040 1300 t 530 1040 3060 3600 1 TOO 1560 3130 3900 PLUS DIVIDENDS money-saving plan as suggested by the electric companies isn’t quite what the Southwestern Power Administration wants!” Then again, we find the Depart ment of the Interior trying to persuade the Federal Power Commission to refuse a per mit to a private company in Virginia because the Government may want to build a public pro. ect there. That will have a queer sound to you: it should. Don’t you see that certain minor of- ficals in Washington make plans and the country plunges down more deeply into Socialism. I’m almost willing to admit that Congress doesn’t know what is going on; but, then, why does Congress vote such broad author ity to the Etxecutive depart ments? Congress has been so busy creating Government Corpora tions, Authorities, Boards, Com missions, and all that, that Congress does not know what is going on. Washington has be come a bureaucrat’s paradise. As long as Mr. Truman or any of his crowd is in control this trend will continue. The only measure of relief will come through cleaning house: half-way measures won’t do any good. Why doesn’t Congress assert itself and curb all this ocialis- tic foolishness? Well, Congress men want to be Committee Chair men: we are sold to the enemy for a chairmanship, really some one’s personal vanity. Would not a dozen stout-hearted men with out Committee assigments be worth more to the Nation than men who are always out on a limb wishing to be sound and sane men but compromising be cause they think they must play the political game with the in siders who hand out the loaves and fishes? Can’t we restore our Government to its Consti tutional functions? Worst of all, a generation has grown to man hood believing that the Govern ment should have all power!! I was once a bureaucrat, so I recognize not only the man him self, but v the symptoms which proclaim the bureaucrat—one day arrogantly strutting around and the next day bowing and scrap ing. I wasn’t that sort of bureau crat, but I have seen thousands of that type. Some years ago I attended ser vices whenever the President of Peru attended officially. There were men at these Church ser vices so thoroughly imbued with the boot-lick habit that they were not concerned with the service itself, nor the devotional spirit; nor did they observe what the archbishop was doing; their one concern was to do as the Presi dent did. If by straining and craning they saw that the Presi dent was kneeling they slid to the floor as though on greased panels. The one, great concern was to be in harmony with the President. So, in the talk about the President’s Palace, the hang ers-on were cocksure one day and bumptious, but strutting completely “about-face” the next day. So their little song was always a servile adulation ,a "me-too” raised to the highest degree. I saw that in the news from Washington today. Six months ago our Government told the world that we wouldn’t fight over Korea and Formosa. Why do our men in Washington talk so much ? Even if we had pur- pjossed in our hearts to let Korea and Formosa be stifled or strangled why did we have to publish that? As I recall, the military men earnestly ad vised defending Korea; Mr. Tru man decided that Korea and For mosa were not worth much, if anything, to us. Perhaps he was right. But why, then, all this fever of war preparation later? Any man with ordinary common- sence could foresee that Russia would take Mr. Truman’s atti tude as a leave to seize what she wanted. If we had said, that we would protect Korea and Formosa Russia would probably have held-off; but, certainly, our attitude was the usual bung ling. Even today—some state ments from Washington tell us! that we shall not risk a war over Korea. What, then, are we doing? The oft-repeated statement that we have a “well-calculated risk” is nauseating. The first time Washington used that phrase “calculated risk’’ was when our armies were nearly torn to pieces and thousands of men caught in foxholes in the Bulge. Let’s not make any more such “calculated risks.” What is our policy today? Do we mean to fight, if necessary? Are you informed about this Korean matter? Japan conquer ed Korea some years ago. Under the agreement between Mr. Roosevelt and Stalin Russia oc cupied the Northern part of Korea, to the 38th parallel; the United States the land South of the 38 th parallel. We with drew our troops some time ago, clashes and bickering with the Russians. In course of time Russian-inspired Chinese Com munists seized about all of China. Anybody could see that Russia would sooner or later seize, or inspire the seizure of, all Korea and Formosa as a step ping stone to Japan. I think we would be wise to maintain strong forces. Then Russia would listen to us. But what, really, is our policy? Let America be strong and sin cere; and let us stop this pid- FARMS AND FOLKS CUT ‘EM LOW AND USE IT ALL Back in the spring I was with a county agent and we stopped to see a tract of timber that had been selectively cut. One of the men from the State Forestry Commission had mark ed the sawtimber and the pulp- wood to come out. The farmer sold the sawtimber first, as ad vised. Then he sold the tops and pulpwood on the stump. Thus a fine job was done in farming the woods. What need ed to come out had been harvest ed, tops were utilized in the pulpwood operation, and the woods were left in the fine growing shape. And there will be other harvests there before too many years. There was only one bad fea ture in the whole operation. The sawmill man had cut stumps too high. Some of them were knee- high, wasting valuable wood, and leaving impediments to hauling there in the woods. The pulp wood man had to cut his stumps so low you could hardly see them. And the tops were so used up that the fire hazard was greatly lessened. FIGHTING WEEVILS County Agent of Darlington was busy with their well-organized boll weevil fight when I was there in mid-May. Seven hun dred fifty farmers had attended their county meeting, at which the experts from Clemson show ed the guns and told of the am munition for this fight.. The Farm Bureau, Grange, County Agricultural Committee, and all agencies worked together there in trying to get every farmer to protect his cotton with poison properly used. That en tailed surveys in the different communities to see who could poison their own cotton and who needed custom service. Those who could do custom poisoning were listed and those who need ed it were served as nearly as possible. Most of the counties are wag ing similar intensive fights this (continued on page five) dling all over the world. FOR RENT—Furnished rooms, hot water, private entrance. Phone 466. 2tp. We are pleased to announce the payment of our . . . 30th Semi-Annual Dividend Amounting To NEWBERRY 7 Federal Savings AND LOAN ASSOCIATION OP .NEWBERRY ESM J. K. Willingham, Sec’y Newberry, S. C. $59,283. Paid To 2091 Investors Each Investment Insured up to $5000 NEWBERRY FEDERAL Savings & Loan Association John F. Clarkson, President J. K. Willingham, Sec’y-Treas * Newberry Federal Savings and Loan Association , i Statement of Condition JUNE 30, 1950 • ij m ASSETS First Mortgage Loans $ Stock In F. H. L. Bank $4,154,323.04 i 45,900.00 x: fg. Cash on Hand and ini Banks f 281,730.00 Furniture and Fixtures j j f 12,037.06 Other Assets ) 2,372.66 LIABILITIES ■ Savings Accounts Borrowed Money Loans in Process Other Liabilities $4,209,977.59 NONE 46,659.36 291.08 mISs Reserves & Undivided Profits 239,434.73 11 $4,496,362.76 Each Account Insured Up To $5,000.00 By an Agency of United States Government OFFICERS JOHN F. CLARKSON Preiident M. O. SUMMER Vice President, J. K. WILLINGHAM Sec'y-Treasurer John F. Clarkson M. O. Summer DtKECTORS J. K. Willingham C. C. Hutto E. B. Purcell G. K. Dominick • ''..A*’.- . : -- ii-