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THE NEWBERRY SUN FRIDAY, AUGUST 24* 1951 1218 College Street NEWBERRY, S. C. PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY By ARMFIELD BROTHERS 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. Spectator Called To Task By Readers Over Ownership Of Santee-Cooper Hot weather has fired my critics to the boiling point and then they boiled over. Honest criticism is wholesome and I in vite it. When I am in error a frank criticism may put me right; and if I am not in error I can clear up the point for my critic. When three critics call me to account it is time to stop, look, and listen, as the Rail Road sig nals suggest to,us. I have print ed the three criticsms and am sending them out separately, be cause the three of them would require nearly all the space of an issue of Spectator. I shall mention them briefly, however, by way of introduction. The first is from Mr. L. A. Fowler of Greenville, who reads The Spectator in The Greenville Observer. He probably reads some part of it in The Greenville Piedmont also. Mr. Fowler challenges the ac curacy of my remark in Spectator that Santee-Cooper is under the control of the Legislature, the Governor and a Board of Direcr tors, appointed by the Governor. Mr. Fowler pays me a compli ment and then says “you busted wide open about Santee-Cooper.” Mr. Fowler’s letter came to Spectator. The second letter was printed in The Calhoun Times and is signed by Bob Connor, as he is known to thou sands, though he is Mr. R. S. Connor, formerly a member of the House from Orangeburg County. My old friend “Bob,” for whom I shall always have both respect and affection, writes somewhat in the vein of Mr. Fowler of Greenville. Both gentlemen con tend that Santee-Cooper is beyond the control of the State and they insist that Santee-Cooper is holding six million dollars which could clear up the financial slate in the State and make unnecces- sary the Bond Issue and the Sales Tax. The third criticism appears as an editorial in The News and Herald of Winnsboro. The editor, George McMaster Ketchin, is a man of good purpose and tries to support all good causes. He used to be quite a friend of mine ,but he seems to be more enthusiastic over Mr. Truman and the Washington bureaucracy than I am. Mr. Ketchin wasn’t in terested in Santee-Cooper; he was caustically critical of the figures I cited showing the totals of salaries paid to white and colored teachers in Clarendon County. Mr. Ketchin reads into my words attitudes and meanings that are entirely of his own imagination. I merely cited facts because the public seldom is given facts. I have a few more facts to offer, merely as facts, and I think my # brother scribe of Winns boro will find them suggestive. Incidentally Spectator took no part for or against the Sales Tax, though he remarked that, as a matter of fairness, some re duction should have been made in other taxes. My friend Ketchin, whom I regard as a man of principle arid ideas, will pro bably agree with me that reduc ing the beer tax was a farcical gesture of tax-relief. What about gasoline taxes? Why the reduc tion in the tax on beer? Who sponsored that, by the way? And why not a substantial reduction in County taxes for homes, farms, and schools? This could have been worked out. Not all the Sales Tax will be used for school operations, by any means; a part could have been assigned to lift all County school taxes. In South Carolina are many opinions about the Sales Tax. The father of the Sales Tax, I think, was my friend Mike Con nor, then Governor of Mississippi, a great gentleman and a charm ing man. In this State a man of outstanding ability and prestige says that rich men sponsored the tax. My friend of Winnsboro seems to think that it is such a good tax that we should all endorse it, whether rich or poor. Although I took no part, for or against it, I was never enthusias tic for the tax because the idea prompting it was unsound. I know that many people with sub stantial wages or salaries do not pay for schools, hospitals and a lot of free services. But the idea of making the heavily-bur dened taxpayer pay heavy addi tional taxes in order to collect something from Richard Roe or John Doe is somewhat childish. The man who pays the Sales Tax is the man who buys. We ask him to pay $200 a year in order to collect $25 from his cook. Here are some more figures from Clarendon County: As point ed out some weeks ago, the White teachers of Clarendon were paid $186,129 during the re cent school year, while the Color ed teachers were paid $275,124. I used the estimate of some busi ness men as to the amount pro bably paid in State, Federal and County taxes. I have some exadt figures to add to t^e general statement. Taking cue month, January 1951,. for example, when all schools were in operation, the White teachers received $19,- 624.57; the Colored teachers $30,- 413.60. The White teachers were discounted for Federal taxes $1,- 155.91; the Colored 'teachers $536.20. In the rural schools of the County for the same period the White teachers were paid $11,- 276.80; the Colored teachers $20,- 028.10. These White teachers were discounted for Federal taxes $822.40, while the Colored teach ers were discounted $154.70. I know, of course, that in come taxes are purely individual, with allowances for dependents. Even so, study the figures. The best showing is that of White and Colored teachers in Manning. White teachers $8347.77; Colored teachers $10,385.50. The White teachers were discounted $333.51 from $8347.77 and the Colored were discounted $381.50 frotn $10,385.50. I am not attacking the Colored teachers; nor am I taking part in the suit. My only motive is to offer a few facts. It is quite within the truth to say tlmt our people are not in formed about the schools. Nor is the plan for a State educational bureaucracy likely to foster home- rule and the spirit of democracy. The local authority %as made the school the Community Center. The benefits which may result from State operation—and there are benefits—may not compen sate for uprooting the local school and the local authority. Do you like figures? I’m talk ing arithmetic, the kind of figures that are proof against all the sins of diet. Here are some figures: “All the^ Presidents, from Wash ington to F. D. Roosevelt (exclud ing war expenditures 1941-45) spent $179 billions. George Washington in 8 years spent $34 millions. Woodrow Wilson, in 8 years, in cluding World War I, spent $46 billions. Harry Truman in 6 years, 1946- 51, spent $242 billions. In 1939 there were 969,000 Fed eral employees, today there are 2,410,000 Federal employees. Cost ing the taxpayers $8 billions a year. Our National debt is TWO HUNDRED AND SIXTY BIL LIONS OF DOLLARS. How much is $260 Billion? It is more than ten (10) times al the gold in Fort Knox. It is more than the’ total of all the bank deposits in all of the banks in the United States. It is more than the assessed valuation of all Ihe property in the United States. ‘Bog Government’ has expended more than FORTY FOUR BIL LION DOLLARS during the past fiscal year (1950-1951). It is pjanning to spend SEV* ENTY ONE BILLIONS in 1962—• which will create a deficit of not less than TEN BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, and Fix a tax burden of $1,589.00 on every family in the United How much is FORTY FOUR BILLIONS OF DOLLARS? If every person in America cashed in his life insurance, the total would come to about $44 billions — and the Government spent that 'much in 1951. If every farmer in this county sold his farm, his farm equipment and livestock, they would realize about $25 billions—spending mon ey for the Government for seven months. If every urban homeowner sold his home—they would realize about $30 billion—and the Govern ment would spend all of it in 8 months. If the net working capital of every industrial plant in America —large and small were converted into cash it would aggregate about $39 billion—and would last the Government spenders for less than 11 months. This is really “Big Govern ment.” It is financed with the money it takes from its citizens in the form of taxes. THERE IS NO OTHER SOURCE. In 1951 the Government collect ed in taxes more than $48 billion. In 1947 (the latest available figures—1951 would be larger) 66 million citizens filed income tax returns. 1 More than 50 million of these had incomes of less than $5,000,- 000. This was the direct tax. But the hidden tax * laid a financial burden of more than $500.00 on every American fam ily. Those who smoked paid $1,300 Million. Those who owned automobiles paid $1,750 Million on gas, oil, tires, etc. Those who went on a vacation or other trip and traveled by bus or train; those who patroniz ed amusements and sports; those who bought a piece of luggage, jewelry, or a ‘hill billy' record, all paid a Federal tax. Their wives and daughters paid TIME-PROVED POWER^afe AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION CHEVROLET Chevrolet alone offers this complete Power Team! f - • I i * Automatic Transmission* Extra-Powerful 105-h.p. Valve-in-Head Engine EconoMiser Rear Axle Powerglide is first.. . finest. . . and only fully proved automatic transmission in the low-price field. 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Private Plamplin would like for his many friends to know that his address is Pfc. James E. Plamplin, A. F. 252000708, Casual Pres. Sec. A.P.O. 969, % Postmaster, San Francisco, Calif. a Federal tax on cosmetics. Those who fish and hunt paid taxes on hunting and fishing equipment, plus $2.00 for a duck stamp. Those who have a ‘phone paid Federal tax—plus an additional tax on long-distant calls. The year ending June 30, 1951, the Government collected Social Se curity Taxes aggregating $800 Millions (net). This has all been spent. The ‘Trust’ holds Govern ment Bonds as security—which must be paid off with more taxes. Citizens are more and more under compulsion to accept the socialistic pldlosophy that the Government can do everything for them—and Beter than they can do it for themselves. The Pl&nners are trying to swap us ‘Something for Nothing’ for Our freedoms and liberty; To en slave us with the creeping paralysis oD the Socialist State.” That was quoted from the Bulletin of The Southern States ln<)ustrial Council. The following story from Polly Piedmont’s column in ThO Greenville Piedmont of August 9, will be read by Newberrians with interest * I’M POSTCARD CONSCIOUS! I love to send them, even if I can think of nothing to say ex cept “This leaves me feeling fine, hope you are the same. I love to get them, even if they say nothing except: “Having a wonderful time, wish you were here.” But I also make a point of col lecting them wherever I go so that when I get home I have com piled a pretty good travelogue that is far more than a diary. Therefore, from my point of view, a city or state can’t be too careful about the kind of post cards it puts out. That's why I am so proud of the South Caro lina card just issued by the Town and Country Garden Club of Newberry. Betty McFall (Mrs. J. Y.) who is a former resident of the his toric old town and who spends most of her summers down there at 1109 Calhoun Street has just sent me one of the cards. It is lovely, don’t you agree? SIGNIFICANT TOPPED BY THE GRAND OLD Palmetto flag, a South Caro lina wren sits on a bough of the yellow jessamine bush. A still larger branch of the bush which bears the state flower runs along side a small map-on the boundary between South Carolina and Georgia, that is. And then down in one corner is the state seal. It is all done in the loveliest color imaginable, shades of blue and yellow—which, of course, you can’t enjoy in a black-and-white newspaper. Every loyal South Carolinian will want to send her messages henceforth on a Town and Garden Club postcard! ^ Two County Men At Trade School The following students recently entered the Columbia Branch of the South Carolina Area Trade School: John C. McCastha, Pros perity and Clarence I. Stone of Newberry. McCastha is enrolled in the school of auto mechanics which is a two year course. There is a modern automobile repair shop for the purpose of teaching students the upkeep and repair of automobiles and trucks. This shop has all the devices necessary to make automobile re pairing as efficient as possible. Stone is enrolled in the school of cabinet making which is a two year course. , TIRE SAFETY CHECK... V y<> ur . -"V: I Pure Oil’s patented TREAD TESTER Tells how safe your tires This sensational new ' • • . . • . service tool measures are in lust two minutes ^ a«pth to. ^ fraction of an inch . . • punches the results on a personal record for you I And the service is free! Be sure with Pure Aftr fof sms me eseesf C. D. Coleman Co. PURE-PEP Gasoline PURE-ETHYL Gasoline with Pure With just one grease, Sinclair litholine, you can lubricate chassis, wheel bearings, water pumps, universal joints... of your car, truck or tractor... winter or summer. 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