University of South Carolina Libraries
t PAGE TWO THE NEWBERRY SUN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15, 1953 1218 Collejre Street NEWBERRY, S. C. PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY 0. F. Armfield, Jr., Owner Entered as second-class matter December 6, 1937 at the Postoffice at New'berry, South Carolina, under the Act of Congress of March 3, 1879. SUBSCRIPTION RATES: &2.00 per year in ad- vance; six months, $1.25. DETHRONED COMMENTS ON MEN AND THINGS By SPECTATOR Are you interested in taxes? How does this impress you? “The annual state tax burden rose to a new high this year, averaging $68 for each United States citizen. The average is up $4 from what it was per person in 1952. States collected about $10.5 billion, an increase of $700 mil lion over last year. Washington had the highest average. Its collections were $108 a person, up 6.6% for the year. New Jersey continued in the lowest place in the per capita list. Although most states continued the steadily rising trend of tax increases, seven showed decreases, and nine showed increases of less than 3%. Utah reported the greatest de crease, down 8.4% to $68. Other drops were South Dakota, 7.3% to $54; Georgia, 4.4% to $62; Vermont, 3.1% to $74; Minnesota, 2.2% to $75; North Dakota with a $74 aver age and West Virginia with $63. The sharpest increase was in Alabama, where the aver age went up 21% to $52 a person. Michigan rose 16% to $87; Illinois’ $53 represented a 13% rise, while Virginia had the same percentage rise to $54. Missouri was up 12% to $51. Nevada’s figure climbed to $98, New York’s to $75 and South Carolina’s to $75. Nebraska, w T hich again had the second lowest per capita tax, as it has had for several years, increased its average 5% to $43. Other states with only slight changes were Ar kansas, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Mis sissippi, Montana and Orego. That is not good advertising for our State, is it? South Carolina is among the highest in its taxes. Why all the taxes? I do not mean this as an idle ques tion. Are we over-taxed, or do we receive a fair return for what we spend? We demand a lot of public service and the cost of everything is high. But is Government—every de partment of Government—branching out too broadly? It deserves careful consideration. I am not shouting a tirade against so-called tax-eaters, an expression which used to bestir my cherished friend, our distinguished Carolinian and historian, Mr. Alex Salley, into angry remonstrance. I suggest that we consider this calmly, studiously, ispas- sionately and progressively. In the field <^f industry machinery is displacing men and women. Even on the farms the cost of labor is being re duced by the use of machinery. As a citizen who proudly boasts a strain of Scottish blood, I wonder if the profitable use of machinery may drive out the small farmer, as well as the small industrialist. You can’t afford machinery when it is so expensive that the farmer will lose his land trying to pay for the farm machinery. I have a friend who operates a gasoline station, a “filling station,” as we call it. He is a one-man operator and here is an observation he makes; “I can handle ten thousand gallons a month by myself. If I employ an assistant and we sell two or three thousand gallons more, I’ll lose money; I’ll be working to pay my helper, instead of making a profit on his work.” There is a lot of hard commonsense in that, the kind of sound, horse-sense we used to have when we were more frequently working with horses. L<W'* \ Are you interested in breakfast? How shall we look on breakfast—is it the breaking of the fast, or is it charging your batteries for the new day? Among the people of olden times it was really a breaking of the fast because they ate supper about six or seven o’clock and ate no more until seven or eight o’clock next day. But in this hectic era people eat, sometimes drink, at very late hours, though the eating is not always of proteins nor the drinking confined to rich, nourishing milk. Our grandfathers began the day strengthened and in vigorated against all the mutations of fortune or the baffling vicissitudes of the day’s routine. Even so. In a feebler per iod, the less robust men started the day with a bit of tomato juice and a piece of toast. And in that manner went forth to the perils and dangers of the day. It is no wonder that most of them surrendered, even before they saw the enemy. But my brilliant friend of The News & Courier, Mr. Waring, in encouring letters, publishes this gem: ( “In your editorial of Aug. 24, you ask for suggestions as to a proper Charleston Breakfast and you seem to indicate that persons who live in Lower King Street and have bis cuits for breakfast every morning are better qualified to speak than others. As I live in King Street and usually have biscuits, or a rea sonable substitute, for breakfast I wish to express my views. A charleston breakfast should commence with fruit, pre ferably South Carolina fruit. In the first place, sugar figs in season are par excellence, but when the fig season is over, South Carolina peaches are a close second. Muskmelons, strawberries, scuppermongs all have their place while Florida oranges and grapefruit are a ready help when no South Carolina fruit is in season. For the second course there must always be hominy, as a sine qua non. Then there must be something with the hominy and the best something is shrimp. Of course the shrimp must be small creek shrimp and not those pelagic monsters. There are those who claim that, for perfection, the shrimp must be caught on a low tide after midnight and must be eaten before the tide is high, for when the tide com mences to run out, the flavor r«ns out of the shrimp. When the tide or the season is not right for shrimp, then broiled whiting are excellent with hominy. In colder weather, sausage, country ham, friend oysters, hogshead cheese, yelow fishroe, kippers or calf’s liver, are fine, with bacon and eggs always as a standby when other hominy ac companiments are not available. Any one of these things is an excellent ‘something’ to go with hominy but remember that shrimp stand first for an ideal Charleston breakfast. Your editorial speaks of biscuits for breakfast every morn ing; but why? Biscuits for every breakfast: No, a hot bread every morning: Yes! On mornings when there are no biscuits, a light fluffy muffin is excellent. Pop-overs, with hollow centers, will cause the breakfaster to forget biscuits. Then there are waffles and there are buck wheat cakes. It is important that with biscuits or muffins or pop-overs one has marmalade, but with waffles or buck wheats there must be sorghum syrup made in an open kettle on a South Carolina farm. Only an undeveloped taste would tolerate bodiless maple syrup or the various branded substitutes for sorghum. After such a breakfast, with coffee of course, a Charlestonian is prepared to meet the day and to conquer the world.” Did you let those words take you back to grandmother’s table, to the days of creative imagination and resourceful planning? Undoubtedly my brethren of the quill, Ralph Grier and Frances Taylor, Bill Workman and Alderman Duncan, start the day like that Charleston brother, or they couldn’t do so much work. Do you know that you must be somewhat of a linquist so as to appreciate the fine points, the shades of meaning of words, as used in different sections? I’m reminded of the man who had peanuts for sale at the State Fair. In order to make his business clear he barked: “Get your peanuts, goobers, pindars, groundpeas and groundnuts here.” Now if you observe carefully, the sweet Charleston flavor of that letter, it will gladden your palafe. For example: “Sugar figs”; where else do you find “sugar figs?” And, strangely enough, figs are quite common in many backyards of the old city. Figs are intimately associated with Charles ton; so much so that if a Charleston stalwart, in a burst of anger, says “I don’t give a fig,” he is talking seriously. Then we come to muskmelons. Where but in our glorious old sea port could you find muskmelons? Of course he argued for hominy. Nor did he do violence by saying “hominy-grits,” j or mere grits. The splendor of our history began with hominy and ham-gravy, plenty of gravy even when the ham was scarce. The interesting letter-writer recommends shrimp with hominy. Why not herring?, It has more-flavor. I hope this does not cause my beloved friend, Mr. Julian Mitchell, to cast me out. All that learned suggestion about the shrimp in the light of the moon and according to the twinkling of the stars, reminds me of my remembered brother who recom mended Austrian Winter Peas for my El Recuerdo farm. Only a spook could have followed all those kindly and solici tous admonitions. Marmalade in a Charleston breakfast? My friend, my friend! I’m as English as anybody, theoretically%but mar malade? Syrup with those “buckwheat cakes is all right but hot-cakes and buckwheat cakes” are really double first-cousins, no? If you use marmalade, brother, they are not the same. The lovely town of Manning had a celebration, recently. “About 4,000 residents of Clarendon and adjoining counties were in 'Manning to participate in the Farmers Fall Fun Fest, sponsored by the Manning Merchants Association and the Finer Carolina program. During the day, throngs of people crowded the streets. Merchants reported from 5,000 to 7,000 persons registered during the day. At 7 p.m. the speakers assembled on the platform built of bales.of hay and shucks of corn and decorated with vegetables. J. Roy Jones of Columbia, commissioner of agriculture was introduced by A. D. Grainger, Clarendon County farm agent. He congratulated Manning on the progress evidenced by the success of the day and plans of the future. J. C. Richert of Raleigh, vice president of the Carolina Power and Light Co., was introduced by T. L. Stogner, local manager of the company. Mr. Richert presented from his company a CROSS XL idea* from other editors From the Eufaula Tribune. Eu- faula, Alabama: Nearly three mil lion horses and mules have disap peared from Cotton Belt farms in the past twelve years. They have been replaced by tractors. It takes about three acres to sup ply feed for a horse or mule and this means that approximately eight million acres of land have been released for crops—certainly not for cotton in view of the over production at this time. No doubt, a goodly portion of the “liberated” land will be used in growing feed for cattle and hogs. This is true In Barbour county where hundreds of farmers have turned to growing livestock. • • • From the South Pasadena Re view, South Pasadena, California: What happens when the family budget doesn’t balance? Most likely you eat beans for a while, or dodge bill collectors. The Federal government has a handy little gimmick, perfected over the past two decades, to get around that problem. They just create more money. That’s called "deficit financing.” If an individual does it, the name is "counterfeit ing.” Everytime the government goes into the hole and creates more money to finance itself, an invisible hand sneaks into your pocket and takes some money out. Since 1932. j western states. when the government first began to “deficit finance” in a big way, that invisible hand has dipped 48 cents of buying power out of every dollar in every wallet, bank ac count, insurance policy and piggy bank in the country. That’s why it’s important to bal ance the budget. So let’s do a little more worry ing about it. And maybe write a Congressman now and then when he shows the courage to refuse Fed eral tax money for a local project that could be privately financed. • • • From the News-Journal, Mans field, Ohio: Politics is too dirty a game for an honest man to have anything to do with. This remark expresses one of the most dangerous viewpoints in the United States If politics, the art of gov ernment. is left to the dishonest, our government will be eaten away by rottenness, and be replaced by some regime which does not repre sent the people—such as commu nism. • • • From the Daily Herald, Oska- loosa, Iowa: The Western railroads cooperating with the government’s drought relief program put into effect on July 1 a 50 per cent re duction in freight rates on live stock feed to the stricken south- ^ INVESTIGATIONS played an im- 1 portant part of the work ac complished by the first session of the 83rd congress. The amount of time and money spent in "opera tion gumshoe” is much greater than is generally realized by the American people. Congressional Quarterly reports that congress this year granted its committees $3,958,471 to con duct these investigations. And it is likely that additional amounts may be added as needed when the con gress convenes its second session in 1954. During the first session which ended early Aug. 4, the House au thorized $1,797,050 for probe spend ing. Of this, $1,582,050 went to the regular, or "standing” committees, and $215,000 to special investiga tive committees. To finance Senate investigations, the upper chamber authorized $1,- 593,000, all for its regular commit tees. With carryover funds of $568,- 421 from the last congress the Sen ate committees have available $2,- 161,421 for* investigations. During the two years (1951-52) of the 82nd Congress, the Senate and House together authorized $5,700,- 870 for investigations* Investigation allowances of $300,- 000 or more have been made avail able to three committees in the present Congress. Those commit tees are: House Government Operations, $355,050; House Un-American Ac tivities, $300,000; and Senate Judi ciary, $521,367. Each chamber makes investiga tions money available to its com mittees by authorizing them to spend from its “contingent fund”— a sum replenished from year to year by appropriations from the U.S. Treasury. Under the contingent fund pro cedure, only the chamber conduct ing the investigation has to approve the spending. A regular appropria tion, such as one adding new money to the contingent fund, must be approved by both House and Sen ate and signed by the President. • • • • Washington observers are say ing that the relations between the administration and Organized labor, very taut since the resigna tion of Martin Durkin from the President’s cabinet, have not been helped by Vice President Nixon’s recent speech at the A.F.L. con vention in St. Louis. Vice President Nixon admittedly had a difficult job of explaining the administration’s viewpoint con cerning the 19 amendments to the Taft-Hartley Act which Durkin said the President failed to act on after promising to do so. His explanation was unacceptable to the conven tion delegates and as a result Mr. Durkin’s accusation of broken agreement took on a great deal more substance. The Wall Street Journal in a special report from the convention said that one delegate, who -was affirmed to be actually a Repub- lipan, is quoted as having said of the Vice President: “With ham you got to have an egg He laid it.” WEEKLY CROSSWORD PUZZLE Conductor Here’s the Answer HORIZONTAL 1,7 Pictured orchestra conductor 12 Bearer 13 Wigwams 15 Constellation 16 Silenced 18 Self esteem 19 Foundation 21 Space 22 Spoken 3 Either 4 Equip 5 Cog-wheel 6 Therefore 7 Stalk 8 Alphabet ending 9 Epistle (ab.) 10 Ogled 11 Envoy 12 Intrigue 14 Parts of feet 17 Depart m II is o Pniv SB TI3ZS 39U039 Si IS II ra us ©us 24 Cares for 23 Deputy _ „ A 25 Mountain spur Motors 26 Shelf 22 Speech 27 Inferno 28 Preposition 29 Diminutive suffix 30 Endure 33 MUitary helpers 37 Stalls 38 Drench 39 Finishes 40 Market 44 Bird’s home 45 Era 46 He is a musician 48 Meadow 49 Give 51 Texas city 53 Packs 54 Draw back VERTICAL 1 Car storehouse 2 Removed 25 In front 30 Daub 31 Tints 32 Eager 34 Contested 35 Hebrew ascetic 36 Bristles 40 Damages 41 Part of "be” 42 Bellow 43 Pipe 46 Not many 47 Thus 50 Accomplish 52 French article —I' Z 3 4 5 b T 8 1 10 12. * 13 14 IS m lb 17 1 18 11 [2(P - 21 rm. 22 23 25 p Zb 27 w mm 21 30 31 32 33 34 35 3b 3? m Ik. i 38 21 m 40 41 42 43 % 44 MS fm 4b 47 m 48 41 SI 51 52 '» ~|53 54 r certificate to Mrs. Fred Kirby, Chairman of the Manning Finer Carolina Contest. Prizes ranging in amount from $159 to $5 were an nounced by Mr. Rogers. These were contributed by more than 50 merchants and totaled more than $1,000. Following this program, the bands presented music after which a street dance was participated in by a large crowd.” RESSIONAL Q—Will Congress go back to Washington for a special session this FaU? A—Not according to Speaker of the House of Representatives Joseph W. Martin, Jr. (R Mass.). Martin said Sept. 9 in Washington he was certain there would be no extra session. Earlier talk of a special session. Martin noted, was based on the Administration’s feeling that Congress would have to boost the national debt limit before the end of the year; however, fiscal experts have indicated the statutory debt limit would not be reached this year. Q—Are there any White House staff members whose specific duties are liaison with Congress? A—Yes. there are. The President shuffled his staff Just recently to unprove liaison with Congress. The White House Sept. 4 announced the appointment of Jack Martin, assistant to the late Sen. Robert A. Taft (R Ohio) and the promotion of Gerald D. Morgan to the post of administrative assistant. Both will have liaison duties. They will be assisted by Homer H. Gruenther and Bryce N. Harlow, according to the White House. Q—Has the government done anything about the suit challenging the Constitutionality of the "tidelands” law? A—The Justice Department filed a motion Sept. 8 In a U. S. District Court asking for dismissal of the challenge to the Submerged (Tide- lands) Lands Act which became law this year. The Department contended that the U. S. government cannot be sued in this type of case without its consent, given by act of Congress. Q—Why did Sen. HoUand of Florida refuse to go to the Chicago Demo cratic raUy Sept. 14-15? A—Sen. Spessard L. Holland (D Fla.) said he thought the South had nothing to gain by attending the rally. He said he found no tangible signs that the Democratic Party leadership had changed its view* on issues that cost the 1952 Presidential candidate, Adlai E. Steven son, 57 electoral votes in four southern stetes. (Copyrighted 1D53, Congressional Quarterly) DaieCarmegie ^ AUTHOR OF “HOW TO STOP WORRYING AND START LIVING” A/I RS. CLIFFORD SNYDER, 616 E. Fifth Street, N. Manchester, Indiana, had never stayed alone in her life until she was married and moved to a small town. They lived in an old house with five outside doors, none of which had a good lock. Her husband was gone two or three nights a week and every night she spent there alone, she set a chair in front of each door with a large pan balanced on the edge.. She slept fairly well knowing that anyone trying to enter * ’ would waken her. When they built their own home, they had two outside doors with good locks on each and she felt reasonably secure when alone. The back door stuck and made a teriffic noise when opened which also added to her security. One night she awoke to find her husband stand ing in her bedroom. He had come in unexpectedly. She sat up in bed and screamed at him. She was so provoked to think he had not only come through the shuddering back door, but had turned lights on, walked through the whole house and even opened the bedroom door ynd she hadn’t heard him. From then on she was really scared. Every litUe noise wakened her and her hair stood on end until she could identify it. One night she was wakened by hearing the floor in the hall creaking. She thought someone was tip-toeing outside. A board creaked and she became rigid. Another crehked and she broke out in cold sweat.* She waited and waited. Finally she decided she couldn’t remain like that all night. If someone was coming to get her he would just have to come and get her. She reasoned that most burglars enter for the purpose of stealing, that they seldom entered an occupied house. They were more afraid of being caught than she was of catching them. She relaxed apA went to sleep. After facing the facts and realizing that she was reasonably safe, she has not been afraid since. CARNEGIE THE STRANGER WENT AWAY By Madge O. Adams apjAIRCUT. Charley,” I said as I climbed into the barber chair the other evening after I’d closed up the depot for the night. Charley usually starts ribbing me right away, about getting fat ter and a little greyer. But tonight he didn’t seem to have much to say. I glanced around the room and saw that the stranger was sit ting over behind the stove. So that was it, I thought—Jacob Tinser. At least he said his name was Jacob Tinser. He’d worn old grey pants with a tear in the knee and a dirty brown suit coat the day he came to town. His white shoes had been ripped out at the sides and tom loose along the soles. But now, since Christmas, he wore a good pair of corduroy pants and clean shirts and a shiny pair of new black shoes. The postmaster had taken up a collection for him. 1 was as curious as the next one about just who Jacob Tinser was, and what he was doing in our town. "Is Jacob still sleeping ini the Doctor’s bam?” I asked Charley as we walked down the street to get a cup of coffee after he’d closed the barber shop. “Yep,” Charley said. I guess I knew what was worry ing him. Charley isn’t much for keeping books. It’s awfully easy to stick a dollar in his pocket when a fellow gets a hair cut and for get to put it down. This fellow might be a treasury agent for all any of us knew. "Folks around town still feeding Jacob?” I inquired. “I guess they are, Percy.” *T still can't help but think that there’s something about Jacob’s bi focals that look—well, phony. If I could only figure them out then maybe I’d know what he was up to!” “Some folks in town’d be willing to pay you if you could. Some folks ain’t a sleeping so good at nights,” Charley nodded wisely. The next day was ' warm, like spring was peeking around the cor ner. Jacob came down to the depot and sat on the platform enjoying the sunshine. I tried to engage him in conversation but he wouldn’t say much. He never had said much, all winter long. When the 10:16 came through I had a good chance to use a scheme. << What was the name on the sida of that last refrigerator car, Ja cob?” I yelled out at him. "Why—why, I wasn’t paying any attention,” he stammered. But I had been watching him. He had been looking right at the refrigerator car as it went past! Then it hit me ... I remembered I’d never seen him pick up a mag azine or a paper the whole winter long! Jacob Tinser couldn’t read v a lick, as sure as taxes! I let that all soak in for a while. Then the pieces of the puzzle began to fit together. If Jacob couldn’t read then he couldn’t be a Russian spy or a movie star incognito or any other of the fanciful things people were saying he was. Jacob was just what he looked like. But I didn’t have any more time to think about Jacob Tinser. Just * then a railroad detective arrived at the depot. He was investigating the coal robberies. After I’d helped him all I coufd he stood around for a while, just visiting. "Say, wasn’t that old Jake Tinser I saw going down the tracks as I came in?” he asked. I nodded. "Do you know him?” The detective threw back his head and laughed. "I’ve had Jacob Tinser and his silly reading glasses thrown off more freight trains than a goose has feathers! From thin time of year till cold weather! They say he boles up in some, little town every winter. I never could figure out how he eats. He’s never been known to work a day in his life!” "I guess he knows human nature pretty well. And, of course the glasses help,” I decided. "How could his glasses—?” "Well,”' I explained. "Nobody around here ever saw a bum wear bifocals—before! ” Thanksgiving’s coming—and Mrs. Joe Doakes says she’ll be thankful if she can afford to buy a turkey.