Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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PAGE TWO THE NEWBERRY SUN THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 1956 1218 Coll«gre Street NEWBERRY, S. C. PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY 0. F. Armfield, Jr., Owner Entered as second-class matter December 6, 1937 at the Postot'fice at Newberry, South Carolina, under the Act of Congress of March 3, 1879. SUBSCRIPTION RATES: $2.00 per year in ad vance; six months, $1.25. COMMENTS ON MEN AND THINGS By SPECTATOR The General Electric Company is one of the great indus trial enterprise of the world. In recent years it has used space in National magazines to illustrate the amazing prog ress of the United States. In the March issue of Fortune, a notably handsome pro duction, is a fine two-page spread, telling about the develop ment of our own South Carolina Electric and Gas Com pany. The advertisement show's the great Urquhart plant of the Company, on the Savannah River, and carries photo graphs of the President, Mr. S. C. McMeekin; the Executive Vice President, Mr. J. M. Costello; Vice President W. H. Kendrick and Mr. J. M. McDonald of The General Electric Co. Among the other gentlemen in the picture are Messrs. F. R. McMeekin, N. D. Urquhart, J. F. Rader, and H. J. Turner. I quote from that very informative ad: “The Edison Electric Institute forecasts an increase of up to 77 per cent in KWH consumption in order to meet the 40 per cent increase in demand for goods and services predicted for all industry by 1965. The South Carolina Electric and Gas Company—one of the country’s farsighted and- progressive utilities—faces an even more phenomenal growth prospect. Working with area development boards and chambers of commerce, they expect load growdh to in crease 12-14 per cent per year in this rapidly expanding industrial area. Keeping ahead of industry growdh has meant that the utilities have had to plan their generating capacity ten years in advance of your actual demand. The utility in dustry must anticipate your needs wiith farsighted grow'th studies, allowing for the time required to design, produce, and install the new, more efficient apparatus that will meet these demands wdien they occur.” I had the pleasure of attending the social hour of the Charlotte Traffic and Transportation Club recently. My distinguished friend, Dr. B. M. Edwards was the speaker of the evening and I enjoyed the trip with him and two others of the Seaboard Air Line, Dr. Edwards himself be ing a Director of that great transportation system. The other gentlemen of the Seaboard were Mr. Everett Q. Davis, Assistant General Freight Agent and Mr. J. H. Carter who all the time does the impossible by arranging accommoda tions when nothing is available. In Charlotte our friend L. W. Bishop was our constant companion and friend. “Lou” even offered to lend me five dollars, without note or security—a tribute to his deep friendship and loving kindness. v Selah! Dr. Edwards was in his happiest vein and surpassed himself. I quote just a bit: “If I am correctly informed, the Southern Railway paid into the Federal Government and to local and State tax collectors during the year 1955 something over $41 million in taxes. Did you ever stop to think just what that means? There are 365 calendar days in the year (this year I be lieve we have one extra day). On the basis of 365 days this means that the good old Southern is ‘kicking in’ taxes to the extent of $112,328.00 every time the sun rises. On an hourly basis, 24 hours in the day, it amount to $4,680.00 per hour. In the meantime, neither the Southern Railway nor any of the other rail transportation lines are getting anything much in the way of ‘hand outs’, subsidies or things of that kind; whereas, much of the competing traffic —and I am not criticizing the trucking lines or air lines— get large subsidies in the way of compensation for handling the mails, also receive grants for terminal facilities, and other benefits, direct and indirect.” It will be of special interest what Mr. Edwardes said of the part Railroads played in the Civil War: “Incidentally, I doubt if any of us Southerners have ever stopped to analyze the situation which existed in the War Between the States. The Confederate Army, which was greatly outnumbered by the Northern forces, and not fully equipped with the implements of war, successfully waged a bitter campaign of resistance to the overwhelming num bers of well equipped Northern troops. They were only able to do it because the South was so well provided with railroads at the time, which made possible the quick move ment of troops and war materials from one section to an other to meet the invader from the North. Had it not been for our railroad facilities in the South, this War Between the States probably would have been brought to a conclu sion in less than half the time it took for the Northern ar mies to overcome the Confederacy.” It was particularly informative, the paragraphs about the operation of Railroads: “l” recently saw an advertisement from ‘Nation’s Busi ness’ of April, 1954. It says ‘Suppose the Government for bade food chains to abandon unprofitable stores.’ You know what would happen, if anything like that should take place. The price of your grocery bill would have to go up in order that the storekeeper could make enough money RUN, SHEEP, RUN out of his other places of business to support the unprofit able operation; and you and I would have to pay the price. The storekeeper couldn’t afford to do it. He .couldn’t take that loss; if he did, he would go broke and be out of busi ness. Another serious thing facing the railroads is the cost of doing business. That is why they have had to increase freight and passenger rates. The railroads not only have to stand the cost of increased wages to their employees, but when the steel workers get a raise, or the coal miners get a raise, or the people who are engaged in hundreds and hundreds of other different kinds of business get increases, then the railroad has to pay a higher price for all the ma terials and supplies they purchase in connection with their operations. Eventually these added costs are passed on to you and me and the public. A great deal has been said about wages paid to railroad employees. The compensa tion paid to all railroad employees has increased by leaps and bounds during the past 30 years. Statistics tell us that on the average, passenger train engineers, who in 1922 re ceived annual compensation of $3,001, had been increased to $7,630 in 1952. Passenger firemen, who were receiving S2.216 in 1922, were increased to $6,728. Passenger train conductors, whose annual compensation was $2,781, had increased to $6,744. Passenger train brakemen, who receiv ed $1,844, were raised to $5,592. Local freight brakemen and flagmen, who received $2,246, were increased to $6,118. Wages to roadway employees had increased at even a higher percentage. A roadway worker who received in 1922 a weekly compensation of $19.19 for slightly over an average of 48 hours per week, received in 1952, $63.70, working only 38.9 hours per week. My old group, the tele graphers, who in 1922 received $32.68 for an average of 53 hours per week, received in 1952, $82.77 for a work-week of 42.2 hours. I don’t say that these wages are too high; I don’t say that they are out of reason; but let me tell you something about all this stuff you hear about ‘feather-bedding’. It seems to me that is where the real trouble exists. I am told that one rather large railroad in the Southeast (it isn’t the Coast Line, the Seaboard or the Southern) during the month of February, 1954, employed 114 passenger conduc tors. During the month they actually worked 15,994 hours on straight time. They received pay for 26,959 hours, and were paid in addition overtime rates for 399 hours, also paid for constructive allowances, 740 hours; or a total of hours paid, 28,098, of which 399 hours were at time-and-a- half rates. They only worked a little over half that many hours, 15,994.” The Charleston Evening Post recently published some thing about the proposed Bricker amendment to the Consti tution of the United States. Our people are being blinded and wooed to sleep by their confidence in Mr. Esenhower. I, too, regard Mr. Eisenhower as serious and high-minded, though uninformed, misled and bungling on some matters, including foreign and domestic policy, in part. The proposed Bricker amendment should command im mediate, resolute and unwavering support of every true American whatever his politics may be. Says The Post: “There is no Constitutional right of South Carolina or any other state which could not be nullified by a treaty be tween the United States and another nation. A treaty could likewise render viod an Act of Congress. It is these dangers which should rally Congress to sup port of the proposed Bricker amendment to the U. S. Con stitution. The Ohio senator’s proposal is that ‘a provision of a treaty or other international agreement which conflicts with any provision of this Constitution shall not be of any force or effect’. A more strongly worded proposal failed by^only one vote of receiving the requisite two-thirds majority in the Senate. The revised amendment at least upholds the principles championed in the former and would serve as a check to dangerous treaties with foreign nations. It is not a mere theoretical peril the Bricker proposal seeks to ward off. The. Constitution now provides, in Article VI, that ‘all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every state shall be bound thereby, anything in the Constitution or laws of any state to the contrary notwithstanding’. As a type of agreement that would be invalidated by his amendment Senator Bricker cited the covenant on ‘human rights’ proposed by a United Nations commission. It would, if adopted, make the Constitution guarantee of freedom of the press subject to waiver. Likewise other Constitutional rights could be cancelled. Several cases have already^ arisen I v ■ • 'T'HERE is a tenseness in Wash- ^ ington official circles over the powder-keg situation in the Near East which even the most obtuse observer of the international sit uation cannot fail to feel and see. Even the bland assurance of the President that danger of global war is lessening, coming atop the Secretary of State’s considered opinion that the suave new policy of the Soviet Union is an indication they are on the run, cannot square with the almost unanimous opin ions of writers and students on foreign policy that the position of the United States and that of the Free World has deteriorated dur ing the past year. The fact remains that the Soviet Union has not lost foot of occupied ground; that its satellite China holds half of Korea and Indo-China; that the Soviet Union has hop- skotched the Baghdad Pact into friendly relations with Egypt; with our old friend Saudi Arabia, with Jordan, with Syria; has opened successful economic and trade re lations with India, with Indonesia and with some of the African states; that the very existence of Israel as a nation is threatened, a nation that the United States, together with England, brought into being. The United States has just sent reinforcement of Marines into the eastern Mediterrean. Britain has reinforced her garrisons on her last bastions there at Malta and Cyprus with planes and paratroops. Mr. Dulles in the meantime took to the air again to attend a SEATO conference in the Far East and told those member nations an armed force of troops and planes, similar to the NATO organization in Europe was necessary to pre vent aggression. According to in formed sources here, the Ban doeng Pact may work out only about as effectively as the Bagh dad conference has done. Critics of the Western World’s foreign policy, which boils down to U. S. foreign policy, is that it has a maginot line complex; that treaties which tie nations to our western bloc by paper agreements form a barrier against aggression from the Soviet Union. From Morocco, stretching across north Africa, and south Asia to Indo-C’hina, there are near a doz en nations which have only re cently gained their independence from colonial rule. In these nations there is a fierce spirit of national ism or patriotism. Other nations are fighting for their independence in this same orbit. They have been under this colonialism for some 400 years. They identify coloni alism with imperialism and cap italism. It is part of our foreign policy to offer them, loans, grants or other aid to help them start or maintain their economy. We are sincere about it. But they dis trust our motives. We have a string attached. We want a mil itary base. Or want them to join our “bloc”. Or we want interest. The wily Russians, with no explanation due to taxpayers, with perhaps even the knowledge they cannot keep their pledges, offer them aid without strings. Just be neutral. You don’t have to join the Soviet bloc. We are for peace and just want to be helpful. We are just now able to do this our selves, but we are willing to share what we have. Q—Can you give me some idea of amount of lumber produced annually? A—According to the National Lumber Manufacturers Association a total of 39,105,000,000 board feet was produced id 1955. This was 7% over 1954 and exceeded the output for the 26 previous years. Q—I am drawing a VA pension. I recently received several shares of stock as an inheritance. Must I include these as income for pension purposes? A—Not until you convert them into cash. If you receive dividends, how ever, it will be considered as income. Q—Can you tell me how the name “Old Glory” originated? A—Most historians associate the name to Capt. William Driver, of the U. S. Navy when he watched the American flag raised to the mast of his new ship. The dates given range from 1824 to 1831. The flag is now in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington. Q—How did the Library of Congress obtain the Gutenberg Bible? A—Otto Vollbehr sold the Bible to the Library of Congress together with some 3,000 other 15th Century items for $1,500,000. Vollbehr had ob tained the Bible from the Monks of St. Blasius, an Austrian order. Q—Did many Presidents of the U. S. own slaves? A—^Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Jackson, Tyler, Polk, Tay lor, Johnson and Grant owned slaves. CROSSWORD PUZZLE PUZZLE N». SSS ACROSS 1 Lingered 7 Race of lettuce 10 Place 13 Consent 14 Fabrication 16 Steps, over a fence 17 Pedal digit 18 Feminine name 19 Girl’s name 20 Avarice 22 Location 23 Droll feUow 24 Flesh 25 Plural ending 27 Before 28 By 29 Struggle for breath 30 AppeUatlon of Athena 32 Troop (abbr.) 33 Not long past 35 Assert 37 Fees 38 American writer 39 Has walked on 41 Religious songs 43 Literary composition 45 Syllable of scale 47 A Great Lake 48 Unfettered 49 Therefore » 50 Chemical suffix 52 Prefix: down 53 Brings legal action against 54 Pigpen 55 Flying ' mammals 57 Saltpeter 59 The heart (anat.) 60 Hero who tried to mount to heaven on eagle 62 Ethiopian title 63 Caravansary 65 One who fixes 67 Keep 68 Cornish prefix: town 69 Young boy 70 Summits DOWN 1 Form of ‘•to be” 2 Placed Into motion 3 Frosting 4 A tissue 5 Holland commune 6 Prefix: down 7 American Indian 8 Faroe Islands’ windstorm 9 As it stands (mus.) 10 Bird 11 Accompany 12 Rock 14 Rhymster 15 Raised trans portation lines 17 Snare 20 Exploit 21 Ravine 23 Armed con flict 24 Kind of roof 26 Bolls 29 Birds 30 Beverage 31 Assent to 34 Drinking vessel 35 Paid notices 36 Dawn goddess 38 Care for fash ioning hollow metal objects 40 Inattentive because of anxiety 42 Charge upon property 43 woody plant 44 Kind of bean 45 Man’s name 46 Beetle 48 Pelts 51 Russian storehouse 53 Asterisk 54 Rails 56 Nahoor sheep 58 Angered 59 A whole 61 River island 63 A weight of India 64 Those in power 66 Sun god 67 Reserve corps (abbr.) Lumj □ »[!□ Answer te Pas sis Ne. to emphasize the danger inherent in the present green light given treaties.” From the Granite State News, Wolfeboro, New Hampshire: Al ready we hear the Fir^ Wardens predicting a dry spring and heavy forest fire bills, because of the very heavy precipitation so far this year in the form of rain. They look wise and state “All we know about New Hampshire weather is that it always averages up. So in spite of all our modern devices, our automatic heat, our sanded and plowed roads, our weather-proof cars, and our in sulated homes, we are most de pendent upon the weather. We get rain instead of snow and resort owners moan in anguish and loggers have to pull out of the woods and mills are threatened with a shut down. We get a hot early dry spring and the loggers can get into the low areas easily, but then comes the fire danger and mills are shut down so men can fight fire. Comes the summer with rain to average up for the dry spring and the tourists stay away by thousands instead of coming in their usual droves and summer resort folks begin to con template bankruptcy. And so it goes. There is one excellent feature about our New England weather. The old saying goes, “If you don’t like the way the weather is right now—just you wait a minute.’’ Sociologists have advanced an interesting theory regarding the difference in suicide rate between New England and California. The rate fo*- self destruction is supposed to be two or three times higher in that fabulous rich state, than it is in lean New England. Soci ologists and psychologists state the .cause for this is obvious. The typical New Englander, accus tomed to cold and wind and rain in unexpected quantities at unex pected moments, is prepared to face adversity. The Californian, used to sunny skies and a mild climate, goes under when adver sity strikes. • • • From the Newark Courier-Ga zette, Newark, New York: Every one has heard the saying, “50,000,- 000 Frenchmen, can’t be wrong. One of France’s greatest men of letters, the late Anatole France, made a definitely wiser observa tion: “If 50,000,000 people say a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing.” This is not limited to France, at course—it applies to every nation on the face of the earth. The fact that many people, or even a great majority of people, believe and a- prove something does not m it right. PaiiCarwegii ■ AUTHOR OF "HOW.iO STOP.WORRYING AND START LIVING' YY H. HOWARD, Cartersville, Georgia, was the youngest at a large family living in a big house. Back in those days little children were really taught to be afraid, so she grew up afraid of her shadow, of a storm, afraid of the dark. Even after her marriage she would grab a coat and run to a neighbor’s or to her husband’s office when a storm came up. After their son was bom she could not do that. When he was old enough to observe her fears she knew she had to conquer her fear, knew that she could never teach her son self control if she could not control herself. So when a storm arose, with thunder roaring and lightning flashing or zig zagging in the sky, she would hold him up to look at the bright flashes and say “pretty, pretty,” and he actually enjoyed a storm. Then one day she thought if he could see beauty in God s handiwork and not have fear, why couldn’t she? His father passed away when he was about four and one-half years old and they were left alone. She knew she dared not be afraid now for her son’s sake, CARNEGIE so, through will power, faith and prayer she learned not to be afraid 1 yotte 1. Hie word spelean la associated with (a) oratory; (b) caves; (c) anatomy. 2. Tin fish is nautical slang for (a) submarine; (b) torpedo; (c) destroyer. 3. Abysinnia is the former name of (a) Iran; (b) Ethiopia; (c) Liberia. Answers *1 CURFEW THAT FAILED By Clarence M. Lindsay npH* town of Brookfield was not ■b he very large, but politically speaking it was livelier than a nest of hornets just knocked off a sweetgum. Jeremiah Abbott had served two terms as Mayor, and he was resolved on keeping his well paid job for another term, at least. And election day was very near. Walking down Main Street one fine morning he met up with Joel Kimball, one of the town’s most popular citizens and who, it was rumored, had hopes of displacing Jeremiah as the Great Mogul of Brookfield. In fact, it was more than rumor, for he had already tossed his hat into the ring, so to speak. “Momin’, Joel!” was the May or’s greeting. “Got many voters lined up yet behind your banner?” Jeremiah laughed and poked his rival in the short ribs with his cane. “Nope! Not many - yet. But y* never can tell!” “Well, I’ll tell you something, my friend! You haven’t got a chance! And today I’m going to have the Town Council put through an ordinance for a nine-o’clock curfew. That’ll keep the young sters off the streets at night— and be a boon to older folk!” Joel shrugged'Great idea, Jerry! —That ought to make you solid with Brookfield folk, I’ll admit!” “Bound to!” agreed the other; and resumed his stroll. When he was out of sight, Joel leaned up against a lamppost and gave way to spasms of mirth. “I know how that curfew business worked over in the next county;— and I reckon It’ll work out the same way here! Ha, ha, ha!” By the following week the cur few law was passed in effect; and after Brookfield had put up with it for a few days, it was quite apparent that the kids didn’t take to it very kindly. In fact, many of them who had previously sought their homes by . nine o’ clock, now didn't roll in tiU alter ten. And lickings dktot "***» any impression on them. Joel, who published and edited the Brookfield Courier, made it his business to call on toe heads of various families and inquire as to just what they thought of toe curfew law. Letters began to pour in, and Joel saw to it that one and all were published—and underneath each one was the printed line “VOTE FOR JOEL KIMBALL FOR MAYOR.” These letters were all more or less alike, and by the end of the week Joel* printed an announce ment on the front page of the Courier in large type, and which read as follows: TA# curfew ordinance which Mayor Abbott bad jammed through the Town Council has proved a boomerang! It is working in reverse! Reports ' from forty-five families make it plain that not only does it not keep the youngsters off the streets at night, but the infernal clang of the nine-o’clock bell wakes half of the babies in town and all of the dogs, and sets them both to howling at once. Result is, there is more noise in Brookfield after nine- o’clock at night than there is all day! If I am elected Mayor, I’ll have this ordinance repealed. VOtfE FOR JOEL KIMBALL This was only two days before the election, and Joel followed the announcement up with a big par- rade, with banners which bore the inspiring lines: “CURFEW SHALL NOT RING TONIGHT! — VOTE FOR JOEL KIMBALL!” They did. Even had Jeremiah managed to have the ordinance re pealed, it was too late, to undo toe damage done. After reading the re turns, he sadly conceded toe elec tion to JoeL “You win!” he told toe latter when he saw that gentleman. “And I hope you keep your campaign promise, for I’m tired of rocking the baby to sleep and locking the dog up in the tool-shed! -f '