The independent. [volume], April 07, 1933, Image 1

About The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936

Image provided by: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Library, Chapel Hill, NC

                
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NeelL The Independent f ??=?
I vSlI xxiv.: NO. 1.321. ,? w ?, - ELIABETH CITY! N. C., FRTlM?7l^-f w., ? , ,,, -??== g
? .arniL/, 1933. mm, a^Tx'gSJ.r.ar1" SINGLE COPY 5 CENT!:.
0ew Feeling of Safety and
Confidence Turns Scowls to
Smiles in All the Albemarle
\ not her Independent Prophecy Fulfilled by
a 15 Minute Margin When The First &
Citizens National Re-opened 100 Per Cent
Saturday Afternoon
The hand* of the chime clock on the front of The
first & Citizens National Bank pointed a quarter to
three ?'cl"ik on Saturday afternoon, April 1. The
hankiwj day in Elizabeth City closes at 3 P. M. A
tiandiny at the entrance to the bank observed
the tinn' by the clock. "'The Independent sure missed
?a.. >vx this time** said the man.
' th? Independent in its issue of
cr-Qiv Match 31 guessed that The {
r- 'Z'tis National Bank,
been closed for four I
* *""" b- opened w.thout re
bfiore the end of last
"* Ana the end of the banking
? V iv r nd of the week was only
tj minutes off. Almost at that
?im:n: '.'nero was a stir within the
hint Word had come from the!
rrtral Reserve Bank in Washing
..'Tha* ui: conditions had been met
r.*h'a:id that the First & Citizens
Sron.i: Bank could open at once;
r-oif restrictions. The Indc
?tadrnl's prophecy was fUifill-d.
Ar. excited middle-aged man who
wa-: smiled for 26 days rushed to
?he front of "he bank and tore from
Z door a copy of the Presidentail
ric: "which closed the bank on
isiday- March 6. "I wanted to tear
iat damned thing down with my
?m hands and I don't want to live
?j see an.vth.ng like it on the door
.v -his bank again." The man was
Chides 0 Robinson, chairman of
?ie Board of Directors who had
neglected his every business enter
prise and slept little or eaten little
for four weeks.
When President Roosevelt took of
s-o or. March 4th every bank and ;
if? insurance company in America
za in imminent danger. The de-.
predion had turned panic, depositors)
nre frantically withdrawing their j
deposits from banks everywhere,
udhoideis oi life insurance policies
??:? demanding their loan or cash)
irrrndc: values. Millions in gold'
iudbeer w/hdrawn from banks audi
snipped to Europe. With a national j
currency amounting to only about
i billion dollars banks were sud
aer.lv beir.c called upon to pay off
tl billions in deposits. In a few
days every bank in America would
tave b?er. in the hands of receivers.
And then Roosevelt ordered a na
bank holiday to save every
u.-.k worth sav.ng. From Washing
"oc came word that no national
ur.k would b? permitted to open
Iain: it was 100 per cent sound and
solvency guaranteed by the gov
snmcnt itself. Bank examiners
*rar. ar. immediate overhauling of
he assets and liabilities of every
ark. Examiners found consiaer
i:.a slow and doubtful paper in The
Fin; & Citizens National Bank of
wabeth City. They said to this
sink. You must write ofl every
War of this doubtful paper and in
htarf you; capital stock by $115.
m new money to offset the paper
to be written off."
It was Wednesday. March 22nd
before this stunning ultimatum was
taderstoori. Immediately a hurry
to the .. jme 200 stockholders of
tae bank was issued, to meet Tues
day March 23. A meeting of a
hank's stockholders can not be cali
ph on lea-; than five day's notice.
The stockholders met Tuesday
aftemior. of last week. It was up
*? them r.ot only to authorize a new
stick r,<ue 0f SI 15.000. but to place
that stock without delay. Failure
to have the stock subscribed by
31 might easily have meant
4'low liquidation of the bank under
a conservator. Elizabeth City was
? a desperate plight; one big chain
^nkiag organization was laying its
to establish a branch in Eliz
?eth City to grab off the banking
witness 'hat Elizabeth City's only
"aWcing nous; could no longer sup
ply
I *<3.500 of the required new capital
?tock was subscribed before that
stockholders meeting adjourned
Tuesday evening. That night and
the nex*. day officers and friends
'1 the bank made an active canvass
? several counties and by Thurs
night 'he total amount of $115.
^ in ->ight. Friday morning
aPPlicant;s for shares of the new 6
<*r cerr cumulative preferred stock
tf:e turned away. A messenger was
?"mediately dispatched to Rich
mond to certify the new subscrip
ts to the Federal Reserve Bank.
The okeh from Richmond came so
7?* to the close of the banking
??y that it was decided to keep the
tank oprn until five o'clock Satur
? Within a period of a little
than two hours, more than
T0000 ui accumulated deposits
*? tranifened to the bank. On
'Continued on Page Four)
Why Not Slot
Machines To Pay
Off City Debts?
??
I
One of 11k* greatest inyster-i
ies of the age to an independ
ent reporter is the source of
all the wealth that is pouredi
into hundreds of slot ma-j
chines in Klizahcth City every
week, lio into almost any
tilling station, confectionery
store or poj)-shop and one will
find a company of youths and
and grown men gathered around j
slct machines feeding copper cents;
and nickels to them.
Once in a blue moon somebody i
makes a jack-pot: but usually the,
prcprietcr makes the jack-pot after j
scores of saps have dumped their'
change into the machine and not;
quits made it.
"I pay mv rent out otf my split i
from the machines." said the pro- j
prietor of one down-town place the i
other morning. The man he leas-'
ed the machine from had just empti- !
ed the week s toll taken by one of;
the penny-in-the-slot machine*. ?
The machine had yield 2.200 pen- j
nies: $11.00 for the lessor and SI 1.00'
for the lessee. The machines re-\
turn to the players only a small per
centage of the coins they put in.
But the saps go back d-ay after day.!
week after week, feeding coins to,
the slots and getting little in return j
except the excitement of hoping'
they can beat the unbeatable. It's |
a sorry game, but the world is made,
up of folks with sorry imaginations.'
But where do the loafers ar.d j
[ simpletons who feed so much money j
| to these machines get so much from ,
to fritter away? The aggregate of
,the money taken into all the scores
i of slot-machines in and around:
[Elizabeth City must run into hun
dreds of dollars weekly. And that
gives the reporter an idea: Why]
; couldn't Elizabeth City pay olf its i
bonded indebtedness and reduce all
,ta.\es by outlawing privately operat
j ed slot machines and putting its own
j slot machines in operation all over
i town. Those slot machines are bet- i
: ter money getters than tax col-'
j lectors and would get the money
1 weher the money is; for there
I seems to be no end to the pennies
and nickels available for slot ma
chines that pay the players possibly
15 cents on the dollar.
Paved Road to
Beaches Not Before
Midsummer
The paving of Route 344 from
from Grandy to Point Harbor in
! Cuirituck County, last link in the
all paved highway from Manteo to
Murphy, will hardly be completed
I before August 1, according to ofTi
| cials of R. G. Lassiter & Co., paving
! contractors.
The paving begun last December
I has progressed from Point Harbor
i and the Wright Memorial Bridge to
i a point about a mile below Powell's
I Point this week, leaving about six
t miles of paving yet to be laid. The
; sand asphalt paving has been de
layed by much wet weather all thru
the winter and spring. Sand asphalt
is laid hot and must be laid on a
dry surface or steam pockets will
form and cause the paving to blist
er and buckle. The contractors not
only must rest during a rain, but
: wait for the road bed to dry before
; resuming operations after a rain.
I
I
? ?A total of 164,000 families were
aided by relief funds in North Caro
lina during the month of February,
; according to figures made public by
the Governor's office of relief. This
j is practically the same as the num
ber aided in January. Based on
five persons to the family this num
ber represents only a little more
than 25 per cent of the population of
tche State.
Mail Girl
THE only female rural mall carrier
that this newspaper has heard any
thing about is Miss Ruth Sample,
above, personable daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. M. B. Sample of this coun
ty. Miss Sample made the highest
grade on a civil service examination
that was stood by more than 100
persons here recently and is now
serving as a substitute rural car
rier.
Elizabeth City
Gets a Cut Rate
Auto Supply House
Another vacant store cn Main
Street occupied this week. The
Economy Auto Supply Co.. A. E.
Gilliam, proprietor has leased the
old Louis Selig stand corner of
Main and Water Sts. and will open
for business Saturday, Apr. 15.
The Economy Auto Supply Co.
will handle Goodrich Tires ar.d a
full line of automobile accessories
and novelties, making a direct bid
for business that goes to mail
orders houses. "We'll sell qual ty
merchandise at cut rate prices." says
rnr. Gilliam, who looks and talks
like a live wire. Mr. Gilliam is a na
tive ' f Norfolk, formerly an automo
bile tire and accessories salesman.
The store will open with beau'Uul
and modern fixtures and a s'ock of
mere than a thousand different
items: "Everything from a spark
plug to a seat cover."
?Luther Langley, Wilson filling sta
tion operator, is charged with kill
ing his brother. Sid Langley, 21, in
a Sunday afternoon quarrel. He said
he did not know the shotgun he
pointed at his brother was leaded.
<-r A^-irv V-X * r
G/h?<BANJK ClQK ?*"> TU?; SOOA dCCKtli
THE EDI/CATION WE DON'T LIKE DOESN'T STICK
I "Well si.-. I never saw anything
like!" said the Soda Jerker.
i "Like what?" asked the Bank
' Cierk.
I
I "Like the way news ol the bank
opening Saturday afternoon put
J new life, new energy and smiles in
| to everybody. Why if that bank
I had stayed closed another four weeks
j I honestly believe half the business
| folks in this town would have gone
| to bed with incurable blues. When
I the doors ot that bank were Hung
i open if was jus: like a break in the
| clouds letting the sun thru for the
first time in a pair of fortnights.
' Everybody had the jitters, waiting
! for the government to let that bank
; open. For one thing, a lot of us
: were afraid that if the bank didn't
[open pretty soon it would take all
the money in the vaults to pay off
.you fellows sitting around in your
; empty cages doing nothin'. It hurt
! a let o' folk, who couldn't draw a
: dollar cut of their accounts, seein'
i you fellows still drawin' your salar
1 ies."
"Maybe we haven t had much to
do for a few weeks." said the Bank
Clerk, "but we are working over
time now to make up for it."
"Weil, what I want to know,"
said the Soda Jerker, "is when will
1 things case up again so a fellow
j can go to the bank and borrow a lit
I tic money"
"It depends on who the fellow
I is and what his requirements are.
| plus the security he has to offer."
j said the Bank Clerk. "It's going to
be a long, long time before commer
cial banks in this country will be
advertising money to lend. The
| trouble with the whole world to-day
I is easy credit. The United States
is broke because it was so easy for
the United States to borrow and
lend money for the rest of the world
to fight a four years' war with.
North Carolina is broke because it
was too easy to borrow money to
build roads and schools with. Eliz
? abeth City is broke because it was
too easy for Elizabeth City to bor
I row money to make municipal im
! provemenLs with.
"Here in Elizabeth City we raised;
about $300,000 to build a hotel with; 1
but somebody showed us how easy it]
was to borrow $325,000 more and
I we built a $625,000 hotel that has
I been in the red ever since. We rais
ed about $30,000 to give ourselves
I a country club: and somebody show
i ed up how easy it was to borrow
$35,000 to add to it and we built a
j $05,000 country club that has been
I in the red ever since.
"Back in the reckless days of 1927
? 1028 it was nothing unusual for an
| individual to pledge his credit for
I more installments for an automo
bile. a radio, an electric refrigerator
. and a house to live in, than his
salary amounted to. Those days are
i gone forever. Out of this depression
j folks have learned that credit is
i dear at any price and that a man
I who is a slave to six per cent in
l terest never gets thru paying for
I the things he buys. Any man who
I began now to lay aside the interest |
1 he would pay on a loan of, say. $10.
1000 would in a matter of 12 years
| have saved $10,000."
j "You say folks have learned all {
I that?" asked the Soda Jerker. "Don't
! kid yourself; folks learn things only,
j to forget 'cm. The trouble with com
pulsory education is, it don't stick.
We aint learned a thing that our
i daddies didn't learn back in Cleve
j land days and later in 1907 and 1913.
;But what good did it do 'em? Like
? i the Latin and Greek and Algebra
I they learned at college, it was for-1
gotten before the summer vacation |
was over. The only education that I
sticks is the education we like. How j
many folks, you reckon, like the]
kind of education we've been get-1
ting these past four years?"
J I
[ 85 per cent of all people have de
fective vision. Are you one of these?
Have your eyes examined today.
DR. J -D. HATHAWAY, Carolina
Building. adv.
Big Shots of the Border At
Last in the Tpils of the Law|
j *
1 Federal Prohibition Ugents Had to Get the I
Warrens or Take a Licking and They I
Have Got the Warrens
Stirred to action h]}. the mistreatment of two
Federal prohibition investigators by Norfolk county |
liquor-runners and by the fatal shooting of a Norfolk j
county officer by alleged bootleggers, Federal authori-j
ties operating out of Norfolk declared war on the'
liquor forces, with the result that the notorious War-l
ren Brothers of Norfolk county, Va., are being land-\>
ed in the toils of the law after years of unmolestedI1
operations. j
Co? Wav-or. Rr Ram Warrpn li
Says Too Much!
| Good Time in
A Small Town
That the good time shown!
to members of the Albany
| baseball team of the Interna
jiionnl League when they
; were here last Friday, instead
i of impressing Manager Hill
MeC.ory and enhuneing the
town's ehanees of becoming
the team's spring training
(mailers, mav have hurl
I ? %
these chances, is indicated in re
marks made by Manager McCory
befo.e leaving here Friday night.
The Cardinals, local independent j
club, arranged a game with the Al
; bany Senators last Friday, hoping
the Northern team would be so im
pressed with the town that they
would come to Elizabeth City for
spring training in the fture, bring
ing into the town some $7,000 in j
training expense funds. The Vir
ginia Dare Hotel furnished the visit
j ing players' with rooms for dressing
j pu.poses: the Puritan Cafe pro
vided a supper; and the Cardials
gave a dance in the Virginia Dare
| ballroom in honor of the Senators.
It was thought that all this gcod
time, together with the town's at
tractions and the oiler of a field free
of charge might induce Manager
McCory to leave Norfolk, where his
team trained this year, and come
(Continued on Page Two)
Jr., Charlie Warren and George |
Bartlett, all of Norfolk county.
were arrested Monday by Federal ,'
authorities on a charge of conspir- j
acy to violate the national prohibi- j
tion law. They are named defend-!,
ants in the same warrant on which t
12 Norfolk men, alleged "big shots"
in the whisky traffic of that city j
and section, were arrested last Fri- j,
day. Woodrow War.en was arrest-,
ed by Federal authorities last!,
month, after the officers had chas-i,
_d a fleet of liquor-running auto-!;
mobiles into the yard of the Warren,,
home on the highway between!;
Hickory and Great Bridge.
The Warrens have a nice country!,
home near Great Bridge. One or!,
cwo of the boys live in South Nor-!
folk, but most of them make their,
home with their father. There are
a number of them, including Charlie.
Woodrow. Sam. Jr., Jesse and Willie.
Most of them are large and power
ful men and are reputed tough.;
Seldom could one ride past their,
home when there were not from1
half a dozen to a dozen trucks and
fast automobiles parked in the,
yard. Large Buicks, Ford V-8's andj
other automobiles and trucks rec-'
i ognized as belonging to the Warrens1
reared down the highways at night'
and in the early morning hours, and
knowing persons whispered "the;
Warrens are malting a run." Stories;
of their activities, their lawlessness,'
their bravado and their meanness
|have long been legend in the sec-;
[-t<>on between Elizabeth City and
! Norfolk. But until quite recently.
i the Warrens "ruled the roost," so
i to speak. Their cars were never
[stopped. They were never bother
ed by officers. They had things
'pretty much their own way. Then
! things happened that changed mat- (
,ters. ;
? On the night of February 9,
Federal prohibition investigators J.
L. Lancaster and E. A. Booth, oper
ating out of this city, captured the
1 driver of an alleged liquor car
which ran their Dcdge sedan into
a ditch near St. Bride's, only to be
surrounded by a large armed group
a few minutes later and to have
their prisoner taken from them.
The officers were then "taken for
a ride" and subjected to indigni-:
I ties. Booth was shot at several;
times as he fled across a field after j
being released. Lancaster had to |
plead for his life. Not long there
after a Norfolk county officer by the |
name of .Peaches was shot and'
mortally wounded by an unknown j
man in a supposed liquor car which I
he was chasing.
1 The prohibition forces, thus chal
I lenged and slapped in the face by j
the bootleg clement, saw it was a,
I fight to the finish?a matter of lay- ,
i ing down entirely and admitting
, themselves "licked." or of fighting
it out with the Big Shots and clean
| ing them up. They decided on the
latter course. That they are getting
results in their fight is clearly in
dicated in the capture of the War
j rens. What the courts will do about
[ the matter will be seen when the
[warrens and the other so-called
Big Shots appear before U. S. Com
[ missioner Percy S. Stephenson in
I Norfolk Friday for a preliminary
'hearing. The Warrens may escape
! conviction, but the officers at least
[and at last have shown that they
| are not afraid to arrest these so
! called bad men.
i Americans consume about 4,000,
000.000 bottles of soft drinks an
j nually.
? !
Police Threaten
Again To Enforce
Motor Vehicle Laws
It is against the law to drive
a locally owned motor vehicle in
Elizabeth City without a driver's
permit issued by the City, and it
is against the law to double park
on the streets. But the laws are
never enforced. Every now and
then the police department puts
out word that it will begin to |
enforce the laws on and after a
certain date. They have put out
the word again. This time they
say that wholesale arrests will be
made oh and after Friday. April
7th. Eelieve it or not.
?'
Elizabeth City Getting Set to
Cash In On the Sale of 3.2 Beer
Farm Relief!
Program Riles
Gov. Employes
l'. S. ('oast Guards and J
other government employes j
are looking with resentment
upon the President's farm re
lief program. They looked
with alarm upon Rooseveltian
economy measures, but said
little. Now they arc voicing
indignation.
A member of the Coast Guard j
stopped this reporter on the street I
:he other night and said: "I guess
we're going to have farm relief?"
"Looks that way," said the re
porter.
"And looks as if they're taking it
out of us fellows in the government
service to give it to the farmers.
Back in War times when the .farm
ers were rolling in wealth, we fel- i
lows in the service didn't get any |
raise: we went right on working fori
the same old pay with our living I
expenses on the uppety up. The i
farmer lived high in those days; he
not only made money but spent
money. Hhe spent every cent he
made and borrowed billions from
the land banks to blow in on im
provements he never will pay for.
He got himself so deep in debt that
he can't pay out and now we little
fellows who never had any flush
times have got to part with a big I
slice of our pay to enable the gov-'
ernment to relieve the farmer. And!
he aint goin' to stay relieved; the!
first time he gets a fair price for1
his cotton, corn or potatoes he'll
go on another spending spree and
will have to be helped again when
the next slump comes.
"Put this in the paper; but don't
call my name; we're under a dicta
torship now and a government em- '
ploye who talks about his bosses
will be canned before he can say
Jack Robinson."
This is a faithful report of the
language of one Coast Guardsman
who is pretty well known in Eliz
abeth City. He voices the senti
(Continued on Page Four)
Virginia Dare Hotel and Country Club Stock
Looking Up?Coca-Cola Bottling Co.
likely Distributors for Anheuser Busch
and Schlitz?Norfolk Southern Contem
plating Beer Trains from Beerless Nor
folk to Sudsy Betsytown
The passage of the Francis Bill legalizing the
sale of 3.2 per cent beer in North Carolina on and
after Mag 1st, 1933 promises to let Elizabeth City and
the Dare Coast particularly?and the Albemarle
generally?in for a great adventure and a lot of pro
fit. If the country is going to be half as crazy about
this new beer as the legislators hope, Elizabeth City
and the Dare Coast will be over run with Virginia
beer hounds coming to North Carolina for the suds
that Pollard and Byrd of Virginia deny them.
i CltvoKnHi Plfv rncf aurnnt.fi
Lower Property
Valuation And
Higher Tax Rate
The Counlv Commission-;
ers of Pasquotank County j
may have thought they weiv
fooling the taxpayers of the!
county 011 Monday when they:
ordered a horizontal reduc
tion of .">11 l-.'l per cent in real
estate valuation, hut they!
were only fooling themselves.
The Commissioners are going
to have a lively time explaining j
things to the taxpayers when the I
1933 tax levy is increased proportion- ;
ately to ollset this valuation reduc-;
tion. i
On Monday morning, the board j
took up the matter of a county-wide i
revaluation of real estate. The
owners of property were howling for
relief. Their property is not now,
worth what it was worth when it i
was last assessed, they claimed, and!
they wanted a revaluation. But the i
board would hear nothing of a re-1
valuation. To have all property in I
the county revalued would necessi- I
tate the employm nt.of additional i
tax assessors in each township,'
would cost the county around $2,000.;
(Continued on Page Two)
drugstores. Tilling stations and iwp
.'hops are looking forward to land
oilicc business and the Elizabeth
City Country Club may have a re
crudescence as the mccca of Vir
ginia golfers who would choose a
stein with their golf. '
Norfolk Southern Rail Road offi
cials arc said to be contemplating
running a beer train from Norfolk to
Elizabeth City. Back in the old
days when North Carolina was Dry
and Virginia Wet. the Norfolk
Southern ran a Red Light special
from Edenton, Hertford and Eitz
?bcth City to Norfolk. It was call
;i a theatre train; it left Elizabeth
Cliv arcund 6 o'clock and. returning,
left Norfolk a few minutes before
midnight. Some North Carolinians
went to Norfolk on the alleged
theatre train to see a show, but most
of them made a bee line for Stove
Seelinger's bar room when they got
:o Norfolk.
And now thirsty Virginians are
expected to be as eager to come 'O
Norfolk Carolina for their beer as
North Carolinians were f?rmcriy
eager to go to Virginia for theirs.
The-c Virginians will buy food,
smokes, gasoline and drug sundries.
And a lot of them are going to ex
pect other forms of entertainment.
Cheap burlesque shows and Ramb
ling houses will appear in Elizabeth
City and on the Dare Coast if wo
don't look out. And more and more
Scarlet Women.
We'll Have Beer Gardens
Th? Francis Bill, providing beer
for Ncrth Carolina is a loosely con
structed measure. It permits the
rule of beer, but it must not be sold
in beer gardens or saloons; nor can
it be manufactured. No one may
establish a brewery in North c?r0*
lina. as badly as North Carolina
needs new industries.
But what is going to prevent tl.c
citing up of saloons and beer
gardens? What is to prevent Charlie
Vanture from opening tus open-air
cafe between the Virginia Dare
Hotel Arcade and the First & Ci.i
zens National Bapk and serving
beer with or without food? And
what's to prevent the Virginia Dare
Hotel from putting awnings. chahs
and tables on the roof of Its.tall
loom and serving beer with or w.th
out food? And what's to Prcv^"
every soda fountain and confec
tionery shop from putting to bar
fixtures and the brass rail?
And what a snap the Illicit manu
facturers of Home Brew arc goto?
to have! Federal, State-and-local
taxes will amount to 3 cts or more
)cr bottle on every bottle of legal
beer Home Brew is maaJwa-tured
at a cost net exceeding l?i cento a
bottle. Does any one think tha-th
Home Brew industry is going to dto
appear with the admission o[ tejal
ized beer? Not on your life. Four
Ten years of Prohibition has edu
cated millions of palates to Homo
B:cw and it will take yearst to> tdu
ca'e them to the new and milder
brew. All of this whoopee over
legalized beer will encourage the m
called Home Brew WdhstrV lor a
time, until Federal and Sta^e tax
collecting machinery Rcto inoac
tion And then look out. A1 Capone
could get by with the selling of mil
lions of cases of beer a"d booze un.;,
he tried to beat the government out
of a little tax. And then Mr.
Capone was railroaded to prison.
The same fate is in store for the
home brewers now; the Federal
Government. State and county offi
cials arc going to be keen to ap
?y-Phmd tax evaders, where they
were indifferent so long as public
revenues were not affected.
There is talk of an amendment
to the beer bill to permit the estab
lishment cf breweries in No. h
Carolina. In that event Ehzabetn
City may have a brewery. I think
Id like to turn my plant into a
brewery." says C. M. Whitley, pack
er of Smithfield style hams. Mr.
Whitley was formerly identified with
the liquor trade back in the old days
land recognizes the possibilities for
profit in beer in North Carolina.
Bvrd cf Virginia Make* a Gum
And in the meantime Virginia,
(Continued on Page Two)
Market House Is Operated At
A Loss As Charged, Opinion
Of Expert Public Accountant
Declaring that the item of depreciation abso
lutely should not and cannot reasonably be ignored,
even by a municipality, A. Lee Raidings of Norfolk,
Va.y one of the South's foremost certified public ac
countants and a recognized authonty on such mat
ters, backs up the Markethouse Committee of the
Young Men's Civic Club in its contention that Eliz
ibeth City's municipal markethouse is losing money
iwimlhi.
The Club committee's arguments I
with respect to the financial aspect
of the market situation have been:
based on an application of common |
sense and reason to actual known
figures. Not a member of the com
mittee had more than a very slight
knowledge of accounting. Conse
quently, when the City Council's
Markethouse committee refuted or j
denied their contentions they were
powerless to offer rebuttal without'
expert accounting opinion to cor- j
roborate them. When the Council- j
men said it is common municipal I
practice to make no allowance for!
depreciation of fixed public proper- j
ties, the Club committee knew not
what to say. When the Councilmen I
said that the annual payments of |
principal and interest on the bond-1
cd and note indebtedness of the j
markethouse could not be included
in a statement of markethouse ex-1
pense the Club committee could j
only argue back that they disagreed;
but had no reason for disagreeing!
except common sense. When the j
Councilmen said the electric current1
and water furnished the market-1
house by the Public Utilities Com- j
mission could not be included in the :
operating expense of the market be
cause it is donated and the City i
does not have to pay for it, the
Club committee knew this was im- j
proper accounting practice, but!
they could only say so; they could:
not prove it. And so it went.
Last Friday, determined to obtain;
expert and authoritative opinion on j
these various questions and find out j
whose contentions were correct, Wm.;
Keith Saunders, chairman of the
(Continued on Page Four)
Holiness Sect Is
Having a Big Time
i
There have been big doings over j
at the Pearl St. Asembly church j
this week, with the Pentecostal Holi-,
ness church staging a mammoth old-1
fashioned revival. Many religious
meetings and revivals have been
held in the little church on Pearl I
Street, but the one now in progress!
is the biggest in many years.
Daily, scores of persons from half j
a dozen adjoining counties drive in i
to Elizabeth City to attend this re- j
viva!, which is being conducted by i
Sigby Miller, local Pentecostal Holi
ness preacher. Those attending the '
revival from a distance take their
meals in an improvised dining room
established in the store building on j
the corner of Pearl and Poindexterj
Streets, where the Sunshine Grocery i
formerly was located. The automo
biles of the visitors fill all evailablei
parking space on both sp. s cfj
Pearl Street for two blocks. Judg- 1
ing from the crowds, the automo
biles, the food and the singing and;
shouting, it's a surenuff revival the j
Holiness sect is having over on j
Pearl Street this week.
?The program to turn Grandfather I
Mountain over to the Federal gov-'
ernment for a national forest has!
been revived. The Forest service has
a tract of 75,000 acres adjoining
Grandfather, and it is argued that i
the two combined would result in j
making one of the greatest mom- i
tain attractions in the South. |