Newspaper Page Text
E good
venin U
By Quimby Melton
Ernie Rogers is dead.
Georgia has lost another truly
great newspaper man; one not
only respected but loved by all
with whom he came in contact.
And Good Evening has lost a gr
eat friend.
In our book, Ernie Rogers
ranks with such other Geor
gia newspaper men as Henry
W. Grady, Grantland Rice, Fr
ank L. Stanton, Joel Chandler
Harris, and Clark Howell.
We first knew Ernie when he
was a student at Old Emory Col
lege and was a classmate of our
brother and a student of our fa
ther. Even as a young man he
displayed a spirit that guaran
teed that he, though a cripple,
would rise to the top of what
ever profession he chose.
Luckily for Georgia Ernie
chose to be a newspaper man
and a news announcer over ra
dio in its early days.
Sonr j years ago Ernie Rogers
speak ng to a Griffin civic club
would up his speech with this:
If • o’, can’t be a pine on the
top c.' the hill
Be a scrub in the valley, but be
The best little scrub by the
side of the hill.
Be a bush if you can’t be a
tree.
If you can’t be a bush
Be a blade of grass,
If you can’t be a kingfish then
just be a bass,
And the livliest bass in the
lake.
We can’t all be captains,
we’ve got to be crew,
There’s labor for all of us here;
There’s big work to do and
lesser work, too,
And the duty of all must be
clear.
If you can’t be a highway, then
just be a trail;
If you can’t be the sun be a
star,
It isn’t by size that you win or
fail,
But be the best of whatever
you are.
Good Evening asked Ernie if
he could have a copy of that
poem. Ernie furnished it to us
but stipulated that we never use
it, in speech or column, as long
as he lived.
But today with Ernie moving
his news beat from earth to Hea
ven we reproduce it, as an in
spiration to all who may read.
And we do so with the affirma
tion that Ernie Rogers was a
pine towering upon the hill giv
ing inspiration to all who heard
him speak or read after him.
Monday night Good Evening
attended the First Baptist Chur
ch service to hear Dr. F. Cros
ley Morgan. Frankly we went
partly out of pure curosity. We
wanted to see just how this Dr.
Morgan compared with his fa
ther, the late Dr. Campbell Mor
gan, one of the greatest Bible
scholars it has ever been our
good fortune to hear.
And just as frankly — Good
Evening was not disappointed
one bit. The 1967 edition of Mor
gan lives up to the Campbell
Morgan image. We expect to at
tend again tonight and wish that
we could attend every night this
week, but Prayer Service at our
church on Wednesday and the
football game Thursday night,
will prevent it.
But we say to our readers, re
gardless of denomination, if you
want to hear an authority on the
Bible, don’t fail to hear Dr.
Morgan.
Man Suffers
Broken Leg
In Wreck Here
A Griffin man suffered a bro
ken left leg in an automobile ac
cident a mile east of Griffin on
Georgia 16 Monday.
Joe King, 32, of Route Four,
Griffin, was admitted to the Gr
iffin-Spalding County Hospital.
King and Mary N. Schwinn,
57, of 1210 Sherwood road, Col
umbia, S.C., were listed as dri
vers of cars involved.
Damage was estimated at S6OO.
She was charged with driving
on the wrong side of the road.
Weather:
FORECAST FOR GRIFFIN
AREA — Cooler tonight. Clear
to partly cloudy and cool Wed
nesday.
..LOCAL WEATHER — High
today 79, low today 48, high
Monday 77, low Monday 63,
rainfall .30 of an inch; sunrise
Wednesday 7:40, sunset Wednes
day 7:13.
More Marines
Sent To DMZ
By EUGENE V. RISHER
SAIGON (UPD—The U.S.
Military Command announced
today 3,000 more American
Marines had been sent to
reinforce Leathernecks at the
Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). It
was a major tactical shift in
preparation for what could be a
decisive battle in the war.
A U.S. military spokesman
said the situation in the
Court Searched
For Gun Today
Judge John H. McGehee or
dered court officers to search
people in the balcony of the Sp
alding County courtroom this
morning after a witness in a
pending case said she had been
threatened with a gun by the
defendant.
Sheriff Dwayne Gilbert said
no gun was found.
He was Investigating the in
cident this afternoon.
Judge McGehee interrupted
court proceedings to order the
search. He issued instructions
that no one was to leave the
balcony until the search was
made.
GM Calls Back
1,200 Trucks
DETROIT (UPD — General
Motors Corp, today called back
1,200 new Chevrolet trucks
because of a brake deficiency.
The company said it would
have to replace a brake booster
diapbram plate because of
improper spot welding on the
plates, which were furnished by
a supplier.
Chevrolet said the deficiency
could cause a loss of power
assist resulting in abnormal
brake pedal effort to stop the
trucks involved.
The owners of the 1968 model
medium duty trucks were asked
to return them to their dealers
so the corrections could be
made.
Country Parson
■lip
“Scholars have an impos
sible job — getting smart
enough to find answers while
staying dumb enough to be
understood by us.”
21 Acts In Fair
Talent Contest
Twenty one acts will be pre
sented in the amateur talent con
test Wednesday night at 8 o’clo
ck at the Kiwanis Spalding Coun
ty Fair.
Grady McCalmon is chairman
of the amateur night and Fred
Watkins will serve as master of
ceremonies.
Prizes will be awarded win
ners in the grammar school, ju
nior high and senior high and
adult groups.
The performers will include:
DAILY NEWS
Daily Since 1872
School Board Races Clock
For Consolidation Money
northern provinces of South
Vietnam posed the most serious
threat of the war despite
statements last week the 35,000
North Vietnamese troops in the
DMZ had withdrawn under
heavy American bombardment.
The Marines were brought up
from areas below Da Nang. The
spots they vacated were filled
by a 4,500-man brigade from the
U.S. Army’s Ist Air Cavalry.
Military observers said the
reinforcements brought total
U.S. forces in the area to more
than 100,000 men—enough to
mount a major offensive to end
the Communist threat.
Denies Invasion
The U.S. government has
denied it is even considering
any invasion of North Vietnam,
but Lt. Gen. Robert Cushman,
U.S. Marine commander in
Vietnam, said today the Marine
reinforcement along the DMZ
was made so “we can go on the
offensive, and I hope soon."
Over North Vietnam, mean
while, U.S. warplanes battled
through a swarm of MIG jets to
hit for the first time a huge
North Vietnamese military com
plex three miles from the
center of Haiphong.
A U.S. spokesman said a MIG
21 shot down one U.S. Air Force
FlO5 Thunderchief, the 695th
plane lost over North Vietnam.
The pilot of the plane was
reported missing.
The MIG attack came as the
Thunderchiefs attacked the
Quang Kien railroad causeway
39 miles northeast of Hanoi. It
was part of 94 missions flown
Monday.
Field commanders at Con
Thien said North Vietnamese
troops were dug in on three
sides, as close as 300 yards
away, to escape the steady 852
pounding in the DMZ.
United Fund
Contributions
Reach $15,657
Contributions to the United
Fund campaign have reached
$15,657, the first progress report
indicated today.
The goal is $70,004.50.
Nine organizations will be fin
anced through the campaign.
Newton Penny is general chair
man of the drive. He is an econ
omics expert on the staff of the
Georgia Experiment Station
here.
Working with him in the drive
during October are hundreds of
volunteer solicitors who will at
tempt to contact every person
in Griffin and Spalding County
for a contribution.
Murder Suspect
Arrested Here
Atlanta police have charged a
man arrested in Griffin Thurs
day night with murder in the
shooting death of an Atlanta
taxi driver.
Jerry Lee Brown, 20, of 326
Windsor street, S.W., Atlanta,
Dale Carley, Jr., Alexis Kelley
and Robyn Mullins; Newton Gal
loway, Catherine Cook and Ja
net Smalley, David Amick, Ka
ren Robinson, David Duke, Mike
Brown, The Fourmost, Kathy
Remond, Mystifing Oracles
Peppi Cowan, Emily Pyron and
Pam Robison, Barrow and His
Bums, Robbie Tweedell, The
Worthy Cause, Connie Butler,
Jack Dutton, Dixieland Kings,
Tracy Maddox, Douglas and
Peggy Scoggins and Don Brad
dock and group.
GRIFFIN
Griffin, Ga., 30223, Tuesday, October 10,1967
I ' ' ' * y J**-
si ■’S EMBay/SNaMI Hr li MR
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KWjr-11
(Griffin Daily News Staff Photo)
Girl Scouts, Boys Scouts, bands, community clubs, commercial firms and motor
units participated in the parade Monday afternoon that opened the Kiwanis Spald
ing County Fair. The fair will open this afternoon at 3:30. It will close Saturday
night.
Vietnam
Plane Crash
Kills 23
SAIGON (UPD—A Cl3O mili
tary transport plane crashed
into a cloud-wreathed mountain
along South Vietnam’s heayily
jungled northern coast Sunday
killing all 23 persons aboard,
U.S. officials announced today.
The plane had been missing
since Sunday morning when it
took off from Hue in turbulent
winds and heayy rains for the
50-mile flight to Dan Nang.
U.S. officials said the wreck
age was spotted late today ater
an intensive two-day search
carried out despite the monsoon
weather. Search planes found it
had smacked into a mountain,
killing all those aboard.
Names of the victims were
not immediately released. All
aboard were believed military
personnel.
Bulletin
LA PAZ, Bolivia (UPI) —
Bolivia today officially an
nounced the death of Ernesto
Che Guevara, revolutionary
and former righthand man of
Cuban Premier Fidel Castro,
in a battle with U. S. trained
Bolovian rangers.
was arrested Thursday night ab
out 9:45 at 563 North Sixth st
reet trying to steal gasoline from
an automobile, police said.
He was arrested by officers
James Quick and Bud Smith af
ter he hid behind some bushes.
Brown was turned over to At
lanta authorities where he was
identified by several people as
being involved in a number of
armed robberies in the Atlanta
area.
A 1967 auto Brown was driv
ing when arrested in Griffin was
stolen from a Cobb County man.
The driver was abducted at gun
point and forced to drive the sta
tion wagon to McDaniel street in
Atlanta where he was released
unharmed.
Brown was carrying a .25 cali
ber pistol, believed by Atlanta
authorities to be the murder
weapon.
Atlanta authorities said a 16-
year-old boy was with the man
who shot the taxi driver. Brown
was alone when arrested in Grif
fin Thursday night.
★ ★★★★★★★★★
Special Announcement
“Would you gentlemen like to hear an important
announcement?” Judge John H. McGehee asked the
Spalding County jury Monday.
They nodded yes
“Red Sox 1 and St. Louis 0 after four and a half
innings,” the judge said.
The announcement brought a few sighs and some
scattered clapping.
It came during a brief pause during the criminal
session of Spalding Court.
State Rules Forbid
School ‘Fair Days’
The Griffin-Spalding Board of
Education explained Monday
night that state regulations pro
hibit letting students out of class
to attend fairs and similar activi
ties.
Some board members said
they had been asked why stu
dents in the system this year
would not be allowed to observe
school days at the Spalding Co
unty Fair.
The board explained the state
forbids such time out of class
room.
In other reports made during
the regular meeting of the sc
hoal board Monday night, Don
Jackson reported the purchase of
new lockers for Griffin High and
Fairmont High athletic depart
ments. He is chairman of the
athletic committee.
He said the equipment was
purchased from athletic funds.
He said finances of the athletic
setup was in good shape.
Taylor Manley, a member of
the school board, wanted to know
why Griffin High had its goal
posts on the end zone line Instead
of the goal line at Memorial
Stadium. He noted that several
other high schools had their goal
posts on the goal line which
makes them 10 yards closer to
the kicker.
Jackson said he would find out.
Mrs. Thelma Newton asked
about the concession stand set
up at football games. Supt. D.
B. Christie said the Lions Club
handles the football concessions
on a 50-50 basis. He said the
system gets from SI,OOO to $1,500
a year from this.
He said that the senior class
handles the basketball conces
sions.
Miss Anne Hill Drewry, chair
man cirrculum, said she want
ed her group to discuss the pos
sibility of adding some speech
Vol. 95 No. 239
courses.
She said the need has been
emphasized during recent weeks
by several teachers. She said
her committee would try to make
a recommendation to the board
soon.
Checking over financial records,
Chairman C. T. Parker of the
school board noted it had not
been necessary to dip into a
$150,000 loan authorized at the
previous board meeting. But
he said the system probably
would have to before next mon
th.
Mr. Parker said tax notices
are expected to be going out
soon. He said some people would
pay taxes early and this should
provide the school system with
operating funds.
He said he understood the
city tax notices were being pre
pared now and should be mall
ed soon. The county notices, he
said, would take a little longer
to prepare.
Mr. Parker read a letter from
the Griffin High student body re
questing that the science-math
building on the Griffin High
campus be named in honor of
the late Supt. George Patrick,
Jr.
Mr. Parker referred the mat
ter to a committee made up oi
Mrs. Newton, chairman; John
West and Bill Westmoreland.
The board last month receiv
ed a similar request from Dr.
Virgil Williams requesting a
building be named for Mr. Pat
rick.
The committee said it would
check on board policy of naming
buildings and make a report.
The board approved the elec
tion of Clarice Colston foi the
special education department at
Kelsey junior high.
System Tries For
$1,013,100 Outlay
The Griffin-Spalding Board of
Education today was in a race
against the clock. At stake was
$1,013,100 in state funds for a
consolidation building program.
The board took these steps
Monday night in an effort to qua
lify for the funds:
— It appointed a site selec
tion committee to come up with
two locations for two new ele
mentary schools.
— It dispatched school repre
sentatives to Atlanta today to
"borrow or buy” some addition
al time.
—lt voted to meet on the first
Monday night in November in
stead of the customary second
Monday night so it could be in
position to act on the building
money before the deadline.
DEADLINE
The school system has learn
ed within the last few days it
has until Nov. 10 to qualify for
the state consolidation funds. The
deadline caught the board by
surprise. They indicated they
didn’t know of such a require
ment when they voted a couple
of months ago to seek the con
solidation money.
Under the consolidation propo
sal, the system plans to make
the Griffin High campus an all
girls high school and the Spald
ing Junior High campus an all
boys high school.
Fairmont would become a vo
cational school.
Two additional elementary sc
hools would be required in the
shuffle.
The consolidation program
would take from three to five
years, under the board’s time
table.
ELIGIBLE
The State Department of Edu
cation informed the Griffin-Spal
ding School board last week it
was eligible for $1,013,100 in state
funds for consolidation if it could
meet the Nov. 10 deadline.
The state indicated it was rea
dy to sell school bonds and the
system here would have to qua
lify for the money by then. If it
does not, the money will go to
some other system that is rea
dy, the school board was told
Monday night.
Gordon Futral, chairman of
the local board’s building com
mittee, gave a summary of the
program’s status in his report to
the board. With chalk in hand,
he sketched off on a blackboard
some figures for board mem
bers and explained just where
the board stood as of Monday
night.
TITLE
One of the things the board
must do before the Nov. 10 dead
line is get title to two pieces of
property on which to build the
two new elementary schools.
In view of the need for imme
diate action on this, Chairman
C. T. Parker appointed Russell
Smith. Taylor Manley, and W.
G. Blackney as a site selection
committee. Smith will be chair
man.
The group planned to begin
work immediately in order to
have a recommendation by Nov.
6. Some sites already have been
checked as possible locations
for the schools.
These were reviewed with the
board Monday night. They will
be rechecked and others in
vestigated by the site selection
committee.
TO ATLANTA
The board sent Supt. D. B.
Christie, Herman Nelson of the
administrative staff, Architect
Gerald Bilbro, and Atty. Jim
Owen to Atlanta today to talk
with state officials about some
questions the local board raised
Monday night.
One thing the board wanted to
know was if the local system
would be required to pledge
$311,900 by Nov. 10 as its share
of the consolidation program.
PLEDGE
Chairman Parker wanted to
know if the state would accept
the local board’s pledge of build
ing fund money it would earn
from the state over the next
three to five years against the
$311,900 local requirement.
If the pledge is not acceptable,
Mr. Parker said he didn’t see
how the local board could put
up the funds. He said the sys
tem simply does not have that
much money.
He said he would oppose a
bond issue immediately to get
the money. Other board mem
bers agreed that they would not
call for an immediate bond issue
for this amount.
However, Mr. Futral frankly
told the board a bond issue pro
bably will be needed within the
next five years if the board pro
ceeds under its present sche
dule.
SCALE DOWN
Bilbro, discussing the building
proposal, said one alternative
would be to scale down some
building costs. But he pointed out
that additional funds would be
needed for “loose equipment"
such as desks, chairs, and other
furnishings.
The Griffin-Spalding Board al
so wanted its representatives to
ask state officials in Atlanta to
day if the $1,300,100 would be
scaled down if the local board
scaled down its building pro
gram.
The delegation said it would
try to find out.
The Griffin-Spalding board is
thinking in terms of two new
elementary school buildings cost
ing about a half million each.
They would be 20-classroom
units each and would require a
minimum of 11 acres of land
each.
ADDITIONS
Some additions would be made
to the Griffin High campus to
carry out the consolidation pro
gram, under present plans.
In other action related to build
ings, the board asked Mr. Nel
son and Supt. Christie to nego
tiate with Dundee Mills on ac
quiring the nursery building
near East Griffin elementary sc
hool. The building could be us
ed for classrooms if needed, the
board was told.
Supt. Christie reported that
three buildings would be listed
as substandard this year with
state authorities. They are Cora
Nimmons elementary, Annie
Shockley elementary and Kelsey
junior high. These three build
ings are to be phased out under
proposed consolidation moves.
North Side and Third Ward al
so will be carried as substand
ard this year, Supt. Christie no
ted. He said that lack of “panic
hardware” such as alarm sys
tems would keep them from
meeting standards. However, he
pointed out that the equipment
was being installed and the
buildings would meet require
ments then.
Woman Sentenced
To 12 Months
On Lottery Charge
Eloise Lawrence of Griffin was
convicted of maintaining a lot
tery Monday in Spalding Super
ior Court and sentenced to 12
months in prison.
Before passing sentence, jud
ge John McGehee said: “I hope
some more lottery operators are
listening. This has got to stop. It
can get people into a lot of trou
ble.”
He then set the woman’s sen
tence at 12 months in prison.
DONEyySuMWHM-
Zlfci/OCT. J-M, 1967
For GOOD
GOVERNMENT
Encourage good citizen
ship; act as sentinels of
freedom.