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ifarksott Prngr^ss-Argus Volume 103 Number 48 Thanksgiving To Be Observed Locally In Various Ways Thanksgiving, a holiday as American as turkey and dressing, will be observed in many ways by Butts Coun tians this week but a spirit of gratefulness is expected to pervade most of the celebra tions. The holiday will begin on a religious note on Thanks giving Eve when the Butts County Ministerial Associa tion will hold the annual Union Thanksgiving Service. Hosting the service this year will be the First Baptist Church of Jackson at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Novem ber 24th. Football will play an important role in Thanks giving Day festivities, as usual, both the TV viewers and those who will journey to Atlanta to watch the annual Tech-Georgia freshmen game, played this year as always to benefit the Scottish Rite Hospital for Crippled Children. In Athens on Saturday the varsities of the two schools will have a go at it, with Georgia’s Bulldogs, 9-1 on the season, going bowling in the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day against No. 1 ranked Pittsburgh. Coach Pepper Rodgers’ Yellow Jackets have not had that great a year, being 4-5-1 on the season, but a victory over the Bulldogs would make the long season seem shorter. Commerce and business will come to a halt here on Thursday, with the great majority of all local firms to be closed. The Christmas shopping season will begin officially on Friday, Novem ber 26th, with local and other stores featuring mammoth sales. The holiday will afford many an opportunity to visit relatives and friends or to entertain company in homes where tables are laden with the bounty of the season. Turkey with all the trim mings will reign supreme with diets forgotten and belts loosened around every groaning board. Hunters will take to the fields, with the local quail, rabbit and deer population expected to suffer rapid depletion over the holidays. Christmas lights will be turned on in the Jackson downtown area on Thanks giving night, adding to the festive spirit of the occasion and signalling the rapid approach of the Christmas season. Traffic throughout the County, as well as the State, will reach a feverish pace on Thanksgiving Eve and the Sunday following, and the State Patrol has issued dire ADDRESS SANTA LETTERS ' t° PROGRESS-ARGUS *td Following a tradition of long standing, the Progress-Argus will once again publish letters to Santa Claus from Butts County children. Letters should be addressed to Santa Claus, C-0 The Jackson Progress- Argus, and either mailed or hand delivered to the office. Please keep letters as brief as possible in order to conserve space. Every effort will be made to sed that all letters which are received will be published. UNION THANKSGIVING SERVICE November 24,1976 First Baptist Church 7:30 P.M. Prelude Organist-Mrs. Polly Garr Pianist-Mrs. Kathy Marsh Song Leader-Mr. Joe Bordan Welcome R ev . Don Folsom Hymn No. 229 “We Gather Together” Invocation Rev. David Beville Solo Mr. Charles Kinney Responsive Reading No. 626 Rev. William Brown, Jr. Hymn No. 231 “Count Your Blessings” Offering Rev. Phil DeMore Thanksgiving Prayer Rev. Waldrep Jenkins Anthem First Baptist Church Choir Scripture Lesson Hebrews 13:15 Rev. Lanny Smith Sermon SACRIFICE OF PRAISE Rev. Walter C. James Hymn No. 233 “Come, Ye Thankful People, Come” Benediction Rev. E. Ray Savage Local United Appeal Drive Is Extended Drive chairman Tom Webb announced today that the Butts County United Appeal drive for this year has been extended fifteen days with the new ending date being November 30. “A United Appeal volun teer should have contacted every Butts Countian by November 30,” he said, “but if by chance we miss someone, they can mail contributions to Butts County United Appeal, P. 0. Box 233, Jackson, GA. 30233.” Mr. Webb also reported that the board of trustees met Monday, November 15, and approved the 1977 budget which included these organi zations: Butts County Ministerial Assn, (for transient aid), Butts County Assn, for Retarded Citizens, American Red Cross, Boy Scouts of America, Girl Scouts of America, U. S. 0., GA Mental Health Assn., Y.M.C.A., and Community Emergency Fund. “With about two weeks to go before the drive ends,” he added “we have contribu tions and pledges totaling a little more than $7,000. We hope that between now and November 30, we can meet the $15,000 goal.” predictions of a multiplicity of traffic deaths. Locally, the Jackson police and the Butts County Sheriff’s Department are bracing for the extremely heavy highway traffic and will exert every vigilance to help keep the traffic toll down. . | j Min tw^ l AN URGENT APPEAL United Appeal drive chairman Toni Webb reminds us that fair share giving will make the thermometer reach the top. With almost two weeks to go till the drive ends approximately $7,000 has been collected. FISHING PROSPECTS ARE MIXED LOCALLY Ben Gunn, the fishing forecaster for the Georgia Department of Natural Re sources, reports that fishing prospects in Butts County over the Thanksgiving holi days will rate from slow to SHALL SHARE . ■ . J JA Let's be grateful now for small and tpl| simple blessings that brighten daily |§| L lives. The smell of coffee. The sound of laughter. A cloudless autumn sky. SF Fireplaces and favorite books. Mittens. *fjr ‘Jy Mufflers. Good warm socks. Crunchy It, apples. Purring cats. Work to do and Mf time to rest. Things to care about and ®|| share. Loved ones to share them with. j£f| lIM /Jhantegiving Jackson, Georgia 30233, Thursday, November 25, 1976 Some Taxpayers Get Rebates; 76 Levy Set at 31.75 Mills Some Butts County tax payers who over-paid their 1975 County taxes may receive an early visit from Santa Claus in the form of a tax rebate to be applied on their 1976 taxes. The action was taken Friday by the Butts County Commissioners in a called meeting, during which the 1976 tax levy was set at 31.75 mills, or 8 mills higher than the 23.75 mills levied in 1975. With Friday’s announce ment, the Commissioners moved one step closer to resolving the long-standing dispute over the County’s 1975 tax digest. A number of irate tax good. Gunn says Jackson Lake, which will be rising and clear, will be good for bass using deep running plugs, and also good for crappie. At High Falls, where the water will be normal and clear, fishing will be slow for all species. payers formed the Butts County Taxpayer’s Protec tive Association to contest the 1975 levies and, through a series of court and arbitra tion decisions, were granted reductions in the 1975 assessments which were applicable to all members. These reductions amounted to approximately 38.4 per cent of the 1975 assessments. Friday’s action by the Commissioners provides that, in accordance with the law that requires all tax payers to be treated uniform and equal, individual tax payers who did not share in this reduction may file an application for a refund on Lovejoy Site 0( Political Gathering Georgians got a foretaste of things to come Wednesday when Senator Herman Tal madge hosted a meeting at his Lovejoy farm attended by president-elect Jimmy Car ter and the largest assem blage of political figures in the State’s history. Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield, of Montana, was in attendance, as was Rep. Thomas P. “Tip” O'Neal, of Massachusetts, vviw is slated to be the next speaker of the U. S. House of Representatives. Other U. S. Senators attending were Hubert Hum phrey of Minnesota, Robert Byrd of West Virginia, Russell Long of Louisiana, Alan Cransford of California, Edmond Muskie of Maine, Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin and Flovd Haskell of Colora- taxes paid in 1975. These applications must be filed within one year from the date of 1975 taxes were paid and will be acted upon on a case by case basis. Applications for refund may be submitted at proces sing desks located in the Courthouse halls or they may be mailed to the County Commissioner’s office. The desks will be open on Tuesday, November 30, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and on Monday through Friday, subject to change as condi tions warrant. A copy of the refund applications, which may be mailed or brought to the Commissioner’s office, is SPECIAL BULLETIN Word was received front Albany, Georgia just before the Prog ress-Argus went to press that Butts County had been declared the state winner in the 1976 Beautification Through Conservation Awards Program. Complete details of the award will be carried in next week’s issue of the paper. do. U. S. Congressman in attendance at the Lovejoy meeting included A1 Ullman of Oregon. George Mahon of Texas. James Delaney of New York, Brock Adams of Washington. Jack Flvnt and Andrew Young of Georgia. $6.24 Per Year In Advance reproduced elsewhere in this issue. The 1976 Butts County tax digest, which has been forwarded to the State Revenue Department for approval, shows a net total of $44,868,107. This is broken down into $38,188,232 for individuals and $6,679,875 for public utilities. For 1975, the County’s tag digest listed individual asses sments at $43,153,652, and utilities at $6,253,056. Not shown on the 1975 digest, however, was approximately $7,000,000 in property owned by TP A members on assess- Curfew Ordinance Continues To Create Controversy By Dale Whiten An ordinance which the City of Jackson passed around 15 years ago has recently created consider able interest both local and statewide. This ordinance is one which places a 12:00 midnight curfew on the downtown area, and it has probably been criticized most loudly and strongly by younger people, mostly teen agers. who seem to be primarily affected by the law. However. Jackson Mayor C. B. Brown contends that the law was not originally aimed at youth and that the actions of them were not entirely responsible for its being passed. 'Back w hen this ordinance was passed, not only youth but older people would congregate around the square to drink beer and so forth, and we felt that w hatever a person wanted to do could be done before midnight." the Mayor said. Brown disputed a claim by a Georgia police officer who. in a story in the Atlanta CONSTITUTION, said that such a law is not a deterrent to crimes such as burglary. "In a small town like Jackson, this kind of law does cut down on burglaries and such because if an officer continually sees the same person ts) or car hanging around the square, he can inquire as to what that person is doing. .And usually in a town this small any suspicious person will clear out." Brown said. He added that this type of law probably would not be effective in large towns like Atlanta or Macon, situations he said the police officer in the CONSTITUTION story was probably referring to. Brown said that this type of ordinance gives the city control over situations before they arise and "since those who would probably be out this time of night are now using pot and pills, in addition to beer, we feel this law does aid in reducing the potential for committing a crime.” On the question of the law's constitutionality. Brown said he was misquoted in the 25 'tW ments that were under contest, which would have raised the digest to over $56 million. Reflecting deflated land values, the 1976 digest would then show a reduction of approximately $11,500,000 in one year. It is believed that the State Revenue Department will act swiftly on the 1976 County digest and that tax notices can be mailed out to Butts County property owners early in December for their 1976 taxes. Those qualifying for the 1975 rebate will have credit given at the time of payment of their 1976 tax 'bills. CONSTITUTION story. “I’m not sure if the law is constitutional, and we won’t know until it's tested. A person cannot say whether any law is fully constitutional until it’s tested,” Brown stated. However, in response to a question about whether such a law does not inherently violate basic civil liberties, Brown agreed that it may. an example given being one in which a person innocently riding around town after twelve midnight might in deed be stopped for question ing and that it would be up to the discretion of the officer to determine the immediate action to be taken. Brown pointed out that the enforcement of the law has resulted in few arrests because usually those who are downtown after midnight will leave when asked to. He also stated that this ordinance is not to be confused with another city law which also imposes a curfew in the event of a civil disturbance or some major development affecting the public. Break-in Is Reported At Jackson Elem. A break-in at Jackson Elementary School last Thursday night was the apparent work of vandals according to the Jackson Police Department. Police reported that a window was broken in the school principal's office and that the office had obviously been entered but that nothing was missing. No arrests have been made. JOE. THE HOBO. SEZ: W' -n Have a Happy Thanks giving and may your turkey U- tatter than your pocket book and sweeter than your (cam's football victory.