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jl.50.S2 A YEAR. IN ADVANCE.
VOLUME XLIV.
GRADY WORKS
CAMPFREED BY PENN,COURT
Georgia Representative Criticises Judg e
As Negro Pulls Wool Over His Honor's
Eyes In Wierd Testimony Last Week
Jacob Head, 26-year-old negro
fugitive, who escaped from the
Grady County Public Works
Camp on May 16, 1946, has been
awarded his freedom by a Penn¬
sylvania judge who condemned
the Georgia penal system and
double-barrelled verbal attacks
were loosed Saturday on the
judge by authorities in both At¬
lanta and Washington.
Judge Samuel Weiss, Allegh- j
eny County Common Pleas Court,
heard the appeal of a Georgia
extradition order for the Negro,;
Jacob Head of Butts County, and j
the fugitive his . , .
gave ireeaom
from nine more years of a 12- ,
year sentence, charging that this j
court cannot come to any other J
conclusion but that James More- |
land (as Head suffer is known in Penn-j
sylvania) will death by tor- i
ture, lynching or murder on his j
return to Georgia.” ■
Jacob Head was convicted of j
burglary on 4 counts on Feb. 13, j
1946 in Butts County. He was ‘
sentenced to 3 years on each i
count making a total of 12 years j
to be served concurrently. On!
April 26, 1946 he was transferred j
to the Grady County Public j
Works Camp from the Georgia
State Prison at Reidsville. In
reality according to the official
record, Head had been impris
ened for only three months prior
his escape from the local works
camp.
According to Warden B. F.
Harrison, the record shows that
after complaining of being sick,
Head was left locked up in the
barracks when the prisoners and
guards left the camp for work. |
With no one in camp but the j
cook, he escaped by ripping I
facings from the door to the
barracks and then prizing the I
door open. The cook said he did ] \
not see the fugitive make the es
cape and it is Head* thought 5 that the j
tool used by was either!
carried in by himself or slipped
to him by someone else. j j
In testifying before Judge !
Weiss, Head said that he “would
not come out alive” if returned
to the Georgia institution. He
told the Judge that road gang
prisoners were manacled and
chained to each other during his
labor camp term. He said that
he had seen two convicts killed
hy guards and others beaten. The
defendant reported that escaped
Prisoners, when captured, were
thrown into an unlighted hole
and sometimes never seen again.
Once, he said, he saw guards
pour gasoline on escaped prison¬
ers and set them afire. Head
testified that he was “framed”
on a burglary charge because he
forked for a Georgia sheriff in
" ne operation of a whiskey still,
(Continued on last page)
Cairo Basketeers To Meet
Cambridge Again Jan. 6 Winning
Girls Expected To Continue
Streak; Game To Be Thriller
For the second time this sea
"° n , the Cairo boy and girl cagers
W * U mee t the Bainbridge teams
Hhen they clash in the local shell
f n Tuesday, January
6th.
ust two weeks ago, the Cairo
basket eers defeated the two
'Lenbridge teams in Bainbridge
'' lth a score of 41 to 30 in the
f lrls game and a score of 33 to 32
the boys game.
Much interest is aroused over
this
rLii tlfy a in thriller. 3 SCOre of 33 to 32 was
A see-saw bat-
3 ' the way with Perkins lead-
2, ln he AUhou Cairo a *ack with 16
sup g h the Cairo boys
lea TC' T n d bere their * first defeat of the
n as t week when the
°masvill e cagers met the local
tTlre (fairo U -J ' V .. ■
The Official Organ of Grady County.
The man who wandereth out of the way of advertising *shall remain in the congregation of the dead.”
TWELVE PAGES
Cairo Side-Glances
Lady thoughtlessly depositing
pocketbook in uptown mail box
instead of letter in her hand_
having to call postman to open
box to retrieve her loss.
Hawk with three-foot wing
spread, still alive, being taken
f train rom , locom Cow -catcher °tive during of passenger stop here,
Many cars with new tags of
other states appearing here, caus
i ng hopeful comment that 1948
Georgia . tags, which are to be alu
m in Um with black lettering, will
be more durable than this year’s,
Kids all agog over scheduled
visit of Santa Claus here Satur
day at 2 P- m.—waiting anxiously
to greet him.
---
Meigs bad Link
Contract Bid On
Work Expected To
Begin bOOn After
Contract Executed
George C. Blount Son, At
an ^ a ’ bid a low of $60,657.74 for
tbe surfacing of 9.033 miles of the
Cairo-Meigs road link as the
State Highway Board, Friday,
°P ened bids on 18 projects
throughout the state, Contracts
be awarded after the bids
are rechecked against the specifi
ca H° ns -
^ time it is not known
us t when the surfacing of the
road begin but the legal
published in The Messenger on
Friday Dec. 5th, stated that "Said
work shall begin within ten (10)
days after formal execution of
and shall be completed
within 40 working
The link to be surfaced begins
about 4.6 miles north of Cairo
at the intersection of Routes 93
and 111, and extends towards
Meigs to the Grady-Thomas coun¬
ty line. With other contracts al¬
ready let, this work will open a
new and shorter paved route be¬
tween Cairo and Moultrie via
Meigs, which also means a new
and shorter route between Mid¬
dle Georgia and Northwest Flori¬
da points via Cairo which will
undoubtely divert much through
travel through this county. Aside
from this, the work will also
mean much to the citizens of
Grady.
Mrs. Pearl Clower was called
last Saturday to Sanford, Fla.,
because of the death of her neph
ew Mr. Ralph Wight.
basketeers in the local
and won by a scoie of 35 to zo,
most of the local fans expect the
Cairo boys to trounce the Bum
bridge cagers. At any rate the
game should be a thriller and a
large crowd is expected to wit
ness the battle.
The local girls are expec e
continue their unbroken recor
after beating the
six by a score of 39 to^!7,
m0St fanS bigger eXP6C ^ lead 1 a" in 1 ?he the com com
an even
ing game. The Cairo gir
ball team have proven the
merit in both games played this
season and Cano ans
fident that they wi ue
their winning streak.
CAIRO. GRADY COUNTY. GA.. FRIDAY, DECEMBER 26, 1947.
n (/> m a </>
ra (ft c a m
The Messenger goes to press
this week better than a day earli¬
er than usual, in order that the
"force” will have a few days off
in which to enjoy Christmas holi
days. The office will be closed
both Thursday and Friday as well
as Saturday for all mechanical
operations, yet the business of¬
fice will be open for business
! Saturday, December 27th.
Most of Cairo’s business houses
will be closed both Thursday and
Friday, but all establishments
wih .... remain open Saturday. _
e * urs ay, anuary 1st
will ... be observed holiday
as a by
the banks and the post office,
while other businesses will re
main open as usual.
Bicycle Licensing
Is Proposed Here
By Police Chief
Chief of Police J. B. Vanland
ingham has submitted for coun
cil discussion and possible aqtion,
a portfolio of data on the bicycle
licensing system which he be
lieves would be a contributing
[factor in investigating bicycle
I thefts and misdemeanors com
mitted by bicyclist.
The matter is not expected to
| be brought before the council be¬
fore the first meeting in January
but it is generally felt that the
public should understand the
P ur P° se behind the licensing of
j n t ^ e case 0 f stolen bicycles,
a full record of the bicycle and
| the necessity for bicycles to be
equipped with a tag, would in
sure a more rapid recovery of the
j oss as would be possible if the
j licensing system were placed in
effect. A number of bicycle
thefts are reported to the local
police department every year but
w ith no record, etc., the police
have very little information with
which to work.
In the case of misdemeanor's
committed by bicyclist, any per
son observing such a misdemean
or CO uld report the tag number
and immediately the police could
put their finger on the cubprit for
i ssu ing a warrant or taking such
action as is necessary.
WOMAN'S CLUB COOK-BOOK
OFFERED FOR SALE.—
The Cairo Woman’s Club cook¬
book is now being offered for
sale. The book is attractive in
appearance and sells for $1.50.
For the convenience of every one
who will probably want a book
they can be obtained at the fol¬
lowing places of business: Mar¬
tha’s Shop, Mrs. Coppage’s Beau¬
ty Ship; and the following homes:
Mrs. Mack Chastain, Mrs. J. B.
Roddenbery and Mrs. C. P. Whid
den.
Gene Blackman, student at
South Georgia College, Douglas,
is among the young set who is
spending the holidays with home
folks. I
! Max Barlow, student at Young
Harris College, Young Harris, ar¬
rived during the week-end to
spend the Christmas season with
his parents, Mr. and Mrs. E. C.
Barlow, and family.
*
1 /
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I jW m M ''Un
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FROM ALL THE
* MESSENGER FAMILY
rj t
Stock Law Goes
j In Effect Jan. 2
[
j No Stock To Roam
I
' Highways !n Grady
In The Future
i As a result of the outcome of
the stock law election held
throughout Grady County on
Wednesday, July 2nd, this year,
no hogs, cows or other cattle may
roam the highways after next
Friday , January 2nd. In the no
f ence e ] ec ti 0 n above referred to,
approximately 1,800 Grady Coun
tians went to the polls to decide
the issue. Of this number 951
votes were cast in favor of a
change or “no-fence,” and 825 bal¬
lots were cast against a “no-fence”
or to let the law remain as at the
present. In other words the is¬
sue carried by a majoriyt of 126
votes.
Of the ten precincts in the
county, only three, Cairo, Higdon
and Spence voted for the change¬
over, while the other seven voted
against the question.
It is understood that a large
number of farmers have already
repaired their fences as well as
having built new pastures when¬
ever the wire and posts was ob¬
tainable. However, quite a few
have been unable to provide prop¬
erly fenced pastures, owning to
the scarcity of wire, therefore it
is very doubtful if the law will
be enforced to the letter for sev¬
eral months. Regardless of this
fact, cows," hogs and other cattle
will be subject to being inpound
ed if found at large or on the
other man’s property, whether it
be field or pasture.
Another fact to be taken into
consideration is the strong prob¬
ability that many cattle will be
killed on the highways, as most
motorists will be laboring under
the impression that few, if any
stock will be roaming the roads
of the county as heretofore, or
after Friday, Jan. 2nd.
Prizes Awarded
To Winners Of
Essay Contest
The awarding of prizes at a
special chapel exercises in the
Cairo High School Auditorium,
Thursday, December 18th, climax¬
ed the closing of the Soil Con¬
servation Essay Contest in Grady
County. The contest was spon¬
sored by the Flint River Soil
Conservation District Supervisors
with prizes being given by local
business concerns.
Mr. J. E. Grimes, Grady Coun¬
ty Soil Conservationist, had
charge of the program and was
very ably assisted by Messrs.
Cevell and Middleton, soil scien
tests fiom Athens and Albany.
Winners in the high school di¬
vision, all, members of the Cairo
Chapter of the F. F. A. were as
follows:
Alton Sculley, 1st prize of $25.
00 given by R. R. Van Landing
ham; Carroll Whitfield, 2nd prize
of $15.00 given by Nicholson’s
Seed and Fertilizer Store; Wayne
Barrett, 3rd prize of $10.00 given
by Smiths Feed 'hnd Seed Co.
These awards were made by
(Continued on page 7)
TWELVE PAGES
Hog Prices Up
Here, Again
Number Ones Are
Back To 25c
Hog prices eased upward slight¬
ly again at last Friday’s weekly
auction sale here, Grady Live¬
stock Auction Co. reported.
Number one graded hogs sold
for 25c a pound, again, 25 points
up from the week before. Num¬
ber one heavies sold for 24-51c a
pound, number twos for 24-65c
a pound and number threes for
23.55c a pound. All prices were
above the board.
Feeder pigs demand was some¬
what stronger, again, with sales
up to 24c a pound. Cattle prices
also appeared stronger with
$18.30 per cwt. as top price.
The volume was near $12,0005.
Big Truckload Hogs
Perish In Blazing
Truck At Whigham
Sixty seven head of No. 1 hogs,
consigned to the Georgia Pack¬
ing Company, Thomasville, and
valued at approximately $3,216,
perished in flames early Thurs¬
day morning, December 18th,
about 5:45 when the truck in
which they were being transport¬
ed ran into the left or west side
of the overpass bridge spanning
the A. C. L. railroad in the east¬
ern part of Whigham.
Probably the worst accident of
its kind in this part of the state,
the big International truck with
a semi-trailer driven by Elwood
Godwin, of Evergreen, Ala., burst
into flames when the auxiliary
gas tank exploded upon impact
with the x ailing of the* bridge.
The driver, and another man who
was said to have been in the
truck, escaped without serious in¬
jury. Cause of the accident was
said to have been failure of the
big truck’s lights during the early
hours before daybreak.
The local fire department was
called to the scene about 6:00
o’clock but the truck was a total
loss. The big truck was loaded
with 87 head of No. 1 hogs, stack¬
ed on two decks, of which 63
head perished in the truck. Some
of the 24 head escaping jumping
of the 24 head escaping jumped
and others were badly singed. Of
those escaping, some were so
badly injured that it was neces
ray to shoot them.
It was reported that the flames
were of such intense heat that
telephone wires over the truck
were burned in-two. Godwin
the driver is quoted as saying
that he got out of the truck as
quickly as possible and attempt¬
ed to free the hogs but was
able to get only four or five out
of the truck before the whole ve¬
hicle was ablaze.
REV. McTIER TO PREACH
AT METHODIST CHURCH.—
Rev. W. E. McTier, superintend
end of the Thomasville district,
will preach at the First Metho¬
dist Church Sunday morning at
the 11 o’clock hour. Being a
former pastor he will be heard
with much interest.
Earl Matthews, student at Mer¬
cer University, Macon, is at home
for the holidays.
m
ll .
SINGLE COPIES. 5 CENTS
i Santa Braves Bad
Weather For Tour
Here On Saturday
Santa Claus, prevented
from touring Cairo to greet
the children on Dec. 13th
because of a steady rainfall,
last Saturday afternoon on a
return visit braved drizzling
rain and threatening weather
to ride through the city sev¬
eral times and to receive an
ovation from hundreds of
children lining the streets.
Santa had asked the local
merchants, who invited him
here, to have some Christmas
candy for the kids on his last
visit, but reported it still too
scarce. Arrangements were
made for him to ride Satur¬
day in a new convertible but
because of the rainy weather
a jeep had to be used, in¬
stead.
One little girl reportedly
cried about an hour when it
started raining Saturday be¬
cause she was afraid the rain
would again forego Santa’s
ride—and her seeing him.
C. of C, Speaker
Outstanding
Florida Dean Has
Wide Activity
In Career
Dean Walter J. Matherly, of the
College of Business Administra¬
tion of the University of Florida,
at Gainesville, who was announc¬
ed last week as the speaker for
the annual membership
meeting of the local Chamber of
Commerce at Citizens Cafe here
Thursday evening, Jan 15th, is
a native of Kentucky and has had
quite a variety of activities during
his career, a biographical sketch
obtained this week reveals.
Some 150 or more of the Cham¬
ber merbers are expected for the
meeting, at which officers and
directors for 1948 will be elect¬
ed. Committees will work out
details after the Christmas holi¬
days.
Dean Matherly will speak here
on “The State of the Nation’s
Business.” A forceful speaker of
outstanding reputation, he holds
M.' A. and LL. D degrees.
The biographical sketch fol¬
lows:
Born on farm at Mackville,
Kentucky, 1888. Attended rural
schools of Kentucky; A. B. Degree
from William Jewell College, Li¬
berty, Missouri, 1915; M. A.,
Washington University, St. Louis,
Missouri, 1916; LL. D., William
Jewell College, 1940; fellow in¬
economics, University of Minne¬
sota; assistant in political econo¬
my, University of Chicago; pro¬
fessor of economics, Georgetown
(Kentucky) College, 1919-1920;
associate professor of business ad¬
ministration, University of North
Carolina, 1920-1923; professor of
business administration, 1923-1926.
Head professor of economics
and Dean of College of Business
Administration. University of
Florida, since 1926; Acting Dean
of General College 1935-1937,
1943-1944; former chairman,
faculty committee, Institute of
Inter-American Affairs, Univers
ty of Florida; First Lieutenant,
World War I; chairman executive
board, Gainesville Little Theater,
1938-1944; president, American
Association of Collegiate Schools
Business, 1935; member of Ameri
can Economic Association; mem
ber, and former president, South
ern Economic Association; mem
ber, Southern Regional Commit¬
tee, Social Science Research
Council, 1930-1934; member, Am
erican Legion.
President, Florida State-Wide
Public Health Committee, 1941-
1943; President County
on Health and Welfare, 1940-
1941; member of Board of Direct
ors of Children’s Home Society
of Florida; member, Florida Aca
demy of Sciences; former assist
ant editor, Modern Business Edu
(Continued on page 6)
4
NUMBER 50. *s
Cairo Officials
Enjoy Dinner
Firemen Hosts At
Party; Council
Meets Later
The Mayor and Council and
other city officials and civic lead¬
ers were guests, along with the
local firemen, at a delightful
i Christmas party at the Fire De¬ j
partment last Thursday evening
when the firemen were hosts at
the annual Christmas gathering
featuring a bounteous roast turkey
menu with all the trimmings.
The Mayor and Council held a
short meeting after the dinner
with Mayor Henry Hester, Sr.,
presiding and with Councilman
Ralph Brown, Aris Mixon, Osma
McManeus, Guy Nicholson and
Albert Walker all present.
Business transacted was large¬
ly of a routine nature but a com¬
mittee was named to seek and
recommend a man to succeed
City Manager Donald P. Wolfer,
who resigned Dec. 9th, and who
i plans to relinquish his position
! here about Jan. 15th to accept a
j similar position with the City of
I | Dan Diego, exchanged Calif., his home and study city.
Gifts were
of a new auditing and accounting
system for the city was deferred
until Monday night.
Tentative approval was
given plans for an ordinance
which would limit the speed
of ACL trains to 10 mph.
through Cairo. The city has
been seeking for more than
; a year to have the railroad
company install traffic sig¬
nals at the Broad street cross¬
ing here and to provide same
adequate protection at other
street crossings. The com¬
j pany has thus far declined to
| authorize the traffic signals
and the proposed ordinance
is somewhat of an aftermath
of this refusal, it is under¬
stood.
The Chamber of Commerce has
been working jointly with the
city, also, to provide for loading
of pulpwood on freight cars fur¬
ther away from the Broad street
crossing to reduce traffic hazards
at the crossing and these negotia¬
tions have been dragging. One
city official suggested an ordi¬
nance prohibiting loading of pulp
wood within a certain distance of
the crossing to force relief action
by the railroad company. The
Chamber also requested the com¬
pany more than a year ago to im¬
prove the appearance of its prop¬
erty around the crossing and move
a pile of asphalt there. The com¬
pany has promised several times
to move the asphalt but it is still
there.
At the dinner earlier, Mayor
Hester presented City Manager
Wolfer with a gold inlaid desk
pen set with an inscription ex¬
pressing the city’s appreciation of
his valuable service here as City
Manager in 1946 and 1947. Mayor
! Hester commended him for his
gervice and expreS sed the city’s
re g re t a t j,j s leaving. He also
commended the Fire Department
and ot h e r c jty departments for
s t e ady progress dring the
y earj as we n as f or their co-op
er£d j on with the Mayor and
Council and with each other,
City Manager Wolfer respond¬
ed with words of appreciation
and praise for the co-operation
extended him during his service,
a period in which the city has
made marked progress, particu¬
larly as to expansion of munici¬
pal facilities and service. He
predicted Cairo’s continued steady
growth and development and
said when anyone from Cairo
goes to the Pacific coast he will
greatly appreciate their calling
on hi m at the City Hall in San
Diego.
Others who responded with
short talks included Fire Chief
Aulden Hawthorn, Chief of Po¬
lice Boyd Vanlandingham, Dr. J.
B Warnell, former Mayor, and
Louis A. Powell, Chamber of
Commerce manager. J. L. Oliver
(Continued on page 7)