Newspaper Page Text
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Editorial
COMMENTS
Mini-Bikes And The Law
The motorized mini-bike and their four-wheeled
counterpart—the go kart—are becoming more of a
menace with each passing day. They seem to be
uniquely a problem generated by our affluence.
Many of the youths of past generations could
not afford the luxury of a bicycle of the standard
self-propelled type, much less one with a motor.
Most youngsters in our day had to work long
hours at odd jobs, to earn enough cash to buy a
bike so that they might have a newspaper route
to earn more money for other wants.
Now we are confronted with six-year-olds who
ride on motorized mini-bikes in violation of the
law. This actually happened in Denver, Colo
rado. In this particular case the bike did not
belong to the child, but to a 21-year-old uncle.
We cite this example for another reason; mini
bikes and go karts are becoming a real safety
hazard. They are a cause of real headaches
for law enforcement officers.
It is true that the vehicles cannot be operated
on the public roadways in most states. But the
fact is that they are being operated in that man
ner anyway. The police are trying to stop this,
but there appears to be a great deal of parental
apathy involved. How many children could buy one
of the vehicles and keep it up without the know-
We don’t anticipate immsdiate acceptance of
this, but while the subject is still current, we’d
like to urge NASA to add one more member to the
crew on subsequent flights into space. Without
at all meaning to disparage the absolute excel
lence of the last performance, we feel that a
poet, or at the very least a song lyrics writer,
should go along to provide Astronauts, though it
obviously works well for them, lacks some of the
subtleties of the good old English words we’ve
used so long to shade meanings and add verve
and bite to our comm inications.
No one would expect the Astronauts to soar
into prose, m ich less poetry (it’s quite enough
for them to soar moonward and return safely),
but imagine what words a Robert Lowell or an
Poverty is a relative term. What one person
calls poverty, another would consider abundance.
U. S. Representative Olin E. Teague of'Texas
calls attention to some interesting figures. A
survey of one of the poorest regions of the U. S.,
where 8 out of 10 families live on less than
$3,-000 a year, showed that 37 per cent owned
washing machines, 48 per cent owned cars, and
52 per cent had television sets.
Representative Teague points out that a major
portion of the so-called poverty-stricken class
of America enjoys fruits of affluence which the
middle classes of Europe cannot afford--not to
mention the rest of the world. He believes,
A Friendly Fleet Os Robots
The awe-inspiring steam locomotives are just a
memory now in most areas of the country. They
are housed in museums or used as novelty short
run excursion rides in amisemmt enterprises.
The propeller-driven commercial airplanes are
destined to follow. The emphasis is on the high
speed transportation of the metroliner trains and
the jet aircraft. In fact, even the jet airliners of
today are doomed to obsolescence in the near fu
ture. They will be replaced by the giant super
sonic passenger planes capable of carrying up to
490 passengers.
Anyone, who has had the opportunity to fly on
a commercial jet on business or pleasure, is
impressed by the speed of modern transporta
tion. We can travel across the nation with more
speed today than could our ancestors who rode
by horse or coach from city to city within their
own states. However, our forefathers did not have
to face the same chaos of claiming his baggage
at the conclusion of his trip as we do. Baggage
handling has somehow failed to improve in pro
portion to transportation. It is performed in m ich
the same manner as in decades past and with the
increase in air travel it can only worsen.
However, a recent announcement bytheDocutel
Once again the power of the free market
has been demonstrated. A major automobile
company has discontinued production of what
was, a few years ago, a popular, sporty car.
Thus, critics of the free market who claim
that promotion and advertising by large firms
can force unwanted products onto the public
have once more been confounded by the real
life marketplace. It happens everyday and is
THE COVINGTON NEWS
mt-mi pace street, n.e . covington. Georgia 30209
NATIONAL NEWSPAPER
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Prize Winner In
=g|= 1969 National
•===== Newspaper Contest
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MABEL SESSIONS DENNIS
Editor and Publisher
LEO S. MALLARD
Assistant to Publisher
Lyrical Flights
A Relative Farm
The Decision Makers
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ledge of their parents? How many parents who
buy their children these potentially dangerous gad
gets instruct the children in their proper usage
and the places in which they may be safely and
legally operated?
The principal reason for not allowing these
conveyances on the roads is the safety of the
operator; it is difficult for a driver of a full
size automobile to see the bikes and karts
when they scoot along beside his car. It is also
dangerous for children to be handling the motor
fuels necessary for the operationof these motors.
Just read through the safety procedures for fill
ing the tank of a gas motor; this fact becomes
quite apparent.
There is a certain thrill for the youth who is
approaching the age at which he may begin to
drive. This puts him at the threshhold of man
hood. Our youths are growing up at quite an ac
celerated rate in too many ways. Let us keep
this one privilege — driving a car — intact;
there is a lot of logical reason for its reten
tion. We would hate to see the dangers inher
ent in these mini-vehicles brought home grap
hically by tragedy. The time to move is now and
the responsibility is on the parents’ shoulders..
Auden or an Eliot might have used had they been
aboard. There were moments, particularly in
the first hour or so of their presence on the
moon, when the Armstrong-Aldrin ballet looked
much as if it had been choreographed for sleep
walkers. It was a scene most of us will remem
ber the rest of our days. But a poet could have
added the imagery of words to the rhythm of the
scene.
A friend of ours with whom we were banter
ing on the subject finally threw cold water on the
idea when he suggested that Jules Verne would
have been the logical nominee. “The only trou
ble is,” our friend concluded, “Verne would take
one look and say, 'There you are: just as I told
you in the first place.’ ”
“The core of the poverty problem often is psy
chological, not physical. We should be fighting
human atutudes that cause poverty.. .We should
replace the .ethics of slavery—the brazen de
mands that 'somebody do something’ and the
slogans that 'the government owes it to us’—
with the ethics of self-reliance.” Money alone
will not teach people that a balanced diet is more
important than a shiny new car.
Points made by Representative Teague are well
taken. They harken back to the fate of the “pov
erty-stricken” Indian tribes of long ago who sank
into oblivion, not from poverty, but from the mis
use of the tools and luxuries of the white man.
Corporation of Dallas, would seem to indicate
there is an answer to their perplexing problem,
Docutel has developed a computer-controlled bag
gage handling system that permits rapid move
m?nt of baggage within an airline terminal com
plex, with all storage, handling and sorting under
computer control. The new system transports
bagg*age in a fleet of seemingly robot cars that
zip along on aluminum rails at speeds of up to
15 miles per hour. This is faster than Great
Grandpa’s coach traveled.
The system, known as the Telecar Baggage
System, is designed to operate byway of an in
tricate escort memory. The baggage can be loa
ded into the Telecar at any one of the terminals
many check-in stations and shuttled to any area
of the airport complex the passenger desires.
The robotcar is controlled by means of a bag
gage claim stub. A passenger can send his gear
from the parking lot to his flight’s loading gate
or vice versa.
From all indications, the system will make
possible fast and efficient airline terminal bag
gage handling to keep up with the increase in
passengers. That we would like to see accom
plished. We wish them success.
far from a rarity in the automobile industry.
As The Wall Street Journal comments, “It’s
always a little sad to see a car nameplate
disappear; some 3,000 have vanished during the
industry’s history. It’s rather comforting, none
theless, to be reminded once more that in U. S.
markets it’s still the consumer who makes the
big decisions.’’
MARY SESSIONS MALLARD
Asiociot* Editor
LEO MALLARD
Advertising Manager
Second Class Postage Paid
at Covington, Georgia
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©1960
Phooey On This Crowd!
OUR WEEKLY LESSON
FOR
Sunday School
THE HEBREWS FAIL GOD
Devotional Reading: Exodus
34:1-10.
Memory Selection: So we see
that they were unable to enter
because of unbelief. Hebrews
3:19.
Intermediate - Senior Topic:
Breaking Faith with God.
Young People - Adult Topic:
Breaking Faith with God.
In the continuing story of God
and his Chosen People we come
to the point where they had a
great opportunity, but through
lack of faith and trust in God
they lost their great chance and
a whole generation was condemn
ed to wander and die in the
wilderness.
As we see the people lose their
great opportunity through unbe
lief, we may ponder the words
of Siakespeare:
There is a tide in the affairs of
men
Which, taken at the flood, leads
on to fortune;
Omitted, all the voyage of their
life
Is bound in shallows and in
miseries.
In a day when spy stories
are standard diet on television
It should be Interesting to go
back to the time of Moses and
see how the great leader organi
zed the “Central Intelligence Ag
ency” of his day. Although they
lacked rapid transportation and
communication, Information was
necessary before a campaign,
and nearly forty years later we
find Joshua sending spies into
Jericho before he crossed the
Jordan to attack the city.
In the history of nations th-
WORTH
ABOUT
Where did the benefits of
economic growth go? They did
not go into corporate profits
which edged up only from
about $45 billion in 1965 to
less than S4B billion last year,
or about 5 percent. But total
government spending —fed-
eral, state and local—increased
35 per cent, from a rate of $lB2
billion in mid-1965 to $246
billion at the end of 1967. Gov
ernment’s share in the gross
national product is up from
27 per cent to 30per cent. In
other words, most of the na
tion’s economic growth in the
past 2% years has been pre
empted by government through
higher taxes. Meanwhile, man
agement’s efforts to hold down
costs have collided head-on
with labor union practices.
Take the case of housing. It
is impossible to provide the
amount required without rely
ing heavily on prefabricated
construction items. Whenever
this possibility is mentioned,
most unions turn a deaf ear.
George Champion,
Retired Chairman
of the Board and Director
Chase Manhattan Bank
THE COVINGTON NEWS
ere are many instances when th
ose with courage were the mi
nority, and the majority were
ruled by fear. From the human
standpoint there was good rea
son to doubt their ability to
conquer the land. They were
poorly armed with only bronze
swords and spears and slings,
whereas the people of the coun
try they were to Invade had cha
riots of iron and horses.
The only hope of the invaders
was trust in the power of God.
They had certainly witnessed en
ough examples of this in their
deliverance from Egypt and their
preservation in the desert for
some sixteen months. Their
great failure was lack of faith
and trust. As we read in our
memory selection, “So we see
that they were unable to enter
because of unbelief’’ (Heb. 3:
19).
As we study lessons from the
Books of Exodus, Leviticus, and
Numbers we should note that the
writer is not a mere historian of
the events but is also an inter
preter who sees the hand of God
in the history of the Hebrew
people. It Is Jehovah who pro
vides for their wants, bears their
sins and infirmities, and stead
fastly keeps his covenant and
prepares the people by long dis
cipline to fulfill their purpose In
the world.
We certainly have lessons to
learn In our day from charac
ters like Moses and Aaron, Mi
riam, Caleb and Joshua. Not
only are the success and fail
ure of these great Individuals
set down for our admonition,
but we can see the psychology
of fear and mob violence which
remain so great a problem in
our own time.
In God’s guidance and the re
actions of the people there are
many types and illustrations of
spiritual truths that remain for
all time.
The sixteen months since they
left Egypt, including about a year
at Horeb, had been abundant proof
of God’s leading and his power to
meet every emergency in their
lives. What a commentary on
human nature that only two out
of twelve had the spiritual per
ception, faith, and trust neces
sary to strike out, depending on
God and his promises.
After a year at Horeb, Mos
es was directed by the Lord to
move across the desert to the
borders of the Promised Land
of Canaan. Before they made
an attempt to conquer the land,
however, It seemed best to get
all the Information they could as
to the country and its inhabi
tants.
It would seem that the people
wished to send an investigating
committee and Moses agreed. So
me commentators feel that Mo
ses should have been a little
more careful in his briefing ses
sion, as the thing that remained
In the minds of those sent to spy
out the land was that they were
to investigate very carefully the
strength of those who occupied
the land, whereas their power to
overcome rested in their trust of
God, and this should have been
the thing upon which they de
pended.
“See the land, what it is, and
the people, whether they be st
rong or weak, few or many. ..
whether they dwell in tents or
strongholds. . .whether there be
wood therein. . .bring back the
fruit of the land.’’ •
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Topics Ng
HUMAN SKIN GROWN IN LAB
ACTUAL RECONSTRUCTION
of human skin by tissue grown
under artificial conditions out
side a living organism is re
ported as having been achieved
by a Stanford University medi
cal research team. Skin grown
in laboratory cultures for per
iods up to six weeks acted as a
source of new skin cells in ul
cerated or burn wounds.
MAN win take the 50,000,000-
mile journey to Mars long before
he makes a 50-mile journey into
the earth, say University of Chi
cago scientists. They say, in
fact, that steel-crushing pres
sure, rock-meling heat, and en
gineering problems may keep
man from ever penetrating
through more than the equiva
lent of “a thin, pencil line ar
ound a circle the size of a bas
ketball.” In their conjecture
about the interior of the earth
they studied both samples from
below, thrown up by volcanoes,
and meteorites that might re
semble internal constituents of
the earth.
DEVELOPMENT of a totally
new waste water purification pro
cess described as one that could
revolutionize water treatment
and help solve both water pol
lution and water supply problems
has been announced by New York
University civil engineers. It
is a chemical-physical process
that would replace conventional
biological treatment and that pro
mises to make large-scale water
re-use a practical possibility.
The researchers reported that
in laboratory tests it purified
raw sewage samples — from
both Ntew York City and a su
burban Connecticut town — to
“equivalent or better quality than
the average drinking water for
most cities.”
THE VERSATILITY of nitro
gen was demonstrated recently
when Chemetron Corporation
formally opened one of its air
separation plants that produces
the cryogenic gas. A company
official used a metal baton to
shatter a soft rubber tube that
had been made brittle by pass
ing liquid nitrogen through it.
The gas has a temperature of
minus 320 degrees F.
Loved Old Salem Camp Ground
Mamie Ozbum Odum
Lord, let Thy work go strongly, sweetly onward,
All those that gather, make their coming sweet,
Lift high Thy hands, disperse to all a blessing
Hallow this ground to wayward, weary feet.
Let all that gather here learn of Thy blessing;
’Tis Thy abode and not the house of man,
Bless all thay come, Thy word divining;
Teach us Thy way, show us Thy Holy plan.
As homeward hearts surround Thy sacred alter
Marked by no jealousy, hate or strife;
Hallow this house and help us keep it Holy
For better and more sacred things of life.
Bless all that come, go with them on life’s journey;
Fill hungry hearts, let fear and doubting cease
And as we sing the loved old songs of Zion,
Teach us in truth, this is the place of Peace!
Each year during the summer
months the little country church
es throughout the county host
their annual "homecoming day”
which usually begins a week of
revival services for the mem
bers.
Being in the weekly newspaper
business and trying to publicize
the good Influences here In the
community, as well as the bad,
members of our staff try to co
ver each of these homecoming
services and get a picture of the
church officers and lay leaders
that are the pillars of each ch
urch.
We also try to report In our
homecoming stories on the pro
gress made by the rural church
es during the past year and the
new additions that have been
added to the church building.
It’s not hard to realize where
the strength of our America lies
when, week after week, you visit
the different homecomings, meet
the dedicated Christian people
who attend these churches, and
feel the presence of God In'an
atmosphere of the "old time
religion”.
Materially speaking, many of
these little churches constantly
struggle financially to keep the
doors open. Most of the people
who attend are the good, hard
working people who don’t have a
great deal of money to help sup
port their church.
But, the warmth and fellow
ship among the people in these
small country churches makes a
visitor feel that there is some
thing missing in the larger and
more sophisticated houses of
worship In our larger cities.
The singing of the choirs and
the congregations alike is im
pressive. Missing may be the
polish of professional music di-
DRUG ABUSE AND NARCOTIC addiction constitute a grow
ing national problem that we can ill afford to minimize or ignore.
The menace is particularly acute in the ranks of American youth.
In a recent message to the Congress, the President said drug
abuse in the past 10 years has “grown from essentially a local
police problem into a serious national threat to the personal health
and safety of millions of Americans.” He has proposed a 10-point
program, covering federal and state legislation, international con
trols, stricter criminal enforcement, rehabilitation, and education,
to combat the drug threat.
As this problem has seriously worsened in recent years, public
concern has mounted and congressional action, combined with in
creased state and local efforts, become more and more imperative.
* * *
THE NATION’S INCREASING crime rate, staggering juvenile
delinquency, and even a large part of the campus disorder and
rioting can to a great extent be directly traced to the abuse of
drugs, such as “pep pills,” marijuana, hallucinatory agents and the
hard narcotics.
In just the past seven years, arrests of juveniles involving the
use of drugs have risen by almost 800 per cent. Half the people
arrested for the illegal use of narcotics are under 21 years of age.
In New York City and other large metropolitan areas, narcotic
addiction grows by the thousands each year. The crime rate and
immoral conduct go up accordingly.
We can only estimate the fantastic number of narcotic addicts
in the United States, but it is thought to go into the hundreds of
thousands. It is also figured that several million college students
have at least experimented with drugs.
This is a shocking situation. It is continually growing worse, at
greater cost to the health of the nation and to law and order. As
the President pointed out, this is no longer just a local law en
forcement problem. It is a serious threat to the general well-being
of this nation.
• * *
THE COMPREHENSIVE PROGRAM proposed by the Admin
istration merits the attention of the Congress. It is hoped that
through stricter enforcement, improved rehabilitative measures,
and expanded education on its dangers, the drug problem can be
curbed. // -- *
Thursday, August 14, 1969
HOMECOMING
SEASON
By: Leo S. Mallard
rection, but the old favorite
hymns of the Bible Belt are sung
with an enthusiasm by the people
that grasps the heart and makes
the visitor want to open his soul
to receive the Christian spirit
that Is felt here, but has seem
ingly been lost in the atmosphere
of convention elsewhere.
I get the feeling at a homecom
ing service In a little rural church
that I’m among people to whom
their "religion” means some
thing in their lives. These peo
ple seem to need their church
and here they find Christ and
the comfort that only He can
bring them.
It may not be convention, but
when I see a country preacher
get down on his knees in front
of his congregation, holding his
Bible in hand, and lead his flock
in prayer, I feel the spirit of God
and sense the humility that man
owes the Father.
To hear a sermon preached
from the Bible and the scrip
tures explained by God’s ser
vant without worry about where
the chips fall is refreshing and
frightening this day and time.
To see a child kneel and pray
at the church altar after ac
cepting Christ as Savior; to see
an old man cry, unashamed, as a
grown son accepts Christ; to see a
teenage girl, in tears, find under
standing In the arms of a Chris
tian mother and father after be
ing touched in her heart by the
words of God.. .these things re
kindle my faith in God and his
presence among those who seek
him.
If you are searching for a mis
sing link in your life, attend a
homecoming at one of the rural
churches in the county. You’ll
be welcome by the members, and
you may just find your answer.
Herman Talmadge
REPORTS FROM THE UNITED STATES SENATE