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®A Prize-Winning Newspaper Better Newspaper Contests VOL. 98 NO. 28 We Need Our Guns to Protect Us From These Terrible Highway Signs? Back at The Ranch r he sign on the other side says "45", showing the spi'sd limit, not the caliber ,°J ’he bullets which went through the sign. This sport" seems popular in f err V- (Home Journal Pho tos;. ■vey NeSmith Jr., Senior at ia Institute of Technology, named to the Dean’s List Spring Quarter, had an average of 3.5 out possible 4 for the. quarter. Julie Tabor was named Jean s list at the Univer tieorgia for the spring She was a freshman and T he daughter of Mrs. Floyd Tabor of Perry. Rains Save Some Crops Rot Corn Badly Damaged fal rains of the last few ,ve saved some crops, but 'owers will suffer a loss 10 30 per cent, County A ■mmett Whelchel Jr. said yesterday. -ston County received "Tread rains Monday, and al rains July 4 and 5, a °f 2 to 3 inches. helchel said the rains came PERRY. HOUSTON GA. 31069, THURSDAY, JULY 11, 1968 City of Perry Receives $42,158 in State Aid Vole Registration : Offices Opening Next 2 Saturdays i Voter registration offices in | Perry and Warner Robins will be , open from 9 a.m. to 12 noon on the next two Saturdays, July 13 | and 20, to register citizens who are not already qualified voters. ( Mrs. Joyce B. Griffin, tax com- ] missioner, said the deadline for ( registration to vote in the joint , Democratic and Republican pri mary is July 22. The offices will be open in the County Courthouse in Perry and the County Office Building in Warner Robins. Mrs. Griffin urged that all per sons who are not registered to vote come to one of the two of fices and qualify. J^osprrA^jEWsJ Cater Rogers was dismissed from the Macon Hospital last Saturday Houston County Hospital Warren Smith dismissed. Georgia Greene dismissed. Inez Harding dismissed. Rochelle SL.mons dismissed. Bennie Richardson admitted. Anita Hall dismissed. David A. Willingham dismissed Karen J. Lindsey dismissed. Peach County Hospital Freda Livingston dismissed. Elizabeth Jackson admitted. May Mindenhall admitted. Patricia Bannister admitted. Collis Griffin admitted. Thelma Batchelor admitted. Molly Hines dismissed. Blanche Dampier dismissed. in time to save the peanut crop and the farmers should get a normal yield if normal rainfall continues. Soybeans also will be all right, he said, if normal rainfall comes. Peaches, which quit growing because of the severe drought, are sizing up well now, but the overall yield has been reduced, he said. The Houston Home Journal The City of Perry received $42,158.02 from the state last week as this city’s share of state grants totaling sl4 million for 1068. Tne city received $35,030 in 1967. The allotment is based on the 1960 census of population, and this makes the growing cities mad and the fading cities glad. Perry, for instance, has gained about 1,500 people since the 1960 census, but gets no credit for the increase. Mayor and Council will de cide where the state money will be spent. State law requires that a certain percentage be used for capital improvements County Considers A Merit System Houston County commission ers, moving toward setting up a merit system for county employ ees, has hired a man to work up a merit plan. The total cost of the study will be $5,500. W. S. Wells of Macon, who does job description work for Bibb County, will receive S3OO a month for 15 months for draw ing up the plan, which will cost another SI,OOO when completed. The City of Centerville’s con trol of a wide area around its city limits for planning and zon ing was approved by the county commissioners in last week’s meeting. The commissioner has re ceived numerous complaints a bout the application of planning and zoning rules in a wide area around Centerville. Mayor Cedric Jones said he thinks most of the problems have been solved. The commissioners apparently agreed that the peripheral control ex tends too far at Centerville but would the situation as it is tem porarily. Water customers complained to the county officials that water pressure in the Sandy Run water system is inadequate and that the rates for water served by Centerville is too high. Sandy Run water system is owned by the county and the City of Cen terville owns its own system. Centerville raised water rates to customers living outside the city limits after city officials failed to get an annexation bill passed in the last General Assembly. ANDERSON SPEAKS TO KIW'ANIS CLUB A. M. (Phil) Anderson, trust officer of the First National Bank in Macon, spoke on Estate Planning at the luncheon meet ing of the Perry Kiwanis Club Tuesday. He was introduced by Earl Lewis, program chairman. Houston School Board Rejects Plea for Speedier Integration 'Choice' System Is Working Well, Board Declares The Houston County Board of Education has denied alle gations made by Negro plain tiffs who have asked the federal courts to void the "freedom of choice” plan and require the county board to speed up inte gration of schools and faculties. The county board of education declared that the system of “freedom of choice” is working properly and that a change would require extensive study by school officials. The Negro plaintiffs want a plan, by next Monday, under which all schools will be racially balanced. Judge W. A. Bootle of the U.S. District Court in Macon has not handed down an order on the Houston County court case, but only Monday gave Walton Coun ty 10 days in which to submit a plan acceptable to the court. A higher federal court already has held that "freedom of choice” plans are not effective in ba lancing the races in schools, and that "unitary schools” (no schools with an overbalance of one race) should be achieved. Defendants show that allega tions of plaintiffs in paragraph two are not accurate. Defendants report filed with the Court on May 31, 1968, shows that on the basis of 3085 choice forms re ceived from negro students, 576 elected to attend previously white schools which is approxi mately 19%. The defendants do not know the number of negro students who will attend school during the school year 1968-1969 but show to the Court that first grade enrollments and choices thereon to be made at school opening will result in an in crease in such a percentage, this averment being predicated on the experience of the defen dants in the 1967-1968 school year. In addition, a certain num ber of students have not made their election at this time and same will be forthcoming when school opens. Further, it is shown that defendants have no way to positively identify the the race of the person exercis ing his choice and only when it is known that the applicant is a negro, does defendant include this choice in the negro trans fers. Defendants allege that free dom of choice in its school sys tem has not failed. Defendants aver that plain tiffs’ allegations set forth in paragraph three are inaccurate. Defendants state that such al legations are “taken out of con text” and that the case cited does not hold that the court has retreated from its initial hold ings and directives addressed to school boards in the Brown & Jefferson cases. Defendants deny the allega tions set forth in paragraphs four and five of plaintiffs’ mo tion and for further answer sets forth that in any event the de fendants would be unable to perform and comply to a decree such as prayed for by plaintiffs. WHEREFORE, defendants pray that the prayers of plaintiffs be denied. Defendants’ li-ief I. Freedom of Choice Plans are acceptable: Mr. Justice Brennan’s initial paragraph in the Kent County case, Green V. County School Board of New Kent County, Va., 88 S. Ct. 1689 (1968) negatives a position that our Courts have now discarded "Freedom of Choice” for it states clearly that he is applying factual circum stances peculiar to Kent County and making a determination whe ther same constitutes adequate compliance by the Kent County Board. Justice Brennan’s decision states "there is no universal an swer to complex problems of de segregation, there is obviously no one plan that will do the job in every case. The matter must be assessed in light of the cir cumstances present and the op tions available in each in stance” "Where the court finds the board to be acting in eL j Jilt * Beavers Insurance Agency Team in Jr, League First row, I. to r.. Bob Turner, Larry Bonner, David Hurley, Chris Wilkerson, Craig Wright, Robbie Poole and Gene Moreland, batboy. Standing, I. to r., Riley good faith and the proposed plan to have real prospects for dis mantling the state imposed dual system at the earliest practica ble date then the plan may be said to provide effective relief.” Defendants have been informed of their responsibilities by the Court and have met same to the best of their ability. 11. Houston County’s Plan is effective in its initial stages: As factual matters now stand, the court has available for its review of Houston County’s Freedom of Choice Plan, only one full year of experience, and preliminary information on se cond year. This year at the ter mination of the preliminary peri od the percentage is approxi mately 19%. As stated in the answer, because of unknown negro choices, the percentage is probably greater than this and same will increase when first grade choices are tabula ted. It is submitted that this demon strates a "working” plan and that same should be continued until it is demonstrated that it is failing. 111. Compliance with decree as requested: Without conceding in any fashion that plaintiffs are en titled to the relief sought, to re quire an attempt to comply with plaintiffs’ prayers prior to the 1968-1969 school year, would constitute undue hardship and expense on the defendants. The Court’s attention is in vited to Prayer I. a. wherein the residence, race, and grade of our 15,000 students is required to be placed on a rm p of the Hous ton County School District which embraces all of Houston County. Obviously this must be an im possibility. Justice Brennan uses the phrase "at the earliest practica ble date” in the Kent decision and it is submitted that to re quire compliance with Prayer II would be a deviation from this Justice’s intent. Defendants strongly submit that such chang es in the school system should be studied carefully and same would require many days of in quiry and research. An ill-con ceived plan for compliance would result in chaos and great injury to all of the students, the school system, and its employees. In summary, the defendants assert that" Freedom of Choice” is a doctrine compatible to a citizen’s rights and privileges. Any step taken to deprive a per son of free choice and to force or cause an event diminishes the freedoms of bqth black and white. Further it is evident in an objective review of school de segregation in Houston County, that same is being accomplisfTed in a prudent, businesslike fash ion, and that all of its citizens have been afforded complete and nondiscriminatory opportuni ties to pursue their own incli nations. It is respectfully sub mitted that defendants are pro gressing on an apt and appro priate course of conduct worthy of continuance and judicial ap proval. House Numbering Project Is Undertaken by City Three city streets and parts of a fourth will soon have new street numbers as a result of City Council action last week. Approximately forty houses and several vacant lots will be af fected by the first step to im prove Perry’s numbering system. Northside Road, Frank Satter field Road, King’s Chapel Road and Tucker Rond from Logue to Clinton streets were all re-num bered to conform with the correct numbering system within the city. In another action, Council of ficially changed the name of the section of Ball Street between Five Points and the city limits to Highway 341-North. ‘‘Council took these actions with a look to the future,” Ad ministrative Assistant Tom Cook Coming Events Golf Pro Wiltz Bernard will hold a free junior golf clinic at Perry Country Club for members’ children, beginning Thursday, July 18, at 9:30 a.m. Cull Mr. Bernard for information. The Session of the Perry Presbyterian Church will meet at the church at 7:30 p.m. today. The Crossroads United Metho dist Church will have an open house at its new parsonage, 734 Forest Avenue, from 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday, July 14. The July meeting of the New comers Club will be held Thurs day, July 11, at 8 p.m. at the Security Federal Building. This will be the annual "Fun and Games” night. All newcomers are invited to attend and share I the fun and prizes. Each member is asked to bring a gift and a guest. The Wesleyan Service Guild will meet at the home of Mrs. •W. M. Haywood, Tuesday, July 16 at 8 p.m. Another series of swimming lessons to last for two weeks will be given by lifeguard Ed ward Lee at the Houston Lake Country Club beginning July 16. TWO BUSSES GOING TO BRAVES GAMES Two busloads of Perry people will go to Atlanta .today for tonight’s game between the Braves and the Dodgers, The , trip is sponsored by the Perry Kiwanis and Perry Rotary Clubs. The bus leaves about 5 p.m. Young, manager; Doug Hutson, Bobby Irwin, Kevin Sor rells, Earl Brown, Clay Kirk, Seabie Hickson Jr„ Seabie Hickson Sr., manager. (Home Journal Photo). noted. "After an extensive study, several streets were found to need re-numbering. Satterfield and Kings Chapel roads are num bered backwards and Northside and Tucker do not conform with the city system. These four streets all represent areas of future growth and changing the numbers now is more desirable than waiting for future problems to occur. Residents whose numbers were changed will be notified by mail immediately, Cook slated. Cor rected addresses will also be furnished to the Post Office and General Telephone Company. Ball Street was changed to Highway 341-North because of the lack of continuity with Bull Street south of Five Points and because of the commercial nature of the section. Cook noted that house numbers will be the same as the former Ball Street num bers. “Council is very interested in gaining public support and use of house and street numbers,” Cook noted. "The benefits of displaying a correct house num ber are many, and the disadvan tages are few. These major changes are the first steps to execute the Council’s wishes.” With Telephone Co, 20 Years Mrs. Estelle F. Hunt received a 20-year service award from Kenneth E. Aldridge, Perry District man ager of General Telephone Co., at a luncheon at the Holiday Inn recently. Mrs. Hunt is a service represen tative in General's Perry office. (Home Journal Photo). 10c PER COPY TWENTY-FOUR PAGES THREE SECTIONS ESTABLISHED 1870 Error in Audit Is Corrected The Home Journal commit ed a serious typographical er ror in the Houston County Au dit last week. Under statement of expendi tures for the County Commis-. sioners and Clerk office, tem porary salaries were listed at SI 5,100. The figure should have been $165 .... quite a dif ference. The Home Journal regrets the error. NEWCOMERS Newcomers to Perry in re cent days, as reported to the Chamber of Commerce, in clude: Mr. and Mrs. E. M. Lund quist, Kenwood Court. Mr. and Mrs. Adna R. Mohr, 1406 Windsor Road. Mr. and Mrs. Joseph K. Bellflower, 1210 Georgia Ave. Mr. and Mrs. J. B. Herring, 1204 Vi Charles Ave.