Newspaper Page Text
VOL. 104 NO. 39
Wharf Rats In The Sewer
City Declares
War On Rats
~ Wharf rats have apparently
entered into at least one area
of Perry’s sewer system in
recent weeks and four cases of
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Mayor Finds Rats
Perry Mayor James McKinley inspects a
I manhole on King’s Chapel Road in which it is
believed rats have entered in recent weeks.
McKinley found several rat holes near the en
trance to the manhole and this is believed to be
where the rats found their way into the main
sewer line and from there entered at least four
homes th r ough the commodes in the King’s
Chapel, Davis Subdivision area of town.
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* Senator Nunn Back Home
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io U.S. Senator Sam Nunn was in Warner Robins
n last Friday night for a Democratic fund-raising
>e
:h dinner. Senator Nunn addressed the 400
:e , Democrats on the current state of the U.S.
29 economy and steps he recommends that Congress
The Houston Home Journal
Perry And Houston County f s Independent Newspaper With An Independent Voice
the rats entering homes in the
Davis Subdivision via the
sewers have been reported to
city officials. The rats have
PERRY, HOUSTON COUNTY, GEORGIA, THURS., SEPTEMBER 26, 1974
entered the homes by
traveling from the main sewer
line to the connector lines
leading to commodes in the
homes where the incidents
have occurred.
Perry Mayor James
McKinley told The Home
Journal today that the en
trance where the rats have
made their way into the sewer
line has been discovered near
a manhole on the King’s
Chapel Road. McKinley said
several holes made by
“large” rats were found near
the entrance of the manhole
leading directly into the sewer
line. He said a city work crew
has already plugged the holes
and are looking now for other
possible entrances.
Three of the cases reported
were all on the same street on
Sewell Circle and Mayor
McKinley said he believes the
sewer rat problem is probably
an isolated incident in that
area of the city.
When learning of the
problem, McKinley called in
state and county health of
ficials along with the city’s
engineer to begin steps to wipe
out the rats as soon as
possible.
Jim Drinnon, Houston
County sanitarian, told The
Home Journal he has con
ferred with State Dept, of
Health officials in Atlanta and
that he is now looking for other
possible entrances into the
sewer other than the King’s
Chapel Road holes found this
week. He also said he plans to
place wharf rat poison in the
sewer to “bait out” any rats
that may be remaining in the
sewer.
Drinnon said many citizens
were puzzled at how rats can
make their way into a home
through a bathroom com
mode. He explained that the
main sewer lines are “pretty
dry" and that rats can easily
travel up and down the lines
and when they arrive at a
connector line going to a house
he said they travel up these
lines. Drinnon said the sewer
lines into residences are also
dry except at times when they
are beine used. He said the
take to ease the problem. Shown here with the
Senator from left are. Perry businessman Francis
Nunn, Perry dentist Dr. William R. Jerles, State
Representative Larry Walker of Perry, Senator
Nunn and State Senator Ed Barker of Warner
Robins.
rats go up the lines and when
they arrive at the pipe running
to the commode they swim
through the short “water
trap’’ line and arrive in the
commode.
Drinnon urged anyone who
discovers a rat in their
bathroom or commode to call
the city hall at once. He
warned residents not to tangle
with the rat and not to try and
kill it with broomstick or
similar. He said to get a
“broadbladed” instrument
such as a shovel or hoe to do in
the rat.
“Wharf rats are vicious
rodents,” Drinnon said, “and
when cornered they will fight
for their lives, so I urge
anyone confronted with one of
these rats to use extreme
caution because they will
attack a human if cornered.”
Mayor James McKinley
said he hopes the rat problem
will be taken care of in the
next few days. He said there is
a possibility that the rats that
were in the sewer may
already be dead and the
poison placed in the sewer
lines this week will probably
lake care of the problem and
that repair of the holes in the
main sewer lines will keep any
other rats from getting into
the sewer.
County Sanitarian Jim
Drinnon asked that residents
in the Davis Subdivision area
take precautionary steps for
the next few weeks until
health officials are positive all
the rats have been killed. He
said residents in that area
should keep their commode
lids and bathroom doors shut
when not in use and that
parents with small children
should accompany them to the
bathroom. He warned
residents not to corner a rat if
it got out of the commode. He
said if the rat is discovered in
the commode, the lid should
be closed immediately and a
heavy object placed on the lid.
He said the rat should either
be killed with an object like a
shovel or leave the lid closed
and the rat will go back down
the commode line into the
sewer line.
These Perry police officers poured a lot of
“booze" down the drain Tuesday afternoon at
police headquarters in City Hall. It was con
fiscated liquor being held for evidence that was no
linger needed so it went down the drain. Most of it
For Authority Appointment Method
Beckham Seeks Changes
Houston County Hospital
Authority finance committee
chairman Billy Beckham
Monday night proposed to the
Houston County Commission
that they derive a new method
of selecting hospital authority
members. Beckham’s idea
was warmly endorsed by
Commission Vice-Chairman
Charles Carter, Warner
Robins gynecologist Dr. Carl
Beard, and a majority of the
members of a huge audience
gathered at the Warner
Robins City Hall in an
ticipation of seeing five
authority members hand in
their resignations,
Beckham, in attendance at
the “showdown”, said, “The
Hospital Authority needs to be
able to work together - we
didn’t campaign, politick, or
make promises for our
positions. We have no plat
forms to live up to."
He continued by saying he
had researched Georgia law
that day and stated, “The
Georgia Hospital Association
saw in 1964 clearly need for a
law, A law was passed that
clearly tells how hospital
authorities are to be ap
pointed. There was an option,
left open at that time, if a
commission wanted to con
tinue to appoint in another
matter.”
Beckham further said,
“Seventy-five percent of all
the counties in Georgia follow
the same pattern. The Georgia
legislature passed a law - so it
must have merit.”
He outlined the procedure,
saying, “The commissioners
could select three men for
each vacancy and submit to
the hospital authority who
select the one most qualified
to help in their situation.”
Beckham also maintained
that “I think the feeling of this
board is this group has not
been as harmonious as it
should have been in the past.
We don’t need to be dominated
by a chairman, or one with the
Down The Drain
most political ties, or the most
effective speaker.”
Dr. Beard later said,
speaking as a member of the
large audience, “In regards to
Mr. Beckham, his words keep
ringing in my ears. Maybe
there’s a better way- allowing
the staff to choose a man and
recommend to the com
missioners. Mr. Beckham had
a real fine suggestion.”
Parkinson, Dooley Replace Harper, Beatty
Perryans Named To Authority
And then there were two.
Only two of the original nine
Houston County Hospital
Authority members who held
positions as of Monday
morning of last week still
retain their position. The
County Commission late
Tuesday night in a “closed
doors” executive session
picked six new people to the
board, to join holdovers
Sherrill Stafford and Billy
Beckham, and Barry Jones,
who was picked just last week.
Don Parkinson of Ferry, a
local insurance executive, was
picked by the Commissioners
to replace Hugh Beatty of
Perry. Parkinson is quite
active in Perry clubs and is a
former Mayoral candidate.
Beatty was chairman of the
Authority’s Personnel com
mittee.
Jim Dooley, an executive
with the Pabst Brewing
Company, was selected by the
Commission to replace Louis
“Smokey” Harper on the
Authority, Harper was Vice-
Chairman of the Authority.
Selected to replace the
Warner Robins Authority
members who resigned
(Freeman Colbert, L.A.
McConnell, Paul Stalnaker,
and Wentford Spears) were:
John Lovejoy, Glynn
Greenway, Preston Porter,
was moonshine whiskey taken in recent raids in
the city. From left, detective Eddie Findley, Chief
B.E. Dennard, Cpt. Arthur Buckles and officer
Charles Lewis. Not present for the photo was
officer Hubert Evans who conducted several of
the recent raids.
Several minutes later
Commission Chairman Frank
Kozar made a specific point to
thank Beckham for his
suggestion. He said he was
sure that the commissioners
would lake the idea into ac
count in further deliberations.
But he cautioned, "I can’t
assure of this hoard’s
position.”
One of Beckham’s fellow
Jr., and Mrs, Eleanor
Granum.
Lovejoy replaces Stalnaker.
Lovejoy is a Robins Air Force
Base employee. Greenway
replaces McConnell.
Greenway is a Warner Robins
insurance executive.
Preston Porter, Jr.,
replaced Freeman Colbert,
Jr Both are blacks and Porter
is a sales representative for an
appliance chain. Mrs.
Granum is a registered nurse
at the Warner Robins-Houston
County Hospital. She replaces
Don Parkinson
28 PAGES
Authority members, Cen
terville Mayor Sherrill
Stafford, in effect echoed his
suggestion. But Stafford
added another twist. He
suggested possibly having the
hospital authority derive a list
of three men for each position
and let the commissioners
pick from the 27 names, a
board of nine hospital
authority members.
Spears.
The six people were ap
pointed after a 20-minute
closed door session. The
“formal motion” to appoint
was made by Commissioner
Charles Carter. He was
seconded by Commissioner
V.W. McEver. The vote was
unanimous.
The six were further in
structed to meet “as soon as
possible” with the remaining
three members to set up the
Authority, elect a Chairman,
and conduct business.
jim Dooley