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* The leading new* *
+ and advertising medi- +
urn of the great Mid* +
+ die Georgia Peach and ♦
* ♦ Melon Belt. *
4.4.44.4.4.4.4.4.4.4.4.
Volume XXXIII, Number 1.
FOUR
)
DOORS TO LEAGUE
1 ARE OPEN TO U. S.
WORKS TO LEAVE THE WAY
OPEN FOR UNITED STATES
TO HAVE HER SAY
AMERICAN ARMY AT GENEVA
|Vi*it nificance, Of Major Churchill Has No Sig¬
But Puts Delegates
To Talking
Geneva, Switzerland.—The arrival
liere of Maj. Marlborough Churchill
assistant chief of the military intel
.licence division of the general staff
©f the United States army, which sc
far as appears now has no real sig
nificance except to himself and hi?
department, has created a mild sensa
tion in league of nations circles.
The “United States” has been od
the lips of almost every spokesman
in the assembly of the league and
probably in the minds of every dele¬
gate.
The hope that tile v i-i-l States will
some day join the league is unmistaka
hie. The entire work of the assembly
lias visibly been directed so as not
to prejudice the most important ques
tions at issue regarding the league
covenant, and so as to leave the way
open for the United States to have
her say in its eventual revision.
The appearance during this assent
bly of any official or unofficial repre
sentative of the American government
was the last thing hoped for. Major
Churchill, consequently, was ail the
more an object of attention when his
presence here became known.
Major Churchill conferred with the
United States members of the league’s
secretariat and also with Colonel Re
quin of the French military delegation
in attendance here.
Major Churchill explained that he
was on a tour of inspection of all the
United States military attaches in Eu
rope and came to Geneva to find out
the manner in which the military com¬
mission was organized and become ac¬
quainted with the activities of the as
aembly regarding intelligence work
and other military questions.
The United States, Major Church¬
ill said, is interested from the stand
point of the future and naturally is
anxious to know what has been done
or may be accomplished in a military
way by the league.
TO LAUNCH LARGEST
VESSEL IN UNITED STATES
NAVY AFTER NEW YEAR'S
Quincy, Mass.—It is authoritatively
announced here the keels of the su
perdreadnaught Massachusetts will be
laid soon after New Year’s Day.
The Massachusetts will be larger
than any vessel in the United States
navy. With a length of 660 feet over
all and 106 feet beam, her displace¬
ment will be 43,200 tons. She will
have electric drive and engines ol
60,000 horsepower, and her speed is tc
be twenty-three knots. The armament
will comprfse twelve 16-inch guns and
a secondary battery of sixteen 6-incb
guns.
The keel of the Lexington, a battle
cruiser, will be laid soon after that
of the Massachusetts. She will have
almost exactly the same beam as the
Massachusetts, but her length over all
is to be 880 feet and her displace
ment 43,500 tons. Her engines of 180,
000 horsepower will yield a speed ot
thirty-five knots under electric drive.
She will mount eight 16-ineh guns and
sixteen 6-inch guns and also will have
eight torpedo tubes.
These two huge warships embody
the latest developments in naval eon
sanction and incidentaly show how
rapidly types have changed in recent
years. The locks of the Panama ca
nal, which are 110 feet wide, will allow
only two feet margin on each side for
ihe passage of a vessel of the Massa
chusetts’ beam.
Kitchen StrlcKen &y Acute Indigestion
Washington.—Representat ive Kitch¬
en. minority leader of the house, was
stricken with an attack of acute indi¬
gestion as he entered the postoffice
department for a conference with the
postmaster general. His attack was
of short duration, however, and after
receiving treatment he was taken to
his home. His physician, Dr. Louis
Battle, says Mr. Kitchin’s condition
is not in "any way alarming.”
Price-Cutting Wave Rolls On Asheville)
Asheville, N. C.—Men’s wear, beef,
pork and bacon will be cheaper in'
Asheville as the result of a wave ot; I
price - cutting , which struck the city.
Clothing houses advertised reductions
of 33 1/3 per cent in men's suits and J j
t«T«ral firms inc^uAad in their lists
THE HOME PAPER OF THE BEST PEOPLE OF THE PEACH PARADISE OF THE WORLD. «
The Leader-Tribune
AND PEACHLAND JOURNAL
FORT VALLEY, HOUSTON COUNTY, GEORGIA, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1920. EIGHT PAGES
BIG MASS MEETING OF
AUTHORITIES ON PEACH PESTS
TO BE HERE. ALL GROWERS,
FOREMEN AND SUPERINTEND¬
ENTS URGED TO ATTEND.
On Wednesday, December 8. at
2:30 p. m., a mass meeting of the
peach growers in this district will be
held at the Chamber of Commerce in
Fort Valley for the purpose of dis¬
cussing the chief factors which will
influence the degree of eurculio and
disease damage to the next crop.
Dr. A. L. Quaintance, leading au¬
thority in this country on fruit in¬
sects, of Washington, D. C., will he
present to discuss various practices
which must be enforced in the dis¬
trict to save the next peacn crop from
the ravages of the eurculio and other
pests. It is probable that a represen¬
tative from the Bureau of Plant In¬
dustry will also be present.
The representatives of the U. S.
Bureau of Entomology, who have
headquarters on Miller Street, have
been making a survey of local condi¬
tions, such as hibernating quarters
of the eurculio in and near orchards
and a definite program of work to
eliminate sources of infestation, etc.,
has been outlined and will be pre¬
sented at this meeting. It is very es¬
sential to secure the cooperation of
every grower, and is this program as
presented is accepted and adopted
the proper public sentiment must be
created to make sure that it is thor¬
oughly and efficiently carried out
by every grower, small and large, in
order to eliminate sources which
might reinfest properties which have
adhered to the program.
The orchard superintendents and
foremen should attend this meeting
as well as the orchard owners, be¬
cause they are the ones who will act¬
ually conduct the work. It is the duty
of every grower to see that this meet¬
ing is well attended because the fu¬
ture of the peach industry rests upon
the adoption of a program of work
which will keep in control the pests
which have caused suen tremendous
losses during the past two seasons
and which have lowered the pres¬
tige of the Georgia peach on the mar¬
kets. A corps of trained men will be
permanently maintained at the Gov¬
ernment laboratory in this city and
their services are at the disposal of
the peach growers of this section.
0
BAPTIST WOMEN ACTIVE
IN MISSIONARY WORK
At the general meeting of the Wo¬
man’s Missionary Society of the Bap¬
tist church held in November, the
president, Mrs. W. J. Braswell, ap¬
pointed Mrs. A. J. Evans chairman
of personal service, Mrs. Tom Mur
phey chairman of publications, and
Mrs. Bettie Williams chairman of so¬
cial service. In the absence of the
treasurer, Mrs. Mittie Wynne, Mrs.
W. A. Wooddall, as assistant treas¬
urer, has charge of the finances.
The society voted to continue the
work of caring for the French Or¬
phans and Mrs. Charlie Byrd has this
phase of the work in hand. During
the past year, under the direction of
Mrs. Braswell the society has made
advances in all of its activities and
the outlook for the new year’s work
is very encouraging.
■0
Mr. N. Hauser, the jeweler, who
has been seriously ill for several days
at his apartments in the rear of his
store, is improving. Dr. W. S. White,
a special nurse and friends have been
attending him.
other wearing apparel, sin, shirts in
some instances being cut 50%. The
butcher shops announced reductions*
of between 20% and 25% on all grades
of beef, pork and bacon.
Marine Is Accussed Of Killing Haitien
Port-au-Prince, Haiti.—Dorcas Wit
liams, a marine sergeant, formerly of
Birmingham, Ala., accused of killing
a native of Haiti, arrived here in the
custody of officers aboard the destroy
er McCormick. The court of inquiry,
which is investigating the activities
of the American marines in Haiti, de
Bared hearing W illiams to enable him
to confer with witnesses for the de
fel)ge The Haitien courier has been
p r j n (j n g a series of extremely sensa
tional charges against the marines
based on hearsay reports.
IN THE
I Mrs. F. E. Elmer, Mrs. lone Henry,
Ernest D. Hopson and Mrs An=
nie E. Cutts Are Held.
Testimony of Experts Indicated Bi-Chloride
of Mercury Taken Through Mouth
Caused Death of F. D. Shepard.
The coroner’s jury empaneled
Nov. 6, to inquire into the cause
the death of Fred D. Shepard on
1, was reconvened in the Austin
atre in Fort Valley Saturday
noon at 2:30 o’clock and heard
timony from Dr. M. S. Brown of
Valley, Dr. John Funke and Dr.
gar Everhardt of Atlanta.
Dr. Brown first testified to
identification of the body of
Shepard when it was exhumed
Nov. 6 and again on Nov. 17; of
removal on each occasion of
of the alimentary canal and
important organs; of the delivery
these in sealed glass jars to Dr.
hardt and Dr. Funke; of the
tion of the intestines and other
dominal tissues observed by him
the occasion of the operation
was performed on Mr. Shepard just
prior to his death in a Macon hospi¬
tal; and of the indication that these
conditions and death were not due to
any known disease.
Dr. Funke testified as to his path¬
ological and microscopjc examination
of the viscera removed by him and
Dr. Brown on Nov. 17, and stated
that the changes in these tissues
served by him clearly pointed to
corrosive poison taken through
mouth
Dr. Everhardt testified that he had
isolated one-fifth of a grain of bi¬
chloride of mercury from the visce¬
ra taken from the body on the sec
ond autopsy, which were delivered to
him by Dr. Funke. He stated that
poison had been found in his tests
of the viscera turned over to him im
mediately after the first autopsy on
Nov. 6. He stated that tt was
ble that a much larger quantity of
the poison may have been taken and
eliminated from the body by vomiting
and purging.
Immediately after the testimony
of these witnesses Solicitor Chas. M.
Garrett cleared the theatre of the
general public in order that the cor¬
oner’s jury might deliberate on the
evidence and arrive at their decis
oin. In a very short time this verdict
was rendered as follows: “We, the
jury, find that Fred D. Shepard came
to his death by bi-chloride of mercu¬
ry given in a manner unknown to us
by parties unknown to us. tt
Mrs. F. E. Elmer, former wife of
Mr. Shepard, with her attorney, Chas.
M. Durrance of Jacxsonville, Fla.,
ent at the coroner’s inquest, having
ent at the soroner’s inquest, having
reached Fort Valley on an early af¬
ternoon train from Macon. Neither
Mrs. Elmer nor her attorney were
given an opportunity to participate.!
in any way in the inquest. As soon
as the theatre was ordered cleared
Mrs. Elmer and her attorney and
stenographer made their way to the
3:40 train for Macon and just as
they were in the act of boarding the
train Deputy Sheriff J. J. Robinson
presented to Mrs. Elmer a warrant In
bail trover proceedings affecting
administration of the estate of Mr.
Shepard and for relief of Fred R.
Crandall, her bondsman in the sum
of $25,000.00. They were escorted
from the train to the law offices of
Col. L. L. Brown, where arrange¬
ments were made for the estate of
Mr. Shepard to be turned over to
Col. Brown, who was named as ex¬
ecutor in the will made by Mr. Shep¬
ard a week or so before his death. It
is stated that her attorney arranged
to give bond in this phase of the case
in the amount of $120,000 for Mrs.
Elmer.
Immediately on leaving the law
offices of Col. Brown, Deputy Sher¬
iff Robinson again placed Mrs. El
under arrest on a warrant charg
murder. She was tak^n to a room
the Winon Hotel and kept there
guard of Deputy Robinson and
J B Bartley, until the midnight
on which these gentlemen took
| her to Macon, where she was placed
| in a hospital ward of the Bibb Coun
ty jail.
Mrs. Elmer’s arrest was soon fol¬
lowed by that of Mrs. lone Henry,
her sister, and of Ernest D. Hopson,
Mrs. Elmer’s son, both of whom
were placed under guard at Mrs.
Henry’s home in Perry.
The fourth person arrested in the
case was Mrs. Annie E. Cutts, wife
of a prominent Fitzgerald attorney,
and a former intimate friend of Mrs.
Elmer when they both were in Ab¬
beville. Mrs. Cutt-s was arrested in
Fitzgerald Monday and was taken to
Macon and placed in the Bibb County
jail that night. She is said to know a
a good deal about the alleged plot to
poison Mr. Shepard, which is said to
have been formed in Abbeville last
May when Mrs. Elmer, Mrs. Henry,
Mr. Shepard and Ernest Hopson went
to Abbeville to see Mrs. Elmer’s son,
John S. Hopson, who was shot there
on May 17 by J. A. Turner, it is said,
overseer on the Cutts’ plantation.
A preliminary hearing will be giv¬
en the four persons under arrest on
Dec. 7, when applications for bail
will be considered.
It is reported that Solicitor Gar¬
rett will be assisted in his prosecu¬
tion of the cases by W. A. McClellan,
a noted criminal lawyer, and that
other lawyers also might figure in
the prosecution. It is further stated
that General Walter A. Harris will
assist in the defense of Mrs. Elmer,
that Judge Jno. P. Ross will rep
resent Mr. Hopson and will also as
s j s t Judge C. E. Brunson of Perry in
the defense of Mrs. Henry. Col. R. J j
Berner, it is said, will assist at
tomey Eldridge Cutts in the
0 f Mrs. Cutts. I
I - -o- 1
D. A. R. ARE IN CHARGE OF
FRANKLIN THEATRE TODAY
Proceed* Go For Memorial Scholar¬
ship, Education Of Mountain
Boys And Girls, And To
Thomas Library.
On Thursday afternoon and even¬
ing the Governor Treutlen Chapter
D. A. R. will have charge of the
picture show at the Franklin Thea¬
tre, which has been kindly donated
to the D. A. R. for the occasion. The
proceeds of the show will be applied
to the memorial scholarship fund at
the University of Georgia for disa¬
bled soldiers and for the education
of mountain boys and girls and to
the Thomas Library.
Mrs. W. B. Smith is regent of the
chapter and under tier leadership
marked advances in educational and
benevolent activities fostered by the
D. A. R. are evident.
The cooperation of trie public will
be appreciated by the members of
the Governor Treutlen Chapter.
o
U. D. C. TO HOLD BAZAAR
TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY
I
Fancy Work, Cakes, Candies And
Kisses To Be Sold To Con¬
tinue Work Of Education
And Benevolence.
The Charles D. Anderson Chapter
U. D. C. will have a bazaar at Cope¬
land’s Pharmacy on December sev¬
enth nd eighth. The bazaar will be
open from ten o’clock a. m. until ten
in the evening. There will be on sale
articles of fancy work, cakes, can¬
dies and kisses. The proceeds will be
applied to the work fostered by the
U. D. C., which is education and be¬
nevolences. The present need is for
funds to care for the old soldiers. The
Charles ~ narle J? u D ‘ Anderson on Chanter Chap ’ with Wlth
F- ^ Mllle „ * as president, , is
makin £ advances in many phases of
work aTul 18 a,so S roW!n S in member
ship.
$2.50 Per Year In Advance.
DIES I! THEATRE
PASSES CALMLY INTO LAST
LONG SLEEP WHILE WATCH¬
ING THE PICTURES THANKS¬
GIVING NIGHT.
As peacefully as a babe falls to
sleep on its mother’s breast Mr. Mar¬
cus Jones Langston, husband of Mrs.
Daisy Foster Langston, express agent
here, crossed “the great divide” be¬
tween the here and the hereafter
while witnessing the pictures a the
Franklin Theatre here Thursday
night. There had not been the slight¬
est premonition to anyone of his pass¬
ing until Mr. T. E. McMinn, propri¬
etor of the picture house, was clos¬
ing up about 10:30 o’clock, when his
attention was called to a man ap
parently asleep in the auditorium.
As soon as Mr. McMinn approached
the silent form close enough to rec
ognize it he had a premonition that
the man was dead, although his atti¬
tude was that of one asleep. It was
generally known here, however, that
Mr. Langston was a sufferer from
heart and' kidney trouble.
When found Mr. Langston’s body
was sitting naturally !n a seat, his
head leaned against the wall, one
arm resting on the adjacent seat, the
other hand holding' his hat easily and
naturally between his knees. There
was not an indication of struggle,
pain or premonition of death. The
doctors say it was the most remark¬
able case of literally falling asleep
into death that had ever come under
their observation.
Mr. CcMinn immediately called in
Doctors Hickson, Wise and M. S.
Brown, who laid the body in the aisle
where an examination could be made.
The cold extremities and stilled heart
showed life to be extinct. The circum¬
stances indicated that Mr. Langston
had been dead for an hour or possi¬
bly two hours. Mr. McMinn remem¬
bered seeing him enter the picture
show very soon after seven o’clock.
Death was pronounced due to heart
trouble complicated with a kindney
trouble.
The body was taken to the under
taking establishment of the Georgia
Agricultural Works, where it was
embalmed for shipment to Lithonia,
former home of the deceased,
Mrs. Langston and daughter, Mar
tha Frances, were spending the
Thanksgiving season in Atlanta and
were reached over the telephone at
11:30 o’clock that night. Mrs. Langs¬
ton and her sister, Miss Martha Fos¬
ter, caught the first train available
that night for Macon where they
were met by friends with an automo¬
bile. They, with Miss Em Langston,
sister of the deceased, and Rev. J.
W. Stokes of the Presbyterian church
accompanied the body Friday morn¬
ing to Lithonia, where the interment
occurred at 11:00 o’clock Saturday
Morning. Mr. Stokes was assisted in
the funeral service by Rev. Marvin
Williams of Grace Street Methodist
church, Atlanta, a former pastor of
the deceased, and by Rev. Burrell of
the Baptist church, pastor of the fam¬
ily. The concluding services were in
charge of the Masons.
Mr. Langston was 55 years old.
He was well thought of by the people
of Fort Valley, as are his estimable
wife and daughter. Owing to the con¬
dition of Mr. Langston’s health for
several years, Mrs. Langston was
the active head of the family, and
has filled the position of express
agent here with the assistance of Mr.
Langston most capably for the past
year or more.
The sincere sympathy of many
friends is extended to these bereaved
ones.
-O
JUSTICES OF PEACE TO
BE ELECTED SATURDAY
The election for Justices of the
Peace throughout Georgia will be
held Saturday, Dec. 4. The election
for the 528th G. M. (9th) District
of Houston County will be held in the
office of the Justice of the Peace in
Valley.
©■
The many friends of Dr. Virgin
ius Brown and family are much con
cerned over his serious illness.
-
a ten-pound boy arrived Wednes
jay evening at the residence of Mr.
and Mrs . W . F- Mathews, 225 Ander
son Ave.
* The only newspaper *
+ published in the heart ♦
+ of the largest Peach- ♦
+ growing section of the ♦
♦ world. *
4.4.4.4.4.4.4.4.4.4.4.41
CASE
TOPER CENT GRAFT
I WITNESS CHARGES
AUDITOR SAYS HE TOLD BOARD
LAST JULY GOVERNMENT
WAS BEING ROBBED
GERMAN SHIPS ARE INVOLVED
Alleges Government Suffered From
Overcharges, Favoritism And
Needless Repair
New York.—Testimony that 10% ol
the $7,000,000 shipping board repail
bills in the south Atlantic district
was “graft,” was given here to the
Walsh congressional committee exam
ining into shipping board affairs. The
allegation was made by Charles Ban
zahf, a traveling auditor of the board
out of New York. It was contained
in a letter written by the witness
to the general comptroller of the
board last July, read here by Chair¬
man Walsh and identified by the wit¬
ness.
Means by which the alleged “graft”
was made possible, the witness testi¬
fied, included lack of inspections, fail¬
ure to check repair work, overcharges
for materials and labor and unneces¬
sary repairs. He cited an instance of
a repair engineer who, he said, had
set in a pilot house and approved re¬
pair hills amounting to “thousands of
dollars’ without ever looking at the
work. He declared inspectors had
been their told business, that and "costs” that were there none ofj
was a;
spirit of make, rather than cut down,!
repair work.
Two of the former German ships
were brought into the inquiry for the
first time by Banzahf. He asserted he
had been instructed to check up bills
for the reconditioning of the former
German liner Hamburg, now the New
Rochelle. This ship was sold on a
charter purchase contract to the Bal¬
tic Steamship company. Ther sale
price, he understood, was approximate¬
ly $985,000, and the shipping board had
advanced for the reconditioning of the
ship about four hundred thousand dol
lars. The hill of repairs for this ship
he added, was about a million and a
halt dollars, which an audit of accounts
reduced approximately $337,000. The
discrepancy between the sale price of
the ship and the cost of recondition¬
ing, he said, he could not explain with¬
out the contract of sale, which he did
not have with him.
-o
POLICE CHIEF LYON HAS
FAMILY REUNION SUNDAY
Chief of Police W. A. Lyon is not
strong on cards nor card fiends, but
the chief had a “full house H at his
house Sunday. It was a family re¬
union of four generations of Lyons,
from the chief’s invalid mother, 79
years of age, who lives with him,
down to his youngest grandchild, age
8 months. Altogether there were fif¬
teen persons in the chief’s little
home on South Macon street Sunday,
gathered there in honor of his son,
W. A. Lyon, Jr., and his new bride,
an account of whose marriage ap¬
peared in our issue of last week.
Chief Lyon and his family all spent
Thanksgiving Day in Macon with his
son and daughter who live there.
o
War will be declared on the two
million-doilar curculij December 8,
Be there.
-o
FORT VALLEY BOY HOME
FROM SIBERIAN SERVICE
Mr. Jesse Hartley is at home on a
furlough for several weeks. He has
been stationed for the past eighteen
months at Vladivostok, Russia, and
went inland 3,000 miles to Omsk,
where he volunteered to assist in the
building of the Siberian railway. He
will go from here to the army post
at Seattle, Washington.
1 *
o
HARTLEY-YOUNG
Friends are cordially interested in
the announcement of the marriage
on Sunday, November 21, of Miss
Vera Hartley f daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. W. A. Hartley, to Mr. Virgil
Young, son of Mr. and Mrs. A. 15.
Young
-o
Miss Ethel Kim of Korea, China,
and who has been a student at Wes¬
leyan College for a number of years,
spent last week end with Dr. and
Mrs. C. R. Jenkins. Miss Kim gave
a very interesting talk at the Ep
worth League hour Sunday evening.