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VOLUME 82 —7 2 JER 25 '
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GARY McGONNELL
Four Candidates Qualify
In Race to Name Sheriff
Three candidates have
qualified for the special
election on August 12 to fill
the unexpired term of the
late Sheriff John Frank Mc-
Connell.
First to enter the race was
‘Not Guility”
Verdict in
Wooten Case
A Superior Court jury
has rendered a verdict
of “not guilty” in the
case of Troy Wooten,
who was charged in the
knife slaying of John D.
Edmonds.
The incident occurred
at a residence just north
of the Summerville city
limit on Sunday, June
18.
The jury deliberated
several hours before
bringing in its verdict
about 11 p.m. Tuesday.
Combat Wounds Fatal to
L-Cpl. Gary T. Marbutt
A Summerville Marine
died Sunday of combat
wounds received in Viet
Nam on July 6.
Lance Corporal Gary T.
Marbutt succumbed to muf
tipie injuries to the face,
arms and legs after being
wounded in combat action.
The 21-year-old Marine died
at a hospital at Clark Air
Force Base, Philippine Is
lands, where he had been
transferred from the com
bat zone.
Cpl. Marbutt was stationed
at Parris Island, S. C„ before
leaving from Camp Pendle
ton, Calif., on February 22
for overseas duty.
He was a 1965 graduate of
Chattooga High School and
was attending the Univer
sity of Chattanooga when
Maddox Speech Here Gets ‘Reaction’
At least one part of a
speech delivered here by
Gov. Lester Maddox at a
meeting of the Summer
ville-Trion Rotary Club
last week has brought a
reaction from several
quarters.
First to react to the
governor’s strong stand
against a local sales tax
was House Speaker
George L. Smith, who
called a press confer
ence to express his
views after Mr. Maddox
stated in no uncertain
terms his opposition to
the measure.
••mat, group in At
lanta," the governor de
clared, “seems to think
your local government
should be run from At
lanta’s city hall, their
local newspaper office
and the offices of the
financial czars that sur
round Five Points.”
Gov. Maddox added
that this is a demon
stration of the age-old
struggle for political
power.
-I want to tell you,
my fellow Georgians,”
®ht ^untrnrrutlle J\tius
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JACK LEDFORD
Gary McConnell, son of the
late sheriff. Mr. McConnell
served as a deputy for two
and one-half years under
his father. He was ap
pointed acting sheriff by
Ordinary Paul Weems to
serve until a special election
can be held.
The ordinary has set Sat
urday, August 12, as the
date for the special election
to fill the unexpired term
which ends December 31,
1968.
Others to qualify are
Charles (Jack) Ledford and
William Eilenburg.
Mr. Ledford is a foreman
at Georgia Rug Mill and a
member of the Summerville
City Council.
Mr. Eilenburg is a native
Chattoogan and has been in
business here for a number
of years.
The special election was
brought about by the death
of Sheriff John Frank Mc-
Connell on July 8. Mr. Mc-
Connell had served two and
one-half years of an elected
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GARY MARBUTT
. . . dies of wounds
Mr. Maddox loudly pro
claimed, "that this will
not happen while Lester
Maddox is governor—
not by the hair of my
chiny, chin, chin.”
Speaker Smith said he
regretted the governor
had used such strong
speech, added that he
didn’t think there is a
chance a statewide sales
tax increase will get
through the General As
sembly next year.
Mr. Smith led a fight
to get the local option
sales tax through the
House of Representa
tives earlier this year.
The bill would have al
lowed any city or county
to levy the tax if ap
proved in a referendum
by the voters.
The state would have
collected the locally
levied tax and then re
turned it to the area in
which it was collected.
The House passed the
bill by a vote of 112 to
59. but it was defeated
in the Senate by a vote
of 23-28.
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WILLIAM ELLENBURG
four-year term.
The special election is ex
pected to generate a great
deal of interest in the coun
ty during the next few
weeks. An indication of this
was the report of a heavy
registration of potential
voters during the last two
days the books were open
for registration. Tuesday
was the last day to register
to be eligible to vote in the
August 12 election.
J. Hairral Davis, of Penn
ville, qualified late Wednes
day afternoon for the spe
cial election to fill the un
expired term of the late
Sheriff John Frank McCon
nell.
Mr. Davis is the fourth
candidate to enter the race.
Candidates may qualify to
run in the special election
until Friday, July 28, at 6
p.m., according to Ordinary
Weems.
More than 8,000 Chat
toogans will be eligible to
he enlisted in the Marine
Corps.
The young Marine was
preceded in death by his fa
ther on November 21, 1955.
Survivors include his moth
er, Mrs. Frances Marbutt,
Route 1, Summerville; nine
sisters, Mrs. Marvin Hughes,
Sewell, N. J., Mrs. Harold
Bryan and Mrs. Michael
Bates, Chicago, 111., Mrs.
Billy Walters, Darlene Mar
butt and Lynn Marbutt,
Summerville, Cpl. Judy Mar
butt, Fort George Meade,
Md., Mrs. Don Dotson and
Mrs. Charles Rich, Lyerly;
two brothers, Karl Marbutt,
Berryton, Allen Marbutt,
Summerville; maternal
grandparents, Mr. and Mrs.
Otis Coleman, Cedartown;
one niece and seven nephews
also survive.
OPPOSES LOCAL SALES TAX^B
Mr. Maddox said he
would not sit by and see
our state government
drained of its sub
stance. When anyone
proposes that our state
government be drained
of this substance, that
it be weakened, that the
right of the General
Assembly be abolished,
that the power of the
governor and the budget
authorities be destroyed
and transferred, I have
this to say:
"These schemers have
picked the wrong gover
nor—at the wrong place
—at the wrong time,
and have picked the
wrong battlefield to
make their move to
wrest control of Georgia
from its rightful owners,
the four and one-half
million people who in
habit the state.”
The House speaker
said that the governor
should reconsider the
bill with the proviso
that the state remit
the local tax on a per
capita basis.
SUMMERVILLE, CHATTOOGA COUNTY, GEORGIA 30747,THURSDAY, JULY 20, 1967
J. HAIRRAL DAVIS
vote in the election and a
large majority of these are
expected to turn out for the
balloting.
Board Submits
Merger Plans
For Study
The Chattooga County
Board of Education has sub
mitted a proposal to Trion
school officials to determine
if an area of agreement can
be found in regard to the
merger of the two systems.
Negotiations have been
underway for several weeks
between the Chattooga and
Trion systems in order to
reach a mutual agreement
for the transaction.
At a called meeting of the
local board Monday, a plan
was adopted which spells
out the wishes of the board
members in regard to the
consolidation.
The Trion schools operate
independently of the county
board, but if a common de
nominator can be found,
they would come into the
local system.
The resolution passed at
the Monday session states
that if the Trion system
grades one through 12—
“should be abolished,” the
Chattooga County Board of
Education agrees “to build a
new high school” sufficient
in size to accommodate the
high school children of
Chattooga County, grades
n ie through 12, including
aii area vocational high
school, “at a site to be
agreed upon” between the
Chattooga County Board of
Education and the Trion
Board of Education or gov
erning authority.
The agreement is con
tingent upon the local
board’s ability to obtain
from the state capital out
lay funds made available for
the consolidation of school
systems. If the merger is ef
fected and funds are not
available in 1967, the new
high school will be built
(Continued On Page 7)
The Atlanta Journal
in a Thursday editorial
said: "The governor’s
speech before a Sum
merville - Trion civic
club . . . was an anti-
Atlanta tirade. Atlanta
and the other cities,
badly in need of reve
nues and getting pre
cious little help from the
state, have asked only
that they be allowed to
impose a sales tax on
themselves . . .”
The governor had said
that no one loves At
lanta more than he.
"Atlanta has been
good to me,” he re
minded, "and I am In
sistant that she gets
acquit able recognition
in state governmental
programs.
“Most all Geqrglans
recognize the Impor
tance of Atlanta to the
economy and develop
ment of the state, but
we must no| fail to real*
ize that we cannot for
get the remainder of the
state.
“No governor has been
Grand Jury Urges Probe
Os Gore Schoolhouse Sale
The July Term Chattooga
County Grand Jury has rec
ommended that the Chat
tooga County Board of Edu
cation “investigate” the sale
of the Gore School property
to see if the purchaser “has
complied with the terms of
the sale agreement.”
The recommendation was
contained in presentments
of the Grand Jury to Su
perior Court Judge Paul W.
Painter.
Attached to the present
ments was a copy of the
minutes of the Chattooga
County Board of Education
for a called meeting of Sep
tember 29, 1964, which show
that “on a motion by Robert
Hendrix and seconded by
O. L. Cleckler, the board
unanimously voted to sell
the Gore School building,
excluding the cottage and
one acre of land, to Roy
Mann and his partner for
$7050.00, with the stipula
tion in the deed that it must
be used for industrial pur
poses.”
At the time of the sale in
October 1964, it was ex
pected that production of
molded gloves—and allied
products—would begin be
fore the end of January
1965. Although initial em
ployment was to be only
about 25 per cent, the
growth potential was ex
pected to be at least 200.
The recommendation of
the Grand Jury reads:
“We, the members of the
Grand Jury, recommend
that the school board inves
tigate the sale of the Gore
School property to see if the
Tillotson Corporation has
complied with the terms of
the sale agreement. If the
board should find that the
spirit of the agreement has
®not been met, that the
board then encourage the
Tillotson Corporation to,
rapidly as possible, make the
1 ndu st r ial improvements
necessary and provide the
Gore community with the
employment that was in
tended in the original sales
contract.”
Nineteen bills of indict
ments were presented to the
Grand Jury. Os these, 16
true bills were returned and
3 no bills.
The jurors found that part
of the heating system at
Chattooga County Hospital
is inoperative and recom
mended that steps be taken
to remedy the situation be
fore cold weather.
Noting that the only hold
up in opening the East Wing
of the hospital for the care
of rest home patients Is the
lack of funds to employ ade
quate personnel for the op
eration of this wing, the
Grand Jury recommended
that “funds be made avail
able to the county hospital
to allow It to begin operation
(of the rest home wing) im
mediately.”
Other recommendation of
(Continued On Page 7)
as sensitive to the needs
of the Atlanta and other
metropolitan areas than
have I. But I think it is
fundamentally unsound
to strip the state of its
prime tax source and
allow it to be used in a
manner which could
lead to discrimination
in the distribution of
funds derived from sales
tax transactions.”
Meanwhile, in a letter
to the governor, the At
lanta Chamber of Com
merce has called on the
governor to end his un
yielding opposition to a
state law that would
permit local option sales
taxes.
In his speech to the
Rotarians and their
guests — the largest
group ever served at
Riegeldale Tavern—the
governor stated that the
sales tax Is a state tax.
It is not a local tax.
"And when the state
of Georgia collects the
taxes In any trade area,”
Maddox continued, "and
does not extend Its
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AWARDED BRONZE STAR
Sp/4 Robert C. Deering is shown being awarded
the Bronze Star Medal by his commanding officer
at Fort Benning, Ga., for heroism in combat in
Viet Nam.
Deering Gets
Bronze Star
A Chattooga County sol
dier has been awarded the
Bronze Star for heroism in
Viet Nam.
In ceremonies at Fort
Benning, Ga., Sp/4 Robert
C. Deering received the
Army medal for heroic ac
tion in the province of Blnh
Duong last August 25.
The citation reads:
Sp/4 Deering’s company,
operating along Highway 16,
was suddenly called upon to
assist another unit heavily
engaged with a strong Viet
Cong force.
Deering, a machine gun
ner, advanced with his
squad in the attack against
the well-entrenched insur-
'Wedt/w
The weather picture for
Chattooga County area Is
expected to be partly cloudy
and warm. Thursday’s high
will be around 88 and the
overnight low is expected to
be 60-62.
There is a slight chance
of isolated showers on Fri
day.
benefits to the people of
the entire state, it is
undue discrimination ...
and would, I am confi
dent, lead to extremely
harmful results in Geor
gia.”
The governor said he
would not remain quiet
while one area might
seek to become unduly
enriched with the sub
sequent result of all
other areas becoming
unduly impoverished.
"So, my answer to
those peo p 1 e,” Gov.
Maddox emphatically
declared,” ... Is that
they are not going to
run roughshod over you
and the other good peo
ple of this state—nor
myself."
During the week-end,
Rodney Cook, of At
lanta, a Republican
House member who co
sponsored the disputed
local option sales tax
proposal for cities and
counties, promised "an
other effort” to push the
proposal through the
next General Assembly.
gents.
After taking the assigned
objective, his platoon was
instructed to establish a de
fense perimeter.
The 22-year-old soldier
moved forward under in
tense hostile fire in order to
lay down a base of fire to
cover the platoon’s move
ment.
In the action, he was ser
iously wounded, losing the
use of his right arm. How
ever, he continued in the
fight, firing his machinegun
with his left hand.
Deering is currently as
signed as an automatic rif
leman in Company B, sth
Battalion, 31st Infantry,
197th Infantry Brigade at
Fort Benning.
The decorated soldier en
tered the Army in 1965. He
is the son of Mr. and Mrs.
James A. Deering of LaFay
ette.
His wife, Kathy, lives in
Columbus.
Sgt. Gardner
Gets Army
Commendation
A Chattooga County sol
dier, Sgt. Tommie W. Gard
ner, 24, received the Army
Commendation Medal June
14 in Viet Nam, where he is
stationed with the II Field
Force Viet Nam Artillery.
The sergeant earned the
award for meritorious serv
ice as a radio teletype op
erator in the artillery's
Headquarters Battery.
He entered the Army in
(Continued On Page 7)
Post Office Plans
Expanded Service
Postmaster John Stubbs
today announced that par
cel past deliveries in Sum
merville will be expanded
from five to six days a week
as of July 17. The areas of
the expended service in
clude business and residen
tial territory served by foot
carriers.
This Is In line with a re
cent directive from Post
master General Lawrence F
O’Brien following the sign
ing of the Post Office De
partment appropriation bill
by President Johnson. The
legislation contains an $8.5
million Item for restoration
of the six-day a week de
livery which had been cut
back In May 1964 as an
economy measure.
PRICE 10c
High Court
Upholds
Coker Ruling
The Georgia Supreme
Court has upheld a ruling
by Chattooga Superior
Court Judge Robert Coker
in sustaining the demurrers
to a petition for mandamus
In the case of Kelley V.
Spence, Superintendent of
Chattooga County Schools,
et al.
The July 14 ruling, written
by Chief Justice Duckworth,
and concurred in by all Jus
tices reads:
Where, as here, the peti
tion shows only an election
of a teacher by a local board
of education for an addi
tional twelve-month period
which was revoked by the
board before a contract was
executed, although the
teacher alleges he notified
the board of his acceptance,
there was never any con
tract by and between the
parties which would require
the board to give him notice
and a hearing under Code
Section 32-912. as amended
(Ga. L. 1956, p. 747) since he
was no longer a teacher
upon the termination of his
present contract.
Nor could the superin
tendent of schools be re
quired to execute and pre
sent to him a contract
since the board had re
scinded his election before
any contract was executed.
Code Ann. Sec. 32-607 (Ga.
L. 1964, pp 3,9) requires all
teachers’ contracts to be In
writing. Thus, his accept
ance of his election would
not be binding on the board.
The court did not err in
sustaining the demurrers to
the petition for mandamus.
State Refuses
Chattooga Co.
Tax Digest
The Georgia Department
of Revenue disapproved the
1967 tax digest for Chat
tooga County which was
submitted on June 22 for
approval by the state reve
nue commissioner.
Regulations require that a
county tax digest must ac
curately reflect an assess
ment ratio of 40 per cent of
fair market value.
In a letter to the Chat
tooga County Board of Tax
Assessors, Revenue Commis
sioner Peyton S. Hawes said
that the digest could not be
approved In Its present con
dition.
"It will be necessary,"
Commissioner Hawes said,
"for you to raise the real
property ... of the digest
by a ratio of 1.07 In order to
achieve a digest of 40 per
cent.”
Commissioner Harry Powell
said yesterday that “we
have no other alternative
than to meet this request.”
The commissioner stated
that he had hoped the
county's assessment ratio of
38.93 per cent would be "near
enough to pass,” but the
state says "no.”
Mr. Powell also said it was
his understanding that
(Continued On Page 7)
Nearly 5000 cities are af
fected, Postmaster Stubbs
said.
The Summerville postal
official noted that the im
proved service will remove
an inequity for many busi
ness and residential patrons.
Postal customers served
by "motorized” letter car
riers have been receiving
six-day deliveries all along.
They were not covered by
the 1964 cutback, Inasmuch
as carriers on vehicles can
deliver parcels of any size.
Customers living on routes
serviced by foot carriers
have received larger parcels
from a five-day a week par
cel post delivery truck. Car
riers on foot only deliver
small packages.