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: The Official Legal Organ of Chattooga County
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Address All Mail to: THE SUMMERVILLE NEWS, P. 0. Box 310, Summerville, Ga. 30747
Editorials
NASA’s Bankruptey
The recent announcement of a new
NASA policy by acting space agency
director William Graham was unim
pressive. First, the NASA official has, in
effect, shifted gears and says NASA now
wants to go into the unmanned rocket
launching business.
This comes as NASA is losing con
tracts to Intel and other sources for laun
chings which had been expected to be
made in the next year by one of the U. S.
shuttles. It means that NASA, because of
the recent tragedy, is either over-reacting
or was on the wrong path with its shuttle
program.
Graham's announcement, made at the
same time the Soviets were putting
together the first space station in outer
space and in orbit around the earth, shows
the bankruptcy of the NASA strategy of
recent years. There is no backup unmann
ed program in place, or even begun.
One would have hoped NASA could
move quickly to launch another shuttle, as
soon as proper safeguards are effected.
But NASA seems paralyzed with fear and .
indecision. There are other shuttles which
have been flown and no doubt are flyable
at the moment.
Safety chances are excellent, since over
20 missions have been completed by these
shuttles. One accident, in fact, in all these
launchings is not a bad record. The at-
Easter, 1986
Easter, March 30, the principal ec
clesiastical event of the year, gets its name
from Eostre, a Teutonic goddess, whose
festival was celebrated in spring. Her
name was given to the Christian festival.
It was she, according to legend, who open
ed the portals of Valhalla to receive the
White God and Sun God, representing
purity and light.
The Christian observance, this year on
the 30th, is a symbol of the Resurrection,
and intertwined with religious customs
and observances, some dating back hun
dreds of years before the time of Jesus
Christ.
The Easter egg became associated with
Easter because eggs were forbidden to be
eaten during Lent and on Easter Sunday
they were traditionally served. The Easter
2
39 YEARS AGO
The following are excerpts from the March 27, 1947 edition of The Sum
merville News.
* * *
17 OF 18 COUNTY SCHOOL BUSES PASS INSPECTION — School
transportation has become a major phase in the administration of public educa
tion. During the war period, the Georgia State Patrol, when inspecting school
buses, was very lenient, knowing that parts were scarce and no new bodies and
few new chassis were available. Now that repairs can be made more easily and
old unsafe bodies and chassis can be readily replaced with new ones, there is
no excuse for buses to remain in operation that are unsanitary and unsafe. Ac
cording to records on file with the safety division of the Georgia State Patrol,
there were 18 school buses inspected in Chattooga County. Seventeen passed
the inspection and one failed the inspection.
* L *
CERTIFICATES FOR FREEZER LOCKER GO ON SALE — Revolving
certificates will be on sale the first of April to build a county freezer locker.
These certificates will be sold at the Farmers and Merchants Bank at the Com
mercial Bank and at the county agent's office. The certificates will be in
denomination of SSO and everyone will have an opportunity to invest in this
freezer locker which will be of great service rendered to the people in the coun
ty, and you will receive an interest on this investment between 3 and 6 per
cent. The locker will be put up on the fair ground, which belongs to the people
in the county. The directors of the fair association will control and run the
freezer locker.
BN
VETS CONTINUE TRAINING, 3 R'S THROUGH VA — In schools and
colleges, in factory and shops throughout the Rome area, an estimated 3,000
veterans are continuing their training and education through the Veterans Ad
ministration. To all of them, the monthly check for subsistence is an impor
tant part of living; many thousands get it regularly and on time, some do not.
titude in the space agency today should be
one of going all-out to get off a successful
shuttle launch as soon as possible.
It should be made in warm weather,
and additional safety measures should be
taken concerning the booster rocket, O
rings and other equipment. But one
tragedy doesn't doom the shuttle pro
gram, nor make it impossible for safe laun
ches to be made. The nation should like to
see NASA get on with its shuttle program,
meanwhile developing an unmanned pro
gram if desirable.
There is no reason now to give up on
the shuttle. It did well on many flights for
many years. It failed on one launch. That
failure’s fault can be found and corrected.
Nothing is perfect and the shuttle pro
gram has, generally, been successful.
Far more fliers are lost in combat pilot
training than have been lost in shuttle
pilot training. Seven deaths is most regret
table but they don’t justify NASA sudden
ly becoming afraid or over-cautious about
another launch. NASA should take the
necessary preventative measures to
eliminate now-known dangers and get on
with its U. S. space program. No one ever
expected the space flight program to be
carried on without any accidents. No other
flight or space program here or abroad has
ever managed to avoid accidents forever.
egg, also dates back to the Egyptians and
Persians, and Greeks and Romans, who
ate eggs annually in spring festivals.
It’s appropriate that Easter comes in
the spring, when the renewal of life is ap
parent. Sunrise services in our churches —
an observance of recent origin in most
churches — symbolize the Resurrection at
sunrise. This practice is observed in prac
tically all churches today as a symbol of
hope, inspiration and faith.
MAKES SENSE?
America is building smaller and faster
cars and is also constructing new and more
modern hospitals. — Davenport (la.)
Democrat
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0’ by James Budd
Televangelists On The Take
Some months ago there was a wire
story about an Atlanta man who pro
grammed his computer to call evangelist
and moral crusader Jerry Falwell's dona
tion line continuously, tying up the line for
weeks.
The man admitted the deed and said he
did it after discovering his elderly mother
had donated most of her life’s savings to
these high-watt TV evangelists. He
resented the fact that their pleas for
monetary help had bilked his unsuspec
ting, sincere little mother of her savings.
It's not like these guys are hurting. If
you're rich, you always want more. Jerry
Falwell took in nearly SSB rgflion in 1984
revenues, Jim Bakker and his PTL Club
(“‘Praise The Lord Club”) received nearly
$53 million and Pat Robertson's Christian
Broadcasting Network took in total
revenues of $230 million, according to a re
cent article in the Washington Journalism
Review. Praise the Lord and pass the col
lection plate. Whatever happened to the
little church in the woods?
The article goes on to say some of the
evangelists have lifestyles that would
make Imelda Marcos feel right at home.
TV crusader Jinmy Swaggart's house
in Baton Rouge, La. is estimated to be
worth $2 million and Jim Bakker lives in
Guest Column
Stop Future Hinckleys
By SARAH KEMP BRADY
Practically everything I ever wanted
out of life was mine the winter of 1981. My
husband, Jim, had just been named White
House Press Secretary by President
Reagan —the culmination of years of hard
work and determination. I was filled with
pride each evening as our two-year-old son
Scott and I watched Jim on the nightly
news. It was a very special time for our
family. Never did we expect it would so
abruptly end.
But on March 30, 1981, John Hinckley,
out to impress a 4 popular actress, shot my
husband during his attempt on the Presi
dent's life. He nearly died. President
Reagan nearly died, and two security men
were seriously wounded.
Now, nearly five years later, Jim gets
better every day. Although he still holds
the title of White House Press Secretary
and goes there once a week, his recovery
has been long and slow, and at times very
painful. Hiss determination and the sup
port of many loving people are pulling him
through. Still, I often ask why it is possi
ble for the John Hinckleys of this world
to walk into a store, buy a handgun and
go out and shoot people because they hear
voices or have strange visions.
I believe that all law-abiding, respon
sible citizens should be able to purchase
guns for sporting or other legitimate pur
poses. I am a conservative and a
Republican and I am against what has
historically been called gun control — more
controls on hunting weapons, gun bans or
gun confiscation. But I don't think we
should voluntarily arm criminals, the men
tally deranged, drug addicts or children.
Despite our nation's handgun crime
rate, our lawmakers are not working to
enact better laws, Instead, Congress is
a waterfront parsonage near Charlotte,
owns a second home in Palm Desert, Calif.,
owns a Rolls Royce and a Mercedes-Benz.
Christianity certainly has come a long way
since the catacombs. .
The extravagance of some TV
evangelists or televangelists has brought
criticism from other preachers including
the Rev. Bill Graham, who is no stranger
to TV himself. Graham reportedly said
some televangelists’ lifestyles ‘‘bring
disrepute to the Gospel and their appeals
for money ‘“have made chills go up and
down my spine.”
Evangelist Robertson is reportedly
considering a run for the White House in
1988. A fellow Southern Baptist, a guy
named Jimmy Carter, already proved a
close relationship with the Almighty
doesn’t necessarily give a president a free
ticket to political bliss and tranquility.
It always amazed me how Carter, who
has spent time building housing for the
poor in his retirement years and came
across as pious as a monk at times during
his presidency, drew constant criticism
from the likes of Jerry Falwell and the
“religious right'’ while he was in the White
House.
Would Robertson fare any better?
considering passage of the McClure-
Volkmer bill (5.49), which would gut our
national gun law, the 1968 Gun Control
Act, passed after the assassinations of
Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther
King, Jr.
The McClure bill would severely under
mine this law. The bill would allow anyone
to buy handguns across state lines, would
make it harder to jail criminals who use
handguns in crime, and would repeal cer
tain handgun record-keeping require
ments.
Law enforcement groups, including the
Fraternal Order of Police, the National
Sheriffs’ Association, The International
Association of Chiefs of Police, The Na
tional Troopers Coalition and The Federal
Law Enforcement Officers Association
have spoken out in strong and united op
position to this bill, because they recognize
that 5.49 would make it easier for
criminals to obtain handguns.
The NRA leadership would have you
believe that anyone who wants to take
common-sense steps to keep handguns out
of the wrong hands is a *‘left-winger” or
anti-American. Frankly, that is rubbish
and I resent these accusations. I am a con
servative and a deeply patriotic person. So
is my husband, Jim. We believe in the
same values that many of you do — hones
ty, justice and hard work. My husband
was wounded while serving our President
and our nation. The NRA leadership needs
to rethink their stand when they throw out
such broad generalities about su?fiorml
of sensible handgun legislation. There is
nothing anti-American about our law en
forcement off;ii:‘l’a. or all:.out lr::e, &r' about
any of our who ocate
common-sense hghmn designed to keep
see GUEST COLUMN, page 10-A
* % Mountain
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18 %, Echoes
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@ Jimmy Townsend
East Tennessee History
JASPER, GA. — One of the most scenic routes in the
world is to travel from Murfreesboro to Dayton, Tenn.
Dayton is the home of the publicized ‘“‘Monkey Trial’’ of
1925. There are still some oldtimers around the court house
who can tell about Professor Scopes and the crowds that
came to this small mountain town in the dry year of 1925.
Leaving Dayton, take the route across the ferry to
Cleveland. This is one of the few ferries left and is a
distance of about a half mile across the Tennessee River.
Then take Route 64 to Ocoee and up the river road to
Ducktown. The river is moved from its bed into a box high
up on the mountain when the TVA is making power. The
thousands of big rocks are exposed in the river bed and
you wonder why this is the most popular rafting place in
the country. A visit to the mining town is quite a treat
in itself.
However, tickets for the April 26 rail excursion from
Etowah to Copperhill are available. It's only a short
distance from Ocoee to Etowah up Highway 411. Tickets
may be purchased at the Ducktown Bank in Copperhill
and in the Ducktown Basin Museum. The Etowah
Chamber of Commerce also has tickets available at the
depot office.
The trip will begin in Etowah and follow the historic
rail line along the Hiawassee River. A highlight is the Bald
Mountain loop near Farner where the railroad crosses
itself.
The Hiawassee Loop is also known as ‘“The Hook and
Eye,” and is the longest rail loop in the world. The six
mile section rises 426 feet between the communities of Ap
palachia and Farner. At the summit, it crosses over itself
on a wooden trestle that is 62 feet high and 195 feet long.
If a passenger looks straight down, he can see the rear of
the train snaking along up the mountain around and
around, making the loop.
The Etowah Boy Scouts will serve a pancake breakfast
before departure in the two-story historic depot. The
Kiwanis Club in Copperhill will offer a barbecue luncheon
and buses will take excursionists to tour the nearby
Ducktown Basin Museum during the three-hour layover.
It will be a big day for Tennessee Homecoming 'B6 —
April 26 and 27 — in all three towns of Etowah, Copperhill
and Ducktown. I lived at Ducktown when a boy and I went
to the sixth grade here before Dad moved us to the farm.
It was a wild and woolly town back then with shootouts
taking place on Main Street, where several miners died
with their boots on. The copper mining town was describ
ed by Colliers Magazine in 1929 as the meanest town east
of the Mississippi River.
I recall the gypsies coming when I was about six or
seven years old. The nomads wore loud-colored clothes and
the men wore earrings. The men and women wore red and
violet blue bandanas around their heads. Beautiful horses
with gold-plated harnesses pulled the covered wagons.
They camped out just north of town in what appeared to
be an oasis in the middle of a desert. They played sweet
music at night and danced around big bonfires,
Many tales were told about these people. Some said
they stole children, among other things. Witcheraft was
supposed to be a specialty with them. I had warts all over
my little hands which was so embarrassing that I tried
to keep them in my pockets all the time. Mama took me
out there to the gypsy camp one night. I was frightened
for sure, but Mama gave one of the gypsy women a dollar
and she did a mumbo-jumbo with my hands. We went
home with the violins ringing in our ears. Dad laughed
when Mama told him where we had been; but a few days
later, the warts disappeared and I have never had another
one until this day.
One day, a lady who lived next door to us went runn
ing out in her yard screaming that her child was missing.
““The gypsies took him,” she yelled. Word like this soon
reached the mines and a mob of miners left for the camp
in a whirl of dust. The miners emptied the wagons on the
ground, but found no child. Bull Patrick, a huge man with
arms the size of a sapling, was the leader and he had the
king of the gypsies standing on a wagon with a rope fasten
ed around his neck, with the other end thrown over a tree,
The wagon was pulled out from under the helpless man
as my dad drove up. He ran to the gypsy and was holding
him by the legs to keep him from choking. Bull raised a
pole over his head to strike Dad. A shot rang out. My
oldest brother of 16 stood on the hood of our big
Studebaker with a smoking rifle in his hands. “The next
one'll be between your eyes, Bull,” he stated flatly. Bull
66 MOUNTAIN ECHOES, page 5-A