PAGE FOURTHE DAILY REFLECTOR. GREENVILLE, N. C.

Friday, September 4, 195f

Friday,' September 4, 1959

A Cloverleaf Can Be Confusing

A Change, Despite Those Protests

Members of the State Highway Commission and influential political frfends of Gov. Hodges and the Commission are going to a great deal of trouble, it seems to us, to reassure the peopl^ of North Carolina that no events in recent months hve had one thing to do with actions and activities of that commission.

Particularly have they taken pains to assert indignantly that there is absolutely no politics connected with or associated with the Highway Commission.

While all this may be true, it appears they are going to a great deal of trouble to impress that fact upon the people of North Carolina. After all Tar Heels have watched the workings of Highway Commissions for several decades now. They have seen a number of organizational changes, and have watched particularly the most recent change from the 14-man commission to the 7-man commission which Gov. Hodges said was made to take politics out of the Highway Commission

and Vice versa. . - i-

All of this high-sounding praise for the non-political* Highway Commission notwithstanding, it is obvious that the Commission has adopted new tactics toward public opinion since it was suggested in the 1959 legislature that a return to the 14-man commission would bring highway affairs back closer to the people.

Prior to that time the Commission was ah aloof body that few people around the state ever saw as a group. As soon as the bill of Rep. Walter Jones of Pitt hit the legislative hopper, however. Highway

Commissioners were out of their hOme communities moving through the state to see people and feel out the sentiment toward the new commission. Gf course it could have been just coincidence that the Commissioners began sampling public opinion at the same time the Jones reorganization bill was introduced, in spite of the fact that the 7-man commission had been in operation for almost 18 months prior to that time.

Regardless of whether the bill introduced by Rep. Jones of Farmville had anything to do with the Commissions decision on bridges in this part of the state, on roads'or on any other construction work, a change in the Commissions tactics in dealing with the public "was apparent in short order.

Some of the contactwork that previously had been left largely to division and district engineers and other highway employees has been taken over by the commissioners themselves. They have, in our opinion, done much more getting back to the people than was the case in the months before the last legislative session.

Maybe Rep. Jones bill didnt have anything to do with anything the Highway Commission has done in recent months . . . but some ch.anges have been taking place, and there is no other tangible occurrence to attribute those changes.

We Have Problems In

Vin^t Of Th6m ^ Growing Crime Rate

Are 'Old Hands

By LYNN NISBET

OLD HANDS -- A Rlgniicant thing about the mass swearing-in (A State officials the other day by Justice Clifton Moore was that most of them were old hands in public service. It Is true that several had been transferred from otber posts, or recaptured from temporary in-activitF.

All of the administrative and advisory boards and commissions, which constitute the largest part of State government, are important. The three commonly regarded as most Important, so far as impact upon the living conditions of the people and the total economy, are the State Board of Conservation and Development, the State Board of Education, and 'the Highway Commission. They are listed alphabetically, but many people trink that also is the order of Importance.

The Board of Education did not figure in the recent swearing-in, but it is remembered that all members whose terms had expired were reappointed, and the only new appointee was George D. Aitken of Charlotte, replacing Oscar Richai'dson of Monroe, who had resigned.

There were seven vacancies on the 18-man C&D, two occasioned by death, one by resignation, the others by expiration of term. Dan Bell of Morehead City lad previously been sworn in. replacing Cecil Morris of Atlantic, resigned- Orton Boren of Greensboro and Edwin Pate of Laurinburg were named to fill the unexpired terms of Robert M. Hanes and Leo Harvey, deceased. Four other members were reappointedWJ3. Austin of Jefferson, H.C. Buchan Jr., of North Wilkesboro. H.C. Ken-nett of Durham, and Max Watson of Forest City.

There were four vacancies on the 7-member Highway Com-misskm. plus a vacancy in the chairnumship. J-M. Broughton Jr. was rea]MX)inted as chairman, and Commissioner Robert Bunnelle. J.W. Mason and J. Lee White were reappointed for ioia year terms. Ralph T. Morris of New Bern was named to succeed E-L. White, deceased.

NEW BLOOD Morris Is the only really new man in the list. He is no stranger to non-go vemnumtal public service, having been actlye in civic affairs at both local and statewide levels. Bell, Boren and Pate will find their duties on the C&D board not much different from those encountered in previous legislative and administrative activities. The field of operation has been broadened. C&D is'^a sort of catch-all for matters affecting everybody in the state.

Other departments Agriculture, Education, Health, Highways, Insurance, Labor, Revenue, Water Resources, Welfare, etchave extensive, but

boU limited, spheres of responsibility. The very term conservation and development of all resources, economic, human and physiail, includes everything in which primary responsibility is vested In another agency and all the things which have no specific agency to handle.

MANAGERS The spectators who came to see their friends sworn in .Tuesday, had opportunity to see about as many of the men who really run North Carolina as at any time when the General Assembly is not In session.

While the newly appointed officers were saying ,T do upstairs in Uie captol, the Legislative Building Commission was in session downstairs in the conference room. That also brought some prominent folks. The dual occasion, plus the opening day^ of the fall term of the Supreme Court, brought to Capitol Square a large number of politicians.

There were at least four whose names have been batted around in speculation about the governorship, and an equal number of prospective seekers after the No. 2 place in State government.

CANDIDATES? Participating in meetings upstairs and down were J.M. Broughton Jr., Edwin Gill, Edwin Pate and Malcolm Seawell. all of whom have been mentioned often as potential governors. Also Thomas J. White, Robert P* Morgan, Volt Gilmore and Ralph Howland, all frequently talked about as candidates for the second place on the State ballot.

Of course, there was no politicking in the open. The prospective candidates recognized that it was not the time or the place for outright campaigning. It was noticeable, however, that all of them sought oppor-.tunlty to speak to the right people at some time during the afternoon.

POTPOURRI Edwin Pate asked for a copy of the oath he signed as a member of C&D board. Said he has found it a good idea to keep a copy in his files of everything he signs. . . When Tom White was named chairman of the Legislative Building Commission. Edwin GUI suggested that maybe there ought to be a vice-chairman, and he nominated for that post Robert P. Morgan, who was unanimously elected. White and Morgan are both presumptive candidates for Lieutenant Governor. . .Attorney General Malcolm Seawell, explaining the act setting up the Legislative Building Commission, noted that it was given more power than any commission he had ever known about. For one thing, it can exercise the right of eminent domain and take private property for public use without a certificate of convenience and necessity from the Utilities Commission. __

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The annual crime report by the Federal Bureau of Investigation suggests that practically every state in the Union should be concerned about the increase in its own rate of crime as well as that in other states.

In North Carolina, for example, the number of major crimes increased by 2,658 in 1958 over the previous year. While the average rate of increase was not the same throughout the state, the figures point out vividly that Tar Heels are faced with the problem of an increasing number of major crimes. And while the rate of increase in North Carolina was not nearly as great as as that in some other states, it does suggest that this state has its own problems with a growing criminal rate.

Once predominantly a rural state, North Carolina is rapidly becoming a state with many small cities and a few relatively large ones. It.s population is going through transition from a rural to an urban people. While this does not mean that Nortli Carolina is rearing more criminals, we cannot overlook that there is a higher rate of crime in urban areas than there are in rural areas.

Every county and community in North Carolina could well profit by comparing its current rate of crimes with those of 1958, 1957 and even with five years ago. There is no community which could not profit by seeking out the causes of its increased crime rate, and effecting measures designed to attack the crimes at their source.

le Strays Hur Sam Rayburn

By DON SCHLIENZ

The Hun

t For N. C. Oil

Off and on theyve been hunting for oil in North Carolina since 1911. I dont know a whole lot of the story,but the August 21 issue of Petroleum Week (a McGraw-Hill publication) carries an article about

the revival of hunting for oil in the Tar Heel state.

So far, of course, no oil.

But then, the seekers are now largely drilling test holes to learn more about the underground layout of the Coastal

Other Editors Saying ; Hiodges & Vice Presidency

By JAMES MARLOW

WASHINGTON (AP) Speaker Sam Rayburn is the shepherd of the House Democrats. But every once In a while President Eisenhower gets his goat.

Seven times this year144 times since taking office in 1953Eisenhower has used his veto to kill a measure passed by Congress. Never yet has Rayburn been able to round up enough votes to override him.

He tried twice this year and failed. This must be galling to the 77-year-old Texan who has the greatest Democratic flock since early New Deal days. Its the strays who ruin him.

Most of the strays on vetoes have been Southern Democrats.

Passing a bill needs only a simple majority vote of House and Senate. But passing a bill into law over a presidential veto requires approval of two-thirds of those present at voting time in both houses.

In the Senate there are 100 members65 Democrats, 35 Republicans and a full two-thirds would be 67: in the

House there are now 436 members284 Democrats, 153 Republicansand a full two-thirds would be 291.

Thus, despite their huge numbers, the Democrats would lack a two-thirds vote on any veto by a handfuleven if the full membership of both parties was voting.

And they couldnt get the two-thirds unless the Democrats voted solidly together and a few Republicans joined them. But the full membership of the two parties almost never votes at any one time.

And Democrats almost never vote solidly. So. when less than the full membership is voting on overriding a veto, the outcome Ls tight and ticklish, particularly if .ome Democrats wander over to the Republican side.

And that's what happens.

For example, this year Congress passed a $1,216.000,000 flood control bill to pay for reclamation and other water projects all over the United States.

This kind of something-for-the-folks-at-home bill is call a pork barrel.

Eisenhower vetoed it Aug. 28, He thought there was too much pork. In Congress the cries of rage sounded like cries of pain. Rayburn led the march to override the veto. The vote came Wednesday.

The total vote w'as 412, of whioh two-thirds would have been 275. But the vote was 274 for overriding (one short of the needed 275) to 138 for upholding Elsenhowers veto.

Eleven Republicans teamed up with 263 Democrats against the President. But six Democrats joined 132 Republicans in backing him up. If one of the six Democrats had voted with his party, Eisenhower would have lost. Five of the six were Southern Democrats.

Earlier this year Elsenhower vetoed a bill which would have stripped Agriculture Secretary Ezra Taft-Benson of authority to refuse loans by the Rural Electrification Administration.

Rayburns House Democrats failed by four votes to override that one. Four Democrats strayed.

On this REA bill the Senate did vote to override64 to 29 with two more votes than were needed to make up the two-thirds .62 of the total 93 votes cast. Sen. Prank J. Lause he was the only Democrat against overriding.

The Senate tried but faed to override Eisenhowers veto last July of the $1,375,000,0(X) housing bill. Rayburns protege and fellow Texan, Sen. Lyndon Johnson. Senate majority leader, reportedly wasnt keen for trying on this one because he could foresee the result. The vote w'as nine short of the needed two-thirds. Ten Democrats were on Eisenhowers side.

The other vetoes this year were on wheat and tobacco bills, both Important to farmers, and two minor bills. After counting heads, the Democrats iq the House and Senate didnt even try to override.

(Washington Daily News)

When Governor Hodges appointed Everette Jordan as United States senator to succeed Kerr Scott, there were cries all over the state that it was a seat-holding operation.

The thought was apparent at the time that Senator Jordan would hold the seat until 1960 at which time Governor Hodges would be a candidate and Senator Jordan would not. Subsequent events have proved many people wrong. It now seems so evident that Senator Jordan will run, and that Governor Hodges will not.

However, another political picture has been painted. There are those who say quite strongly that Governor Hodges Is interested in a cabinet appointment should the Democrats win the presidency next time. He may or may not, but at this stage of the game, it is too early to predict cabinet appointments.

But there are those who say that Governor Hodges would like to be the vice presidential nominee on the next Democratic ticket. We have no way of knowing just how serious the governor is about such a move, but any man would be highly complimented to be the vice presidential nominee on his partys ticket.

Governor Hodges would be a good candidate, and he would bring ability, dignity, energy and enthusiasm to the ticket. We dont know how much chance he will have of getting the nomination, but if it should come his way, he would be a fighting candidate. We are sure of that.

We look at the convention setup this way at the present time. If a member of the United States senate such as Hubert Humphrey, Stuart Symington, or Jack Kennedy Is nominated as the ticket leader, then the chances of a state governor being named for second place on the ticket will be greatly enhanced. In that event the chances of Governor Hodges or some

other state governor will be given high consideration.

On the. other hand, if a governor or former governor such as Adlal Stevenson, George Leader, Robert Meyner, or some other in that category is nominated, then it would practically eliminate the chances of any governor being named to the second position. Actually we cannot see the possibility of two senators or two governors leading

In the event a senator is pre-

In the event a senato is pe-sidential candidate, then the various Democratic governors will be looked upon, and there is a good chance that one of them will get the nod. In all probability the presidential nominee himself will name his running mate. Senator Humphrey or Senator Kennedy might be more Inclined to name Governor Hodges than would Senator Symington who hails from Missouri,

At best the chances of Governor Hodges getting second place on che Democratic ticket are slim. But there is a chance, and should fate smile North Carolinas way and should Governor Hodges be picked, then the party would have a good man.

Since he is being talked of as a potential candidate, certainly Governor Hodges will lead the North Carolina delegation to the convention. There are some who will discount the South entirely. But when Mr. Stevenson ran twice, he had a Southern Senator both times as his running mate. The South has a good chance again of landing the second place, but hardly any chance of landing the first place. And we say that in all respect for Senator Lyndon Johnson, a great Texas Democrat.

Much can happen between now and convention time. And the name of Luther Hodges might be lost In the shuffle or It might gain more prominence as time passes.

Plains section.

According to this Petroleum Week piece, there hasnt been any drilling hereabouts since 1953, when two dry holes were the result. So far this year a total of ten holes have been drilled for two operators. These were all shallow (2,000 feet or less). But they say the companies who are exploring are studying the information thus far collected.

Seven of these holes were drilled in the Lake Mattamus-keet area, Hyde County: and three were drilled north of Jacksonville, in the Hoffman Forest, Onslow County.

Two more holes may be drilled shortly in Onslow, once some preliminary problems are resolved.

And while they havent come up with anything yet, the magazine article says Geophysical studies and drilling to date point to the possibility of petroleum accumulation in the coastal plain area.

So that old dream isnt dead yet.

The deepest probe for oil in North Carolina was .made near the tip of Cape Halteras in the-summer of 1946. That one went 10,054 feet. No trace of oil or gas.

Other drillings have been in Pamlico Sound, about eleven miles south of Roanoke Island G947) and in Camden County drillers had a gas show at 6,421 feet (1953).

The article goes on to say that from the standpoint of known structures and thick marine sections, the northeast quarter of the state seems to hold the greatest potential. But much drilling and further geological and geophysical work will be necessary to provide better understanding of the geology in the area.

Incidentally, exploration does not come cheap.

On another page (this was a real reading day for me) one learns a company spent over $4 millions on one dry hole in Alaska this year: the same firm drilled a $490,000 dry hole in New New Mexico last year. And the companys dry hole expenditures in 1958 totalled over $35.5 millions when 147 tests were drilled.

So it strikes me that when anybody is willing to gamble what must be a very sizeable amount of money on such an unknown quantity as Tar Heel oil prospects, they must have a reason.

ighter

Side O A Story

By HAL BOYLE

NEW YORK (AP) The Federal Bureau of Investigation Is noted more for its sense of justice than its sense of humor.

That fact, of course, is Inherent in the nature of its Job.

The task of catching thousands of criminals yearly is deadly serious work. It can be deadly dangerous, too. A number of J. Edgar Hoovers men have given up their lives ih the line of duty.

But even the grimmest police work swnetimes has its wryly humorous side^times when comedy for a moment obscures the tragedy.

When Warner Bros, decided to do a film dramatizing Don Whiteheads best seUer, The FBI Story, it undertook meticulous research into the bureaus operation to insure authenticity.

Here are a few of the lighter episodes in the .FBIs crowded history:

Agents once arrested a 19-year-old girl accused of being an accessory in a bank robbery. Under questioning she strenuously denied any knowledge of the crime.

Sthe was" told her bail would be $5,000. aqd agents asked where she could raise such a sum.

Well, she said. I guess 1 could rob another bank.

There was a sudden silence, which the girl broke by observing ruefully: Oops. I shouldn't have said 'another', should I?

In Houston FBI agents trailed two members of a car theft ring to a hotel.

Finding the door ajar, they stepped quickly into the room, told one of the surprised thieves: We're FBI agents. You are under arrest!

From an adjoining room came a terrified shout from the second thief: Dont shoot! Im clean!

He was. He was sitting in the bathtub covered with lather.

During one recent investigation an agent served as assistant funeral director, rode in the funeral coachand even helped in the burial of a man who was a close acquaintance of a fugitive the bureau was seeking.

Now and then a fugitive can be extraordinarily helpful to the FBI. One such was a man wanted for interstate transportation of stolen property. When arrested,- he had in his pocket a

(Continued on Page 11)

Strength

^o^ loaav

By EARL L. DOUGLASS PROFILE OF DECLINE

I saw him go step by step down into hell. I saw him lose his soul.

The man who said this was talking about a business associate who had just died. The man who had suffered this profound decline had been a man of considerable stature in the field in which he moved. Until he Was fifty, he was going straight up. His Mecess was phenomenal. And not only w'as he personally successfulhis influence on everyone about him was marked and beneficial. Then, as he neared fifty, he began, somehow, to slip. His drinking increased until it became a problem. He seemed to lose all sense of the influence he weilded in the circle in which he moved. He became cynical. He paid little attention to his work. He might well have given up and spent his life in travel or anything else he cared to for he was the possessor of a quite substantial private fortune. But he just continued going down and down and paying very little attention to the world round about him and its people.

I saw him lose his soul. So said his friend when it was all over and the undertaker had been called In. He had been like the meteor which flashes across the sky and then falls a burned out and dead thing.

Step by step-down, down. And this after he had brought himself up to dazzling helghtik

Featherbeddina, A Rising Issue

Opinions In Brief

Nothing within the power of men to alter can logically be called uncontrollable or inevitable. If the people permit it, spending will unquestionably continue racing out of control. But. if the people decide otherwise, there is still time to halt this giant snowball deal in its tracks."Wall Street Journal.

Without Barden and the courage, power and determination of his football days at the University of North Carolina, the labor bill might still be burled ' In committee. Barden and a small band of legislators who agreed with him that a bill must be reiwrtedthey did the trick/ Asheville Citizen-Times.

T

In the House at Washington, after the hard-fought battle brought victory to the Landrum-Grifiin bill. Chairman Graham A. Barden of the House Labor Committee was hailed a.s the man who somehow said the right word at the right time, and did the right thing at the rrgiit time.

A janitor was overheard to make lhs remark recently when di.scu-ssing the subject of an uninformed person trying to teach another: 'You cant no more teach what you aint learned than you can come back from where you aint been.' -^Greenville (S.C.i Piedmont.

By ELMER ROESSNER

Youll read a lot about featherbedding in the next two months.

Years ago, when most beds were made of straw, he who slept in a featherbed had it soft.

Today one who has a job with no work, or who gets more than a days pay for a days work, or who is paid to perform unnecessary work, has a featherbed."

There are many such Jobs. Shipping firms must hire stevedores fr whom there is no work. Government workers compile statistics no one ever looks at. Railroads pay firemen with no fires to tend.

One estimate puts the cost of featherbedding at $2 billion a year. This is passed on to consumers in higher prices, or taken out of stockholders profits. RAILROADS BALKING

You will hear more ' about featherbedding because American railroads have agreed to resist it in negotiating contracts with operating unions to replace those expiring November 1, Thi'ee years ago the ratiJoads

agreed to drop the featherbedding issue until the present time.

A dramatic example of featherbedding was described by Albert R. Beatty, vice president of the Association of American Railroads, who said the engineer on a four-hour trip between Washington and New York gets two-and-one-duarter days basic pay each way, collecting four and a half days pay for a little more than eight hours running time.

Railroad spokesmen cite another instance: The Burlington Zephyr makes the 1,000-mile run between Chicago and Denver In a little over 16 hours. But under union contracts, there must be eight train crews with each member getting more than ten days pay.

THREE COSTLY OUTRIDERS

Still another: The Burlington sent out a self-propelled shovel to repair the tracks at Riverside, ill. Even though the shovel was operated by a maintenance man, the railroad had to send along an engineer, brakeman and conductor at a cost of $58.54. The thft*e extra men

had to ride outside the one-seat shovel cab and, wed rather have them stay at home where they wouldnt get hurt. J.E. Wolfe, vice president, told tne Wall Street Journal. J

The Interstate Commence Commission, in a study of featherbedding after the three-year moratorium, found that a passenger conductor on a train between Minneapolis and Milwaukee, a distance of 346 miles, had been paid $16.69 a day until the truce was signed, when his pay jumped to $38.50 a day.

States often Incorporate featherbedding rules Into laws. MANDATORY FEATHERBEDS

Fourteen states require railroads to carry a third brakeman on freight trains, a requirement necessary in the days of hand brakes. Other states require railroads to maintain full-time employees at depots even thought there is little or no business except at harvest time.

Your reporter was once a beneficiary of a featherbedding A Csllfornla law required every train to carry a bagpage-uiaa (wo pfveut ra|lroatl9 from

making brakemen do that Job as well). Your boy, a peanut butcher selling chocolate bars and soda to rarely interested passengers, got 50 cents a trip from Oakland to Sacramento signing his name as baggageman. There was no baggage to handle: your boy always told passengers to carry their own suitcases.

Now the railroads are rebelling against featherbedding. Will they end it? Will young Doctor Hau-senpfeffer believe Margai'cts story? Will Legs OBrien get the safe open in time? Read tomorrows column for more on featherbedding. Or better yet. stay in bed.

EUROPE LOVES THOSE AMERICAN BROILERS

America broke its own export record of fresh and frozen chickens during the fli-st half of this year, new figures show. A total of 39,560.000 pounds w'as exported. That was tliree and a half times as much as was exported in the first half of 1958.

West Germany was the best Customer, taking 10,500,000 pounds, followed by Switzerland

WU g,.Tno,B81