Celebrating the Fourth of July, Vienna, Va., 1921

Folks celebrating the 4th of July in Vienna, Virginia, 1921. 

C.W. Gaither to be Secretary-Treasurer of Newly-Incorporated Auto & Gas Engine Works, 1920

“Leaves Rail Road for the Auto” from the July 23, 1920, issue of the Elizabeth City Independent.

Elizabeth City gains and Hertford loses a valuable citizen in C.W. Gaither who has come from Hertford to Elizabeth City to take the office of secretary-treasurer of the Auto & Gas Engine Works, Inc., of which he is a stockholder. Mr. Gaither is 42 years old and this is the second job he has held in his life. He went to work for the Norfolk Southern R.R. at Hertford when he was 12 years old and when he was 21 years old he was holding down the agency for the company and doing the telegraph trick at that point. He had become so identified with the Norfolk Southern that he might have remained a fixture if his brother W.G. Gaither, cashier of the First & Citizens National Bank of this city, hadn’t convinced him that Elizabeth City is a better field for pep and perseverance of the Gaither variety. Mr. Gaither entered upon his new duties last week and will remove his family to Elizabeth City as soon as he can find a home for them. The Auto & Gas Engine Works was recently incorporated and its officers under the incorporation are W.P. Skinner, president; T.J. Jones, vice president; C.W. Gaither, secretary-treasurer.

Drawing of Draft Numbers for War, 1917

“The Drawing of the Draft Numbers at Washington,” from the High Point Review, July 26, 1917.

The drawing of the prospective soldiers for the United States took place in Washington Friday. Every man who was registered on June 5^th was drawn, therefore the list stands the same as ion that day, when each was given a liability number, in the order they registered. For instance, the first man registered was given No. 1, the second No. 2, and so on. The drawing Friday established in addition to the liability number, a service number, which was placed in red ink by the local draft boards on the back of the cards and forwarded to Washington. It was these numbers that were drawn Friday. No. 258 was the first service number drawn at Washington and of course this was liability number 1. The next number drawn was liability number 2, and so on. When the various quotas for the army are to be secured the boards will commence with the government’s liability number 1 and on down the list until enough men are secured, from each district, barring exemptions, when the drafting will cease and those whose names have not been reached this time will likely be reserved for future use. The number on the left of your name designates the liability number.

The Review will be pleased to give any party the information desired as to his numbers or anything pertaining to the draft that we can. Every time a number was drawn Friday, it represented 42,000 men, as there are 42,000 draft districts in the country and the same numbers were used for all the districts.

Happy Fourth of July

This Fourth of July image can only be from July 4, 1908 to July 4, 1911 because the flags have 46 stars. Our flag received its 46th star November 16, 1907 when Oklahoma gained statehood. The 46-star American flag flew from that date until January 6, 1912, when the New Mexico Territory became the state of New Mexico. Arizona was added on Valentine's Day of the same year, giving the United States a 48-star flag. Alaska and Hawaii were the final states joining the Union in 1959. The lyrics on the image are from America and were written by Samuel Frances Smith in 1831 when he was a student at Andover Theological Seminary in Massachusetts. The melody was from the British anthem, "God Save the Queen." The Star Spangled Banner wasn't adopted as our official national anthem until 1931.

Children Should Be at Home Working, Not Wandering Around the Community, 1916

“Conservation” by Mrs. F.B. Ashcraft, from the June 16, 1916 issue of The Monroe Journal.

(A paper read before the Woman’s Club and published by special request.)

I shall not attempt to discuss conservation in its broadest sense. As it pertains to our forests, our mountains, our Niagara Falls, not even Monroe’s shady trees, for they have been ruthlessly sacrificed for a block of cement. To simplify the word it means to save, to preserve. So today I want to make the application very practical. I want to discuss a very vital side of conservation, namely, the saving of our Monroe boys and girls, and Monroe’s yards, gardens, streets, alleys and public grounds.

For the second time I present my views to an organization of public-spirited women. It is not a fine spun theory of mine, but as I am very much a home-lady, I should say it is a home-spun theory, for I have given it right much serious and sometimes unpleasant thought. There are people who object to anything that calls for money, or more money, this might appeal to them as it requires no extra outlay of money but, is neither a money saving scheme.

It is this—That the children of the public schools be graded or given credit on their monthly reports for work done in their home or around their homes, that is, domestic work, physical and manual labor, to enumerate: cooking, sweeping, washing dishes, sewing, cutting wood, carrying it in, cleaning yards and side-walks, and the backs of the premises, working in the flower yard or garden, in fact, anything that children and young people can and should do.

Some one may say, what is the object of this? I should say:

Firstly—To teach our boys and girls habits of industry, to teach them to be able to appreciate a well-kept sanitary home and something of what the mother has to do in the home.

Secondly—To teach them to stay at home contentedly and thereby keep them off the streets and intruding on others who wish to have their children work and study.

Thirdly—To teach them that work is honorable and a credit to them. If there are parents who have plenty of servants and it is not necessary for their children to work, let them show their public spirit by going out and helping beautify our town. We observe there are side walks that are disreputable.

Fourthly—To teach our boys and girls that it is unbecoming and a reflection on their home training to be seen on the streets of Monroe every afternoon and often at night, loafing at some corner, or at the picture show, ice cream counters, post office, or at the depot. It would be far more to their credit to be at home and relieve mother or father of some of the domestic cares.

Fifthly—It will partly or largely solve the servant problem and alone with other good reasons save money these war times. But some one says, how can I keep my boy or girl at home and employed when some John or Mary is always calling to them to come and let’s go up town, or play ball, or to walk, or to the depot, or picture show or something else.

It seems to me that some such system inaugurated in our public schools would be greatly beneficial to the children, the parents and the community. It would prove especially good if adopted in our mill and colored schools. Miss Sowman, the expert sent out by the United States government, recommends home gardening from a money making basis. I argue it for the conservation of our boys and girls. It has been dinned in our ears always that the smartest men came from the rural districts. Why? It is not because they are born with more brains, but mix their brains with their muscle and thereby saved from the devil’s work-shop. Listen! We cannot vote, but we can be training our future city officials.

The children need the work and the work needs the children.

                                --Mrs. F.B. Ashcraft

Woman's Club Wants to Change Municipal Government and Hire City Manager, 1916

“Commission Government,” from the June 16, 1916 issue of The Monroe Journal.

Have we not sat still, folded our hands and abused long enough? Shall we not try to solve the problem of municipal government on a brand new plan? Practically every American city has its group of men who are enthusiastically organizing some endeavor to secure the commission form of government for their towns. This government, while it may not be ideal, is so much better than the forms of government which preceded it in the various cities that the officials have been bombarded with questions by mail to such an extent that it has been bombarded with questions by mail to such an extent that it has been necessary to publish pamphlets as an answer to enquiries. Unquestionably the plan is popular wherever tried.

The essential features of the commission plan are economy, efficiency, control of public servants and of public funds and permanency of public improvements. Wards are abolished. The government is put on a sound business basis. The manager must run the city on an efficient business basis and he is directly responsible to the people for the business success or failure of the corporation. To make any business enterprise pay the cost of equipment and of operation must be kept within the limit of business economy. Wastefulness must be avoided.

All servants and helpers that are not actually profitable to the city should be gotten rid of just as a clerk or any other servant would be. The business efficiency of the commission plan secures employees that can render regular, efficient service. It does not allow the practice of furnishing jobs to friends or relatives; but the proposition is exactly reversed and men who can and will render the most valuable service are sought to take the jobs. The police show inefficiency if they arrest a stranger or a harmless countryman merely for intoxication and then allow prominent citizens or home boys to take in the town driving fast or cursing and threatening. This is inefficient police service. The ladies of the Woman’s Club think all violators of law should be treated alike instead of locking up the stranger or the countryman without bond and sending the prominent citizen home or letting him stay in the street. It is said that our street force wastes a thousand dollars a year or more in inefficiency and waste of time. We have been told that under the present system of government the aldermen can spend money for any old thing that suits them just whenever they take a notion. All they have to do is get the mayor to sign notes, checks or vouchers.

After a year of managerial work for Tarboro, J.H. Jacocks shows a good record in supervision of the town’s affairs. June 1, 1915, the town owed notes and the banks $3,167; fire truck note $2,026; miscellaneous bills $2,050; a total of $6,237.69. May 1^st this year those bills had all been paid and the miscellaneous bills amounted only to $850. The town on the first of the month owed $4,487.69 less than on June 12^th last year.

Other cities can be cited which show equally fine reports under the commission form of management and the sooner Monroe gets the commission government the sooner will the city enter an era of progress and growth that will be the pride of all of us.

Put a Little Piece of 'Country' in the Town of Monroe in the Form of Parks and Playgrounds, 1916

“Parks and Playgrounds” by Mrs. Roscoe Phiffer, from the June 16, 1916 issue of The Monroe Journal.

Mr. John Nolen, an eminent landscape architect of Cambridge, Mass., says, “Every city worthy of the name has public parks of some sort, and they are now recognized as a necessity of city life, just as streets and water and schools are a necessity. In nothing is a school so permanently benefitted as in the relation of sites and the construction of an adequate system of playgrounds and pleasure parks. The creation of a satisfactory park system is one of the most difficult and responsible duties that ever comes to a town or city government. No one nowadays doubts the necessity of city parks and playgrounds, and recent investigations give final and convincing evidence that parks pay as a municipal investment, pay directly in dollars and cents.”

One of our most public-spirited citizens has tried for years to induce the city government to buy a certain tract of land, lying close in, to be used as a public park. The people generally realize that a bad situation will confront us one of these days, when we will become a closely built community, without breathing space for the public. No bits of the natural world, no little piece of “country” left. It seems almost a necessity that the municipality acquire land for this purpose before the price becomes prohibitive. This has been diligently preached by men and women of vision, who hope that it is not already too late. Providing park space is perhaps as necessary as some other things only we got started doing other things with the money. Space for outdoor recreation is badly needed, a place for the necessary habit of human assembling in crowds; place for the children to play, following the imperative law of their nature, place for the absolutely necessary business of courtship, a place for old age to sit apart in peace and undisturbed contemplation.

“The boy without a playground is father of the man without a job.” A boy must have something to do. If he cannot get a job during vacation, the playground helps to solve his problem. There is nothing better for a child in any way than to be taught good wholesome, constructive play.

“What! Teach children how to play?” This skeptical exclamation greets one who tries to present this new idea, and it is hard to convince some that what was good enough for our fathers is not good enough for us. The child is entitled to all the advantages that have been worked out for his benefit, just as well as we are to our modern conveniences in our homes, our offices and business houses.

The playground is a positive factor in lessening juvenile delinquency. While a child is on the playground he is not breaking windows, obstructing street traffic with his games, his use of language is much more restrained and he cannot smoke cigarettes. If this restraining influence is only exercised for an hour a day on several hundred boys, whose environment is bad, it is worth while. Those who have followed the subject closely unite in speaking a good word for the restraining influence of the playground upon the children who attend them.

The law of the directed playground is that every child must play and play fair. The child is by nature a social being and he would rather take part and “play fair” than be isolated. The usual story of the playground is that it is started by the philanthropic workers, then turned over to the city.

Our city is growing and we should look well to the public amusements of our people and provide them that wholesome, healthful recreation which is necessary in every community.

Raeford, N.C., has been presented with a magnificent gift, a tract of several acres of long leaf forest,near the center of the town, which will be used for a park and bear the name of the donor, Maj. J.W. McLaughlin.

Dr. Woods Hutchinson says: “Never till we are ready to graduate from the university of life, which ought not to be before 65 or 70, should we cease to regard play as one of our major electives. Play makes the child into a man, and keeps the man into a child, growing and improving all his life long.”

                --Mrs. Roscoe Phiffer