85 years ago: July 27, 1939

Dublin Courier Herald, Dispatch and Press

CADWELL MAN SHOT BY POLICE
Wendell Mullis, farmer of the Cadwell section, is in a critical condition at the Claxton Hospital today suffering from gunshot wounds inflicted by John Faircloth, Cadwell Marshall, in a reported fight that followed the marshall’s attempt to arrest Mr. Mullis on a charge of drunkenness.
Laurens County Sheriff I.F. Coleman said that a warrant charging assault with intent to murder was sworn out against Marshall Faircloth by H.E. Mullis, father of the injured man.
The warrant was sworn out before Judge E.L. Stephens of the City Court of Dublin.
Marshall Faircloth was freed on $500 bond after he had surrendered to Sheriff I.F. Coleman upon learning that a warrant charging assault with intent to murder had been sworn out against him.
Mr. Mullis was shot in the left thigh, the bullet coursing through his stomach, puncturing his intestines in several places and lodging in the muscles of the back, attaches at the hospital said. He was reported as resting as well as possible but in a critical condition.
Sheriff Coleman said that information he had received revealed that Marshall Faircloth arrested Mr. Mullis on charges of being drunk on the streets of Cadwell and while he was taking him to jail the two started fighting, resulting in the shooting.

FIVE MONTH SCHOOL TERM
Laurens County schools can operate only five months during the 1939-40 school year unless provisions are made by the Georgia General Assembly for additional revenue to meet teachers’ salaries, Laurens County School Superintendent Elbert Mullis said today.
With financial assistance from the state remaining the same during the coming term as last year, Mr. Mullis said, the county system will be able to operate for only four months; county officials can scrape sufficient funds to carry on schools for an additional month, making a five month term.
Approximately $20,000 is required monthly to operate the extensive county school system, he said. This fund cares for the education of some 9,000 white and colored students in 84 schools. About 5000 students in the county are white, going to 22 schools and employing 160 teachers while the remaining 4000 students are colored in 62 schools employing 104 teachers.
Due to a jittery financial situation,the state was able to furnish funds for operation of only about four months of the past school term where state revenues had been promised for at least a seven-month term. Operation of school during the final three months of the past term was put on the shoulders of local authorities when cost of extensive state services overshot revenue.
Mr. Mullis said that the county could operate schools for only one month, using the equalization fund, which amounts to approximately $30,000 annually, and revenue derived from a county-wide five-mill school tax to pay teachers’ salaries.
Schools of the county system will open about October 1, two weeks later than during the past, the superintendent said.
Varied length school terms are being predicted by county school authorities all over the state as the hue and cry continues for an extra session of the legislature to enact some type of revenue raising tax in order that the state promised seven month school term can be carried on.
Reports have been circulated throughout the state that the financial crisis would be alleviated through a special session of the assembly and various dates set for the call to be issued by Governor E.D. Rivers.
Rumors are current at present that a special session will be called for the first of October after school authorities throughout the state have passed resolutions requesting enactment of a three-per cent sales tax to raise sufficient revenue to meet the critical financial shortage which caused the state to operate approximately $8,500,000 in the red during the past fiscal year.
No word has come from Governor Rivers with the exception of the fact that monies tagged for highway uses will be diverted to the schools in order to keep them running unless some other means of raising the money is provided.

DOUBLE PARKING TO STOP
Double parking along Jackson Street in front of the Laurens County Courthouse must stop, Dublin Chief of Police J.W. Robertson said so.
Only one digression from this rule will be permissible, the chief said: Buyers, both out-of-town and residents of Dublin will be given ample time
to secure packages from stores along the street even if it becomes necessary to park parallel to the sidewalk, Chief Robertson said.
The chief qualified his permission to double park on occasions with the assertion that cases will be made against persons leaving their cars empty while they went shopping:
“Someone must be in the automobiles in order to move them if the traffic becomes congested,” Chief Robertson said.
The chief is seeking to make room for customers of stores along the street, requesting that employers and employees alike leave their automobiles at home or park them in the back alleys.
“This plan has helped on occasions in the past, and I am confident it will be a great help to both the police department and all stores on Jackson Street if everyone will cooperate.
“County and city people alike will be given ample time, even though they must double park, to load packages from stores, but this business of leaving cars parked in the streets must come to a halt,” Chief Robertson warned.

OPPOSITION IN ONE RACE
With more than one candidate qualified in only one race, Dublin’s August 9th Democratic Primary today promised to be one of the quietest in several years. D.T. Cowart, Secretary of the City Democratic Executive Committee, entered the race for councilman from the third ward in opposition to P.C Hutchinson, incumbent, in the final hours before deadline for qualifying on Saturday afternoon.
The race for the third ward aldermanic seat is the only one of the five races in which opposition developed although reports were current until the dead line Saturday afternoon that one or more candidates for the four council seats and mayor’s place would have opposition.
As released by the Executive Committee, the ticket for the August 9 primary follows:
For mayor – Dee Sessions
For councilmen:
First Ward – Martin Willis
Second Ward – Milo Smith
Third Ward – P.C. Hutchinson and D.T Cowart
Fourth Ward – M.Z Claxton
Mr. Sessions, unsuccessful candidate for mayor in the 1937 election and alderman from the city at large, is the only candidate in the mayor’s race since Dr. C.A. Hodges, present mayor, announced he would not seek re-election on the same day that Mr. Sessions revealed officially that he planned to run. Mr. Sessions had been rumored as a candidate for several days.
W.H. Shuman, former fourth ward councilman and meat market operator who said on Friday that he was considering making the race for mayor, against Mr. Sessions, failed to qualify.
The executive committee today is checking the registered voters’ list. Deadline for registration was at 6:00 on Saturday afternoon.
Between 1,000 and 1,100 Dublin Citizens are eligible to cast ballots in the Primary.

CITY TAXES DUE
City Clerk Millard Rogers today reminded property owners of Dublin that 6 o’clock Tuesday afternoon is the deadline for payment of fourth installments on 1939 city taxes without addition of a penalty.
Mr. Rogers said that the fifth and final installment will be due on August 25. The city clerk’s office will be open until 6 o’clock tomorrow afternoon to receive fourth installment payments.

BUILDING PERMITS AHEAD
Running barely ahead of last year, building activities during the first six months of 1939 swung towards construction of small owner-occupied homes, permits registered at the office of Millard Rogers, City Clerk, revealed today.
Total permits for the first half of this year ran $795 ahead of the corresponding period in 1938. Permits this year totaled $43,780 as compared with $42,965 over the same period of last year.
Residential construction in 1939 jumped well ahead of the same type building during last year with a total of $30,125, records revealed.
Eight homes were built in the $2,000 class during the first six months of this year while only one such residence was constructed last year. One $5,000 home and another $3,600 residence was constructed this year while the remaining houses built ranged under $1,000.
Highest priced home construction during the first six months of 1938 was $10,000 with two in the $3,000 class and three in the $1000 category. Others ranged downward from $1000.
Business construction showed a slight drop this year over the corresponding period last year, the records revealed. Total permits issued amounted to $9,300 this year as compared with $12,625 during the first half of 1938. Highest contract during last year was for $4000 while the largest permit issued for business construction this year was $6,000. Eight business building permits were issued last year as compared with only four during the first six months of this year.
Repairs and renovations during this year showed another bare drop from the levels reached during the six months of 1938 with the largest number of repair permits being issued during 1938. Total repair permits last year amounted to $4,605 as compared with $4,335 over the same six month period of this year. Eleven permits to make repairs were issued during the first half of this year while 16 were issued during the same period of 1938.

HALF HOLIDAYS END
Employers and employees of Dublin business houses will enjoy the summer’s final half-holiday this week with prospects of going through the last summer month of the year open six days a week.
Merchants began closing stores at 1 p.m. each Thursday during May and decided to end the annual summer custom with July’s half-holiday.
Swimming places, other places of recreation and streams for fishing have copped the fancy of half-holidayers.
Dublin streets will be almost deserted, leaving only the filling stations and drug stores open this Thursday.

DOG CATCHING STARTS MONDAY
A city dog catcher will begin rounding up animals without proper rabies tags, Mayor Charles A. Hodges said today, after consulting with several aldermen.
Dogs found without 1939 inoculation tags will be seized by the dog catcher, and a fee of $2 charged before they are released. The fee will include inoculation, without which dogs will not be released.
Over twenty persons are now taking anti-rabies treatment at the local health office, and there has been only luke warm response to appeals to the public for having dogs treated, City officials said, making it necessary to take steps to enforce the ordinance.
Having dogs treated is a civic duty as untreated dogs are a menace to society.

SCHOOL REPORT MADE
Laurens County’s $390,951.20 system of rural schools furnished educational facilities for 8,189 students, both white and colored, during the 1938-39 term, County School Superintendent Elbert Mullis reported today to the Stated Department of Education.
Properties of the 22 white schools of the county system were valued at $390,951.20 with enrollments of 4,703 during the past year, Superintendent Mullis stated. Valuation of equipment of white schools, including libraries and teaching aids, was placed at $60,564.55. Colored schools of the county were valued at $10,607.40.
Superintendent Mullis reported that 160 white teachers of the system received salaries during the 1938-39 term of $82,065, the average per capita cost of operating the white schools being $24.08. There were 4,703 white students enrolled in the 22 county schools during the past year.
The 62 colored schools of the county, with 106 teachers who were paid $21,215.50, had an enrollment of 3,486.
In the white school system, 56 buses traveled 783.4 miles each morning in carrying students to school, the report revealed.
Largest schools in the county schools are the Dudley school and the Cadwell School. There were 468 students and properties valued at $49,000 and equipment of $6,420 at the Dudley school The school equipment of the Cadwell school was valued at $33,000, the highest in the county.

MEMBERSHIP OF LEGION POST
Members of the local American Legion are reminded to meet on August 10 for the annual picnic. Wives and children are always invited. This will be an opportunity to meet the new commander, who was elected at the regular meeting last night. E.F. Moxley, local railway express agent and former city councilman, was named to succeed Commander Peter S. Twitty, who has resigned because his business has taken him to Washington, D.C. Bleckley Parrott was elected to take Mr. Moxley’s place as finance officer of the Post.
Post officials also released the full membership list and requested that all members clip and save this so that it could be referred to when needed in the future.
The full membership follows:
D.H Adams, Jerry Ahern, S.M. Alsup, Earl Arnau, S.G. Burch, R.E. Ballard, Denton Barron, J.E. Bedingfield, T.C. Bobbitt, Clarence Burch, Coke Brown, T.A. Bland, E.H. Balsley, J.E. Chambless, Sam V. Conyers, M.A. Chapman, Ovid H. Cheek, E.J. Cliatt, Fred Camp, M.G. Combs, Guy V. Cochran, M.Z. Claxton, C.C. Crockett,
W.A. Darsey, Walter Daniel, George W. Foster, J.K. Griffin, D.L. Green, Tracy W. Hill, Tom H. Hodges, A.J. Hargrove, W.H. Hobbs, C.A. Hodges,
R.H. Hightower, J.J. Horton, M.H. Hogan, Beeks Hightower, Edison Harbin, George C. Ingram,
Johnnnie Jordan, Tilman J. Joiner, Bennett Joiner, B.C. Keen, D.W. Knight, W.H. Lovett, Tom Lester, W.R. Manry, David Morgan, I.L. Miller, E.F. Moxley, Earley Miller, Guy McNeely, A.R. Morris, George McCulough, B.C. McLendon, A.B. Mixon, T.H. McDaniel, Hubert R. Moffett, A.G. Murray,
R.L. Nelson I. Parker New, Carl K. Nelson, O.B. Overstreet, Homer Prescott, E.E. Prescott, Bleckley Parrott, J.M. Peacock, J. Felton Pierce, W.P. Roche, H.O. Roach, Otis B. Rawls, Owen C. Roberts, J.D. Roberts, W.T. Roche, Grafton H. Reinhart,
H.V. Smith, A.C. Scarboro, Dee Session, Walter B. Seymour, E.M. Stanley, A.G. Shipes, Milo Smith, L.K. Smith, T.J. Trammell, Peter S. Twitty T.D. Thomas, L. Taylor, S.C. Wells, Tony Walker, R.L. Wilson, Charlie Wheeler, Oscar I. Walker, J.H. Weaver, P.M. Watson, J.M. Wall, L.D. Wood, J.T. Wright, Leon Wade, Julian M. Ward, T.B. Williams, Emmett Werden, A.A. Warren, L.F. Warren

CHRISTIAN W.M.S. CIRCLES
The Executive Committee meeting of the Womans Missionary Society of the Christian Church was held in the home of Mrs. M.A. Shewmake. The annual shake up for the selection of members for the circles was held at this meeting.
Members of Circle One are Mesdames R.I. Butler, George Feagin, J.C. Hamilton, Bill Shuman, L.G. McNeely, Reese Hodges, J.A. Rachels, Mark Smith, R.L. Autry, A.T. Summerlyn, M.A. Shewmake, Tom Peters, Jr., J.J. Jordan, D.C. Knight, J.M. Page, and G.R. Lee.
Circle Two members include Mesdames W.W. Jordan, C.A. Hodges, Bill Miller, Waddell Jordan, Bryan Tingle, H.C. Tharpe, Susie Jones, James House, Leo Radford, S.F. Beasley, W.J. Proctor, R.E. Bush, H.T. Jordan, L.L. Porter, B.B. Tanner, J.T. Floyd, and D.L. Stinson.
Circe Two will meet next Monday with Mrs. Proctor. Mrs. Waddell Jordan will present the devotional. Mrs. Bryan Tingle has been appointed Leader of Circle Two. A contest between the circles will be held, ending January First.
Mrs. J.J. Jordan and Mrs. H.C. Tharpe were appointed to be in charge of flowers for the church.

CADWELL ROUTE 1
By Mrs. Ruth Murkerson
Revival services have closed at the Cadwell Baptist Church, where Rev. Marshall Nelms of Hephizbah, President of the Georgia Baptist Training Union, preached to capacity crowds. Eight additions were made to the church, six of them for baptism.
Congratulations to Sam Smith on his 56th birthday anniversary, July 17th. Mr. Smith was the recent guest of his son, Jim Smith, and family.
Mr. and Mrs. Freeman Braswell had as their week end guests the former’s sister and family of Rentz.
Mr. and Mrs. N.J. Stuckey had as their Sunday guests the former’s mother and bothers, Leonard Stuckey and family of Eastman, Leo Stuckey and daughter of Louisville, the former’s sisters, Mrs. J.B. Jones and family of Eastman, and Mr. and Mrs. Nellie Stripling and daughter.
Mr. and Mrs. John Henry Williams were weekend guests of the former’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Dave Williams.
Little Miss Marjorie Stuckey is visiting her uncle, Leo Stuckey.
Mildred and Myra Porter are visiting their parents, Mr. and Mrs. Hilton Porter.
Miss Dorothy Sapp spent last week with her cousin near Eastman.
Ralph Stevens is spending this week at St. Simons Island.
Mrs. T.E. Stevens and little daughter, Mary Louise, were Monday guests of Mrs. Ruth Murkerson.
Mrs. Freeman Braswell was the Monday guest of Mrs. Claude Daniels.
Mrs. Dave Williams and Mrs. Henry Williams were Saturday guests of Mrs.
Sam Smith.

COTILLION PARTY
Mrs. Edward F. Powel entertained the members of the Cotillion Club with a bridge party in the attractive Brandon cottage at Sessions Lake, the occasion marking a bi-monthly meeting of the club. After an enjoyable bridge game, the hostess served delicious refreshments. She was assisted in entertaining by her sister, Mrs. David S. Brandon, Jr., and Miss Willie Mae Walker
Invited with the club members were Misses Maudine long and Margaret Watkins and Mrs. James Page and Mrs. June Barker.

YOUNG GIRL GIVEN PAROLE
Lottie Mae Meeks, young white girl, sentenced to 12 months at the Milledgeville State Farm on a charge of vagrancy, has been granted a parole by the State Prison and Parole Commission, Sidney F. Brown, Clerk of the City Court of Dublin, revealed today.
Clerk Brown said that the parole became effective today. The woman was paroled under supervision of the sheriff of Johnson County to whom she was ordered to report for the next 10 months.
Records at the office of Clerk Brown revealed that the woman was sentenced on April 29 of this year to 12 months at the state farm on a charge of vagrancy which she failed to pay a fine of $50 on a plea of guilty.