Septembers past, 100 years ago

From The LaGrange Graphic, 1916

Front Page News

A Building Boom Strikes LaGrange — A genuine building boom has struck LaGrange.

Messrs. Howard and Henry Park have let a contract and work has already begun towards the erection of four stores on Bull Street adjoining the Ideal Theater.

These stores will each be 25 feet wide by 100 feet deep. The walls will support two more stories should necessity demand it, and it is almost a certainty that it will be a necessity in less than a decade.

It is also the intention of these same gentlemen to build four stores just south of the Park Hotel. The upper floors of this three-story building will be used for hotel purposes in connection with the Park Hotel.

On Alford Street, Dr. W.E. Morgan will erect four new residences with all modern conveniences. With all this new building we feel that it will not be long until LaGrange will also have an auditorium.

Modern Hospital For LaGrange — The city of LaGrange has purchased from Dr. Henry R. Slack the LaGrange Sanatarium at a cost of $30,000.

The LaGrange Sanatarium was built about nine years ago by Dr. Slack at a cost of $30,000. Since that time additional expenditures of over $4,000 have improved the facility.

The sanitarium now has 35 rooms, two operating rooms, a consultation room and all conveniences.

The city of LaGrange will erect two African-American wards in the near future on the grounds adjoining at a cost of about $8,000.

A provision in the will of the late Joseph E. Dunson made it possible for the city to own the sanitarium. Mr. Dunson willed the city $10,000, provided the city should raise a like amount. The will also provided $500 a year for five years.

Dr. Slack will also give, by will, $5,000. LaGrange can, with pride, boast of having as complete and up-to-date sanitarium as can be found in any city of its size in Georgia.

Plan To Construct Churches At Mills — A movement was started Sunday morning at the First Baptist Church in LaGrange to erect Baptist churches at both Hillside and Dunson mills.

In a ringing speech after the sermon last Sunday morning, Mr. Fuller E. Callaway urged an awakening within the church both in the matter of a more united interest in the church itself and in the method of greeting new people and new members in the city.

He stated that within the past year probably two thousand new people had come to LaGrange and in all probability there were at least 500 Baptists in this number. Only a very small percentage had been asked to put their letters in or become members of the churches here.

Large Attendance In Public Schools — The LaGrange Public Schools opened Monday, Sept. 11, with splendid attendance.

The following list shows the number of registered pupils: High School, 194; Harwell Avenue School, 473; Unity School, 78; East LaGrange, 49; Dixie, 29; making a total of 823.

This number will doubtless be augmented, as there are always some who are prevented from registering the first day. We were unable to get the number of pupils in the African American schools at this time.

Jitneys To Advance Rate Oct. 1 — Mr. R.W. Underwood, manager of the LaGrange Motor Company, has announced that after the first of October the fare on the jitney buses of the city will be 10 cents instead of the present rate of one jitney.

The high cost of operation made this advance necessary.

For regular customers of the bus line books will be issued making the individual tickets cost a fraction over seven cents.

One of the problems of this increase in the rate: will a jitney buss be called a “jitney” buss when the fare is 10 cents? But this is too deep a question to be decided here.

Editorials

The Plight Of The American Farmer — There is one class of citizens whose condition is worse than that of the lowliest laborer and that is the farmer.

We have in this nation six and a half million farms and they yield the farmers who operate them, according to a recent bulletin on farm income issued by the Federal Department of Agriculture, $1.47 per day out of which must be paid the living expenses of the family.

There are four and a half million male farm laborers in the United States who make $1.35 per day and a million and a half women farm laborers who make 78 cents per day when they board themselves and out of this meager earning they must care for those dependent upon them. All those who work on the farm labor from 12 to 14 hours per day.

People Of U.S. May Differ On Issues But Are All Americans When Need Comes — Those who visit our shores from foreign countries marvel at the apparent freedom with which we discuss our national problems, and at our divisions in parties and factions politically. Sometimes they see a divided nation and lack of support for our president, whoever he happens to be.

We do differ on national questions, and in this country as in no other we are free to express these differences by speech and the printed word, but when that time comes that the nation needs us we are all Americans. And that includes those who are Americans because they have come to us from foreign lands mindful of the liberty we offer them, not only a promised liberty but one which is realized. (By Malcolm G. Jeffris)