The French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1896-1912, 1910-08-11

Raleigh, N. G., Aug. 8.-W. F.
Eller, of Ashe county, a former A.
& NJ College man well known in
the state, has been engaged by the
North Carolina Merchants Asso-
citation to serve as state organizer,
forming new associations and in
creasing the membership and stir
ring new life in those associations
already organized. There are
eighty eight local associations at
this time. Quite number of
them are not active, however. At
state headquarters here, under
the direction of President E. e.
Broughton and Secretary E. L.
Harris, a determined campaign is
being ipaugurated to impress on
the next legislature the necessity
for number of legislative acts
that they will make fight for
at least, a modification of the
Homestead law, so that the right
to exemption can be waived as in
Virginia. They also want re-
forms In freight rates and regula-
tions. Then too, the association
is committed to a bill to allow
towns of the state to adopt the
commission form of government
where the majority of the vot0rs
want it.
Confusion In the fire alarm sys-
tenn, lack of water pressure and
the fact that the fire engine was
not properly cleaned up and sup
piled with kindling, so delayed
ire-fghters this morning as to
cause much unnecessary fire loss
and arouse general indignation
among the many hundreds of peo-
pie who turned out to see the fire
near Moore Square. A tangle In
the alarm sent some of the appa-
ratus in the wrong direction and
when the water was ready to be
played on the fire the pressure
would scarcely lift it to the roof
of the two story building. The
fire engine always held in reserve
for emergencies for fires in the
high business blocks, was brought
out but had to stop at store en-
route, it is aid, to buy bundles of
kindling. The water discrepen-
came in for most complaint the
tpressure being way off. On every
hand was heard the declaration
that something must be done to
Iremedy, not only the trouble about
| the pressure, so often deficient,
but that the continued very fire.
quent muddy condition of the wa
| ter impairing its household utility
was beyond endurance. The fire
loss was about $1,000. One, resi-
dence occupied by Wade Williams
and owned by c. P. Spruill, was
/ Quilted and the roof burned off
and most of the furniture burned.
I'D. e. Moore q residence next door
Twas flooded with water.
u Il q
| For several weeks there has
been a fight on between the state
treasurer and a number of sewing
machine manufacturers and deal
ers as to the state license tax for
selling machines in this state
Some of the manufacturers, nota.
bly, the Standard Co., of Cleve-
land, O., had refused to pay the
persisted in selling machines to
$3.50 manufacturers license and
dealers in this state with view to
having them persist in the sale OF
machines without payment OF
their So license issued to dealers
in connection with the manufac.
turer's license of $3.50. Now,
however, the state treasurer an
nOunces that the Standard Co.,
has "come across" and paid its
license and the dealers will follow
suit with their local license. Ii
4 looked awhile like number OF
the sewing machine people were
banding together to fight the rev
enue tax on machines.