The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936, 1927-03-11
RUN FOR OFFICE AND
YOU RUN A GAUNTLET
That's The Way w. T. Culpepper is Beginning
To Feel About 1t Since He Came
Out For Mayor

office he begins to discover !
that his private life and bust
ness relations are no longer |
private property. W. I. Gull !
pepper. president oi the Cul-
pepper Hardware Go. OF this
city and president as well OF +.
l.. Williams Co.. road coutrac-
tors. is finding it that way.
Mr.. Culpcpper announced his cam
didacy for the mayora!y of Eliz- J
ahcth City few weeks az" and he
il beginning To realize that runnin" !
for office is like setting ones self
up rs Il target for every sharp !
shooter.
Folks had about forgotten the
nntoricty the Culpcpper srcup re-
rrivcd some months ago III their !
clash with City Manager Miles Fcrc- !
bee. until Billie CulpCpper said he
wanted tn be- Mayor. And then
rvrrvhody remembered that the tuI-
peppers were sore on City Manager
Frrchct and after his scalp h"cauSc
he had accused J.. Il. Cuipepprr.
Rillic'S business partner. '0f trying
~ make shady deals with the city
administration. In fact the CITY
Manager went 81 far AZ To say that
the CulpeppcrS tried tn get rake
off in almost every deal the city :
made with outside contractors anu /
supplv dealers and he made Il >pccl-
fic charge that he had been offered
a share in certain secret rebates II
he would stand for them.
Now comes another suggestion Il i
scandal which directly involves W.
T. Culpeppcr himself. Just about
the time hr announces his candl-
Gacy. the County Highway Commits
sion witholdS payments ot NioW
To the r.. Il. w tlLdHi> We Va =" '
W. r. Culpeppcr is the resident
head, on the suspicion that MI Cui-
pepper'S company was putting i'll
bills 70 the county fer work which
II had never performed.
David Cox. Sr.. Il civil engineer
is checking mp now upon the work
performed by thr f.. l.. Williams TO.
md if the suspicious of County
Auditor Pritchard are confirmed
AIr. CulpcprTr'S candidacy for the
is going 10 receive Il trc-
riblc setback,
II is SUSPECTED hy the county
and members uf the high
vav commission. that the accounts
Of the f.. l.. Williams Co. with re-
Spcct To- the ESlip road project III
lower PaSQuOtank We're padded.
The suspicion VISA heightened when
the road engineer !. ]. Ford. VII"
the work for the com
mission. WIS tdllCb "b'i w. ''"
his field books.
The field books are small books
which the engineer carries on tn"
lob. setting down in detail thr
amount of work and materials that
enter into the job from day To day.
From the field books the final re-
cords are made up. Mr.. Ford was
slow To produce these field books
and when ne did produce them. one
of the books WAS not the original
field book ut all but nicely made mp
COPY done in Il feminine hand writ
in- There were no lady engineers
employed in supervising the work
on that ESlip road.
Jesse J. Ford. former Highway
Engineer for Pa$quotank County.
came back To- Elizabeth City Satur-
day To confer with the members OF ,
the Highway Commission relative
tu the proposcd investigation Ill
this county.
Mr.. Ford WIS in good h,Imor
and said he had no desire To crlti-
else anybody. hut thinks am M
Justice might bc done himself or
the Highway Commission. if pc"ps"
form opinions before the rcchcckin%
Of figures is completed.
Il have no doubt that It complete
will reveal that every
thin. is all right with the Figures.
Mr.. Ford explains. Its true. one
or two errors were made. but moth
iuy has been said about the time IN
error WAS made on the estimates oil
the E<iip road i'm favor of the Collil-
ty. of course the figures were
copied in II different handwriting
but it WIS the hamdwritin" of the !
girl in the office"
Mr.. Ford explains that hc Is now
wOrkin" on Il contracting job ut
Drivers. between Norfolk and SUI
folk. and that he is ready to comc
back at any time to stand by th"
c>u imatrS he made. He said h" ac-
ridrntally heard of the proposed i'll
vr>ti"atiUn. during Il trip TO Nor
folk and haStcUcd owe" tu Elizabeth i
City 10 set himself straight.