Watauga Democrat. [volume] (Boone, Watauga County, N.C.) 1888-current, 1929-07-04
GREER TALKS ON
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Mayor and Members of City Coun-
Gil Invited Guests at Meeting OF
Civitan Club Last Week; No
Meeting Today


Boone is a good town in which to
live. But there are some conditions
that need to be improved" declared
Prof. |. G. Greer, of the faculty of
the Appalachian State Teachers
College, speaking before the Civitan
Club last week on the subject, Law
Enforcement and Making Boone a
Clean Town"
Preceding Prof. Greer's address, a
delightful musical program was rem
dered by Misses Kathleen, La Vern
and AIMEE Greer, of Yankton, S. D.,
which was thoroughly enjoyed by
the 26 club members and invited
guests present. The attendance prize
was won by Civitan f. S. Qualls.
The club voted to have float in
the Fourth of July parade and
r. F. McDade, D. L. Wilcox and r.
d. Hodges were named as commit
tee to prepare the float.
The club was asked to prepare
copy for a feature page to appear
in bulletin to be issued in the near
future by the Teachers College The
committee named by the club to pre-
pare the copy is composed of J. F.
Moore, W. H. Gragg and 7. E. Bing-
ham.
Mayor R. S. Swift and and Dr. H.
B. Perry, member of the city council,
were guests of the club, and follow
ing Prof. Greer's talk, gave assur-
ance that every effort would be
exercised to really make Boone an
ideal place in which to live. This,
they said, would be easy with che
hearty backing of the citizens Of the
town.
Civitan G. X. Moose outlined
few things for which the organiza-
ton hopes to accomplish during the
next year, these being county farm
agent, golf course, hot lunch for un-
dernourished school children, selling
Civitan to the community, etc.
DR.. F. T. Warner, president of
the Advent Christian Seminary;
Bridgeport, Ala, was "a guest of the
club and made brief but interest
ing talk.
Today being July 4th, there will
be no meeting of the club, the next
meeting being on July 11tn, at 1870
p. m ., at which time the regular
monthly business session will be
held.
Professor Greer's address, in part,
is as follows:
Crime is to great extent the
result of social progress. The pas
sage of law forbidding an act
which has become a part OF the hab-
its and customs of a large group of
people, makes the continuance of
that act crime. Let NE call your
attention to few concrete illus
trations.
IN 1903 congress passed law
forbidding the importation OF slaves.
Numbers of men who had been en-
gage in this business continued to
imp slaves into the United States.
Although they We're doing just what
they had previously done, they were
criminals in this respect and they
were prosecuted and sent to the
penitentiary.
"A very eminent jurist has said
the passage of the pure food and
drug law made fifty thousand GRIM
inals in one year. These fifty thou
sand criminals, however, were doing
nothing more than they had been
doing before the law was passed.
"A man makes, sells, transports
and drinks liquor. He is doing what
was once legal, but he can't do it to-
day without violating the law and
intruding upon society.
"A prosperous farmer decided to
move to town. He bought q lot in
a beautiful residential section and
built an attractive home. When he
moved he brought with him four fine
hogs and put them in a lot back of
his house. The town authorities no.
titled him there was an ordinance
against keeping hogs in this section
of the town. He told the authorities
he was a citizen of the state, paid his
taxes anu WOulu Keep HIS mugs WiSle
he pleased. He did not agree to
keep this ordinance until he had
spent $400 in the courts and two
weeks in jail He was fine citi-
zen in every respect except one. He
refused to adjust himself to new con-
ditions.
'When conditions like these arise,
where shall we place our sympathy
and use our influence? Shall we
sympathize and defend the criminal
or shall we protect the law and So
ciety? | never saw man in trouble
that did not have my sympathy, but
the law is the best friend we ever
had. 1t protected us before we were
born, it stands with drawn sword by
sides and over our homes while we
are living 1t will protect our bones
as we sleep on the hillside. 1t
should and must be protected. Every
Ciyitan here should use his influ-