Henderson daily dispatch., 1936-12-15
WARD MIGHT HEAD
HOUSE COMMITTEE
Veteran Pete Murphy of
Rowan, However, Talked
= For Appropriations
Daily Dispatch Burenu,
In the Sir walter Hotel.
y - RA IA LR WILL.
Nv i.

Raleigh, Del. 15.-RepreSentatlVe H.
L. Nibby) Ward, of New Bern,
Craven county, is regarded by many
here as being very strong conten-
der for the craftsmanship of the House
Appropriations Committee. 1t is
known that he is being very strongly
recommended to Speaker r. Gregg
Cherry for this post and a good many
observers here are already confident
that the 33-year-old New Bern attor-
ney now serving his second term In
the General Assembly, will be named
chairman of the committee which
must decide just how much money
each of the various State Departments
and institutions will get for each of
the next two yearS-and which must
also decide how much the public
schools of the State will get, regard
ed as the most highly controversial
question and the one around which
the biggest fight in the General AS
sembly will develop.
There are still those, however, who
believe that Representative Walter
(Pete) Murphy, Of Salisbury, is more
likely to be named chairman of the
appropriations committee than any
one else and good many admit that
at the present time no one knows
who Speaker Cherry will appoint, and
that it is evidently a toss-up between
Ward and Murphy. Those who believe
that Speaker Cherry will select his
appropriations committee chairman
from the west are confident that he
will name Murphy, while those who
think he will pick an eastern man for
chairman of this committee predict
he will name Ward. Since it is gen
orally conceded that Cherry will APP
point Representative Victor S. Bryant
of Durham, chairman of the House
Finance Committee and since it is
agreed that Durham may be consider
ed as being in either the east or the
west, most observers agree that Cher
ny can select his appropriations chair
man from either the east or the west
without violating the custom and pre-
cedent that if the chairman of the fin
ance committee is from the west, the
chairman of the appropriations COM
mittee must lie from the east, or visa
versa. Gttn
Murphy has strong backing for the
appropriations post from many of the
members of the House from the west
ern part of the State, not only because
he is from a western county but be-
cause they believed he is the best fit
ted man in the House from the stand
point of experience and ability to
handle this important post. This will
be the thirteenth time Murphy has
served in the House and he is regard
ed as being one of the ablest think
ers and parliamentarians who has
ever served in the General Assembly.
It is generally conceded that many of
the alumni of the University of North
Carolina, of which Murphy is an
alumnus, are strongly backing him
for the appropriations post in the be-
lief that he will see to it that the Uni
versity gets better and more liberal
deal from this session than it has
from the last two or three.
Ward is also regarded as having
some very strong backing, including
some from University Of North Caro-
lima alumni, as Ward is also an alum
nus of the Chapel Hill institution, al
though he took his law degree at
Wake Forest. 1t is maintained by
those supporting Ward for the appro-
priations post that the University has
nothing to fear from Ward whatever
and that he will Re just as fair to it's
requests for larger appropriation as
Murphy would be. 1t is also pointed
out that Ward was a member of the
appropriations committee in the 1885
session and that Murphy was not
member of the house in that session,
with the result that Ward is already
more familiar with the problems of
this committee at this time than Muir
ply is. There are some who regard
Ward as being more tactful, less talk
alive and generally more conciliatory
than Murphy, who is known for his
ability and Willingness to say what he
thinks and for his liberal use of bit
ing sarcasm. A good many also De-
lieve that Ward would hold approp-
riations down better than Murphy and
be more likely to prevent the free
spenders' from running away with
the committee and the writing of an
appropriations bill calling for more
money than the finance committees
can provide.