 The Whitewright Sun
Thursday, November 24, 1927 pg. 1 RAT EXTERMINATION DRIVE DISCUSSED HERE Miss Inez Derryberry, county home demostration agent, and M.B. Gilson, assistant in the federal biological survey, engaged in rat extermination work in cooperation with the extension service of A. and M. College, were in Whitewright Monday in connection with the work of the rat campaign in Grayson County. Miss Derryberry and Mr. Gilson visited the schools and addressed the pupils outlining the plans and purposes of the rat campaign and giving details as to the methods under which it will be conducted. The program for this campaign as mapped out at meetings held during the past two weeks at Sherman contemplates the organizing of school children in every community in Grayson County for the work and the offering of prizes to the schools accounting for the most rats killed. A supply of poison regarded as the best for the purpose has been received in Sherman and will be distributed over the county upon request. The cost will be 25c per pound and it is sufficient for 150 doses. It has been further stated that at a cost of about $1.50 per family, large numbers of rats which are damaging crops and property in Grayson County can be destroyed. Under the program as mapped out, the actual work of the campaign over Grayson County will begin Monday, November 28. Records will be kept of the number of rats killed to be used in statistics which will be submitted to the legislature along with similar records from other counties in an effort to secure a state appropriation to aid in carrying on the work of rat extermination.  Thursday, December 8, 1927 pg. 1 RAT CAMPAIGN GETTING RESULTS The county-wide rat extermination campaign is getting results, according to report from the various sections of Grayson County. The school children are offered prizes. The prizes will go to the boys and girls that bring in the largest number of rat tails during the campaign. The boy and girl who brings in the largest number of rat tails will receive the first prize, and the second and third prizes will be awarded to the boys and girls bringing in the second and third largest number of rat tails. The campaign will continue until January 2, and those who have not yet entered the contest will have time to do so, and by hard work may win one of the prizes. Up to Wednesday morning the grammar school children had brought in over 3,000 rat tails, while the high school children were trailing behind with only about 750 rat tails to their credit. The Government estimates that a rat destroys about one dollar's worth of property a year. If this be so, the Whitewright school children have saved the Whitewright section nearly $4,000 since the campaign started. The rat extermination campaign is not only for school children. Every person in Grayson County is supposed to join in the campaign and help rid the county of rats. Two sets of prizes, one for boys and one for girls, is to interest the children in the campaign. Since the above was put in type a committee has secured over $100.00 of prizes, which will be given boys and girls in the rat extermination campaign. The list of prizes will be published in the next issue of The Sun. Some of the prizes are valued as high as $7.50 each, and there will be a number of them. These prizes will be give to the Whitewright school children entering the contest. The Whitewright Sun Thursday, December 22, 1927 pg.1 7,555 Rats Have Been Exterminated Since the rat extermination campaign was started in Grayson County about two weeks ago, Whitewright school children have killed 7,555 rats. To prove that they killed this number, tails from the dead rats were brought in to the "counters." After the tails were counted they were burned, so there is no mistake about this number of rats being killed by those who are trying to win some of the prizes offered to school children in the rat extermination campaign. About $100 worth of prizes are now on display in the Manning, Clark & Meador show window. These prizes will be give to the boys and girls who killed the largest number of rats. The following is the official count of rats killed up to Wednesday morning of this week by Whitewright school children. The contest continues until Monday, January 2. FIRST GRADE Charles Jarvis - 3 SECOND GRADE Pete Nicely - 188 James Jarvis - 25 O.A. Hefner - 5 Granvolee Hansard - 5 Will Bryant - 3 Mark Montgomery - 2 Harold Hall - 3 Lorene Rutledge - 4 THIRD GRADE R.T. Head - 935 Weldon Jones - 91 Joe Thomas May - 7 Jim Meador - 5 Earl Phillips -1 FOURTH GRADE Eldridge C.... - 728 Lester Burchfield - 543 Charles White - 125 Woodis Hopper - 108 Ralph Kirkpatrick - 3 Jack Lay 7 J.D. Fleming - 10 FIFTH GRADE Robert Mathis, 1,206 Woodrow Belew - 79 Howard England - 167 SIXTH GRADE Fitz Bryant - 88 Samuel Phillips - 69 Ross Wilson - 30 SEVENTH GRADE Elmer Anderson - 543 Sylvia Mae Locke - 124 Mae Myrick - 15 Thomas Gillett - 28 Vonda Lee Stuteville - 16 Emma Gene Sears - 6 Prentiss Compton - 55 Myra Nell Vestal - 8 Lloyd Stowers - 35 Leland May -100 EIGHTH GRADE J.D. William - 611 R.P. Booher - 414 NINTH GRADE J.O. Williams 16 Johnnie Beazley - 1,508 The Whitewright Sun Thursday, December 22, 1927 pg.4 DEAD BANK ROBBERS AND DEAD RATS The bankers of Texas are offering a reward for dead bank robbers; the institutions of Whitewright are offering rewards for dead rats. Live bank robbers and live rats are a menace to t he country; they become valuable only when dead. A special drive is now being made against the rodents in Whitewright and vicinity in cooperation with the county-wide campaign to exterminate these predatory pests. The work now under way here is being directed by F.W. Smith, superintendent of the city schools. The rat killers are instructed to cut off the rat tails and bring them to the Superintendent to be counted and destroyed and proper record made of the number killed. To aid in the laudable work and give impetus to the special campaign, which ends January 2nd, the business men of Whitewright have donated a substantial collection of prizes to be awarded at the close of the special drive. The city and adjacent rural territory is divided and a separate list of prizes arranged for each division, so that the boy killing the most rats inside the city limits will have an equal chance with the boy scoring the highest count in the country. Following is the schedule of prizes: COUNTRY First prize, $10 Second prize, .22 Winchester rifle, $7 Third prize, sweater, $5 Fourth prize, box candy, $2.50 Fifth prize, 2 boxes candy, $1.20 CITY First prize, $10 Second prize, sweater, $5 Third prize, bat and fielder's glove, $4.50 Fourth prize, 300-lb ice book, $2.10 Fifth prize, box candy, $1 GRANDE PRIZES - COUNTRY A prize will be awarded for the largest number of rat tails reported in each room, as follows: 1st grade (A), air gun, $1 1st grade, (B), football, $1 2nd grade, bill fold, $1.50 3rd grade, inner tube, $2 4th grade, hammer, $1.50 5th grade, hand saw, $2 6th grade, watch, $3.75 7th grade, Auto-Strop safety razor, $1.50 8th grade, Auto-Strop safety razor, $1.50 9th grade, Auto-Strop safety razor, $1.50 10th grade, Auto-Strop safety razor, $1.50 11th grade, Auto-Strop safety razor, $1.50 To the student in each grade residing in the city and killing the most rats in the city, 50 cents in cash each. GIRL's ESSAY CONTEST, COUNTRY AND CITY TO the high school girl writing the best 500-word essay on "The Rat," hat box, $7.95 To the high school girl submitting the second best essay, framed picture, $3 To the grammar school girl writing the best 500-word essay, Sheaffer fountain pen, $5 To the grammar school girl submitting the second best essay, 5-lb. box high grade candy, $3 The last count of rat tails before Christmas will be made at the school building December 22nd; another count made at the grammar school building on the afternoon of December 29th; the last count and prize awards made January 2nd. Whitewright Sun Thursday, January 5, 1928 pg. 1 WINNERS IN LOCAL RAT EXTERMINATION DRIVE Herewith is a partial list of the winners in the rat extermination campaign conducted in the local public schools. At press time a complete list of prizes awarded could not be obtained, and a supplementary list will be published next week. A grand total of 13,877 rats were killed by the school children, as evidenced by that number of rat tails turned in to teachers for counting. Most of these rats were killed by children living in the rural districts, where they had access to more rats than children living in the city. GRAND PRIZE WINNERS Rural Boys 1st, Lester Burchfield, 4th grade, $10 2nd, R.T. Head, 3rd grade, rifle 3rd, Johnnie Peasley, 9th grade, sweater 4th, Eldridge Caylor, 4th grade, $2.50 box candy 4th, J.D. Williams, 8th grade, $1.20 box candy Town Boys 1st, Howard England, 5th grade, $10 2nd, Thomas Gillett 7th grade, sweater 3rd, C.W. Phillips, 6th grade, bat and glove 4th, earl Blanton, 9th grade, ice coupon-book 5th, Homer Atnip, 8th grade, $1 box candy WINNERS BY GRADES Prizes were awarded in each grade to the town boy and the country boy bringing in the greatest number of rat tails. Grand prize winners are no included in this list. Following are prize winners from outside the city limits: 1st grade, room 1 - Dwaine Caylor, air gun 1st grade, room 2 - Jones Alexander, football 2nd grade - Pete Nicely billfold 3rd grade - earl Phillips, automobile tube 4th grade - Woodis Hopper, a hammer 5th grade - Cleophus Haliburton, saw 6th grade - Billie White, watch Following are prize winners living in the city 1st grace, room 2 - Jack Cantrell, 50 cents 2nd grade - Jack Meador, 50c 3rd grade - Weldon Jones, 50c 4th grade - Vonda Lee England, 50c ESSAY CONTEST WINNERS The following winners have been announced in the essay contest on the subject, "The Rat," in the high school department: 1st, Mary Pumphrey, hat box 2nd, Dorothy Hamilton, $3 picture Winners in this contest for the grammar school have not been determined. The essay contest was limited to girls only. OTHER PRIZED There are several prizes yet to be awarded, and these will be distributed among students killing the larger number of rats, but not winning any of the prizes above listed. Whitewright Sun January 5, 1928 pg. 1 INDIVIDUAL WINNERS IN GRAYSON ANTI-RAT DRIVE ANNOUNCED Sherman - Eugene Lavender, Sherman, Route 2 Forrest Robinson, Sherman, Route 5 and, Joe Richard, Sherman, Route 5, are 1st, 2nd and 3rd individual prize winners in the rat extermination campaign both in the county-wide and the Sherman trade territory competition, according to announcement made Monday. The number killed was 3,264, 3,251 and 3,091 respectively, for the three boys. In the county-wide competition among the rural schools, the Sunflower school, with 8,740 rats reported killed, won 1st place. The Pecan and Center schools were awarded 2nd and 3rd prizes with 7,469 and 7,276, respectively. IN the competition for the schools in Sherman, the Washington school led with 1,300 and the Jefferson school was second with 1,070. OTHER WINNERS Individual competition Jack Cox, Whitesboro, 4th, 2,707 Levi Davis, Tioga, 5th, 1,875 Lathen King, Sherman and Harry Sims were tied for 6th place.  Whitewright School History Susan Hawkins © 2024 If you find any of Grayson County TXGenWeb links inoperable, please send me a message. |