HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS A Journal of Liberty County, Texas — Our History and Our History in the Making

VOL. 1, NO. 10 “TRUTH WITHOUT BIAS. SARCASM WITHOUT MERCY.” May 9, 2021

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One year $25 | One month $2.50 Go to https://hoots.news

THE HOOTS & HOWLSAdventures of Salon Girl

Advices Quotable Quotes

Page 11

THE SASSEDITORIAL:

Hightower, Smith and the process Page 4

THE WEEK AHEADDayton City Council Liberty City Council

Economic Development Week Page 3

THE HISTORYReminiscences of Texas

The Texan Theater Page 6

Election results a bit late County jail gets new screws

Page 2

THE WEEK’S NEWS

THE LIFEKnepper signs with Howard Payne

A soldier comes home Page 10

THE TRUE FANA true supporter of local journalism

Page 12

HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE WEEK’S NEWSPAGE 2

With apologies, we* remembered to vote May 1, then forgot all about the election and neglected to in-clude whatever results might have been available before going to press† last week with the May 2 issue.

ELECTION RESULTS City of Ames

Cornelius Gilmore won the mayoral race in Ames with 81 votes, defeating Emmett Albro, who had 37 votes.

All running unopposed, the elected Ames council members are Michael Trahan, Carlton Rollins, Eddie G. White and Audrey Harri-son.

City of Dayton Caroline Wadzeck running un-

opposed was reelected mayor with 276 votes.

Andy Conner won the position 4 seat on the council with 227 votes against D.G. “Bubba” Graves, who had 142 votes.

Alvin Burress held onto his posi-tion 5 council seat with 214 votes, while challenger Janette Goulder-Frick received 110 votes, Jose S. Hernandez 8, and Valorie Jackson Barton 43.

City of Hardin Mayor Harry Johnson won un-

opposed with 74 votes. Chris Goodwin received 74 votes

for position 1 to defeat Julie Terry with 20 votes.

Harvey Finley won the position 5 race with 65 votes to 28 votes for

Jonathon Fajkus. Brett Clark ran unopposed for

position 2 and received 68 votes. City of Plum Grove

Debra Bell received 60 votes to Jennifer Coker’s 40 in the race for position 1 on Plum Grove’s council.

Jacob Clay won the position 3 seat with 64 votes to 36 for Myra Acosta.

Running unopposed for seats on the Plum Grove city council were Calvin Padgett, who garnered 74 votes and Diana Chunn, who re-ceived 66.

Hardin ISD For place 2 on the Hardin school

board Angie Amyx won over Patty Williamson, 300 to 177; and Cody Parrish running unopposed received 347 votes for place 1.

Liberty ISD Barbara “Barbie” Kelly won the

position 4 seat on Liberty ISD’s board of trustees, garnering 267 votes to the 71 cast for Craig P. Gi-rard.

Reelected without opposition were trustees Bruce Bell, Lance Lawrence and Rachel Odell.

EMS District No. 1 Proposition A passed with 46

votes For and 26 votes Against.

*That “we” above would be a royal we if there were anyone else working here. As there is not, it is just a pretentious habit of your editor’s.

†The “press” referenced above is the magic electronic press in the clouds.

Small Ad prices offered to suit your taste. Better to sell cheap than to waste this space.

Falling down on the job

By Capt. Ken DeFoor LCSO Public Information Officer !

Liberty County Sheriff Bobby Rader congratulated and spoke to the fifth graduating class of correc-tional officers that Training Divi-sion Supervisor, Cpl. Ann Marie Mitchell has put through an in-formation crammed class over a required three-week training acad-emy course. These new correctional officers will assume their positions within the confines of the Liberty County Jail shortly with two of the graduates being veteran correction-al officers with state correctional facilities.

A few of the many subjects taught in the Academy class are CPR and First Aid, Mental Health Response, Ethics in Law Enforce-ment and Stress Management for Correctional Officers, to name only a few. All correctional officers have the opportunity to advance from a Basic C.O. Certification up to a Master Jail Certification through further training and testing by way of the Texas Commission On Law

Enforcement (TCOLE). Cpl. Mitchell is asking anyone

who may want an interesting and fulfilling career field to contact her at the Sheriff’s Office as she will start a new class for correctional officers on May 24. Applicants will have to be at least 18 years old and pass a criminal history background check as well as a psychological and physical examination.

An application can be taken from the Liberty County Sheriff’s website or an applicant can contact Cpl. Mitchell at her office phone of 936-336-4515.

This is an exciting career field with good county benefits, but perhaps Cpl. Mitchell sums it up best when she says, “The Liberty County Sheriff’s Office is looking for those who are seeking a chal-lenging and rewarding career op-portunity. We are looking for those with strong ethical morals to be part of our team.”

If this appeals to you and you are looking for such a challenge, you are encouraged to apply while there are still positions open.

New Correctional Officers for County Jail

LCSO photo

! HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE WEEK AHEAD PAGE 3

MONDAY, MAY 10

TUESDAY, MAY 11

FRIDAY, MAY 14LifeShare Blood Drive at Liberty County Sheriff’s Office Training Room from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Beaumont Av-enue. Call Ann Marie Mitchell at 936-402-9265.

Dayton City Council will hold a special called meeting at 5 p.m. to canvass the votes from the May 1 election and swear in the newly elected members.

SUNDAY, MAY 9Hoots & Howling Madness arrives at 5 a.m.

Whoopee!

SEE ANYTHING YOU LIKE IN THIS ISSUE? THEN PLEASE

TELL SOMEBODY. H&HM NEEDS READERS.

Armed Forces Day

Liberty City Council meets at 6 p.m. to consider, among other matters, resolutions for an economic development agreement with Liberty Capstone Properties, LLC; award-ing a bid for lawn maintenance services to Bushmasters; the purchase of a new sound and video system for the council chambers; authorizing the city manager to apply to TxDOT’s call for projects related to the Main Street Brick Sidewalk Project.

SATURDAY, MAY 15

May is… National Bike Month Older Americans Month World Trade Month Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

This week is… National Police Week

Dayton Community Development Corporation to celebrate Economic Development Week

DAYTON, Tex.  — May 9-15 is National Economic Devel-opment Week, which celebrates the contributions of

positive economic development and explains the role of the eco-nomic development profession in our local community, including stewardship of: • Policies that meet broad economic objectives including increased

employment, creation of higher-paying jobs, diversification of the economy, and sustainable growth. 

• Policies and programs to provide services such as building in-frastructure, enhancing the quality of life through community development projects, and recruiting enhanced medical services for residents.

• Policies and programs explicitly directed at improving the busi-ness climate through business attraction, finance, marketing, neighborhood and community development, business retention and expansion, real estate development, and others. 

“Now in its sixth year, National Economic Development Week was created by the International Economic Development Council, the largest professional membership organization for economic developers, in 2016 to recognize the unique role that economic development has in creating vibrant communities with strong economies. Over the span of five years, more than 450 campaigns have been created throughout the United States and Canada, creating millions of impressions, hundreds of news stories, blog entries, videos, events, and other activities. Cities, counties, and states recognized the week in past years through official proclamations, local community events, and informational campaigns online and through social media. The United States Economic Devel-opment Administration (EDA) has also issued a statement commemo-rating Economic Development Week in past years.”

This will be the first year Dayton will be celebrating Economic Development Week, with the effort spearheaded by the Dayton Community Development Corporation. DCDC has a variety of activi-ties planned for Economic Development Week including meeting with local business leaders, highlighting past economic development projects, encouraging residents to shop locally, hosting a Business After Hours Mixer with the Dayton Chamber of Commerce, and more. 

The Dayton City Council passed a Resolution on April 19, declar-ing May 9-15, Economic Development Week in the City of Dayton. 

We look forward to interacting with you all, and can not wait to celebrate Economic Development Week May 9-15.

PRESS RELEASE

Happy Mothers Day

County Commissioners Court meets at 9 a.m. to con-sider, among other things, awarding the contract to ren-ovate part of the courthouse for use as the County Court at Law No. 2 to Myron McDowell Construction.

Ten down, ___ to go. It depends on readers.

Texan Theater in Cleveland will be honored with a his-torical marker from the Liberty County Historical Com-mission at 10 a.m.

!!!

HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS VOL. 1, NO. 10 SUNDAY, MAY 9, 2021 Edited and published by Casey Stinnett

in Liberty, Texas. All content in this publication, unless otherwise noted, has been produced by the publisher and no one else is to blame.

© Casey Stinnett, 2021 Submissions:

Readers wanting to contribute their own original articles on local events or local history, opinion pieces, or their own original short fiction, are welcome to do so and may send them to editor@hoot-s.news.

Articles and stories should be no more than 1,000 words long. Opinions should run around 500 words.

Submissions of photographs depict-ing local events are also welcome.

Nothing libelous, insulting or crude should be submitted. Opinions should address public issues and not private complaints.

Unless otherwise agreed prior to pub-lication, contributors grant only a license to publish and republish their work while retaining copyright to themselves.

The publisher offers no guarantee of publication and no payment, unless such is agreed upon prior to the work being submitted. However, by submitting arti-cles, stories or photographs contributors implicitly assert and warrant that such is their own original work. Letters to the editor: Readers may also contribute opinions in the form of letters to the editor of no more than 300 words — all other sub-mission standards addressed above apply to letters.

HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE SASSPAGE 4

By Casey Stinnett Editor

Among the many, many things that raced through my mind Jan. 6 while watching on television the events at Washington, D.C. was a memory of an article I read last year about Dallas White’s arrest in 1934 for a murder of a man in Devers.

It came to mind because of what happened after his arrest, or what was prevented from happen-ing because of two local elected officials who I believe put aside their own feelings and judgments, and perhaps prejudices, too, and upheld the law at risk to their own lives. The law they upheld in this instance was not the substantive law of right and wrong, but the more important law in a country like ours, the procedural law. That is the law we rely upon to make sure the rest of the law is applied fairly.

Dallas White — alias Dallas Smith, alias Jack Johnson — was a black man accused of the murder of J.J. Andress and the assault of Mrs. Andress who both had sur-prised White as he burgled their home near Devers.

White stole their car and ran, but he was quickly caught in Beaumont and returned to Liberty County for trial. He was tried quickly, too. He was caught Oct. 10, 1934 and went on trial Oct. 17, 1934.

White confessed to the crimes. There were no other suspects. White tried to commit suicide while in custody and awaiting trial.

There were newspaper accounts of the murder, trial and subsequent

execution across the state, and as was the practice of newspapers at that time, whenever the accused was African American, the fact of his race featured prominently and repeatedly in every report.

Such reporting had its effect. On his first night in the Liberty County jail a mob of around 400 collected at the jail with the intent of lynching White.

Between the mob and White stood Liberty County Sheriff L.V. Hightower and District Attorney Clyde E. Smith.

A wire service report of the event says the mob approached the jailhouse door with a telephone pole, evidently intending to batter in the door, but they were stopped by Hightower and Smith, who “told the mob they would be met with ‘plenty of fight’ if attempts were made to take the negro.”

The report quoted Smith saying later, “After so long a time and much talking, the mob decided to let the law take its course.”

We cannot know what Smith or Hightower were thinking at that moment or what either thought of White, and I do not pretend to any special insight, but what I believe I see in this episode are two men dedicated to upholding the highest standards of the law.

With a confession in hand, both men almost certainly believed White guilty. A week later, Smith pursued and won a death sentence for White. Surely, Smith and High-tower anticipated on the night of Oct. 10 that the outcome of the trial would be death for White. Yet,

both men stood between White and a mob that would lynch him, putting their lives on the line to save the life of a man virtually guaranteed to die for his crimes.

Whatever their true motives, I want to believe they were willing to lay down their lives for the law, for the processes of the law, that we may continue to have a govern-ment of laws and not of men.

It is that we abide by the pro-cesses of the law that matters most. The substantive law can be right or wrong, but if the processes of the law are disregarded, then there is no law.

That was the great offense committed Jan. 6. Disliking the outcome of an election, a mob thought it right to put aside the whole of the law. That can never be right. Even in response to corrup-tion, the procedures established by law must be followed.

When an umpire makes a bad call, coach and players might protest, they might argue, yell, kick dirt and so on. But, when they have said all they can say, whether the umpire changes his call or not, whether he was right or wrong, the players and coaches go back to their dugout and go on with the game.

That’s the way we do it here. The former president and his

supporters are far from being the first to think they were robbed in an election. They are only the first unwilling to put it behind them and move on to the next election. They are the first who tried to end the game now and forever over what they saw as one bad call.

Hightower, Smith and the process

“Cry, man, and howl.” Ezekiel, 21:12

! HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE SASS PAGE 5

Get vaccinated.

At left is a United Press article that ran in the Waxahachie Daily Light in October 1934.

At right is Sheriff L.V. Hightower escorting

Dallas White. !With apologies,

H&HM is unsure who should have credit for this photo, but it was most likely obtained from the Sam Hous-

ton Regional Library. Or else, it was caught roaming wild on the

internet.

! HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE HISTORYPAGE 6

The following is the sixth installment of a ten-part series first published in 1897 by THE PA-TRON AND GLEANER in North Carolina, writ-ten by one Col. D.C. Hardee, under the pseudonym Carlton, describing Liberty County as he remember it from his time here from 1839 to 1843.

In this my 6th article I redeem my promise to renew my Texas Sketches.

Liberty County which was my home during my residence in Texas was on of the oldest and most populous portions of the Republic. About one half of the county was composed of early settlers and their descendants. The other half of the population was composed of those recent emigrants from the United States. While it is true that the old settlers possessed but few edu-cational advantages, yet as a rule they had native talent.

The recent settlers from the United States in the main were educated and enterprising. To say the least they were well informed. The Hardins, four brothers from Tennessee with their large families, were intelligent and influential citizens. Watson Hardin was sheriff of the county, and Frank Hardin was county surveyor. The Warrens from Maryland were not only intelligent but refined. Doctor Townsend from Mississippi with his large family who resided in the town of Liberty were noted for their refinement as well as for their kindness and hospitality. William H. Palmer, a lawyer living and practicing law in Liberty, was from one of the eastern counties in North Carolina, was not only known as a good lawyer but as an accomplished scholar. I might mention dozens of others remarkable for their intelligence and enterprise.

Anahuac, a small village on the Galveston bay, was originally in the limits of old Liberty county. It is now in the new county of Cham-bers. It was at this village it is said that the first declaration of Texas independence from the Mexican government was made. The tyrany of

the Mexican Alcaldes which were the chief offi-cials of the country and greatly embittered the inhabitants against the government. Texas was a vast region of country, occupied principally by herds of wild cattle and herds of wild mustangs, and wild Indian. The Comanches, the wildest and most savage of all the southwestern tribes, roamed over most of this vast territory.

Mexico was anxious to have this country set-tled in order that she might derive some revenue from the settlers by taxation. Furthermore, in order to drive back these hostile tribes of sav-ages that were constantly robbing and pillaging the settled portions of Mexico on the western frontier of Texas, she offered through her agents grants of land and every other inducement to settlers from the United States to occupy this country. As soon as permanent settlements were made the Mexican government appointed its own officials to rule the people and collect the taxes.

These officials under one pretense or another were constantly extorting money from the set-tlers. After many years of forbearance the pa-tience of the people became exhausted and their Anglo-Saxon blood made itself manifest in the shape of a rebellion against this tyrany and op-pression. A citizen was charged with cow steal-ing and brought before an Alcalde for trial. As the testimony partially sustained the charge the accused was found guilty by the Alcalde and ordered to be hung the same evening which was accordingly done. Hanging was the penalty un-der the law at that early day for the high crime of cow stealing. The law was also very severe in cases of murder at that time. The penalty was the confiscation of all of the cattle and horses and other personal effects of the murderer be-sides long confinement in prison.

Every settler began to feel that he had been deceived by the Mexican government. After spending all of the prime of their lives improv-ing the lands which had been given them they were unwilling to abandon them and leave them

and in poverty return again to the states. They began to feel like defending their homes and their firesides. In these circumstances the little settlement in and around Anahuac declared its independence. This feeling was already spread-ing over Texas everywhere and resulted in a final independence of Texas which was achieved at the battle of San Jacinto.

Although not within the scope of these sketches I feel quite sure my readers will pardon me for the digression which I am now about to make. My sympathy for bleeding Cuba inspires me with a wish to recall some of the cruelties and outrages of the government that is now try-ing to crush the liberties of this young republic. It is heart-sickening to a very large majority of American citizens to see blood thirsty Spain sending her inhuman armies three thousand miles across the sea to crush out the hearts’s blood of a feeble nation struggling for liberty.

When we remember that Cuba is a part of America, so to speak, and within a few hour’s sail of our own shores, it is not surprising that every true hearted American should sympathize with her in her struggle for liberty. What, how-ever, shocks and astonishes the liberty loving American citizens is to see the executive posi-tion of our government taking part with imperi-al Spain in this unequal contest. The President with his Cabinet and one hundred and fifty thousand office holders receiving their salaries and commissioners in British gold or its equiva-lent say that it is not their fight. They give to Cuba their sympathy and to Spain their aid and assistance and then call it neutrality. If a true hearted American attempts to assist the Cubans by sending them arms and ammunition he is captured by the American government authori-ties, tried, condemned as a felon and cast into a prison. If imperial Spain, however, who for cen-turies has desolated and ruined as far as she could so many young republics in the two Americas procures arms and ammunition in our country to crush out the Cubans with, why that

REMINISCENCES OF TEXAS

HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE HISTORY PAGE 7

is all right. They call this neutrali-ty. To the plain minded citizen it looks very much like taking part with the strong to oppress the weak. Webster’s great dictionary defines neutrality to mean, “A person or nation that take no part in a contest between others.”

The executive department of the United States government defines neutrality to mean to aid and assist Spain in crushing Cuba. Neutrality indeed! If the part our government is taking in this struggle between Spain and Cuba is neutrality, then burn up Web-ster and every other dictionary and make one conformable to of-ficial interpretation at Washing-ton City. If the United States will take its heavy hand off of Cuba and allow her like she does Spain the right to come to our shores for help and supplies, we would soon have at our door a young sister republic. It is said that his-tory often repeats itself, and that revolutions never go backwards. I have said thus much about Spain and Cuba in order to draw a comparison between her on-slaught on Cuba and her tyrany and despotism over Mexico and Texas.

For eight years Spain waged a merciless war upon Mexico be-cause the Mexican people were unwilling to submit to her unrea-sonable taxation. She was success-ful in the contest but not until she had murdered thousands of Mexi-can citizens and consumed and destroyed all of her wealth and resources. As soon as Mexico re-covered from the ruin and depres-sion which had been inflicted upon her by her red-handed op-pressor another revolution oc-

curred. This lasted only two or three years and Mexican indepen-dence was established in 1824.

The Cuban revolution of 1868 lasted ten years and like the eight years war with Mexico resulted in favor of Spain, but not until Cuba was a land of desolation and ruin. And repeating the history of Mexico, Cuba is again fighting for her liberty. This will be Cuba’s last fight. The heroism of her soldiers with her blood-stained battle fields will soon tell the world in reality what the poet has told in romance, that,

“The cause of freedom once begun, Bequeathed from bleeding sire to son, Though baffled oft is ever won.”

In my next communication, beginning where I now leave off, I will furnish some facts which may interest those feeling an interest in the achievement of Texan in-dependence.

CARLTON.

The Liberty County His-torical Commission will

honor the iconic Texan Theater in Cleveland with a county historical marker on Saturday, May 15, 10 a.m. The public is invited and en-couraged to attend the dedication for this Cleveland landmark.

Records indicate Cleveland had a movie theater as a part of the busi-ness community as early as 1933. The Cleveland Theater was opened on Friday the 13th of January 1933 by the Long Theaters, a circuit owned and operated by John G. Long of Bay City along with various partners. The theater was located on Houston Street about one block west and over the railroad tracks from the present movie theater loca-tion. In February 1939, a ten-year renewal lease on the theater was ne-gotiated between the owner, Mrs. Clara B. Anderson, and the Long Amusement Company. J.G. Long and Glen McClain, theater officials completed the agreement. Long Amusement Company also pur-chased the sound and projection equipment, seats, and other items needed to build a modern movie theater. Shortly thereafter, Long and McClain purchased property facing Houston Street for a 40 X 92-foot theater to seat 500 people. The $35,000 Texas Theater opened on Friday the 13th, October 1939. Cleveland elected not to participate in the President’s Ball in 1940 but instead took part on January 30,

President Roosevelt’ birthday, with benefit performances at the movie theater. The funds raised from tick-et sales from several movie screen-ings that day were divided, one-half going to the National Foundation sponsoring the fight against infantile paralysis and the other half to a trust of the State Committee for delivery to permanent chapters of the Na-tional Foundation. Liberty was among the counties scheduled for such a chapter for treatment of local children suffering from the disease. On April 16, 1940, famous country singer, Tex Ritter appeared on stage at the Texan. The Texan celebrated its first anniversary Oct. 12-24, 1940. Three sets of dishes and a four-piece bedroom suite valued at $79.50 was given away to lucky ticket holders attending the theater. On Saturday, Jan. 20, 1962, the Texan Theater was gutted in an early morning fire which also damaged The Cleveland Advocate newspaper and The Cleveland Grocery, both located in the same block as the the-ater. The Texan owner estimated replacement costs at $100,000. The Cleveland Fire Department was as-sisted in the fight to save the busi-nesses by firemen and/or equipment

Continued on page 8

Texan Theater to be honored by LCHC

PRESS RELEASE

HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE JUMPPAGE 8

Cont. from page 7

from Conroe, Liberty, Dayton and Livingston. The theater then burned another three times in the next year and half, the last two times being a day and half apart in the late spring of 1963.

Dec. 13, 1967, Owen Properties, Inc. reported the construction of a new walk-in theater would begin the first of the year. The new building would be all fire-proof construction. The new the-ater was completed in 1969.

Cliff and Peggy Dunn purchased the property in 1994 and held a Grand “Reopening” in April of that year, stating that they had established a family theater for the area and wanted people to feel it is “their family theater.” There were new seats, new screen, and new surround sound in The Texan Theater. In January 1999, a letter to the editor in The Cleveland Advocate thanked Cliff Dunn for opening the theater and his heart to the

citizens of Cleveland between January 19 and 23 with free admission to see “The Prince of Egypt.” Mr. Dunn also served free popcorn to each family. In 2004, the theater was restored to its original state and a lighted tower like the one from the 1930s replaced The Texan Theater sign. That same year, the Greater Cleveland Chamber of Com-merce honored Cliff Dunn by naming The Texan, “Business of the Year” and a “cornerstone” of the downtown business community. Cliff gave back to the community in numerous ways such as opening the theater for a special movie showing for the Senior Circle Friends as well as programs offered to the school district. Free passes were offered to new teachers in the school district. These free passes were used in the classroom as special awards and incentives for work well done by students.

In 2012, the theater faced new difficulties. Mr. Dunn learned that because of changes in technol-

ogy, his old film reel projection system would soon become obsolete. The cost to update would be $86,000, an impossible amount for the 80-year-old owner. A “Save the Texan” campaign was started by local citizens which included dinners and auctions. Community support quickly fol-lowed and $53,000 was raised for the new projec-tion system. Cliff and Peggy Dunn paid the re-mainder, and the system was upgraded.

The Texan Theater, after many decades stands as a testament to a tight-knit community and love of the simpler things in life which make small, rural towns such a joy in which to raise families. The Texan Theater offers first-run movies, refreshments, all at modest prices and is a fine example of com-munity efforts to save and preserve wonderful, last-ing traditions in small town America.

For more information about this marker dedi-cation, please email County Chair, Linda Jamison at lchc318@gmail.com.

At approximately 10 am on Monday, May 3, Liberty County Sheriff ’s Deputy Luis Jennings responded to a call just south of the City of Liberty on Private Road 1133 regarding an Aerial Drone aircraft found on the ground near the bathroom win-dow of a resident.

Upon closer examination of the drone, it appeared the aircraft crash landed near the home due to overextending its flight range or a battery failure of the craft.

The property owner who re-ported the abandoned drone near his home was concerned the craft may have been used for criminal purposes to spy on surrounding land owners in order to “case” out any valuable vehicles or equip-ment and/or for the act of theft or burglary. To the homeowner’s

knowledge, nobody that lives near him owns or flies such a drone aircraft.

Deputy Jennings described the drone as a black and white drone with four rotors. The brand name is by Protocol and the model is a Kap-tur. The word “Kaptur” is printed on all four rotors. The drone has been placed in evidence at the Sher-iff ’s Office while it is being exam-ined further to determine a serial number and if a camera is onboard and if so, does it contain aerial photographs of the surrounding area homes and property.

The Sheriff ’s Office is asking anyone who may have knowledge of this drone, or if anyone was flying the craft for sport rather than crimi-nal intent, to contact the Sheriff ’s Office at 936-336-4500 so proper ownership can be established.

Drone aircraft found near home

Mark Jerrob Campbell was a very special person. The only thing bigger than his smile was his heart. He cared for others, and was a friend to all. He is missed deeply by so many. Join us in celebrating Mark’s legacy of helping and supporting others in a way that makes the world a better place.Proceeds will go to an education scholarship created in Mark's name, awarded to Dayton High School students each year. When: Saturday, June 6 Time: 11 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. Where: St. Anne’s Catholic Church Hall in EastgateAdmission: Free• Crawfish will be available for purchase • BYOB • Wide open spaces and play area for kids • Silent auction • Live Entertainment (Star Twirlers & Cheerleaders, Josh Brown and more) Donations accepted. Email dhs2004scholarship@gmail.com for info

Paypal.me/2004scholarship Cash, check and PayPal are all accepted forms of payment and donations.We look forward to celebrating with all who loved and cherished Mark.

Mark Campbell Scholarship Fundraiser Crawfish Boil

By Capt. Ken DeFoor LCSO Public Information Officer

HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE CRASHES PAGE 9

On May 3, at 3 p.m., a plane crashed at the Cleveland Municipal Airport at 17699 FM 787 East. Miraculously there were no in-

juries when the 1965 Beechcraft 55 Baron did a belly landing. Darrell Smith from Duncan, Oklahoma, who was bringing the plane in for repairs when it experienced total electrical failure, was piloting the plane.

Johnny Whitson from Lone Star Aircraft Services responded along with other local tenants at the facility to aid the pilot. Saddle Creek Towing re-sponded to aid in lifting the aircraft so they could crank the landing gear back down. The runway was cleared within three hours and was back open for traffic at 7:15 p.m.

Plane crashes at Cleveland airport, no injuries

AUSTIN  – Despite less traffic on the road in

2020 and a 2% reduction in mo-torcycle crashes, safety officials are alarmed by a 17% increase in Texas motorcycle fatalities compared to 2019. On average, a motorcyclist is killed in a crash on Texas roads every day—last year 482 died. Mo-torcyclists account for 12% of all traffic fatalities statewide.

May is National Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, and the Texas Department of Transporta-tion’s annual “Share the Road: Look Twice for Motorcycles” cam-paign gets underway to call atten-tion to the safety precautions mo-torists can take to protect motorcy-clists and themselves. In 2020, in the 7,481 motorcycle crashes in Texas, 1,856 motorcyclists were seriously injured and 482 were killed.

“May through October is an especially dangerous period for motorcyclists in Texas,” said Tx-DOT Executive Director James Bass. “Of all the motorcyclist deaths in Texas during 2020, more than 61% happened in that peri-od. It’s so important to remember that these motorcyclists don’t have the same protections that drivers in vehicles have, and that’s why we’re urging all motorists to stay watch-ful and alert when traveling along-side motorcycles so everyone can reach their destination safely.”

The Texas Transportation Insti-tute (TTI) reports that fatal crashes between motorcyclists and drivers often occur when drivers misjudge the motorcycle’s distance and speed

and make left turns in front of an oncoming motorcyclist. Last year, almost one-third of Texas motorcycle fatalities occurred in an intersection or were intersection-related. TTI also points to driver inattention as a con-tributing factor to motorcycle crash-es.

TxDOT has these safety tips for drivers to protect motorcyclists and prevent crashes:

• Take extra care when making a left turn.  It’s safest to let the motorcycle pass to avoid turn-ing in front of the rider.

• Pay special attention at inter-sections.  Nearly one in three motorcycle fatalities happens at a roadway intersection.

• Give driving your full atten-tion.  Even a momentary dis-traction, such as answering a phone call or changing the ra-dio station, can have deadly consequences.

• Look twice when changing lanes.  Check mirrors, check blind spots, and always use turn signals.

• Give motorcyclists room when passing them. Move over to the passing lane and don’t crowd the motorcyclist’s full lane.

• Stay back.  If you’re behind a motorcycle, always maintain a safe following distance. When a motorcyclist downshifts instead of applying the brake to slow down, it can catch drivers off guard since there are no brake lights to signal reduced speed.

• Slow down. Obey posted speed limits and drive to conditions.

Photos courtesy of Darline Dean

PRESS RELEASE

Texas motorcyclist deaths spike in 2020

PRESS RELEASE

HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE LIFEPAGE 10

A signing ceremony was held Monday afternoon outside of Liberty High School for Abbie Knepper, who will play volleyball next fall for Howard Payne University.

Knepper signs with Howard Payne

A soldier comes homeArea first responders escorted home Monday the re-mains of Army Medic 24-year-old Jerrald Wayne Offer, who passed away unexpectedly April 24 at his home in San Antonio. The child of Karen Sue Kearly and Jeffery Lynn Offer, he was a Liberty High School graduate, Class of 2015.

HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE HOOTS & HOWLS PAGE 11

By Dana Martin I pride myself in my willingness

to go the extra mile for my clients.  I am always ready for their appoint-ment when they arrive so they know to never sit in the waiting area.

I serve them drinks and snacks and have the TV on their favorite shows.

Sometimes I regret having spoiled my customers, like when they ex-pect me to babysit their children or give them a neck massage.

For years an elderly woman made appointments with me because she could drop off her middle-aged, brain damaged son for a haircut and go next door to purchase groceries while I took care of him.

Once she drops him off and goes to the market. I shampoo his hair and wrap him in a cape to give him a quick cut. I told him I need-ed to take a restroom break and would be right back.

When I returned my coworker said he left. I ran out to the parking lot and saw him running down the street still wearing my haircut cape.

I was young so I kicked off my heels and ran after him. When I fi-nally caught him two blocks away, he told me he was looking for his mom.

I convinced him that by that time his mother would be at the salon to pick him up. So we walked back, getting to the salon just as his mother arrived, only for her to tell me to just forget about the haircut.

The Adventures !of Salon Girl !

Old Man River “Texas is the ‘Old Man River’ of states. No matter who runs it or what happens politically, it just keeps rolling along.”

—Will Rogers !Simply tell the truth

“If you simply tell the truth, you’ll never get mixed up. Then you don’t have to remember what you’ve said.”

—Sam Rayburn !Do something

“I never had the ambition to be something. I had the ambition to do something.”

—Walter Cronkite

Quotable Quotes

“Salon Girl” Dana Martin is a partner in Shear Power Salon at 4387 Calder in Beaumont.

Instead of insurance, all health-care services, and especially surg-eries, should be performed on per-sonal, unsecured credit. That way, the doctor gets paid only if the pa-tient lives. !!

Everyone can learn something from those around him, except your boss. !!

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. But after a third unsuc-cessful try, you might better stop and think of another way to go about it.

Advices

HOOTS & HOWLING MADNESS THE TRUE FANPAGE 12

H&HM’s thanks go out to one of its most enthusiastic supportersWhile it is possible Richard Pickett’s enthusiasm might be more for his granddaugh-

ter Zanna, who drew the Hoots & Howling Madness logo on his scalp, than it is for the publication itself, here in the newsroom at the world headquarters of H&HM it has been debated at length and is decided that the image to the left is best interpreted as both of their endorsements of independent local journalism as practiced by the intrepid writers of this humble weekly journal.

H&HM attempted to reward Zanna with a snazzy logo t-shirt of her own for her as-sistance with H&HM’s guerrilla marketing efforts, but leaving it in a sack on the Picketts’ front door with two other t-shirts, it was stolen within a few hours.

No one saw the perpetrator, but there are only four people in Liberty who currently have lawfully possession of these t-shirts — your editor, his brother, Mr. Pickett, and Abbie Knepper, the high school volleyball player featured on page 10 (Knepper, as far as we know, might not be caught dead in it. We just gave her the shirt without asking whether she wanted it) — therefore, anyone else seen in Liberty this past week and probably most of this week wearing a Hoots & Howling Madness t-shirt is likely to be the culprit. The suspect might be further identified by his having the appearance of someone so very stupid that he would steal cheap, spray-painted t-shirts.

Anyone who would like a Hoots & Howling Madness t-shirt before they become all the rage next year in Milan can obtain one by subscribing for one year to Hoots & Howling Madness. To subscribe, go to hoots.news. To get the t-shirt after subscribing, email the size you want and your mailing address to editor@hoots.news. Note that production is painfully slow, but every shirt is unique and one will be sent to you eventually.

For a logo and profile picture I’ve stolen and adapted William Wallace Denslow’s illustration of Toto from the original edition of The Wizard of Oz.

It’s no longer under copyright, so I didn’t really steal it.

L. Frank Baum used Toto in the Oz books as the one character who would find and reveal the truth, but until Baum’s eleventh Oz book, Tik-Tok of Oz, Toto never spoke. All of the other an-imals in Oz could speak, but Toto did not. Then in Tik-Tok, Toto finally spoke only to explain that he could speak but chooses not to.

Toto is also a true cynic, like Diogenes. The word cynic means dog. Diogenes was called a cynic by other Athenians be-cause they thought he lived like a dog. From his own point of view, Diogenes wanted to strip away from his life everything that didn’t matter or that was merely social convention, until all he would be left with was the truth.

Baum never gave Toto’s breed, but Denslow drew him as a Cairn Terrier, with eyeglasses. I’ve tinted his lenses blue for my logo, so he can be all hip and everything.

A Cynical Logo Chosen