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GOLDEN VALLEY NEWS
, ank Was Believed
}[Reincarnation of
• [ Faustin I
Sergeant Who Was King
,000 Natives on Voodoo Isle
~cOngh courtesy of THE LEATH-
K, the magazine of the U. S.
S.)
~['~NE dark, gloomy night in
the year 1848, on the tiny
l°Pical voodoo isle of La
l~ve, black King Faustin
8tlddenly and mysteriously
~ppeared. Years crept by
ld King Faustin I was never
~rd from again, but a leg-
,u Was born that some day a
rnendant of his name would
to rule this West Indies
: d.
~.~e three score and ten years
~,, in 1920, a creaky sailboat
[~'.~cl across the choppy waters of
.h~ehannel from Port au Prince and
"~rral~d up on the sands of La Gon-
.~rl~ Bounding out was a strang
ze
,,~Em tion of occupants; chattering
~ck natives, bawling cattle--and
,l,'~.e~rY Sergeant Wirkus of the
'l~d~. States marines--whose first
"i~?a s Faustin. f
'~rh2_s was forged a link in one o
t~.Strangest stories that ever came
~of this storied, superstition-
~[h"~ island. For Faustin E. Wir-
"~L a blue-eyed, square-chinned
[~.:e from the state of P:funsyl-
|]k~~, who had never heard o King
|~tin I or about his mysterious
~l~earance from La Gonave, and
[~ ~ertainly was no descendant of
[~bony emperor, eventually was
[~ed King F aus:in If and
il&.~ virtually singLhanded over
|~. t2,000 natives for nearly five
|'~'-between 1921 and 1925.
|~ ~'S ASked About "Qu~n."
-K~:l~|~ibecame famous as the "White
La Gunny6,'* and as he
more commonplace du-
the marine corps today, he
|eta numerous inquiries about
~rsin Haiti; about the broad
~an~ng native woman, Queen
~nenne, who had chosen him
the island.
Ti Memenne, of course, was
a queen, nor was Wirkus
a king, because La Gonave
a province of Haiti and
administration of the Hal-
and its president. But
little cotmtry had been
of a bloody uprising a
Years before, starting in 1915.
rates had been sent in to settle
;t a picked number had re.
to train and run the native
ely Sergeant Wirkus was one
men, and by congressional
Stun, was on detached duty
k me Gendarmerie and held the
~f lieutenant in the force. As-
~! to La Gonave, he was official-
[~tlbdistrict commander.
~ay Wirkus is a warrant officer,
~l~rge of the marine aviation de-
Mb~T~ent at the navy's pre-flight
~at Hill, C. But to
Chapel
N.
~ck to those years of yester-
~ afte
~ r enlisting, he landed in
Rh the first outfits of ma-
~!hhat went down to settle the
~ in that country..His was the
~AWenty.second company, led by
~ Alexander S. Williams, and
~ tRaliou commander was a man
~¢lestined for world fame, Gen.
ICy Butler
d ~ Years'of Bushflghflng.
i~fl oh for five years, the ms,
C yere busy bushfighting the
~'ous 'cacos, k~fe.wielding
Whose tactics were bloody if
not successful. Wirkus engaged in
many scraps~he killed seven cacos
in one bitter engagement--and grad-
ually gained recognition as an effi-
cient and straight-shooting non-com.
Once in Port au Prince he took a
handful of native gendarmerie and
broke up a secret voodoo ceremony
and captured the ringleaders. This
he accomplished with not a man in-
jured. Voodoo meetings were often
hotbeds Of trouble.
During these years Wirkus kept
hearing tales about the island of
La Gonave, 40 miles north of Port
au Prince and about 300 square miles
in area. Voodooism was rampant
on the island, and fearsome were
some of the tales. A white man, so
it was whispered, was not safe on
La Gonave. No one wanted that out-
post duty. Ghosts and spooks, they
said, haunted the place.
But Wirkus made one visit to the
island and decided he wanted it as
a sub-district command. He scoffed
at voodoo scare tales--and still does
--and figured it would be a good
place as a one-man job. Hunting
and fishing were good, the climate
was no barrier, and Wirkus was
ambitious to make a name for him-
self as the key man in rurming the
subdistrict. It was his responsibility
to regulate travel and traffic, pre-
vent smuggling, exercise control
over the prison, enforce harbor and
docking regulations, sanitation re-
quirements; and see that lands were
properly a11otted and taxes paid.
Natives Suspicious.
When Wirkus arrived on brooding
La Gonave, he found the natives
suspicious of all white men, which
was hardly surprising. For years
they bad been exploited and cheated.
Their lot was a poor one, to say the
least. Wirkus set out to correct
these conditions, and behind his suc-
cess was a genuine affection for the
native population. As sequester, or
administrator, he not only handled
his official duties, but went out of
his way to help the people, He
showed them better ways to tUl their
lands, for the main industry was ag-
riculture. He repaired their antique
equipment and modernized it where
possible.
Mothers were astonished but
grateful when he came to their aid
in bringing up their offspring. They
didn't know it, but he bought a
book, "The Care and Feeding of
Children," to help him with such
problems. He surveyed the lands
and divided, eliminating bitter dis-
putes, and he reduced taxes for
some and boosted it for others, many
of whom had enjoyed favoritism
from corrupt local representatives
of the Haitian government.
It took a full year for Wirkus to
gain the trust and friendship of the
islanders, and particularly Queen Ti
Memenne. The "queen" was the
leading figure in a group of matri-
archal societies which dominated
affairs of business and society on
La Gonave. During his early months
there, Wirkus had made it a point to
humor the fat and friendly queen,
and she soon began to accept his
advice and help.
Summons From Queen.
One day Wirkus received a sum-
mons at his newly built home on the
coast. Messengers from the queen
delivered it. They were very sol-
emn. The message asked that Wirr
kus hasten inland and up into the
back mountain country to the
q~een's village of whitewashed mud
huts. The queen very urgently want-
ed to see the young American, who
was then not quite 25.
Wondering what it could be about,
Wirkus accepted and started off on
horseback. The trails up the moun-
tain were crowded with natives, all
heading for the queen's village.
When he finally reached the village
he was ushered, still somewhat rays-
Warrant Officer Faustin Wirkus as
he looks today.
teriously, into a dwelling especially
reserved for him. It was late after-
noon and the queen's emissaries
informed him that his presence
would not be wanted before Queen
Ti Memenne until late that night.
Already drums were slowly beating
in the village center. Still wondering
what it was all about, he calmly un-
dressed and went to sleep.
Khaki-Clad Monarch.
Later the marine sergeant,
dressed in his usual khaki and put-
tees, entered the queen's house,
stepping into a tiny room. Squat-
ting in close array on the floor were
members of the inner court. Ti
Memenne, barefoot and dressed in
a gaily colored robe, sat at the front
in regal fashion, her black face
shadowy in the sputtering, vague
rays of candles. Queen Ti Memenne
must have been in her forties or
more, and, while a friendly woman,
she had a way of commanding and
getting respect.
The marine found out why he had
been summoned before the queen.
He was to be crowned "King Faus-
tin II."
"At first I thought it was just a
way they had of telling me they
liked me, but later it developed that
Ti Memenne and her people were
in earnest about the matter. They
had discussed the thing for days,
and had agreed to name me as their
'white king.' "
The ceremony, weird in many
ways, lasted nearly thrbe hours. Out-
side the drums rolled and pounded,
all but drowning out the bleating of
a young goat scared to the tip of
his tail, which was brought into the
royal chamber and offered "up as a
blood sacrifice.
Wlrkus was seated on a small,
short-legged chair, and at the
queen's command, an attendant
came from the next room bearing a
heavy, ornate crown.
°'I now crown you 'King Faustin
II,' " proclaimed Queen Ti Mem-
enne, and she placed the crown~
the same crown, so it was said
that once had adorned the head of
King Faustin I--on Wirkusl
"Two huge blacks then picked me
up and carried me outside. As soon
as I appeared the drums beat out
the king's salute--four ruffles and
three taps. I knew that this was
no empty honor they were paying
me."
'White King of La Gonave.'
Thus was crowned "The White
King of La Gonave," a title that
was to bring Wirkus, the marine
fame in many countries. William B.
Seabrook made him the featured ro-
mantic character of his book, "Mag-
ic Isle," and later Mr. Wirkus him.
self wrote a book which he called
"The White King of'La Gonave."
With the fame, however, also
came envy and jealousy from cer-
tain quarters. Haiti's president a
few years later, Louis Borne, hardly
relished the popularity of La Gun-
ape's subdistrict commander, or the
thought that a "king," official or un-
official, was in charge of one of his
provinces. So eventually Wirkus
was transferred to another West In.
dies station.
Before that happened, though, the
adventure - loving leathernec~
proved himself a good and kindly
administrator. The natives greeted
him with "Bun soir, Rot," .or "Good
evening, King," and he was forever
amused at the intense interest the
natives took in his everyday affairs.
Often they stood around his home,
just to watch him dress.
As "King," of course, he had no
more authority than he had before.
In the eyes of his marine associates
in the Gendarmerie, he was still
merely subdistrict commander. He
received no pay for his kingly title,
and his stay on the island was as
routine as before. To him, it was
just a high compliment.
In 1925 Wirkus was transferred to
another •tation in the West Indies.
It was a sad occasion when "The
White King of La Gonave" bade his
people goodby. The natives lined
the shores and cheered as Queen Ti
Memenne gravely prophesied:
"Some day you will come back
and rule the island of La Gonave."
a Handful of Devildogs, Armed With One Machine Gun,
i lew 125 Japanese"in a Three-Hour Battle on Guadalcanal
i:~gs Were issued that eve- the attack began." attacking," said Sugarm_a.n, "'our
,~: one of our patrols would Japanese troops rushed the barbed gun jammed and we had to wo~K
~g through the woods after wire defenses and attempted to scale pretty fast to clear it. ~nen ~c--
',~ reeonnaLssance in front of them with a bridge made of poles mortars found the range. ~ev:~.
:~ Late in the evening some and cloth. For each man that fell times we had to move our gun pus
~aPProached us. it seemed there were two more to tion. .
~ h lasted three nours ac
!i~ t it was our own pa, take his place. The Japs threw ev- The battle . .,:_-'_,^~
pf . n ]de es~llna~v~
~1,~ c,J~ekSugarman, but erything at the machine gun post- cording to Sugarma • _
~ taking auy chances. We tions, including grenades, dynamite, that the machine gun pu.mped ~:;
~lt fired and 125 dead daps ~¥
k ~m , a shot over their and flame throwers, 4,000 rounds,
"~ao one answered. Then "Five times, when the Japs were in front of their sector,
By' PAUL I M.LON
=_
Released by Western Newspaper Union.
SUBSIDY PROBLEM
IS A TOUGH ONE
WASHINGTON.--The senate prob-
ably next will pass the ban on food
subsidies--and what will Mr. Roose-
velt do then, with the fourth term
vote campaign underway, with his
labor campaign manager, Phil Mur-
ray, pleading for steel wage in-
creases, and the consumers groan-
ins audibly about prices?
The generally published supposi-
tion has been that he will veto
the ban and continue to pay the mid-
dlemen free treasury money to hold
wholesale prices down while slip-
ping an increase to the farmers. The
congressional and farm leaders nat-
urally heard about this, and have
made private plans to squeeze him
around to their way.
His OPA authority expires July 1
shortly before his renomination. If
he vetoes this ban, they intend to
slip another into the OPA bill which
he cannot veto without losing his
whole price regulation program.
Certainly all the newly generated
administration heat hereabouts there-
fore, already is being turned on the
senate to get a.compromise which
will extricate the White House from
its worst political predicament.
Lately, reports have come in from
the Farm Belt indicating the men in
the fields were not so strong against
Roosevelt, but all evidence locally
suggests the contrary. The farm or-
ganization leaders here have been
off the front pages lately, but their
ire has not diminished, nor has their
intention to circumvent FDR. •
FARM PAYMENTS UP
True, nearly all farm prices are
now above official parity. Also, the
administration has been quietly inch.
ing up its subsidy payments. Flour,
most important farm food product,
has been slipped into the subsidy list,
as has grapefruit juice.
Moreover, his Commodity Credit
corporation has been functioning all
along in a quieter subsidy way
with price stabilization loans and
buying.
Cor~spicuously, Agriculture Secre-
tary Wickard has come out with a
new postwar farm program, which
sounds big -- postwar production
greater even than now. But all
these efforts have a moldy under-
side, which the farm congressmen
say will guarantee a heavy ma-
jority against FDR in farm states.
The Wickard program can be ac-
cepted as the Democratic plank in
the platform to be adopted in Chi-
cago, but an analysis will show it
contemplates consolidation of small
farm units into larger operations and
abandonment of acreage on those
crops which can be produced more
cheaply offshore, presumably meats
(Canada, Argentina, Mexico) and
oils from around the world--this to
be done to strengthen friendly rela-
tions with foreign peoples and pro-
mote world peace, a
Also, the politics of the food sub-
sidy program appeals only to the
class of farmers who do not pay
taxes or buy bonds, apparently the
smallest of the small. To them only
is it gravy. The others realize they
are paying part of their own subsi-
dies in taxation.
Obviously, as smart a political
manipulator as Mr. Roosevelt is not
going to let this adverse situation
go into the campaign. What will he
do?
If he gives Phil Murray the steel
wage increase, he will have to give
the farmers some more price in-
creases, and, in either event, he
will alienate the consumers who are
the biggest bloc of voters.
Ordinarily, you would think be
would just let farm prices gradually
rise until election day (the custom-
ary way), but this too will entail
difficulties with labor and consum-
er. Usually, his technique is to give
all claimants a little bit, but this
would be difficult in the present tight
wage-price condition, and probably
would please no one.
A lady recently came to me with
the rumor that "they are not going
to pay off on Series E bonds, but
only on the others." There are 60-
million American citizens now hold-
ing war bonds, nearly half the cen-
sus of men, women and children
Do you think this government is ever
going against the invested wishes of
half its people? All bonds will be
paid off. They will have to be. The
whole future of this country is now
bound with the sound maintenance
of the war debts in bonds. No gov-
ernment in the future will ever per-
the slightest impairment of
those investments unless it wants a
,lution.
Jap barbarities have increased
bond sales, the news stories say.
Any reason for buying bonds is a
good one, but the best one is not emo-
tional hate, but plain common sense,
A bond is the best place for money
today for any citizen. It is the best
place bJ put money for the future
education of your young Children,
and the best place to provide for
your old age. But best of all, you
can there deposit your money for the
automobiles, refrigerators, radios,
house painting, vacuum cleaners.
and what you will need when thJ.~
war is over.
t
Ph/Ih'pa"
BOBBY JONES AND THE WAR
Bobby Jones, famous golf star, is
now a major in the U. S. intelli-
gence service in Europe. There is
no better man to size up the dis-
tance, get the range and advise
whether a bazooka or a mashie is
needed on the next shot.
Bobby is on the job right now
analyzing the enemy's form, finding
out what clubs he has in his bag,
determining whether the Nazis are
lying about the score, and report-
ing whether their "new weapon" has
an iron or a metal shaft.
There are rumors that the Ger-
mans are breaking their clubs, yell.
ing at the caddies and blaming ev-
erything on the greens committees.
Such $ psychology as that is the
prelude to defeat, as any golfer can
testify. Bobby's Job is to make an
official report.
Possible File by Mr. tones.
7893-A (A. Hitler).--All inquiries
and observations regarding this par-
ty indicate he is through as a big-
time competitor. He doesn't even
talk a good game today. Now
changes his stance frequently, wig-
gles the club too much, yells con-
stantly for quiet when addressing
the ball and hits from outside in.
Recently used a putter to get ball
out of a mudhole, on "hunch." Lost
17 holes in an 1S-hole match the
"other day and called it a successful
disengagement according to plan.
Should not be taken seriously in
class competition.
358Z-B (Goering).~Now takes out
five or six clubs before deciding
which one to use. Has shifted from
wood to irons on driving tees in the
argument that he would rather keep
straight than get distance. Keeps
talking about a super club he used
to have. Has shortened backswing
so much it resembles preparation for
a six-foot putt. Very irritable on
the greens. Some idea of his state of
mind can be obtained from the fact
he recently tried wearing medals ou
his golf pants to see if they gave
him more confidence that way. No
luck.
4992.C (Goebbels).- Now putts
with a chipper, approaches with a
driver and tries a spoon in traps.
Constantly complains there is some.
thing wrong with the ball. Took nine
putts on a green the other day and
delivered a long harangue claiming
that in spirit and morale he was
stronger than ever.
Is trying to drive with the left
hand but that's no good either.
3330-H (Hlmmler).--£Still thinks he
can win by hanging his competitors,
shooting the caddies and burning
the scorecards. Is so nervous now
that be won't even come to the first
tee without his personal firing squad.
THOUGHTS ON A JET PLANE
The jet plane intrigues us. It is
a cross between an airplane, a sky-
rocket and a comet, with an instru-
ment board. It is a quantity-produc-
tion meteor.
Science and engineering are mov-
ing too fast. By the time a pilot
gets any new plane back from a
test flight it's old-fashioned. It had
become obsolete in midair.
Thls Jet plane strikes us as some-
thing born of & nightmare, the thrill-
er-dlller funnles and the radio hair-
raisers, It is a hot flame with pas-
senger aceommodatiens.
Man is ceasing to be a man and
Is becoming, a Roman candle, a
piece of fireworks, a skyrocket with
a hat and coat.
A speed of 500 or 600 miles an
hour is promised by jet planes.
That's traveling, as the seagull
chirped as he went through the wind.
shield of a runaway bus going in
the opposite direction.
You can't visualize such speed
unless you have seen a man chase
his hat through a wlnd-tunnel ou
roller skates.
It's faster than sound, A pilot
gets to his destination before he
hears his orders and gets back be-
fore the echo has been verified.
It has no propellers. They would
only get in the way!
"It's all done by gas," explained
Elmer Twitchell, the well-known avi-
ator engineer, pinochle shark and
stamp collector, today. "Yes. sir,
all done by gas and air pressures.
with black magic, and live sparks
thrown in."
"I have Just made a flight In one,"
said Elmer• who looked pretty
scared. "At least, that's what the
doctors told me It was."
"I just stepped in," he explained,
"the skipper touched a button and~
~resto-~I was going so fast that ra.
die messages had to move to the
right to let faster moving vehicles
"Just what's to be gained?" we
asked. "The other fellow is bound
to get a 60~.mile.an-hour plane, too."
Want Colored 'Chutes
Burmese natives have asked the
army to use colored fabrics in
'chute~ that drop food and supplies
to troops on the Burmese frontier,
The natives use the discarded
cloth for clothing, and they are
tired of white.
~ttst 2 drops i
use ProDs in each I
~ostril help you |
breathe freer almost I
instantly, so your |
head cold gets alr. |
Only 25c~2~ttmes as |
much for50e. Caution : •
Use only as directed. |
Penetro Nose Drops
Greatest Object
The greatest object in the uni-
verse, says a certain philosopher,
is a good man struggling with ad-
versity; yet there is still a greater,
which is the good man that comes
to relieve it.--Goldsmith.
Dr. G. S. Illnllnrinn
1140 Bdwy., Fargo, Dial 2-1~
NEW METHODS and
EQUIPMENT
Piles, Prostate, ImpotenceTreated,
Artificial Fever and Steam Baths
for Blood, Rheumatism, Skin,
Nerves and Toxic Disorders.
Misguided
Heck--What were you and your
wife quarreling about?
Peck--Well, she said a certain
girl was beautiful, and I made the
mistake of agreeing with her.
[ SNf.&PPY FA2T$
RUBBER
Normally U. S. motorists need-
ed 30 to 35 million new re-
placement tires a year. In
1942 and 1943 combined,
only about 17 million tires
will have reached vehicle
owners through rationing of-
rices.
Korossal Is "Plasticized polyvlnyl
chloride,~ O 8. F. Goodrich rubbor-
like material that before the war
was used In more than 300 differ.
ent product~ Koroseal has now
gone to war.
Wheel alignment means macb
to tire mileage these days,
with Im many old cars |n ~-
ice. Frequent checking of
camber and toe-in in front
wheels will prove a rubber
and mileaoo savor.
i
Lightning Repeats
Lightning often strikes more
than once in the same place, in
spite of the old saying.
Beware Coughs
from common colds
That Hang On
Creomulston relieves promptly be-
cause it goes right to the seat of the
trouble to help loosen and expel
germ laden phlegm, and aid nature
m soothe and heal raw, tender, in-
flamed bronchial mucous mem-
branes. Tell your druggist to sell you
a bottle of Creomulsion with the un-
derstanding you must like the way It
,quiCkly allays the cough or you are
ave your money back.
CREOMULSION
for Coughs, Chest Colds, B ronchitil
Spoken Languages
Not counting minor dialects
there are said to be 2,769 spoket
languages in the world.
And Your Strength and
Energy Is Below Par
nelt may .be caused hy disorder of kid-
y tunetmn that permits poisono~
WeaoSte to a e~tmulate. For truly ma~y
P InS test tired, Weak and miserable
when the kldneys fail to remove excess
us and other waste matter from tim
hlood.
You may suffer nagging baekaeh~
rheumati~ p~ins, headaches, dizzlnea~
~[etting up nights, ~es pains, swsllin~
Sometimes frequent ahd ecant~ urlns-
ties with smarting and burning ~ aO-
otbe.t.sjgn that someth/~g hi wroaS with
~ne i~laneys or bladder.
There should he no doubt that proml)S
treatment is wiser tha~ neglect, lTse
Dean's Pills. It b better to ~ly on a
medic!he that has won coantry~dde a~
proval than on somethins le~ favorably
known. D~an's ba~,e bee~ tried end tt,~ff~
ed many ~ear~. Ate st all dlm_g stor~,
f~et Don# s today.