Voters to Decide Fate
Of Now-Extinct'Race'
By WARREN MACK
In the winter of 1941-42 the Mill
race retaining walls were destroyed
by a flood.
In the winter of 1946 the city of
Eugene acquired the title, rights,
and interest of the Eugene Power
company in the millrace.
In the spring of 1948 (today,
that is) the voters of Eugene.will
decide the fate of the millrace—we
hope once and for all.
Joy for a Time
Following the city’s purchase of
the millrace rights-of-way all was
happiness and joy on the campus,
at least. Students reminisced of
canoe fetes and picnics in the shade
of the “Old Millrace.” With news
stories, editorials, and pictures the
Emerald spoke longingly of the
dear, gone days when the town was
dry but the race was wet. After
today these dreams of the past may
become an actuality.
For years, certain groups advo
cated that the city buy the rights
to the millrace. In late 1946 this
was done, primarily because of the
new highway development. But all
the city got was the right of way
•and the water-less millrace .with
the remnants of concrete walls, de
stroyed by floods. Although the
race legally belonged to the city,
there were no funds available to
repair the flood damage. The city
now has a $10,000 millrace fund but
this is not nearly enough. Around
this point the current question re
volves.
Voters to Decide
The people of Eugene will decide
today whether or not to authorize
the sale of general obligation bonds
up to $20,000 to construct and re
pair the channel—to get water
back into the Millrace. But before
any of this money is available for
xnillrace improvement, it would
have to be matched by a fund
raised by interested groups.
Potentional “interested groups”
include the University of Oregon,
University students, alumni groups,
Emerald Classified
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two cents a word thereafter at the Emerald
Business Office.
Classified deadline is 4:00 p.m. the day
trior to publication.
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the citizens’ Millrace Park associa
tion, property owners with land ad
joining the millrace.
University’s Hands Tied
The University, which stands to
gain the most from millrace re
storation, cannot commit itself.
University officials say that as a
state-supported institution, the
University has its hands tied—it
couldn’t pour money into the Race
even if it wanted to.
The students, logically enough,
fall under the heading of an “in
terested group” but it remains
doubtful if they could raise the
necessary amount to finance the
new race.
On this subject, President Nevv
burn was quoted in the January 28,
1948 issue of the Emerald as being
in favor of a campaign among the
students to rasie the necessary
funds. He said it should be “easier
than the Student Union drive.”
Maybe it would.
In the October 4, 1945 issue of
the Emerald, Dean Onthank told
the reporter that money from stu
dent activities had accumulated in
the treasury. Immediately there
was official hope of putting this
into a millrace fund. Evidently this
money (somebody mentioned $15,
000) has gone to meet more press
ing prooiems—it nasn i ultii lurueu
into a millrace improvement fund.
And October 9, 1946, City Manager
Deane Seeger said he believed the
University was to help finance the
purchase and maintenance of the
millrace. Evidently it was left up
to the students.
Eyes Turn Toward Alums
The dear old alums are also po
tentials—aren’t they always when
it comes to financing something for
the school and the students?
The Millrace Park association is
already doing at least a part of its
share in getting the race into op
eration. It was this group which
caused the ballot to be drawn up.
It was this group which placed an
appeal in the city voters’ pamphlet
urging passage of the millrace
measure. Primarily the group was
formed only to investigate methods
of salvaging the race. But its work
has gone beyond that, to the point
of actively campaigning for a bet
ter millrace—financed by someone
else.
Property Owners Divided
Millrace property owners are
somewhat divided on the question.
However, Keith Fennell, campus
Speech Head
To Introduce
Henry Wallace
Henry Wallace will be intro
duced to Oregon students by R. C.
McCall, head of the speech depart
ment, Tuesday afternoon at 3 in
McArthur court. No classes will be
dismussed for the speech, which is
under the sponsorship of the Uni
versity assembly committee.
Wallace will arrive in Eugene at
2:15 from Corvallis, will speak at
Mac court at 3, and leave Eugene
for Coos Bay at 4:30.
Widely Read
Considered one of the most wide
ly read men in public life, the third
party presidential candidate not
only writes of current events, but
has been the center of controver
sial news since his first AAA was
declared unconstitutional.
When he first entered public ser
vice in 1933 as secretary of agri
culture, Wallace declared his de
partment would “make good for the
farmer or I will go back home and
grow corn.”
Main Objective
Main objective of Wallace’s AAA
was to stabilize farm incomes at
satisfactory levels and to bring
about a better division of income
among farmers.
The ambitions of Wallace have
developed from those when he was
a child and wanted to “make the
world safe for corn breeders” to
his desire now to make the world
safe for free thinkers.
Eugene is one of four scheduled
towns in Oregon in which the pres
idential aspirant will make a
speech on his far western tour.
businessman, stated that the ma
jority of the property owners were
in favor of a rejuvenated millrace.
According to Fennell, there are a
few holdouts but most of these are
persons with purely selfish inter
ests in mind.
Opposition to the measure is
voiced by citizens with the very le
gitimate gripe that they will be
taxed for something which will not
benefit them. Consider the west
sider who owns no property on the
race, seldom ventures east of Wil
lamette street, and has no prospec
tive Oregon students in his family.
He has only a nebulous thing called
“civic pride” to repay him for his
increase in taxes—and he wonders
if this “civic pride” wouldn’t bet
ter be manifested in something else,
a ball park for instance.
Eugene’s voters will answer these
questions today: Should the city set
ASA Outlines Platform Planks
Assemblies Needed for Unity
Following is the ASA platform
for the ASUO elections to be held
next Monday:
1 All campus unit through stu
dent assemblies. Revival of post
war assemblies for students which
will bring off-campus students into
closer contact with on-campus stu
dents, provide a place to orientate
freshmen, bolster athletic morale,
and allow an opportunity to openly
discuss current campus problems.
2. More freedom of student gov
ernment. The Student Body presi
dent to call a meeting of the presi
dents of every living organization
for the purpose of discussing stu
dent problems, orientation of cur
rent executive council rulings, and
of forming a united body of house
leaders to present Student body
problems to the administration.
3. Unification of all campus
drives into one major drive. Contin
ue the policy of the ASA of trying
to combine all drives on the cam
pus into one drive. Appropriations
to be made from a central fund.
Girl Scout camp near Lake Cleowox
Honorary system. Student body
president to appoint a committee
to meet with all service honorar
ies in an effort to find a fair and
just means of selecting members.
5. Support a Bill Hayward Me
morial. A memorial to the late Col
onel Bill Hayward has been sug
gested and should be carried out.
ASA candidates pledge their sup
port to this cause honoring Ore
gon’s great exponent of sportsman
ship and fair play.
6. Dismissal of all classes during
aside a fund for millrace improve
ments to be matched by interested
groups and restore Eugene’s his
toric landmark or should the city
just forget the whole thing ? Should
the city make use of the $10,000
millrace fund already on hand or
should it forget it along with the
thousands of dollars spent in 1946
for the title, right, and interest in
the millrace? Should the city cre
ate a debt amounting to at least
$20,000 or should it use this money
for other projects ? Should the city
regard the esthetic and scenic ad
vantages of the millrace to be
greater than the less ethereal needs
confronting the city or should it
not?
Homecoming and Junior weekends.
Classes and the two weekends can
not successfully compete with each
other and if the University is to
continue to put on outstanding
Homecoming and Junior weekend
classes should be discontinued Fri
day afternoon and Saturday morn
ing.
7. Move election dates up. Oregon
is the only school on the west coast
to have elections late in May and
this prevents the University send
ing the next year's student body
president to the west coast student
body conference as every other
school does.
£. Continue support of opening
the millrace. Last year’s ASA can
didatees worked for this end and
the 1948 candidates will continue
to work to restore the millrace.
9. Continue support of the Stu
dent Union. The building is defin
itely needed by the University and
every effort will be made to get it
as soon as possible.
10. Continue stressing athletic
public relations.s Oregon is moving
in athletics, but we should not let
up now. Keep making young stars
Oregon conscious. They should have
no question about enrolling here.
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