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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 21, 1969)
Three cancel lectures due to physical danger A trio of controversial speak ers scheduled to speak Tuesday at the University, cancelled their visit after a series of mid night bombings Monday. According to John Froines, assistant professor of chemistry, Tom Hayden, Bobby Seale and Reece Erlich, cancelled their visit “because there was a def inite feeling of physical dan - ger in coming.” Hayden, founder and past president of Students for a Dem ocratic Society (SDS); Seale, national chairman of the Black Panther Party, and Erlich, foun der of the California Peace and Freedom Movement, were sched uled to speak at an afternoon discussion. Speeches set The speeches were scheduled for 2:30 p.m. at McArthur Court. They were to speak on “Political Repression and Sur vival.” Froines, and local Black Pan ther leader Howard Anderson, told an afternoon press confer ence that the visits were cancel led after a series of threats during the week convinced them that there was danger in speak ing at the University. “A whole series of events made us believe that there was an attempt to intimidate t h e people from coming,” Froines said. , Includes phone calls Froines included in those events, threatening phone calls to local political leaders, an at tempted bombing of an instruc tor's home and the series of bombings Monday night. Both Froines and Anderson disclaimed any knowledge of the persons responsible for the bombings. “I have no idea who did it,” asserted Froines, “but it might be groups on the right. No group on the left is in favor of ter rorism; terrorism divides you from the people.” Counter-revolutionary Anderson agreed that the bombers were probably counter revolutionaries” intent upon dis crediting leftist groups. He de scribed the bombings as counter revolutionary acts. Froines indicated that both Hayden and Seale would appear at the University in the near future. “We are not intimiated by the use of force,” he said. “We will have speakers here, hopefully before the end of the term.” See related story, page 8 Oregon daily EMERALD TODAYS WEATHER sunny, warm high 82 low 45 Near 09c chance of rain Vol. LXVIII UNIVERSITY OF OREGON, EUGENE, WEDNESDAY, MAY 2 \ 1%9 No. 137 Anonymous donor offers reward No clues in $10,000 bomhinas By RICK FITCH Of the Emerald Police have taken no suspects yet in connection with a series of explosions that caused more than $10,000 damage in Eugene late Monday and early Tuesday. Capt. W. H. Smith of the Eugene Police Department said Tues day FBI agents have joined Lane County law enforcement agen cies in the investigation, and Police Chief Arthur Ellsworth said an anonymous donor has posted a $2,500 reward for information leading to the apprehension of those responsible. Meanwhile, there were reports Tuesday of a bomb scare in the EMU, an attempted dynamiting of a University graduate assistant's home and a bombing of the Coos County courthouse in Coquille. EMU Director Dick Reynolds said someone phoned the main desk at 2:15 yesterday afternoon and stated a bomb was set to ex plode in the building at 2:30. The building was cleared until 2:40, but EMU staff members could find no trace of an explosive. The girl who received the phone call described the caller as a male with a low voice. She said the person was "not old, but wasn't a kid.” Reynolds said the police were not summoned. Elliott Gehr, a graduate assistant in anthropology, told the Em erald Tuesday eight sticks of lighted dynamite were put in the mailbox of his Springfield home at about 7:30 p.m. Sunday, but didn’t explode apparently because rain dampened the fuse, which was old and defective. Gehr, who stated he “didn’t have any idea” why he would be a target, also reported that three shots were fired at his home from a car late Monday night. The Lane County Sheriff’s Depart ment, which disposed of the dynamite and is currently investigat ing the entire matter, has made no arrests. , The explosion in Coquille, 100 air miles southwest of Eugene, ripped a hole in the lawn of the Coos County courthouse, badly damaged the building, and shattered windows as far as four blocks away. Capt. Smith said police are not currently investigating the possi bility of a link between the Springfield and Coquille incidents and the rash of bombings that hit Eugene’s downtown and University districts, but promised, 'Well be comparing notes in the next couple of days.” He said police have officially confirmed the following sequence of explosions in Eugene. • 10:59 p.m. Monday—The State Highway Department’s Eu gent maintenance yard at 2141 E. 15th Ave. A second explosion was reported at the same location two minutes later. • 11:16 p.m.—The University Branch of the First National Bank of Oregon. 1380 Villard St. • 12:01 a.m. Tuesday—Eugene Register-Guard building, 975 High St. • 12:15 a.m.—First United Methodist Church at 14th Ave. and Olive St. • 1:10 a.in.—Registrar’s office in Emerald Hall on campus, 13th Ave. and Emerald St. Police said the damage was discovered at 1:10 a.in., but the explosion could have occurred earlier. Police received reports that additional blasts had taken place at the Eugene Medical Arts Building at 10th and Mill, and the Uni versity parking lot on the corner of Franklin Blvd. and Agate St., Smith said, but patrolmen dispatched to those locations could find no evidence of explosions. No fires were reported as a result of the explosions, although H Eugene limnen were sent to EMERALD HALL Dynamite explosion rips floor IMioto by Cindy Boydstun inree 01 tnc nombing sites, and there were no injuries, although two of the buildings hit were oc cupied at the time and there were bystanders. "They apparently weren't try ing to hurt someone," Police Chief Ellsworth said, noting that each of the buildings nor mally wouldn’t be occupied late at night. Smith said it appears that sticks of dynamite were used in each instance, but fur ther laboratory work is neces sary to obtain definite proof. At. the maintenance yard, the first explosion was on the east side of the building near an elevated diesel tank and four parked cars. The second blast was a few feet away at an out side stairwell. Dale Allen, district mainte nance superintendent, estimat ed damages at $750 for win dows and the building, $875 for the vehicles, plus the loss of 150 gallons of diesel fuel caus ed when the tank was knocked off its base, breaking the fittings. The cars sustained rear - end damage and glass breakage. Half a dozen state police pa trolmen stationed in an office on the west end of the yard, raced toward the stricken build ing after hearing the first blast, (Continued on page 4) Robert Clark: man of achievements Editor’s Note: The following is an an alysis on recently-appointed University President Robert Clark’s four-year ten ure as president of San Jose State Col lege. Miss Newcomb is a magazine jour nalism major at SJS and was former editor of the school’s Alumni Association magazine, The Spartan. By NANCY NEWCOMB For the Emerald Robert Clark resigned May 2 as pres ident of San Jose State College to fill the same post at the University, an in stitution he served for 20 years prior to coming to San Jose. ‘ The return to the University is in a sense a return home,” Clark told the press on the day of his announcement. But in returning home, Clark is leaving behind many achievements and a col lege which he built to the stature it is today. There is probably much that com pelled Clark to accept the new presi dency, for California is not the easi est state in which to be a college ad ministrator. At this time five of the 19 state colleges are without presidents. Clark stated that he was not pressured into resigning his post here, yet there are many factors which certainly could be considered pressure points. First and foremost stands the gover nor of California, Ronald Reagan, a conservative who makes strong sugges tions to the State College Trustees and the Board of Regents of the University of California—the ruling bodies of the respective institutions. Following in suit are the State College Trustees, who assume the power to dic tate campus policy. Clark survived their iron fisted rule by acquiring more local autonomy for SJS. Third is the state legislature, the body that makes the laws controlling the over all actions of college presidents and their roles in handling campus affairs. Finally, the president must face his own students and faculty. One might think that with such oppo sition piled against him, Clark would have run, quit or retired. But he didn’t. And he came out on top as, perhaps, one ol' the best college administrators in California today. When a college president resigns, one can arrive at the best assessment of his administration by talking to the people he worked with—the faculty and stu dents. At SJS, Clark’s announcement was received with shock, sadness and a fear of who would replace him. Bill Hurschmann, editor of the cam pus paper, the Spartan Daily, said, ”1 (Continued on page 2) - ROTC V 3 * navy'peSfuiriNo ^ CAMPu5 jNtiftr ttt.KK.cLEY
