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About La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959 | View Entire Issue (June 26, 1930)
NEWWSERVER BUILDING EDITION SECTION ONE PAGES 1T0 8 VOLUME XXVIII LA GRANDE, OREGON, THURSDAY, JUNE 26, 1930 NUMBER 266 INSTALLED IN NEW HOME NEW PRESS FAST MODEL' DUPLEX NOW IN OPERATION Observer's Latest Ad dition to Equipment Mar vel in Efficiency. PUTS OUT 6,000 PAPERS AN HOUR Replaces Old Press-. That Formerly Served The Observer Installed by Factory Man . l.a Grande and Union county pruplo who will visit tho new home uf The K veiling" Observer during tho hist week will whow particular1 interest In tho new Duplex press and marvel at Its speed and the ease uf operation. - This pre.s. re placing 'the old Duplex which has ween over two decades of service, most of this with Tho Observer, in unquestionably the fastest and best flatbed press manufactured at the present time, and was secured by Tho Observer In keeping with Its policy uf securing tho best poHslhle equipment in order to give its read ers and advertisers the highest type of service and efficiency.. 1 , . Tho press, shipped here' from the factory at Battle Creek, Mich., entiling through by -freight on tho Union Tacifle. in seven days, and weighing approximately 3 0,0 0 0 pounds, was installed by C. 1 Young, 1 factory representative In charge of the Duplex mechanical work on the Pacific coast 1 Mr. Young started assembling tho jness two weeks agQ. He has been with the Duplex company for 30 years and while in La (irande, expressed tho opinion thut this city was ono of tho most Interesting and pro gressive he has been In, In propor tion to its size. The new Model K Duplex,1 dor signed to print mid fold sin thous and cluht-natre papers in' one hour's run, is operated" by electric control, - driven by a new lSi horse power variable speed motor. The . press arrived here about, three weeks ago. the 10.000 pieces - coming knocked down In separato'boxes. As soon as tho progress of the building allowed, Mr. Young Htnrt1 cd assembling tho press. Tho new press Is guaranteed to turn out li.Iiuo (tapers per hour, of four, six or eight pages. In addi tion, it will handle single and double page hill. Because the press. Is new and still somowhat stiff. It has not been operated at full speed, but It has already boon run at n li.UUO ptiper per hour speed, with highly satisfactory re sults. This piVss, which stands on n specially constructed foundation In tho lower floor of Tho Observer plant, is in an ideal location in tho building, easily available to the makeup department where 1he separate pages are assembled and locked up before tho pressman places them in thulr proper posi tions in tho press. Tho press is so Installed, wit h holts insulated with rubber hose and washers. Hint practically every bit of vibralion Is removed from the building. This, perhaps, was not absolutely necessary as the en tire building Is thoroughly rein forced in such a manner that a presa would safely operate, but tho Insulation provides the utmost In ease and nulet when thp press is In' operation. Another feature of which the publishers are rather proud. Is the full electric control under which tho press is operated, rusbhutton stations, located in strategic points, permit tho pressman to stop of jog the press with utmost ease. In ad dition the main station provides starting and fast and slow running controls, thus allowing a variable speed. The story of tho progress of the printing industry with the Inven tion of tho many marvelous and complicated machines for the pro duction of the modern newspaper is undoubtedly n fascinating one. Many years ago ull the type for a paper was set by hand, this being a slow and laborious process, and requiring a large force when a daily of any size was published. Now all this Is done with ma chinery in a fraction of the time. Old presses were small, slow and difficult to operate, but in com parison, tho presses of today are marvels of mechanical Ingenuity. .Starting from n roll of paper weigh ing hundreds of pounds, the paper is carried through the press at high speed', printing, cutting and folding and turning out the complete paper jiL ono operation. In the Duplex pres one finds a new standard of excell?nce. It is compact and highly efficient which means that it is all built on the floor where the pressman can operate it conveniently and not be compelled to climb all over It as was necewiry Mith older types of presses which were so clumsy as to eause their own disuse. The development of the business of The Observer and its move into the new home, huve created the demand fur a printing press of (Continued on ?ag FlvV. The Associated Press Wire News Serves Observer Paper, in Instant Touch With all C o r n e r s of World Features' Also Supplied by A. P.- i . Tho Hvenlng Observer, now in its new homo and with now press and other equipment, continues as a member of the Associated Press, the greatest news gathering and distributing : organization In the world. With' automatic teletype ma chines In its office, which print about 18,000 words of news from all cornors of the globe dally, The Observer jfs in dJUect touch In instant touch with - the happen ings throughout the world and In Its afternoon editions, serves its renders -with a" galaxy of reports of the duy's doings, ranging from thv fluctuations of the Chicago wheat market to the latest hap penings In tho Chinese war. from international sports events in Ku ropo to explorations at the poles or the-earth, and from Wail street quotations to the latest marriages in Hollywood. - Carefully Divided ..The. .18. 000. words dally are so divided that eachr particular de partment may receive its quota of news markets, sports, general news, womenfs events, elections, human interest events, etc. The stories como into the offico over a leased .wire from Portland and Salom, tho Associated I'ress distri buting centers in Oregon sending to papers In every section of this' state accurately typed and requir ing a minimum of editing. All that is necessary Is a brief perusal of tho story, possibly a bit of cutting to fit tho space, and the writing of a headline- and the story goes buck to the linrftypc machines ai.d Is transformed into type ready to bo proof-read und then go into the forms for printing. On January 1, 1030, when the last check was conducted, tho As sociated Jress which is a noii-profitublc.- co-operative organiza tion with each member paper con tributing Its share of news und pny lng,lts' In-oportion" of .expenses tho .membership of The Associated .Pri&tl showed an increase of 34 over Jan. -1, m'9. Oh that day there were 1,1'SO member papers as com pared to l.'-MC a year ago. Tho dully report of the Associat ed Press Is now being transmitted over 220,000 miles of operating cir cuits throughout the United .Status, Involving the employment of ap proximately 500 telegraph opera- Above is a picture of .the new high-speed Model K Duplex piess which is now in daily operation on the lower floor of The Evening Observer') new plant on Sixth street, near the intersection of Washington, Elm and Sixth. This giant will print and fold 0,000 eight-page papers, turning them out ready for delivery, in one hour. The press was in stalled in The Observer building about two weeks ago by a factory representative and thoroughly letted before placed into daily operation. . -- pf" r r" a "T ti - ...1. s&iiki The Observer, (luring tho earlier years of Its life in Iji (ntiule, ci'iipieil tho above building, which was located on the same slur Mhich the present homo oceupUs. Tho wooden building was ercetetl by J-1 red It. Carrey mid (icorgc D7. Carrey, clitois au'l publislters uf (he -paper, who arc. pictured at the left above. The others, left to right, ftillow: Ole Krlckson, ml man; Syl Iturge.jiow thyul; Kloy Masscc (now Mrs. A. V. Nelson); Hay I'tter, now fiend; Kfctl Sheets, ad man, who tiled recently at Wallovtu; O. K. Collin, circulation; A. Y. Nelson, news alitor; and Otto Didiou, linotype operator, now dead. Tho window at the left was the news room, which was about 4 by u feet In ("inciislons. At. thai time the ,stnct In front of the offkre was unpaved and slilcwalks wcrc.'of wood construction. tors and the use of more than 2,500 automatic telegraph printing ma chines. In tho New York, office, alone, 70 telegraph circuits are .in operation, linking up more than half of the country. . .Millions of Words News items from 1.850 different cities, comprising 17,323 Items, with a total of 2,5C2V715 words, were as sembled and transmitted to mem bers during one week wtyon u count was made. ."While no one member received this vast amount of news it all flowed through tho regular- channels to members as their news needs required. The amount of news handled dally .exceeds 300. r 000 words. 'Tabular market reports, representing each day nearly 15 columns of newspaper space, were not included in the survey. . Brazil, Venezuela, ' Nicaragua. Ciuatemale and tho Dutch Island of Curacao were added during tho last year to the last of Latin-American countries with which the As sociated I'ress exchanges ncwii. A special service of American news was Inaugurated to Spain, where it : The Observer's New High-Speed Model E Duplex Press Now Operating THE OBSERVER BUILDING is supplied to 1 5 member papers in Madrid and Barcelona. Through out the world service, touching every important city on the globe, news connections woro strength ened. l-Vaiuiv Service Added A new addition during the last year was the 'feature service, con sisting of cartouns, comic strips and panels and special feature articles Jo he run daily. Tho Observer at present is presenting the following Associated I'ress features lo Its readers HCorchy Smith, the Boy Aviator: Oluria; Modest Maidens; Villago J-ilfo, all comics; cartoons on national events; special ft aturcs including, 'Talks '.With lurents,;' "Dally Menus." "Health Hints," ' Kport Slants,' stylo stories, nuto mobllo news, science news, and a wide variety of general news stories not carried on tho Associated I'ress wlro and largely of educational In terest, human interest, etc., de signed to reach every class of read er. The feature srvice also supplies The Observer with dally news mats, IN 1907 sent from Han c'runeisco and New York, including It-lephoto and air mail service when tho valuo of tho pictures warrant the utmost In speed. Recently Tho Observer printed pictures of a major news event that took place In tho east within 18 hours after it oecured tho pictures being flashed to San Francisco by telepholo, then air mailed to Portland, and then com ing to ha Orandu via train to ar rive hero as quickly almost as the pictures wcro printed In metropoll talu centers throughout tho, nation. This news picture service Is gen eral, touching upon practically every phase. of news or curiosities that wjll he of .Interest to American1 newspaper renders. Through this same service it in possible for The Observer to keep on hand pictures of practically every person of prom Incnco In the world, and this "mor gue" as it Is called in newspaper offices, is being built up dally. Hundreds of matrices, ready for instant casting, aro filed In The f Continued on Pago Kour) RECALL EVENTS OF EARLY DAY IN THE OBSERVER OFFICE Kdltor'n Note Tho following very interesting article docs not attempt to follow The Observer's history through tt earlier years but deals largely with outstanding ocoureiii-es,' men and women who helped shaH Its destiny during the period between 1005 and J1H5, most of which time Tho Observer was housed in u wooden building on (he slto occupied by the present plant. Kver .since. Oultonhurg ce-dls- covcred tho old Chineso invention of sotting movable typo together to convey thought by 'tho printed page, thoro has been a fascination and an appeal to tho masses In and around newspaper officeH. It is proverbial that onco printer's ink' gets hold of a human, tho nffec tion lasts. Tho past 30 years havo been rich and interesting In,Ia Grande newspaper history, lore and human Interest. : In tho early dnya of ThoOb server whenever tho company purso permitted and tho spasmodic com petition demanded It, there would bo a society editor. The financial part of tho emoluments woro meagro but tho social prestige that was. the real pay. The prestige amounted to something. Fr that reason women prominent in tho social affairs of that day wero moat often Invited to tho society doslt a dcak moro Imaginary than real and was moro apt to bo a smooth board laid ucrosH ono's.knee. Ono such whose items had zip and real ly metropolitan in consception and selection of fashionable vorbiage was Mrs. F. K. Moore, wifo of a popular professional man, since dead. Her homo now Is variously California points and Purls. When sho first look over tho job hIio had as her houso guest Felice .Thymic, u petilo Kansas City lass, who later achieved world-wido famo in mu sic, by soundly whipping ono Oscar llummcrstuin and Lhls broko her rise to world grand opera. Fellco could hrcczo Into tho hack shop and pack off a half dozen fluUnr lug hearts whenever she took a no tion. . Tho Mooro homo-was -built In - tho Mrcinnto"- outskirts- where tho W. C. Perkins home now stands. Another society editor whoso gracious smile wus an offico force stlnuilfint was tho lato Mrs. J, J. Carr. When ,n Grande wont dry 11 ad or the first local option tost, Mrs. Curp worked at her doslt all night und tho next day, receiving and passing out tho "terrible news" that even Perry had gone dry. Another mission sho volunteered h : to undertake during that ovont wan to bring delicious lunches from her own cupboard for tho woary news staff. Ono such lunch basket "was heuvy with two bottles of Burgun dy which sho had commandeered from her husbnnd's wine cellar and which sho intended for the whole staff front and back: History fo lates that tho Burgundy never reached tho back shop for the simple reason Fred Currey and A. AV. Nelson saw it first. They had then served 65 continuous hours without a table meal and had 12 yet to do. Tho stories that day wero snappy. . Another woman Who attained famo In local news writing was Hdna Morrison Dudley now living in Portland. Kdna was a hound for news nono moro so but her rot urn to tho offico was a daily signal for trouble. It is said of hor that shov would persistently tulk on trivial subjects in tho most rush ing hours of tho day much to tho distraction of follow newshounds. Ink wells and mild cussings had no effect. Sho could write, she would talk, and did both admirab ly at tho samo time. "When the sheet was out, her chattor would ho entertalnmont of the best sort. Tho first girl, probably, to break In on a. regular news beat on Tho Observer was Olivo Massee, now Irs. tieorgo Huntington Currey. Less than a month aftor hor arrival on tho job an alarming Monday morning found tho rcportorlnl staff marooned behind a Kamola waah out and tho boss himself gono fish ing. Hho gathered up two days news, wrote an editorial or. two, waited on the customers, read tho proofs, directed the make-up, was out on time with a nowsy edition, und tho next day was a full-fledged reporter and hus boon ever slnco. ' . Kxcept Tor tho Populist campaign In tho DOs, no effort mado by Tho Observer created such a struggle us tho locul option fight. Tho cam- iuiinn and tho election itself was a terrible strain on tho force. To begin -wltli George If, Curroy was tho concoivor and en?inoor;of tho movomcnt. Jin directed tho news propaganda nd tho stories woro dry as tinder and cuoh story opened a soparulo wound somewhere in town. His staff promulgated dry ness whether they liked it or not. When tho conflict became so tor rid that neighbors passed without speaking and Tho Observer stuff (Continued on Pago1 Three) FIRST DAILY OBSERVER ON PRESSIN'97 Newspaper Now in its Thirty-Second Year Many Changes Made. - "VOLUME 1, NO. 1" - VERY INTERESTING Started Out With Four- page, Six-columm Morn ing Edition r- Re-print Several Items. ; Tho dally Observer, now In Us ; thirty-second year of existence, was of a different complexion when It camo Into existence on tho first day of Docembor, 1897. Now an evening- now&paper, then ; It was a morning dully. In tho flies of The Observer to- day among tho most- interesting of tho entire lot is one containing Volume 1, numbers 1 to - 76, in clusive tho first 76 issues of tho daily Observer to bo published in La Grande. . Vivo Ownerships Slnco that day in December, hack In '07, the paper has been under five ownerships. It was founded by : Coorge and Pred Currey, aftor they hud . issued an Eastern Oregon Weekly Observer for a year and a few weeks, and it romalned under- their management until purchased by Bruco Dennis. Ho published it for awhllo, then sold it to Clark Lelter and J. D. Meyers, who later sold It hack to Mr. Dennis. Then a few' years ago Mr. Dennis sold It to K. B. Appleby, and tho present -Observer Publishing company was organized, . , . Four Six -Column Pages . But to get back to the famous old "Volume 1, No. 1," . , , . t was printed in four pages, on paper 14 by 21 Inches, and con-, stated of ,slx tcolumns of typo on . each page, 13 ems In width; Tho presofit paper, consists of eight columns, 13 cms in width.. Tho old flies, yellowed with age, tolls much of interestboth to tho youngor generation and to tho older generation. - . Tho first column on tho-front pngo of that first edition was inado up partly of "Professional Curds," and among them wore those of Wil liams & Co., real estate; Ueorgo B. Curroy, -attorney-at-law; 3.. li. Corpe, M. D.; O. W. BIggors, AI. IX; Thomas R. Monk, M. D.; It. J. Lincoln, denllHt; Finn & lvanhoo, attorneys. Underneath the profes sional cards was an advertisement by tho Anderson & Fitzgerald bar ber shop, who advertised, ' "Any thing In tho tonsoriul lino," Moll tor's Drug store followed; with this messago: 4'01v your seed wheat a doso of - medicine. Blue Vitriol Chrystal, 6 lbs, for $1." Underneath this and nt tho foot of tho column was an advertisement , by CI. W. Harris, watchmaker and jewclor. (tononU News Tho next culumn consisted of . Kcuorat ue ins oi news, wmi uhh heading: "Tho Pacific CoaHt . . Tho Latest Happenings of Interest Boiled Down . . .Measles Among IndianH . . . Tho Columbia Rlvor at Colllo Not to be Opened for Somo Time Yet . . . Oregon Tobac co." One item told of tho growing of tobacco lu Polk!toUnty tho previous year. Another said that 00 por cunt of tho lumber mills in Washington have, or will close down for the winter. A third said the govern ment has ordered the salo of old PNrt Oolville In Wisconsin on Fob. Oth. A fourth said: "Tho resldenco of property belonging to Ben Snipes, will bo sold at public salo in Ynklma county, Washington In a few daj-rt. Mr. Hnlpes was for a long time the 'cattle king1 of Kastern Oregon and Washington." A fifth, said that measles were terrorizing mothers among the Indians on tho umaiuia renui viiuti. Column Nrt. 3 on the front paga In 1H!)7 started with news of a "fearful storm" In the Phllliplnes, Oct. 6, with heavy casualties. Two nther Hems, one from Australia and one from Portland, completed that column. i , Hawaii Problem ' " ' News of a government deficit of ?8,r72,10y,'a letter from Mrs. J.-C. Smith from Nicaragua written to her parents, Mr. and Mrs. A. ltur ris, of the Cove, nnd three other items filled tho next column. Ono from Washington wild Senator Lodgo says: "The first business of (he Senate would bo to confirm tho annexation of Hawaii." Another advertisement, two col umns In width, occupied the upper right hand corner of the front page, paid for by the old New York store. jNuuomu njews events compicuiu tho layout. Over on pugo two. In the same ' position the New York storo oc cupied on page one, was an ad vert Iscment by tho Chicago store. A bit of metropolitan rivalry in tho good old days. Other advertisements on that pugo were uy w . a. iHessner, gro cer; the Ltu, uranuo National uaiiK (directors were J. M. Berry, Jay Brooks, C. It. Goodnought . J. M. A,-. 1 (Continued on Pago Two)
