La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959, July 20, 1945, Image 1

Historic Oregon Newspapers

La Grande evening observer., July 20, 1945, Image 1

Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR

About La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959 | View Entire Issue (July 20, 1945)

Page of 6 Next Prev Issue Next Text PDF JP2 (2.5 MB) Clip/Print Image

Return to Top

Page of 6 Next Prev Issue Next

Newspaper Page Textr Weather Data for 24 hours to 7 a. m. Temperature: Maximum 9 Minimum 52 forecast: Clear tonight anil Saturday. A Community Newspaper For Every Member of the Family yw!t!ii:i'iiiii!!!::ni:iii"iiii'i!)ii!'i lit 1113 I III II II Mil l Illl'lSrfil i mmmmm imtnrrf in inn ESTABLISHED 1S96 LA GRANDE, OREGON FRIDAY EVENING, JULY 20, 1915 FIVE CENTS mm Society Takes Steps to Preserve Historical Data of Union County When the last story had been told and the final reminiscence had been recalled, members ol the Union County Historical so ciety and of the sons and daugh ters of Pioneers adjourned to their homes last night, tired from a long day but once more thrill ed in the recollection of the old days. Several steps were taken at the meeting of the society last nigh't at Riverside park which will help to preserve records of the past for posterity. Save Papers First, Frank Jasper, in report ing for the advisory committee, asked that all papers presented before the society meetings be preserved and prepard for filing in the society, archives. Each month a paper on some aspect of Union county history is presented, i Dr. Charles Quaintance, vice president of- the society, endorsed Jasper's suggestion. Such papers could be filed- in the library or in the historical room which the society hopes to have in the pro. posed library building at the col lege and would be available to Increased Street Lighting Proposed For La Grande Survey Made at Suggestion of Ed Ford Plan for three times as much iHumination: for La Grande for only 25 percent more power has been submitted to the city com mission by J. T. Hood, who re cently made a survey of the city's lighting system at the request of Ed Ford, city manager. Hood, sales engineer with the GbribraT Electric" "company in Portland, made recommendations for improvement of the lightting system by replacing the 74 lights of 6,000 lumens each now on Ad ams avenue, with 54 new lumi naries of 10,000 lumens each. In this way, Hood stated, La Grande would receive approxi mately three times the illumina tion now received, glare would be reduced and visibility improv ed even beyond this by higher mountings of 25 feet, instead of the 16 feet mountings now being used. The cables in use at the pres ent lime could1 be used for the new lights, and since the existing 0.020 ampere pole transformers are rated 600010,000 each, those removed from the present instal lations could be used in connec tion with the new standards and luminaries. In this way, only new poles and lights would be need ed. The cost of installation is estimated at $10,000. Since there are no provisions in the city budget for such a pro gram at the psesent time, the commission is merely consider ing the proposal. Red Cross Swim Classes Start Next Monday Red Cross swimming classes, which were to have started in August, will start next Monday at the Pine Cone pool, according to Harvey Carter, chairman of water safety committee for the Union county chapter of the Red Cross. Telegram was received here last night notifying the chapter Miss Anita Jasper will be here to be instructor. Classes will start daily at I p. m. with beginners and swimmers taking instructions until 3 p. m. From 3 to 4:30 p. m. will be classes in junior lifes aving, and from 5:30 to 7 p. m. there will be junior and senior life saving class es. This is the tentative schedule and may vary. If enough interest is shown a! Cove in the classes they will be scheduled there later, Carter said. Carter and Morris Richardson, who is home on furlough, will as sist with the classes. Registra tion will be held at the pc-ol and instruction will be free, the only charge being the pool fee. WAIVE HEARINGS PORTLAND, July 20 (UP) Two Seattle war workers, Lenora M. Hodgson, 26, and Fae Lois Burns, 19, held in Portland on a eharge of aiding Italian prisoners of war to escape, waived removal hearings today before Federal Judge James Alger Fee. students or researchers. Mrs. Clarence Kopp then sug gested it would be desirable for branch chapters in other towns in the county to be organized or to try to organize more member ship in th,ese towns so that his torical data, which is haider and harder to get each year as the persons who lived them pass on, can be collected before it is too late. Jesse Crum' of Elgin favored this idea also, as did Jasper. President C. F. Hamann will ap point committees by the time of the next meeting to bring this idea to fruition. President Hamann appointed as a library committee Dr. Quainr tanec, Kale Hanley and Eva Wearo. Re-Elected All officers were re-elected, in cluding President Hamann, Dr. Quaintance, vice president, and Mrs. Charles Spencer, secretary. The election took place after the dinner, which had been arranged politick style, and which was at tended by more than 30 members of the society. . k Is O DOOR "TALKS" IN COURT Mrs, Erminia Roohan is shown In Los Angeles court with knife and scarred bedroom door she brought along as evidence in seeking divorce irom - hu6band Josph E. Roohan, She charged her husband consistantly threat ened her life and reoeatedly threw a butcher knife at her but ex plained that she was never hit because she would dodge behind the door. Rufus I. Barker, Fruit Farmer at Cove, Is Dead COVE, July 20 (Special) Fu neral services for Rufus I. Bark er, 70, who died of a cerebral hemorrhage Wednesday night at Salem, will be held Saturday afternoon at Eugene with burial there also, according to word re ceived here today. A fruit farmer, Barker had been a resident of Cove for 35 years, having conte here from Minnesota He was a member of the Grange, of the Episcopal church and other organizations and was active in civic affairs. He sold his ranch here a year ago and moved to Eugene. Besides his wife, he leaves four sons, Ray. in Italy. Guy, Herbert and Gordon; and five daughters, Jessie Daniels, Bcrta Hoare, Nel lie Stringham, Dorothy Young and Lura Wells. Rents Established On Housing Units Rents have been established at on furnished three-bedroom houses in La Grande's 40-unit housing project now under con struction at Fourteenth street and II avenue. Rents have not yet been estab lish on the 10 onc-t-jdroom houses or the 20 two-bedroom houses, it was announced today. Applications are still being ac cepted at the Chamber of Com merce office for the units, avail able to workers in essential in dustries. The houses will be completely furnished, with iceboxes and wood ranges, but may b? rented unfurnished, if preferred. Most of the pioneers sons and daughters who. had been attend ing the pioneers meeting during the day had returned home be fore the society meeting started. More than 100 had been present for the memorial for Mrs. Hattie Proebstel Eckley, and for the af ternoon program at which George Cochrane presided. Discuss Book Also under discussion last night was the publication, expected soon, of the biography of Dun ham Wright, pioneer of this area, who lived to more than 100 years old and who saw the develop ment of Oregon from very early days. The book was written by Frank Jasper and is now in the hands of the publishers, the Caxton Press, Caldwell, Ma., which has agreed to bring out the book. Discussion of ways to promote sales of the book was held. . Cochran was re-elected presi dent of the Pioneer association, Jasper was re-elected vice presi dent, Anna Brooks Royes, secre tary; Kate Hanleys treasurer; and Edith Curry, historian. Patrolman Resigns; To Go Into Business Harry A. Chambers, patrolman with the La Grande police de partment, has resigned his posi tion effective July 31. Cham bers, who has been working on the local force since April, is planning to go into business here the first part of August. Before coming to La Grande, he was special agent for the Kaiser company in Portland, and had worked for 20 years in Los Angeles county, where ho was chief of police and deputy sher iff. He also, in Los Angoles county, worked in the forestry department, and as a sound re corder in Hollywood studies. Joergensen Held For Grand Jury After Hearing Carl R. Joergensen was bound over today to await action of the grand jury, following preliminary hearing in justice court on a charge of obtaining money under false pretenses. The charge, preferred by Mrs. Edward H. Schultz, 1511 Y ave nue, accused Joergensen of con tracting to repair a roof "on be half of a Spokane concern, col lecting down payment in the amount of $163 and failing to ac count for it. Mrs. Wayne Standley, 1407 Cherry street, also brought charges. District Atlorney Colon R. Ebcrhard called these women und several others who stated Joer gensen had obtained money from them. Joergensen Is held on $1,500 bond. The grand jury will meet some time within the next few weeks. Five Jap Teas in Fl ames GUAM, July 20 (UP) r Admiral Willium F. Halsey's, mnraudintr fleet was reported prowling the Japanese const for a new. air-sea stnKe to day while htiRe fires still raired throuirh five Honshu war centers gutted during the night by a record force ol Sunerlortresscs. Shuken by 11 days and nights of intermittent naval attacks dur ing which Halsey's Anglo-Amer ican raiders sent 7,500 tons of bombs and shells crashing into a 600-mile strip of Japan's Paci fic coast, "Tokyo warned the as sault might be resumed at any moment. No More Details The Japanese said Halsey's 150, batthjwagons, carriers,, cruisers and supporting warships were still maneuvering off western Honshu. Admiral Chester W Nimitz gave no additional details on the bombardment of Nojima Cape, western arm of Tokyo Bav. or the preliminary air strike on the Yokosuka naval base Wed nesday. That indicated Halsey had imposed radio silence on his armada, possibly covering a new blow at the enemy coast. More than 600 Marlanas-based Superfortresses, the biggest B-29 fleet ever sent aloft, sowed a 310- mile trail of fire and ruin across centra! Honshu before dawn this morning to carry the pre-invasion bombardment into its 45th con secutive day. Use Mustangs One hundred fighters carried the aerial assault into the day light hours, Tokyo reported. Enemy broadcasts said they at tacked the Aichi area of central Honshu for an hour. Part of the force, the Japanese said, was over the Okazaki and Toyahashio areas Southeast of Nagoya, and other squadrons at tacked the northern edge of Nagoya itself. Tokyo broadcasts said Tlaga, west of Nagoya, and Takahagi, 13 miles southeast of Hitachi, .ilso were hit, and they acknow ledged that big fires burned in the last raiders disappeared, all the target cities hours after Two Lost Two Superfortresses, less than one-half of 1 percent of the strik ing force, were lost in the at lak. One was shot down in flames and the other was aban doned later, with five of its crew rescued. Bomber pilots returning from the five-way strike said their incendiaries stoked tremendous fires in the flimsy cities. 63 Boys Attend Crop-Livestock Tour at Station Sixty-three boys from Union, Wallowa, Baker, Malheur, Uma tilla and Grant counties this af ternoon learned first hand many of the things a rancher has to do in his daily work. They went to the Hall ranch where they watched dehorning, branding, vaccination and other cattle handling details. The Hall ranch is the summer range nf the experiment station at Union and is far us Catherine creek. The boys, attending the annual crops and livestock tour at the station, spent the morning learn ing how to make rope halters and how to tie various kinds o livestock. This evening they will have Softball and olher games and after dark will see a motion picture. Saturday, the 4-H clubbers will have a crop and weed identifica tion contest and a sheep, hog and beef and dairy cattle judging competition. In the late after noon, they will wind up the two day school by going swimming at the Cove pool. END STOVE RATIONING WASHINGTON, July 20 (UP) Tne war production board and the office of price administration announced jointly today thai rationing of gas cooking and ga. heating stoves for civilian con sumers will'end July 31. far , S s -s s v LOGGERS BATTLE BLAZE IN OREGON FOR EST FIRE Loggers work in a pall of smoke, try. ing to save bridge across Wilson river, Tillamook, Orel., in week-long forest fire, worst in state since 1929. More than 1.500 servicemen and civilians lought blase covering at least 27.000 acres in rugged mountain country. Latter Day Saints Church Will Have Ward Conference La Grande first ward confer ence of Latter Day Saints church will be an event of Sunday, July 2, in the ward chapel, Walter A. Lindsay, bishop, announced to day. The conference will be divided Into three parts, the first or young people's session will com mence at 10 a. m. A special meeting will be held at 4 p. m. for all members over 19 years of age. The closing session will be gin at 7 p. m. at which time the general, stake and ward officers will be presented and sermons will be given by the stake presi dency. The young people s session will feature a program which will in clude a song by the primary chil dren; a five-minute address by Lawrence Veal on "My responsi bilities as a deacon"; "What Mu tual has meant to me this year," by Carol Shinsel, a Beehive girl; Some of my experiences as a ward teacher," by Vernile Wes tenskow; an address by Conrad Huntsman, a member of the stake Sunday school board; "My appre ciation of the church program for its youth," by Barbara Bean, Gleaner girl; "My appreciation for the church and how I encour age my family to read the scrip tures," by Kate Metcalf, a moth er; and an address by Wiley Neb eker, a member of the mutual stake board. Aussies Push On Rich Oil Belt MANILA, July 20 (UP) Aus tralian troops pressed toward the rich oil belt around Samarinda and the mouth of the Mahakam river, in eastern Borneo, today after capturing Sambodja, 28 miles northeast of Balikpapan. Both Australian and Dutch East Indies troops smashed two stubborn Japanese counterattacks in the area north of Balikpapan, and Japan's grip on Borneo's rich oil supply appeared vastly weak ened. Before the war Sambodja and the Mahakam river delta, to the north, produced 7,000,000 barrels of oil each year from 400 wells. Sambodja has a small refinery as well as a pipeline leading to the Mahakam delta. The Dutch begn destroying wells in the two areas three days prior to the Japanese invasion in 1942, but it is believed thai all but a few have been put back nto operation. New Altitude Mark BURBANK, Calif. July 20 (UP) A new unofficial American al titude record of 44,940 feet was set by test pilot Joe Towle in a two-seated Lockheed P-28 Light ning, Lockheed Aircraft corpor ation disclosed today. They test ed a new-type oxygen mask worn by. B-29 crewmen. An outside temperature gauge developed trouble just shorl of Towle's 45,000 foot goal. The plane was a conventional P-38 except for an extra sctk f IN NEW PART Kenneth E. Schilling, for four years head of the music department at Eastern Oregon college, and last year with the music de partment of Whitman college l.i Walla Walla, has been named director of the Whitman con servatory of music, He is the husband of the former Pat Mc Manus. House Completes Bretton Woods Bank Action WASHINGTON, July 20 (UP) The house today completed legislative action on a bill auth orizing United Slates participa tion in the international bank and stabilization fund contem plated under the Bretton Woods fiscal agreements. Only Truman's signature on Ihe bill remains to make this country the first nation ready to join the proposed $H,WJO,(IOO,000 monetary stabilization fund and the $11,100,000,000 international bank of reconstruction. The U. S. would put a maxi mum of nearly $0,0011,000,0110 into the two funds. The senate passed the hill late yesterday by a vote of 61 to Ml. As soon as the bill was re ceived by the house today, Chair man Brent Spence, D., Ky., of Ihe banking committee, asked the house to accept three minor senate aniendmnts. The house agreed without a dissenting vote. Senate Approves Lamb Subsidies WASHINGTOM. July 20 (UP) The senate Ut night approved a bill designed to permit sub sidy payments to lamb growers by Ihe commodity credit cor poration. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Joseph C. O'Mahoney, D.. Wyo., now goes to the house. The bill provide CCC can pay the subsidies under a program to be approvod by tho secre tary of agriculture. O'Mahoney pointed out CCC has the authority io pay direct subsidies to producers but lacked the funds. He said RFC had Ihe funds but not ihe au thority. His bill permitted transfor of tho necessary funds Irom RFC io CCC. rm y -1 Jack R. Oliver In Business in City Since 1888 Now Established In New Location After 32 Years After 32 years in one location, Jack R. Oliver, insurance and really man arid one of tho oldest pioneers in Union county, has sold his building situated next door to the Evening Observer, and is established in the L. C. Smith building. The Oliver building has been purchased by W. E. Wilkins who is remodeling it for another business. 1 Oliver's moving brought to light the interesting fact he has been In the insurance business since 1888, and he states he has paid to the companies more than a million dollars in premiums ol his, clients. 43 Years Records of the company reveal the local agent, now B3 years old, had served 43 years and is the oldest man, in years of service, with the company in Oregon and is believed to hold that record in the entire Pacific department, 'Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah and Arizona). Oliver was born in 18(12 In Iowa to II. W. and Caroline Oli ver, and with them crossed the plains in an ox-drawn covered wagon in 1864. The trip to Ore gon took six months, and upon I heir arrival in the Grande Ronde valley they settled in the Sum mervillc district, when there were still very few white people here. Jack Oliver worked in the U. S. land office in La Grande dur ing President Cleveland's admin istration, was deputy county clerk six years, and county clerk four years. In 1892 he married Winnie Blakeslee, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles L. Blakeslee, pioneer settlers who came to Ihe county in 1862. Mrs. Oliver who will be 77 years old Monday, was born in Union. In 1900 Oliver, a familiar figure throughout the county, started in the insurance business, operating first in Union and moving to La Grande at the lime the county seal was moved hero. Same Company III 191.1 he set up his business in the building on Sixth street, and his departure from that site uproots an institution that could well be called a land mark. He will continue with the company for whom he has btn an agent more than 40 years. The Olivers have one daugh ter, Mis. Mildred Crowley, who resides next door to them on First street. RAISE TAX EXEMPTION WASHINGTON, July 20 (UP) The house completed action to day on a corporate tax bill rais ing excess profits tax exemption and authorizing a speed-up in payment of more than $5,000. 000,000 in tax refunds. The bill is designed to assist Industrial re conversion. It does not change any taxes on individuals. Fog New Peril Develops In Forest PORTLAND, July 20 (UP) A new peril developed for" the western' Washington com-, munity of Glenwood, where some families already have been evacuated and others are prepared to leave, as forest fire raced down the mountain' side. - A new fire sprung up to the north of Glenwood, to add to the threat from thes Wilson river fire, to the west of the sawmill and logging oamp center. , ; To the south of Glenwood, the' Gales creek sector was reported holding fairly well after an ad vance late yesterday. . Refugee Camp Refugees set up camp at Balm Balm Grove, south of Gales creek, while 40 other families' prepared to pile into army trucks,' should tho flames approach near er to their, homes. The fire had spurred within 500 feet of the Glenwood hamlet, threatening, stands of old-growth' timber and the Consolidated cqm. pany logging a mile and a half from this community. However,' fighters said they had checked this sector, at least temporarily. I Raging On State forestry officiols said the' blaze was raging on the eastern front In Washington county, be tween the Tillamook-Washington county line at the coast range summit and. the foothills leading down toward Glenwood and Gales creek near Forest Grove. .. . : Dense smokq hindered fire fighting facilities as the blaze staged a spectacular display, run ning wild in- all directions while feeding on heavy brush and snags in exceedingly rough ter rain. Preparations were being made at Owl camp, state fire headquar ters at the summit, to use pumps and hose if necessary to keep the camp wet down as numerous spot fires began dotting the hillsides. Need Hain Slight rainfall early Thursday was not enough to help the situa tion. While a new fire camp was be ing established on the lower Wil son river for 200 more soldiers, forestry officials prepared to call out still more troops from Camp Adair, Fort Lewis and Fort Stev ens. It was estimated already 2,000 men are combating the Wil son river blaze. Sailors from the Tillamook air base were sent to another critical area late Thursday to backfire in an jittcinpt to halt the westward progress of a bad flareup just south of Jordan creek in the southwest corner of the fire area. It was hoped today a system could be arranged, forestry offi cials said, whereby servicemen who have been fighting the fire since early in the week could be relieved. Save Camp Willamette Valley Lumber company logging camp was saved from the forest fire near the sum mit of the Coast range in Polk oeunty thai had spread to over 6000 acres by Thursday night. ' On Ihe northern front of the Wilson river fire, near the Clat sop . county line, more soldiers were sent down the Salmonberry valley today to fight a blaze which broke out of control. Sweeping Changes In Government of Spain Expected MADRID, July 20 (UP) A sweeping reorganization of the Spanish government was report ed imminent today in an apparr nt move by Gen. r runcisco Fran o to break the fulange and smooth Spain's way back into the, good graces of the United Nations. Authoritative source said Fran co might announce the shake-up today and tnat it definitely would be made public within the next Ihre or four days. These informants said only four members of the falungist cabinet would survive the purge the ministers of labor, finance, education and interior. Even those holdovers reportedly were to be retained only because Fran co feared too sharp a break with the fulange might arouse popular resentment.