Morning Oregonian., August 13, 1918, Page 10, Image 10

TIIE MORNING OREGONIAN, TUESDAY, AUGUST 13, 1918,
1
uiuirn
puniinnnr
inanmitu uniuu
IS EXCITING PEOPLE
Real Purport of Letters and
Characters on Door Jambs
Not Yet Discovered.
RED CROSS DENIES WORK
llrporls to Police Testerday Indi
cate Hundreds of Letters "C
Have Been Found on Resi
dences In City and Suburbs.
What is tba real purport of tha let
ters and character! found upon the
- walls and door-Jambs of Oregon homes?
This Is a question that is interesting
' residents o f cities and towns of the
state. Several possible explanations
have been suggested, but only from
. Marshfield has come the claim that
... committees of the Red Cross left the
... letters there as a check upon houses
visited.
Ma it Portland householders were
surprised yesterday to observe letters
marked in lead pencil on the walls near
' the doors of their homes, at a height
- of about five feet from the floor.
Reports published in The Oregonlan
...yesterday from Eugene, telling of the
, appearance of a mysterious letter C
at front doors of numerous houses in
Eugene and Marshfield. caused hun
Creda of householders to look for mark-
. Insrs at their own front doors, and re
ports made to the police station and
', other places indicated that hundreds
'. were rewarded by the finding of mark-
Ings.
Explanation Clvea Credence.
One woman called up the police de
partment to report that there were
three of five residences in a block near
' East Thirty-second and Market streets
that bore the initial "C" near the door
jamb at a height of about five and a
' half feet. No marks whatever were
found on the other two houses. All
appeared to have been made recently.
This woman, who was of an investi
gating turn of mind, called up friends
- In other parts of the city and received
' reports from two localities, one in the
vicinity of Thirty-sixth and Broadway,
and one neighborhood on the West Side,
that markings were found In both lo
calities, but until the Investigation was
" made by this woman and her friends
the fact had not been, observed.
An explanation was vouchsafed for
the appearance of the markings by a
representative of a Chicago company
',' that sells a variety of merchandise to
consumers through the medium of
- agents, that the mysterious letters are
probably the work of some solicitor.
- who adopts this method of checking the
Aucaiuica no canvasses.
Rif Peddlers Use Marks.
leaving a symbolic mark on houses
ill kkmm MMmmmmm
v
J " " v -
. jZnrc? JBennett, Jar of
" Tfyr &'4ts6 Sfious on Cart A"
At Liberty
TODAY'S FILM FEATURES.
Sunset Clara Kimball Toung,
"The Price She Paid."
Star Mildred Harris, "For Hus
bands Only."
Columbia Thomas Santschi, "The
Still Alarm."
Majestic Dorothy Phillips, "The
Risky Road."
Peoples "To Hell With the Kal-
ser." -
Liberty Enid Bennett, "The Big
gest Show on Earth."
Globe Louise Huff, "Destiny's
Toy."
Circle Mary Pickf ord, "Less Than
the Dust."
f ENTERAL. PERSHING and Theodore
I Roosevelt In photoplays Is what
William Fox, one of tle most ag
gresslve of producers, is promising the
film world within the next few months.
TX'V. xr A m &( Tt-Ill TTrl-w t.. . 1.
canvassed Is a common practice of ""' . . . . " 1,1 w'
Syrian rug peddlers," said this man. ot lno ersn'ns picture, said to be an
: who is informed upon the wavs of the intimate romantic story of General
soliciting salesman, ' and it has been I Pershing s rise from a barefoot Mis
. quite generally adopted by others. By sourl lad to the command of the Ameri
- means or various methods the mark is I can Army In France.
made to serve a purpose where it is the "You will see Pershlne on the Mia
desire to canvass a locality thoroughly, sourf farm, later as school teacher, his
instance, a line unaer tne letter life at West Point, as an Indian fighter.
o ii u answer 10 ine oeii, m tne Spanish War. united States Mill
inuusn 11 was apparent tne people were tarr Attache In .To nan iimltir ih.
nome. a piain initial letter usually Moros In the Philippine Islands, on the
. uicaus iuhi iao peupie were not at
home, find Is USftri Ms a man. nf rotrrr -
nitlon that no mistake has been made front and, back door at the Link home.
. when another call Is made to try to Underneath the letter at the back door
Iind the residents. When the neoDle ,a " - company, Aansaa
have been seen no mark in made." City, Missouri." Two different mark
One borne owner in the Parkrose ,na are usually made in connection
district was Informed by his wife that wlth the "c- 11 either has a small
marks had been placed on their house cross inside the curve at the bottom, or
fully three weeks ago and upon inquiry straigni line unaerneatn tne letter,
found that almost every house of that Mrs- K- s- Bryson, secretary of the
neighborhood hnr th mvxti -a" i-ane county cnapter or tne tiea uross,
A fon Rv nii.n t (h. ...t I and Mrs. W. P. Sell, chairman of the
ymbol is that the mark was placed committee which has been engaged in
i. ..n.i. with the work of weighing and measur.
they were satisfied the marks were
rirl.i in ,o,.. .,, (hi. "J mciuuc.o u an, nu yyvm.
m,u- . v... ,T.Jr V. : organization.
Mexican frontier and later In England
and France" is the Fox promise.
"Put the Flag on the Firing Line'
is the name of the Theodore Roosevelt
picture, details of which have not yet
been announced. The famous ex-Presi
dent is said to be the leading figure
in the photo-drama.
Screen Gossip.
Seena Owen, George Walsh's wife.
has been engaged to play opposite
Charles Ray. Seena has been out of
pictures ever since she was in Portland
on a filming trip. She became ill and
could not complete the picture In which
she was leading woman for hubby
George.
Bryant Washburn and Florence VI
dor is another Btellar combination
Paramount is soon to offer.
m
Mary Pickford hasn't gone back to
work yet.
.
Marie Pavlsi playing leads for Tri
angle, has changed her first name to
Yvonne, and Ann Kroman, after play
ing leads with Bill Farnum, changed
hers to Ann Forest.
It is reported that Wellington Cross.
of vaudeville fame, has canceled all
two-a-day contracts and will start
working as a moving picture actor im
mediately. Wellington has been flirt
ing with the producers ever since he
arrived in Los Angeles.
-YOU - ".
Better Not , X-- Vf?Vv
Miss This s
."'. "Ws"
' . . V J "T
Everybody's pleased with this bill they 1
are even talking about it on the streets T
and well they may talk, for its . ;
"THE BIGGEST h f
SHOW ON EARTH" f i V J
De Luxe Performances 1 i s
2 to 5 P. M. and 7 to 11 P. M.J ' I
TOMORROW
LAST CHANCE Four-Year-OId Four-Minute Man
KNOX PRICE
The Boy Wonder of the Age
IF YOU'RE
NOT BUSY r
BETTER GET j 9?!, g5? 9-40
THE MISSUS j -15' 8'15' 9.
AND COME ON I '
DOWN TONIGHT ,jU....a.T... ...!T ..n i , -
' ..- I - .
A Large Stock of the
Following:
SHIPBUILDING
SUPPLIES
Always on Hand
hi to 12-inch Steel and genuine
Wrought Iron. Pipe standard op
extra heavy. Malleable, Castiron,
Flanged and Screwed Fittings
standard or extra heavy. Lunken
heimer Valves, Brass andIron
standard or extra heavy.
THE GAULD CO.
12th and Everett Sts.
Broadway 4301, A 6253.
EAST SIDE MILL &
LUMBER CO.
Lumber Manufacturers
Foot of Spokane Avenue
Portland, Oregon
ALBINA ENGINE &
MACHINE WORKS
INC,
Win. Corn root. President
STEEL SHIPBUILDERS
Plant and General Office, Portland,
Oregon.
suming- tnat tne tr stands for "com
mittee." that solicitors in recent war
AI-BAXT RESIDENCES MARKED
mark to identify houses visited, but
General Frank McCrillis, of the Red
Cross drive, states positively that no
such markings were used In the Red
Cross campaign under authority 4t the investigation Conducted, but No So-g-eneral
committee. I
Residents of the Rose City Park dls- I lution Reached
WAV . .....iln.l n.. ........ T i 11. I
marks which appeared on their doors.
porch posts and door-jambs last night. I ioor casings or more man nair ine
Some were greatly perturbed and many residences of Albany were marked this
calls came into the police station. Some I morning with a letter "C. The mys
It li said believed the markings were I terious marks have aroused consid
In the nature of a threat and asked for I erable speculation and officers have
police protection. conducted an investigation without
Patrolmen were Instructed to keep a gathering any solution to the situation.
sharp lookout and to arrest offenders Whether the work was all done last
Immediately upon detention. I night or whether part or all of It was
I done previously and the marks were
THEORY OF CANVASSERS GIVEN I not noticed until reports were pub
lished of similar markings n Eugene,
Marshfield and other places is not
Officers or Red Cross Organization known. Many people insist, however.
, . I that the markings are new. In almost
Deny .Knowledge. aIi cases they appear to have been
TTTfJKNT!. fir. Ana- i? rsnii,i i made recently and some people who
Vi nr,E,n(., tt mviturlAiii mark, i
I washed or painted their door casings
door casings at homes tn various parts recently insist that the marks were
of Lane County Is yet unexplained, but I V" niguu
the theory Is advanced that they were
t..o.V. WOMAN DIES
The discovery that more than one
to investigation, which gradually re- MJT Messages of Sympathy Sent to
vealed that the marking, was general.
not only in Eugene, but in other parts
of the county. Springfield houses gen-I
.rally have been marked.
- Marks at the home of David Link in
Eugene support the theory that they
were made by canvassers. The myster-
Allen and Miriam Todd.
Tha many friends of Miss Miriam
Todd and Allen Todd, Jr., are sending
them messages' of sympathy on the
passing of their mother, Mrs. Allen
:ious letter "C." faintly printed with a Todd Sunday night at her home. 265
lead pencil and about as big as a half
dollar, appears on the sills of both the
Thirteenth, near Jefferson street.
Mrs. Todd had been ill for the past
year, and prion to that time she was
prominent socially and In club circles.
She was president of the Portland
Shakespease Study Club for two years
and a leader in the club's social and
dramatic work and later active in pa
triotic affairs.
Her son. Allen, arrived last night
from Camp Lewis to make arrange
ments for the funeral, which will be
in charge of the Flnley undertaking
parlors. Miss Miriam Todd formerly
attended St. Helen's Hall and is well
known among the younger set.
The National Smoke
Hi
6;CIG5R
Better than most 10-centers
J. B. SMITH CO.. Distributors.
LIQUOR CACHE DISCOVERED
Tourist Car Arriving From Califor
nia Brings 174 Pint Bottles.
Officers Phillips and Teeters, of the
I war emergency squad, made an inspec
tion of sleeping-cars yesterday when a
train arrived from the south.
Close inspection of a tourist car re
sulted In finding 174 pint bottles of
whisky hidden under the roof over the
entrance to the car. A freshly painted
section directly above the door at
tracted their attention and. being re
moved, disclosed 29 packages of liquor,
each containing six pint bottles.
The porter in charge of the car on
the trip from San Francisco had not
been found late yesterday.
BIG CONTRACT LET
500 Ship Winches to Be Made
by Portland Firm.
MORE MEN ARE REQUIRED
Machines Will Be Csed to Equip
Steel Ships and Closing: of Deal Is
Surprise to Many Because of
Statements by Mr. Piez.
Construction of 600 winches., the
largest single order of the character
ever placed in Portland and probably
on .tne facuic coast. Is to be under
taken by the Helser Machine Works
through a contract entered into with
the Emergency Fleet Corporation by
Jack Helser, who has been in the East
for a few weeks and is expected home
tne last of the week.
ine wincnes. it is understood, are
for steel ships, and as 10 are required
for each vessel the order will provide
ior tne ntung out of a large fleet.
The contractor has agreed to deliver
6a winches each month, and as impor
tant and expensive additions have been
made to the Twenty-second-street plant
during me past tew months, it la not
questioned that the terms of the con
tract will easily be compiled with.
Also tne force of from 65 to 75 men.
which has been maintained there up to
the time of the expansion of shop fa
cilities, will be largely augmented, and
probabilities are future efforts will be
concentrated on the production of
winches. It has been the system in
Unost plants to which the Emergency
Fleet Corporation has awarded orders
for boilers and other equipment in
number, that they have been kept busy
along the same lines, following out the
general ideas of the officials in the big
ship organization that standardization
proves the most productive.
The Helser plant has been identified
with machine work for. vessels since
the present activity manifested itself.
besides which they have handled con
siderable overhauling and repair work
on older Government vessels. Closing
the contract for the 500 winches came
as a surprise to some, beeause of an
explanation made last month by Charles
Plez, vice-president of the Emergency
Fleet Corporation here, on being im
portuned on behalf of the machine shop
and boiler shop interests to allot more
such work here, that it was desired to
keep as much equipment as possible in
course of manufacture in the middle
states, where some excellent plants
were available and their previous pro
duction either eliminated or cut down
to a marked degree because of the war.
There are advantages in ordering ship
equipment In the West for vessels
building at coast ports, particularly in
Winter, when snow conditions in the
East might block transportation routes
or seriously delay car movement; while
the open Winter along the Pacific slope
makes it possible to manufacture the
gear and ship it promptly to any of the
yards in Oregon, Washington and California.
ment Railroad Administration today received
word that the order discontinuing export
bills of lading which was to become ef
fective September 30 has been rescinded.
The news was received with considerable
enthusiasm by merchants and shippers, as
the enforcement of the order would have
created a great deal of confusion and ex
pense to the big shippers of exports, it .is
claimed.
A fire which broke out aboard the
schooner Honoipu lying in the stream at
Eureka about 11 o'clock this morning caused
the destruction of between 10.000 and zu,
000 feet of dry lumber in the center of her
deckload. also considerable damage to sail
and rigging. The fire ignited from the
breaking of a gasoline pump located on the
deck between the foremast and mainmast
and burned for two hours. It was finally
extinguished, at least as far as could be seen
by the pumps of the steamer Phoenix, which
went alongside. The extent of the damage
cannot be determined until - the deckload
has been removed.
The biggest catch of codfish ever known
Is materializing this season, according to
advices here today. The last vessel to re
turn from Pirate Cove was loaded to the
limit with the catch, even the deck being
filled with fish in barrels. The advices say
that the codfish have run closer to snore
on account of floating ice. Another factor
contributing to the big catch has been the
incentive of the fishermen to make a big
winning. '
They have been paid at the rate of 8 cents
for each fish, or $80 a thousand. Some of
the men have earned thousands of dollars
and will return to their families with enough
to keep them in comfort for a long time.
CREWS GET READING MATTER
Harbor Patrol and Knights of CO'
lumbus Make Tars Happy.
New vessels recently placed in com
mission here have been abundantly
supplied with reading matter and the
last to get ready for sea has been
given a supply of stationery also
through the efforts of Carl Prehn, fet
ing harbormaster, and Frank Whalen,
secretary of Portland Council, Knights
of Columbus.
Mr. Prehn began the system of put
ting books and magazines aboard the
ships, having only a limited store for
each and that was obtained through
the co-operation of wholesale magazine
and news dealers. On learning of the
work being carried on, Mr. Whalen in
formed Mr. Prehn that there was abun
dant reading matter at the Knights of
Columbus Club, so some of that has
been taken to the vessels during the
past few days.
One crew yesterday sent their thanks
to the acting harbormaster through
members of the harbor patrol, and said
they were decidedly pleased to be as
sured of something to read during the
nights to be spent at sea.
SLACKERS ARE WARNED
SHIPYARDS MUST NOT BE USED TO
GET DEFERRED CLASSIFICATION.
Pacific Coast Shipping Notes.
SAN FRANCISCO. Anr. 12 r.9n-l.l
The traffic efficiency, bureau of t& Govern-
Marine Xotes.
Inspection of the steel steamer Western
Maid, floated by the Northwest steel com
pany July 8, was continued yesterday by
United States titeamvessel inspectors JSd
wards and Wynn. She will probably leave
on her trial trip today from the Willam
ette Iron & Steel Works.
Changes of masters recorded at the Cus-
tom-House include A. Seimby. signed on
the steamer Ocklahama. in place of T. A.
Lowerv: Chester Turner, on the steamer
Undine, relieving L. O. Kosford, and Fred
erick Hagestrom on the steamer lone, vice
E. Ellis.
To carry en instruction ' In steel ship
building plants, Newton Van Dalsem, of
the education and training department ot
the Emergency Fleet Corporation, has ar
rived in the city from the East and was
accompanied from Seattle by C. J. Tilden,
who is in charge of the teaching in steel
plants of Oregon and Washington. Me
chanics at airterent plants win De desig
nated as Instructors and after a course
under Mr. Van Dalsem for six weeks will
Impart their knowledge to men in classes.
J. H. Abbott carries on similar work in
the wooden shipyards ot the Oregon Dis
trict, y
In company with C. w. Tebault, manager
in Oregon for the National Service Sec
tion of the Emergency Fleet Corporation.
Dr. D. C. Tremaine and Sergeant ' Joseph
B. Hathaway, who spoke to shipyard work
ers here during the past two weeks, went
to Coos Bay plants yesterday.
Columbia River Bar Report.
NORTH HEAD. Aug. 12. Condition of the
bar at 6 P. M. Sea choppy; wind northwest,
28 miles.
River at 6 P. M hydrograph ont of order.
Tides Tuesday at Astoria.
High. I Low.
K-At a xr a 1 ft!1i A. at a f t
0:19 Pt M..7,5 leetl 0:57 P, It..l.J feet Northwest has made final arrangements
John II. Stevenson Asks Local Boards
of State to Report Specific Cases
to His Department.
Due to comments that there are In
stances of shirkers and slackers using
shipyards as a harbor, employment
there being a reason for placing men
of draft ages in the deferred classifica.
tion list, John H. Stevenson, branch
officer for the Emergency Fleet Cor.
poratlon in classification and transfer.
has addressed a communication to local
boards in every county of the etate,
asking that - information of specific
cases of the character be forwarded to
his department.
"Men who are not doing their best
will be speedily dealt with, and we
would like to know from anyone of
such cases, he said yesterday. It is
the policy of the Government to defer
men from military duty, and the fact
they are of draft age and employed in
yards is not to be taken as prima facie
evidence that they are shirkers, but if
they do not do their best work and
boast of the fact, it is apparent they
defeat the ends of the system.
There was a survey made recently
on the baseball situation, and of sev
eral thousand men in the yards of
Oregon in the deferred class, only 11
were found of draft age who are ball
players of the class called professional,
and of those men not all were in class
1 by any means. We found that the
ballplayers as a rule were older men
and. those having families.
WAGE SESSIONS AT CAPITA!
Macey Commission Is Now Consider
lng Conference Results. "'
Regarding conferences held last week
by Emergency Fleet Corporation off!
cials with Pacific Coast . shipbuilders
and representatives of employes, at
Philadelphia, it was reported that an
agreement had been reached regarding
working conditions and that 'recom
mendations had been formulated to be
presented to the Macey Wage Commis
sion at Washington, where the first
session was to have been convened yes
terday.
There have been different reports
reaching the city from the conferences,
one to the effect the Mare Island scale
had been adopted, but no official re
ports have been given out by Portland
corporations, and it is taken to mean
an early decision is expected from the
Macey commission. The representa
tives of Pacific Coast builders and em
ployes were given to understand when
the conference was arranged by .Di
rector-General Schwab and Vice-President
Piez, of the Emergency Fleet Cor
poration, that whatever action was
taken would go into effect immediately.
WESTERN SCOUT IS LAUNCHED
Seattle Matron Comes Here to Start
New Carrier on Way.
Mrs. C. D. Bowles, of Seattle, whose
husband is interested in the Northwest
Steel Company, was sponsor yesterday
for the hull of the 8800-ton steamer
Western Scout, which was floated at
4:03 o clock. Mrs. Bowles was pre
sented with a gold vanity box imme
diately afterward. The Western Scout
the 15th vessel the company has
launched,- the last three in slightly
more than a month, as the Western
Maid was floated July 8 and the West
ern Comet July 23.
As soon as a towboat went alongside
the Western Scout yesterday she was
headed for the plant of the Willamette
Iron & Steel Works, where her ma-
hlnery is ready for installation. The
for Its own fitting out plant, which
will be constructed immediately north
of the present property. Land was ob
talned from the Portland Lumber Com
pany having a frontage of 623 feet and
with fully 100 feet more at the North
west's yard that can be used for moor
ing purposes, it is figured two vessels
can be worked on there at the same
time. It is hoped to have the plant
ready In November.
TRIAL TRIPS ARE GIVEN TWO
Point Adams and Commandant
. Challes Ready for Delivery.
' On official trial yesterday were two
of the Portland-built fleet, the 3800
ton steel ship Point Adams, last of
those in the water at the plant of the
Albina Engine & Machine Works, and
the French steam auxiliary schooner
Commandant Challes, of the 20 ships
being constructed by the Foundation
Company for the French government.
There have been five vessels turned
over to the Government by the Albina
plant and the Point Adams will be de
livered in a day or two, leaving nine
ships yet to be floated. Due to de
lays in the receipt of steel the vessels
now on the ways are about in the same
stage of completion, so when the next
ship is -launched there will be more
to follow in close order.
The Foundation Company has de
livered four ships to the French and
two additional are to be formally turned
over this week. Quick work on fit
ting out the vessels is enabling the
company to clear the slip at the north
end of the yard and when more berths
are open additional snips win be
launched.
SPEED OFFICER HITS TACKS
Oregon City Patrolman Has Un
known . Enemies.
OREGON CITY, Or., Aug. 12. (Spe
cial.) As a protest against the action
of Speed Officer Meads, persons un
known sometime. Saturday night scat
tered dozens of roof tacks at the door
of Meads' "dugout" on the East Eighty
second street road. The tacks were
carefully placed and three punctures
resulted before Officer Meads discov
ered the cause.
Six arrests were made Saturday and
Sunday. Abe Brugger and J. L. Ber
rldge paid fines of J10 each, and J.
Wilson and G. W. Soyter $15 each. J.
Newall paid 825 and Mrs. A. Smith
was fined 820 for passing a car when
another machine was approaching.
H. Hartley, of Portland, was fined
$50 and costs for a little Joyride party
between Clackamas and Portland at
1:30 Sunday morning.
We manufacture it: Shipbuilders
BOAT SPIKES
BOLTS
SHIP RIVETS
NORTHWEST STEEL CO.
Portland, Oregon
The Largest Manufacturers of Light
weight Drag Saw In the World.
MOTOR WORKS, IXC.
Engineers. Machinists. Founders.
Manufacturer of the Famous
TAIGHAN PORTABLE DRAG SAW
475 E. Main St,
Portland. Or.
Specialty Foundry &
Machine Works
Iron and Brass Castings
OF EVERY DESCRIPTION.
Moulding Machines Used
Special Ratea on Small Work.
Seventh and Belmont. Portland, Or.
T. Mendiicksen
l. Oahm
Phone Broad
way 1S81
Phone Home
A mat
1 and 3 North Flint St. Cor. Ankenj St.
rorxianu, ur.
Neustadter Bros.
Manufacturers of
"Boss of the Road"
Overalls
STANDARD SHIRTS,
PORTLAND, OREGON.
Logging Supplies
Railroad and Contractors' Equipment
"SHAY" LOCOMOTIVES,
Stewart Bros. Co.
HOFIUS EQUIPMENT CO.
Phones Marshall 410, A 1410.
A. R. POPPLETON
ELECTRICAL MACHINERY AND
REPAIRS.
District Agent
Century Electric Co., St. Loots, Ha.
Single and Polyphase Motors.
71 Front St., Portland, Or.
TRIUMPH
MACHINERY CO.
General Machinery Merchants
SHIPBUILDERS, ATTENTION!
PORTLAND, OIL
ELECTRIC STEEL FOUNDRY
4
SHIP AND MACHINERY STEEL CASTINGS
QUALITY. TWENTY-FOURTH AND YORK STREETS. SERVICK,
rkoneaAIarahall 325, Hume A .. . . . x'ortlaad UreKuai