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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 2, 1922)
THE MORNING OREGONIAN. MONDAY, JANUARY 2. 1922 CQSVIM1TTEE ON I NOW IflKI TIE Executive Board to Meet on Thursday Afternoon. LEGISLATION IN MUDDLE Current Annual KUltion lias Arti cle Printed Before Solons Failed to Clear Vj Matter. STATUS OK 11125 KXPOSITIOJf. The accompanying article ex plains In detail the present sta tus of the 1925 exposition, which Is featured in a special section of The OreKonlan today. Al though unexpected complica tions in financing the fair have arisen, its sponsors feel confi dent that satisfactory and ade quate means will be found.' Portland has voted overwhelm ingly for the exposition and its proponents are certain that fa vorable sentiment prevails In the state at large. There is every reason to believe that the expo sition will be held, as announced, and will be a credit to Portland and to the state. Owing to the muddle in which the 1925 exposition measures were left when the special. session of the legis lature adjourned Chistmas eve, fair proponents are marking time until next Thursday afternoon, when the executive board of the state-wide fair committee will meet. There Is In the current annual edi tion of The Orcgonian an eight-page section devoted to the 1925 exposition. The articles and illustrations dealing with this subject were prepared sev eral weeks ago following the special election In Portland, wlien the citi zens of this city went on record ly a four-to-one vote in favor of the un dertaking. Coiirne to lie Decided. What course the executive commit tee of the fair will adopt cannot be forecast, since at the present time no programme is being worked out to submit to the board. The upstate members may have some solution to the tangle. - Legal inccedingH may be decided on to test the validity of the measures before the legislature, or the board may formuhite an en tirely new policy with respect to the contemplated exposition. There Is no where a disposition to abandon the project. When the state-wide committee worked out the plan of financing the enterprise. It was agreed that J1,000. 000 should be raised by private sub scription: J2, 000,000 should be raised by a property tax in Portland, and $3,000,000 be raised by a state tax. Portland promptly amended its char ter and committed itself to raise $2,000,000 and named five prominent citizens to handle this money. The people of Portland voted, as stated, four-to-one in favor of the tax. Special Seaalon Held. Upon this showing, a special ses sion of the legislature was called and house Joint resolution No. 3 was in troduced. This designated that a property tax be levied to raise $3,000, 000. Of this sum, to be spread over three years, Multnomah county would contribute one-third, so that out of the total of $6,000,000 required for the exposition, Portland would pay $4,000, 000. Thirty-six members of the house of representatives entered into a mutual agreement not to support a direct property tax, although virtu ally all favored the exposition. A number of the representatives in the agreement signed up with reserva tion s. When these 36 house members were combined, the fair proponents cast about for some other method of financing the fair. A state income tax was suggested, also a sales tax, an amusement tax and a poll tax. Finally It was decided to raise the $3,000,000 by increasing the present tax on gasoline. On this basis the house passed the resolution and the Fletcher gasoline bill. Amendment In Proposed. The resolution wa9 a constitutional amendment to be referred to the peo ple and voted on May 19. The resolu tion created the Oregon 1925 exposi- Apply Ytmir CWstaias 0idk n a BRUNSWICK PHONOGRAPH' 9 S-?4fti II Jisf Urn t i pall: lar or the very latest dance music, may be heard whenever you wish, and played as the greatest artists, soloists or orchestras in the land play them. Brunswick The name stands for all that is fine and 'beautiful in tone, all that is handsome in design and finish, and all that approaches ultimate perfection in mechani cal detail. Prices $65 upward, on easy terms. : tion commission and made constitu tional the gasoline tax, and for some time there has been a question whether the gasoline tax Is constitu tional. The Fletcher bill provided how the gasoline tax was to be ban died. Once in th"h state senate, the reso lution and the revenue bill were sent to the senate committee on roads and highways, which stood five against the resolution and four in favor. Many amendments were offered and ac cepted In committee, among others thai the lecislatura Innread of the governor should name the exposition commissioners. The resolution and revenue bill eventually went before the senate from the committee and for two days was a bone of conten tion. Death Cota Peraonnrl. There are 30 members in the state senate, but-through the death of W T. Hume a few weeks before the spe cial session but 29 answered rollcall Fifteen senators voted for the fair legislation and 14 against it. The presiding officer ruled that these measures, not having received the constitutional majority, had failed to pass. The president of the senate, on an opinion from the attorney general, contended that 16 members are the necessary majority. An ap peal was taken from the decision of the chair and the chair was not bus tained. Such was the status of affairs when the legislature adjourned. The presi dent of the senate, refusing to abide by the successful appeal from .his ruling, declined to sign the resolu tion and bill. The speaker of the house refused to sign them until the president of the senate did so. Thus, the resolution and bill are stilt with out signatures. Illll Off Ballot. The secretary of state will not place the constitutional .amendment on the ballot unless compelled to do so by the courts, through nyinriamus pro ceedings. The governor has nothing to do with' the constitutional amend mertt, but the revenue bill is differ ent, and he has declined to sign it, as the bill Is not in proper shane. Such Is the genesis of the fair legis lation. The executive board of the fair committee will study the situa tion and consider the various angles which It presents. Mandamus pro ceedings may be brought against the secretary of state in order to test the validity of the resolution and Kill, the question of validity being whether 15 or 16 affirmative votes are a con stitutional majority in the senate when there are but 29 living mem bers. The executive board will either agree on legal steps or will decide on initiating a measure for the Novem ber election or evolve some new plan of finance. EVANGELIST t IS MISSING Police Detectives Asked to Searcli for K. K. Dayton. Police detectives yesterday were asked to conduct a search for R. E. Dayton, a traveling evangelist, who has been missing from his room at the Laurel hotel for the last three days. The Inquiry was started by Rev. W. B. Stewart, pastor of the Glencoe Baptist church. Mr. Dayton was to have spoken at the church yesterday, but failed to appear. Inquiry at the hotel developed.' that he had been missing for three days, although mot of his clothes and personal effects were still in his room. -v The missing man was described as being about 45 years old. He is of fair complexion, has brown hair, weighs 175 pounds and Is six feet tall. Bank Interest Acquired. CENTRA LIA, Wash., Jan. 1. (Spe cial.) J. B. Wood has purchased a considerable interest in the Centralia State bank, it was announced yester day. and tomorrow will assume the duties of vice-president of the insti tution. The new bank official has had considerable experience in the banking business in the middle west, CAUTION Wrappers of the New Year's Edition of The Morn . ing Oregonian today will bear this label: New Year's Edition JJnnlanD. (rgan Price will be 5 fents k copy; postage. 6 cents in the United States and, possessions. All other foreign postage will be 12 cents. Now you may have the Bruns wick you lhave so Jong wished for. That Christmas check will go as a first payment and the balance can readily and easily be arranged on monthly pay ments to suit your convenience. And what pleasure you are going to enjoy when the home is flooded with the music you love most; when your favorite melodies, whether classic, operatic, popu MASON AND HAMLIN PIANOS MORRISON ST. AT BROADWAY TMca a-reeu bam niAHei.cs. oaklamo. rnno. am oo SAN MU. IACRAMKNTO. LO. ANIUt PLEA TO SUIN WIFE FROM PURDiN FOUND Slayer Believed to Have Sought Reconciliation. KNOWLEDGE OF SUIT HELD Brother Says ex-Soldier Did Not Know Divorce AVas Granted and Came Here to Stop It- Charles W. Purdin, who killed his divorced wife, Agnes Purdin, and Howard Sigsby in the home of Mrs. Purdin at 448 East Forty-seventh street, shortiy after midnight Satur day, had" returned to Portland from a soldier's hospital at Sawtelle, Cal.. in an effort to effect a reconciliation with his" wife, is t:.e belief of Police Detectives Leonard and Gordon, who continued their investigations Into the double slaying yesterday. Among the effects at the Purdin home there was found a Megram which Purdin sent to his divorced wife on Christmas eve, and which read as follows: "Worried about you. Will you take me back?" Condition Still Critical. This plea, so far as is known, was not answered by Mrs. Purdin. and Purdin, it is believed, left the hospital and returned to Portland in order to plead in person. According to K. M. Purdin, a brother of the slayer, Charles Purdin did not know his wife had obtained a divorce, although he knew that suit had been started, and when he went to her home late Friday night and found her there with young Sigsby. he at that time thought she was still his wife. Turdin is still In a critical condtion at St. Vincent's hosptal, as a result of his efforts to take his own lif by the use of gas, but attending physi cians expressed the belief he would recover. Statement Is Refused. Deputy District Attorney Mowry, police detectives and a court stenog rapher went to the slayer's bedside yesterday afternoon and endeavored to get a statement from him, but he steadfastly refused to tell anything about the double killing or of his actions immediately prior to and after it. O. li. Wattenburger. a taxi driver, told detectives yesterday he had re ceived a telephone call at 12:20 A. M. Saturday, asking him to pick up a fare at East Fiftieth and Division streets. The man then changed his mind almost instantly and asked him to drive to East Fiftieth street and Hawthorne avenue. . Wattenburgcr said his passenger answered in detail the description of Purdin. Coroner Smith announced an In quest will be held early this week, although the exact time has not yet been fixed. First Aid to Be Taught. S1LVERTON, Or., Jan. 1. (Special.) The four L organization of Silver ton is formulating plans for a com munity class in first-aid training. The work Is to be under the super vision of the four L, any one can at tend class, and the instruction will be free of charge. The first meeting is to be held In the Silverton Com munity clubrooms on the evening of January 4. Mrs. T. P. Risteign is chairman. Store Closed Today 65 Years in Portland v' Meier & Frank Company LARGEST DISTRIBUTERS ' OF MERCHANDISE AT RETAIL IN THE NORTHWEST JANUARY CLEARANCE See Happy ' in FT rrjj i" rrr rrr m rrr rr? HUE - r'rVrw rrr ? ra rrr rcr. w. r-- rrr rrr - - - - - i j i lTJ rrr rrr LtT rc rrr rrr rrr L-r tv Vn m ri SKI rrr Every Article (Contract in Tonight's and Tomorrow's Papers a ESTABLISHED 1857 I V 1 New Year to Everybody rr rrr m rr: rpp err 95 rrij rrr rPB'BBF CHJCJ BBB PDA rrr rpr EPF ppp rrrxaiOTg goa m 12 III rc,r zm nun gap B..5S SEE 5m rtr ''"J EJR8 The Meier & Frank Store Established 1857 Fifth, SLxth, Morrison and Alder Streets, Portland, Oregon Lines and Groceries Excepted) Meier & Frank's Great Which Enter the Second Week Tomorrow - HE UUALITY JIUKt of Portland, Oregon FIFTH. SIXTH. MORRISON, ALDER STS irr k wtir.t in t i v i jv mf; ? -fss i R educed SA Watch Our Windows Store Closed Today 65 Lsi -r - i cars in i Portland