..lMJLUIIUk rUi(
AUDIT OF SCHOOL
BOOKS DEFEATED
Directors Sommer and Orton,
-Supported in Telegram From
Director Plummer, Vote No. .
iTWO OTHERS FAVOR IT
hi?-'-:-----. '" ' llu , , - -
Traveling and Campaign Ex
X penses Must Remain Mystery j
b Ne wDesk Bids Called For.
Resolution calling for an audit of
the books of the school j district by
the. county auditor back ; to June I,
1816, was defeated at meeting of
the school board Monday evening
y the votes of Chairman E. A. Som
5mer and Director Geor?8 M. Orton.
Director O. M. Plummer was not
present, but sent a telegram saying
hat the board should 1 not allow
themselves to be stampeded by the
Taxpayers league Into having the
Audit made, and that he was opposed
to It. Director- A. C. Newill made
motion to have the action taken.
tit) was seconded by Director Geo.
B. Tmohas and botn voted for the
Measure. ' ' J -
H Reopening of the bids for school desks,
tabling of the measure to have the
eourts determine the legality of trips
"for school directors and advertising
'Campaigns for bond issues, and a dis
cussion of the mysterious letter received
1 connection with the former bids sub
mitted for. the school desk contract,
were the other outstanding features of
'.the session.
THEIR PliACE, THEY sat
" Reasons assigned by Sommer and
Lbrton for thetr negative votes in the
"matter of the audit of the school books
J were - identical. In substance, these
were that both 'directors felt .that be
; cause they had not been on the board
I back, as far as June 1, 1915. it was not
'exactly their place to authorize any in
vestigation of the records for that full
period. That It was not up to them to
'question the transactions .of their pred
:cessors, which might have been irreg
ular was stoutly maintained by both.
They said that If they had been on the
hoard for -that period, they would be
willing to favor such a measure. Only
'.those who were on the, board during the
years back to 1915 should be allowed to
'order ; light thrown on their own acts,
Sommer and Orton held. .
;buck passed to pixmmeb
However, after Plummer's , telegram
iwai read saying that he was- opposed
;jto being "stampeded" Into an investi
' cation of the books, both Sommer and
lOrtoni said that they would leave the
matter to Plummer and that if he
; Would make a motion to that effect,
.they would vote for it.
", Kewill and Thomas who spoke at
length In favor of the audit, said that
'they realized the hopelessness of ob
taining- a passage of the resolution
land Orton. They said that - Summer
would never make a motion for it and
i'that his telegram was suficient proof
of it. j That there might be some chance
!ot it fhext year "was partially proposed
'In the message from .the absent dlrect
!or who spoke of having, an amount for
such -a purpose put in the coming bud
!get; for 1920, but that was discounted
by ' Newill" and Thomas who said it
.was an evasive delay that would ef
fectually bury the measure.
II! Sommer and Orton spoke of favoring
jan. audit for a year back, but .. neither
,oiade; any motion for such a move.
TAXPAYERS WAST FACTS
Director Thomas characterized the
resolution for an audit as more than
'amotion to have an investigation made
" into the records of the school business
'for the past four years.
"i do not believe," he said, "that the
iTaxpayers' league merely wish this
-audit made to learn whether or not
.the. books have been properly balanced
for the last four years. They want
ifnformatlorv more specif la as to just
how the hundreds of thousands of dol
lars spent by the board during this
period has been given out.
; "It is not really an audit that they
desire," he said, ''they want to learn
Where . the money has gone and the
. manner in which it went.
; "And I for one," he declared, "believe
that they are entitled to U and I am go
' "Red Crown" is all
pure, , straight-distilled,
all -refinery gasoline
every drop crowded
yrith dependable power.
Red Crown has the
full and continuous
chain of boiling points
necessaryfor easy start
ing, quick and smooth
acceleration, steady, de
pendable - power and
long mileage. Look for
the Ked Crown sign be
fore you fill.
STANDARD OIL COMPANY
iwsuieraiaj
GMLGasdliize
- a I
,r- .4r-iT ""t. r 4 tX J
for it., I certain!? am wining to have
an audit jtnade of any of the. transac
tions since I have been on the board
and see' no reason why, since It is up
to the school board to order it. the in
vestigation should sot go back as far as
we can legally: make It. . My predeces
sors on the board might be willing for
the same thing but I, fall to see how
they can order it, if they are not on the
board."
THAT MY8TEEIOITS IETTEE
Prior to the .vote on the audit, the
question of the 1 "mysterious", letter re
ceived by Director Thomas in connection
with the award of the bids for school
desks to the Northwest School Furni
ture company was brought up In the
shape of a letter to the board from the
Northwest company denying any knowl
edge of the mysterious missive in ques
tion. It requested the , board to give
them an opportunity f seeing the letter
as it was reputed to have been written
on their stationary and was supposed to
throw some light on alleged irregulari
ties In the handling of the bids on the
contract which they were awarded. They
denied that there bad been any irreg
ularities whatsoever. -J
Before any action was taken Direc
tor Newill produced a letter from the
A. H. Andrews company in which they
asked him to 'inform them whether
statements published in a local dally as
emanating from Chairman Sommer in
regard to the letter were correct. The
article containing Sommer'i alleged ut
terances was, they intimated, libelous
in that it Inferred that they were re
sponsible for the letter and that it was
a frame-up on their part to cause their
rival, the Northwest School Furniture
company, to Ie 4he contract. -They, de
nied having anything to do with the
letter. i .
RTOIT IS IRRITATED
During the ; discussion of the matter
Director Sommer became very much ir
ritated and threatened tof leave the meet
ing and go home unless they dropped the
subject. He s said that be had many
things more Important than a foolish ar
gument over the subject of the myste
rious letter. His threat to Jeave the
meeting prevailed and the letter was or-
.dered put on file.
t was voted to. bold a special meet
ing at 5 :80 Tuesday afternoon to receive
sealed bids on the contract for school
desks and thus eliminate- any further
controversy over, the first award, which
went to the Northwest School Furniture
company.
" Request of Clerk R. H. Thomas for
approval of-bills and claims amounting
to $68,938.98 was halted in Its perfunc
tory passage when Director George
Thomas said : :
"I want to frankly admit that I don't
know anything about those bills and
that I would like to before they are
authorized for payment. It is by hand
ling affairs in this sort of a manner
that Is making trouble for us. We never
see the bills. We don't even know what
they are for and yet we pass them with
a tap of the gavel."
LEFT TO CLERK
Clerk Thomas, in response to the
director's remarks, said that for the
past two years, slnces a resolution
passed by the board, ' none of the bills
were ever checked by the directors and
admitted that it was left to him entirely.
After some discussion over a $5000
Item for lumber ordered during an emer
gency without the usual fomula of get
ting bids, the claims for $68,938.96 were
approved unanimously. m
The matter of bringing suit to have
the validity of the expenses of traveling
directors and publicity campaigns de
termined by the courts, which came after
the opinion of District Attorney Walter
II. Evans holding that such expenditures
were unlawful, was tabled by the board
on an unanimous vote. The motion was
made by ' Director Orton and seconded
by Director Newill.
"No use of spending any money for
this purpose," said Chairman Sommer,
expressing his opinion ef the measure.
"I don't see any sense in my suing
myself, affrrmed Director Thomas.
OLD niCH COST AGAIN
A letter from the secretary of the
School Janitors and Helpers' union ask
ing general Increases In pay was read
and referred to the finance wmmittee.
It asked $6 a day for janitors, $5 a day
for helpers, double time for overtime,
Sundays and holidays, an f -hour work
ing day and the appointment of a su
perintendent of janitors.
Dr. Henrietta Moore, head of the
department of English In the Univer
sity of Idaho, was appointed to be head
of the department of English in the
Lincoln high school and acting dean of
the girls to fill the -position left vacant
by the resignation of Dr. A. P. McKinlay,
formerly head of the department of lan
guages in that school. It. A. Dillon was
made head of the department of mathe
matics at'thCFranklin high school upon
the recommendation of Superintendent
D. A. Grout.
Ex-Service Man Dies
Centralis, Wash., Aug. 2$. Robert
Conner, a returned service man. aeed
28, died Sunday. He Is survived by his
mother, Mrs. Mary Conner. He was
born in Clackamas county. Oregon.
Quality
Gasoline
KOI
APPEAR OVER DOORS
OF SEVERAL HOMES
Markings Vary ron ; Different
Houses; Rose City Park
Residents Disturbed. . .;
' Mysterious markings on doorways
of their houses have aroused the sus
picions pt residents of Hose ? City
Park in the neighborhood of 64th
street. The ; markings vary on? dif
ferent houses and .are capable of
wide range of interpretations. V? ;
J. A. Bamford. 648 East Sixty-fourth
street north, discovered a CX sign drawn
with a lead .pencil above his front door
way Monday .afternoon and immediately
potifled the police. Investigations were
made but the officers were unable to de
termine the signification of the mark
ing. Other houses In the neighborhood are
marked with numerals or combinations
of numerals and : Initials enclosed in
circles, squares snd triangles. ; The
marks are usually placed above the door
ways and are too high for the reach of
children, according to Bamford. Solu
tions of the mystery offered by persons
in the neighborhood are weird and
varied. Some maintain that the houses
marked are designated for future
burglary and 'others insist that the
markings are messages from the spirit
world, while one or two housewives claim
that the marks are made by peddlers of
tea and spices.
The police admit they are baffled by
the appearance of the mysterious mark
ings and strict watch is being kept for
the perpetrators. According to Bamford
and. his neighbors the marks are mnde
upon their doorways during the nitii-t
hours and no one has yet seen the mis
creant at work.
Pacific Employes .
Along Coast Eeject
Compromise Scale
t "
San Francisco. Aug. 26. (L N. S.)
About 15,000 employes of the Pacific
Telephone & Telegraph company have
rejected the compromise wage agreement
which served as a basis for the settle
ment of the recent telephone strike. This
became known today following a canvass
of the referendum vote of the workers
in Coast citjes.
This rejection of the compromise
agreement will necessitate a reopening
of the wage negotiations between the
company and workers. If the company
does not voluntarily then grant an in
crease, it is stated by union officials
here that a strike vote will be taken.
Likelihood of a strike could not pos
sibly loom before October 1. 1
Under the compromise granted the
workers, the men were given 96 day
while a scale of from $12 to 919 weekly,
depending upon experience and site of
cities, was given the girls. The men had
demanded $6.40 a day and the women a
scale of from $12 to $24 weekly, after
a period of service extending five years.
Yakima Showered
Elks With Melons
During Convention
Yakima, Wash., Aug. 26. Edward Me
Williams, who had charge of the "Melon
Patch" during the Elks' state conven
tion, figures that he distributed free to
convention visitors 60 tons of water
melons and canteloupes during the three
days of the convention. With the melons
600 gallons of cider was served. On the
eve of the departure of the guests a
carload of melons was given away In
two hours. Seventy-rfive watermelons
and three crates of canteloupes were put
in each Pullman sleeper on the f Elks'
special trains. Those who ; drove to
Yakima in automobiles were : given all
the melons they would stow away in
their cars.
Politz Clothing Co.
Doubles Floor Space
By Use of Basement
Extensive improvements on the ground
floor and basement of the building at
the southwest corner of Sixth and Wash
ington have Just been completed by the
Politz clothing company. The firm has
practically doubled its floor space by
fitting up the basement as -a salesroom
for overcoats.
Cabinets with glass fronts have been
installed In the basement and In the
sales room on the ground floor. Com
modious dressing rooms are also pro
vided and every modern faeintv
" vwu-
ducting a high class clothing business
aw-.i. ie.uu A L Ul LilC A- OlltZ
company's equipment.
10-Year-01d Boy
Of Pendleton Is
Eeported Missing
Missing from his home In i Pendleton
since Sundav. 10-va.r-nlA Tvslhnw. na
is believed to be in Portland, : and the
iocai ponce nave Deen asked to help
find him. He is described as having a
fah face, llrht hair and bin ATM. mrtA
wore a black shirt and a pair of over-
- . uivugut umi uo nix some
money in his possession.
Last seen about 11 nVlwif ' Knmi.w
Wm. Jassllo, of St Everett street, was
reported missing to tne local police. He
Is described as 25 years old, 3ark com
plexion, hair and eves, and ibnnt K rt
10 inches tall, weighing 130 pounds. ; He
was oressea in a oiue serge suit and
cap. " . - ...... , - -
River's Body at Crntralia -Centralia,
Wash Aug. 26. The body
ot Edgar Rivers, son of Mr. and Mrs.
Lk R. Rivers . Of " this o.ltv. Whn -aro a
Allied Thursday h near Oregon f City.
wnen ne was crowned rrom a. bridge by
a motor truck, has arrived here and (a
being held pending funeral arrange
ments. .... - ".
. Legion Post Picnics
Marshfield, Aug. 2C. The local Amer
ican Legion post held a big picnic on
Coos river Sunday.
Ratification of the peace treaty is ex
pected by congress before the end of the
week. ....... -. - :. s .
liuurqus to.ijauncii
National Drive to
Prevent Accidents
Railroads In the United States under
federal control will carry on national
accident prevention drive, October IS to
3i. according to word received by J. F,
Orodzkl of the safety bureau of the
O-W. R & N." Launching , of such a
drive was' decided upon by the director
general of railroads.
, Grodiki has also been notified by H.
J. Bell, regional safety director of the
Northwest, that a conference of safety
officials of the region will be held In
Chicago in ; September to formulate
plans for the safety drive. H
Eeedsport's Council .
Holds First Meeting
Reedspert, Aug; 26. At-the 'first meet
ing of the new city council of Reedsport,
with the first Mayor, W. P. Reed, pre
siding, it was decided to secure copies
of the charters of both Marshfield and
North Bend to aid in getting the new
city started. District Attorney Neuner
of Roseburg has been asked to attend
the next meeting to aid In proper or
ganization of the council.
Granaries Are Full;
Wheat Rots in Field
Omaha, Aug. 26. (I. Ni S.) Wheat is
rotting in many fields in Nebraska be
cause the grain elevators are filled, ac
cording to, charges made today by J. J.
Welch, Omaha grain man. who has just
completed a tour of the wheat fields of
the state. Welch's "charges are to be
placed before the United States grain
corporation. v
-All
'-.'.'
lilMt I'iitLPS IS
ELECTED TO TAKE
PLACE OF HOLDER
Change Made Following Resigna
tion of Volunteer General Man
ager of Local Red Cross.
HOLDER HAS WORKED HARD
Successor Organized Base Hos
pital No. 46 and Served With
)t as Chief Nurse.
The resignation of Richard V Holder,
volunteer general manager; the election
of Miss , Grace Phelps to assume his
duties under the title of assistant to the
chairman ; the election of Miss Margaret
IX CVeech to the executive secretaryship
of the home service section rendered va
cant by the resignation of Miss Dorothy
E. Wysor, were features of the weekly
executive committee meeting of the
Portland chapter, American Red Cross,
Monday.
' Holder, formerly a well-known rail
read executive, has urged the commit
tee for some time to replace him on the
grounds that while he is on leave from
the iChicago & Northwestern railroad, he
desires to- devote more time to hla per
sonal affairs. He plans, however, to de
vote much time to the work of the chap
ter. ' . )
He has devoted bis entirj time without
remuneration to the chapter since last
January when Amedee M. Smith, now
you can
ask in a
The LORD SALISBURY
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every demand
It satisfies your taste for
quality your wish for quan
tity and your necessity for
economy.
It's inevitable because the
dominating desire of the
human race is for Quality,
Quantity and
And
20
cents
The reason for the low price is that LORD; SALISBURY is packed
in the most inexpensive and the most attractive machine-made' paper package
instead of the expensive hand-made cardboard box. For these practical reasons
i ' ' v " ' -' -'b---.- ' - ;-:i'--.'v.,:'fe''-;'';.V:-'-;. .,"'--y." f ... y.;;:k v : '."-' ::.'""
U7 .
Guaranteed try
I.
'AA-A "- 'A. i :
-.1 i-i
manager, went on a long vacation. "
Miss Phelps waa with the chapter two
years ago when the organised the teach-
ing and first aid work, later recruiting j
th nursing personnel for base hoepltal
No, 46. with which she served as chief
nurse until its. return to this country for
demobilization, when she was appointed
nursing chief of another unit. : She ia
now resting at her home in Eugene.
Miss Creech, a graduate ef Reed col
lege, created somewhat of a sensation in
Portland by 'her survey of charitable
organizations ome years ago for the
Portland Chamber: of Commerce, and
since that time has held executive posi
tions with social service agencies in the
East and in California.,. Since the "resig
nation of Miss Wysor a month ago she
has been serving as acting executive
secretary in addition to her work as
supervisor, and her success and tact de
termined the committee to elect her
While the majority of the committee
chairmen of the Red Cross in Portland
are men, : the executives now are alt
women. . '..., ' ; ' ; --;" J
Washougal Hotel Is
Damaged by Blaze
Washougal, Wash, Aug. 2. Fire th
the Olsen hotel here Sunday evening for
a time threatened to become serious.
The local fire department and employes
ef the woolen mills nearby brought It un
der control. The fire is supposed - to
have been started by defective electric
wiring in the hall, running up the walls
to the third floor, where it. spread to
all rooms on that floor. The loss was
about 11000, covered by insurance. -
Man and Woman Ray
Be Leaders of Gang
Ixs Angeles, Aug. I. N. S.)-
Arrested here as suspected members of
a' gang of automobile thieves, Lillian
Miller, alias Lillian Baton, and Alfred
Because it contains 28 type of TurkisK tobacco
and is the only ticn-grado Turkish cigarette
in the world that cell for aN little money as
for 15
ci
...... ..mi,, .i.e4 . t( l,. J,v..v i.i'.-y
had traveled through the states of Cali
fornia, Oregon. . Idaho, Washington and
Montana as roan and wife. They may
have to face a Mann act charge while
their activities are being Investigated.
Four 1oys ranging in age from 1 to 1
years old-were found in a bungalow oc-
to
A Woman in St. Johns
Says: .
-66
The
ELECTRIC WASHER
is certainly a marvel! It washes
my husband's shirts as clean as
my table linen and he works in
the shipyards!
J. C. English Co;
Upstairs at
148 Fifth St.
4 " -v5i v
which means thai if .you , don't Uke
LORD SALISBURY Cigarettes you
can get your money back from the dealer. ,
pected of being the leader.
" 1 1 '
Oeneral Increase of about 80 per cent
m the cost of living from June, 13H,to
June, 1919, were shown by tables made
public Saturday by the department of
labor. ,
Vj N (.