COFFEE BREAK
Saturday, July 8, 2017
East Oregonian
Page 5C
OUT OF THE VAULT
Roommate argument leads to brutal death
A
Pendleton man was beaten with
an axe by his longtime roommate
on their front porch after an
argument in August 1930. He died
minutes after police arrived.
On the night of August 10, 1930,
James Jarnagan walked up to the
Pendleton fire chief, W.E. Ringold,
and confessed he had just killed his
roommate, U.G. “Doc” Ruud. When
Ringold brought Jarnagan to the Police
Chief Charles Lemons, Jarnagan went
on to relate, “He’s not dead yet, but he
soon will be.”
Chief Lemons loaded Jarnagan into
a police car and raced to the three-room
home Jarnagan, 55, and Ruud, 63,
had shared for many years just across
the railroad tracks from the Pendleton
Round-Up Grounds. They found Ruud
sitting in a chair on the front porch, his
feet perched on the porch rail, and his
still-smoldering pipe beside him on
the floor. He was unconscious but still
breathing, though barely. An ambulance
was called, but before it could arrive
Ruud died of his injuries.
Jarnagan told his story the following
morning at the police station in front
of Chief Lemons and District Attorney
C.C. Proebstel. He said he and Ruud
were quarreling over cooking and
alcohol, and that Ruud had struck him
during a struggle. To defend himself,
Jarnagan said, he grabbed a heavy axe
and struck Ruud in the head several
times with the blunt part of the axe
head. He was not nervous during
questioning and did not seem worried
about the outcome of the case, but
didn’t seem to remember many details
of the incident.
Police were inclined to doubt
Jarnagan’s story, however, considering
Ruud’s body did not look like it had
been involved in a struggle — rather, it
looked as though Jarnagan had stolen
up behind Ruud and launched a surprise
attack while the older man was relaxing
on the porch. Officers who guarded the
crime scene overnight also discovered
a hammer hidden in Jarnagan’s bed.
And while Jarnagan claimed he had
been drinking the night of the murder,
no liquor was found in the house. The
owner of the home, Jim Spencer, told
authorities that Jarnagan had been told
he would have to move out the day
before the murder took place.
Jarnagan was charged with first-de-
gree murder, and friends took up a
collection to fund his defense. Dr. W.D.
McNary, who had observed Jarnagan at
the state hospital for a month following
the murder, was asked about Jarnagan’s
sanity during the trial. Dr. McNary said
that while Jarnagan was indeed sane,
his mental capacity left him unable to
plot and carry out a deliberate murder.
A plea of guilty to second-degree
murder was accepted by Judge Fee, and
Jarnagan was sentenced to life in an
institution.
■
Renee Struthers is the Community
Records Editor for the East Oregonian.
See the complete collection of Out of the
Vault columns at eovault.blogspot.com
DEAR ABBY
Twins disagree over plan to go their separate ways
Dear Abby: My twin sister
deal with it.
and I are juniors in high school
Please give me your opinion.
and starting to plan to apply to
Also, please give me advice on
colleges. It has always been
how to make my sister under-
assumed that we would go to the
stand that this is nothing against
same college and be roommates.
her. — Twin Sister
Dear Twin Sister: My
My sister still wants it this way.
mother and my aunt were
I, however, think it’s finally time
identical twins. Like you, they
for some separation. We’ve been
Jeanne
“roommates” our whole lives Phillips shared a room and slept in the
same bed for many years. Their
and shared a bed until we were
Advice
parents dressed them alike and
14, when Mom finally let us get
gave them names that were
twin beds for our room.
My sister was hurt and upset when I mirror images (Pauline Esther and
told her I prefer that we go to separate Esther Pauline). Like you, my aunt
colleges, and she took it personally. It is yearned to be an individual. My mother
nothing personal. I love her with all my loved the attention that being a twin
heart. I would just like to finally be an brought. This created serious conflict
individual after us having always being for them later in life.
You deserve the chance to spread
known as “the twins.”
Our mom agrees with my sister and your wings and be your own person.
tells me stories about friends of hers If you do, you will grow from the
whose kids ended up with “roommates experience, and so will your sister. You
from hell.” She says we have always should not have to “sell” her on this, but
gotten along beautifully sharing a room, explain it to your sister that way. Your
so why argue with success? Well, I’m mother should be GLAD that you are
willing to take my chances. If I get a independent.
Dear Abby: I strongly feel this is an
roommate I don’t like, I’ll find a way to
issue many women besides me struggle
with. Maybe you can offer some insight.
My husband and I have been trying
to conceive without success for several
years. I don’t want to reveal our strug-
gles to friends or family, but how do you
handle questions like “Why don’t you
have a baby yet?” and “When are you
giving me grandkids?”
The older we get, the more pointed
these questions become. I don’t know
how to respond. What should I say? I
feel like either lying and saying I’m not
ready yet, or telling the truth about the
possibility of never having children,
although I’m sure the questioner doesn’t
intend to go down the path of “Let’s
discuss my fertility.” — Struggling In
West Virginia
Dear Struggling: I’m sure many of
the questioners have no idea they are
delving into a subject that is painful and
frustrating for you. Perhaps the most
diplomatic answer would be to say, “If
I’m lucky enough to be expecting, I will
let you know.” It shows you are open
to the possibility, and it’s either going to
happen or it won’t.
DAYS GONE BY
100 Years Ago
From the East Oregonian
July 8-9, 1917
An antelope reservation in Oregon
is a project under consideration by
the government biological survey,
according to Dr. Field of Washington,
D.C., who has charge of the game reser-
vation work and who spent yesterday
in the city. He had been visiting the
Klamath reserve and was en route to
Yellowstone. There are a good many
antelope in the southern counties of the
state and the government is considering
protecting them within certain areas to
aid in their increase.
50 Years Ago
From the East Oregonian
July 8-9, 1967
The city fire department extinguished
a grass fire early Friday afternoon after
standing by at the south city limits
while some 12 acres of wheat on the
R.E. Goad place was destroyed before
another fire could be subdued. The grass
fire also caused some damage to a shed
and lumber pile at 1805 S.W. 44th St.,
owned by William Easley. Two trucks
and 19 men answered the call and by 1
p.m. had the blaze extinguished with all
flames kept away from two residences
valued at $18,000. The Goad fire
apparently started in the 800 block on
SE 11th from a weed fire and while the
city couldn’t cross the corporate limits,
the department had two pumpers and 20
men at the scene.
25 Years Ago
From the East Oregonian
July 8-9, 1992
With soaring statistics in hand,
members of the Northeast Oregon
Regional Air Service Task Force
had cause to celebrate Tuesday. A
record-setting 1,112 passengers passed
through Pendleton Airport in June. That
means that Horizon Air, the lone airline
which services the airport, appears
not only likely to remain — but to
expand. Starting in November of 1991,
passengers increased by 21 percent, and
by the end of June 1992 that average
remained firmly in place throughout
the eight-month period. Comparable
air fare coupled with free parking was a
decided draw for many Eastern Oregon
customers.
THIS DAY IN HISTORY
Today is the 189th day
of 2017. There are 176 days
left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in
History:
On July 8, 1947, a
New Mexico newspaper,
the Roswell Daily Record,
quoted officials at Roswell
Army Air Field as saying
they had recovered a “flying
saucer” that crashed onto
a ranch; officials then said
it was actually a weather
balloon. (To this day, there
are those who believe what
fell to Earth was an alien
spaceship carrying extra-ter-
restrial beings.)
On this date:
In 1663, King Charles II
of England granted a Royal
Charter to Rhode Island.
In 1776, Col. John Nixon
gave the first public reading
of the Declaration of Inde-
pendence, outside the State
House (now Independence
Hall) in Philadelphia.
In 1891, Warren G.
Harding married Florence
Kling DeWolfe in Marion,
Ohio.
In 1907, Florenz Ziegfeld
staged his first “Follies,” on
the roof of the New York
Theater.
In
1919,
President
Woodrow Wilson received
a tumultuous welcome in
New York City after his
return from the Versailles
Peace Conference in France.
In
1950,
President
Harry S. Truman named
Gen. Douglas MacArthur
commander-in-chief
of
United Nations forces in
Korea. (Truman ended up
sacking MacArthur for
insubordination nine months
later.)
In
1965,
Canadian
Pacific Air Lines Flight 21,
a Douglas DC-6B, crashed
in British Columbia after the
tail separated from the fuse-
lage; all 52 people on board
were killed in what authori-
ties said was the result of an
apparent bombing.
In
1967, Academy
Award-winning
actress
Vivien Leigh, 53, died in
London.
In
1975,
President
Gerald R. Ford announced
he would seek a second term
of office.
In 1986, Kurt Wald-
heim was inaugurated as
president of Austria despite
controversy over his alleged
ties to Nazi war crimes.
Admiral Hyman G. Rick-
over, widely regarded as
father of the nuclear navy,
died in Arlington, Virginia.
In 1994, Kim Il Sung,
North Korea’s communist
leader since 1948, died at
age 82.
In 2011, former first lady
Betty Ford died in Rancho
Mirage, California, at age
93.
Today’s
Birthdays:
Singer Steve Lawrence is 82.
Actor Jeffrey Tambor is 73.
Ballerina Cynthia Gregory is
71. Actress Kim Darby is 70.
Actress Jonelle Allen is 69.
Children’s performer Raffi is
69. Celebrity chef Wolfgang
Puck is 68. Actress Anjelica
Huston is 66. Writer Anna
Quindlen is 65. Actor
Kevin Bacon is 59. Actor
Robert Knepper is 58. Rock
musician Andy Fletcher
(Depeche Mode) is 56.
Country singer Toby Keith is
56. Rock musician Graham
Jones (Haircut 100) is 56.
Rock singer Joan Osborne
is 55. Writer-producer Rob
Burnett is 55. Actor Rocky
Carroll is 54. Actor Corey
Parker is 52. Actor Lee
Tergesen is 52. Actor Billy
Crudup is 49. Actor Michael
ODDS & ENDS
South Carolina mom gives birth to 14-pound son
LEXINGTON, S.C. (AP)
— A South Carolina couple
is looking for some bigger
baby clothes after their son
was born at a whopping 14.4
pounds.
WLTX-TV reports that
Colin Austin Keisler was
born by cesarean section
at a hospital in Lexington.
The baby is healthy, but his
mother, Cindy Richmond,
says they had to send her
mother home for some
bigger clothes because Colin
couldn’t fit into any of his
newborn outfits.
Colin is off to a good start
if he’s destined to attain some
of his father’s goals for him.
Arthur Keisler wants Colin
to be a defensive lineman at
Clemson University and play
for the Green Bay Packers.
B I N G O $ 1,000 WILL GO!
Weatherly is 49. Singer
Beck is 47. Country singer
Drew Womack (Sons of the
Desert) is 47. Comedian
Sebastian Maniscalo is 44.
Actress Kathleen Robertson
is 44. Christian rock musi-
cian Stephen Mason (Jars
of Clay) is 42. Actor Milo
Ventimiglia is 40. Rock
musician Tavis Werts is
40. Singer Ben Jelen is 38.
Actor Lance Gross is 36.
Actress Sophia Bush is 35.
Rock musician Jamie Cook
(Arctic Monkeys) is 32.
Actor Jake McDorman is 31.
Actor Jaden Smith is 19.
Thought for Today:
“Fools are more to be feared
than the wicked.” — Queen
Christina of Sweden (1626-
1689).
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59 15
47 67
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