COFFEE BREAK
Saturday, March 9, 2019
East Oregonian
C5
OUT OF THE VAULT
North Powder murder blamed on insanity
By RENEE STRUTHERS
East Oregonian
A fractious marriage deteriorated
to murder in March 1933 in North
Powder when a woman hacked her
husband to death with a hatchet, then
tried to cover up the crime.
Warren W. May, 42, a farmer living
five miles southwest of North Pow-
der, was murdered sometime during
the night of March 27, 1933. His wife,
Rose May, 30, told police that she
awakened around midnight and, find-
ing her husband gone from their bed,
went in search of him. She said she
found his body just outside the front
doorstep. May had been struck sev-
eral times on the right and left sides of
the head with a heavy object.
But investigating officers found
some discrepancies with Mrs. May’s
story. Officers found a blood-soaked
pillow covered in a clean pillowcase,
and the blankets were soaked with
blood. Two pillows had been washed
the morning after the killing. And a
hatchet with blood and hair on the
blade and the handle was discovered
secreted behind a cupboard.
The Mays’ two children, Lloyd, 7,
and Juanita, 5, said they didn’t waken
during the night. They were being
cared for by the Baker County juve-
nile judge.
According to neighbors, the Mays
had a violent quarrel three weeks
before Mr. May’s death. He was
shot in the left arm with a revolver,
but conflicting stories of the shoot-
ing were offered to investigators.
Mrs. May said her husband shot him-
self while cleaning the gun. Young
Lloyd May said his father was shot
while struggling over the gun with his
mother. Warren May told a neighbor
shortly after the shooting that he was
shot accidentally by his wife, and that
the argument was “all his fault.”
Rose May was arrested on sus-
picion of murdering her husband,
and arraigned on a first-degree mur-
der charge. However, Rose May was
judged insane by Baker County Judge
Charles Baird, and was committed to
the state mental hospital in Pendleton
on March 30.
DAYS GONE BY
100 Years Ago
From the East Oregonian
March 9-10, 1919
Lieutenant Fred Steiwer is now a Pendleton citizen again. He
arrived home Saturday evening, without giving any advance
notice of his coming, and declares he is ready to take up civilian
life. He will resume his law practice in this city but may devote
the first few days to visiting with his family. Though on the
western front battle line for 70 days Lieutenant Steiwer escaped
without anything but minor injures. He was hurt once when his
horse fell with him and at another time struck his head against
a tree limb while dodging a shell during an attack.
50 Years Ago
From the East Oregonian
March 9-10, 1969
Cars driven by Police Chief Louis Colcord and a Pasco,
Wash., man he was pursuing were involved in an accident on
Highway 730 on the edge of Umatilla about 12:15 a.m. Sun-
day. Both men are in the Umatilla Hospital with head and chest
injuries. Colcord had arrested Wesley H. Perkins, Pasco, for
driving while under the influence of liquor. After the arrest,
Perkins attempted to elude Colcord, according to state police.
Police said the Pasco car was parked crossways on the highway
with its lights turned off. The Umatilla officer hit it broadside.
Perkins has been cited by Colcord for driving under the influ-
ence of liquor and attempting to elude a police officer. State
police also cited the Washington man for driving while under
the influence of liquor.
25 Years Ago
From the East Oregonian
March 9-10, 1994
The Nicht-Yow-Way Dancers are headed “north to Alaska,”
as the song says. Performers from the Umatilla Indian Reser-
vation will participate March 24-29 in the Camai Festival at
Bethel, Alaska. Eight dancers from the 24-member group will
be guests of the festival committee, with all expenses paid.
Native Americans from across Alaska, along with a native Rus-
sian group, will gather and perform cultural dances. Alberta
Taylor, coordinator for the Nicht-Yow-Way Dancers, expects
4,000 to 5,000 people will watch their presentation.
THIS DAY IN HISTORY
On March 9, 1933, Con-
gress, called into special
session by President Frank-
lin D. Roosevelt, began its
“hundred days” of enacting
New Deal legislation.
In 1796, the future
emperor of the French,
Napoleon Bonaparte, mar-
ried Josephine de Beau-
harnais. (The couple later
divorced.)
In 1841, the U.S.
Supreme Court, in United
States v. The Amistad, ruled
7-1 in favor of a group of
illegally enslaved Africans
who were captured off the
U.S. coast after seizing con-
trol of a Spanish schoo-
ner, La Amistad; the jus-
tices ruled that the Africans
should be set free.
In 1862, during the Civil
War, the ironclads USS
Monitor and CSS Virginia
(formerly USS Merrimac)
clashed for five hours to a
draw at Hampton Roads,
Virginia.
In 1916, more than 400
Mexican raiders led by Pan-
cho Villa attacked Colum-
bus, New Mexico, killing
18 Americans. During the
First World War, Germany
declared war on Portugal.
In 1976, a cable car in the
Italian ski resort of Cava-
lese fell some 700 feet to
the ground when a support-
ing line snapped, killing 43
people.
In 1977, about a dozen
armed Hanafi Muslims
invaded three buildings in
Washington, D.C., killing
one person and taking more
than 130 hostages. (The
siege ended two days later.)
Thought for Today: “It
is the nature of man to rise
to greatness if greatness is
expected of him.” — John
Steinbeck, American author
(1902-1968).
Universal Crossword
Edited by David Steinberg March 9, 2019
ACROSS
1 Done for
6 “The Plague” author
11 “But is it ___?”
14 Give the OK
15 Protein-building acid
16 Waggle dance insect
17 *No.16 in a Grafton
series (note the
progression at the
starred answers’ starts!)
19 Longoria or Mendes
20 Santa’s laundry woe?
21 Obama education
secretary Duncan
22 Bit of information
24 *Web locations
26 Window sign words
30 Bark sound
31 ___ of the curve
32 Itinerary
35 Mars, to Greeks
39 *Wasted
42 Handyman’s item
43 Command before
Paste, often
44 Low-stress class
45 Wonderment
47 Show to another
table, maybe
48 *Hotel review site
54 Ankle bones
55 Outer: Prefix
56 Gobi Desert’s continent
60 Plastic ___ Band
61 *Coal extraction technique
64 “Americone Dream,” e.g.
65 “The Owl and the
Pussycat went ___”
66 Visually fixate
67 Mata Hari was one
68 Hog sound
69 They spread on Reddit
DOWN
1 Chooses for a position
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
18
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
32
33
Oil, at a trattoria
Additionally
___ drink (soda)
D’s Scrabble value
“It’s a Wonderful Life”
director
Change for the better
Stuck in the mud
Start to form?
Meld metals
Drives the getaway car, say
Vaudeville show
Lions and Tigers
Engrossed
To the extent that
___-European languages
Started vibrating, perhaps
Sour
River from Pittsburgh
Seized auto
Warm cap features
In favor of
Puckering body part
“VEGAS CONSTRUCTION” By Jim Holland
sudoku answers
34 ___ port in a storm
36 Deception
37 Ireland’s best-selling
solo artist
38 32-card game
40 Scored 100 percent on
41 Doe, e.g.
46 Belts’ places
47 Dorm unit
48 Some ‘Vette roofs
49 Incurred, as debts
50 IRS agent committing
tax fraud, e.g.
51 Left-side page
52 More frosty
53 3/17 VIP
56 Poker pot starter
57 “The King and I” land
58 Memo opener
59 Iron and Bronze
62 32,000 ounces
63 “Tao” or “Catholic”
suffix