CapitaiAJournal
ItlSSII.
An Independent Newspaper Established 1888
GEORGE PUTNAM, Editor and Publisher
ROBERT LETTS JONES, Assistant Publisher
Published every afternoon except Sunday at 444 Che
meketa St., Salem. Phones: Business, 8037 and 3571;
Want Ads, 3571 ; News Room, 3572; Society Editor, 3573.
Full Leased Wire Service of the Associated Press ond
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entitled to the use for publication of all news dispatches
credited to it or otherwise credited in this paper and also
news published therein.
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Salem, Oregon, Wednesday, January 21, 1948
Governor Stands the Heat
Only the intervention of divine providence or the unlikely
but possible presentation of new evidence which might cast
doubt upon the guilt of the accused can prevent Warden
Henderson, 27-year-old Portland negro, from paying with
his life for the cold blooded murder of Walter Poole of Van
port on Christmas eve, 1945, in the state penitentiary gas
chamber Friday morning at 8 :30 o'clock. That is the decision
of Governor John H. Hall, announced yesterday after the
chief executive had heard all of the petitions, read the letters
urging clemency for the negro
oughly the 105-page record of
In refusing to intervene as requested by a large number of
church groups and organizations interested in racial rela
tions, the governor said "the law must take its course." He
further said that no cause recognized by the law as justifying
his intervention existed in the showing made in Henderson s
behalf by anyone. All of the appeals were based upon senti
ment or emotions, he declared, denying the truth of any
allegations to the effect that Henderson would not have been
sentenced to death but would have been sent to prison for
life had he been a white man. In a lengthy statement showing
careful preparation the governor said:
"There is no evidence or claim that the defendant did not receive
a fair trial. There is no indication that racial prejudice had any
part in the case," adding that it was his belief that the governor's
power to commute should "be exercised, only for the purpose of
preventing a miscarriage of justice, such as a showing that the
accused did not have a fair trial or every opportunity to present a
defense, the presentation of newly discovered evidence since com
pletion of the trial, or other extenuating circumstances.
The determination of such appeals as this have been the
bane of the official lives of every Oregon governor since Julius
Meier, who on July 3, 1934, commuted the death sentences of
two convicted slayers, one of them also a negro. Every gov;
ernor since then has faced the ordeal of passing final judg
ment upon one or more condemned men. All have stood the
test and have stood firm in the performance of a judicial duty
arbitrarily imnosed unon the executive department where,
by no stretch of the imagination, can it be reconciled to the
proper order ot things.
Amolifvinor his statement
son's behalf were voiced by individuals or groups opposed to
capital punishment, the governor charged them with neglect
ing to take recourse to the initiative and thereby lay the
entire question of capital punishment or its repeal squareiy
in the laps of the voters for their decision. But even though
retained as nart of the Denal code the final decision in death
penalty cases should rest in
the case of last minute development ot evidence conclusively
establishing the innocence of
Labor Leaders Deserting
Henry Wallace's declaration of his candidacy for president
on a third party ticket, with a platform of peace by appease
ment of Russia, together with President Truman's left of
center messages on state of the nation and budget, in which
he bid for New Deal support in the FDR manner, seems to
have brought the labor leaders back into the democratic fold.
Even those who have hitherto been staunch supporters of
i.Bimuc me joining ine paraae 10 tne white Mouse and pledg
ing democratic support in the coming election.
As a matter of fact these labor czars are realistic enough
to know that a third party is a futility in our political system
ar,d like all bloc leaders with their pressure politics are inter
ested mainly in immediate special privilege for the groups
they represent, rather than in the long range welfare of the
nation. Hence though they know Truman will not go all the
way with them, Wallace can only get them in bad with the
public.
The latest labor boss to make the pilgrimage to the White
House is A. F. Whitney, president of the independent Broth
erhood of Railroad Trainmen, who in May, 1946, when the
president forced an end to a strike which would have tied up
the nation's transportation system, denounced Mr. Truman
as a "political accident" and promised vengeance. He said his
union would spend "millions to defeat" him in 1948.
Whitney announced after his White House conference that
he had had a "wonderful talk" with the president, that he
was all for Mr. Truman's re-election and predicted any of the
republican hopefuls could be defeated this year, and added
that "Taft would be the softest bet."
Whitney's visit followed his resignation from the Progres
sive Citizens nf America, which he helped organize. It is the
left wing out fit, which with the Communist party is most
active in Wallace's presidential effort, and endorsed his can
didacy at the Chicago convention this week. Wallace cannot
count on the support of many of his former adherents be
cause they are political opportunists after the spoils, but he
can always count on the crackpots and the lunatic fringe
along with Stalin's cohorts.
Not-So-Eager Beaver Dams
Downtown Traffic in Denver
Denver W) A beaver built a traffic jam In Denver.
Traffic blocked up and a crowd gathered as the not-too.
eager beaver waddled down a main downtown street.
It was undetermined how the animal got Into town, but
patrolmen wanted It out. One, unrecalllng anything about
beavers In his training, railed headquarters for help when the
animal actively resented the hand of the law on lt paddle
Then the heaver scooted tinder a car. Advice from a lot of
bystandlng would-be beaver experts was unavailing.
Finally, a visitor here for the National Western Livestock
show, Elmer Randall of Buffalo, Okla., and a police reinforce
ment, Patrolman Ed Draper, got a loop over one foot of the
animal and quickly bundled It up for delivery to some nearby
stream.
Hey! 'Dream House' Is Stolen!
Detroit (IP) Police today joined James C. Peterson In a
search for the partly-built seven-room ranch type home he
reported waa stolen from Its foundations.
The 31-year-old war veteran and father, employed as a fac
tory crane operator, told officers he had been building his
"dream home" himself and had completed the entire frame
work, three walla and half the rough flooring before beginning
a brief vacation three weeks ago.
Not i splinter waa left when he returned to his construction
work yesterday, Peterson reported, and a pile of lumber beside
the frame was gone too.
"I'm going to pitch right In and start all over again," aald
Peterson. He estimated he bad spent about $3000 o.i the house
m far.
slayer and had studied thor
testimony in the trial.
that all the appeals in Hender
the courts except, possibly, in
the condemned man.
Wallace
IBY BECK
Actions for Regret
-fl7WM5 THE
,,, IN THE ALLEY. -Clf ...-T. fJ1 "Z7i?
SIPS FOR SUPPER
What Goes on Here?
BY DON UPJOHN
The world seems to get topsier and turvier with each passing
day. This country is turning itself
Europe because, so it is averred,
start another
global war. The
inference is that
there will be no
war when there
are full turn
mics. Yet, over
on the other side
of the world a
frail, wistful
1 o o k i ng little
creature called
Mohandus
Don Upjohn
Ghandi went on
a hunger strike for a few days
and just by the simple process of
eaining an empty stomach stop
ped what threatened to be the
bloodiest war in the history oi
his benighted nation. One place.
they eat to keep war away from
the door, another place they
don't eat for the same purpose-
Anyway. Mr. Ghandi has the ad
vantage of having proved hi?
point very quickly and effica
ciously. The other idea is still in
the theorizing stage. But we
hope it works as well.
Free Ride for Van
Foster Van Osdol, sales man
ager for Hogg Brothers, copped
a free if involuntary ride on the
Espee the other evening. He and
Mrs. Van Osdol went to the train
to say au revoir to Mrs. Mabel
Olson of San Francisco, Mrs.
Van Osdol's sister who has been
visiting here. Mr. Van Osdol
carried Mrs. O 1 s o n's suitcase
aboard the Pullman but had no
sooner got aboard than the porter
pulled up the footstool, slammed
the vestibule doors, the train got
under way and there was Van.
Mrs. Van Osdol told the ticket
agent here what happened, he
wired to Albany to put Van
aboard the next train north as a
guest of the railroad company
and Van was back at 8 p.m.,
chipper and happy and no poorer
than when he started out.
Word comes up from Califor
nia that the feud between that
state and Florida has become so
intense the Californians have
been refusing to use the Florida
stamp recently Issued on their
mail. This was a pretty green
stamp with a picture of a flamin
go on it. But little good that'll do
em, as the post office depart
ment has just issued the new
California stamp commemorat
ing the gold rush days there, and
we bet they won't sell enough of
them In Florida to pay for ship
ping 'em there. And then there'll
be Don Wiggins and Ben Max-
STORIES IN LIFE
Cartoonist Al Capp Won Fame
With 'Li'l Abner' Despite Handicap
Many people both men and women have achieved fame and
fortune despite heart-breaking
creator of Li'l Abner. the comic
Capital Journal, might be put
In this same category.
As a boy of twelve. Capp lost
a leg in an accident and he nas
been walking on a wooden leg
ever since.
Sure, in the beginning, he
was afraid to dance or drive a
car, or go out with girls, or
even to meet his own friends in
his home town in Connecticut
He hated his wooden leg.
But he got a job in a gas sta
tion because he had to work. He
studied art, too. A certain girl
encouraged him. When he left
to challenge the big city, the
girl called him a dope for wait
ing so long to pop the question.
' Just ask me, ' she demanded
..ley were married in Boston.
But they went broke, so Capp
hitchhiked back to New York
where, earlier, he had tried his
hand unsuccessfully In cartoon
ing. He found temporary haven
In Greenwich Village.
Ha started peddling his car
toons, but without success.
Then one day he was stopped
on the street by a stranger
who said, "I'll bet what
yor've got under your arm
Is rejected cartoons."
inside out to rush food over to
empty stomachs over there will
well who won't use any of them
either. It looks like a poor deal
for California.
MacKENZIE'S COLUMN
Greek Newspaper Flays
Notes of U.S. Mission
BY DeWITT MacKENZIE
IAP Foreign Affaire Analyst)
The Greeks are a proud and independent folk, with a glorious
past and, we trust, a glorious future.
One of the things we admire about them is their Spartan cour-
age
a n d their f?
quic k n e s s in
defense of their
rights. More
power to theml
Still, there is
on old saying,
and true, that
discr e t i o n is
the better part
of valor, and we
take the liberty
of commending
this thought to D.WItl M.ekenele
the Athens royalist newspaper
Vradyni, which seems to us not
only to be indiscreet but ill in
formed and rather ungracious
toward a very good friend
Vradyni, which frequently
speaks for the dominant royal
ist party, has taken the Ameri
can aid mission, headed by
Dwight P. Griswold, to task for
notes to the Greek government.
The newspaper says these notes
have sounded as though writ
ten for "The Japanese or Ho a
country inhabited by gang
sters." It hopes that the threaw
of the communist guerrillas in
the north will be ended before
long so "We soon can forget
our friendly allies and return
to were we were before
Vradyni doesn't specify what;
the notes contained but it is
known that Griswold recently
told Foreign Minister Tsaldaris
that America won t tolerate a
"dictatorial solution" of
Greece's problem. We also
know that some Greek politi
cians have discussed the possi
bility of a semi-dictatorship
under which parliament would
be dissolved.
Heaven preserve Greece from
another such dictatorship as she
suffered under the late General
(Little John) Metaxas who ruled
with an iron hand from 1938 to
1941 when he died, during the
Italian invasion. It isn't that
Metaxas lacked capability. Most
successful" dictators have been
capable, and Little John was
successful." However, Greece
lived in the shadow of fear, as
physical handicaps. Al Capp,
strip which is appearing in the
This was correct, but It
marie Capp sore, and he start
ed to walk on. The man called
him back and Introduced
himself. He wag one of the
country's noted comic artists,
and he gave Capp a job as
his assistant.
Racking his brain for an ori
ginal Idea, Al suddenly recall
ed a walking trip he had taken
years before through the moun
tain country of Georgia, Ken
tucky and,, Tennessee. The pic
turcsqueness and humor of the
Southern mountain folk had
made a vivid and lasting im
pression on him. Diving into an
old packing box, he pulled
forth a picture of a hill-billy
boy he had drawn at that time.
Opportunity was knocking
a ; Capp realized it. His imagi
nation began working. That
hill-billy boy would make a
comic strip hero different from
any ever used before. He could
be both funny and appealing.
Thus "Li'l Abner" was born.
So the work of Al Capp, who
overcame a physical handicap,
now comes to Capital Journal
readers every evening on the
feature page.
WASHINGTON MERRY
Boss of Farmers' Union
Wants Truman Dramatics
BY DREW PEARSON
Washington James Patton, rugged boss of the National Farm
ers' Union, urged President Truman to walk up to congress some
day just like any other American citizen and lay his views before
a congressional committee.
"What you ought to do sometime," snorted the Colorado farm
leader, "is take
your hat in
hand, walk up
Pennsy 1 v a n i a
avenue, go be
fore a congres
sional commit
tee and say,
'Gentlem en, I
am here to tes
tify in the peo
ple's interest.'"
The president
smiled and
Drew Fearaon
shook his head.
'My most effective weapon,"
he disagreed, "is to stand before
a mike and talk to the people."
"If you want to win the next
election," persisted Patton,
"you have to do more than
talk. You have to dramatize
your views. Instead of stroll
ing on the White House lawn,
stroll up Pennsylvania ave
nue with a purpose. It would
be the first time since Jef
ferson that a president ap
peared personally before a
congressional committee."
"Well," admitted Truman,
that would be rather drama
tic."
Note Patton also invited the
president to address the Nation-
I found when I was there in
1838 as the world war was boil
ing up.
Metaxas was born on the is
land of Ithaca. He is said to
have started his working life as
a dock laborer but he became a
soldier and showed so much
promise that he was sent to the
German war academy in Berlin
to complete his education. May
be that's where he developed his
admiration for the Germans.
Anyway he was very pro-German.
Metaxas rose to be Greek
chief of staff during the Balkan
wars and finally when King
George II was recalled to his
throne in 1935 the general was
made war minister and then
premier in 1938. It took the two
fisted Little John just four
months to make himself com
plete dictator. . He abolished all
political parties and put several
thousand of his political foes in
cluding many prominent states
men, aboard ships and sent them
into exile among the Greek is
lands. I was told that a lot
of the exiles suffered terrible
hardships.
Plain clothes police spied on
the public and anyone who
spoke disparagingly of Little
John ended up in jail. The cen
sorship on news was so fierce
that a Greek newspaperman
committed suicide after being
hounded and arrested many
times because the authorities
figured he was disclosing too
much.
PRIZE OF WAR
Barque, All Sails Set, Rounds
Cape in Near-Record Voyage
BY DAN L. THRAPP
London U.R A tall ship, her 45,000 square feet of canvas furled
to the spars of her four masts, was towed proudly up the Thames
She went past the gallant old clipper, Cutty Sark, past the hulk
of HMS Worcester, now used as a schoolship, to a berth at Vic
toria Docks.
She
was the barque Pamir,
3.200 tons, 81 days out of Wel
lington, N. Z., with a cargo of
wool, tallow and, in odd spac
es, Red Cross gift parcels.
She was the first barque
to make London after round
ing Cape Horn in 40 years.
She also was the first square
rigged sailing vessel to come
up the Thames since the Cut
ty Sark herself arrived from
Falmouth 11 years ago.
, . . .
The Pamir was nine days
ahead of schedule after a near
record passage when she round
ed the Horn with all sails set.
That was in seas where more
great ships have been dismasted
by hurricane gales than off any
other cape In ,the world. She
averaged nearly 200 miles daily
for the 15,000-mile voyage.
"We had a very fine trip
Indeed," said Capt. H. S. Col
lier. "If anything, we had not
enough wind before we reach
ed Cape Horn, but she re
sponded lightly to what little
there was. She Is a fine ship,
easy to handle and light as a
feather In any breeze."
"We had ideal wind once we
entered the Atlantic and often
logged 12 to 14 knots better
than most steam freighters."
Many notables, government
dignitaries and common citizens
watched the ship glide up the
muddy Thames to her berth
Hundreds of old sailing ship
men.- veteran sea dogs of the age
of sail, crowded every vantage
- GO - ROUND
al Farmers' convention In Den
ver March 8, where the chief
subject discussed will be recla
mation. "I hope," said Patton:
"that you don't turn all the Col
orado valley development pro
jects over to the army engin
eers." More Rent Control
Washington's best friend of
the real-estate interests, gruff
talking Sen. Harry Cain, has
been given the paradoxical
chore of drafting a new rent
control law. An outspoken foe
of rent control, a senate sub
committee gave him the assign
ment of drafting the new bill.
Immediately he hustled over to
see Senate Boss Robert Taft.
"Let me get this clear,"
rasped Cain, "do you want leg
islation continuing rent con
trols?" "Yes," said Taft.
"What kind of a bill do you
want?" Cain asked, bewilder
ed. "I can't say, Harry," re
plied Taft. "That is up to you."
So the senatoi who doesn't
believe in rent control has been
given the job without guid
ance from the party bosses to
draft a bill continuing rent con
trol. He will have to work fast.
The present weakened rent-control
bill expires February 29.
Meanwhile, Senators Spark-
man of Alabama and Myers of
Pennsylvania, democrats, have
introduced rent-control bills
with teeth.
Where Money Went
For years Jesse Jones' Re
construction Finance Corpora
tion was the one and only gov
ernment agency not subject to
scrutiny by the government ac
counting office. Lindsay War
ren, eagle-eyed comptroller gen
eral and boss of the general ac
counting office did his best to
have his auditors examine Jes
se's books, but Jesse's pull on
Capitol hill was so strong that
he remained exempt.
Now, however, Comptroller
General Warren finally has
been able to probe certain op
erations by RFC subsidiaries.
Simultaneously, indefatigable
Congressman George Bender
of Cleveland, Ohio, Is plan
ning to air certain deals that
the general accounting office
has unearthed.
Here is the first:
The Andrews Steel plant of
Newport, Ky., is located along
the Ohio river where it needs
costly repairs every time the
river is flooded. In 1942 it was
owned by Lehman Bothers, the
New York banking firm, which
sold it in June 1943 to Paul An-
gell and Charles Stamm of Chi
cago, who had scarcely moved
in before they threatened to
close down unless the govern
ment took the plant over.
The Defense Plant corpora
tion, a subsidiary of Jesse Jones'
RFC, sent its assistant vice pres
ident, T. W. Atkins, to inspect
the plant. He reported that it
was run down, needed repairs
and that no more than $472,-
890.68 of the total inventory
was worth purchasing.
(Concluded on Page 9, Column 3)
point to see the arrival of a
type of craft which -made Eng
land a great maritime power.
One pipe-smoking, stolid, re
tired merchant officer, watching
the ship being warped into
Victoria Docks for unloading
summed it up:
"A trim ship," he said. "I'd
like to command her." .
The Pamir, built of steel
43 years ago, waa taken as a
prize by the New Zealand gov
ernment when Britain declar
ed war on Finland. She was
one of the great sailing fleet
owned by the late Capt. Gus
tav Erikson, of Marlehamn,
Aaland Islands.
She is now operated by the
New Zealand government. A
second Erikson barque was tak
en as a prize by the South Afri
can government and is now op
crated from that dominion.
Three others are sailing under
Erikson s flag and others are
undergoing refits or their own
ership is disputed.
These sailing ships are young
men's ships. The crew of 33
aboard the Pamir averaged 20
year of age. The youngest, 15-year-old
Charlie Green, is a
New Zealander. George Gunn,
19, was sallmaker.
One of the British members
was Viscount Traprain, ion and
heir of Lord Balfour, who ship
ped before the mast as Jerry
Balfour, and reached England
just In time to celebrate his
22nd birthday.
THIS FUNNY WORLD
II ' W 1 "'tiiriff(IL7 '
.11 ''
4-21 ' ',
OPEN FORUM
Hot Rods and Delinquent Parents
(Editor's Note: Contributions to this column must
be confined to 300 words and signed by writer.)
To the Editor: After reading the enclosed article (ouster of
hot rod boys from airfield) in your issue of January 19, it makejf
me wonder why such a condition should exist.
I would suggest that the par-
ents of the boys who were op
erating the 75 to 100 cars be
contacted by the officials instead
of the boys.
It is my honest belief that they
will find that the said hot rod
cars and also the fuel for same
are being paid for by the par
ents. After reading this article from
Aurora, and an article from
Monmouth, Ore., stating that the
Faculty club at OCE had met to
FILM CAPITAL
Beauty, 21, Refuses Movie Bid;
Fighting Wolves Not Worth lt
BY VIRGINIA MacPHERSON
Hollywood (UB Juanita Cole, a 21-year-old beauty who won
the "Arthur Murray Girl of 1948" contest against her will, doesn't
care what the judges think. She refuses to sign a movie contract
and face that.
band of howling
Hollywood
wolves again.
She did it
once. And it
wasn't worth it.
Miss Cole
came out on top
as the queen su
preme among
3,000 Arthur
Murray dancing vlrfllli, M.ePner,
lectuiicrs, tiuuges
were Actor Glenn Ford, Artist
Varga, Photographer George
Hurrell, Make-up Expert Perc
Westmore and Boss Murray.
They all figured . Juanita
would be a cinch for a starlet's
contract. But she said "no."
"I was under contract to a
major studio for a year and a
half," Juanita said grimly.
"Yon have to be too nice to too
many people. Producers make
passes at you. And all the
wolves see your picture In the
paper, think 'wow' here's a
deal, and call you np con
stantly." She might have played the
game so many other ambitoius
girls do, Juanita said, If she'd
been hepped on being a movie
star. But all she wants to do
is dance. She said she wasn't
even happy about winning the
contest. And she looked like
she might even mean It.
"It's just one big, black head
ache, as far as I'm concerned,"
the be-dimpled beauty complain
ed. "I didn't want to enter my
picture in the first place. But
I'm a supervisor and I couldn't
very well make the teachers un
der me enter theirs unless I did.
So I sent one in just to be a
good sport."
V
Next think she knows she's
"It." That means she has to
have her picture taken in
seductive poses with as little
clothing on as her conscience
will allow; she has to give out
her life story to the press; she
PARTS MEN
WANTED
$1.42Vi to $1.79 per hour
Tine end M for overtime. 40-aoar
week. All helldevo and vacation witb
ar. Satardave and Snndare off. Ei
eellent .ehanee .for .advancement.
Fine vorfclni cendltlona In ene af
the Northweit'f eldeet and lancet
Chevrolet eempaniee.
Write, wire or. eall . eelloett Mr
Thatcher.
Westlok. Chevrolet Co.
8th & Lenorj, Seattle. Wash.
Eliot 4122
e
CAPITOL LUMBER CO.
North Cherry Art.
rv.gjW vi-.
it
continue the further guidance of
the students not to bore ypu
with a lot of words that can be
expressed by a few I frankly
state without any reservations
that these boys need further
guidance from their respective
parents, instead of placing our
officers and faculty members of
our schools in the present pre
dicament. Thomas R. Smith.
Independence, Ore.
has to appear on radio shows;
and she has to listen to job of
fers from movie studios and
modeling agencies.
Juanita who comes from
Council Bluffs, la., said "no"
to everything. The boys who
dreamed up the contest twisted
her arm on the publicity angles.
But, she mutters darkly, they .
can't make her take a job she
doesn't want.
And she doesn't want to be
movie queen. L -
"I've been a dancer since I'
was 3," she explained. "I'm
happy doing the job I have now.
It's a job I know I can get ahead
on. Some day I'll have my own
dance studio, I hope. But I'd
make a lousy actress."
Juanita is unmarried, wears a
size 36 sweater, and weighs a
curvaceous 19 pounds. She also
photographs like a million In
those poses they put her in.
She just wonders what her
mother back in Council Bluffs
will think when she sees 'em,
that's all.
KING COLE
DRIVE-IN
GOOD SANDWICHES
MALTS -FRENCH FRIES
Service to Your Car
RAIN OR SHINE
OPEN
5 P.M. Week Dayi
And Sundays
Closed All Day Thursday
So. Commercial at Liberty 'Y'
QUISENBERRY'S
Now
LOCATION
419
FERRY ST.
PHONE 9123
(In Phone Directory)
QUISENBERRY
PHARMACY
Hi
is for efficient
'Prco-to-logo
THE CIEAN FUEL
Phono 8862