THE WEATHER HERE
BAIV TONIGHT snd most of
Sunday. Cooler Sunday, Lowest
temperature tonight, 50; highest
Sunday, 60,
M a I m u m ttttrriar, minimum ie
(lav, 41, TnUI it-bnur prrrfpiUtian: trri
fr mnnth: l.?!i nnrmai, .!). Ken prr
ttPHatlon, !.'!!! mitro, ,89, Rivtr belch t,
3. 'Heport by U. 8. ' either
apital
T TKT1 "n -rt-o-r Th it
HO M E
EDITION
V
61st Year, No. 222
Fntrd u sestj !ut
Salem, Oregon, SaturtJo0,,nber 17, 1949
Pries 5c
Fear Coal Strike
Already Begun
3 Excursion Steamer Moronic
Burns with 226 Death Toll
. . .
Taxpayers of
Salem to Pay -More
This Year
Assessed Valuations
$6 Million Above Last
Year Rate Lower
By DON UPJOHN
' Salem property owners are
going to have to loosen their
purse strings when taxpaying
time comes around this fall.
Announcement by County As
sessor R. Tad Shelton shows
that in the Salem city limits the
assessed valuation is up $5,993,
512 or an increase this year to
$28,267,738 from $22,274,226
last year. And the composite
levy in the city limits will be
"tiown but 1,4 mills dropping from
73.5 mills last year to 72,1 mills
this year.
The total taxes covering Sa
lem and its political subdivis
ions are not yet extended but
the signals shown give warning
that they are going to be higher
due to increased budgets.
City Levy 19.9 Mills
The city levy itself is down
from 20.5 mills last year to 19. S
mills this year and the county
levy also is down from 17 mills
last year to 14.2 mills this year
but the school levy is up 2 mills
from 36 mills last year to 38
mills this year.
Assessor Shelton says that the
heavy increase in assessed valu
ation over last year, around 25
per cent, reflects a large in
crease in both real and personal
property increases and also the
fact that there have been large
annexations to the Salem area
the past few years accounts for
another sizeable chunk of the
increase.
Eugene's Valuation
It may be interesting to note
that figures received in the of
fice of Assessor Shelton from
the Lane county assessor show
that the Eugene assessed valua
tion for the current year is $27,-
173,164, a little over a million
dollars less than the Salem val
uation while tiie Eugene city
levy is 72 mills, or ,1 of a mill
less than that of Salem. Other
Lane county towns show Flor
ence with a levy of 103.4 mills;
Cottage Grove, 75.3; Coburg, 80
and Springfield 58,3 mills.
The other two of the larger
towns in Marion county, Silver-
ton and Woodburn, both show
increases in valuation while one
is up in its levy and the other
down,
(Concluded on Page 5, Column 8)
Seek lo Finance
Sanfian? Dike
Immediate completion of
main dike for flood control of
the North Santiam was urged by
leaders of the movement at
meeting in Jefferson Friday af
ternoon. The project is being
financed by farmers of the af
fected district.
Dike financing was the princi
pal topic of discussion with the
committee deciding to place two
additional bulldozers to the three
already at work on the eight
foot channel through the island
The equipment was needed if a
major portion of the work is to
be completed before the rainy
season.
The barrier calls for con-
" struction strong enough to hold
back water backed up three
niles into Linn county by the
completed dike. It must also
carry the river fast enough to
prevent washing out around 3,
000 acres during flood stage
when the North Santiam reach
es 24 feet here. The main dike
will be 20 feet high and 130
feet through at the base.
Work done on the dike so far
will be inspected next week
by engineers from Salem, Port
land and Albany.
Vafer Again Flows
In Old Mill Race
Eugene, Sept. 17 W) Water
Is again flowing in this city's his
toric old millrace. In a special
ceremony witnessed by a crowd
of over 1000 people. Mayor V.
Edwin Johnson turned valves
that allowed water to flow into
the channel for the first time.
Since 1845.
The canal was broken by Wil- ments, including superintendents
lamette river flood waters early of state institutions are directly
In 1945, and the return of water chareed with the proper fune
to the millrace is the result of tinning of their organizationg.
a spirited campaisn among the; "This responsibility requires
citizens of the community for 'that these officers have discre -
donations towards the recon- tion within legal limits in the
trucuon costs.
400r00D Out
Chances of Averting
Nation-wide Steel
Walk-out Brighten
Washington, Sept. 17 Mt The
danger of a nationwide e o a 1
strike next week mounted to-
dav but hopes brightened for
averting a less-imminent steel
strike.
The 400,090 coal miners were
expected to stay away from the
pits next Monday because their
welfare fund's trustees, headed
by Mine Union President John
L. Lewis, voted to suspend pen
sion and other benefit payments.
This action was taken at a
stormy, five-hour meeting of the
fund's three trustees yesterday.
The reason was that the fund
was fast running out of money.
Many coal operators, because
their contracts with Lewis have
lapsed, have refused to continue
paying their 20-cents-a-ton roy
alty to the fund.
Spontaneous Stoppage
Lewis, in announcing the cut
off of welfare payments, re
frained from any mention of a
strike.
But 8,000 miners in Wyoming
and Utah already were out of
the pits in what union officials
called a spontaneous stoppage.
Union officials in the west said
they had nothing to do with
the walkout at all, that the men
were protesting the lack of a
contract. Operator spokesmen
said men heading back into the
pits were stopped by union of
ficers. That happened just be
fore Lewis announced the end
of welfare payments.
The trustees' meeting was fol
lowed by the sudden resignation
of the operators' trustee, Ezra
Van Horn, He wrote coal own
ers he wanted to step out right
away. In fact, he warned that
if they don't name a successor
promptly he will go to court to
force them to do so.
Concluded on Page S, Column 8)
Palffy Admits
udapest Plot
Budapest, Hungary, Sept, 17
IIP) Lieut. Gen. Gyorgy Palffy,
former chief inspector of the
Hungarian army, confessed in
court today that he and his co-
defendants had plotted to assas
sinate Hungary's top govern
ment officials last May.
He said the planned putsch
failed because the government
arrested Laszlo Rajk, former
communist minister of foreign
affairs and minister of the in
terior, 4
Rajk admitted his guilt on the
stand yesterday,
Palffy said the scheme had
Yugoslav help, and after the
planned assassinations the plot
ters would have seized the coun
try. The general, iumber two de
fendant in the treason trial here,
took the stand and, like Rajk
then embarked on a long public
confession.
(Six others are scheduled to
follow Palffy to the witness box
It appeared certain that they
also would follow the establish
ed procedure of confession.)
Dismissal of Miller
Upheld by State Board
By JAMES D. OLSON
Dismissal of Dr. Horace G. Miller as psychiatrist at the Oregon
State hospital by Dr. Charles E. Bates, superintendent, was upheld
Saturday by the state civil service commission.
In a letter to Dr. Miller, J. N. Chambers, of Salem, chairman of
the commission, said no evidence was submitted at the recent
hearing indicating that "your
dismissal was made for political,
racial or religious reasons nor
was your professional competen
cy as phychiatrist questioned."
The commission stated that in
recognition of the years of past
experience of Dr. Miller with
the state, his request for place
ment of his name on a state
wide re-employment list, was.in reviewing the information
granted. However, it was point-
ed out that Dr. Miller's re - em -
olovment from this list would
be subject to the-"judgment of,imical to the best interests of
any appointing authority to
iwhnm vour name and other eli-
gjblos might be certified."
The commisison in its findings
that heads nf state fienai-t.
selection and removal of employ-
SPA-1 kl ' 1 j;;f-
Id rr-h'
McKay Urges
Conservation
Barring any serious depres
sion, the wise handling ot Ore
gon's natural resources will en
able the state to continue her
absorption of thousands of new
residents without experiencing
economic disruption. Governor
Douglas McKay said Saturday
in addressing the crowd at the
soil conservation field day at the
Bartcls farm.
Gov. McKay Insisted that
there was no such thing as a de
pression mirrored in his crystal
ball. In fact, he said, the state s
payrolls for 1948 and thus far
in 1849 are the greatest in state
history and the Oregon labor
market of 668,000 as of last
month, also was a record-breaker.
McKay said that the latest
figures now place Oregon's pop
ulation increase at 50.4 per
cent, which, in numbers, means
543,000 new residents most
from out-of-state "but several
tens of thousands brought here
stork-back,"
The continued Influx, the1
governor said, calls for careful1
planning to avoid a labor sur
plus. Industrial expansion must
keep ahead of population expan
sion, he added, and any future
blueprint must take into consid
eration the location of new in
dustries so as to avoid overcon-
cenfralion with its resulting
stream pollution and smog.
"Development of hydro-electric
energy must spearhead Ore
gon's growth," the governor
said, "But it is important that
the state's natural resources
must be governed by the long-
range outlook, rather than by
the expediency of the moment
es unde their supervision,
"To properly discharge these
responsibilities and maintain or
ganization morale" the commis
sion continued "there should be
cooperation between the ap-
! pointing authorities and their
staffs.
It appears to the commission
submitted at the hearing that
1 personality difference between
' yourself and Dr. Bates were in-
the administration of the hospi
tal, in view of the failure of Dr.
Bates and yourself to resolve
-such differences,'
said.
the decision
"It is our opinion that the ap
pointing authority acted within
his legal and administrative
rights in the action which he has
taken. Based upon the above
1 observation the dismissal action
is sustained," the commission
( concluded
Bartela Family Field Day Hosts Leonard Burns, left, la
charge of Stayton staff of V. S. soil conservation service,
discusses with Irvin Bartels family the range of soil conserva
tion work set to be carried out Saturday during demonstrations
of good land use practices. Left to right, Burns, Henry, Ron
ald, Judy, and Irvis and Mrs, Frankie Bartels.
Rejuvenation of Land
Aim of Conservationists
By CLAUDE
When Daniel Waldo, first settler in the hills east of Salem now
known as Waldo Hills, plowed
December, 1843, he started a soil
ment company tractors and all
trying to put back together again
$100 Boost in
Duty Free Goods
Washington, Sept, IT ) A
$100 boost in the amount of du
ty free goods a U.S. tourist may
bring back from abroad has
been approved by the senate.
The Increase still t subject to
action by a senate-house confer
ence committee. A tax bill pass
ed yesterday by th senate was
sent to the conferenca group.
Chairman George (D-Ga.) of the
senate finance committee said
the bill would correct a number
of hardships in the present fed
eral tax laws.
The $200 exemption would re
place the $100 exemption ap
proved by congress In 1887, It
would be applicable, as at pres
ent, to a resident once every 30
days, provided he remained out
of the country at least 48 hours.
The exemption would apply on
ly to merchandise for personal
or household use, or as souvenirs
or curios.
It would be In addition to the
law passed by the 80th congress
permitting $300 In duty-free
goods for U.S. residents, provid
ed they remain out of the coun
try 12 continuous days. This ex
emption may be used only once
every six months.
Burglar Killed in
Portland Tavern
Portland, Or., Sept, IT mm
Athanasiot A. Montis, 21-year-
old ton ef t Portland tavern
owner, today killed a burglar
who attempted to break into his
father's beer parlor.
Ellta Ruben Garrison, ST, an
ex-convict, died at Providence
hospital two hours after Monstis
shot him with a ,32 automatic.
Monstis said the tavern had
been burglarized twice, and that
he had been sleeping In the rear
Garrison served several peni
tentiary sentence in Virginia
and Nebraska and wa convict
ed of burglary lit Multnomah
county la 1840,
t,rrtI- ' -p,.r... TT i I iLJ f j even Portland would feel the
, 'tlU,4- - .r.ST7'-,H-i' S , heavy gusts by late tonight.
When Garrison broke Into the f t ,. ,j ; : '-Jls rsr-,-' ' -4'CT, ; I The coastal town of Astorta
tavern esriy today with bg , - : ' l';.;,. , ?vm. ' d Just recovered from m
of burglary too s itenrtis com- ' ; , I I ' - ' t f srm; The most tevert electrfe-
manded him to "hold It " Mon- . ' ' , , f , , i A , s ,..,".-' - ' i i-anifestatten ver to strife
stis, believing th Garrison held t t , v f iV'.l I , U i ,S "- Lightning early yastcr-
,,. '"VP,. h,' h'nd' h" h'm '' ' ' ,,; '' V 'VV' !,,., - r 'X. 4 utowcd up th front yard of
through the Jung U.l.v,..'!, . i Jr,5i , i SH- .5 'fj.. .1 A.i,! L ..i L.L.i C.?-,p connty -H Agent Date
SC - r '
'
y
a
.vjj
'i
STEUS1.0FF
his virgin soil to plant wheat in
breakdown which all the imple
the soil conservation men are
in today's big Willamette valley
h1 conservation field day on
the Irvin Bartels farm near
Shaw, Bartels farm join land
of the old Waldo place.
Contour strips and diversion
terraces were needless in th
fields of two-foot high native
grass as Waldo staked his mile
square claim on the hilts where
he came to rid himself of the
ague which plagued him In Mis
souri. "Better to be scalped
by the Indians and be done with
it than to stay here in Missouri
and be shaken to death with the
ague" counseled his wife Melin
da at the start of the trip across
the plains.
During the next quarter een-j
tury most of the arabie land in
Waldo Hills felt the stab of the
grain farmers plow. Mrs, Wal
do did manage to hold out a
small tract of land in its native
state for her huckleberry patch
which until recently was an un
disturbed point of interest near
the Bartels house.
For some years the hills grew
magnificent crops of grain. For
ty bushels per acre yield of
wheat and 75 bushels per acre
of oats were not uncommon. But
continual grain cropping
brought declining yields, by
1879 the average yield was only
18.4 bushels, 1889 was a better
crop year with an average of
22,8 bushels.
Fruit growing was introduced
in 1851 but to this day the Waldo
Hills section is devoted largely
to grain with a three-year rota
tion of wheat, oats, and a one
year fallow the common rou
tine. The lipid" day is s concentrat
ed dose of conservation and good
farming practices which have
been advocated in Marion coun
ty by the agricultural adjust
ment administration (produc
tion marketing administration
since 1937 and by the soil con
servation service since 1947,
iCenHudrg on Page H, Coiwmn ?s
v
ft
V
I tJ- '
Contraction Start On North Marlon Union High School Structure lit hy tit feat contain
ing seyen class rooms, gym, domestic art department and cafeteria in the basement started hy
Kuhr & Sons, Portland builders, three miles northwest of Hubbard. Gl. brick will festur
classroom sidewail construction. Completion date will b about April IS, leso,
Aflantir Part
Powers Agree
Upon Defenses
Washington, Sept, 11 f
The North Atlantic pmt council ;
today set Bp a ll-natton defense ;
committee and Instructed H in
draw u
riefens
iantic at
draw bb Immediately aniied
plans far the North At--
c t
2800-word communique
; upon wmen me setense com-!
: mittee will work was fa-sjed
after a one-hour conference or
the council of ministers the
first meeting of the council.
The defense committee will
i bt composed of defense minis
ters of each of the pact nations.
: It will meet onee a year unless
I emergencies dictate more fre-
: quent meetings.
The first meeting will be held
here Oct. 5.
Military Committee
The council directed the de
fense committee to establish a
military committee composed of
chiefs of staff of the 12 pact na
tions. It also directed that five re
gional planning groups be es
tablished to lay out a defense
plan on a geographic basis.
The planning bodies wiU be
divided as follows:
North European Denmark,
Norway, and the United King
dom. The V. S. agreed to parti
cipate in this groups defense
planning "as appropriate."
melsde4 en Page 5, Column
Cashmere Fruit
Plant Burned
Cashmere, Wash., Sepf, It Wi
A fast-spreading fire destroy
ed the huge plant of the Cash
mere fruit growers union here
today, with loss estimated at
nearly $1,000,000 in buildings,
equipment and fruit.
The blaze flared suddenly
from an unexplained cause at 4
a.m. just as a watchman was
making his rounds. It started
in the middle of the warehouse
and spread both ways down the
block-long structure, fed by dry
material for fruit boxes and oil
ed packing paper.
By 10 a.m. the fire was dying,
but had destroyed all the plant
including a new cold storage
unit built st the west end three
years ago.
Mrs, Jean Barnes, secretary
treasurer, estimated loss to
buildings and equipment at
$750,000. Also lost were 75,000
boxes of d'Anjou pears and 35
carloads of Bartlett pears for
canneries, with total value plac
ed at about $200,000, Insurance
covered both plant and fruit,
which was owned by individual
growers and stored in the plant
awaiting delivery.
The fruit was being handled
for growers by Gwin, White &
Prince, Inc., distributing com
pany, Noel Bakke, the com
pany's sales manager at Seattle,
said the plant toss woufd be a
serious handicap to handling of
the apple crop,
Mrs. Barnes said the grow
ers union, organized in ItKtT,
was one of the oldest coopera
tives in Washington state,
Richard ft'tx In Hospital
Holly wand, Sept. 1? Wf
Richard Dix, 54, former film
star, remains "in grave condi
tion. his physician siri loriay.
Dix suffered a heart attack Au
gust 10 and probably will be
hospitalized several weeks.
!
,IT m ' lWm2KEAl
. -
si'- i -
If i-Ax -
allace P. Carson
Carson Named
Oregon Siaie
Bar President
Gearhart, Sept 17 fff Wal
lace P. Carson, Salem, was elect
ed president of tiie Oregon State
Bar today.
Wilbur P. Eiddtesbarger, Eu-i
gene, was elected viee-president
Lee Karr, Portland, secretary;
and Roy F. Shields, Portland,
treasurer,
A circuit Judge told the Ore
gon State Bar today that Judges
are making ton many mistakes,
Circuit Judge James W. Craw
ford of Portland said he was1
shocked" at the number of low
er court trials which, because of j
error, have been reversed by the
state supreme court.
Multnomah county, in which
Crawford himself serves, ts justi
as bad es the other counties, ha
said. He said h thought Judges
in that county handle too many
cases; "Accuracy flies out the!
window when ysst try ts go too
fast."
Crawford proposed a school
for trial judges, where they;
could study errors in past eases I
and means to prevent them.
Search On for
Azores Plane
New York, Sept, 17 ( Coast
guard, air force and Canadian
aircraft were thrown Into a
widespread hunt today for a
small, single-engine plane long
overdue on a projected S,000-
mtie non-stop flight from the!
Azores to New York City,
The little plane, a Beecheraft
Bonanza, rrporfedly was loaded
with fuel for 29 hours of flying
when tt tnok off with two Italian
aviators from the Asores yester
day. Under normal conditions,
its gss supply would have been
exhausted st JO a.m. (EST) to
day. The search planes started from
American and Canadian bases
shortiy after dawn, about 10
hours after the plane last made
radio contact with shore.
At that time, the fliers, John
M. Bronrteilo and Camillso Bar!
ofiifn, gave their position as
abtmt 4i( mites east of New
Vork City and 18tt miics due
south of the naval base at Ar
gent i, Nflrf.
The missing aircraft's radio
apparentfy went dead after that
report.
Their flight was to help win
American financial support fori
a proposed "Boys Town" In
: Italy.
Middle-night
Flash Fire af
Toronto Pier
i Toronio, Sept. ft Mf A msd
dle - of the night Mr roared
; til rough the Great Lakes crisis?
Koranic at her pier b4 fcy notm
! today, police said. 198 bodies
;had been removed front th
w reekage,
I In addition they said three
persons died in hospitals n(
four were recovered from th
a ster, making a known death
i toll up to at least 1ST, Torsnts
hospitals and first aid station
at two hotel counted 188 In
jured, 189 ef them seriously, Ir,-
vestigrtme otttewte t the sees
of the Great Lakes worst disas
ter In a century said titer
thought th number of dead
might mount high a S2S,
Hast PasseBfrrs 4jif?p
The fir, which raced through
the JS-year-oId vessel, broke
out while most of those aboard
were sleeping. Operating offi
cials put the number aboard at
512 passengers and 1T8 crew
members. The i,80S-ton Jforonig
tied up at her pier to downtown
Toronto last night with holiday
tapper bound from Detroit
and Cleveland tor th Thousand
islands. It was to b her tost
eruis of the season.
Hundreds of passenger es
caped: In a frantic, cranung,
pushing mob, after they were
awakened by alarms and cries
of "fire. Some leaped to th
pier, some ts other vessels, some
into the water. Other wei
trapped and their uneeantetl
bodies were afitl believed to b
huddled In th submerged C-
deck. The death toll rosa at tire
men kept bringing vp th char
red, broken bodies st th irfa
tint,
SI2 Pamngersv 17t Crew
The operating department of
Canada Steamship Lines, own
ers of the ruined vessel, said the
best estimate they could make
was that there were approxi
mately ill passenger end 1TB
crew members.
All except about 10 of th
passengers were Ed to b
American. The veaseE arrived
here last night from Cleveland
and Detroit for her last cruise
of the season to Preseett and
the Thousand Island,
- OnHudM eg Page Casms f)
Belgian Ship
On Cuban Rocks
Miami, Fla Sept, VI m
Rescue craft were rushing to
day to aid the 2,$0B-ton Belgian
freighter Brabant aground on
rocks off the southern coast ot
Cuba.
An SOS signal was picked tip
from the vesset shortly after t
a.m. (EST. Ship at sea wers
alerted and the coast guard in
Miami stood by ready to send
help if needed.
Coast guard air sea rescue
headquarters said the Brabant
master reported the vessel was
"taking on a little water but
was to no immediate ctanger."
The commercial tug "rescue
was dispatched from Kingston,
Jamaica,
The vessel wss reported to
have been en route from gulf
coast ports to Antwerp, No
estimate of the number of men
aboard was cvailable.
Another Sform
Headed for Oregon
Portland, Scot, ST Anstlt.
er storm was bearing Inland on
Orrg,m today, and th weather
: Bureau hoisted sform warnings
; ssoii the coast,
i The weatherman forecast
.s'i up to 4S mile an hour
a(no the Oregon coast, nd said
Hoecitcr. and burned th porch
of Harold Rathburn' home.
Luckily, the wood were
wet that no forest fire wer
started by th bolt.