THE WEATHER HERE MOSTLY CLOUDY with occa sional rain tonight, Sunday. Con tinued mild temperatures. Low est tonight, 43; highest Sunday, 53. Muimum ;trrd;, u, minimum lo dey, . Total 24-hour precipitation: .Vi! tar month: 11.13; normol, s.M. Seeton nre elpltallon, 51. U; normal 58.03. Rirer height. 10.1 feel. (Report b V. S. Weith. r Bureas.) Capital Joiaraal HOME EDITION 62nd Year, No. 18 Entered u second el mi matter at Salem, Oregon Salem, Oregon, Saturday, Januar Price 5c OS ttSJJ 1 Air Hearing May Be Here Early in March io School Buses All Inspected For Safe Use Capt. Lansing Reports 1252 Vehicles Examined by Experts By JAMES D. OLSON Inspection of 1252 school bus Coates to Pick One of 3 Sites For Apartments I M' . X !- 1 1 er U re y i e B s Chinook Wind Melting Snow, Rivers Up No Major Flood in Willamette Santiam On Rampage By MARIAN LOWRY FISCHER Valley folk eyed the river stages apprehensively Saturday morning although thoroughly appreciating the welcome "Chi nook wind" and mild tempera tures. Reports from the weather bu reau this morning reiterated that pno major flooding is expected along the main Willamette ri ver at this time, although all streams will see moderate to sub stantial rises during the next 48 hours. The Salem gauge showed the Willamette up to 10.7 feet Sat urday morning, the high mark of the winter to date and a fi gure compared to the 5.6 read ing Friday morning. The river was to continue to go through Saturday. Flood stage here is 20 feet. Santiam Rising Fast Most serious flooding in the valley is due on the Santiam at Jefferson. At the Jefferson station the Santiam was up to 13.8 feet Sat urday morning, .8 of a foot above flood stage, and the river is forecast to hit 18.5 feet there Sunday forenoon. State highways will not be flooded at that mark, but some county roads probably will be washed and considerable low land flooded when the river reaches that stage, It was said this morning. Upper Willamette The Willamette will go past flood stage at Harrisburg by Sunday forenoon and is likely to reach a peak of 15 feet by Sun day night, the weather bureau forecast said. Flood stage there is 12 feet. The highway would not be affected there, reports stated, i Eugene, the area where all the i big flood troubles start, reported the Willamette up to 7 feet Sat urday morning and continuing to rise. Flood stage there is lz feet. The lack of any torrential or prolonged rain was said to be holding back flood troubles. The pile-up of snow and Ice through the foothills and valley has had a eradual but sustained run-off, most valley sections reporting only light rains along with tne warm wind. (Concluded on Page 5. Column 8) Flood Menace At Silverfon Silverton, Ore., Jan. 21 Hea vy run-off of melting snow and surface water overnight result ed in Pudding river flooding the old Silverton highway near the airport from three to five feeti this morning w it n preaicuuna that the water will be the high est in recent years. Silver Creek, a tributary to Pudding river, rose 3Vi feet ov er night and is still rising. It t registered five feet beneath the bridge here in the city. Hop yards and the general area in the vicinity of the airport are several feet deep in water. The rise in Silver creek has f not yet affected the reading of Pudding river and the increase in volume probably will be re flected over the weekend. Rise in Silver creek has re sulted in the usual flooding of basements throughout Silverton. All snow in the immediate vicin ity has melted and that in the hieher altitudes beginning to melt. Siuslaw Highway Closed at Florence The Siuslaw highway between Rno-pne and Florence was closed again by a slip-out near Flor ence, the state hignway commis sion renorted today. Rut elsewhere in Oregon rain washed the snow off most of the hlehwavs. though others were still covered, either with snow or spots of ice. The road report, based on in formation received up to 9 a.m. Included: Government Camp Spots of Ice; 102 inches roadside snow. Upper Columbia River high way Closed at Shell Rock. Siuslaw closed, Santiam Pass Bans pave ment; 124 inches roadside snow. Willamette Pass -Spots of ice; 118 inches roadside snow. Cochran Makes Pro gress on Home Issues In National Capital Salem, not Washington. D. C. probably will be the place of hearing for the United Air Lines case before the civil aeronautics board according to an Associat ed Press story today. The dispatch quotes Clav Cochran, manager of the Salem Chamber of Commerce, who is now in Washington, and men tions that the hearing has again been postponed to a date i n March. Cochran, expected home i n time to report at a meeting of the Salem chamber's board of directors next Wednesday night, is in Washington on several is sues. He is trying to prevent a temporary removal of Salem from United Air Lines sched ules, and, among other things, arrange for the marketing of surplus Oregon flax. Washington, Jan. 21 (P) Clay Cochran, of the Salem, Ore., Chamber of Commerce, said to day he hopes to be able to work out some way to dispose of the surplus flax in the Salem area from the 1947 and 1948 crops. Cochran said he had tried to get federal commodity credit corporation and marketing pro duction officials to agree to pur chase the 300 tons of surplus flax for stockpiling purposes. He said the agencies reported they did not have funds for that pur pose. (Concluded on Page 5, Column 5) Crisis Passes On Mississippi (By the Associated Press) Floodwaters continued to menace areas in the midwest, south and Pacific northwest to day but conditions in the major watersheds generally appear ed improved. The Mississippi river flood crisis in the Missouri-Illinois re gion appeared to have passed. But the 11,400 refugees from the Birds Point-New Madrid flood way in southwest Missouri were cautioned not to move back to their homes prematurely. There also was a marked im provement in the nation's wea ther. There were only a few se vere cold spots and only a few areas were hit by rain or snow. Temperatures generally moder ated. The weather bureau re ported "hot" weather in parts of the Rocky mountains. Tne mer cury hit 52 at Sheridan, Wyo. and 50 at Billings, Mont. Temperatures in the central and northern Rockies and parts of the central great plains climb ed from 30 to 40 degrees yes terday. The high at Pueblo, Colo., was 75, a record for the winter season. At Goodland, Kans., the top was 73 and it was 69 at Denver. The 57 at Salt Lake City was a record for the date. ' The only sub-zero areas today were parts of Minnesota and North Dakota and in northern New England. Some snow fell in Pennsylvania and New York and Michigan. There was a rain belt from northern California into the Pacific northwest and west ern Montana. Capitol Zone Change Hearing Set Monday By STEPHEN A. STONE A public hearing will be held by the city council Monday :wt th. nrrtinsmee bill that jhi .n. the four-block area bounded by Center, Winter, Union and Capitol streets, together with other fringe areas in adjoining blocks. The proposed ordinance oatus uo the state capital planning commission in its recommenda tion that the area De maae part ni Ihe, raDitol building zone and that the state purchase the four blocks. Since the ordinance bill was introduced Monday night, Jan 10, Attorney General George Neuner. asked by the state board of control for an opinion, has held that the state cannot Duy the property without legislative authority, and the state emer gency board, because of the opinion, has gone on regoru against immediate purchase Tk hill hofnre the citv COUn cil would change the area in All UAL Planes Stop at Salem McNary field took on the look of a metropolitan airport today. As in the days of the 1948 flood, Salem's United Air Lines station was handling all of the Portland-bound air traffic. United began sending its flights regularly scheduled for Portland into Salem Friday aft ernoon. Ice on the runways at the Portland airport prevented stops there. " First of the big planes to ar rive was a DC-6 from the south which set down on McNary field at 4:20 P.m. Friday. During the remainder of the day and Fri day night two other DC-6s, one of these from the east; one ja--i and one C-54 cargo plane stop ped in Salem instead of Portland Flight 175, a DC-3 that has a Salem stop and then terminates in Portland, terminated in Sa lem and originated out of here Saturday morning as flight 174, southbound. (Concluded on Page 5, Column 7) 17,000 Idled By Rail Strike Pittsburgh. Jan. 21 VP) Near ly 17,000 workers were idled to day by a strike of 400 Brother hood of Railroad Trainmen who quit work in a dispute over the discharge of a conductor on an inter-connecting railroad. The giant Pittsburgh works of Jones and Laughlin Steel corpor ation was closed, throwing 12, 00 out of work. The remainder idled are employes of other dis trict plants served by the Mon ongahela connecting railroad. Picket lines were thrown aDout the sprawling Jones and Laugh lin plant. There was no disorder, how ever. Hundreds of men reported for work shortly after the strike was called at 6 a. m. (Eastern Standard Time). would change to a oiass i resi- volved Into a Class I residential zone which would prohibit the erection of any building but res idences. It strikes mainly at apartment houses, which are permitted in the precent Class II residential classification, and the issue was started by the pro posed erection of a seven-story apartment house at 555 North Summer by Robert Coates of Portland. Coates, out of con sideration for the wishes of the state commission, has agreed to abandon his plan if compensat ed for money so far spent on purchase of the property and other costs. - 1 (Concluded on Page 5, Column 1) Fire Damaged Planes Pictured above are two of the planes damaged in the fire discovered early Saturday morn ing by CAA control tower operator, Jim Miller, in the old barracks building used by the Farm Air company as a shop and hangar. At top is a newly converted duster; a Stearman, owned by the Farm Air company, and below the Stinson fuselage owned by Ernie Monner, being worked on by the mechanic for the Farm Air company. Arson Suspected in Airport Hangar Fire By MARGARET MAGEE State and icitv -police and firemen Saturday morning invest! gated a fire in ,-n-,.pld , barracks building at the south end of McNary Ifieid wni'cK has been used as a shop and hangar by the Farm1 Air company. ' ' The fire, spotted at 3:10 Saturday morning by Jim Miller, Jury Finds Hi ss Guilty, 2 Counts New York, Jan. 21 (ff) A federal jury convicted Alger Hiss on two counts of perjury today a verdict that branded Hiss a communist spy for the Russians while he held high state department office before the war. The federal court jury of eight women and four men deliv ered the verdict at z:du p.m. (EST), nearly 24 hours after it received the case. It was Hiss' second trial. Last July another jury failed to agree in the case. Hiss faces a maximum sen tence of 10 years in prison plus $4,000 in fines. Hiss was convicted specific ally of lying to a federal grand jury when he denied passing state departments secrets to Whittaker Chambers, self-de scribed courier for a Soviet spy ring operating in Washington in the late 1930's. He also was convicted of lying when he denied seeing Cham bers after January 1, 1937. Federal Judge Henry W. Goddard set January 25 for sen tencing and continued him in the same $5,000 bail. Quiz Employe In Big Robbery Boston. Jan. 21 W) A vet eran Brink's employe was still under questioning today and police said he would be "un til we clean up one angle" in the hunt or the Hallowe'en-masked gang who looted the armored car firm of a million dollars. Capt. Francis M. Tiernan said William E. Manter, 49, a 22 year employe of Brink's, Inc., was still held after Being pick ed up last night when a police alarm went out for him. Tiernan spoke of the one angle" but would not say any thing more about it. The search turned today to "a western Massachusetts city," Tiernan said, but he said he could not identify the city or say why it figured in the na tion's greatest cash raid. A second Brink's employe, Gerard Pfaff, left headquarters today and Tiernan said he on ly came in for questioning ana was very cooperative." operator at the UAA control tower at the field did damage estimated at about $1000 to a Stearman airplane owned by the Farm Air company, and probably burned beyond repair a Stinson fuselage owned by Ernie Monner. Charred paper, charred wood and paper and the fact that the fire was spotty when the navy firemen arrived to extinguish the flames, point to arson, plus thr fact that the padlock had been pried from a side door of the building. Fire Chief William P. Roble Saturday morning said that the state arson squad was being contacted. Possibility of the fire starting from faulty electrical wiring was ruled out. The outside electrical switch had been thrown by Lloyd Miller, mechanic for Farm Air company, when he left the build ing about 4:30 Friday afternoon Poet said. Evidence Found Poet also said that there was no fire in the stove and that the welding equipment had all been turned off. Other partners in the firm with Poet are L. C. (Mac) Mac Glothlin and Gilbert Waage. (Concluded on rage 5, Column 4) Tucker Case Goes to Jury Chicago, Jan. 21 (U.R) The government's case against Pres ton Tucker and seven associates charged with mail fraud, con spiracy, and violation of SEC regulations, went to a jury at 10:55 a. m. (CST) today. , - . Ja. ujjumB ! mnmmmmmwmmnrn i ill T2 ''r,t " mm iY ' nil ilH i iiWii" IWlTPIWi Salem Airport Gets Portland Traffic Portland airport, closed by Ice, Is now diverting traf fic to Salem airport where a flight from Seattle to Washington, D. C, landed this morning. Passengers are shown leaving the plane for United Air Lines limousines to Portland. es in the state of Oregon has been completed, according to Capt. Walter Lansing, director or the traffic safety division of the secretary of state's office. The school bus inspectors tra veled more than 15,000 miles into every school district in the state and within a week or so, will set forth to repeat the Jour ney in re-inspection of the buses found to be deficient. The 1949 legislature enacted a law requiring the secretary of state to adopt minimum stand ards of construction and opera tion of school buses and to in spect them for compliance. For merly the public utilities com missioner prescribed the regula tions with the state police mak ing inspections when requested to do so. Majority Meet Requirements At the completion of the ini tial inspection, D. V. Price, Mon mouth, and J. O. Byerley, Al bany, the tvs inspectors, report ed that the majority of buses easily met the requirements, with many other requiring only slight corrections or additional equipments. However, some buses were so obsolete that no reasonable changes would render them safe for operation and have been re placed. Capt. Lansing explained that the standards adopted are considered minimum, and that bus manufacturers have been meeting them or exceeding them for many years. (Coiicluded on Page 5, Column 8) Vishinsky Calls Acheson Liar Moscow, Jan. 21 (P) Foreign Minister Andrei Y. Vishinsky said today U. S. Secretary of State Dean Acheson s charge that Russia is annexing four north China provinces is a ly ing and slanderous declaration.' Vishinsky made his statement in an unusual press release to foreign correspondents, coincid ing with the arrival in Moscow of Chou En-Lai, foreign minis ter of the Russian-recognized Chinese people's republic. Chou s arrival led to the be lief that negotiations for a trea ty of friendship between Russia and the new Chinese republic of Communist Leader Mao Tze- Tung were nearing an important climax. Mao has been in Mos cow for a month. . Vishinsky, commenting statements by Acheson at the Na tional Press club in Washington January 32 that Russia is tak ing over Manchuria, Inner and Outer Mongolia and Sinkiang, said they were intended "to put a good face on a bad game the failure of American policy in Asia." Vishinsky also accused Ache son of uncovering his own "an nexionist plans in relation to Ja pan and also the Philippines and Ryukyu (islands of the North Pacific)." Acheson, he said, declared "these non-American territories in the defensive line of the Un ited States which, as is well- known, is in the line of aggression." 'Persona Non Grata' Bul garia has demanded recall of Donald R. Heath, U. S. minis ter to Sofia, charging, in a note, that he is "persona non grata" unwelcome in Bul garia. Highly placed sources said the state department con siders the case so serious that it will break diplomatic rela tions with Bulgaria rather than submit to the demand. (Acme Telephoto) Bulgaria Stands Fast on Recall Washington, Jan. 21 W) In formed officials said today they look for Bulgaria to stand fast possibly on orders from Moscow against a United States threat to break off diplomatic relations, Expressing the suspicion that the Soviet Union had called the signals on the Bulgarian demand for the recall of U. S. Minister Donald Heath, these diplomatic authorities said the Russians may welcome a chance to force American officials out of Sofia entirely. The United States, replying to the recall note yesterday, de clared bluntly that It will with draw its entire diplomatic mis ston from Bulgaria and send Bui garian diplomats in this country home unless the eommunist gov-l ernment at Sofia drops its in sistence on getting Heath out. The American government thus indicated that it has decided on a tough policy toward the communist satellite governments of eastern Europe in respect to the treatment of American offi cials and citizens there. Larsen Heads Civil Defense Washington, Jan. 21 JP) A former atomic research official was named today to head the government agency charged with planning for wartime civil de fense. Paul J. Larsen, who has been associated with atomic research in Los Almos and Albuquerque, N. M., will take over as first chairman of the civilian mobili zation office on March 1, Presi dential Assistant R. Steelman an nounced. The office was set up as one of eight planning groups in a re cent reorganization of the na tional security resources board, which Steelman has been run ning as acting chairman. Larson's appointment was an nounced on the heels of a de fense department disclosure that recruiting of 150,000 volunteer aircraft observers will start im mediately to be ready for action if war should come. The two announcements mark ed a sudden surge of action in the civil defense program, which has been dormant since the war. Plans Told to Mayor Elfstrom in Conference At Portland Robert Coates of Portland is certain he is going to build an apartment house in Salem. He will use one of three pro posals. That is the way the contro versial capital zone apartment project stands today after a con ference in Portland yesterday between Coates and Mayor Rob ert L. Elfstrom. The three proposals are; The first is to build on a lot Coates owns in the Hollywood district at the northwest cor ner of McCoy and Hunt streets. Second to build near the capi tal zone on a lot the state would have to furnish him in return for his property at 555 North Summer. And the third is to go ahead with construction at 555 North Summer on the permit already issued him by the city. Wants Expenses Back Whether Coates builds on his Hollywood lot depends on trans fer of his FHA committment to that location from North Sum mer street. If FHA is willing to do this Coates is willing to stand any expense of making the transfer. Also he will not insist on an immediate transfer of the North Summer street property from himself to other owners to com pensate him for his investment there and his incidental expens es. He will be willing to hold the property until the next leg islature has a chance to act on capitol zone expansion. (Concluded on Page 5, Column 6) Truman Plans Tax Revision Washington, Jan. 21 (U.R) President Truman plans to ask congress to cut excise taxes by about $750,000,000 a year but to more than make up this loss through higher corporation taxes, congressional sources id today. Mr. Truman was understood to be planning to send his tax recommendations to congress on Monday. Most of the president's proposals will be in general terms, It was said, with the treasury scheduled to spell out the details at subsequent con gressional hearings. Democratic members of the tax-framing house ways and means committee were given a preview of Mr. Truman's tax message at a White House con ference yesterday. While they agreed among themselves that they would not discuss the recommendations publicly, it was reported that Mr. Truman will propose a $1,000,000,000 boost in corpora tion taxes, higher estate and gift taxes, plugging of some tax loopholes, and the $750,000,000 reduction in excises. Mr. Truman, it was said, has no present intention of asking for higher taxes on top-bracket individual incomes as he did a year ago. Snow Woman Loses Teeth Medford, Jan. 21 W) An un happy Medford woman wished today she hadn't been so realis tic about that snowman. Help ing build the snow figure, she put a spare set of false teeth in its mouth for a touch of real ism. Somebody stole the teeth. STARTING MONDAY ANOTHER OF THE BETTER STORIES BOOKED FOR CapltalJournaJ Readers A Six Day Novelette "A Man Is Missing" By Erie Stanley Gardner Creator of the Famous Fictional Detective Perry Mason STARTING MONDAY in the CapltalJournal Salem'i Leading Newipaper