Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 17, 1915)
polk VOL. 27 (THE HOME PAPEE) DALLAS, FOLK COUNTY, OREGON, TUESDAY, AUGUST 17, 1916. (TWIOE-A-WEEK) NO 48 LONE WOMAN ATTACKED INDEPENDENCE MAN PICKS UP ASSAULTED BRIDE. Mrs. Robert Lakin Suffers Indigni ties, and Offenders Are Now Serv ing Penitentiary Sentences. W. B. Barnett of Independence made a startling discovery x nday at- ternoon near Eddyville, Lincoln coun ty, when he found the unconscious form of Mrs. R. R. Lakin lying in the road. She had been bound, gag ged, robbed and brutally mistreated by two wayfarers, who had left her in the dense brush to die. bhe succeed ed in freeing herself from her bonds and wandered to the road where she lapsed into insensibility. Barnett picked her up in his machine and took her to Chitwood. Mrs. Lakin is 19 years old and a bride of four months. Frank Jones, 28, of Tillamook and Charles Reynolds, 27, of Tusla, Okla., , pleaded guilty to the crime and were ' starting life sentences in the peniten tiary at Salem by Saturday night. The two men narrowly escaped with their lives, as an angry mob had gath ered shortly after they had been en sconced in jail. Mrs. Lakin was riding on horse back alone from Nashville, her home, to Toledo, says the Messenger, when she was first accosted by the two men. They asked her to stop and eat lunch with them, one declined and pro ceeded. On her way back in the af ternoon she was again accosted by Reynolds and Jones. This time they drew revolvers, forced her to dis mount and then marched her before them into the woods, leading her horse. Once in seclusion they gagged, bound and robbed her, after which they subjected her to indignities at their leisure. Finally the two men left Mrs. Lakin, still bound, and pro ceeded leisurely on their way, think ing she could not set herself free. Mrs. Lakin did free herself, however, dragged herself to the road, where she fell unconscious and was found later by William B. Barnett of Inde pendence, who carried her in his auto to Chitwood. As soon as Mrs.- Lakin could tell her story, Sheriff Geer was notified and with a posse went in search of the assailants, the men meanwhile the middle Willamette valley, accord ing to Mr. Clark, have been heavily damaged by vermin and mould and many of these yards will not be pick ed at all. Near St. Paul, Mt. Angel, Yamhill and Silverton the greatest damage has been done and the crop will be about 75 per cent short. In Polk county Mr. Clark found the best prospects for a good crop. Here there will be plenty of superior hops to off set any damage there may be from mould. In the lower valley Mr. Clark and C. G. Coad inspected 87 yards, of which the owners will not pick more than 35. WILL HAVE TO GO SOME. PARTY AT ROCK HOUSE MUCH OF INTEREST AT HIS TORIC MOUNTAIN CAVE. Cold Springs and Splendid View Make Fourteen Mile Trip on Rick reall Worth While. - Contemporary Expresses Opinion That The Observer Is a Good One. Newberg Graphic: Lew A. Gates, publisher of the Polk County Observ er, announces that he has secured the services of Earl C. Browulee, an ex perienced newspaper man, who has been added to The Observer's repor torial force. This will doubtless light en the. burden Mr. Dates has been carrying, but the new will have to go some if he makes The Observer shine with more brilliancy as a readable "country paper" than it has in the past. Mr. Cates is evidently a believ er in evolution, for his paper is al ready one of the best that comes to the Graphic desk, and his determina tion to give his constituents even a better paper merits the glad hand and liberal patronage on the part of Dallas and Polk county residents. It is purely a case of the servant being worthy of his hire. CHANGE OF OWNERSHIP M'ARTHUR SELLS HALF INTER EST IN STOCK FARM. B. Stauff, Practical Dairyman From Coos County, Joins "Our Fat" in Breeding. j Jmd been arrested by farmers, and though both were still armed they over to the sheriff and questioned . closely they admitted, their guilt. Sheriff Geer started at once for To ledo with his prisoners, and at one place was forced to drive at full speed through a crowd of men who had gathered, and who were threatening summary vengeance. After guarding his prisoners over night the sheriff took them before Circuit Judge Ham Uton, cue grand jury, which was in pession, having meanwhile indicted them on charges of attack and as sault with intent to kill. RAILROAD PICNIC AT SALEM. Dallas Employes of Southern Pacific To Have Outing. Many employes of the Southern Pa cific company in this city will attend the basket picnic to be held under the auspices ot the Portland division safe ty committee at the state fair grounds Wednesday, August 25. -Long special trains will carry the Portland employ es to Salem, free of charge, and those from other parts of the valley will go in groups on the local trains, plan ning to arrive at the fair grounds about 10 o clock. Dallas railroad men are instructed to execute a formal pass request to cover their transpor tation, and have been told that spec ' ial, low rates will be offered to their friends and relatives, and anyone not having the pass privilege. Passes al lowed for this special event will not be considered in the number of free transportations allowed employes un der the company's rule. A program of eompetitive athletic events has been -arranged, including a baseball game, for all of which fine prizes will be offered. . ANNUAL SHOOT DATES SET. Dallas Companj to Send Team to Clackamas. There will be 13 companies of in fantry, 9 of the coast artillery corps. 1 cavalry troop and the Oregon Naval militia represented at the annual state shoot of the Oregon National Guard at Clackamas, Oregon, Sep tember 10 and 11. Captain stafrin has jnst received announcements of the date and has been advised to have the team representing Company L at Clackamas on the range Septem ber 6, 7 and 8 for preliminary prac tice. In addition to rifle matches there will be pistol practice and eom petitive shooting. Stats Hop Crop Short, - , That the entire hop crop of the state will be less than 100.000 bales, is the statement made by J. L. Clark. ice-president of the Oregon Hop- Vowers' association, who has just Completed an inspection of more than yet unannounced. He appears at Sa- 000 hop yards in toe state, l ards in lem tonight. Congressman C. N. MoArthur of Portland has sold an interest in the livestock and equipment on his farm near Rickreall, to 0. B. Stauff, of Coos county, and that big farm will hereafter be operated under the firm name ot McArthur S otautt. Mr. Stauff is a practical dairyman, having been reared on his lather's tarm in Coos county." He is a graduate of the Oregon Agricultural college, where he specialized in dairying, following his graduation, he spent two years as test supervisor for the register of merit work carried on under the direction of the Oregon Agricultural college, and is well and favorably known among dairymen and breeders throughout the state. The partner ship plans necessitate the retirement of Arthur Jones, the efficient fore man of the McArthur farm, who has leased the Russell Catlin Dairy farm just east of Salem. Mr. Jones has done good work with the McArthur herd, and has made many friends among breeders and others who have met him. Mr. McArthur states that he ' and his partner expect to develop their herd along certain family lines and that twenty females, in addition to the herd bull, Holger, and some young stock, will be retained as a founda tion herd. The remaining females. about twenty in number, together with a large offering of Duroe-Jersey hogs, will be sold at public auction Mr. McArthur will leave tor Wash ington earlv in November, unless sooner called by a special session of congress, but Mr. atauff will have en tire charge of affairs in his absence. A most interesting trip, and one that few Dallas people of the present have taken, is to the Rock House cave about fourteen miles west of the city. The cave is in the mountains above the Rickreall river and is at an ele vation that means a steady climb from the river bank. But the beau ties of nature to be found there and the oddity of the cave itself make the trip well worth while. The nat ural cavity is about 50 feet deep, 20 feet wide and 15 feet high, and has the appearance of an ancient coal bed burned out hundreds of years ago. It has a wide opening, hidden from the trail below by a heavy growth of tim ber, and the cave contains many cur iosities. Through its floor come sev eral cold water springs where tired climbers refresh themselves with rare gusto as they idle about feasting on the magnificent view from the high elevation and enjoying the scenery of the forests to the utmost. Rugged ridges from every direction center at the cave, making it a vantage point over a wide range of territory. It is said by those who have made the trip that the entire valley is in view, with Black Rock and Monmouth es pecially plain. In days gone by hunters in the val ley made the Rock House their head quarters, and from reports of sports men who found game in abundance in the hills it has been the scene of great many pleasant bonfire gather ings, where the spirit of "spooky" stories added charm by the nearness of the great natural vault, with the mystery that always surrounds such a place, and by the wild calls of ani mals that haunted the locality. There are still many signs ot these gatner- mgs about the cave, such as the lit tle piles of burnt rock which made out-of-door kitchens, and bleached bones of big game whose flesh made up a least. Nearby are many inter esting spots, including a group of icy- cold springs a quarter ot a mile away. A party from the 'camp colony on the Rickreall made a trip to the cave on Thursday of last week, and, al though the climb claimed heavy toll from some of fleshy folks, like Cap tain Conrad Stafrin, they are unani mous in their praise of the beauties to be found there, not to mention the resultant good from the exercise. The party, which will make the trip again when opportunity presents itself, in eluded Captain and Mrs. Conrad Stafrin, Mr. and Mrs. Willis Simon ton, Mrs. E. A. Hamilton, Mrs. Ida Manson, Miss Vera Wagner and Mii Abbie Walker. MOB GETS LEO FRANK OFFICIALS AT GEORGIA PRISON OVERPOWERED LAST NIGHT. Intruders Alleged to Have Said Frank's Body Would Be Placed on Girl's Grave. rheumatism, and now travels here and there to visit relatives or old friends. At Ballston Mr. Herrick has a brother-in-law and bis wife's mother, who he has not seen for more than thirty years. WORTHY OF CONSIDERATION. A mob variously estimated at be tween twenty-five and seventy-five persons overpowered the warden, su perintendent and guards of the Geor gia state prison, Milledgeville, at 11 o'clock last night and quickly got Leo M. a rank and rushed him away in an automobile. First reports that it might be friends were disregarded when the prisoner said he heard a member of the mob say that Frank's body would be placed on the errave of Mary Phagan at Marietta. Frank was serving a life term for the mur der of the girl. The attack was shortly before mid night. The warden and most of the guards were sleeping on a iear porch or the main building in which the prisoners are confined. Both he- and the guards were handcuffed, jafter which the party entered the prison and removed Frank. The mob was or derly, but worked with quick precis ion, tight automobiles took the men to within a short distance of the pris on. First all the wires from the pris on and all ercept one from Milledge ville were cut. Five men went to the house of J. T. Smith, warden, covered him with pistols and stood guards over him. Other men went to the house of J. M. Burke, superintendent of the prison, and held him under cover of their guns. Practically every other mem ber of the mob then rushed to the stockade gate nearest the dormitory, where Frank was being housed. Only yesterday did the physicians dis charge him from the hospital, where he bad been since being murder. MARSHAL GIVEN FREE HAND. Farmers Offer Their Co-operation in Exhibit Movement. The proposition recently submitted to the fanners of Polk county by Mr. c. Hi. uavis, to the effect that. if given their co-operation, he would offer monthly prizes for the best ex hibits of season products and conduct a sates day in connection, appears to be meeting with the approval of many ranchers. During the past fortnight Mr. Davis has received a number of encouraging letters from tillers of the soil, who see in the plan as presented by the promoter opportunity to better obtainiug conditions. Those who have not already signified their intention to co-operate in this commendable undertaking should do so forthwith and thus help a good thing alone. The plan as outlined by Mr. Davis may be found in The Observer of last Friday. TOOMUCHSPECULATIOir TRADE COMMISSIONERS CON DUCT INVESTIGATION. Lumber Industry Blamed For Many Business Troubles Found by . Government Inquiry. Hearing Postponed. "A hearing, in the matter of the temporary restraining order against the payment or issuance of warrants by the county eourt to the Himes Construction company, will be held on August 21. The hearing was set for yesterday, but was postponed up on the return of Judge Belt from the beach. FLAMES DESTROY TOWN. Copper&eld, Made Famous by Gover nor West, in Ruins. What was left of the little town of Copperfleld after Governor West and Miss tern Hobbs completed their no torious raid was practically wiped off the earth by a fire that swept the place on rnday morning. Ihe esti mated loss is about $30,000, partly covered by insurance, and the cause, although not officially decided, is thought to have been incendiarism. The fire originated in the old Lincoln building and s brisk wind spread it quickly to tbe postoffice building, from where it leaped to the remain ing buildings of the town. Only three buildings, including one of the saloons that figured prominently in the West raid, and the residences, were saved from the bra. Gypsies at Willamina. The band of gvpsies that made it self undesirable in- Dallas last week, held np William James and relieved him of $30 when he met the travelers on the road between bhendan and ulamina on r nday. A deputy sher iff from Sheridan recovered the loot and allowed the band to continue On its wav. World's Champioi to Visit Dallas. George E. Spears, who claims to be tbe world's champion straight rail and fancr shot billiardist, has an nounced his intention to visit Dallas during the week, the date being as Auto Goes Into Ditch. While driving an outomobile be tween Dallas and Independence Sun day night, Ray Walker of the latter place had the misfortune to go into the ditch, quite badly wrecking the machine. Fortunately the occupants of the car escaped without serious in jury. . CHILD GOES TO TEXAS GRANDFATHER GETS CUSTODY OF TWO-YEAR-OLD. Contest for Offspring of Woman Who Died Mysteriously Ends With Appearance of Nearest Kin. The county court last week granted the request of A. S. Wertheim of Comfort, Texas, to take little Rex Palmer, son of Mrs. Alice Palmer, whose mysterious death occurred at Black Kock recently, back to Texas. Mr. Wertheim, father of Mrs. Palmer, arrived in Dallas last week to take custody of the child if the court would extend its permission. He had learned of his daughter's tragic death only a few days before he left Texas for the north, and many weeks after death occurred. He consulted Mult nomah county officials who have been searching for tbe baby's father, and then came to Dallas, where tbe search for the parent bas also been fruit less. In view of its failure to locate the father the county eourt willingly granted custody of the child to its nearest relative, and the saddened grandfather is now on his way back to Comfort, Texas, where be will bring the little boy up in ignorance of his parents' shameful and tragic life. The aetion of tbe eourt. of course. denies the application for custody of the child hied by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Trimble of Black Rock, who have eared for the boy since his mother's death. Coroner Chapman refused permis sion for Mr. Wertheim to remove Mrs. Palmer's body to the home of her youth in Texas. General Clean-Up Campaign Will Be , Instituted. At its regular semi-monthly meet ing last night the city council gave Marshal Chase full authority to con duct a thorough clean-up campaign that will include unsightly premises, shoddy -looking .buildings and yards grown to weeds. At every meeting the marshal reports some particular case of neglect and to cover all these he has been given authority to order any repairs or removals on property in the city. The street commissioner was authorized to hire a man to re pair the wooden cross-walks in the city, some of which are in dangerous condition. He will also undertake the moving of the walk in front of the Main street grade school to meet other walks on the street. The school property is being filled in and the sidewalk will be moved before this work is completed1. The reports of the city auditor and city treasurer were referred to the finance committee without reading, and all bills and warrants were al lowed. The council was adjourned until August 30. H. L. Fentoii and family spent Sun day visiting relatives in McMinnvil'.e. EARLY SETTLER'S VISIT KNIGHTS GO TO CRATER DALLAS REPRESENTED AS DIS TRICT CONVENTION. Claire Snyder Will Receive Final Rank in Knights of Pythias Or der on Wizard Island. MR. HERRICK KNEW DALLAS SIXTY YEARS AGO. Only Two Frame Shacks on Banks of Picturesque Rickreall River at That Time. "When I first came to Ball-is, al most 63 years ago, the town claimed right to distinction as such by virtue of its two frame shacks on the banks of the Rickreall, north of the present city," said B. B. Herrick of Turner, who passed through the city on Fri day en route to Ballston, where he has relatives. "The Lewis family made up theo- tal habitation of the town at toat time ; they were the proprietors of the village and members of the family occupied both of the houses. Salem was not much more of a city than Dallas, and had, I believe, three frame 8 hacks on the present site of the Bush bank. This settlement we called ' head quarters,' and the principal trading of tbe district was done at a little store that carried a few dry goods to desig nate it as a trade center." Mr. Herrick drove across the plains with an ox-team and settled on Kow ell prairie, east of Salem, on October 10, 1S5Z. tie is the father. of eleven children, most of whom are still liv ing. He is well known to those few who remain of Oregon 's hardy citizen ry of the early fifties, and ean repeat practically the entire history of tbe early settlements of this section. Three years ago he was afflicted with eronie trouble and retired from all activities but those necessary to the fullest enjoyment of life, insofar as that is possible when one is bent with Things are stirring down Crater Lake way today, with perhaps 1200 Knights of Pythias assembled .there from all parts of the state for the district convention of the order. By last night most. of the lodgemen had arrived, and were in quarters at Med ford as guests of Talisman lodge of that city until bright and early this morning, when a long procession left by automobiles for the lake. At eight o'clock this morning, E. W. Jaqua of talisman lodge called the knights to order on the rim of the crater, and after music by a lodge band Will G. Steel, superintendent of Crater Lake National park, delivered a short ad dress of welcome, and the good time was on. "A Lesson in Friendship. the authorized Pythian drama, will be presented on the rim of the lake this evening by the Talisman lodge of Medtord. This is a reproduction of the story of Damon and Pythias, upon which much of the lodge work is founded. Tomorrow morning, after a o o clock breakfast, the lodgemen will go to Wizard island in the lake for initiation by the Klamath Falls and Medford lodges. At that time Esquire Snyder of Dallas will be. giv en the knights degree with about 250 other candidates. After the initia tion ceremony the party will return to the rim of the lake, where prom inent grand lodge officers and other knights will address a meeting. There is no announcement of a program for the last day ot the convention. Knights who left Dallas on Sunday evening to attend the convention wearing the ribbons of Marmion lodge, were D. P. Patterson, Leif Fin- seth, Dr. B. F. Butler, Judge Belt, tred West, Ben Werner and Claire Snyder. By Friday most of the Dal las lodgemen will have returned. Jewelry Store Changes Hands. All fixtures and stock in the J. H. Shepherd jewelry store have been sold to A. D. Matz, formerly of San Fernando, Cal., and the new owner took possession this morning. Mr. Matz selected an entirely new stock of goods in Portland and with its ar rival the owner will fit up a complete and modern establishment. J. H. Shepherd and family will store their household goods here for tbe time be ing, and will go to Lincoln, Neb., for a visit before making plans for tbe future. - Overproduction and overspeculation in the lumber business seems to be the substance of business ills of the state, as found at the Federal Trade -commission hearing at Portland on Thursday. The trade commission is conducting investigations with mer chants and manufacturers in the prin cipal cities of the nation, and at tempts to prescribe remedies for the troubles it finds. That the lumber business is principally responsible for the state s commercial and financial debility, and that the industry is on a precarious footing, is the concensus of opinion of those who were con cerned at the hearing, and the men behind Oregon's chief commercial re source are to blame. They have trifl ed with credit, and have speculated in lands beyond all reason. This spec ulation was aided while there was a great demand for timber, according to W. D. Wheelwright, president of the Pacific Export Lumber company, but when the slump came in the mar ket the lumberman was forced to lose either by shutting down his mill, or by running on short time. The lum bermen are due for a thorough regen eration; they are compelled to pro duce, whether or not there is a mar ket, and our greatest need at this time is a merchant marine to open new markets to take care of the pro duction since so many markets have been closed by the war. Overproduc tion, said the speakers, was a natural result of the lack of a uniform sys tem of accounting, without which small mills cut prices and fail to keep proper tab on their output. "In many lines the state is in good condition," said A. L. Mills, presi dent of the First National bank of Portland. "Farmers have an enor mous wheat crop on their hands, for which they will receive at least 85 cents a bushel. Cayuse ponies that formerly sold for $25, bring $125 at war prices. Lambs that you can al most cover with a $5 bill are selling for $4.50. AU agricultural markets are in fine shape. The one trouble is with our one great industry the lum ber business. Mills are running at a loss. Something is wrong. You can see how vitallv this affects us when I tell you that from 50 to 55 per cent of our labor depends on the lumber mills. Another big question that stares us in the face is that of securing ships for the exportation of our record wheat crop. As a result of the opening of the federal reserve banks the country is swamped with money. There is no shortage of capi tal. We had plenty to move crops last year and are willing to let the lumberman have capital. The only sign the average mill man has to tell him whether or not he is making money in his year-end balance. He must have a standardized system of accounts, by which he can tell at a glance how much it costs him to man ufacture his lumber. This war has affected us seriously in the lumber business as regards freight and mar kets. It has cut down the number of ships and narrowed the demand. It has also hurt exchanges." The hearing at Portland lasted on ly one day. The members of the trade commission who appeared at the meeting were: Joseph E. Davies, lawyer of Wisconsin, chairman; Ed ward N. Hurley, manufacturer of Il linois, vice chairman; William J. Harris, Georgia banker;' Will H. Par ry, banker, Washington state; George Rublee, New Hampshire, lawyer. Indian Fair at Silets. The first fair ever held at Siletz will be that which opens at the agency next Tuesday and continues two days. The exhibits, which will include ag ricultural products, domestic art, rare relics and curios, will be made exclu sively by the Indians. There will al- be literary entertainments and athletic contests. Amity's New Postoffice. The government has taken lease on a new building to be built in Amity by E. W. Rae and J. R. Cronk and will move the postoffice there as soon as the building is completed. Tbe building, 60 by 80 feet will be of pressed brick with the front finished in light colors and equipped with large plate glass windows. Accidents at Camp. W. G. Dennis is a patient at the Dallas hospital, where Dr. Starbuck is repairing cracked ribs and a se verely bruised shoulder in addition to several cuts about the face which Mr. Dennis received when he fell from a cable at the Black Rock camp of the Willamette Valley Lumber company. Another hospital patient from the same camp is J. H. Bushaw, a bridge carpenter, who suffered two broken toes when a 3 by 10 inch bridge tim ber fell from a height of about twenty feet and struck his foot. Sheridan Adds to PayrolL The Ballston and Willamina section crews of the Southern Pacific will be ' assembled under tbe formanship of Shirley Waite, and will be stationed at Sheridan. The change will add approximately $300 to the Sheridan payroll and, if permanent, will mean the construction ot a number of homes. Harvesting Bountiful Crops. Mr. Al. Snyder was last week in the McCoy neighborhood, and tells The Observer that the fanners of that section are harvesting bountiful crops. The farmers surrounding McCoy ap pear to be unusually prosperous, as is evidenced by tbe number of improve ments now under way there.