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About The Athena press. (Athena, Umatilla County, Or.) 18??-1942 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 27, 1928)
She Mtu tm N I DEPENDENT NEWSPAPER F. B. BOYD. Owner and Publisher Subscription Rates, One copy, one year " One copy, six months One copy, three months '7i Athena, Oregon, January 27, 1928 REMAKING AN EMPIRE (Nation's Business) Recfttapy of a lost empire was the probleTh, that confronted a nauuimi PROPERTY WOULD PAY IT Should the $3.00 automobile lic ense come, property tax in the state f,f Oreiron would have the burden to carry in proportion to what the pres ent revenue from licenses amounts t and what it would be under the flat ,..u. i, .00 schedule, for automobile i..;ic would demand the present u..o of road construction and high way maintainence. With the present property tax not able to meet governmental expense, what would be the result when pro perty is called upon to lift that share of the road tax now carried by auto mobile license fee? Unless property tax covers the deficit, here is what would happen to the state highway program, under the proposed flat automobile license fee rate of $3.00: 1. Loss of $1,180,000 per year of federal aid funds. 2. No funds for the construction of new highways. No funds with which to widon, straighten and otherwise improve - existing highways as they become in adequate to properly serve the in creased traffic which they must bear. 4. Only sufficient funds to prop erly maintain about one-half of the highways that are now being enjoy ed and that are so important a factor in the commercial and social welfare of the state. 5. Ultimate obsolescense and de struction of a system of highways in which many millions of dollars have been invested. The Athena community feels ap preciative for the completion of the Wildhhorse market road, and a re sponsive chord has been struck in the announcement that a banquet will be held to commemorate the achieve ment. Thus opportunity is presented to appropriately dedicate the new highway. When you have to sneeze, sneeze right out loud. Else you find your self in the predicament of the Berke ley man, who, not to offend street car passengers, held in his sneeze, and when it released itself it jerked him out of the window and landed him in the hospital with a lame back. Lindy at last forsook social func tions and gave his nerves a rest by going into the woods on a tapir hunt. He topped off a week's pleasure jaunt in fishing for alligators in a Panama swamp, and he proved to be adept at the job. Now the lad is pepped up for another air grind. That a German divorce decree will get you as far as any other, is evidenced in the case of Elly Ney and her former husband, William van Iloogslraten, director of Port land symphony orchestra; and with as much harmony, too. "College girls are taking up box ing. They wrestle, also, but it is called dancing," grouchily deplores the Vermmia Eagle man, whom we'll wager doesn't know the difference be tween the black bottom and the centipede waltz. Technique of high order was intru- duced the other day by a Portland thug, when he grasped with his teeth the little finger of a woman's hand and deftly "lifted" a diamond ring from her third finger. "Five dollars" said a Portland judge to a bunch of 125 motorists who persisted in driving around be hind 1927 license plates. They paid and lett their tlivvers in the garage. the versatile co-ed is supreme; mistress of the chafing dish, if noth ing else; and so long as the art of cheese-making remains, let her chafe o Immense flocks of robins reported in flight over Southern Oregon, por tends serious future inroads on a cer tain well known variety of fish bait. o New styles and an optimistic spring feeling go hand in hand, and dad pays the bill on the first of the month. r,fprpnf in Chicago in November, The lost empire is about a fifth of the entire area of the United States -more than that of the cultivated farm land of the country and it lies within the nation's boundaries. It re quires no force of arms to retake it; it is not in rebellion. This realm contains the one great eternally ' re newable natural resource of the nation; it supports one-tenth of our people; it provides shelter for a ma jority of them; it is the mother of most of our industries. Yet in the midst of progress and prosperity it lacs and languishes The lost empire is our private for est land; and its plight was described at the conference as "the most inv nortant question before the American people today." Part of this empire- desolated and sterilized by tire is as lost to the nation as if it had been annexed by a foreign power, part of it is in a twilight state of sorry re generationragged, neglected, fire swept woodlands; part of it is cour ageously staging a comeback; and a part happily a large part, is still physically sound and intact abound ing in magnificent virgin forests but economically weak, and in danger of eventual loss. The lost empire has been deplored and bemoaned by practical men as well as by the senti mentalist and the academics, the last two groups frequently coming to the conclusion that the solution of the problem is to compel the owners of timber land to grow timber for scene ry if they can't for profit. The Chamber of Commerce of the United States has long recognized that the recovery of the lost empire an ecomonic question that must be answered outside of debating societies by practical private enter prise. The Chamber hit on the novel -ac tually, it is a novel idea of calling together the business men who own the woodlands of America outside the public forests, the men who are act ually growing timber and utilizing the forests, and get them to suggest remedies. Long the lectured, the men of the tall timber became at last the lec turers. And they even lectured themselves. Neither did they evade their share of the responsibility. Without u "but" or an "if" they assumed, "as civic duty, the leadership in this great national enterprise of perpet uating the forests." There were more than 300 of them, representing every province of the lost empire, which stretches through about forty states. Sitting with them were representatives of the industries that must have wood or perish and a score or more of professional for esters, including Col. W. B. Greeley, the, chief forester of the United States. The National Resources Depart ment of the Chamber, which directed the conference, cheered it with the announcement of the results of a survey of the present state of com mercial reforestation in the United States. Nearly 200 commercial companies already have adopted for estry policies. These apply to about 21,000,000 acres of land. Moreover, virtually all of the Pacific coast and the adjacent states are systematically protecting their forest land virgin as well as cut- over against fire; and so are a large proportion of those of the southern states and of other regions. Such protection has been declared to be 75 per cent of reforestation in the American environment. Speaking of the mannce of the fires, Colonel Greeley touched a sore spot of nntional and state policy when he declared that, despite grati fying progress, we had not yet made the United States "safe for forestry." So, last year, the forest lands of the United States were exposed, more or less unprotected, to 91,000 forest fires, which burned not less than 24, 000.000 acres of land. It should be explained that but a very small part of this devasted area included valu able timber. Most of it was land that had been cut over at least once, and, probably, almost all of it had been burned over before. But it is the land that has been denuded that contains the present hope of future forests. And there is no insurance, or virtually none, which fact was sur veyed and deplored by an insurance committee headed by John L. Kaul, president of National Lumber Manu facturers' Association. PROPOSED $3.00 LICENSE FEE County Revenues A great deal of discussion ha3 arisen regarding the effect that the proposed $3.00 flat license fee would have upon the road finances of the various counties in the state. Under j the present basis of distribution the; counties receive twenty-five per cent ) of the net income from motor vehicle license fees after the costs of collec tion have been deducted. This dis tribution to the counties during 1926 based upon the net receipts for the calendar year, amounted to $1,410,- 000, the share of each county Deing proportional to the amount of license fees paid in by owners of vehicles registered from that particular coun ty. Under state statutes the money is transferred to the county "motor li cense fund" and is required to be dis bursed; first, for payment of interest and retirement of county bonds issued for road construction and improve ment; second, for cooperation on bridges and grading on state high ways if such cooperation is required; and, third, for general county high way improvement. At the end of 1926, the various counties of the state had outstand ing road bonds to the extent of $24, 650,000. Assuming that these bonds have an average life of thirty years, which is perhaps above the average, the retirements during the year! would have amounted" to $822,000. Assuming an average interest rate of iV2 percent, the interest requirements for the year would have amounted to $1,109,000, or a total for principal and interest of $1,931,000. It -will be seen from this that the counties found it necessary to raise $512,000, in addition to the income received from their share of the motor ve hicle license fees, in order to take care of their bond obligations. This deficit is large enough to throw a considerable burden upon the general finances of the counties, but seems small when contrasted with the conditions which would exist if the proposed $3,00 license fee were to go into effect. Under the proposed $3.00 fee the county share of the motor vehicle license fees during 1926, would have been reduced to $365,000. This would have left a deficit of $1,566,000 to be made up from other county sources, probably necessitating a direct levy upon the property of each county. 1 The total taxable property in the state for 1926 was $1,084,538,000, and the raising of the deficit of $1 566,000 would have necessited a levy of 1.44 mills on all of the taxable property of the counties, of $1.44 on each $1,000 of taxable property. Even those figures do not indicate the burden which would be imposed if the flat $3.00 fee were to be adopt ed and a tax on the general property of the state were resorted to in order to make up the deficit to the State Highway Commission's rev enues. The deficit to the commis sion, it is estimated, would have Been $3,162,500 for 1926, or a total of $4,728,500 to be met from property taxes. The levy required to meet this amount would have been 4.36 mills, or $4.36 on each $1,000 of tax able property in addition to the bur den already carried by the direct property taxpayer. The difference between a 4.36 mill tax on all the taxable property of the state and the present income of $1, 419,000 to the counties, plus $4,257, 500 to the state, without resort to property taxes is the difference to the average property taxpayer, be tween the present scale of fees and the proposed $3.00 license fee. Complete Kitchen Equipment EVERYTHING for the kitchen from an oil stove to a clipper you'll find it at this store. We v selected our stock thoughtfully with your kitchen nwids always in mind. All the articles we offer you are tried and proved through long years of honest service. We have New Perfection Oil Cook Stoves clean and reliable, com plete with oven and warming cabi net. And we also carry a big assort ment of Utensils Aluminum and Enameled Steel. Let us help you select the articles you need for your kitchen. ROGERS i nwiwmrrwwTiri in iinrTiwrrnMiTii i nma i GOODMAN FNEW PERFECTION 'f i-L OiJ Cook Stoves and Ovens H, I&J Under the present law the courts and juries have to wrestle with the fiction that a defendant may have j been insane at the exact moment of committing a crime and quite norm al at a ten-minute distance on either side of the act. It is this fiction that admits a sickening plausibility to the plea of "guilty by reason of in sanity," and induces lavish waste of time and money on the contradictory testimony of mental and nerve specialists. American Beauty Bread Baked by the most modern and up-to-date process known to the art of baking. Insuring you uniform quality the year round. Ask your grocer. MILTON BAKERY, H. W. Kreiger Prop. SSSS3SBES3SS9EBB3BBE Able to Navigate Magistrate The constable says you were intoxicated imd unable to walk. Prisoner Excuse me contradictln' Mm, sir, but 1 was able to walk quite comfort able 'n ' t fours. Tit-Tilts. In Pound Notice is hereby given that the following described animals have been taken up and placed in Athena city pound, and unless redeemed by owner, will be sold to the highest bidder for cash in hand on Tuesday, January, 31, 1928, at 2 o'clock p. m. One bay mare, about 6 years old, brand open 8 on left stiffle. Colt at side. , One brown horse, about 4 years old, no brand visable. B. D. TAYLOR, Marshal. WE CALL FOR AND DELIVER Monday, Thursday, Saturday Cleaning, Pressing, Repairing, Dyeing Rugs Cleaned and Size4 Twin City Sanitary Cleaners F. E. Smith, Milton-Freewater Our Agency is at Penn Harris Barber Shop. Haircuts and Shaves. Phone 583. The home of good Dr. W. Boyd Whyte CHIROPRACTOR Stangier Building, Phone 706 Pendleton. Oregon. 957 J "Coolidge pours oil on troubled waters" meaning that another ad miral ha. talked too much. DR. J. L. GEYER Dentist Post Building, Athena, Phone 582 NOTICE TO CREDITORS In the County Court of the State o! Oregon forUmatilla County. In the matter of the Estate of Mar tha J. Shick, Deceased. Notice is hereby given that the undersigned has been appointed exe cutor of the last will and testament of Martha J. Shick, deceased, by an order of the above entitled Court. All persons having claims against the said estate are hereby notified to present the same to me at Athena, Oregon, or to my attorneys, Watts & Prestbye, at their office in Athena, Oregon, within six months from the date of the first publication of this notice. All claims must be verified as by law required. Dated at Athena, Oregon, this 13th day of January, 1928. ARTHUR E. SHICK, Executor of the Last Will and Testament of Martha J. Shick, Deceased. Watts & Prestbye Attorneys for Estate, Athena, Oregon. J13F10 It Pays to Look Well! To look well you should keep your hair properly cut your face shaved and massaged In fact everything in the Barber line. Come in and see Herb Parker and I. Penn Harris Barber Shop Agency for Troy Laundry and Twin City Sanitary Cleaners. Phone 583. 1. DR. S. F. SHARP PHYSICIAN AND SURGEON Athena, Oregon I'ortUud plar.: to ;pc::d the tut re ba grata!! of $S,6TS,OC0 for her schools during 1S2S. FoEsibly Admiral Plunkett is seek ing a niche on the retired list? o There is quite speck of doff tax running loose in Athena. DR. W. G. COWAN PHYSICIAN AND SURGEON Athena, Oregon WATTS & PRESTBYE Attorney-At-lw Main Street. Athena. Oregon State and Federal Court Practice A JUST LAW PROPOSED (Seattle Times) The district attorneys of Oregon, corresponding to the prosecuting at torneys in Washington, have recom mended an addition to the criminal code that deserves favorable con sideration in both states. They pro pose a law providing that when a de fendant is found guilty of a crime by reason of insanity the verdict shall be conclusive that the defendant is in sane and the term of detention' in an asylum shall be at least as long as the minimum prison sentence for the crime charged. The justice of this is ho obvious that it is a wonder some such law was not drafted and enacted long ago. The insane criminal is more dangerous to leave at large than one who is sane and whose proclivites might to some extent be restrained by knowl edge and fear of consequences. The insane person cannot be presumed to lha'e either knowledge or fear. m We Handle Genuine m A Goods-No Substitutes. rA Try Our Ta D.R.SHAMPQO Tg Shaving and Baths Up-to-the Minute Bobs Hair Cuts and Shingles DUFFIELD'S BARBER SHOP Athena, Ore. SOME OF THE FACILITIES OFFERED BY THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF ATHENA SAFETY DEPOSIT BOXES For rent from $l"per year up. These boxes are kept in our fire-proof and burglar-proof vault, and they are accessable to you at any time during banking hours. INTEREST ON DEPOSITS We will pay you interest at the rate of 4 per cent per annum, compounded semi-annually if you wish, on our certificates of deposit. In the last five years we have paid our customers over $75,000 in interest on deposits. WE OFFER FOR SALE Insured mortgage bonds, insured by the National Surety Company of America. These bonds are in $100, $500 and $1,000 denominations and draw in terest at the rate, of 6 per cent coupons payable semi annually. ESTABLISHED 1865 Preston-Shaffer Milling Co. AMERICAN BEAUTY FLOUR is made in Athena, b ' Athena labor, in one ol the very best equipped mill in the Northwest, of the best selected Bluestem wheat grown anywhere. Patronize home industry. Your (Tocer sells the famous American Beauty Flour Merchant Millers & Grain Buyers Vthena. Oregon. Waitshurg. Wash