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dead easy if done the right way. This paper will tell
several hundred at once at nominal cost. v
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Entered at the Foat Office at Athena, Oregon, as Second-Class Mail Matter
VOLUME 50.
ATHENA, UMATILLA COUNIT, OREGON. FRIDAY MORNING, MAY 10, 1929
NUMBER 19
GOMMENGEMENT
PROGRAM TONIGHT
Dr. Davis of Whitman Col
lege Will Deliver
the Address.
Beginning this evening at 3 o'clock
the commencement exercises for. the
1929 graduating cIbsb of Athena high
school trll bwiesed by a .large
audience.
A class of fifteen, nine boys and six
girls, will tonight bid good-bye to
Athena Hi where they leave behind
them the years spent in public school
training, to enter upon a period of
effort in acquiring education of a
higher trend.
Dr. Davis, of Whitman college will
deliver the commencement address to
the class which has for its motto,
"stick to the ship." Class colors are
rose and cream, and the class flower,
rosebud. Those having ; charge ' of
decorating the auditorium for the oc
casion, have spared no effort in their
work and as a result the audience to
night will be surprised at the decora
tive effect. '
The Members of the graduat
ing class are Weldon Allen Bell,
Alberta Charlton, Jack William
Dow, Lee Foster,. Pearl Irene
Green, George Gross, Areta Maxine
Kirk, Marjorie Marguerite Wilson,
Edwin Luvoise McEwen, Ralph Mc
Ewen, Jr., Oral Michener, Wilford
Miller, Donald Wayne Pinkerton,
Emma Marie Ringel and Mildred
Street The program is as follows:
March............ '. Orchestra
Invocation..; ;.....Rev. H. E. Dow
"Sweet and Low" High School
Presentation of Class Gift
Wilford Miller
Vocal Solo Mrs. David Stone
Commencement Address
Dr. Wm. R. Davis
Overture Orchestra
Presentation of Awards
Supt. Lee A. Meyer
Presentation of Diplomas
B. B. Richards
Benediction....... .. Rev. H. E. Dow
Baccalaureate services were held
at the auditorium Sunday evening, be
ginning at 7:30. Rev. H. E. Dow,
pastor of the First Baptist church of
Athena delivered the sermon. The
program for the Baccalaureate ser
vices follows:
Hymn Congregation
Invocation.
Anthem ." Quartette
Scripture Reading.
Announcements.
Solo Mrs. R. B. McEwen
Baccalaureate Sermon..Rev. H. E. Dow
Anthem Quartette
Benediction.
Pheasants Thrive
In Eastern Oregon
Reports from the state game farms
at Corvallis, Eugene and Pendleton
show that up to April 30,. eggs were
gathered as follows: Chinese pheas
ants, 6356; Wild turkey, 507; Guinea
fowl, 525; and Mongolian pheasants,
98. The Hungarian partridge has
not started laying. 'This season
many more Mongolian pheasants will
pe raised thai) heretofore as it has
been show?) that they thrive in. East
ern Oregon where plantings have
been made.
Experiments being carried on at
Oregon State College under the su
pervision pf the state game commis
sion to determine the food habits of
Chinese pheasants is being watched
by other states,. The experimental
work has been under way for the past
ten months and has two more months
to go when a report will be made.
Ten representative agricultural coun
ties of Oregon art the scenes of the
work. So far it has been learned that
while the pheasants eat a certain
amount of cereals they also destroy
pests that do damage to crops, and
feed on weed seeds that if given
growth would be destructive to the
farmer. , Michigan and other state
game commissions have asked for re
ports on the work now being carried
on.
A Half Section Is
Being Planted Daily
By Four Crews
A half section of land 320 acres-
is being planted daily to beans in
the Athena-Weston district, ' : where
more than 6000 acres have been leas
ed from landowners by the Eickhoff
Products company for its first
year in bean production in this
section.
Divided into four crews, operating
two caterpillar tractors, each draw
ing three corn planter w.n-h me
equipped with mechanism ior rtrilhncj
the seed beans in the soil, plant
ing operations are 'well under way..
- - Each crew manning two tracwrs
nH six rfanters. seed on an average
about 80 acres per day. . Two crews
are operating in Athena neighborhood
nnAer supervision of Marion Hansell,
and two crews at Weston, where Buzz
Fisk is overseeing the work.
Refora h seed beans go into ilie
hoppers on the planters, they are in
oculated as soon as tie sach.3 are
opened, put into the containers im
modiatelv and sent on their way
through the drilling apparatus and
down under the soil, which has pre
vimislv been nacked and carefully
. -
prepared to receive the seed.
Permanrit Clinics
Held For Children
Miss Edna Flanntean. county health
renorts that Dermanent clinics
for children have been established in
this countv. These clinics are being
held at the hospital in Pendleton each
Monday morning, oegmning ai
9:30.
An average of eleven patients at
tended the clinics during the month
of April. One tuberculosis clinic was
held durinsr the month at which
twelve patients were examined."
In cooperation with uuia ne&itn
Week, the county health association
had for its special project a ehart ex
amination tor ail cnuaren iaKing
nnrt in district track meets, the ex
aminations being made by different
physicians, when- 469 pupils were examined.
Ten mwlls were eliminated from
all activities of the meet, and ten
were limited in their activities. Ul
the ten eliminated, seven returned to
their physician for re-examination
and treatment.
Makinir ImnroTementa
Henry bell is making extensive im
provements to his " cottage on High
street east of Fifth, which is to be
occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Armond De
Merritt, who are moving to Athena
from Walla Walla. A new addition
is being built on the south end of he
couage, ana me interior is aiso un
dergoing alterations.
Local Rain Welcome
A good, hard shower qf rain of an
hour duration was welcomed heri
Saturday, and during the afternoon
Intermittent showers fell. The rain
fall was local in scope, a. few miles
from town but little moisture was in
evidence. Gardens and growing crops
in the Athena vicinity were greatly
benefitted.
How to Dispose of Ten Millions?
HI PRICES AI
LOWEST FOR YEAH
Chicago bears caught the grain
markets in a weak moment Tuesday
and drove wheat prices down to rock
bottom for the year. Made vulner
able by the huge exportable Ameri
can surplus carried over from the
great 1928 crop, with shipping fa
cilities clogged, and a new crop only
eight weeks distant, wheat quotation,
sagged 2 to 3 cents at. Chicago,
and from 8 to 9 cents at Win
nipeg, where the pit had taken a
holiday while American markets
were starting down hill.
The market had closed before the
Western trunk lines announced a
voluntary cut until September 3Q of
grain rates for export, taken at the
behest pf President Hoover to facili
tate the movement of the 1928 cany-
over to the seaboard. The reduction
ranged frqm j to 11$ cents per
hundredweight of wheat,
Enormous short covering, much of
it for foreign account, seemed to have
little effect on the Chicago pit. Win
nipeg's opening weakness had given
impetus to the downwarq movement
at Chicago, and the marKet snowed
little inclination to rebound. The
lowest prices for the season since
1924 were marked down, and at the
finish wheat was about 28 cents under
the year's peak price of three months
ago, and 50 cents under the figure a
year ago. May wheat closed at $1.05
to $1.05, July $1.104 to $1.10,
and September $1.13 to $1.13.
Other grains also were undermined
but corn was firm in comparison.
On top of optimistic crop comment
for this year came the latest esti
mates of the heavy surplus still in
storage from last year's record yield
on this continent. In Canada 38,000,-
000 bushels were said to be packad
away in elevators at the seaboard
competing with domestic grain for the
foreign market and for shipping fa
cilities. Montreal, with elevator ca
pacity for 15,000,000, bushels, report
ed 21,000,000 bushels on hand in eleva
tors, ships and on rail, and private
reports indicated nq relief in sight
before Jate May.
Meanwhile markets abroad were
cutting the American price, Liver
pool closed 2 to 2Z pence lower than
yesterday, and at noon Buenos Aires
was 4 to down.
The Canadian visible supply was
estimated at 88,927,000 bushels, com
pared with 77,656,000 bushels a year
ago.
i $
G Harold Smith of New York, who is In the unique position of a mun
who has $10,000,000 at his disposal, and doesn't know what to do with It, So
Mr. Smith has asked for suggestions from the public nnd how they're coming
In. Mr, Smith will , present $1,000 to the person who mnkes the best sug
gestion to him.
FAVOR
MILTON MEN
PERTAINING TO
HOUSE BILL
NCP.EASE IN
363
SALARIES
Milton, Oregon, May 8. (To Editor,
Athena Press:) The following item
appeared in the Portland Oregonian
of May 5th: "The referendum Idea
has struck Umatilla County, and A.
R. Shumway, member of the Legisla
tive Committee of the Grange and Constitute a substantial ' group with
the almost unanimous, judgment of
the Legislature, its Umatilla County
representatives in the Legislature,
the deliberate judgment of the Gov
ernor of the State, but likewise the
judgment of its own members, which
Farmers Union Is credited with being
the inspiration. The referendum is
aimed at House Ball No. 363 increas
ing salaries of Umatilla County of
ficers . Eight counties pay the
County Judge more than Umatilla;
five counties pay their Sheriffs more;
twenty-one counties pay their As
sessor more; seven counties pay their
School Superintendent more; five pay
their County Clerk more than Uma
tilla, but the Grangers of Umatilla
county consider the county officials
are paid enough at present.
In view of the history oi tnis leg
islation, and the facts which make its
enactment essential and desirable, it
is hard for us to conceive that the
Grange of this county would endeavor
to accomplish its defeat, unless its
members have not been fully or
correctly informed.
The membership of the urange
locally, as we kpow it, is composed
largely of men and women who are
sincerely dedicated to the cause ot
efficient and economical government.
We do not believe that they wqu'fl
wilfully want to commit their organ
ization, or themselves, to any course
which would not be fair and just to
the Granges, or which would be
prejudicial to the welfare of the
-cunty as a whole, and certainly In
no event would commit themselves
to any policy for or against any
legislation, without first informing
themselves of all available facts in
connection therewith,
Therefore, in order to bring perti
nent matters concerning House Bill
No. 333 to the attention of the Grang
ers of this county, and others who
might be Invited to sign the referen
dum petitions when presented, we re
spectfully urge their consideration of
the following facts before they sign
such petitions and thereby delay the
operation of what we conceive to be
just and necessary legislation.
Concerning the history preceding
the enactment of this bill, do you
know:
That only two of the sixty mem
bers of the House, and only one of
the thirty members of the Senate vot
ed against, this measure after it was
fairly presented to them!
That the membership of both House
and Senate has a large number of
men who are members of the Granga
and who are faithful to the principles
of that organization and diligently
assert themselves against any meas
ure which they believe prejudicial to
the interests of the organization, and
that only two of these Grange mem
bers voted against the bill?
That the Governor did not sign the
bill uptil after thorough investi
gation of Its necessity, and after con-
sultion with representatives of the
Grange and that this bill was one of
the few salary bills which received
his support?
That for the Grange to initiate ref
erendum proceedings against the bill
at this time is to repudiate not only
in the Legislature?
That the last salary increase for
any official of Umatilla County was
nine years ago, in 1917.
That the present salary of the
Sheriff was established thirty-three
years ago?
That the present salary of the
County Commissioners was establish
ed twenty-five years ago?
That the present Balary of the As
sessor was established twenty-three
year ago?
That the present salary of the
County School Superintendent was
established twenty-three years ago?
Concerning the necessity and the
circumstances which justify the in
creases provided by this bill, do you
know:
That since the Assessor's salary
Was established in 1905 the valuation
of the property in Umatilla County
has increased 550 per eent?
That when the Sheriff's salary was
established thirty-three years ago the
county had a. population of less than
fifteen thousand, and an assessed
valuation of less than Five Million
Dollars?
That the work in the County Clerk's
office has increased over eighty-per
cent since the last salary raise pro
vided for that office, not taking into
account the increases in work inci
dent to the primary election laws?
That the gross amount of moneys
handled by the Treasurer's office has
increased over two hundred per cent
since the last salary raise authorized
for that office?
That even the City School Super
intendents in Umatilla County re
ceives a larger salary than that re
ceived by the County School Superintendent?
That on January 1, 1919, Umatilla
County had a total of ten miles of
improved highway; on January 1,
1929, Umatilla County had a total of
342 miles of improved highway, an
increase of more than 3320. per cent?
That during the past ten years the
Umatilla County Court has beep re
sponsible for the expenditure of $5,-
100,000 for all purposes, an average
expenditure of $510,000 annually, and
that during that time no warrants
against the general fund have had to
be registered, nor interest paid there
on, and that the County Court, dur
ing that time, and without mandate
from the people, has saved in various
ways over $25,000 to be applied upon
the construction of the much need
ed county jail? f ,
That during the past ten years all
of the $1,050,000 voted by the people
for Improved roads in Umatilla Coun
ty will be entirely paid during 1929,
and that Umatilla County, on
January 1, 1930, will be entirely out
of debt and on a cash basis?
It is assumed, '. without knowing,
that one of the pretended objections
to the enactment of thi3 mt-auru is
its supposed increase in county taxes.
We who lign' thi letter "have alway s
U, of O. Merman
jgp ill'1'6 1
l
X
This is Johnny Anderson, leading
college swimmer in the northwest, who
will head the University of Oregon
team that will Invade California next
month for dual meets with Stanford.
California, Southern California and
IJ. C. L. A. Johnny holds several Pa
?itlo Coast conference records.
consistently identified ourselves
against unwarranted increases in
taxes, but it is our honest opinion
that the passage of this bill will not
have this result. In this connection
we ask: ' ; -
Do "you know that the aggregate
increases in salaries provided by this
bill is only $4,300 annually, and that
the last session of the Legislature
also passed a bill which cuts flat
mileage from the expense accounts
of all county officials, thereby saving
to Umatilla County, in terms of 1928
experience, an amount which is equal
to, if not greater than, the aggregate
increase provided by this bill ?
That Umatilla County is now the
second wealthiest county in the state
and has the lowest rate for state and
county purposes in the state, a tax
of only 14.9 mills, against tax rates
in other counties of more than doublo
that amount?
That even if the salary increases
were not offset by the saving in mile
age, House Bill No. 363 would only
raise the taxes .88 of a mill, or, re
solved in terms of cents, eight cents
on every thousand dollars ?
That by reason of the full payment
in 1929 of the bond issue referred to,
there will necessarily be a. decrease of
20 per cent in county taxes for the
next assessment, and that the future
discloses a sharp decline in county
taxes and this notwithstanding the in
crease in salaries provided?
In view of the facts, it is hard
for us to believe that any one serious
ly interested in increasing efficiency
in our county offices can seriously ob
ject to House Bill No. 363.
That the laborer is worthy of his
hire is a principle as applicable to the
employment of our public officers as it
is to our private employees, and that
when the burdens and responsibilities
of office increase, that a fair compen
sation should be made thereof. If
perchance, members of the Grange
are disappointed with the actions of
various county officials, then there is
an appropriate way for them to regis
ter their objections directly against
given officials through the polls. The
present officials are only accidently
beneficiaries of House Bill No. 363.
It is Intended primarily to fix rates
of pay which will, in the future, in
duce persons of ability to seek the
positions. Without this inducement,
the taxpayers of this county will be
confronted with the possibility of
higher taxes as a result of the kind
of inefficiency which always follows
under-pay mcnt.
Respectfully submitted,
ROBERT G. STILL
T. C. FRAZIER
W. S. MUNSELLE
John A. Keller Dies
At Pendleton Hospital
From Heart Trouble
John A Keller, well known in Ath
ena, where he formerly lived for
many years, died Monday night at
St. Anthony's hospital in Pendleton,
after a critical illness of several days
from heart trouble.
Familiarily known to his friends as
"Jack," Mr. Keller came to Athena
in 1900 and worked for some time at
his trade, that of stone mason. Later
he engaged in farming west of Ath
ena. Later he went to Portland, and
returning to this county, he has been
farming in the vicinity of Helix.
Mr. Keller was born at Nurstand,
Minnesota, and attended Hamline
University at St. Paul. On June 20,
1898, he was married to Miss Flor
ence Smith, who with two daughters,
one son, two brothers and one sister,
survive mm.
Funeral services were held from the
Methodist church at Pendleton Wed
nesday afternoon, with Rev. Melville
T. Wire officiating.
Members, of he Odd Fellows lodge
took charge of the funeral services
after the services were held in the
church, and his body was brought to
Athena for burial. Mr. Keller was
a pioneer member of the I. O. O. F.
lodge and a member of the Masonic
order.
Will Observe Mother's
Day, On May 12th
Sunday evening in the Christian
church auditorium, the combined
congregations of . the Baptist and
Christian churches will give a suit
able program in honor of Mother's
Day, to which all are invited. The
program follows:
Trio, by the Orchestra.
Hymn Congregation
Scripture Reading Louis Stewart
Prayer G. R. Gerking
Solo.' Kohler Betts
Reading I....- Esther Berlin
Quartette.
Talk .....Rev. Dow
Piano Solo Marjorie Douglas
Reading ; ......Mrs. C. M. Eager
Pagant, Mother's Day, with special
songs by Mrs, Reeder, and Mrs, Stone
and music by orchestra.
Hymn, "Blest Be the Tie"
Congregation
Benediction.
UNION COMPANY
ENTERS ATHENA
Hatchery to Reopen
The state game commission an
nounces that the hatchery at Bingham
Springs will be reopened at once, and
by June first over a million eggs from
Diamond Lake will be put in the
troughs at Bingham hatchery.
Visitors Here
1 Rev. and Mrs. D. Loree and children
were Athena visitors Saturday. Rev
Loree was formerly pastor of the
local Baptist church.
The Union Oil Company was grant
ed permission to establish a dis
tributing station in Athena at a meet
ing of the city council, Monday eve
ning. The consent of the council was
necessary for the reason that the
station will be located inside the city
limits.
The location selected by the Union
people i opposite the Standard Oil
plant, south, across the road and just
inside the city limits, The location
is on Northhern Pacific property and
on the west side of Northern Pacific
tracks.
The entrance of the Union in the
Athena field increases oil distributing
plants to three. The Standard and
the Continental oil companies already
have stations here, the Standard be
ing the first to enter local territory,
followed by the Continental.
In other sections, producing com
panies are acquiring service stations
the Shell company having purchased
a service station in Pendleton this
week. The Continental owns the
Athena Service Station under lease
to Bryce Baker.. So far the Standard
has no down-town service station of
its own, and it is not known what
the Union's intentions are relative to
a service station here.
Athena Mothers Entertained .
About sixty-five Athena mothers
were entertained in the Christiari
church reception room last Thursday
afternoon when the Etude club gave
a most pleasing and appropriate pro
gram. A pageant depicting five
stages of life, beginning with the
child and ending with old age, was
carried out with music and readings.
with Mrs. Laurence Tinkerton at the
piano. Many old-time melodies were
used, the whole being keenly ap
predated by the guests, young and
old. One special feature was a wed
ding which was carried out in an
impressive and realistic manner. The
entire membership of the club par
ticipated in the program, and all de
serve special credit. Each mother
was presented with a pink carnation,
and pink tulips centered the table
where later, Mrs. D. A. Pinkerton and
Mrs. Laurence Lieuallen of Adams
cut cskes and poured coffee.
Weston Won From Athena
- Weston defeated "Pike" Miller's
Athtna town team in a closely play
ed game at Weston, Sunday; by a
scdre of 7 to 5. "
RATE SITUATION
IS f,
IJOR
Cheap Lands In Canada Are
Challenge To Food Ex
port Markets.
In a letter addressed to farm offi-
ciala jrf Oregon, Idaho and Washing
ton, Arthur M. Geary, attorney for
the farmers in the grain rate cases
has explained the present status of
the case and the lines he will follow
in carrying the fight through with the
interstate commerce commission at
Washington. Mr. Geary's letter in
part, is as follows:
The nature of the proposed report
in the grain case as it relates to
Washington, Oregon and Idaho has
two possible explanations. One is
that in the maze of contentions and
counter-contentions of railroads,
market and milling interests through
out the country the prime object of
the investigation' under the Hoch-
Smith resolution, namely, to bring re
lief to agriculture has been over
looked. The other is that the pro
ponents of the report feel that the
time has come for the forced reduc
tion of wheat acreage in this country
to a basis that will no more than sup
ply the domestic requirements.
What ever the explanation, there is
no side-stepping the issue raised
which the farm organizations of
Washington, Oregon and Idaho must
face.
With about 90 per cent of the
wheat of Washington and Oregon and
the soft grain growing sections of
Idaho now going into export, there
is no use in minimizing the serious
ness of the situation.
Our problem appears in large part
to be the gaining of the attention and
the ear of the eleven commissioners
long enough for them to understand
the true facts as they affect a great
industry in these states of the north
west.
The viewpoint of the examiners ap
pears to be exactly the opposite to
the Canadian commissioners as ex
pressed over a year ago in their de
cision under the Canadian "Hocb-
Smith resolution." To quote from
one of the Canadian commissioners:
"Canada must place her wheat on
the world's market at a price .that
will compete with the offerings of
other countries. If she cannot do that
she cannot sell, and if she cannot sell
and at a profit to the producer
she cannot produce for export.
The national interest imperatively de
mands that production shall be in
creased to the limit that the
world market will take at a price that
will meet costs of transportation and
enable the farmer to successfully con
tinue and to extend his operations."
By their cheaper and newer lands
and lower freight rates obviously
Canada has issued both a challenge
and an invitation. The challenge is
to flood the world markets with wheat
at prices under which Washington,
Oregon and Idaho wheat growers can
not operate at a profit. The invita
tion extended by extensive advertising
and colonization offices in this coun
try is for the grain farmers in in
creasing numbers to continue to ex
patriate themselves and to become
growers of grain on the Canadian
prairies.
By excepting brief and oral argu
ment it is my intention to drive home
to the commissioners the basic fact
that the Canadian competition en
titles Oregon, Washington and Idaho
and for that matter, Montana grow
ers to the " lowest possible legal
freight rates over the price fixing
routes to the North Pacific ports; also,
that the more of this wheat that , is
diverted out of the country the bet
ter it is for the grain growers of the
other sections.
Wheat Farmers Meet
Wheat farmers of Umatilla County
will have an unusual opportunity to
get first hand information on the
market outlook for future wheat
crops if they attend a wheat grow
ers' meeting which has been arranged
to be held at Pendleton today. The
important subject of grain grading,
how it is done and what it means to
the producer will also be featured on
the same program. The combination
offers one of the most attractive ses
sions held in recent yers for grain
growers of this county.
Dry At Yakima
F. S. LeGrow of the First National
Bank, made a business trip to Yakima
a few days ago. On his return Mr.
LeGrow stated that the alfalfa crop
and pasturage in the Yakima valley
had been greatly retarded by dry
weather. Lack of moisture had the
effect of drying up the soil to the ex
tent that in some localities it was ba
ren of vegetable growth almost entirely.