Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (July 19, 1945)
4 Heppner Gazette Times, July 19, 1945 EDITORIAL . A Long Way Around This week the Gazette Times family mailed a birthday gift to a little friend at Ritter. There is nothing unusual about mailing birthday gifts to little friends (or big ones, for that matter), but in this instance the matter of geography enters in to the picture and causes one to pause and give a little thought to the subject of highways and mail routes. In the matter of the birthday gift, let us trace the distance the parcel had to travel to reach its ultimate destintion only 56 miles from Heppner. To begin with, it was hauled to Arlington by mail truck. There it' was loaded onto Train 18 which carried it on to Pendleton. From there it was taken by mail truck to Ritter. Now consider the distance. Heppner to Arlington, 57 miles; Arlington to Pen dleton 85 miles; Pendleton to Ritter approximate ly 70 miles all that distance to reach a point 56 miles distant from Heppner. It lacks but 12 miles of being four times the actual distance between the two points. Time was when Heppner was the outlet for a large part of the John Day region. Stages ran from here to Canyon City, carrying mail, express and passengers to Monument, Long Creek, John Day and Canyon City. Freight wagons hauled merchandise from Heppner to the interior region for many, years, being finally supplanted by the swifter auto trucks. The Condon branch of the Union Pacific took a bite out of the Heppner in terior trade territory. The Vale-Burns branch pro vided an outlet in another direction and with the building of the John Day highway Heppner lost the last vestage of interior trade territory, and now we 'find ourselves traveling more miles to get into the John Day region or; as related above, our mail to that section has to take a devious route. Not a small amount of credit for the loss of this territory was due to lack of foresightedness right here at home. We had a good thing but did not appreciate it enough to protect it when others sought to cut in. It would have been impos sible to hold all fr the trade but if an effort had been put forth to built a highway directly into the John Day valley rather than off to one side we might still be enjoying profitable trad,e relations with a section that once liked to come here. Heppner cannot deny that it was given an op portunity to do something about a good road into the middle John Day country. Mrs. Mary Davis, owner of the Ritter Hot Springs, spent her own money and time coming over here to sell Heppner on the idea of a highway from here to her neigh borhood but could stir up no effective response among the business men. She finally directed her efforts to other fields and we know who is getting the benefit of tlte busines most of which at one time came to Heppner. It is not likely that another urge will come from that direction and if Heppner ever takes a notion to build up trade relations with the John Day country it will have to do so on its own initi ative. We will have to present advantages (and we have them) that other points do not have and prove to our neighbors that we really want their trade. There are no greater barriers between here and the John Day country than have already been broken down in construction of other routes to that section. If there is no immediate highway in sight, at least we can have something to look for ward to as a matter of postwar enterprise. accompanied her daughter, Mrs. Of H. Bengston and children that far Sunday on their return to Medford after a two weeks visit here. Mr. Bengston met his family in Port land and drove them to Medford. Henry Happold returned Tues day from Montana, having finished the shearing season. He reports it was a wet season, bad for shearers but good for crops. Here to attend the funeral of Mrs. Mary Thomson were her bro thr Karl W. Farnsworth of The Dalles and her stepson, Earl Thom son, and wife of Portland. Mr. Thomson is a member of the Port land police force. LOCKER OPERATORS SEEK REASONABLE REGULATIONS The Central Market, owned and operated by Mrs. Sara McNamer, is circulating a petition for the purpose of obtaining some semb lance of reasonable regulations by th Office of Price Administration relative to locker plants. The pe tition asks that grading of produ cers' meat for their own consump tion be rescinded. The orders and regulations, as they now stand, are interpreted by OPA to require grading of a farmer's own meat when he has the meat animal slaughtered for him, and the car cas is temporarily in the possess ion of the locker plant by storage in the chill room. Likewise, when the locker pJant processes the meat by cutting it, wrapping it, quick freezing it, and then putting it in 'he patron' individual locker box, OPA insists that the meat must bear a grade label. Grading of meat which is to be sold is not objected to and Mrs. Mc Namer states that the organized locker industry is willing, as it al ways has been, to cooperate in the meat rationing program against violations of the price structure. The only reason for petitioning at this time is to enable the locker plants of the nation to stay in bus iness, on a reasonable basis, con tinuing to serve the patrons in the conservation of their meat supply. Lloyd Burkenbine drove to La Grande today to bring his wife home after a sojourn of some weeks in the hospital following a serious eye operation. Mrs. R. L. Benge returned Wed nesday evening from Portland af ter a short visit in that city. She o livery Following Firestone Tires 550x 16 700x 20 8 ply 550 x 17 700x20 10 ply 600 x 17 750x20 8 ply 600x 16 750x20 10 ply 650 x 15 750x16 8 ply 650 x 16 825x18 10 ply 700 x 15 1000x24 12 ply 650x 18 Bring your tire certificate to us for quick service Rosewall Motor Co. Your FIRESTONE Dealer OPA Odd Lot Rel eiease RATION FREE FROM JULY 9 TO JULY 28 1945 INCLUSIVE o ver 100 Pi OF RATIONED SHOES SOLD RATION FREE MEN S AND LADIES GONTY'S Phone 2352 PROFESSIONAL DIRECTORY HEPPNER CHAMBER OF COMMERCE Meets Every Monday Noon at the Lucas Place Dr. W. H; Rockwell NATUF)PATHIC Physician & Surgeon 227 North Main St. Office hours: 1 p. m. to 7:30 p. m. Exam. Free. Ph. 522. Heppner, Ore. A. D. McMurdo, M. D. PHYSICIAN & SURGEON Trained Nurse Assistant Office in Masonic Building Heppner, Oregon Dr. L. D. Tibbies OSTEOPATHIC Physician & Surgeon First National Bank Building Res. Ph. 1162 Office Ph. 492 JOS. J. NYS ATTORNEY AT LAW Peters Building, Willow Street Heppner, Oregon J. O. TURNER ATTORNEY AT LAW Phone 173 Hotel Heppner Building Heppner, Oregon O, M. YEAGER Contractor & Builder All kinds of carpenter work. Country work especially., Phone 1483 Heppner, ' Ore: Elaine E. Isom All Kinds of INSURANCE Phone 723 Heppner, Ore. New Auto Policy Bod. Inj. Pr. Dam. Class A 6.25 5.05 Class B 6.00 5.25 Class C ,7.75 5.25' TURNER, VAN MARTER & CO. Phelps Funeral Home Licensed Funeral Directors Phone 1332 Heppner, Ore. Heppner City Council Meets First Monday Each Month Citizens having matters for discus sion, please bring before the Council J. Q. TURNER, Mayor P. W. MAHONEY Attorney at Law GENERAL INSURANCE Heppner Hotel Building Willow Street Entrance J. O. PETERSON Latest Jewelry and Gift Goods Watches, Clocks, Diamonds Expert Watch & Jewelry Repairing Heppner, Oregon New York Life Insurance Co. MRS. A. Q. THOMSON Representative for past 14 years Morrow County Abstract Gr Title Co. INC. ABSTRACTS OF TITLE TITLE INSURANCE Office in Peters Building Harry Nelson Accounting Service Member National Association of Tax Accountants Heppner, Oregon HEPPNER GAZETTE TIMES The Heppner Gazette, established March 30, 1883. The Heppner Times, established November 18, 1897. Consolidated Feb. 15, 1912. Published every Thursday and en tered at the Post Office at Hepp ner, Oregon, as second class matter. Subscription Price $2.50 a Year O. G. CRAWFORD Publisher and Editor