Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 12, 1976)
BESSIE WET2ELL U OF ORE NEWSPAPER LIB EUGENE OR 9 7403 $nys authority 4 i ; - - - v fr If nvs p yiu mv i on j The Bigfoot prints, found near Johnson Creek last week, have been termed a "hoax" and "fake" by one of the world b leading authorities. , i Peter Byrne, a 50-year-old former professional hunter in Nepal, who switched from tiger shooting and yeti hunting to tiger conservation and Bigfoot hunting, assessed the prints last Friday. . After surveying the prints, looking at photographs and talking to many people, Byrne, and two assistants also looking, Lynn McKinney and John Cordell, found the prints to be "faked " "The tracks are faked", Byrne told the Gazette-Times from his Bigfoot Information Center in The Dalle Monday, "they are not at all what a Bigfoot print should look like. Byrne operate the modest Bigfoot Information Center in The Dalles and describes himself as the "only man alive who has made a profession out of this extraordinary search. He has been doing it for five years, supported by admission to a small exhibit and by small donations from various sources, including the Academy of Applied Sciences, also the chief sponsor of the current Loch Ness Monster expedition. Byrne said that right and left footprints were quite different", causing him to note that if the tracks were real, the animal had "two entirely different feet." Byrne said he deduced that the tracks were fake by tne outline of the feet and the shape of the toes in the prints. Byrne said the original story said that "hundreds of prints were found." Byrne said he saw maybe a dozen prints. "Guy (Patterson) showed us the prints and most were not prints at all but figments of his imagination," Byrne said. Byrne arrived in the area with Cordell on Friday, nine days after the first findings and four days after Pattersons alleged tracking. Two good rains had fallen before Byrne arrived in the mountainous area. Byrne said he wanted it to be clear that he thought "Patterson is honest and one of the finders ... not involved in a hoax." Byrne said Patterson's findings and "interpreta tions were amateurish and 100 per cent wrong." Byrne said many "tuffs of grass" and "natural depressions" were construed as Bigfoot prints. "I have seen these for 20 years," Byrne said, "and there was really nothing there." Byrne said he "seriously doubts" that Patterson tracked the animal for three miles as he stated. "There is not a person in the world that can track in pine needles. You could co all the way to Borneo and not find anyone." Byrne, who said he saw "maybe a dozen" prints, said he would have "loved for them to be real. But, our opinion is that they were faked." . "If there were the least chance that they were real, we d be over there." Byrne said. "4 .' ft 9 ,' Ttia print tea found Thursday morning, before the Dig ram. (G-T Photo) r v ... THE . i n:.. ....... f '" ..'. 'X--. II,' ..".;a.J MEPFBIEI2 IM i VOL. W. NO. 2 HEPPNER.OR Thursday, August 12. 1976 ' i m ' iflr ' - .s. Pounding rains scor summer follow, delay harvest again 4 ' - ' -'" it ' . . , , Z if t - Muddy waters wash down Clark's Canyon road and over bank into field side ditch. Rains did little crop damage but thwarted combine ignitions. (G-T Photo) Pinball wizards stop city amusement tax A small contingent of cfe. restaursnt and Uvern owners strode into the Heppner common council chambers Tuesday, demanding equsl rights or no rights at all. The group appesred before the council in opposition to proponed ordinance th.t would tax all amusement devices in the city. Saying the ordimnce would be "against pmple that have them (amusement devices) and "dincriminatory". the small group asked thit the council consider business tax for all Heppner businesses, Ron Palmer, owner of the Wagon Wheel, became speaker for the group early in the discussion stages. Palmer was emphatic when he told the council they were "picking on tavern and cafe owners. The proposed lax would have charged 1100 a year for pinball and f.ioe ball tables; and $50 a year for shuffle board and pool tables. . Some of the owners threatened to ckne down and said others not in attendance felt the same way. After tome diK-uwn between ctwnnlmen. Mayor Jerry Sweeney said "lets forget the ordinance." Around the Uble. Cliff Green was opposed to the ordinance; Robert Jones was opposed; Ray Boyce was "dead against" it; and Warren Plorharsky. after some thought, went along with the council. Boyce said that when the first city budget was defeated and the second passed after a lopping session, the city was trying to eeek sources of revenue. The original ordinance for the city was written in 1916 and amended in 1952. In 1973. the entire ordinance was rescinded because one owner told the council he couldn't afford the tax and survive ss a business. In other business, the council: e adopted city council agreement saying the city and county would form a Joint municipal corporation. The agreement M7 i"lic court will have all or certain judicial Jurisdiction over the city. The ordinance Is retroactively In effect on August 1. agreed to proceed with measures to rid the town of an already condemned house on Chase Street near the Mobile Station. It's just one of those unfortunate things you have to face if you're going to be a farmer. Tnat'a the way Louis Carl-' son of lone described last Friday's quick, pounding rains, that will Inevitably delay area wheat harvest for another week. The harvest got a slow start to begin with, some farmers as much as two weeks behind schedule; and with the Friday storm, coupled with other hard downpours, It will go on through fair days and Into September. Varied reports had as much as two Inches falling in a three-day period from Thurs day to Saturday. At Carlson's farm, 17 miles south of lone, the rain "didn't hit here as hard as some places." But, Carlson, who takes his own rain recordings, found 103 inches of wet stuff in three days. The crop damage was not visible, Carlson said, but grain quality and grade will suffer. Carlson's farm at Hardman received an even harder rainfall, "probably in ches" in that Thursday to Saturday period. The main damage, as was the word from many farmers, was done to summer fallow. The plummettlng cloud burst Just beat the fallow down. Carlson said he may get started on the combines again by Thursday but. he said, it will take warm days and warm winda. The rains are "postponing" harvest, Carlson said, and the economic loss is coming from quality loss. "You have to expect It," Carton said. It's Just like any other business, you have good years and bad years." Bill Padberg's land in Clark's Canyon received some summer fallow damage. A large silt dam was filled up and broke loose, sending a huge gush of muddy water down the canyon. The road, right off the Hcppner-Condon highway, re ceived ample damage when Padberg's summer fallow, being leased by Pat Cutsforth, took a rain beating Friday and mud didn't enhance the rounds growability. Padberg said he figured the area got "better than an inch 'It's jusf like any other business; you have good years and bad years.' the waters ripped part of the asphalt up in two or three different spots. The water crossed that Clark's Canyon road about three times doing less than extensive damage but enough to put county road workers on the Job. Louis Carlson on Friday" but said crop damage was minimal. Pad berg said harvest for him would probably start on Thur sday or Friday but again, he said warm days and warm winds would have to dry the wheat. John Martin, also living in Oregon Wheat Harvest-Morrow and Umatilla County is about 35 per cent complete. Rain has delayed the harvesters once more. The Willamette Valley has about 15 per cent harvested, the Mid Columbia area about 40 per cent. Union and Wallowa counties should get on the stick towards the end of the week. InspectorsThe Oregon grain inspectors, represented by Longshoremen, have a contempt of court charge pend.ng before them. They walked off the Job last week for a period of time to consider the news about alleged grain inspection scandals. This evidently was in protest of the allegations. The State of Oregon said that this was in violation of the court-ordered Injunction placing them back to work. The court will decide on Aug. 13, this Friday. The longshoremen have until Aug to argue the case about the 'go-back -to-work' injunction. If they don't argue, the injunction is permanent. Then, both the State and the longshoremen must submit to binding arbitration of their dispute. Market-Dropping with vigor. Last Friday, it closed in Portland at W 35 for August delivery. Reports are that very little new crop wheat Is being sold ... if any at all. Delays in harvest along with dissatisfaction with the price are believed to be the cause of no sales. Clark's Canyon, reported that from Thursday at 6 p.m. to Friday at 6 p.m., his farm received about one inch of rain. He said there was no crop damage except for some washing on east facing hill sides. Martin said that his farm has received a little over two inches already this month and the ground's saturation caused the washing. Martin's acreage took on .52 of an inch in about one and one-half hours late Friday afternoon. He said that at the head of Clark's Canyon at the Ron Haguewood farm, rainfall al most doubled. Mrs. Haguewood said that in about one hour, the farm received 1.05 inches. She said it was only the third time in 20 years that the water and mud had crept up to her doorstep. "Diversion ditches just cou ldn't hold it," Mrs. Hague wood said. "I had to roll up my pant legs and wade to the front door." Riley Munkers of the Mor row County Grain Growers, said the rain "isn't helping any." Munkers said there was no sprout damage. Harvest resumption is anyone's guess Munkers said, noting that a Thursday-Friday start is con ceivable, if, warm weather continues. Munkers said that in these rains, the wheat geta "too much moisture in the kernel", causing poor storage. Mun kers said 12 per cent moisture was ideal and that Monday morning samples went as high as 17 per cent. Even If the warm weather continue and the wheat drys out, farmers are still in for an economic loss. Munkers said that after the grain drys out. it can lose weight per bushel Munkers, the chief buyer and seller of area wheat at MCGG, said harvest now will run into September. He figu red harvest to be 35-40 per cent completed. - Don Gilliam MCGG, takes some rain gauge tests in Heppner. He said that for the month, Heppner has received 1.51 inches of rain. That's way above last year's months total of .82 inches. The average monthly rainfall is only .32. The first day of August, Gilliam said, there was more rain than the monthly aver age. On August 1. the city took on .33 of an inch. Last Friday there was .71 and Saturday .46 inches. Senators to visit Hatfield Sen. Mark Hatfield will be In Heppner today at 3: IS p.m. to visit with local citiicm. Hatfield will be at the Wagon Wheel for citlien Input. Jernstedt State Senator Kee Jerav stedt. from this 28th district will be In Heppner Monday afternoon. Jernstedt will attend the lleppner-Mormw County Cha mber ef Commerce lunch and Immediately afterward, aoia a public forum at the F.lk'a Dining room for citlien Input. The meeting will start at 1 p.m. Boardman city manager Jim Thompson will Ulh at the Chamber of Commerce meet ing. He will sneak man's present growth aa projected growth. Schools face projected growth Matt Doherty realties that the population has Increased in north Morrow County. The thing he doesn't know, is f.ow many of those new faces will be attending Morrow County "It's impossible to tell how many are school related." Doherty, Morrow County school superintendent, said this week, calling story In a Pendleton paper last week, "not totally accurate", concerning a school facility crunch. "There Is a population Increase In the north end of the county," Doherty said, "and projected increases are anticipated for early fall." Right now, four classes are being built at ivivrrs.u School in Boardman and eight new class rooms are being built at A C. Houghton Elementary school In Irrigon. But. they won t be ready by the start of school, slated for Sept 1. The completion date is set for late November. "If the population Increases past" the present building projects, "we'll have to lake some kind of temporary facilities." Doherty said. Including in his list of poswibililie. stages, multl purpose rooms, etc. He also said teachers would be doubled up with larger classes lor team teaching ' We feci we can handle it." Doherty said, hut noted that "if wf re caught in a bind, we may have to rent space from churches, granges, or other organizations." r..Knv ani.l he cchi dn t conceive mai uir uiun. - : Kuv la use ren a laciimes, sih.ii mm u - Hed.d not discount the possibility thougn. ii wou.u nc .v be quite a crunc h before we d consider that," Doherty added. tvherty said that additional staff has been hired to take a hltle slack off current staff employees. iXiherty said most of the populate was coming from agri business related projix-ts. We anticipate, as the er rolls on. that additional population would come from Portland General Electrtc's project"
