Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 3, 1980)
TWO The Ileppner Gazette-Times. Ileppner. Oregon. Thursday. January I. ri js. The Official Newspaper of the City of Heppner and the ' County of Morrow ohta Ortgon Nawtfapor The Ileppner GAZETTE-TIMES Mcrrow Cont j's Eoae-Owied We kl j Newspaper U S P S. 240-420 Published every Thursday and entered aa second-claw mailer at the Potl Office al Heppner. Oregon under the Act of March 3. IS7. Second-class postage paid at Heppner. Oregon Ollice at 147 West Willow Street Telephone. (S03; 676-922H Address communications PJ the Heppner Gazette-Times. P O Box 337. Heppner. Oregon. S7Hi Sniai in Morrow. Umatilla. Wheeler Gilliam counties: 10 00 elsewhere. Senior Citizen Rate. 5 00 Jerome F. Sheldon, Publisher Steven A. Powell. News Editor WHAT OTHERS SAY SIFTING THROUGH TIMES The Good Servant Traditionally it has been the postmaster in any community who has been the federal official closest to the people. In his everyday sale of stamps and money orders and distri-t bution of letters and parcels, the postmaster is "Uncle Sam" to many citizens. Postal employees are in a position to create goodwill for the government by the way they conduct business, and their attitude usually reflects that of the postmaster. In Heppner, it is good to observe, the postal workers arecourteous and cheerf ul a credit to the leadership of Postmaster Hubert Wilson who now has retired. Community newspapers such as the Heppner Gazette-Times are in a position to make critical judgments of the U.S. Postal Service, for the efficient distribution of their newspapers is very much dependent on how well the postal workers handle the mails. This newspaper has been pleased with Mr. Wilson's staff in particular, and wishes to extend to him its hopes that he will enjoy a good life in whatever venture he undertakes. May his successor be the equally good public servant that he has been! Scuttling Amtrak ? A proposal by the federal government to reduce passenger train speeds could affect the patronage that Amtrak is gaining. Rules published in the Federal Register recently call for cutting the running time of Amtrak's trains to those of freight trains because as stated in the official notice many locomotives in passenger service impose as severe loads on the track as any freight equipment. Therefore, the increased probablity of personal injuries in passenger train accidents warrants at least the same level of safety for passenger trains as for freight trains. That phraseology appears in the notice establishing hearings on the question. The hearings have been held but the record is still open for written comment. Amtrak officials say the effect of the rules could be devastating to some of their patronage. The Empire Builder, for example, would have six hours, forty-three minutes added to its run between Chicago and Seattle. The Pioneer, operating between Salt Lake City and Seattle, would not be as severly affected. It would add only eight minutes to its present running time. The technical basis for the proposal is an evaluation of track conditions prepared by the Federal -Railroad Administration. Oppo nents, however, argue that if adopted the changes would drive patrons to other transportation modes that have poorer safety records, and thus would actually increase the number of transportation fatalities in the United States. People who use the trains do so for a number of reasons, among them being, of course, the comfort and relative safety of rail travel. There is also the matter of convenience. Arrival and departure sche dules must accommodate most of the passengers. But the trains must alsooerate on time and perhaps run a little faster than the competition particularly the private auto on parallel routes. The proposal to cut passenger train speeds is viewed by some passenger-train buffs as a "backdoor attempt" to scuttle Amtrak, without the same public outcry that direct abandonment of the trains would generate. (If you're interested in adding your comment to the record, use this address: Docket No. RST-3, Notice No. 1, Docket Clerk, Office of the Chief Counsel, Federal RailroadAdministration, 400 7th St. S.W., Washington, D.C., 20590.) Good years ahead seen for beef industry Hay French doesn't want to push his luck, but he thinks the next few years could he good years for the beef industry. French, a rancher from the Heppner area, became the president of the Oregon Cattlemen's Association during the OCA convention last month. And it wasn't a matter of his heing elected because he wasn't at the election. He went in with his eyes open, with reasonable expectations of those good years he was talking about. "Yes. I'm optimistic." he said. "This year we've seen prices improve quite sharply. "Expect these prices to level off, because I expect to see expansion of the cattle herds." French, 52, is a member of a family that has been ranching in the area for four generations. And he has a daughter on the ranch, so prospects look good for another generation. It there is one fly in the ointment, one nagging itch that can't be scratched away, it's the high cost of money. "It makes us think twice before we go out to borrow money to expand out herds," he admitted, and he told of ranchers who are paying as much as 16 percent to borrow operating capital though others have managed to get money at 11 percent, sometimes even less. His optimism isn't strong enough to make him believe that the costs of operating a cattle ranch will go down. "They're going to get higher." he predicted, "and we will probably have another cycle in the supply and demand of beef." These cycles are nothing new to the industry: When there's a lot of beef, prices slip, and when beef is scarce, prices are high. And it probably always will be this way. What the cattlemen fear is the violent change, as in 1975-76 when prices dropped so low that many ranchers found others ways to make their living. "The rapid changes make marketing very difficult," French said, noting that many factors enter into the pricing The Heppner Gazette-Times invites letters for publication. They should concern matters of general interest. They must be non-libelous in nature and in good taste. Preferably, letters should be typed, double spaced, on one side of the sheet of paper only. Letters of diverse viewpoints may be published and their appearance in these columns does not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Area residents generous tn Adventist appeal Editor: The Heppner, Lxington and lone residents have responded with generous concern this year for the worldwide huma nitarian work sponsored by Seventh-day Adventists. Near the conclusion of our 71st World Service Appeal, total contributions are over $900. These gifts are channeled to a central fund through admini strative lines that are already functioning. In this way, no money is lost in overhead. Church members solicit gifts strictly on a volunteer basis, of course. The funds gathered will be appropriated to meet human need wherever it exists in Oregon, the U.S., or overseas, and whatever form it takes. Last year Adventists sent cash, clothing, food, medi cines and medical equipment to 48 countries outside the United States. This aid was valued at $9 million. Seventh- - day Adventists have missions, schools or hospitals in 190 countries. The finer focus of all their work is to present a Energy crisis publicity lauded Editor: I would like to thank you for helping to publicize the En ergy Crisis Assistance' Pro gram. I realize that the key to publicizing our services throughout five counties is the effective use of the media. Your public service articles will no doubt save lives this winter. The Energy Crisis Assistance Program has al ready served approximately . 150 families. J suspect there will be families who will need our services later in the season who don't need them now. Your publicizing our services would be greatly apprc -iated. Again, thanks for your help! Sincerely. Jeff Cohen, M.S.W. Coordinator, Energy Crisis Assistance Program Blue Mountain Economic Development Council, Inc., Pendleton. living Christ, a Christ living in the hearts of men and women. Our own church members participate heavily in the World Service Appeal. But in a world so full of tragedy and injustice we welcome the support of our friends in meeting such needs. To publicly express their deep thanks, the Seventh-day Adventist Church members are preparing a vegetarian buffet supper, slated for January 13, for all local residents and other who wish, to come. They are interested that all , be accommodated, so are asking that reservations be made no later than January 7, by calling 676-9449, 676-9491 or 676-5225. Sincerely yours, Dan Adels, Pastor Heppner SDA Church The first step to save energy Editor: Our first step towards energy conservation should be to park, in Walla Walla, all vehicles of the Corps of Engineers. Randy Lott, Lott's Electric A name spelling correction (The following letter refers to an article in the Oregon State Bar Bulletin that the Heppner Gazette-Times re printed recently. Editor: Re : Oregon Sta te Bar Bulletin Current Issue. No doubt you may receive some mail calling your atten tion to the misspelling of Conser on page 10. The "g" in the name should have been a "s". Sincerely, John F. Kilkenny Senior Circuit Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit, Portland. ;md c.im combine to create a volatile situation. ('iiitle futures, politics, the weather, transportation Kiev fill come into the picture." he said. "Even the eruption in li-iin can change the market, even if there's no connection between them "The consumer finds it difficult to understand why there can be such violent movement of prices. But if I have to pay high rates of interest, the consumer has to pay higher prices for beef." A major concern of ranchers using public lands is the agitation toward locking up those lands or curtailing their uses To many of the ranchers whose cattle graze on public land. French said, any serious cutback in grazing rights would he devastating and "some might not survive." "My family has been using public lands for three N generations, and we need them. We want to stay on those lands." ' Another cause of some apprehension is the "scare" story downgrading beef as a nutritious food and even suggesting that there might be a health hazard. French noted that Oregon is a state that ships its feeder cattle out of state for finishing and then buys back the finished product. Oregon Cattleman December issue """ Willi .lusline Weiitherford As we leap into leap year 1980 and the beginning of a new decade, perhaps a brief refresher course in understanding time would be of benefit. Of course, everyone understands that a year is the time the earth takes to make one complete revolution around the sun. However, astronomers use two kinds of years the solar, equinoctial, or tropical year which is 365 days, five hours, 48 minutes and 46 seconds long, which is the basis of our common or calendar year, and the sidereal year that is 365 days, six hours, nine minutes and 9.5 seconds long and is based on the time it takes the earth to return to the same place in its orbit, with reference to fixed stars. The sidereal year is longer than the solar year because of the precession of the equinoxes and it is seldom used except in the calculations of astronomers. It is based on the moon's revolution in relation to a fixed star. To the 365-day calendar year, we have had o add an extra day every four years to correct the difference in time between it and the solar year. Soevery fourth year is called leap year and the extra day is Feb. 29, which actually makes the average calendar year 11 minutes and 14 seconds too long. Therefore, the extra day is not added in the century years, except in those divisible by 400. Thus the years 1700, 1800 and 1900 have had only 365 days but the year 2000 will contain 366. The real difference between calendar and solar years will vary only one day over a period of several thousand years. In most Christian nations the calendar year begins Jan. 1. During the Middle Ages, however, most European nations considered March 1 or March 25, Annunciation Day, as the first day of the calendar year. By 1600 nearly all civilized countries except England recognized Jan. 1 as the first day of the year. England adopted the Gregorian calendar, which sets Jan. 1 as the beginning of the year, Sept. 14, 1752. The Orthodox Jewish year begins near the time of the autumnal equinox, about the 22nd of September. The Islamic year, however, is based on the changing phases of the moon. It lasts for 354 days and its beginning continually falls earlier in the seasons. Thirty Islamic years make up a cycle during which there are 11 leap years which occur at irregular intervals, ... Most of us are so happy with written holiday greetings. Several local families were cheered by international telephone calls. Staff "Sgt. Charles Douglas Gonty and his wife, Anastasia, chatted with his family here from their Army-based home in Holland Christmas Day. Cathy Jensen had a good holiday talk with family members in London, and the Dick Grahams also chatted with relatives in London. Because I have been traveling a bit and doing family visiting and I admit also to being somewhat absent minded last week I really learned that it pays to trade with local merchants. I did not do a very good job of picking up my purchases Dec. 24 and did not realize I was short of a rather important item until after the stores were closed. I argued with myself during the night and the next morning about calling the merchant's home Christmas Da. I finally telephonedlo ask if I could possibly meet him at the store and retrieve my package. He said "You don't need to do that-I will see that it comes to your home, soon." And he did and so my Christmas Day was much nicer that I deserved to have it. Again I declare it really pays to trade right here with our neighboring business persons who kindly give extra service that we could never expect from out-of-town merchants. Several of us learned again how treacherous "black ice" is at this time of the year. I had my car suddenly go out of control as I traveled between McNab and Arlington Dec. 27, and felt most fortunate that the car headed into the mud bank on the left of the uphill grade and not to the right, down into the canyon. My daughter-in-law Bette and little granddaugh ter Anna were in the back seat and were really frightened along with me. Thankfully son Bill Haberlach and grandson Adam were following behind in the Haberlack car. Bill sort of straightened out the exhaust pipe the hillside had bent over, and we moved ahead at a snail's pace in the two cars over the ice to Arlington. Neighbor Jane Rawlins went to Pendleton Dec. 27 and found a few minutes when she could not control her car either. She reported that several big trucks just pulled off the road to wait for safer traveling. Charles Rawlins will soon be leaving for Western Kentucky University at Bowling Green to study and to attempt to rewrite golfing history. I hear that Clifford and Frances Williams have sold their small farm at Lexington and have moved to Hermiston. For several weeks now lots of us will struggle to write 1980 instead of 1979. What creatures of habit we do become. We wish you each a very Happy New Year. Fiflv vears ago a fire blaze caused by a gasoline cooking stove New Year's Eve did $50 in damage to "Margie's Eat Shop." Heppner reconditioned its steam plant that had supplied the city with electricity before Pacific Power and Light Co. was given a franchise in Heppner. 1955 Twenty-five years ago Mary Van Stevens was sworn in as the Heppner mayor. She was the first woman mayor in the history of Heppner. 1!)75 The Heppner Common Council met and acquired the land needed to put a reservoir near the high school for city water. niaa1aUaMsaiaaBys (mm Heppner Auto Parts 234 N-AAain Heppner . 676-94 23 1 The u rn ri aad rn vcDiMfi Rapco "I rfcvvn vw w mim-w. JrOamers Carpet, Linoleum, i"en oy Ceramic lue, lutcnen Cabinets, Rapco Insulation HPPnf CASE FURNITURE Heppner Carpet, Linoleum, Counter Tops Installed Beauty Rest mattresses, Fabrics and Accessories,' Sherwin Williams Paint C ill it 5 TURNER VAN MARTEff 9oxaCt uoux Omuxanct huxU UtLJlon 676-9"$ J : 1 I RRYaNI vtrwmm uniin j. 2z&BSBBBBS INSURANCE howakd brtant WmmtiSm stit mwwm, oaaoow I7sm , Home Remodeling Specofizhg In Aluminum Siding and npor of oU tiding . Storm Windows and Doon Prime Windows Small Remodeling Jobs In Busmem Ktn FtfwM For 12 Veen 676-5051 MEDICAL PHARMACY t Fret Madhn Sarrte On rtoriptioos Hospital Supplier 3 Moo.-Fri. 94 fm. Sat. 9-lfJ. Located in the Medical Canter 1100 Soathgate Pendleton 276-1531 SWEENEY MORTUARY Cemetery,. Grave Markerv 676-9600, Granite, AAcTrble, Bronze r 76"9226 Serving tone, Lexington & jHeppner p.o. Box 97 1 JaYWES (BUSINESS MACHKES Service calls every "Wednesday , in Heppner, lone and Lexington 332 S. Main St, Pendleton Telephone Z76-6441 Bit N. First, Heradaton Telephone 567-2731 Chevron GLENN DEVIN Chevron USA, Inc. Commission Agent 676-9633 c 1 Abstract & Trtfa Company t Wit. snuonea i Escrow Service1 ,.' 431-9261
