Medford Mail T
The Weather
Forecast: Unsettled wttb showers to
nip tit; Saturday fair with rising
temperature.
Highest yesterday , , ,. 58
Lowest thin morning ST
Paid-Up Circulation
People who pa for then newspapers
are the best prospecta for the adver
tl&era. A. B. C. circulation la paid
up circulation. This newspaper U
A. B. O.
Twenty-eighth Year
MEDFORD, OREGON, FRIDAY, MAY 5, 1933.
No. 38.
15)
nn
JL
lo)U
Hot Exchange Marks Quiz of Policeman O Brien in Banks Trial
i 1 ' 1 " i 1
ribune
OTS
Comment
on the
Day's News
By FRANK JENKINS
COMMODITY price are rising. If
you follow the market pagea t
alt, you know that without being"
told. The quoted flgurea tell the
story.
What we would Uke to know la
how' much inflation talk haa to do
with toe rise and how much of It
1, due to the working of the natural
law of supply and demand.
WHY do we want to know that?
Well. It's something Uke thia:
Rising prices that are baaed on Infla
tion amount In reality to kidding
ourselves. We thin out our money
by means of Inflation, and so MAKE
IT LOOK UKE we had more of It.
just as It looka like we have more
milk when we add a quart of water
to the quart of milk the cow has
given us.
But rising prices that are based
upon excess of demand over supply
are genuine. They will STICK aa
Jong aa there are more buyera than
sellers-inflation or no lnfla'lon.
A MONO the commodities In which
A we are Interested here on the
pacific coast, there are SOME, at
least, whose rise In price appear, to
be due to excess of demand over sup
p,yto the fact, that Is. that there
are more buyers than sellers.
Hops, for example.
FOR years, thehop market haa
been depressed. Prices have been
disastrously low. and acreage has
been steadily reduced. The supply
has been declining year after year.
Then, suddenly, legal beer appears,
and there la big increase In ;the
demand for hops-thls In the face of
greatly reduced supply. Hop prices
are soaring.
Inflation, possibly, hss something
to do wlt.n It. but the real cause Is
excess of demand over supply.
WHEAT prices have been rising
rapldly-and again, of course,
inflation prospects have probably had
eomethlng to do with the rise. But
you must have noted that wheat
price have risen In other countries
well as this.
World crop conditions are poor.
The visible supply of wheat la di
minishing. Demand is catching up
with supply, and more buyers than
eellers are -coming into the markets.
In other words. If all this is true,
wheat pricea would have risen any
wsy Inflation or no Inflation.
WITH the flush production season
just about upon us, butter
prices have been strengthening rather
than weakening.
Is that Inflation?
INFLATION, to be sure, may have
something to do with It, but ac
cording to the best flgurea available
butterfat production Is off about 15
per cent here on the Coast.
When the Alsaka fishing fleets were
outfitting at San Francisco and Se
attle recently, tlelr purchases of
butter created quite a flurry In the
market and for several day there
was considerable scraching around to
find butter enough to fill the orders.
This flurry extended clear down
here into Southern Oregon.
WHY Is butterfat production off?
Shortage and higher prices of
feed appear to be the answer.
Along that line, a creameryman
told this writer an Interesting tale
yesterday. He wa up In the Puget
Sound country recently, and saw
dairymen coming In with their truck
and hauling off hay a few bale at
a time Just enough to keep their
cows going.
They were paying for this hay, in
the small quantities In which they
were buying It. at the rate of 20 a
ton. At this high price, they weren't
feeding very heavily. . . ...
Scanty feeding holds milk pro
duction down.
HAY. here on the Pacific Coast, ts
ni&h tbls spring, and It appears
now thst the supply will not be
heavy this fall.
West of the mountains, vetch has
froen out badly. ErH of the moun
tains, there hs been rather severe
(Continued on Pace Ten)
To IMrert farm Aid
WASHINGTON. May 5. fAPl-
Mrtntnr p-Mevr.r, Dr. M. L. Wil.on
of M:i
n P'sre rollfer. wlii tilrert ;
rtinlnif'rfiTin of provi.iom of the'
farm relief bill dealing with wheat,
FRED WOLF HELD
AS SLAYER; SAYS
Rural Triangle Climaxed by
Tragedy As Children Wait
Mother's Return From
Milking Cow Near Home
Wllllsm Sheldon, , is dead with
a bullet through his heart, and Fred
Wolf, 3S, la lodged In the county Jail
a the climax of a three-cornered
love affair on Blrdseye creek, near
Riviera, south of Oold Hill.
Sheldon, according to Wolf, wno
killed the alleged home-wrecker about
7:30 o'clock last nMrht. had been
paying too much attention to Mrs.
Wolf, pretty and 26, and had caused
Mr. Wolf to talk of "packing up her
things and leaving, if she had money
enough."
Two children, Lavlna May, four, and
Leonard Everett, three, were In the
Wolf home at the time of the shoot
ing, waiting for their mother to
come back with the milk.
Tragedy on Trail.
Wolf ahot Sheldon on the trail
leading from the Wolf house to the
barn, and then, after sending word
to state police In Medford that he
had killed the home-wrecker, he sat
down near his cabin to await the
arrival of officers, who placed him In
Jail here, after taking a complete
statement about the affair. Mr.
Wolf haa not been questioned, but la
staying at their farm home, officers
said.
Wolf will be bound over to the
grand jury on a charge of murder,
officer said.
.The affair had been going on for
some time, according to Wolf's al
leged confession, but he had not no-
( Continued on Page Four)
1
DBS MOINES, May 6. (Pi "Rack
eteering" methods were used to re
cruit the membership of the Farm
Holiday association In the farm dis
order area of Iowa, Attorney-General
Edward L. O'Connor charged today.
The attorney-general, returning
from the counties In which disorders
have occurred, estimated that "not
more than 25 per cent of the holiday
association members In that area
were "willing member," and that the
remainder were enlisted through
threat and Intimidation.
O'Connor declared farmers were
forced to Join and pay 75 cents for
a membership card, under the threat
that their barns, strawstacks and
other property might be burned.
"It Is only since the National
Guard troops have been sent Into the
area that the true picture of the ac
tivities has come to light." O'Connor
ssld. He explained that previously
farmer and business men had feared
to talk to authorities about the situ
ation. T
ALB ANT, Ore., May B. (AP) Geo.
C. Wire, a nurseryman, remained un
conscious In a hospital here today
from the effects of carbon monoxide
poisoning and from unexplained'hesd
Injuries. He was found yesterday
in his automobile near Peoria and
had been missing since Tuesday
morning.
Wires automobile 4iad run off the
road. The gasoline tank was empty.
His Jaw was broken and his head
bruised. Police today were investi
gating the possibility of an attack,
although they believed Wire might
have been rendered unconscious by
fumes from a defective heater and
injured when the automobile left the
highway and struck the ditch.
QUAKE CENTERED OFF
OREGON'S COASTLINE
VTCTORIA. B. C. May 5. MV- An
earthquake of moderate intensity, be
lieved by observers. to have centered
off the Oregon coast, wa? recorded
here for an hour Bnd a quarter last
nitht. startlnc at 8:15 p. m. P. N
p:er Dn;scn. Mipe.-lptoivlent of the
Oo-i.-.j nfrva'TY, p'--rt th -en-
ter of the disturbance about 3Vjt;
miles distant.
KIDNAPED GIRL
UNHARMED TO
RELEASED AFTER
4 DAYS' ABSENCE
HARWICHPORT, Mass., May 5.
(AP) Margaret McMath, 10-year-old
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Nell O.
Tuesday, was returned to her parents
McMath, kidnaped from her school
this afternoon.
The girl appeared on a coast guard
boat with her father and Brigadier
General Daniel Needham. Massachu
setts commissioner of public safety,
when It pulled into Wynchmere har
bor. On the coast guard boat. No. 8259,
were General Needham. State Detec
tives Mahoney and Ferrara and Dis
trict Attorney William O. Crossley of
Pall River.
The entire party, aboard the coast
guard boat, left for the coast guard
base at Woods Hole.
WASHINGTON, May 8. (AP) The
Washington Star said today It had
learned from authoritative sources
that Margaret McMath had been re
turned to her father at 2 o'clock this
morning.
The paper said It .understood that
900,000 ransom waa paid to the kid
napers. It was said the girl had been kept
aboard a boat off the Massachusetts
coast under an agreement by the par
ents not to divulge the transaction to
the police for 48 hours.
r-
BUILT SECRETLY
.E
' By PAUL MALLON.
(Copyrighted by McClure Newspaper
Syndicate)
WASHINGTON, May 5. The gov
ernment I secretly experimenting
with a radio station which will come
very near blanketing the United
States.
It la being built at Cincinnati by
the Crosley Manufacturing company
(WLW.) The government's hand in
It Is supposed to be entirely unofficial
and very much on the Q. T.
An experimental license wsa quietly
Issued authorizing tests with (hold
your breath) 800.000 watts. Only
one other station that strong has
been built In the world. That is in
Russia. Something like It la also
being tried In Mexico.
The official whisper says the ex
periment ts for scientific purposes
only. That la probably true.
The plain result will be to mske
one station Independent of all chains
If the tests work out.
Experts say the spot was Ideally
chosen. Cincinnati Is a radio sound
ing board. WLW Is the only eastern
station which regularly reachea the
Pacific coast, even with low power.
The gossip going around 1 that
the government ts Interested In
giant Inland station for war purposes
or some other purpose of state. Those
rumor take too much for granted.
We are not near a war or any pur-
(Contlnued on Page Three)
BY
DF1S MOINES. Iowa. May 5. ( AP)
The National Farmers' Holiday asso
ciation threw down thl challenge
to the nation today:
Either the demand of agriculture
for farm relief will be granted or the
product of the farm will be with-
he!d from the American dinner table
beginning May 13 until they are. A
guarantee of production costs Is
.....
It was the second time In less than
. r that man. for a nation-wide
Yrm hni,rf. Rervntin
their action of a year ago, the na.
tlonsl convention of the association
vesterday passed a resolution calling
the ftr;ke for May 13 and Instructing
us executive committee to prepare
plena snd me'hod by which the em-
- co on marketing of foodstuffs
would be carried out.
Banks and Wife on Trial
pi a-1
Llewellyn A. Banks. 62. former Medford. Ore., publisher and his
wife, Edith banka, at they appeared In court at Eugene to stand trial
for the death of Constable George Prescott who w fatally shot
when he attempted to serve warrant on Banks. (Associated Press
Photo)
Fehl Attempted Framing
Of Banks Is Testimony
i By Fleming During Trial
Threat to Slay Arresting Officers Related
By Close Friend of Agitator as
Details of Murder Bared
By ARTHUR PERRY
BUGBNE, May 4. E. A. Fleming, 67, well-known Jacksonville orchard
1st, at the home of L. A. Banks at the time Bank fired the shot that
alew constable George J. Prescott, on March 16 last, and Sergeant-Detective
James O'Brien, companion of the slain official, on hi last traglo
official mission, gave sensational testimony Thursday, at the trial of the
former editor and orchardtst, and bis wife, Edith Robertlne Bank, charg
ed with first degree murder.
Fleming enlivened the somber pro-'
ceedlngs with his laconic replies to
question. O'Brien Identified the
death weapon a high-power big game
rifle and the blood-stained bench
warrants, and a note Mrs. Banks sent
to officers, by Tommy Williams. Flem
ing told of threate made by Banks
a few minutes before the slaying.
O'Brien told of looking through a
window and seeing Banks, calmly re-
losdlng hi rifle after Prescott Bad
fallen, mortally atrlcken, on the front
porch of the Banks home. He Iden
tified also four fragments of bullet
removed at an autopsy In hi pres
ence, from the body of the slain of
ficial. Both were two of the major wit
nesses for the state, and links In vital
corroborstlve evidence to come.
Fleming testified that he came to
Bank' home on the morning of the
murder. In the auto of Earl Bryant,
one of the eight men who have en
tered pleas of guilty to ballot theft.
Fleming came to confer about calling
a meeting of the "Good Government
Congress." to collect funds for the
defense of the men arrested on the
ohareg. Banks and Fleming ex
changed greetings. Mrs. Bank waa
present. Fleming testified. The two
men seated themselves. Mrs. Banks
ws busy nearby.
Frameup Suspected.
6oon theresfter Bsnks said:
'Fehl and Coleman held a long
conference yesterday. They planned
a political swap, and will mske me
(Continued on Page Four)
T
i ,LONDOfI MT j.(AP) Premier
M,cDon.d. two long cabinet ses-
slons today, failed to swing his min
isters to support the American pro
posal for a world tariff truce effective
Imml.ll
" " '
American proposal was that
th customs armistice should begin
at once and continue throughout the
world economic and monetary con-
ference.
The prime minister' failure to ob-
tain hi cabinets approval for tni
action was authoritatively iearnn
after
run day of negotiation on
' the tariff issues.
IS RETURN
PARENTS ARMS
FEHL IN DENIAL
LA.
County Judge Earl H. Fehl flatly
denied the statement made by E. A
Fleming, Jacksonville orchard 1st and
banks follower, who testified
the witness stand In Eugene yester
day that Banka had said, on the
morning before he shot Officer
Oeorge Prescott, that "Fehl and Cole
man are trying to frame me on the
ballot theft, and were closeted two
hours yesterday afternoon."
"It Isn't true," Pehl said. "Coleman
and I did not plan to frame Banks.
"I should say I wouldn't frame
Banks," Pehl continued. "Coleman
and I did not have a conference on
the afternoon before Prescott was
killed."
Pehl refused to comment further,
except to make a statement about
"newspapers printing th9 truth."
Judge W. R. Coleman, with whom
Banks claimed Pehl conspired to
"frame him" on the ballot theft,
latighed at the story as "ridiculous
"1 had a talk with Pehl some time
before Banks killed Prescott," Cole
man said, "but we didn't mention
Banks' name snd ws didn't mention
ballots. Our talk was about other
matters entirely, and whoever car
ried that story to Banks was crazy,
If It waa ever carried to him. We
were In Pehl's prlvat office, however.
snd I told Pehl at that time that I'd
gladly give five dollars. If 00 other
friends of his would, to csrry his
Parr case to the supreme court to de
termine whether or not he got Justice
In circuit court hers.
"No." Coleman said. "Pehl and I
didn't frame Banks."
Portland Refuses
' TO SAVE DAYLIGHT
PORTLAND, Ore., May ft-(AP)
Thera will be no monkeying with
the clocks In Portland In an attempt
to economic on daylight. The city
council yesterday defeated a daylight
asvlng proposal by a vote of trues to
two.
ED
HEAVY TOLL IN
AS
ANDERSON, S. C. May 5. (P)
Four persons were killed nnd upwards
of two score Injured today when a
tornado struck lie I ton, textile com
munity 10 miles north of here.
BIRiMINOHAM, Ala.. May 5. (P)
Twenty persons were killed snd more
than 200 Injured by a tornado that
swept three west central Alabama
communities today.
Helena, a mining village of 700
population, bore the brunt of the
storm, with 3 dead and nearly 1"0
injured.
The other communities struck were
Demopolls, Centorvtlle, Brent and
Adamsvtlle. Union Grove and Cosl
mont. The storms added to the toll of
May storms In bhe south which swept
Louisiana, Ark annas and Mississippi
Two were killed lh storms In the
lower Mississippi valley yesterday
FOR $52,239 BIG
IE OF TOTAL
Jackson county's tax collections I
took a lively Jump today when the
California-Oregon power company
check for $52,239.11 was paid, along
with a payment of more than 0000 I
from the Timber Products company, i
$6400 from the Home Telephone and
Telegraph company, and 91200 from
the Timber Products company. Pay
ments Thursday amounted to $15,776,
mostly In small payments from land
owners.
A total of $171,889 In taxes has been
paid this week, according to figures
at the sheriff's office, which Is nearly
one-third the total payments for the
first half.
Slightly more than $666. 171 Is the
amount supposed to be collected on
first half payments, as compared to
$702,730,74 for the first half last year.
According to figures prepared by
the California-Oregon power com
pany, their check Is more than 81
per cent of the total property tax
to be collected for the first half. The
power company will pay a total of
$104,478.22 for the entire year's taxes,
and, according to their figures, if only
60 per cent of all taxes are paid,
Copco's check will amount to more
than 80 per cent of all 'taxes, paid.
The city of Medford wlfl receive
$17,290.15 of the money from the
Copco check, or approximately 10 per
cent of the entire city budget for the
year, according to Copco figures.
The $104,478.23 to be paid by the
California Oregon Power company
covers only the properv taxes paid
by Copco In Jackson county and does
not Include various other forms of
ststs snd federal taxes, nor does this
amount take in the franchise tax
paid the city of Medford. Copco of
ficiate state
APPLE BLOSSOMS
E
WENATCHEE, Wash., May g (AP)
This apple growing canter la on
parado today and tomorrow.
Nature waa doubry kind to Queen
Lucille of the Mth annual blossom
festival as bright sunshine and flut
tering blossoms greetd visitors as
her majesty prepared 1 to receive the
homage of thousands of subjects,
With Oovernor Martin leading the
grand march, Wenatohee'a blossom
festival will formally open tonight
with the queens ball.
The heaviest apple bloom in years
will greet visitors tomorrow, P. h.
Overley, horticulturist, said. North
central Washington's 40.000 acres of
orchards carry a 00 per cent blos
som. 30 per cent above the average
of other years.
PHrLADEtiPHIA.'pa., May .ffP)
Pepper Martin fell Into hla hero
waya of the 1931 world aeries today
by connecting for four straight hits
and scoring four runs In the Bt. Louis
5-to-a victory over ths Phillies. Mar
tin and Chuck Klein, the Phillies'
(lugging outfielder, got bom rune.
BASEBALL
National
Chicago ........ 18 0
Boston 3 8 0
Root snd Hartnett; Botta and Ho-
gan, S poh re r.
Pittsburgh ... 4 8 0
Brooklyn .. 3 7 1
Swift and Grace: Mungo, Shaute,
Benge and Outen, Plclnlch.
H.
10
E.
0
St. Louis
Philadelphia
8 0
Wllaon;
Batteries: Walker and
rearce, Llska and Davla.
R. H. E.
Cincinnati 8 8 0
New York - 5 7 3
Batteries: Prey. Kolp and Lom
bard!; Spencer, Luque and Mancuso.
PLANS TO ASSIST
FARM. COMME
ARE GIVEN C. OF C.
WASHINGTON. May 5. (AP) Two
cabinet officers described to the
Chamber of Commerce of the United
States today their plana for assisting
agriculture and commerce.
Henry A. Wallace, secretary of agrl
culture, and Daniel C. Roper, secre
tary of commerce, asked the co-ope
ration of the business leaders
working out schemes they believe will
aid In the country's recovery from
the depression.
Roper proposed a "president's coun
cil on business" to advise with the
government on economic conditions.
Teamwork Needed.
Wallace asked that agriculture and
Industry "travel In double-harness,
as a team with the load equally dt
vlded between them."
Recalling the many proposals made
recently for reviving the council oi
national defense or the war indus
tries board of the Wilson administra
tion, the commerce secretary pro
posed the president's council as an
alternative. At the same time he
outlined his plans for reorganizing the
commerce department, the move ne
cessitating aharp curtailment of the
bureau of foreign and domeatlc com
merce. Roper also said his plans call
for the setting up In the department
of a great bureau of transportation
for regulation of all transportation
agencies and probably communica
tions. Would ne Mouthpiece.
The business counsel, as outlined
by Roper, would consist of not more
than 31 representatives of American
commercial life "properly distributed
(Continued on Page Seven)
TAKING MINE
SELLS FOR $1000
BOSTON, May 5. (r The Shasta
King mine, near Redding, Cal., own
ed for the past eight years by the
closed Federal National bsnk of Bos
ton, wsa sold for tl.000 today to
Richard J. Burton of Boston, by or
der of the United States district
court. The Shssta King mine has
shipped copper to all parts of the
world.
Under the terms of the order, the
purchaaer, In order to obtain full
title to the property, must raise
1.000 additional. This, It waa set
forth, he expected to receive from
stockholders of the Trinity Copper
corporation, which operated the mine
until It went Into Bankruptcy eight
years ago, when the title was taken
by the bank. Approximately $1,000
la due on taxes.
GEARY FUNERAL IN
KLAMATH SATURDAY
PORTLAND, May 5. (Funeral
services will be held here tomorrow
at 2:30 p. m. for Richard Everett
Oeary, 47, of Klamath Falls, who died
here yesterday. Services will be at
the Portland crematorium. Geary,
well-known mining engineer and
rancher, had been 111 for saveral
months.
SECURITY CURB
BILL IS ASSURED
WASHINGTON, May S. (VD PM
age of the Rayburn securities regu
lation bill was assured today In the
house upon adoption of procedure
through a vote limiting debate to
five hours and precluding alt but
committee amendments.
So Fatalltln
SALEM. Ore.. May .(AP) The
second successive week without fa
talltlea resulting from Industrial ac.
eldenfa wee reported by the stat
accident commission today. During
the part seven dsys a total o? 308 ac-
oldenU have been reported.
DEFENSE CENTERS
E
PAL OHf SCO II
Irish Tempers Flare As Lon-
ergan for Accused Pair In
sinuates Guns Arranged
in Agitator-Editor's Home
EUGENE. Ore., May 6. (AP) "We
didl" On these two words, said to
have been uttered by Mrs. Edith R.
Banks in answer to the question.
"Who killed Prescott?" the stata
hopes to convict the wife of the Med
ford ex-publisher, along with her
husband, for the death of the Jack-
son county constable.
As a hushed audience leaned for.
ward tills afternoon. Tommy Wil
liams, oil truck driver, dramatically
told of his conversation with Mrs.
Banks as he stood beside th hnrt
of the fallen officer.
Hod Note for Police
Mrs. Banks had hsnded Willlsma
a not? to be given to the state po
lice. The ot read: "Come and get
Gorge Prescott snd you will be all
right. Then proceed In order. Mrs.
Banks."
"I had been driving past the house
in my truck when Mrs. Banxs waved
for m to come over. I hesitated.
Her arm was sticking out through
the door and In hor hand was what
looked like a letter," said Williams. .
"I approached but din" not go up
on the porch. She asked me again
and then a third time. Finally I
went up on the porch, fftie handed
me the note, which was on a card.
I read 1L
. - Pointed to Body -. J
I "I aaid, 'Where Is he?' (referring to
Prescott). .-.,..T-..
one said, 'There and nolnteri
the body,
1 said, "Who killed him?'
"She said. 'Wa did I' '
"I took the note to the state no-'
lice." , .
xnus was the oDenlni shot, fir.
In the state's case against Mrs.
Banks, who this faf haa figured only
casually In the states evidence
against the couple. Williams testi
fied Just before the court adjourned
for an hour aa a gesture of respect
to Wm. 8. Levens, chief prosecutor.
wno uiea mis week.
The Jury was Instructed to disre
gard Mrs. Banks' note and conversa
tion as iar aa It concerned Mr. Banka,
but -the evidence was admitted In
the state's case against the woman.
Perl Criticized
Williams hau followed Frank Perl,
Jackson county coroner and H. W.
(Continued .on Page Seven)
,WlLL
ROGERS
e$gys:
WASHINGTON, May 4
Seemed good to. get in here to
day aud see old friends. Mr. '
Vieo President turned over his
oi'fiee to nie to hold confer
ences in. He is the same Garner
he was evpn before hp. vrnn
speaker.
Had a long cbat with Speak
er Hainey. Saw congress pass
the inflation bill, the biggest
bill ever to pass any legislature
in the history of the world.
Invited right into ' our new
treasurer's office, Jlr. Woodin,
while the federal reserve board
was in session. He says "may
be you can give us a laugh, w
can't get anybody to give us
any money." They seemed
cheerful and they are the ones
has to dig it up. Then over to
Lew Douglas, the Arizona eow
puncher, head of the budget,
who says "You are just in
time; nil I need to balance the
4ooks today is six billion."
What a tough job that guy's
got, but he is able. Lunch with
Senator Joe Robinson of Ar
kansas and Senator Connelly
of Texas and not a one of all
these men knew what inflation
was.
Yours,