Wednesday' March 30, 19S5
MEDFORD (OREGON) MAIL TRIBUNE THREE
4SiIi Legislative Assembly 'Undistinguished Host Observers Agree
Biflls in Legislature
Salem U.R) The Joint Ways
and Means committee of the
Oregon legislature yesterday ap
proved a $7500 budget for the
Battleship Oregon' commission.
The Oregon Historical society
biennium 'budget was cut from
$50,000 to $43,000.
Salem U.P.) The Senate
Elections committee yesterday
recommended that a legislative
Interim committee be formed to
study the Oregon Corrupt Prac
tices act.
Formation of the
would delay action on several
bills introduced during the cur
rent session to change campaign
laws.
Salem fJ.R) A bill to permit
formation of grasshopper con
trol districts similar in organi
zation to rural fire protection
districts was being prepared to
day by an eastern Oregon legis
lator. Sen. Stewart Hardie of Con
don said he was introducing the
bill at the request of W. W.
"VVeatherford, Heppner rancher.
Weatherford said the grass
hopper problem was serious, par
ticularly in Morrow and Umatil
la counties. He said Department
of Agriculture studies show the
area has an infestation of 14 to
28 grasshoppers per square yard.
Eight to 11 hoppers per square
yard will eat as much as a cow
on a range, he said.
A bill to allow ranchers to set
ud their own districts and tax
themselves to control grasshop
pers would help the control
fight, he said.
Salem U.R) The Senate has
'passed and sent to the House
I a resolution that would amend
I part of the constitution which
calls for the governor to receive
a salary of $1500 a year.
The section, which has been
ignored since 1862, was part of
the original constitution written
in 1857. It also provides the sec
retary of state shall receive
S1.500, the treasurer $800 and
Supreme Court Justices $2,000
each.
A taxpayer in 1936 sued to
have the governor's salary cut
committee j Daclc t0 l,5uu, but the Mate
supreme Lourt held the legisla
ture could fix salaries. The gov
ernor now gets S15.000. Su
preme Court justices $12,000
and the secretary of state and
state treasurer $10,000.
Salem- U.R A measure to
Increase statutory maximum pay
of bar pilots was passed by the
House, 33-21, yesterday and sent
to the Senate.
The bill .introduced by Reps
Orval Eaton. Astoria, and Tho
mas R. McClellan, Notsu, would
increase maximum compensation
for piloting vessels over a bar
from $2.50 to $3 per foot draft
and from 2 to 214 cents per reg
ister ton.
Rep. Harvey . H. DeArmond,
Bend, objected to the bill, saying
the Legislature was establishing
maximum compensation for a
private operation which he said
was unconstitutional.
Salem U.R) Attorney Gen
eral Robert Thornton ruled yes
terday it would be constitutional
for Oregon to have a special
election should the Legislature's
tax program be threatened with
delay by referendum.
The opinion was given at the
request of Rep. Loran Stewart,
chairman of the House Taxation
committee.
Salem OI.R) The Senate
Highways committee didn't give
the green light to a measure to
prohibit ambulances from run
ning red traffic lights Monday,
pending a study of possible
amendments.
Rep. George Layman of New
berg, author of the measure,
told a hearing its purpose was
aimed at reducing number of
traffic accidents resulting from
speeding ambulances colliding
with other vehicles at intersec
tions. Irving F. Wedel. Salem Memo
rial hospital administrator, sug
gested that ambulances be made
to stop for red lights and then
to continue if traffic were clear.
There are some cases, he said,
where delay might cost the life
of a patient.
'Agreeable, Incompetent'
Tag Put on Legislature by
Veteran; Governor Concurs
(Editor's note: Mrs. Bren
(Oliye) Starcher, society edi
tor of the Mail Tribune, last
week end attended a meeting
of the Oregon Presswomen in
Salem, and stayed over to
visit the legislature for two
days before returning home.
Following is .her report on
impressions she received dur
ing her legislative visit.)
Salem-4U.R) Two bills that
would alter the state's school
support fund's distribution pro
gram were argued at a hearing
before the Senate Education
committee Monday.
One measure would attempt to
apply anticipated increases in
the support fund to equalize the
tax spread between different in
come groups. The other would
change the support plan to
achieve the same end.
Relative merits of the two
bills were that the one would
attempt to equalize the educa
tional opportunities of school
children, while the other would
attempt to equalize the tax bur
den. School officials from Portland
and eastern Oregon were strong
ly opposed to the proposal to
change the school support formula.
HUSKIES PUT IN BID
Seattle (U.R) The University
of Washington will put in a bid
to hold the NCAA 1956 basket
ball championship finals at Ed
mundson pavilion, Harvey Cas
sill, the school's athletic director,
said today.
By OLIVE STARCHER
Mail Tribune Society Editor
The 48th legislative assembly
of Oregon, 80 days old today,
will probably be written down
as an undistinguished one. This
is what is being said in the halls,
in the press room, in the offices
of state officials and at the
numerous gatherings which go
on in Salem during a session.
One competent observer, a
veteran of many legislative ses
sions, said "this is the most
agreeable and the most incom
petent legislature I can remem
ber for a long time." Newsmen
listening agreed. A tax expert
who has attended several ses
sions said Monday morning
' practically nothing useful has
been accomplished so far."
Many In First Terms
One reason given for the in
ability of the two bodies "to get
going" is the high percentage of
members serving their first
terms. It takes time to learn
procedures and routine, and the
absence of exDerienced men to
fcuide the newcomers is being
felt in both House and Senate.
This session has also seen more
than the usual number of "gar
bage" bills, which prevents the
legislators from putting their
minds to the really important
problems.
Even Gov. Paul Patterson feels
that things are not goin? too
well. During an interview Tues
day with three members of the
Medford League of Women
Voters, the governor remarked
wearily, "This is a peculiar legis
lature," and then added, "But
they have had some peculiar
problems to solve."
The league committee discus
sed with the governor his stand
on HB99, which would provide
state inspection of meat. The
governor sympathized with the
women but pointed out that he
was struggling to put through
even the most important points
of his program. He declared
that appropriations for a new
mental hospital in Portland are
"in danger," and added, ''I am
not even sure I can get through
a little appropriation of $48,000
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Governor Weary
Governor Patterson looked
gaunt and weary, and it Is being
said that Republican party lead
ers are worried that he is work
ing too hard. His staff is too
small, some say, and he is too
conscientious about his duties.
Party leaders don't want Gov
ernor Patterson to use up too
much of his strength now, for
many of them are counting on
him to oppose Senator Morse in
the next election, and they keep
telling one another that whoever
campaigns against Morse will be
in for a rugged time and must
be in top physical condition and
in good spirits.
Mrs. Frank Fairweather and
Mrs. Harlan P. Bosworth Jr.,
official members of the league
delegation, were undiscouraged
by the governor's refusal to
make an issue of the meat legis
lation (they did. not really ex
pect that he could) and returned
to Medford last night feeling
that the battle on HB99 is not
lost by any means.
Attend Committee
Monday night they attended
a meeting of the meat marketing
and livestock committee during
which a resolution was passed
pledging representatives of meat
packing firms to double their
license fees as a means of fi
nancing a state meat inspection
program, providing the House
ways and means committee
would appropriate a minimum
of 5100,000 this term. The fig
ure of 400,000 first set as nec
essary was said to be "unreal
istic." j ,
Tuesday the two women talk
ed to some 30 people, including
Jackson county's legislators,
Rep. V. T. Jackson, who kept
the bill from being killed by
the ways and means committee
and Rep. Robert J. Steward. La
bor has supported the meat bill
with the statement that it is
needed health legislation.
Governor Patterson also told
the league members that many
Jackson county voters are tak
ing a firm stand for a sales tax
as a means of solving the state's
pressing financial problems.
Rep. E. H. Mann from Jackson
county also said he had had sev
eral letters urging him to sup
port a general sales tax, and
Mrs. Phillip Lowry reported
that letters to her husband on
tax matters heavily favor such
a tax. (Senator Lowry is being
praised as the most outstanding
of the freshmen legislators).
See Cigarette Tax
Many around the State House
are saying that the cigarette tax
bill will pass, and that possibly
the general sales tax will be
come the subject of an initiative
from the people after this session
is closed.
Monday morning the House
passed four tax bills, HB238, the
"skyscraper" exemption repeal
and utility exemption repeal;
495, a corporation income tax
to catch interstate firms; 495
which is an insurance premium
tax and 520, a withholding tax
increase to include farm work
ers. To the voter attending the leg
islature for the first time, com
mute hearings are often more
interesting than the actual ses
sions of the House and Senate.
One of the liveliest of the hear
ings Monday was on SB333 and
SB323, both of which would
change the formula under which
state school support money is al
located. Of the 14 or 15 speakers
this reporter heard, well over
half were opposed to both bills.
It is understood that Jackson
county would profit from the
new formula.
Many Appear
Appearing in favor was Cecil
Posey, executive secretary of
Oregon Education association, a
retired professor, a PTA repre
sentative and one or two other
citizens. Included in the opposi
tion were school board superin
tendents from Klamath Falls,
Oak Ridge and Pendleton, and
former Senator Giles French of
Sherman county, as well as rep
resentatives of the Oregon
Grange, labor, a citizen's com
mittee of 400 Portlanders, Port
land American Association of
University Women.
Thftse favoring the bills
brought up the usual arguments
of the inability of poor districts
to provide standard education
for their children, while those
opposed said the new formula
"doesn't provide equality of edu
cation but only equality of
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Peter iawfords Become
Parents of 7-Lb. Boy
Hollywood U.R) Actor
Peter Lawford and his wife, Pa
tricia, today were the parents of
a seven-pound boy.
Mrs. Lawford, the daughter of
Joseph Kennedy, former U.S.
Ambassador to Great Britain,
gave birth to her first child in
St. John's hospital at Santa
Monica yesterday.
taxes, and if we are going to
equalize school taxes, why not
other types of taxes," that the
new formula is contrary to the
principles laid down in the first
state school support law, that
state support is promoting in
efficiency among districts and
has brought consolidation,
strongly proposed by the Holy
report, almost to a standstill.
Educators, school board mem
bers and parents were also out
in force Tuesday morning for a
hearing on a bill which would
repeal the law which makes
physical education compulsory
in Oregon schools. The PTA
favors retention of the law.
Although agreeing that it may
not be perfect, some said school
districts were not obeying it any
way, and others said repeal or
not wouldn't matter, that school
districts will keep their physical
education programs regardless.
The director of health from the
state department of education
appeared upon request of the
committee, and said that he be
lieved the department would
still require pre-school examina
tions and continue its immuni
zation programs, regardless of
what happened to this bill.
Tuesday afternoon the House
of Representatives was strug
gling with Oregon's milk prob
lem again. Since the voters abol
ished the milk-control law last
election, a bill setting up certain
regulations on producers and
dairies has been introduced in
the house, and caused lively
debate.
Representatives Maurine Neu
berger and Elmer "Gallon Jug"
Deetz both spoke in opposition
to the bill which will probably
come up for final vote today or
tomorrow.
Peak of Steel Demand Seen
Arriving Early Next Month
New York XU.R) Iron Age
magazine predicted today steel
demand "will hit its high point
in April" with operations top
ping 96 per cent of rated
capacity.
It noted "(he terrific demand
from automotive companies in
the critical production period
just ahead." j
"The car makers underesti
mated strength of the new car
market and are trying to make
up for lost time," said the na
tional metal-working weekly.
"Meanwhile, the market build
up is spurred by pressure from
virtually every industry."
Steel operations this week are
scheduled at 94.5 per cent of ca
pacity, up one-half point from
last week.
"A leveling off can be ex
pected this summer," Iron Age
stated. "But on a .seasonally
adjusted basis it probably will
indicate an improvement and
continuation of the recovery
movement.
"There will be another upturn
following the summer breathing
spell. Strength of the steel mar
ket rests on such a broad base
that another surge is almost cer
tain in the last half of 1955."
Steel and automotive labor
are having an influence on the
market," Iron Age pointed out.
"Outcome of labor negotiations
remains uncertain.
Odds Favor Settlement
"But in steel the odds favor
peaceful settlement of forth
coming talks between the indus
try and the United Steel
Workers.
"Chances are that negotiations
in the steel industry will wind
up with a moderate wage in
crease, followed by a compen
sating price boost."
"Meanwhile, automotive pres
sure has created tense feeling
among steel consumers," Iron
Age said. "Everyone is clamor
ing to get his requirements on
the books and from the mills as
fast as producers can handle
them.
"This factor will pitch steel
production to near-record levels
before the downturn comes."
Woman Sues Husband
In 11th Divorce Case
Memphis, Tenn. (U.R) Th
odds favored marriage today at
Mrs. Garnett Lee Pearson sued
her husband for divorce for the
11th time of their five years of
marriage.
Only once has she gone
through with one of the di
vorces and then she remarried
see whaf a difference CH makes
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