o
CT3
0
loi m www W
O 3 -
ORCHARDS HIT BY
HIGH KM; SOME
LOSSES SERIOUS
A cyclonie-type windstorm
Sunday blew "about a two-mile-
wide path through pear and
peach orchards between Med:
ford and Phoenix extensively
damaging isolated orchards, ac
cording to reports from orchard
ists and county, agents.
"C. D. Cordy, county horticul
tural agent, said damage will be
spotted, and will vary from
nothing up to as much as 65 per
cent of the pear crop. He said
damage would range between 10
and 25 per cent in many anjous
and cornice orchards.
Serious To Some Growers
TheGdamage, he said, is "de
finitely serious to growers af-
fectedf," and that in some cases
losses, -will not be made up. He
added," however, that in some
cases ,,Jwhere orchards suffered
Stevenson Blasts
Administration
On Broad Front
Chicago 4U.R Adlai E. Ste
venson, hi a double-barreled
blast 'at the Eisenhower admin
istration, 0said today that it -has
let theefarm situation steadily
-worsen" and caused "anxiety at
home and lost confidence
. abroad."
Stevenson made the attacks
in a letter to Henry Snow of
Kasson, Minn., and in an article
in the current Look magazine. '
' The charges came on the eve
e of a speech-making tour by the
U92 Democratic presidential
candidate. The tour will be cli
maxed in November, when Ste
venson has promised to tell
whether he will run again for
the presidency.-' "; -
Bxead Front Attack
Stevenson's Look article at
tacked the Eisenhower adminis
tration on a broad front. It
listed "serious failures," one of
them "the anxiety at home and
the lost confidence abroad that
resulted from trying to please
both wings of the Republican
party."
q The Snow letter was released
on the third anniversary of the
National Plowing Contest at
Kasson in which both Stevenson
0 and Mrs. Ensenhower stated
their farm policies.
Free Rid Charged
"Since that day three years
ago, the farm situation has
steadily worsened under an ad
ministration that embraces flex
ible price supports while main
taining distressing rigidity of
mind," Stevenson said.
He accused the Eisenhower ad
O ministration of "taking a free, if
hazardous, ride" on prosperity
created under Democratic re
gimes. Under the GOP leader
ship Stevenson said, big food
processing corporations prosper
hugely while individual farm in
q comes drastically decline."
Morse Urges Sale
Of Milwaukie Project
Washington (U.R) Sen,
Wayne Morse (D-Ore.), urged the
government today to sell the
Kellogg War Housing Projects
Milwaukie, Ore., to private bus
iness so the land could be put
back on local tax rolls.
In a letter to the Army, the
' General Services Administration
and?he Public Housing Adminis
tration, Morse said he cannot
understand why the government
retains the 90-acre tract "on a
non-productive basis."
"This land is located in the
heart of an area that has enjoyed
substantial industrial expansion
" during the past several years,"
he said. He said that sale of the
property would be "in the inter
est of the taxpayers and . .. .
3 wise property management."
Spaur Orders Closure
Of Logging Operations
Salem (U.R) Hot weather
and low humidity prompted
State Forester George Spaur to
order closing of log operations
in several Willamette Valley
areas, including operations in
Clackamas and Marion counties
today. '
Affected were the Tillamook
Burn, Clackamas and Marion
counties, eastern Lane county
forest areas, Linn county and a
part of Douglas county. ,
New York (U.R) Leading
sellers of zinc; have raised the
.. price of the metal one-half cent
to 13 cents a pound, East St.
Louis basis. i
15 to SO per cent losses, remain
ing fruit will increase in size
and make up some damage loss.
Bear Creek orchard officials
said they suffered some loss,
but no estimate of the damage
had been fully determined to
day. The storm apparently moved
from west to east through the
Phoenix area south of Medford,
and little damage was reported
east of Phoenix.
A spokesman for Crystal
Springs orchard said there was
no wind in Talent or south of
Phoenix, and that there was lit
tle or no wind east of Phoenix,
The storm did not affect orch
ards in the Eagle Point or Cen
tral Point areas, he indicated.
10 Per Cent Losses
Crystal Orchards officials said
losses in two of their orchards
west of Phoenix would be about
10 per cent, but anjous damage
would be less than 10 per cent,
Several orchards, in the area
had cornice pears on the ground
in orchards which had been
picked once. Other trees lost be
tween 20 and 25 per cent of its
fruit during the storm.
Unofficialreports today listed
one orchard in the general area
as losing about 10.000 boxes.
and another report listed one
orchard as losing two-thirds of
its fruit.
Paul Culbertson. who owns
orchards in the west Phoenix
area, said his orchards also were
damaged Sundav. and a stronff
wind in the Jacksonville area
late yesterday afternoon damag
ed an orchard on Old Stage rd.
Peach Trees Damaged
Several other orchards in the
Old Stage rd. area also sustain
ed in yesterday's isolated wind,
he said. Yesterday's wind blew
about a third of the remaining
fruit to the ground in Culbert-
son's orchard, he said.
Reports indicated that no pear
trees' were blown down, but
some peach trees in the wind's
path suffered extensive damage.
Peaches in the Phoenix area
were damaged Sudav.
The storm; which apparently
contained no rain or hail, felled
a large tree at 1894 Orchard
Home dr.
The Medford fire department
sent a pumper to 511 .King st.
Sunday to check an electric wire
which had blown down and was
shorting causing sparks. Fire
men reported no damage.
Arson Possibility
Eyed in Iddio Fires
Kellogg, Ida. OJ.R) Firemen
studied the possibility of arson
today in two blazes which caused
about S200.000 damage tn a lum
bar yard, a warehouse and sev
eral private homes.
Fire Chief Bill Linhart said
the fires yesterday were the
worst in 20 years in the city. No
one was injured.
The blaze in the Kelloe Lum
ber Company broke out about
o:jo a.m. A large number of
sheds housing its lumber sup
ply were destroyed but part of
the yard was saved.
As firemen were controlling
that blaze, a fire broke out in thp
Robinson Motor Company ware-
nouse two blocks away from the
lumber yard. Ten cars, two buses
and a quantity of tires were
destroyed.
Two Held in Theft
Of Bonneville Wire
Portland (U.R) Two ex-convicts
accused of stealing six tons
of copper wire from the Bonne
ville Power Administration here
were ordered held today for fed
eral authorities.
Walter Clyde. McClure, 35,
Portland, was caught red-handed
Sunday as he attempted to drive
out of the Bonneville yards on
North Suttle road with his specially-rebuilt
truck loaded with
six tons of wire.
Officers later picked up Frank
Louis Brambora, 30, Portland, on
suspicion that he was McClure's
accomplice.
Although Brambora did not
name his partner, he gave de
tectives an account of how he
entered the yard earlier and cut
and rolled the wire before it
was picked up by the truck.
Salem (U.R) Oregon con
gressman Walter Norblad has
asked the Coast Guard to inves
tigate safety regulations at the
mouth of the Columbia river,
where drownings occurred re
cently while salmon fishing der
bies were m progress.
50th Year
Medford
22 Pages
MEDFORD,
TRAPPED BY SHIFTING winds, four fire fighters are killed in flaring brush fire at La
Habra, Cal., near Los Angeles. Ambulance drivers prepare to remove the bodies of two
victims. Eleven others were injured in blaze that blackened 700 acres. (International)
STATE ACCIDENTS
Traffic Accounts
For Seven Deaths;
Five Die in Water
By UNITED PRESS
At least 20 persons met death
in Oregon in a variety of violent
accidents over the long Labor
Day holiday week end that be
gan at 6 p.m. Friday.
Traffic mishaps led the holi
day death parade, claiming seven
lives. Five persons died by
drowning; two in fires; four in
logging accidents; one in a fall
and one in a train mishap.
The latest highway victim was
Jackie Eugene Fenimore, 22,
Klamath Falls. He was killed
instantly last night and three
of his teen-aged riders were in
jured when his car careened
wildly off the road 15 miles east
of Klamath Falls.
. A swimming accident claimed
the life of Forest De Hart, 23,
of Tillamook.
Martin Joseph Hilburn, 25, of
By UNITED PRESS
A final United Press tabu
lation today showed that 443
persons, lost their lives in
Labor Day week end traffic
.accidents, 43 more than pre
dieted by the National Safety
Council. The worst highway
carnage was in California
where 44 were killed. In addi
tion io the traffic deaths.
United Press counted 73
deaths by drowning. 10 in
plane crashes and 66 from a
variety of accidents for an
overall holiday toll of 592.
(51ieoa
Barkdale, Ore., was killed near
Grants Pass when his car went
into a ditch after skidding 150
feet along the highway shoulder.
Yesterday afternoon, Donald
Westover, 21, of Springfield, was
believed drowned while water
skiing in Fern Ridge lake.
Other late week end fatalities
involved woods accidents. Two
men, Ed Wilkie, about 38, and
Todd Deffenbacker, 38, were
killed yesterday when a tree
fell on the pickup truck in
which they were sitting.
Snag Kills Boy
Ten-year-old Robert Hughley
was killed when a 40-foot snag
his father was falling toppled
on him on the Burgoyne ranch
about three miles from Riddle.
A brush and timber fire near
Seneca in' northeastern Oregon
took the life of 38-year-old El
wood Jackson of Baker.
Killed in highway accidents
were Donald Hovgaard, 25, Cas
cade Locks; John C. Hopkins,
21, Portland; James P. Twohy,
43, Portland; Ambrose Hopkins,
63, Marcola, and Frank Leo
Popham, Portland.
Killed in other drownings
were Jimmy Bones, 18 months,
Turner; Uno Edbolom, 40, Tier
nan, Ore., and Arthur Brawand,
23, Portland.
Charles R. Scott, 70, Portland,
who was rescued from an apart
ment fire which killed his wife,
died Sunday at Good Samaritan
hospital of burns suffered in the
blaze. His wife, Marian, 40, was
dead when firemen broke into
their locked and burning apart
ment early Saturday.
Patricia Ann Trute, 24, Port
land, was killed when she fell
from a cliff at the Oregon coast
Saturday.
Raymond Hatch, 39, Spring
field,' was killed when he was
struck by a train at Springfield.
OREGON, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 6,
Red China Releases
9 American Citizens
Geneva (U.R) Communist
China announced today it has
granted exit permits to nine
Americans "who may now de
part" for their homeland, and is
ready to free two others when
they ask to leave.
A 12th American will be per
mitted to leave in' two or three
months when his business af
fairs are cleaned up.
The Reds also announced that
three other persons, one be
lieved to be a Dutchman, will be
allowed to leave the Cnina main
land immediately.
Release Demanded
" Chinese Ambassador to Poland
Wang Ping-man made the dis
closure when he met this morn
ing to discuss with U. S. Am
bassador to Czechoslovakia U
Alexis Johnson the exchange of
nationals of each other's country.
The Americans to be freed are
part of a group of 41 known to
Burglary Series
Believed Solved
A series of burglaries in Jack
son, Klamath and Siskiyou coun
ties was believed solved today by
the arrest of two midland, Ore.,
men, according to state police
here.
Arrested were Donald Neil
Chinn, 25, and Charles Edgar
Howell, 31, both of Midland,
which is south of Klamath Falls.
State police said the pair have
admitted seven burglaries com
mitted at various places on
Highway 66, between Ashland
and Klamath Falls, and six in
Siskiyou county. Loot taken in
the 13 burglaries included guns,
money, and household furnish
ings, and was valued at about
$2,500.
Local officers were to meet
with Siskiyou county authorit
ies today in Klamath Falls in an
effort to recover some of the
loot.
Disarmament Talks
Enter Second Week
United Nations, N.Y. (U.R)
The West today begins the
second week of disarmament
talks with Russia with little hope
that the Soviets will give a def
inite ' answer to President Eisen
hower's military inspection plan.
The five-nation United Na
tions disarmament subcommittee
resumes secret discussions after
a four-day holiday week end.
President Eisenhower's plan
for aerial and ground inspection
coupled with an exchange of
detailed military information be
tween the United States and
Russia, was expected to get de
tailed discussion.
Changes Likely in Corrupt
Salem (U.R) Oregon's Cor
upt Practices act is expected to
undergo the first major changes
in 46 years when the next State
Legislature meets in 1957.
The Legislative Interim com
mittee on Elections, created by
the 1955 Legislature, which will
make recommendations to the
next session, held an organiza
tional meeting here today.
State Sen. Pat Lonergan of
Portland was chosen chairman
and Rep. Robert Jensen of Port
land, vice-chairman. Rep. Kay
Meriwether of Portland was
named secretary. ,
ce 5c
IE
. 142
KILL 20
be in Communist hands and
whose release has been de
manded by the U. S. govern
ment. To Meet Saturday
A communique issued after
Wang and Johnson met-for two
and a half hours and then ad
journed until next Saturday said
the nine Americans had applied
for and been granted exit per
mits.
It said two other Americans,
identified as Bishop James Ed
ward Walsh and Mrs. Peter Hui
zer, had not yet applied for per
mits, but, could have, them upon
request.
The communique also said
that another American, identi
fied as Charles Sydney Miner,
could leave Red China "when
the affairs of the company with
which he is connected are
cleared up."
Chinese officals listed the
Americans to be freed as:
Miss Emma Angelina Barry,
Ralph Sharpies Boyd, Mrs. Ju-
anita Byrd Hwang, Robert How
ard Parker, Howard Lischke
Ricks, Mrs. Howard Lischke
Ricks, Miss Eva Stella Dugay
(Sister Theresa). Mrs. Nadeshda
M. Romanoff, Miss Irene N. Ro
manoff.
Council Schedules
Rezoning Hearing
A public hearing on rezoning
from two-family dwellings to
heavy industrial district of the
area north of Clark st. between
Narregan st. and McAndrews
rd. is one of several items on
the agenda for the city council
at its 7:30 p.m. meeting today.
Items from Mayor Earl Miller
include a withdrawal of an an
nexation request from the First
Church of Christ, Scientist, and
requests from the American Le
gion to use parking meters for
flag display and from the Rogue
Rangers for use of city land.
City Manager Robert Duff
will report to the council on sev
eral items, including authoriza
tion of an audit, a report from
an insurance company to pay for
fire hose destroyed in the Med
ford Furniture company fire re
cently, and on traffic signals at
the corner of Holly st. and Stew
art ave.
Weather
FORECAST: Continued dry, hot;
and smokey through Wednes
day with a chance of after
noon thunderstorms over
- mountains. Low tonight . 60.
High Wednesday 95-98.
Temp.
Highest Yesterday ;. 101
Lowest this Morning .
59
A subcommittee made up of
Sen. Mark Hatfield of Salem,
Rep. Meriwether and Mrs.' Jean
K. Young, Portland,1 Secretary
of the State Republican Central
committee, was chosen to select
an executive secretary. '
The subcommittee will accept
applications, interview candi
dates and report its recommenda
tion at the next meeting of the
interim committee. ""
At the suggestion of Sen. Hat
field, the interim committee ask
ed Sam Haley, Legislative coun
sel, to prepare rules for proced
ures for committee bearings to
Huge Blaze Rages
On Klamath River
North From Yreka
More Men Needed
To Combat Fires
Yreka A 20,000 to 30,000
acre forest fire was burning out
of control in the Humbug creek
area, about 20 miles northwest
of here today. '
The blaze was so big that
Klamath National forest officials
could not accurately estimate its
size.
Mora Men Needed
Some 800 men, including San
Quentin prison convicts, were
fighting the fire, and more were
urgently needed. Klamath Na
tional forest officials this morn
ing said "We definitely need
more men." "Any man able to
work and who owns a pair of
boots" was being asked to re
port to U.S." Forest service's
warehouse just south of Yreka.
The blaze, which is being
called the "Haystack f i r e,"
jumped the Klamath river yes
terday afternoon, starting at
about Riverside school. This
morning, the smoke was so
dense that lookouts were re
porting a zero visibility.
Protect Buildings
Tankers from state and U. S.
forest protective agencies and
from the city of Yreka were
standing by to protect all major
buildings. Many cabins, a good
share of them unoccupied, al
ready have burned, and people
are being warned to evacuate
their homes as soon as possible
throughout the fire area.
Five major fires were burning
in Siskiyou county today. Forest
officials said it is impossible to
estimate how many men are
working the blazes. Two helicop
ters have been called in to help
direct fire fighting operations.
Lymond Posts Bail;
CAA To Get Report
William George Lymond, 31,
of Seattle, Wash., posted $30
bail Sunday morning and was
charged in district court today
with being drunk on public
highway. He is to appear to
morrow and enter a plea.
Lymond was arrested late Sat
urday night by state police on
highway 99 south of Talent. Ly
mond had wandered to the high
way after a light plane he was
piloting creashed on a small hill
south and west of Talent.
The plane was only slightly
damaged, and Lymond was un
injured. State police said Ly
mond apparently was on a flight
from Seattle to Redding, Calif.
The plane was reported missing
earlier Saturday night.
Civil Aeronautics administra
tion safety agent Carl Christen-
sen of Medford said he has in
vestigated the case, and will file
a report with the regional office
in Seattle. Action by the CAA
could result in loss of license in
addition to a civil penalty.
Smog, Sticky Heaf
Bother Los Angeles
, Los Angeles (U.R) Smoth
ering smog combined with sticky
heat today to provide the city
with one of its worst weather
blows in history.
At least 60 deaths during the
seven-day heat wave were blam
ed by the coroner's office either
directly or indirectly on the
high temperatures.
The temperatures hit at least
100 degrees in the city for the
seventh straight day today at
1:20 p.m. when 100 was record
ed. Top mark in the heat wave
was the 110 degrees, an all-time
high, last Thursday.
The smog reached the first
level alert stage in the county
and authorities banned all back
yard burning. Industries were
urged to stop their burning ac
tivities voluntarily.'
Practices Act
be held during the next year.
Much of the committee's work
will involve a study of the pres
ent Oregon Corrupt Practices
act, particularly as it deals with
reporting expenditures by candi
dates for public office and polit
ical committees.
Two bills providing for re
porting financial contributions
and expenditures both before and
after election were introduced in
the 1955 session but each died in
committee. A resolution provid
ing for an interim study of the
entire subject of . Oregon's elec
tion laws was passed.
1 0,000 Acre! Hit
o
As-FlamesSweep
Over TirterlaMd
Heat, Drought Create
Explosive Situation
One of the most explosive forest fire situations in the history
of Jackson and Siskiyou counties "blew up" yesterday.
More than 50 fires, some of them driven by gale force winds,
had roared over nearly lO.OOO' acres of timberland by this morn
ing in Jackson county alone. An estimated 1,000 men were fight
ing the fires, and more were being called in from other sections
of the state i
In Siskiyou county, officials of Klamath National, forest, esti
mated that raging fires by this morning had covesed 30,000 to
40,000 acres of first class timberland.
Several Hundred Men Fight Fire
Largest fire in Jackson county Is on the Sykes creek drainage
north of Rogue River, where several hundred mij are battling a
4,500 acre blaze. .
Ted Maul, district forester for the State Forest department,
said this morning that the Sykes creek fire "is nowhere near being
controlled." ' Shortly after noon, however, crews reportedly were
The Medford area went into its sixth consecutive day of near
100 degree temperatures today, with only slight relief in tight. The
five-day forecast is for little or no rain in western Oregon.
Temperatures at the Medford weather bureau sine the first
of the month have been 98 degrees' on Sept. 1 and 2. 102 on Sept. 3.
a record breaking 107 on Sept. 4, and 101 yesterday. (The previ
ous record highs for early September were in 1923 and 1934, when
104 degrees was registered on the 6th and 2nd of the month, re
spectively. Other early-September highs of over 100 were regis
tered in 1931, 1935. 1938, 1943, 1944 and 1948, ranging from 101
to 103 between the 2nd to the 161h of the month. .
High for today was forecast at 98, and tomorrow's high was'
expected to be between 95 and 98 degrees.
Medford weather bureau officials said this morning that ,
more thunderstorms are expected this afternoon, mostly in the
higher mountains. There will be gusty winds in the vignty of the
storms.
The base of the few clouds which have fotfmed in this area
during the past few days has been at from 14,000 to 15.000 feet,
the weather bureau said. Because the air between the ground and
the base of the clouds has been extremely dry, any rain which falls
evaporates before hitting the ground.
Low humidities in Jackson county have ranged from 18 to 20
since Sunday, according to the weather bureau. Any reading of
20 or below is considered to be critical for forest fires. Continued
lew afternoon humidities are expected for the next few days, the
weather bureau said. . ,.. --
gaining ground in the battle. The blaze started from a sawdust
pile and spread rapidly before a high wind. 'I've never seen any
thing as explosive," Maul said.
Sixty volunteers responded to a radio request for aid this
morning and were" sent to the Sykes creek fire by county Civil
Defense officials. The county disaster car was standing by, and the
Jackson county Red Cross planned to send a mobile canteen unit
to the fire this afternoon.
The Medford Civil Air patrol, unit, has several men in the
Sykes creek area, and has an
ing for any improvement in visibility over the fire.
No Homes Destroyed
County Commissioner L. G. (Shy) Morthland telephoned from
Wimer shortly after noon today to report on the Sykes creek fire ;
battle. Food supplies are not yet a problem in the area, he said.
No homes have been destroyed. Civil defense personnel are assist,
ing the fire fighters of whom there are between 400 and 500 at
work.
He said the principal difficulty is sightseers, who are clogging
the roads. While the road is open, he said it would be dangerous
to go beyond Wimer, where the road is narrow and equipment is
at work clearing fire debris.
The situation on a fire on Blackwell hill, which covered about
1,500 acres, was termed "not tofc bad" this morning. The fire
was started yesterday at about 3 p.m. when high winds blew
down a tree, which fell across power lines.
Families Evacuated
The fire forced evacuation of families from their homes on
both sides of the Rogue river, and state police and officials of
Central Point rural fire distritc said this morning that five houses
were believed to have burned. Names of the owners were not
available.
Medford city fire department dispatched a rural pumper to
the Blackwell hill fire at aboijt 7:45 p.m. Monday at the request
of Dick Krupp, chief of the Central Point rural department, which
was in service throughout the night. The truck was released from
the fire shortly after 3. a.m. today.
. Trucks, pickups and trailers from all parts of the valley re
sponded to a state police reqaest for vehicles to aid in the evacua
tion. Consolidated Freightways in Medford sent 10 trucks, and
many other trucking firms and private parties aided. State police
officers stood by to aid in the evacuation and to prevent looting.
Sheriffs deputies and state police blocked off roads leading
into the fire area, but large numbers of sightseers hampered the
evacuation workers and fire fighters throughout he early hours
of the blaze. .
Station Closes Down
television station KBES-TV went off the air when its trans
mitter atop Blackwell hill became so filled with smoke that the -
technician could no longer work.
The station was planning to return to the air at the regular
time today. It was off from mid-evening on Monday, after fire
surrounded the transmitter and burned two buildings, the pump- '
house and tank building, and put an overload on the air condi
tioning equipment.
One of the power poles carrying electricity to the transmittter :
partially burned last night, and the station was taken off the air :
because of the danger of losing transmitting equipment. Chief
Technician Bill Smith, Technician Donald Berch, and Mr. and
Mrs. Everett Faber were at the transmitter when fire surrounded "
it, and all were cut off from the outside for about 45 minutes.
I Faber, vice-president of the TV firm, said the technical crew
worked "most of the night getting the equipment back in shap.
Timber Mountain Fire
A third large fire is in the vicinity of Timber mountain, west
of Jacksonville, and near the Jacksonville reservoir. By this morn
ing it had burned over 2,500 acres. Some 200 men, with eight
bulldozers and several pumping units, hoped to trail the fire by
noon today, but Maul said "whether we can hold it is proble-"
matical."
A garage belonging to E. C. (Jerry) Jerome on the Old Stage rd.
burned last night. Cause of the fire was unknown, but it may
have been from burning embers blown in from the Timber moun-'
tain blaze. It was a complete loss, reports indicated. Jerome lost
another garage just 11 months ago. ' . ;
A fire on Nuggett butte, about half mile north of Gold HilL
which was believed under control Saturday night, blew out in a
high wind yesterday and covered some 100 acres. It was controlled
this morning, but here again, there was a question as to whether
it could be held in check. '. - 1
(ContiuMd Pace Three)
- . . . . ...... , J
observer plane standing by wait
o