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TWO MEDFORD (OREGON) MAIL TRIBUNE
65
Dead, 100 Injured as
Loaded
Gomez Palacio, Mexico U.R)
Two trucks loaded with nine
tons of dynamite smashed into a
crowded passenger and freight
train at a crossing Friday night,
setting off a tremendous explo
sion that killed at least 65 per
sons and injured 100 others.
Authorities feared the toll
would rise. They said many of
the injured were not expected to
live. At least 12 of the dead were
children.
Were Racing Trucks
The two drivers apparently
were racing their trucks, each
loaded with four and one-half
tons of Ihe high explosive, and
were so itnent on their competi
tion they did not see the train.
They hit it at full speed.
The explosion tore a gaping
hole in the ground and levelled
houses near the scene of the
blast. The balcony of a movie
theater in Gomez Palacio a mile
and a half away, collapsed from
the force of the explosion and
the moviegoers fled in panic but
none were injured.
Flung 700 Yards
The engine and all three cars
of the mixed passengers and
freight train, a local running
from Torreon to Chihuahua.
were destroyed. The engine of
one truck was found 700 yards
away. No trace was found of the
bodies of the drivers.
. All the crewmen aboard the
train and most of the passengers
were killed. Many of the dead
Q and injured were inhabitants of
nouses aiong me iracits.
e The scene was like that of a
battleground. Bodies and parts
of bodies lay scattered among
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With Dynamite Hit Train
the devastation when ambu
lances began arriving from Tor
reon, eight miles away. Many of
the injured lay groaning under
piles of wreckage. An accurate
count of the dead was difficult
because so many of the bodies
were destroyed.
Chickens, pigs and burros
kept in pens near the houses
Logging, Lumber Indutsries
Praised for Forest Fire Work
The logging and lumber indus
tries, and their individual mem
bers, received high praise from
state and federal agencies Fri
day evening for the work done
in combating the forest fires in
this area the . week following
Labor day.
Ted Maul, district warden for
the state forestry department,
said the work of loggers and sup
ervisors was "magnificent," and
praised the unquestioning coop
eration of anyone who was
asked for help, and of those who
called offering help.
Jack Wood, supervisor of the
Rogue River National forest,
seconded Maul's remarks, and
said, "I simply don't have the
words in my vocabulary to de
scribe the spirit and the coop
eration we received during the
rough time we had with the
fires."
Will Speed Progress
Stewart Moir, Portland, chief
forester for the Western Fores
try and Conservation associa
tion, pointed out that this type of
freehanded cooperative work to
eradicate fires will speed the ar
rival of the time when less at
tention will have to be paid to
fires, and more can be devoted
to proper forest management.
Dwight Phipps, who will be
come state forester Oct. 1, said
the state had received excellent
cooperation in other fire areas,
and suggested that the record of
agency-industry cooperation in
the Rogue valley area is "spread
ing" to other sections of the
state. Phipps came down espec
ially for the meeting, which was
the September gathering of the
Southern Oregon Conservation
and Tree Farm association, held
at the Jackson hotel. s
Tree Farm Certified
Moir presented Arthur Davies,
president of SOCTFA, with two
certificates for a new, 200-acre
tree farm Davies has established
on Forest creek northwest of
Jacksonville.
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Sunday, September 23. 1955
were all killed.
Many of the injured had to be
taken to private homes in Gomez
Palacio because the town's hos
pital quickly filled up.
The accident happened about
10:15 p.m. (EDT). Gomez Palacio
is about 250 miles south of Big
Bend National Park in Texas.
Authorities said the lead truck
L. L. Simpson, secretary-manager
and forester for the 'asso
ciation, reported that it has been
decided to form a continuing
committee of the organization
to study its present cooperative
fire plan, and to suggest expan
sion and improvements. Had it
not been for the plan, he de
clared, the fire situation early
this month could have been
much worse than it was. But
with an expanded program, con
trol may be effected in similar
future situations more rapidly.
The committee will study
communications, transportation,
equipment and manpower needs,
Simpson said. It will be headed
Two Four-Year-Olds
Die in House Blaze
Portland (U.R) Two children
died in the gas-filled basement
of a flaming Portland home
shortly before noon Saturday
and seven firemen were over
come by, the fumes as they
fought to rescue two four-year-
old boys.
Dead were Richard (Dicky)
Emerson, Jr., son of Mr. and
Mrs. Richard Emerson, and Rich
ard (Mickey) Scales, Jr., son of
Mr. and Mrs. Richard' Scales.
Fire "Frightening"
Firemen described the fire as
"frightening" and said they fear
ed for a while the gas escaping
from a broken main in the base
ment of the Emerson house
would blow up the entire neigh
borhood.
The seven firemen overcome
by cooking gas were taken to
Providence hospital where oxy
gen was administered. Doctors
said they were in satisfactory
condition.
Some 700 spectators crammed
into the fire area and hampered
rescue attempts. One onlooker
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MAIN ST. MEDFORD
9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Trucks
smashed Into the train just as
the train reached the crossing.
The second truck, only a few
yards behind, .followed the first
vehicle into the holocaust and
exploded seconds later.
Hundreds of cars were stalled
on both sides of the crossing and
highway crews were dispatched
to fill in the giant crater.
by George Flanagan, general
manager of Elk Lumber com
pany,, and will have federal and
state, as well as association, rep
resentatives as members.
B. L. Nutting, manager of the
Medford corporation, discussed
the establishment of a scholar
ship fund at Oregon State col
lege in memory of the late Floyd
Hart, and invited lumber indus
try men to contribute to it.
E. D. Olsen, of the state indus
trial accident commission, de
scribed plans for the regional
safety conference to be held here
Dec. 9 and 10, and invited
SOCTFA members to partici
pate. had to be arrested when he per
sisted in getting in the way of
firemen.
Captain Cecil Roth who com
manded the first fire company
to reach the fire scene said
"smoke was pouring out of the
house on all sides and we could
hear gas rushing from the brok
en main in the basement. Coir
first thought was to shut off the
gas before the entire neighbor
hood blew up on us."
And he added,' "We couldn't
understand why the gas did not
explode or catch fire. That was
what made it such a frightening
situation."
Receiver Named for
Homes Foreclosure
Portland U.R) Mrs. Mar
cella O'Bryant of Springfield
was appointed receiver in a
foreclosure action against 26
houses owned by Springfield
Homes company Friday.
U. S. Judge Claude McCol
loch appointed the Springfield
real estate agent to collect $60
to $70 rent on the houses until
they are sold at auction by the
U. S. Marshal.
Foreclosure action was taken
-
Vega and Harp of Orpheus
By J. HUGH PRUETT
Astronomer, Extension Division
Oregon, Higher Education System
When darkness has fully de
scended and the twilight of our
early autumn days has faded
from the heavens, even the cas
ual observer can hardly fail to
enthuse over a very brilliant
blue-white star that glows al
most overhead, or a little west
of overhead by 9 p.m. '
This is Vega, the star with the
Arabic name, and the second in
brightness of all stars visible
from our latitudes. (Some of the
planets are brighter, but they
are not stars.)
Name Gradually Changed
Vega is said originally to have
been "al-Waqui," which was
gradually changed to Wega and
then Vega. It is one of the nearer
stars. Its distance is 27 light
years, or approximately 27 times
six trillion miles from us. Were
Vega as close to us as our sun,
its brilliance would appear about
50 times that of old Sol. Since
Vega's heat and light would then
be unbearable, it is best admired
at a distance.
Due to the precession of the
equinoxes, Vega in about 12,000
years hence will be our north
star. And what a splendid guide
star it will make, although it
will not be quite as close to the
pole of the sky as is our present
Polaris. Polaris is now less than
one degree from the pole, and
by A.D. 2100 will be within one
half degree of this location. Then
it will seemingly move farther
from the pole for thousands of
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Changes in Copco
Klamath Contract
Slated for Study
Klamath Falls (U.R) Oregon
and California Klamath River
Commissions, the California Ore
gon Power Co., and the Bureau
of Reclamation will meet next
Wednesday in Sacramento to ne
gotiate an extension of possible
changes in Copco's contract with
the bureau.
Klamath Falls Meeting
Representatives of all four
groups met in Klamath Falls Fri
day when the Sacramento meet
ing was agreed on. The Friday
meeting was in addition to a
series of meetings the commis
sions have been holding in at
tempt to formulate an interstate
compact in use of waters of the
Klamath river.
Nelson Reed, chairman of the
Oregon Klamath River Commis
sion, said . Saturday that his
group believes signing of an ex
tended Copco-Bureau contract
should not be postponed until
the river compact becomes ef
fective.. He pointed out that the
compact would not become law
until approved by both state leg
islatures and the Congress.
More Facilities Needed
He said the Klamath Falls
community needs the additional
power facilities proposed by
Copco and that their construc
tion is important to the local
economy. "
There is no reason why the de
sires of both commissions in re
gard to protection of future
irrigation rights cannot be rea
lized, he added.
Historical Society
Given Collection
Portland (U.R) Donation of
the M. M. Hazeltine glass neg
ative photographic collection to
the Oregon Historical Society
was announced Saturday.
The society said donors of the
collection were Mr. and Mrs.
George Goodbrod, of California
The society said the collection
was invaluable and was re
markable for its historic value
and completeness. Included are
scenes of the mining days in
Sumpter and Cornucopia, triv
ing Oregon gold rush towns;
Baker and Pendleton; San Fran
cisco before the earthquake of
1906, territorial Idaho in the
1880's, Yellowstone Park and
Utah and Alaska.
- M. M. Hazetine was a pioneer
photographer of Baker.
Early photographs on glass
negatives have become extreme
ly rare, the society said, and
the Hezeltine collection is . the
second to be added to the so
ciety's archives.
by: the Federal National Mort
gage association.
years.
When, as now, Vega is high
in the evening sky, five dim
stars can be seen clustering close
to it. Vega and these stars out
line the Harp of Orpheus, the
great musician of classical myth
ology. According to the ancient
story, so charming was the play
ing of Orpheus that his music
had power over wild beasts,
'drew stones and trees from the
ground and stopped rivers from
flowing.
The famed Argonautic Expe
dition for the recovery of the
golden fleece found Orpheus on
board the ship. On the way, the
vessel passed the island where
the sirens sang their enticing
songs, and often lured sailors
to their death. Some captains
tied their men to the masts or
poured wax in their ears as they
passed the sirens' island, but on
the good ship Argo this was not
necessary for Orpheus played
his harp so beautifully that the
alluring nymphs attracted no
attention.
Star Becomes Double
One of the little stars nearest
Vega becomes a double even
through low power opera glasses.
With 150-power telescopes, the
two stars appear far apart and
each in turn becomes a close
double. This star, Epsilon Lyrae,
is the famous double-double.
Between the two dim stars of
the Lyra group, farthest . from
Vega, fair-sized telescopes reveal
the beautiful Ring Nebula, a
circle of glowing gas with a
star at its center.
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organ Asks Removal
Of Prineville Demo
Portland (U.R) Democratic
State Chairman Howard Morgan
Saturday asked Gov. Paul L.
Patterson to remove Vernon
Burda, a Democrat from Prine
ville, from the legislative interim
committee on election laws.
Backs Baker Man
Morgan suggested Burda be
replaced by Lloyd Rea of Baker.
The Democratic chairman said
that while Burda "is nominally
registered as a Democrat" he is
regarded within the party as a
"tame Democrat who does the
bidding of Republicans."
He said Burda was listed as a
contributor to the 1954 cam
paign of Republican Gov. Patter
son. Morgan objected to the make
up of the committee as lopsided
in favor of Republicans.
Mann Appointed
Under the resolution approved
by the Legislature, Senate Pres
ident Elmo Smith appointed
Sen. Mark Hatfield,- and Pat
Lonergan, . Republicans, to the
SLOW SERVICE
Chatham, England (U.R)
British Admiralty officials Sat
urday investigated why a bag
of Navy mail was delivered sev
en years late. The mail for men
who served aboard the destroyer
Constance in 1948 was discov
ered in a dark corner of the. de
stroyer Duchess, which was
launched in 1951.
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IPHAMdD ffldDtnSffi
111 North Central
committee. House Speaker Ed
Geary named Reps. Bob Jensen,
Kay Meriwether and E. H. Mann.
Mrs. Meriweather is' the lone
Democrat on the committee.
Gov. Patterson appointed Mrs.
Frederic Young, secretary of the
Republican State Central Com
mittee, and Burda.
Morgan asked the goveriior to
remove Burda from the commit
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tee and appoint the secretary of
the Democratic State Central
Committee. That is Rea.
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