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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 8, 1956)
Subscribers To report improper or non-delivery ot the MaU Tribune phone 2-6141 before 6:45 ojii daily and 10:30 a m Sunday If regular delivery arrive hort ly aiter vou call please notify of fice thus eliminating special mes enner aervice 50th Year Eisenhower To Hold nformal eturns Key West, Fla fU.R) Presi dent Eisenhower, winding up an ll-da Florida vacation, will re export personally today on his health and his plans for the "im mediate future," a White House aide said Saturday. . But the informal conference with reporters today was not ex pected to produce any announce ment as to Mr. Eisenhower's po litical intentions in this election year. Condition of Health Presidential Press Secretary James C. Hagerty said the presi dent would discuss only the "in mediate future . . the condition of his health, how he feels and what he is going to do when he gets back to Washington about resuming the regular routine of the presidency." Mr. Eisenhower, who arrived at this naval base Dec. 28 to follow a program of rest and recreation while recovering from his heart attack last September, will meet with newsmen about 9 a.m. and will fly back to Wash ington about two hours later. He will be in toe capitol city when his special farm message is delivered to Congress Monday, The President worked out final details of the program at a con ference with Secretary of Agri culture Ezra T. Benson here Fri day. Hagerty said the President ar ranged the informal chat after hearing of reporters' interest in his health. The meeting is not regarded as a press conference but rather as just a get-together between Mr. Eisenhower and the newsmen who have been cover ing him at Denver, Gettysburg, and Key West since he was stricken Sept. 24. Ask Any Questions .- -; Although reporters will be permitted to ask any questions they wish, Hagerty indicated that the President would answer only those dealing with his health and his plans for resuming presiden tial duties in Washington. . During his stay here, Mr. Eisenhower has followed a daily schedule of activity and rest which brought an expression of satisfaction with, the President's health 'from his physician, Maj. Gen. Howard M. Snyder. Hagerty quoted Snyder as say- Campaign For New Summit Conference London U.P.) Iron Cur tain diplomats were waging a behind- the- scenes campaign here Saturday for a new sum mit conference of Big Four chiefs of government this year. The Red diplomats, in an in spired whispering campaign, claim such a top-level meeting "in the summer" will prove "in--evitable." They hinted that top Soviet leaders might even be prepared to go to the United States if President Eisenhower should find it impossible to leave the country in an election year. In informal talks with West ern officials and newsmen, these diplomats suggest that the summit meeting would be charg ed with working out a "declar ation of principles" to break the present East-West deadlock. Soviet Premier Nikolai Bul- ganin said last week in an inter view in Moscow that a new sum mit meeting could be "fruitful." Iron Curtain officials here now stress there is more to this hint than meets the eye. They consider it a first move toward a new initiative for another summit meeting, probably in the summer. Sacramento U.R) Next sea son's irrigation supplies should be plentiful, the U.S. Weather Bureau and the State Division of Water Resources said today. Road Conditions (As of 10:30 p.m. Saturday). Highway 99. north Closed by a slide about 12 miles north of Grants Pass. Highway 99. south Siski yo was open, chains advised, illghway 66, Greeajprings Packed snow, chains were re quired. Highway 97. California South of Weed, chains re quired. Highway 62 Packed snow at Union Creek and Prospect chains advised. la Ml m United Press Full Leased Wire 28 Pages eetmg; ing the President has slept "very well here .averaging over eight hours sleep a night as well as napping during the daytime. "The President has accomp lished his administrative duties without the slightest fatigue," Hagerty said.-"It has been to the satisfaction of the doctor that even on the cooler days here, they have been crisp and stimu lating and served the purpose of helping the President's health." Local Employment Slowed By Flood; Low Mark Expected The high employment noted in recent months in the Medford area did not slow down until the flood Dec. 21-22, according to John J. Patton, manager of the Medford office of the Ore gon state employment service. Flooding along Rogue river appeared to have less effect on employment than bridge and culvert washouts, which stopped log hauling and closed some mills. Other mills shut down for their usual overhauls, he said Temporary Shutdowns Lumber shutdowns are temp orary and will end when repairs are finished or weather im proves. Retail trade experienced a heavy Christmas business and layoffs of extra help at the end of the season was said to be normal. Gift packing in the fruit in dustry was completed the week before Christmas. Unemployment' in the county Dec. 31 was estimated at 1,800; including 325 women. The fig ure was up 39 per cent from November, but is still slightly below the preceding December Next Two Months Employment for the next two months will depend largely pn weather conditions, according to Patton. The outlook for January and February are expected to mark the .low point in employ ment for the year. Job place ments dropped sharply from No vember and probably will re main low for, the next 60 days. Although heavy rains made Orchard prunning slow, there was a small demand for pruners last month. Ask Authority For Crater Lake Buses Bend U.P.) Authority to furnish commercial bus service through Crater Lake National Park was asked Friday by Pacif ic Trailways bus lines with head quarters in Bend. . The firm asked the Interstate Commerce commission to au thorize passenger busses through the park from Medford to Bend and from Klamath Falls to Bend. Heretofore only park company busses have been permitted within the boundaries of the park. Pacific Trailways said both the Crater Lake lodge manage ment and the national park ser vice favor the Trailways applica tion. William Niskanen, Trailways official, said service could begin June 15 if permission is granted. To Capitol U.S.,, Britain Headed For Red China Trade Showdown Washington (U.R) The Unit ed States and Britain Saturday headed for a showdown on whether to relax controls on trade with Communist China. Diplomats said the issue will get top-level consideration at the White House talks beginning here Jan. 30, between Presi dent Eisenhower and British Prime Minister Anthony Eden. According to word from Lond on, Eden plans to argue that European trade with Red China in non-war items should be ex panded gradually, "beginning soon." The present U. S. position is that "the trade line should be held." This attitude might be modified by any evidence of peaceful intent on Red China's part. But the prospect right now is that it might harden even more between now and Eden's arrival if Red China continues to hold 13 American civilians. Roseburg Area Hit By Flash Blizzard; Power Lines Down Eight Inches Snow Fall Within Few Hours Roseburg (U.R) Only emergency telephone calls were being accepted between Rose burg and Coquille areas Satur day as Friday night's flash bliz zard left a trail of downed wires and trees. H. C. Wells, manager of the California-Oregon Power com pany at Roseburg, said the power situation was the worst there since 1937. Main transmission lines were not touched, but dis tribution was out over a wide area, Wells said. An official of Pacific Tele phone and Telegraph said dam age to telephone lines in the Douglas county area was "serious-" Trouble complaints were being received at the rate of one a minute, the official said. Some 900 phones were out. Eight inches of snow fell in the area within a few hours and six inches remained on the ground yesterday. Traffic was hampered by slides and slush. A truck, trailer and its load of logs slipped off the North Umpqua highway yes terday morning and plunged over a 150-foot bank into the little river. The driver, C. E. Pratt, jumped clear and was not injured. A Greyhound bus was trap ped at Glide on Highway 42 by a' mud slide at the rear and a washed out culvert in front. Three passengers walked out to await other transportation. Meanwhile, as Oregoni ans were mopping up from three weeks of rain, snow and slides, weather forecasters s a w a gloomy prospect of at least five more days of rain and snow for the state. - More than two inches of rain fell on parts of water-weary Southern Oregon Friday. Snow was predicted in the mountains last night and, east of the Cas cades, light snow showers were expected through the weekend. Rivers were rising but fore casters said it was not certain whether serious flooding would result in the same regions hit by a pre-Christmas deluge. , County Commissioner Injured In Accident County Commissioner and Mrs. Chester W. Wendt suffered bruises and other minor injur ies Friday night in a traffic ac cident in San Jose, Calif. They were returning from a holiday visit in Albuquerque, N.M. with their son and daughter-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Warren Wendt. Members of the "family . said the Wendts' auto was struck from behind while stopped for a red light in San Jose, and the auto was sandwiched be tween cars at the intersection. They are expected to return home tonight with their son-in-law and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Lon Skinner, who traveled south to return with the Wendts. Wendt suffered a neck injury when his head was snapped back in the collision, family mem bers said.' They were visiting friends in San Jose. Honolulu, T.H. (U.R) The crew of a C-124 Globemaster that developed engine trouble on a flight from California dumped 25,000 pounds of cargo into the Pacific Saturday and the giant Air Force plane limped to a safe landing here. in Chinese jails. Officials here are seriously concerned; about Red China's increasingly harsh tone on the prisoner issue. The China trade ' issue has been under discussion for years by Washington and London, al most always with a general dif ference of -views.' Eden is under heavy home front pressure to urge that the Free World's China trade con trols be brought into line with the more relaxed curbs in ef fect for Russia . and eastern Europe. The United States itself per mits no American trade with with Red China. Major trading countries in Europe, associated in the control of business with the United States, have some trade with Red China. But there are tighter controls on non-war trade than the Allies have with Russia and eastern European satellites. MEDFORD, OREGON, SUNDAY, JANUARY 8, 1956 Brazil President Ad Libs Prepared Speech Washington (U.R) President-elect Juscelino Kubils chek of Brazil learned Satur day thai there's many a hitch between preparation and de livery of a speech. He had to ad lib an address before the Council of the Or ganization of American States because he forgot his glasses and couldn't read his prepared text. Rain, Hail Drench Northern CaL; No Flood Threat Seen San Francisco (U.R) Rain and hail soaked northern Cali fornia Saturday but weather forecasters ruled out any new flood threats. The extreme northern por tions of the state received mod erate to heavy rains Friday night and early yesterday, with Eureka registering an inch up to midnight Friday night. As the rain diminished in the north, it spread southward to the San Francisco Bay area and into the northern Sacramento valley. Hailstones a half inch in diameter pelted parts of San Francisco. Low Pressure Area The rains came from a low pressure area off Washington and Oregon which was reported breaking up. However, another low center in the storm-spawning Gulf of Alaska was headed southward toward the Washing ton coast. Meanwhile, there were, these developments in the aftermath of California's disastrous storms and floods: 1. The death toll from the floods climbed to 75 in Califor nia, with 34 in Yuba City alone. 2. The Sutter county grand jury planned to investigate the Yuba City disaster. Mrs. Angela Hauss, foreman, said the jury will assess the actions of public officials . who were . respsjiaRjS? for the maintenance of levees, warning of flood danger to the public and for handling the sit uation after the flood. Emergency Loans 3. The Farmers Home Admin istration announced that emerg ency loans would be given to farm owners or operators and stockmen who suffered flood losses. . 4. The U. S. Army Engineers awarded $700,000 in contracts for repairing levees in, the Sacramento-San Joaquin river delta area. San Francisco Bridge Co. received a $400,000 contract for repairs along the Empire Tract and Olympian Dredging Co., San Francisco, received a $300,000 contract for repairs on Quimby Island. , 5. : Western Pacific Railroad said a rock slide which blocked the main line through the Feath er River canyoh is expected to be cleared today. The slide was located 45 miles northeast of Oroville. Sports Bulletins Medford high overcame a seven-point first quarter defi cit here last night and went on to score its second Southern Oregon Conference basketball victory of the-season over Ash land. 70 to 56. Ashland led at the quarter 13 to 12, but Medford was on top 35 to 21 at halftime and 47 to 37 at the third period break. Dick Cop pie tallied 20 points and Neil Plumley 15 for Medford. Gene Parent and Phil Sword re corded 15 and 14, respective ly, for the Grizzlies. Cave Junction ' Crater High was on top -all the way here last night in a 67 to 38 Rogue League basketball de cision over the Illinois Valley Cougars. Comet quarterly ad vantages were 14 to 8, 42 to 17 and 55 to 25. John Shama, Crater, was high point man with 12. Klamath Falls 67, Grants Pass 58. Eagle Point Phoenix high edged Eagle Point 48 to 44 here last night in a Rogue League basketball contest. The Pirates had a 25 to 23 halftime lead in getting their second loop win over the Eagles. Bill Mad den collected 16 points and Jim Korih 15 for Phoenix and Ron Veach 12 for Eagle Point. Santa Monica, Calif. (U.R) A small private plane crashed today just short of : the Santa Monica ' municipal airport, skid ded two blocks down a street and struck a tree. The only per son injured was the pilot who sustained a head bump and a cut finger. WC? M0ft voi erSv' r W II 1 Mid-East Advisor To Present Plan From Anthony Eden Will Urge American Membership In Pact London (U.R) Prime Minister Sir Anthony Eden will dispatch his top mid-east advisor to Wash ington next week with a sweep ing five-point plan for western action in the troubled Middle East, official sources disclosed Saturday. . The plan will urge American membership in the Baghdad de fense pact along with Britain, Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Pakis tan, the sources said. Preparations for Talks The proposals will be coordin ated with American suggestions in preparation for the talks be tween Eden and President Eisen hower in Washington starting Jan. 30. Evelyn Shuckburgh, foreign office chief policy advisor, will present a blueprint based on a a two-day secret meeting here between Foreign Secretary Sel wyn Lloyd and the British Mid dle East ambassadors this week. Center piece of the project is a tentative plan for a fully co ordinated system of financial, economic and technical assist ance grants to the Middle East countries. This might be linked the area. Pledge Assistance The plan provides further for a strong warning against ag gression in the area, and a pledge of assistance to the at tacked party, informed sources said. This amounts to a re-affirmation of the 1950 tri-partite dec laration (Britain, the United States, France), but with possible additional safeguards against ag gression or change of the status quo by force. The 1950 declara tion deals with arms shipments to the Middle East with an eye towards maintaining a balance of power. ,. ; , . The plan envisions a complete review of the present arms sup play program to Middle East na tions, with new safeguards against an arms race in the ex plosive area. President Calls GOP Head Meeting Washington ' (U,R) Presi dent Eisenhower has called Re publican congressional leaders to the White House Tuesday for his first meeting with them since the 1956 session of Congress began. The conference also will be the first Mr. Eisenhower has held with his legislative leaders since Dec. 12 when he discussed the administration program for this year. Whether the session will mark the resumption of weekly con ferences between the chief exe cutive and GOP legislative lead ers will depend largely on Mr. Eisenhower's regimen while he continues to recuperate from his heart attack. No agenda is made available in advance of the meeting, but the Tuesday session, coming the day after submission of the Presi dent's new farm program, is almost certain' to take up that touchy subject particularly re action to the soil bank idea for cutting down on surpluses. Sherman Oaks, Calif. (U.R) Bulldozers tore at a moving mountain of earth Saturday in an attempt to save a $33,000 home from being crushed into a pile of rubble. Air Force, FBI, Police Join Forces To Arrest Man Who Admits Extortion Plot Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.R) A twin-engined Air Force plane trailed "an intended extortion victim's car and sent a radio message that helped FBI agents and police in arresting a man who admitted the plot, federal authorities said Saturday. . The suspect, Norman Ray mond Carver, 64, a former bowl ing alley operator now unem ployed, signed a statement ad mitting the attempt to obtain $30,000 from H. Chase Stone, 56, president cf the First National Bank of Colorado Springs, the FBI said. Waives Hearing Carver waived a preliminary hearing yesterday before U. S. Deputy Commissioner James C. Cages who set bond at $10,000. He was bound over for trial in Federal District Court at Den ver. The elaborate device to trap tha extortionist wai organized. R7 c So f if 3 u' r JOL irmroe IKE ASKS FOR FLOOD INSURANCE Dick Tribe (left) and Herbert Miller, assistant executive clerk of the White House, arrive at the capitol carrying copies of President Eisenhower's State of the Union message to be read to the Senate and House. In the message, the President asked Congress to authorize flood loss insurance up to three bil lion dollars. Individual covered by policy would pay 60 per cent of premium, participating states 20 per cent and the federal government 20 per cent. edford's Combined illacfe Rate Lowest Of 54 State Medford has the lowest com bined millage . rate of any city in. Oregon of 2,500 population or more, according to the an nual compilation of the League of Oregon Cities. Medford's combined rate of 57.4 mills is the lowest of 54 cities having more than 2,500 people. Only 17 incorporated communities had lower millage rates, and all were in the small city class. The combined millage rate in Medford includes levies of 8.7 by the county, 39.8 by the school district and 18.9 by the city. The 18.9 Medford city levy for fiscal year .1955-56 is 1.7 mills below the average levy of 20.6 mills in Oregon cities this fiscal year, the annual pro perty tax levy report shows. Medford is one of 101 cities in Oregon with a tax levy below 20 mills, which was the aver age rate levied in cities in the state last year. City rates range from 3.4 mills at Imbler to 77.1 in Falls City. Combined millage rates, and city levies, in that order, of other Jackson County cities are Ashland, 68.7, 13.2; Central Point, 66.7, 17.6; Jacksonville, 76.4, 17.5; Eagle Point, 84.1, 25.2; Gold Hill, 68.7, 19.6; Rogue River, 74.7, 15; Phoenix, 83.7, 24.8; Talent, 80.6, 20.6; and Butte Falls, 67.6, 8.7. The assessed valuation of land within incorporated city limits in Jackson county totals $36,672,421, or 45.4 per cent of the total assessed valuation of Friday after Stone had received the second of two letters de manding money. The first, in November, asked $25,000 and the FBI said Stone attempted to comply but that no contact could be made with the man demand ing the money. : A subsequent letter said Stone had not followed his original in structions. The third letter asked $30,000 and ordered Stone to drive along a 15-mile circuitous route in Colorado Springs and its envir ons and then throw the bundle of money out the window of his car at a designated spot. Organize Trap Webb W. Burke, FBI agent in charge at Denver, and Police Chief I. B. Bruce of Colorado Springs organized the trap after enlisting the aid of the 44th Air Rescue squadron at Lowry Air Force Base, Denver. Stone' car was marked with JNE 5ress Full Leased Wire Price 5c BDSUllOt lim Cities $80,732,148.. The 10 cities of Jackson county provide $2,511,; 690 through combined tax lev ies, or 49.1 per cent of the total $5,110,880 derived through combined tax levies in the county. . Equalization Program Herman Kehrli, ., director of the bureau of municipal re search and service of ' the League of Oregon Cities, noted that, on a state-wide basis, the equalization program has result ed in a shift of property taxes from personal and utility prop erty to real property. . The most extreme shift, he said, , occurred in . Jackson county from a combination of state and local programs. Real property in Jackson . . county constitutes 69 per cent of the total : assessed value this fiscal year, compared to 61.4 per cent last year. The proportionate value of , personal property dropped from 22.7 per cent last year to 17.5 per cent this year, and utility ' property dropped from 16.6 per cent to 14.2 per cent, he noted. Kehrli pointed out, however, that "it must be recognized that both the state program and the programs in most counties are at best still inadequate and piecemeal." , He added that equity in property taxation de mands sufficient qualified per sonnel to reappraise all classes of property and to keep valua tion information up to date,' a program which remains "the basic responsibility of the coun ties." luminous paint on its top surface so that the car would be visible from the air but not from any one on the ground. . He followed the route while Maj. Marshall Frederickson, commanding officer of the 44th Air Rescue squadron, and Colo rado Springs Detective Capt. Homer Beattie - observed pro gress of his car from an Air Force SA-16 amphibian search plane. - When the car reached the rendezvous and stopped the plane sent a radio message to agents and policemen on the ground. However, no direct contact was made by the attempted ex tortionist Friday night, the FBI said. Carver was arrested after a check of license plates of auto mobiles in the area. Burke said the plates on Carver's car were observed twice, and the arrest followed. Weather FORECAST Fog or low clouds this morning; partially clear ing by noon; increasing high clouds this afternoon; snow ' late tonight or early Monday with heavy accumulation in the mountains. Snow showers Monday afternoon. High to day, 42; low tonight 28; high Monday 35. No. 247 American Flag Is Ripped From Pole; Six Hospitalized Caretaker Government Forced To Resign Jerusalem (U.R) Anti western rioters stormed .the American consulate in the Jor danian sector of Jerusalem and ripped down the American flag Saturday in a new outbreak of violence that forced Jordan's caretaker government to resign. Troops of Jordan's famed Arab Legion opened fire on the ' angry mob. In Amman, capital of Jordan, rioters set fire to the offices of the United States Point Four and the United Nations refugee programs and to the offices of the British Middle East bank. . Troops and police let the mobs go unchecked through the capi tal and concentrated on protect ing foreign embassies and lega tions. Six Hospitalized Six persons were hospitalized in Jerusalem with wounds -from tear gas bomb shrapnel and bul- lets. Sixteen other injured were given first aid treatment. Press reports received in Da mascus, Syria, said seven dem-, onstrators were shot to death by Arab Legionnaires in Amman and Jerusalem. The reports said ; the Legionnaires swept the streets of the capital with ma-. chine . gun fire in , an effort to ; restore order. ' , The . Jerusalem radio an nounced a dawn-to-dusk curfew for both cities following a day which started with a general strike in: all Jordan's cities and demonstrations denouncing the. Baghdad pact and. demanding immediate nation-wide elections. Gather At Consulate ! At 4 p.m. a large mob gath ered outside the American con sulate and United States author ities called the Arab Legion to ask for protection. One platoon was immediately sent to the consulate. A" Legion officer warned the mob, by then esti mated at about 500 persons, that the troops would open fire if an attempt were made to enter the consulate grounds. When the demonstrators start ed stoning the building and smashing at the two street doors of the consulate gardens, the Legion opened fire and threw tear gas bombs. The grounds were finally cleared, but only after the mob tore down the American flag suspended from a steel flagpole in the consulate garden. The tattered flag was reclaimed by the consulate. An automobile belonging to Point Four officials was set afire. The caretaker government of Premier Abrahim Pasha Hashem submitted its resignation to King Hussein. The king asked Hashem to remain in office until a new premier is designated. The anti-Western demonstrat-. ors were protesting possible Jor danian membership in the Bagh dad pact defense alliance, and the government's about-face on the dissolution of parliament. The United States is not a mem ber of the pact ringing Russia's southern frontier, but is a strong supporter of it. The collapse of Hashem's regime threw Jordan into a crisis that threatened Anglo- American planning for the Mid dle East. President Eisenhower and British Prime Minister Sir Anthony Eden have scheduled talks -later this month in Wash ington on the Middle East situa tion. . Turmoil was spreading through the strategic area. In the Arab-Israeli dispute, an authoritative Cairo newspaper ; reported that Egypt's army on. the Palestine front has now re- '. ceived new Communist arms and is "ready for action." - - In Jordan's neighbor Leb anon, cabinet members were squabbling over a crisis sharp ened by differences over West-, ern aid. Three ministers quit Saturday, , but withdrew their resignations when the govern ment accepted certain conditions they had imposed for future cc- operation. ' Washington U.R) Sens. Wayne Morse and Richard L. Neuberger asked President Eis enhower Saturday to support "a . greatly expanded flood control program.'
