Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 8, 1956)
TWELVE MEDFORD (OF.EGON) MAIL TRIBUNE Sunday, January 8, 1956 1955 Rainfall Slightly Above ormal; Temperatures Cooler A cold dry winter, left over from 195 a cool dry spring followed by a dry but not es pecially hot summer added up to average annual 1955 temp eratures about two degrees cold er than normal in the Rogue valley. Hryness in the early part of the year was more than comp ensated for a by wet late fall and early winter, topped off by 3 record breaking December rainfall that brought total 1955 precipitation to slightly above normal in the valley. Three Records Broken Three weather records were broken during 1955 according to the U. S. leather Bureau at the Medford airport. A record breaking high temperature for September was reached Sept. 4 when mercury climbed to 107 degrees. Two months later a November snowfall of 11.2 in ches broke all records for that month. An 8.77 inch rainfall set new records for December. The average annual tempera ture for Medford was 52.3 de grees, 1.7 degrees below nor mal. A low for the year of 19 degrees was reached March 15 and 20. Above Normal Fall Rainfall was 1.76 inches above normal, totaling 19.9- in ches with 14.81 inches of that amount falling during the last three months of the year. Rain, .01 inch or more, fell on 93 days. Snow fall totaled 16.2 in ches for the year. Normal for the Medford area is 7.2 inches. There were 111 clear days in 1955, 99 days partly cloudy and 106 cloudy. Medford skies, con sidered from sunrise to sunset, were cloudy 59 per cent of the year. Normal is 57 per cent cloudy. There was heavy fog on '51 days compared to a nor mal of 43. Ashland had an average an nual temperature of 50.4 de grees, 2.3 degrees below norm al. Rainfall at Ashland totaled 17.73 inches, 2.25 inches below normal. Snowfall totaled 8.9 in ches with most of it falling in November. Ashland High High temperatures at Ashland was 100 degrees on Sept. 4. Low was 17 degrees on March 5 and again on Dec. 29. At Grants Pass, an average annual temperature of 53 de grees was only .6 degree below normal. A high of 108 degrees was reached Aug. 8 and a low of 19 degrees was reached on March 20. Rainfall at Grants Pass total ed 31.44 inches, 1.69 inches above normal. There was 6V2 inches of snowfall. County Engineer To Leave For Meet In Florida Monday County Engineer Paul Ryn ning and Mrs. Rynning will leave by air Monday evening for Miami, Fla.. where he will at tend the annual convention of the American Road Builders as- gociation. Floyd Robb, Coos county en gineer, will accompany them. Both Rynning and Robb are members of the board of direc tors of the county division of the association, and Rynning is on the convention's resolutions committee. The three will return the following Monday. Federal Program The association is composed of all segments of the road build ing industry, governmental and private, including equipment manufacturers. Rynning said a number of matters will be con sidered, including action on pro posals for a federal road build ing program. During his absence, Delbett Clifford will be in charge of the county roads program, Rynning reported, and will continue rou tine maintenance jobs as well Sis repairs needed because of recent floods and washouts. The engineer said there are still a couple of places in the county where families are cut off from the outside, although it is shown that no one is in any danger. These include the Neth erland bridge, in the Shady Cove area, and Emigrant Creek rd., east of Ashland. On Elk creek a . bridge was washed out, but loggers have constructed- a ford usable by larger vehicles, and the Trail bridge is still out. Rynning said his original esti mate of the amount of damage to county roads, $250,000, may have bet a bit high, but that a great deal of work still re mains to be done, and it will take months to complete. Increased Sawmill Residue Use Needed For Lumber Industry Corvallis Increased automa tion and use of sawmill residues are needed in the lumber in dustry to hold prices in line with competing materials, ac cording to John Grantham, man aging director of the Oregon forest, products laboratory at Oregon State college. Grantham said installation of more automatic equipment in sawmills is necessary to increase man-hour productivty. Increase Productivity Automatic dogging, riderless carriages, remote setworks for resaw and similar equipment could replace men who have no important decisions to make. This would increase productivity of essential workers, he reported. He ' urged increased utiliza- HAPPY AND HUMBLE Singer Julius LaRosa, 26, look ing happy and properly humble, poses with his bride-to-be, Rosemary (Rory) Meyer, 25, in New York after announc ing their engagement. LaRosa rocketed to success when Arthur Godfrey fired him for not having "humility." Miss Meyer is a secretary in the office of singer Perry Como. Radioactive Ores Reported In Area Four occurrences of radio active minerals in Jackson com ty have been 'reported to the state department of geology and mineral0industries, it was re ported last week. The information ' is contained in the current issue of The Ore- Bin, publication of the depart ment. None of the locations is in 'commercial production. One is located on the Little Applegate river 'southwest of Jacksonville, and is the discov ery of George DeGroote, Port land. Uranium minerals on the location are unknown. Another, located near Trail, was found by Ervine House, Shady-Cove. The third, located, by Vernon Ritchie ! and Norman Nelson, Medford, is located south of Ash land, and the fourth, located by Car! Love, Milwaukie, Ore., is north of Trail, wherestwo loca tions were found in the same area. Water Runoff May Be Above Average Runoff during the "water year" in this area should be well above average, according to the Medford weather bureau. R. D. Church, meteorologist in charge, said the forecast as of Jan. 1 indicates that heavy fall ind winter precipitation will provide more than ample sup plies of water during the irriga tion season. Fall precipitation in southwestern Oregon was 120 per cent of normal. December precipitation averaged about 225 per cent of normal. The figures for south-central Oregon (prin cipally the Klamath basin) were 110 per cent for the fall and 250 per cent for December. Water-year forecasts for spe cific points listed by Church in cluded: Rogue river near Prospect. 1,720,000 acre-feet, or 129 per cent of the 1938-1952 average Klamath river Upper Klamath lake net inflow, 1,800,000 acre feet, or 147 per cent; North Ump qua river below Lake creek, 390,000 acre-feet, or 130 per cent. Pofucek Named Head Of Labor Council George Potucek, 387 OGara St., was installed as president of the Medford Central Labor coun cil at the reguar meejing recently. E5 E. Ford was made vice- president; Pauline La Plane, fi nancial secretary; Vernon Mar shall, recording secretary; Jess Wagner, sergeant at arms; ana Merle Merriman, Alvih York Wiliism Hoxie and John Rorrex; trustees. The council heard Glenn Jack son and John Crawford outline the program for the Rogue Val Jey Memorial hospital and went on record as endorsing the pro ject. Plans are underway for ' March of Dimes dance, with Crater Adult Classes Still Have Openings Central Point Openings still are available in two evening adult classes sponsored by the Crater High school vocational agricultural department, Leon ard Kunzman, instructor has announced. Kunzman said about 40 have enrolled n the animal sanitation and disease control class, which is a continuation of a course conducted last year. About 10 have enrolled in the farm truck and tractor maintenance repair course, in which residents may bring their vehicles for repairing. Both courses are held n the agricultural building at Crater High school. The animal disease control class, which started last Wednesday, is held Tuesday nights between 8 and 10 p.m. The vehicle maintenance class will start Wednesday at 8 p.m Persons interested in enrolling in either class may contact Kunz man. tion of plant residues by expand ing uses for slabs, edgings, trims, ' sawdust and bark. Use of mill residues as chips or fuel avoids disposal cost and may mean the difference between profit and loss for the operation. By 1957, lumber prices are expected to increase about 80 per cent more than the anticip ated increase in competitive products. Predictions of future lumber demand hinge largely on price, Grantham explained. A 1954 report forecasts only a 7 or 8 per cent increase in lumber consumption between now and 1975 despite an anticip ated 64 per cent increase in disposable income of individuals and a 64 per ' cent increase in new housing starts. Grantham said he doubted the anticipated increase of mill residue value will be sufficient during the next 10 to 20 years to offset cost increases in lum ber manufature. Increased Lumber Costs Increased lumber costs will come from such "pressures" as higher stumpage costs and in creased logging costs because of smaller volumes per acre, rough er terrain and greater hauling distances. Milling costs will rise because of smaller logs. Pressure for higher prices also will come from increased labor and trans portation costs. Production costs can be re duced by diverting logs to those plants which can obtain the high est values or can most efficient ly utilize raw materials, Grant ham said. Greater volume recovery from each, acre of forest land through prelogging or re-logging has been accomplished in many in stances, but the extent of these practices is too limited, Grant ham said. Mill residues can be used for hardboard and particle-board production, paper, and paper- board. Hardboards and particle- board produstion is expected to double by 1975, Grantham said. Increasing Use Sawdust is finding increased favor as a mulch for berries, ornamentals, and vegetables such as cabbage and tomatoes. Stud ies are under way to treat saw dust before its application to overcome temporary nitrogen depletion induced by the saw dust. The treatment- of sawdust would improve it's characterist cs as a soil conditioner. Bark, now used for fuel, is a potential as a chemical raw material. Laboratory research has demonstrated that waxes, tannins, and flavanones may be obtained from bark by solvent extraction. Oil Company Offers Scholarship At SOC Standard oil company of Cali fornia will award two leadership scholarships during the . 1956-57 academic year to students at Southern Oregon college, it was announced yesterday. They are part Ox a nation-wide educational program sponsored by Standard and selection of winners is han dled by college scholarship com mittees. Linfield college, Pacific uni versity, and University of Port land also have been authorized Two-Year-Old Case Goes To Grand Jury The case of Fred Stewart, 38, Idaho, charged with burglary not in a dwelling, was resubmit ted to the county grand jury yesterday. Stewart is charged with burglarizing the Medford Accounting service two years ago. Members of the jury are La mar Dodd, Central Point; Iva Cathey, Eagle Point; Virginia M. Bohnert, Central Point; Wilburn E. Gillestie, Jacksonville; Mel- vin P. Scott, Velma F. Ryn and A. J. Lynch, Medford. Heart Association Fund Drive Slated A community-wide Heart Sun day collection will be conducted in Medford Feb. 26 by the Amer ican Legion auxiliary, according to an announcement by C. H. Labbe, Portland, assistant vice- president of the U.S. National Bank and 1956 state Heart fund chairman. Mrs. Earl Bigalow is chairman of the local drive- Funds contributed will be us ed for a crusade against diseas es of the heart and circulation. Mrs. Bigalow said the auxiliary hopes other county organizations will participate in the collection as last year, when Medford rank ed second per capita in Oregon contributions. Although not sponsoring the drive last year, the auxiliary aided in the campaign and Miss Laura York, past state music chairman of the auxiliary and past state president of Business and Professional Women's clubs, served as chairman. Persons wishing to1 contribute two hours, between 2 and 4 p.m., Feb. 26, may contact Mrs. Biga low, 2-6877. Volunteers will give each family they visit an-opportunity to support the crusade, she said. The Sunday collection will be the principal means of raising funds for the Heart association. Last Year Good One For Most Crops; Some Adversely Affected Casualty Losses To Be Reported In Taxes Procedures for reporting cas ualty losses on income tax re turns were ' explained yesterday by R. C. Granquist, district direc tor of internal revenue, Portland. Losses are only deductible in the year sustained, and must be reduced by any insurance or other compensation received in that year or which will be received in a subsequent year. Information regarding prob lems created by flood disasters is available through the Medford office of internal revenue in. the federal building, 33 North Riv erside ave., or from the internal revenue service, 830 NE Holla day st., Portland. Rehabilitation Groups Are Listed For Area Residents Agencies with information about rehabilitation assistance for individual and private losses from floods were listed yester day by Charles H. Beal, federal civil defense engineer, Salem. American Red Cross assists in private and individual losses and persons desiring help local ly may call at the Red Cross of fice, courthouse, phone 2-4405. The Small Business adminis tration, which has charge of grants non-secured and 10-year loans at 3 per cent to individuals or small businesses, has been set up in Grants Pass, phone Green wood 6-7422. FHA Office ' The Federal Housing adminis tration office at 33 North River side ave., liberalizes terms and extends time of payments for homes and improvements. Head office is at 827 NE Oregon st., Portland. The veterans administration, with offices at 35 North River side ave., liberalizes terms on homes "of" veterans affected by the flood. Regional office is in the Lincoln building, Portland. Loans to farmers for various types of losses are available through the Farmers Home ad ministration, 209 SW Fifth ave., Portland. The U. S. department of com merce, room 217, Pioneer post office building, Portland, is in charge of priorities for materials to rebuild industries and small businesses. Beal said federal funds are available only for work essen tial for preservation of life and property and replacement of damaged civil defense equipment purchased under the federal matching program. Whether the 1955 climate was good or bad for agriculture de pends on what trop was being produced, according to W. B. Tucker, chief county agent. Generally speaking it was a good year for agriculture, Tuck er said, with the bad aspects pretty well off-set by the good. Record Pear Crop In the fruit industry it was a bumper year for small fruits and the weather contributed to development of a record break ing pear crop. Apricots and peaches, however, were largely curtailed by heavy freezes early in the year. No, damage to fruit trees from freezing has yet been apparent. Pruning was delayed by mud and rain. Cattlemen suffered serious damage, first because cold wea ther caused shortened hay crops and resulted in higher prices for imported hay, and second be cause freezing weather in Nov ember killed range grass nec essitating early feeding of live stock. The dry weather, however, apparently killed a large por tion 01 animai parasites thus re ducing disease incident in dom estic animals. Premature Ripening Dryness caused premature ripening of seed crops, such as dry land alfalfa, but furnished ideal harvesting conditions. There was a shortage of irri gation water in 1955. but in most areas the amount was satisfact ory, Tucker said. Again, cool weather preserved the amount of existing snow pack causing an even run-off through the year. Heavy rains and floods in the latter part of 1955 caused a tre mendous amount of erosion. Damage was divided between water washing away good top soil and water depositing lay ers of debris and sand on top of productive land. The full extent of the damage is not yet known. Tucker said. , About 80 miles of streams in the area were out of their banks causing stream bank erosion, de stroying fences and filling irri gation ditches with mud, sand and debris. Good Year for Some It was a good year for such vegetable crops as peas, spin ach and lettuce, but sweet corn and tomato crops were severely limited by cold and a short growing season. Bee-keepers, in the valley suf fered heavy losses due to a long, cold spring and low nectar con tent in flowers which made it necessary to feed bees. A large number of hives were lost and others were weakened.' j Fooflighfers Will Meet Wednesday The first of twice-weekly workshop meetings of the Med ford Footlighters, a local civic theater group, will be held Wed nesday between 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. Mrs. Stan Zapell, long, ac tive in the. group, will head the workshop, assisted by Frank Buchter, Mrs. Edward C. Kelly and others in the group. Meetings will be held each Wednesday and Thursday even ing in St. Mary's school activities room. The building was made available "in response to the need of Footlighters for a com fortable 'in town' facility," ac cording to Mrs. Max Wimmer, president. The St. Mary's room was do nated as a public service while the group's fairgrounds theater is being remodeled. It is equip ped with a small stage and "is ideal for our workshop pro gram," Mrs. Wimmer said. Theme of the wokrshop is "learn by doing" and all persons wishing to work on acting tech nique, direction, lighting, make up, costuming or staging will have an opportunity to experi ment on their own, she said. Medford Company Gets Grading Contract Salem U.R) The State Highway commission has award ed a Curry county grading and surfacing contract to Keith Brothers Construction Co.. of Medford on low bid of $39,440. The job involves 2.27 miles of grading ' and surfacing on the Brookings-Morse ranch ' section of the Chetco river road, easterly from Brookings. About 2,500 pounds of Doug las fir seed will raise upwards of 100,000,000 trees under ideal conditions, according to forestry experts. Chicago An accidental death occurs every five minutes within the United States. PICTURE TUBES REJUVENATED Is your picture tuba dull and weak? Most picture tubes can be restored to original brightness at only a fraction of the cost of replacement. For further information CALL Electronic Service 18 N. GRAPE PH. 3-1971 Warning to Maytag Users If Your Maytag Appliance Was Damaged by Flood Water Do Not Use Until You Consult Your Maytag Dealer , LARSON APPLIANCE CO. 406 East Main St. o Phone 2-5302 Permanent and Costly Damage Can Be Avoided By Being Sure Your Appliance is Safe to Use. Your Maytag Dealer Has a Rehabilitation Program " Sponsored by the Maytag Company. Rogue River Youth Injured in Accident Charles Berton Beck, 19, of Rogue River, was hospitalized in Grants Pass Friday afternoon after the car he ' was driving was wrecked, according to a state police report. Officers said Beck, driving south on Highway 99 near the Welcome motel near Savage Rapids dam, passed another car and then lost control of his, which went into a spin, slid off the road and sideways into the cement base of the motel sign. It continued on for some distance, finally striking a tree, the report said. He was hospitalized for treat ment of a cut eye, and possible other head injuries, the officers said. The car was towed away. r WHO CAN HELP YOUR HEARING? C. R. ADAMSON Ofn a frefnerf Sooofe Hearing Aid Ccxtsukoat Cm W j If1" A.a : - k . iAi;iiiriAiifaiii-il SONOTONE C. R. Ad am son, Dist. Mgr. - 839 East Jackson Blvd.- By training and experience with many different kinds of hearing loss, I hove been able to bring better hearing to hun dreds. Now I have another wonderful new hearing aid to help break through that iron curtain of deafness. This is the micro-midget Scmotone "100." It is as smoH as a matcrrbook and weighs about one ounce. Ifs not a gadget designed to attract by just being small. This is a reof aid to HEARING, with traditional buirt-m Sottotone quality. When you do business with Sonetone, you invest in a com plete hearing service and join thousands of happy users in a proven better hearing program. MERCY FLIGHTS MEEDS YOU! DO YOU NEED MERCY FLIGHTS? o Anyone in Southern Oregon ot any time may find himself in immediate need of the services of Mercy Flights. Ask any of the more than 430 patients who learned this from experience. Yet without the subscriber system Mercy Flights could not keep 'their planes available to meet the urgent requests. It's a fact. Mercy Flights planes are operated at a yearly loss of more than $10,000 and this loss is covered by the subscriber fees of $4 a year per family. However, those subscribers who do have need of a flight, more than get their money's worth. In a medical emergency, they can be taken anywhere within a 400-mile radius of Medford, and still not have to pay a cent. We urge every family in Southern Oregon and Northern California, within a 150-mile radius of Medford, to join Mercy Flights now. We believe it is safe to say that there is not a resident in this area who does not know someone who has been flown as a patient by Mercy Flights. If you want to say "thanks" for that service, and at the same time protect yourself and loved ones, join today.' Mercy Flights, Inc. is a non-profit corporation serving you. Simply send your name, address, and $4 to ( Mercy Flights, Inc. P. O. Box 522 Medford, Oregon Your subscriber card, good for one year, will be sent to you. 1 Marshall, secretary of the mu two scholarships. Winners will sicians, as chairman. be announced next spring.
