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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 28, 1957)
mm MM. Pickets Used To Portland Washington (U.R) Racket eers backed by the Teamsters Union used picket lines to try to monopolize Oregon pinball ma chines and sew up profits of $250,000 a year, a gambler testi fied today. James B. Elkins, Portland gambler and racketeer, told the Senate Labor Rackets Commit tee that Teamsters Union busi ness agents would insist that owners of taverns and other pin oball "locations" use only ma chines bearing'the stamp of the teamsters. If they refused, the union threw picket lines around their places, cutting off deliveries and hurting their trade. There were these other de velopments: Earlier, Portland City Com missioner Stanley W. Earl testi fied the teamsters fought his re election because he rejected its demand that he vote to legalize pinball machines. Earl said Clyde C. Crosby, teamsters or ganizer for Oregon, warned him '"that I either supported pinball; or I would have political opposi tion." Refuiei To Testify Frank Malloy, Portland Teamsters' Union official ac cused of closing down the Mt. Hood Cafe because it was using nonunion pinball machines, in voked the Fifth Amendment. Committee Chairman John L. McClellan (D-Ark.) described Malloy as the "strong arm" man for the union. McClellan in ttructed committee counsel "to have the staff immediately pre pare a rpsolution of contempt'" against - Malloy. Aides said it probably will take four or five days to prepare the legal docu ment which would require com mittee approval and a vote of the Senate itself. Elkins, a veteran of the pin ball business, testified that a ma chine in a good location could take In as much as S200 a day. He said there were nearly 2.000 machines in Portland. They had been outlawed but were still operating while the law was con tested in court. The grim, gray-haired wit ness, testifying against his ri vals for the third successive day. Slid he became a silent partner in the Acme Amusement Co., which was set up by: Joseph P. McLaughlin. Seat tle gambler who he said was sent by West Coast teamster boss Frank W. Brewster to or ganize Portland's vice and gamb ling. Veral P. (Budge) Wright, a pinball operator. Fred Elkins, the witness' bro ther and partner. Herman Walter,.Wright's part ner. Another silent partner in Acme, he said, was Thomas E. MalontK. another Seattle gamb ler and close friend of Brewster. Labels on Machines Elkins testified that McLaugh lin and Maloney. when they ar rived as emissaries of Teamster Union leaders to take over the city's gambling, first asked him to head the pinball firm they planned to set up. But Elkins said he refused because he had leased his route 37 locations to another operator, Stanley Terry. Therefore McLaughlin and Fred Elkins recruited 9 Wriit "to be the front man." Elkins said he was present at a later meeting with McLaugh a lin and Wright when "Budge was told he had final authority on anything concerning p i n balls and punchboards. He had the backing of the teamsters in getting equipment. Budge was offered the distributorship of Bailey machines, out of Chicago-" "He (McLaughlin) said it Cvould work the lame as in oth erowns." Elkins said. "They'd picket. Budge could have any location he wanted. Clyde Cros bv (teamsters organizer for Ore ajri) would send a man around from the teamsters and would tell the owner of the tavern or inn he'd have -to get his pin balls it unless they had a un ion sticker." . If the owner cfused. the un ion would and did picket his business, Elkins said. Took fest Locations Only Acme's machines had union "stickers. Elkins said. He testified that McLaughlin plan ned to keep the rest of the city's 20-ci pinball operators out of the tirm until Wright got all the best locations, then let in a few Claimed Enforce Racket who would buy equipment from Wright. Elkins testified that McLaugh lin also sent Crosby, the state teamster organizer, to persuade the mayor and City Commission to legalize pinball machines. Elkins said McLaughlin had ideas of spreading Acme's union enforced pinball monopoly throughout the state. "The take "would have been fantastic ... a quarter of a mil lion a year," he said. Horace A. Crouch, operator of the Mt. Hood Cafe in Portland testified that Malloy ordered him to remove two of Terry's pinball machines in twq days or be picketed. "I said you can't picket me. I belong to the Culinary Work ers' Union, said Crouch. Business Closed Down But two days later he found pickets in front of his cafe. His customers, mainly union men, would not enter. Teamsters would not deliver supplies. Crouch said Malloy told him: With pickets around the Mt. Hood Cafe, not one patron en tered. Crouch said. He held out for a while but had to close, and had to wait three months to re open. He said a representative of Acme came to see him and said Acme's were union machines from Acme at last. Malloy said he is under two indictments in Portland, one count of extortion as a result of Mt. Hood Cafe picketing, ayd one of conspiracy. Invoking the Fifth Amend ment's protection against self incrimination, Malloy refused to say who ordered the pickets around the Mt. Hood Cafe. At first he even refused to say whether he heard Crouch's testi mony about him a few minutes earlier. Little Information Malloy gave the committee lit tle - more information than his name and that he had been with the Teamsters' , Union for 25 years. Although Brewster and other teamster officials have been cited by the Senate for contempt of the Senate Investigations Sub committee, Malloy became the first witness to test the wrath of the special Rackets Committee. Elkins testified Wednesday that ' Brewster once threatened him with sudden death. The com mittee plans to question Brew ster later. Commissioner Earl told the committee that Crosby told him I It was the late John J.-Sweeney, I former teamster organizer in Oregon, who ordered a teamsters fight against him unless he sup ported legalization of pinball machines. He Got Opposition Earl said he talked with Crosby May 18, 1955. The next day, he voted in City Council against considering a letter from Crosby asking the council to le galize pinball machines. "From then on I got the op position of the Teamsters Union, their newspapers and others al lied with them the coin ma chine men and tavern oper ators," Earl said. The city commissioner, a for mer executive secretary of the Oregon CIO, said he once favor ed pinball machines but changed his mind during a fight over their legality when he heard a woman testify her husband lost his week's paycheck playing the devices. He said the city banned coin cperated machines in 1951 but the operators fought the case in court, then removed the coin slots. The city countered by ban ning all pinball machines of any sort. Ballot Proposal Beaten Earl said Crosby later got on the ballot a proposal to repeal the ordinance against pinball machines. It was defeated by 40 000 votes. He said the Teamsters Union ook no interest in pinball ma chines until early 1955. Accord ing to earlier testimony, this was at the beainning of the term of William M. Langley, who was elected district attorney with teamster and racketeer backing. Earl' said the teamsters had ciganized the 100-odd employees of the pinball industry and "had to deliver" by making the ma chines legal, but "just didn't have three votes" the number lequired to pass anything in City Council. Reorganization Bill for Schools Passed by House Duncan Sees Need For Appeal Clause Salem U.R) The comprehen sive school reorganization bill passed the Oregon House 36 to 10 today after a 75 minute de bate. Rep. Allen Tom, Rufus, said the bill would simplify the law by making fewer types of school districts and would strengthen local districts by putting chil dren from the 1st and 12th grades under one administration. He added that it also would reduce the cost of education somewhat by providing for con solidation of transportation, pur chasing and other features. Would Study Entire Picture Reorganization would be ac complished by a county commit tee of nine school voters who would study the entire county education picture before sub mitting a consolidation plan for approval of the state board of education. An election would 'then be held. Tom pointed out that there was no compulsion provision in the bill. He said that if the nine member committee decided no reorganization was necessary, they would not have to re organize. Most debate over the bill cen tered on legal technicalities. Rep. Robert Duncan, Medford, said provision should be made in the bill for staying reorganiza tion while appgal could be made to the courts. Rep. George Lay man, Newberg, opposed the bill on grounds that populous areas could reach out and gobble up small districts against the wishes of rural people. Rep. Joe Rogers, Independ ence, chairman of the House Education Committee, said the comprehensive bill was the best reorganization bill he had seen since 1940. He said it provided ample protection for small dist r'cts. In answer to a protest that the state would set up standards for the new administrative district, Rogers said a bill defining what standards the board could set up was now before his committee and would be voted on by the Legislature. DOW-JONES AVERAGES New York (U.R) Dow-Jones final stock averages: 30 indus trials 464.62, off 1.64; 20 rail roads 141.04, unchanged; 15 util ities 70.40, off 0.13, and ' 65 stocks 164.64, off 0.39. Sales to day were about 1,620,000 shares compared with 1,620,000 shares Wednesday. r The Dalles iU.R) Ernest R. Carpenter, 26-year-old service man stationed at Vancouver, Wash., was killed here Wednes day night. Weather FORECAST: Variable filch cloudiness through Friday. Low tonight 40. High Friday 63. Temp. HiehfRt Yesterday fil Lowest this Morning 17 Prec. to 4:30 a.m. Today .01 Our Skies Tonight Sunrise . .. 6:49 a.m. Sunset 6:00 p.m. The Moon rises Friday 6:27 a.m. and will be in conjunction with the Sun (New Moon) 8:12 a.m. PROMINENT STARS The Pleiades, in the west 9:27 p.m. VISIBLE PLANETS Mars, below the Pleiades. Jupiter, rises , 7:49 p.m. Saturn, rises 2:13 a.m. "My Death Has Certainly Been Full Of Ups and Downs" 51st Year Medford United Press Full Leased Wire 30 Pages Six Utilitiy Firms Of 'Brainwashing' Booklet Termed Effort to Wreck Power Program Publication Given To Douglas McKay Washington (U.R) House investigators accused six utility firms today of trying to "brain wash" Interior Department of ficials in an effort to wreck the federal power program. A House Government Opera tions subcommittee called for an investigation of efforts by pri vate power companiees to "in fluence" the administration, Congress and state governments. Inaccurate Information The subcommittee charged that the utilities prepared and gave the department in semi anonymous form a booklet of "so-called factual information" which actually comprised a "pot pourri of professional private power propaganda." It said the pamphlet contain ed "inaccurate, incomplete, dis torted and otherwise deceptive information which could only have been calculated to mislead the officials to whom it was di rected . . ." - . - - The Democratic - controlled subcommittee considered the subject behind closed doors Wednesday. No announcement was made, except that the re-, port had been approved. The report was not formally re leased. Although the subcommittee vote was not disclosed, it seem ed likelv 'that the minority Re publicans would file a dissenting report. The report concerned a book let titled "The Federal Power Program: Its Background Growth and Consequences." This was given to then Secretary of Interior Douglas McKay in 1953, shortly after he took office, and was listed in the Interior Department library as a book let of "factual information," the report said. Vague Recital The report said the publisher was not identified, except for a "vague recital" of sponsorship by unidentified Rocky Mountain power companies. Actually, the subcommittee said its investigation showed the compaies were Arizona Pub lic Service company. Public Ser vice Company of Colorado, Mon tana Power company, Utah Pow er and Light company, and the Idaho Power company. Re search,! art and publishing was done by Ebasco Service, Inc., a subsidiary of Electric Bond and Share company, the report said. Washington (U.R) President Eisenhower will not hold a- news conference this wek. . MEDFORD, OREGON, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1957 DONATE TREE Landscaping of Medford's new Jefferson school started last week, and members of Cub Scout Pack 5, wanting to do their share, financed a tree from Pack funds. At a ceremony Tuesday afternoon members of the pack helped plant the European white birch by putting in a shovelful of dirt each., Representing the eight dens in Pack 5 were, left to right, Terry Presenti, Douglas Wolf, Kenneth Phipps, Rodger Wiley, Gary Vaughn, Porter Maintains Dominican Gangsters Operating in U.S.; Charges Bring Washington (U.R) Rep. Charles O. Porter (D-Ore.), charged today that the Domini can Republic is operating a "Chi cago gangster network" in this country to liquidate its enemies. He said in a House speech that strongman Rafael Trujillo's re gime was. directly responsible for the disappearance of both Jesus De Galindez, a Columbia university professor, and Gerald L. Murphy, young Eugene, Ore., flier. Emergency Precautions . . He said there is strong evi dence that Murphy, reported to have piloted the plane that spirited Galindez "out of New York, was murdered because he knew too much. Supporters of both sides plan ned mass demonstrations on the capitol plaza- in praise of and in protest against Porter's speech. Capitol police took em Water Rates Increase For East Side Users Medford residents on the east side of town will be the first to pay increased city water fates as a result of the recent annexa tion of the Kenwood-Grandview area to Medford, according to Robert Lee, city water superin tendent. Lee said east side customers paying on a flat rate basis will receive water bills Friday show ing the increase. The new rates, he said, are effctive April 1. The bills will show the March rate, and the increased rates for April. Flat rate customers re ceive bills every two months, in advance. Water users in west Medford paying on a flat rate basis will receive water bills April 1, ac cording, to Lee, and be charged the higher rates for April and May. Residents charged on a meter basis will not be billed for the increased rates until May 1, Lee said. ;The water superintendent said most increases will be 25 cents per month for customers on a flat rate service with 3A or one inch connections. Range of Rates Lee pointed out water-rate in creases will range from 15 cents for fs-inch metered connections in residential and commercial classifications to S2.50 for a four- inch metered service. Most four- inch meter services are in major Accused Attempts .! nihil Jti iJt$ri4mf wiiwmii .wm r ri i n'.iiimi .e f i i " ergency precautions to head off I possible trouble. A group of 115 members of the Dominican Cultural Society, traveling in three buses, came here from New York to picket Porter with signs saying "Viva Trujillo." The congressman's office said another group, made up of ex iled Dominicans, planned to parade a casket across the plaza as a symbol of what Porter call ed "foul play ... in the Murphy case." Porter, who has dismissed the Dominican Government's ex planation of Murphy's disappear ance as a "cock and bull story," said that at least seven "stark contradictions leap out from the pages" of the official document. The more likely explanation, he said, was that De La Maza was ordered to kill Murphy and was then "liquidated." commercial concerns, he said. Average water-rate increase will be 18 cents per water con nection per month, Lee said. He added since there are 26 differ ent sizes and classes of service, the increases will vary with the type of service, some more than 1 18 cents, some less. He emphasized the increases do not mean more revenue will be available to the water de partment. The additional funds will be used to cover added ex penses to the department from annexation, he said. Lee explained two-thirds of,fir . in the the revenue from the water-rate increases is budgeted to retire bonded indebtedness of the two districts, which is $151,000. The remaining one-third is to finance additional maintenance costs in' the new area and cover losses resulting from reduced water-rates for Kenwood-Grandview residents, who will now pay lower city rates. California Man Fined In Municipal Court Robert Jean Watkins, Cres cent City, Calif., was fined $100 in municipal court recently and had his driver's license suspend ed for 90 days. He pleaded guilty to charges of driving while under the in- fluence of intoxicating liquor. ce 10c NE United Press Full Leased Wim No. 292 Larry Young, Michael Kenyon and Eddie Calloway. Also on hand for the ceremony was Superintendent of Schools Leonard B. Mayfield, center, R. E. Wicker, maintenance superviosor at Jefferson, holding the tree, and Cubmaster of Pack 5, Ward Lampkin, right. Principal K. A. Hulburt, not pictured, received the tree on behalf of Jefferson school. - The Dominicans claim that Murphy was shoved off a cliff into shark-infested waters dur ing a fight with Octavio De La Maza, a Dominican pilot. They said De La Maza confessed kill ing Murphy and hanged himself in his jail cell because of "re morse.. Porter said if there had been bad blood between Murphy and De La Maza. the two would not have been "drinking rum togeth er near the cliff where Murphy disappeared as the Dominican pilot claimed in his "suicide note." His investigation, he said, showed that Dominican prison ers are "stripped of all their posessions," and it would have been impossible for De La Maza to get pencil and paper to write the note. He also wondered where the pilot got the mos quito netting he was supposed to have used in hanging himself. "Moreover," Porter said, "re morse as a motive for the sui cide is nothing short of ridicu lous." The Congressman said the Do minican Republic's callousness "demands action" and called for U. S. economic sanctions. King Added to Family For Pear Blossom Festival Here The royal family of the an nual Pear Blossom Festival has been expanded to include a king, Jay Pierce, Festival presi dent, has announced. The decision to include a king was made on a recommendation of a special committee which basic' planning for the Festival since it started four years ago. Selection of a king will be on the same basis as selection for the queen, Pierce said. Bob Boyer, chairman of the special committee, said letters of ex planation have been sent to firms, clubs and organizations in Jackson county which may be interested in entering a con testant. Scheduled April 27 The Festival is scheduled April 27. - - ' ' Regular meetings of volun teers serving on the planning committee are held each Wed nesday morning at the Holland hotel. Organizations wishing to participate in planning addition al special events have been ask ed to send representatives to the Officials Drift Final Touches To Historic Pact Agreement Details Not Disclosed Washington U.R) Israeli and American officials were to meet here today to put the final touches on a historic agreement for Israel to withdraw its troops from Egyptian territory. High diplomatic authorities said Wednesday night that Is rael had agreed with the United States and ''ranee on a formula for Israeli troop withdrawal that the Jewish nation feels will protect its borders and shipping. Details of the agreement were not disclosed. Formal announce ment of the historic accord was expected "this week end" pos sibly Friday either at the Unit ed Nations in New York or here. Actual Israeli troop with drawal from the Gaza Strip and Gulf pf Aqaba coast regions of Egypt are expected to begin soon after the announcement, diplo matic sources said. Eban Sees Break Israeli Ambassador Abba Eban, whose constant shuttling back and forth between Israel, New York and Washington helped forge the accord, told the United Press: "I think we've broken through." Diplomats said further discussions between Israeli and U.S. officials today are neces sary to "tie up loose ends" and put the agreement in "proper, legal language." If Israel does withdraw from remaining Egyptian territory it will be credited as a victory for American diplomacy. President Eisenhower and Secretary of State John Foster Dulles have devoted much of their time re cently to forging a compromise that would induce Israel to pull out. Congressional leaders of both parties also will claim a share of the credit' for insisting the ad ministration wilhold support for punitive measures against Israel in favor of keeping the door of diplomatic negotiation open. French Give Assistance French Premier Guy Mollet and Foreign Minister Christian Pineau, here for official confer ences with Mr. Eisenhower and Dulles, also joined in the final negotiations that led to the troop withdrawal accord. While terms of the settlement were not immediately disclosed, it was assumed they include some elaboration of this coun try's offer to support freedom of navigation in the Gulf of Aqaba, and to push within the United Nations for guarantees against Egyptian raids on Israel from the Gaza Strip. A U.S. "middle way" resolu tion calling on the United Na tions to take over the Gaza and Aqaba areas after Israel pulls out has been held up at U.N. headquarters awaiting develop ments here. Astoria Girl Moved To Multnomah Home Astoria (U.R) Fourteen-year-old Carol Ann Wagner was moved from Astoria to the Mult nomah county juvenile home in Portland today pending disposi tion of an attempted homicide charge against her. The Clatsop county juvenile court ordered the child trans ferred to Portland after hearing a petition charging her with at tempting to kill her father by putting lye in his cocoa. meetings. Pierce said. Pierce said Festival officials believe the addition of a few events each year would allow an orderly growth of the Fes tival without becoming a finan cial burden on any one segment of the community. Costs are kept to a minimum each year by enlisting volunteer help and contributed materials, he said. Act as Liason The retail merchants commit tee of the Jackson County Cham ber of Commmerce has agreed to act as liason with businessmen in order to solicit funds to under write nominal operating costs. Pierce said. Solicitation of mem bers of the pear industry will be handled by a representative of the Jackson County Fruit Growers League. Although no specific appeal for funds will be made to other segments of the community, Pierce said, the committee en couraged anyone interested in the Festival to make contribu tions. They may be submitted to the Festival in care of the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce, he said.
