Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 14, 1958)
MAIL TRIBUNE, Medford, Oregon, Sunday, December 14, 1938 Afghanistan Seen As Country Where West Becomes Orient Editor' Note: "AfehanisLan- im" In tne jargon or journalists Is a, nasty word which means that a newspaper in its news coverage and editorial columns Is more concerned with events and controversies far from home than with the local scene. Not withstanding this, the Mail Trio one takes pleasure in presenting today the first article in a new series by Jerry Liebman. 29-year-old Medford man current ly on a trip around the world The subject of this series-Afghanistan. Liebman, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Manuel Liebman. 4262 Col ver rd., was educated in Med ford schools. He then studied at Harvard Collge, the Harvard Graduate School of Design, and the Erole des Beaux Arts in Pa ris. He Is on leave this year from E. E. Poor and comoanv. New York City, where he is em ployed as an architect, designer and engineer. By JERRY LIEBMAN Afghanistan, to me, is the country where the Occident changes into the Orient. West becomes East, and the Arab' burnoose is exchanged for the Indian turban. Middle East ern black and brown hued clothing takes on the hum mingbird colors of the exotic East. Of course, the Middle East is not the Western world as HOW TO BUY A "GIRL'S BEST FRIEND" DIAMONDS BY Weisfield's OF AMSTERDAM Diamond Cutters Authorized Member of The) Diamond Council of America lib"" J X fi fLI, fr ft we in Europe and America think of it. And yet Jordan, Iraq and their fellow Arab countries partake more of the Occident than of the Orient. Who can draw the line that separates the Occident and Orient? The Middle East does not have the certain exotic something, the spicy dash of color, that can be felt in the true Orient. It is. after all, a matter of atmosphere that de fines East and West. Afghanistan partakes of both and adds as a third in gredient a distinct Mongol touch of southwest Asia. A mysterious, rich atmosphere results which is uniquely Afghanistan. Personal Attachment I have had an odd personal attachment to Afghanistan since childhood, an attach ment that had rooted I don't know how and that has stayed in me strongly enough to force my visit to this un believable country. It has been extremely difficult to reach Afghanistan: I mean the sheer difficulty of travel money and business commit ments in America aside. Afghanistan has been open to the Western traveller only within the last few years and ground travel has only recent ly risen above the camel cara van. As a matter of fact, the camel is far from being out moded. It's quite true that Afgha nistan is busily engaged in building a national airline and air traffic increases daily. The visitor, such as myself, who wishes to see the country inti mately and thoroughly, how ever, is faced with hardships and problems since he insists on ground travel. The traveller foolish enough to bring his car into the coun try soon finds himself with broken pile of expensive met al on his hands. Even motor cycles give Afganistan a wide berth and drivers prefer to travel through Pakistan, far south of Afghanistan's fright ful roads. A jeep and Land Rover are the only two vehicles strong enough to stand the punish ment of roads that are only tracks across a desert or a gulley in the mountains. The jeep driver must bring his own gasoline and spare parts HARRY L. POTTER PART II In our last column, we discussed the first two "C's" of diamond buying Carat and Cut. The third "C" that comes into prominence in diamond buying is Color. The term "bluewhite" i a misnomer and al thou eh stones tinged with blue do exist, they are quite rare. The traditional engage ment ring has a white stone, and to date, over 200 different shades of white have been found. The whiter the white, the more ex pensive the stone. There are quite a few different diamond colors in cluding green, pink, black and brown and some of the world's most famous diamonds are not white. The fourth and final "C" is dia mond Clarity. A good diamond should have fine clarity and there - should be no fissures, carbon spots or other flaws visible to the naked eye. A so-called "perfect diamond' is one which has no visible flaws to the trained eye under ten power magnification. Minor flaws, invi sible to the naked eye, won't af fect the gem's beauty, but will af fect its price. Your best insurance against buying an inferior diamond is a jeweler whom you can trust and depend upon. Weisfield's is the only authorized member of the Diamond Council of America here in Medford. and our scientifically trained staff of qualified Diamon- tologists and Guild Gemologists are at your service. When plan ning your next diamond purchase, visit Weisfields and be assured that we provide you with the best diamond value for your money. Remember, our Diamond Council of America" emblem is your assur ance of quality and value beyond . compare! Tool Thefts Are Reported in City Two possibly related cases involving the theft of tools from Medford service stations were reported to city police Thursday. Jim Joe Hobbs of the Stan dard Service station, Fourth st. and Central ave., reported the theft of tools valued at about $26.50 Wednesday night. He noted that four men in a vehicle had driven into his station, and that two had left the car while he was putting air in the tires. James Cleo Weter of Weter and Olson Service station, 1258 South Riverside ave., re ported the theft of a tool box and tools the same night. He said three men in a vehicle had driven into the station shortly after midnight and asked for gas on credit. He said one left the car to go to the rest room while he was putting in the gas. since gas stations are, on the average, some 250 miles apart Spare .parts are a dream and must be flown in by request No bridges exist and so rain halts traffic for days at a time There is a bus service of sorts. That is, a bus may run two or three times a week with luck and good weather, but before you leap to buy your tickets for Afghanistan perhaps I should describe travel on those buses No Bui Schedule First of all, there are no bus schedules. Not only is the hour of departure unknown but too often the day. This does not mean that no one knows exactly when the bus will leave. On the contrary, every bystander is certain he knows and what is more, is very willing to tell you. The fact is that only the driver knows and then only when his key is in the ignition This makes it impossible to say the bus is late, because to be late there must be a sched ule, which there decidedly is not. No good for the passenger to complain because he can easily find himself walking. The driver is very much the captain of the ship and pas sengers are to be seen, not heard. His word is law. As the driver is the Big Man of his village the greatest ambition of any boy is to be a bus driver. Next best, the driver's helper A peculiar function of the driver's helper in Afghanistan is to ride hanging onto the rear of the bus. When the bus is going up a hill, which is usually, the helper runs be hind with a huge triangular chock of wood, ready to shove it behind the rear wheel if the bus falters (which is usual ly). The helper's . duties in clude placing baggage on top of the bus. Almost all baggage is carried on a rack exposed to sand, sun, and storms and the sand, powder fine, has an insidious way of creeping into the tightest suitcase. Add Assortment , An odd assortment is this topside baggage: sheap, ducks, tents, huge bundles of cloth ing, hay, bedsteads and, in short, every item of the house hold. When an Afghan travels, he travels. On top of the bag gage are piled the passengers who couldn't afford seats be low. The record for upstairs riders was set, to my knowl edge, between Herat and Kan daher when 18 men clung, teetering and swaying, on top of all the baggage. At that, they were safer than those of us inside. This same bus, which was typical of all Afghan buses, seated six abreast inside wnn no aisle space. Each passengfer could rest only one shoulder at a time against the wooden back of the bench since to seat six abreast meant each man sat diagonally, first class included. When the time came to switch shoulders, the bench load of Afghans resembled the Roxy chorus dancing in unison. The most frightening part of riding inside the bus was having thick, solid iron bars across each window. Escape in case of emergency was im possible except through the one front door. No such thing as an emergency escape door. Often Sport Labels The wooden bus bodies are On. of &feLj our finest , SS!ipSSrfc diamond 122 E. Main Ph. SP 3-5348 Open Mon. & Thurs. Until 9 p.m. Member Diamond Council of America (MffiCMSIiSHmEt look Into the future! Would you have the money to seize any op portunity that might corns your way? You can be ready if you save reg ularly wftore you earn more, safely. n l i!uvho&. uurreni annual sgffl& Dividend Rate 314 SAVINGS & LOAN ASSOCIATION 126 East Main Medford Since HO. "Where You Are Paid to Save" designed and built in Afghan istan on truck beds. These homemaid buses often sport "Made in America" labels, stolen from some imported goods, as the ultimate recom mendation. I have even seen a few buses proudly bearing the plaque of an International Harvester machine. . The buses are designed to carry the. maximum amount of bodies. Safety . precautions would be detrimental to this one, powerful economic aim. I preferred to travel third class to be near the rear door. Something like riding at the rear of an airplane, safer in case of crash. The great draw back to third class is the can tilever action when the bus hits a bump (again, which is usually). These seats are far out behind the rear axle and the fulcrum action shoots heads against the bus roof like bodies out of a cannon. Well dented bus roofs (and heads) prove it. Bus progress is erratic, de pending on what friends of the driver we come upon, whether anyone feels' like tea, and, above all, the five daily prayers all good Mo hammedans must say. I looked forward to prayer time when the bus would, stop and all passengers pile out. While prayers are in progress I stretch joints and massage my head, good opportunist Christian that I am. Try and Stop Me -By BENNETT CERF- AN ENGLISH PROFESSOR saw a colleague from the same department coming his way across the Dartmouth campus and pulled his friend behind the sanctuary of a spreading elm. didn't spot us," he whispered fervently. "He'd talk us to death." ' The friend chuckled and reminded the prof, "You're not exactly the silent type yourself." "I know," sighed the pro fessor. "If I saw myself coming, I'm afraid Yd duck out of the way, too!" A couple of sandwich men paraded up and down in front of the internal revenue bureau in mid-town Manhattan, drum- , , , , ,v ming up trade. "Let us make up your federal and state tacome tax reports for you': 15." urges one. His rival walks doggedly behind him, advertising "Exactly the same service: $3.75." O 1958. y Bennett Cerf. Distributed by King Features Syndicate. VI Stockmen Ask Spatz Be Retained A resolution was passed by sociation work out the propos- me jacKson iuumy oiuun.- men's association last week uring ' Gov.-elect Mark Hat field to retain Ward Spatz, Medford,' on the state board of agriculture. The resolution was passed at the annual association meeting in the Central Point Grange hall. A total of 87 at tended. The resolution requested a representative of Jackson county be appointed to the advisory board of the state department of agriculture and strongly recommended that Spatz, a Medford fruit shipper, be retained. Spatz is the first man from this coun ty to be appointed to the board, association officers pointed out. Following considerable dis cussion on cattle theft, Ed Coles, Prineville, secretary for the Oregon Cattlemen's association, said the OCA is promoting more workable brand inspection laws and has requested the Oregon Bar as- One of this season's new outboard motors will have three cylinders. Another is claimed to be the first prac tical outboard diesel. ed bill. Coles attended the meeting with Kent Magruder, Clat skanie, OGA president. Chester Is the oldest fettle ment in Pennsylvania. It wm founded by the Swedei 1844. in Many large factories in Pak istan are using power devel oped from supplies of natural gas. IMG IHTHEEA! Gnat! ' ifi&lkpeuati No Cords No Ear Button Comfortable Self-Adjusting Sound Plat Fits Most Eyeglass Frame Fronts Trim, Smart Styling For those who can use a bone conduction hearing aa Tm DurditM tfc limn md Inmt of your chowt from your ami EytfUu SoC4lifL $90500 YNITH living Smrf HCARINO AID FREE QUALITY TEST! Come In or cod for dome oppelntment GEORGE E. WHITE, Hearing Aids 131 West Main. Medford Phone SP 3-1841 0 117 S. CENTRAL S Open Mondays, Thurs. iyN 0 CHR,STMAS"NEW' S0 CHR,STMAS-R,GHT-0"FASH,0NED SAV,NGJi cH: j SIGNATURE big wheel cleaner has strong, full horsepower suction! Airline stereo hi-fi with powerful amfm compare 399.95 Most powerful amfm stereo we've offered 37995 compare at 495.95 Power to spare in a wonderful home sound entertainment unit. Diamond stereo needle plays all 33, 45 rec ords. Mahogany veneer. Walnut $10 more. ONLY $10 DOWN A peak achievement in stereo perform ance plus AMFM radio. Two 1 2" woof ers plus extended-range horn for ulti mate sound. Mahogany veneer. Walnut $10 more. ONLY $10 DOWN $5 DOWN only 5 a month Your work is easier! Strong suction picks up dirt from deepest pile rugs; can be adjusted to clean lightest draperies. No running back and forth tools are always within arm's reach. Buy with 7 tools and 5-year guarantee. SIGNATURE 6-t00l tools (tor cleaner rests one tool cleans even cord en cleaner en stairs rugs, bare floors stores en cleaner canister cleaner 3488 Only 3.50 down Powerful A H.P. motor sucks up deep embedded dirt. Dis posable dust bags. SALE! 1959 AIRLINE 21" console TV Stereophonic-Hi-Fi portable plus speaker Reg. 116.90 Just in time tor Christmas a eompiere stereo Hi-Fi at outstanding Ward sav ings! Give your family the unforgettable listening pleasure of full-depth stereo sound! Also plays standard records. SALE! 8-TRANSIS-T0R AIRLINE RADIO Plays on flashlight bat teries. 6' speaker. 49.88 Tit - ' 'weBsesa ' 0 COMPLETE I Ms lllti m ' hi-oe vu-rtnv 11 hi ' 1 res 5 DOWN '9 a month All the performance of TV consoles selling for '239.95! Slim-look TV has aluminized tube for greater contrast; automatic gain con trol for steadier pictures. Mahogany finish. Blond finish 10 more. 'Diagonal measurement SALE! PORTABLE 4-SPEED PHONO Bass-treble control, big speaker, tyt nn 3-tone case. 00 AUTOMATIC 4-SPEED PHONO Save 20 today! Tone and vol- in r ume control. T"3y0 DELUXE 17" PORTABLE TV Fringe area perform ance. Weighs f r-J AC only 33 lbs. 1 04.30 Free 90-day service policy Sweep Telechron clock. Sensitive radio. Timed appli ance outlet. ?4.95 two-speaker radio Brilliant-toned set has phono jack plug - in. Ivory or tur quoise cabinet. 22.95 ONLY 5 OR 10 DOWN HOLDS ANY MAJOR APPLIANCE NO MONTHLY PAYMENTS TILL FEBRUARY, 1958 -Y.:, i V. Y. , ViY'Yi w iY.Vm uYiY.'i ,?.YwVV.Y.Y. i.', v ViV VaV.Y V.V.Vi Vi 't .V V.Vi V Vi V Y 1 ' V , Y, V t 'Vr.V i V A v t
