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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 26, 1959)
Ms i MM M mm Petition Asks 2nd Vote'- en Consolidation . A petition requesting a sec ond election on consolidation of Phoenix and Talent school districts was approved 5 to 2 last night at a meeting of the Jackson county school district f reorganization committee. Col. D. H. Barber, commit tee member from Trail, made a motion that the proposal for an election be referred to the school district boundary board r with the statement that the 1 :M 1!nA ..r i V ronr. pi upuadi Ad All line win ganization procedure. The boundary board is ex pected to set a date for the election when it meets Thurs day, Sept. 3. The board will also consider a petition for residents north of the center line of Barnett rd. to join the Medford school district. Frank Van Dyke, Medford attorney, reminded the com mittee that several petitions from the Barnett rd. area res idents for annexation to Med ford school district are still pending. Represents Residents Van Dyke, who said he rep resented a number of the Bar nett rd. area residents and real estate man George Field, said the petitions cover a number of proposals for an nexing that area to Medford. field reminded the commit tee that a petition had already been presented which showed that 97. per cent of the resi dents in the Phoenix district living within Medford city boundaries favor annexation to the Medford scfiool district. Keith Hockersmith, Med ford, committee chairman, noted that the "petition" is an opinion poll only. This was conceded when it was present ed to the committee, he said. Although signed by property owners and taxpayers, a num ber of them do not live in the affected are a " Jlockersrnith emphasized. Field said his car speedom eter measured six miles from the Barnett rd. area to the Phoenix schools. It is only a half mile from Barnett rd. to the nearest Medford school, he said. He mentioned the possibility of an accident in the six miles. No Accidents "We have been transport ing kids from that area to Phoenix for a good many years as a losing' proposition and not one accident has hap pened," Allen Harris, Phoenix school board member, said. "Now. suddenly we aren't good enough for you. And not onlv that, you want to haul part of the Phoenix district into Medford with you." "You can get to the point where- you centralize too much," Barber said in follow ing up. his motion. "I believe there is room for one more school between Medford and Ashland. Joining Phoenix and Talent will make a reasonable middle-sized high school." This would graduate the 100 pupils as recommended in the reDort by Dr. Paul Con ant,, Barber said. The Phoe nix area will expand even more in a few years to create an even better high school, Barber stated. Annexation oWrk "It is Dretty well document ed" that three days after the other election in which the Phoenix-Talent consolidation proposal was rejected, many of the people campaigning for an independent Phoenix school district were working for annexation with Medford, Barber pointed out. "A great many Phoenix people have come to me seek ing another election," Barber said., A petition directed to the boundary board for transfer of the area west of Rocky point from district 6C to the Rogue River school district was tabled pending a check of signatures to determine if they are of registered voters. According to law, 'the commit tee must approve such peti tions first. Howard Norwood, speaking for the Rogue River Boosters, argued that 95 per cent of the people of that area want to join with the Rogue River district. He said he had not contacted Norman Gail, Gold Hill, chairman of district 6C board, nor Harry White who had already petitioned to join Rogue River district. A sharp, bitter exchange followed between Norman Gail and Norwood over how many couples with school-age children were represented and what the actual valuation of the area is. Gail said 42 youngsters axe involved. Millage is the prime issue involved and not the youngsters' welfare, Gail said. Charles Meyer, new district 6C school superintendent, firmly suggested that "you leave the kids out. They are certainly not among the issues involved." Bob Gail, Rogue River, re organization committee mem ber, pointed out that the com mittee had been delaying ac tion on the proposal for two years and at least 50 per cent of the meetings had been de voted to it. This, he said, is "a reasonable expression from the people." Reduced Carload Freight Rates on Lumber Approved Washington-UPD-The Inter state Commerce Commission approved today reduced car load freiglit rates on lumber moved by rail in the Pacific Northwest, subject to a mini mum weight of 50,000 pounds. But the commission found that rate cuts on loads of less than 50,000 pounds are not reasonable, and ordered them cancelled no later than Sept. 28. Probe Follows Protest ed the rate reduction after ed the rat ereduction after truckers protested. The cuts average 20 per cent, and ap ply to lumber hauled from Oregon and Northern Califor nia to Arizona and Southern California. The railroads asked permis sion to slash rates so they could meet highway and barge competition.1 They also sought to restore a rate par ity which existed between Southern Oregon and North ern California shippers from 1927 to 1954. The reductions approved to day went into effect last Dec. 21. The ICC had held them up for seven months in order to investigate but had been unable to reach a decision within that , period. The reductions had been generally supported by lum ber dealers in Southern Cali fornia, and opposed in North ern California. The ICC found that while there had been a substantial increase in consumption of lumber and other forest prod ucts in California and Ari zona, the railroads have "suf fered a decline in this traffic." JOINT MEETING A joint meeting of the city council and planning commis sion will be held Thursday evening in the council cham bers. The group will meet with trailer park owners in the city to discuss the pro posed trailer park ordinance. WEATHER FORECAST: Variable cloudi ness and x little cooler throughN Thursday. . Low tonight SO. High Thursday 85. Temp. Highest Yesterday 91 Lowest this Morning 50 Our Skies. .Tonight Snnset today 6:57 p.m. Sunset 'tomorrow Moonrise tonight 5:30 a.m. .11:30 p.m. New Moon Sept, z Saturn, the planet prominent in the south after sunset, is now about equal in brilliance . w i t h Procyon, - -the eighth brightest star. It is much brighter than Antares, the star seen between it and Jupiter. Air Force Sergeant Tells of Being Willed Valuable Alaska Mercury Mine Merced, Calif.-UPD-An Air Force sergeant, tail gunner on a B52 jet bomber, said today he had inherited a multimil lion dollar mercury mine in Alaska and hoped to have it producing by next spring. T.Sgt. Thomas L. Howlett, 28, stationed at Castle Air Force Base near here, dis closed ownership of the mine but said he planned to keep his $480 a month job in the Air Force despite appraisals that indicated his mine might be worth $40 million. Befriended Widow Howlett was given the mine by Mrs. Cora Dinsmore, Liv ingston, Calif., widow of a prospector. Howlett and his wife, the former Nova Mayberry, 18, daughter of a Merced county turkey grower, befriended Mrs. Dinsmore and listened to her stories of prospecting trips James Alger Fee Dies in Florida Of Heart Attack Judge Stricken During Banquet Miami Beach, Fla. - (UPD -Judge James Alger Fee, a member of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Fran cisco and a native of Pendle ton, Ore., died of a heart at tack Tuesday night while at tending the annual American Bar association convention. Judge Fee, who served on the federal bench in Portland for 23 years, was 70 years old. He was stricken while at tending an annual judiciary banquet. A short time before he became ill he had been elected chairman of the ABA's judicial administration section. Named by Ike, Hoover He was appointed in 1954 by President Eisenhower to the San Francisco position. The appointment came on April 6, just 23 years to the day after he was named by President Herbert-Hoover to the Portland federal court job. Judge Fee was born in Pen dleton on Sept. 24, 1888. He attended Whitman college at Walla Walla and received his law degree from Columbia university. He practiced law with his father and was Pen dleton city attorney for two years. During the first World War Judge Fee was in the Army Air Corps and held the rank of first lieutenant. Later he became a- lieutenant-colonel in the Oregon National Guard. Elected Circuit Judge After World War I he re turned to Pendleton and was elected circuit judge in 1927, where he served until 1931 and his federal appointment. Judge Fee's first wife died in 1935 and he was married again in 1944. There were four children by his first mar riage, Frances, Margery, Wal do and Lillian. Judge James Alger Fee, who .died in Miami, Fla., T.uesr day, had been in the Rogue valley for several days at the opening of the Shakespearean Festival and spoke here a cou ple of weeks ago at a meeting of the Jackson County Bar association. He was a frequent valley visitor, both profes sionally and for pleasure, and friends said he was consider ing making his home here upon retirement. Three-Lane Traffic Set on Main Street The state highway depart ment completed restriping Main st. today for three lane traffic from Riverside ave. to Oakdale ave., according to Vernon Thorpe, city engineer. The street will now include three 12-foot width lanes of traffic including parking strips on both sidesl Thorpe said that the former four 9 foot width lanes were too nar row for driving comfort. The old stripes on the street are also being removed by the department. Portland Bank Robber Escapes With $3978 Portland - (UPD - An armed bandit Tuesday afternoon robbed the Pittock Branch of the Portland Trust Co., and escaped with $3,978 in Ameri can and Canadian currency. Police said the gunman walked off with $3,500 in American money and $478 in Canadian currency including a $100 Canadian bill. throughout the world. Her fa vorite was about a mercury mine in Alaska. In the spring of 1958, Mrs. Dinsmore showed the young couple a metal box containing a map to the mine. Five weeks before she died in June, 1958, she said they were to have the map and the mine on her death. Larger Than Estimate Last May, Howlett said, he went to Alaska and restaked the mine, finding it "even larger than the original esti mate" obtained by Mrs. Dins more's husband, James, before he died in 1955. "Mrs. Dinsmore said she and her husband, v&re reluct ant to develop the mine be cause they didn't want to get involved in setting up a cor poration " Howlett said. "She said he had prospect ed for 40 years and lost sev 54th Year. MEDF0EDfeiEffii 26 Pages Basic Policy Decision Okayed By Eisenhower U.S. To Pay Entire Bill for Military Washington-UPD-The United States has decided to give Laos emergency help in arm ing 5,000 more troops and militiamen to deal with Com munist, guerrilla attacks, of ficial sources disclosed today. Formal announcement of the decision, expected this afternoon, is not likely to men tion the 5,000-man size of the force increase or the cost of the emergency aid, officials said. To Foot Entire Bill But they said the U.S. will foot the entire bill, including pay and the "cost of uniform and other equipment. The present 25,000-man Laotian army is entirely financed by U.S. aid. President Eisenhower ap proved the basic policy decis ion Tuesday shortly before he left for Europe. Officials said the U.S. agrees "with Laos that direct military intervention by U.S. or Southeast Asia Treaty Or ganization forces is not neces sary to deal with the stepped up Communist guerilla at tacks. These officials said they knew no basis for a report that the U.S. was sounding out its SEATO allies on their attitude about sending in an, expeditionary force if the Lao tian government loses ground to the rebels. Faces Collapse But the Laotian govern ment's special representative, Ngon Sananikone, has warned that his government faces col lapse if the Communist-inspired rebellion is not soon stamped out. - . Sananikone, the brother of the prime minister of Laos, told State Department offi cials in a 35-minute conference late Tuesday that the military situation in Laos is "grave" and if allowed to worsen, "it will become a debacle." Police Hold Suspect In Portland Slaying Portland"- (UPD - David Lee Heads, 16, was shot to death on his front porch Tuesday night and police today arrest ed a 15-year-old boy they said admitted the slaying. Wilbur Denson was arrest ed by detectives at a garage in the rear of his home. Detective William Taylor said the only reason the youth could give for the shooting was that Heads had been picking on him and making fun of a Jeg injury suffered by the suspect in an automo bile accident. Police still were questioning Denson. (See Story on Page 5) BASEBALL Washington 2 4 0 Detroit 3 6 1 Kemmerer, Clevenger (8) and Courtney; Bunning, Burnside (8), Morgan (9) and Berberet. eral fortunes because of mal feasance in deals with part ners." The airman said he. has formed the Polar Region Min ing & Development Corp., a family-owned firm, to develop and operate the . mine. The company includes his father, A. B. Howlett, Norfolk, Va. To Get Geologist's Report Howlett said he would re turn to Alaska in two weeks to obtain a new geologist's report and hopes to have the mine producing cinnabar, the chief ore of mercury, by next spring. The sergeant, whose enlist ment is up in 1965, said he was not saying in what part of Alaska the mine was locat ed because "it would be like cutting my own throat. I have enough problems as it is with out getting involved in any more. MEDFORD, OREGON, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 26, 1959 w "We Just Want to Amend Things a Little" Wreckage Believed To be From 1940 Airplane Crash State Aeronautics Director to have been removed at that Earl Snyder, Salem reported ! time. The report from Davis today that he believed the p I a h e .wreckage " northwest of Prospect in Douglas county was from a craft which car ried Mr. and Mrs. .Richard Walbert, Medford, to, their deaths in 1940. The Douglas county sher iff's office today sent a party to the site of the wreckage to destroy what it could and mark the site in an attempt to prevent further concern about it. Some Mystery The wreckage was located by , Joe Davis, a logger from the Applegate valley, and An ton Schuessler, Provolt. Davis 4old authorities he first sight ed the wreckage two years ago, and returned to the scene Sunday with Schuessler. Snyder said there still was some mystery about the wreckage. A hunter first sighted what was believed to be the Walbert plane about 10 years ago. However, Snyder said the bodies were supposed Assessed Value of Property Decreases Salem -(UPD-Assessed value of all taxable property in Ore gon reached $2,656,857,253 as of Jan. 1, 1959, Chairman Dean Ellis of the Tax Com mission announced today. The 1959 total was nearly one-third less than last year's figure of $3,882,258,633, due primarily to the" action of the Multnomah county assessor in reducing the ratio at which properties were placed on the assessment roll by approxi mately 50 per cent. While assessed value de creased, the true cash or mar ket value of properties on as sessment rolls increased from $7,224,400,430 in 1958 to $8 477,637,820 this year, Ellis added. Counties making large gains in assessed value in clude Baker, Crook, Curry, Klamath and Wasco. Counties with less assessed value this year are Clatsop, Coos, Gil liam, Jefferson, Lincoln, Mal heur, Multnomah, Polk, Sher man and Tillamook. Mrs. Lonch Pleads Innocent to Charge Mrs. Esther Elizabeth Lonch, 31, Medford, pleaded innocent to a charge of second degree murder in circuit court this morning before - Judge James M. Main. Mrs. Lonch, who is charged with the slaying of William B. Simmons, 62, retired railroad switchman, Aug. 2, was ar raigned Monday in circuit court. "t T ATT ana ocnuessier indicated boneswjere scene. .; Snyder said no other planes still missing in . this area matched . the ' Walbert plane either in color or number. The Walberts were' on a flight from Medford to Portland when they vanished. Officials in . the aviation safety district office of the Federal Aviation Agency in Medford said the wreckage was first reported by the Army Air Corps. The wreck age apparently has been well preserved in the high, dry country, officials said. Second Attempt At Housing Bill Washington-(DPD-The House rules committee approved the $1,050,000,000 "second try" housing bill today. Debate on the House floor was expected to begin Thursday. By voice vote the commit tee agreed to allow the House to consider the Senate-approved measure under a procedure making it open to amendment. Republicans are certain to push for changes designed to meet administration objec tions. Rep. Leo E. Allen (R-Ill.) said the President ought to veto the bill if it is passed in its present form. Chairman Brent Spence (D-1 Ky.) of the House banking committee, which approved tha Kill 10.1 Tnoafav tnlrl the rules committee the new bill answered many of the com plaints President Eisenhower voiced when he vetoed a $1,375,000,000 bill July 7. Labor Legislation Compromise Drawn Washington -0IPD- House ne gotiators on labor reform leg islation drafted a new com promise today to narrow the gap of disagreement on four hotly disputed points. They planned to offer the proposal as a substitute for a similar compromise proposed by: four Senate Democrats Tuesday. As the 14-member joint con ference committee Went back into formal session, Rep. Rob ert P. Griffin (R-Mich.) told newsmen 'we're getting real close" to a final agreement. Griffin was co-sponsor of the tough House version. .Some of the conferees said there was a possibility all the issues could be settled before nightfall. But Sen. John F. Kennedy, chairman of the conference committee and co sponsor of the Senate bill, ex pressed doubt on that score. Tribune Dp Lo Anti-Pollution Ordinance Sought By Councilman Medford City Councilman 1 a complete solution can be Robert Van Sickle today called for quick city action toward passage of an anti-air pollution ordinance. In a letter to City Manager Robert Duff Van Sickle asked for the matter to be brought up at the first council meet ing in October. Van Sickle said the "City Attorney should be requested to formulate an ordinance aimed at abating the burning of refuse by residents of the city. And the problems of burning by industry should also be regulated. The ordi nance," he continued, : "can form a basis on which the county court can enact and extend supplemental legisla tion." Could Assist The councilman noted that the proposed measure "prob ably will be of little value so far as we are concerned with areas which constitute the fringe of Medford, but it un doubtedly would be true that the proposed ordinance could assist in curing the complaint of abuses by various commer cial spraying operations. ' ' "In this latter regard the city would simply, be cooper ating with a number of or ganizations, probably the most prominent of which is the Izaak Walton league," he said. Van Sickle said that from his understanding "it appears that there has been delay, probably avoidable, in for warding sample readings to interested state authorities -readings of air ' samplings which we're taken from stra tegic points in the city." The readings were taken in a city-state air pollution study, is now in progress. Reviews Results Van Sickle said that after reviewing the results of a meeting last Friday and in ap praising limited progress 1 re ports from involved indus tries, he got the impression "that unassisted voluntary ef fort will prove pointless in abating the subject problem. As a result of numerous dis cussions it appears clear that our air pollution, problem is one that arises from abuse by minority groups in all cate gories. The councilman took note "of the splendid effort made by Mr. (Dunbar) Carpenter who represents a cooparative portion of the fruit industry, and the management of Med ford corporation, who admit tedly are leaders in the lum- K uwup I does form a basis on which : lau. nicarmam&nf i N6W UljflllTlCllTlClH I l i : i 4. m l J u: Negotiations Due Washington (UPD - Diplo matic officials said today the Big Four would announce in about 10 days agreement on a new round of East-West dis armament negotiations. They said the announce ment is expected to follow President Eisenhower's visit to Western Europe and pre cede the arrival here Sept. 15 of Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev. Russia and the Western Big Three - - the United States, Britain, and France - are re ported to have agreed on cre ating a'new disarmament com mission of eight to 10 nations to try to work out global arms cuts. The nations would be divided equally between East and West. INJURED Jack Goodman, 413 Arcadia st., received head injuries in a one-car accident at 11:40 a. m.today at Sixth and Main sts., according to city police. He refused medical treatment, it was reported. Salem - (UPD -Robert F. Rit tenhouse, 44, Newberg, has been named first director of the new Oregon Marine Board. Price 10 Cents No. 130 founded." "We recognize that city au thorities are limited by defi nite real boundaries in an ef fort to take, the lead in pol lution abatement, but the fact remains that there is an op portunity for leadership and it is the writer's belief that the opportunity should be fully explored." Van Sickle said that be cause of the possibility that state recommendations may be delayed, he felt the city should take steps. He said "we are pleased to cooperate with Mr. William Doernbach who has been appointed as chair man of the municipal section" of the recently formed Citi zens Air Pollution Abatement league. The league was or ganized at a meeting Friday. Seventh Sellout v Audience Attends 'Twelfth Night' Ashland-The Oregon Shake , spearean Festival reaoid breaking 1959 season set a new mark! last night when J, 221. persons attended the eighth staging of "Twelfth Night" and "The Maske of the New World." The crowd, including more than 100 standees, formed the seventh sellout audience for the popular combined bill, and was the largest of the sea son. v' . On Monday night, when an audience of nearly 1,000 watched "Antony and Cleo patra," the total attendance passed the 1957 season figure of 24,393. With the Tuesday tally, the Festival pushed its 1959 total to 25,984 - a figure that is 4,683 ahead of last year at this time, and is within 3,179 of the 1958 total of 29,163. New Record Seen With 11 performances re maining, a new record appears imminent. - - Standing room tickets will be sold for the Saturday "Twelfth Night" performance starting at 8:15 p.m., and some seats remain for its final stag ing on Sept. 2. Standing room tickets are $1.20. Regular tickets are $2.40 and $1.80. Excellent seats remain for all other performances in $he final three rounds, now under way, officials said. Even though new attend ance records are . being set daily, the all-time high for sin gle audience totals is yet to be reached. For a Saturday performance of "The Mer chant of Venice" last year, 1,245 assembled at the theater. Highway Traffic in Area Increases, Report Notes Highway trafic at four lo cations in Jackson county showed an increase over the volume recorded last year during July, the state high way department has reported. At a permanent automatic trafic recorder five miles east of Ashland on Highway 66, trafic volume was up .9 per cent last month from July, 1958. During the past seven months the traffic volume in creased 4.8 per cent. Last month, the average daily traffic was 1,190 vehicles compared to 1,179 in July, 1958. ' The greatest increase in the county was on Highway 99 two miles south of Talent where the average daily traf fic last month was 9,522, a 7.7 increase over the 8,845 recorded in July, 1958. In the past 10 months traffic volume Cheering Throng Greets President On Peace Mission Adenauer; Cabinet .;; On Hand at Airport ' Bonn, Germany -(UPD- Presi dent Eisenhower arrived in this capital city of West Ger many on a mission of peace today and received a wildly enthusiastic welcome from the nation he once conquered in war. Long before the President's 707 jet arliner landed at near by Wahn Airport after his flight from Washington, tens of thousands of Germany jammed the airfield and the streets and roads leading from it into Bonn. Adenauer Present West German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer and the en tire Cabinet met the Presi dent. He received a 21-gun sa lute, reviewed a 315-man West German army-navy-air force honor guard and ex changed words of encourage ment with Adenauer before driving off in a triumphal cavalcade. The crowd applauded Eisen hower even more loudly than they did Adenauer. Pledget American Help The aging Adenauer told the President it was a "great and heartfelt pleasure" to wel come him to West Germany. "In this unusually difficult time you are the flag bearer of freedom in the whole world," he said. "I believe youf exchange of talks with world leaders will secure peace in the world." Eisenhower, In reply, again." pledged American support to" West Germany and West Ber-" lin in their struggle to remain bulwarks of the Free World' despite the threats of the So viet Union and Communist East Germany. "In my country, the name Adenauer has come to sym bolize the determination of the German people to remain strong and free. . ; . "In the , implementation of that determination, the Ameiv ican people stand by your side and send through me their ' very best wishes for - your successful efforts." " - An estimated 50,000 Ger mans lined the 19-mile route from Wahn to Bonn and its nearby diplomatic suburb of Bad Godesberg where the President was spending the night at the U. S. Embassy residence. Conferences Scheduled The President and Secre tary of State Christian A. Her ter will spend about seven hours in conferences Thurs day with Adenauer, Foreign Minister Heinrjch von Brent ano and other West German officials. Thursday evening Eisen- a five-day visit, during which he will make a 'quick trip to Scotland to call on Queen Elizabeth II, hold down to earth diplomatic talks with Prime Minister Harold Mac millan and receive Spanish Foreign Minister Fernando Maria Castiella. . Sept. 2 he hops over to Paris to meet with French President Charles de Gaulle in what may be the toughest part, of his mission designed to weld together a solid west ern front before his meeting with Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev Sept. 15. Radio Highlights An hour-long presentation of Antony and Cleopatra, by a full cast of Ashland ' Shakespearean Festival players, will be heard over radio station KMED (1440 kc) starting at 7 o'clock to night. on Highway 99 increased 7.4 per cent, the department said. Traffic on Highway 62 four miles south of Shady Cove in creased from 2,431 last year to 2,550 last month, a rise of 4.9 per cent. In the past seven months the volume increased 10.1 per cent. On Highway 238 a mile west of Ruch,' traffic volume increased 4.9 per cent from 693 last year to 727 in July this year, the department noted. In the past seven months the increase was 9.6 per cent. The department said Cen tennial celebrations and ac tivities throughout the state contributed substantially to the increase in traffic in the state. Statewide, highway traffic increased 5.6 per cent last month over the traffic re corded in July, 1958. -
