Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 3, 1960)
8 MAIL TRIBUNE, Medford. Or. Sunday, Jan. 3, 1940 Fast decade Saw Americans Prosper Respite 'War Two EBusiness SBumps Washington -IUPD- Ameri-ltion to grow faster than the cans enjoyed unprecedented rise in population, take-home prosperity in the 1950s de- pay for each man, woman spite a "little war" in Korea and child in the nation in and two business slumps. It was a decade in which the bountiful productivity of the U.S. economy managed to keep the nation supplied with both guns and butter. Spurred by the tensions of the cold war, the country built up a military striking power unequaled in its peace time history. At the same time, American workers, farmers and businessmen turned out record volumes of goods and services and raised living standards. Consumer Prices Up The decade saw consumer prices go up about 25 per cent. Inflation replaced un employment as the nation's most serious, continuing eco nomic problem. Unemployment had been the devil of the 1930s. In the 1950s it cropped up in two recessions but never haunted the man in the street or the man in the White House as it had 20 years earlier. The 1953-4 and 1957-8 re cessions slowed America's economic growth. Some said they were critical setbacks in the race with communism. Others said the slumps were healthful '"breathing spells" incidental to the progress of a free economy. By the end of the decade, some 67 million Americans were at work compared with 58 million 10 years earlier. Population Grows The population, of course, had grown too-from 150 mil lion to nearly 180 million. Population growth and (he cold war had a lot to do with another big increase of the '50s-federal spending. From 41 billion dollars in 1949, government spending shot up sharply . during the Korean War, edged down for two years, then turned back up. Federal outlays of all kinds are estimated at 95 billion dollars a year now. Most au thorities agree that-barring a major thaw in the cold war the upward trend will con tinue. Tax revenues are rising as individual incomes and corpo rate profits climb to new highs. Most politicians hope mounting tax revenues will keep the budget balanced as it ' grows. ' Rising even faster than gov ernment income was every body else's. Individual in comes climbed, setting new highs year after year, even during the recessions. Price increases .wiped out some of the gains In -wages and salaries. But even so, with a post-war boom in creased about 20 per cent in real buying power. More Own Homes The end of the decade saw more people living in their own houses than ever before. The number of families own ing their own homes leaped from 20 million to 29 million, or to nearly three out of five non-farm families. Playing a big role in the spread of home ownership was government mortgage underwriting, which made it possible for millions of fam ilies with modest incomes to borrow the money needed to buy a house In fact, borrowing-to-buy became part of the American way of life. Formerly, the man who was continually in debt was thought a spend thrift and of questionable character. Now, installment buying is accepted and even respected. Finding it that way - or making it so-Americans went deeper-into hock in the 1930s, Consumer debts soared from S17.305.000.000 in 1949 to .$48,000,0000,000 this year. "No down payment" displac ed "money back guarantee" as the merchant's favorite come-on. People borrowed money to buy houses more than any thing else. Autos came sec ond. The number of passen ger cars on "the road mush roomed from 36.453.000 in 1949 to about 58,591,000 this year. Credit Curbs With borrowing helping to fuel the booms, the govern ment made credit curbs its chief anti-inflation weapon. Federal Reserve restraints on the growth of credit in good times led to higher interest rates and a sharpening of the controversy over "cheap" ver sus "tight" money. Also tied to the inflation problem was the big boom in the stock market. People decided stocks were a good hedge against inflation be cause stock prices were go ing up, too. The number of American stockholders jump ed from 6,490.000 in 1952 to 12,490,000 in 1959, according to the New York Stock Ex change. An outstanding feature of the boom-which saw the mar ket's industrial average zoom more than threefold-was the popularity of mutual funds. Many "little capitalists" put their money into the funds, letting professional managers make buy and sell decisions. On the nation's farms, the 1950s brought a merry-go- livestock production jumped j 000 in mid-1950 to nearly $8,- 25 per cent but the number of farms and farmers de clined. Scientifically blend ed, medicated feeds treated with drugs and chemicals un known a decade ago boosted livestock and poultry produc tion. New plant varieties and fertilizing practices lifted crop yields per acre to an all-time record in 1958, with 1959 almost as good. The number of farms dropped from 5,382,000 in 1950 to 4,645,000 in 1959. Farm population shrank from 25,058,000 as the decade open ed to 20,800,000 last year. Farm Prices Off Although production soar ed, the pocketbook side of the farm story was not so bright. Most farm prices fell. Net farm income tumbled from a high of 515,158.000.000 in 1951 to an estimated $11,500, 000,000 in 1959. Surpluses held by-the gov ernment under its farm price support programs piled up. They rose from $3,500,000,- capital goods helping produc- round of change. Crop . and 2100 mJ CO O to Co Our Beautiful New Now Open! itLL JOE HOSICK Funeral Director We have the most reasonably priced cemetery and mortuary services in Southern Oregon. W invite inquiries at any time. Investigate our complete services All within Siskiyou Mem orial Park. SISKIYOU FUNERAL SERVICE PHONE SP 2-5488 John Day Returns From Club Meet John Day, Gold Rey ranch. Central Point, has returned from New York City where he attended the annual meet ing of the Boone and Crockett club, of which he is a new member. The club, in which member ship is limited to 100 persons, was founded in 1888 by Theo dore Roosevelt, who was its first president. Among the purposes of the club are "to promote manly sport with the rifle; to pro mote travel and exploration in wild and unknown, or but partially known, lands; and to work for the preservation of the wild animal life of this country, especially big game, and so far as possible, to fur ther "legislation for that pur pose, to assist in -enforcing the existing laws, and to edu cate the American public in the importance of proper game preservation." One of the requirements for membership is that the per son must have killed with the rifle, in fair chase, at least one adult male indi vidual of at least three species of American large game." The club is recognized as one of the most powerful non political organizations pro moting conservation and wild life ' preservation. Every two years, he added, the club sponsors the measur ing and determining of rec ords for North American big game. 'Many' Considered As GOP Keynoter Washington (UPD A Repub lican national committee spokesman said Thursday that Gov. Mark Hatfield of Oregon is "one of several" persons being considered for keynote speaker at the 1960 GOP convention. But the spokesman said "many more" persons, includ ing Gov. William F. Quinn of Hawaii, also are in the run ning. The committee official said selection of a keynote speak er is "no further along now than it was several weeks ago." He said it probably would be "quite a while" be fore a speaker is picked. Hatfield and Quinn were mentioned prominently for the honor at a recent Califor nia meeting of the western conference of GOP national committeemen and state chairmen. The committee spokesman said that both gov ernors received "considerable support" at the conference. 650,000,000 by mid-1959. Burgeoning farm output, mounting surpluses, falling farm income and a sharp policy split between Republi cans and Democrats as well as within the parties them selves promised to make the farm problem one of the hot political issues of the new decade. Prosperity, however won derful, was not new. There had been good times before. But another side of the eco nomic story of the 1950's-aid to foreign countries-was a landmark in American his tory. Through the Marshall Plan, military . support for NATO and technical assist ance and loans to less devel oped countries, the United States poured billions of dol lars into the economies of friendly and "neutral" na tions. War-torn economies bounc ed back, in part because of American assistance, in great er measure through the ef forts of the countries them selves. By 1959, Japan, Great Britain, France, West Ger many, Italy and to a lesser extent a number of other na tions were competing with the United States for world markets. In the younger countries of Asia and Africa, U.S. dollars vied with Soviet rubles to win friends and prove the superi ority of their respective eco nomic systems. Premier Nikita Khrushchev personally carried the Soviet challenge to this country and blunty told Americans face-to-face that the Soviet system could and would whip the American economy. He said communism would bury cap italism under a deluge of goods and services which the American economy could not match. Many Americans agreed with Khrushchev that the new decade, and beyond, would see the cold war fought, not in the trenches, the skies or the diplomatic conference rooms but in the factories, mines, power sta tions and fields of the two strongest nations on earth. Easy-Made Blouse 0HEt CRIPPLED ACTOR WEDS New York- (UPD -Polio crip pled British actor Michael Flanders, 37, was married Thursday sitting in the same wheelchair he uses in the Broadway show "At the Drop of a Hat." Flanders and Clau dia Davis, 26, daughter of a Columbia university profes sor, were married in a civil ceremony at his apartment. The Alberta village of Gro- uard, 230 miles north of Ed monton, was named after the Roman Catholic missionary, Emile Grouard. Mrcifo) 9166 1 y f sizes 12-20 One evening's s e w i n g presto! a beautiful, new blouse to star with all your separates. Very easy wrap 'n' tie design smooth fitting and so smart in silk print, shapely jersey. Tomorrow's pattern: Women's dress. Printed Pattern 9166: Miss es' Sizes 12. 14, 16, 18, 20. Size 16 take sVs yards 54-inch fabric. Printed directions on each pattern part. Easier, accurate. Send Thirty-fir cents (coins) for this pattern add 10 cents for each pattern for first-class mailing. Send to Marian Martin, Medford Mail Tribune, Pattern Dept., 232 West 18th St., New York 11, N.Y. Print plainly NAME, ADDRESS with SIZE and STYLE NUMBER. DBLflDX 12" and 2' Mixed Big Double Loads Summer Prices S & H Green Stamps MEDFORD FUEL CO. - Telephone SP 2-21 11 I H kmi'kfinrtv m ' f ZtBNttGS, Die HUG JAGA1NS GALORE stttCTIOwf- n H 1 : sj' m r is" SNOWY-WHITE, STURDY MUSLIN At these spectacular low prices, it pays to fill your linen closet! Take lots of wear, wash beautifully . . . are tremendous value for the money. Flat single, 72x108" . 1.98 Fitted twin, bottom ; 1.87 Pillow cases, to match 94c pr. Flat twin 72x108" PASTEL. MUSLINS IN SOLID COLORS SAVE Flat twin, 72x108" Decorative color to give youf home a holiday look! Lovely, soft shades pink, blue. Flat full, 81x108 ....2.53 Fitted twin, bottom 2.34 Pillow cases to match 1.14 ir. Peppered 1 80-THREAD LUXURY PERCALES IN WHITE SAVE Flat twin, 72x108" Superb quality, soft, smooth. Closely woven for longer wear. Flat full. 81x103" ..2.77 Fitted twin, bottom ........1.39 Fitted full, bottom 2.17 Pillowcase. 42x36" 1.38 pr. Fitted double 2.17 REVERSIBLE QUILTED MATTRESS PAD Twice the wear! Plumply filled; reinforced tape. Lock-stitch quilting. Washable. Twin 1 97 Full 197 BED PILLOWS, ASSORTED COVERS Everglaze polished cotton; florals or stripes'. Rose, blue J mWmW. X or brown. Blend filling. 21x27" 10 WASH CLOTHS Soft, thirsty 12x12' terrv Solids: in smart color assortment pack. Stripes: color variety RAYON-ACRILAN SOLID COLOR BLANKETS Slight irregulars 60" and up. Stitched ends Only 2.77 13 DISH CLOTHS Big "Bakers' Dozen" bar gain! 13 asst. dishcloths. Stripes in cheery tones. J3xI4'i" 1 00 BATH MAT & LID SET Pastel che nille. Multi color floral motif on mat; 2 1 x 3 4'. Matching lid cover. 1 77 CHENILLE BEDSPREADS Irregulars with tiny imperfections that won't affect appearance or wear. Exciting selection, all thick, lush cot ton chenille many fringed. Styles for every decor. Full, twin sizes. Decorator colors. H perfecf 3.99 for Tf ' "II ' Will v1----f-1-Vlyf.Ai..-. SET OF BATES TOWELS SOLIDS OR STRIPE OUTSTANDING BUY! Soft and 2 f Of fluffy terry towels at our amazing low price. Glorious solid colors in QT1 OH "tar blue, pink, sun gold," forest Vjl "U green, petal pink, mint green, white. J Stripes in aqua, gold, turquoise, rose; on white. A wonderful thought for , . 20x40-8126. tole-prk for pair """7 tifnwN p 1 'i ni'i"1 "nr i i ' ' 1 "t V i o. - n srm- vs y a wmmmmmmm 4 v .-K-:ivMHeMvi ":',.v.'l',a..w cfkQo rB7 7 HEIRLOOM SPREADS SALE PRICE $98 o Reg. to 13.95 FAMOUS MAKE! Close-out of top name bedspreads sovet you moneyl Assortment of cotton, end luxuriously fringed. Twin and full sizes in group . variety of beautiful colors! 4 Sixth and Central C.'S' YOU MEMORIAL PARK
