9 F
THURSDAY. FEBRUARY 23, 1961
MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEDFORD. ORE.
mm mm
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COAL MINERS HAPPY Tired but happy, these coal
miners were among the first to report back to the Oak
mont Mine at Barking, Pa., after its reopening following a
close-down of nearly seven months. After so long a layoff,
eight hours in the "pit" have a telling effect, but not a
single complaint was heard. From left, the miners are Tony
Chiera, Charles Roller and Joe Rizane.
. (UPI Telephoto)
Reopening of Coal Mine Brings Much
Happiness in Pennsylvania Village
Kftitnr'ii note: AlthoUch economic
hardship prevail! In much of the
natlon'ii coal fields, the cloudi of
floom held a silver lining ir
handful of miners In Western
Pennsylvania this week when one
mine reopened after seven months
of Idleness. UPI Reporter Fred
Treosli accompanied the first shift
u-of miners inio uio rauixmeu
w h. rnllnwlnv rilnnati.h. nit de-
-"crlbc how the surprise recall
.-hrni,nrht nW hoDe to the men.
'Unfortunately, Industry spokesmen
""said, the reopening 01 one humu
holds Utile prospect of hetter times
.for thousands of other mine work-
ers sun jodidbs.
"By FREDERICK H. TREESH
Barking, Pa.-(1)PB-Ed Moffet
SShummed a happy tune as he
ewung a pick viciously at the
wall of coal In front of him.
V.C For Ed, each out of the pick
"represented a niche in the
mountain of debts that built
up during months of Idleness.
"I'll tell you, it's nice to
be back," said Moffet, a life
long miner from New Ken
sington, Pa., as he smoothed
a place on the face of a mine
tunnel for a mechanical drill
to make its first bite in seven
tVionths.
A little after 8 a.m.. Moffet
and 20 other miners climbed
onto an orange-colored elec
tric train for a Jolting, two-
mile ride down the slope of
the Harmar Coal Company's
Oakmont Mine, located 20
miles northeast of Pittsburgh.
It was their first trip through
the winding tunnel since last
July 29 when the mine closed
because the coal it yielded no
longer was needed.
Moffet and the others were
put out of work, like thou
sands of other miners in the
nation's coal fields, when the
Oakmont Mine shut down.
iCam Just in Time
Times were hard, and the
'future appeared black until
their telephones rang a week
ago. Word that the mine was
reopening came Just in time
to avert economic disaster for
most of the men who had
only two or three more $40
' checks to draw before their
unemployment compensation
ran out.
Sixty-five men were called
back to the mine Initially.
As work progresses Inside the
40-year-old pit, more and more
men will be recalled until the
entire complement of ISO is
back on the Job, probably
within four to six weeks. Each
man will be earning at least
$25 a day. ,
The reopening of the Oak
mont Mine with its $1 million
annual payroll will have little
economic significance to the
industry as a whole, according
' to an industry source. The
spokesman said the mine,
which has a 3,000-ton-a-day
maximum output, was reacti
vated because of a "surplus of
work" at other mines in opera
tion. The source noted that a
major steel producer had ex
panded operations at two of
J.ts largest captive mines from
"three to five days a week.
Another steel firm In Pitts
"6urgh has relighted a furnace
,ond retired an additional bnt
'tery of coke ovens.
Although giving little con
sequence to these minute up
turns, the Industry source add
ed, "a trickle here and a
trickle there might mean
something."
Smile Crones Face
As John McCready switched
on his helmet light and started
down the long concrete stair
case to the waiting mine train,
& broad smile crossed his face.
"It's good to be back," said
McCready, a miner for 25
Tjlcars who had experienced
t his first prolonged furlough.
i-UWhat you have saved up
doesn't take long to go. I
"qnly had three more unem
ployment checks left."
McCready, from New Ken
sington, is married and the
father of an 11-year-old son.
-. To Walter Sabot of Lower
. Burrell, Pa., going back to
work Is like "pennies from
heaven,"
; "After seven months, every
body's happy to be back,"
Sabot said as he placed his
lunch pall on the train seat
and climbed in beside it,
. "Things were pretty rough
with the mortgage and util
ities," he said while the train
Jolted along through the gray
lime-coated tunnel. "I just got
a $4U gas bill because of the
hard winter. It's going to be
easier to pay now.1
"My wife nearly fell over
when she heard the mine was
going to open again," Sabot
said.
Raymond Jefferson of Arn
old, like the other miners,
was eager to start his first
day back at work
"I almost got a ticket driv
ing over here," he said, beam
ing. .
Jefferson said he was out
when the mine superintendent
telephoned his home last Tues
day with the news that the
mine was reopening. His wife
became so overcome with ex
citement and she couldn't tell
him about it when he came
home. -
"My brother told me. At
first I didn't believe it," Jef
ferson said, explaining that
he and his brother, also a
miner, frequently Joked about
the mine reopening, hardly
daring to hope it ever would.
Lester ; Howell of Apollo
worked two hours overtime
on his first day back, but he
appeared fresh when he
emerged from the mine.
Can Stand Extra Hours
'After the rest I had, I can
stand a few extra hours," he
said.
An he piloted a small self-
propelled mine car through
the cavernous Interior of the
mine, Howell explained what
he and the other miners en
countered when they tried to
find new Jobs after the Oak
mont Mine closed.
I went to several coal
companies looking for work,"
Howell said. "They said they
would like to employ me be
cause of my experience, but
they already had men of their
own laid off. They couldn't
hire me." 1
The miners were jubilant on
their first day back in the
pit.
Four or five Joked as they
guided a cutting machine into
the solid coal face of a mine
tunnel. When the machine
blade, resembling a dinosaur
tail, cut into the wall, a
dense cloud of choking, blind
ing dust spewed forth. The
men stepped back, coughing
and wiping their eyes. But
they still managed smiles.
It 11 take four doublchead-
ers of whisky to settle that
dust," one of them quipped,
evoking a chorus of laughs
from the others.
Unable io Speak
The happiness was not con
fined to the mine, however.
In a little four-room house
on Barking's only street, Mrs.
Ann Tromza, a portly matron,
tried to put Into words her
feelings about the mine re
opening. Tears welled in her
eyes. For several minutes, she
was unable to speak.
Then she recalled the many
months of uncertainty when
her husband, Pete, was idle.
"When you don't have any
work, there's no Income," she
said, "It was pretty bad. We
just bought this house before
the mine closed, and we had
made a lot of repairs. It was
awfully hard to meet the payments."
Mrs. Tromza said It would
be easier now to clothe and
feed her husband and their
four children, aged 15, 8, 7,
and 5.
We don't have to scrape
from the bottom of the barrel
anymore," she said.
A few doors up the deeply the help of his wife,
rutted gravel street, Henry "We're tickled to death the
Miller, postmaster and grocer, mine's open again," Miller
tended his modest store with said. "Our business fell off 50
Boys From Valley
On Harvard List
Three Rogue valley students
at Harvard college .were
among the 12 Oregon boys
there who have named to the
dean's list on the basis of their
grades for the academic year
1959-60.
They are Richard G. Corum,
30 Willamette ave., Medford;
David L. Mack, Gold Hill,
both juniors; and John M.
Holt, 1335 NW Washington
st., Grants Pass, sophomore.
In order to ,be placed on
the Dean's list, a student must
maintain an average of B or
better for the year.
Berkeley, Calif. -(UPt- There
have been more anti-trust
cases in the motion picture in
dustry than in any other, re
ports Michael Conant, author
of a recent study published
by the University of Califor
nia Press. i
per cent while it was closed."
"The hardship even showed
on the faces of the children
who came into the store," Mrs.
Miller said. "Even our candy
business fell off."
Communities io Share
Storekeepers in dozens of
communities around Barking
are bound to share in the
good times again just like the
Millers. With the Oakmont
Mine back in operation they
are certain to reap the bene
fits of its $1 million-a-year
payroll.
But the Infinite joy un
chained by the lifting of their
economic burden belongs to
the miners and their families.
"When a miner goes back
to work, the recession is over
for him," observed one coal
company official.
Capitol Memo
Appling Seen Good
Bet for Congress
In First District
By DOUGLAS GRIPP
Salem - IUPD - Secretary of
State Howell Appling Jr. is a
good bet for Congress in the
first district
in 1962.
This 'is the
latest, and
best, specula
tion on the po
litical future
of one of Ore
gon's most
powerful Republicans.
Douglas Gripp How ever,
sources close to Appling say
the candidacy hinges on at
least one factor: That Repub
lican Walter Norblad does not
seek reelection. Appling
would not oppose Norblad,
they say, because he is not un
happy with Norblad's work in
Congress.
Appling's chance could be
in the offing.
Norblad is being touted as
a challenger for U.S. Sen.
Wayne Morse (D-Ore.) next
year. Gov. Mark Hatfield has
decided to go for reelection
instead of Morse's seat.
. Appling lias ruled himself
out of the U.S. Senate contest.
He made it plain last week
that his decision is "final,
definite, clear and irrevo
cable." Since Hatfield and Apjpling
are apparently out, some Re
publicans feel Norblad is the
next best man to tackle
Morse. But they add frankly
it would take Norblad's tough
est campaign and a formid
able mustering of support to
'beat him.
Speculators say 1962 could
be the crossroads for Norblad.
They note that with the end
of his current two-year term,
he will have 16 years in Con
gress, entitling him to full
federal retirement of $1,000
per month. He has also had
his eye on the governorship
in the past.
Appling can run for higher
office in 1962 without losing
his job as secretary of state
because he will be in the mid
dle of his four-year term.
One of Appling's major tar
gets in state government -Atty.
Gen. Robert Y. Thorn
ton - is in that position too.
The Democrat was swept into
his third term at attorney gen
eral last November while Ap
pling easily won the secre
tary's post. '
Thornton tried to unseat
Norblad in 1958 and didn't do
too badly in a strong Repub
lican district although he lost
by 17,061 votes. Since then
the picture has changed and
the GOP margin in the dis
trict is down considerably.
An Appling-Thornton show
down would jar the political
stumps.
If Norblad decides to "play,
it safe" in 1962, the specula-
Bank Debits Show
Decline in Area
Bank debits for three
southwestern Oregon counties
dropped by 10.2 per cent last
month compared to Decem
ber, 1960, and 5 per cent com
pared to one year ago, accord
ing to the bureau of business
research at the University of
Oregon.
The debits in Jackson, Jose
phine and Curry counties
totaled $84,298,841 last month,
it was stated. One year ago
the amount totaled $88,743,
260. Bank debits represent the
dollar value of checks drawn
against the deposit accounts
of individuals and business
firms. .
tion is that Appling will sit
tight and see how the wars
go before he has to make a
decision - in 1964. ....
None out of 10 forest fires
are caused by man.
BEWARE
OF
IMITATIONS
LOOK
fOR THt
HAPPY
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LOW III PRICE
1 : ' IS
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A REGULAR 15c KITE FREE FOR
THE ASKING-WITH ANY ORDER
W H I C H INCLUDES PURCHASE
OF TWO DOZEN EGGS!
BEST GOOD EGGS
are locally produced. Always fresher and taste better. We stock
Surles and Korner's, delivered to us several times weekly.
MEDIUM AA
LARGE AA
EX LARGE AA
53'
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Doz.
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O'Boy Snoboy Apples
Winesapand
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3 -lb.
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Pkg.
EACH PACKAGE CONTAINS 8c COUPON ON SNOBOY POTATOES
ORANGES
Small
Sweet
$100
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6 dozen 1
ch 15'
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5!
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Enter the Dole Contest and Win
DOLE
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HAWAIIAN
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PINEAPPLE JUICE 3
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AM Can
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i iivi)ii)f!i
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fflEESE 41
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SLICED CENTERS lb. 49' Chunk n
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While Supply lasts 10 to 20 Pounds
45?
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2 - 29
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4