Matter of Fact
lei New York HeraJd
THE MUSHROOM CELLARS
Washington Even today,
remarkably few people have
frasped what a horrendously
narrow
squeak the
United States
had in the
Cuban affair.
M All depended,
as is well
known, on the
Oct. 14 U-2
flight, which
brought back
the first solid
Almp
evidence of the Soviet missile
emplacements in Cuba. If the
aaviet anti-airaraft missiles
In Cuba had been made oper
ational on schedule, there
can be little doubt that this
U-2 would has'e been shot
down, like the later U-2 on
Oct. 27.
The still unexplained mis
carriage in the Soviet plan
for Cuba must be taken as
proof of Justice Felix Frank
further's rule that "God
takes care of little children,
drunkards, and the United
States of America." Even so,
this was only half the story.
'THE story's other half con
cerns the American gov
ernment itself. To begin with,
it must be recalled that there
was a soild consensus among
the American policy-makers
that the Soviets would never
cmplace offensive missiles in
Cuba. Few governmental
forecasts have been made
with so much positivencss as
this wholly wrong forecast.
The atmosphere of false
confidence generated by this
forecast almost certainly had
a role, in turn, in a change in
the 'U-2 surveillance pattern
which was ordered at the be
ginning of September. At that
time, the schedule of U-2
flights over Cuba was in
creased from two to four per
month. But the U-2s were
also directed to survey new
areas, and to avoid the previously-surveyed
ateas where
large numbers of anti-aircraft
missiles had already been
seen.
This was because it was
thought the A-A missiles
might be ready for use at that
time, and it was desired to
avoid a world commotion
soout "another U-2 incident
over Cuba." By the end of
September, however, refugee
reports about the emplace
ment of offensive missiles in
Cuba had become uncomfort
ably circumstantial.
IT WAS clear, furthermore,
that if offensive missiles
were being emplaced any
where, they were to be found
in the areas protected by A-A
missiles which had, indeed,
been put into Cuba for just
that purpose. Hence the
orders for the U-25s were
changed a second time, to
provide surveillance of the
A-A protected areas.
After delays owing to bad
weather, this change of
orders produced the historic
U12 flight on Oct. 14. Such is
the other half of the story of
the narrow squeak. It has a
double moral.
In the first place, to be
blunt about it, Soviet pur
poses in Cuba were better
measured by the crass, un
tutored instincts of 'he "great
rancid American people" (to
use the late Frank Kent's
awful phrase) than by the
learned consensus of the gov
ernmental experts. And in
the second place, these crass
popular instincts played a
most useful role.
As will be remembered,
public feeling about the Cu
ban problem had become
very strong and vocal by the
end of September. Hence the
government's policy-makers
were uncomfortably aware
that the consequences at
home would be exery bit as
disastrous as the came
quences abroad, if they were
taken by surprise by the sud
den appearance of Soviet mis
siles in Cuba.
WHAT uncomfortable aware- j
1 ncss. one can hardly
doubt, helped to tip the bal- :
ance in favor of the crucial i
second change in the U-2 sur
veillance patterns. j
Otherwise, one may rcas- ;
onably suspect, the argument
within the government would
have been won by the seem
ingly logical question: "We
know they're not going to
put offensive missiles into
Cuba anyway, so why risk a
U12 incident?''
In that event the surveil
lance pattern would not have
been changed, and the So
viets would have achieved
their intended surprise.
These two morals are
worth underlining, at this I
time, because of their bear- :
Ing on the directive enforc- j
ing total news-control at the
Pentagon, which the Prcsi-
dent and Secreary of Defense .
Robert McNamara have just
decided to continue in force, i
As pointed out in a previous
report In this space, the worst
vice of this directive is to dc-
prive the United States of its
main protection against bad
Secretaries of Defense who
may lurke in our future.
U' Li
By Joseph Alsop
Tribune Syndicate
makers against public debate
and public pressure. Consider
what would have happened
to the defense program if
Charles E. Wilson and Neil
McElroy had been complete
ly protected from any pres
sure except pressure from the
Budget Bureau. That is how
to gauge this deepest vice in
the news-control directive.
Yet the Cuban experience
suggests another vice. The
truth is that even when the
government is led by brilliant
men like McNamara. instead
of by men like Wilson and
McElroy, the caves of the
policy-makers still too strong
ly resemble mushroom cel
lars. The danger is airless
ness, in other words, and this
airlessness can be loo easily
fatal, unless the caves are
regularly ventilated by the
winds of national debate.
No policy-maker likes this
kind of ventilation. Yet de
bate, based on information,
is the strength of every free
society, just as swiftness of
maneuver, based on secrecy,
is the strength of every un
free society. And by news
control, the strength of our
society is directly attacked.
Two Receive Life
Prison Sentences
Portland-(VPIl-Two men re
ceived life prison sentences
here Monday in separate cir
cuit courts.
Guitar player Lloyd Wes
ley Allen, 25, was sentenced
after pleading guilty to sec
ond degree murder in the
death of Portland restaurant
owner Willard Glover.
Charles Knowles Thompson
received his life term after
being found guilty of second
degree murder in the shooting
of his estarnged wife, Sandra.
Both men were arrested
March 24, after the separate
slayings occurred within a
few hours of each other.
MEDFOHD MAIL TRIBUNE,
Reclamation Officials Check
From Sunday's Flood; Reservoirs Up
Surveys of storm damage
in the Rogue valley contin
ued today as crews worked
overtime to clear debris and
repair washed out roads.
Two men from the bureau
of reclamation district office
in Boise, Idaho, and une en
gineer from the Portland of
fice of the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers were surveying
the storm damage. They are
Gerald Kirkpatrick, Boise,
flood study section, and Car
los Randolph, Portland, irri
gation division engineer.
Henry Stewart, Portland.
Army Engineers, estimated
the Rogue basin project
would have reduced the crest
at Grants Pass by five feci
if it had been in before the
storm.
Walt Hoffbuhr, Talent Ir
rigation district manager,
said that Howard Prairie lake
had a reading Monday of 36,
S00 acre feet, showing a rise
of more than one foot during
the storm.
Emigrant Up Six Fttt
Hoffbuhr said storm drain
age caused Emigrant lake to
rise six feet. The lake had
been shut off early Sunday.
Some estimated that this re
duced the peak of the flood
through Bear creek by 50
per cent.
Torrents of water from Em
igrant, Hill and Samson
creeks main tributaries into
Emigrant lake, poured in 4,
000 acre feet al 5.000 cubic
feet per second. Normal in
flow is 25 cubis feet per sec
ond. Observers reported that wa
ter surging through Bear
creek Sunday at 15.000 cubic
feet per second was much fast
er than during the 1955 storm.
Bank Damage
All irrigation districts re
ported considerable bank
damage with the flood water
going over the top of ditches
and cutting out the earth
bank behind.
Southern Pacific railroad
company officials said that
MEDFORD. OREGON
service on the branch line
between Tolo and White City
is not expected to be restored
for several days. Some 2,000
feet of track was washed out
on this branch line, accord
ing to George Joyce, train
master. Two engines and 25 track
men worked throughout Sun
day and part of Monday re
pairing the main line track
that was washed out near
the Elk Lumber company and
one-quarter of a mile south
of Mcdford near Phoenix.
The washouts near the lum
ber company were two of 50
feet each. Joyce said that
more than 350 cubic yards of
gravel have been brought in
for the washouts. At least
that much more will be need
ed to repair the branch line
washout, he noted.
On Train Delaytd
Only one freight was de
layed for an hour Sunday be
fore it proceeded south. Traf
fic will be slower, Joyce said,
until the new bed has been
allowed to settle.
Every emergency has a
lighter side. Sunday several
boys sailed a three-masted
schooner in the swirling wa
ters of South Holly St. while
another patiently fished near
by. Picturesque small foun
tains were noted throughout
Medford at manholes, where
pressure in the storm sewers
was sufficient to cause water
to bubble up through the
holes in the cover.
In some areas at the height
of the flooding storm sewers,
flowing at capacity forced the
covers off of some of the
manholes, making driving
hazardous.
Residents Help
When families in the Eagle
Point area started retrieving
personal belongings from Lit
tle Butte creek, a freezer was
four It had been swept to
the bottom of the creek from
the basement of the Dick Wal
lis residence.
You'll
How SAVINGS GROW at
FIRST FEDERAL
This schedule shows how weekly savings
accumulate, based upon our current rate
of 4 a year on savings, with earnings
added to the account and compounded
twice yearly.
Begin the
Habit Now
You'll find it both pleasant and profitable
to join First Federal's fast-growing family
of investors. You'll like the friendly, neigh
borly, personal service at First Federal's at
tractive new home at Sixth and Grape
streets.
C.I
In all areas residents join
ed the crews asisting in sand
bagging buildings and to di
vert water. i
Low water pressure in
Medford Sunday afternoon
necessitated shutting off the
water to 400 to 500 residents
for about one half hour. The
break was located in one of
the five mains which cross
beneath the creek channel.
The 18-inch main was clos
ed off al both ends and re
pairs will not be undertaken
until next spring. Repairs are
expected to be expensive Bob
Lee, city water superinten
dent, said and an accurate
appraisal of the damage can
not be made until waters in
Bear creek clear and sub
side.
Even with the heavy rains,
Ihe amount of chlorine add
ed lo the Medford water sup
ply was cut in half Monday.
Lee said that it was possible
due to some special parts re
cently purchased for the city's
chlorinater. The chlorine was
reduced to one pound per
20,000,000 pounds of water.
Surface Water Detected
Last month, when surface
water was detected in the
city's water supply at Big
Butte springs, chlorine was
added to the water. When
ever the presence of bacteria
is discovered in water, Lee
said, state health regulations
make it mandatory that chlo
rine be used to destroy them
and purify the water.
During the height of Sun
day's flood, Medford city fire
men received almost 100 calls
concerning flooded base
ments. Triey reported no
alarms of consequence during
the time when five bridges
across Bear creek were clos
ed. They did not respond to
the flooded basement calls
except at the home of Joe P.
Lippert, 400 North Ivy St.,
where a sump pump was
smoking. There they discon
nected wiring.
At the home of Ernest Wal-
Saving
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Corporation, n agency of th. U. S. Government. This Hindi behind Firs! Federal's sound, progressive business minegement and adminil
trition. Your savings are readily available If you need Ihem; they help to build your community while entrusted to ui.
201 W. 6th
Damage
lin, 2109 East Main St., they
used a smoke ejector lo re
move fumes from a gasoline
powered pump. They discon
nected wiring to a water
heater al the Doran Real
Estate office. 511 South Riv
erside ave. Water had sub
merged the heater.
Persons Evacuated
Throughout the Sunday
flood Red Cross and Civil
Defense volunteers assisted
persons evacuated from their
homes. Some 100 families,
driven from their homes by
high water, returned home or
to relatives by Monday.
Canteens were set up al
Eagle Point, Rogue River and
Roxy Ann Granges and the
Veterans of Foreign Wars hall
in Shady Cove. Coffee and
food was also served at some
of the schools. In Medford
food was served at the Red
Cross chapter house on Haw
thorne ave.
All Jackson county sher
iff's deputy reserves were
called to assist in flooded
areas.
ALAN MOWBRAY FINED
Los Angeles -IUPI- Actor
Alan Mowbray, 66, was fined
$150 in municipal courl Mon
day alter pleading guilty to
being under the influence of
an intoxicating beverage.
Mowbray, who was arresled
Aug. 15. is noted for a long
series of character roles in
movies spanning three dec
ade!". Per
0 Annum
JVir CHRISTMAS
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PROTECTION
and LOAN ASSOCIATION of MEDFORD
Street, Medford, Oregon
Funds Released for
Condon Air Station
Washington - HOT - Oregon
Sen. Wayne Morse and Rep.
Al Ullman said today the Air
Force is releasing $335,000
lo the Army Engineers to
proceed with construction of
electrical emergen y power
facilities at Condon Air Force
station.
Pope Confined
To Apartments
Vatican City - flTIi - Pope
John XX 1 1 1 remained confin
ed to his Vatican apartments
today, resting and recovering
from the first serious illness
of his life.
The pontiff, stricken with
anemia and stomach trouble
believed to be a bleeding ulcer-was
showing increasing
improvement but doctors urg
ed him to "take it easy" for
the rest of the week so he
would be in the best possible
condition for what could be a
tiring week end.
The 81-year-old Pope Is
scheduled to attend the cere
monies closing the first ses
sion of the Ecumenical Coun
cil on Saturday and the canon
ization of three saints on Sun
day. Both are to be held in
St. Peter's Basilica.
High Vatican sources said
Pope John probably would be
able to resume an almost-normal
schedule next week. He
fell ill a week ago today.
rise
Robert F. Kyle, Manager
TUESDAY. DECEMBER 4. I!)ti2
IFire Breaks Out in
Titan Missile Silo
Tucson, Ariz. - lUPU - Fire
broke out in a Titan missile
silo Monday and was quickly
controlled although 30 work
ers were treated for smoke in-
halation.
Only two workers were
I hospitalized. They were re
ported in good condition lo-
I day.
I The brief fire in the silo 23
miles southeast of here was
I caused by a short circuit in
j an electrical panel of the main
power source about 35 feet
I below the surface. Maj. Ken
neth Ingram, security officer
I at Davis-Monthan Air Force
i base, said most of the work
lers affected by fumes were
working below that level.
Counsel With . . .
Mr. Insurance Fred Brennan
F. R. Brennan, C.I...
MEDFORD INSURANCE
Agency
PHONE 773 7343
27 North Holly Street
A 5
Portlander President
Of Boating Clubs
Salem Bert Cooper,
Portland, president commo
dore of the Tyce Yacht club,
was elected president of tha
Oregon Federation of Be it 3
clubs at a meeting here Sun
day.
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