Herald and news., March 22, 1956, Page 7, Image 7

THURSDAY, MARCH 22. 1956
llKRAI.O AND. NEWS. KLAMATH FALLS, ORKKON
PAGE SEVEN
Oregon Flax Business
Just About Extinct How
Morty Meekle
Ru flifI W ..an.-.-., w
Mm an industry mats losing money.
SALEM 11 The 40-vear-old you m'eht "s wc" n3ve ore thM
dream that a thriving flax indue.!''11 Give men some ira.mng.
try would develop In the Willam-' ' The P1""' 's 8 oustanl source
ette Valley is all but shattered!0' K0"y bc-'se It presents the
and Warden Clarence T. Gladden 1 S'eatest lire hazard imaginable,
ot the state prison wants to close Il s iu" ' dust- ,nd "e spark
up the prison flax plant. I could blow the place up."
This plant, which turns the flax ' INMATES EMPLOYED
into fiber, was created 40 years! olaaden says the plant em
ago to give the larmers help m'P'oV" 165 inmates during the
starting the new industry j winter months, and as few as 16
Now it is the last prop keeping ln September. He objects to this
life in the dwindling flax business i peasonal nalur' 01 he work, be
ofOrcaon. It is the nniv mr.lcaus lhe P,ant workers have to
where the Oregon flax larmers I be'dle ln the " seasons
nic ii.Mwk.ia enm iruiu au tenia
can sell their product.
DIFFERENT
Ten years ago it was a diiferent
story.
World War II had Jusl ended!
and the prison llax plant had it.
to SI a day ln the (l?x plant
The Board of Control has been
talking about closing tip the plant.
The 1955 Legislature passed a law
authorizing the board to get rid o!
cleared a profit o! 1. 200,000 from
1S41 through 1945. There also were
nine cooperative plants in the val
ley. Twelve thousand acres were
sown to flax, of which the prison
contracted lor 3,500. There were
several linen mills in the Salem
area.
Things weie good, then, because
the Eastern linen mills couldn't
buy from European sources.
But cs soon as the war ended,
the market for Oregon flax dimin
ished as the European flax re
turned. Now, all nine cooperatives have
folded up. The prison contracted
for only 860 -acres last year, and
won't contract for a single acre
this year. It is doubtful whether
ny flax will be grown in 1956.
All of the linen mills are gone
from the state.
LOSING MONEY
The prison flax industry started
losing money when the war end
ed. II has lost $120,000 since then,
and now Is losing S20.0OO a year.
The Industry, which lor many
years had guaranteed farmers $60
a ton for No. 1 flax, has dropped
Its guarantee to $52.
Gladden wants to get rid of the
plant because he feels It is hold
ing back his plan to establish new
prison industries that will train
convicts to hold Jobs after they
get out.
The money being lost could bet
ter be spent on new prison Indus
tries, such as a clothing factory,
Gladden feels.
"Virtually all of the work in the
flax plant," Gladden said, "is un
skilled. A prisoner who works
there Isn't trained for anything.
"If you're going to have to have
, , BACHELOR DEGREE
LOUISVILLE, Ky. on Prank
Adams Taylor retired ln Florida
six years ago at the age of 44. He
had been a professional athlete.
' tobacco Inspector. U. S. Dept. of
Agriculture official, real estate de
veloper and an insurance sales
man. Now he Is about to come out
: ef retirement to officially begin
his career as a Presbyterian min
ister.' He will receive his bachelor
of divinity degree ln May.
Flax gVowing and processing is
a long ana complicated process,
and the penitentiary has to pay
the growers in advance for their
crops.
The farmer plants it ln March,
with the prison's flax experts
choosing the land and supervising
the planting and cultivation.
It is ripe in 100 days, and then
it Is pulled and sent to the peni
tentiary, where it is de-sccded and!
stored through the winter.
ln May of the year after har
vesting, it is soaked for 4l3 days,
and then nut into the fields for
drying. In the fall, It is brouph'J
into the prison plant for extract
ing the fiber.
WHOLE PROCESS
The whole process, from plant
ing to removal of the fiber, takes
18 or more months.
After that, it's a matter of find
ing a market for the fiber. The
prison now has 110 tons it would
like to sell. .
All .alcs are made through a
broker in New ,York City.
Much of the new construction at
the, prison, including the wall, can
nery and' a warcnouse, nas Decn
made possible by the lush flax
profits In the war years.
Gladden doesn't think those
profits are likely to be repeated.
So he wants to sell out.
IJinthkop I L x
nmorrvv I hEv, ThERE'9 1-' A
is he p-J-l YOU'RE HE MOST BE W i
AKXJN0 (J . BOOMER? L0OON6 1 i
f HI, e. BOOMER.) JV PIP YQU COME ALIThFI
(7 WHAT ARE ..aW7 a WAY OVER HERE JU6T .
t?Y0UK)INC)O7T- TO9RIN6METHI6 J
aL in THE 56 TV 7 I 1 V NEMWPEH
Br Us !
Guided Missile Info Given
WASHINGTON (UP) The Pen-1
Uson has set loot a flood of new 1
guided missile information in an
evident eilori to knock down Dem
ocratic claims that weapons de
velopment is lagging. ,
ln less than two weeks, the
armed forces have given details
on lour new guided missiles, rang
ing from short-range anti-aircratt
to intercontinental types. The Pen
tagon also has disclosed improve
ments to two others.
It also was giving special treat
ment today to about 80 members
of Congress who are visiting the
Caribbean where the Navy is dem
onstrating its new guided missile
cruiser Boston as well as the super
aircralt carrier Foreslal.
The flood of weapons data li re
markable for the usually secretive
Defense Department and Indicates
a change of policy since Senate
Democrats first began steady criti
cism when Congress returned in
January.
Less than three weeks ago. De
fense Secretary Charles E. Wilson
said he wanted to quiet down guid
ed missiles talk because he thought
the sales department was ahead of
the engineering and production de
partments already.
But shortly thereafter, the Navy
took reporters to the Caribbean for
a preview of the exhibition con
gressmen were getting today. The
Navy demonstrated its Terrier
anti-aircraft missile in operation
against a drone target, the first
such public showing. It announced
development of a new anti-aircraft
missile, the Tartar, to be standard
armament on luture destroyers. It
disclosed that a new, longer range
Terrier is under development.
O People Read
SPOT ADS
-you are.
Concert To
Benefit Scouts
The Girl Scouts, the Camp Fire
Girls and the Boy Scouts will ben
efit from the ninth annual barber
shop quartet end chorus concert to
be staced at the Pelican Theater
on May 19, by the Klamath Faljs
unapier 01 me &rt.BswoA, inc.
From proceeds ol the eight pre
vious SPEBSQSA performances,
these youth organizations have re
ceived sums totaling S3. 500 which
has been used for improvement of
the Girl Scouts and Camp Fire
Girls camp at Lake of the Woods,
known as "Esther Applegate Camp"
and for the Boy Scouts camp at
Crescent Lake.
A feature of the performance
this year will be the 40-voice Cas
cade Chorus from Eugene-Springfield.
This Is the champion chorus
of the Evergreen District of the
SPEBPQSa and is the one which
will represent the district in the
International Chorus Contest to be
held at Minneapolis on June 15.
The group has previously .partici
pated in contests at Detroit. Mich
igan and at Washington, D.C. The
director is J. H. Leaoo.
SAVE DOLLARS!
USED . I Cfl tl
WASHERS Wl
TAKE YOUR PICK!
At Our Used Appliance Store
VERN OWENS'
Cascade Home Furnishings
IT'S GREAT CROWING
hi
i W 111, j J ,m hoy Phosphorous
I h i iiiili. YJ a 1 '"pie give. ,, Simplof i
! 5 Wl mo'evig0" P'a" S foster. I
I m I J maturity, prorn" hos"" I
! V jWPW ,0 r 1 '"'"once '
124 No. 4th .Ph. 8365 M '-"u Sj
iT" ' ' m, ' ... ... , 1
MEMBERS and GUESTS I . uttt 1
Pete Colley's Band ' . WmSty ' C-" ' 4V4 SOUNDS - I
r : 1 .....Z::.':'- r. ' ' ' JTTtSsV.' "1 IMPOSSIBLE M 1 I
AMERICAN LEGION CLUB mmims& , v J Tdi.yf 9 but its true- H 1.1
i - " f I ? t'- ! r r f . w " n ' mi,es e7Tr w I
I o . it t'Jh- L t ' LA across fhe Atlan- I I
traps' :j , Y:'f t sf& ?jk' ,ic' The Benrus
C Ls jrlffifrrffffihtTTi . V 'Y, Watch flayed J
I Vt 'j r" - perfT'ky
,1,... i ' .. ' h ' 1 , 3 ' . . V VX. K-JS fJ, ' ,"&T , f . . , i t wiomhiiii X llairfc
Tii ii tut, Jkhlii gUM&Aj
in. .r vrr-i v t y . i it 1
CMm ($Meton FREE for 14 Days hou
AUTOMATIC
MIXMASTER
AND BLENDER
Mixmaster Regularly 44.50
Blender Regularly 12.95
SUNBEAM STEAM
OR DRY IRON
TOTAL VALUE
LESS TRADE-IN
57.45
7.50
Res
leu
TradC'ln
... 1 7.95
3.00
?ayU 14.95
ONLY 75c WEEK
YOU PAY ONLY
Set tht only mixer with
blender attachment! Have
2 useful appliances in
AW
NO MONEY DOWN . . . ONLY 1.25 WEEK
MrWeliT. JHffl 11 Mill K. F.. Or.
ri ttni m th Innbum HttmiMfr anil
Rkndrr i 1 .imihrani H mr Stm Iri ( .
I tm rfirUttnc w,n 'n-
Mk -t r month mil ih tnllrt BmwBiit
it pti4. I will rtffitt my lf4 in In M'--ht
f miff 4 tr ( ) mhr I tht !
NAME PHONE
AIIIRFSft HOW LON
I ITV TONE . . STATE
LM PLOYED IIV . . - - HOW LONO -
CRK Dlf HI ! ERI N t .
701 MAIN ST.
Klamath Falls, Ore.
Store Hoers 930 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
NOW! WEAR THIS NEW
o)sniD)n n
FREE for 14 Days
TAKE ONE HOME TOMORROW AND MAKE YOUR OWN TEST
TO PROVE THIS WATCH IS REALLY WATERPROOF!
Imagine a watch with all these quolity features that vou con
own tor just 22 t'OI And, of course, vou can find out for yourself
what an amazinq value this is by wearing the Benrus
17-iewel woterproof for 14 days. Test its resistance to woter
by dunkinq it in a qlass of water, by wearinq it swimminq.
Check its accuracy. You'll agree that this watch is well
worth the notionollv advertised price . . . and at Weisfield's
your trade-in saves you 20 00!
PAY 50' A WEEK
N?5Sa
sens?
I
L.
rif trnd mr Ih Man
M MS nr. Klamath Fa II. Or.
H il. h advrrllir al tt.M. 1
nrl w ill rn I
pfr mttnlh er
rill rci mi
trk ontM lh n
haUn.
t h'
pin In Ii
I briri In
Will RE F.MPl.OiLO
I Rl HIT Rl I I R SI I
HOW LONG
Hurt !.
NiriM anal Whm l. lt4t
NO
MONEY
DOWN
701 MAIN ST., Klamath Falls, Ore.
Store Hours 9:30 am. to 5:30 p.m.
'ri'an' MHwanatil-n -'if
4jji iiir t rrvrrrTi'ri " '
aajajlwat