Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 36, Number 22, Decatur, Adams County, 26 January 1938 — Page 1

XXXVI.

Kt. WARNS IsiWSTPLAN |l«CIIT WARES 'fli.ldU l' r *‘‘ s ,ndus ' ■ . K(‘a‘P l ,rosont Sj Wage Levels Roof announced today with 600 smaM b SWill D* held F ' b ' „ M- bu.messmen will conSc’ methods of obU.n.nQ recovery and ".II • representatives to meet Hi President Roosevelt. Jd» <U ’ R) Ml,); prepared r„ sim ,. lullin' snnnie gpriidins l" maintain ~ SH',. .: lb"*" »!»• ,l " lleve p n ifi( sysi'Mii that ,lley H maintain wag"* and out Roosevelt contended in JH coutcrcnce statement that jB, ■ proltts. ■B ,uff,.|v.l meeting reeesthe less should lie |,V uialiaK' iiieht still ku( industry. He said to ... . IdefS pisan final''ial bankiuplcy * vs nt kE,, ii^H ,4", • 'ed and to mass in general. Bfcr midway in a series of House coiiferem es w ith . looking toward inilstel- liusiS' inand government would Bui ’ w 'dges and R JJ. -x good will conference !iusiness men. ill meet early etary of Comsr. Alter theii ■r, Mr. Rooseslegation of a little fellows” s on previous ested bitterly lining eompeapolistlc busliGE THREE) MEN BLAST ed As Case enades es P>—A case of d at a secret irrorist "hoodi. exploded toss a group of that 14 men hed for furthnuary 15 seizi. in IS cases; ree Hotchkiss 71 automatic cache of the foulards, neat ion. iken to an an laboratory in juif in south ause it was •ous to keef s. es of Villejuil entire suburt he bombs and jval. ien arrived ir the bombs tc g grounds at ie fuses could removing the ■ooden shacks detail dropped o contain 3! txploded. The VOE THREE) READINGS BMOMETER -00 p.m 2( 1:00 p.m 11 ER tonight and iteiv cloudy on tonight; "9ht, not so Thursday.

DECATUR DAILY DEMOCRAT

High School Equivalency Examination Saturday A high school equivalency exam Inatlon will he held Saturday In the offices of <\ K Striker, county I school superintendent, in the courti house ' Several have signified their intentions of participating In the exam, which awards a rating equal ’ to a high school diplotnu if the ap- j plicant Is successful. Anyone wlhli | ing to take the exam is requested to see Mr. Striker. (appeal Issued BY RED CROSS Local Chapter Seeks Aid For Residents Os WarTorn China An appeal for funds to be used 1 for the relief of millions of suffer- . ing men. women, and children in i China was made today by Wal i Wemhoff. chairman of the Adams county Red Cross chapter, who an nounced that at the suggestion of > | president Roosevelt, chapters r throughout the country were Join-; t 1 ing iu the appeal, r i No definite quota has been set for the local chapter but voluntary i contributions are earnestly solicit-, t ed. Contribution boxes have been placed in the Democrat, the First 1 j state Bank and at Wtnnes’ Shoe * jStore. i! -in asking our community to assist in raising this fund.’ Mr. > Wemhoff said, "there is little need * to emphasize appalling conditions f existing around Shanghai and other -: cities, inasmuch as newspapers, - i newsreels, and radio have vividly pictured conditions that exist .” He said that this money would ■! be allocated to relief agencies and * hospitals already existing, and that a committee of American business f men in China, appointed by the 1 American ambassador. Nelson T. * Johnson, would be formed to dis- ' tribute the fund. No personnel will be send from the Vnited j 1 States 1 "In addition to the urgent need for food, shelter, and warm cloth * ing, one of the great needs hi * i China »< the present tUu* i» tot 1 medical assistance.” Mr. Wemhoff '! said. "Great danger exists that 1 epidemics may break out. "j Admiral Cary T.' Grayson, nat * | ional Red Cross chairman, said | American officials in China had fns | formed him that 650.000 sick and f homeless persons were crowding j the International Settlement and . greater Shanghai at the present 1 time, with many times that number ' scattered throughout coastal and interior cities, towns, and villages that have been devastated. The national chairman also point- ■ ed out that lack of adequate hous [ j ing facilities for the homeless was I aggravating the health problem, and that existing public shelters had been over-crowded, resulting £ in thousands of homeless being j forced to huddle under straw’ matt-, ing shelters without sufficient protection from snows and cold rains j sweeping over the country. I Schoof Students Entertain Inmates it j Students of the Decatur Catholic n high school were to' entertain the inmates of the county infirmary late this afternoon with the presenj. tat ion of a playlet. *4B STUDENTS : ARE ENROLLED n : s Second Session Os Anp nual Leadership Train,f ing School Held K “ A total of 48 students is now end rolled in the annual Adams county leadership training school, being II held every Tuesday nigh‘. at the 0 Decatur high school, the Rev. lt James (A. Weiber, registrar, anti nounced today. The number totals 15 more than |« were enrolled a week ago Tuesday is on the opening night of the school, d Last night was the final date for :2 enroll'ng, any additional enrollment ie! not giving credit to the church rep- ‘ | resented. j The Decatur Zion Reformed (church leads in the number repre- ! sented at the school, with a total of 10 enrolled. The First Methodist i Episcopal church is next with nine * enrolled, with the local Church of ’ Nazarene third with eight enrollees. lS Others are: Decatur First U. B. six; Decatur First Evangelical, five Decatur Baptist, three; Mt Tabor |U. B„ three; Bobo U. 8., Monroe Church of Friends, Mt. Pleasant M. E., and Cross Reformed Churcn of Berne, uu» each. 'Four more sessions of the school will be held, one on each of the four following Tuesday nights. |

ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER IN ADAMS COUNTY

CITY STILL IN I GRIP OF COLD Temperature Drops To Nine Above Zero During The Night A sharp rise in coal prices and a marked lull in activities of downtown Decatur are two of the most noted results of the severest cold wave of the season, which con- ! tinned to hold the city and community firmly in its grip today Coal dealers almost unanimously reported a marked increase In reI tull coal prices, one reporting a raise of $3 per ton since last fall, with a 15-cent raise during the past three weeks. No actual shortage has been reported. City streets afforded an unusual sight today, as scores of car owners left their autos at home or in a downtown garage as protection front winter weather. Frozen-over display windows and blustery gusts of snow flurries kept shoppers from lingering on downtown streets. Garage owners and service slalions along with coal dealers were the only business houses to report a heavy business, as car owners sought to fill radiators with anti-freeze, re-charge batteries and in other methods winterize their cars. Nine Degrees Lowest Despite the discomfort to citizens, similar to that of a much lower temperature, the mercury is reported to have reached a low mark of nine above last nighl. The sudden advent of the cold wave and the penetrating effects of the cold winds are thought to have caused a general belief that the temperature was much lower. Despite continued snow flurries, county and state highways gre reported in generally good condition, with a few exceptions. At the north bridge the bridge floor buckl ed up in the center, necessitating the placing of an all-night watchman. The temperature, after hitting the low mark of nine during the night, had risen to 16 at 10 o’clock this morulas. Following are the temperaftire readings each hour during the night; 9:00 p.m- 10 1:00 a.m 10 10:00 p.m 10 2:ooa.iu. 9 11:00 p.m 10 3:00 a.m. 9 Midnight 10 4:00 a.m. 10 5:00 a.m. 10 6:00 a.m 11 48 CANDIDATES 1 ARE INITIATED Decatur Moose Lodge Initiates Class 01 t andates Approximately 125 members of Adams lodge 1311, Loyal Order or ] Moose, attended the Initiatory meeting at the local home o u North Second street. The meeting was pronounced one of the moat enthusiastic ant! entertaining held by the local order in recent years. Members of the Fort Wayno Moose lodge attended and the wide-ly-known Fort Wayne degree team | installed degree work on a large 1 class of candidates in ritualistic ceremonies. The class was <onvpos- | ed of 48 candidates. Following the meeting lunch and refreshments were served in the lodge roms. The meeting was in charge of the lodge offices and planned by the committee for the evening. b — Youhg Democrats Invited To Dance An invitation has been extended to the members of the Young Democratic club of Adams county to attend a free dance to be given in the Indianapolis Athletic club, Saturday evening at 10 o’clock, FebI r uary 5, according to word received today by Mrs. Ruth Deßolf, chair man of the Adams county club. The dance is sponsored by tho loung Democrats of Indiana. To Conduct Driver Tests Here Friday — 'State patrolman Burl Johnson will be in Decatur all day Friday to conduct examinations for auto drivere’ licenses. All persons desiring to take the tests are asked to make appointments at the Adams county auto license bureau. License 'bureau officials a'so announced that Grover Baumgartner, field agent for the state gross income tax division, will be at the I 'bureau Thursday and Friday to assist in making out tax returns, j which must be sent to the state by | January 31.

Decatur, Indiana, Wednesday, January 26, 1938.

Dorothy Thanks Her Friends

This is Dorothy, a 17-year-old’ Monroe girl, who is one of the thousands of victims of infantile paralysis in the United States, pictured In her wheel chair purchased through funds raised in thlH community by previous Birthday Balls for the President. Dorothy has not had many opportunities in life. She never walked. She never played many of the childish games like other girls. She never went to school. She can't talk very plainly—but perhaps it is for the best because j Dorothy never will. Attacked by infantile paralysis! when she was four months old. her small body never had an opportunity to develop properly, although her family has made itself poor by SET DATE FOR APPLICATIONS February 6 Final Date For Rural Eleetrification Program . i - i February 6 has been se’ as the final date for filing applications to participate in the Adams county rural electrification committee's original program to provide lights and power for the six southern township of Adams county After this time, a penalty will he assessed. | tin order to have a sufficiently large number of patrons to make (the electrification program successful. the Adams county committee is working with a committee representing aU the townships of Jay county and two townships of Ranidolph county. With the six Adams I county townships and the others, ’ there will be more than 2,000 custo- ! mers. If the six Adams county j townships attempted the project I alone there would be only about 600 customers. It was pointed out by the Adams county committee that appro-: ximately the same office force, crew of workmen and engineers •be required for the maintenance of service to 600 persons as w r ould be needed for 2,000 customers. lAfter February 6, the Adams county committee will suDtntf the names of those who have joined. (CONTINUED ON PAGE FIVE) STRIKER FAVORS NEW BUILDINGS County Superintendent Approves Additions To Schools A statement was made today by ; Clifton E. Striker, county superintendent of schools, relative to pro- ' posed additions to rural schools In Adams county. Mr. Striker’s etatament is: “Because of inquiries made to niy office by Root township school patrons as to my opinion on proposed community school additions in Adams county, I am making the following statement; “I can see no reason for objection to any corporation seeking a worth- ' while improvement to its school system when its people ehow their . willingness to pay for the improvement.” i Petitions are now being circulated for a proposed addition to the i Root township school at Monmouth, and those interested in the movement have stated that they have anticipated nearly a 100 percent sign-up of the petitions now being ■ circulated before the end of the week. i When the petitions are completed, they will be presented to the township trustee and the township j | advisory board for consideration. j

sending her to specialisle. Proliably if she had been attacked by the disease In 1938 instead of 1921. modern science would have been, able to prevent most of the havoc j wrought by- the disease on her body but at that time little was known of either the causes or treatments for the disease. Riley ■ hospital did not have a thereauputie pool and the Warm Springs., Georgia, foundation did not exist. There was no national foundation for the tight against infantile par ! alysis. Roosevelt A Victim Dorothy was attacked by the | disease the same year as Pres; dent Franklin Delano Roosevelt. 1 but did not have a personal for- j (CONTINUED ON PAOE TWO) + — ♦' Pipe Purloiner Asks Forgiveness 6 Years After Alleged Theft Six years after the theft of a ] piece of pipe from the property of 1 Hugh Andrews, public high school i teacher and coach, a voting ad and his father appeared yesterday before the local coach, i The iad. member of a strict religious sect of the county, is to be confirmed Sunday and asked the coach's forgiveness of his only ein, stating that he had taken the pipe to use as a swing for himself and fellow school students. Forgiveness was quickly granted and Mr. Andrews expressed the hope that the lads had enjoyed their purloined swing. GUARD SLAYER FROM SUICIDE Authorities Take Precautions Against Suicide Attempt Chicago, Jan. 26 — (U.R) —Extraordinary precautions were taken today to prevent the escape or suicide of John Henry Seadlund. unemotional confessed kidnapslayer of Charles S. Ross. He was removed to the county jail late yesterday under heavy guard and locked in an isolated cell only a few feet from the death j • chamber. There is no chance for him to communicate with other prisoners. Warden Frank Sain ordered a special day and night guard for the confessed slayer. He was deprived of his tie, belt and shoelaces to prevent any attempt at j taking his own life. He puffed a big cigar and grinned frequently as he underwent routine questioning by the jail registrar. Asked his occupation, he chuckled and said, “burglar." A jail physician, questioning him during a physical examination, asked if he had ever used nar-j : cotics. "Sure,” Seadlund said, “heroin and morphine, but not for a long time.” “How did you use it?” the physician asked. “In the snoot,” Seadlund replied.. He asked and was allowed to! keep a small picture of a two-year; old child. He would not identify the baby. He insisted in registering under his alias of Peter Anders and said his parents were dead, despite the fact his mother, Mrs. Paul Sead- : lund, Ironton, Minn., visited him ! Sunday. U. S. District Attorney Michael ! L. Igoe said he would present the slayer’s case before the federal grand jury Friday. He indicated i that Seadlund's 27-page confession to G-men would be read to the jurv. In his statement, Seadlund admitted timi he kidnaped Ross the ————— ——————— j (CONTINUED ON PAGE SIX) 1

SEVERE STORM SWEEPING OVER HALF OF NATION Driving Blizzard Extends Over Half Os United States — (By United Press) A driving blizzard, sweeping over the north central states from the Arctic regions, extended its force east and westward today and sheathed half the nation witli| crippling ice and snow. Mishaps caused by floods in the! middlewest and near zero temperattires and drifts throughout the Great laikeg region caused at least six deaths in three states. The blizzard, centered across the upper Michigan peninsula, spent its fury westward into Wisconsin and lowa. The biting winds, sometimes reaching a velocity of 50 miles an hour, piled 30-foot drifts across highways in Michigan and isolated hundreds of families. Additional suffering was caused by freezing flood waters in Wis- j cousin. Illinois and lowa. In the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles | i and western Kansas, raging dust storms uprooted winter wheat fields. Through the south, frost and high winds threatened damage to orchards and crops. Gale-like winds also endangered: shipping on the Atlantic and many hoals reached port just in time, j ' Mackay radio reported a distress call from the British freighter Pen- • catrow in the Atlantic about 60 miles off Halifax. Nova Scotia. The Pencarrow's master cancell-' ;ed an ‘ SOS’’ after learning the tug Foundation was en route to his aid. The coast guard cutter 1 Cayuga was speeding to assist the ! steam trawler Ripple, adrift with a crew of 2Y)' men 50 miles east of j Provincetown. • Although the biting cold brought new hardships to families forced to flee lowland homes in the TriState flood area, it ended temporarily the danger of more serious overflows. Early today six families were rescued from their homes near Fox Lake, 111., when waters of the Nlp-’"-sink creek overflowed. The rescued included seveial children.; Fifty children were marooned by nowdrifts in a high school five miles from Ironwood, Mich. Near Tarquette, Mich., other children were reported taking refuge in a farmhouse after their school bus was trapped by rising snows. IT. S. forecaster C. A. Donnel predicted a “severe” cold wave for the entire middlewest. The storm was centered over northern Lake Huron and was moving slowly. He ! forecast continued snowstorms in all northern states from the Mis-, sissippi to the Atlantic seaboard. Heaviest snowfall was expected in Pennsylvania and New York, he said. At Lansing. Mich., Gov. Frank Murphy expressed alarm as he received reports of the storm’s fury —marooning lake ships and automobiles. isolating farms and villages. forcing shutdown of schools and mines. “We must not permit this to become a catastrophe," he said. "The (CONTINUED ON PAGE THREE) HONOR WORKERS OF LOCAL FIRM Four Decatur NIPSCO Employes Are Feted By Company Heads Four employes of the Decatur branch of the Northern Indiana Public Service corporatbu were among the 167 workers of the organization who were honored at a ! banquet held in the Fort Wayne ! Chamber of Commerce building last evening. All four have been with the company for more than 10 yeai'S, having received buttons signlf.cant of that fact several years ago. j C. A. Stapleton, manager of the local office is the oldest in years jof service, starting his 26th year with the company. The others are: Miss Bertha Voglewede, recently retired from her duties; John Barth, who assumed the position of bookkeeper and Alva Lawson, of the service department. John H. Schanahan, president of the NIPSCo, delivered the principal address and Dean H. MitcheP, vicepresident, persented the awards. Fort Wayne, Columbia City, Bluffton, Peru, MontlceUo, Wabash and Logansport employes who had been with the company more than 10 yeare were honored along w th the I local workers.

Birthday Ball Heads Will Meet Tonijfht A meeting of all committee chair-. | men for the Birthday Ball for the I President will ibe held tonight at 7:30 o'clock in the office of the gen- i eral chairman, John L. DeVoss. The committee chairmen are: J Kenneth Beard, decorations; Ralph Kenworthy and Louise Haubold. arrangements; James Murphy, telegrams; Mrs. Hugh Holthouse, flowj era; Don Wait and Dr. E. P. Fields, I tickets and Edwin Kauffman and Fern Bierly, orchestra. WILL OBSERVE FOUNDER'S DAY Decatur PTA Council To Observe Founder’s Day February 18 The Decatur PTA council will join with similar organizations in the entire nation Friday. February 118 in the commemoration of Founder's Day, it was announced today. The local meeting will be held ! at the Decatur high school with all three of the local PTA’s from Central. West Ward and South Ward pa rticipatlng. Mrs. Gertrude Myers, adult edu- | rational director of WPA from Fort Wayne, will be the chief spedker at the meeting. The Central school glee club, under the direction of Miss Helen Haubold. will furnish the musical entertain- | ment. A feature of the meeting will be the showing of moving pictures taken during the razing of the old i Central building to make way for ; the new Decatur junior-senior high school. The Pictures, taken by Ravelings staff members of the high school, are expected to be of especial . interest to PTA members. Mrs. L. A. Cowans is president ;of the Decatur PTA council and j the program committee is composed of Miss Grace Coffee. Miss Mathilda Sellemeyer and Mrs. ! Francis Pollock. Complete plans for the meeting will be announced at a later date. Cub Training Course Meeting Thursday Cubs and parents interested ir. the Cubbing program in Decatur are urged to attend the training course, which will he held at the Decatur high school Thursday evening at 7 o’clock. OUTLINE ROAD IMPROVEMENTS New Method Os Improving Roads Outlined At Road Meeting Lafayette, Ind., Jan. 26 — (U.R) — .! A method of improving highways . without additional expense, now . in the experimental stage at Purdue University, was outlined today ,by Dr. W. K. Hatt, former head of the school of civil engineering, at the second day session of the 24th annual road school being held j at Purdue. Dr. Hatt retired some time ago ! to devote his time to the highway research project which was undertaken in co-operation with the j i state highway commission. An ap- ] | propriation of $50,000 was approv-: ed at the last session of the legis- • lature for the project. Construction of a sample strip II of road two miles northwest of the Purdue campus to study cli- | matic effects; the sampling of j various paving materials in differI ent parts of the state, and study ' of the paving materials after being used over varying lengths of time was described by Dr. Hatt. Other speakers on today’s pro- • gram included Earl Feldman, engii neer of tests for the highway commission; Professor R. A. i Moyer of lowa State college; C. N. 1 Siniff. engineer of maintenance for ' the highway commission and H. J Schnitzious. landscape supervisor for the highway commission. > "Since the state is spending 1 about $20,000,000 a year and its ' counties about $10,000,000 more in ' highway work, it is especially tm- ■ portant that we know definitely 1 that we are getting the most for j our money,” Dr. Hatt said. 1 In 1936 more than 3,000 miles of ' surface treatments were inspected and approximately 200 samples from these surface treatments 1 were collected for laboratory analysis, Dr. Hatt explained. “This survey showed that there ' is a definite relation between the; time of construction, weather con- \ J ditions and service behavior of ’ these surface treatments.” Dr. I 1 (CONTINUED ON PAGE SIX)

Price Two Cents.

EIGHT UNIONS SEEK 3RD TERM FOR ROOSEVELT Eight Resolutions Are Presented At Mine Workers Meeting Washington, Jan. 26 — (U.R) — Eight resolutions urging that President Roosevelt be drafted for a third terra were presented today to the 35th convention of the United Mine Workers of America. Scores of resolutions from locals of John L. Lewis' own organizaj tlon urged greater efforts to reunite the American federation of labor and the committee for industrial organization. Other resolutions endorsed the ClO's position in peace negotiations with the federation. On rest 'uflon. presented by a Hat a. Wyo., local, demanded a rank-and-file referendum before further UMWA funds are expended In the CIO drive. UMWA auditors reported yesterday the miners loaned CIO groups at least $1,200,000 between June 1 and Nov. 30, 1937. Echoing Lewis’ description of Mr Roosevelt as “the only president who has given the common people a square deal,” the third term resolutions were submitted by unions from Royal, Pa., Avella, Pa., New Salem. Pa., Uniontown, Ky„ Rivesville, W. Va, Everettville, W. Va., Scottsdale, W. Va., and Lochgelly, W. Va. One resolution said: “We feel that President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the present administration are doing all In their power to uplift the moral and earning power ! of the laboring class and we feel i that in the next two years of the i present administration it will be impossible to pass the necessary I legislation for the benefit of the 1 working class.” The resolutions were among the 2,172 proposed by UMWA locals. They were referred to the resolutions committee for study. The UMWA, which claims approximately 600,000 members and is the nation’s largest labor union, endorsed Mr. Roosevelt for a secj ond term at its 1936 convention and contributed heavily to the Democratic campaign two years ago. Mora than 10 resolutions calling for the expulsion of William Green, president of the A. F. of L. and | former UMWA secretary, were presented by the locals. Green was I charged with “dual unionism,” after he admitted the UMWA's Illinois rival, the Progressive Min- ! ers of America, into the A. F. of L. Other resolutions asked Green's suspension from the miners’ union. Still others urged the mine workI ers to join with “all organized I labor” in sponsoring a FarmerLabor party because "neither of the major political parties has been a friend to labor.” Another, submitted by a Frederickstown, Pa., local, urged the Farmer-Labor party to enter a presidential candidate in the 1940 election. More than 200 resolutions urging restoration of autonomy to 18 districts of the union were presented. Approximately 50 opposed | it. Delegates predicted this issue would stir the conventions major ! controversy. Other resolutions included a boycott of Henry Ford until he signs (CONTINUED ON PAGE TWO) DEATH CLAIMS LOUISE GERKE Mrs. Louise Gerke Dies Today At Home Near Fort Wayne Mrs. Louise C. Gerke, 88 native of Adams county, died this morning at 6:30 o’clock at her home, three miles south of Fort Wayne. Death w-as due to complications. The deceased was born hi Adams county November 27, 1849, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Heckman and was married to Herman F. A. Gerke. She was a member of Trinity Lutheran church. The husband preceded her in death November 23, 1912. Surviving are two daughters, ; Mathilda and Clara, at home; a son, Herman of Fort Wayne seven t grandchildren, and five great grandchildren. A sister, Mrs. Henry Dirkson, of Adams county, also survives Funeral services will be held Saturday afternoon at 1:30 o’clock at the home and at 2 o’clock at the I Trinity Lutheran church Burial ( will 'be made in the church cem!J etery. The body will 'be returned home ! Tuesday from the Zwick & Son funeral home.