Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 37, Number 244, Decatur, Adams County, 14 October 1939 — Page 1

kxxvu- No 2, t

IAZIS MAY MEET WITH OTHER POWERS

iISH SHIP ■|Y Al OAK IS MNK BY SUB \dmiralty Anflpce. Battleship Wxinkiiu Today ■ ’**• Ml’’ x s ' ■’ »ral»»< underwater IK im •. ■l |; . <>,k has ln-'-n .. ■ : ...... . < , W.IS : ot warships. . ...■<! inaj.T of the war. The sank ■ i'..;-4t-m- S.-pt 17 folll ago tomorrow, with the fr.: 26" offi< ere and HITS before the anof ’he sinking of the the admitulty had an the sinking yesterday of marines Two of ■ was learned today, were ocean going type. naval quarters said that of the Koya) Oak was not because it was one of Rays oldest battleships anti had always been infor use where the risks it was plain that navy had won a new victory. the Royal Oak was laid of Britain's 12 battleships nevertheless one of the fortresses" believed, un- ■* -!• ' - tiun methods. ■ almost unsinkable by subHsas the first British battle■lost since Nov. 10. 1918. the ■etore the Armistice, when as ■ submarine sank the old batBerman empire was < rat king ■p Rrlttania off Cape Trafal■on the southwest coast of ■-scene, in 1805, of Nelson's ■? over the combined French fleets. ■ Royal Oak had special ■ f " protection against tor“nd was regarded by naval ■rities as strongly protected ■” submarine attack. y. ll Oak tnok part in the batd Jutland in 1916. and was under tire in course of patrol in the Spanish civil war. Wnslly built at a cost of a ITINUED ON PAGE THREE) — o HMURDERER INLAKE AREA «h For Killer Os arsaw Woman Centers At (loose Lake *«**. Ind., oct. 14—<U.R>— tn for the murderer of Mrs. *n« Potter, 62, centered to--11 marshy ground, near Goose '■ nltout five miles south of ‘"rdon of police surrounded “tea H f t e r persons in the “"borhood reported seeing a _ l|) In an abandoned cottage * Thursday night. Police disrby * Moody handkerchief J™. Potter was killed sometime night or Friday mornPolice said. Her head had _ crushed uy a large atone. •“WINUSjJ ON PAUIi lUKEb,) ,

DECATUR DAILY DEMOCRAT

To Speak Here / A 1 .IbeBSI < Rev. Harold Garner of Oglesby I 111 . will be th. during the Adams cininty Sunday ( ■ school convention, which will be' . held at Geneva Sunday and at the i First Evangelical church in this I city Monday. ——— 11 BANQUET HERE MONDAY NIGHT — Banquet To Feature Adams County Sunday School Convention i Plans are rapidly going forward 1 . for the feature event of the Monday session of the annual Adapts county Sunday School convention. | which will be held at the First ; I Evangelical church in this city. The banquet of the young peo- j pie’s and I'brlsiias worker's group. ■ which will be held Monday even-. 1 1 ing at 6:15 o’clock, is heralded as , | the main part of the second day J ; program. The first sessions of the con-1 vention will be held Sunday after-,, noon in the Geneva U. B. church. ; starting at 2 o’clock. The evening session Sunday will be held in the : Geneva Methodist church, starting at 7:30 o'clock. The Rev. Harold ' Gamer will deliver the sermon at , 1 both of these sessions. The Monday program will start at 9:30 a. m., with the afternoon session at 1:30 p. m and the dosing session at 7:30 p. m. The banquet will be held between the as-: ' ternoon and evening sessions 1 Five minute talks by the Revs. 1 George O Holston. C. J. Gerig and G. T. Rosselot will augment the ■ address of the Rev. Garner. Special music will be furnished at all of the sessions by various ' church groups and soloists. Perrysville Youth Wins Husking Content I Flora. Ind.. Oct. 14—(UP)—'Paul i Bare of Perrysville won ths annual j i vocational agriculture corn husking! contest yesterday afternoon at the 11 Mummert farm near here during a • rainstorm before about 10.000 perI sons. Bare shucked 955.32 pounds to I top a field of 24 starters. Chinese Claim .lap Airfield Destroyed i Chungking. China, Oct. 14. -(U.R)! - —An official Chinese statement today said that three Chinese bomb- . ing planes had "wiped out” the airfield at Hankow, destroying almost 100 Japanese airplanes. After destroying the planes on the ground, the announcement j said, the Chinese craft engaged in 1 a dog flgnt with Japanese pursuit planes over a distance of 200 miles ’ In the direction of Ichang. Three Japanese pursuit planes ' were shot down during the battle, which was the longest of the war. ' the statement said. o— Four Are Killed in British Train Wreck f London, Oct. 14.— (U.R> — A train i wreck attributed to the “black out" killed four and injured five i ’ persons at the Bletchley station In 1 1 Buckinghamshire last night and ’ "black out" restrictions had to be i ’ lifted to facilitate the search for victims burled in the wreckage. i It was reported that many other i passengers had been slightly hurt, i Two sections of a Midland Scot- 1 1 tish express collided opposite the 1 ’ station platform. The waiting room ot the station was demolished- jl

SECRETARY TO F. D. R. DENIES PLEA RECEIVED Earley Denies Nazis Havel Made Any Bequest For .Mediation Washington, Oct. 14 — (U.K) — Stephfi| T. Early. White House secretary, today emphatically reiterated that there la no plea for mediation from the German government before President Roosevelt Referring to a headline In a New York newspaper which said that the United States was Ignoring Nall mediation pleas. Early said the headline wan in sharp contrast to "repeated declarations by the president. by White House officials and by the secretary of state that there is no Nazi mediation plea before the president." Early pointed to another dispatch In the same newspaper quoting the official German news agency DNB as denying any plea had been made to the president for mediation. "Gentlemen,” Early added, “that's not printing the news. It puts the president and this government in the position of sulking in their tents — which they are not.” Lindbergh Opposes Washington, Oct. 14 — (U.R) — Isolationist senators, encouraged by the support of Col. Charles A. Lindbergh, prepared today for a “tremendous fight” against repeal of the arms embargo. In his second radio speech on the United States’ position in the European war. Lindbergh last night aligned himself with the opponents of embargo repeal to ' the extent of advocating a modi- ’ fled embargo on arms and munttlons. He favored the unlimited export of defensive weapons. "If we repeal the arms cmlnirgo with the idea of assisting one of ( the warring sides to overcome the other.” he said, "then why mislead ourselves by talk of neutrality? Those who advance this argument should admit openly that repeal is a step toward war The next step would be the extension of credit, and the next would lie the sending of American troops.” Isolationist senators were greatly encouraged and claimed that the country's reaction to Lindbergh’s arguments would win them more votes in the senate. Administration leaders doubted that it would and still claimed 65 votes. 17 more than necessary to pass the president's program. It was pointed out that the vast majority of those supporting embargo repeal base their position not upon giving aid to one side In the war, but on the contention that the embargo is unneutral and could involve this country in war. l ln short, both sides claim that they are motivated only "by the desire to keep the United States out of war. “This fight is not hopeless by any means.” said Sen. Robert M. (CONTINUED ON PAGE SIX) O JUNIOR SCHOOL OFFICERS NAMED Junior High School Students Select Class Officers Today Officers of the junior high at the Decatur junior-senior high school, which is comprised of the seventh and elgthth grades, were announced today by Principal W. Guy Brown. Alvin Rickord was elected president of the eighth grade and Jerry Light was named vice-president. John Spahr was named secretary and Marilyn Cairns, treasurer. Lowell Smith, junior high faculty member, was chosen clasa sponsor by the members of the eighth grade. Don Eicher was named president of the seventh grade of the Junior high and Keith Gilpen chosen vicepresident. Joyce Roop was elected secretary and Jim King, treasurer. The class sponsor chosen by the seventh graders is Harry Dailey, also a member of the faculty. The seventh grade election was held late Friday while the eighth grade was held earlier. Classes in the senior high school had selected officer previously.

ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER IN ADAMS COUNTY

Decatur, Indiana, Saturday, October I I, 1939.

Conclude Centennial Celebration Sunday Rev. Ceo. 8. Lozier Prof. Edward N. Himmel The centennial celebration of the Evangelical church In Adams ‘ county will be concluded on Sunday with mass meetings In the forenoon. aftern<M>n and evening. The forenoon service will be held In the Decatur First church, while the afternoon and evening services will be held in the Berne Trinity church, it is anticipated that the attendance at each of the services will be large, as has lieen the attendance during 1 the past week Prof Edward N. Himmel. North Central College. Naperville. 111., will be the guest speaker at each of the three services. He | will speak In the forenoon on "Christ and His Glorious Church"; in the afternoon on "Thy Kingdom Come" aud In the evening on "Doing I the Will of God." The services begin at 10:10 a. m.; 2:30 p tn and '7:30 p. m.. respectively. Special music and other features will lie inhided In each of lhe services. The pulilic is cordially invited to. attend any or .ill of these services.

Adams County Man Held At Bluffton Bluffton. Oct 14—Dale Johnson, ?n Adams county young man. was I i eturned to this city Friday by Sneriff Fleming French from Mun* ! th-, where he was taken Ir'o cuaI tody following the filing of an affidavit in the Welle circuit court i here by John A. Fulk, charging him ■ with forgery. He was arraigned be- : fore Judge J F. Decker and with- • held his plea. • tile is alleged to have forged the ■ nnme of Mrs. W. 11. Johnson to a - check for $5. written on the FarI mers’ State bank of Prebl?, and to have had it cashed by Fulk manager > of a local blacksmith shop. NO CHANGE IN HOOSIER CROPS I I I — Hot, Dry September Made Little Change In Crop Conditions i —— Lafayette. Ind.. Oct. 14. — The I exceptionally hot. dry September ’ weather made little change in In- ' diana crop prospects. If anything. It hastened the drying of the corn, which was estimated to yield 50 ; bushels per acre with a total pro- • duction of 207.200,000 bushels, acI cording to a monthly crop report I issued today by the agricultural statistics department of the Purdue University agricultural expert--1 m nt station in co-operation with i the U. S. agricultural marketing service. ’ The estimated corn yield is the highest on record. The report indicated husking began in September at an unusually early date. Such a small proportion of the crop was Immature last month that the premature ripening caused by the hot. dry weather had a negliI gible effect on the yield. I Potatoes suffered from the dry weather, especially in the northern Indiana counties. The indi- . cated yield was lowered five bushels from the August figure to 90 bushels per acre with a total production now forecast at 4.680,000 bushels. Crop reporters claimed a higher i soybean hay yield than previously i indicated, raising the figure for all ■ tame hay to 1.35 tons per acre, the . ten-year average being 1.12 tons. The September weather was very • favorable for curing soybeans and other late hay. Soybeans for beans were reported prematurely ripened with a slight reduction in expected yield • to 19.5 bushels per acre and an ■ indicated production of 12.422.000 i bushels, 48 per cent more than last year. Pastures declined 32 points In ■ condition in September. Fruits ■ made very little change. The I commercial apple crop was still . estimated at 1,200,000 bushels. Api prehension early last month of , damage by excessive heat was not i reflected In reports on apples. I Other crop production estimates i follow: oats, 28.812,000 bushels; barley. 704,000 bushels; tobacco. 10,156,000 pounds, and sweet po- , tatoes, 345,000 bushels.

YOUNG SLAYER FOUND GUILTY r _______ Reform School Parolee Faces Death Sentence For Slaying i _ Hollywood, Oct. 14. — (U.R) —An ' all-male jury deliberated but 50 . minutes before convicting DeWitt Clinton Cook. 20-year-old reform . school parolee, for the city college ! j campus murder of Anya Sosoyeva. . I 27. pretty Russian dancer. The jury’s verdict made no recI nmmendation for leniency, thereby I making the death penalty man- ! datory. Cook, who confessed then later denied bludgeoning Miss Sosoyeva Ito death last February 24. sat white-faced and sullen as the veri diet was announced. In an unusual proceedings, the jury was polled at the request of Cook s public defenders as to the degree of the crime and again as to the penalty. The word "death" was repeated 12 times and first degree ’ the same number of times Sentencing was set for next Friday. . , Cook presented no defense. Deputy district attorney U. U. Balalock closed his case Wednesday with a motion picture re-en-actment of the campus slaying, with Cook taking the murders role while police cameras and microphones recorded his actions and words. The movies were taken after the lowa youth had confessed dubbing Miss Sosoyeva with a 2 by 4 scantling. Deputy public defenders Ellery Cuff and William B. Neely argued for two hours in Cook's behalf, attempting to convince the jury that life imprisonment would be sufficient punishment. FRENCH CLAIM 17 SUBS SUNK Assert 17 or 18 German U. Boats Sunk, Others Are Missing Paris. Oct. 14—<U.»~Authoritative French sources said today that the allied fleets had sunk 17 or 18 German submarines since the start of the war and that several others had been attacked and ■ their fate could not be determined , Acivlty on the western front the past 24 hours was reported almost ala standstill because of heavy l rain and fog. Several German patrols appeared east of the Moselle river and In the Chrenthal salllent i southeast of Swelbruecken and i German artillery shelled French positions on a hill west of Saarlouis. it was announced, but elsewhere it was generally quiet. French sources admitted a previous German announcement that the French had blown up three railway bridges over the Rhine Thursday morning. The bridges were at Wintersdorf, near Hagenau; Tfrlssac, neat Colmar, and . Neuuburg, near Mulhouse.

Nazis Report Conference To Be Held With Russia, Italy To Discuss Allied Rejection

FRED MAJOR TO BE PAID HONOR Decatur Odd Fellows Lodgi* To Honor Grand Master Os I. O. 0. F. Arrangements are now underway by members of the local Odd Fel-1 lows lodge for a banquet and re-1 I ception in honor of Fred Major, i , of this city, who was elected grand I ' master of the I. O. O. F. of Indiana j The affair will be held at the ' ' Im ai lodge hall Thursday evening. ; ; October 26. The affair will be i I open to the public and tickets sell | j ing for 25 cents may be secured , from any member of the order. D. L. Drum. Walter Lister and James Gattschall are members of > lhe committee in charge of the event. Further details of the event will be announced later. Mr. Major is the first member of i the local order to be elected grand I master. He has been active in fra- i ternal work for a number of years, first being initiated into the St. 1 i Mary's lodge. No. 167, I. O. O. F. I on October 25. 1925, and after havII ing filled all elective offices bej came a member of the grand lodge in 1928. In 1936 he held the appointive | office of grand guardian and in i 1 1937 was elected grand warden. "In 1938 he was named deputy : | grand master and this year was i • advanced to the highest ranking - j office in the state lodge. , I He is one of the youngest men Ito be accorded that honor in the ■ll2O years of the lodge's existence. ■' Dorphns Drum, also a member I (CONTINUED ON PAGE THREE) YOUNG PILOTS BREAK RECORD California Flyers Set Light Airplane Endurance Record I.OS Angeles, Oct. 14 — (UP) — With one world's record already behind them. Clyde Schle'pper and ' Wes Carroll today kept kloCt in i ' tiny seaplane for the 15th day They ■ were gunning for an all-time endur--1 ance flying record of 30 days. At 4:30 o'clock yesterday after--1 neon they broke the old light plane record of 343 hours and 46 minutes held by the Moody brothers of of Springfield. 111., The two young pilots were eating a snack of early supper when they broke the record. A cheer tram the ground crew brought a happy wave of response. Though flying a seaplane equipped to laud only on waler. they are keeping to a course above the hard surface of Rosaincud dry lake. The idea Is that this will discourage any temp.ation to land until they have to. Word of the record was signalled to another endurance team. Troy Colboch and Jerry Keeley, droantng above Santa Ana airport. This pair 1 today was In Its 10th day. "Congratulations.” Colboch and Keeley replied. "And we'n> coming right after that record." A third California team was also ' competing. Bill Eddy and John ’ eebumaker were in their Bth day ■ over Sarcamento airport. , o Chamberlain Not To Broadcast Tonight London. Oct. 14 — (UP)— Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain will ’ n>t make a broadcast speech to • Canada and the United States toi night, as had been reported, his office announced. Brother Os Adams County Woman Dead William Byrd. 59. brother of Mri. I Enos Wilson of near Decatur, died i Friday at his home In Bluffton. Tite| i widow is the only other near survi-i i vor. Funeral services will be held • nt the Presbyterian church In Bluff I ten at 2:3n o'clock Sunday afternoon. Burial will bq at Ossian.

CITY SETS DATE FOR BOND SALE Electric Utility Bond Sale To Be Held Here October 23 The sab- of |350.0<M) of electric i revenue bonds on the City Light I I and Power plant by the city of I I Decatur, will be held at 2 o'clock , | Monday afternoon. October 23. at I the city hall, it was announced to-' I 'lay by city officials. The council met in continued' session last night and passed the j I new ordinance, authorizing the | sale and providing for the pay-1 ment of the bonds. The proceeds : from the bonds are to be used in : I financing a half million dollar Im- ■ 1 provement to the municipal utility. including a 5.004) KW turbine.: a (toiler and other necessary equip- ■ ment. bids for which will be re- i reived Nov. 1. The ordinance, captioned number two. amended the instrument adopted by the council on September 26. and changed the amount of lionds io lie issued to 3350,000, an increase of 350.000 over the original figure. It also provides that the bonds shall be paid in semi-annual installments. beginning January 1. 1942. and continuing up to January 1. 1955. To provide for the payment of the bonds, the ordinance, which was passed by a four to one vote, councilman Morris Plngry voting “no" on Its adoption, the city wilt set up a bond fund, equal to 15 percent of the gross revenues of the electric department. This fund will grow until it reaches a total i of 380.000. The bonds will be dated October 1. 1939. will be sold at par and at ; an Interest rate not to exceed 4*-i percent. The bonds will be sold to the person or firm who bids the lowest interest rate. A 330.000 certified check must accompany each bid. The maturity schedule on the bonds provides that 320.000 In bonds shall be paid each year in 1942 and 1943; 822.000 each year in 1944 and 1945; 812.000 on January 1. 1946 and 813.000 every six months thereafter up to and Including January 1. 1949. From July 1. 1949. payments will be 314.000 every six months, up to and fhcluding January 1. 1951; and from July 1. 1951 to January 1, 1955. inclusive, the payments (CONTINUED ON PAGE THREE) - ■ O ————— Pastor’s Father To Preach Here Sunday The Rev. M. T. Brandyherry of Ontario. Calif, father of the local pastor, will be the special speaker at the morning and eiening services at the Church of the Nazarene. The miming worship service convenes at 11 A M. and the evening services will begin at 7:30 p. m. NEW BUILDING STARTED HERE Socony-Vacuum Oil Co., Is Building Warehouse Here Preliminary work on the construction of a warehouse for the Socony-Vacuum OH Company, near the southeast corner of Eighth and Monroe streets, has been started. The work of construction is being done by Phil Sauer local contractor. and his crew of workmen. Excavation work was scheduled to start today. The ground had been staked off and cleared away preparatory to excavation. The building Is to be approximately 26 by 56 feet lu size and Is to comprise for the main part 1 storage space for materials hand!- . ed by the company. Plana also Include a section of ; the space to bo used as an office room for the warehouse. Mr. Sauer estimated that about one month would be required tor thu couslructluu of lhe building.

Price Two Cents.

Informed Sources Assert Leaders Os Nations May Meet In Italy To Talk War Situation. COMMON DEFENSE Berlin, Oct. 14 (U.R) German. Russian and Italian leaders may i meet somewhere in Italy to dls--1 cuss the allied refusal to end the war on Adolf Hitler's terms, usualjly well Informed Nazi leaders rej ported today It was Indicated that no meeting had yet been decided upon, but that the question was lielng ' discussed In negotiations through I diplomatic channels on what the Nazis called the insulting Btltl.ili ; rejection of Hitler's peace hid. Nazis attached Increasing Imi portance Io the visit to Italy of | Heinrich Himmler, chief of thi Gestapo, the Nazi secret police. Himmler went to Italy ostensibly i to discuss evacuation of German- ‘ blooded people from the Italian I Tyrol, but Nazis (minted out that such a visit would be made If Hitler proposed to go to Italy. Himmler's visit to Lake Como, often the scene of International conferences. Increased Nazi Interest in the possibility of a three power meeting in Italy. In any event, Nazis said, a three power consultation would be held j soon, in addition to the present ' negotiations through diplomatic ! channels. They said “common | defense measures" would be dia- ; cussed. (There baa been no Indication , I from Italy either that a threej power meeting would lie held there I or. if a meeting were held in Italy !or elsewhere, that Benito Mwsao I lint intended to discuss any "common defense masures.") Nazis seemed to believe that premier-foreign commissar V. M. Molotov or Vladimir Potemkin, vice foreign commissar, might come to Berlin to represent Russia In negotiations and that. If no meeting were arranged in Italy. Count Galeazzo Ciano. Italian foreign minister, might come 4o Berlin. The Nazis seemed *nfldent that if Hitler asked. Italy would give military aid to Germany. But at the same time there was a belief in well Informed quarters that Germany attached more importance to seeking the utmost aid from Russia. Russia was not believed to have proraised Germany any military aid so far. In a further tightening of air raid restrictions It was said that regulations would be enforced henceforth with “Iron strictness." The reinforced Gestapo made it known that 500 persons were bcf ing punished each night tor blackI out violations. . Police would act ruthlessly, it i was said, to enforce the new 25 , mile an hour motor speed limit , and to stop the sudden flashing on of headlights. Motorists were encouraged to blow their sirens in warning to pedestrians Bicyclists were warned that their machines would lie seized If they rode without any lights at all. David P. Steury Suffers Broken Leg David P. Steury of route I. Berne, ctirpenter, was admitted to the Adams county memorial hosnital yesterday when he fell and broke his leg. • , — o ■ "■ Former Appellate Court Judge Dead Winchester, Ind., Oct. 14 —(UP) —Frederick S Caldwell, 77. a former Judge of the Indiana appellate court and superintendent ot schools here for one year, died yesterduy after a short illness. O 111 TEMPERATURE READINGS DEMOCRAT THERMOMETER R :00 a.m.... 36 ll:00a.m 42 10:00 a.m 38 WEATHER Fair, cooler in extreme southeast portion, heavy frost tonight; Sunday fair with rising temperature. w