Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 45, Number 307, Decatur, Adams County, 31 December 1947 — Page 1

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||jxLV. No. 307.

person Asks ftlop Lists ■Speculators — Should Halt Release . •fMost Lists To rSrevent Harm Dec. 31 — (IP) ■E ary of agriculture Clinton said today that he to stop release of most furlists of commodity market !^K r£ in order to prevent harm to small, innocent iHe secretary made his anafter a conference President Truman. He said ■\. intended to make a formto the presi|H later. said he would issue ■ her list of about 1,000 names ■ day or two and hope after "the people" will be “satis|Btliat these lists are not packJHrh insiders who made for|K from tips.” did not make it clear imwhether his no publiiM- proposal would apply to a ■■which will be compiled in %Hgary of all government emwho traded on commodiany time in 1946 or 1947. Uaderson said he knew of no ■who “needs shielding.” secretary, however, told a story of a small town |Htor who had written him indi■g that lie would take his life ■is name appeared on one of sericulture department lists speculator. doctor wrote Anderson a ■t letter saying that last spring |Hwas “persuaded by a custom- ■ man" to go into the corn He lost money, and the without consulting him, ■i went into cotton futures the doctor again lost ■jey. doctor told Anderson he got out of the commodity after protesting the brok- ■ unauthorized action. the physician heard that speculators would be pubHe wrote Anderson it mean his ruination in the town in which he lived and be “about the same as be- ■ caught in a disorderly house a police raid.” lot of people got caught in this way,” Anderson said, just and unjust got caught ■Person said he intended to the problem with the today but did not get >n a conference with the executive, secretary of comce W. Averell Harriman, and of state Robert E. ■tttt. ■person said that after he inthe doctor he could not ■® Ms name off the lists, he ■ttfreti another ' letter which BJ ta part: Mp am so rry lam not extrovert To Pae-e 6, Column 8) ■ — O Ble Os Christmas ■ls Near Quota of the Adams county B erc M°sis association today ansales of Christmas seals B raith bonds total $2,820.21, B«nn S2OO short of the $3,000 ■p for the county. Individuals organizations who have not or their seals are requested to B.|° at once in order that the B ®ay be exceeded. ~ ■■ —o ■ Cloudy ra| WMther ■ins « rain ex treme south |S ' r ” 2ing rai " <”■ cen- ■ fii aht \ n ° rth Portions tonJ" 31 " 9 t 0 lloht snow I’r lloht 1 Central and t 0 Bleet ■•outh TL in “ rai " oxtreme I'Mder somewhat ■ Th U r.^ tßn 9ht - rather cold

DECATC DAILY DEMOCRAT

Five New Officials In Office Thursday Three County, Two In City Positions Three new elective county officials and two city officials will take office for the first time tomorrow, New Year’s Day, to begin their terms. Edward Jaberg, Decatur school teacher, will assume the office of county clerk, succeeding Clyde O. Troutner. Both are Democrats. Mr. Jaberg was elected to a four-year term in November, 1946. Norval D. Fuhrman will become county treasurer for a two-year term, succeeding Roy L. Price. Both are Republicans. Mr. Fuhrman was also elected in 1946. John W. Blakey, a Democrat, will become a member of the Adams county board of commissioners, succeeding Dale D. Moses, a Republican. The majority on this board once again swings back to the Democrats. Other members of the board are John C. Augsburger, Democrat, and John Christener, Republican. The new members of the city administration are John M. Doan, mayor, and Joseph A. Krick, city councilman. Mr. Doan, a Republican, succeeds John B. Stults, a Democrat, and Mr. Krick succeeds Harry H. Hebble. Both are Democrats. Mr. Hebble was not a candidate for re-election. The other city councilmen, all Democrats re-elected, who begin new terms tomorrow are: Adrian G. Burke, Joseph H. B«ennan. Dorphus L. Drum and Alfred K. Beavers. H. Vernon Aurand. Republican, will begin his third term as city clerk-treasurer. The city administration will hold a special meeting at noon Thursday to swear in the new officials and the county commissioners will hold a special session to conduct an annual reorganization meeting. Numerous appointive officials and departmental heads in the city administration, all announced previously by mayor-elect Doan, will also assume the duties of their respective offices New Year’s day.

Announce Appointments Mr. Jaberg announced today the re-appointments of Mrs. Maxine Troutner as deputy county clerk and Mrs. Eileen Andrews as regisMrs. Troutner has been in the office for the past two years, most of that time as deputy. Mrs. Andrews began her duties last February. Mr. Fuhrman announced that he had re-named Miss Helen Ruth Haines as deputy county treasurer. Miss Haines has been serving in that capacity for the past four years, being named to the post when Mr. Price assumed the office. Q Report Os Criminal Cases Is Announced

212 Cases Handled During Past Year A total of 212 criminal cases were handled in courts here during the year 1947, it was shown today in a compilation of monthly reports made by prosecutor Myles F. Parrish to the county commissioners. Thus more than SI,OOO was turned over to the state by the prosecutor’s office at the rate of $5 and $7 per case handled in the various criminal courtas. The figure does not include paternity, guardian, juvenile and divorce cases. Offenses include forgery, grand and petit larceny, burglary, malicious trespass, reckless flying, reckless driving, drunken driving, assault and battery, assault and battery with intent, game la'w violations, excise law violations and larceny by trick. Two persons are still serving prison terms from the list of defendants in the above actions.

Two Escaped Convicts Are Reported Slain Six Are Captured, Four Still Free After Prison Break Canon City, Colo., Dec. 31 — (UP) — A posse of national guardsmen and peace officers today killed one convict and wounded another who had joined 10 other criminals in a wild break for freedom from the Colorado state penintentiary last night. The slaying of the fugitive raised to two the number killed in the manhunt. In all, six were captured after gun battles, and three of them were wounded. Four of the 12 who participated in the break still were at large. The man killed today was identified by warden Roy Best as Orville Turpley, 54, convicted of murdering a deputy sheriff. Frank Hellman, 26, a kidnaper, was wounded. Heilman and Turley were shot by national guardsmen and a sheriff's posse with “shoot-to-kilf” orders after barricading themselves in a secluded shack near Florence, Colo., where they had sought food from the owner, identified only as an “old man.” The posse trailed the two fugitives to the shack, creeping In-dian-fashion the last few yards, and demanded their surrender. Turley and Heilman bolted from the shack and made a run for it. The posse’s bullets killed Turley and “shot the hell” out of Heilman. Warden Best reported. He said Heilman’s right arm had to be amputated. Best said he had a report that another posse had trapped three other fugitives in the hill country near Garden Park, Colo., 12 miles from the prison. If the report is correct, Best said, only one man is left Unaccounted for. John Klinger, 43, a one-time robber, was killed several hours after the break. One of the five captured convicts was apprehended through (Turn To Page 2. Colnmrt 3) O 416 Wedding Licenses Issued In Past Year Dan Cupid made plenty of progress in Adams county during 1947. a survey of the county clerk’s records showed today. While the little fellow bagged 416 couples with his love-tipped darts that sent them to the marriage altar the past year, only 59 new divorce actions were started.

Unusual News Stories Mark Year 0f1947 In Decatur, Adams County-Traffic Low

BY 808 SHRALUKA STAFF WRITER Tonight at midnight Decatur winds up one of its most unusual years — the year 1947. Now, we’ll admit there were no outstanding stories for Decatur in 1947 — but in the vernacular, it really was a year for “screwy" stories. For instance: Just take the third day of the first month, January. Mother Nature is one of her more prankish moods threw a coating of ice over everything from the housetop to the telephone lines. That little fiasco of hers just about paralyzed everything vital in the city and community for several days. Then think back about the time when Decatur was actually without fire protection for several days — before the city dads in an emergency action bought a used Ford fire truck from the Edsel Ford estate. How did it go, anymore? One of the trucks would run but its pump-

ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER IN ADAMS COUNTY

Decatur, Indiana, Wednesday, December 31, 19 7 I

Michael Abdicates For Love

Kt x

SACRIFICING HIS THRONE for love, young King Michael of Romania has abdicated, permitting immediate formation of a Commun-ist-led so-called 1 “Peoples’ Democratic government.” Son of the fabled former King Carol, Michael presumably took the step so that he might marry Princess Anne of Bourbon-Parma. It is reported Communist officials in Romania had withheld permission for the marriage on grounds that the country could not afford expenses of a state wedding at this time.

Fire Losses Lowest For Several Years Annual Report Made By Retiring Chief Fire losses in the city during 1947 are the lowest in several years, it was reported today by retiring chief Harry Stults. While the total figure will not be. compiled for several days, chief Stults said that the department answered 65 fire alarms in the city and 14 in the rural areas during the year. The loss will undoubtedly be low’, he declared, while the same figure throughout the nation is the highest on record —some 700 million dollars. • Chief Stults issued an expression of appreciation to the general public for the cooperation and support received during the five years he held the post as chief and urged continued cooperation with the new chief, Cedric Fisher, and his assistant, John E. Meyer. He also urged a continuance of the fire prevention and cleanup program. Chief Stults, for 20 years a member of the volunteer force, will remain in the ranks. Other members of the department, besides the retiring chief, the new chief . <Tnrn Tn Paep 2. Column SY

er wouldn’t work. On the other the pumper would work but the ' truck wouldn’t run. It seems there i was a chance of pulling some sort 1 of a civilian defense auxiliary pump- ! er with a truck (the one that would t run but its pumper wouldn't work) . 1 in event of a real emergency. The j whole problem has been solved now, however. Decatur not only 5 has that Ford, but it has a big, ' new streamlined Mack, besides. 1 Then there was that cat stranded ’ on a pole — remember? Henry > “Hank” Dierkes proved himself a hero for the students of the Decatur - Catholic School and the Sisters of i St. Agnes when he braved the maze I of “hot” lines to bring down Tabby after she had been on that pole for , about 18 or 20 hours — and he t got a medal for it (a sort of pseudo- . award from his fellow workers.) Sheriff Herman Bowman started s something, too. In 1935 a Berne ec- . centric was found dead — frozen in f the ice of a stone quarry. Nobody • thought much about it — and the

BULLETIN Chicago Dec. 31 —(UP) — The weather will add to the ordinary hazards of travel New Year’s Eve on the highways of Illinois and Indiana, the weather bureau here warned today. “’Freezing rain or sleet,” said the bulletin, “beginning in southwestern Illinois this afternoon, will spread eastward tonight." o Decatur Lions Hear Legion Commander James Staley Speaks At Meeting Tuesday The American Legion’s contribution to the community was outlined Tuesday evening by James K. Staley, fourth district Legion commander, in an address to the Decatur Lions club at the Knights of Pythias home. He described the efforts of the Legion to assist in civic projects and enterprises and the part that it plays in aiding veterans of all wars. Mr. Staley said that about onethird of the veterans in this district have enrolled in the Legion and are supporting its programs. Harry Knapp was in charge of YTiirn Tn Pas. Column Ki

coroner returned a verdict of death by natural causes. But sheriff Bowman, a special policeman at Berne w’hen they, found John Mullen’s body, remem-1 bered some of the oddities surrounding the circumstances of his death. Then he learned that some Amishman was supposed to have said he “couldn’t sleep since I killed John Mullen.” The sheriff reopened the probe into the 12-year-old death and the grand jury took it up from there. No one has been charged with the murder but the case is still “open.” Oh yes — don’t forget those flying saucers. We Decaturites saw them, too — at least some of‘us did. Remember those whirling discs reported in the sky throughout the nation? There was that young newscarrier boy. Kenneth Nash, who went to Mapo Bros, clinic at Rochester for one of the most delecate opera-

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Pres. Truman Confident All Nations Can Agree Ultimately For Peace

City Plant Whistle To Greet New Year The curfew shall ring tonight! It will be the curfew whistle, but it won't carry the meaning. As his last official act, retiring mayor John B. Stults instructed municipal plant workers to blow the plant whistle at midnight tonight — long and loudly — to greet the New Year. Several bells will likely be rung and other noises added to the din of welcome. o

Names Members Os City Planning Group Appointments Made By Retiring Mayor Four appointments to the new city planning commission were announced today by retiring mapor John B. Stults. The new appointees are: Charles W. Kent, real estate agent and a Republican, to a twoyear term. Kenneth E, Hirschy, Central Soya .company employe and a Democrat, to a three-year term. Dick D. Heller, newspaperman and a Democrat, to a three-year term. Harold Mumma, lumber company dealer and a Republican, to a twoyear term. The appointees will serve on the bi-partisan board with mayor-elect John M. Doan, city engineer Ralph E. Roop, both ex-officio members, and councilman Alfred K. Beavers, chosen earlier this week by the city council as its representative. Mayor Stults announced this morning that he had made the four appointments upon the recommendation of the council and that the appointments would be approved by the council at the first meeting of the New Year. o Hagana Condemns Attack On Arabs Jewish Underground Condemns Attacks

Jerusalem, Dec. 31 —(UP)—The Jewish underground army hagana issued a statement today condemning the attack on Arab oil refinery workers in Haifa as “madness” and attributing it to “Jewish dissidents." The attack touched off the most murderous battling yet seen in the Holy Land’s month-old war, with 41 Jews slain for the death of six Arabs killed by barrel bombs dumped from a speeding taxi. Fear of similar outbreaks caused a strike by 500 Arab and Jewish workers in the Jerusalem general post office, shutting off all telephone and telegraph communications with the outside world. Government and press messages, however, were transmitted by the British army radiocable system. Hagana’s statement lashed at the Haifa attack as “a mad deed by Jewish dissidents which in no way justified the murder of tens of Jew workers in the refineries.” The hagana statement alleged that the Jewish people sought peace so they could work undisturbed in all parts of Pa’estlne. ilt insisted that hagana would continue its policy of “aggressive defense” despite the casualties.

Wallace Outlines Program Os Peace Hits Both Parties As Leading To War Milwaukee, Dec. 31 — (UP) — Henry A. Wallace planned to fly to his home in South Salem. N. Y.. today for a month’s rest before launching an intensive campaign to win his third-party fight for president. Wallace made his first address as a candidate last night. He charged that leaders in the Democratic and Republican parties were “whooping it up for a war with Russia" and outlined a seven point program “to form a basis for world peace.” More than 3J)00 persons paid admissions to hear him speak in the Milwaukee auditorium. The audience was unetithusiastic * but: listened attentively to the address which was not broadcast. Wallace approved of the Marshall European recovery plan as ' a means of aiding destitute nations hut disapproved of the Truman policy motive as a means of halting communism in those ■ nations.

He said the plan “with the Truman doctrine as its core" has interfered in the social economic and political affairs of the countries which have received aid.” He also criticized the administration for by-passing the United Nations in dealing with and aiding the war-wrecked nations. His own plan to promote peace and prosperity, he said, would: 1. Establish a reconstruction fund within the United Nations, similar to the United Nations rehabilitation and relief administration, to help those countries to become self-sustaining. 2. Establish a special UN agency to administer the fund. 3. Encourage nations “possessed of the means” to contribute sufficient money to the fund along with the United States, to maintain it for five years. 4. Give nations which suffered worst under the Axis prioirty tc use the fund. Allocations would be based solely on merit and need,* regardless of the nations’ politics or social institutions. 5. Permit each nation to deYTurn Tn Pasrp 2. Column F»> o Ed Jaberg Resigns Lincoln School Post To Become County Clerk On Thursday

Miss Opal Sprunger, of Monroe a third grade teacher at the Lin coin grade school, will assume thr position left vacant by the resigna tion of Edward Jaberg, count'-clerk-elect, it was announced toda'by Walter J. Krick, city school superintendent. Mr. Jaberg has resigned his posi tion to enter the public office after 32 years as a teacher, 17 of these in the Decatur school system. Miss Sprunger will teach socia’ studies and geography in the fourth, fifth and sixth grades, classes formerly taught by Mr Jaberg. Mrs. True Andrews of this city has been named as a substitute teacher temporarily for Miss Sprunger. Both will assume their new duties with the opening of school on Monday.

Price Four Cents

Looks Forward To 1948 Confidently That World Peace Can Be Achieved Washington, Dec. 31 (UP) — President Truman today expressed confidence that all nations can agree ultimately on a world peace, but told the Russians that “a mutual spirit of goodwill and confidence is a necessary prerequisite." The president spoke about peace on two occasions — first in general at a New Year’s 'Eve news conference and then in receiving the credentials of Alexander S. Panyushkin as new Soviet ambassador to the United States. To the newsmen, Mr. Truman said he looked forward to 1948 with confidence that world peace can be achieved. To the new Russian envoy, he said that solution of the world’s postwar problems demands “a mutual spirit of goodwill and confidence" among the great powers. He told Panyushkin that th< American people want to “live in peace with other nations in a stabta and prospering world" and that hey will cooperate readily with any other nation which makes clear hat it has the same goals. The president’s meeting with the new ambassador —a broad-should-ered. middle-aged man with a heavy head of hair — was brief and largely perfunctory,, Mr. Truman also told his news conference that he felt 1948 will be a happy political year for the Democrats. But he refused to comment on Henry A. Wallace’s decision to run for president as an independant. In a New Year’s Eve news conference, Mr. Truman also: 1. Said he did not consider that his personal physician. Brig. Gen. Wallace H. Graham, did wrong by •peculating in the grain market. 2. Congratulated the General Electric Co., for its voluntary reduction of prices from three to 10 percent and said that if other companies follow suit “a real bulwark will be built against rising prices.”

3. Announced he will send his state of the union message to congress on Jan. 7, his annual economc message on Jan. 9 and his new budget on Jan. 12. 4. Thought a lot of people ought o make New Year resolutions, but hat he personally would not make any. 5. Refused to say why he is not •eappointing James M. Landis as hairman of the civil aeronautics joard. Landis’ term expires at midlight. Mr. Truman also voiced “every aith” in “the final working of the united Nations as a means of general world peace.” He said he still was “confidently looking forward to a world peace of which all the nations can agree.” “We can’t afford else.” he continued, saying that world peace would benefit “the selfish interests” not of this country but of every other nation. The president’s dissertation on he prospects for world peace began with a New Year’s greeting to reporters and wound up as a bell(Turn Tn Pat-c n. Column o) O Births Far Outnumber Deaths In Decatur Births far outnumbered deaths in Decatur during 1917, it was shown today in a report made by Mrs. Annabelle Heller secretary of the city board of health. Births for the year, excluding the month of December, totalled 541. Deaths, up to and including December 30. totalled 105. The birth figures includes all babies born at the local hospital. Parents of many of these reside outside the city.