Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 46, Number 301, Decatur, Adams County, 22 December 1948 — Page 1

it.’ . W Mb lAlni DECATUR DAILY DEMOCRAT ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER IN ADAMS COUNTY

XLVI. No- 301.

EEVEN JAPANESE WARLORDS EXECUTED

■herlands ■lndies ■ls Halted {■United States Cuts |ljff Recovery Aid I ■ house Os Move Dec. 22 — (UP) — ...'■fery chief Paul G - Hoffman SKciit off all recovery aid to ■ieiiierlands East Indies until ■Dutch conflict with the Repub- ■; Indonesia is settled. economic c ooperation adminKtion.of which Hoffman is head. ■tMt the action does not affect -■jCA program for the Nether- ■ itself■never, money which already earmarked or authorized ■ tie Netherlands East Indies ■ lot yet used will not be com■ed lor the present. ■’■i&an's decision has the ap■nl of the state department ii seriously concerned with .■Dutch "police action" in the ■cesian republic to "restore or■yady about $6,000,000 has been ■irized in grants by the BCA ■se by the Dutch in the Nether■ere was no immediate estimate ■» much of this already has ■ inent. .Most of it is for tex■i rice and wheat Hour, sorely ■N by the natives. c'Ste Republic of Indonesia has ■received any Marshall plan aid. '•'■if the J 6.000.000 has been all■:ted for the Netherlands East ■ stopping such aid, Hoffman the present no new contracts ■leroneiudad under outstanding ■trement authorizations. Hith- ■ BCA has allotted funds for recovery of the Dutch- ■ portion of Indonesia as part ■iprogram for assistance to the ■kriißds." .■ffman's action spiked plans of ■th officials to use Marshall plan ■kthe Republic of Indonesia af■tity have "restored order.” K Troops Advance yhvia, Dec. 22 — (UP) — The •■tt army reported tonight that tOtroops were advancing unop■•in the Indonesian republic, command said its forces established any con'act ■ Republican units which were ■•W to withdraw before the arrived. |B'-Mniunii|ue reported that in jßklJava Dutch troops occupied ■ Delanggu Sugar area be- ■* Jogjakarta and Soerakarta. sources said the Republiup the main installations ■•ornkarta before they withcommunique said the Dutch ’*** the air field at the Indon- i Sumatra capital at ■“Kioggt. The capture of the >t«elf was reported earlier tofron Pleads Not Wfy To Murder ■J* W »TW. Ipd.. Dec. 22—(UP) ■*'« Dodson, handsome forsoldier, today plead■~*en! to the murder of Mrs. ■J** Howard, for which anai rea dy has been sentK *0 die. ■J**” 1 »nd Robert V. Christen. ■*J? operator of a drug store ■\’ Mh are charged with the ■L, °f Mrs. Howard, wife of ■"Heid soldier, in March. 1945. ■». weather ■J^ 1 ' cloudy tonight, some■J 1 co'der north portion. ■T**X increasing cloudi- ****** temperature

Parking Meters Are Selected By Council Meters Mounted On Removable Posts Automatic parking meters, mounted on removable posts to make way for the 1949 street .fair, will soon be in operation on Decatur’s streets. City council Tuesday night made its selection from the bids sub- . mitted by manufacturers and chose ! the Park-o-meter, an automatic de- , vice, to help in the solution of the I traffic problem. Park-o-meters are currently in use in Kendallville,; Logansport and Jeffersonville. | Ind., and Bryan, Hicksville, and Dayton, O. The removable post clause, which ’ was necessitated by the setup of the annual street fair, will be included in the city's agreement with ' the manufacturer. Buffalo, N. Y., I and Petoskey, Mich., have enteri ed into similar agreements because ■ of their local problems. Length of legal parking when! ■ the meters are installed has yet to; : be decided upon. The Park-o-meter i xian be adjusted for one-hour or j two-hour limits. Pennies and . nickels may ba used in the devices, 'which are'completely automatic ! for the motorists' convenience. The council adopted an ordinance approving a contract for the purchase of a black 1949 Plymouth sedan to replace the present police ' patrol car. It will be delivered by 1 Phil L. Macklin and company for a net price off 729. Mollenkopf and Biting were chosen to supply the city with a model 1 AB-5 International truck of 17,500 pounds maximum load, and an Aristocrat six by nine dump body, to replace the present 1941 Chevrolet dump truck. Net price is $2,000. Acquisition of the patrol car and dump truck was approved by the adoption o! a pair of ordinances under suspension of the rules. Marvin Hill, a property owner . along the route of the proposed North sewer improvement, appeared before the council to protest such a project. He said its depth of three feet was insufficient, and charged that it would overlap the (T:"" Tn Pnirf Two! — William Weber Dies Al Hospital Today Funeral Services Sunday Afternoon William Weber. 71. of Preble, prominent retired farmer, died at (9:15 o'clock this morning at the (Adams county memorial hospital, i He had been in failing health for several years and confined to the hospital for the past 12 days. He was born in Root township ' .May 7. 1877, a son of iaiuis and Wilhelmina Weber, and I to Sophia Bieberich April 1.. 19M j ,He was a member of St. Paul s i Lutheran church at Preble Surviving are his wife: four daughters. .Mrs, Lawrence Busche of Allen county. Mrs. Richard Be er of Convoy. « • I!e,e " er of Kirkland township and Mrs Edward Bleeke of Union township, two sons. Clarence and Robert Weber, both of Kirkland township, eight grandchildren: one brother Fred Weber of Norfolk. Neb and two sisters. Mrs. Dan Bieberich o. Fort Wayne and Mrs. Dallas Hower of Tulsa. Okla. Four one daughter, three brothers and five sisters preceded him in death. Funeral services will be held 1-30 p m. Sunday at the home and a' the St. Pauls Lutheran church at Preble, the Ret. O ' to C Busse officiating- Burial wi.i IzwlA -..ml home Thurwlaj'..." ~ ‘ may call

Possible Peace Moves Studied By Nationalists 1 Begin Discussions Soon On Seeking Negotiated Peace ! Nanking, Dec. 22 — (UP) — The new Nationalist cabinet of pre- ' mier Sun Fo will begin discussion? almost immediately on the question Jof whether to seek a negotiated ' peace with the Chinese Communists. 'An affirmative decision is expect- . ed, high Chinese sources said, but the major question as to whether , the Communists now, in view of thAir continuing military successes, . would be willing to accept anything less than virtual surrender complicates the issue. | Sun. Generalissimo Chiang Kaii j Shek, and other Nationalist leaders ' are extremely anxious to make it ' appear to the Communists that they I cannot possibly hope to conquer all ■ China militarily, it was said. It was expected, therefore, that an unusually strong Nationalist fighting effort may be forthcoming in the next few days on the approaches to Nanking. If Communist advances toward the north bank of the Yanktze could be halted, Red leaders might be more willing to discuss what Sun calls "an honorable peace." This presumably would be a settlement calling for a coalition government in which the Com- 1 munists would have no more than an equal share of power. The Kuomintang central political (Turn To Page Bight) Quentin Roosevelt I Air Crash Victim • 1 ■ One Os 35 Killed In Chinese Crash Shanghai, Dec. 22-(UP)- The ( operations manager of Chinese NaI tional Aviation Corporation noth 1 fied headquarters here today that Quentin Roosevelt and 34 others : died in the crash of one of company's planes yesterday. 1i Capt. E. M. Allison wired from Hong Kong that 27 of the victims were Chinese passengers, mostly , wealthy evacuees from Shanghai. “All abroad were killed in the j first impact.” Allison reported.' ( "The bodies have been sent to the ( Kowloon mortuary.” The big DC-4 Skymaster that carried the grandson of president ( Theodore Roosevelt to his death ' I crashed into a hillside and burned on Basalt Island, 13 miles from Hong Kong, during poor flying 1 weather. Airline officials said Roosevelt's body had been positively identi- ' fied. The son of the late Brig. Gen. Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., was a ) vice president of the airline, which has been ferrying refugees from , the China war. I ■ It was understood that Cornelius Roosevelt. Quentin’s brother and ( head of William Hunt and Com-!, pany of Hong Kong, had taken off j for Shanghai to join Quentin’s , widow and three children. Mrs. , Roosevelt is the former Frances ( Webb of Kansas City. Mo. She was a former American Red Cross worker who married Roosevelt at j Blandford. End., in 1944. The Skymaster went down 14 minutes before it was slated to land in the British Crown colony. It maintained radio contact on its trip south and then Informed the. Hong Kong airport that it was >etI ting down for a landing The cause of the crash has not been determined A search plane found the I wreckage. I In two years’ activa service with ' (T«M

Decatur, Indiana, Wednesday, December 22,1948

Yule Gift From This Trumans I a ■' Ol Fl (i f llafc ■IT J 3 ■ ||9, t j.' mF i * ' MWfe. f 1.1 I' l ' t M t ‘ , '■ kjM LEATHER BOOKMARKS are Christmas gifts of President and Mrs. Truman to White House employes. Genevieve A. Irish of Burlington, Vt., secretary in office of Charles Ross, shows you one, inscribed “I would rather have peace in the world than be president-. Christmas greetings from President and Mrs. Truman, 1948.” Gifts carry presidential seal above inscription.

Denies Blame For Slow Bridge Work Denies Commission To Blame For Delay Fred Deal, superintendent of the Bluffton sub-district of the state highway commission, has denied i i hat the blame for allegedly snailpaced progress on the Pleasant iMills bridge rests with his department. ' In a letter to the Decatur Daily Democrat, received today, 'Mr. Deal likened the commissioner's problem 1 to that of a carpenter erecting a' house who has no other supplies , than the shingles for the roof. lHe said a lumber vendor at Brazil had been called upon to supply , 75 pieces of 4xlo-20 lumber for the renovation of the covered bridge. Due to inclement weather, .Mr. Deal's letter exiplain's, "he has been unable to get the logs out of the ’ woods to saiw them for the job. 1 But he has been delivering them as fast as he can." The letter adds that most of the flooring material has -been delivered. Residents on the east bank of the St. Mary's river at Pleasant Mills 1 have been virtually isloted by the 1 bridge repairs, which have been underway for more than two months. They can reach Pleasant Mills on foot across a perilous ternporary plank, or take an eight or 12 mile detour via Willshire, O, or Decatur. Following is the text of the explanatory letter: "Editor Decatur Democrat. "Dear Sir: — For the information of the people who have been customariliy crossing the covered ' bridge to go to Pleasant Mills. A word of information may be of solace to them, it is not through any fault of the state highway com mission that the bridge isn't com : pleted. This case could be parallel with a carpenter erecting a house, and the shingles for the , 4Tn*«* Ta Good Fellows Club Previously reported 1645.05 i Rotary Scout Troop 5.Wp Kitty Kaye 500 Knights of Columbus 10.4»0 i Local 1932 (USAI — 15.00 r Total $680.05

Christmas Party Is Held By Lions Club More than 125 Lions club members and their children or other young guests attended the dub’s annual Christmas party Tuesday evening at the Decatur junior-sen-ior high school. A magician entertained for half an hour, and Santa Claus presented each of the children with treats. Refreshments for all followed. Malcoln Locke and Watson Maddox were in charge. Narcotics Peddler Sought By Police 18 Youths Arrested In Raids On Parties Indianapolis, Dec. 22 — (UP) — Federal and local authorities today sought an unknown narcotics peddler suspected of furnishing marijuana to 18 persons, most of them young people, arrested in raids on wild sex parties. Meanwhile, vice and narcotics squads were poised for more raids against houses suspected as sites of sex and dope orgies. Fifteen persons, including two teen-aged girls, were arrested on vagrancy charges in a raid Sunday night at a house where an all-night party was in progress. Sgt. Harold Morton, who was assigned to full time duty investigating the city’s marijuana problem, said no drugs were found in the house but “the air was blue with marijuana smoke.’ “Police have knowledge that sex orgies have been going on in this spot," he said. City judge Alex Clark released the two girls to their parents. But five others, including a boogiewoogie tavern pianist.* were held under $1,500 bonds pending a Dec. 30 hearing. The raid by federal narcotics agents and city officers was followed up early yesterday by a second at another house where three persons were arrested, including a pretty 21-year-old girl. The three were released on SSOO bond. Morton said police were convinced that a single peddler has been supplying the young people with marijuana and encouraging them to in (Tara To Page Two) • 4

Hangman's Noose Claims Lives Os Hideki Tojo, X Six Other Jap Leaders

Grand Jury Returns One Indictment Here I Report Inspection Os County Buildings The Adams county grand jury adjourned this morning after an 11day session during which 27 witnesses were heard. One criminal indictment was returned, but no! details are to be made public until an arrest has been made. Recommendations included in the jury’s report on its investigation of county buildings, submitted A<> Judge Earl B. Adams today, included: 1. The employment of additional help at the Adams county home. 2. The repair of windows in the court house; the redecoration interior walls throughout the court house with the exception of the basement; the painting of the exterior of the courthouse; the im- , provement of lighting facilities and expansion of storage space for records in the clerk’s office; the placing of rubber mats on the (metal court house steps which . "have become worn and slick, inak- . ling them very dangerous when , they become wet;" the installation ! of Venetian blinds in every court house window. 3. The opening of the chimney for the fireplace in the front room of the county jail; the painting of the kitchen, cells, office and halls. The report praised sheriff Hermon Bowman and Mrs. Bowman for "the cleanliness of the premises" at the jail and found the county infirmary in good condition, commending Mr. and Mrs. Frank Kitson, superintendent and matron of the institution. John Bixler, court house custodian, was lauded for his efforts in (Turn Tn I’niie S'vea. May Use Abandoned School For Center Building Is Offered By Township Trustee i Members of the Washington town ship extension planning committee Tuesday night discussed the possibility of transforming the aban , doned Rinaker school into a community center. The school, located one mile north of Monroe, was offered for conununity use by township trustee John Stoneburner. Such organiza tions as the Farm Bureau, home economics clubs and 4-H clubs I i would have the use of its facilities under the plan. County recreational director Dennis R. Norman announced a tem- , porary committee to publicize the plan, composed of Mrs. Russell Mitchel, Mrs. Henry Helman, Mrs. Leonard Schwaller. John B. Stone- ! burner. Jay Yost. Eugene Herman and Thomas Miller. A meeting of ; interested persons in Washington ! township will probably be held in i the near future. , New directors for the township planning committee for 1949 were elected at the meeting. They are Mrs. Russell Mitchel and John Kintz. The meeting was held at the home of Peter Lehman. Township problems were discus sed hy the planning committee, and the need for more people to serve jas township leaders was stressed. | (Tara Ta Page Sevea)

Asks UN Order A Cease Fire In Indonesia United States Says Dutch Assault In East Unjustified Pari -, Dec. 22—(UP) The Uni - ed States asked the United Nations security council today to order a cease fire in Indonesia and a withdrawal of Dutch and Indonesian Republican troops to the lines they held before the lighting started Sunday. Dr. Philip Jessup told the council that the Dutch attack was unjustified. He said the situation ■ wall dangerous, and might prove: to be "a grave threat to internalI ional peace." The council met in emergency session to consider the fighting. in Indonesia. The Dutch defended their attack by pleading that they | were fighting a government "seriously undermined by cornmun i ism." The United States, Colombia, and Syria joined in presenting a, resolution calling for the cease fire and the troop withdrawal to the old truce lines. "My government fails to find any justification for the renewal of military operations in Indo ! nesia," Jessup told the council. "The council is obligated under the charter at this stage of its de-! liberations immediately to order a cessation of hostilities in Indonesia and to Require the armed forces of both parties immediately to withdraw to their own sides of the demilitarized zones which are! delineated in detail in the truce! agreement of Jan. 17, 1948." The truce he mentioned was the Dutch-Indonesian agreement worked out aboard the U. S. warship Renville under the auspices of a! UN commission of good offices. "I must reiterate my govern !, ment’s view that the council’s (, cease fire order of Aug. L- 1947. continues to lie binding on both (Turn To I'ocr T»ol Funds Distributed By Stale To County $580,042 Received • During Fiscal Year Adams county and its cities. ’ towns, townships and schools received a total of $580,042 in dtstri but ions of state funds during the I 1947-48 fiscal year, or at the rate of $27.30 per capita, according to an analysis contained in the bien ! nial tax and social security manual of the Indiana State Chamber of Commerce. The statewide per capita average was $26 S 6. Statistics concerning the county show the school units received $269,783: the share for streets and highways was $185,560, and the civil units received $124,699 for general expenditure and ’ public welfare purposes. In addition to the $27.30 per capita received In state aid. governmental units of the county levied $40.10 per capita in local property taxes The combined Adams county re Iceipts of state distributions and (Tent Ta Pact Sevea)

Price Four Cents

High-Ranking Japs Pay Final Penalty For Aggressive War In The Pacific Area Tokyo. Thursday, Dec. 23—(VP) — The hangman's noose today claimed the lives of Hideki Tojo, Japan's "architect of infamy." and six other high-ranking Japanese convicted of waging a war of aggression in the Pacific. The official announcement from the office of Gen. Douglas MacArthur said: “Between 0000 (12 midnight) and 0035 (12:35 a. m.), 23 December 1948, all seven of the war criminals that were condemned by the international military tribunal of the far east were hanged." An unnamed American hangman delivered the final justice to Tojo, on'y one of the three Axis dictators to stand trial for his part in starting World War 11. Although the army would not confirm it, it was believed the executioner was Lt. Charles Rexroad of San Rafael, Cal. Rexroad left his home in Yokohama earlier in the evening and told a guard he would not be home until ti a.m, Only a sma 1 unidentified bod) of military officials witnessed the executions which took place inside Sugamo prison on four Americanbuilt gallows. The seven men were executed after the longest and costliest legal undertaking in history—a trial which lasted 2% years and cost an estimated SIO,OOO a day. Tojo and his six aides went to I their deaths "with minds as pure | and cleansed of worldly cares as that of Buddha." according to Nobukatsu llanayama, Buddhist priest who administered the last rites to the warlords. 'They were utterly indifferent toward religion while they were (Turn f io I’nn* Mil Toys And Clothing Given By Merchants To Good Fellows Club Decatur’s less fortunate were given a deciiied boost toward a happy Christmas today with the announcement of a windfall of gifts to the Good Fellows dub by Decatur Merchants. Several hundred dollars in new' toys, never used, were given to the Good Fellows club by the Schafer i Co. and the Schafer Store. Further , Itootning the Christmas spirit were 1 splendid gifts of clothing from the Gass Store and the C. A. Douglas [Co. Decatur is meeting the challenge of the Good Fellows club and many a -Decatur home, otherwise cheerless on Christmas morning, -will be a happy spot when the Delta Theta Tau sorority members, sponsors of the club, make their distribution of sorely needed food, clothing and toys. SHOPPINGS & BUY CHRIJTMAJ fEALf