Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 56, Number 285, Decatur, Adams County, 4 December 1958 — Page 1

Vol. LVI. No. 285.

I , jS XXw -■ - ■ i * B ■£&&)& ** » ’ I '' r * fe SKhL Ji " -iw ***' FIELDS OF FLAMES— The Malibu, Calif., area brush fire rages in background while in the foreground only smoldering embers of what once was a home remain. Scores of residences have been burned.

Chicago Plans For Tightening Os Fire Laws Indicate Lack Os Fire Doors Added To Fire Death Toll CHICAGO <UPl>—City officials promised to tighten fire laws today when an investigation indicated lack of fre doors sucked suffocating gases to the second floor of a parochial school, killing 87 children and three nuns. Investigators comb in g the charred Our Lady of the Angels Roman Catholic grade school for clues to the tragic Monday afternoon holocaust believe the flames broke out in rubbish under a basement stairwell. TJiey said the flames and smoke and gases swept up the open stairwell to the second floor,, killing the children in one searing breath. Most of the victims were found in six classrooms on the second floor. The first floor, protected by a metal fire door, suffered relatively little fire damage. Deny Any Negligence However, the pastor of Our Lady of the Angeles Catholic Church and the janitor of the school denied any implications of negligence. The pastor, Msgr. Joseph Cucussen, said as far as he knew no papers or rubbish had accumulated beneath the stairwell. James Raymond, 43, the school janitor, told arson investigators under intensive questioning that he had checked the basement frequently and found no rubbish under the stairwell. Authorities planned further questioning today of Raymond, one of 75 persons still hospitalized in the wake of Chicago's worst fire in 55 years. Nine of the injured were reported in critical condition today and nine others were removed from the critical list and reported in fair condition. Conformed To Ordinances The 48-year -old school conformed to city fire ordinances despite the lack of a fire door on the second floor, and city officials said they would act to revise the laws to prevent a similar tragedy in the future. “We will make sure it can never happen again,” Mayor Richard J. Daley said, “when all the investigations of the fire are ended, all the necessary steps will be taken to protect our children. All the faculties of the city wiU be thrown into this.” Fire Commissioner Robert J. Quinn said he believed a door at the top of the open stairwell would have saved the 90 lives. He said most older Chicago schools still have such unprotected stairwells, and said he would consider Continued on page five INDIANA WEATHER Partly cloudy, windy and turning colder this afternoon and tonight. Much colder in north portion tonight. Scattered snow flurries likely near Lake Michigan tonight and Friday. Partly cloudy north, cloudy south Friday with chance of snow possibly mixed with rain in south portion Friday. Colder Friday. Low tonight in lower 20s extreme north, 25 to 30 south. High Friday 25 to 30 north, 30 to 35 south. Sunset today 5:21 p.m. CDT. Sunrise Friday 7:50 a.m. CDT. Outlook for Saturday: Clearing and colder. Lows Friday night 25 to 35. Highs Saturday in the 30s. 12 Pages

DECATUR DAIEF DEMOCRAT

Three Santa Claus Trains On Saturday Details Complete For Three Trains Final details for the three Decatur Chamber of Commerce Santa Claus trains which will be run Saturday were announced today by Tom Garner, Christmas promotion chairman of the Chamber and by Erie railroad officials. Trains will leave from the Erie station on Winchester street at 10 a. m., 1:30 p. m. and 4 p. m. Indications are that all three trains will be filled to capacity, since over 1,000 tickets have been distributed for each run. Last year, 2,488 persons enjoyed the trip. Erie officials said today that the trains will be ready approximately 30 minutes before departure time. Trains will again be on the north track and will be loaded from the station'side. The Winchester street crossing will be blocked while the train is being loaded and autos will be detoured Util tug 'WM t* -- *'■ Police ask that autos be parked properly and off the main thoroughfare. Efforts will be made to keep traffic lanes open so that parents can bring children to the station, shop while the children are riding with Santa Claus, and then pick them up when the train returns in about 90 minutes. Traffic control was handled expertly last year and the congestion which some had feared did not develop. Police and sheriff department officers received many favorable comments for an unusually fine job of handling last year's traffic. Officials again emphasized the necessity for having only the proper colored tickets for each train. Only the tan tickets will be valid on the 10 a. m. train, only yellow tickets at 1:30 p. m. and only green tickets for the last run at 4 p. m. Nurses and first-aid personnel will be available on each train, through co-operation with the local America Red Cross office, in event any child becomes ill. Mrs. Vernon Aurand, R. N., Walter Stoppenhagen and Mrs. Lester Ford will serve on the morning train. For the early afternoon train, Miss Eloise Noll, R. N., Mrs. Roger Singleton and Mrs. Jack Rayer will be on duty, and on the 4 p. m. train Mrs. Edna Meyers, R. N., Gerald Durkin and Mrs. Arthur Shoaf. Members of the Delta Theta Tau sorority will again sell popcorn at the station. All profits will be used by the Good Fellows club to provide Christmas food and gifts to needy families. Participating merchants will receive their number assignments Friday or Saturday. Each person riding the train will be given a numbered copy of Santa Claus train news. They will be urged to shop Decatur stores to find the Continued on page five December Meeting Os Retailers Monday The retail division of the Decatur Chamber of Commerce will hold its December luncheon meeting Monday at the Decatur Youth and Community Center at 12 o’clock, Fred Kolter, executive secretary, said today. The guest speaker will be William Hood of the Hartford Acci? dent and Insurance company. His theme will be “Insurance — general background.” A question and answer period will follow. Hood‘was obtained through the co-operation of Teh Hill of the Leia riel Smith Insurance agency. Members who can not attend are asked to contact the Chamber office before 12 noon Friday. Members planning to bring guests to the meeting are asked to make reservations accordingly.

Malibu Brush Fire Nearly Under Control Over 2,000 Men On Fire Line In Costly Fire In California MALIBU, Calif. (UPP) — The huge Malibu brush fire which has destroyed 40 homes and blackened more than 20,000 acres was reported almost under control today but still extremely dangerous. The disastrous conflagration at one time forced several thousand residents including a number of movie and television personalities to flee their homes in the Santa Monica Mountains. ‘‘There is no expected time for complete control,” the county Fire Department reported. More than 2,000 men remained on firelines, concentrating mainly on hot licks of flame which endangered a populated section near Webster School and two other hot spots along a five-mile perimeter on the east and west lines. “All men and equipment are being held. No one has been released except the injured,” the Fire Department announced. More than 1,000 servicemen from nearby Navy, Army and Marine camps were assisting in the firefighting. Star’s Home Destroyed Lew Ayres’ $50,000 home was among those destroyed. Others luckier were actor Glenn Ford, Bob Hope and Ronald Reagan whose properties were seared but who managed to save their homes. A fleet of airplanes dropping packs of a water-borate solution bombed the area, especially the hot spots and the inaccessible sections in the rugged canyons. The fire by night looked like a million bonfires from a distance. But the stench of destruction could be smelled from miles away. In the early morning light the fire scene was black. A plume of dirty black smoke swirled 15,000 feet into the air and flattened out on the horizon, darkening the western part of the sky for Los Angeles residents 35 miles away. Hot, dry and windy weather has plagued firefighters since the fire broke out Tuesday at the 20th-Century Fox ranch. Scene of Desolation Roaring along on winds up to 60 and 70 miles an hour, the blaze spread over 2,000 acres in less than two hours, literally exploding the squat scrub dak trees which spot the area. The same dry and hot weather conditions prevailed Wednesday although winds were down around 35 miles an hour. Los Angeles Wednesday had a high temperature of 89, an all-time recorded high for Dec. 3. Residents returning to sections which already have been wiped out and no longer offered anything for the blaze to feed on, were faced with a terrible scene of desolation. The blackened hillsides which only two years ago fed the disastrous Malibu fire that claimed one life, 45,000 acres and 60 million dollars worth of property were once again littered with the carcasses of animals. Many families will be homeless for Christmas. County officials estimated that in addition to the millions of dollars damage caused by the blaze, it cost more than SBO,OOO a day to, fight the fire.

ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER IN ADAMS COUNTY

Decatur, Indiana, Thursday, December 4,1958.

One Dead, Nine Saved When Navy Helicopter Crashes In Potomac

Democrats To Center Fire On Vice President California Leader Urges Development Os Western Accent WASHINGTON (UPI) — Paul Ziffren, California Democratic national committeeman, advised the Democratic Party today to develop “a western accent” and to keep its gunsights on Vice President Richard M. Nixon for the next two years. Ziffren gave his views at a news conference in which he spelled out the bid of his home city of Los Angeles for the 1960 Democratic convention. He said holding the convention in Los Angeles would put it “in Nixon’s back yard.” No matter whom the Republicans nominate for president in 1960, he said, the Democrats should keep an eye on Nixon. Ziffren said he and other western Democrats also believe the party “needs a western accent”, since 12 western states, including Alaska, now have 19 U.S. senators. He said he felt the party would be under “a great handicap if we have a predominantly southern accent.” Conceding that a “struggle for power” is underway to shape the party’s future course, Ziffren predicted that the national committee, at its meeting Saturday, will vote overwhelmingly to keep Camille Gravel as Louisiana’s national committeeman. The Louisiana Democratic committee is demanding Gravel's removal to clear the way for his replacement by a committeeman who would take a stronger stand on racial issues. Gravel told newsmen that under no circumstances would he consider resigning. He said he was elected to a four-year term by the 1956 national convention and that none of his critics had charged him with any offense except support of the Democratic Party and its nominees. Jett M. Talbot, chosen as Gravel’s replacement by the Louisiana committee, will present his credentials to the credentials committee Friday. The group is expected to recommend that Gravel remain on the committee. Continued on page five Mrs. Susie Reppert Dies This Morning Well-Known Decatur Resident Is Dead Mrs. Susie Reppert, 85, well known Decatur lady, died at 7 o’clock this morning after only a short illness. She became slightly ill last evening while visiting with her sister-in-law, Mrs. Jacob Borne, at the Walter Augsburger home, 726 North Third street. Her condition became worse during the, night until her death this morning. Mrs. Reppert had lived with Mrs. Martin Worthman for the past 32 years, and they had moved recently to the McConnell apartments on North Third street. She was born in Magley April 22, 1873, a daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth Borne, and was a lifelong resident of Adams county. She was married in 1898 to Otto Reppert, who died in 1926. Only surviving relatives „ are many nephews and nieces. Four brothers and five sisters preceded her in death. Mrs. Reppert was a member of the Zion Evangelical and Reformed church. Funeral services will be conducted at 2-p.m. Saturday at the Zwick funeral home, the Rev. William C. Feller officiating. Burial will be in the Decatur cemetery. Friends may call at the funeral home after 7 o’clock this evening until time of the services.

Ready Air Base For Project Discoverer Put Man-Carrying Satellite In Space VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (UPI) — Scientists, engineers and construction men worked feverishly here today to ready this huge new air force base for “Project Discoverer,” a program aimed at putting a mancarrying satellite into space. The Defense Department announced Wednesday 1 that the first shot in the program to find Olit how to put a man into orbit and get him back safely will be fired in about 30 days. , The biggest U.S. satellites to date will be launched. These eventually will include a five-ton artificial moon which is much bigger than anything Russia has put into orbit so far. Mice and monkeys will go first, probably on the fifth or sixth launchings about the middle of next year. When enough information is obtained, a man will be launched, but not in 1959. Spokesmen explained one reason Vandenberg was chosen for this project is its location on the Pacific missile range, the world’s largest, from where it is a clear shot to the South Pole, the direction in which all launchings firom here will be made. Sjn the Pacific, there is plenty of ocean in which to recover the satellites and many islands which can be used as tracking stations,” a spokesman said. Other reasons: —Experts believe the jutting section of coast may be the only place in the U.S. where it is possible to launch satellites into polar orbits. It is only in a polar orbit that a reconnaissance satellite such as the Air Force sentry could view the entire surface of the earth. —The installation is close to “most manufacturers involved in production of missile development” and to headquarters for the ballistic missile division of the Air Research and Development Command. Reach Compromise Over Space Agency Pres. Eisenhower Okays Compromise WASHINGTON (UPI) — President Eisenhower has approved a compromise which will hand the new civilian space agency a ley Army laboratory but let the Army keep control of its missile programs and space experts headed by Dr. Wernher von Braun. The agreement was worked out by the National Aeronautics and Space Council, which met with the President Wednesday. After the conference, Eisenhower issued an executive order putting it into effect. The compromise stipulates that the German-born Von Braun, the Army's top rocketeer, and his 2,100-man team will devote some of their time to peaceful projects for the civilian space agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. This will' include eight satellite launchings next year. The President, acting in the “national interest,” ordered the Army’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory at Pasadena, Calif., transferred to NASA to give it an established lab for research work. At the same time, he agreed to an Army demand that it be allowed to retain control over its space scientists and proceed with development of its various missile programs. The compromise was aimed at ending a dispute which arose when the space agency asked that Von Braun and his big staff be transferred to its payroll. The Army contended such a * move would wreck its missile program.

West German Leader Backs Berlin Stand Adenauer Flies To West Berlin To Aid Stand Against Reds BERLIN (UPl)—West German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer flew into West Berlin today to throw the weight of his immense prestige behind the free world outpost in its stand against communism. Socialist Mayor Willy Brandt headed a full-dress civic welcome for Adenauer which underscored the chancellor’s political campaign visit as a symbol of West Berlin’s defiance to the Communist threat to strip toe city of its defenses. Adenauer’s Christian Democratic Party technically is opposed to Brandt’s Social Democrats in Sunday’s elections for a new 127-seat West Berlin City Council. Brandt is seeking re - election against Lemmer, minister of all-German affairs, who has Christian Democratic support. Adenauer arrived from Bonn aboard a special U.S. military plane. The 82-year-old statesman drove directly to his quarters here to rest for a party rally tonight. In his campaign appearances here, Adenauer was expected to urge a massive turnout of voters rather than to indorse any candidate in the contest for mayor. His overriding theme was likely to be German unity. The Socialists polled more votes than the Christian Democrats in West Berlin’s last election, but the two parties are both represented in the coalitiop that governs the city. The results SunJday are expected to continue this arrangement in force. The Communists polled only 2.7 per cent of toe vote in the 1954 election, winning not a single seat in toe City Council. The Reds are expected to do even worse Sunday. Authoritative sources in London said today Britain hopes to meet Russia’s demand for toe conversion of West Berlin into an undefended “free city” with “positive counter-proposals.” They said there was no point

Continued on page five M. E. Lord Dies At Lutheran Hospital Retired Manager Os Fort Wayne G. E. Manley E, Lord, 70. retired works manager of the General Electric Co. in Fort Wayne, died at 4 o’clock Wednesday afternoon at the Lutheran hospital in Fort Wayne. Mr. Lord was manager of the Fort Wayne works from 1939 until his retirement in October of 1953, and was well known in Decatur through his business and civic contacts through the local G.E. plant, which was also under his supervision. He was a member of the Trinity Episcopal church, Sol D. Bayless lodge F & AM, Mizpah Shrine, Scottish Rite, Rotary club, Elfun society of G.E., Chamber of Commerce, Fort Wayne Country club, and the Junior Order Mechanics. He became associated with General Electric in 1908. Surviving are his wife, Edna F.; one son, Alan C. Lord, Fort Wayne: one daughter, Mrs. Lorraine Saylor of Fort Wayne; one brother, Ralph H. Lord of New Jersey, and four grandchildren. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Friday at the Trinity Episcopal church, the Rev. George B. Wood officiating. Burial will be at Dingman’s Ferry, Pa. Friends may call at the Klaehn funeral home after 4 p.m. today until 1:30 p.m. Friday, when toe body will be removed to the church to lie in state until time of the services.

Minimum Wage Law Increase Is Sought t Major Drive Opened By Organized Labor WASHINGTON (UPI) — Organized labor and its allies launched a major drive today to obtain an increase in toe federal minimum wage and extend it to include millions of workers not now covered. New demands for Congress to revamp toe Fair Labor Standards Act were expected to result from a two-day conference marking the 2Qto anniversary of the minimum wage law. The AFL-CIO and the National Consumers League, joint sponsors of the meeting, lined up such new deal headliners as former Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins and economist Leon Keyserling to address their conference. The Labor Federation was on record in favor of a 25-cent boost in the jninimum to $1.25 and extension of coverage to nearly 10 million additional wage and'salary workers. Secretary of Labor James P. Mitchell, scheduled to speak today did not commit himself on a higher minimum or broader coverage in his prepared remarks. To Ask Amendment Mitchell said he would ask Congress to amend toe act to authorize him to sue an employer to recover back wages tor an underpaid worker without toe worker’s written permission as now required. ' He said many workers are reluctant to give their consent even though they have been paid wages below toe legal minimum. “Any man (who) cheats his employes will not be expected to look kindly upon being dragged into court by one of them,” Mitchell said. The cabinet member asked more workers to complain if their employers violate the wage-hour law. Labor’s arguments for a boost in minimum standards were to be advanced by AFL-CIO President George Meany when he speaks at a banquet tonight. Asks Coverage Expansion The present $1 an hour minimum went into effect March 1, 1956. Mitchell proposed expanding coverage to include 2,500,000 more workers at the last session of Congress but no action was taken to amend toe law. About 24 million employes in 900,000 firms now are covered by the act, which provided for a 25 cents an hour minimum when it Continued from page one Elks Hold Memorial Services On Sunday Annual Service To Be Held By Lodge Annual memorial services of the Decatur'B. P. O. Elks lodge will be held at the lodge home on North Second street Sunday afternoon at 2:30 o’clock. This service is held on the first Sunday of each December in memoriam to the deceased members of the fraternal organization. Eight members of the Decatur lodge have died during the past 12 months. Robert Hammond, exalter ruler, . will preside during the Sunday . services. The Rev. Benj. G. Thomas, past- , or of the Bethany Evangelical I church in Decatur, will deliver the memorial address. The exalted ruler and his staff of officers will exemplify ritualistic rites, during which the lodge secretary, V. J. Bormann, will ' read the roll call of members who died in the past year. . A- male quartet, composed of ' Kenneth Nash, Leo Kirsch, Harold ’ Cox and Earl DeWeese, will sing special music, accompanied by - Mrs. William Gass, who will also ' play the processional. ’ All members of the Decatur lodge, families of deceased mem- ■ bers, and the general public are s invited to attend the services Suni day.

Survivors Are Stranded Four Hours In Water Two Navy Captains Killed As Trainer Falls Into Potomac WASHINGTON (UPI) — Survivors of a Navy helicopter crash that took one life and injured nine other persons told today of a h.Tiro wing four-hour wait for rescue from the chill waters of the Potomac River. Coast Guard and Washington harbor police rescued the passengers from the fog - shrouded river Wednesday night, and at first it was thought all had been saved. But early today harbor police found the body of one man floating near the marsh - like crash scene two miles south of here. . He was identified from papers as M. A. Thralls, 48, a civilian employe of the Fairchild Camera Co., Syosset, N. Y. The papers indicated he lived at Convent Road and Fourth Place, Syosset, N, Y. The nine men ‘rescued were six Marines and sailbrs and three civilians. On Routine Flight The helicopter, a Sikorsky HR2S, was on a routine turnaround flight to Anacostia Naval Air Station here from Patuxent Naval Air Station about 50 miles away in southern Maryland. One of the civilian survivors. Clarence Chick, 29, of Lexington Park, Md., said the helicopter “was flying along when all of a sudden water rushed in and metal started flying.’’ He said he found himself hanging upside down by his seat > safety belt. Another passenger, Navy aviation machinist’s mate Clayton Akers, 26, of Pulaski, Va., said he guessed the plane hit a sandbar. Akers, who suffered minor cuts andbruises and exposure, said some of the passengers and crew stayed in the overturned helicopter and some clung to it in the water. Happens Near Shore The accident happened within hailing distance of shore. But the men's plight went unnoticed until residents of a large nearby apartment in South Alexandria, Va., finally heard their cries and alterted harbor police who sped to the rescue. The survivors were in the river for nearly four hours after the plane went down about 6:30 p.m. e.s.t. Chick said most of those aboard stayed in the helicopter after the crash. “The tide came in and we were about knee deep in water,” he said. Akers said there was no indication of trouble until the helicopter hit. “All of a sudden there I was in Continued on page five Two From County Are Inducted Into Army Two Adams county young men, Dale Franklin Gerke and Dale Dean Busick, were sent to Indianapolis this morning by the county selective service board for active induction into the nation’s armed forces. A third youth, Reuben S. Hilty, a conscientious objector, was sent for physical examination.

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