Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 56, Number 293, Decatur, Adams County, 13 December 1958 — Page 1

Vol. LVI. No. 293.

I I I ALL SECTIONS OF THE UNITED STATES, and Canada, are represented in the above photo, taken as members of the Decatur Chamber of Commerce are shown with students of the Reppert school of auctioneering, and one of the veteran instructors of the school, now in semi-annual session here. Pictured, left to right, are: Donald H. Jervis, Dixfield, Me.: Robert H. Heller, past president of the C. of L,; lAJUis Jacoos, Chamber of Commerce president; David Moore, chairman of the retail division of th* C. of C.; Mert Hauck, Lakeland, Fla.; Fred Gordon, Kingston, Ontario, Canada; E. E. (Jack) Cox, Riddle, Ore., and Col. Guy Petit, Bloomfield, la., instructor at tht school for many years. (Plainly visible m the background is a photograph of the late Col. Fred Reppert, founder/of the school, one of the most .famous of its type in the world.) *

Fresh Snows Pound Eastern ParfOfU.S. Climaxing Week Os Record Snows And Sub-Zero Weather | United Press International Fresh snows pounded the eastern two-thirds of the nation from Canada to Mexico early today, climaxing a week of record snows, subzero temperatures and California's worst heat wave since the days of the gold rush. Heavy snow warnings were up for Te\as and Arkansas—the latter was hit by nine inches of snow Friday a new storm rolling across the plains tumbled a widespread cold wave in its advance. Another cold snap lingered in the southeast where snows and uncommon chilly blasts caused most schools and state offices to close down Friday in the Carolinas and Virginia. Snow fell during the night across a vast area in the central and southern plains, the Midwest, and from the Great Lakes into New England. Snow In Pennsylvania Forecasters said snow falling in northwest Pennsylvania would total from three to seven inches, making driving extremely hazardous. The region had been hit with 25 to 30 inches of snow earlier in the week. Sudden snows also swept into Ohio, with another 4 to 8 inches expected at Ashtabula where a 264nch blanket was still on the ground. Light snows pelted Dallas and Fort Worth Friday night, as well as parts of the Texas Panhandle. Records toppled at both ends of the country. At Providence, R.1., the old record of 7 degrees above zero for a Dec. 12th (in 1929) was replaced by a 4-degree reading Friday. On the West Coast, however, San Francisco reported its hottest December day on record, 76 degrees. It was the second record to fall this week, as an alltime local dry spell baked the city. Although the season average is 4.97 inches, San Francisco’s rain only came to less than half an inch for the season. Weather Kills 61 The Weather Bureau began to keep records on San Francisco in 1849. At least 61 persons had been killed since the weather onslaught began early this week, including 28 in home fires and deadly fumes from overtaxed furnaces. About 25 persons were killed on snow and ice covered highways, while death by freezing or exhaustion claimed eight more. While the fresh storm caused temperatures to drop beow zero in many places across the northern tier of states, there were threats of snow flurries across Continued on page five Surse Is Killed In ar-Truck Accident VALPARAISO, dnd. (UPD —One of two Illinois nurses planning to move to Indiana was killed and the other injured in a car - truck crash on U. S. 6 between Chesterton and Valparaiso Friday. Treva B. Hill, 62, Alton, 111., was killed and Ada Mowrey, 22, Tinley Park, 111., was hospitalized at Porter Memorial Hospital here. The truck driver, David Kittle, 46, Fox Lake, 111., was unhurt. Police said the nurses’ car skidded into the rear of a semi-trailer. The women had just applied for work at Norman Beatty Memorial Hospital, Westville.

DECATUR DAILY DEMOCRAT

Republican Editors Hear 6ov. Handley Seek To Revitalize Republican Party INDIANAPOLIS (UPI)-Gover-nor Handley told Indiana Republican editors Friday that his conservative philosophy is unchanged despite the GOP debacle In the Nov. 4 election. Handley made this observation before a group of about 40 edi- - tors at the first of two state-wide a meetings on how to revive and . revitalzie the party which was 1 snowed under a barrage of proi test votes. e The second meeting, for about 200 party officials including dis3 trict and county chairmen and - vice-chairmen, will be held here 1 Monday. ' Handley said he is seeking to 5 rebuild the party for the 1959 - Municipal and 1960 presidential 5 and state campaigns. 5 The governor entertained the f editors and publishers at a lunch--1 eon. It was a quiet gathering ex- ■ cept for remarks about “modern Republicanism” by Robert S. 1 Kendall, managing editor of the 1 Martinsvile Reporter. Avoids Old Principles ’ "The Republican party seems to have run away from its old principles,” Kendall said. “Under 1 the administration of President Eisenhower, it is hard to distin- ' guish Republican policies from those of the Democrats. It seems ! that the Republican party is now undermining the foundations of the Republic.” ’ Kendall referred to Supreme ’ Court Chief Justice Earl Warren ' as “the unspeakable Earl Warren.” Hasdley agreed partly with Ken- ; dall, saying that his philosphy is ’ unchanged and reiterating his opposition to federal aid to education and to direct money grants from Washington. Handley expressed agreement ' the conservative resolutions adopted by the convention of the American Farm Bureau this week and said his senatorial campaign had been based on those principles. Handley said he had invited the newsmen to meet in an attempt “to create a healthy climate for the swing of the Indiana political pendulum back to the Republicans.” Riley Speaks Up Handley, who succeeded Gov. George N. Craig under whom the state highway scandals occurred, said his primary objective had been “to restore integrity to state government.” Kendall also had Said that he realized that “Craig had hung an albatross around the neck of Governor Handley.” INDIANA WEATHER Partly cloudy to cloudy and continued quite cold tonight, ’ with occasional snow flurries north. Sunday partly cloudy and cold with occasional snow flurries near Lake Michigan. Low tonight 5 below to 5 above. High Sunday 15 to 25. Outlook for Monday: Partly cloudy and continued quite cold with snow flurries north. Good Fellows Club Previous total $273.60 Eagles Auxiliary 5.00 DAV ——- 5.20 Psi lota Xi 25.00 G. E. Women’s Bowling League — — 18.00 "Business & Professional . Women’s Club - 11.50 TOTAL $338.35 NOON EDITION

Youth Sought For Murder Os Family Os Five Mother And Four Small Children Are t Found Dead In Home - EL CAJON, Calif. (UPI) — A : massive manhunt was underway 1 today for an 18-year-old “friend” 3 of the family believed to have ' killed a mother and her four small children in one of the most 1 vicious murder rampages jn ■ southern California history. 1 Mrs. Thomas Pendergast, 37, ■ was found shot to death Friday night in the hallway of her subur- * ban San Diego home. Found in 1 other parts of the house and an 1 adjoining garage were her four children, all fataly stabbed and two of them disembowled. “It was like a slaughterhouse—- ■ the most sickening thing I’ve ever 1 seen,” Det. Sgt. Frank LeCount who was among the first at the ' scene said. “Blood was everywhere." Thomas IJendergast, 39, an air- ; craft worker, said he arrived I home from work and was met by • Charles Harrison, of Rochester, : N.Y.”, whom he had befriended about three weeks ago. Find Two Knives Pendergast said the youth ' forced him at the point of a gun ’ to drive him to downtown Sah Diego. He said he managed to ■ wrestle the gun away from the i 6-foot, 4-inch Harrison before the youth jumped from the car and fled. Pendergast said Harrison in his hurry to escape the car left behind in the auto a suitcase with all his clothes in it. ALso found were two hunting knives, one with a 6-inch blade and the other with a 10-inch blade. Police said the 10-inch knife had blood on it and possibly was the murder weapon. The Mexican border was being closely watched for the lanky 160pound youth while scores of highway patrolmen, sheriff’s deputies and police officers from all surrounding areas set up road blocks in the manhunt. Pendergast, on the verge of a state of shock, told police as he was being questioned today that he was -unaware of the slayings until he drove back to his home and walked into the hallway where he found his slain wife. Two-year-old Allen and his sister, Diana, 4, were in the bathroom, their throats cut. Two Children Disembowled In one of the two bedrooms of the house Pendergast found his son, Thomas, 6, with his throat cut and his stomach so brutally slashed that he was disembowled. David, 9, the eldest child, was found in a half-bath in an adjoining garage. His throat was cut and he also had“been slashed across the stomach and disembowled. “The kid probably ran into the garage to escape Harrison when he saw what was going on,” Continued on page five ( Fort Wayne Teacher Killed In Accident < GOSHEN, Ind. (UPI) — Mrs. j Donna Gullion, 28, Fort Wayne, was killed in a two-car crash on ( U. S. 33 north of here Friday night. I Police said they identified Mrs. ‘ Gullion, an English teacher at Fort ( Wayne North Side high school by ( a school book she was carrying, The occupants of the other car, < Harley Mast and Ray Lambert, j Goshen, were hospitalized at Gen- ( eral hospital here in fair condition, t . , fl

ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER IN ADAMS COUNTY

Decatur, Indiana, Saturday, December 13,1958.

Army Sends Monkey In Space In Nose Cone Os •y ■- • 1 Intermediate Missile

Dulles Flies To Paris For Allied Parley Seeking Effective Answer To Soviet Cold War Threats PARIS (UPI) — Secretary of State John Foster Dulles arrived today to lead the Western Allies in seeking an effective answer to the new Communist effort to capture West Berlin. President Eisenhower’s special plane "Columbine,” that brought Dulles here, landed at 9:20 a.m. (3:20 a.m. e.s.t.) at Orly Airfield in threatening weather. Dulles appeared rested and cheerful as he walked down the landing steps into a cold drizzle. He showed no signs of the ailment that made it necessary for him to take a few days’ rest at Washington’s Walter Reed* Army Hospital earlier this week. The secretary was welcomed at the airport by U.S. Ambassador Amory Houghton, Pierre Pelletier, a high official of French Foreign Minister Maurice Couve de Murville’s staff, and other U.S. and French officials. To See DeGaulle Embassy officials said Dulles will meet Premier Charles de Gaulle at 4:30 p.m. Monday to discuss the world situation. The secretary was the first foreign leader to arrive for the crucial conference on Berlin which will be held in advance of the annual meeting of the Atlantic Pact council, which opens Thursday. British Foreign Secretary Selwyn Lloyd and West German Foreign Minister Heinrich von Brentano, other participants in the ■“Big Four” Berlin conference, are expected tonight. West Berlin’s Mayor Willy Brandt is also heading for Paris on his own initiative to speak for the 2.2 million people of his threatened city. Will Reject Red Plan Hie urgent need for Western action in the Berlin crisis overshadowed the annual “stock-taking” meeting of foreign ministers of the 15 pact nations, which will take up three days next week. Diplomatic observers believe the continued existence of the Continued on page five Mrs. Eva R. Brandt Dies Last Evening Funeral Services Monday Afternoon Mrs. Eva Rose Brandt, 79, a resident of the Willshire, 0., community most of her life, died at 6:30 o’clock Ffiday evening at her home three miles south of Willshire on highway 49. She had been ill for the past week. She was born in Union county, O„ March 24, 1879, a daughter of Simon and Lena Storm-Wise, and 1 was married to Otto A. Brandt March 4, 1903. Her husband preceded her in death Sept. 14, 1952. Mrs. Brandt was a member of Zion Luhteran church at Chattanooga, O. » Surviving are three daughters, Mrs. Omer Havens of Orlando, Fla., Mrs. Charles Shell of Sycamore, 0., and Mrs. Dean Baughman of Fort Wayne; two sons, Carl L. Brandt of Rockford, 0., and Herbert W. Brandt of Willshire; 12 grandchildren; one brother, Lewis Wise of Convoy* 0., and one sister, Mrs. Earl Dennis of Fort Wayne. One son and two brothel are deceased. Funeral services will be con- ‘ ducted at 2 p. m. Monday at the , Zion Lutheran church at Chattanooga, the Rev. Waldo Byer officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Friends may call at the Zwick funeral home as- j ter 7 o’clock this evening. The , body will lie in state at_.the , church from I p. m. Monday un- j til time of the services.

No End In Sight From Severe Cold Coldest December In A Generation United Press International Indiana’s longest and most intensive December cold wave in more than a generation pushed the mercury well below zero again today and showed no signs of relenting. . Goshen recorded 10 below zero, . Fort Wayne 6 below, South Bend 5 5 below, Lafayette 3 below and ’ Indianapolis 1 below. It was the _ fifth morning in a row that ‘subzero readings were recorded in ■ Hoosierland. . There was no end in sight for 1 the wave of severe weather j which has gripped the state for a 1 week, the second sub-zero period j since Thanksgiving. , At Indianapolis, temperatures for the first 12 days of Decem- ’ ber averaged more than 12 de- , grees below normal for the entire , month. ' The weatherman said highs today and Sunday will range from , 15 to 25, with lows tonight rang- ! ing from 5 below to 5 above and indications pointing to more of the same Sunday night in view ; pf an outlook saying that Monday would be “continued quite cold.” A snowfall predicted overnightly for Southern Indiana failed to materialize, but a ' rarp swirl of fine, ice crystals was in the air in the Indianapolis and Cincinnati areas. Very light snow fell upstate and occasional flurries which have predominated the weather pattern in the general area of the southern tip of Lake Michigan were due to continue into Monday. Outside the northlands, no snow was predicted through the weekend and Monday. High temperatures Friday ranged from 13 at Fort Wayne to 24 at Evansville. Russian Educators Wind Up U.S. Tour Say Mathematics, Science Inadequate WASHINGTON (UPD—Visiting Russian educators were expected to tell U.S. Education Commissioner Lawrence G. Derick today that American mathematics and science teaching is “inadequate.” The Russians reached that conclusion during a one-month tour of U.S. schools and universities. Inadequate was the description applied by Dr. Aleksei Ivanovich Markushevich, bead of the nineman delegation, during a news conference Friday. He said that by Russian standards U.S. students would get failing marks in math and science. But the Russians praised the general interest shown by Arrjericans in the school system as well as their desire to “provide a better education for a larger number of children.” Markushevich said U.S. high school students apparently were given “easier”, problems and exercises than those on the same level in the Soviet Union. Pace “Rather Slow” He said Russian high school students take four years of math, four years of chemistry and five years of physics. American students, he said, generally have one or two years of math, one year of chemistry and one year of phy sics. Hie Soviet educator also said the pace of instruction is “rather slow. ” AmeTi c a n classrooms sometimes reminded him of “a slow motion film,” he said. The Russiaq said American ■ high school libraries are lacking in great works of literature, par- ; ticularly the French classics. On i another subject, he said LQ. and psychological tests are not a 1 “fair” measure of achievement, i Acquired Much Information i Speaking through an interpreter Markushevich said the Soviet ed- i ucators had Ricked up “much val- 1 uable information” about the American system. But he added 1 Continued on page five ]

U.S. Economy Pushing Out Os Recession Figures Os Federal Reserve Board Show Economy Improving WASHINGTON (UPD—Federal Reserve Board figures today offered fresh evidence that the nation’s economy is emerging from the recession that gripped it last winter. Hie board reported that industrial production recorded its biggest increase in five months and construction activity, personal income, and retail sales soared to record highs in November. The increase in factory, mine and mill activity was credited to a big boost in auto assemblies, plus a widespread gain in manufacturing activity generally. A major factor in the November increase, the board said Friday was an end to labor strife that slowed down the production of autos and other items in October. v Industrial Production Jumps The Reserve Board said its index of industrial production, based on a 1947-49 average of 100, jumped three points in November to 141. This was two points above the November, 1957, level and only four points below the alltime record set in the boom month of August, 1957. The board’s seasonally adjusted rate of auto production in November stood at 139 per cent of the 1947-49 average, compared with only 67 per cent in October. The industry’s 'schedule indicated an even further increase in output this month. The board noted that production of non-durable goods, which fared relatively well during the business slump, rose to a new record in November. Construction Value Rises The value of new construction rose in November to an annual rate of 52 billion dollars, 6 per cent more than a year ago. Retail sales rose 1% per cent to top the previous high set in the summer of 1957 by 1 per cent. In the field of construction, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday night that 100,000 new houses were begun in November, a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,330,000 the highest in 3% years. The bureau said that publicowned housing starts totaled 2,000 in November, bringing the total Continued on page five Annual High School Program Dec. 21 Christmas Program Will Be Presented The annual Christmas program of the Decatur high school will be presented in the school’s gymna-sium-auditorium at 4 o'clock Sunday afternoon, Dec. 21, Hugh J. Andrews, principal, announced today. The program, which has been one of the outstanding features of the holiday season in Decatur for many years, will be presented through the cooperative efforts of the music, speech, home economics and art departments of the school. The choral music will be under the direction of Miss Helen Haubold, supervisor of vocal music in the Decatur public schools, and instumental music will be directed by Clint Reed, band director for the schools. The traditional scenes attending the birth of Jesus Christ at Christmas time will be portrayed by narration and pantomime. Details of the program including the names of cast members, will be announced next week. There is no admission charge for this traditional program and the public is invited to attend.

Sprinkler Systems Urged For Schools Continue Probe Os Tragic School Fire CHICAGO (UPD—The foreman of the blue ribbon coroner’s jury investigating the tragic Our Lady of the Angels school fire has made two recommendations to minimize the possibility of similar tragedies. Roy Tuchbreiter, chairman of 1 Continental Casualty Co. and of '- Continental Assurance Co., said - Friday he believes sprinkler sysi terns should be installed in all t schools and that fire boxes should be located outside all public - buildings. Tuchbreiter pointed out that the i nearest fire alarm box was two - blocks from the school where 89 j children and three Roman Catholic nuns were killed in the Dec. 1 e fire. The school had no sprinkler > system. , The cause of the blaze has not - yet been determined, but fire experts, including engineers from - the National Fire Protection - Assn., are agreed it began in a s heap of trash located near a basei ment stairwell. - In testimony Friday, James Raymond, 44, janitor of the school, said that his work load was so heavy he was unable to attend personally to accumula- * Hons of trash near the stairwell ’ where, it has beeh theorized, a ’ student may have discarded a J cigarette. “I leave it up to the mother superior,” he said. 1 Raymond also said he had been shorthanded because his assistant janitor was ill for five weeks ' before the fire. ! “I have a lot to do,” he said. ‘ “They (the school officials) don't * expect it to be done well with ‘ that amount of help.” : Montgomery County I Man Com Champion ! Yield 2nd Highest In Contest History LAFAYETTE, Ind. (UPD—Karl 1 Moser, 27, Montgomery County, ; reigned today as 1958 Indiana I five-acre corn growing champion. Moser, a commercial hog farmer, was crowned by the Indiana ' Five-Acre Corn Club Friday for producing the second highest ! yield in the 45-year history of the contest. ( Moser’s 226 bushels per acre was 15 bushels below the all-time mark of 241 set by George Custer of DeKalb County in 1954. Moser operates a 275-acre tract near Waveland with his father. J. H. Roadruck, White County, the 1957 winner, was runner-up with 208 bushels. Moser won honors from a field of more than 3,400 farmers entered in the contest, which, this year, produced a record 815 contestants with yields of 150 bushels or more. Other top yields were turned in by Frank Blacker, Tippecanoe County, 202 bushels; David Grimes, Montgomery, 197; Gwen Randolph, Dubois, 195; Oley Robinson, Benton, 194; John Harbison, Putnam, and John Lans in- 1 ger, Henry, 190, and Philip Moore, ■ Clay, 189. Moser planted his winning crop ' May 13, seeding PAG 383, a hy- 1 brid. He fertilized with 5-20-20 fertilizer at the time of planting using 250 pounds per acre and . cultivated the crop twice. Moser used a 2-4-D weed killer spray. Moser’s field had been in corn for four years. He used manure before planting 40-inch rows containing about 20,000 plants per acre. Injuries Are Fatal To Evansville Man EVANSVILLE, Ind. (UPD — Louis Riechen, 33, Evansville, died in a hospital here Friday from injuries sustained Thursday when his panel truck swerved off Ind. 57 near Evansville.

Sends Monkey Whizzing Info Space Today 1,700-Mile Flight In Missile Fired In South Atlantic BULLETIN WASHINGTON (UPI) —The Army announced today that the search for a missile nose cone which carried a small monkey into space has been called off. Army headquarters here quoted Brig. Gen. J. A. Barclay as saying at Cape Canaveral. Fla., that “there appears to have been a mishap” in the recovery gear which, the nose cone of the Jupiter missile carried to assist searchers in locating it. CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPD—The Army sent a monkey on a whizzing 1,700 - mile flight into space today and proved that a prolonged stay in a gravity-free state does not produce significant “adverse physiological change.” The little monkey, with a high degree of intelligence, was fired in the nose cone of a Jupiter intermediate range missile that plopped into the south Atlantic and was the object of a search by surface craft. What happened when “Little Old Reliable”—the first name given the space simian by the man who found it just that way in preflight testing—hit the water had to await word from the recovery craft. But aB indications were that "Little Old Reliable” made its trip into space and back without a bobble. Pulse Became Normal Brig. Gen. J.A. Barclay, commander of the U.S. Army Ballistic Missile Agency at Huntsvile, lAa., on the scene at Cape Canaveral for the significant test, said the nose cone of the Jupiter missile landed about 15 minutes after its 3 a.m. c.s.t. blastoff at a spot 1,700 miles down range in the south Atlantic. The Army chose for the new venture into living space flights a dainty, soft-haired little creature with a gentle family life and much the same anatomical makeup as man. In a statement released by the Defense Department, Navy Capt. Norman Lee Barr said the monkey’s breathing was slower than normal and slightly irregular during the takeoff. Pulse rate picked up as the rocket accelerated. But Barr said that after the missile soared beyond the pull of earth’s gravity, the monkey’s breathing and pulse rate returned to normal. Barr said the most significant finding from the monkey’s flight, recorded through instruments attached to the little beast’s body, was that “the prolonged gravityfree state does not produce significant adverse physiological change.” Test Guidance System The United States previously has fired mice into space and Russia has put up a dog. Army doctors said the passenger was a male squirrel monkey, a small intelligent creature which "has the same anatomical makeup as a man and undergoes much the same emotions.” Barclay said the mission involved testing an inertial guidContJnued on page five

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