Indianapolis Times, Volume 43, Number 172, Indianapolis, Marion County, 27 November 1931 — Page 1

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CITY COUNCIL LIFTS EARLY PARKING BAN Bar From 7 to 9:15 Removed, as Result of Plea by Business Men. HELD INJURY TO TRADE .Tow-In Provision to Remain in Force; Injunction Hearing Postponed. Answering demands of business men, city councilmen today repealed the 7 to 9:15 a. m. downtown parking ban, in effect approximately six months. The action was taken at two special meetings held at noon by the council, and becomes effective at once. The repeal ordinance affects only the early morning ban, but not the towing-in of cars illegally parked, including double parking, in front of fireplugs, theater and hotel entrances and in alleys. A second ordinance, providing for posting of $25 bonds by two-in victims to permit them to recover use of their cars pending contest of the tow-in charge in court, also was passed by the council. The bond is set at $25, or “such other reasonable sum as may be fixed by the court.’’ Requested by Mayor The council’s action in repealing the parking ban section of the city traffic code came as the result of a request by Mayor Reginald H. Sullivan. Decision of Sullivan to abandon the ban followed conferences with business men, who told him the ban had proved harmful to interests of downtown business houses. The empty streets and activities of the police tow-in trucks had a “bad psychological effect,” not only on out-of-town customers, but on those living in Indianapolis, Sullivan was told. Sullivan and a majority of the councilmen expressed the opinion the ban "is a gapd law,” but that they would accede to views of business men. Suit is Postponed As result of officials’ decision last Saturday to ask for repeal of the ban, a group of business men supporting an injunction suit pending in the Hamilton circuit court at Noblcsville, postponed a hearing in the suit until after action by the council today. The suit was filed by Prank Fishback, restaurant operator and county council president, who charged the ban was unconstitutional. The parking ban was adopted last spring by the council on recommendation of the citizens’ traffic committee, which studied traffic conditions and rules here and in other cities for more than a year. The section was designed to prevent all-day parking, and to provide auto space for shoppers later in the day. WAGE CUTTING PROBED Pay Slicing on U. S. Job in Minnesota Investigated, Says Senator. if;/ United Press WASHINGTON, Nov. 27. The war and labor departments are conducting an investigation of charges that private repair contractors on High Dam, between the Twin Cities, have cut wages, Senator Henrik Shipstead (Farmer-Labor., Minn.), announced here today. Shipstead said he intended to call on War Secretary Patrick Hurley later today to learn the results of the investigation. He also may call up Labor Secretary William N. Doak. Shipstead said he wanted the Governor to compel the contractors to maintain the wage rate prevailing at the time the contract was made. LAUDS I3ANDH| — iDEALS Johan Warliker, Hindu Orator. Is Town Hall Speaker. Holding the opinion that Gandhi is the greatest and best thing for India, Jehan Warliker, Hindu orator, spoke this morning at English's on “A Panorama of India.” Warliker was born in India, but received his education in England. He returned to India after graduating in law, to study the problems of his own people. He appeared as one of the regular attractions on the Town Hall series. Rafael Sabatini, noted author, will speak next Thursday night at English's.

Dog Dies Hero By United Press CHICAGO. Nov. 27.—Beauty did all she could to aid her master, Anthony Tisoncik, when five bandits entered his soft drink parlor, but after* all she was just a small poodle. Beauty made for the bandit leader, who carried a revolver in each hand. She bit at his leg and he kicked her away. Beauty snarled and took a better hold. The bandit cursed in pain. He shot once and wounded the little dog. It clung on. The bandit reached down, carefully pressed the nose of his gun into the poodle’s body and fired. At the second shot, Beauty growled feebly and sank back dead. The bandits hastily took SBO and fled, the twogun robber limping.

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VOLUME 43—NUMBER 172

Wilson Film-Memorial Great Tribute to a Great American

Thousands of Indianapolis residents from every walk of life, and large delegations of grade and high school pupils, Saturday will see a motion picture which can be classed among the great films of all time—the Woodrow Wilson FilmMemorial, to be presented at 2,4, 6 and Bp.m. in Keith’s theater under auspices of The Indianapolis Times. • Proceeds, above expenses, will go to the Made Work committee, for relief of the city’s jobless. The Woodrow Wilson Film-Memorial is a deserved tribute to a great man who left the indelible impress of his intellect, patriotism and unselfish devotion to the welfare of mankind upon the records of his era. He was a somewhat strange combination, and, for that reason, his actions often were misunderstood and misinterpreted; but those closest to him

2,9-INCH SNOW FALLS ON CITY Streets Are Seas of Slush, Hazardous for Traffic. Indianapolis residents received their first sample of winter weather today, when they awoke to find the ground covered with the season’s first snow. The snow, which reached a depth of 2.9 inches, began falling early Thanksgiving night. It was wet and clung to branches of trees, providing a wintry scenes throughout the city. Wheels of automobiles soon churned the snow on streets into slush, making pavements slipery and dangerous to automobile traffic. The lowest temperature during the night was 29.9. The minimum temperature expected tonight is 28, not sufficient to freeze the slush on the streets, weather bureau officials reported. The precipitation was heavy from Indianapolis south, but light in the north, it was reported. No more snow was expected here within the next twenty-four hours. The snowfall was general throughout the entire midwest and was moving eastward, according to wire reports. Haze and low ceiling prevented operation of planes on lines of the Embry-Riddle division, American Airways, and on Transcontinental and Western Air, Inc. Street car, traction, railway and bus line officials reported no interruption in service due to snow. No damage was reported by the Indiana Bell Telephone Company and Indianapolis Power and Light Company.

TOM MIX IMPROVED Doctors, Encouraged, Say Danger Is Not Passed. By United Press HOLLYWOOD, Cal., Nov. 27. Encouraging reports came today from the bedside of Tom Mix, screen star for tfie first time since peritonitis deevloped after an appendectomy Monday night. A bulletin issued at noon (central standard time) by Dr. R. Nichol Smith and Dr. Gum Stout said: “During the last twenty-four hours Tom Mix has improved slowly although due to the necessity of the continued supportive treatment, it is too soon to give an ultimate prognosis.” TOWN SWEPT BY FIRE Mining City Is Mass of Ruins After Flames Wreck Business District. By United Press HOPEWELL, Pa., Nov. 27.—Virtually all of this mining town’s business di trict lay a mass of charred ruins today and Red Cross workers administered to citizens whose homes were burned in Thursday’s fire. Nine business hopses and public buildings and twenty-one homes were destroyed by the fire which raged for eight hours before fire companies from five nearby towns gained control. DOUBT SUICIDE REPORT Red Men’s Finance Chief Disappears as Books Are Examined. By United Press NEW YORK. Nov. 27.—Doubt was cast today on the reported suicide of Edward A. Davis, chairman of the financial committee of the Improved Order of Red Men, when it was learned police were conducting a search for him as auditors examined the books of the New York tribes of the national organization. A farewell note, his initialed hat and Davis’ luggage were found in a stateroom of an Albany night boat recently. None, however, could be found who had seen a man of his description board or leave the boat.

MYSTERY POWDER FOUND IN HOME; PLOT FEARED

Samples of a large quantity of white powder scattered through the interior of the home of Mrs. Pearl A. Simmons, 533 North Tibbs avenue, were being examined today by city chemists. Although police are not yet sure if the powder is poison, they believe it may have been part of a plot to murder members of the Simmons family. Mrs. Simmons called police when She returned to her home early today, and found the furniture and rugs covered with a thick layer of the substance. She left her home Thursday afternoon.

Partly cloudy tonight and Saturday, lowest temperature tonight about 28; somewhat warmer Saturday.

while he held the most exalted position in the world, wllh one voice bear witness to his fidelity to conviction, his transcendent intellectual ability and his unswerving integrity of purpose and action. He faced just such problems as no President before him ever faced. The importance of their proper solution transcended all geographical limitations and concerned universal humanity. Conscious of the wisdom and justice and, indeed, the necessity for ratification of his action, he went out to the people as a crusader for national righteousness and the welfare of the world, and fell at his post, as much a victim on the altar of duty as was any soldier who fell at the forefront of the fighting on the soil of France. Woodrow Wilson failed asr men count failure and success, but he wrote that which the quickened conscience of America yet will translate into law.

Boy Peddles Banknotes at Penny Prices By United Press CHICAGO, Nov. 27.—Jackie Becker, 8, had a brisk business while it lasted. He found a whole bundle of crisp bright banknotes in an old stove, put them under his arm and went out selling them. His price was reasonable. Whatever a customer offered —a nickel, a dime, or a penny—he took, and counted the profit good. Then his mother heard of Jackie’s us'"-;s and put it into receivership by taking away the remaining banknotes totaling $3,900. She* put them in a safedeposit vault. t But Mrs. Martha Preuss heard also of the bargain sale. The banknotes were found in the old stove that shj was about to sell for junk. She believed the money was put there by her husband before his recent death. A plea by her attorney to be allowed to open the deposit box and recover the remaining notes will be heard today in probate court. ALLEGED ACCOSTER OF CHILD IS CAPTURED ouis Yarberry Found Hiding in Closet by Police. Breaking into the barricaded home of Louis Yarberry, 39, og 144 Geisendorff street, police this afternoon captured Yarberry, who was wanted on charges of attempted assault on an 8-year-old girl. Police were called to the home by a womap living nearby, who said her daughter had been lured to Yarberry’s home and mistreated. The woman said when she went to Yarberry’s home to remonstrate he menaced her with a gun. Police arrived in time to see Yarberry rush into his home, locking the doors and hiding. After an extensive search Yarberry was found in a closet. A revolver also was found. Yarberry was identified by the child as her attempted assailant, police said. MADE-WORK PROGRAM JO GET DANCE FUNDS Public Invited to Tomlinson Hall Event Monday Night. Emergency relief measures in Indianapolis will be augmented by a series of keekly entertainments to raise money for cash payments to the needy, the Emergency Work Committee, Inc., announced today. Cash payments will supplement food and fuel relief given by township trustees to those who are employed on “made work” projects. The new plan has been approved by the mayor’s special advisory committee on relief. First of the series will be a dance in Tomlinson hall Monday night at 9 with music provided by the WFBM orchestra. Mayor Reginald H. Sullivan and the board of public works have given free use of Tomlinson hall for the entire series. CLA nvjs~H ANDS - ARE OFF Hoover Denies Interesting Himself in Cleveland Boom. By United Press WASHINGTON, Nov. 27.—Published reports that President Hoover had interested himself in a movement to select Cleveland for the Republican national convention next year were denied at the White House today. Predicts Georgia for Roosevelt. By United Press WASHINGTON, Nov. 27. Prediction that the Georgia delegation at the national convention next year would support Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt of New York, for President, was made today by Representative Crisp (Dem., Ga.), on his return here. He said sentiment throughout his state strongly I favors Roosevelt’s nomination.

Warning her daughter, Dorothy, and Nami Oberle, 529 North Berwick avenue, a guest, not to enter the house, Mrs. Simmons also refused to let neighbors enter. Police, fearing to touch the powder, took a teaspoonful of it from a rug and carried it to city hall. Mrs. Simmons said the front door of the home had been left unlocked when the family left Thursday. Mrs. Simmons said her daughter yand the guest were the last perleave the home. Mrs. Simmons told police she knew of no reason why an attempt should be made on lives of the family.

INDIANAPOLIS, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 1931

TWO AMERICAS LINKEDJN DAY Lindy Makes Rapid Flight in Giant Amphibian. By United Press MIAMI, Fla., Nov. 27.—Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh has demonstrated the truth of his prediction that North and South America could be linked by air in one day—and he did it desipte international “red tape.” Lindbergh brought the giant amphibian American Clipper to a thrilling landing out of darkness and rain at 6:29 p. m. Thursday after a twelve-hour flight from Barranquila, Colombia, with stops at Kingston and Havana. During the trip he was required to sign clearance papers no less thgn 220 times, he revealed. “Don’t you think the clearance system should be clarified?” he was asked. “I sure do,” he replied. The American Clipper carried twenty-six passengers and five crew members when it arrived, in addition to 15,000 pounds of mail and a $5,000 currency shipment. The elapsed time from Barranquila was 12 hours and 41 minutes, the flying time 11 hours flat.

Wins TOJE FILED Six Are Left for Probate by Mrs. Duckweiler. Six will left by Mrs. Rosina Duckweiler, widow of Kenry D. Duckweiler, fertilizer manufacturer, involving an estate estimated at more than $250,000, were being prepared for filing in probate court, it was learned today. Mrs. Duckweiler, who received the estate following death of her husband more than two years ago, was said to have willed large sums to the Indiana Masonic Home and the Salvation Army, in addition to converting her home at 5250 North Meridian street, into a home for destitute children. Her husband was co-owner of the Duckweiler-Kingsbury ;F e r t i 1 i z er Cos. Mrs. Duckweiler died Sunday. Estate left by Duckweiler still is in litigation in probate court. Suit was filed by Mrs. Logan G. Hughes, a niece, resisting probate of Mr. Duckweiler’s will. ALLEGED INFORMER IS KNIFED BY PRISONER Stabbed in Arm and Back During Jail Battle. By United Press HARTFORD CITY, Ind., Nov. 27. —Henry Klingshire today faced probable charges of assault and battery with intent to kill after a pocket knife assault upon Vaughn Mills, Montpelier, in the county jail here. Mills was seriously injured. Witnesses said Klingshire accused Mills of informing officers that he had participated in a series of robberies here in which loot was taken from freight cars and stores. Both men are held on chares of robbery in connection with the thefts. Klingshire obtained the pocket knife from Grant Sebring, Muncie, another prisoner at the jail, it was said. Mills, who is under a one-year sentence and a S2OO fine, was wounded once in the left arm and once in the back. Nat Moore, an alleged accomplice in the robberies, was sentenced to nine months and fined SIOO. GAS PROBE IS LOOMING Illinois Officials to Confer With Governor Leslie Monday. D. C. Jennings, a Chicago accountant, and Illinois official who have been fighting gasoline bootleggers in that state, will confer with Governor Harry G. Leslie Monday regarding plans for probing gas bootlegging in Indiana. The Governor has become interested in the matter through a request for an investigation made by an organized oil dealers’ committee. NEW CITY CARS VOTED Fourteen to Replace Old Ones; Receive Bids Today. Fourteen new automobiles will be purchased soon for the police department to replace a similar number of touring cars, it was announced today by Albert H. Losche, city purchasing agent. The new cars, to be two-door sedans of the light car type, will cost approximately $7,000, it was estimated. Ordinance authorizing the purchase was introduced at a special meeting of city council at noon today. Bids will be considered by the safety board Dec. 8.

‘SPITE VERDICT’ CHARGES WILL HIT CORONER Acts of Retaliation After Rows With Undertakers Are Alleged. JURORS RENEW INQUIRY Accident Victims’ Relatives Will Be Summoned for Testimony. BY DICK MILLER Evidence of “spite” verdicts, alleged to have been returned by Coroner Fred W. Vehling as result of quarrels with undertakers, was expected to be presented today to the Marion county grand jury, as it resumed the probe into alleged illegal activities of the coroner. Hospital internes, physicians and relatives of dead persons were among nearly 100 witnesses ready to appear before the probe body. Record of autopsies of bodies of persons killed in traffic accidents, in which the cause of death was apparent, were to be examined by jurors, in their investigation of charges that numerous “curiosity” autopsies were ordered by Vehling. Consider Fireman’s Case Prosecutor Herbert E. Wilson and Oscar Hagemier, deputy grand jury prosecutor, in charge of the probe, indicated attention of the jury will be called to the cases of Lieutenant Lewis Stanley, city fireman, and Mr. and Mrs. James Jordan, Lawrence, killed in auto accidents. Records to be presented to the jury will show, according to Wilson, that needless autopsies were held on each of the three bodies. Relatives of the dead persons are expected to tell of alleged highhanded methods by Vehling in investigation of deaths. Relatives of the Jordans charged Vehling with threatening to arrest them, and ordering them placed under bond because they notified other relatievs of the tragedy. Other witnesses scheduled to appear before the jury were expected to reveal Vehling’s practice of sending bodies of victims of automobile accidents to his own undertaking establishment at 702 Virginia avenue. Exorbitant Fees Alleged The bodies were'embalmed immediately, and relatives and undertakers were forced to pay exorbitant fees before Vehling consented to release the bodies, it is charged. Charges have been made that students of a local embalming school constantly were on duty at Vehling’s establishment to embalm bodies before relatives or undertakers arrived. With the grand jury investigation in its third day, attorneys were preparing for the trial, Dec. 7, in Johnson county circuit court, of a suit asking impeachment of Vehling of charges of maladministration. The suit was filed by James Holland as result of Vehling’s investigation of the death. July 17 in Indianapolis, of John Snider.

PANTAGES ACQUITTED Jury Holds Theater Man Innocent of Assault. By United Press LOS ANGELES, Nov. 27.—Alexander Pantages, multimillionaire theater man, was acquitted today of a charge of attacking Eunice Pringle, a 17-year-old dancing girl. It was the second trial for Pantages. The first jury found him guilty andHie was scheduled to go to San Quentin prison under a one to fifty-year sentence. After a bitter fight he won a retrial from the state supreme court. THI EVES LOOT HOMES . OF FOOD, CLOTHING Steal Stove and Dishes From Church Street Residence . Burglars who removed quantities of food, clothing and fixtures from two Indianapolis homes were sought today by police. Breaking into the home of Mrs. Zena Cox, 843 Church street, thieves stole tw ocoats ,a table lamp, two smoking stands, a coal stove, twenty-five quarts of peaches and several dozen dishes, valued at S2OO. Charles Gimil, 1815 Massachusetts avenue, reported thieves broke into a garage in the rear of his home, removing two bushels each of pears and apples and vegetables. A thief stole twenty-five brass valves valued at S4O from the Fishback Candy Company, 550 West Fourteenth street. VICE-CONSUL ARRESTED Nicaraguan at Los Angeles Is Charged With Liquor Sale. By United Press LOS ANGELES, Nov. 27.—Leopoldo Lacayo, vice-consul of Nicaragua, was free on S2OO bail awaiting a hearings today on a charge of violating the prohibition act. Lacayo, 42, was arrested after he is said to have sold half a dozen bottles of liquor to a fellow-country-man. Lacayo said the case was a “frameup and a travesty on justice.” ,Safe is Looted of $75 Opening an unlocked safe at the City Poultry Company, 125 North Alabama street, early today, a thief took $75 in cash tend valuable papers, police were informed.

Lya De Putti, Rocket hi Screen World, Is Dead

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Operation to Take Chicken Bone From Throat Proves Fatal. By United Press NEW YORK, Nov. 27.—Lya de Putti, film actress and international beauty, died here early today of double pneumonia, following infection ,fchat followed an operation to remove a chicken bone from her throat. Oxygen was administered in a last attempt to save her life. Flashed to Fame By United Press HOLLYWOOD, Nov. 27.—Lya de Putti, beautiful Hungarian actress, who died today in New York, flashed into sudden fame as a motion picture star in 1928, only to fade almost as quickly from the firmament of Hollywood. Miss De Putti, born in Budapest, attracted attention as premier danseuse of the Russian ballet in Berlin, was offered a small motion picture part, and received a starring contract. She appeared as a star in the foreign production of “Variety,” and created a sensation on Broadway. American motion pictures claimed her and she starred in the “Prince of Tempters” and another picture produced in New York before coming to Hollywood. Decline is Sudden The slight, brunette actress, with striking black bobbed hair and brown eyes, was featured in the Hollywood productions of “The Scarlet Lady” and “God Gave Me 20 Cents.” Her sudden rise to stardom in American pictures was followed by a decline in popularity almost as abrupt as had been her rise, and she remained in Hollywood but a short time. Like Lil Da Gover, the German star, Miss De Putti was a mystery to Hollywood. While here she made friends, limited her acquaintanceships, and took but little part in the activities of the film colony. Played Girl of Street In “The Scarlet Lady,” a picture of Russian Revolution, she portrayed the difficulties of the girl of the streets who had lovers on both sides of the conflict. In the “Prince of Tempters” she appeared with Ben Lyon, Lois Moran and Mary Brian. Lothar Meendes, the German director, was brought to America to direct her in •this film. AWARD 4-H MEDALS Indiana Boy, Minnesota Girl Honored by Farm Club. By United Press CHICAGO, Nov. 27.—The Sir Thomas Lipton medals for the outstanding 4-H Club service during 1931 were awarded today to a Minnesota girl and an Indiana boy. The youngsters whose efforts were regarded as having contributed most to the ideals of the farm boys’ and girls’ organization are Mary Teresa Rico of Keewatin, Itasca county, Minnesota, and Charles L. Brown of Battleground, Tippecanoe county, Indiana.

FIRST WEST-EAST FLIGHT MADE OVER S. ATLANTIC

By United Press DAKAR,' Africa, Nov. 27.—Bert Hinkler, Australian flier, completing the first west-to-east airplane crossing of the south Atlantic, landed at Bathurst, on the coast of British Guiana, this morning. His flight from Natal, Brazil, took twenty-two hours. Hinkler took off from Bathurst and landed at St. Louis, Senegal, 200 miles northward, today. Hinkler/ when he left Natal intended to land between Dakar and Bissao, in Portuguese Guinea. Winds blew him off his course and forced him to make a difficult landing at Bathurst, on the small island of St. Mary's in the mouth of the Gambia river. Hinkler refueled at Bathurst and

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Lya de Putti

JAPANESE MOVE TOWARD CHINA Trainloads of Troops Speed to Gateway City. BY D. C. BESS United Press Staff Correspondent MUKDEN, Manchuria, Nov. 27 Trainlcads of Japanese soldiers rolled southward today in an offensive directed against the Chinese by General Sheguri Honjo. (Such offensive is in direct contradiction to intentions announced by the foreign office at Tokio and reported to the United Press shortly before receipt of this dispatch.) Mukden remained calm, but there was great activity at Japanese military headquarters. It appeared, as trainload after trainload of troops left the city and airplanes headed south, that General Honjo was bent on taking Chinchow and forcing the Chinese, inside the great wall, into China proper. The vanguard of the Japanese forces reached Yangchauntze, thirty miles north of Chinchow, this afteroon, and halted for the night, it was announced in a communique by General Shigeru Honjo, Japanese commander. Armored trains preceded the troop trains, the communique said, and encountered Chinese armored trains south of Tahusan. The Chinese abandoned their trains. The communique said Japanese bombing planes from Mukden were (Turn to Page 15) HOKE SMITH IS DEAD Ex-U. S. Senator Passes at Age of 76. By United Press ATLANTA, Ga., Nov. 27.‘—Hoke Smith, former United States senator from Georgia, died at his home here today at the age of 76. He was born at Newton, N. C., on Sept. 2, 1855, rose to be twice Governor of Georgia, served two terms as United States senator, and was secretary of interior in the Cleveland cabinet. The former senator is survived by his four children, three daughters, Mrs. Ronald Ransom, Mrs. Callie Smith May and Mrs. Spotswood Grant, and a son, Marion Smith, all of Atlanta. Dr. Doeppers to Be Honored Dr. William A. Doeppers, who resigned as city hospital superintendent several months ago, will be presented with a certificate of esteem by the city health board at a meeting tonight at the hospital. Dr. Doeppers no wls connected with the medical department of the Eli Lilly & Cos. Hourly Temperatures 6a. m 30 10 a. m 32 7a. m 30 11 a. m 32 Ba. m 30 12 (noon).. 34 9 a. m 30 1 p. m 33 :

started for St. Louis, where there are greater facilities. He intended to start for Port Etienne at dawn. Aviation experts were favorably impressed by the flight. They pointed out that not only was it the first west to east crossing of the South Atlantic, but the first solo flight across the south Atlantic and the first trans-Atlantic crossing in a light airplane. Mailboats and planes had reported Hinkler unsighted at sea and the airdrome crew was astounded when he landed unexpectedly. Sir Poiers Mostyn, Australianborn baronet, had arrived at Casablanca in a light Moth plane and had rented planes to search for Hinkler, when he heard the news of his arrival at St. Louis.

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500, TRAPPED BY BLIZZARD, FACINGDEATH Cold and Starvation May Wipe Out Tribesmen on Barren Mesas. 300 STRAGGLE BACK Rescue Groups Dig Through Mountainous Drifts to Carry Aid. By United Press GALLUP, N. M., Nov. 27.—The worst blizzard tragedy in the history of the nation threatened today, as 500 Navajo and Zuni Indians faced almost certain death from cold and starvation on the desolate, windswept mesas of western New Mexico. Nine Indians are known to be dead already. Trapped on the mesas when a blizzard suddenly swept the region, the plight of the tribesmen was described as horrible. But with the queer psychology of the red man, they braved death rather than abandon the pinon nuts they had gone to gather. Their situation became increasingly serious today, as the United States weather bureau predicted more snow and lower temperatures for the region tonight. Many May Die Officials of the Indian service declared that unless the Indians were rescued before the new cold blast, the death toll of nine probably would be increased considerably. Desperate attempts were being made to reach the snowbound Zunis and Navajoes. The most promising rescue attemp was that of approximately fifty white men, who left the Crown Point reservation on horseback, led by S. F. Stacher, veteran superintendent of the reservation. Besides that party, more than two hundred relatives of the marooned nut hunters were trying to batter their way through the drifts to effect rescue. Bitter cold prevailed. Temperatures ranged downward from zero. In places ten feet of snow choked the trails. Even the rugged mustangs of the range dropped in their tracks. Food Is Scarce The only food the marooned Indians had was the harvest of pinon nuts. It diminished steadily under the demands of women, children and ponies. The only fuel was the tough, green pinon wood. It provided little warmth, when it burned at all. Their only clothing was the usual garb of blankets and moccasins. In the stranded party were many children. The Zunis and Navajoes always take them along when they migrate to the pinon country. Possibility of using airplanes for relief of the trapped Indians was remote. Flying conditions were forbidden. There are few landing places in the rugged country, which lies just east of the grand eg non. 300 Straggle Back Couriers who struggled into the isolated agencies brought piecemeal accounts, many of which were conflicting. Three hundred Indians, in small groups, straggled into civilization Thursday. The rest, they said, remained to guard the nuts. The tiny Indian ponies were so weakened by hunger and exposure they were unable to haul the harvest. The 300 set about immediately to fatten their ponies, to strengthen them sufficiently to return and gather the nuts. The tribesmen were on two great mesas, Cerro Alto and Santa Rita, ten miles west of the little Indian trading post of Atarque. The braves who returned said their fellow tribesmen had piled bits of brush into crude wind-blocks for shelter. There was little fuel, they said. The snow was from three to ten feet deep. There was no forage for the ponies. Epic of Race The short, disconnected sentences of the Indians told what may become an epic of their race. The weather was warm when the harvest started. It was the first harvest of any amount in three years. The tribes, in anticipation, had done little basket making or rug weaving. "Can make more money selling nuts,” one brave declared, explaining that, as the rugs and blankets had not been produced, the nuts were absolutely necessary. The pioion nut resembles a navy bean, save that it is gray. The nuts are sold to the Indian traders, who, in turn, sell them to eastern dealers. In the east, the nuts are considered delicacies, commanding high prices. Entire families went to the harvest, small boys and girls, squaws, braves and elders. The nut* were hacked and piled at a central spot. The families moving on from one clump of the gnarled and stunted trees to another. Temperature Near Zero Suddenly the blizzard came. Whipped by a high wind, the snow piled into drifts The temperature was below zero. At first the Indians huddled about fires. Then the fuel was covered by snow. Scattered families gathered at community fires to preserve fuel. Then bush shelters were bui’t. The Indians sat down to v .it. A$ the storm grew worse, the tribes called a council. It was decided 300 would return, feed their ponies, and then come back for the nuts.

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