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Newspaper
Cedar Rapids Gazette
Location
Cedar Rapids, Iowa, United States of America
Date
Dec 23, 1939
Page
3
The administration drops an immediate 600000 man surge plan. It will seek funds to make the present 462000 army and guard 100 percent trained and equipped. Congress would face about 1100 million dollars for the army with emergency outlays and eventual manpower tweaks.
A Christmas snow storm moved into Iowa Saturday afternoon with a white blanket over the countryside. The weather bureau forecast snow statewide Saturday night and Sunday, with hazardous driving in southwestern Iowa and warnings from the highway patrol. Atlantic reported heavy snowfall at 12 30 p.m. Most reports came from southwestern and south central Iowa while northern Missouri saw sleet and rain. The forecast called for snow tonight changing to snow flurries Sunday with moderately cold weather leaving part of the fall on the ground.
Overcast skies and chances of snow marked the Christmas weekend in Cedar Rapids. Temperatures fell to 17 degrees at midnight Friday, rose through the morning to 34 by 2 p.m., with a Friday high of 30 between 2:30 and 4 p.m. Genehatchers Inskeep company i.
Retail merchants bureau official notes Cedar Rapids stores will keep evening hours this week for Christmas shoppers and remain open until 9 o'clock tonight to accommodate the season.
Lester Etzel about 27 was burned to death while trying to save clover seed from his burning farm home northwest of Alburnett. His father Jake Etzel suffered a fatal heart attack on learning of the death. Fire traced to defective wiring in the wash house. The home valued at 5 000 to 6 000 dollars was a total loss with some downstairs furniture saved. Neighbors called after Mrs. Jake Etzel rang an alarm. Surviving are the parents, a sister and three brothers.
In Cedar Rapids at the intersection of Tenth avenue and Third street SE a taxi collided with a pickup truck injuring Rudolph Fisher 34 and his brother Benny 26. Both suffered bruised hips with cuts and a bump to the head. Reckless driving charges were sought against taxi driver Gerald Pettit 25.
Abraham L. Shushan and four allies were found guilty of mail fraud tied to a 496000 dollar government bond refunding scheme. The five face up to 35 years each. Also named are Seymour Weiss, Leche, Maestri, and other Long associates, with related state cases noted.
In Philadelphia, Lyman Gilbert 65 attended a joint farewell Christmas party the night before his planned January retirement from the insurance business. After the event he left with gifts, turned to shake a friend’s hand and collapsed dead.
Nine hundred fifty needy Cedar Rapids families on the Christmas exchange list were assured baskets or gifts. Baskets were delivered tonight and some will be handed out Sunday by volunteers, Sunshine Mission, and Salvation Army. Agencies checked requests and anonymous tips, and the $144.80 donated was split between Sunshine Mission and Salvation Army to fund food and baskets. Boy Scouts delivered filled baskets on Friday and Saturday.
Paris dispatch says Emil Hacha was kept conscious with injections as Nazi chiefs forced the Czech president and Czech Foreign Minister Frantisek Chvalkovsky to sign over Czechoslovakia. Coulondre reported the scene in Berlin, detailing threats of massacre and a staged surrender to save lives.
Anthony H. G. Fokker, famed aviation designer and builder, died Saturday in Murray Hill hospital of pneumococcal meningitis. Born in Kediri in 1890, he led wartime plane development, moved to the United States in 1922, and helped design transport and pursuit aircraft including the Southern Cross for Kingsford Smith. He was widower. his wife Viola died in 1929 and he never remarried.
Police investigate a $180 theft from the Municipal Employees Credit Union cash box in the sewage disposal plant. Treasurer John C. McIntyre reported Oct 14 to Dec 20 collections of $515.10, with $335.10 present. McIntyre questioned a loan theory and said the desk was locked most of the day while he was in and out. Police to quiz union members.
By Bugs Baer the piece notes Russians competing in Finland and lamenting losses as Finns prove tougher. It claims Russians dominate second places while the Olympics remain on schedule and the street scene is described with humorous cold imagery.
A World War I vignette recalls Christmas Eve when German and British soldiers sang carols and shared a brief moment of humanity in No Man's Land. They exchanged gifts and helped bury the dead before fighting resumed the next day, illustrating a holy respite from war.
General Kyril A Meretskoff, head of the Leningrad military district, was promoted with a nomination to the Leningrad district soviet amid rumors of his dismissal. A Soviet communique tallies Finnish casualties and equipment losses, noting difficult terrain and strong defenses along the Mannerheim line.
Paris reports French naval sources say about 500 German ships, mobilized since war start, are ordered to return to the Reich. The crews aim to sail via all routes from neutral ports carrying an estimated 1,800,000 tons of cargo as Germany seeks raw materials.
In Bethlehem the Church of the Nativity will ring with peace on earth amid a quiet Holy Land. Pilgrims from abroad are fewer this year, with Christmas mainly a local observance, as radio broadcasts and war fade from the scene.
A freight and passenger train collision near Rudolfzell on Lake Constance killed fifty and injured thirty. Two earlier German wrecks west of Berlin killed 132 and injured 109. Officials in Marksdorf and Klostern were arrested. sources saw no sabotage, citing equipment decay and wartime strains from Austria Czechoslovakia and Poland seizures.
Representative John A. Martin, 71, a Democrat from Colorado, died early Saturday at a Naval hospital after a brief illness. He served in Congress and was known for his legislative work and public service.
Mrs Magdalene Jefford and her 15 month old son were stranded with pilot Fred Chambers for four days after their plane ran low on fuel in a blizzard. Rescue involved brother in law Jefford dropping supplies and dog sled teams guiding them to safety near Nulato. Hans Mirow, owner of the grounded liner, disappeared during the search with other pilots seeking him 100 miles southwest of Nulato.
Finnish forces report a broad counteroffensive stalling Soviet land campaigns until spring. They claim 5 000 Russian prisoners and large material losses, while air raids cause limited Finnish damage. Moscow cites 25 000 Russian dead in brief conflict. Finland notes heavy Soviet air use and bold tactics.
Lloyd Watson 18, of 1827 Hamilton St SW, allegedly forged and used a stolen car registration under the name Charles H. Watson to obtain credit at Standard Tire and the S and W service station. Detectives say he rented a battery and attempted to buy a $25 radio using the fictitious identity. He was arrested at 11 30 am by Detective J H Bailey after a tire shop alert.
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