23 Dec 1948
Page 1
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Newspaper
Decatur Daily
Location
Decatur, Alabama, United States of America
Date
Dec 23, 1948
Page
1
The issue lists a cloudy to partly cloudy outlook with scattered rain in extreme north areas and northeast coastal winds. Local markets report middling at 32 and strict low at 30. Multiple hospital admissions and closures for Christmas holidays are noted, including Decatur General and county offices. Several church events and sermons are described along with local police and patrol updates.
London December 23 Two battle tested American destroyers the Buchanan and McCalla are being transferred to the Turkish navy. Reactivated at Charleston under a Greek Turkish aid program act. Built in 1942 with WWII records. U S crews will sail them to Turkey early in 1949 with Turkish skeleton crews aboard as passengers.
Paris reports French high court of justice returns not guilty verdict for Marcel Bernard Peyrouton after a 46 minute jury deliberation. He faced treason and intelligence with the enemy charges tied to Vichy leadership and postwar roles, including a stint as police secretary and ambassador to Argentina.
Nationalist warships at Tangku near Tientsin repelled Red attacks killing about 1,500 Reds. Spencer Moosa reports heavy fighting on the outskirts with 800 Reds killed or wounded last night. Fu Tso Yi’s Peiping headquarters says Reds were driven back, Peiping population shown to back defenders.
The Arab Electric cooperative says about 250 Wolf Beat area customers in Morgan county will have Christmas trees lit for the first time this year. Manager Earl A. Holloway and board member John McCutcheon announced the plan and wished residents a merry Christmas and a happy new year.
A stray dog head examined at the Decatur branch laboratory tested positive for rabies. Several dogs had been bitten by the animal, according to officials reported to The Daily.
The National Safety Council estimated a Christmas period toll of 265 traffic deaths from 6 P M Friday to midnight Sunday. Final numbers may rise with delayed reports, and could be lower if drivers and pedestrians act cautiously especially around gasoline and alcohol and if weather worsens. Council president Ned H Carborn stressed the estimate is not to dampen cheer and may prove too high.
The Decatur Daily invites readers in Morgan Limestone Lawrence and Cullman counties to submit their list of the ten most notable local news stories from 1948. Readers are encouraged to write to The Editorial menu at The Decatur Daily in Decatur Alabama with their selections.
Government figures show November living costs fell for the second straight month with the index down 0.1 from October, led by food price declines. The mid November index stood at 172.2, 4.4 percent above the 1935-39 average and 74.6 percent above August 1939.
Russell Anthony Latona, 13, Sacramento, leaped overboard near Cape Maisi on Dec. 14 to aid shipmate Bent Jeppsen, 14, of Denmark aboard the Grete Maersk. Jeppsen was killed by sharks. Latona survived wearing a life belt and was hospitalized in good condition. Navy official credits Latona’s quick use of a life belt for his rescue.
A posse of state county and city officers under orders to shoot to kill pursued fugitive Murdock Hinton 48 a Luce dale farmer across a two mile square swampy area west of Mobile. Hinton wanted for questioning in a four time Mississippi killing was armed with a shotgun and pistol. Bloodhounds were brought in and Hinton was believed trapped near Hurley Miss, with details of his motive and the fatal double event still developing.
Washington reports indicate negotiators from seven nations are close to finishing a defense pact linking the United States and Canada with Europe in a mutual aid alliance. If finalized this weekend, it would mark rapid progress in trans Atlantic bargaining and extend a Western shield from Alaska to Scandinavia.
State National Bank board grants Vice President T. F. Adams a year long paid leave to recover health. J. S. Wyatt becomes vice president, C. D. Cottingham shifts to cashier, and J. S. Edwards with C. E. Timberlake named assistant cashiers. Adams has served as vice president since 1937.
The Junior Chamber of Commerce announced five new directors. Sam Maione Jr Harold Michelson William Lindsey Joe Morrison and John F Smith Jr were elected by the membership this week to join the board of directors.
Reports from Tokyo describe the execution of Hideki Tojo and six other war leaders by hanging at Sugamo prison after midnight. The priest said the condemned appeared almost jaunty as they drank weak wine and offered a final poem and message to the world.
Decatur's sky shifted from a potential White Christmas to a sunny departure as temperatures rose from 38 at 8 AM to 49 by noon, an 11 degree jump. Hourly readings show a steady climb through the morning with 52 expected by 2 PM.
Seattle and Tacoma ports remained idle on December 23 as AFL workers continued a three day walkout in Seattle and Tacoma longshoremen joined, halting loading of 20 ships in Seattle and six in Tacoma. Picketing targeted dock activity but workers reported no change in the stoppage.
Miss Claudia Moss of 335 Jackson Street displays the Eleanor Roosevelt Iris that blooms in spring and fall, a double flowering noted as a royal purple Christmas sight. Moss, living with her sister, mocks Westbrook Pegler by reading his columns to see what new nastiness he will utter.
The House Un American Activities Committee tied a red tag to 13 CIO union officers, naming four as communist leaders led by Harry Bridges Ben Gold Abram Flaxer and Donald Henderson. It warned workers that striking under a communist government could invite soldiers with guns and cited 20 CIO unions with entrenched communist leadership. It also asserted Communist influence in key unions like the Electrical Workers and warned they could threaten U S war production.
In Paris on December 23 Australia urged the United Nations to expel the Netherlands for what Col. W. R. Hodgson called a clear violation of the UN charter in the Indonesian conflict. He criticized the Dutch ceasefire breach and the ultimatum to Indonesia, and urged peaceful arbitration as the true path to settlement.
Postal workers will have a few hours Friday to do Christmas shopping as the office and branch close at noon. Postal service will continue through the holidays with special carrier deliveries as needed to prevent mail backlogs.
Fragmentary note quotes a line about a person who waits to do a great deal of good but never acts, mentioning famed individuals as context.
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