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Newspaper
Decatur Daily
Location
Decatur, Alabama, United States of America
Date
Dec 26, 1947
Page
1
December weather across the state included frost south portions and a warmer trend by Saturday while Decatur saw a 44 degree high and 29 degree low. Local police logged Christmas arrests for public drunkenness and pistol carrying, and county records noted two arrests for drunkenness and one for DUI.
President Truman may wait for the Republican nominating battle before choosing a Democratic running mate for 1948. White House discussions point to a large field, with a July Fourth holiday timing influencing the decision. Possible candidates include McCormack, Dewey or Martin seen as GOP frontrunners, and Truman is expected to align a VP pick to counter the Republicans.
Ken Reynolds presents a column of brief notes and curiosities from the paper’s inner pages. Snippets blur the line between calendar items and oddities with local flavor and wry observations.
Secretary of Agriculture Anderson asked over 600 brokerage firms to report any government employees or immediate family who traded futures between 1946 and 1947. Brokers must submit wares of insiders by January 3 with detailed data by January 10. The inquiry covers federal state and local employees and officials.
Dr and Mrs A J Dupuy invite about 125 friends to an annual open house at their North Jefferson Street residence in Athens on Christmas day between eleven and one. The event is eagerly anticipated by invitees.
A savage typhoon struck the Philippines causing massive damage and many deaths. At least 56 people are dead or missing, including 46 from the Kina which sank near Samar. Tacloban no longer spared, Manila and Laguna report deaths and disappearances as emergency measures begin.
Former Secretary of War Henry L Stimson argues in his wartime biography that if he or George Marshall had been commander in chief the invasion of France would have begun in 1943, though no certain answer is possible. He notes Roosevelt favored Torch over Bolero and Churchill resisted a 1942 cross–channel invasion.
A House Armed Services subcommittee begins mailing 2953 former Army and Navy officers retired for disability with tax free incomes to detail the disabilities that led to retirement. Chairman Elon V X Chi o says the system is unfair and will expose inequities. The list includes colonels and captains and parallels a Truman White House request after Maj. Gen. Meyers' disability retirement case.
Funeral services for former Decatur grocer Thomas tin Shelton will be held Saturday at 2 30 PM from Caddo church. The body arrived today at 5 45 AM from Plant City Florida. Mutual Service will direct burial in the adjoining cemetery.
Guerrilla forces opened heavy attacks south of Ioannina and near Konitsa as Greek troops report very heavy losses. Greek authorities have arrested over 500 in Athens since the Northern communist state proclamation. War Minister Stratos led operations as forces reinforced frontier towns. a Yugoslav reconnaissance plane was repelled.
Premier Hideki Tojo testified at the Tokyo war crimes trial declaring the war was fought in self defense. In a 65,000 word deposition he claimed Japan acted only as a last resort and that the war could not be an international crime. The case spans 25 leaders accused of aggressive warfare dating back to 1929.
Senator Sparkman of Alabama says relief from high prices and enactment of the Marshall plan will top Congress’s agenda when it reconvenes January 6. He plans to push federal education aid, a nationwide hospital building program, and continuation of rural electrification, while backing Truman price controls. He supports Marshall plan aims but stops short of full commitment.
A 12 year old girl and a city electric department employee remained in critical condition at Decatur General hospital after Christmas Eve accidents. The girl Sherry Gayle Maner wore flannel pajamas as her clothing caught fire near her home. Grandmother Mrs J M Reynolds helped extinguish the blaze. The man Charles L Merrell suffered 40000 volt arc burns after touching a hot line. Power outages followed as crews helped bring Merrell down and give blood.
The Decatur Kiwanis club installed officers today with Rev W W Glass as incoming president and James R Williams and Charles H Winston as vice presidents. Others on the board include Joe Calvin T J Cottingham Redus Collier Fred Hunt Jr and Luke Pryor. Frank Seibert is secretary and John Harlow treasurer. The meeting at noon was presided by Ewell K Gregg with guests Judge Seybourn H Lynne Floyd Sharp and birthdays observed. Kenneth Thomas district governor was in charge of the program and Raymond Yost outlined Alabama Kiwanis district goals for 1948.
Police filed several drunk driving charges after a motorist knocked a telephone pole on Christmas Eve causing a chain of collisions. Six cars were involved, with multiple drivers charged for reckless driving and dis orderly conduct while police handled the scene. A passerby who came to bail out a detainee shouted Merry Christmas as he stepped into traffic.
Otis Ballew is out of Cullman county jail on 750 bond after being held since Monday for assaulting and attempting to murder his wife. Mrs Ballew was stabbed at home 20 miles east of Cullman and later released from Arab hospital. Murf Ballew and Murf Ballew Jr. are also free on 750 bonds after arrest for conspiracy to commit a felony in connection with the stabbing.
Willie W. Thomas, 30, negro, is held in city jail awaiting action of federal secret service agents. He was arrested in Decatur last night by Police Officers Stanford and Braswell. Police Chief J. B. Whitmire said the exact federal charges were not certain.
Decatur residents share Christmas with Cherokee Indians at the Tennessee Willow trailer camp. Chief Chewacki's grandson Steve Mitchell is recovering from a serious attack after three weeks at Decatur General. The celebration included open fire cooking, Indian style worship, and visits from locals at St Ann Catholic church.
A.P. reports a heavy toll during the Christmas period with at least 179 highway deaths and 107 from other causes. Over 30 fires claimed many lives including 10 Indians in Nevada and seven in Texas hotels. State totals show California leading with 27 deaths, Texas 28, New York 20, with varied regional losses.
Five persons died in Alabama traffic incidents during Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Helen C. Ryals, 24, near Attalla, was fatally injured in a a car crash on the Camp Seibert reservation. Robert Lee Hinton of Alberta City was struck by a bus and killed near Tuscaloosa. James Tatum of Waugh died when his car overturned near Montgomery. A two-car collision on the Greensboro road near Tuscaloosa caused two deaths including McKinley D. Jackson, 18, and Pete Mason, a Negro. Ten others were injured, with one in critical condition.
The Associated Press reports a deadly wave of incidents from Arkansas to Miami during the Dixie celebration. Nearly 50 lives were lost in automobile crashes, shootings, stabbings, fires, and related chaos as holiday festivities turned tragic.
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