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Newspaper
Decatur Daily
Location
Decatur, Alabama, United States of America
Date
Dec 28, 1949
Page
1
Partly cloudy this afternoon through Thursday with cooling in the east and south and warmth in the north. Northeast winds along the coast. In hospital news Billy Joe Chandler of Tanner 1 is fair after a hunting accident. Other patients include Will Norton from Courtland and E Simpson of Hartselle.
Decatur and Garner Pride report strong interest on day one of a city wide natural gas survey. About 240 contacts were made, 50 definite applications and a $5 deposit were turned in by ten canvassers. Some will require second calls. the door to door survey will run six weeks contacting every household and business. The plan includes a wholesale gas contract with Alabama Tennessee Natural Gas Company to serve Decatur Huntsville and other valley cities.
Raymond Hicks Wall, 42, was charged with the Christmas Day shotgun slaying of his father in law Lora Tosh, 53, who was released on no bail in Columbia Tennessee. Tosh, a Limestone farmer, was killed around 6 30 P M after an argument with Walls during a drinking spree. Wall had been held on a first degree murder charge with a $5 000 bond, but bail was reduced this morning. Tosh’s death leaves three sons and two daughters, and he was buried in Giles County Tennessee. Witnesses said Tosh drew a knife and threatened Wall during the ride home, prompting Wall to retreat to the truck bed and later to return, where he fired twice, hitting Tosh in the chest. Wall surrendered at the sheriff’s office after the shooting.
Alabama Farm Bureau Federation schedules a series of district meetings starting January 3 to discuss cotton acreage inequities in the quota system. Meetings will be held at Ozark January 3 Monroeville January 4 Tutwiler January 5 and Belle Mina January 6 before reporting concerns to Washington for January 9 discussions. Walter Randolph urges farmer participation.
Betty Lou Marbury, a 10 year old farm girl from Tennessee, had her right hand amputated today to stop infection from a malignant bone tumor. Doctors said removal between the wrist and elbow was necessary after prayer camps and national interest followed her plea. Her father, Clay Marbury, and Baptist hospital staff described her calm acceptance and faith throughout the procedure.
Bond of 1500 dollars is set for four Marshall county men charged with kidnapping Joe King a 35 year old Marshall disabled veteran. County Judge H W Slaton Guntersville Attorney Joe Starnes and Sheriff C M Grant announced the arrangement. Starnes to represent the four men. See Bond on Page 2.
Neal Richards, about 35, received knife wounds in the chest abdomen and over the left eye during a drinking party. Travis Tyler, 41, held without bond on assault with intent to murder charges. William Oakland Bray, 24, held without bond on same charges after a separate stabbing incident. Richards condition described as not critical then improved but serious. Jeffries, 26, suffered nearly a dozen knife wounds after a car incident. Sheriff Byars’ office reports ongoing investigations and hospital transfers.
In a British Home Office trial, radioactive sodium was used to mark a railway car floor to trace a thief. Scientists and officers used Geiger counters to reveal the suspect's path from car to field, aiming to curb postwar thefts by tracking criminals with atomic materials.
Gadsden Alabama December 28 reports a tree display on Black Creek with two thorn trees nearly covered by hundreds of small dead snakes. County Agent T L Sanderson cites a nest washed against the trees, while another theory suggests promoters had tied snakes there.
President Soekarno arrives in Batavia to lead Indonesia as it rebuilds after war occupation and revolution. The new policy seeks foreign cooperation to lift a poverty stricken population, 10 percent literate, with vast debt and needed irrigation while U S weighs a $100 million loan.
A girl and her little cousin did not return home after an all night search. They left for a family visit about a mile away at 11 30 am yesterday and never appeared at Oville Lebreque’s home. The Biron and Lebreque families reside in a sparsely farmed area with dense woods.
Decatur residents rally to help the Calvin Spears family after a Christmas Day fire destroyed their Sixteenth Avenue home. The Decatur Moose Lodge, led by Lester Rice, has collected over 150 and secured donations of clothing, bedding, food, and household goods from about a dozen merchants. A Moose Lodge trustee urged anyone wishing to help to contact Garrison at 303 or Bob Harrison at 364, with transportation for items available if needed.
Decatur children are asked to donate at least one Christmas toy to European kids with no Santa visit. Decatur American Legion Post No 15 has two drop points Bailey's on Bank Street and Office Equipment on Second Avenue. Each toy should include a message and giver’s signature. Jimmy Bloodworth leads the effort noting America’s bounty should reach abroad to children with no gifts this Yuletide. See LOCAL on Page 2.
Eight fire companies fought a downtown Birmingham warehouse blaze at Allison Moving and Storage Co. on South 20th Street. Two floors were heavily damaged and authorities warned losses would run high into the thousands. the fire began about 11 p.m. and was controlled at 12:30 a.m.
Two Northern senators clash over which civil rights bill to bring first in January showdown. Wherry calls for an anti lynching bill test after reconvening while Lucas backs a fair employment practices bill FEPC. Sparks and others warn tempers will flare regardless as debate rules may force a two thirds vote to end filibusters.
President Truman ends his Christmas vacation at home and plans to fly from Fairfax airport to Washington The Independence to resume duties and finalize three major messages to Congress The White House timetable hinges on when the state of the union message and accompanying economic and budget reports will be delivered Officials say a return flight should take about four hours with timing depending on congressional discussions and scheduling decisions
A violent electrical storm lashed central and North Argentina causing deaths and injuries. Eight killed in Buenos Aires province, five in La Plata, two in Avellaneda, and a boy in Villa industriales. Communications disrupted, seven freight cars damaged in Olavarria, with three inches of rain in Buenos Aires. Firemen rescued marooned residents.
A director of the National Capital Centennial Commission says they have sought government assistance and law enforcement eyes to support the birthday celebrations marking the capital's anniversary.
President Juan D. Peron filed desacato charges against editors of La Nacion and La Prensa for publishing an opposition member’s accusation that he profited from office. The federal case follows a December threats and carries potential three year jail terms under the new law. Atilio Cattaneo, who made the charge, had been exiled to Uruguay after leaving Congress.
Patricia Reynolds Capella, a 26 year old American dancer born in Detroit, appeals to five world figures including Pope Pius, Stalin, and Vincent Auriol to assemble a plan for world safety so she can have children. She is married to Frenchman Jacques Capella and seeks guarantees against looming war.
A Marsha county convict, Bill Hard, 28, serving a first degree murder sentence from 1943, escaped Camp Cullman after 8 A M foggy morning. He fled to Falkville then tried to hitch a ride to Gunter's Mountain before vanishing into the woods. His wife, described as a 17 year old blonde, had sought divorce about three weeks earlier.
Rear Admiral Joseph J. Clark and his wife are sued by Miss Selma Sinclair for assault and battery citing forcible entry to the Clark owned apartment house on Massachusetts Ave. Papers were served as the case reemerges after prior eviction battles. Clark calls the suit a spiteful falsehood and denies violence.
SIGNAL HILL Calif December 28 Mrs Ruth Hamre 43 killed herself with a blank cartridge pistol placing the muzzle against her neck and pulling the trigger The force of the discharge severed her jugular vein and she bled to death Alfred Hamre her husband said she kept the pistol under her pillow to repel prowlers while he was at sea He added she had been ill.
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