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Newspaper
Decatur Daily
Location
Decatur, Alabama, United States of America
Date
Jan 10, 1949
Page
1
Weather outlook cloudy and colder with rain in the north. Decatur cotton market noon quotes middling 32.5. Court records list several arrests including violations of traffic and public drunkenness. Local residents return from Los Angeles. PTA meetings scheduled. hospital moves and obituaries noted for local families. See Diary on Page 2.
The city enjoyed sunshine and blue skies with a high around 69 in the afternoon after a trace of rain in the previous 24 hours. Morning readings ranged from the low 50s to the mid 60s with noon reaching 69 degrees and a night low near 48.
A humorous column by Ken Reynolds features brief gags and witty observations. The piece showcases light satire and playful riffs on daily life and society.
Britain concentrates troops and warships in the Mediterranean amid Palestine concerns and potential force show. Israel rejects a British protest over five downed aircraft near the Egyptian border and defends landing at Aqaba. Britain reserves right to seek compensation and possible UN action contingent on Israel’s boundary adherence.
The United States asked Britain and Israel to treat the shooting down of five British planes as a regrettable incident only. State Department officials said the event should not derail Palestine truce talks opening Wednesday on Rhodes. The department noted advance notice of British force movements to Aquaba but gave no confirmation of American objections.
Britain, seeking Security Council action, signals readiness to aid Arab states if Israel infringes territory. A government source says London may declare it not bound by the arms embargo in the Middle East. Israel rejects the protest as not addressed to its government and cites British troop presence at Aqaba as threatening Negev territory.
Seven Black men including Frank Hairston Jr and James Hairston were charged in Martinsville Va with raping 32 year old Glen Floyd wife of a local store owner. Police report oral confessions and implicating statements. initial count had suggested thirteen suspects. Floyd accompanied by a 12 year old boy said she was attacked in East Martinsville near the Danville and Western tracks after selling clothing funds.
President Truman asked Congress for an immediate appropriation of 56.4 million for the Tennessee Valley Authority steam electric plant as part of a 1950 fiscal year budget totaling 135.2 million including other revenue sources. He warned of an upcoming power shortage and cited a 16.5 million item to begin construction at New Johnsonville, Tenn, a project previously rejected by Congress.
A two engine plane crashed into a church conference camp near Julian California killing five of six aboard. A survivor identified as Madelaine Baer of Inglewood was critically injured. Aboard were three married couples including Merald Miller and Jean La Berge. The Miller Dial and Nameplate Co. in Los Angeles owned the plane.
Bradford Smith writes The American Adventure a narrative mixing Gospel editing and world history. The piece notes his work in propaganda during wartime and his teaching roles at Columbia University and Bennington College.
Seven cars of the Florida to New York Orange Blossom Special derailed at Milford Virginia. Three dining car waiters were injured and taken to Fredericksburg hospital. no passengers hurt. Train was moving as RF&P line in the Seaboard service. cause not yet determined. Remaining passengers to be moved to another train and continue north before noon.
The Tombigbee river crest eyed Demopolis after forcing 3000 Mississippi residents from homes. Gainesville on high ground faced no flooding while downstream Demopolis prepared as crested waters were forecast to reach around 61 feet, below record levels but ahead of expected flood impacts.
Local VFW post plans to attend the mid winter parley in Anniston on February 5 and 6 with several representatives and national officers expected to attend the meeting.
Fourteen year old Buddy Jett of Tanner 1 escaped serious injuries when his bicycle was hit by a southbound car on Highway 31 about four miles north of the city at 10 49 A M Sunday. The driver, a man from Ontario Canada, could not be identified. Buddy was taken to Baugh Wiley clinic for first aid after landing on his head.
The Associated Press reports a severe cold wave across the Western plains and Rocky Mountains, with temperatures dropping to 26 below in Livingston Montana and forecasts as low as 19 degrees in California fruit regions. Blizzard conditions threaten livestock, and relief efforts begin as snow drifts extend from Wyoming to New Mexico.
M H Broom president of the Hartselle Rotary club will direct the March of Dimes campaign in Hartselle with B L Rickenbacker as county chairman. The crippled children's committee will handle solicitations during January 14 31. Funds aid infantile paralysis treatment and the drive marks Franklin Delano Roosevelt's birthday January 30.
Burglars broke into S. M. Kress store in Montgomery Jan. 10 and blasted open a safe taking about $2,000. The blast caused about $1,100 in damage and hurled both safe doors across the room, one breaking the office door.
Police logged three automobile wrecks, two caused while drivers tried to avoid collisions. Sheron Randolph and Rufus Rolson collided at Bank and Cherry Streets about 7:10 am. Louie Glenn’s car overturned on Highway 31 N to avoid Ed Nelson, no injuries. Alfred Wantin’s car ditched on Highway 31 after Slaughter left turning toward a filling station. no injuries listed. Officers Broadrick Smith Collier Standridge Terry Jacobs investigated.
Police in P Tenn report an attempt to wreck the New Orleans Cincinnati train near the station. Obstructions were placed on the tracks with lumber and tools found by officers. The FBI is assisting in the probe and details point to a planned derailment near the railway. Glenn Dancy alerted authorities after hearing activity near his home.
During the Union Hill versus Hartselle basketball game at Morgan County High School, temporary bleachers on the stage collapsed injuring three students. Frankie Jo McAnally of Cotaco suffered back injuries and was treated at Decatur General Hospital, Billy Gene Clemons had two broken bones in his foot, and Ted Gibson sustained a slight back injury. Between 60 and 80 spectators were in the affected section.
Heat pump tests underway in Decatur with TVA funding as one of eight Tennessee Valley sites study using buried soil heat. Officials say the system could cut heating costs while cooling in summer, but current installations remain pricey for typical homeowners.
President Truman sends a budget plan urging higher taxes to reduce the deficit for the coming year. The document outlines present income projections around 39.6 to 41.9 billion dollars and a rising national debt, with a deficit near 0.6 to 0.9 billion.
President Truman presents a 1950 budget totaling 41.858 billion dollars for the year starting July 1, the largest in history, equating to 282.82 per person. He urges tax increases of about 4 billion annually to fund growing defense and social programs including a new health insurance plan, with Western Europe rearmament to be financed later. The plan projects a 873 million 1950 deficit and a 600 million 1949 red ink, prompting calls for faster social security hikes and higher corporate and estate taxes.
Captain Tom Wiley and his wife arrived home to Decatur after holidays to find 23 feet of snow in Rapid City. At the Army base hospital where he serves, patients had been evacuated to Denver, Colorado. He telephoned his mother to report their trip.
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