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This newspaper page contains 26 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
Shafter Press
Location
Shafter, California, United States of America
Date
Jan 22, 1942
Page
2
A brief public notice from the era notes second class matter status for postal handling in Shafter California dated August 1, 1085 under the relevant act. The fragment indicates a federal postal requirement and location specifics.
Local growers report profitable results as Shafter spinach is cut and shipped to a Los Angeles cannery. Yield runs about eight tons per acre under a preplant contract price, with potential for higher output if weather improves. Growers see spinach as a possible permanent crop, expanding acreage next year and diversifying farm income for a more prosperous community.
The Shafter community expects a major potato harvest despite wartime shortages and labor concerns. Thousands of carloads will move to markets worldwide, with extended work hours and carnival-like storefronts shaping the town during evenings, while workers carry a heavier sense of purpose this year.
Dr. Claude ZoBell of Scripps Institution of Oceanography argues that civilian harm from bacterial agents is unlikely if precautions are followed. He cites two key factors in infections: individual resistance and pathogen virulence, stressing sanitation and personal hygiene as defenses.
The article urges civilians to stay calm about bacterial warfare and to maintain physical fitness and home sanitation. It reassures that proper precautions should prevent any germs delivered by enemies from harming the population.
The piece warns women face a straw hat shortage with possible priority rationing after this year. Men may still buy straw toppers as stock remains, while women seek substitutes and changing styles amid production management efforts to assign priority ratings for farm machinery and parts.
Rain halts picking in the Shafter district keeping a large amount of cotton unpicked while prices stay strong. Growers face the paradox of high potential money with poor quality and reduced yield due to wet weather.
A fragment outlines a sensational view of a tank as a vast war machine moving through swamps and trenches. It also notes civil service notices inviting many workers, a February 10 rabies vaccination for dogs by Dr. N M Twisselmann, and a Farm Bureau membership push with a stock show preview and Hereford entries from Shafter Future Farmers.
A letter exchange from Shafter California discusses a license plate slogan reading God Bless Mexico Too and rebukes a prior incident at a local motel on January 14, 1942. The notices reference public coverage in beauty parlors and barber shops and dismiss a newspaper mention.
A Bank of America branch manager reports workers uncovering an uncashed check and a fresh twenty dollar bill behind a wall panel during remodeling. The bill ends a months long teller shortage, and the manager quips about needing a tax to enter once the work is done.
The New York Sun notes a need for a new skating flag, replacing the red ball on a white field due to resemblance to the Japanese ensign. Mountain Lakes New Jersey develops a blue ball on a white field as the new signal that ice is firm.
A UC Citrus Experiment Station study shows immersion in hot water for two minutes or more fully protects Eureka lemons from brown rot when infection occurred 34 hours earlier. The experiment was conducted at the University of California Citrus Experiment Station.
Dr. Frank M. Stewart professor at the University of California Los Angeles campus was elected president of the Western Government Research Association. He also serves as director of the Bureau of Governmental Research at the University.
The writer questions the value and cost of civilian listening posts between Shafter and Fresno, proposing four trained army listeners might offer better protection. He asks who will cover maintenance expenses for posts currently funded by volunteers on whose property the posts sit.
A rain of pennies falls as E A Weil opens his Central avenue store back. Pennies slugs and dimes pour out with dimes from the penny machine. A group of boys on a vacant city lot eye a spring sigh and a baseball bat. Richard Becker named most improved on Coach Montgomery's basketball squad. Cafe Neuman charged $40 worth of stamps, signaling a shift from drinks to defense stamps.
Norman Chief Standlee, a former Stanford football ace, denounces an Army doctor who allegedly rated him color blind. He questions the difference and asserts his ability to identify the enemy, framing the dispute as a clash over fairness and wartime judgment.
Holm, dean of women at Lodi High School, urges that adolescents require parental presence at home when needs arise, noting that they need parents more than teachers or preachers. She emphasizes active parental involvement over external figures.
Col. J. E. Lyon, chemical warfare officer, tells the Oakland chemical society that war gas is less dangerous than many assume. He says a person can sniff a small amount without serious effects, and should simply move away from the area quickly.
Miss Lou Richardson, S F, regional defense official, reminds women to remember the days when the war ends. While men fight, they should plan for the peace to come after victory.
Maj Gen David P Bar Rows declares the Pacific cannot host two fleets and the war will be long, signaling a hard struggle ahead as U S forces adapt to strategic limits. Mischauer quips about Hollywood and the high cost of living.
Dr R E Smith of Cantina College of Agriculture reports at the university that two viruses cause diamond canker in French prune trees. His research disproves the belief that the disease is a hereditary sport or strain.
Researchers at the University of California College of Agriculture report evidence that alternate bearing in Valencia orange trees results from the simultaneous development of two crops, one mature and one new, on the same trees.
San Joaquin Ginning reports 4018 bales ginned this season with more coming in and growers preparing for 1930. McFarland notes crop rotation and potential acreage rise for 1931. farmers shift between cotton and alfalfa. Jack Willbanks acquitted of manslaughter in a Bakersfield train crash last December. General Petroleum places 40 wells on pump in Lost Hills, aiming 1000 barrels daily. 92 wells will run on a new pipeline system, reviving long-idled fields. Lost Hills oil market shifts toward southbound shipments. conservation drives changes in Kern heavier oils. Bootleg whiskey and hair oil barred from California barber shops. separation required for non barber activities in shops.
Lettuce production in Shafter district runs near normal with 25 carloads shipped to date by Richland Fruit Co. Markets span the southern and bay districts and prices average through manager F W Handel. Weather now favors further carloads, 1928 had smaller shipments but larger acreage and brighter prospects for continued growth. A lone crime note closes with a late night restaurant encounter as J P Neufeld visits for coffee, startling Pete White.
Judge Elmer Lobre of McFarland imposed fines from 25 to 50 dollars on a Los Angeles group for killing 12 wild ducks after the season closed on January 15 at a duck club west of McFarland. Wardens Vail Welch and another officer brought them to court and the ducks were sent to the county hospital for use there.
A plan approved by the San Joaquin Valley Water Committee at a Fresno meeting indicates eight valley counties will contribute to a regional water survey fund. The projected study will begin in San Joaquin County and run through Kern County, with a final report on water needs for Fresno Kern and Tulare counties to follow.
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