Demoreai fam.
INK SLINGS.
—Certainly you can conjure up no
dream of greater happiness and con-
tentment during the new year than
we hope will really be yours.
—This is 1923 and we're a year or
two ahead of a lot of subscribers to
the “Watchman” but a thousand or
two behind those who have extended
us the credit to keep the old home pa-
per going.
—The new Legislature has conven-
ed, but it will take a month or more
to discover whether it is going to get
up on its hind feet and walk alone or
creep through the session after Pop-
pa Pinchot.
—Every day we have written some-
thing about the foreign situation and
every following day we have torn it
up for the reason that there appears
to be a new situation on the other side
every twenty-four hours.
—After ten days it will be Governor
Pinchot. Of course he has been act-
ing Governor since early last fall, but,
be that as it may, let’s all be for him
up to the time we catch him four-
flushing on the promises he made.
—Experts tell us that the known
copper resources of the country will
be exhausted within twenty-five years.
With every other person making a
still or a radio outfit we're surprised
that there is enough to last that long.
—Nine times out of ten you'll find
that the fellow who comes ‘round and
tells you that “the people are talking
about this, that or the other thing
you've done” is the ubiquitous little
mischief-maker who has given them
the dope to talk about.
—The State water commission last
Saturday sent a night message
to borough manager Seibert to con-
serve our water supply for there was
no relief in sight. Waiving the grand
rain that started falling less than
twenty hours after we were advised
that there was no relief in sight we
are wondering what the wise men at
Harrisburg were expecting Mr. Sei-
bert to do—stand at the spill-way of
the beautiful spring and stop the
twenty million gallons of water that
run away every day to keep the lower
Bald Eagle from becoming like the
dry rivers of Arizona.
—A glance at the football sched-
ule that State has engaged to play
next fall convinces us that Mr. Hugo
Bezdek is resolved to put the recently
professed faith of the Alumni and the
under-graduates in him to the acid
test. While we don’t estimate Bez-
dek’s value to State in the scale of vic-
tories won on the football field we're
fearful of what others may think and
say when the blue and white gets
through with such a row of games as
Gettysburg, Navy, West Virginia,
Syracuse, Georgia Tech, Penn and
Pitt. No team in the country will
have such a schedule.
—Of course the beauty of the com-
munity Christmas tree service so
elaborately planned by the camp-fire
girls had to be marred by noisy auto-
mobiles and a lot of frivolous indi-
viduals who thought it a frolic in-
stead of a thoughtful, solemn service.
The best voices of the town were
massed there for carol singing but the
noise and congestion was so great that
the effect was as nothing to that of
the carolers who sang on the quiet
streets early on Christmas morn.
Their’s was the song in the air that
roused from peaceful slumber those
who thought of the star in the sky
and the mother’s sweet prayer.
—Looking over the personal men-
tion in this edition of the “Watch-
man” we urge dwelling upon the par-
agraph that Mr. Gates has devoted to
our old friend Walter Gherrity. For
years we have sung about the accura-
cy and truthfulness of “Watchman”
statements and, here, the very first
time we've been off the job since the
spring of 1890 either Gates or Walter
are trying to make you believe that
bucks are still so plentiful over in the
fastnesses of the Seven mountains,
where Walter has that alluring lodge,
that they are rubbing all the paint off
his buildings with their horns. We've
visited Pat and we’ve visited Walter,
since dear old Pat departed, and it’s
our impression that none of the build-
ings over there ever wore a coat of
paint.
—In 1902, had we cracked up like
we did on Thanksgiving day, 1922,
we presume some perfectly good doc-
tor would have told us to have our
appendix removed at once. Had the
physical cataclysm happened to us in
1912 in all probability we would have
been urged to undergo a tonsil and
adenoid operation as the sure route
to wellville. As a result of the de-
layed upset we are still proprietor of
an appendix, two perfectly good ton-
sils and enough adenoids to be heard
all over the house most any night
after the hour of retirement, but we
have lost a noble wisdom tooth. It’s
the rage now to blame every ill, from
ingrowing toenails to brain fag, on the
teeth and the doctors are making all
the business they can for the ex-Ray
operators and the dentists.
up two smackers and that grand old
wisdom-worker only to find out that
there wasn’t a pus sac dangling at the
bottom that had been draining into
and poisoning our system so that we
couldn’t be otherwise than ill. She’s
gone and the more we think of it the
more we feel like paraphrasing Coue’s
cure-all dope, thusly: Every day in
ever way, I'm getting “easier” and
“easier!”
7
RE
Aemacralic
VOL. 68.
STATE RIGHTS AN
D FEDERAL UNION.
Little Prospect of Reforms.
The personnel of the Legislature,
as organized by the Republican ma-
chine, affords little promise of the re-
forms to which Governor-elect Gifford
Pinchot stands pledged. Larry Eyre,
whom Mz. Pinchot publicly condemned
as an undesirable, is president pro-
tem of the Senate with power to or-
ganize the standing committees, and
C. J. Goodnough, always a servile
follower of Penrose, Speaker of the
House. The widely known lust for
party spoils may induce these gentle-
men to acquiesce in Pinchot’s plans
during the first part of his term,
while the offices are being distributed,
but the support will be grudging from
the beginning and is not likely to en-
dure long.
The considerable increase in the
Democratic membership will no doubt
exercise a wholesome influence on the
proceedings of the session. The
Democratic members are in perfect
harmony and fully determined to
strive for worthy legislation regard-
less of the source of its origin. Gov-
ernor-elect Pinchot may safely rely
upon the forty-one Democrats in the
House of Representatives and the six
Senators of that political faith to aid
him in carrying out every proposition
he may advance for the good of the
Commonwealth and in the interest of
the people. This fact may also serve
as a restraining force against the
wild partisan legislation contemplated
by the Republican machine.
But we are not over-confident of
great achievement in the direction of
reforms during the period of the pres-
ent Legislature. Upon the question of
prohibition the Governor-elect will
probably have no difficulty in carry-
ing out his promise of legislation fa-
vorable to the dry interest. It ap-
pears to be the popular side of the
question. Of course he cannot “drive
every saloon out of the State,” as he
declared he would. There will be
speak-easies and “boot-leggers” in
spite of legislation and vigilance. But
there is not likely to be any “mess-
cleaning” worthwhile. The vast army
of needless officials will continue to
milk the treasury for ‘four years
us 4 3 noice
more.”
ee
—Senator Borah may have failed
in his effort to lead the “bitter end-
ers” out of the seclusion of provincial-
ism, but he did succeed in smoking
some sort of a foreign policy out of
the White House and the State De-
partment.
State Manager Proposed.
The report of Senator Woodward's
reorganization committee will in all
probability meet with the fate of its
several predecessors. That is to say,
it will probably be read in both
branches of the General Assembly,
referred to the appropriate committee
in each, discussed at intervals for a
few weeks and then dropped into a
convenient pigeon hole and die. Un-
like some of its predecessors, how-
ever, the principal recommendation of
the Woodward committee richly de-
serves its fate. The last reorganiza-
tion committee made some actually
worthy recommendations. Possibly
this one contains some suggestions of
merit but it conceals it.
The main recommendation of the
Woodward committee is that the of-
fice of general manager be created in
whom will be invested such vast pow-
ers as to make him responsible to no-
body except himself. Several bor-
oughs of the State and at least one of
the third class cities have resorted to
that form of government with more
or less success. But in each instance
the manager was under restraints that
guaranteed proper respect for his ob-
ligations to the public, not contemplat-
ed in the plan of the Woodward com-
mission. The general manager of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania cor-
poration would be appointed by the
Governor but amenable to no one ex-
cept in so far as gratitude influenced
him.
tralization, however, and that appears
to be the drift of the official mind at
this time. To hold the people at a
distance and limit the confidence to a
few seems to be the policy. A gen-
eral manager would promote this sys-
tem and it is not unlikely that a ser-
ious attempt will be made to put it
into force. But we have faith in the
Democratic minority in the Legisla-
ture to defeat any such scheme. It
will not meet with unanimous approv-
We gave |
al among the Republicans and upon
| any measure of legislation on which
| the majority party is divided, the mi-
nority will be able to exert an influ-
ence for good.
——Dr. Finegan knew how to in-
terpret Mr. Pinchot’s shifty com-
‘ment on the school department ex-
travagance. He used the expensive
| machinery in the interest of Pinchot
cand has “cinched” his job for anoth-
er term.
wey
It is in line with the trend of cen- |
BELLEFONTE, PA.,
| Governor Sproul’s Swan Song.
i Governor Sproul’s last message to
the Legislature, delivered orally on
Tuesday, assumed the form of a re-
view, or rather a defense of his ad-
{ ministration. He deplored a few
{ things, naturally, and pointed with
! pride to many acts which the people
{have deplored. The enforcement of |
| Prohibition has not been as vigorous
i or successful as he would have liked
i but that is not chargeable to him.
: There may have been a lack of co-
| operation between the federal
| State agencies of enforcement but the
| federal end was largely to blame for
{ the reason that it began badly and
| grew worse as it progressed. The ap-
public notice that the matter was a
joke.
The Governor points with pride to
i the. record of his administration in
the reorganization of the Department
of Education. What has been achiev-
ed beyond the centralization of power
in Harrisburg and the multiplication
of expenses remains to be seen. Pos-
sibly time will reveal some advantage
{ in the methods adopted by the import-
| ed and expensive head of the depart-
ment. Let us hope for the best. The
construction of 1800 miles of concrete
and 1000 miles of other permanent
roads is something to boast of, if the
result had been accomplished at rea-
sonable cost. But as a matter of fact
the expenses incuried in the work
were so excessive and the quality so
doubtful that present estimates of the
value of the improvement are conjec-
tural.
High hopes were entertained by the
people when Governor Sproul entered
upon his duties as Governor of Penn-
sylvania, with wide experience in pub-
lic affairs he had acquired an envia-
ble reputation for business sagacity.
It was expected that correct business
principles and methods would be ap-
plied in the administration of the af-
fairs of the great corporation of
which he had become the head. But
these expectations have been disap-
pointed. The most slovenly methods
of conducting the business of the peo-
ple have not only caused confusion in
Commonwealth in debts the extent of
which can only be guessed at.
—Pity the poor air! The public
health workers tell us that itis pollut-
ed with germs and bugs of every de-
scription and now Herbert Hoover
comes along to say that it is dyspep-
tic with the thousands of messages
that radio fans are shooting into it
every day.
|
; Proposed Tax on Manufactures.
i
State Treasurer Charles A. Snyder,
lin a report of the activities of his de-
| partment to the Governor, suggests a
| tax on the $5,500,000,000 of capital
! employed in manufacturing enterpris-
s in Pennsylvania. He doesn’t actu-
| ally recommend such a tax. He mere-
ily suggests that “if the Legislature
i wishes to take care of the unpaid bills
| and obligations which may be created
| by department heads under the pres-
ent appropriations” such a levy might
i be resorted to. The existing levy may
| be depended upon to produce $45,000,-
000, but that will not be enough.
According to his figures $70,000,000 a
year will be required and the proposed
levy will make up the difference.
There is a good deal of reason in
the proposition to levy such a tax on
manufactures if the money is needed
to “clean up the mess” at Harrisburg.
Mr. Snyder estimates that the reve-
nue from such a tax on the basis of
present levies on service corporations,
banks and other enterprises would
yield something like $25,000,000 a
year. Auditor General Lewis esti-
mates the revenues at a trifle under
$55,000,000 a year. The addition of a
manufucturers’ tax as estimated by
Snyder would provide amply for the
needed increase without laying other
burdens such as the coal tax and the
: gasoline tax on the people. But a
better system of balancing the books
would be to reduce the expenses of
government.
| A manufacturers’ tax, like all oth-
er taxes, will be paid by the ultimate
consumer. If such a tax is levied the
price of the products of the industries
will be increased not only to cover the
tax but to yield a profit to the manu-
facturers for the trouble it causes
them. At present the manufacturers
contribute a million dollars or so an-
nually to the Republican campaign
fund in consideration of exemption
from a tax that Mr. Snyder imagines
will amount to $25,000,000, so that
they find their campaign contributions
an attractive investment. It is a
question for the Legislature to consid-
er. A tax on manufactures with a
corresponding decrease on other taxes
would be an excellent thing.
re ——————————————
Senator Lodge has been feast-
ing on crow for some time and seems
i to relish it.
e
€
and |
| pointment of Senator McConnell was |
the accounts but have involved “the |
Fineganism Will Continue.
| As was to be expected the Pinchot
‘educational commission has white-
washed Finegan and put “the odor of
{ sanctity” on Fineganism. The bur-
'den of its report, handed to the Gov-
.ernor-elect the other day, is that the
expenses of the public schools in
Pennsylvania are less in the aggre-
gate, as well as in ratio, than those of
other States that might be named.
For that reason the report declares
the criticism of the Finegan adminis-
tration of the State Department of
Education are unjust. Finegan is do-
ing his best to increase the cost of
our educational system to a proper
i level, which is above rather than be-
low the maximum, and for that reason
he is to be commended rather than
censured.
As a matter of fact the cost of the
administration of the school depart-
ment was not the main cause of com-
plaint against Fineganism. It is true
that the vast number of high-salaried
officials in the department at Harris-
burg seemed like needless extrava-
gance. Four hundred thousand dol-
lars is a large sum to pay for swivel
chair ornaments when a third of that
amount would secure the service. But
that is not what the people protested
against. Their protest was against
the centralization of all authority over
the schools in Harrisburg thus de-
priving the people of home rule in a
matter of such vital interest as the
education of their children. Pinchot
and the commission alike miscon-
strued the matter.
But the commission has done pre-
cisely what it was expected to do.
Like the rest of the Republican lead-
ers the Governor-elect aims to take
from the people all rights of self-gov-
ernment and centre authority in the
capitals of the State and nation. It is
the Roosevelt idea. Its inception is in
a belief that the people don’t know
what is good for them and must be
nursed. The idea of self-determina-
tion is obnoxious to imperialism and
the trend of the Republican managers
is in that direction. For that political
machines are created and public offices
5, tg For that the school de-
political bureau and will be maintain-
ed as such until the party is voted out.
—We note that after the opening of
the Senate Speaker pro-tem, T. Lar-
ry Eyre, addressed his colleagues on
the matter of enforcement of the Pro-
hibition laws, urging them to co-op-
erate in an effort “to keep liquor out
of the capitol.” Bottles have fallen
and broken on the floors of the res-
taurants of the capitol at Washing-
ton, right under the nose of Mr. Vol-
stead, and the country has been prop-
erly scandalized, so we presume Lar-
ry’s admonition to the Pennsylvania
Legis] ture is designed to save it
from the possibility of public oppro-
brium more than to urge Prohibition
on it elsewhere than in the capitol.
If we read his remarks aright we
didn’t get the idea from them that he
advocated keeping liquor out of Har-
risburg or any other community in the
State. -
——The opening of State College
on Wednesday and the Bellefonte
Academy yesterday, with the conse-
quent inrush of students of these two
institutions, made things quite lively
on the streets for several days.
——Senator Borah may not be the
acknoweldged boss of the Republican
party in Washington but he makes
Harding and Hughes “toe the mark”
whenever he feels they need that sort
of exercise.
——0Id 1922 has run its course and
it wasn’t an altogether bad course at
that. Still it is to be hoped that 1923
will take advantage of every opportu-
nity for improvement.
—1922 wasn’t such a bad old year
notwithstanding the fact that some of
us may not look back on it with the
pleasantest of memories.
——If everybody accepts Pinchot’s
invitation to attend the inaugural
there will be some crowd in Harris-
burg on the 16th.
——It gives us pleasure to assure
the public that Bill Vare’s efficiency as
Senator will not be impaired by mod-
esty.
——When Borah and Hungry Hi
came to the “parting of the ways” the
world was presented with a sad pic-
ture.
——1It will be worth the price of a
trip to Harisburg to see Larry Eyre
posing as a reformer.
Ambassador Harvey appraises
himself properly. He says he is a
messenger boy.
RES
JANUARY 5. 1923.
The Other Man.
Douglas Melloch in the Crescent.
Perhaps he sometimes slipped a bit—
Well, so have you.
Perhaps some things he ought to quit—
Well, so should you.
Perhaps he may have faltered—why,
Why, all men do, and so have I;
You must admit, unless you lie,
That so have you.
Perhaps if we would stop and think,
Both I and you,
When painting some one black as ink,
As some folks do,
Perhaps if we would recollect,
Perfection we would not expect,
But just a man half-way correct,
Like me and you.
I'm just a man who's fairly good,
I'm just like you.
I've done some things I never should,
Perhaps like you.
But, thank the Lord, I've sense to see
The rest of men with charity;
They're good enough if good as me—
Say, men like you.
Christmas Season a Gay One. Belle-
fonte Merchants Did Big
Business.
AFTERMATH.
Minna Irving in the New York Herald.
After the merry Christmas bells
That tinkled o'er the snow,
After the glittering Christmas tree
With twinkling lights a-glow.
After the Christmas turkey plump
With oysters overstuffed,
After the spicy Christmas cake
With frosting capped and cuffed.
After the Christmas mail that made
The postman worn and gray,
After the Christmas holly wreaths
With scarlet ribbons gay,
After the Christmas mistletoe
With osculatory thrills
Comes New Year's with its “Please Remit,”
And sheaf of Christmas bills.
If retrospection to the Christmas
season were confined to the last two
lines of the above “Aftermath” it
would not be a cheerful thought, but
there was enough of happiness and
good will associated with the Christ-
mas season to make up for most any
kind of an aftermath.
In a business way practically all the
re | Bellefonte merchants claim that their
Christmas trade exceeded any pre-
vious year. Notwithstanding the fact
that they had stocked to the limit
rush orders had to be sent off to meet
the demand and when the rush was
over on Saturday night the stores
looked as if they had been struck by a
cyclone. The big bulk of the buying
was done in the last week with Sat-
urday the banner day.
Uncle Sam was also overworked and
the mail in and out of Bellefonte was
exceptionally heavy, averaging from
seven to eight hundred bags of mail
and parcel post packages daily. The
postoffice force worked on Sunday
with a big truck delivering parcel post
packages.
The community tree on Chirstmas
eve, the first of the kind in Belle-
fonte, drew hundreds of children to
the court house to hear the Christmas
stories told by Mrs. Krader and get
their treat of a box of candy, while
several thousand people gathered
around the community tree in the
Diamond for the evening services.
The Odd Fellows band opened the ex-
ercises after which Rev. David R.
Evans offered prayer and Rev. Wilson
P. Ard made a brief talk. Christmas
carols were sung by the various
church choirs under the leadership of
Cecil Walker.
The tree was brilliantly illuminated
with colored lights and a big white
star on the top. It was very attract-
ive and the Camp Fire girls deserve
a lot of credit for originating the idea
and carrying it to a successful con-
clusion.
On Christmas morning groups of
men traversed the main streets of the
town singing Christmas carols, so that
the day was ushered in in a true
Christmas way.
Of course all the churches had spe-
cial Christmas services as well as en-
tertainments and all were well attend-
ed. Out at the United Evangelical
church the Brotherhood presented
their pastor, Rev. Reed O. Steely, with
a handsome Elgin watch, beautifully
inscribed while Mrs. Steely’s Sunday
school class gave her twenty-five dol-
lars as a token of their esteem.
er ———
One of the last official acts of
Auditor General Lewis during the old
year was the appointment of mercan-
tile appraisers in the various counties
of the State, and in Centre county the
plum fell to Abraham D. Gledhill, of
Howard. Mr. Gledhill conducts a res-
taurant in Howard and has the ability
to perform the work entailed by his
appointment in an efficient and satis-
factory manner.
——-When Warren Gamaliel was
Senator it was all right for the Sen-
ate to butt in on diplomatic ques-
tions. But now that he is at the oth-
er end of the avenue he looks through
different lenses.
SPAWLS FROM THE KEYSTONE.
—Suit for $3000 damages for personal in-
juries has been entered in the Blair coun-
ty court by Miss Gertrude Wilson against
the city of Altoona. She alleges she step-
ped into a coal hole in a sidewalk May 31
last and permanently injured her spine.
—Reparation in the sum of $8706.65 is
asked in a case filed before the Public
Service Commission against the York Ha-
ven Water and Power company and the
York Haven Electric Transmission com-
pany by the borough of Middletown. The
reparation is for the excess collected dur-
ing the time a rate set aside was in force.
—The Carbon county tax collectors’ us-
sociation has decided to give delinquent
tax payers until February 1st to pay their
taxes, after which time, if they are not
paid, tax warrants will be issued and the
personal property of the delinquents at-
tached and sold. The association will sup-
port any of its members against whom a
legal contest is instituted.
—To the accompaniment of music played
by her daughter at the piano, Mrs. Maria
Cortez, 36 years old, of Monnessen, sang a
ballad and then turned a revolver upon
herself and fell to the floor dead. Louis
Cortez, the husband, left the home for his
work in the mill, believing that all was
well with the family. Ill health is thought
to have been the cause of the suicide.
—Mr. and Mrs. G. A. Kauffman, of Sha-
mokin Dam, called their children together
on Christmas and gave each a brand new
$1000 bill. Mr. Kauffman promises it will
be an annual custom as long as he lives.
The children are, Arthur Kauffman, of
Hummell’'s Wharf; Riley H. Kauffman, of
Chester; Mrs. George Rhoads and Mrs. L.
C. Buffington, of Shamokin Dam, and Mrs.
M. S. Leisenring, of Northumberland.
—Jean Hardin was shot and killed while
walking in the main street of Tarentum
on New Year's day, and a few minutes
later George Williams walked into the bor-
ough police station, saying he had com-
mitted the crime. According to the police,
Williams accussed Hardin of running away
with his wife, and shot him four times.
Two bystanders were held as witnesses.
All of the interested parties are Negroes.
—The Pennsylvania Power and Light
company, purchaser of the Williamsport
electric light and power interests, soon will
treble the capacity of the Lycoming Edi-
son power plant in that city, spending ap-
proximately $500,000 on this development.
In addition, a new power line from Mil-
ton to Lock Haven is being constructed
over a private right of way on steel tow-
ers, carrying a current of 66,000 volts,
which will supply power and light for
many towns in Central Pennsylvania.
—Joseph Fetterman, of Harrisburg, does
not approve of shooting in the New Year
with real bullets. Fetterman retired ear-
ly Sunday night, preferring gentle slum-
bers to the noisy celebration acorded the
New Year in cafes and clubs, but some of
his neighbors decided to give the neigh-
borhood a real celebration. Fetterman
was awakened by the discharge of a gun
and the crash of glass. A bullet grazed
his nose, plowed its way through a bu-
reau and lodged in the wall of his room.
—Daniel Foreman, 21 years old, of
Edenville, Franklin county, Pa., died late
last Friday from burns sustained Thurs-
day might in the open—hearth department
of the Standard Steel works at Burnham,
near Lewistown. Foreman lay down in the
slag pit at the open hearth to enjoy a nap
between heats without the knowledge of
his fellow workmen, who drew the heat in
his supposed absence. The slag that slop-
ped over the edge of the ladle ignited his
clothing and he was terribly burned about
the head, face and body before the flames
could be smothered. Xe was hurried to
the Lewistown hospital, where it was found
more than two-thirds of the skin surface
was burned and no hopes were entertained
for his recovery.
—The body of John Spickler, aged 75,
night watchman for the Hackman &
Harnely Furniture company, in Lititz, was
found on Saturday morning burned to a
crisp, lying on the floor adjoining the boil-
er-room. He had a long beard reaching to
his waist and it is believed this ignited
while he was fixing the fire Friday night
and that he ran to another room for water,
but collapsed on the floor. A pocketbook
containing money was found across the
room, where the old man may have thrown
it in an effort to prevent its being destroy-
ed after his clothing caught fire. Neigh-
bors did not hear any noise during the
night, but noticed Spickler's dog barking
early in the morning. They failed to in-
vestigate, however, and the man’s body
was not found until several hours later.
—Attorneys for Floyd Smith, of Brad-
ford county, who has been five times res-
pited from the electric chair, after both
the State Supreme court and the board of
pardons had turned a deaf ear to appeals
in his behalf, have begun the preparation
of a new appeal, to be taken before the
first meeting of the new board of pardons
under Gifford Pinchot’s administration.
Smith’s respite expires January 23rd, and
a request will be made of the new Gover-
nor, shortly after he takes office, for n
sixth stay of execution until the new board
can act. Smith is the man who was re-
sponsible for the death of his wife's two
weeks old infant. He has virtually lived in
the shadow of the electric chair for a year,
having been brought to the death house at
Rockview in January, 1922. But he has
never lost hope and always maintained that
he would never go to the chair.
— Seventeen year old Blair Drininger, ar-
rested at Lansdale, Montgomery county, on
Monday, in a signed statement given out
by the police, was alleged to have con-
fessed to having robbed six postoffices and
a number of stores and homes, among the
latter that of Supreme court justice George
B. Orlady, at Huntingdon. The lad re-
‘cently escaped from the Glen Mills reform
school, the fifth time he had gotten away
from that institution in the last two years.
He was originally sentenced for the rob-
bery of a wholesale grocery at Hunting-
don, where he was alleged to have been
leader of a band whose rendezvous was
cave in the hills. His parents live in that
city. The postoffices he was said in his
alleged confession to have admitted rob-
bing were at Fleetville, New Foundland,
Panther, Gouldsboro, Newton Square and
Gradyville. He was quoted as having said
that he and another boy had broken into
Justice Orlady’s home while the family
was in Florida. They obtained $40 the con-
fession stated. The robberies, all of which
had been unsolved, extended over a per-
iod of four years. Drininger said he start-
ed robbing when he was 11 years old.