Democratic watchman. (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1855-1940, November 28, 1924, Image 1

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

    i. al
INK SLINGS.
——1Tt is a comforting thought that
the inheritance tax will make little
difference to a man after he is dead.
—If you forgot to enroll in the Red
Cross buy a hundred Christmas seals.
‘That will ease your: conscience for it
is just as worthy a movement.
—We’re against publicity of income
tax reports. Having nothing to re-
veal ourselves we have no desire to
see what might make us jealous of
those more fortunate.
—Present releases are to the effect
that the next session of the Legisla-
ture will be a short one. So far as
the welfare of Pennsylvania is con-
cerned it can’t be too short.
—While the college presidents are
telling the world that commercializa-
tion is ruining college sports the en-
gineers of their faculties are busy
drawing plans for larger stadiums.
—Our late standard bearer has sail-
ed for Europe to take a long rest. We
mention the fact merely to show that
Mr. Davis had enough left out of the
wreck to save him from the Chautau-
qua circuit.
—We can conceive of no one who
was so utterly forlorn yesterday as
not to have had something for which
to be. thankful. The trouble with
most of us is that we accept too many
things as a matter of course.
—We don’t expect Warren Worth
Bailey to win his contest for Cam-
bria’s seat in Congress, but we do ex-
pect to see him make a-helluva fight
for it. Warren Worth is at his best
when there is something to scrap
about.
—When Governor Pinchot comes up
here, carrying his problems back to
the people—if nobody else does it—
we're going to ask why it is safer to
set fire to a farmer’s barn in Berks or
Chester counties than it is to carry a
pint of over-worked cider on one’s hip.
—Dr. Carlson, of the Chicago Uni-
versity is out with a declaration that
life can be lengthened greatly and
youth partially restored by fasting.
The Doctor evidently knows what he
is talking about, but if you decide to
try his restoration be careful not to
fast too long.
—Charley Chaplin, idol of the kid
movie fans, has been married at last,
and ‘not to Pola Negri. Charley has
made many folks happy with his slap-
stick comedy, he has made others ri-
diculous with his mouse-ear mous-
tache. Let us hope he will make Lita
Grey a good husband.
—Mr. Tchitcherin, the low high-
brow of Russia, thinks “American cel-
lars are stocked with gold.” Mr.
Tchitcherin unwittingly has revealed
his unfitness to pose as a prophet for
Sovietism. The AZ American cellar
doesn’t boast of gold, these days. It
doesn’t boast of anything. It’s afraid
some one might think there’s gold in
it and find something else.
—The Holiday season is approach-
ing fast and we're distressed when we
realize that we haven’t a thing ready
for you. If you're in the same boat
let us help you out of the slough.
Look at the label, right over and at
the top of this page. If it ends with
anything less than ’25, slip a check or
a few green boys into an envelope
and mail to us. That will help you a
bit and make us so happy that we’ll
forget that we are worried about the
approach of Christmas.
—The allied dental exhibition in
New York is apparently designed to
take a lot of joy out of the life of the
lounge lizard, but so far as that pur-
pose is concerned it will be a flop.
Showing the alarming dental condi-
tions of the average girl it announces
that only one in five is safe to kiss.
Judged from the days when the cave-
man was unknown, the tea-hound was
called by his right name—Sis—and
osculation really meant something,
we should say that one in five is an
average that is certainly anything but
a joy killer.
—Last week we got all het up
about the: aeroplanes “that might be
disturbing our slumbers after April
one, next. The futility of going off
half cocked was never better exem-
plified for, since then, it has been dis-
covered that our landing field is too
small for “setting down” after derk
and, maybe, Centre Hall will get the
aviation field. If we can’t hold it we
know of no place that we’d sooner see
it go than Centre Hall. There's
hordes of Democrats over there and,
inasmuch as the Democrats haven’t
been gettin’ much lately, no one would
have the heart to gum their chance
to get acquainted with night noises.
—Carrying the “Buy-at-Home”
campaign, which we are advocating, a
bit further, let us suggest that you
puzzle at home. Instead of sitting up
half the night thumbing the diction-
ary to find words that you never knew
of before and probably won’t remem-
ber twenty-four hours later, set your-
self to something worth while. Fig-
ure out from this conglomeration who
will be the next judge in Centre
county. Here is the conglom:
qakgiutljyhp. Add to them a word
of five letters that describes what you
do to give your wife cause to leave
your bed but not your board, and then
spell out who will be the next judge
of Centre county. You can use one
letter as many times as you need it.
The first person who sends the cor-
rect answer to this office will receive
a kick in the tail with a frozen boot or
two year’s subscription to the paper
that stands for this kind of damphool-
ishness.
VOL. 69.
Electoral Reform Legislation.
The Philadelphia committee of sev-
enty is preparing a number of elec-
toral reform bills for consideration
during the next session of the Legis-
lature. Preparing bills of that sort
has become a habit with that organ-
ization. It means well, no doubt, but
is responsible for some of the elector-
al abuses that have made the State of
Pennsylvania notorious for corrupt
elections. Of course the fault is not
with the members of the committee of
seventy. They are all, or nearly all,
fair minded men who care more for
clean government than for political
success. But the political crooks take
advantage of them and so alter and
amend their reform measures as to
make them work evil rather than
good.
Among the bills this committee will
recommend to the 1925 session will
be one requiring personal registration
in cities only: once in four years in-.
stead of every year as at present.
This would simply work out an entice-
ment to fraud. Under the existing
system thousands of bogus names are
registered in Philadelphia and Pitts-
burgh, but under the proposed system
the number would be multiplied, for
there would be little, if any, chance to
check on the voting lists. Enterpris-
ing ballot box stuffers would lay a
claim to vote in every precinct in the
city and it would be difficult to pre-
vent them from carrying out their
purpose. It is a safe guess that the
machine will favor that scheme.
Another amendment which the com-
mittee will recommend has greater
merit though it will not cure a much
used. evil. It would require an affida-
vit of disability to procure assistance
in marking ballots at general elec-
tions. Such a provision in the prima-
ry election laws has helped some. But
the political managers in the cities:
have already devised a method of cir-
cumventing it. They procure a blank
ballot in advance, mark it for the pur-
chased voter and require him to re-
turn the blank given him by the judge
of election before they pay the price
of-his perfidy. The political reformer
whe will invent a method of prevent-
ing this new form' of fraud will de-
serve public thanks.” 0.
Sm ———————— ssn
Everybody worth minding fa-
vors good roads and good roads are a
splendid asset in any community. But
even good roads may become an evil
if the cost of them is excessive or the
burden too great to bear.
Confusing Condition in Pittsburgh.
The Republican managers in Pitts-
burgh are having a hard time arrang-
ing among themselves the distribution
of future party favors. For many
years there has been a shifting of
bosses and a change of allegiance in
which Mayor Magee, Max Leslie and
millionaire Oliver have been the active
participants. Recently some new fig-
ures have been introduced into the pic-
ture but instead of clarifying this has
beclouded the situation. Just now the
factions are involved in a row in which
the new figures, one a cousin of Sec-
retary of the Treasury Andy Mellon,
and the other the present Secretary of
Labor in the Washington administra-
tion. It is all over the apportionment
of the city and county offices next
year.
For some time back an alliance has
been maintained between Mayor Ma-
gee and millionaire Oliver who cher-
ished an intense hatred of Max Les-
lie. Because of an equally intense ha-
tred of Leslie Governor Pinchot
placed the force of his influence at the
service of the Mogee-Oliver combine.
Lately, however, Pinchot has been
showing favor to outside influences
and Oliver “broke” with him. This
led to a quarrel between Oliver and
Magee and Oliver joined forces with
Leslie. Thereupon the cousin of Sec-
retary Mellon enlisted under the same
banner and a war of extermination
has been declared on both sides. But
the trouble is that neither of the
chieftains is certain of the fidelity of
his troops.
The annexation of Mellon and Oli-
ver to the Leslie force and the “de-
touring” of Pinchot to an independent
element left Magee looking like a
plugged nickle for a time. But some-
thing else turned up. Mellon wants
the worth of his money and demanded
that Secretary of Labor Davis be pro-
claimed the favorite of the combine
for Governor. Mr. Davis would pre-
fer to be United States Senator but
the place is not available and Leslie
wants to utilize his popularity among
wage earners as a candidate for May-
or against Magee. It is said that “no-
body knows where a hobo goes” and
the solution of this Pittsburgh prob-
lem is equally difficult. But however
it is determined in the end the public
will suffer.
———g oes cm as—
——Washington will enjoy an in-
teresting spectacle next week. Mr.
George Wharton Pepper will again
undertake to occupy the official place
of the late Boies Penrose.
STATE RIGHTS AND FEDERAL UNION.
Governor Pinchot Will Fight.
Governor Pinchot is not greatly
alarmed by the attitude of the ma-
chine managers with respect to the
coming session of the Legislature. He
expects a full measure of opposition
to all his pet propositions but will not
be diverted from his purposes. The
Governor has sublime faith in the cre-
dulity of the people and believes that
his professions of reform will work
out his plans. In the beginning he
will not openly express a preference
among the several aspirants for the
speakership of the House. He has a
preference, and if there were a rea-
sonable hope for the success of his can-
didate, he would probably assert it.
But there is no such hope and he will
remain silent.
But after the machine completes its
organization the Governor will frank-
ly and firmly declare his plans and de-
mand support of them under penalty
of a direct appeal to the people. He
will reiterate his claim that his ad-
‘ministration has saved the tax payers
forty or fifty thousand dollars a day
during the two years of his adminis-
tration. Both the Auditor General
and the State Treasurer, the fiscal of-
ficers of the State, have openly de-
nied this statement and cited the pub-
lic records as authority. But the
Governcr goes on asserting and imag-
ines the people believe him. There is
an old adage that “a lie well stuck to
is as good as the truth,” and he may
be putting it to a test.
In any event it is practically cer-
tain that there will be some smashing
of records and ambitions during the
approaching session of the Legisla-
ture. Governor Pinchot realizes that
if the machine gets the better of him
in the impending contest he “is done
for.” For that reason he will enter
the conflict in full armor and fully de-
termined to “rule or ruin.” In 1922
i he smashed the machine and during
| the session of the Legislature that
followed he forced obedience to his
mandates. But he had patronage to
dispense at that time and that form
of currency, exceedingly acceptable
and immensely potential, is exhausted
and he must find some other lure to
"serve his purpose. :
Samra SEY Lb — dB ASA yh
——Even the surviving turkey
' should not strut too much. * Christmas
‘is coming and a good gobbler is an
i attractive eenterpiece on a’ Christmas
“dinner table.
Result of Red Cross Enrollment.
During the Red Cross roll call car-
ried on last week, $204.00 were col-
lected from 127 memberships. All
but fifty cents of each membership is
for support of the service of the local
Red Cross, fifty cents is for national
and international Red Cross service;
hence $141.00 remains in this commu-
nity and $63.00 goes to Red Cross
headquarters in Washington. The
outcome of the roll call is gratifying
to the committee as it was a voluntary
contribution from those desirous of
‘ being participants in the noble work
of the American National Red Cross,
full details of which will be found on
an inside page of this paper. Last
year, in the house-to-house canvass,
workers met frequently with “We are
not now interested in the general pro-
gram of the Red Cross but would like
to contribute to the community nurs-
ing service” and it is planned to of-
fer later an opportunity of giving to
the nurse apart from the Red Cross.
The Elks have generously donated
to the nursing service $519.32 from
the Elks Hallow-een carnival and Mrs.
Russell Blair has offered to give part
of the proceeds from “The Green and
White Revue” and it is hoped enough
money may be thus realized to resume
the nursing service.
——1It is to be hoped that President
Coolidge will be able to live up to the
claims made for him as a “cool-head-
ed, wise, far-seeing and courageous
leader.”
National Delphian Society.
The National Delphian society will
hold its organization meeting in the
community room of the Y. M. C. A.
next Tuesday evening, December 2nd,
at 8 o'clock. The Delphian society is
a national movement devoting itself
to furnishing women with a nation-
wide program of study, embracing
music, art, drama, modern nations
and literature. For this purpose
about one hundred thousand American
women have banded together, meeting
twice a month for the purpose of de-
veloping the cultural arts. These
chapters are non-sectarian and non-
partisan.
——Pennsylvania spent $50,000,000
in building and repairing roads this
year, which will be all right if the peo-
ple got the worth of the money.
mm———— A —————.
——The Norristown Herald is
thankful because it isn’t a turkey on
Thanksgiving day. But on election
day it was a goose.
BELLEFONTE. PA.. NOVEMBER 28S. 1924.
| Butler’s Actions Provoke Criticism.
There is considerable dissatisfaction
among Republican Senators in Wash-
ington over the commanding attitude
Senator Butler, of Massachusetts, has
assumed. Much public comment fol-
lowed his appointment to fill the va-
cancy caused by the death of Senator
Lodge, because it strikingly recalled
the conditions which brought the late
Mark Hanna into public life. But the
comments which have followed recent
actions of Senator Butler are of a less
friendly character, for they have tak-
en on the form of protest. It may be
observed that complaints are not made
in the open. They are sort of cloak
room whisperings but ominous of mu-
tiny in the future. Mr. Butler may be
disappointed in the results.
As titular head of the party organ-
ization in the Senate and chairman of
the important committee on foreign
relations, Senator Lodge occupied the
finest suite’ of rooms in the ‘Senate of-
fice building: ‘It was reasonably ex-
pected ‘that his successor in the office
‘of floor leader of the party would in-
herit the quarters he had occupied.
But without waiting until a floor lead-
er was chosen Senator Butler moved
his official belongings into the rooms.
It was a bit of assurance which dazed
the older members of the body. The
custom has been for new Senators to
await their turn and take what was
left. But Mark Hanna didn’t do that
and probably Butler imagined he is
succeeding Hanna instead of Lodge.
Naturally the incident has opened
up a much wider field of comment
than pertains to the rooms in the office
building. There are various other in-
dications that Mr. Butler sits in the
Senate chamber on a different plane
than that occupied by his associates.
It is noted and freely discussed that
he goes to and from the capitol in a
White House automobile while other
Senators have to provide their own
vehicles or walk, and that he comes
and goes to and from the White House
| with an air of proprietorship fairly
exuding from his body. These things
are irritating to some of the Senators,
but if the Senator has force enough to
put it over he will do so. Hanna got
away, with it easily. -
- “—_'The coming session of the Leg-
islature will be interesting unless
somebody weakens.
Thanksgiving Dinner at Rockview
Penitentiary.
Some people feasted on turkey yes-
terday, some on goose and some on
. duck, but more probably on chicken,
while at the Rockview penitentiary
the inmates had neither of the above
but the dinner they ate was good
enough to satisfy most any man.
Fresh roast pork was furnished in
abundance, and in addition, all’ the
trimmin’s. In fact the chef prepared
for the dinner 500 pounds of fresh
roast pork, six barrels of browned
sweet potatoes, 50 gallons of natural
gravy, 8 gallons of ketchup, 16 gal-
lons of apple sauce, 55 .pounds of
creamery butter, white bread, raisin
bread, ice cream in bricks and chocolate
layer cake, coffee and four stogies to
each man. The only work done at the
penitentiary was looking after the
stock and kitchen duty and the in-
mates took turns at doing those.
The fourteen prisoners at the Cen-
tre county jail were furnished with a
chicken dinner and all the accompan-
iments, equal to that served on the ta-
ble of sheriff Taylor and family.
re ———— rn ———————
——The high price is most assuredly
causing the turkey to lose prestige as
the Thanksgiving dinner bird. At the
time this item was written not a tur-
key had been seen in Bellefonte while
fifteen or twenty years ago it was
nothing unusual to see half a dozen
farmers on the streets of Bellefonte
with a load of turkeys for the Thanks-
giving trade. Of course at that time
the birds sold for ‘anywhere from ten
purchaser had an ample supply to
pick from. Of course Centre county
farmers are not raising turkeys now
i like they did in those days. At that
' time it was a rare farmer who did not
| have his flock, while nowadays it's the
rare farmer who does. Raising tur-
keys successfully requires more care
and attention than growing chickens,
and the automobile, the telephone, the
radio and the cross-word puzzle are
, more alluring.
| eee ee
——Happily Congress comes in just
in time to provide thrills after the
football season goes out.
——The Bellefonte banks next week
will pay out their Christmas saving
funds deposits, and while the aggre-
gate sum will not seem large compar-
ed to the big towns in the State yet
it will total up in the thousands and
come in very nice to those who saved
a little each week during the year.
——Governor Pinchot was in Ohio
the other evening denouncing those he
helped to keep in office.
to eighteen cents a pound and the
NO. 47.
An Important Election Case.
From the Philadelphia Record.
The question whether Pennsylvania
shall be represented in Congress by 36
Republicans or by 35 Republicans and
one Democrat is of very small moment
by comparison with the issue about to
be presented before the Supreme court
of this State as a result of the No-
vember election ir the Twentieth dis-
trict. On the face of the returns, in a
very close contest, the Republican
candidate, Anderson H. Walters, was
elected. But in the official computa-
tion of the vote several ballot boxes
were opened by direction of the Court,
on representation that their contents
basis of the actual vote cast, as dis-
tinguished from the vote erroneously
reported by the election officers, War-
ren Worth Bailey, the Democratic can-
didate, was found to have a majority
of 14 votes. :
At this stage of the proceedings,
before the result was certified in ac-
cordance with law, counsel for Mr.
Walters raised the issue that an elec-
tion for a Federal office must be de-
cided upon the face of the returns;
that the Judges exceeded their author-
ity in ordering the ballot boxes open-
; that, regardless of the contents of
the boxes, the figures on the return
sheets must be accepted as final as far
as the State of Pennsylvania is con-
cerned, and that the election of Mr.
Walters must, therefore, be certified.
Following a difference of opinion be-
tween the Judges who had ordered an
inspection of the ballots, representa-
tives of the rival candidates a to
submit the matter to thé Supreme
court. That is the case now to be tak-
en under advisement. oa
It is not for us to discuss the legal
points involved in a controver
which the Court must pass; but
lieve no breach of propriety is involv-
ed in considering the practical aspects
of the question. The entire eountry
must be interested "in the - outcome,
since a precedent is about to be es-
tablished that will apply to every
State in the Union. Under. our State
election laws the right of a comput-
ing board to go behind the figures
presented by election officers when
there is reason to believe that those
figurs are fraudulent, ' or that they
have been carelessly eompiled, is un-
challenged.
pretation, shall be found to hold that
when applied to the selection of
‘eral officials, it will become a pi
quences and seek a remedy for a glar-
ing injustice. \
In the present case itis not denied
that Bailey received more votes than
Walters; but the contention, reduced
to plain terms, seems to be that so far
as the State is concerned it is not the
number of ballots cast for a Congres-
sional candidate that matters, but the
number entered upen the return
sheets. If this is the law, it may be
pointed out that the recipient of the
greatest number of actual votes, de-
clared the loser by the certification of
his opponent, still has his remedy. He
may contest the election before a com-
mittee of the House of Representa-
tives. Such a contest is very costly;
it is likely to be prolonged through-
out the session to which the contest-
ant claims he was elected, while the
sitting member draws the pay and
registers his vote on national meas-
ures, and in the end it will be, or at
least usually is, decided, by partisans,
on a narrow partisan basis. i
Every reasonable citizen’s sense of
fairness must revolt against the idea
that the law contemplates the victory
of a minority over a majority candi-
date, and that an office may in future
be won with the approval of the stat-
utes by the simple expedient of in-
ducing dishonest election boards to
enter false computations of votes on
their return sheets. That may be the
law, nevertheless; for the exact ex-
tent of Federal authority over State
election methods is yet to be deter-
mined in this particular case. An ear-
ly hearing before the Supreme court
is greatly to be desired in order that
the limitations upon the rights of the
States may be defined and considered
with a view to preparation for legisla-
tive action if revision of the statutes
is required.
Jacking Up Egypt.
From the Philadelphia Public Ledger.
The British are finding that making
a subject ‘people independent, even in
so shadowy a manner as Egypt is in-
dependent, is a ticklish business. They
had their reasons, of course, for put-
ting the Egyptians to a certain ex-
tent on their own, and these reasons
were certainly not altruistic. So long
as British interests could be protected
by retaining control of Egypt's for-
eign affairs and military establish-
ment, it seemed better all around that
the Egyptians take over the domestic
administration. The Egyptian gov-
ernment- knows exactly where it
stands. It is responsible for the as-
sassination of the British official who
was commander-in-chief of King
Faud’s army and governor-general of
the Sudan. - It must demonstrate that
it is worthy of responsibility by clear-
ing up the matter and giving assur-
ance that it will do better in the fu-
ture.
——We are not greatly worried
over the publicity of income tax re-
turns. We haven’t been trying to fool
anybody in that way.
————— A ———————
—Get your job work done here.
were incorrectly tabulated, and on the’
If the law; upon inter- |
State election laws are inoperative |is estimated by commissioners’
ing
popular duty to consider the ‘conse-
SPAWLS FROM THE KEYSTONE.
—Anthony Sinkus, 6 years old, fell into
a tub of beiling water at Shenandoah and
was scalded from head to feet.
—John Mahal, 47 years old, of Exchange,
scratched his hand while at work in the
coal mines and died of lockjaw.
—The congregation of the Ebenezer
Mennonite in Christ church at Bethlehem
last week greatly surprised their pastor,
the Rev. F. M. Hottle, with a Thanksgiv-
ing gift of $1014.75 as a mark of esteem
and apreciation for his services.
—William Steele, a farmer residing near
Everett, Bedford county. alleges hunters
shot and badly wounded a cow belonging
to him, and has prosecuted George Emeigh
and Lyman Reffner, of Roaring Spring.
The men gave bail for a hearing.
—AS a result of the increased number of
cases of scarlet fever in East Tyrone the
borough health authorities, together with
the State-Department, have deemed it nec-
essary to prohibit all children 12 years
and “tinder from attending public gather-
ings.
—Clement Kunes, of Blanchard, and
Glen, Williams, of Mackeyville, were injur-
ed when the car in which they were riding
rolled over an embankment near State Col-
lege on. Saturday. Williams who was
driving, tried to avoid a collision with a
car, it is claimed.
—The Masonic Home at Elizabethtown,
Pa., and the Masonic Home in Philadel-
phia will divide a balance of $96,590 from
the estate of John Orr, of the Quaker city,
who died in August, 1923. The amount
was awarded to the accountants of the es-
tate for distribution by Judge Thompson
in Orphans court last Friday. ;
—Three years in jail and a fine of $1
was the sentence imposed upon Mrs. Susan
Sures, of Nanticoke, when she scorned his
offer of freedom on condition that she re-
store $1600 she was said to have taken from
boarders, prior to an elopement. Although
her four children were in tears, she.walked
to her cell, while the father took the chil-
dren home with him. -
a —Harry Bridge, a well known Clearfield
tailor and trout fisherman, last Wednesday
night dreamed that he was catching a lot
of big trout from a pool of water which
‘had formed on the parlor floor ot his home
on West. Front street. Thursday afternoon
a fire burned the roof off the house and
the pool of water on the parlor floor was
| ne dream. The fire loss is about $2,000.
—M. A. Davis, Mifflin county detective,
+.and fifteen state police raided four homes
in Snyder county Friday night, seizing 500
gallons of mash, ten gallons of moonshine,
wine, and several stills, They arrested
John W. Gill, local preacher and his three
sons, Charles, 30; Rush, 28, and Lester, 21
years old. The three live near McClure
‘and the others near Beavertown. All were
‘lodged in jail in Middleburg. 3
~The October harvest season is declar-
ed in a: statement from the Department of
Agriculture to have been unusually good,
which helped the corn crop, although it is
said ‘only 50 per cent. is merchantable, tke
lowest in thirty years. The weather con-
ditions ‘also helped the potato crop. : The
statement summarizes conditions from all
counties and shows early estimates to have
been well founded in the main. :
~The expense of the Willow murder
trials to. Snyder county will cost $5,500, it
clerk,
‘Charles 8. Mattern. -are several bills
“tobe submitted, Tt 18 estimateq that ‘the ge
cost to support Ralph Shadel and Mrs. An-
nie Willow in prison will be $6,570 for ten
years. The county must pay 90 cents a
day for each. This means more than $12,-
000 cost to the county from the crime:
—Despite an attack in which an ax, a
club and a stove lifter were used, consta-
ble Henry Rittenhouse Saturday collected
taxes for 1923 from Mrs. Katherine Giger,
of Shickshinny valley, Columbia county.
At the mention of taxes the woman flew
into a rage and attacked the constable,
her son, LeRoy, assisting her. The officer
finally disarmed her and locked her up for
a time. Then she paid the taxes, the costs
and extra costs in an assault and battery
action that the officer brought.
4
— Pennsylvania potato growers shipped
1,461 car loads of this year’s crop of po-
tatoes up to November 15, compared with
shipments of 1,403 car loads to November
17, 1923, officials in the Department of Ag-
riculture announced last week. The esti-
mated production this year in Penmsylva-
nia was placed at 28,792,000 bushels, or
more than 2,000,000 bushels in excess of
the estimated 1923 crop. The quality of
the Pennsylvania crop was estimated at
90 per cent. normal, compared with 80.4
per cent. the average for the United States.
—Although he was securely handcuffed
and the train on which he was riding was
traveling fifty-five miles an hour, John
Killian, 19 years of age, Plymouth desper-
ado, plunged headfirst through a window
one afternoon last week in an attempt to
avoid imprisonment in the Huntingdon Re-
formatory. When he was captured an
hour after his spectacular leap, officers dis-
covered that he was only slightly injured.
Killian has escaped from the Luzerne
county Industrial Schoel at Kislyn on six -
occasions, where he was sentenced in con-
nection with two Plymouth robberies. \
—William Richards, aged 23 years, son
of B. E. Richards, cashier of the First Na-
tional bank, of Muncy, was arrested in
Lock Haven early Saturday morning, as he
was attempting to break into the H. H.
Wilson store. Officer B. C. Aikey heard
the burglar alarm and saw the man run-
ning down the alley. He was taken be-
fore alderman T. M. Brungard, where he
gave his name and said that he had been
looking for work several places, and had
gone there from Clearfield, getting rides in
motor cars as far as Lamar, and walking
the distance of eight miles from Lamar.
He had no overcoat, he said, and was
breaking into the Wilson clothing store to
get one.
—A case of rhino schleroma, a disease
said to be almost unknown in America, is
challenging the specialists at the Howard
hospital, in Philadelphia. The victim is a
man who has been suffering with the dis-
ease which causes a hardening of the nose
to almost rock-like texture, for five years.
Many specialists have been called into con-
sultation, but the patient was said to have
obtained = little relief. = Physicians said
there was no record of an American born
citizen ever having the disease. They said
it was somewhat prevalent in parts of
Australia and Russia and often proves fa-
tal. Explaining the malady, the doctors
said it was caused by a germ, but that
they had been unable to isolate the germ.
In its early stages the nose assumes a
tough texture and gradually hardens un-
til the nostrils close entirely. It is not
painful until it reaches the last stage
when partial strangulation ensues.