VOL. 82 NO. 6
THURSDAY, FEB. 11, 1971
Water sprays from the ice-covered ledges of the falls below
Huntsville Dam as the rays of the sun momentarily hit the icy
water.
Price to run for position
on Dallas school board
The snow banks may. be five feet high, but as
sure™a harbinger of spring as the first robin is the
first candidate’s hat thrown into the ring. This year
he belongs to William Price, a Midway
William Price
anea blanketed by
8 inch snow
The heaviest snowfall of the winter began late
Sunday afternoon at 5: 30 and continued well on into
the night, with accumulations of up to 8 inches.
: The white stuff fell so fast and heavy that the
- National Weather Service had recorded 5 inches by
midnight, and still it continued to fall. The storm’s
intensity seemed to. increase during the early
morning hours Monday ‘before finally tapering off.
It had roared out of the South, moving up along the
Eastern coastline. at,
Maintenance crews on regional highways had a
difficult time keeping roads open for traffic.
At approximately 10 p.m. Sunday, northbound
traffic on Route 309 at the intersection of Carverton
Road, Trucksville, wagcompletely stalled. Traffic
in both north lanes was bumper to bumper, with a
large number of cars involved. Several cars had to
be abandoned along the edge of the highway.
: Snow plows finally. got around the massive
/lines by moving along the shoulder between the
/ highway and Toby’s Creek. Once the trucks got in
front, they were able to move in tandem, clearing
(continued on PAGE THIRTEEN)
Manor resident who is seeking a slof on the Repub:
lican slate for Dallas School Board membership.
A 1957 graduate of Lake-Lehman High School,
‘Mr. Price is well-acquainted with the ins and outs
of academe. He is presently an assistant professor
of history at King’s College, having received an
M.A. degree from the University of Scranton in 1966
and a bachelor’s degree from Bloomsburg State in
1961. He is currently a Ph.D. candidate at the State
University of Ohio.
Mr. Price is also well-acquainted with the spe-
cifics of the Dallas School District; he served as a
classroom teacher in the Dallas Junior High School
from 1961 to 1965.
His candidacy for the school board follows his
conviction that ‘professional educators must take
part in education not only to help make quality ed-
ucation an actuality as well as an ideal, but also to
better assess the needs of a given school system
within the intellectual and material realms.”
He regrets that there is a tendency to use the
school plant as a symbol of quality education, when
in fact the real indication of a quality school system
is its teaching staff. Materials are necessary, he
hastens to add, but they should be utilized for
‘teacher supplementation rather than teacher sub-
“stitution.
“In order to have any degree of quality educa-
tion there must be a stable faculty committed to the :
students and to the district,”’ he asserts, ‘‘and this
is not possible unless the district is committed to
the teacher.”
He is a realist about taxes, and maintains that
“we must accept the fact that the cost of education
will go up yearly.’ He does not condone careless -
spending, however, and suggests that there is a
“need for the re-evaluation of school district
needs.”’
Rather than follow traditional guidelines of ex-
penditures, he suggests, one must ‘‘explore new
avenues to re-direct funds to assure maximum
usage of taxes.”
He questions the wisdom of the current Dallas
building program, asserting that ‘it would be fool-
ish to plunge forward into any new building pro-
gram until the State situation levels out.”’ He ad-
vocates a three year waiting period of re-
evaluation and re-definition of goals before starting
any new building project in the Dallas school
district.
So far as kids go, he’s convinced they're ‘‘ex-
tremely sophisticated in many ways.”’ In terms of
academic potential, he declares, it’s absolutely
astonishing what they can do, given the right moti-
vation and the opportunity to express themselves.”’
Married to the former Sylvia Knauer, Mr.
Price is the father of two children. He is a member
of the Shavertown United Methodist Church.
DALLAS, PA.
FIFTEEN CENTS
by Shawn Murphy
John Wilson, the Noxen man accused of fatally
shooting George Wesley in the parking lot of Sor-
ber’s Hotel Jan. 10, is held now without bail in the
Luzerne County Prison awaiting presentment of his
case before the next grand jury.
Had the sheriffs of either Luzerne or
Lackawanna Counties been able to carry out a
warrant issued for Wilson's arrest Oct.16, 1970, it is
conceivable that the alleged killer would have been
jailed three months ago.
The warrant in question was issued by Luzerne
County Judge Peter Paul Olszewski when Wilson
failed to show up for a trial on an assult and
FBI arrests
gambling ring
The alleged ringleader of a 7-state gambling
operation was arrested Saturday in Dallas by
Federal Bureau of Investigation agents.
George Peter Delvecchio of Dallas was among
11 residents of Luzerne-and Lackawanna Counties
taken into custody for their alleged part in a nation-
wide betting ring, with emphasis on basketball and
horse-racing events.
_Delvecchio’s address was listed as Valley View
Drive, Shrine Acres, Dallas. He is reportedly
known also as George Julio.
A 1970 Cadillac and a 1964 Buick were seized by
FBI agents, who reported both were used by
Delvecchio in his alleged operation which was
supposedly headquartered in Dallas and Wilkes-
Barre.
Repeated efforts were made by this 1 newspaper
to contact Delvecchio. However, there were no
listings in the Dallas area telephone directory in
either of the names by which he is known to the
FBI. A number of local police officers were con-
tacted, but they stated they had no information on
him.
A preliminary arraignment was held before
U.S. Commissioner Neville B. Shea. The 11 were
released on $5,000 bail. Hearings will be held Feb.
25 and 26.
The accused were charged under a law enacted
Oct. 15, 1970, which makes it a federal offense to
conduct gambling operations which are illegal
under local and state laws. Specifically, they are
charged with violation of Title 18, U.S. Code Sec-
tions 1955, 371 and 3. Section 1955 makes it a federal
offense to conduct illegal gambling; Section 371 is a -
Conspiracy; Secion 2 is Aiding and Abetting.
Penalties range from five years in jail or
$20,000 fine or both.
The overall 7-state operation was reported to
involve over $60,000,000 annually, -although no
amount was listed for the alleged regional betting
operations.
Local police officers said they took no part in
the arrests, but had been informed of the pending
raids.
warrant for Wilson
never carried out
battery charge filed by George Swan of RD Dallas.
According to the charge, Wilson, his brother
Alex, and one Carl Weaver assaulted Swan and
Francis Cummings, RD Shavertown, in Mason's
"Villa, a bar located along Route 309 in Dallas Town-
. ship. The alleged assault took place on the night of
Dec. 29, 1969.
On Jan. 7, 1970, Justice of the Peace Harry
- Thompson found a prima facie case against them
“and a Luzerne County grand jury indicted all three.
John Wilson and Carl Weaver were charged with
; assaulting Swan; Alex Wilson allegedly assaulted
Cummings.
On Oct. 16, Alex Wilson was con-
victed in a trial without jury by Judge Olzewski. He
was ordered to pay a $25 fine plus court costs and
was placed on probation for two years.Weaver was
found not guilty by Judge Olzewski, but John
Wilson never appeared for his trial.
Olszewski then issued a bench warrant for his
arrest and ordered that his bail be forfeited.
As is customary in such cases, the bench
warrant or capeas was forwarded to the Luzerne
County Sherriff’s office. Chester Krushefski, chief
deputy sheriff, told The Dallas Post that his men
went out to Noxen ‘‘three or four times’’ to arrest
Wilson but they were not permitted in the Wilson
home.
On one occasion, Sheriff Krushefski reported,
his men were told by Wilson's family that he had a
“temperature of 103 degrees and a notice from his
doctor not to move him.’’ The sheriff conceded that
the excuses were ‘“‘just a lot of applesauce.”
When informed of the doctor’s excuse, Mr.
Krushefski said, Judge Olszewski urged the
sheriff’s deputies to ignore it and arrest Wilson
anyway. :
Shortly after that, however. Mr. Krushefski
discovered that he had “7 jurisdiction in Noxen,”
which lies within Wyoming County. “We hurried up
(continued on PAGE THIRTEEN)
tractor-trailer
skids on ice
A tractor-trailer rig jack-knifed Monday af-
ternoon at 4:30 on the ice-covered roadway of Rt.
118, Lehman Township, about one mile east of Leh-
man Center.
According to Police Chief Lionel Bulford, the
1966 International truck trailer belonged to Johnson
Brothers Freight Company, Hickory, N.C., listed
as common carriers. Ray Billings, RD 1, Newton,
N.C., was the driver.
Billings from Elklin, N.Y., told Chief Bulford
he was on his way with a load of freight to his home
terminal in Hickory. His rig went out of control
when it started sliding on the icy pavement.
After the accident, Billings climbed down from
the cab, and was heard to express great relief that
he had escaped injury and that no one else was
hurt.
By their quick actions, drivers of two smaller
trucks were able to avoid being struck by the out-of-
control truck.
least of which was this tractor-trailer which jack-knifed on
Route 118 in Lehman Township Monday afternoon.
Judge
Icy roads were blamed for many vehicular accidents throughout A
the Back Mountain community during the past week, not the