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VCI179-~NO- 19°- ~ WILMINGTON, N. C., THURSDAY, MAY 23, 1946 ' ESTABLISHED 1867
Aftermath Of Army Plane*s Death Plunge
A fireman secures the shattered tail of the
Army plane which crashed into the 58th story of
the 10-storv Bank of Manhattan building, in Wall
St.. New York, killing its five occupants. The
tail structure fell to the 11th floor ledge when the
terrific force of the collision tore the transport
plane apart. (International)
POINT TO FUTURE
Propellor Club Hears
Admiral At Meeting
Assistant Chief Of Naval Personnel Tells
Group America Must Keep Strong
Merchant Marine
“With victory ■won, we must look to the future,” Rear
Admiral Felix Leslie Johnson, USN, assistant chief of Naval
personnel said, as he addressed about 75 members and
euests of the Propellor Club of the United States, Port of
Wilmington, at a banquet at the Cape Fear Country club
last night in celebration ol nation
al Maritime Day.
Admiral Johnson was introduced
io the gathering by Col. John
Bright Hill, district collector of
customs and fraternity brother of
the high rank Naval officer.
•‘Look To Future”
Speaking briefly but to the point
on the Merchant Marine training
program set up by the U. S.
Maritime commission, Admiral
Johnson said:
"With victory won, we must look
to the future. We must maintain
a strong merchant fleet—the finest
and fastest in the world.”
"There is no question of our
being able to turn out the very
fi test of ship construction as we
did during the war. And there is
no question of our being able to
turn out the finest of merchant
seamen as we also did during
the war.
Postwar Fleet
“America may look forward to
a postwar merchant fleet of 12,
003.000 tons—manned by 15,000 of
ficers and 93,000 men.”
Admiral Johnson then touched on
the three training groups—the UT
S. Merchant Marine Cadet Corps,
the State Merchant Marine Aca
demies, and the Maritime Service.
“These training schools,” he
ta d. “have turned out 270,000 of
fcers and men since the train
ing program began.” He then en
tered into a short detailed discus
S! ;:l of the technical aspects of
the program.
’With the mutual respect and
fri: cooperation which exists be
Te:n the Navy and the Merchant
^orme," he concluded, “America’s
position in the post-war maritime
See MARINE on Page Two
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Reg. u g. p.t Office)
The Weather
FORECAST
North Carolina and South Carolina:
Thursday partly cloudy and rather warm.
(Eastern Standard Time)
(By U. S. Weather Bureau)
Meteorological data for the 24 hours
ending 7:30 p.m., yesterday.
TEMPERATURE
1:30 am, 67; 7:30 am, 66; 1:30 pm, 74;
7:30 pm, 70.
Maximum 75; Minimum 65; Mean 70;
Normal 72.
HUMIDITY
1:30 am, 91; 7:30 am, 77; 1:30 pm, 50;
7:30 pm, 64.
PRECIPITATION
Total for the 24 hours ending 7:30 p.m.,
0.17 inches.
Total since the first of the month,
3.21 inches.
TIDES FOR TODAY
(From the Tide Tables published by
U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey)
High Low
Wilmington -2:53a 10:19a
3:15p l0:32p
Masonboro Inlet _12:18a 6:54a
12:49p 6:57p
Sunrise, 5:05a: Sunset 7:I2p; Moonrise
12:43a, Moonset 11:20a.
River Stage at Fayetteville. N. C., at 8
a.m., Wednesday—19.2 feet.
COUNCIL REFUSES
TO END IRAN CASE
Delegates Not Satisfied All
Soviet Troops Have
Withdrawn
NEW YORK, May 22. — UP) —
The United Nations Security Coun
cil refused to drop the Iranian case
Wednesday after hearing Iranian
Ambassador Hussein Ala express
doubt that all Soviet troops had left
the country.
Ala. called to the Council table in
a move to clarify the confused
situation, told the delegates he did
not feel that a message received
Tuesday night from Premier Ah
med Quavam was a “categorical
statement” that the withdrawal had
been completed.
He also declared that he believed
Soviet elements continued to inter
See COUNCIL On Page Two
NUMBER OF IDLE
MINERS GROWING
Only Conditional Hope
That Complete Shutdown
May Be Averted
WASHINGTON, May 22 — (/P) —
With the number of idle soft coal
miners growing rapidly despite
government seiezure of the pits,
Secretary of Interior J. A. Krug
could express Thursday night only
a conditional “hope” that a com
plete shutdown next week would'
be averted.
Striving for a bargain with John
L. Lewis to keep coal flowing,
Krug, the government mine boss,
said he still had no assurance
from the United Mine Workers
chieftain that a full-scale work
stoppage would not occur.
Contract Difficult
“It is very possible,” Krug told
a news conference, “that the
government's position on all the
principles (involved in a new con
tract) Can be decided before Sat
urday night. The execution of a
contract within that time would be
very difficult.
‘T hope that if an accord on the
things that make a contract ap
pear certain, the workers can be
kept on the job.”
See MINERS on Page Two
CLINTON HIGH GYM
DESTROYED BY FIRE
Tobacco State Loop Club
Loses Pniforms, Equip
ment To Blaze
CLINTON. May 22 — Fanned by
a strong wind, fire which was said
to have started from a hot water
heater, this morning totally de
stroyed the Clinton High school
gymnasium building and back
grand stands of the athletic field,
home of the Clinton Blues of the
Tobacco State league.
Discovered at 9:45 o’clock while
classes were in progress in the
high school less than 100 yards
away, the flames spread rapdily
but members of the Clinton volun
teer fire department were able to
prevent any damage to the school
building. The firemen experienced
considerable difficulty in fighting
the fire as hundreds of feet of hose
had to be strung from hydrants
on College street while the tin
roof on the gymnasium building ad
ded to the difficulty.
H. L. Swain, superintendent of
city schools estimated the loss at
See CLINTON On Page Two
Today and Tomorrow
By WALTER LIPPMAN
Since the death of Roosevelt j
and the fall of Churchill the
relatiops of the Big Three
have been conducted by their for
eign ministers. This has had great
consequences. Churchill, Stalin
and Roosevelt were heads of gov
ernments, exerting authority not
only over the foreign offices but
over all other departments and
over the armed forces as well.
When the peace-making was
reduced to the level of the foreign
ministers, the subjects which they
could discuss became seriously re
stricted. This was bound to hap
! pen. Mr. Bevin, Mr. Molotov and
1 Mr. Byrnes are at best eaual col
leagues with, not superiors of, the
military chiefs and the political
leaders at home. They are unable,
therefore, to negotiate with full
power, or even to explore thor
oughly the real issues in which
their governments are most deeply
interested.
* * *
As a result the relations of the
great powers are conducted at two
levels. One is more or less visible:
here we see the series of confer
ences which for many months have
been working on treaties of peace
j with the European satellites of
! See LIPPMANN Page Nine
i
HOPES OF A VERTING RAIL STRIKE LOW
AS UNIONS BALK A T TRUMAN’S TERMS;
GROUP CONTINUES BID FOR AIR ROUTE
CAB Refuses
Application
For Permit
Wilmington-Charleston To
Bermuda Clipper Sche
dule Under Issue
COOPERATION PLEDGED
Airport Authority Here
Gets Support Of Clark
And Hooey
The Wilmington-New Han
over Airport authority will
continue to support Colonial
Airlines' bid to establish a
clipper service from Wilming
ton and Charleston to Ber
muda and the Caribbean de
spite the fact that the Civil Aero
nautics Board denied Colonial its
application for the route yesterday
afternoon.
“We will go all out in support
of Colonial when it files a new ap
plication for the route,” Hamilton
Hicks, secretary of the authority,
said yesterday.
To Keep Fighting
Immediately after the adverse
ruling was handed down, Colonial
officials said the airline would
keep fighting for the rountine by
filing for a new application.
Colonial will also have the sup
port 61 Congressman J. Bayard
Clark and Senator Clyde R. Hoey,
of North Carolina, and Senator
Olin D. Johnston, of South Caro
lina.
Congressman Clark, speaking
from Fayetteville last night, de
plored the CAB’s action yesterdaj
"depriving North Carolina of this
See AIRLINES On Page Two
DECISIONREVERSED
IN DAMAGE CHARGE
State Supreme Court Re
opens Suit Against
Diamond Company
The State Highway and Public
Works commission was given ano
ther chance by the State Supreme
court in Raleigh yesterday to
collect from the Dimond Steam
ship Transportation corporation for
damage done to Cape Fear river
bridge by 1he S. S. Severance,
it was learned from an Associated
: Press dispatch.
The ship rammed the bridge, and
the commission sued the company
for $9,950, alleging negligence.
Now Suited
When the case was tried in
New Hanover county Superior
court last December, Judge Claw
son Williams non-suited the action.
The Commission then appealed to
the Supreme court.
In reversing Judge Williams’
ruling, Supreme court associate
Justice W. A Devin said: “We
think there was competent evi
dence to support the plaintiff’s
allegations of negligence on the
part of the defendant and that the
plaintiff was entitled to have its
case submitted to the jury under
appropriate instructions.”
The President Receives An Honorary Degree
President of William Jewell college, Dr. Wal
ter Pope Binns( right) holds the diploma as Presi
dent Harry S. Truman receives an honorary
degree of Doctor of Laws from Maurice Winger
(left) vice president of the board of trustees.
Later, the President told the graduating class pf
the college in Liberty, Mo., that America needed
fewer “Monday morning quarterbacks’’ and more
workers in the ranks. (International)
ADMIRAL RELATES
WAR EXPERIENCES
Johnson Summarizes Views
Of War For
Kiwanians
Summarizing his impressions of
the recent war in the Pacific, gain
ed during two months of action be
fore and during the Okinawa cam
paign, Rear Admiral Felix L. John
son, assistant chief of Navy per
sonnel, told members of the Ki
wanis club yesterday that with
such United States ships, such
stout-hearted men and such able
fliers, the Japs never could have
licked our country.
Coming to Wilmington to be guest
speaker at the Propeller club ob
servance of Maritime Day at the
Cape Fear Country club last night,
Rear Admiral Johnson delighted
Kiwanians with a unique address
on his experiences in the South
Pacific, as featured speaker of the
regular weekly luncheon meeting
at the Friendly Cafeteria clubroom.
Pays Tribute
After paying tribute to the men
of the Merchant Marine Service
for their magnificent contribution
to victory in World War II, Rear
Admiral Johnson told the service
club members of the stirring inci
dent which occurred during the
months he spent in the Pacific as
a part of Task Force 58. He was
in command of the cruiser USS
Springfield, which sailed with the
Fifth fleet under Admiral Marc
Mitscher, whom he took occasion to
praise as a grand officer and a
brave man.
Recalling his participation in
strikes against Okinawa and Japan,
the speaker said that all concerned
feared the Jap kamikaze suicide
planes, one of which hit the carrier
Franklin some 50 miles from Ja
pan. Describing this incident as the
worst thing he had witnessed dur
ing his tour of duty in the Pacific,
Rear Admiral Johnson reviewed
with pride, the great recovery
dash made by that badly crippled
ship after being towed for some
20 hours.
See ADMIRAL On Page Two
Along The Cape F ear
SUSPENDED ANIMATION —
While we Were having a very hot
time deciphering our volumes of
phone-notes about the “Shco-Fly
Sand-Fiddler” and the "Lily-Lilly
Lillie-Sylvan Grove” yesterday, we
came across something which froze
us to our chair.
It so numbed us that we decided
the only way to break out of our
state of frigid suspended anima
tion was to set it down on paper.
So we set aside our information
on the much-disputed train and
steamboat temporarily and pound
ed out the following story on our
typewriter with frozen fingers.
* « *
CAPE FEAR FREEZE—Back in
1893 (the story says) the Cape Fear
river froze solid all the way to
Southport. .
Somehow we just can t picture
the old Cape Fear in such an inert
condition—and for such a cause. It
is, in one word, incredible.
But that’s what the story says.
The ice spread from shore to shore
and measured some two to three
inches thick. The Cape Fearians,
unused to such contraptions as ice
skates, bought them in great quan
tities and had a great time falling
all over one another on the hard
surface of the usually soft and ami
able Cape Fear.
* * *
WINTER FREAK — The fish
house owners took advantage of
the Cape Fear winter freak. When
the ice finally broke up they gath
ered the drifting chunks and used
them to ice the fish they sent to
inland cities.
It wasn’t just the Cape Fear
which froze, however. All the
ponds and lakes around Wilmington
solidified. And hundreds of birds
and water-fowl were laid out stiff
and cold as icicles.
See CAPE FEAR on Page Two
ROTARIANS GATHER
250 At Wrightsville
In Annual Meeting
Fellowship Banquet Opens Three - Day
Conference Of 188th District Of
Rotary International
An estimated 250 persons last night crowded the din
ing room of the Ocean Terrace hotel in Wrightsville Beach
for a fellowship banquet which marked the opening of the
First Annual conference of the 188th district of Rotary
International.
DADS INTERESTED
IN COMING DERBY
Proud Parents Call For
Rules, Entry Blanks For
Soap Box Races Here
Soap Box Derby stock went up
several points here yesterday as
interest in the forthcoming race
for 11 to 15 year-old boys began to
soar. During the day scores of
boys called at The Star-News of
fice, Raney Chevrolet company
showrooms and Brigade Boys’
club seeking information on rules
for the event. Most of them were
furnished with copies of the rifles
and an additional supply of printed
rules will be available at the
Raney showrooms and Boys’ club
today.
And interest in the great sport
ing event to be held in Wilmington
during the last week of July and
first week of August was not con
fined to prospective race drivers
for several sport-minded daddies
called at The Star-News yesterday
and walked out with copies of the
rules and entry blanks for their
sons. All plan to complete the
entry blanks today and forwarded
them back to Derby headquarters
for official entry.
Race representatives addressed
See DADS on Page Two
The banquet, organized by H. A.
Marks, chairman of the Hotel and
Banquet committee, was the initial
feature of the convention which is
to continue through Friday under
the auspices of President Tom
Lilly’s Wilmington club.
Henry Presides
Presiding over the long tables
was Ozmer Henry of Lumberton,
district governor of the 36 clubs
represented at the affair.
He asked for silence as invoca
tions were recited in Hindustani by
Ralph Wellens; in Portugese, by
Mrs. Carroll Tinsley; in Dutch, by
John Nuckton; and in Scots dia
lect, by Walter Cartier.
In the intervals between food
courses, members of the entertain
ment committee led the banquet
ers in club anthems and old song
book favorites.
At the conclusion of the meal
the program was continued under
the direction of Entertainment
Committee Chairman J. B. Kit
terell, Greenville, who introduced
Miss Patsy Harper, Washington,
D. C., pianist, and Thomas R.
Hood, Dunn, magician.
Long Registration
Registration for the conference
commenced at 5:30 p.m. and con
tinued until the banquet hour at
7:30 p.m.
In the hotel lobby, which was
hung with Rotary emblems and
orange and blue pennants, two
stenographers took names and is
sued conference passes to Rota
ians for a wide area of eastern
North Carolina.
See ROTARY on Page Two
NAVY IN CAMP
Davis May Be Grounds
Fjyr Ordnance Secrets
Wilmington Star
Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON, D. C„ May
22. — Camp Davis and the sur
rounding land and water the
Navy proposes to use will be
come the department’s number
one proving ground for ord
nance experiments of top mili
tary secrecy, when the camp
is taken over next month, it
was revealed here today.
The huge former Army Apti
Aircraft base will be taken over
entirely, as will the coast is
land near the base and the
sound and ocean waters adjoin
ing, the latter to be used in
tests which are expected to in
volve radar-directed weapons
that helped greatly in destroy
ing Japanese sea and air power
during the recent war, it was
learned from reliable sources.
Changed For Navy
The main area of the camp
will be changed generally to
meet the needs of the Navy,
and the Navy department has
notified the War Department
that its requirements will be
such that a few of the hundreds
See CAMP DAVIS on Page Two
- 1
Labor Heads
Bitter Over
Compromise
President Offers Raise Of
I8V2 Cents Per Hour
In Last Appeal
CARRIERS ACCEPT
Brotherhood Leaders De
mand Rule Changes
In Settlement
WASHINGTON, May 22 —
(UP)—Hope of averting the
railroad strike set for Thurs
day afternoon flickered low
Wednesday night when lead
ers of two holdout unions
balked at President’s Tru
man's llth-hour settlement offer.
Only White House Intervention
kept the angry union chiefs from
returning to their headquarters in
Cleveland.
The two labor heads, A. F.
Whitney of the Trainmen’s union
and Alvanley Johnston of the
Locomotive Engineers, bitterly de
nounced the President’s comprom
ise proposal of a wage of 18 1-2
cents an hour. They said it was
conditioned on their waiver of
other demands for changes in
operating rules and that as a whole
it wa8 worse than the recommen
dations of Mr. Truman’s fact
finding board—which they rejected
more than a month ago.
Leave Washington
Hinting strongly that they would
permit the once-postponed strike
to go ahead on schedule at 4 p. m.
(local stand time) Thursday, they
checked out of their Washington
hotel and raced for the 8:30 p. m.
train to Cleveland.
They were intercepted at the
station by a telephone call from
the White House and agreed re
See RAILS On Page Two
AIRPLANE FREIGHT
SERVICE TO START
Schedule To Link Wilming
ton With Major North
ern Cities
Daily scheduled airplane freight
service linking Wilmington to Balti
more, Washington, Philadelphia,
New York, and Boston will be in
augurated at Bluethenthal airport
on Monday by the Meteor Air
Transport of New York, John H.
Farrell, city industrial agent, an
nounced yesterday.
Farrell immediately began con
tacting local merchants notifying
them of the new regular market by
air.
"Intensely Interested”
"Although the announcement
took them by surprise,” Farrell
said, ‘‘most of them seemed in
tensely interested in the possibili
ties of shipping material out of
Wilmington to the northern cities
and having material shipped to
them from the northern cities.”
“By Saturday, I hope, many of
the local merchants and industrial
ists will have lined up their busi
ness to start off the air marketing
in a fairly big way. In due time
the business should grow into a
pretty large thing.”
Large-Scale Users
According to Paul Franklin Bell,
assistant secretary of the Chamber
of Commerce, the Castle Hayne
See FREIGHT On Page Two
And So To Bed
An elderly local lady was
very happy over a communica
tion she received in the mall
yesterday afternoon.
The communication was a
greeting card accompained by
a dividend check amounting to
a tidy sum of money.
The sum of money was, of
course, the cause for happiness,
And the cause for the up
roarious laughter was the fact
that the envelope was dated
December, 1945, and that the
sentiment of the greeting card
expressed itself in two words:
“Merry Christmas.