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PAGE TWO Even In Darkest Africa The Natives Have Tax Problems, Missionaries Say Returning to a land where polyg amy is practiced, taxes are based on the number of wives a native has, pygmies are prevalent and decompo ed meat serves as money, Mr. and Mrs. Henry Seneff are leaving here this week to resume their work at a mission station in the heart of Dark est Africa. Mrs. Seneff was formerly Miss Lil lian Welty of this place, daughter of John Welty, of Cherry street, where she and her husband have been visit ing for the past week. Working under the African Inland mission, Mr .and Mrs. Seneff are lo cated in the highlands of Belgian Con go, deep in the African interior. Surprisingly enough tax problems largely are the bane of the otherwise carefree natives in the vicinity of the mission where the Seneffs are located. Tax Problems For Natives Heavy taxes are levied on all na tives by the Belgian government. Those unable to pay must work on the roads. Since the African native is inherently lazy and shuns work as much as possible he rarely has money when taxes fall due, hence works on the roads is a common occurrance for most tax payers. The trait, however, has enabled the Belgian government to proceed with a very ambitious road program. Of some 15,000 miles of government roads in Belgian Congo, more than one-third are suitable for autos. The main tax levied by the Belgians is the ‘‘hut tax,” which represents about 50 Belgian francs per year. The exchange rate of the franc is about 30 for $1 of American currency. This “hut tax” is levied on the head of the household. Belgian official also are using taxes in an effort to stamp out polygamy, which is natives. widely practiced among the Tax on Polygamy is no law to prevent a as There na he tive having as many wives wants, consequently polygamy is com mon, and it has been customary for a man to have as many wives as he could afford. An attractive wife usually has a market price of from four to five head head of cattle, payable to the father of the girl. In addition, a husband must yay one goat to the father for each child his wife bears. Each wife lives in a separate hut, with the husband’s hut standing in the center. In addition to the hut tax of 50 francs, which is levied on the hus band’s residence, there is a smaller tax for each wife’s hut. In attempt ing to discourage polygamy, the gov ernment will exempt a man from all tax when he was only one wife and four or more children. Problems many times are encount ered by the government in collection of taxes. Within 60 miles of the Sen eff’s rest small, shy people who flee at the ap proach of strangers, especially whites. For many years, these little people have lived a secluded life, and now the government is attempting them out of the jungle, so can be classified and taxed. ».a ow* ...uK W KAi LMw: 1 B- 0-2020 29.2 Bu, I i per Acre M'A Lb. Teat WegM per Bu. i •w ivory is sold. Other tribes trap ele phants by digging pits, covering them with brush and then waiting until an elephant falls thru the opening. Natives in the area are very black and divided into two general classes. One group is a finey featured as the whites and very intelligent. Men are tall, usually over six feet. The sec ond group, of smaller stature, is back ward mentally. No Guns Permitted Spears are the only weapons na tives are permitted to carry. Only on rare occasions are natives allowed to use guns, as the government guards carefully against possibility of revolt. Natives are forbidden to have liquor, altho they make home brew from kafir corn and bananas, a concocton which is permitted. A very potent native wine made from the juice of the palm tree is banned. Money in scarce and the natives are not interested in it. Salt and buffalo meat is the almost universal medium of exchange in their dealings. One egg usually is exchanged for two tablespoons of salt. Meat used in trading generally is decomposed and infested with vermin. Despite this it is relished by the natives. They have a simple means of dealing with "crawling meat.” It is placed in a pot of boiling water, the vermin are skimmed off when they rise to the top and the meat is eaten. Decomposed Meat Prized In addition to decomposed mdhts, the natives relish rats, cats and cater pillars. Medical tests have disclosed that the digestive tracts of natives generally are infested with worms. The mission post where Mr. and Mrs. Seneff are located is at the ex treme east of Belgian Congo, which is nearly a third as large as continen tal United States. Altho directly on the equator, they are in the highlands and the weather is cool and damp. There is a rainy season of approximately nine months, and a dry season of three months in the highlands. They live in practic ally the same temperature the year around. In the lowlands it is always very hot. Lake Albert ,one of the largest Af rican bodies of water is only 16 miles from the station. Leopoldville, pro vincial capital, is 100 miles to the southwest, and Mombasa, seaport for their region, is 1500 miles southeast. Enroute to Mombasa when they left Africa in 1938 the Seneffs traveled in one and one-half ton truck. a mission station is the Ituri for ,the largest African jungle. Pygmies are Shy its depths live the pygmies, In to force their clan are about the men Women pygmies usuallly four feet in height, and stand about five feet. A very primi tive race, they are nomadic and ex tremely hard to trace in the jungle. At hunting, however, they are ex ceedingly skillful. They kill elephants by spearing the gigantic beats from underneath in the abdomen. The ele phant meat then is eaten and the Thickly Populated Area At the station Mr. and Mrs. Seneff have charge of the outside work and travel from one native village to an other. The region si thickly populat ed, and they touch 300 villages within a 50 mile radius of the station. In each of the villages is a native evan gelist, whose work is supervised by the missionaries. Some of the country the Seneffs visit is very wild. In addition to ele phants ,there are buffalo, leopards and lions. Once Seneff encountered two lions while walking in the road. He stood perfectly still—to run would have started the lions in pursuit—and after surveying him curiously the an imals turned and disappeared. Lions will not attack human beings unless they are hunyry or have bee wounded ed. Coffee and ivory are the principal exports from the area. In their farm ing ventures the natives raise corn, white potatoes »nd tropical fruits. There is a ready market for these foodstuffs, since the Belgian govern ment operates large gold mines in the T^T Bo v-g, wi Y-./is4»WfS 1 ct a* need 2falfa I I A«fa iftjg I 17.6 Bu«J p*t Act*: 49 Lb. i Ten Weight per Bu. JJ N0.I2 at "King’s Palace” and Garden Zoar. GERMANS IN OHIO German pioneers crossed Appalachian Mountains at earliest opportunity. the the The first Germans to penetrate the Ohio country were noted for exceptional services in Indian af fairs, Conrad Weiser and Christian Frederick Post. They were con cerned not with settling the coun try but almost entirely with mis sionary work among the Indians. The first German settlement was at Columbia, now part of Cincin nati. It was founded (1788) by Major Benjamin Steitz, an officer of the Revolution. By 1792 the settlement had 1100 inhabitants. Another early German colony was established on the banks of the Little Miami by Christian Waldschmidt in 1795, near the present postal station of Milford. On the Upper Muskingum, the Pennsylvania German, Ebenezer Zane (Zahn) founded Zanesville. To pay for his lands he contracted to cut a pack horse trail from Wheeling to Chillicothe to Mays ville, Ky. Mail was first carried over the Zane Trail in 1797. The same year Zane laid out New Lancaster (now Lancaster). The first German newspaper west of the Alleghenies, printed in Pennsylvania Dutch, appeared in New Lancaster in 1807. Stephenville, named for General district and furnishes all the food for the workers. French is the legal language of the province and English cannot be taught. In English provinces where English is the legal language the sit uation is reversed. Campus Comment Everything is in readiness for the opening of the fall term at Bluffton college next Tuesday, administra tive officials reported this week, freshman class of approximately is expected, one of the largest recent years. A 85 in be on Homecoming festivities will celebrated at the college this year Oct. 21. The day’s celebration will be climaxed with a night football game between the Beavers and Grand Rapids college. Three alumni groups have held meetings recently. At Columbus a group of 50 alumni gathered on the Ohio State campus to hear talks by Dr. Harry Good, an instructor at the state university, and President L. L. Ramseyer. Last Sunday Wayne county alumni met at Smithville. Earlier in the summer a group of 25 alumni gathered at Cleveland. Bluffton college football drill will be started within the next week under the direction of Coach A. C. Burcky. The Beavers will open their season this year with a night foot ball game against Kenyon in Lima stadium on Sept. 23. POTASH YOU are looking forward to a profitable grain crop next year and good clover or al the year following, then use fertilizer high in potash when seeding this fall. Potash in creases yield, stiffens straw, and keeps the grain from lodging. It improves quality by plumping out the kernels and increasing test weight. To insure good growth of clover or alfalfa fol lowing grain, plenty of potash must still be avail able in the soil. A 2-ton yield of clover hay re quires 3 times as much potash as is needed to produce 25 bushels of wheat 4 tons of alfalfa need more than 7 times as much. Use 200-400 lbs. of 3-12-12,0-12-12,0-20-20, or similar ratios per acre for fall seedings. Often the increased hay yields more than pay for the fertilizers used, leaving greater profit from the increased grain yields. Consult your county agent or experiment station about the plant-food needs of your soil. See your fertilizer dealer. You will be surprised how little extra it costs to apply enough potash to insure good yields and high quality. tuedtein c/i&pA. AMERICAN POTASH INSTITUTE, INC. Inveetanent Building Washington. D. C. Midwt OHi—: m. Building, Uiayotta, Ind. the has the Dr. Clarence O. Lehman, 1916, been appointed president of State Normal school at Potsdam, N. ¥., according to word received here. Dr. Lehman had served as head of the department of teacher training' at the school for a number of years. LniareProht THE BLUFFTON NEWS. BLUFFTON, OHIO LET’S EXPLORE OHIO One of the notable of all the Ohio German settlements was Zoar, founded by 225 German Sep aratists in 1817 under the leader ship of Joseph Bineler. The group .wchased 5500 acres of land in Tuscarawas county. All property was 'd in common. The society i ained intact un til 1898 when it disbanded and some $2,500, worth of prop- Rockport The Light Bear rs of the Presby terian church met Saturday afternoon with Franklin and Joan Mayberry Ralph Marshal who has been a sum mer student at 0. S. U. returned here Friday to spend several weeks vaca tion with his parents, Mr. and Mrs, Herbert Marshall Miss La Donna Campbell will leave Monday of next week for Ada where she will attend Ohio Northern Univer sity. Mr. and Mrs. J. O. Cupp and dau ghter Edythe .-pent Thursday with Mr .and Mrs. D. W. Core in West Lib erty. Mr. and Mrs. W. E. Marshall re turned home Tuesday night from a five day visit with Mr. and Mrs. P. A. Morse in Centralia, Ill. While there the accompanied Mr. Morse on a bus iness trip that took them into the Sharecropper section of Missouri. Mr .and Mrs. Glen Huber and fam ily spent Thursday and Friday with Mr .and Mrs. Perry Huber of Indian apois who were guests in the George Huber home near Lafayette. Mr .and Mrs. Harry Mills and dau ghter Mary Lou, Miss Harriet Eysen bach, Mi. and Mrs. Oliver Brotherton and Dan Rupert all of Delphos Mr. Evan Soash of Bluffton and Mr. and Mrs. Orlo Marshall and daughter Jean enjoyed a steak roast at the Colum bus Grove community picnic grounds Thursday evening and spent the even ing in the Marshall home. Mr .and Mrs. Russell Jones of Pitts burgh were entertained at dinner Sat urday evening in the home of Miss Edythe Cupp. Miss Mary Marshall was a week end guest in the home of Miss Francis Cooney in Bluffton and attended a picnic dinner at Riverside park in Findlay, Sunday Twenty-five members of the Farm Bureau Youth Council of Allen County held a meeting in the home of Mr. and Mrs. Herbert B. Marshall last Thursday evening. Miss Madeline Bixel of Pandora who spent several days the past week with her sister, Mrs. .C. Marshall, left Monday for Rittman where she has been a member of the teaching staff in th* Rittman schools for a number of y. ars. Mr .and Mrs. Walter Cupp and fam ily enjoyed a steak roast at the home of Mr. and Mrs. J. O. Cupp and dau ghter Edytb Wednesday evening. Among those from this vicinity who attended the State Fair in Columbus the past week were: Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Begg and Don Martz, F. C. Marshall, son Robert and Wendell Amstutz. Mr. and Mrs. Howard Carey, Mr. and Mrs. Glen Huber and children Jeanette and Buddy, Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Marshall and sons Herbert, Jr., Ralph, Kenneth and Don, Harold Marshall and son John, and Mr. Glen Mayberry and son Roger. Mr and Mrs, Stephens and family returned from a western trip Wednes day which took them as far as Spo kane, Washington. Enroute they vis ited Miss Eunice Trumbo at Council, Idaho and she accompanied them on a trip through Yellowstone park The September meeting of the Pres byterian Missionary society will be held Wednesday afternoon of next week in the home of Miss Enora Mar shall. Tin following program will be given: Worship service, Mrs. Walter Cupp Book review, Mrs. William Reichenbach: Topic, India, Mrs. Glen Mayberry Year Book of Prayer, Mrs. W .E. Marshall. Mr. and Mrs. Otto Badertscher and daughter Doris Jean and Mrs. Eugene Tscheigg were in Orrville for the week end as guests of Mr. and Mrs. Willis fft? 1 Philadelphia Steuben, and New were established in 1797. Real German colonization fol lowed the. successful Indian cam paigns of General Mad Anthony Wayne. Today a German township appears in almost every Ohio county. Towns with scriptural names—Bethlehem, Salem, Naz areth, Goshen, and Canaan were chiefly settled by German Mora vians, Dunkeis nd Amish. Ger mans settled in Cleveland when the Ohio Cai i v as opened. Can ton, Massillon. Alliance and Mi nerva were devc. by Geimans. Their indust ri hand trans formed the .'’side from wil derness to rich farm lands. Their skill and ent quickened the development of industries. 1 erty was divided among the mem bers. The “King’s Palace,” Bine ler’s home, is now a museum out of the jurisdiction of the Ohio State Historical Society and is open to the public. garden is alsc The Zoar flower notable. The first mayor David Ziegler, was exploits against the Indians made him particularly beloved by early settlers. One of the state’s mer chant princes, Martin Baum, was German. In 1810 he brought th first iron foundry to the west, bui the first Ohio sugar refineries and established textile mills and other factories. of Cincinnati a German. His He also aided in introducing sailboats on the Ohio, supplantin flat and keel boats. The Methodist preacher, Hein rich Bohm, born in Pennsylvar in 1775, of German pare: preached throughout Ohio in G man. His was the first Germ sermon heard in Cincinnati, September, 1808. “The village, he wrote in his journal, “promist to grow very rapidly. It already has 2000 inhabitant"" Weaver and Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Tscheigg. Mr. and Mrs. Roy Clemens, Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Amstutz and Junior Hoov er and Mr. and Mrs. James Yant of Beaverdam spent last Thursday at Port Clinton. The C. E. society and young peoples class of the Presbyterian Sunday school will hold a steak and weiner roast at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Begg near Columbus Grove, Saturday evening at 6:30, as a fare well to those who are leaving for col lege in the next few weeks. Mr. and Mrs. Harrison Bassett and son of near Lima were Sunday even ing guests in the home of Mrs. W. E. Marshall. Mr. and Armorsville and Mrs. H. O. Hilty re Mr. turned home last Wednesday after spending five weeks with relatives in Washington and California. Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Wells son spent Friday evening at Charles Montgomery home. and the Mr. and Mrs. W. I. Moore spent several days with relatives in Illin ois and also attended the Moore re union. and Mrs. Merton Moses and and Mrs. Catherine Welch Thursday afternoon at Mr. family spent Charles Montgomery home. Mr. and Mrs. Harry Moore family of Detroit spent over week end here with relatives. Past week callers of Mrs. Montgomery were Mr. and the and the Eva Mrs. Ernest Klingler and daughter Betty, Carl bus, and Will Battles and Mrs. Merton Moses. Zellar and daughter of Colum Mr. and Mrs. Robert Ruggley granddaughter, Mr. and Mrs. Ruggley, Harry and Mildred Past week callers of Mrs. Law rence Hosafros were Mrs. Noah Stewart and daughter, Hazel Henry, Mrs. Howard Smith and Mrs. oJhn Wilkins. Don Oates spent last week with Tommy Owens of Lima. News Want-Ads Bring Results. haw! A Magnificent Serial MARTHA OSTENSO Don’t miss a single in stallment of ’’Prologue to Love" as it unfolds serially in this paper. A dramatic, powerful tale of love and hatred in the mountains of British Columbia, it is one of Martha Ostenso’s great est, most vital stories. Starts Next Week Trio Confess To Beaverdam Holdup Three youths are being held in Lima awaiting grand jury action, after pleading guilty to charges of armed robbery in connection with the Aug. 21 holdup of the Blue Bell restaurant in Beaverdam. Arthur Detrick, 21, of near Elida, was arrested for investigation, early last week, and on Thursday confess ed to the Beaverdam robbery, auth orities said. At the same time he implicated Paul Shaffer, 19, of Columbus, and Woodrow McClurg, 22, of Lima. Shaffer was arrested in Columbus, and McClurg was seized in Lima on his return from Michigan where he had gone, shortly after the holdup. Arrest of Detrick and Shaffer also is believed to have cleared up the robbery of a general store at Jumbo, in Hardin county on August 18. Charles Decker, operator of the store, is said to have identified Det rick, and Shaffer was later impli cated. In the holdup of the Blue Bell restaurant in Beaverdam two of the youths entered the building early in the morning, ordered coffee and then one of them leveled a revolver at Miss LaVonne Beemer, the waitress. They took all the money from the cash register, then hid Miss Beemer awaken the proprietor, Mrs. Leota Peters, who was sleeping in a back room, from whom they obtained a larger amount. Their loot was ap proximately $50. According to police Detrick and Shaffer were the two gunmen and McClurg sat in a taxi awaiting them about one-half block from the res taurant. 45-Day Open Season For Hunting Ducks Duck bunting this fall will be per mitted during a 45-day open season, according to 1939 migratory bird regulations announced last week in Washington. In Ohio the season will open on Oct. 22, instead of Oct. 15, as a re sult of the new ruling. Daily bag limit for ducks is 10, with the possession limit remaining at 20. When any daily limit includes canvasback, redhead, bufflehead and ruddy ducks, not more than three of any one, or more than three of the aggregate of these kinds may be taken. For geese and brant the daily bag limit is four, and not more than eight may be in possession. The daily bag limit on coot remains at 25. SPEAKER AT LIMA MISSION During the month of August the Lima City mission provided 1046 free meals and 297 transients received free lodging, Adam D. Welty, sup erintendent of the institution, re ported this week. Rev. Clifford Hillifield, of the Ft. Wayne Gospel Temple, is conducting services at the mission every night at 7:30 o’clock this week. His stay in Lima will be closed this Saturday with a mass meeting in Memorial Hall. & Here’s history-making value acclaimed the biggest, finest, sturdiest washer for the money since Thor built the world’s first electric washer over 33 years ago. Large, sanitary tub, porcelain in side and out Thor multi-vane Super-Agitator and approved Free Rolling Safety Wringer first to meet the new, rigid 1940 Safety and Efficiercy require ments of the Underwriters Lab oratories. Thor is a washer designed and built to satisfy the exacting re quirements of particular women— women who insist on results. It’s fast, gentle, thorough water action will restore your clothes to their original spotlessness with out a trace of wear. Stop in today and see this washer. THURSDAY, SEPT. 7, 1939 Change Announced In Old Age Pension Act Persons who were 65 years of age prior to January, 1937, may now be come fully insured under the amend ed social security act, it was an nounced last week by William A. Ashbrook, manager of the Old Age Insurance Bureau field office in Lima. Previously such persons were ex cluded from monthly benefit pay ments, but with the passage of amendments it now is possible for them to become fully insured. To qualify for insurance benefits, such workers must earn at least $50 in each of six different calendar quarters after January 1, 1939. The wages of individuals who re main at work in commerce or indus try after reaching the age of 65 are now subject to the same payroll de ductions and taxes as those of younger workers. Taxes will be col lected back to Jan. 1 of this year. After becoming fully insured in dividuals under the amended act, the workers will be entitled to monthly benefits when they retire from em ployment. Birthday Gathering _________ A number of friends and relatives gathered at the home of Mr. and Mrs. John Chidester Sunday to help celebrate the birthdays of Gerald Chidester, Mrs. Guy Eikenbary and Jean Chidester. Their birthdays oc curred on the first, second and third of September. The ocasion was celebrated with a basket dinner at noon on the lawn. Among those present were: Mr. and Mrs. Sam Balmer, Mrs. Solo mon Steiner and sons, Mr. and Mrs. Gerald Chidester and daughters, Mr. and Mrs. Oliver Steiner and son, Mr. and Mrs. John Nonnamaker and son, Mr. and Mrs. Guy Eikenbary, Mr. and Mrs. John Kieffer, Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Chidester and son, Miss Sarah Amstutz, and the host and hostess Mr. and Mrs. John Chid ester. MUNSON R. BIXEL, M. D. Office Hours: 8:30-10 A. M. 1-3 P. M. 7-8 P. M. Office, 118 Cherry St. Phone 120-F Bluffton. O. Melville D. Soash, M. D. The Commercial Bank Bldg. Bluffton, Ohio X-RAY FLUOROSCOPE Telephone 254-W D. C. BIXEL, O.D. GORDON BIXEL, O. D. Eyesight Specialists Open Evenings Citizens Bank Bldg., Bluffton Savings & Loan Bldg., Ada Francis Basinger, D. D. S. Evan Basinger, D.D. S. Telephone 271-W Bluffton, Ohio I’m telling all my friends about my new ^£&WA5HER Basinger's Furniture Store