The Bluffton news. [volume], May 30, 1946, Image 1

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THURSDAY, MAY 30, 1946
BUY
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VOLUME LXXI
SCHOOLS MAY ASK
VOTERS FOR ADDED
TAXES THIS FALL
I
Face Choice Between More
Revenue or Cut in Courses,
Board Member Says
Extra Levy, if Requested, Prob
ably Would Be For Two
Mills Next November
With Bluffton schools operating on
an ever narrowing margin between
receipts and expenditures, the board
of education must ask for a larger
tax levy or eliminate some courses in
the present curriculum, it was stated
by Donavon Conrad, member of the
board, in an address before the high
school alumni association, Friday
night.
Conrad is a member of the board’s
finance committee and a graduate of
the high school.
Shrinking revenue and increasing
'expenditures have posed a major
problem which the school board must
solve before the opening of the 1946
47 fall term, the speaker pointed out,
in amplifying a similar statement
made the preceding night at com
mencement exercises by Waldo Hof
stetter, the board president.
In his talk to the alumni, Conrad
pointed out that the annual income
for Bluffton public schools is approx
imately $60,000, of which $54,000 is
•earmarked for salaries of teachers,
administrators, janitors, school bus
drivers and other employes.
$6,000 For Maintenance and
i Operation
This leaves only $6,000 for mainte
nance and operation of two school
buildings, including fuel, lights, wat
er, telephone, insurance, operation of
four buses, textbooks, school supplies,
band instruments, Harmon field main
tenance and repairs, plus any in
'crease granted for teachers’ salaries.
A sizeable item represented in ad
ditional expense this year will be the
installation of a new boiler for the
heating system of the grade school
building.
It is believed the board of educa
tion will decide this summer whether
to reduce the curriculum or ask for
an increased tax levy at next fall’s
election,
May Ask Two Mills More
Altho no figure has been determin
ed, it is assumed at least a two-mill
levy, yielding $10,000, will be needed
to assurd operation of the schools on
their present basis. This levy would
be in addition to a three-mill levy in
effect here for a number of years,
and which was renewed last fall for
five more years.
On the other hand a curriculum ad
justment to permit operating within
the present school budget would mean
cut in music, art, speech and other
departments, it is estimated, all of
which should be offered to students.
Music Counsellor In
Y. W. Summer Camp
Miss Barbara Jean Triplett,
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. R. L.
Triplett of Campus drive who last
week completed her junior year as a
student in the Eastman School of
Music at Rochester, N. Y., has ac
cepted an appointment as music
counsellor in a Y. W. C. A. summer
camp at Port Clinton. She will leave
the middle of June to take up her
duties at the camp.
Miss Triplett arrived home Mon
day night from Rochester, accompan
ied by a classmate Miss Bernice
Flanagan of Chicago who will be her
house guest for the coming week.
Two Bluffton G. I.’s
Graduate At O. N. U.
Two Bluffton ex-service men will
be graduated at commencement exer
cises of Ohio Northern university at
Ada, Sunday afternoon. They are
Evan Soash, son of Dr. and Mrs.
M. D. Soash and Wade Huber, son
of Mr. and Mrs. Waldo Huber.
Soash will receive the degree of
Bachelor of Science in Education
and Huber will receive the degree of
Bachelor of Science in Mechanical
Engineering.
Graduates From Ft.
Wayne Bible School
Miss Drusilla Lugibihl, daughter
of Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Lugibihl, liv
ing west of Bluffton was graduated
from Ft. Wayne Bible school at
commencement the past week. Her
brother Emerson Lugibihl and wife
and an aunt, Mrs. Mary Lugibihl
attended the graduation exercises in
Ft. Wayne.
£^THE
CONSTRUCTION OF
TWO NEW HOMES
IS STARTED HERE
Begin Foundations for Two
Dwellings to be Erected on
Cherry Street.
Trailer Units Being Fitted up
at College Garage Structure
Under Way.
______
Bluffton’s residential building boom
which is well under way despite
post-war restrictions was further
stimulated this week when work was
started to provide two more dwell
ings, both on Cherry street.
J. A. Leatherman is assembling
materials for a foundation for a new
house at his lot near the Geiger
street junction and Clayton Bucher
is starting the foundation between
the Slusser and Mrs. George Schmidt
residences on which he will move a
barn to be remodeled for residential
use.
Since early last fall Mr. and Mrs.
Leatherman have occupied a house
trailer on the lot where they will
erect their new home.
Bucher who purchased from Miss
Theresa Slusser a bam facing Vance
street will move the structure to the
new location nearby on Cherry
street.
Starts Garage
In addition to this construction
has been started on the garage of
the Stanley Basinger funeral home
to be located at West College avenue
and South Jackson street, the form
er Oberly property which Basinger
has purchased.
Meanwhile ten trailers are being
fitted up on the Bluffton college cam
pus as a temporary housing project
for residence accommodations for
married ex-service men who will at
tend school here this fall. A power
shovel has completed excavation for
sewer and water lines. The houses,
together with two prefabricated
units are located south of the foot
ball fied.
Farm Youth's Finger
Mangled In Accident
David Jones, 10, son of Mr. and
Mrs. Clarence Jones residing one
and one-fourth miles north of Bluff
ton on Route 25 suffered the loss of
part of the index finger of the right
hand when it was accidentally caught
in a grain drill, early Friday after
noon.
The accident occurred as the
youth was riding on the grain drill
in the field with his father while
the latter was engaged in sowing
soy beans.
The boy was rushed to the office
of a Bluffton physician where ampu
tation of part of the finger was
found necessary.
Enters Music School
At Baldwin Wallace
Miss Jean Ann Steinman, daugh
ter of Mr. and Mrs. Forrest Stein
man of South Lawn avenue has en
tered the conservatory of music of
Baldwin Wallace college at Berea
for the summer term and expects
to continue her studies at that place
for the coming year.
Lynn Byers In U. S.
Post In Germany
Cpl. Lynn R. Byers, son of Mr.
and Mrs. C. Floyd Byers, of Goshen,
Ind., former Bluffton residents, was
discharged in February from the
United States Army in Germany, to
accept a United States Civil Service
position in that country under di
rection of the war department.
Byers is entitled to wear the Pur
ple Heart and one Oak Leaf clus
ter, two battle stars and the Com
bat Infantryman's badge. He was
formerly an engineering student at
Purdue university.
He is a grandson of N. E. Byers,
of this place.
Crops In Bluffton District Stage
Recovery From Dry Weather Setback
Electric Current Off
Thursday Morning
Electric current will be off for
about three hours on Thursday
morning beginning at 8 o’clock while
mechanical repairs are being made
to equipment at the municipal elec
tric light and waterworks plant, it
is announced by the Board of Public
Affairs.
Heavy Rainfall of Last Two
Weeks Revives Crops Affect
ed by April Drought
Wheat Heading 10 Days Early
Points to Harvest Season
Last of June This Year
Revived by rainfall of the last
two weeks, crops in the Bluffton
area rapidly are recovering from
setbacks suffered during April’s
near-record dry weather.
Grasslands are green and heavy
with lush growth, wheat and clover
are heading early, and almost con
tinuous daily rainfall over a period
of more than two weeks have helped
all crops that got a slow start dur
ing the prolonged early-spring dry
spell.
A good stand of wheat is heading
about 10 days earlier than usual,
and present indications point to an
early harvest. Prospects at present
are for a better crop than last year.
As wheat normally comes to a
head about one month prior to cut
ting, harvesting of the crop this
year likely will start around the last
of June instead of July 4, the tra
ditional date for the Bluffton area.
Corn Cultivating Starts
Corn planting is widely varied this
year on district farms. Some of the
early corn planted the last of April
and the early part of May is ready
for cultivation, and in other fields
seed is not yet in the ground.
Most farmers who delayed plant
ing corn until May, to escape corn
borer infestation, have been delayed
in getting the crop into the ground
by heavy mid-month rainfall.
Planting largely will be completed
this week, however, barring a con
tinuation of rains, and farmers are
not overly worried over the late
seeding, inasmuch as May 24 is set
by agricultural experts as the ideal
time for planting corn in this sec
tion.
Soy Bean Seeding Under Way
Soybean seeding also is well un
der way in the district, with plenty
of moisture in the ground to pro
vide good germination conditions.
Farmers, while reluctant to admit
there has been too much rain, gen
erally admit there has been enough
until the crops are in the ground.
So far tn May rainfall in Ohio
has generally been more than an
inch in excess of normal, but April’s
prolonged dry weather has made the
precipitation welcome so far as
farmers are concerned.
With Service Men
Sgt. Raymond Schumacher, son of
Mr. and Mrs. Cyrus Schumacher of
College road has received his dis
charge from the Army. He served
18 months in the European theatre
of war.
Harvey Niswander S 2/c of the
Navy has received his discharge
from the service at Great Lakes,
Ill., it was announced the first of
the week.
Arrives In Germany
To Join Her Husband
Mrs. Wayne Yoakam who sailed
last month for Germany to join her
husband in Germany has landed in
Bremerhaven, according to word re
ceived here the first of the week.
From there she went by train to
Wursburg where she was met by her
husband, Lt. Yoakam.
The couple will live in a five-room
duplex apartment in Kitzingen, Ger
many, where Lt. Yoakam is station
ed in the electrical laboratory of the
army air forces occupation troops.
Mrs. Yoakam is the former Luella
Mae Smith of Arlington. She ex
pects to remain in Germany with
her husband who has signed for a
two year period of overseas duty.
With The Sick
Rolland Flythe who has been ill
with heart trouble the past six
months has returned from Kollmeier
convalescent home in Findlay much
improved. He makes his home with
his daughter and son-in-law, Mr. and
Mrs. Oscar Wenger of Spring street.
Charles Gazette continues quite ill
at his home on North Main street.
Mrs. Grace Wilson who was re
cently brought to her home on North
Jackson street after taking treat
ment in Lima has been removed to
Bluffton hospital.
Mrs. George Swank, Sr., who is
seriously ill, has been taken to a
Columbus hospital for treatment.
Mrs. Ed Scheele who recently un
derwent a major operation at Lima
Memorial hospital is convalescing at
her home on South Main street.
THE BLUFFTON NEWS, BLUFFTON, OHIO
A NEWSPAPER DEVOTED TO THE INTERESTS OF BLUFFTON AND VICINITY
Mayor W. A. Howe will introduce
the speaker, and William Holtkamp
will conduct the band in its appear
ance on the program.
Business generally will be suspend
ed in the town thruout the day there
will be no mail delivery, and windows
at the post office will be colsed.
Buckeye Lake To
Open Memorial Day
Buckeye Lake, Bluffton’s munici
pal swimming spot will open for the
season on Memorial day, it was an
nounced the first of the week. The
place is operated by the town under
lease arrangement with the Central
Ohio Light & Power company, own
ers. Evan Soash has been appointed
manager in charge for the summer
season.
Ex-College Youth
Dies In Army Camp
Pvt. Henry Blosser, 21, former
Bluffton college freshman, died at
Buckley Field, Colorado, Saturday,
according to word received here the
first of the week. He was in serv
ice in the army air corps.
Details of Blosser’s death were not
known here. However, the body was
reported enroute to his home in
Goshen, Ind., where funeral services
will be held Wednesday at the
Eighth Street Mennonite church fol
lowed by burial there.
Surviving are his mother, Mrs. C.
B. Blosser of Goshen, a brother
Ralph of Dayton, former Bluffton
college field secretary and a sister,
Mrs. Christine Hartzler of Ashland.
Pres. L. L. Ramseyer, Dr. J. S.
Schultz and Rev. Paul Shelley of the
college will attend funeral services.
Real Estate Deal
Mrs. W. F. lutzi of Grove street
has purchased from Edgar Chamber
lain the Cheery street residence
formerly known as the Clymer prop
erty. She expects to occupy part of
the property.
BLUFFTON NEWS
BLUFFTON, OHIO THURSDAY, MAY 30, 1946
TO HOLD MEMORIAL
DAY EXERCISES ON
THURS. MORNING
Legion In Charge Of Services
at Cemetery And High
School Auditorium
Business Will Be Closed For
Day No Mail Delivery In
Town Or Country
Honoring Bluffton’s soldier-dead of
four wars, Memorial Day exercises
here Thursday will include the tradi
tional parade, services at the ceme
tery and a public meeting at the high
school auditorium.
Opening event of the morning will
be the parade which will form at the
town hall at 9:30 a. m. From there
the parade will move to Maple Grove
cemetery’ where Memorial Day ritual
istic ceremonies will be conducted at
10 a. m. The parade will he led by
the Bluffton High school band.
Invited to participate in the parade
and the service at the cemetery are
Spanish-American War veterans, all
ex-servicemen of World War I and
World War II, Boy Scouts, American
Legion and servicemen home on fur
lough.
Services at Cemetery
Services at the cemetery will be
held over the grave of Andrew Hau
enstein, Civil War veteran. Ralph
Henry’, commander of the Legion
post, will be in charge of the exer
cises.
The Memorial Day program will be
continued in the Bluffton High school
auditorium at 11 a. m. with Rev.
Kenneth Leary, Methodist minister of
Van Wert, delivering the principal ad
dress. Rev. Leary is a Legionnaire,
and a Candidate for State Chaplain of
the Legion.
Special music will be provded by a
veteran’s quartet consisting of Her
bert Oyer, Norman Beidier, Roger
Howe and Raymond Greding, Ralph
Balmer, pianist and a high school
quartet, Jean Ann Burcky, Imogene
Wenger, Ray Follas, James Howe,
and Mary Kathryn Bauman, accom
panist.
Births
The following births at Bluffton
hospital:
Mr. and Mrs. C. Stephen Schay,
Cleveland, a girl, Brigette, Sunday.
Mr. and Mrs. Kermit Kibele,
Bluffton, a boy, Monday.
Mr. and Mrs. Chas. Rodabaugh,
Ada, a boy, Charles Robert, Tues
day.
Mr. and Mrs. Lowell Smith, Con
tinental, a girl, Wednesday.
Concluding the busy events of
Bluffton High school commencement
week, graduating exercises for a
class of 42 seniors were held last
Thursday night in the high school
gymnasium.
In the class address by Grove
Patterson, editor of The Toledo
Blade, who recently returned from
an extensive trip thru the Far East,
the audience was told that we are
facing a new way of life, based on
internationalism, whether we like it
or not.
Patterson told the graduating
class that we followed a path of
isolation and were dragged into the
first World War. Then we turned
down the League of Nations, only
to find two decades later that we
were embroiled in World War II.
Memorial Day
Lest We Forget
jTlcrt Iiavc JieJ that Democracj live.
Gass Address by Grove Patter
son Points Out Fallacy Of
American Isolationism
Graduates Receive Diplomas At
Conclusion Of Program In
Gymnasium
Now, he said, America must
realize we cannot shirk our respon
sibility of living and cooperating
with other nations.
The class speaker declared that
Russia is overly suspicious of all
the outside world, because everyone
(Continued on page 8)
Assign New Pastor
To M. E. Church Here
Class Of 42 Seniors Is Graduated At
High School Commencement Exercises
Rev. Paul E. Cramer, ex-army
chaplain has been assigned to the
pastorate of the Bluffton Methodist
church by the Ohio Methodist con
ference which closed its annual meet
ing in Toledo, Tuesday.
He succeeds Rev. J. A. Weed, for
eight years pastor of the church
here who has been assigned to the
charge at Mechanicsburg.
Rev. Weed will assume the duties
of his new pastorate on Sunday and
move to Mechanicsburg next week.
Rev. Cramer will fill the pulpit
here on Sunday morning for his first
sermon and move next week from
Lima where he has been assistant
pastor at Grace Methodist church
for several months.
His army service included several
years in Europe and while stationed
in the Paris area he became ac
quainted with Rev. Ernest Bigelow,
pastor of the Presbyterian church
here, who also served as an army
chaplain.
Other assignments of Methodist
pastors are:
L. F. Fauver, West Mansfield to
Beaverdam Rev. Edwin Lineberger
from Rawson to Ansonia near Green
ville with Rawson, Cygnet and Hoyt
ville charges to be supplied E. L.
Winans from Columbui Grove to
Payne L. R. Foltz from Curtice to
Gilboa M. F. Ringenburg, Pandora.
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BLUFFTON STILL
FEELS EFFECTS OF
RAILROAD STRIKE
No Passenger or Mail Trains
From Thursday Night Until
Monday Morning
Mail Is Brought Here From
Lima and Findlay by Auto
mobile Star Route
Bluffton’s jumbled mail, express
and freight contacts with the outside
world this week still are showing the
effects of the paralyzing two-day
railroad strike which completely tied
up the nation’s transportation system
from last Thursday evening until late
Saturday night.
No passenger or mail trains passed
thru Bluffton from Thursday night
until Monday morning.
Mail, express and freight ship
ments piled up at intermediate points
during the strike was straggling in
to the town the first of the week, but
it will take days and perhaps weeks
before transportation service returns
to normal, it was pointed out.
In Bluffton .shipments of local in
dustries still were in shipping rooms
Monday night because of inadequate
facilities to move them promptly once
the strike had ended.
No Train Thursday Night
With the strike effective in late af
ternoon. the Nickel Plate local, east
bound to Fostoria, failed to run far
ther than Lima, and it did not arrive
here Thursday evening as scheduled.
This meant there was no outgoing
express after the Thursday morning
train until Monday morning.
Bluffton’s only incoming mail dur
ing the strike tieup came via automo
bile star routes, which goes thru here
td Findlay at 2:35 p. m. and back to
Lima at 5:35 p. m.
Mail carried during the strike per
iod was restricted to first class mail
ings, and no ^her classifications were
accepted at the post office until Mon
day.
Star Route Connections
The Star route going into Findlay
connected with other automobile
routes to Toledo and Kenton, and that
sent to Lima made connections with
trucks and busses carrying mail to
Dayton and Cincinati.
Poultrymen were unable to ship
chicks, but fortunately the hatchery
season is about over and there were
not too many complications from that
source.
Daily newspapers were trucked in,
or came by star route, but their re
ceipt was uncertain, and size of most
papers was reduced during the strike
period because of the newsprint
I shortage.
BUY
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NUMBER 6
REVIVED HARMON
FIELD ACTIVITIES
TO START MONDAY
Full-Scale Recreation Center
Program to be Headed by
New H. S. Coach.
Organized Activity Planned at
Field Monday Thru Fri
day Each W eek.
Resumption of a full-scale recrea
tion program at Harmon field during
the summer months, on a basis com
parative with that in effect here
more than a decade ago, was decided
Tuesday night at a meeting of the
recreation committee representing
the Bluffton Business Men’s associa
tion in sponsoring activity at the
field.
Kent Cotterman, new’ Bluffton
High school coach, has been em
ployed by the committee as a full
time recreation director at the field
for the three summer months, and
activities at the play center will get
under way next Monday.
The field recreation program will
include organized activity every day,
Monday thru Friday, from 1 p. m.
until 8 p. m., it was decided at the
recreation committee meeting, with
major emphasis during the opening
w’eek to be in work with boys and
girls of grade school and high school
a?e-
Fit Up Tennis Courts .(
In addition to re-inaugurating a
full-time program at the field, the
long-neglected Harmon field tennis
courts w’ill be put into shape for
play again this summer.
New activities planned include a
croquet court, lighted for night play
by adults. Lighted horse shoe courts
also are in prospect, softball league
will be organized, and recreation
center activity generally will be on
a par with that Bluffton enjoyed a
decade ago.
New playground equipment for
kiddies will be purchased, and the
playground will be set up in an area
adjacent to College avenue, rather
than in the isolated rear section of
the field where it now is located.
Opening of Harmon field next
Monday will follow by three days
the start of a summer program at
Buckeye lake, directed by Evan
Soash, manager, and James Gratz,
assistant.
To Hold Vacation
Bible School Here
Daily vacation Bible school for
children 4 to 14 years of age w’ill
open next Monday in the Grade
school building for a tw’O weeks’
term, it is announced by the Bluffton
Ministerial association w’hich spons
ors the project.
Classes will be held in the morn
ings from 9 to 11:30 o’clock from
Monday thru Friday. The teaching
staff w’ill be recruited from local
churches and all children w’ithin the
age group are invited.
WiU Graduate At
Heidelberg College
Miss Mary Elizabeth Steams,
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ralph
Stearns of Spring street a senior in
the conservatory of Heidelberg col
lege, Tiffin, appeared in her gradu
ating recital at that place, Monday
night.
Among those from this place at
tending the program w’ere Mr. and
Mrs. Ralph Stearns and son David,
Rev. and Mrs. V. C. Oppermann,
Mr. and Mrs. W. O. Geiger, Mr.
and Mrs. Lyle Niswander, Mrs. Ed
win Niswander, Miss Kathleen Nis
wander and Mrs Richard Basinger.
Miss Steams will be graduated
with the degree of Bachelor of Mu
sic at commencement exercises to be
held next Monday morning. The
class address will be delivered by
Clarence Menser, vice president in
charge of programs of the National
Broadcasting company and a Heidel
berg alumnus of 1915.
Wins Scholarship To
DePauw University
Daniel Bash, son of Mr. and Mrs.
E. W. Bash of Lorain and grandson
of Mrs. M. M. Kibler of Bluffton
has been awarded a $1,200 scholar
ship to DePauw university at Green
castle, Ind., it w’as announced the
first of the w’eek.
The Lorain youth is being gradu
ated this spring from Lorain high
school and was one of a group of
75 seniors who were awarded De
Pauw scholarships on the basis of
scholastic excellence.