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BLUFFTON A Good Place to Live VOLUME LXXII McCULLOCH AND QUATMAN WINNERS IN PRIMARY VOTE Joseph Quatman, Lima Attor ney Choice of Democrats by Narrow Margin. Miami County Republicans Give McCulloch, Favorite Son Big Vote Tuesday. William M. McCulloch of Piqua, former Republican speaker of the state house of representatives and Joseph C. Quatman, Lima attorney, Democrat, were nominated as candi dates for the vacant congressional seat in Ohio’s fourth district, on the basis of unofficial returns from Tuesday’s primary electin. The vote was at a special primary called for the purpose of selecting nominees for the November 4 elec tion for the congressional seat vacat ed by Representative Robert F. Jones, Lima Republican, appointed by President Truman to the federal communications commission. The complete unofficial vote: Republican McCulloch, 10,120 Fetter, 4,159. Democrat Quatman, 2,923 Har mony, 2,879 Dickman, 1,918 Chris tie, 861. Miami Vote Heavy Voting throughout the district was light with a notable exception of Miami, home county of McCulloch, which gave him a total of 4,708 Re publican ballots. Although iMami is one of the smaller counties, the vote for. McCulloch was by far the larg est given any candidate on either ticket from any other county. McCulloch’s opponent on the pri mary ticket, Dewey Fetter, Allen county Republican chairman, receiv ed 3,011 votes from Allen county electors In the Democratic voting Quat man was crowded by Roy E. Har mony of Sidney with Mayor Reuben Dickman of New Bremen third and Paul Christie of Delphos, fourth. Lions Will Sponsor Sight-Saving Program An expanded program of commun ity sight conservation activities, in cluding the purchase of eye examin ation equipment for the Bluffton public schools, will be financed thru the sale of sight-saving stamps by the Bluffton Lions club the latter part of this month. A new state law requires eye ex aminations of pupils annually, simi lar to that which was conducted in the schools here last year with bor rowed equipment, under Lions club auspices. In addition to the school program, the club plans to expand its activi ties in assisting deserving children and adults of the community in sight conservation. This will include a continuation of a program of pro viding glasses and treatment for cross-eyes. Church Of Brethren Homecoming Sunday The County Line Church of the Brethren, seven miles south of Bluff ton will hold their annual home coming services, Sunday with a basket dinner at noon. All are wel come. Church Of Christ Homecoming Oct. 19 Bluffton Church of Christ will hold a homecoming and services for dedication of the new cathedral windows Sunday morning and after noon, October 19. it was announced thg first of the week. Births The following births at Bluffton hospital: Mr. and Mrs. Naden Basinger, Pandora, a girl Sondra Joyce, Thurs day. Mr. and Mrs. George Myers, Bluff ton, a girl, Kathryn Lenore, Thurs day. Mr. and Mrs .Oscar Zimmerman, Bluffton, a girl, Arietta Kay, Thurs day. Mr. and Mrs .Clyde Briggs, Bluff ton, a boy, Ricky Lynn, Monday. Mr. and Mrs. Louis Orwick, Ar lington, a boy, Wednesday morning. Mr. and Mrs. Elton Beery, a daughter born Tuesday in Medina hospital, Medina, Ohio. Mrs. Beery is the former Marjory Nisw’ander, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. W. M. Niswander of Bluffton. I I RESTAURANTS SAY MEATLESS DAYS ARE UP TO PUBLIC Substitutes Available But Meat Will be Served if Patrons Demand it.. About Half Order Meatless Menus on Tuesday, as Save Food Drive Opens. Success of “Meatless Tuesdays” in Bluffton restaurants will be up to the public, proprietors of local eating places said this week in commenting on the government sponsored pro gram of food conservation. Restaurant operators will be glad to serve meatless meals every Tues day in cooperating with the “save food for Europe” drive, but if custom ers order meat they will get it. “After all, the responsibility should be that of the individual, rather than depending on the restaurant propri etor to force the issue,” one restau rateur said in a statement that fairly well summed up the attitude at all Bluffton eating places. Similar Pattern Thursday A similar attitude was apparent with respect to planned menus for Thursdays, on which the public has been requested to eat no eggs or poultry. Bluffton’s first “Meatless Tuesday” this week found about half of those who eat in restaurants ordering meat substitutes and eating less bread, as requested by President Truman. There was no way of determining how many menus in private resi dences had meat eliminated for Tues day’s meals, altho meat market op erators reported no apparent decrease in sales the early part of the week. The nation’s save-food program was launched last Sunday by Presi dent Truman with his request that no meat be eaten-on Tuesdays, no eggs or poultry on Thursdays, and that every person eat one slice of bread less each'meal. Youth Home From Japan This Week T/5 Robert L. Weyer, son of Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Weyer of Cherry street has returned to this country from Kyoto, Japan and is expected home this week. 26 From Here At Area F. H. A. Rally Bluffton High school Senior F. H. A. Girls attended a district rally at Celina last Saturday, with 26 mem brs of the Bluffton club in the dele gation. Fourteen clubs were represented at the rally, at which reports were made of activities of the various groups, followed by a recreation period. Death Takes Publisher 1854 B. F. B1ERY 1947 New College Avenue Sewer Replaces Old Stone Slab Surface Water Drain Outmoded Stone Sewer, Now Beyond Use, One of Old est in the Town Installation of New Sewer to Relieve Floods at Main St. & College Ave. Replacing one of the town’s old est surface water drains, a new sewer is being laid this week from the Sinclair filling station corner on Main street to the College avenue bridge across Big Riley creek. Installatin of the new sewer will eliminate flooded conditions which follow every heavy rain at the Col lege avenue intersection on Main street. The new sewer, consisting of 15 inch concrete tile, will follow the north side of College avenue, empty ing into the creek at the bridge. Ex cavation and the laying of tile were started on Monday by Charles E. Kohl and Son, Lima contractors. Replacement of sewers was re quired when investigation this fall showed that the existing line, esti mated to be about 75 years old, was beyond repair. The old sewer was constructed of stone slabs, laid to provide a rec tangular shaped tunnel. Its con struction branded it as one of the oldest existing sewers in the town. Cost of the new sew’er is estimat ed at slightly more than $800. Traveler Succumbs To Heart Attack Albert F. Anderson, 49, Detroit auto salesman, died suddenly of a heart attack at Swiss Inn south of Bluffton where he had stopped for lunch Friday noon. Anderson to gether with two business associates were enroute north from Miami, Florida. He was stricken as he left the inn to resume his journey. The body was removed to the Paul Diller funeral home from where it was sent to Detroit. Funeral serv ices were held at Port Huron, Mich., Monday followed by burial at that place. His wife, Mrs. Lenora Anderson survives. Missionaries Home From Belgian Congo Returning to this country after eight years service as missionaries in the Belgian Congo, Mr. and Mrs. Henry Seneff are expected to ar rive in Bluffton wdthin the next week to visit her father, John Welty, of Cherry street. Mrs. Seneff is the former Lillian Welty. After a three-months trip across the Atlantic by freighter, Mr. and Mrs. Seneff arrived in New York City last Thursday. They are here on a furlough. THE BLUFFTON NEWS A NEWSPAPER DEVOTED TO THE INTERESTS OF BLUFFTON AND VICINITY BLUFFTON, OHIO, THURSDAY, OCT. LONG CAREER OF B. F. BIERY, 93, IS ENDED BY DEATH Publisher and Former Head of Schools Here Dies at Home, Friday. Resident of Bluffton Since 1880 Funeral Services Monday Afternoon. B. F. Biery, publisher of the Bluff ton News and former superintendent of the Bluffton public schools died at his home on Grove street Friday evening at 7 o’clock. He was aged 93 years. Born near Allentown, Pennsylvania, January 23, 1854, he was the young est son of John and Maria (Hoffman) Biery and the last survivor of the family. He came to Bluffton in 1880 where a half-brother, T. H. Biery resided and soon thereafter began his teach ing career in the Pandora schools. Later he was corrected with the Bluffton schools as instructor and from 1894 to 1900 was superinten dent of schools here. Enters Newspaper Field In 1900 he purchased the Bluff ton News from the late I. N. Hemin ger, who then became publisher of the Findlay Republican-Courier. Nineteen years later when the business here was incorporated into the Bluffton News Publishing & Printing company, Mr. Biery became secretary-treasurer and business manager, which positions he held un til his death. Altho in later years he gave up much of the routine of office work and his visits down town became less frequent, his mental faculties were unimpaired and he continued active ly interested in business affairs. Former Town Official In public life he was a former member of the town council and served two terms as town clerk. He was active in civic affairs and a sup porter of projects for community ad vancement and culture, especially those affecting the welfare of the schools. He joined the Presbyterian church here in 1889 being an elder for the past 36 years and also a former superintendent of the Sunday school and clerk of the church session. Fraternally he was more than 50 years a member of the Masonic lodge, together with the Eastern Star and Royal Arcanum orders, Delta Tau Delta college fraternity, the National Editorial association and a former member of the Lions club. Traveled Widely Until the period of failing health which preceded his death he was un usually active for one his age and he and his wife traveled widely. Eight years ago they made a summer trip to Alaska. He drove his car until past ninety and until last fall was a familiar figure on the downtown streets. As a youth he studied in Ursinus preparatory school in Meyerstown, Pa., was graduated from Franklin & Marshall college Lancaster, Pa,, in 1875 and Union Theological sem inary, Newr York city in 1878. He was married December 13, 1888 to Etta Milliman of Ottawa who sur vives together with one son C. A. Biery of Bluffton and two grand daughters, Roberta Biery of East Northfield, Mass., and Beverly Biery, a student in Oberlin college. Funeral services were held Monday afternoon at the Presbyterian church with the pastor, Rev. E. N. Bigelow officiating. Associates in business and church activities were pallbear ers. Burial was in Maple Grove cem etery w’ith Masonic rites. Dr. Ramseyer Talks On European Trip An illustrated lecture on present day conditions in Europe was pre sented Tuesday night at a dinner meeting of the Bluffton Lions club by Dr. .L. Ramseyer, Bluffton college president, who spent the last summer overseas. Shortage, of food and. houses is most critical in the war-devastated sections of Holland and Germany, Dr. Ramseyer told the group. In contrast, Belgium seems to have made the most rapid recovery, pos sibly due to that country’s flourish ing trade with the Congo area in Africa. While overseas, Dr. Ramseyer visited England, Holland, Germany, France, Belgium and Switzerland. The colored slides shown to the group were taken by Dr. Ramseyer on the European tour. 9, 1947 Allen _______ Special Services Are Arranged By Trinity Lutheran Con gregation Minister Who Installed Rev. Gauss Fifty Years Ago Will Speak Honoring Rev. John Gauss, 73, on the completion of his 50th year as pastor of Trinity Lutheran church in Jenera, members of the congregation and residents of the community will hold an all-day cel ebration there on Sunday Installed as pastor of the Trinity church on Oct. 10, 1897, Rev. Gauss from his first year of service has been an active community leader. Pictures on Page 2 In tribute to his long tenure as pastor a rare event in church cir cles, special services will be held in Trinity church at 9:30 a. m. next Sunday. Sermons will be preached in both German and English, it was an nounced by Rev. Walter C. Voss, associate pastor. Rev. William Bodamer, 78, of Rocky Ford, Colo rado, who installed Rev. Gauss in the Jenera pastorate fifty years ago will speak in German and Rev. Henry Hayn of Detroit, former class mate of Rev. Gauss at the Lutheran Seminary, Saginaw, Mich., will speak in English. Dinner Tuesday’s Congressional Vote by Counties Fetter McColloch (R -----------3,011 1,870 Auglaize ___------------ 217 Darke ______ 264 1,463 Mercer _____ 104 497 Miami ______ 193 4,708 Shelby _____ _------------ 370 850 Totals ___ 4,159 10,120 Bluffton voters gave little atten tion to Tuesday’s primary election and only a comparatively few w’ent to the polls. The total vote of 212 cast here is about ten per cent of Bluffton’s voting strength. Richland North precinca polled a total of 22 votes. Vote cast in Bluffton’s four pre cincts and Richland North precinct from unofficial returns w-as: Few Bluffton Voters Go To Polls At Tuesday’s Primary' Election Rev. John Gauss, Fifty Years Pastor Of Jenera Church Will Be Honored Sunday Today his church, with 401 com municants, has one of the largest small town congregations in Ohio. at Noon Following the morning service, a community potluck dinner will be held at noon in the Jenera town hall, after which an informal pro gram will be presented. Joining in services for the day will be members of the St. Paul’s Lutheran church, two miles south east of Jenera, and the Findlay Lutheran Mission. In his long ministry, Rev. Gauss has served only two charges. He came to Jenera from Lapeer, Mich., where he had been pastor of a Luth eran church for two years. Moving into the parsonage at Je nera on Sept. 21, 1897, Rev. Gauss had a caller the next day who said he had been waiting for the arrival of a pastor so that he could be married. The couple, Mr. and Mrs. John Baine, were wed on that date, and the “Barner Hannes” celebrated their Golden Wedding anniversary last month. Has Associate Now Due to advanced years and ill health, Rev. Gauss relinquished part of his duties a year ago when Rev. Voss took over as assciate pastor. For many years, Rev. Gauss has been prominent in his denominations, the Wisconsin Synod of the Luth eran church. Rev. Gauss’ wife is the former Frieda Kraft, of Bluffton, whom he married following the death of his first wife. His children, seven daughters and one son, all are ex pected to be at the service Sunday. Also to be remembered at the time of the service next Sunday, will be some of those who were members of the Trinity congregation when Rev. Gauss took over his ministry there 50 years ago. Three of the older members are George Pifer, 90 Henry Pifer, 85, and Jacob von Stein, 80. Men love to wonder, and that is the seed of science. Christie Dickman Harmony Quatman (D) (D (D) (D) 579 315 437 1,589 2o 669 176 103 93 360 387 288 27 251 208 257 131 197 560 355 6 126 1,111 331 861 1,918 2,879 2,923 A RN Republican Fetter __ _, 6 5 9 6 7 McCulloch .. .25 44 11 12 4 Democrat Christie __ 0 1 2 1 2 Dickman ..........13 10 0 6 3 Harmony ...J 4 11 2 10 1 Quatman .... 0 10 9 10 o Total vote .. .53 81 33 45 22 BY HARRY U HAL* Editor’s Note—This is one of a series of articles to appear in the Bluffton News dealing with early Ohio history. Others will appear in forthcoming issues. How Every County Began When Archibald Woods, of Wheel ing, who owned the land, wanted the trees and underbrush cleared off the streets of Woodsfield in 1814 he set a keg of brandy where the principal street was to be and invited every man and boy within five miles to “coine in, have a rousing good time and clear out Main Street.” They did it and so the first trees in an unbrok en forest which was destined to be Monroe County’s capital city were felled. Early pioneers were good judges of liquor. Everybody drank it. Whis ky then was cheap-25 cents to $1.50 a gallon, depending on the year of purchase and unless it was at least seven years old it was not considered “fitten to drink.” Every cabin had it and it was offered to every guest. Even the preachers, who “put up” at pioneer cabins on their long, wilder ness circuits, took an occasional nip. County Beginnings The story of the beginning of every city in Ohio is virtually the same, differing only as did the cus toms of the times. Woodsfield is mentioned because it it a typical county seat of an average Ohio county and because its history from the beginning has been so care fully preserved. Its first courthouse and jail was a combination log affair built two years after the first trees were cut on Main street. Its total cost was $137—the woodwork $100 and some stone, $37. The next courthouse, built in 1827, was of brick. It burned in 1867 when another brick, costing $40,000 re placed it. Hewed Log Houses and Cabins In 1820 Woodfield had 18 houses, six of hewed logs and the remainder just cabins, al occupied by families who had been there at least two years. Just as a record for posterity we are naming them. They were: Joseph and Ezra Driergs, John Sny der, Anson Brewster, David Pierson, James Phillips, Michael Davis, James Cole, Henry H. Mott, Stephen Lind ley, John King, Henry Jackson, Amos B. Jones, Mrs. A. G. Hunter, Patrick Adams, James Carruthers and a man named Sayers. The eighteenth cabin was the hewed-log courthouse. Carruthers’ son, George, was the first child bom in the town. Woodsfield was incorporated in 1834 and again in 1836 with Henry Johnson as first mayor, an early sett ler in the county. County Formed in 1813 Monroe County, founded in 1813, was settled first by Philip Witten, from Wheeling Robert McEldowney, 1794 Jacob Vellom. the same year and the Vanderwarters. Honthornes, Atkinsons, 1798, at the mouth of Sun fish Creek—now Clarington. The Crows, Clinei and Dyes soon fol lowed. Excepting for the names, exact dates and locations, the foregoing is a story identical with that of every other county’ and county seat in Ohio. All of them began the seme wny, ex perienced the same hardships, priva (Continued on page 8) BLUFFTON A Good Place to Trade NUMBER 25 CORN HARVESTING IS COMPLICATED BY EARLY FROST HERE Many Fields in Bluffton Area Killed By Frost 10 Days Before Maturity Whether to Put Green Corn in Crib or Leave It in the Field Is Debated Soft corn, found in many Bluffton area fields this fall because last week's heavy frost caught much of the crop before it had reached ma turity, has presented farmers with their most complicated harvesting problem in many a year. Many farm observers were pre dicting this week that the trend of recent years toward the use of com pickers will be reversed this fall, basing their forecasts on statements by agriculture authorities that chances of the ears drying out in shocks are better than in a crib, providing shocks are not too large and are well made. Grain can be left in shock until dry enough to crib, even though it should take all winter, it was point ed out, but that harvested by corn pickers must immediately be put into storage. Small, well-made shocks were re commended, for green corn, high in moisture content, may be affected by mold if an average size shock with considerable fodder is erected. Com prevented from fully matur ing by the late September frost ac tually could be handled with best results if we went back to a mode of husking that has largely passed out of the picture, it was pointed out. This would entail leaving the ears on standing stalks until they are thoroughly dried, then proceed ing w’ith husking. However, those farmers w’ho want to use this year’s com ground for fall winter wheat, must get the com out of the way immediately and will have to make the choice between cutting and shocking, or harvesting with a picker. It has been estimated that the 'killing frost of last week, coming about 10 days earlier than normal after planting of the crop had been delayed last spring, cost Ohio corn farmers millions of dollars. Com specialists said, however, that the exact extent of damage will depend on what kind of drying weather w*e get in October and November. Olive Branch Church Homecoming Sunday Olive Branch Evangelical United Brethren church will hold its annual homecoming and rally day, Sunday. Special services will open with Sunday school at 9:30 o’clock fol lowed by morning worship when Rev. Walter Purdy of Rawson will de liver the sermon. A basket dinner W’ill be held at the noon hour and Prof. John Klass en of the Bluffton college art depart ment will be the afternoon speaker. Bank W ill Observe Columbus Day Monday The Citizens National bank W’ill be closed all day next Monday in observance of Columbus Day. Observ ance of the day will be on Monday since the holiday this year falls on Sunday. Dr. Gordon Bixel At Optometric Congress Dr. Gordon Bixel is attending the Mid-Continent Optometric congress in Milwaukee the first part of this week, and will return to his office here on Thursday. Principal con gress speaker will be Dr. Ward Hal stead, authority on human behavior following ablations of brain areas. Real Estate Deals The McCabe egg interests of At tica, Mich., have purchased from Da vid Reichenbach the brick building on North Main street adjoining the town house which has been occupied by the Reynolds Bros, produce firm. Justin Gratz has purchased the Railroad street property of the late Mrs. Florence Sechler. He and his family will occupy the property soon, moving from an apartment in the W. H. Gratz property on South Jack son street. E. C. Romey, cashier of the Citi zens National bank who was in jured in an automobile accident ten days ago is improving at Bluffton hospital.