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I I BLUFFTON A Good Place to Live VOLUME LXXII BEGIN FIRST HOUSE IN TOWN’S SPRING BUILDING PROGRAM Excavation Completed for Ger ald Swank Residence on West Elm Street Water Main Being Extended to New Building Addition on Cherry Street Making a belated start in Bluff ton’s spring residential building pro gram/ excavation for a new home was 4mpleted early this week on a West 1pm street property owned by Ge ram Swank, North Main street barbershop proprietor. S^hqik’s building lot is just east of the curve in the street, and ad joins tlif Amos Reichenbach, Jr., property |of which a house was con structed last fall. Swank's building program is the first res|db’htia1 project launched this spring in the town, and altho there are ^rumors of other projected homes, ^pr^vailing inflated construc tion 'pnces| so far have proved an effective djjnper on the start of a general buiBing boom. At the sane time, pressing need of municipal service facilities for new subdivisions resulted in the lay ing of a newiwater line to the Har ley Burkholder addition, Cherry street and Cfunty Line road, this week. A four-inch water main was ex tended on Cherry street, to provide water service for the new building addition. Connections also were made for fire hydrant protection. Tag Dag In Cancer Drive Here Saturday Tag day, one of the features of Bluffton’s cooperation in the Ameri can Cancer month drive, will be held here next Saturday, with members of the Travel Class sponsoring the sales campaign. bp the meantime, program of city-wide canvass to raise funds for the war on cancer was moving for ward locally, with women’s clubs co operating in the venture. The Alice Freeman club and Cen tury Circle members will contact in dustry and take charge of distribu tion of coin collection boxes in retail stores here. Half of the funds raised in the campaign will remain in Allen coun ty, to be expended through the direc tion of an Allen County unit estab lished Tuesday night at a meeting in Lima attended by five local repre sentatives. At the session Mrs. A. E. Lichten walter and Mrs. Charles J. Sheri dan were named members of the county executive board and Mrs. Lichtenwaiter was elected secretary of the county unit. Objectives of the American Cancer society, first organized as a volunteer unit in 1913, are: 1—Research on a national level 2—Education on the state level 3—Service on the state level. Since 1945, activity the society has been greatly expanded, and today 77 of Ohio’s 88 counties have local organizations. Officers and a medical advisory board recom mend expenditures from funds. Of money raised in campaigns, 50 per cent remains in the county 10 per cent goes to the state organiza tion 15 per cent to the national or ganization, and 25 per cent is used for national research. Bluffton’s delegation assisting in organization of the Allen county unit Tuesday night included Mrs. Her man Hilty, Mrs. Wilford Steiner, Mrs. A. E. Lichtenwalter, Mrs. Pwight Spayth and Mrs. Charles J. Sheridan. Groups from Bluffton, Harrod, Elida, Beaverdam and Lima -were at the session. Dinner Honors Boss Employe Pensioned Miss Mary Diller, West Elm street, was honored at a dinner party given by the Boss Manufac turing company Friday night at the Walnut Grill. After the dinner she was presented with gifts from em ployees and a gold plated plaque from her employer in appreciation of her years of service with the company. Miss Diller joined the Boss organi zation in 1921 in Pandora where a plant was being operated and six •years later resumed her work in the Bluffton plant. She has retired on a pension plan provided by the com pany in the last two years and is the first employe of the Bluffton plant to participate in its benefits. Utilities Untroubled By Shortage Of Coal Bluffton utility plants have not yet felt the pinch of the coal short age, resulting from the late March shutdown of mines, a survey showed here this week. Enough coal for approximately three more weeks of uninterrupted service is on hand on the municipal light plant, Supt. John Swisher said Tuesday, and there are no plans for curtailment of sendee. At the Central Ohio Light and Power Company’s major generating plant, located here, there is no sign of a fuel pinch being felt for more than a month, it was reported. In the meantime, the meagre sup ply of fuel available for householders in local coal yards was approaching the vanishing point, but no real crisis is expected unless extended cold weather should return. FINANCING REPAIRS AT BUCKEYE POOL PUZZLES COUNCIL Major Repair Program Needed At Municipal Swimming Center This Year Basis of Management at Pool Also Deferred For Further Study By Group The problem of stretching limited finances to cover the cost of com pleting a major program of neces sary repairs at Buckeye lake swim ming pool was one of the major problems encountered by municipal council Monday night in considering plans for operation of the town swimming center during the coming summer season. With financial stringency of the town’s treasury complicating plan ning, councilmen have a first-class headache on their hands in determin ing how to go about financing re moval of the large two-pool float from the quarry and effecting needed repairs to the structure. A new floor is needed in the big float, necessitating its removal from the quarry, and a lot of additional work also will be required to put the float into condition for the coming summer. Bath House Needs Repairs In addition to repairs to the float, extensive work also will be required at the bath house and to other facilities at the pool, councilmen learned in an inspection tour of the premises 10 days ago. Another problem was encountered in consideration of the basis on which management of the swimming pool will be set up for the coming season. A committee consisting of Council men Charles Aukerman, Wilford Geiger and Mayor Arden Baker will be responsible for presenting several alternate programs of procedure with respect to management at next meeting of the council, when a man* ager for the pool likely will be hired. More Than 500 At Triplett Open House More than 500 persons viewed operations in four operating plants of The Triplett Electrical Instrument Co., last Thursday afternoon, in the local industry’s first community open house program. The open house tour of operating departments was held in connection with observance of the close of the company’s 44th year of operation here, in which it has become one of the major industries in its field. It’s Leap Week at Bluffton college and co-eds with the determination of a modern Sadie Hawkins are on the prowl stalking the males of their choice all over the campus. And the males, apparently, aren’t too elusive—fact is they have posted signs at vantage points reminding the girls that this is their golden opportunity—when the privilege is theirs of paying for an evening’s en tertainment at the theatre and an after-show snack. Mosquito Control Program To Be Continued ThisiYear By W. A. Howe Every Co-ed Out To Get Her Man During Bluffton College Leap Week During this week, all social cus Spring And Summer Control Treatment Will Be in Exper ienced Hands Employment of Former Mayor As Control Director Sanc tioned By Council Bluffton’s spring and summer mosquito control program will be in experienced hands this year, it was decided Monday night at a meeting of the municipal council when the group approved the mayor’s appoint ment of Wilbur A. Howe to the po sition. Howe, a former mayor, who took on the job during war years when no one else could be found for the work, agreed to continue the con trol program again during the com ing season. Regular treatment of all bodies of water *.ithin the Corporation limits will be entailed in the treatment program to control the summer’s mosquito infestation. Inaugurated aboi^t a decade ago when Howe was ini the mayor’s of fice, the summer treatment program has been one of the most successful ventures on the municipal service program. Howe will receive $1.25 per hour for time spent in spraying the creeks. Herrmann Funeral Rites Held Monday Funeral services were held Mon day morning in St. Mary’s Catholic church for Joseph Edward (Ed) Herrmann, 61, of 116 Washington street, who died at 11 p. m. last Thursday in Lima St. Rita’s hos pital. He had been in the hospital a month. Death was iaused by a heart ailment. A son of Casper knd Frazina (Steff) Herrmann, he (was born at Archbold, August 11, 1^86. Unmar ried, he had *»een an er rploye of The Triplett Electrical Inst iiment Co. Survivors i jjlude three brothers, Irvin J. Herrmann, all of Bluffton. Rev. James Nett officiated at the funeral services Monday. Burial was in Maple Grove cemetery. Minister's Auto Kills Cow On Road A cow which wandered onto the highway near Pandora was killed Sunday night when hit by a car driven by Rev. Edgar Shady, pastor of the Bluffton Evangelical Mennon ite church. The accident occurred near the farm home of Mrs. D. C. Steiner as the minister, returning to his home in Pandora, was blinded by lights of an approaching car. The front of his automobile was badly damaged. Births The following births at Bluffton hospital: Mr. and Mrs. Harold Hunter, Bluffton, a girl, Barbara Jean, Fri day. Mr. and Mrs. Roger McOwen, Pan dora, a girl, Linda Sue, Friday. Mr. and Mrs. John Bucher, Pan dora, a boy, David Stanley, Sunday. Mr. and Mrs. Don Martz, Bluffton, a girl, Janet Ann, Sunday. Mr. and Mrs. Marshall Adams, Benton Ridge, a girl, Carmela Sue, Sunday. Mr. and Mrs. Rayon Boutwell, Bluffton, a girl, Ronda Kae, Tues day. Mr. and Mrs. Roland Bixler of North Haven, Conn., announce the adoption of a 10-day-old daughter, Katherine Anne. Mrs. Bixler is the former Margaret Triplett, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. R. L. Triplett. Mr. Bixler is the son of Mr. and Mrs. D. W. Bixler. toms and dormitory regulations are vice versa. Boys are required to observe girls’ rules such as signing out and time in, when gone for the evening, while the girls are allowed later hours than usual. Inauguration of Leap Week has been officially sanctioned by the stu dent self-government group as well as the college authorities. A big, all-school party is being arranged for Saturday night to mark the conclusion of Leap Week activities. THE BLUFFTON NEWS A NEWSPAPER DEVOTED TO THE INTERESTS OF BLUFFTON AND VICINITY BLUFFTON, OHIO, THURSDAY, APRIL 8, 1948 CRITICS PROTEST DROPPING COURSES AT HIGH SCHOOL Student Publication Launches Bitter Attack on Board of Education Board Members Say Critics Lack Understanding of Problems Involved A pitched battle appeared in the making this week over Bluffton board of education action in dropping art, agriculture and speech depart ments as an economy measure, as teachers, student groups and women’s clubs struck back at the decision to curtail courses offered in the high school curriculum. Smouldering opposition in the schools flared into the open last Friday when The Cutlass, high school student publication, carried two edit orials sharply denouncing the school board’s action. Purportedly reflecting the attitude of teachers and students, the editor ials hinted that at a teachers’ meet ing held following establishment of the curtailment policy, a program of counter measures was being draft ed. “Fighting Mad” we’re fighting mad,” said one editorial and continued, “Peti tions are flying around as thick as tin roofs were several days ago in the cyclone. The school board will know they have a constituency. At first the storm cloud only looked as Continued on Page 10 Woman Found At Home Unconscious Mrs. Noah Niswander, said to have suffered a paralytic stroke, was removed to Bluffton hospital after she was found unconscious in her home on South Lawn avenue Tues day noon. Hospital attaches said Wednesday morning her condition was unchanged. She was found by Utv. Paul Shelly, Bluffton college instructor, a roomer at the Niswander home who sensed something amiss when he re turned to the house shortly before noon Tuesday and noticed the morn ing mail had not been removed from the mailbox on the front porch. She was removed to the hospital Tuesday afternoon in the Basinger ambulance. Lila Moon To Be In Concert Here Friday Lila Moon, Rawson native and Bluffton college graduate who has since become a concert pianist, will appear in a concert at Ramseyer chapel here Friday night at 8:15 o’clock to which the public is invited. Miss Moon, who appears on the concert stage under her maiden name will be accompanied by her husband Weikko Kopra, Finnish baritone, who will supply vocal number on the pro gram. Besides her work in Chicago where she -was graduated from Sherwood School of Music and appears in re citals, she has given programs in Iowa, Michigan and Indiana. Her husband, son of a Luthern minister, began singing in his fath er’s churches as a boy soprano. Dur ing the war he was in the air corps and now is a junior in the Chicago Musical college. Entries For Amateur Night Due On Friday Entries for the Bluffton area ama teur night contest to be held in the high school gymnasium on April 23 must be in the hands of the entry committee before Friday of this week, it was announced Tuesday. The contest is being sponsored by the high school senior class as a means of raising fun^ls to help finance the group’s commencement week tour to Washington, D. C. All contestants must live within a 14-mile radius of Bluffton. Radios will be awarded as prizes to the five winners. HOME FROM NAVY Fred Fritch ie, Jr., who served nearly six years in the navy is spending several weeks at his home here after receiving his honorable discharge from the service. BOGART IMPROVED M. M. Bogart of South Main street, a patient in Bluffton hospital ill with an asthmatic condition was reported improved Wednesday morn ing. Tippy Dye, Ohio State Basket ball Coach is Speaker Here Awards Presented to Football and Basketball Squads Honoring this year’s Bluffton High school football and basketball award winners, the Lions club had the ath letes as their guests at a dinner meeting Tuesday night in the Wai-, nut Grill to hear William Henry Harrison “Tippy” Dye, Ohio State university basketball coach. Dye, who just returned from the national convention of college cage mentors in New Y'ork city, also showed films of last winter’s Ohio victory over the University of Mich igan, which later went on to win the Big Nine championship. The movies showed in action Bluffton’s Bob Burkholder, a regular on the Ohio team, who was the star of the Michigan encounter. Burkholder, w o accompanied Coach Dye here for his appearance, was introduced, as was Burkholder’s father, Harvey Burkholder, west of town. Awards Presented Awards presented to high school athletes at the session by Coach Kent Cotterman and Faculty Manager Sid ney C. Stettler were as follows: Football letters—Seniors—Ronald Diller, Richard Fields, Donald Herr, Arthur Neuenschwander Juniors— Along^flie Ogontz Indian Trail Paved with blood, peopled by phantoms and packed with tradition not sensed by the stream of motor ists who pass over it today, the old Indian road between sunup and sun set ran almost faithfully where US 250, and State Route 50, 5, 45 and 51 carry the traveler to the Ohio River. Passing through or near Lodi, Medina, Ravenna and Warren, the trail sometimes dropped a mile or two to the south but the route al most was identical—between Ogontz, now Sandusky, and old Ft. McIntosh, now Beaver, Pennsylvania. It was the oldest and, barring the Indian trail to Kentucky over which the savages carried salt, the longest in the Ohio country. There in the 1700’s, long before the whites came to Ohio, Indians still streamed over it after scattered settlements had been made. Where the trail crossed Silver Creek, Portage County, Frederick Daniels and others in 1814 found several trees on whose smoothed off bark the Indians had carved, in their picture-writing, historical legends. Headless Ghost On one of these were the figures of seven Indians facing east. One figure had no head. Miles back in the beautiful Kattown valley, between Lodi and Ashland, residents still avoid the woods on foggy nights— Chief Kattowa’s ■headless ghost is said to walk there. He was murder ed—seven Indians went into the wilderness and but six came out. Here and there along the trail white settlers noticed old piles of stones, which, though huge, appear ed to grow as time passed. After the Indian days had passed, settlers tore them down to sec what the stones covered. Under each pile they found a skeleton, whether savage or white, they were unable to determine. The Indians had a traditional custom—every time a savage passed the grave of an enemy he threw a stone onto it. Geological formation of the stones showed that they had been picked up here and there along the trail and tossed on the graves when travelers came to them. Since most Indian burials were on poles •above ground it is a good bet the graves were of whites. Over the Ogontz trail parties of Indian hunters passed long after settlement of the area by the white men and always returned over it with their horses laden with the season’s kill. That and the whisky, meant a drunken orgy among the savages until the meat all was Bluffton High School Athletes Honored At Lions Club Dinner On Tuesday Night Continued on Page 10 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. Contract Signed For $75,000 Revenue Bonds Supplemental issue of $75,000 in revenue bonds, to complete an ex pansion program at the municipal light plant, cleared the final prelim inaries last week when legality of the issue was established by bonding attorneys. Municipal council Monday night then concluded the contract with Stranahan, Harris and Co., recom mended by the board of public af fairs, under which income of the plant from its electric current pro duction is pledged for payment of the bonds and interest. Contract for the additional $75,000 in bonds is the same as that under which the Toledo bonding firm in 1946 underwrote a $125,000 revenue bond issue, with the exception that the new bonds will bear a 3% rate of interest. The previous issue had an interest rate of 2%. MOUNTING COSTS DELAY BUILDING OF NEW COLLEGE GYM Erection of Quarter-Million Dol lar Structure Indefinitely Postponed Decision Announced Following Meeting of Building Com mittee Here Because of rising costs Bluffton college will postpone indefinitely construction of the quarter-million dollar gymnasium which it plans to erect on the cajnpus. This became-*' known following a meeting last Thursday night of the building committee in charge of the gymnasium project together with its advisory group and the architect in charge. Current sdtyrwketing buildmg costs have outstripped by a considerable margin the estimate of $250,001) which was deemed adequate for erec tion of the structure when the finan cial campaign to raise that amount was launched in the fall of 1948. Agree on Postponement At Thursday night’s meeting the advisory committee consisting of bankers and businessmen definitely recommended postponement of con struction because of increased costs and the architect is said to have been in substantial agreement with this stand. The campaign for funds with a goal of $250,000 under way for the past 18 months has passed the half way mark with $133,000 raised in cash and pledges. Included in this amount are large contributions from Mrs. C. H. Mus selman and her daughter, Mrs. Luel la Arnold of Biglerville, Pa., and Mrs. Henry Stauffer of Palm, Pa. Trustees Approve Remodeling Step At a meeting of the College board of trustees on Friday, however, plans were approved for remodeling of College hall this summer during the period between the close of school this spring and opening in the fall. Changes will include removal of college administrative offices from the second floor to the first floor, with the basement, second and third floors housing classrooms. Plans also include construction of a large concrete vault. eaten up—the Great Spirit would provide more. Imprisoned for Murder It was down this trail, then noth ing but a bridle path, that Chief Bigson and his two sons were herd ed in 1806 by white settlers from Deerfield to life imprisonment at Warren for attempted murder. The Bigsons were members of a group of about 20 Mohawks encamp ed near Deerfield. Other tribes in the neighborhood were Onondagas and Oneidas, all of whom, including the Mohawks, were friendly to the whites until the Deerfield episode occurred. One Mohawk named John Nicksaw, had been bested by John Diver, a white settler, in a horse trade. All the Indians were dissatisfied with the bargain and Nicksaw vainly tried to get Diver to trade back. Appealing to other whites, Nicksaw was told to see Diver again and get him to “do justice.” “No. You speak to him. Me no speak to him again,” the Indian said and walked away. That night. January 20, 1806, while there was a sleighing party at Diver’s cabin, five (Continued on page 2) BLUFIFTON A Good Place to Trade NUMBER 51 PONDER* PLANS TO RE APPRAISE REAL ESTATE IN COUNTY W here To Set Basic Property aluation Major Headache For County Allen County Re-Appraisal, Due This Year, May Be Done By Professionals........... Re-appraisal of real estate, requir ed this year by state law, is expect ed to represent a major headache for Allen county officials and those responsible- for setting up the surveys in other counties in this area. Principal bugaboo faced by county auditors in preparing to tackle the re-appraisal job is existing inflated values of real estate, particularly residential and farm properties, which today sell for two to three times their previous valuation. Should re-appraisals be set too low, there will not be sufficient revenue to meet the inflated costs of county, city, and township govern mental operations, but auditors also realize that major increases in property valuation will bring a flood of complaints from taxpayers. Seek Fair Plan Trying to establish an appraisal procedure fair to the county govern mental units as well as to property owners under existing conditions pose major problems as to who is going to do the appraising, how it’s1' going to be done, and how to revise the present tax duplicate. Sentiment in Allen county at present leans toward employing out of-town professional appraising firms for the program, because of their trailed approach toward problems suck as encountered today. Previously the appraisal has bten uoi» by local residents of each area, but? today’s inflated real estate price levels make it hai*d to get a uniform bai s of procedure through opera tes of that sort. Employ Outsiders r’aceff by a similar condition, Putnam county already has employed an outside professional firm for its re-appraisal, and Elsworth Conn, county auditor, said re-appraisals in the last two years have raised the tax duplicate by more than $2,900, 000. In Hancock county, Auditor Eu gene Lapp said property valuations have increased $4,000,000 in the last year. In connection with the re-appraisal program, required by law every six years, state officials last week said taxes generally have been increased little since real estate valuation hit the depression bottom, with most advances made effective coming thru special levies. v Youth Conference At Ebenezer Church The 12th annual youth conference of the Ebenezer Mennonite church will be held over the week end from Friday to Sunday. Rev. Walter Mc Dowell of Quarryville, Pa., will be the speaker and Wallace Turner of Vaughnsville, song leader. Services will open Friday night at 8 o’clock with a fellowship hour. A program for young people has been arranged for Saturday night at 6:30 o’clock and the conference has been arranged for Saturday night at 6:30 o’clock and the conference will con tinue with meetings Sunday morning at 10:30 a. m. and 7:30 a. m. To Sail Soon For Summer tn England Mrs. Harry Shrider, Jr., of Har mon road will sail from New York the last of this month to visit at her former home in England. The Shrid ers were married in England where he was stationed during the war. Real Estate Deals Mrs. Charles Gazette has sold her North Main street property to Levi Frankhauser and is moving her household goods to Indiana, Pa. Frankhauser will occupy the prop erty moving from the property at the junction of Rt. 103 and the Al len-Hancock county line which he sold to Lawrence Rodabaugh. Rodabaugh will occupy the prop erty moving from the late Mrs. Bertha Balmer residence on South Main street. The Balmer property will be occupied later this spring by Mr. and Mrs. Evan Soash and fam ily now at Alger where he is high, school athletic coach.