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IlX ILi Jil II J a" A
VOL. 15
KENNA, ROOSEVELT COUNTY, NEW MEXICO, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1921
NO. 46
TBI ARE KILLED
EXPLOSION
DEAD ARE NEGROES, TWO
WHITE MEN AMONG, THE
SCORES INJURED
FIRE THREATENSAFTER ELAST
Twenty Small Houses Were Splinter,
ed; a Portion of the" Oil Plant
was Wrecked and Threw
People Every Way.
Memphis, Tenn. Ten negroea dead,
approximately a Bcore Injured, some
probably fatally, and property damage
estimated at $200,000 makes up the
known toll of an explosion of "casing
head" gasoline awaiting unloading
from a tank car to the plant of the
Coylar Reese company In North Men
phis -which let go with a blast that
wrecked a part of the oil plant, leveled
a block of frame dwellings artd shook
the entire north end of the" city. -Of
the Injured two are white per
sons, L. C. Scott, superintendent of the
Reese plant, and L. C. Wilder, truck
superintendent. Doth were badly burn
ed but physicians say they will re
sover.
- Spontaneous Combustion Blamed.
, Coylr Reese, president the oil com
pany, attributed the explosion ' to
spontaneous combustion due to the
contact Of vapor escaping from the
tank car- when the metallic cap was
removed preparatory to unloading the
car, came in contact with the atmos
phere. . t
"rtie tank car which contained 8,000
gallons of caBlnghead gasoline pro
duced by the absorption process, was
chipped here from Kelleyville, Okla
homa, Mr. Reese stated, and was load
d In a low temperature.
When the cap was remover, accord
lng to this theory, the vapor came in
. contaet with such higher atmospheric
conditions here and the explosion fol
lowed. It was stated that representa
tives of the United State bureau of ex
plosions and experts from the refinery
from which the car was shipped will
arrive to definitely determine the
cause of the blast.
Tenement Houses Splintered.
When the explosion occurred a row
f frame tenement houses along an
entire block were splintered and the
occupants blown to the streets or
caught under the falling timbers
Most of those killed outright- were
- badly mangled while several of the
injured were so badly burned they
died soon after reaching a hospital.
When police and firemen reached the
scene the streets and alleys in the
vicinity were littered with splintered
timbers and torn and twisted house
hold goods with the dead and Injured
caught in the tangled maze of wreck
age. Andrew McKlnley, the negro who
was removing the dome from the tank,
car when the explosion occurred, was
hurled several hundred feet through
the air. He wag badly burned and Is
dead. McKlnley was quoted as say.
lng that, when he removed the cap
gas rose to a height of twenty feet
and formed a pall of black smoke
which Ignited and exploded.
AlnuM simultaneously pools of oil
on the ground caught fire and a sec
ond explosion occurred. One report
was that McKlnley used a chisel In
attempts to remove the cap from the
car. This, however, has not been veri
fied. Mr. RetSie stated that his In
vestigation disproved any theory other
than that the explosion was caused
toy spontaneous combustion.
Besides the damage in the immedi
ate vicinity window glasses within a
Tadiua of several blocks which were
shattered by the concussion which
was felt a distance of half a mile from
the scene. Two sheds at the plant ot
the Colyar Reese plant were lifted
bodily from their foundations and fell
In a heap.
Fire which followed In the wake of
the explosion completed the work of
destruction. The flames were checked,
however, before they spread beyond
the splintered wreckage of the Ill
fated dwellings.
r
DISARMAMENT PLAN IS FOO
MILITARY ENVOYS DECIDE
ON REPORT
The Austrian Case is Puzzling-
Opinions Differ as How to Aid
Nations.
Paris. After rejecting a proposal to
turn the Austrian financial problem
over to the league of nations, the
allied supreme council decided to ap
point a commission to make a thor
ough inquiry into the entire question
of the economic situation In Europe
with particular reference to Austria.
The council took this action in view
of the opinion of the conferees, that,
as the Austrian situation involved the
entire European economic situation it
was -advisable to have this situation
thoroughly Inquired into, through the
most competent representatives of the
allied countries obtainable.
Allied Representatives.
These representatives, it was de
cided, will be Sir Robert Hore, presi
dent of the British board of trade,
Louis Louchar, France, Signor Glan
nlni, tbe Italian economic expert, and
probably the ministers of commerce of
other allied countries, including Bel
gium. The commission was appointed
at the . meeting in the near future
att he meeting. It was expected to
meet In the near future and ex
pedite its work in order that definite
decisions might be taken before the
close of the conference here.
During the discussion in the council
the general opinion, was developed
that it was useless to try to do any
thing fqr Austria apart from the solu
tion of the economic problems of the
neighboring countries, with which
Austria's future is bound to be close
ly connected, and the suggestion from
the ' Austrian section of the repara
tions commission for an advance to
Austria of $25,000,000 yearly for .ten
years, guaranteed by pledges on Aus
tria's resources, was not acted upon.
The tendency is, it appeared, tg re
ject any proposition likely to involve
increased taxation for France and
Great Britain.
HARDING WANTS
SMALLER A1Y
APPROPRIATION BILL SUB-
MITTED WITH BIG CUT
FOR 1921
OrLYKEED ARMY OF 150,000
To Sell 10,000 of 40,000 Trucks and
20,000 of 8,000 Mounts the War
. Department Now Has On
Hands Recommended.
WESTERN ROADS REDUCE
Chicago Lines Plan to Lay Off 10,000
' Employes.
Chicago. Railway executives on
lines centering in Chicago are devis
ing means whereby 10,000 employes
may be trimmed from the railroads'
payrolls within the next 30 days. More
ttian -20,000 men already have been
laid off, it was learned and the reduc
tions in working forces are not yet at
an end.
Western railroads have not yet
adopted the plan of the Pennsylvania
system which recently maife a 30 per
cent reduction In operating forces and
a fifty per cent cut In office forces.
Railroads .here are simply reducing
their forces where reductions are pos
sible without adopting any specific
plan for a definite reduction.
Estimates available show that the
Chicago, Burlington and Qulncy road
has dropped from 4,000 to 5,000 men
from its rolls; the Chicago, Milwau
kee and St. Taul, 5,000 to 6,000; the
Chicago and Northwestern 6,000 to
7,000; Illinois Central 2,500 and the
Chicago and Alton, between 400 and
500.
Washington. Provision has been
made in the annual army appropria
tion bill for an army of only 150,000
at the Bugegstion of President-elect
Harding, Representative Anthony of
Kansas, chairman of the house appro
priations sub-committee which drafted
the measure, said in announcing that
the bill was ready to be reported to
the house.
The proposed army of 150,000
which compares with the present army
of about 213,000. men, and with the
army of 175,000 men fixed in a resolu
tion recently adopted by the house
and senate, was sugested by Mr.
Harding as a proper maximum. Chair
man Anthony said, at the reeent con
ference which he held with the president-elect
at Marion.
The army appropriation bill, which
probably will be submitted to the
house carries appropriations totalling
1328,000,000 which sum represents a
reduction of $62,000,000 from the ap
propriation for the present year, and
a cut of more lEan half in the esti
mates amounting to 1 690,000,000 sub
mitted fcv the war department.
Civilians to Be Cut.
The most' drastic of the appropria
tion cuts, Chairman Anthony saldwas
in the amount provided for the pay
of civilian employes of the army and
war department. The decrease decld
Bd on by the committee, he said, would
reduce the number of such employees
bv one-half and mean the dismissal
of from 30,000 to 50,000 employes.
Nearly all - construction would be
eliminated under the bill.
The committee, Mr. Anthony said,
felt that the American troops in Ger
many would be withdrawn in a few
months and this influenced it In fram
ing the bill. Testimony before them,
he said, showed that the expenses of
maintaining the" troops on the Rhine
to December 1, amounted to $270,000,-
000 of which Germany had paid only
130,000,000.
'As far as we know," the chairman
added, "the war department is making
bo effort to make Germany pay up."
Sell 10,000 Trucks.
The bill would direct the war de
partment to Bell 10,000 of its 40,000 re
serve motor trucks, and 20,000 of Its
88,000 surplus horses and mules.
The air servioe under the bill would
get $19,200,000 of which $4,000,000 is
for new production.
Approximately $1,500,000 is provided
for chemical warfare.
An "amphibious" tank capable of
going under water has been developed,
Mr. Anthony said, and the appropria
tion for the tank corps contemplated
a number of them. .
PROBERS CLEAR SCHWAB
0
"It's the Best News I Ever Heard,"
Steel Magnate Says of Action.
Washington. With the approval of
Chairman Walsh, members of the
bouse committee Investigating the
shipping board declared in a state
ment that they "were satisfied" after
hearing all the evidence and examin
ing the documents that the charge
that Charles M. Schwab received
money from the government for his
personal expenses while serving as
war-time director general of the
emergency fleet corporation, "was not
troven. and further that it was not
true."
The statement was issued by Rep
resentative Steele, democrat of Penn
sylvanla, after discussion with the
other members, of the testimony re
lating to the $200,000 voucher. Its
issuance in advance of the full report
of the committee to congress
S. AMERICA FRIEND OF U. S.
Colby Pleased With Reception Ten
dered By Southern Nations.
Washington. Once again at his
desk at the Btate department, after
nearly two months of traveling. Sec
retary Colby told of the lmpreslsons
gained from his official visits to Bra
zil and Uruguay, and his unofficial vis
it to Argentina.
"It was a broadening experience,
one that I wish all my fellow coun
trymen might have," Mr. Colby de
clared. "Without exception, I found
the three republics evincing the ut
most friendship for the United States
as well as a profound understanding
of the situation with respect to the
lest of the world in which this coun
try finds Itself, now that the war is
over.
"I know no better way of expressing
my admiration of the people of those
countries than by saying that they
are delightful, progressive,. enlighten
ed In short
Attention Claim Holders
I have a complete set of plat books for Kexma
and surrounding country for several miles and
am prepared to attend to any land business that
you may have.
A. C. White
U. B Commissi opt.
Kmaa, N. M.
ED. J. NEER,
Undertaker and Embalms
x LICENSED BY-8TATE BOARD
CaHa answered day or night Office phone 67 two rtasi.
Residence, 67 three rinys. Agent for Roswell and AmariUo
Greenhouses. PorUlea, New Mexico.
Complete Line of Caskets and Robea
BsffiEbfcSBI
Tb Old Time Preparations Are Good
and you will find them all here front DobeH's solution to
the end of the chapter. All correctly compounded and bearing
the guaranteeing label of
t "WJ YhfscaWkw pood, sfffijiTZc
ROSWELL, N. M.
- CO TO
KEMP LUMBER CO.
ELIDA, N. M.
.
For Wire, Posts, Cement, Lumber and Building
Material Sash. Doors and Hardware
3. C BRIDGES, Manager.
KEIillA BANK & TRUST COMPANY.
KcnnOf New Mexico.
ooooooo
STRAIGHT BANKING ON SAFE
AND SOUND METHODS. '