^LIBRARY VICTORIA, B.C. Largest Circulation of Any Semi-Weekly Newspaper in British Columbia �Vol. 35; No. 73 Frince George, B.C., THURSDAY, September 18, 1952 $4.00 per year 5^ per copy Miss America Is Crowned Now on a tour of principal American cities, NEVA JANE LANG-JLEY, who entered the "Miss America" contest as 'Miss Georgia", was crowned queen for 1953 by Miss America of 1932. COLLEEN HUTCHINS. Miss Hutchins won the titlp last year competing as "Miss Utah " - . Trio Gets Nine Months For Robbery Attempt Three men who late last spring srnqsjbe^trieir way into the Hudson's Bay company branch at Third and Quebec Street here and attempted to remove the safe were; "ientenced to nirve months in jail on Tuesday by County CourYpudge Henry Castillou. The three men, Louis Cote, Norman Bedard, and*A2phonse Richard, pleaded not guilty td a charge of breaking and entering arid theft. Star witness for,the prosecution was Frederick Bonner, Prince George, an eyewitness, to the crime. i Bonner described to the court how he had been walking west along Fourth Avenue around 4 a.m. when he saw three men leave the Hudson's Bay store and #et into a car parked near the Hoyal Bank across the street. He told how he had hurried to the police station and.returned to the scene in a police car. The three men were arrested in the lane south of Third Avenue after a short chase. Also sentenced at the County Court session here this week were two comely inmates of^the1 Prince George Women's Jail '"charged with escaping lawful custody;. The two, Ruth Rissanen and \alerie Creanza, were given one" month in jail to be served at the end of their present sentences. They pleaded guilty to escaping from the provincial jail here about two months ago. Hugh Smith, a transient, was sentenced to 10 months in Oakal->a after he was convicted of theft fer $25, and W.*B. "Seeley was sentenced to six months in Oakal-ia_ona charge of entering a dwell- ing by night with intent jto steal. -._ Alexander Matton. was given four months in jail following" conviction on a charge of indecent assault. Tomorrow's Voters Want'Centre' Today Although today's city voters have not yet had a chance to voice approval of a plan to rehabilitate and complete the Civic Centre, tomorrow's city voters approve it by an over- whelming majority. Placed in the hands of The Citizen today by Civic Centre Athletic Director Nick Schmeling was a petition"'urging rapid completion of the Civic Centre signed by no less than 487 students and 12 teachers from the Prince George Junior Senior High School. Mr. Schmeiing said idea for the petition came from the students themselves, many of whom are unable to indulge in their favorite sports in the school's gymnasium after school hours because it is being used . by groups which actually belong in the Civic Centre. �In a foreward to the petition, Earl Warner, president of the 1952-53 Student's Council, pointed out that many of the signatures represented individual students who this winter would be unable to participate in evening basketball practices becatise of the heavy load of activities carried on in the school auditorium. Members of the Student's Coun-cil signing the petition were Earl Warner, president; Dawn Kirs-chke, secretary; Annette Hrehor-ka, treasurer; Kaye Wagner, house council; J. . Cruikshank, service council; J. Berdusco, athletic council; Nora Turner, fine arts and Dawn Brinkworth, social council. Mr. Schmeling will put the petition in the hands of the City Council on Monday night when it is expected aldermen will make up their, minds on whether or not to let the public decide soon whsit the fate of the Seventh Avenue Centre will be; * .���.-- ��"<�- IWA Members Fined On Contempt Charges VANCOUVER, Sept. 18 (CP) � International Woodworkers of America will seek release From VANCOUVER, Sept. 18 (CP)� jail of Tony Poje, union official, A caravan of buses arrived here pending an appeal of his three Wednesday night with 156 Can- months sentence and $3,000 fine, adian- veterans of the Korean war Poje, business agent for the Manitoba Logger Near Here A 44-year-old man believed to be from St. Pierre, Manitoba, was killed Monday in a logging acci-dent 60 miles east of Prince George. Dead is Norbert Larievre", unmarried, a teamster for Geddes Lumber Company* Prince George. Inquest into Larievre's death is to be held here tonight. Only access to the isolated Upper Camp o: ;he Geddes Company operation where the accident occurred is by boat, and R.C.M.P. officials went to the �cene on Tuesday after the man's body had been brought down-river to Shelley and into Prince George. According to reports, Larievre was skidding logs over a-windfall when the load hurtled on top of him pressing his face into the mud. It is believed he suffocated before the log could be removed from on top of him. More Clouds * Cloudy this evening and Friday is the weather predicted by the meteorological office at the airport. Some sunny periods are expected. Friday afternoon. /Winds will be light, with little ,change in temperature, expected low and high readings being/48 and 66. Medicos Ready Plans For Health Insurance VICTORIA, Sept. 18 (CP)�Steps taken by the medical profession to institute a national voluntary health insurance plan were outlined Wednesday by Dr. R. W. Richardson, Winnipeg, chairman of the economics committee of the Canadian Medical Association. Speaking to a convention of the British Columbia division here, Dr . Richardson reminded .'delegates that C.M.A. is on record as favoring voluntary health insurance, but not a government operated scheme. "The profession has sponsored or co-operated in 11 voluntary, prepaid plans in an effort to spread the cost of medical care," he said. "Now we are in the process of co-ordinating these individual plans." IDENTITY OF BODY SOUGHT BY POLICE Still lying unidentified in a. city morgue today is the body of a .man found late last week on the banks of the Fraser River, 3 miles south of Long-worth. The body was discovered wedged in a log-jam by Oliver Pratha, a resident of Longworth. Royal Canadian Mounted Police, using their own aircraft, have brought the badly decomposed body to Prince George and are postponing burial pending identification. Police say that, a city physician who examined the body estimates that the man has been dead at least nine months. , No marks of violence are apparent on the body .and it is presumed the unidentified man died by drowning. An R.C.M.P. official said that a possible clue to the man's identity is being checked today. Only the collar of his shirt, a tie and a piece of underwear remained on the body. Salvagemen Win Fraser River Fight Snatch $30,000 Equipment From Water Two weeks of intensive work resulted in triumph for a six-man salvage crew here yesterday afternoon. Inch by'inch, $30,000 worth of construction equipment which sankxin more than 20 feet of water in the main channel of the Fraser River here after it lurched from its'trailer while crossing the C.N.R. steel bridge, emerged from the swirling current yesterday just two weeks from the, date when salvage operations got under way,' Only one tractor was used to Canine Mascot Returns With Princess Pats and their mascot. I.W.A. Local 1-80 at Duncan, was Members of the First Battalion, sentenced Tuesday by Chief Just-Princess Patricia's Canadian Light ice W. B. Farris on a contempt of Infantry, arrived at Seattle earlier court charge. Fourteen other In the day aboard the U.S. Navy troopship Gen. H. L. Howze. The regimental mascot, a dog named "Fritz," was chaperoned by Lieut. W. R. Burton-Foster of Vancouver. I.W.A. members were fined $300 each. Chief Justice Farris said the men "wilfully disobeyed" a court injuction against picket action at Nanaimo during the summer. Housewife Wins Prize At Packed 'Bay7 Open House An airport housewife this morning is proud possessor of a fsgir of blue bordered Hudson's Bay blankets, coveted last Council Meets Tonight Jo Ratify By-laws, Referendum A special meeting of the City Council will be held in City Hall tonight for the sole purpose of giring final reading to civic improvement by-laws designed to authorize borrowing of more than half a million dollars for streets, power and water. In addition, final reading of--------------------- night by some 1,000 people. The blankets, famed "four point" quality, Were door prize drawn for at the conclusion of the "'open house", celebrating the GAME BRANCH SAYS BIRDS HERE; BUT HUNTERS HAVEN'T FOUND THEM Despite B.C. Game Branch assurance that there are lots of grouse 'n the dl'strict this year, hunters ore still reporting bags below expectations. A prominent Game Branch official, Inspector Walter Gill,- said ne was confident that birds are plentiful, but added "you won't find ^em on the roads for awhile." He would not comment'6n one widely held theory that it will take � cold sn�P to bring the birds into the open, but he theorized that some wet weather such as the district had Tuesday would help. Meanwhile, upland game bird nimrods are taking some birds, but Qre f�r short of the limit bags they were anticipating. ney report seeing most birds alone, and these, they add, are extremely shy. One hunter who depends on the theory that cold weather is needed th h"9 b'rds �Ut �ntO the roads' olso believes that the cold stupefies* e birds somewhat and makes them easier game. Dominion Department of Transport weather officials at Prince r9e airport,1 however, do not see cooler weather within the next few Qys, although they state that if skies clear, nights will fall below Treezi g fro u6 *Orecaster explained that the current air mass is moving in m the Pacific and that until the flow starts from the north, daytime ernperatures will not change much. completion of the big $40,000 addition to the Hudson's Bay Company branch premises at Third Avenue and Quebec Street. Lucky winner was Mrs. K. May-nard, who held ticket No. 36845. Promptly at 9 p.m., store manager Jack McArthur held aloft the well-shaken drum containing the matching ticket stubs, while hopeful ticket-holders, many of whom had been trying out the comfortable chairs and couches in the furniture department while awaiting zero hour, crowded around him and the winsome small girl from the audience he called upon to draw the fateful stub. Mrs. Maynard, who was In another part of the store and out of hearing range, did not at first know of her good fortune but later-came forward to claim her prize. From the time doors opened at 7 p.m., crowds flocked into the store to inspect the completed interior with its smart modern finish and look over the counters and racks filled with specials for the expansion sale which commenced this morning. No merchandise was sold and husbands and fathers elbowed happily through the packed aisles without (Se HOUSEWIFE, Page 5) wording of a referendum vote on enlargement of the City of Prince George will also be given. City Clerk D. T. Williams said today that government approval of the intended by-laws and referendum came yesterday from B.C. Bracewell, inspector of municipalities. Decision on whether or not to present a second referendum, authorizing expenditure of $44,600 on the Civic Centre, will likely not be made until Monday. Of the three by-laws to be presented, the largest, an 'even quarter million dpllars, is for expansion and improvement of the municipal water storage, pumping and distribution system. Second largest, for $175,000, is for expansion of the power sys- Hockey Association Meeting Tonight A new slate of officers will be elected and plans discussed for the 1952-53 season at a meeting of Prince George Hockey Association in the City Hall tonight (Thursday). The meeting will start at 8 o'clock. A financial statement covering the 1951-52 operations of the association will be presented to the tern, and the smallest, for $125,-000, is for improvement of city streets. The special meeting tonight will determine the date, time and place of polling, and will result in the appointment of a returning officer. Likely da'tes for presentation of the by-laws are October third or fourth. They cannot be presented earlier than 10 clear days after first being advertised for the public's benefit. pull the equipment from the river after salvage crew workers had secured it with a line of heavy :teel cable. A second tractor stood by to help if necessary. Most of the salvage men's time was spent in getting ready for the fateful moment yesterday when the first real strain was ,puf on the cable. First of all, a raft was built from which the crew could probe for the equipment in the muddy Fraser water. Lines were fastened -to the �machines at" an earlier stage btrt" they parted when a preliminary. effort was made to move the machines. Sunk in the river were two units, a D.7 Caterpillar tractor and a 12-yard carry-all. The machines were still attached to e.ach other- when salvage men started winching them in yesterday. George M;. Hughey, an insur-ance adjustor connected with the case, said apparent damage to the equipment was slight. "There is little, if any, apparent amage to the carry-all, and at first sight only the C-frame of the tractor is damaged," the insurance man said. He added, however, that the tractor would have to be entirely dismantled and in- % spected before it could be put back in operation. Both units are the property of Summit Contractors Ltd., Prince George. meeting. The outlook for hockey in Prince George and Central B.C. next winter is very bright, and it is expected the Quesnel club will be playing in their new covered rink now under construction. An influx of hockey talent from the prairies last summer will probably result in keen competition for regular berths on league teams. "It Is shaping up as the best season ever," said an association official here, in urging a large turnout of supporters at tonight's meeting. Grain Yields Brighten Ft. George Crop Picture Aided by soaking early summer rains~and favorable growing weather, many farmers in the vicinity of Prince George report storage space bulging with one of the best grain crops on record. I----------------------------------------- On many farms the yields of, 4AAA ATDCC If) RC BROKEN BY LAND CLEARING UNIT wheat were prolific, running to 60 bushels an acre. Some oat stands threshed out at 90 bushels an acre, while barley seed has yielded up to 60 bushels an acre at some points. However, average crops will be from 10 to 15 bushels below these figures. Generally speaking, those farmers who seeded early on well prepared soil were able to benefit from June rains which enabled the crops to become well established before the mid-summer dry spell. On other farms where planting More than 1000 acres of virgin land will have been added to farm acreage in Fort George district before the B.C. Department of Agriculture land clearing unit halts operations for the season. There has been an unprecedented demand for services of the unit this year, according to a Prince George official of the Ag- was delayed the seed did not ger-j ricultural Department, minate promptly and ripening has been retarded by recent heavy rains. Some losses will occur if wet weather persists into the late fall and heavy frosts intervene. Yields of hay and alsike clover for seed are below average in most cases. Blame for this is placed on the prolonged dry spell during late May and early June (See GRAIN X'ELD, Page 5) Hundreds of acres remain to be cleared in the Reid Lake and Red Rock regions and at Mud River and other points along the Vanderhoof highway. Most of the work done this season has been in the Pineview and Salmon Valley areas where the heavy machinery added many acres of tillable soil to established farms.