0c-c4-57 1158 Melville St. VANCOUVER 1, B.C. Prince George Citizen An Independent Semi-Weekly Newspaper Devoted to the Interest of Ccr.'na' and Northern British Columbia THE WEATHER Cloudy Tuesday, showers Tuesday afternoon. Little change in temperature, winds light. Low tonight and high tomorrow, 32 and 52. Vol. 40; No. 34 Prince George, B.C., MONDAY, April 29, 1957 (Two Sections - 16 Pages) $4.00 per year 5c per copy Gangs Retaliate | $1,100,000 Budget Before City Council City council tonight will likely approve a "hold the line" budget totalling $1,105)362, the second time in the city's history, that a budget has passed the million-dollar mark. Dollar for dollar, the budget almost matches the 1950 budget of $1,100,500, but from there all similarity ends. Whereas general tax revenue Jast year netted the city $578,611, this year, the vQJta�vixiust.'. collect over one third more. Amount to be collected by taxation totals a whopping $803,322.-13. HAMK MIIjL, KATE The mill rate this year at 83 mills is exactly the same as in 195(5, but the kicker here is the new rate of taxation. Hate of taxation for general municipal revenue will he 63.75 mills' on 100 per cent of land assessment and 42 per cent on improvements. This Is a reduction of 3.31 mills but the percentage on improvements has upped from 20 to -12 per cent. School cost levy will be 10.25 mills, on 100 per cent of land assessment and 75 per cent of improvements. This is an increase of 3.30 mills over last year's levy which nullifies the 3.31 mill decrease in the general tax levy; SCHOOL COSTS Final estimates of school costs totals $261;433:57; an Increase of $6S,11 ] over last year's costs. In addition to increased school costs, one of the major factors that induced the boost .in the amount of the levy was the sale last year of the city's electric light utility. Hecause of the sale, the city will be out this year an estimat- ed $139,000 which will have to be made up, '.from general ,tax revenue. Including nchool costs, trie normal operating expenses of the city will go up this year $210,487. OTHER INCREASES Other increases are registered in the city's lire and police administration. Fire department costs will go up some $21,210 and police protection will cost taxpayers $33,-(Sec BUDGET, Page 3) 'Uncle Louis' Heading West OTTAWA (CP) � Prime Minis-tor Sf. Laurent has set off on a 5,700 mile, 12 day tour of the western provinces, seeking his third mandate as head of a party that lias been in power for a record 22 years. The 75-yc-ar-old Liberal leader will make his first major pitch for votes in a platform address at Winnipeg .Monday night. He is expected to review his government's achievements, particularly since 19-1S when he took over the leadership from the late Mackenzie King. VANDALS' VICTIM early Saturday morning was senior high school principal Lome Downey, seen here surveying new living room window installed at a cost of more than $100 after hoodlums hurled rock through the duo-therm picture window at about 2 a.m. He is seen holding large piece of shattered window that was broken by what have been described as "revenge-seeking" hoodlums. Keeping Inept In Schools 'Ties In With Hoodlumism' VANCOUVER (CP> � the annual -R^Cf: fat^nt-Te^cher's Federation convention here was told that forcing inept students to remain in school until 15 years of age "ties . . with hoodlumism." Vancouver School Board Chairman Reg Atherton told the 400 delegates at windup sessions here Friday that the problem of hoodlums in schools "is highly exaggerat- Hoodlums At Principal BUR BOOST is Lirnr VAN'COUVER (CP) � E. V. F. Ely, executive secretary of the British' Columbia Hotels Association, said Saturday an increase in the price of a glass of beer is "inevitable" throughout B.C. Some hotel operators felt the new price would be 15 cents a glass, or two glasses for 25 cents, following the pattern set in Prince Rupert where seven hotel operators announced Friday they were boosting beer prices following a wage increase for employees. Commissioner Donald McGugan said he had received no word of beer price increases and declined to comment. ed. "But I think if there is any hoodlumism at the school level, it ties in with the retention of all students, regardless of ability, willingness and ambition;" he added. Faith Never Altered Bodies Strewn Around Plane Lost Since Last Wednesday VANCOUVER (CP) �Wreckage of a single-ehginecl aircraft with the bodies of three businessmen around it, was found Sunday high on a snow-covered mountain near Harrison Hot Springs. It has been missing since Wednesday night. Private helicopter on lease to the RCAF picked up the bodies and flew them the L'8 miles ;o Harrison Lake where an air force Canso was to be used to bring them to Vancouver. -The Navion aircraft was on a flight from Penticton to Vancouver when it became lost. The RCAF search and rescue division said the wreckage was .spotted at about the S,000-foot mark on Mount BrackenbrJdge, 20 miles north of Harrison Hot Springs. ' Ahoard the plane were Walter Dalton, 12-year-old insurance executive. Fred McDowell, 16. a free-lance radio director, and Bob McLachlan, 37, who headed his own mortgage company. All three were from Vancouver.1 An RCAF Dakota, one of a fleet of air force and .private planes whtph had searched for the missing private craft, spotted the wreckage. Mount Brackenridge, one of the highest in the Harrison Range, is 55 miles northeast of here and 100 miles from the take-off point of Pentioton. Dalton,' pilot of the private plane, is believed to have encountered icing conditions in the mountains and been forced down. Government Staunch Supporter Of Wenner-Gren Development Let no man, or woman for that matter, run off with was specifically blamed by police. the idea that the Social Credit government of British | Tllc Qucncc attorney-general's de-Columbia is the least bit skeptical about the agreement ' it has signed with Wenner-Gren B.C. Development Co. Ltd. Street Gatherings Banned In Mine Town MURDOCHVILLE, Que.� (CP)�More than 100 Provincial Police and company-hired detectives patrolled the near.-empty streets Sunday as tension heightened in this strikebound copper - mining town. No street gatherings arc allowed and officials of Gaspe Copper Mines Limited, whose mine and mill have been at a standstill Windows Smashed At Home, School Police today arc conducting an intensive investigation into the outbreak over the week-end, of three separate acts of vandalism, two of them aimed against a central figure in the rash of hoodlumism which has plagued this city in recent months. Victims of a fresh outbreak of vandalism in the city, was high school principal Lome Downey, 2545 Fifteenth Avenue and Max Andrews, a lumber buyer, 2845 Pine Street, Said to be the victim of "revenge seeking" hoodlums was Mr. Downey, who was awakened at 2 a.m. Saturday when a rock was hurled through a window of his^ new home. DAMAGE AMOUNTS TO OVER $100 Damage to the double-pane, picture window, has been estimated at over $100. It was not covered by insurance. The incident occurred only a few hours after the school principal had returned from a conference of school teachers in Vancouver. Not content with the damage to Mr. Downey's home, hoodlums took further revenge by smash Inp a pnne of glass In the principal's office, sometime Saturday nig-ht. Tho tcluHs, about 8 by 10 inches was replaced this morning. Police have questioned a number of senior high school students in connection with the incident. Second victim, Mr. Andrews, since the United Steel Workers of reported that, the windshield, rear America called "the strike March window and a side window of his brand new car were wilfully smashed by hoodlums after it was left parked overnight Saturday on the cut-off between South Fort 11, declined to comment. Thirty-five men hired for the company by a Montreal detective agency arri'ved here Friday, a day after a dynamite blast ripped a hole in a -1,500,000 gallon oil tank at Mont-Louis, the company's shipping point on the St. Lawrence River. Damage to the company-owned reservoir was estimated at $130,-000. There were no injuries. Although the explosion was termed an act of "sabotage" no one Despite newspaper and magazine articles which have since cast Thursday night was here to dis-doubts on the intentions of the Swedish millionaire, the government has not. lost faith that Wen- ner-Greii wil live up to his end of the bargain. DISI'Kl, DOUBTS In case any of his constituents had 'become contaminate* by such reports. Hon. R. (J. Willi'ston pell thorn. The minister of lands and forests told a meeting of party followers in the Civic Center that the fabulous financier "has faith" that he will build the controversial mono-rail railroad up the Rocky Mountain Trench. (See WENNER-GREN, Page 5) partment said an investigation is being carried out. Spring Breakup Causes Terrace Highway Closure Department of Highways reports that the trans-provincial highway between Terrace and Pacific is colsed to all traffic. A 15 mile stretch of road has been closed off because of spring break up, it was reported this morning. George and the Trans-Provincial accurate.' Highway. � Amoxint of the damage has not been estimated, but it is believed that it will be in' excess of $100. Police believe that there is a definite connection between tho two incidents. Meanwhile in the senior high school gymnasium, this morning, Mr. Downey told some '100 students that he "would never give up, even a little bit, to the elements commonly referred to as hoodlums." In an address to his students "to get the record straight," Mr. Downey declared that "any sii'g* estion that hoodlumism exists n the school is completely in- IT DEFIES EXAGGERATION However he indicated that the "nature" of hoodlumism in Prince George is such that "it defies exaggeration." "it cither exists or it docs not exist. If it does, it is serious; if it does not, it is not." He defended the administration of the school and asserted that to him, liquor, brawling, rowdy behavior and obscene language "arc serious." To me, all these arc serious. They do not belong, and I shall always be completely uncompromising in my stand. "A school's standards and ideals (See HOODLUMS, Poge 3) Parks, Recreation Rift Flares; Board Revolts, Cries 'Sabotage' Seething with indignation, city parks board Friday night publicly revolted and demanded that city council rescind a resolution designed to strip it of the administrati f bh h ii Motorist Acquitted Oi Careless Driving Douglas Burrows was acquitted of a charge of careless driving in city police court Thursday. Evidence revealed that Burrows' late-model car skidded 270 feet when negotiating a curve at the Ncchako Hill on the Hart Highway, April 20. The car ended up in a 13 foot deep ditch. Accused claimed to have been lit by another vehicle but examination of the car failed to indicate signs of a collision. tion of both the civic centei The revolt brought into the open for the first time, the smoldering resentment that has marked relations for some time between the board and the city's recreation commission. Rallying behind their chairman, E. L. Pollard, park commissioners took the following steps: 6 Branded city council's resolution "illegal." ft Accused a member of city council with '-'deliberate sabotage of purpo; # Demanded a full investigation into causes of conflict between the board and the commission. % Called for an immediate and the swimming pool. Commissioners "are in full and complete control" of all park fa ci lilies in the City of Prince George. BIZARRE SITUATION' The complicated dispute touched off by a resolution adopted by city council 10 days ago, which transferred to the recreation commission, the management of the Civic Center and the swimming pool. Until then both institutions had f the parks board for political . l�l� <�en Dotn institutions had urnoses." hccn administered by the parks investigation of all civic personnel, "from the city clerk on down." # Demanded that council make public a statement to the effect that the Board of Park board. This led to the bizarre situation where both board and commission were advertising in The Citizen last week for employees to staff the swimming pool. SNAP RESOLUTION Angered by what he defined as a "snap resolution" adopted by council, chairman Pollard declared that unless council rescinds the order, he would report "the whole history of this case to Victoria." Said Mr. Pollard: "The custody, care and management of tUe Civic Center was entrusted to the parks board by virtue of a bylaw. Council cannot amend the bylaw by resolution or without the board's consent. "The swimming pool was officially handed over to the parks board by the mayor at the opening ceremonies last year. This was subsequently confirmed by passage of a bylaw." NO PETTV POLITICS Mr. Pollard pointed out that "tliis board is not concerned with petty politics." "We were elected to do a job clearly defined in the statute. We intend to do that job. If city council allows itself to be nagged into snap decisions which arc clearly illegal and out of order, I for one am prepared to report the whole history of this case o Victoria." He contended that when the (See RIFF FLARES, Page 3) CCF CANDIATE for Cariboo riding in the federal elections in June, is Dawson Creek railroad employee William M. Close, 41. An active member of the party since 1934 Mr. Close served as campaign manager for former CCF MP, Bill Irvine in the 1045 campaign. He also campaigned here for John Melnnjs in 1952. Mr. Close will make his headquarters in Prince George starting Mav 15 and will remain here for the duration of the paign.