Herald and Review from Decatur, Illinois • Page 3

Decatur, Illinois, Sunday, March 6, 1960. DECATUR SUNDAY HERALD AND REVIEW Fire Damage to Four Buildings Could Hit Million Temperature 1959 Tax Rate in City Increased by 8 Cents ii Ttr ot Decatur rate this year. It is Millikin Bank To Mark 100th Anniversary The Millikin National Bank will open the celebration of its 1001 anniversary with a dinner March 14 in the Masonic Temple. A capacity audience of 650 business, industry and civic leaders has been invited to the dinner which will have "The Business Outlook" as its theme. The dinner is the first of a series of events to be held through stores which "burned yesterday.

On duty here are Lb William Fire Department crews kept a cold vigil last night over the remains of the five downtown Blaze Third to Strike Lincoln Square Area Council Takes Steps For 4th Parking Lot the levy for the City Public Hos pital, which has been leased to De catur and Macon County Hospital. The hospital levy last year was 1.7 cents per $100 assessed valuation. Elimination of that levy, this year helped to offset the increase of approximately 2'A cents in the city general corporate rate, and hold the total City of Decatur rate increase to only one-fourth of one cent Voter League Candidate Meeting Set "Your Date With the Candi dates," sponsored by the League of Women Voters, will be held March 24. This will be the 12th public can didate meeting sponsored by the League, a non-partisan organiza tion which seeks to -promote wider participation in government. This year's meeting will be at 8 p.m.

March 24 in the Stephen De catur High School auditorium. All candidates on both primary ballots have been invited to the meeting. They have also been asked to fill out information sheets giving biographical information and qualifications for the office they seek. During the first half of the meet ing candidates for policy-making offices will speak briefly giving their position on topics suggested by the League. The second half will be devoted to question answering by all the candidates.

They will answer written questions from the audience. Co-chairmen of this year's session are Mrs. Thomas L. Hurst and Mrs. Lloyd Ater.

Kindergarten Set at Niantic The Niantic-Harristown orienta tion kindergarten will begin April 4 and run through May 20. A full-year kindergarten is not held at the school and the six- weeks program takes its place. Sessions will be held from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and from p.m.

to 3 p.m. in the Union School, where it was held Iast.year. Union School is southeast of Harristown. Enrollment can be done imme diately at the Harristown Grade School. Mrs.

Alice Harris of Decatur has been employed to teach the class. School buses will take the morn ing session pupils to Union School, and return the afternoon session pupils to their homes. Parents are responsible for returning the morning session pupils to their homes and taking the afternoon session pupils to the school. MRS. GRACE MAIDEN OF ARGENTA DIES Mrs.

Grace Belle Maiden, 52, Argenta, died at 5:30 a.m. Friday in John Warner Hospital in Clin ton. She leaves her husband Dale, daughters, Mrs. Shirley Edwards, Mansfield: Mrs. Doris Kissick, Sheldon: Mrs.

Edna Wheeler, Clinton; Judy, at home; sons, Dale Eugene, Three Oaks, Wil liam, Argenta; James and Jody, both at home, brothers, Clifford Burge, Decatur; Leonza Burge and Orval Burge, both of Weldon; and Dewey Burge of Farmer City. Funeral services will be at 2 p.m. Sunday in bhiloh Evangelical United Brethren Church. Burial will be in McCord Cemetery, north of Weldon. Hits Record 8 Below Zero Natural gas consumption hit an all-time high of 190,000,000 cubic feet here Friday as temperatures dropped to a record breaking eight degrees below zero in It was the coldest day this win' ter and the chilliest March 5 on record.

The previous low for the date was seven above in 1901. The lowest temperature ever re corded in Decatur was 22 below on Jan. 15. 1927. Actually, the Illinois Power Company moved 205.000,000 cubic feet of gas here from Friday mor ning to Saturday morning, accord ing to R.

A. Blakeney. Blakeney is division manager for the Illinois Power Co. But about 15,000,000 cubic feet was moved as a part of a with drawal test in the company's Freeburg storage field, he said. The previous high was 000 cubic feet of gas on Feb.

4, 1959. Farmers remained isolated by drifted snow as city, township and county maintenance crews worked to open major traffic arteries. To the north of Decatur the Wyckles Corner road and county route 52 from the Warrensburg- Harristown blacktop to the Man- tic-Latham road remained closed yesterday, according to Jonas Wilson, county maintenance supervi sor of roads. To the south, county routes 49, 34, 29 and 27 were still not open at about 7 p.m. yesterday he re ported.

Routes 29 and 27 were ex pected to be opened during the night Some area farmers still trying to dig out from under the recent snows had not received mail since Wednesday. Mrs. Delbert Utsler of Bethany fell off a tractor and was injured yesterday while helping her husband clear their drive. The heavy snow still on the ru ral roads forced Utsler to use his tractor to drive his wife to a neighbor's house on a cleared road. The neighbor drove Mrs.

Utsler to a doctor where 11 stitches were required to close a cut on her leg. Lawyers Set Fee Schedule The Decatur Bar Assn. has adopted new recommended min imum fees and is aiding in the first general revision of Macon County court rules in several years. The schedule has not been made public, but is expected to be re leased in the near future. The fee schedule which covers such legal procedures as the han dling of estates, the preparation and filing of legal papers and the lawyer's percentage of awards in personal injury cases was pre pared by a committee headed by attorney Orlando A.

Kuhle. Committees headed by attorney Frank H. Byers for Circuit Court and attorney Stocks Williams for County Court are working on the rule revision. However, the actual rules, are made by the judges of the respec tive courts. Court rules are revised period ically, but the current effort is an overall study intended to result in a compilation and printing of ex isting rules.

County Judge Gus T. Greanias said the rules of his court have not been printed since he took office in 1946. Heart Fund Hits $17,000 Latest figures of the Heart Fund campaign show that more" than $17,000 has been collected so far in the month-long drive. Completed figures for the Heart Sunday door-to-door collection in Decatur last Sunday show a total of $9,748.23. In the township drives an addi tional $3,184.36 was collected and added to $4,254.60 contributed in the business and industry drive.

There are still returns to come in the business and industry drive and in the township drives. The -goal of the campaign this year is $25,000 compared to a goal of $20,000 last year. The Heart, Fund collected 713.49 in last year's drive. Heart Fund Sunday chairman, Mrs. W.

A. Hildebrand. said that any persons missed in the Sunday drive may mail their contributions to the Heart Fund office in Decatur. i -By Joe Penne -Of the Herald and Review Staff A 1 aiore ana property owners, stunned, by their losses yesterday in one of the worst fires in Decatur's history, had no definite re building plans. Destroyed were four adjoining buildings just north of Lincoln Square on North Main street The damage was tentatively set at 5500,000 to $1,000,000 by William A.

Wait, son of Arthur Wait, a co-owner of the buildings. Wait said most of the property was covered by insurance. He said an accounting of the losses is incomplete and future plans will be uncertain for some time. Most of the shop owners who were burned out said they were anxious to get back into business but would have to wait to see about insurance coverage. One of the store owners.

Dean Walley of the Walley Son jewelry store at 127 N. Main had a close call yesterday afternoon at the scene as a floor collapsed Walley was trying to open a damaged safe in the store when the weakened floor gave way, dropping the safe, containing watches, jewels and records, 10 feet into the water-filled basement. Two firemen, Capt. Edward Bretz and Leo Wittig, grabbed Walley by the head and shoulders and pulled him back to safety as he started to fall into the basement The firemen were leaning in from outside the window. Capt.

Bretz said, '1 was afraid something was going to happen when Walley went into the building. So we stayed close by. I guess it was lucky we did because he could have gone into the basement with the safe and floor and could have been killed." Walley said he had had closer calls but without the firemen "I could have gone into the base ment with the safe on top of me. Auto trallic in the area was jammed for blocks as people came to see the damage. Pedestrians restricted to the east side of Main street, crowded sidewalks for a glimpse of the city's worst fire in years.

Cold Remarked To the curious onlookers comments about the fire ranged from "It sure is cold out" to "What shutter speed are you using on your camera?" Most of the thousands who viewed the area were more concerned about how cold it must have been for the firemen. One teen-ager expressed regret about the damage to the Lincoln theater. She said, "I didn't get to see the movie there yet" J. F. Darby, owner of the Darby Beauty Salon, said he first heard about the fire on the radio at 7 a.m.

"It was quite a shock and I couldn't believe it I don't know if I'll be able to get back into business again," he said. Ben Leader, co-owner of Rambo Pharmacy, said, "I was called at 2 a.m. by the police and told that there was a fire and that I would probably have to come down and clean up a little before we could open in the morning. "When I got there flames and sparks were all over the place," he said. Nick Greanias, owner of the Lincoln Square Cafe, said he had no idea what his loss was.

The cafe recently underwent a $20,000 remodeling. Greanias said he was in the rear of the cafe when he heard an explosion. He said he first thought it. might have been one of his compressor motors so he switched off the electricity in the front part of the cafe. Smoke Seen He said he could see smoke coming' through the fuse box on the wall between the cafe and tavern.

William Heidlebaugh, 867 N. Water St, a cook at the cafe, told the police he was in the basement at about 1:45 a.m. and smelled smoke. As he was going upstairs for an extinguisher he heard a rumbling. A.

G. Chiligiris, owner of the tavern where the fire started, said he left it about 1:20 a.m., some twenty minutes before' the blast which apparently started the fire. Mrs. Chiligiris said last night she and her husband couldn't think of anything in the tavern that could explode. She said they didn't have any gas stove in the tavern and the heating plant was located behind the Emerson Piano House.

Jerrys Peters, 1052 E. Riverside said he was standing by the Transfer House when he heard a slight boom. He said glass blew: across the street from the Lincoln Tavern windows and then there was a lot of smoke and some flames. "It didn't seem too bad. Some people came running out of the Lincoln Square Cafe eating their By John R.

Harpster Of the Herald and Review Staff A tax rate of $3.63 per $100 as sessed valuation, eight cents more than in 1959, will be paid by the bulk of City of Decatur residents this year. The rate was announced yester day by Randall Roberts, chief tax extension deputy for County Clerk Laurence Tangney. It covers property owners in that part of the city within De catur Township. Rates for parts of the city in other townships have not yet been computed. While this year tax rate is higher than in 1959, the increase is not nearly so sharp as the 43- cent boost from 1958 to 1959.

On a $10,000 assessed valuation the increase this year will raise taxes by only $8, from $355 to $363. Last year the comparable in crease was $43. The tax rate failed to increase as much this year as in prior years because the Decatur School District, which imposes the bulk of the tax load, reached its educa tional fund rate limit ot $1.80 per $100 assessed valuation last year. The school educational rate thus could not be increased above $1,801 this year, and the total school rate, of which the educational rate is only a part, increased only from $2,355 last year to $2.45 this year. Building Rate Up With 'the educational rate hold ing steady at $1.80, the 9'4-cent over-all school rate increase oc curred because of a boost of that amount in the building fund rate, from 26.36 cents per $100 last year to 32.86 cents per $100 this year.

The 9-cent over-all hike this year compares with a total school rate increase of 39'4 cents in 1959. Because of the school educa tional fund limit of $1.80 per $100 valuation, the schools will be un able to collect the full six -million dollars levied for the educational fund this year. Roberts said that when applied to the total school district assessed valuation of $305,582,666, the $1.80 rate will bring in only $5,500,487. And about five per cent must be deducted from this fig- to cover costs of collection and uncollectable bills, Roberts said." The schools thus stand to get about $775,000 less in tax revenue than the amount levied. Here is a list of the individual tax rates which make up the total $3.63 rate to be paid by Decatur taxpayers, with comparable 1959 figures in parentheses: Figures Compared Macon County 14.45 cents (11.99 cents) Township 15.5 cents (14.7 cents) Township road and bridge 8.4 cents (7.1 cents) Decatur Sanitary District 16.4 cents (16.04 cents) Decatur Park District 13.25 cents (15.54 cents) City of Decatur 50 cents (49.72 cents) Decatur School District $2.45 In each case the tax is per $100 of assessed valuation.

A comparison of the rates shows that the county, township, town ship road and bridge fund, De catur Sanitary District, City of Decatur and Decatur School District are' all imposing higher tax rates than in 1959. The increases range from 9'i cents, for the schools through 2.46 cents for the county to increases of less than a cent for the Sani tary District and the City of De catur and its related agencies. The only reduction, of about two and one-quarter cents per $100, comes in the Decatur Park Dis trict rate. Following is a breakdown of the City of Decatur tax of 50 cents per $100 valuation, with last year's figures in parentheses: Rate Explained (Because many of the individual rates making up the City of Decatur rate are less than one cent per $100, the figures are expressed as decimal fractions of $1. Thus $0,005 indicates a tax rate of one- half cent per $100 valuation.) Central Park $0.00341 ($0.00341) Playgrounds and recreation $0,033 ($0,033) Public Library $0.1206 ($0.13443) Police pension $0.01918 ($0.01280) Firemen's pension $0.01704 ($0.01707) Fire protection $0.0494 ($0.0494) Municipal Band $0.00852 ($0.00854) levy $0,008 ($0.0145) Retirement $0.03835 ($0.03414) Public benefit $0.01278 ($0.01067) Civil Defense $0.00852 ($0.00854 General corporate $0.1812 One tax levy by a city agency is not included in the over-all City out the year in connection with the centennial, according to E.

Joynt, president of the bank. Vermont C. Royster, editor of The Wall Street Journal and 1953 Pulitzer Prize winner, will be the featured speaker. He will discuss American's economic future. The business outlook for Decatur industry will be discussed by: Edwin K.

Scheiter, president of the A. E. Staley Mfg. Co. Albert G.

Webber, president of the Mueller Co. Warren Kinsey, Decatur plant manager, Caterpillar Tractor Co. Edward Lindsay, editor of Lind-say-Schaub Newspapers Gov. William G. Stratton will be at the dinner to bring birthday greetings to the bank.

Out-of-town guests at the speakers' table will include: Richard Aishton, president Conr tinental Illinois National Bank 4 Trust Chicago W. R. Mesenbrink, senior vice president. First National Bank, St. Louis Kenneth E.

Cook, president of the Illinois Bankers Chicago Sidney Maestre, chairman, Mercantile Trust St. Louis Carl E. Allen, president. Federal Reserve Bank, Chicago O. H.

Zimmerman, vice president of operations, Illinois Central Railroad, Chicago George H. Haslam, vice president, Hanover Bank, New York James Jaffray, vice president, First National City Bank, New York Mothershead, president, Indiana National Bank, Indianapolis, Ind. Kent Duncan, vice president, Harris Trust Chicago H. H. Pevler, president, Wabash Railroad, St.

Louis Arthur L. Atkinson, chairman, Wabash Railroad, St. Louis Gaylord A. Freeman president. First National Bank, Chicago.

Began On Merchant Street The Millikin Bank traces its history to the private bank opened on Merchant street in 1860 under the name "James Millikin, Banker." In 1863, the bank moved into larger quarters on' East Main street, near where the present Illinois Power Co. building is located. Two years later, Jerome R. Gorin became Millikin's associate in the firm, then called Millikin Co." In 1880, the bank moved to its present location at Water and Main streets, and in 1896 the present bank building was open ed on the site. James Millikin was born in Clarkston, in 1827, and came to Decatur from Danville in 1856.

In 1862, he bought the site on West Main street on which he later built his home. This home is now the Decatur Art Center. In 1901, he founded Millikin University. At the time of his death in 1909, Mr. Millikin owned 55 per cent of the Millikin Bank stock.

Through his will he created a trust which directs that the income from his estate be used for charitable and educational purposes for the benefit of the citizens of Decatur. The featured speaker at the an niversary dinner is a native oi Raleigh, N.C. Royster became edi tor of the Wall Street Journal in August 1958. "Receptions all over the state have been incredible and seem to be picking up. Voters are looking for new faces and new ideas.

They are weary of the same old candidates and tired of machine politics," he said. Rentschler, a 34-year-old candy manufacturer from Lake Forest who sported a lapel pin for Nixon, said the vice president is his top choice for the next president. As for the Democrats, Rentschler said they had a number of good prospects for vice president, but no good presidential candidates. He said he thought Nixon could beat any of them but that at this time he thought Sen. John F.

Kennedy would be the Demo choice. Herald and Review Photo Byers.left, and fireman Harry Pridemore. cluding the purchase price of the ground, show the price of each parking space from $1,500 to The cost for each parking stall in the Municipal Parking Garage was $2,700. Building Appraised The City Council had the build ing appraised before reaching the $42,000 figure. In addition, a favorable report on the location was received from George Barton Associates, consultants who are doing a parking and traffic survey for the city.

The city is also mindful that by the widening of Eldorado street to six lanes, some 55 parking spaces were lost. In recent weeks merchants from the Water St-El- dorado St. area have asked the Council for parking relief While the proposed lot may not be the whole answer to their problem, it does offer a facility that is within a block of many of the businessmen. The city has the money to pay for the land and the estimated construction cost of $36,742. Finance Director Jack W.

Lot tus said a surplus fund from parking meters, which has been build ing up over the years, has reached almost $175,000. The lot would have a frontage of 94 feet, and a depth of 175 feet. Two Entrances Entrances to it would be from Eldorado, behind the library, and N. Main street. In addition to downtown stores the lot is also contemplated for use by people going to the library andtheYWCA.

It is planned now that the lot would have short-time meters, for library patrons, and longer meters for others. Several councilmen said they regarded the purchase of the Le gion building as a good business investment, and that it afforded the city an opportunity to provide off street parking for one of the city's own agencies," the library. Special 40-Page Section Depicts Spring Fashions Soft shaping and quiet colors keynote spring fashions depicted in today's Herald and Review's special section. The 40-page tabloid, coordinated by fashion reporter Mrs. Alice Flint, 2114 W.

William offers style highlights for the entire fam- ay- Mrs. Joe Roger who, until yesterday, was Miss Nancy Nottle-man modeled for cover and title pages. Herald and Review staff photographer Robert E. Strongman shot the pictures and staff artist Alice Schwabe designed the cover. Copy for the fashion section was prepared by Ann Colbrook ef The Herald and Review's women's department Fashion Correction Pictures over the stories on pages 20 and 21 of today's fashion section are transposed.

The suit picture goes with the story on pleats and the tunic dress goes with, the story on braid Saturday morningjs fire in the 100 Block N. Mam St. was the third blaze to badly damage the area since 1904. On Nov. 17, 1904, fire did about $125,000 damage to the Decatur Hotel and Arcade buildings.

In April, 1915, the same hotel was destroyed in a $180,000 blaze. The hotel was on the site where the buildings burned Saturday morning. About 18 years ago the Rambo Drug Store suffered $40,000 damage in a fire which swept through the basement of the theater block. Arthur Wait of Decatur has been owner of the property during all three fires. The Arcade Hotel was opened in September, 1904 by F.

BJ Stearns and Edgar H. Scotts of Chicago. 1 Fire Fighters Perform as Expected; Machines Falter The men assigned to' fight yes terday's downtown fire did their duty as expected but not as much could be said for the machines. Three of the fire department's pumpers broke down during the course of the fire. However, Chief Byrd Davis re ported last night the trouble in one was in the ignition system and that it could still be operated on a reserve magneto system.

The No. 1 pumper, which broke down, was a 1936 model just re paired. A reserve machine, be lieved to be a 1927 model, was called in to replace it One of the pumpers was shut off for a time, allowing the water in the main water pump to freeze. When it was started up again the pump exploded due to the pressure. The city street department crews brought in to clear off the ice had no better luck.

They had to take time out to replace a sheared pin in the bulldozer they were using to clear away the ice. A special pump brought in to clear water put of the flooded basements also failed to operate. Main tenance men worked on it most of the day with no success. I 6,100 AT SHOW About 6,100 persons attended the sixth annual Modern Living Home Show in the Decatur Armory Sat urday bringing the four-day total to about 7,800 persons. Doors open at 1 p.m.

today and close at 10 p.m. sandwiches while others stayed in side and kept on eating," he said. "I went across the street to the White Peak Grill and picked up my girl and we went home because we didn't think it was very bad," Peters said. William E. Dial, 35, of 1032 E.

Eldorado was driving his taxi by when the blast occurred. "I had a woman passenger and was going south on North Main street," he said. "When I got to the Lincoln The ater I swung left to turn and as I got by the tavern an explosion like a-bomb went off. "It spattered the back of my cab with glass and the cab seemed to teeter. So I just turned my off and told the passenger to lay on the floor, the same as I did.

"I didn't see any flames at all just black smoke rolling out of the tavern. Then I started up and beat it out of there," Dial said. By Norman J. Puhek Of the Herald and Review Staff The City Council has taken steps to provide a fourth municipal parking facility. The Council announced yester day that it has an option to buy the building occupied by Castle- Wilhams American "Legion Post, 105, at 421 N.

Main St The pur chase price is $42,000. The plan is to build a 48-car parking lot on Legion ground and on part of the property now owned by the Public Library The south 40" feet of the Library property, now a lawn, would be combined with some 50 feet of frontage the Legion has. The Legion building would be razed, The Legion building has been for sale since 1955. The club wants to build a new meeting The CounciJ announcement said negotiations with the Library Board of Turstees have been go ing on for some time. The next formal step will be for the library board to take ac tion on allowing the citv to lease its property.

A 15-year lease, calling for token payment of $1 an nually, is proposed. Mrs. Mary T. Howe, librarian and secretary of the Library Board, said last night that she knew nothing of any formal request from the council for the land. Mrs.

who said she han dles all the board's correspondence, said that if such a request were to be received she would turn it over to the board for ac tion. The board held an executive session, closed to the public, Feb. 26, and Mrs. Howe has said that the "Legion building was dis cussed." If board approval is received. the City Council is expected to take immediate action to buy the Legion property.

Cost estimates of the lot, in Red Cross Names Five Five Decatur women have been appointed chairmen to new supporting services of the Macon County Chapter of the American Red Cross. The announcement was made by Mrs. C. M. Newberry, chair man of the office of volunteers; The chairmen are: Mrs.

Shelley E. Heiland, 21 Wy oming co-chairman of the Motor Corp. service. Mrs. F.

Kline White, 4 Allen Bend staff aide chairman. Mrs. Henning J. Hansen, 127 Woodale hospital represen tative to the Veterans Hospital at Danville. 1 Mrs.

W. Wolfe, 45 Ohio co-chairman of recruitment for volunteers. Mrs. Carl Kaiser, 722 W. Wood associate representative to the Air Force Base field hospital.

Mrs. Newberry said a drive for volunteers is on during this month's Red Cross Educational campaign. Anyone interested may call the Red Cross office Rentschler Believes He Has Lead On Other GOP Senate Candidates A confident William H. Rentsch ler reported yesterday that sup port for his nomination was picking up and that he felt he was running well ahead of the other candidates. 1 Rentschler, who is seeking the Republican nomination for U.S.

Senator from Illinois, was in Decatur for a few hours. At noon he "met with about 50 supporters at a luncheon in the Elks Club and in the afternoon he met members of the Republican Macon County Women's Study Club. Before leaving for Champaign in the evening Kentschler was guest at 1m informal coffee hour in the Don R. Livergood home. 40 Norwood Dr.

1.