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SIs 2s 20 4 OSHAWA and Whitby Gazette and Chronicle TTE WHITBY Sp OSHAWA-WHITBY, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1947 Price 4 Cents 32 PAGES IN TWO SECTIONS VOL. 6--NO. 301 yo wo Flying Fortress, Big Ocean Plane Report Troubles Halifax, Dec. 24 (CP)--Canadian and United States air search forces were in action today on distress signals from a United States Army Air Force flying fortress making a forced landing somewhere northeast of the Goose Bay, La- brador base, and from an American Seaboard and Western commercial plane, reporting one en-# gine "running wild" over the At- lantic 400 miles from its Gander, Nild., destination. R.C.AF. and United States forces at Goose were sending off search planes to look for the big fort which was two hours overdue at the base when it reported it was lost and making a forced landing. The pilot said he thought he was somewhere "northeast of Goose" and he said he was making a forc- ¢d landing on a lake. There were @o other details except a weather peport that a blinding snowstorm or blizzard may strike that area in the next few hours. The first reports from the dist- ressed commercial airliner were equally skimpy. The plane, of un- identified type, reported only that it was 400 miles from Gander on a flight from Shannon, Eire. > . The commander said one engin was 'running wild"--an aviation term meaning it was feathering and he was carrying passengers or cargo. The United States Army base at Stephenville, Nfld, had dispatchd a flying fortress equipped with an aerial life raft. Pp Police And Fire Staffs To Work Tomorrow asUsual In the interests of public ser- vice, Oshawa police and fire de- partment staffs will remaingon their regular shifts Christmas Day. Firemen will come in as usual at 8.00 a.m. tomorrow and re- main 'throughout the day until 6.00 p.m, when the night shift will report for duty, Police officers will not alter their program in any way al- though it is expected each one will have an opportunity to carve the turkey at his home, ' THE WEATHER Clear and cold today. Thurs. day clear and a little milder. Winds light, Low tonight and GREEKS HEAR VIFIADES SET IN RED GOVT Athens, Dec, 24--(AP) Greek Army headquarters at Vol- os was reported today to have in- tercepted . a radio "announce- ment" that Gen, Markos Vifiades, Greek guerrilla leader, had pro- claimed the establishment of an independent Communist "govern- ment" somewhere in Northern Greece. An attempt by the Guerrillas to ---- position to the Athens. govera- ment Jong has been anticipated here, Vitiades, whom Greek troops have been unsuccessfully at tempting" to hunt down, announc- ed through a Guerrilla brpadcast several months ago that he had assumed all authority in Guerrilla held areas pending establishment of a "provisional democratic gov- ernment." Athens observers have specula- ted that Russia and her Balkan satellites would immediately re- cognize any Communist "govern= ment" set up by Vifiades, thereby obtaining anuexcuse to extend military aid to the Guerrillas. Foreign Minister Constantion Tsaldaris, War Minister George Stratos and Gen. Yadzis, Chief of Staff, immediately went into conference at the Foreign Minis. try follo "ing receipt of reports concerning the Vifiades an- nouncement, There was a disposition on the part of some government officials to regard the broadcast as merely part of the Communist "war of nerves." Informed sources, however, said that if Vifiades really has set up an opposition "govern- ment" the U.N. will be asked to intervene, high Thursday and 30. 'Toy Flood For Johnny As Gifts For Sick Boy Come From All Points When Johnny Beuchler wakes up tomorrow morning, he'll find * his toy tractor--the one he's wanted so much-- and a whole lot more besides. Santa Claus is making 275 Col- Jege Avenue one of his red-letter stops tonight. Little three-year-old Johnny, who has been stricken with dread leukemia, will find = the Christmas tree surrounded by a miniature toytown. . The dull emptiness of an illness, for which doctors see no cure, will be warmed by an unmistakable Christmas spirit--the spirit which still sways mankind beneath a crust-like exterior. There's the toy tractor--a climb- ing oné with rubber treads, and a steam shovel, a bulldozer, sand shovel and road grader. Standing beside them will be a sturdy trans. -port truck, big enough to hold Johnny himself. Then there's a dump wagon and other toys too. A big bunny rabbit from another friend ' is' perched atop them all. The toy tractor is a gift from Sheather Hardware, 245 King East. The other toys, a gleaming array of mechancial delights, come all the . way from Orillia, where the Otaco Ltd. toy firm heard about Johnny and his illness. Ralph Bard, the firm's sales representative made a special trip here today cutting short his own Christmas holiday. The T. Eaton Co. is also sending ! from Toronto, by special delivery, | ~ a parcel of toys to make Johnny's' Christmas dreams come true. "Johnny has always been curious about parcels," said Mrs. Buechler, as she carefully placed the gayly- wrapped presents away. "I've told him Santa will be here tonight" she smiled. Then she turned to answer another one of the stream of telephone calls. Christmas, 1947, will be just a bit brighter on College Avenue now. Santa--and the rest of the people too--have promised that, Turkeys Plentiful For Over Holiday Toronto, Dec. 24.-- (CP) -- Tur- keys are plentiful at 40 to 50 cents a pound wholesale in all sections of Ontario except Cochrane south where all holiday fowl is scarce, the weekly crop report issued by the Ontario Agriculture Department showed today. 'The supply of Christmas trees is good with wholesale prices ranging from 15 to 40 cents a tree. And except for the usual worries over prices and high feed costs, the farm market situation is improved, the crop report indicated. Prices for / pure-bred livestock have improced and the market for hogs and weanling pi ed, particularly LSet up some .seri-af regime in op-.} 1.5. MOVING BASE TROOPS FROM CANAL Washington, Dec. 24 (AP)--The United States drafted plans today for the immediate evacuation of some 2,000 troops from 14 bases on Panama in the wake of a sudden policy switch involving the dis- puted defence sites. The unexpected action followed the Panamanian Assembly's unani- mous rejection of an agreement that would have given the United States the right to use the war-built bases for periods of from five to 20 years. The decision to withdraw entire- ly from the 14 bases, including the huge B-29 bomber base at Rio Hato, was made known late yesterday after a top-level conference of gov- ernment policy-makers. There had been no previous ink- ling that the United States was con- templating any such step. The withdrawal will be completed as quickly as possible "consistent with the number of personnel and the amount of material involved." Later the army said the with- drawal would begin immediately. It said Lt.-Gen. Willis Crittenberger, Panama Zone Commander, had been asked for a report on how soon the evacuation can be com- pleted. An + administration official sald the United States felt it should give full recognition of Panama's sov- ereignty and to the overwhelming opposition of the Panama people to the agreement. In addition, "we feel it essential not to accept an agreement that is inadequate. It would be worse than ro agreement and would lead to a false sense of security." The United States, it was dis- closed, scaled down its original de- mand for a 99-year lease . to 20 years for the Rio Hata air base and five years for the other 13 sites. The army now must fall back on its own defences within the 10-mile wide Canal Zone to defend the waterway, All Mail May Be Delivered By Christmas As weary postal workers neared the end of one of the heaviest Christmas seasons in the city's history, Postmaster N. J.- Mor said today that all mail posted bef: the December 19 deadline had been delivered and he was hopeful that the balance would also be pretty well cleared. Since Friday's record peak, the volume of mail had gradually de- creased and Mr. Moran said it took a marked drop yesterday afternoon. The last of the mail posted by the deadline. went out on the letter routes this morning and the car- riers were going to work up to dark tonight in an endeavor to deliver last-minute greetings. Meanwhile, the indoor staff was well abreast with the out-going mail. Now postal workers here, along with those across the Dominion, are looking forward to a well-earned rest on Christmas Day. The post office will be closed and there will be no deliveries. Unless further in- structions are received from Ottawa, however, regular service will be pro- vided on Boxing Day. Jew, Two Arabs Killed In Strife Over Partition Jerusalem, Dec. 24 (AP) --A Jew and two Arabs were killed today in continuing communal strife over partition, . Four Arabs and three Jews: were wounded. The fatalities rose t6 310 in Pales- tine and to 431 throughout the Middle East since November 29, when the United Nations decided to carve the state into Jewish and Arab nations. Scattered sniping and skirmishes in Haifa were reported broken up by a charge of Hagana forces, the underground Jewish defence army. Gunfire echoed through the old City of Jerusalem. An Arab was 3 has steadl- | wounded by bullets from a speeding ing pigs in western counties. | taxicab in suburban Romena. . by another fall before the holiday. Christmas Morning Airliners Send Distress Calls To Nfld --Photo by V. A. Henkelman Canada Coast To Coast " To Observe In Churches Christmas And Homes By The Canadian Press What with women complaining about the pushing around store counters, men complaining about getting pushed around--in the ribs and the pocketbook--and the shop- keepers not complaining at all, 'it looked as though Christmas day would be as quiet for Canadian pauls as the riotous kids would al- ow. a As usual in the Canadian tradition, the festival of the birth of Christ is essentially a home affair, with fam- ily gatherings the rule in every pro- vince. In Nova Scotia, a white Christ- mas is predicted. Theatres will re- main open, although no midnight shows have been announced. In Halifax, shopping has dropped off, indicating many have accepted the advice to buy eanly. Shopping has continued brisk in New Brunswick and a forecast from Saint 'John indicates snow on the ground now will likely be covered The round of community parties and dinners in Quebec: Province has already started even though late shoppers still throng the shops. In Montreal, authorities have in- structed night clubs, cafes and oth- er licenced establishments to stop serving liquor at 11 p.m. Christmas eve. They may start again at 1.30 a.m. Christmas Day when masses and services are over. In Ottawa, some. theatres have announced midnight previews for the 24th. Clubs and Hotels are well booked. Liquor and wine stores close at 6 p.m. Christmas eve, .al- though those | by Hull, Qu | will be open until midnight. ~ At Toronto, as in most other Canadian cities, no midnight movie showings have heen scheduled. The sale of beverages in all hotels, bev- erage rooms and lounges has been ordered stopped at 6 p.m. Dec. 24, continuing through Christmas. From Hamilton, a report said that pre-Christimas buying had pushed close to the record volume of 1946. In Winnipeg, the Christmas cele- bration was expected to have little in the way of public observance aside from church services. Christ- mas eve and Christmas night dan- ces have been arranged in Regina, with a hockey game scheduled for the afternoon. Snow has been plentiful. Indications are that Vancouver will have a "green" Christmas and there, too, home parties predomin- ate in the holiday celebration. With shopping tapering off, several stores announced price cuts on some items ranging from 10 to 50 per cent. No Paper Friday In common with the major- ity of the daily newspapers in the province, The Times.Gaz- ette will not publish its usual issue on I'riday, which will be observed as Boxing Day in Osh. awa. The business and editor- ial offices will be closed all day Friday, The publisher and mem- bers woof the staff bespeal« the ro-operation of advertisers and those who may have copy for Saturday's issue in making it available as early as possible. Pope Pius Urges National Sincerity To Ensure Peace Vatican City, Dec, 24--(AP)-- Pope Pius, in his annua] Christ mas message, declared today that a 'policy of insincerity" among nations was blocking the path to peace and called for a 'league of honest men" to safeguard the world against war, The Pontiff specifically blamed "a growing tendency toward in- sincerity" for collapse of the re- tent Foreign Ministers conference in London, which he said had left the world "further than ever from the true peace." He sharply condemned those countries which, he said, had adopted "the lie and the garbled word" as "accepted weapons of offensive" in an effort to "win at any cost the battle of class in- terest and theories, or ideologies and power politics." The Pontiff named no names in placing the blame for the pres. ent state of world affairs, but his 4,400-word address contained many passages which western lis- teners, at least, interpreted as condemnation of Communism and of the post-war poligies of the Soviet Union, The Pope spoke from his apart- ments in the Apostolic Palace and his address was broadcast to the world by the Vatican Radio and Italian. stations. It was to be re- broadcast in 12 languages today FAMILIES HOMELESS BY FIRE Million Dollar Loss As Cornwall Stores, Apartments Burn Cornwall, Dec. 24 (CP) --Fire raged unchecked through the heart of Cornwall's downtown shopping dis-~ trict today before being brought under control shortly be- fore noon. Mayor Lloyd D. Gallinger said damage amounts to about $1,000,000. Twelve stores, several offices and® some 24 apartments were gutted during the 11 hours firemen bat- tled to control the leaping, searing flames. Firemen from Massena, N. Y,, 10 miles southwest of here, answered an emergency call and sped to Cornwall to help check the blaze. Relief headquarters tor tlie dozens of men, women and children forced to the cold @rce-spread street below their apartments were set up at city hall. Meanwhile, normal business and transportation was strangled in this city of 15,000 persons about 70 miles west of Montreal on the St. Lawrence River, Traffic Snarled : All along Pitt Stret, the city's main thoroughfare, traffic was snarled. For blocks the only vehicles moving were fire trucks and police cars, Deliveries were disrupted. The weary, hard-pressed regular fire department of 16 men, bolster- ed by the Massena brigade and volunteers, continued to pour tons of water into the smouldering ruins. One person--a policeman -- was reported injured. He suffered a leg| injury when struck by a tumbling store front, one of several walls which collapsed during the early morning, : : Ai least two other persons, one a woman, escaped injury under sim- ilar circumstances, Long-time Cornwall residents said the blaze was the worst in the his- tory of this textile and mill com- munity. The last disaster by fire was in 1933 when fire caused $250,- C0) damage to another--smaller -- section of the business district, The two-dozen families who fled from apartments above the razed block of stores were almost destitute. Most escaped with only scanty clothing and only a few were able to save personal belongings and furniture. from the path of the speeding flames. Mayor Gallinger appealed to householders to. provide accommo- dation. for homeless. He indicated that persons who could not be look- ed after in that way would be cared for by the city. Appeal For Aid Officials were considering an ap- peal for clothing for the destitute families. There was little wind but intense cold hampered the work of firemen, "Their efforts were commended by the mayor in a statement empha.- sizing the extent of the disaster and appealing for 'public assistance. "This is a severe blow, not only to the individuals concerned but to the whole business life of Corn. wall," he said. "Property loss and loss of stock will easily amount to $1,000,000. "This constitutes a civic emerg- ency and I appeal to all residents to render whatever possible assist- ance they can. The homeless per- sons will be registered at city hall, which will serve as headquarters for relief work. "All welfare agencies and indivi- duals will be expected to do their share in meeting this emergency. "In the event that such action is necessary, I pledge the assistance of city council in seeing that those per- sons left homeless will be looked after until they can be rehabili- tated." Cause of the fire was not deter- mined immediately, but it was known it started in either the Mc- Intyre and Campbell . drygoods store or the adjoining Lowe broth. ers paint shop. Fed by paints and varnishes, the flames spread quickly and soon were beyond immediate control. Tt In the early-morning darkness, the centre of the city was violently aglow as the flames licked upward and to north and south. 'The tangle of fire-fighting equip= ment and the sudden-freezing wat- er from hoses across the sidewalks and into Pitt Street added to the confused situation as the dozens of homeleSs persons were evacuated from the setond-storey apartments. By 9:30 am. the flames had gut- ted 10 stores, several offices and the apartment dwellings of at least 20 families. The walls of some of the stores collapsed, spilling rubble in- to Pitt Street, the city's main titor- oughfare, ; Constable Hurt Constable Percy Riviere suffered a minor knee injury when struck by debris from a falling wall, He had been racing through the second- storey apartments warning sleep- ing occupants of the blaze, As he made his way to the street, he was caught by the sudden collapse of a wall, A Mrs. Gadbois, proprietor of a jewellery store, narrowly escaped injury as she sought with an une identified taxi driver to remove jewellery from her store as the flames edged dangerously close. She and the cabbie were inside the store when the front «wall tumbled, crashing over the taxi cab. But because it fell torward the street, Mrs. Gadbols and the man were not injurea, First reports were that the fire started in either the McIntyre and Campbell drygoods store or in the CORNWALL FIRE (Continued on Page 2) * LATE NEWS BRIEFS x TUGS RELEASE STEEL CARRIER Amherstburg, Ont., Dec. 24 (CP) --Three tugs were used to pull the - steel carrier Venus off a rocky shoal in the lower Detroit River last had been aground for 24 hours. night after the ship The grounding marked the second time since Sunday night that the heavy freighter encountered trouble on its tri from Buffalo, N.Y., to the River Rouge plant of the 'Ford Motor Co. GERMAN CHILDREN GET TREATS Frankfurt, Dec. 24 (Reuters)--American soldiers at Bremen have imported 100,000 ice cream bars from the United States for German children this Christmas. The soldiers have spent £716,290 on pre-Christmas parties for nearly 100, children. STORM TAKES FOUR LIVES 3 Boston, Dec. 24 (AP)--A northeast storm was mov- ing seaward today after leaving four to 15 inches of snow in New. England and taking at least four lives. Seven inches had fallen in in Lebanon, N.H., and 4.4 inches in Connecticut. Boston by 4 a.m., 15 inches The weather bureau predicted clearing weather during the forenoon but said 35-mile winds might cause drifting in and tomorrow. BIRTHPLACE OF NOVEL New Delhi, India -- (CP) -- Dr. Mulk Raj Anand, celebrated Indian birthplace of the novel, five millen- nia before the birth of Christ. The epics of the Ramayana and the Mahabarata were loose forms of the novel, which gradually resolved into more efficient forms of story-tell- ing. author, claims that India was the | exposed places. men are held by Brantford CABBIE JUMPS, BANDITS FLEE : Hamilton, Dec. 24 (CP)--Held prisoner in his taxi cab for more than three hours and twice directed at gun point to push the machine out of muddy ruts, John Hughes, hurled himself from the machine on a Brant- ford street early today, and lanced at the feet of a police- man while two bandits sped off with the cab. The cab was recovered later in a ditch outside the city and two police.