CONGRESSMEN OFF TO PHILIPPINES . . . Seven senators and representatives left Washington airport for
a round-the-world tour during which they expect to participate in the celebration at Manila marking Phil
ippine independence. Left to right: Gen. H. L. George; Rep. Karl LeCompte (R,» la.); Rep. J. W. Robinson
(D., Utah); Vernon Moore, secretary, Filipino rehabilitation commission; Sen. Hugh Butler (R., Nebr.);
Rep. Fred Crawford (R., Mich.); J. Weldon Jones, President Truman’s representative; Sen. Allen Ellen
der (D„ La.); Rep. George Miller (D.t Calif.); Sen. Owen Brewster (R., Maine); and Brig. Gen. Carlos
Romulo, resident commissioner of the Philippines.
This air view shows tons of water being pumped Into the oil-fed fire that blazed in four slips of the
St. George ferry terminal on Staten island. A number of persons were trapped in the buildings. Nine alarms
quickly sounded, summoning every piece of apparatus available and three fircboats.
INDIANS SELL OUT . . . The Cleveland Indians baseball team was
sold after almost a week of negotiations and offers. Acceptance of an
offer by Bill Veeck of Chicago and his associates was made by Alva
Bradley, ex-president of the Indians, for his former stockholders. Photo
shows, left to right, Joseph Hostetler, attorney for Bradley and now
secretary for the new combine; Harry Grabiner, new vice president
and treasurer, and Bill Veeck, new president of the club.
SPEED RECORD . . . The fastest airmail delivery in the history of
the United States was accomplished when a P-80 jet propelled plane
carrying mail left Schenectady, N.Y., and arrived in Washington, D.C.,
in 49 minutes. Capt. Robert Baird, pilot, of Clarksdale, Miss., is hand
ing the pouch and a letter from W. Stuart Symington, assistant secre
tary of war for air, to Vincent Burke, postmaster at Washington. The
plane reached a top speed of 580 miles an hour.
OWNER OF CROWN JEWELS ...
A ph'oto of the Countess Von
Ilesse, princess cf Prussia, as she
looked in the days when Hitler
and Goering were entertained at
her Kronberg castle. It was from
this castle that the Hesse-Darm
stadt jewels were stolen.
A SHORT while ago, we were
roaming the Cleveland land
scape with a pretty fair old-timer.
He was, and is, the Gray Eagle—
only a trine gray
er than he used
to be. The name
is Speaker — Tris
Speaker — the
kid who came up
from Hubbard
City, Tex., near
ly 40 years ago
to become one of
the great ball
players of all
time, both as an
out-flelding hawk
Trls Speaker
ana a niuer, a
hitter good enough to keep Ty Cobb
from leading the league 13 consecu
tive years.
Tris Speaker won or saved many
a ball game with his brilliant field
ing and his hard hitting. But he will
ingly agrees that when it comes to
a winning percentage, the star
pitcher is the winning factor.
“Walter Johnson,” Speaker
said, “won 20 or more games a
year over a period of 10 consecu
tive years with a club that with
out him probably would have
been mired in the second divi
sion. His average was about
200 or maybe 300 per cent
above his team’s average.
Washington without Johnson
was a pushover. Washington
with Johnson pitching was hard
er to beat than any team In
the league, including the Athlet
ics, Tigers or the Red Sox. It’s
the same, today, when Newhous
er, Feller and (handler are
working.
"The Red Sox also have great
pitchers, but they have a great team
to back them up. What makes them
so strong, at this point anyway, is
that in addition to a fine ball club
they also have the pitching. That
makes it tough for any challenger.
Great pitchers such as Ed Walsh,
Nick Altrock and Doc White have
carried weak-hitting teams to a
pennant and a world’s champion
ship, as this trio did in 1906, but no
set of hitters and fielders ever have
carried weak pitchers anywhere out
of the second division.”
All that is needed is to look over
the individual pitching averages of
Hal Newhouser of the Tigers, Bob
Feller of the Indians and Spud
Chandler of the Yankees and com
pare them with the averages of their
teams in the standing of the clubs.
These three men have kept on win
ning in spite of weak batting sup
port at times.
You’ve heard more than a little
about the famous Gas House gang
of St. Louis around 1934. They had
their full share of good ball-players,
but it was Dizzy Dean who pitched
them into a pennant — without Dizzy
they would have finished six or eight
games away, possibly more.
• • •
Next Title Bout
In the wake of the Louis-Conn
championship fight it is only natural
that the new gossip should concern
the next title contest. It was gen
erally understood that if Louis re
tained his title his next fight would
be against the winner of the Tami
Mauriello - Jersey Joe Walcott elim
ination contest. If Conn won there
was to be a repeat engagement,
meaning the best two out of three.
Louis will have to have a Sep
tember match for several reasons.
One is need of money to pay his
taxes and to square his account with
Mike Jacobs. Another is that Joe
isn’t getting any younger and the
years have begun to take their
toll. He still can pick up another
$90,000 net profit in a second fight
Outside of Conn and Louis, the
heavyweight picture has been
shy of talent for some time.
Now Conn is definitely out.
Promoter Mike Jacobs has been
trying to get a real challenger
ready for the last three years,
but the supply has been ex
tremely thin. Lee Oma kicked
himself out of the picture with
his terrible showing against Jer
sey Joe Walcott. Oma set an
all-time record for wrecking a
show, for refusing to make any
part of a fight. You can throw
Oma out of any heavyweight
picture that means anything.
Jersey Joe Walcott may not be
much of a heavyweight, as far as
champions go, and the same can be
said of Tami Mauriello. Still they
seem to be the only ones left who
have shown anything worth looking
at — and neither has shown too
much. A Mauriello-Walcott meet
ing might be no part of a thriller—
it doesn’t figure to be—but at least
it would be a clash between the two
heavyweights who might slip into
the spotlight in the wake of Louis
and Conn.
Financially, the sooner such a
fight is scheduled, perhaps the bet
ter. There has been an abnormal
amount of loose money around.
The amazing thing is that during
the five years intervening between
the first and second Louis - Conn
parties, no other heavyweight has
been developed who has any class.
One might think that over a five
year period, during which so much
boxing was taught in the army and
navy, some challenger would have
been found. So far this is only an
idle dream. Up to date no such
animal bas been developed.
MIGHTY ATOM . . . The grim secret and the revelation of the horrify
ing effects of radioactivity following the atom bombing of Japan was
given the world here by a man of science who saw It. He is Col. Paul D.
Keller, 98th division surgeon stationed at Osaka. He asserted Jap sci
entists knew the "how” of the atom bomb but could not put it to work.
The above picture, furnished by Colonel Keller, shows the twisted re
mains of a railroad right-of-way In the bombed area.
•
COLOSSUS OF THE SKIES . . . The 220-foot hull of the world’s largest
cargo plane, designed and built by Howard Hughes, is moved from the
Culver City (Calif.) plant to Terminal Island. Built almost entirely of
wood, the $20,000,000 craft—capable of carrying 700 persons—will now
be assembled in a $150,000 graving dock. Ten cities and towns and other
subdivisions co-operated in moving the big plane.
U, S. COMBATS DENTAL DECAY . . . The use of fluorine to rontrol
dental decay, the most prevalent disease in the world, is being studied
in Miami county, Ohio, where U. S. public health officials are checking
Faults of tests conducted on 1,200 school children less than 15 years old.
PIONEER OPERA HOUSE . . . Historic old Central City (Colo.) opera
house, built during the mining boom, is open again this summer after
a four-year wartime blackout. Metropolitan Opera stars in Mozart’s
“The Abduction From the Seraglio’’ and Verdi’s “La Traviata’’ are
playing there from July 6 to July 28.
ATOM BOMB . . . Mrs. Caroline
Swancutt, left, mother of Maj.
Woodrow Swancutt, who was se
lected to pilot the plane carrying
the atom bomb over Bikini, re
ceiving telegrams from friends.
Seated next to her is Swancutt’s
sister, Mrs. Ralph M. Sloan.
SCIENTIST ... Dr. Abraham
Frelricb, who has discovered a
simple antidote to rescue persona
who try suicide by taking over*
doses of sleeping medicine. Tho
drug, which also helps avert pneu*
monia, is called amphetamine
(benzedrine) sulphate.
EXECUTIVE . .. The first woman
in Tokyo to hold executive posi
tion as head of a business estab
lishment, Mrs. Yoshiko Matsuda.
. ..................... —.—.——
ANSWERS CHARGES . . . Ruth
Mitchell, sister of the late Gen.
Billy Mitchell, answered charges
of Nasi collaboration by General
Mihailovich with the charge that
America is appeasing the Rus
sians by permitting them to prose
cute.
MRS. CHURCHILL HONORED
... Mrs. Winston Churchill, wife
of Britain’s wartime premier, is
shown in academic robes after re
ceiving an honorary degree of doc
tor of laws at Glasgow university.
CONGRATULATIONS . . . Super
intendent of schools, Vierling Ker
sey, presents Gus Johnson Jr.,
North Hollywood (Calif.) high
school graduate, his diploma, as
the youth, paralyzed from waist
down, reclines on a stretcher.
