North-Central Nebraska's B-I-G-G-E-S-T Newspaper
Volume 78._Number 36. O’Neill, Holt County, Nebraska, Thursday, January 1, 1939. Seven Cent*
LINCOLN, ME3R.
XXX
Agitated Pet Lion
Has Keen Nostrils
tL.
J. E. Wiley,
Pioneer at
Dorsey,Dies
With Wife He Staffed
Postoffice, Phone
Exchange for Years
DORSEY — James E. Wiley,
86, who for many years staffed the
Dorsey postoffice and manually
operated telephone exchange, died
about 9 pm Tuesday, December
30, in Sacred Heart hospital at
Eynch.
He had Ijeen a patient there
seven weeks and had I >een in de
clining health several months.
Funeral sen ices will be con
ducted at the Dorsey Presbyter
ian church, possibly Friday after
noon. Rev. John Hart, pastor of
First Presbyterian church in O'
Neill, will officiate. Burial will l>e
in the Dorsey oemet ry under di
rection of Bigfin’s.
I^ast week gangrene had set in
and Mr. Wiley's health would not
permit surgery.
Mr Wiley came to Nebraska in
1882 at the age of nine. He was
reared in Steel Creek township.
On June 12, 1901, Mr. Wiley
Wiley . . . succumbs.
was united in marriage with Eliz-1
abeth Rinkerd, who holds the hon
or of being the longest continuous
resident of that township. The
couple was married at the Bink- j
erd home 3*2 miles from where
the Wileys made their home so
many years.
The couple farmed for a num
her of years 'Mid then took over |
operation of the telephone switch- 1
board and the postoffice. After the
switchboard was moved in aliout J
1951, they were identified with the
postoffice until February, 1957,
when the postoffice department j
liquidated the Dorsey office.
Until aliout three years ago Mr. i
Wiley continued to drive a car. ;
Ills tall, erect bearing belied his
advanced years.
Mr. Wiley was regarded as a
pillar in the Dorsey church and
was one of its oldest memliers.
The Wileys in 1951 formally cele
brated their golden wedding an
niversary.
Survivors include: Widow Eliz
abeth; sons -Sgt. James Elza of
Oakland. Calif.; Walter of Ver
digo Hills, Calif.; Marvin J. of
Grand Island, captain in the Ne
braska safety patrol; daughters—
Mrs Howard (Ellen' Marston of
Dorsey; Judith, who is married
and iives near San Francisco,
Calif.; eight grandchildren.
Ewing Fire Siren
Is Working Okay
EWING — There had t>een
Christmas eve activities in the j
churches
All through many of the hous
es there was quiet—not even a
a mouse. Suddenly the town's
fire alarm wailed in the chill
night air loud enough to dis
rupt hardworking Donner and
Blitzen. It was 11:15 p.m.
A little boy. in the presence of
his exasperated mother, had
pulled the lever on the town’s
fire signal—just to sample how
it works.
AUCTION CALENDAR
Friday, January 2: Mr. and
Mrs. Floyd Butterfield, living IV2 >
miles north of Atkinson, will sell
30 head of cattle, registered Here
ford bull, two tractors and other
farm and haying machinery, also
household goods; Col. Ed Thorin
of O’Neill, auctioneer; First Nat
ional Bank of Atkinson, clerk.
(Details on page 9). |
Friday, January’ 9: Mr. and
Mrs. Ed Etherton, residing north
of Emmet, will sell livestock, full
line of farm and ranch machin
ery, grain, feed and household
goods, complete closeout; Col
Wallace O'Connell of O’Neill, auc
tioneer; Ed Murphy of O’Neill
clerk. (Details on page ID.
Wednesday, January 14: Lester
Waterman, living 15 miles east of
O’Neill on state road 108, or four
miles north of Page and three
miles east, will sell complete line
of farm machinery and some live
stock; Col. Wally O’Connell of O’
Neill, auctioneer; Ed Murphy of
O’Neill, clerk. (Details in subse
quent issues!
Saturday, February 7: Holt
Countv Angus Breeders’ associa
tion sale, O’Neill Livestock Mar
ket.
H) MRS. N. I>. ICK£8, SR.
Special C'cmspumlrnt
PAGE Air Force Sp4*c Jerry
.Summers, who is stationed at
Ellsworth air force base near
Rapid Qty, S.D., and works af
ter-hours in one of the city’s
stores, won't soon forget the lion.
The store owner has a daugh
ter. The daughter is the posses
sor of a lion. Time was when the
lion was small, quiet, playful
and somewhat lesembled an
overgrown cat that had been
thriving on cornflakes.
The lion was accustomed to
putting in his time in the base
ment of the store particularly
in winter months because ins
coat is tropical in character.
None of these arrangements
bothered Summers as long as
the lion was caged.
With the yule season bearing
dow'n the lion became unduly ex
cited, roaring and stomping and
threatening to break out of the
improvised cage.
Meanwhije, a car for several
days had been parked askew
near the outside entrance to the
store basement. Nobody thought
much about it- In order to bring
the tempestuous lion (still in the
cagei into the daylight. Sum
mers decided to move the ab
andoned car. He climbed in.
Looking around he saw the body
of a dead man.
It was later learned the man
had iieen imbibing in holiday
spirits and had died of exposure.
Jerry completed a holiday
stay here Monday and headed
Ivack to Rapid City confident
the animal wdth the sensitive
nostrils had settled down to pet
status again, and hopeful the
city's dead have been duly bur
ied.
Air Line Travel
Below Expectations
North Nebraska May
Face Loss
Nebraskans must increase their
use of the recently granted north
ern local air service route be
tween Omaha and Casper, Wyo..
of face the possibility of losing
the route, State Aeronautics Dir
ector Holland Harr said last week
Harr said that of the six Ne
braska cities granted stops on the
route by the civil aeronautics
board on a “use-it-or-lose-it" bas
is, only Omaha is meeting its
daily quota as stipulated by the
CAB.
Harr said Ainsworth is defin
itely going to have to boost its
passenger count.
If the current passenger use
rate at Ainsworth keeps up, the
CAB possibly could take away the
Ainsworth stop, leaving only the
Valentine airport in the immed
iate area on the northern route
operated by Frontier airlines.
Harr also said Lincoln has
made a poor showing.
Although l>oth Norfolk and
Chadron have failed to meet their
quotas, Harr said passenger counts
for Norlh Central Airlines at Nor
folk and Western Airlines at Chad
ron have gone up since the north
ern route was granted Frontier.
The CAB stipulated that the
Omaha- Casper flight must carry
average passenger load of seven
on each filght per day.
From Deceml>er 14 to Decem
tH'r 20, a total of 184 passengers
was carried on the route.
Route cities and the number of
passengers boarding planes in
cluded; Casper. 11; Douglas, 1;
Lusk, 3; Chadron, 28; Valentine,
20; Ainsworth. 14; Norfolk, 15;
Lincoln. 20; Omaha, 72.
It would he normal to expect
the one flight each way daily
filled to capacity during the,per
iod before Christmas.
Chicago & North Western trams
Omaha - Chadron - Omaha—car
ried as many as one hundred pas
sengers per trip at Christmas
time on its shorter route. The
trains were jerked off In July of
this year. .
The poor Frontier showing
might slow airport improvements.
O’Neill was d substantially better
passenger point for train travelers
than Ainsworth and might he ex
pected to be a lletter supporter of
air travel But O’Neill’s airport
cannot accomodate Frontier air
liners without a 150-thousand-dal
lar improvement project.
Postal Receipts Up
$5,000 Over 1957
Receipts at the O'Neill postof
fice for 1958 will be five-thousand
dollars greater than last year.
The estimated $53,000 total will
tie a record, Postmaster Ira H.
Moss said Tuesday before final
computations had been completed.
Part of the gross income is at
tributed to the rate increases that
went into effect August 1. Moss
said the postoffice department had
provided a formula for determin
ing what percentage of gross re
ceipts is to be credited to the in
creases in fees.
During the year the postoffice
here added two new employees:
I yean Jeffrey, city carrier, and A1
Bosn. substitute clerk.
Moss said door-to-door delivery
was extended in the residential
areas during the year, aggregat
ing 40 lineal blocks.
Robert McNeil of Omaha, field
service officer for the postoffice
department, is credited with help
ing make the transition from rail
to truck transportation for incom
ing and outgoing mails here. Moss
said the holiday load was made
easier by the blessings of a co
operative weatherman.
The O’Neill PO is operating on
a terminal basis and processes
mail inbound from and outbound
to points west of here and Rosebud
points in South Dakota.
John Joe Dunlin (left), a passerby, and Holt Deputy Sheriff Janies Mullen examine wreckaRe in
which llonnic L. Rost, 6, was fatally Injured. (Note upturned chunks of asphalt).—The Frnnter Photo.
This Is the car which overturned and crushed Francis D. liatliff of Atkinson.—The Frontier Photo.
Revells Wedded 50 Years—
Quarter Section to 3,000 Acres
An orphan boy, who was obliged
to shift on his own from a tender
I age, and his sweetheart of the
! turn of the century era Sunday,
December 28, celebrated their
golden wedding anniversary. Mr.
and Mrs*. Emmett J. Revell were
j honored at an open-house affair
arranged by their children.
Virtually all of the northeast
Holt county turned out for the
event plus numerous friends and
relatives from greater distances.
Mr. Revell was born in Michi
gan and as a toddler moved to
Kansas where at least one brother
was bom. The Kansas-born babe
was regarded as a "grasshopper"
baby and further explanation is
unnecessary because the home
steading family, stripped of mops
by the plague, pulled out for Den
ver, Colo.
Later the four Revell sons
found themselves in an Omaha
orphanage. Emmett was so
young he remembers few details.
All he knows is the family
broke up, family records were
lost, and Mr. and Mrs. Peter
Dane of near Alma claimed three
of the toys at the orphanage and
were' stern taskmasters during the
growing up years. His brothers,
likewise, are without factual
knowledge of what led to an un
happy and parentless childhood.
One of the Emmett's brothers
fled the orphanage.
Emmett came to Holt shortly
after the turn of the century and
met Lila Pearl Coffman, who
lived with her parents, the late
Mr. and Mrs. M. C. Coffman in
the Irish settlement northwest of
O'Neill. Pearl was bom in Ida
county, la., (near Ida Grove),
was reared on a farm and ed
ucated there and was a young wo
man when the Coffmans moved to
O'Neill.
The Coffman-Revell alliance
dates from a social event at Cen
ter Union church.
Mrs. Revell dosen’t recall the
proposal. "It w’as so thrilling ami
exciting I don't remember the de
tails", she recounted.
They were married Christmas
day, 1908, at the Methodist church
in O'Neill with Reverend Watson
performing the nuptials.
They farmed several years in
the Center Union locality and then
moved onto the place now occu
pied by Rolland Miller in the Star
community. In 1916 they moved
onto the present place, 28 miles
northwest of O’Neill. At that time
it was a modest quarter-section
layout. They purchased it and
added on a half-dozen times.
Today, Mr. Revell and his wife,
their son. Dale, and their son-in
law, M. E. Davis, preside over a
three- thousand- acre combination
farm-ranch which is comprised of
deeded and leased land. One
grandson, Owen Davis, also par
ticipates in the operation.
The Revell place has been a
model in Holt for its widely-rec
ognized soil conservation practices
(including four water reservoirs).
Mr. Revell is first to proclaim
the ponds are well-stocked with
fish.
Fifteen years ago Mr. Revell
entered the registered Angus cat
tle field and will be consigning
over 25 head to the annual spring
sale of the Holt County Angus
Breeders association to lie held
in February’.
The Revells became the parents
of five sons and one daughter.
One son, Fred Monroe, died of an
infectious head disease at the age
of 28.
The other sons are Harry of
San Francisco, Calif., who was
unable to lie present; Dale of O’
Neill, who lost his right hand in
a cornpicker accident in Decem
lier; Wayne of San Diego, Calif.,
and Raymond of O'Neill. Their
daughter is Mrs. M. E. (Femi
Davis, who is also known as Sal
ly
Dale and his family and the
Davises reside near the home
place.
There are nine grandchildren
and four great-grandchildren.
One of the great-grandchildren.
.Keith Emmett Davis, son of Mr.
and Mrs. Owen Davis of O’Neill,
was the youngest present at the
celebration. The other three
great-grandchildren lielong to Mr.
and Mrs. Edward Davis at Ft.
Riley, Kans. Edward will be re
leased froth the army next mon
th and will be returning to the
family place. Because his move
■■ txw.jwojjg-:> ■yx-r%msas.'£.::.•--- >
here is imminent, he did not ar
range for his family to be present
for Sunday's observance.
Mrs. Revell (who was reared as
an only childl claims there are
certain disadvantages in being
the “boy and the girl” of a fam
ily. In contrast to Mr. Revell’s
shifting from pillar-to-post as an
orphan, she vividly remembers
“there is loneliness in being with
out brothers and sisters”.
Mr. Revell has two living broth
ers Alfred of Wichita, Kans., and
Otto of North Star, Can. Otto
visited the Revells last year and
a handmade wooden memento
hangs on the wall in the dining
room. Otto created the panoramic
scene with bits of native wood
The wood was cut to less than
jig-saw proportions and inlaid on
a mounting. The rural scene re
presents many hours of handi
work and reveals high artistic
taste.
Mr. Revell is 78 and his wife is
69. Both enjoy good health. Em
mett is a director of the Elkhorn
Valley National Farm Loan asso
ciation and is a member of the
Holt County Angus Breeders' as
sociation.
Mrs. James Konen of Juanita
(widow of the Revell's son, Fredi
and her son. Larry Revell, also
Mr. Konen, were among those
present from a distance; also Mr.
and Mrs. William Blundell of
Chadron; Mr. and Mrs. John
Christ of Atchinson, Kans.; and
Mr. and Mrs. E. Wayne Revell
and son, Glenn, of San Diego.
Cahf.
Two Die Result of
One-Car Crashes
Two persons were fatally inju
accidents during the yuletide holidi
Dead are:
RONNIE L ROST, 6, son of M
coin, who died Christmas day 26 hi
FRANCIS D. RATLIFF. 27. of
Christmas day when he was throw
way 11 north of Atkinson.
The deaths boosted Holt county'
Hurled from
Moving Car,
Man Killed
Francis D. Ratliff, 27,
Killed Instantly
Early Christmas Day
ATKINSON Francis D. Ratliff.
27, Atkinson mechanic, was killed
almost instantly early Christmas
morn when the car in which he
was a passenger left the highway
and rolled over. Ratliff was
thrown from the car and crushed
when the vehicle rolled over him.
The northljound machine was
being driven by Robert N. (Bob
bie) Fold, jr., 31, also of Atkin
son. It was about 12:45 a m. when
Ford lost control of the car on
state highway 11 about one mile
north of here.
Ford was able to pull himself
from the wreckage. He searched
for his companion and found him
pinned. The O’Connor brothers,
Gerald, jr., and Joseph, were first
to come upon the scene.
Ford told the state highway pa
trol he had applied the brakes
and the automobile plunged into
| a ditch and overturned.
Ford was taken to Atkinson
1 Memorial hospital for observation
hut was dismissed about noon
; Christmas day.
Funeral services for Ratliff
were conducted at 2 p.m., Friday,
I>ecember 26, at the Seger funeral
chapel. Rev. Curtis Barnett offic
iated. Burial was in Wood Lawn
cemetery with military rites con
ducted by Farley-Tushla post of
the American Legion.
Pallbearers were Rolland Ever
etts, Howard Davis, Edward Sch
muecker, Stanley Irish, Francis
Cleary and Kenneth Mliar.
Vocal music was provided by
Mrs. William Sehorn and Mrs.
Dean Fleming, who were accom
panied on the organ by Mrs. Jay
Jungman.
The deceased was born March
23, 1931, at Atkinson, a son of Mr.
and Mrs. Dave S. Ratliff.
lie was reared and educated
here and was graduated from At
kinson high school in 1949. He par
ticipated in basketball during his
high school career.
He enlisted in the air force
June 2, 1952, and was sent to a
base in Texas for training. He re
ceived a medical discharge Aug
ust 14, 1952.
Ratliff, who was single, had been
employed as a meat cutter at
Cleary’s Market until that firm
was sold. Recently he had been
employed as a mechanic by Jo
seph and Edward Schmuecker at
the Schmuecker Bros, garage.
He was a member of First
Presbyterian church and was ac
tive in bowling.
Survivors include: Parents Mr.
and Mrs. Dave S. Ratliff; broth
ers- Neal of Bassett; Willard 11.
of Stuart, and Richard D. of At
kinson; sisters Mrs. Joseph (Vi
ola) Deseive, Mrs. John (Vivian)
Schwindt and Mrs. Donald (Marj
orie) Smith, all of Atkinson; Mrs
Vern (Florence) Schneider and
Mrs. Robert (Lois Jean) Kissing
er. both of Lincoln; grandmother
Mrs. Frances Dobias of Atkin
son.
I -
The Emmet J. Revells (center) on their golden wedding day. Also pictured: Son—E. Wayne of San
Diego; daughter—Mrs. M. E. Davis of O'Neill; sons—Dale and Raymond, both of O’Neill.
_ I
*ed in separate one-ear automobile
tys in Holt county.
r. and Mrs. Howard L. Host of Lin
>urs after nn accident near Emmet.
Atkinson, was killed at 12:45 am
i from a car and crushed on high
5 highway death toll to four for 1958.
Ratliff . . . fatal holiday.
To Whisk County’s
Ballots to Lincoln
-3
Waring Protects Date
of Movement
While Ihe stale's democratic
and republican leaders are com
peting for public favor in connec
tion with the recount of the No
vember 4 general election voting,
Holt County Clerk Kenneth War
ing Tuesday said he would not
publicly announce his departure
date for the statehouse.
Waring has l>een ordered to
bring in the Holt ballots. Accord
ing to law, secrecy is supposed to
surround transfer of ballots from
all countyseats to the statehouse.
The recount involves the race
for governor. Ralph G. Brooks (D»
of McCook is the apparent winner
over the incumbent, Victor E. An
derson (Rl of Lincoln. The unof
ficial tally is a margin of 1,500
votes. An average switch of nine
votes per county could make An
derson, instead of Brooks, the
winner.
Meanwhile, it is up to the state
legislature to determine whether
there will be a recount. The 1959
legislature will convene next w-eek.
O’Neill's State Sen. Frank Nelson,
who says he has not heai-d enough
evidence to determine whether or
not he will vote for the recount,
will be leav ing here Sunday.
-Saturday Brooks made public
the appointment of Former Gov. j
Roy L. Cochran as chief engineer |
of the Nebraska department of ;
roads and irrigation. Cochran has !
been an outspoken foe of the Ains
worth and Sargent irrigation proj
ects. Ho served 12 years as high
way engineer before being elected
governor three successive terms.
He is 72.
1959 Baby Derby
Ready for Gun
The Frontier’s 12th annual Holt
county baby derby gets underway
at the stroke of midnight Wednes
day, December 31.
Leading O’Neill firms are co
operating with The Frontier to pro
vide a shower of exciting gifts for
the champion.
Participating firms are McIn
tosh Jewelry, Gambles, Shelham
er’s Jack & Jill, O’Neill Photo Co.,
Harding Creamery, Moore-Noble
Lumber Co, Western Auto, Pat
ton’s Ben Franklin, New Outlaw,
Beatrice Foods, McCarvilles,
Coast-to-Coast, Helen’s Flower &
Gift Shop, Gillespies, Apparel
Shop, Gilligan Rexall Drug, Merri
Dr Pepper Bottling Co., McDon
ald’s, Dankert’s, Coyne Hardware
and the M & M.
(Details on pages 4 and 5).
Record Number of
Patients at Hospital
With seven tonsillectomies per
formed Tuesday, St. Anthony’s
hospital was filled to capacity.
All rooms were filled, the nurs
ery was doing a good business, and
some children were being cared
for in hospital beds erected in j
the corridors.
St. Anthony’s is a 38-bed hospit
al. There were 48 patients Tues
day night—excluding the nursery.
Those having tonsils yanked
Tuesday were Sharry, Phillip and
Cynthia Savidge of Ewing, Clem
and Paul Douglas Mewmaw of
Page and John Tighe and Charles i
Gonderinger of O’Neill.
Christmas
Eve Injuries
Fatal to Boy
Ronnie L. Rost, 6,
Dies Next Day in
O’Neill Hospital
Ronnie L. Rost, 6, son ot Mr.
and Mrs. Howard L. Rost of 1
coin, was fatally injured uboul 4
p.m. Wednesday, December M
tChristmas eve), in a One-ear ante
accident a half-mile east of bis
met
The boy died 26 hours later —
Christmas night in St. Anthony*
hospital. He suffered a ruptured
spleen and two broken legs
The lad was riding with hot
grandparents, Mr. and Mrs
seph M, Foster of Orchard They
had been visiting Mrs. Nettie Wusb
feldt at O'Neill and were encode
to Atkinson to visit relatives.
The westbound car was travel
ing the former mute of U S. high
way 20. Near Emmet where shr
old highway and new mute «*►
verge, the Studebnker four-daw
sedan being driven by Mr. Easier
encountered large holes in the as
phalt where boulder-like i trunks
of hardsurfacing had been turned
up. The Foster car came to a step
crossways on the old road with
the front lodged against the
chunks of asphalt and the rear
precariously near a freshly-cre
uieu uii.cn. j ne easi uppn»cn
the highway was not barricadnt
although there was a "rvm&
closed" sign a short distance eaa*.
from Ihe scene of the accident.
A passerby, Leon Beckwith
summoned the ambulance.
Mr. Foster avers he did m*
loose control of the car although
it traveled more than 150 feet af
ter encountering trouble. The car
was not badly damaged.
Mrs. Foster suffered a 1 rat fur*
ed right arm. Mr. Foster was
treated for shock and bruise*.
Both are still hospitalized at St
Anthony’s.
Mr. Foster was "up and!
around" Tuesday at the hospital.
Ronnie Lee Rost was bora Aug
ust 2, 1952, at the Tildcn hospital.
He and his parents mover! to Lin
coln from Orchard in Septem lwr.
1953. He had been visiting his
grandparents since December 9.
Funeral services were conduct
ed Sunday afternoon, December
28, at the Hoeplinger funeraS
home in Neligh. Leslie Olson find
Ernest Crooks of Spencer conduc
ted the rites.
Hymns were sung by Mrs. Clin
ton Hopkins of Neligh and Mrs.
Jacob Braun and Miss Kathleen
Braun, both of Atkinson. Mrs.
Clyde Hopkins of Neligh was ac
companist.
Burial was at Neligh. Pallbear
ers were Lynn Keetle, Clinton and
Crandall Hopkins of Neligh and
Lyle Clark of Clearwater.
Survivors include: Parents; bro
thers Martin, Arthur and Hilt*
Joe (all younger than Ronnie);
grandparents Mr. and Mrs. Jo
seph M. Foster of Orchard and
Mrs. Margaret. Rpst of Nejigh.
Burning Tree Stump
Results in Lorn
of 32 Hay Stack*
EWING — Volunteer firemem
from Ewing and Clearwater,
scores of men from the two
communities and many farmer*
spent Christmas afternoon t>atiling
a rural fire that destroyed 3?
stacks of hay on the Frank Urban
and Foster Felker farms, locat
ed about 18 to 20 miles southwwa
of Ewing.
The haysteaks had been arrant
ed in orderly fashion in row* *#
eight. Four rows were consume*
by flames but two stacks in ewe
row' were saved. However, m
another meadow fire destroy**
two additional stacks, making a
total of 32.
Late Christmas night the siavAs
were still smouldering.
It was theorized the fire mas
have started on the holiday af
ternoon when someone attempted
to rid a tree stump of a swarm ti
bees by setting fire to the stum^
TO PRESS EARLE
This week's issue ot The Iron
tier went to press 24 hours ahead
of schedule in order to insure de
livery to most subscribers in Fron
tier Land ahead of the new year1*
holiday. Because of a heavy vol
ume of advertising and a serie*.
of Yule wedding stories, consider
able late-arriving news contribu
tions have had to be omitted
Time did not permit developing
extra pages in the "short week”.
THE PUBLISHERS.
Uhl Hume—
John Joe Uhl, son of Mr. and
Mrs. Norbert Uhl, was home for
the holidays from Georgetown Uni
versity in Washington, D.C. He ii
also employed there.