Evening Star Newspaper, May 26, 1940, Page 7

- William Griffith Dies; Courts May Decide . Newspaper-Radio Ownership Case F. C. C. Seeks to Prevent Control of Station By Ohio Publishers By WILLIAM J. WHEATLEY. ‘The authority of the Federal Com- munications Commission to decide whether a newspaper and a radio station in the same community may be under one ownership may be tested in the courts. In the case of the Brush-Moore . Newspapers, controlled by a Repub- . lican group in Ohio, the commission will listen to oral arguments on June 6. which are to be limited strictly to the matter of newspaper owner- ship. The Brush-Meore Newspapers now own 50 per cent of the stock in Station WPAY at Portsmouth, ©Ohio, and Chester A. Thompson, » owner of the other 50 per cent, has asked the F. C. C. for permission to transfer his stock to the Brush- Moore syndicate, stating that he was unable to give the time necessary to the station and was not prepared to invest the amount of money nec- essary for improvements. ‘When the request came before the ecommission several weeks ago, it was denied. Commissioner Thad H. Brown, Republican member from * Ohio, was not present. Subsequent- ly the applicant filed a petition asking that the original action be vacated and the request be granted. As an alternative, the commission was asked to grant a full hearing, the original action having been taken without a hearing. Further, the petitioner asked that, in the event neither of these two requests were granted, that the commlxson enter findings of fact and conclusions of law in support of its decision, in order that the issues might fully ap- pear in the record. The petition contended that both the Constitu- Ation of the United States and the " Communications Act of 1934 require that the relief sought be granted. Petition Voted Down. While the commission denfed all| three of the prayers of the petition, it authorized oral argument limited to the question of newspaper own- | ership. Commissioner T. A. M. Craven, seconded by Commissioner Brown, sought to have the petition | granted, but this was voted down, 4 to 2. with Chairman J. L. Fly, Commissioners Paul A. Walker and | Frederick I. Thompson, Demow crats, and George Henry Pa,\'ne.’ Republican, voting with the ma- Jority. In another case, that of a new station at Martinsville, Va., the commission granted a new station to a co-partnership, one of whom owned all of the common &tock in the only newspaper in the service area of the proposed station. Chair- man Fly dissented to this decision. View of Local Court. While the matter has not been presented directly to the United States Court of Appeals here or to the Supreme Court of the United | States, the local tribunal, in the case of the Tri-State Broadcasitng Co., Inc. licensee of Station KTSM, vs. the F. C. C., and Dorrance D. Rod- erick, said: “We know of no pro- vision of statute or rule of law, and are cited “to none, which forbids broadcasting by the owner of a newspaper.” But in the viewpoint of the commission this is not con- troling law because the issue was not directly before the court in the case. But, it is now thought likely that | if the commission insists on its| original action in the Brush-Moore case, the courts will get the direct question of newspaper ownership and decide whether the “public in- terest” control of the commission extends far enough to permit the regulatory body to make a denial in such cases. It was pointed out that the Su- preme Court only recently has de- ecided that the commission’s func- tions are confined by the statute to control of the grant of frequencies to broadcast stations and do not extend to policies of the broadeast- ers or ownership, so long, in the lat- ter case, as the applicants are quali- ! fied financially to provide the facil- ities for broadcasting. Police Eject Students From Pro-Allies Rally By the Associated Press. LOUISVILLE, Ky., May 25—A group of “pro-Allies” Louisville citizens tonight asked Congress in a resolution to ft neutrality re- strictions and give immediate aid to the Allies. Efforts of two University of Louis- wille students to offer a resolution not to send an American expedition- ary force to Europe “no matter if the Allies get whipped” was shouted down by the crowd and the stu- dents dragged from the meeting by police. They were released after be- ing questioned. The Louisvile War Memorial Auditorlum, which seats 2,300 per- sons, was filled and police said several hundred persons were turn- ed away. william B. Belknap, former State Jegislator, who acted as chairman of the meeting called by 21 civic and industrial leaders, told the audience he believed “you express the senti- ment of a large section of the American people.” Lewis J. Gorin, jr., Louisville at- torney who, while a student at Princeton University in 1936, an- nounced the formation of the “Vet- of Future Wars” and demand- ed “anticipatory” bonuses immedi- stely, addressed “the young men of America” in saying, “It is up to us to make it safe for those things we hold dear.” Former Spee Crewmen Arrested in Uruguay By the Associated Press. . MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay, May 24. —A Parliamentary committee in- yestigating Nazi activities in Uru- announced today the arrest of two Germans identified tenta- tively as former crewmen of the scuttled German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee. Nationally Known Artist By the Associated Press. LAGUNA BEACH, Calif., May 25—William Alexander Grifith, 73, THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C NEW W. P. A. PROJECT TO BE DEDICATED—The District’s new $600,000 fire alarm headquarters, located in McMillan Park, on the line of First and Douglas streets N.E., which will be dedicated ‘tomorrow at 10 a.m. Defense Plans Discussed At Richmond Parley By the Associated Press. RICHMOND, Va., May 25.—Gov. Price conferred today with Virginia's military leaders on defense plans and announced afterward the ap- pointment of Brig. Gen. Williami H. Sands of Norfolk and Col. Leroy | Hodges of Richmond to a legisla- tive commission created to study facilities for & National Guard ar- tillery range. The Governor said he would call the commission together in Rich= mond next week for purposes of organization. Speaker Ashton Dovell of the THE FIRST OF MUSICIANS { tague of Hampton and William A. House of Delegates on March 22 named Delegates Harry B. Davis of Princess Anne and James B. Mar- ton of Gloucester to serve on the commission, and the following day Senator Henry T. Wickham, presi- dent pro tem of the Senate, ap- pointed Senators E. Sclater Mon- Wright of Tappahannock as the Senate's representatives. The conference today with Brig. Gen. S. Gardner Waller, the adju- tant general, and Lt.-Col. Edwin T.| Parker of the U. S. Army Field{ Artillery, senior military adviser to{ the Virginia National Guard, was| called for an “explanatory discus~ CHOICE EVERYWHERE STEINWAY “THE INSTRUMENT OF THE IMMORTALS" New Steinway Pianos, $f95 up All New Steinway Grand and Vertical Models Contain Latest Steinway Patents, Including the Diaphragmatic Sound Board and Accelerated Action, Producing Incom- parable Tone and.Respos Any Steinway Piano may be iveness. .- . purchased with a cash de- posit of 10%, and the balance,will be extended over a period of several years if dglind. -Used pianos taken: in trade at fair values. E.F. ri)op Sons Co.—1300 G Exclusive Steinway and Gulbransen Deslers in Washinston @~ THERE IS 'NO BETTER RADIO-PHONOGRAPH g MAGNAVOX YOU WILL INSTANTLY RECOGNIZE ITS SUPERIOR QUALITIES OF TONE, RECORD REPRODUCTION AND RADIO RECEPTION. “BELVEDERE” A MASTERPIECE IN DESIGN AND EFFICIENCY Combination Radio-Phonograph, in Walnut or Mahogany Push-button Tuning. Separate Bass and Treble Controls. Short ‘Wave Reception. Two Duo-Sonic 12-Inch Speakers. Automatic cord Changer. In short, an Instrument which satisfies the Critical e — l NINE OTHER MODELS, $69.50 to $550 ACCOMMODATING TERMS AVAILABLE * DROOP'S *1300 EXCLUSIVE REPRESENTATIVE FOR MAGNAVOX IN WASHINGTON A Charming Apartment Grand 4 ft. 6 in. 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District Fire Alarm Headquarfers to Be Dedicated Tomorrow New Structure Will House One of Most Modern Systems The District's $600,000 new fire alarm headquarters, one of the fruits of the local P. W. A. program, is to have its formal opening at 10 am. tomorrow, at the specialized new structure in McMillan Park, on thes line of Douglas street N.W., although it will not be placed into service for about a week. The one-story building, according to H. A. Friede, superintendent of the fire alarm system, will house one of the most modern fire alarm cen- tral offices in the United States. When the new plant is placed in service, the District will no longer depend on the obsolete mechanisms now housed on the fifth floor of the District Building. Plan to Expand Plant. Supt. Friede had requested $1,.- 000,000 for the project. but this was cut down to $610,000 and plans now are being made to expand the facili- ties at the new plant if and when additional funds are found available. The original District fire alarm office, installed at 482 Louisiana ave- nue N.W. in 1863, was connected MAY 26, 1940 —PART ONE. with 25 fire alarm boxes, had & two- circuit switchboard and served four fire stations, 1t was recalled. The city now has more than 1,200 fire alarm boxes, but, due to the growth in population, the city is “badly” in need of “many more,” Supt. Priede said. Many Lives Will Be Saved. “Many lives and property that will be saved by adequate fire protection in fature years,” Mr. Friéde said, “can be attributed tc the Commis- sloners’ foresight and - efforts in meking the new fire alarm system the finest in the United States.” Among District officials who are invited, to attend the dedicatory ceremonies tomorrow are Commis- sioners John Russell Young and Col. David McCoach,. jr.; Assistant LEngineer Commissioner Patrick H. Tansey, A. W. Crossley, chief engi- neer for the District un its P. W. A. program; Highway Director H. C. Whitehurst and Fire Marshal Cal- vin G. Lauber. A machinery plant in Leningrad, Russia, claims it now has 180,000 volumes in its library. ORDINATION Gifts and greeting cards. Gallery & Co., 718 Eleventh St. N.W. Uninstructed Slate For Washington G. O. P. By the Associated Press. TACOMA, May 25—The Wash- ington State Republican Convention voted tonight to send an unin- structed delegation to the national convention at Philadelphia. The convention adopted a resolu- * AT tion directing the 18 delegates to work co-operatively with the dele- gations from Oregon, Idaho, Mon- tana and Wyoming in supporting “such measures as may be deemed for the best interests of the five Northwest States.” It added, how- ever, “said delegation shall not.be committed to further the interests of any candidate for the presi- dency.” R~ We’re Being Talked About —but can't help it if several thousand customers say complimentary things about our fuel oil delivery service, and that’s why each year many new cus- tomers come to us—so if you want “tops” in fuel oil service—service with that “extra something”—you can have it by signing one of our fuel oil con- tracts now, so write or phone NAtional 3068. John P. Agnew & Co,, Inc.,, 714 13th St. NW. 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