The Key West Citizen Newspaper, November 29, 1952, Page 9

Saturder, Novomber 29, 1952 THE KEY WEST CITIZEN Page 9 ee ISLAND PARADISE VISITED BY BOAT Confessions Of Former Czech Leaders Follow Set Pattern By JAMES MARLOW WASHINGTON ® — The con- fessions of the 14 former Czecho- slovak Communist leaders on trial in Prague revive an old question first brought up during the Mos- cow trials of the old Bolsheviks in the 1930s. Why do peuple on trial in Com- munist countries trot in like sheep and denounce themselves in open court with confessions they must know will send them to prison or to death to death? people brought to trial in Commv- nist countries, has never been gen- erally practiced by Communists this side of the curtain. When the leaders of the Ameri- NOW'S § 132 is STRUNK LUMBER. YARD 120 Simonten St. PHONE 816 can Communist party, for exam- ple, were tried in New York a couple of years ago they not only confessed nothing but seemingly tried to make the tria! a night- mare for the judge and the gov- ernment. They were aided in this by the difference in legal systems. Here, where a mar has tc be proven guilty, their lawyers were in court to defend them. In Prague it is the obligation of the defense law- yers to help on the prosecution, In a book still talked about— Arthur Koestler’s ‘Darkness at Noon”—an attempt was made to explain why a veteran Communist who had fallen from grace would condemn himself for offenses he did not commit. The explanation, in brief, went like this: No matter how rotten he might think Stalin’s leadership, the most important thing to the accused Communist is the eventu- al triumph of world ccmmunism. Therefore, instead of publicly condemning the regime which he earnestly thought was ruining cor. - munism, be would publicly con- demn himself for the sake of the party and his hope that maybe it could win out in the end. There are probably other less idealistic but more practical ex- planations for the trial confes- sions. Hypnotism has been suggested as one. Police terror sounds more likely, either through torture to extract compliance or threats of punishment for the accused man’s family and friends if he didn’t con- fess in open court. (Karl Radek, old Bolshevik and journalist, provided the classic ex- ample of the absurdity of these confessions during his Moscow trial in 1937. He made an extra- ordinary admission, undoybtedly with tongue in cheek, since he was said to be sardonic. (Radek said he pleaded guilty not only to all the crimes of which he stood accused but to all those of which he might be accused. He was reported to have been let off with a 10-year prison term. Some of his co-confessors were shot.) In the Prague trial the Commu- nists in power tipped their hands For Any Type of Building S. H. DRUDGE GENERAL CONTRACTOR Key West’s oldest, continuous contractor. Established 22 years. Over 700 contracts completed without a forteit. Including, Metel, Store fronts, Homes, Apartments, Reefing and Remodeling. $410 AVE E. 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They must realize from these examples that the life of a Communist lead- er is in more danger when his own party is in power, as in East- ern Europe, than when it isn’t, as here. Swiss Climbers Of Mt. Everest Still A Puzzle NEW DELHI, India (#—Hima- layan travel experts here have a favorite indoor sport these days-- trying to figure out whether the Swiss mountain climbing expedi- tion has succeeded in conquering Mount Everest. There has been no direct word for some time from the climbers and their native companions. The expedition sold exclusive news and photo rights in order to finance the try, and this may have some- thing to do with the present lack of news. Some veterans of travel in the Himalayas believe the Swiss team has already made its first try at beating the subzero temperatures and bone - chilling winds of the world’s tallest mountain, the sum- mit of which no man has ever reached and lived to tell about it. Others say the infrequent reports indicate the team is taking plenty of time, selecting safe routes and j avoiding any waste of energy and supplies in a determined effort to conquer the more than 29,000 feet high mvuntain. One native with the team has been killed and three others injured thus far. That is proof of how tough it is to climb across Ever- est’s snowswept icy heights. The puzzler is the report brought back by a native runner on Nov. 16 saying the team had estabiished a station only 150 feet from the top. But that report was nine days old when i* was received. Since then there has been no public word from the expedition. NO RUSSIAN WHEAT $ EXCHANGE FOR ISRAEL TEL AVIV (® — The Israel gov- ernment is not able to import Rus- sians wheat in exchange for ci- trus fruit, according to a foreign office spokesman here. It was stated that the wheat price asked by the Soviet autho- rities “was considerably higher than that which Israel pays under the International Wheat Agreement or on the free world market.” Residential Building Record For 1952 Is Seen By Experts 1953 MAY NOT EQUAL IT, HOUSING EXPERTS STATE By T. E. APPLEGATE (For SAM DAWSON) NEW YORK @~—It now appears certain 1952 will see the starting of the second largest number of housing units in history. Through October ‘‘starts” on non -farm residential units ran about 15,000 ahead of the first 10 months last year. This year’s total will fall far short of 1950's record 1,396,000 units, but is expected to exceed the 1,088,800 started in 1951. It seems 1953 may be a different story. Predictions that this year’s vol- ume will be exceeded are rare, al- though many, including leading economists and home building leaders, think the 1953 total will top the million-unit mark for the fifth successive year. Some however, take « more cau- tious view. They report that in many sec- tions home buyers are becoming more price-conscious, with build- ers having greater difficulty sell- ing homes above $12,500. And they say the building of more than 4% million housing units in the past four years has been more than adequate to meet residential needs. George W. Warnecke, head of the New York mortgage invest- ment firm bearing his name, said these factors would combine with general economic trends to hold 1953 housing starts below a million. He anticipates a sharp but short drop late next year which may “shake out” most of the speculative home builders and wipe out owners of both large and small properties who have over-extended them- selves financially, Warnecke sees no really sus- tained depression in sight. Nor does he think the setback will have much effect on over-all construc- tion and building volume in 1953. Judging by inquiries as to financ- ing, the New York mortgage fi- nancier said, a large volume of supermarkets, apartment build- ings, various types of warehouses and other structures is in an ad- vanced planning stage and will proceed regardless of an economic upset. However, such a recession could cause the dropping of some plans for 1954. His firm services some 300 mil- lion dollars of mortgages for lead- ing insurance companies. Warnecke sees 1953 as another year of stiffening interest rates, with mortgage lenders restricting commitments to really prime in- vestment opportunities. This in it- self would put a brake on any runaway activity in building. A tightening up of mortgage loan Portfolios, he says, will enable pru- dent institutional investors to with- stand a pretty severe market shock, if one comes. Contributing to probable severity of any recession in real estate, Warnecke says, is the fact that many new home owners have not firmly established their earning capacity and may not have the “will to scrape and pinch to pay | the mortgage charges and to hang | on at all costs.” And he suspects that day-to-day living costs are absorbing more | of personal incomes than they did in the late 1920s, The liners Queen Mary and Queen | Elizabeth are built partly of scraps from the German battle fleet sunk | in Scapa Flow after World War I. | The Royal Palms | APARTMENTS Accepting Applications Now | Furvished and Unfurnished Mark Rhodes’ Estate Near Summerland Key Keeps Him Busy By SUSAN MCAVOY Howell Key, 22 miles north- east of Key West, just off Summer- land Key is a ten acre island which has recently been renamed the Isle of Mark Time. Mark .H. Rhodes, timing device magnet who invented the parking meter, the cooking timer, and timers for switch controls in in- dustry chose this Key for his year- round life-time home after canvas- sing the globe by boat, plane and train to find the perfect place. “I found it here,” said that red- haired invertor-entrepreneur. We had planned to call on Sheriff Berlin Sawyer who occupies a third of Howell’s Key with his own home. The Sheriff’s outboard however, was docked at Johnston’s point, which meant that the Sheriff was not over at ‘his Island home. Mrs. Henry Hudgins, Henry Clay, and John, her boys Skipper Ed. Gibson and I cruised over from Johnston’s point in his cruiser the Mary King, to’ the Key which is about one mile off Summerland Key. As we neared Isle of Mark Time we could see the figures of Mr. and Mrs. Rhodes moving through their second deck gless enclosed living room. We had not planned to stop. Rhodes, however, leaped out on the bank at: the small turning basin and motioned vigor- ously for us to pull in. Ed looked dubiously at the water wondering if it would be deep enough for the Mary King which draws two and one-half feet, and at the size of the minute turning basin. He brought her in perfectly while Rhodes grabbed the lines and made her fast. Mrs. Rhodes, an attractive au- burn-haired lady greeted us as we stepped off on the Island. Within the first five minutes 1 learned that instead of spending harried weekends at this Island home, she and Mark Rhodes live here year round. He has retired from the prospering business in Hartford which produces the tim- ing devices which have made Rhodes Timers household words throughout the country. Retired is hardly the word for Rhodes’ present status. He has worked as hard finishing the pour- ed concrete, concrete block two deck house on his Island as if he were still directing his 400 em- ployees in Hartford in the manu- facture of Rhodes’ timers. Mrs. Rhodes explained her ban- daged finger. “T’'ve been putting a new roof on the house. Don’t ever let any- one sell you an aluminum roof. It leaks. We have had to put on} an entirely new roof. We hired a man to do it. He came one day and then didn’t show up for a month. We decided to do it our- selves. At least we'll know it’s | done right.” | So with the materials and tools Mrs. Rhodes has been climbing to the flat roof every day and roofing her house with a combina- tion of cheese cloth, cement and other items. It sounded complex to me, but she assured me that she had gotten the knack of it. Rhodes fertile mind is match- | ed by artisans hands. The mag- nificent cabinet work in the huge glass jalousied living room is all | the product of Rhodes’ two years | of loving labor on his home. | “I planned and dreamed of this! house for 15 years,”’ the volatile inventing genius told me. I'm try-, ing to put into it all the time savers, space savers that I made/ industrially for 20 years.” | Rhodes’ phenomena! success in the timer business dates back to 1930 when he started single hand- ed to invent and manufacture his timers. Today they co: than 100 models and are used in thousands of products. His park- ing meters are in use in Key West and 450 cities of this coun- try. A southerner by birth, Rhodes headed for the south from New | England when it came time to re- tire. “I chartered boats and looked over land in the Bahamas, in the West Indies, all over. When I found this I knew it was what Ij} wanted.” The living room which occupies the re second deck faces the southeast so that on summer da , it catches any fugiti room and six foot tiled bath tub, The room hes double decked bunks. Proudly Rhodes told me that he has fitted every comfort and con- venience in the house into 850 square feet, The kitchen which ig rated from the living room ave by a low counter, has vegetable storage space, a small - tor, stove, sink and work space. A deep freeze down stairs holds the bulk of the Rhodes A storage closet for canned on the first floor opens to floor of the kitchen through a just high enough for No.2 upright, and other cans on side. Rhodes raced down the ana sa four or fiv opening to prove the convenience of e* The inventor has buried his waste baskets in special built in cabinets which close automatical- ly. All Rhodes’ closet deors clese automatically, because of the per- fect balance he has worked out. And being a timing genius, the.. doors do not close until Mrs. Rhodes has pulled out the gre- ceries or dishes that she needs. Lining the walls of the living room are two couches, a built-in ae built in bookshelves, a desk, and more storage cabinets, done in a blonde wood. . ras The couches, Rhodes explained, are part of his ideal house. “Té I don’t feel like sitting up- right after dinner I can flop down on one of them without having to go to my bed room, Foam rubber on the chairs and beds ELECTRICAL CONTRACTING Ketchings Eleciric 7s Years Experience .. Service Day er Nigh? All Work Guaranteed FREE ui iP AND DELIVERY P. ©. BOX 631 PHONE 2206-W KEY WEST, FLA. $$$ RRR, THE PAINT WITH EVERYTHING SATIN Lbumimatt | With Satie Leminof the job bn done | whee other points hove jet began. 3 a couple of skiffs to take the|much as I love to fish. You see Rhodes back and forth to the Keys | there’s so much I want to do on for shopping. Next week they'll | the house, and the garder and the grounds, I don’t know when I'll have an inboard boat. This would get time to fish.” Time does not mark on the Isle of Mark Time for Mark Rhodes “TI hate to see the boat come, jor his wife. RENOVATE! FOR A GALA HOLIDAY! M. E. BENNETT CONSTRUCTION CO. RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION ... REPAIRS PREE BSTIMATES ARCHITECTURAL SERVICE AVAILABLE 214 DUVAL PHONE 2187 Key West Floor Covering Co. ANNOUNCES A Complete Stock of Armstrong Vinofloor Linoleum Also Kentile and Armstrong Asphalt, : Rubber and Cork Tile Formica and Plastic Wall Tile INSTALL IT YOURSELF or Expert Guaranteed Installation Call 1454 — For Free Estimate Key West Floor Covering Co. 182 DUVAL STREET Sl a i fl wh a is THe Cropical reves a 1s THE Copical TOUCH! Leading decorators everywhere ore todey touch for the trend toward cr wol tropical decor. Oun ore mode to order for us by Miami's Magic City ... your assurance of the best voive in each quolity. They cre unconditionally guorenteed egcinst demage by bomboo beetles ond wood insect, specially trected to resist mildew ond color-fading, and the best grades come com Precision - made te fit your windews perfectly ... cheese from decerater inspired colers ... either matching er contrasting tepes. plete with riveted, bross-finished dropery hooks eolor, too. Come in today ... ond let us show you how fittie # costs to modernize with these wonder- fal, practical drapes! KEY WEST x th ee 2 €or VENELiAN BLIND C0. 1m OUVAL STREET PHONE 1082 Louver Windews—Sterm Stops—isioviics—Leuver Deors Aluminum — Gloss — Weed coat frishes wolls ond wagaibort = 2 Bedroom Apartments aster bedroom of the house ground floor next to the) @wy sem Pima, tect m Eoment te epply. 1 lovette! Ter epoote! GALLON $5.25 Qu RT e & 4,000 gallon capacity cistern. r for the Rhodes establish- ment comes from the rain supply, caught on the roof, and stored into the cistern. When we were there Sunday, $1.65 Rhodes was cementicg miniature H itd Se sr| PIERCE BROS, aitholes of gt yee gre whieh oc- cupies almost all of the first story of the house. These will be paint- onqes a0 ed white when finished to match) Ger. Fleming and Glizebeth Sts. the rest of the white house FIRST STREET and PATTERSON AVENUE PHONE US POR FREE ESTIMATE The Maxwell Company 99? Pieming &. Phone 682