The Key West Citizen Newspaper, December 28, 1954, Page 1

Key West, Florida, has the most equable climate in the country, with an average range of only 14° Fahrenheit VOL, LXXV No, 307 THE SOUTHERNMOST NEWSPAPER KEY WEST, FLORIDA, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 1954 IN THE U.S.A. Navy Confirms Citizen Story ‘or Quick Communication, Use CLASSIFIED Ads! Youll teach buyers and sellers— tenants or workers . . . Just DIAL 2-5661 or 2.5662 Today The city commis PRICE FIVE CENTS City To Confer With Engineers For Electric Co. Commission Discusses Higher Tax Payments ion will confer with the engineers On Water Line for the City Electric System before they decide on the | Talks Slated On amount of increased revenue they will ask from the city« THE SS CUBA RETURNS—The P and O Steamship Co. announced today that they will place the SS Cuba in operation between Key West, Tampa and Havana Jan. 24, Named for a famed P and O cruise ship that plied out.of Key West in pre-World War II days, the SS Cuba was formerly the SS Denali. Ship carries 200 passengirs and has deluxe accommodations. Clyde-Mallory Dock Use Still Sought By P & O Lang Tells Commissioners Of Talks With Company Officials By JIM COBB The P & O Steamship Co. has re-opened negotia- tions with the city for rental of the Clyde-Mallory dock. That information was revealed at a special meeting of the city commission Monday when City Manager Vic- tor Lang reported that he has conferred with company of- ficials who want to use the dock as a passenger terminal for their Key West-Havana-Tampa operations scheduled Reluctant Driver Is Identified By Sheriff’s Dept. ‘The driver who wrecked the 1954 ea: of another man and who re- fused to divulge his name has been identified as Vernon Drew, 26, of Temple, Texas, the sheriff's department said yesterday after- hoon. Drew is in the James Archer Smith Hospital at Homestead with a broken right ankle, He was driving a car owned by Feliciano Gonzalez, 59, of Gran- ville, N. Y., when the car over- turned three times near Lake Sur- prise at 3 a, m. Sunday, A passenger in the car, Albert F. Pfund, 31, a former La Concha Hotel busboy, is in-the same hos- pital with multiple cuts anc bruis- es. Both men were thrown from the speeding car when it flipped into @ mangrove swamp, Drew refused to give officers his mame. However, a check of his fingerprints with the FBI indenti- fied him. e SUICIDE RECORD TOKYO (i#—The Welfare Minis- try reported today more than: 20,- 000 Japanese committed suicide in 1954—a national record. TONY'S RESTAURANT © 808 SIMONTON STREET Will Be Open Thursday, December 30 Closed New, Year's Di to start Jan. 24. The proposed plan, Lang said, is for the city to make minimum repairs to the dock, with the shipping company sharing the cost. Earlier, the company had indi- cated that they would operate from the Gulf Oil Terminal, but they now say that the high cost of fuel here has ruled out that possibility. Fueling Question The plan was for the ship to dock free of charge in return for an exclusive fueling contract, but Capt. Robert F. Lord, P and O marine superintendent, said today in Mia- mi that oil can be purchased much cheaper in Tampa. E City Manager Lang said that in- stead of a full-scale repair job to the dock, a ramp would be con- structed at a cost much lower than the earlier $50,000 estimate. ; He added that an estimate will be submitted to the shipping com- pany today for their consideration. Ship Renamed Meanwhile, P and 0O officials have announced that the ship mak- ing the run will bear the name of another famed cruise ship which operated out of Key West in pre- World War II days — the SS Cuba. The re-christened SS Cuba is the former SS Denali, recently acquir- ed from the Alaska Steamship Co. The twin-screw radar equipped ocean liner accomodates approxi- mately 200 passengers, offering lux- uriously appointed staterooms, spa- cious cocktail lounge and dining salon and expansive promenade} and sports decks. | P and O officials have enthus- | iastically expressed the belief that | their new operation will be a re- sounding success. “The heavy influx of winter vi- (Continued on Page Two) End of Year CLEARANCE SALE THESE TRANSPORTATION SPECIALS GOOD UNTIL JANUARY 1, 1955 From $10 to $250 33 TO GO AT THESE PRICES! Monroe Motors A-1 Used Car Lot CORNER SIMONTON AND GREENE STREETS City Defers Action On Proposed Study, The city commission mov- ed last night to give further study to a proposal to have a survey conducted of two local governmen‘al functions by a national firm of experts in municipal administration. City manager Victor Lang pre- sented a proposal to the commis sion from the Publie Administra- tion Service, a non - profit firm which offers techinical assistance to governmental agencies on the local, state and national level. Particular Fields Lang said that he is particularly interested in having studies con- ducted of the finance department and of the city’s civil service ad- ministration. The firm has offered to do the job on a cost basis, with the total price not to exceed $4,500. The firm would conduct a comprehensive survey of the city government and submit recommendations for need- ed changes. The city manager pointed out that the studies would be valuable in the development of newer and more efficient methods of admin- istering the city’s financial needs. Important Points He added that with a new set of civil service rules slated to go into effect shortly, a program of job classification and pay plans is im- portant. “It will be difficult to adminis- ter the new rules without such a study,” said Lang. * ity Finance Director John Day also recommended the city take advantage of the plan, citing the huge financial growth of the city as the reason. Commissioner Delio Cobo then moved that the city manager con- tact other cities in Florida to de- termine the worth of the program. Lang had earlier pointed out that most Florida cities have made use of the service in the past. _ James H. Mendel Jr., M.D. Ear - Nose - Throat Specialist WILL BE WERE FOR CONSULTATION TUESDAY, JAN. 4 For Appointments Call... Dr. J. A. Valdes TELEPHONE 2-7821 Man Wages Fight For Life A 56-year-old Key West grocer continued to wage a battle for life today in Monroe General Hospital as police questioned a sus- pect in his Christmas Day stabbing. Physicians said that the condition of the man, Elmer Del Pino, of 313 Truman Ave., remained critical. He was stabbed six times in the stomach and chest by an unidentified Negro early Saturday in a robbery attempt as he prepared to open his grocery store for business. sailant. Del Pino told police that he did not recognize his as- Police Chief Bienvenido Perez said today that a man who said that he came to Key West only a week ago from Georgia is being held in the city jail for, questioning in connection with the attack. “But Del Pino is Gift List To Be Announced Soon A list of gifts for the first baby born here in 1955 is ex- pected to be announced Wednes- day or Thursday, Harold Laub- scher, Chamber of Commerce manager, said today. Last year, Key West mer- chants put up 28 gifts for the. new year's first baby and his Parents. The first baby born here in 1954 was Mark Lawrence Mil- ler who weighed in at seven pounds, eight ounces one min- ute after midnight Dec. 31. He was born in the clinic of Dr. Aubrey H. Hamilton, 622 Eaton. His parents arr Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Victor Miller of Big Pine Key. Rapist Sought In Tallahassee TALLAHASSEE (#—Sheriff’s in- vestigators and police today dog- gedly tracked down all possibie leads in an effort to catch the man who raped a 16-year-old girl here Sunday night. The victim, who apparently tainted when the attacker seized her as she passed a vacant lot in a subdivision at the outskirts of the city, was able to tell investiga- tors only that ‘‘he was a tall man.” Sheriff Bill Joyce said he had a score of odds and ends to work out but nothing resembling an im- portant clue. The victim was said to be re covering satisfactorily. Plan Your New Year’s Eve Celebration still too weak to be confronted with the man | to see if he recognizes im” sai’ the Chict. * Slain Man | Found As Cops ‘Probe Mishap PHILADELPHIA (#—Police in- vestigating a minor auto accident early today found the assistant rec- tor of Old St. Peter's Episcopal church brutally beaten to death in his bachelor apartment. Patrolmen Joseph Nicholl and Meyer Weise said the body of the Rev, Dr. Benjamin H. Bissell, 59, was clad only in a T-shirt when they found him sprawled on a bed in the apartment about 3 a.m. Doc- tors said later he had been dead about an hour. Placed under police guard at Jefferson Hospital was James Mor- rison, 26, who police said had been released from prison three months ago after serving a term for burglary. Morrison, according to Nicholl and Weise, was removed from the wreckage of a small English sedan that skidded on a downtown street corner and crashed into a brick wall a few blocks from the church and Dr. Bissell’s apartment about 2:30 a.m. They quoted Morrison as saying he had been drinking last night, ! could not remember what hap-| pened but thought he had been injured in a fall. Morrison was suffering from cuts of the head, hands and face and a back injury. Police searching the wrecked car fuund cards indicating it was owned by Dr. Bissell. They also found a clergyman’s white and rurple stole, and a wristwatch| with its leather strap torn. Watch! and strap were bloodstained. It} was after these discoveries that} Possible Purchase Of Water System By DENIS SNEIGR The Navy at Key West today confirmed an exclu- sive Citizen story of Dec. 16 that the Aqueduct Commis- sion wants to buy the water pipeline from the: Navy. Aqueduct Commission and Navy men will meet here the morning of Feb. 4. The meetings will be on the sec- ond , of the administration building on the Navy Base. Preliminary Meet The negotiations here will only be preliminaries. A final okay must come from Washington Naval au- thorities. Mpmbers of the Aqueduct Com- mission, including Earnest Ram- sey, manager, and Alonzo Cothron, chairman, will attend, The Navy will be represented by Cdr. J. W. Schwartz, public works officer, and men from Wash- ington — Cdr. William E. David- son, Hamilton Treadway, and L. B. Lanhart. Cdr. Peter Corradi, public works officer of the Sixth Naval District, also may attend the meetings. The commission, it was report- ed, want to buy the line that sup- plies Key West and the other keys with water in order to plan for fur- ture expansion. Keys Building Boom The keys are exerpeincing an un- precendented building boom building permits are expected to hit $5,000,000 this year — and more water is certain to be needed. Cothron said that if the commis- sion can buy the line from the Na- (Continued on Page Two) Wanted For Xmas A local business man coughed too close to the ocean and his partial plate of teeth went fly- ing into the water. The mishap occurred down by the shrimp boat docks on Christmas Eve. Fred Stephenson, after hear- ing of the man’s plight, spent almost an hour using a diving lung to locate the teeth in the mud bottom. Stephenson said the owner was very delighted to have the plate found and said very clearly, “Merry Christmas.” NOW APPEARING officers went to Dr. Bissell’s apart-| ment. | Homicide detective Henry Brown said Dr. Bissell had been beaten} about the head and face, apparent- | lv with fists, and possibly smoth- lered by the pillow which partly | jeovered his face. Bed covers were | | pulled to the foot of the bed. EGG NOG Available Every Day at the ADAMS DAIRY Telephone 2-7542 at the CASA MARINA BETTY MADIGAN Famous M.G.M. Singing Star ++. ALSO... Joe CANDULLO and HIS BAND Nitely for Dancing RESERVATIONS NOW BEING ACCEPTED FOR New Year's Eve Members of the Florida Keys { owned utility. fathers when they met to di ping the company’s $18,000 New Navy Unit To Be Based Here The Navy’s Underwater Photo Unit will be transferred to Key West from Washington shortly | after the first of the year, it was | learned today, Ledr. Charles A. Hooper is the officer in charge of the unit. The unit, formerly known as the Navy’s Underwater Photo ; Team, was composed of three men and Ledr. Hooper, However, it is being expanded into a unit and will include camera and el- ectronic technicians as well as well as diver-photographers. Fickle Fortune Fails To Foul Seaman Fate MIAMI BEACH #—Dale Fate, seaman aboard the USS Sea Poach- er, Key West, continued to his home in Rochester, Minn., today but he doesn’t plan to pick up any stran- gers along the way. Fate started out Saturday with leave papers and $120 in his pocket. {He and a buddy picked up a hitchhiker and arrived here early Sunday. As Fate explained, they decided to take a nap in the car and the hitchhiker, identified by Detective Early Mackey as Robert Arthur Lynch, a piano player from Inter- national Falls, Minn., Said police might fine them sleeping in the car and that would be bad for him, a civilian. Services Offered Lynch explained he’d be jailed for vagrancy since he had no mon- ey and offered to keep Fate’s mon- ey in his pocket. Fate and his buddy awoke at & a. m., but Lynch was gone. So was Fate’s $120. Lynch was found asleep in a hotel room and Mackey said he admitted taking the sailor’s money; that he said he had just been released from the Minnesota Penitentiary after serving three years for armed robbery. Judge Lawrence Hoffman ordered Lynch to pay a fine of $100 o: serve 30 days for larceny by trick. He also gave Lynch 15 days for failing to register as a criminal. Fate reclaimed $114. New Year's Eve DANCE AMERICAN LEGION HOME STOCK ISLAND 10 P.M. ‘til “?” Admission: $1.00 Per Person RESERVATIONS CALL 2-7912 AFTER 12 NOON That decision was arrived at ] t night by the city SCUSS Ways and means of up. payment in lieu of taxes. Commissioners have been smarting under the terms of a bond ordinance authoriz- ing the flat $18,000 payment although the electric com- pany has grown by leaps and bounds, with a resultant increase in profits. That the city actually loses mon- ey each year, was pointed up when it was revealed that they pay near- ly $25,000 to the utility for electrie service annually. Last Night's Action Last night, the commissioners moved to meet the engineers, with R. S. Beck and Associates, before deciding on how much of an in- crease they will ask for when a $4,200,000 bond issue is authorized for needed expansion of the city’s power producing facility Only chance the city has of pat- ting an increased revenue is for a $3,500,000 outstanding bonded in- debtedness of the company to be refinanced and combined with the new bond issue. Commissioners also expressed the opnion that a substantially low~ er interest rate could be obtains ed on a $7,800,000 “package deal.” Chief bone of contention last night, was the question of whether or not the city should ask for an annual increase of a flat sum or should ask for a percentage of the |firm’s gross revenue or profit, Lump Payment City Manager Victor Lang ad- vocated a lump payment, saying that in the event of a rate drop or increased cost of production of electricity, the city would receive a smaller payment. Mayor C. B. Harvey proposed a plan to use the additional revenue for needed municipal improvements such as a city hall or auditorium, He suggested setting up a “priori- ty list” for such improvements. | “We just won’t get the improve- | ments out of present revenues — | we’ve got to find some other way ” | commented the Mayor. | Then, Commissioner Louis Car- j bonell, suggested calling in the company engineers before setting a figure for the increase. His motion was passed unani- mously. |ACTION TAKEN TO 24 RECOVER $1,650 Cecil Carbonell has started court action against Joseph M. Cabrera to collect $1,650 and costs owed to Carbonell on a promissory note, according to papers on file today in the office of Earl Adams, coun- ty clerk. The bill of complaint says the $1,650 was due February 12, 1954, | Interest was given at six per cent |per year. Jack A. Saunders is at- torney for Carbonell, Se , KITCHEN and BATH TILE BOARD at | Strunk Lumber i SIMONTON, near Aquarium Serving the Public To Day and Night, Service Starting 714 SIMONTON STREET CARIBBEAN CARRIERS ARMORED CAR SERVICE and From Your Bank, Except Sunday REASONABLE RATES—including 100 Percent Insurance and Bond Coverage—Certificates Furnished January 3, 1955 For Further Information, Call 2-6311 KEY WEST. FLORIDA