The Mercedes News (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 5, No. 53, Ed. 1 Friday, May 25, 1928 Page: 1 of 10

                                
YOUR EYES
—and Your Kfiic.ency
Glasses Properly
Fined
J. M. Reynolds
Jeweler and
Optoeromist
©He ptercefces items
Tuesday Morning and Friday Morning
Texas Delegation
At Houston to Be
For Prohibition
Moody Wins Spectacular
Victory at State
Convention
In one of the stormiest state demo-
cratic conventions in Texas history,
Governor Dan Moody, Wednesday at
Beaumont, won his fight against the
Smith democrats and assured a Texas
delegation at the national convention
in Houston pledged to a dry candi
date and a dry platform. Governor
Moody's victory came after he had
been placed in one of the most diffi-
cult positions of his tempestuous
political career, and one that made
his decision practically certain of
losing him state political support
that has backed him since he first
entered politics.
p. Scenes of wildest confusion pre-
vailed late Wednesday afternoon,
with friends of the governor joining
in the hecklers attacking him. The
crest was reached during a vote to
determine by what method the con-
vention should pick its delegates to
the national gathering.
Earlier in the day the governor
won a victory against the forces
seeking to instruct by name against
A1 Smith, and had stated that he was
in favor of having each congressional
district choose its own delegates.
John Boyle, Smith leader, and a
strong political backer of Governor
Moody, sponsored this plan.
Faced with the possibility of hav-
ing the Smith adherents gain control
of the Houston delegation, if the
candidates were named by each dis-
trict, Moody came out on the con-
vention floor in favor of a commit-
tee naming the delegates, this com-
mittee to be named by the chairman.
Amid much wrangling, speech mak-
ing, and scenes of the wildest con-
fusion, the convention voted with the
governor to have the committee make
the selections. Additional rancor
was injected into the situation when
the Governor made a speech, after
halting the roll call on the proposi-
tion, this speech coming at a time
^ when victory did not seem so sure.
Governor Moody will be chairman
of the 24 delegates at large at the
having one-sixth of a vote each,
national convention, these delegates
making four votes to add to the 36
from the 18 congressional districts of
the state.
The Valley will have direct repre-
sentation at the national convention
at Houston with the naming of W.
R. Montgomery as delegate from
this congressional district and Mrs.
A. Y. Baker as alternate delegate at
large. H. P. Hornby of Uvalde, A.
P. Johnson of Carrizo Springs and
Mary P. Weller of Benavides were
the alternates from this district.
The following district delegates
were named by the committee with
two alternates in each district. The
alternates are not given here.
1.—W. J. Pollard, Paris; Grover
Sellers, Sulphur Springs.
2*—A. A. Seale, Nacogdoches; K.
W. Denman, Lufkin.
3. —M. L. Cox, Cannon; E. B. Al-
ford, Henderson.
4. —M. M. Muse, McKinney; E. F.
Blakely, Bonham.
5. —George C. Purl, Dallas; John
Sharpe, Ennis.
6. —J. E. Bradley, Groesbeck; W.
R.    Howell, Corsicana.
7. —Adam Cone, Palestine; E. R.
Cheeseborough, Galveston.
3.—Alvin S. Moody, Houston; Miss
Florence Sterling, Houston.
9. —W. T. Demming, Gonzales; W.
S.    Munson, Ankleton.
10.    H. N. Graves, Georgetown;
Fred Blundell, Lockhart.
11*—J* R- McLellan,. Gatesville;
W. M. Sleeper, Waco.
12. —Tom W. Hines, Venus; Carl
Crowley, Fort Worth.
13. —-Grady    Woodruff, Decatur;
Homer Latham, Bowie.
14. —A. J. Wirtz, Seguin; R. J.
Boyle, Bexar.
15-—H. P. Hornby, Uvalde; W. R.
Montgomery, Edinburg.
16. —R. E. Sherman, E. Paso; L.
L. Farr, San Angelo.
17. —F. M. Newman, Brady; E. D.
Gatlin, Breckenridge.
18. —Grover B. Hill, Potter City;
G. E. Hamilton, Motley County.
The majority committee platform
adopted by the convention was fea-
tured by the prohibition principles
urged by Governor Moody, and
called for strict enforcement of the
state and national liquor laws and
favored presidential candidates in
sympathy with the plank. The plat-
form also covered fully the follow-
ing salient points:
Condemnation of the growth of
federal powers and the “consequent
diminution of the rights and powers
of the several states,” the “multipli-
cation of bureaus, which results in
governmental extravagance and en-
genders corruption,” and “is build-
ing up under the fostering care of
the republican party a highly cen-
(Continued on page 6.)
Mercedes Boy Given
Recognition by Rice
Institute for Work
Menton Murray of Mercedes, man-
aging editor during the past year of
the Thresher, Rice Institute student
publication, was presented with a
gold R and Quill pin, at the publica-
tion banquet held Thursday night in
Houston. Dr. Lovett, president of
Rice Institute, made the presentation.
This pin is the highest award pos-
sible for the school to make for jour-
nalistic work done by a student dur-
ing the year.
The Rice publication has the fol-
lowing to say regarding Menton in
a recent issue:
“Menton Murray ends a brilliant
journalistic career at Rice this year.
Were it not for the fact that he is
entering the law school of Texas uni-
versity next fall Menton would natur-
ally succeed to the position of editor-
in-chief of the Thresher. As manag-
ing-editor of the 1927-28 Thresher he
filled the position which has always
been the training ground for the next
term's editor. It is a job which com-
mands little in the way of remunera-
tion and much in the way of drudg-
ery. Fully cognizant that he was
never to enjoy the final fruits of his
labors, Menton’s unfailing devotion
of time and energy to the Thresher
easily made him one of the publica-
tion’s leading forces during the past
year. In Menton Murray, Texas
university falls heir to a most cap-
able journalist, a tireless worker,
and a man who does things and does
them well.”
Partial Schedule o< Nn Tariff. RkmtcI Herr | REDUCED FREIGHT RATES
SEEM ASSURED BY TARIFFS
JUST RECEIVED IN VALLEY
Kansas City1,
St. Louis .
Washington
Cabbage
Tomatoes
Beets & Carrots
Old
New
Old
New
Without Tops.
Old    New
119
89
159
13
126
89
144%
122 j
164
155
151%
122
112
84 j
146y2
106
120%
84
112
97 |
131
123
119
97
116
106 |
138
134
123
106
84
79    |
91
100
91
79
109%
94    |
128
119
116%
94
77
80 j
84
101
84
80
75
69    |
82
87
82
69
84
86 |
91
109
91
86
140
113    |
159
143
147
113
Veto of Farm Relief
Will Aid Democratic
Chance in November
Thought Here That Re-
publicans Will Lose
Middle West States
DIRT BROKEN FOR
$12,500 LEGION
BUILDING HERE
Ceremonies, befitting the occasion,
marked the breaking of ground for
the new American Legion $12,500
building in Queen City Annex Tues-
day morning. Before many mem-
bers of the post present Mrs. J. A.
Garcia, mother of the Mercedes boy
who was killed in France, and after
whom the post was named, turned the
first spade of dirt for the building.
E. H. Poteet made a short talk.
Other ceremonies under direction of
H. E. Sugg, post commander, com-
pleted the program.
-o-
Valley Vegetables In
Terminal Markets Will
Be Seen in Pictures
Motion pictures, showing how fruits
and vegetables from the south and
west are handled for distribution in
Boston and vicinity, will be shown
at the grammar school auditorium
Tuesday evening, under the direction
of W. J. Fillingim of Atlanta, Ga.,
representative of the New York, New
Haven and Hartford railroad.
In order that one meeting will
serve for the Mercedes unit of the
Rio Grande Valley Egg Association
and the showing of the picture the
two meetings will be held together,
the association meeting to immedi-
ately follow the showing of the pic-
ture.
The picture should prove interest-
ing to the fruit and vegetable grow-
ers of the Valley, since many carloads
of Valley products go through the
large terminal market shown in the
picture.
President Coolidge’s veto of the
McNary-Haugen farm relief bill was
the subject of wide discussion in and
about Mercedes yesterday. The con-
census of opinion was that the ac-
tion will materially enhance the
prospect of a Democratic victory in
the next presidential election, par-
ticularly if the Republicans nominate
Herbert Hoover for president.
Speculation centered very largely
on the reaction in the grain grow-
ing states which have sponsored this
bill and pushed it to passage through
both houses of congress. It was
doubted whether it could be 'passed
over the president’s veto. There was
no doubting the fact that in Demo®
cratic circles the veto met with a
great deal of rejoicing and a con-
siderable increase in the feeling that
a victory next November is not out-
side of the possibilities.
The way has been paved, it is be-
lieved, for democratic victories in
some of the middle western states,
notably Illinois where Chicago is ex-
pected to give the Democratic nomi-
nee a very large vote.
Comment by legislators, particu-
larly those favoring the bill, was dis-
cussed, particularly the statement by
Senator McNary, of Oregon, co-au-
thor of the measure, that the “mes-
sage indicates that the president is
unsympathetic with the farmer and
uninformed as to his problem.” Sen-
ator Robinson, of Arkansas, said the
message was “surprisingly intemper-
ate in view of the president’s tem-
perament.”
But the greater part of the dis-
cussion here centered around the ef-
fect it would have on Hoover’s can-
didacy. Many declared that in view
of the veto, the Republicans would
not dare nominate Hoover at Kan-
sas City. The prospects of Frank
O. Lowden for the nomination, have
been materially enhanced, it is be-
lieved.
The president vetoes the bill on the
following grounds:
“Its attempted price fixing fallacy.
“The tax characteristics of the
equalization fee.
“T h e widespread bureaucracy
which it would set up.
“Its encouragement to profiteering
City Prohibits
Distibution of
Circulars, Bills
Ordinance Effective at
Once; to Be Rigidly
Enforced
The distribution of handbills, cir-
culars and all other similar advertis-
ing matter, in the city of Mercedes, is
prohibited in the future by an ordi-
nance passed by the city council at its
meeting May 20 and which becomes
effective at once with publication in
this issue of the News.
The new ordinance is the same
standard ordinance passed by prac-
tically every other city in the Val-
ley and covers very fully every phase
of distributing advertising matter in
Mercedes.
The new ordinance provides that it
shall be unlawful to distribute, stick,
place or affix any paper, handbill, or
other printed or written matter in or
upon the public streets, alleys, side-
walks, curbs, parks or other public
grounds or appurtenances thereto, of
the city of Mercedes; or in or upon
any automobile, street marker, post,
electric light standard or pole, or oth-
er objects, whether moveable or im-
movable, and provides as punishment
a fine not less than $1 or more than
$100.
This ordinance or one similar had
been discussed numerous times by the
city council because of the many com-
plaints of home and automobile own-
ers of the muss created by circulars
and other matter left in cars, at the
home, and blowing on the streets and
in the yards. The beautification cam-
paign being conducted by the Busi-
ness and Professional Women’s club
has done much to improve the appear-
ance of the city and the council de-
cided that this would be a great help
to this club in their work to make
Mercedes a cleaner and more beau-
tiful city.
Decided improvement in the ap-
pearance of other Valley cities since
passing the ordinance has been noted,
particularly in Mission and McAllen,
where it is rigidly enforced.
Mayor J. E. Haynes has indicated
that the provisions of the ordinance
will be rigidly enforced and that after
this date all those violating the or-
dinance will be hailed into city court.
War Veterans Will
Attend Services In
Harlingen Sunday
Memorial day services will be
conducted in the Methodist church,
Harlingen, at 3 o’clock, Sunday aft-
ernoon, May 27, by the veterans of
all wars, under the auspices of Har-
lingen Post 205, American Legion,
and Arroyo Camp No. 36, of Har-
lingen, Spanish War Veterans.
Arrangements have been made for
suitable service, which will be ad-
dressed by Rev. W. E. Johnson, vicar
of St. Albans Episcopal church of
Harlingen, followed by Judge A. L.
Lewis of Harlingen, who will address
a few remarks to the American Le-
gion.
All veterans of all wars will as-
semble at the city hall in Harlingen
at 2:30 and from there march in a
body to the church. The public and
veterans of all wars are invited to
attend these services.
Honor Roll For
Last Semester of
School Announced
and wasteful distribution by middle-
men.
“Its stimulation of overproduction.
“Its aid to our foreign agricultural
competitors.”
There are thirty-six names on the
honor roll of the Mercedes schools
for the third six weeks of the second
term, according to announcement of
E. H. Poteet, superintendent of
schools. Ten of these, were in the
junior high school; six in the senior
high school; one in the south side
grammar school, and five in the north
side grammar school.
Those on the honor roll in high
school were Aurora Cavazos, Mary
Fisher, Jose Garcia, Nadine Lentz,
Daisy Lister, Fay Dell McAdams.
Junior high school:    Nannie Mae
Barnes, Eric Borchelt, Jessima Coun-
cil, Estella Cuellar, Rafaela Hinojosa,
Marguerite King, Richard Phelan,
Helen Teal Stotler, Virginia Sweeney,
Estelle Vann. South side grammar
school: Clarence Henry. North side
grammar school: Hilberto Artaego,
Florencia Flores, Abelina Galban,
Francisco Solis, Dora Villareal.
Only twelve students made the hon-
or roll for the entire second semester
of the 1927-28 term of school. They
were Mary Fisher, Jose Garcia and
Fay Dell McAdams of the high school;
Nannie Mae Barnes, Eric Borchelt,
Rafaela Hinojosa, Virginia Sweeney
and Estelle Vann of the junior high
school; Francisco Solis, north gram-
(mar school; Estelle Ashton, Clarence
Henry and Elizabeth Lingo of the
south grammar school.
Sixty-five students of the entire
school had perfect attendance records,
not being absent or tardy at all dur-
ing the entire school year. Eleven of
these were in the high school; twen-
ty-one in the junior high school; twen-
ty-five in the south side grammar
school; five in the north side gram-
mar school, and three in the Heidel-
burg school.
Egypt isn’t ready for a republic.
She thinks law officers shouldn’t butt
into private premises.
rize Wir ners in Yard Beautification Contest Announced
Intense interest evinced during the
winter and spring months in the city
beautification campaign staged for
the second time by the Business and
Professional Women’s club here
reached its culmination Tuesday
when judges visited the lawns en-
tered, and chose the prize winners.
Four first place yards in the ma-
jor contest were selected in the four
districts in which Mercedes had been
divided.
In district number one, which in-
cludes Hollywood and the Queen
City Annex, the prize winning yards
are:    Old yards, first place, Ray
Tolson; second place, A. N. Brown,
and third place, Paul West. New
yards, first place, John L. Bruce;
second place, Harry Lawson, and
third place, Harry Peters.
District number two, with Miss
Mary Gaddy as chairman, has the
following prize winners:    Old yards,
first place, Oscar Roman; second
place, John Herndon; third place,
William Shaw. New yards, first
place, John C. Jones; second place,
James Anderson, and third place, S.
H. Collier.
District number three, the district
advisers being Miss Mary Anne Ma-
kens and Miss Ettie Ivey, has for
prize winning yards:    Old yards, first
place, R. H. Smith; second place,
Phillip Schubert, and third place, J.
A. Glover. New yards: First place,
R. C. Brown; second place, A. Haus-
man, and third place, Max Hessel.
In the business property entries,
the Mercedes hotel lawn received
first place. In the church division,
the Methodist church received first
place. The junior high school won
first place in the school entries and
the vacant lot, owned by H. H. Gid-
dle won first place in vacant lot
entries.
Judges who made the decision
were M. Chandler of the Chandler
Nursery company of Edinburg, H.
L. Bonnycastle, landscape architect
of Weslaco, and Miss Kate Adele
Hill, Cameron county home demon-
stration agent, who are judging the
Edcouch contest this week.
Mercedes residents are urged to
visit the prize winning yards, and
to read stories which will be pub-
lished in Mercedes papers next Fri-
day, telling the good and bad points
of the yards, as seen by the judges.
Better care has been taken of the
lawns this year, in comparison to
last year, according to the judges,
who urge that Mercedes residents
take advantage of the expert advice
of a landscape architect furnished by
the Mercedes Business and Profes-
sional Women’s club.
In making a general criticism of
the lawns the judges advised against
cluttering the yard with too many
shrubs and flower beds, and the
planting of flowers around trees and
park ways, which does away with
the broad expanse of the lawn, neces-
sary to the beauty of the yard.
The neglect of the church proper-
ties was spoken of by the judges who
said that the well kept lawns of
churches mean much to the impres-
sion made upon tourists.
Of the 12 prize winning yards, the
yard of John Bruce, in the opinion
of all three of the judges more nearly
fulfilled the landscape architect’s idea
of beauty than any of the yards in
Mercedes. The view from every
angle, its spaciousness, amid the set-
ting of native trees and shrubs,
makes a prospect of much promise.
Features worthy of special com-
ment among the prize winning yards,
are the setting of the red hibiscus in
the yard of R. S. Tolson, this being
admirably suited to the architecture
of the house as is the sidewalk,
curved properly for the size of the
lot, the compact neatness of the
whole showing what can be done with
a medium sized plot.
The John Jones home carries on
the idea of the landscaping, being
designed to bring out the house.
While this Yard has but started, the
effect in the years to come will he
much what the Oscar Roman yard is
now. The judges made special men-
tion of the gradual working up of
the background of shrubs and trees
that forms a setting for the Roman
home. The wild olive tree in this
yard is especially beautiful.
The home of R. C. Brown in dis-
trict No. 3 showed a beautifully kept
lawn, the rose garden and sidewalk
arrangement making it a winner.
Others of the new yards, as Jas.
Anderson, Harry Lawson and Harry
Peters, are well landscaped and if
care is exercised in not putting too
many flowers and too much shrub-
bery in the lawn space, will be very
attractive yards.
There are some beautiful old yards
among the prize winners. The com-
petition is much keener in the class
as there are so many contesting.
In many cases the judges found
the selection of the prize winning
yard very difficult. Yards receiving
a high score were Jack Hawkins,
which showed beautiful cars, C. E.
Blankenship’s which is well land-
scaped, the Saladino home and the
Chadick apartments.
There are a number of other very
attractive yards, both old and new
that are showing very marked im-
provement as the months go by and
with continued effort some of them
will win prizes in future contests.
Undoubtedly there will be some
criticism as to the scoring of judges.
Their decisions both last year and
this have been a series of surprises
and more and more as people learn
the fundamentals of landscaping
they better understand why certain
yards won prizes when others
seemed so much prettier.
The winners of the prizes for
flower beds will be announced at a
later date as this contest does not
close until June 1st.
Publication Indicates No
Further Delay; Analy-
sis Impossible Until
Tariffs Completed; Re-
ductions to Open New
and Large Markets.
First copies of one section of the
new freight tariffs set up in the
Southwestern Consolidated rate deci-
sion of the Interstate Commerce
Commission have been received in
the Valley and additional copies of
this and other sections are expected
as fast as they come from the
printer. All “of the tariffs involved
in that part of the decision which
is to go into effect July 8 are ex-
pected to have reached the Valley not
later than next week. This relates to
tariffs on perishable commodities
into northern and eastern markets
and on farm machinery into this ter-
ritory and is that part of the deci-
sion which is of vital interest to the
Valley.
An analysis of the new rates is
not possible until all of the tariffs
have been received. There appears
elsewhere on this page, however, the
rates as they pertain to some of the
principal commodities which the Val-
ley ships. From this can be ob-
tained a general idea of the tenor of
the whole schedule.
There was no end of satisfaction
over the evidence that the rates are
being published as it is now pretty
well established that there will be
no further delay in making them ef-
fective. There already have been
several postponements with the con-
sent and order of the Interstate
Commerce Commission. That body
evidently is determined that it will
not grant further delay and the only
possibility of another holdup appears
to lie in appeal to the supreme court
by dissatisfied shippers or states.
Fight on New Rates
Public service commissioners of
southeastern states, at a recent
meeting, determined to fight the new
rates which they alleged discrimi-
nated against those other states and
even have threatened an appeal to
the United States supreme court. If
such action should be taken there
might be an endless delay as has
been the case with the lake cargo
coal cases. Valley shippers, how-
ever, are hoping that the court will
not suspend the rates pending a de-
termination of the case.
The new rates, it will be noted
from the adjoining table, give sub-
stantial decreases into eastern and
far northern points, while making
some increases to St. Louis and
Memphis. They will permit Valley
vegetables to go into many markets
from which they have been practical-
ly barred in the past and will mean
not only a wider market but a great
saving to Valley farmers.
Weight Hearing
A. B. Waldron, executive general
agent of the Missouri Pacific rail-
road, has been advised by the Inter-
state Commerce Commission that the
hearing on weights, which was
scheduled to be held at Harlingen
on June 1, has been postponed. He
will be advised later when this hear-
ing will take place. It relates to the
adoption of a standard method for
weighing cars of vegetables shipped
from the Valley.
50 Valley Firemen
Will Attend State
Convention in June
Final arrangements for the Valley
delegation to the state firemen’s con-
vention at Denton next month, work-
ed out at a meeting of district chiefs
and marshals here Monday night, in-
dicates that over 50 Valley firemen
will attend. They will leave the Val-
ley June 10 in a special pullman.
R. R. Talbert, chief of the Mer-
cedes department; H. E. Peters, fire
marshal, and Andy Thomas, Fred
Brooks, “Red” Bates, A. D. Garcia,
delegates, compose the personnel of
the party from Mercedes that will
attend the convention.
Legion to Attend
Memorial Services
As has been the custom since the
war the J. A. Garcia Post of the
American Legion will worship in a
body Sunday, preceding Memorial
day, and the Methodist church has
been selected for the services this
year. The post will attend the 11
o’clock services when Rev. R. S.
Pierce will deliver a special sermon
apd music appropriate for the occa-
sion will be given by an augmented
choir.
The public is invited to attend.