davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
iandcn, Knox viii
Attend FIR ParIey

Continued From Page u
That Secretary of State Cordel Hull
and Rep Carl Mapes T.. Mich,
ranA4lg Repuf -. member of the
powerful hou les committee WI
participate.
White House Secretary Stephen
T. Early said that he intent under
lying Mr.. Roosevelts invitation to
Laneol anG Knox and other Re-
Publican leaders was expressed In
his spoecll 10 the nauou on the
int. tcinal situation N which he
calleo for an adjournment OF par
tisanship and selfishnes to
strengthen national unity.
Both 1886 Republican leaders .ac-
cepted the presidents invitation
without moments hesitation,
Early said
The conference will De held at
the White House al pm. We'd
nesday.
The wednesday meeting will not
include Sen william [. Borah. r..
Idaho. the veteran isolationist who
has assumed a leading position
against Mr.. Roosevelt's proposal fox
revision of the neutrality law and
elimination of the arms embargo.
Congress meets II special ses-
sion Thursday to consider Presi-
dert Roosevelt's proposal for re-
peal Of the arms embargo
A Pan-American conference will
convene in Panama City two days
later to discuss western hemisphere
neutrality problems. Undersecretary
OF Stat Sumner Welles will repre-
sent this country.
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
OswaIf Denies He
Kidnapped japanese
Gaming Ring Boss

CONTINUED From Page -
toda, repuled vice lord of Los An
geles' Japanese district.
Recently Yamatcda and two other
japanese were convicted of man
slaughter in connection With the
Staying of Teruhiko Nambi, Lodi
rancher, and patron of Yamatoda's
Los Angeles gambling resort, whose
body never was recovered.
FEDERAL Officials have irtimated
that Ya-ratoda's conviction may
have been based on trumped up
charges "to put him out Of circu-
lation.'
Various minor arrests for gamb-
Lng. fighting and threat charges,
assertedly used to spirit him out of
Los Angeles anu into El Centro,
probably also were faxed, federal
prosecutors SAID.
The specific dharge in today's
action was thst last Dec. % Chief
Oswalt came to Los Angeles and
with Lieu.. Henry forced entry into
Yamatoda's home and arrested him
On an assertedly "trumped up
charge of gambling in Imperial VAL
ley.
Setsuzo Ota, known as "the pro-
fessor" ard former husband of the
late Lucy Banning, was among
those indicted Seven other Japan
ese were included II the indictment
which listed them as gamblers and
'%fixers."
Date for trial O: the case will be
set oct. 9.
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
Housemoid's S Lew
Elective Tuesduv

The California ''housemaid's law
will gel employers of domestic help
If they don't watch out, Director
Thomas Finney of the State En-
pioyment service warned Mondey.
On Tuesday az domestic help
will be includea tnoer the WORK
mems compensation law and en-
rlvovers sust take out Insurance.
II TIE 1seip works more than 81
hours week for any one employer
Penaily Tor failure TO take out
tae Insurance is mandatory fine
of not less than $500.
Finney warned employers that
they should agn formal contracts
wsin ineir domestic help. specify
~ axaelly how many hours they
Viii De expected TO work each week.
THE law provides that formal
seg,Tacl must. be drawn up betFeen
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18

employer and employe even in cases
where the employe works less than
So hours week; yet lives Oh the
employers premises, Finney said.
Such insurance precludes civil
suit Dy the enploye against the
employer FOR injury received while
worping in the home. IN case Of
injury, !Fnney said, the employer
instructs the employe to file dam
age claims with the Industrial Ac-
cident commission.
Depending upon the salary, the
employe is assured compensation
ranging from q $3.50 minimum at
S25 week and fun medical treat
naent. Ia case 81 death arising from
injury the employees dependents are
assured Of cash death benefits
ranging from $1,000 to 5000.
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
Ship Standing By Canadian Flying
Boat Forced Down on Sea Flight

CHATHAM, Mass, Sept. 18. tUP)
The Swedish steamer Pollux re-
ported at 1890 am. today that she
had reached Canadian flying boat,
forced down at sea, and was stand
ing by ready to rescue the crew
If the boat sank before a tug ar
rived from Sydney, N. S.
The Pollux had sped to the un-
identified flying boats assistance
at an estimated position of rs to
100 miles off Sydney in response
to an SOS. The flying boat re-
ported it was forced down by a
broken aileron.
Word that the Pollux had reach
ed the flying boat was received by
radiomarine here in a message re-
layed by the s. S. American mer-
chant.
IF the plane sinks before tug
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
4-H'ers TO Buy
Beef Calves

Henry Worthington, II. Lee Lam
derman and George L. Winwright.
advisors in the All club baby beef
program, will accompany beef club
members to Oceaiaside Saturday
to purchase calves for the l939-40
program.
Calves will be purchased from
the Santa Margarita ranch. ac-
cording to Winwright. Owners of
the ranch annually select 200 of
their best stock, then allow Al
members to pick from that group.
Twelve Baby Beef club members
will purchase animals.
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
Long live Soviet power. "


The line drawn on the map pub
iished by Izvestia extended from
the East Prussisn frontier through
Belostock, CFialyStok> BrestlitoySk,
Valinsk and Lvov to the Carpathian
mountains on the Slc~akian from
tier near the junction of the Polish
-Ramanian frontiers. This would be
an almost straight line cutting off
the eastern third of Poland and
apparently roughly paralIenng the
pre-World war Russian frontier.
No definite explanation was giv-
en- r. Izvestis for the libel of
exit line of German troops" but
Inc map showed Nazi forces facing
toward Poland. without giving any
Soviet troop positions.
The ini.cation was that Soviet
Troops were eXpestsd to occupy the
territory OF Poland up 10 the line
drawn on the map, which took in
eil Of Western White Russia and
the western Ukraine. Germany pre-
sumably would be given a free
hand in the remainder of Polish
territory.
Diplomatic circles believed thai
the White Russian and UkI ainian
areas would be made separate re-
publics of the Soviet union. similar
to other Sovie. rspublics. There YVES
a difference Of opinion however. as
- whether a -nal buffer state be-
tW sen Germany and Russia might
be created or whether Germans are
permanent to occupy
all of the rest of Polish territory,
-lIls establi i1i5 6 common from
ier iu Fast Prussia.
More .han 100000 Soviet amy
,roops were believed 10 have been
nasseu on the Russian frontier be-
'oIe the advance into Poland Sun
isy mornine but official sources
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
121bMen Aboard
Aircraft Carrier
Sunk by Torpedo

tContirued F. ON Page u
Is feet deep.
The General Plan Of armcr was
that o. cruiser lines, the three
inch belt being built up of two
incn plating On one-inch shell plat
ing. Decks around its magazines
had been thickened.
The ship was completed in 1919.
Originally it was intended as a
cruiser, with view to operations
in the Baltic.
During its triaS the chip met
heavy weather, the authoritative
James Fighting Ships" noted, and
vas driven inc mead secs With the
result that her hull was strained
forward. 1t was then strengthened,
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
Soyiefs Contact
German Troops in
Polish Fortress

Continued From Page ID
miles III less than SO hours, meant
that the German-RuSsian wise gas
being squeezed raj idly shut on The
remaining Polish troops in central
Pollard.
German armies at Warsaw re-
suIned battle operations after a
Polish emissary failed to appear as
instructed 10 surrender the city.
The German army command pre-
vioasly hao ordered the Poles to
surrender Warsaw. without further
fighting, or the city would be con-
sidered an open battle zone, pre-
sumably subject to unrestricted
aerial and artillery bombardment
Instructions had been broadcast
as 10 how a Polish enisSary, ac-
coppanied by a foreign neutral
was to reach the German lines.
II was announced that most 0.
Poland" had been occupied by Ger
man troops, that Polish aLplanes
had disappeared from all fronts
and that numerous units Of the
air force and anti-aircraft have
been assembled and stand ready for
application elsewhere" The refer
ence presumably was to the west
ern FROM.
1t was announced officially that
the German ard Russian army
operations in Poland had no OBJ
Jectives conflicting either with Ger
man-EoViet interests or with the
Cerman-aoviet non aggression pact
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18

CERNAUTI, Rumania, Sept. ID.
CUP Polish government leaders,
abandoning their country to Ger
man apd Russian invaders, were
preparing to hurry across Rumania.
today to Constance on the Black
Sea, where they would sail for
France.
They had fled from zaleszczyki, In
the southeast corner Of Poland.
just before it was bombed by Ger
man airplanes. while German troops
pressed toward it from the NORTH
west and Russians from the east
German airplanes had pursued
them all the way 70 the border
and were reported to have bombed
the village Of Sonit ON the Ru-
msnian side, killing six people.
The flight Of Polish troops and
civilians across the Rumanian bor-
der had clogged the two connecting
roads for IL miles back. An esti-
mated 10000 automobiles were jam
med at the frontier in snare of
wagons, carts and pedestrians car
rying bundles on their backs. The
Polish troops were surrendering
their arms to Rumanians and great
piles of guns, ammunition and
other equipment had accumulated
beside the roads.
Although they had not appeared
in public, President Ignacy Mos
cicki, Foreign Minister Josef Beck
and other officials of Poland ar
rived here yesterday afternoon. They
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18

One OF the youngest war vet
Grams" in America today Is little
Mass Gail Mackenzie OF New
York. She was aboard the
British liner Athena when IT was
torpedoed and sunk OF the Heb
rides. Gail was one of the
numerous Ath enia survivors
brought to Halifax, N. s., aboard
the American ship. CITY Of Flint.
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
Woman Changes
Mind About Death

The woman changed her mind.
Mrs. Rosa Faustio, rs, disappeared
from her home near Holtville Sun
day night after threatening to drown
herself.
She returned home before Dep
uty Sheriffs Park Burritt and Rob-
ert Elmore finished searching the
water around every bridge and
check on the Ash canal from a point
near the Faustio home to Rositas
dam.
II changed my mind" she told the
weary OFFICERS who had been sum-
moned by her worried relatives.
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
Plan to Partition
Poland 4fh Time
Drawn by Invaders


a new frontier line and the extent
of Nazi and Soviet military opera
tions by publishing a map on which
"the line of exit for German troops
was drawn for point on the East
PrusSian frontier southwark thru
Brest-Litovsk and Lwow to a point
near the western boundary of Ru-
mania.
Best information was tnat buf-
fer state, Presumably IN central
Poland and possibly including War
saw, WIS enyisaged to separate the
German and Soviet frontiers, but
it appeared that in any eventuality
there would be a common frontier
in the East Prlssian sector.
Confronted by a series o. stun
ming blows tl7at practically ended
according L he Nazi high COM
mand-the We o. the eastern
from, Great Pritaiu and France
we're Expected to proeest to Mos
WV Dlk " 1AA=A a ACtloAal Va
war aeainst the Soylets. The small
nations CT eastern Europe and es-
pecially Rumania, Esthonia, Latvia
and Lthuania were directly adja-
cent to the Nazi-Soviet operations.
Thev mobilized their frontier lorcss
n OBVIOUS concern that they would
Dc directly involved, despite Rus
ian and Ge.naa statements that
heir neutrality would be observed.
Turkey, cioselg ted 20 the So
'iets in the past, was described by
lazis as row more intensely inter-
.sted in relations with Germany
han with maintenance of her mu-
ual aid agreement with Britain
md France.
The Nazi press and official cir
les generally limited at far reach
ag realignnent of spheres Of in
luence in eastern Europe. The
Ictual elimination of German and
russian zone in Poland was said
o be under negotiation By Ger
nan and Russian military officials.
That the series Of heavy blows
delivered against the allied power
would lead to a new peace proposal
oy Adolf iIitler-possibly through
italian Premier Benito Mussolini
,r through Josef v. Stain of Rus
'ia-generally was indicated in
Berlin. But such a peace ofier
would be made, it was emphasized,
N the basis of a great Nszi triumph
n Europe and an alignment OF
powers on an unprecedented scale
against Great Britain and France.
What are Britain and France
fighting Germany for, anyway
was the question posed in Berlin.
The Russian and German gov
ernments, a German statement said
have agreed that:
THE Polish state, from the
of its creation after the
World War, lacked the natural
of statehood.
2.-The Polish state collapsed
its own incompetence.
Germany and Russia must
reorganize the various nationaLties
u Poland by "the creation of COR
porate BODIES of people"
4.-The task of Germany and
Russia Is to establish a complete,
new settlement Of their spheres o.
influence, assuring peace and order.
5.-Anglo-Frnch claims that they
should assist Poland have been
proved groundless and their alli-
ances wit Poland no longer exist
5.-knglo- French claims ths they
confronted with the question: What
:, their objective IN fighting Ger
nanyo
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18

arrives, the Pol1uX VIII PICK up tIle
crew." the message read, indicat-
ing. station operators said, that
there were no passengers aboard
the flying boat.
The message said heavy seas ana
thick weather prevailed.
Imperial Valley press., 1939-09-18
Sullivan to.Discuss
Swine Cost Study

Wallace Sullivan, extension spe-
cialist in farm management, will
conduct a swine growers meeting
at the county court house Wednes-
day night at 7:30.
Sullivan will discuss swine cost
studies OH 13 valley projects, which
were released last week.
Evening star., 1939-12-31

potent has his reputation become that default
ing officials and tellers have been known to
confess as soon as he entered their banks; and
once teller who had been hiding a shortage
for years waited only to hear Pratt tell his
staff to start thorough check of the accounts;
then the teller walked into an adjoining room
and shot himself.
If there is any way of stealing money from
bank that Pratt doesn't know about, it has
yet to be discovered. Right now he is writing
a book for bankers and auditors, telling in
detail of the various methods and how they
can be forestalled or detected. People are
always thinking that they have found
brand-new way, but the Big Idea invariably
falls into one of the old categories. The hard
est job, Pratt says, is not finding out how a
theft was committed but how the thief con-
cealed the evidence That's where auditorial
sleuthing comes in, and like any other kind of
sleuthing it is just matter of chasing down
facts and more facts until they add up to just
one inoontrovertible picture.
That is why Pratt thinks that an auditor
must have boundless curiosity; he himself
certainly has it. Years ago, before he became
primarily specialist in bank work, he was
making an audit of brewery. Checking up
on the inventory, he went into the warehouse
to examine the barrels of beer in storage. He
counted the barrels, but then some minute
difference between the barrels in front and
those piled up behind struck his eye, and he
climbed in for closer inspection He tapped
a barrel - and it was empty. So were all of
them, except the decoys in front.
Evening star., 1939-12-31

~ICTURE neat pleasant appearing man
- with carefully cropped mustache;
d polite, deferential man, eager to avoid
any jarring, willful note. His name is Lester A.
Pratt, and he is Certified Public Accountant
of Washington. D. c. He might be your neigh
borhood banker as far as outward appearances
go. Now picture Sherlock Holmes or the last
fire. eating district attorney you saw in the
movies For banking authorities tell me that
Pratt has probably caught more bank looters
than any other man in the country.
He doesn't call them looters. He calls them
embezzlers And he doesn't talk about catch
ing" them He says he detects defalcations.
But the fact remains that when defalcation
is detected, it means that somebody has been
stealing money from the bank, and the
detection" almost always includes finding
out who that somebody was. And further
fact remains that American banks are robbed
of more money every year by their officers
and employees than by bandits from the out
side - money running high into the millions.
Pratt doesn't think of himself as detective
- "a sleuth- with-an-adding machine - but he
is; most modern auditors are. OF course the
majority of banks into which he is called have
no irregularities to be unearthed. His job is
either to make a routine examination or to
unravel some tangle brought on by innocent
errors, which happen in the best of banks.
But in quarter of century of public prac-
tice - called in sometimes by surety COM
panies, sometimes by the government, some
times by the banks themselves - he has
turned up prodigious number of frauds So
Evening star., 1939-12-31

Soon after that, though, he decided that it
was impossible to know enough about all
kinds of commodities to satisfy his curiosity
about the inventories of business concerns.
And since an auditor was expected to certify
the value of inventories he made up his mind
to specialize, 50 that his curiosity need never
be unsatis6ed. He chose banking.
Pratt insists that his job is not to theorize
or jump at conclusions, but to find out exactly
what the cold figures show. But he admits
that he forms pretty good idea, by the way
people act when he goes into bank, whether
he is likely to find a theft or not. The petty
pilferers and the big-sho defaulters alike, he
says, almost always give themselves away in
their fear of being caught.
There was, for instance, the savings teller
whose ledger Pratt had just been examining.
On quick run-through, it seemed in order.
But as Pratt looked up from his work, the
teller was right there. did you find every
thing okay?" he inquired, with elaborate
casualness.
Pratt nodded, but the question Tipped up
red flag in his mind. Why should the teller
even ask? That night, Pratt went back into
the bank with his staff and gathered up some
of the recent savings department records.
Among them were some stacks of Cancelled
checks held together by elastic bands. Some
of the bands were broken, and it offended
Pratt's sense of orderliness. The checks might
get mixed up. He sent for some fresh bands
and went to work methodically replacing the
broken ones. AS he worked, he thumbed
through the checks. Suddenly he stopped, his
thumb holding stack open.
Hmm" he said to an assistant. Look at
the signature on this check"
Evening star., 1939-12-31

The assistant looked at the scrawled sig
nature.
Somebody wrote it left-handed," said
Pratt.
The check bore savings-account Number
10000 Hunting back through the records,
Pratt quickly found that the account had
been closed out three years before Obviously
the teller was using it as plant, drawing
money on it and juggling his balances to cover
up the withdrawal.
Pratt had a hunch. The embezzler had used
account Number 10000, round number,
easy to remember in case he needed to destroy
evidence in hurry. Let's have look at
Number 1000" " said Pratt. And 10000"
The hunch was right. These we're planted
accounts, too. In a couple of hours the whole
shortage had been uncovered.
lust luck" says Pratt, if you ask him
about that case.
Luck? Well, maybe. But Lester Pratt is
usually can be traced back to that limitless
curiosity of his, curiosity that has led him
into many realms of activity far afield from
figures and account books. How did he hap
pen to know, at glance that the signature
on check in the middle of whole stack of
checks had been written left-handed?
Well, some years ago he got interested in
the art of bookbinding, and took it up. In his
spare time he did some beautiful work. A
friend found some old manuscript diaries in
an attic trunk, and asked him to bind them.
Some of the writing had faded, so he learned
how to use infrared rays to bring out ink
marks that were invisible otherwise. And as
he worked over that old handwriting, the
whole subject of handwriting intrigued his
inquiring mind - so he found out about it.
And, among other things, he found out what
left handed writing looks like. Call it luck if
you wish.
AS matter of fact, much as the fctional
Philo Vance uses his knowledge of seemingly
obscure subjects to track down murderers, 50
does the factual Mr.. Pratt use his to help him
unearth and prevent Inside jobs in banks.
The basement of his home is fitted out as
workshop, completely equipped not only for
bookbinding but for such other intricate work
as wood carving, etching, electroplating and
cabinetwork. He has literally thousands of
tools, all neatly filed and Immediately pre-
served, and dozens of mechanical appliances
and gadgets. Hobbies" he says. Il wish
had more chance to use them."
Yes, they are hobbies. But &. one day
Pratt walked into the vault of bank and
started to check some wrapped rolls of coins.
He handled several rolls, then, as he picked
up another, he muttered something and tore
off the paper wrapper. The coins were
washers - substituted by an employee who
had been Systematically pocketing hundreds
of dollars. In indulging his hobbies, Pratt had
handled lot of different metals. He was
familiar with their minute variations in weight.
And 50 another bank robber was caught.
When bank employees decide to get rich
quick, one of the more common ways is to
remove from the files the ledger cards of dor
mant accounts, substitute fictitious cards and
start withdrawing. Pratt has turned up hun
dreds of such cases, one of the recent ones
involving the theft of $4,000 by an old and
<r,,c<od op,Dlouoo Oro of Dra<&'c ,,,a,x, boh
The Bluffton news. [volume] (Bluffton, Ohio) 1875-current, 1939-04-06
X * X
WANT-ADS

Wanted-To do ironing at home.
Inquire 116 Spring st. so
Wanted-Girl or middle aged wom-
an for general housework. Please
leave name at News office.
Plow your garden early with port
able garden tractor; no damage to
flowers. Let is give you our price
on one acre lots. Wilbur Sumney,
Bluffton phone.
For rent-Modern front apartment
by April Is. Mrs. Zoe Zehrbach. sc
For rent-Sleeping rooms. Inquire
News office.
For rent Rooms. Mrs. Alma Bixel
307 S. Main st.
For saIe-Four Belle City incubat.
ors, good condition, very cheap. Mrs
Mrs. c. Z. Thompson, Bluffton phone
For sale--All Stark pear trees al
half price this week L. A. Oberly
salesman.
For sale-Lawn mower sharpener
also brooder stove and chick feeders
ID. L. Nusbanm, Kibler street.
For sale-Potatoes. Henry Hilty
Bluffton phone.
For sale-Brooder house in gooc
condition. Mrs. Zella Hixon, phone
526-W.
For sale-Baby chicks every Mon
day and Thursday. We still hav,
some / to weeks old started chicks
Steiner's hatchery.
For sale-Trailer with rack; 10 #
spike tooth harrow adjustable; double
tree, blacksmith forge and some tools
Gid Burkholder, 156 Railroad St.
Bluffton. 81
For sale-Good double harness. Sc,
it at Bluffton Implement & Harness
Co.
For sale-Building lot on Soutl
Main street Call BIuffton phon
495-W. s.
Found-Pocketbook containing mon
ey. Owner inquire Mrs. Ruth Stein
man at Beatrice Beauty shop.
Lost-Grain sack with shoe stretch
er in it somewhere between Bluffto
and the Gratz school. Finder leav
at News office. Reward.