The Chronicle-star combined with the Moss Point advertiser., 1944-05-12
Wells Protests Action OF State Body In
Suspension. Charges Team Goal"

Declaring that Pascagoula has
been made the goat" Thomas
R Wells, superintendent of the
Pascagoula schools, in a formal
statement Thursday answered ac-
ton taken by the Mississippi
State Literary and Athletic As
sociation at a meeting Saturday
in placing the local boys basket
ball team on probation for one
year for responsibility in the al
eyed vandalism committed at the
Mississippi Southern College dur
ing the recent state tournament.
The announcement of its ac-
ton was made following a meet
ine III the committee in jackson
Saturday which was attended by
ar Well During his presence.
Mr. Wells stated, no indication of
the subsequent judgment against
the Pascagoula school was given
BY the committee. Expenses for
the damage was pro-rated among
three schools - Bogue Chitto,
Hickory and Pascagoula. How
ever, no mention was made of the
other two schools in the decision
of the committee. MI Wells said
that school officials have re-
ceived no official notice of the
action of the committee. The an
nouncement was released to the
press in jackson.
"The boys admitted that they
marched around the dormitory
the night after being eliminated
from The tournament" Mr.. Wells
said, but investigation has failed
TO prove that they were in any
way responsible for any damage
to the property. AT the commit
tee investigation l attended GER
tain members of the committee
told me they felt the Pascagoula
boys had been guilty only of
noise making and further stated
that members of one of the other
Teams had confessed to knocking
out windows and screens and do
ing other damage. / fail to UNI
uefstand why no notice has been
sent us and why no other teams
were involved in the decision of
the committee"
No Official Supervision
Eight participating teams, aver
aging ten boys to the team, were
lodged in a dormitory of the col
iege during the tournament with
out any official of Mississippi
Southern College having been
placed in charge. The three
teams involved in the alleged
vandalism were eliminated in the
afternoon and during the evening
the players were said to have
caused considerable damage to
school property. The local team
was in charge of w. c. Hickman,
coach. The decision of the COM
mlttee in no way reflects on the
academic standing of the Pasca-
goula school.
The Board of Trustees, follow
Ing investigation of the charges
and a study of correspondence
and all available evidence, an
nounced unanimous approval of
the statement made by Mr.. Wells
which. with a letter co Sale Lilly,
Chairman of the executive COM
mlttee of the association, follows:
Although we have had no of
ticlal Information to that effect,
| note from a press release to the
Clarion Ledger that the Pasca-
goula High school has been placed
on probation by the Executive
Committee of the Mississippi Attn
ietic and Literary Association for
the alleged part that members of
the basketball team had in a
disturbance that occurred in one
OF the dormitories on the night
OF March "a. On the following
Saturday tn eofficials of Missis-
Saturday the officials of Missis-
Continued on Page 81