OCR Text |
Show iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii 9 Sbututa, Rut 9 Jteasid. . . 4 ' By SECOND-GUESSER !!llll!lllllllll!!ll!lillllll!lllllll!IIIIIHII This is Fire Prevention Week, the time of year we're supposed to look about and take stock of our fire hazards. The Governor of our State, and the President of the Nation, have issued proclamations, proc-lamations, and called upon the people to try to prevent fires. In Milford, we think it would N be a fine time to do a little back- patting. Nowhere in the state, nowhere in the entire west, can a city boast of lower fire insurance insur-ance rates. And the ones directly di-rectly responsible for the low insurance rates responsible for saving real cash for every person per-son who pays fire insurance premiums, are the members of your Milford Volunteer Fire Department, De-partment, who grab the truck when the siren sounds, at any hour of the day or night, and extinguish the blaze that is threatening your home or your neighbor's home. ; Last week we suggested to two groups that they honor the fire boys with a dinner. One group was "broke" and the other didn't seem too interested. But the firemen never loose interest they're on the ball every day in the year. So, this week at least, when we see a man or boy wearing a Fireman's badge, let's give him a pat on the back and a word of thanks. He's earned it. For the past three years (maybe (may-be longer, we've only been here three years), the city dads and a good many individual citizens have been "griping" and talking about the hazard at the highway grade crossing in Milford. We have heard many complaints about cars pulling up at the crossing, looking up and down the tracks, then starting off, only to have to slam on their brakes to avert a catastrophe when a lonesome boxcar loomed up in their headlights. Some time ago, lights were installed in-stalled at the crossing by the Union Pacific. We were told that the officials weren't exactly sat-i sat-i isfied, but believed that a different differ-ent focus on the floodlamps would eliminate the danger by providing proper illumnation. So the city dads who were considering con-sidering asking for an all-night watchman at the crossing, decided de-cided to table the matter pending further study. At a Chamber of Commerce bull-session, when many things were being considered and discussed, dis-cussed, a switchman working the night shift, told the group that switchmen were supposed to be on duty at the crossing, flagging flag-ging cars and directing traffic, at any time switching was going on at night, but "sometimes we are at the other end of the yards and it isn't always convenient or V (possible to be at the crossing." Last Sunday night, about 7:15, we were en route to Beaver and must of course cross the tracks. We stopped dead still and looked both ways. Apparently there was no switching going on, although a string of box cars was sitting on the tracks just north of the crossing. We started up, and suddenly looming into our headlights was a boxcar, without engine attached, coasting across the road. We managed to stop with plenty of room to spare, but don't think we'll ever be the same again. Now we know how the others have felt when they had the unnerving experience of seeing a boxcar loom up from nowhere, and frantically grabbed for the handbrake and jammed their foot-brake through the floor boards. And after the boxcar had cleared the crossing, a switchman switch-man appeared from behind the string of boxcars. We think it's time the City Council demands that the Union Pacific employ a watchman for the grade crossing, 24 hours a day. We've advocated that action ac-tion every time the hazard has been mentioned. The floodlights flood-lights have been installed at the crossing and have proved inadequate. inade-quate. Let's have a full-time watchman. It will be cheaper to pay a watchman's wages than to lose lives. While we're on the subject of the U P, we'll pass on another gripe. Several local citizens (Continued on Page 5) HERE'S MORE ABOUT I DUNNO ! Continued from Page One', j have called our attention recently re-cently to the increasingly flagrant flag-rant violation of federal and state regulations prohibiting the blocking of roadways for long periods of time. A few weeks ago, to cite a specific instance, Milt Pool, a local merchant, and Vernon Burns, city recorder, waited 30 minutes (by Mr. Burns' reliable timepiece), before the crossing was cleared and motor traffic allowed to cross the tracks. We believe the law allows al-lows a crossing to be blocked for not more than five minutes. Complaining citizens say they hope it won't be necessary to take legal action against train ciews to force them to abide by the statutes. A note from Max Wainwright, received late last week, tells us that Lehman's Cave will for the remainder of the year be operated oper-ated on a five-day schedule, with no tours scheduled on Friday Fri-day and Saturday of each week Conducted tours will continue Sundays through Thursdays, as in the past. The schedule is necessary, the genial custodian said, because be-cause of increased costs of operation oper-ation and no increase in the appropriation. ap-propriation. He sincerely hopes to resume the every-day schedule next spring. "The travel year just ending brought a record crowd of over 7,500 visitors to the Monument, totaling over ten thousand "visitor "vis-itor days," Mr. Wainwright said. "The climax was reached on Sept. 5th when over two thousand thous-and persons attended 'Lehman Cave Day' in celebration of the completion of the new improved highway leading into the monument monu-ment grounds." And, in a footnote, Max adds: "I am in hopes before too long of reading a headline in your paper, 'Contract Awarded for Improved Highway Between Milford Mil-ford and Nevada State Line.' " The "pinball players" will have to drive a little farther in the future, we are told, since the Beaver City Council revoked the licenses under which the gaming devices have been operating in Beaver. The action was taken at last Monday's city council meeting. It was a juicy plum to turn loose, both for the operators and the city dads. We understand the license fee was $300 for the first machine and $25 for each additional' machine an operator spotted in the city. Our informant volunteered the information that District Judge Hoyt ordered the machines ma-chines removed during his last visit to Beaver, early in September, Septem-ber, to preside at District Court, and after threatening grand jury action in a letter received last Monday, the city council ordered the licenses revoked. |