25 years ago this week — 1999

PENDLETON — Even when you do everything right, terrible things can happen.

Sometimes it’s a tragedy.

Sometimes people die.

Besides the families of the people killed or injured in the massive automobile pileup on Interstate 84 on Sept. 25 during a blinding dust storm, the person most affected by the incident may have been Oregon State Police Lt. Mike McCullough.

“I-84 is my freeway. It happened on my watch,” he said. “It broke my heart and made me very angry at the same time.”

McCullough, the highest-ranking police officer in the region, spoke before an audience of nearly 70 people Wednesday night at the Red Lion Hotel during the October Eastern Oregon forum sponsored by the East Oregonian and Blue Mountain Community College.

McCullough said he has replayed the events of Sept. 25 over in his mind hundreds of times and admitted he doesn’t have an answer for preventing a similar incident.

“Crash reports will show that people (on the road) did things right and had bad things happen to them,” he said. “And some people did some real stupid things that killed themselves and killed other people.”

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UMATILLA — Cynthia Sherrow has a computer at home, but when it comes to using it, it’s her son, Jared, who’s the mouse master.

That’s why Sherrow went to the Parent Computer Learning NIght Thursday at McNary Heights Elementary School.

“He has a faster mind than I do,” she said. “He doesn’t have the patience to teach me either.”

The lesson was the first in a series of courses that parents can take to learn the basics of operating a computer.

“There is a lot of computer use here at school,” said Leslie Blank, the school secretary and one of the instructors for the class. “But many parents are computer illiterate.”

Blank said offering the course at McNary will help teach parents basics such as what a mouse is and how to use it, how to change the font size, and how to delete and undelete items.

The class also introduces parents to the Internet by checking out the school media center’s home page.

“That way they will know how to supervise their child when they go on-line,” Blank said.

The course is made possible through a $63,829 grant the Umatilla School District received from the Oregon Department of Education to buy most of the 22 computers in the computer lab in the elementary school’s library.

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PENDLETON — Saturday’s Red Ribbon Parade was the largest yet, organizers said.

“The community support is outstanding and the parental support for the anti-drug message is terrific,” said Jodi Emmanuel, a Red Ribbon Parade committee member.

Participants in the annual parade include the VFW; Standfield and Tribal fire departments; Salvation Army; the Main Street Cowboys calliope, Pendleton police officers and hundreds of youth and adults from around the area.

Mid-Columbia Bus Company helped transport participants from Roy Raley Park, where the parade ended, to the starting point at the chamber office on Main Street.

Donations for a lunch served at Roy Raley came from Safeway stores in Hermiston, Pendleton and Milton-Freewater, Albertson’s, United Grocers, Red Lion, Nalleys and Coca-Cola.

The Red Ribbon committee also included Rosemarie Atfield, Peggy Doherty, Shelly Ena and Janet Jones.

50 years ago this week — 1974

Timber buyers are cooperating with the Umatilla National Forest in changes taking place in planned timber sales because of a green-up of moth-damaged fir trees.

Gordon George, Pendleton, timber officer on the Umatilla National Forest, said today that many changes are occurring because the green-up is more extensive than expected.

The trees had appeared to be defoliated by the tussock moth, but in a burst of energy some trees appear to be recovering from the damage.

A green-up doesn’t necessarily mean that the trees have survived the tussock moth’s attack, George said.

The exact extent of recovery won’t be known for several months because trees sometimes show this surge in a last-ditch effort that fails.

Two such areas are easily visible to motorists on Interstate 80 North through the Blue Mountains. One is south of the freeway near Emigrant State Park and the other is north of the freeway near the Mt. Emily interchange. George said trees in those locations burst forth with new needles last spring, appearing to recover, but now the full damage is becoming apparent as this recovery effort fails and the trees again lose their needles.

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The Umatilla County Board of Commissioners wants the Democratic Central Committee to nominate a sheriff by next Monday, Commission Chairman C. E. Lassen said today.

But Democrats are reluctant to act so hurriedly, a Democratic source said.

The source said Democrats want to nominate someone from outside the department that was commanded by Paul Jones until his resignation last week in a court action in which he pleaded no contest to a charge of perjury.

Acting Undersheriff James H. Carey took charge of the department and Monday was named interim sheriff. He has been active in a complete departmental investigation that has resulted in five resignations and suspensions of deputies.

The Democratic Central Committee last Friday decided to meet Nov. 7 — after the election — to nominate a sheriff for consideration by the board of commissioners. The board doesn’t have to follow the recommendation.

“Why prolong it?” Lassen said today. “We want that recommendation by Oct. 28.”

A central committee source said Democrats may respond by refusing to make a nomination on such short notice. “We need time for candidates to step forwards and to evaluate them,” the source said.

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ARLINGTON — More than a quarter million yards of earth and rock are edging toward Interstate 80 North near Arlington, creating a Russian roulette with traffic.

Highway engineers are desperately trying to figure a way to stabilize the massive hillside near the white “A” above the town. They say up to 300,000 yards of material are perched above the freeway. Huge boulders up to half a ton are apt to roll to the road at any time.

“We have troubles there and they are going to be expensive,” said Carl Williams, Bend, Region Four engineer for the state. Williams said today, “This is a very large area – and it’s moving slowly, there’s no use to hide the fact.”

Monday morning, rocks covered part of the eastbound lane of traffic. Highway engineers became aware of the slide condition at that time. Fissures in the hill were discovered totaling more than a quarter mile. Some cracks are up to a foot in width.

A highway worker said sending traffic through the area was chancy.

“It’s wicked,” said the worker who asked not to be named. He said one motorist was hit by a boulder Tuesday. The motorist, driving a small foreign car, was going slowly when a rock estimated at 300 pounds shot down the mountain.

“It would have wiped him out pretty good,” the worker said. But the driver hit his brakes, slid sideways and “that was the only thing that saved him.”

100 years ago this week — 1924

A deal for the purchase of a part of the J. M. Harrison ranch near Reith and the taking of an option on the balance has just been completed by the state to secure the land for the use of the state hospital, according to a statement today by Dr. W. D. McNary, superintendent of the state institution.

The ranch includes 670 acres of land, about 300 acres of which is what is known as bottom land. The state has paid down $20,000 and has taken an option on the remainder of the place to purchase it for $15,000 additional, Dr. McNary said. The first payment of $20,000 represents money appropriated by the recent session of the state legislature for the purpose of buying additional land for the use of the hospital in producing more of the foodstuffs used in feeding patients.

Governor Pierce is in favor of appropriating the additional money to make the purchase, and other members of the state board feel the same way about it, Dr. McNary said.

“We expect eventually to devote the bottom land to the production of alfalfa and pasture as well as some garden trucks,” Dr. McNary said. “As soon as we have cleaned up the place and got more of it seeded to alfalfa we expect to increase our dairy herd so we may produce enough milk and cream to make it possible for us to make our own butter, a thing that we can’t do at present.”

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That the undercurrent of sentiment in Oregon at present is favorable to John W. Davis and that he has more than an even chance of carrying the state on November 4 is the belief of Dr. C. J. Smith, democratic state chairman who was here last evening.

Dr. Smith says he is not yet ready to estimate the margin by which he thinks Davis will carry Oregon. He has the impression the Davis victory in this state will be similar to the Wilson victory in 1912.

“From personal visits in nearly all counties in western Oregon and many in eastern Oregon I find that the democratic vote is standing almost solid for Davis” says Dr. Smith. There will be some losses but they will be more than made up by votes for Davis from republicans who are disgusted with the Coolidge-LaFollette rumpus and are turning to Davis as the best way out this year.”

Dr. Smith looks for a total vote of 250,000 in Oregon and he expects rather close contest between Coolidge and La Follette on the republican side. With such a division and with Davis receiving the democratic support plus considerable backing from republicans and independent sources he expects Davis to get the Oregon electoral vote.

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An inter troop meet for the various troops of Boy Scouts in Pendleton will be held here December 5, according to plans made last night by scout-masters and committee members at a dinner and meeting held at the French cafe. Attending the meeting were A. Dan Dayton of Walla Walla, G. L. Clark, H. J. Kirby, F. R. King, Roland Oliver, Joe Light, J. M. Miller and J. M. Cornelison. At the meet contests will be stages in knot tying, signaling, fire by friction, skin the snake and sitting down relay race.

A school for scoutmasters and others interested in the work is to be conducted at Whitman college beginning Monday, November 10. The school will be conducted for five consecutive Monday nights, and the sixth meeting will be an overnight camp session. The seventh and concluding session will be given on a Sunday night and will be devoted to conducting a Sunday meeting for Boy Scouts.

A loving cup is to be awarded to the troop winning the most points in the meeting here December 5, and later a county meet may be held.