McCormick messenger. (McCormick, S.C.) 1902-current, January 14, 1937, Image 6
2
McCORMICK MESSENGER, McCORMICK, S. C., THURSDAY, JANUARY 14, 1937
“The Burning Crypt”-
By FLOYD GIBBONS,
Famous Headline Hunter
X T’S always the little things that cause the most trouble. Jimmy
Pezalano of Maspeth, L. I., can tell you that. It was a pencil
that brought him the big adventure of his life. And while plenty
of people have got into trouble for being too handy with their
pens, I don’t think they went through half as much grief as that
little stick of wood and graphite brought to Jimmy.
It all happened on December 17, 1931, when Jimmy was working for
a drug manufacturing concern in Long Island City. Jimmy was a stock
clerk, and one of his duties was to check over the shipments of whisky
and alcohol as they came in, and store the stuff in a big, 200-foot square.
Steel-lined, burglar proof vault.
That vault was the danger spot of the whole plant. In it were
stored all the explosive and inflammable chemicals in the place.
There were tons of such stuff as chlorate of potash, and gallons of
collodion, naphtha, ether and the like, in addition to hundreds of
steel drums full of alcohol. “And I was responsible for this
stock/* says Jimmy. “Besides myself, only the boss had the com
bination that would open the massive door.**
Just a Pencil Started the Trouble
On that fateful December 17 that we’re going to hear about, Jimmy
was finding that responsibility pretty heavy. A shipment of foreign
whisky had arrived just an hour before quitting time, and Jimmy couldn’t
go home until it was all stowed away. He and his helper hurriedly
wheeled the cases into the rear of the vault and started to open them and
unwrap the bottles from the straw in which they were packed. They
worked rapidly for half an hour, but—
“Doesn’t something always happen when you’re in a hurry?’’ Jimmy
wants to know. And I’ve got agree with Jimmy. Something always
does. This time it ^ras a pencil—the only one they had. It dropped
to the floor and rolled into a dark corner between two stacks of cases.
They didn’t want to go back to the office to get another one. so they did
something that was strictly against the ruleg. Jimmy’s helper lit a
match to look for it.
That match was hardly lit when footsteps sounded outside
the door. Could it be the boss? If he ever saw that lighted match
in that vault full of explosives—well—somebody would get fired.
Quickly, Jimmy’s helper threw the lighted match into what looked
like a puddle of water. Then, in an instant, that “water’* had
burst into flame. The “water** was a puddle of highly inflam
mable collodion that had leaked out of a faulty drum.
Flames Crept Toward the Explosives
“Instantly,” says Jimmy, “the flames caught in some of the loos^
straw we had taken from the whisky cases. Tongues of fire began to
lick out toward the leaky drum the collodion had come from. For a
second I was scared stiff. There was enough explosives in the vault to
blow the place to bits, and on the upper floors there were more than
300 people getting ready to go home.
“I leaped for a rack of sand pails, grabbed two of them and yelled
to my helper to get the other's. The flame was creeping up the side of
the drum less than an inch from the plug hole when I threw the sand
over it. Grabbing the other two pails from my helper I yelled to him
to run outside, ring the alarm and hurry back with an extinguisher.
Then I threw the rest of the sand. It barely sufficed to put out the collodion
still burning at the b^se of the drum, but now the straw was burning
furiously, setting fire to the wooden whisky cases.”
It looked bad for Jimmy, but in another moment it was worse.
He heard a loud slam—glanced at the door—and his heart almost
stopped. In running out, his helper had kicked away the stick
used to keep the heavy door open. It had banged shut. Jimmy
was TRAPPED IN A BURNING VAULT full of explosives and the
only other person who had the combination was the boss, WHO
USUALLY LEFT THE FACTORY EARLY!
Jimmy Made a Gallant Fight
“I was stunned,” says Jimmy. “For a moment I stared blankly at
that locked door, but the acrid smoke brought my attention back to the
rapidly spreading fire. There was a bare chance and I jumped for it.
Like a maniac, I rolled the steel drums away from the flames. With
blistered hands I pushed and jerked away heavy cases of potash until
I managed to clear a small space around the flames. Every few seconds
I had to stop to stamp out flying sparks that threatened to set off some
stored explosive, but in the end I had cleared the space and pushed all
the burning straw and wood to the center of the fire. Then, with fear
inspired strength, I dragged up heavy steel plates, used as a runway
for hand trucks, and set them like partitions aropnd the blaze.
“None too soon. In another minute hell popped. Cases of whisky in
the center of the blaze began falling apart. Bottles went off in a series of
shattering explosions. Thanks to the steel plates, none of the scattering
glass and flame struck me, but I had a busy time stamping out the flying
sparks and burning splinters of wood.”
For a full 25 minutes, Jimmy fought that blaze. Then, over
come by heat and smoke, he was beating a reluctant retreat
when the door opened and men came running in with sand and
fire extinguishers.
“With my hair singed, hands scorched and my face as black as coal,”
says Jimmy, “I must have made a sorry figure. But boy, did that air
feel good? And was I glad that my helper had enough presence of mind
to run and catch the boss JUST AS HE WAS LEAVING THE BUILDING?”
®—WNU Service.
Lightning Takes Course
Like River Shown on Map
The ancient Greeks believed that
lightning consisted of heavy spear
like projectiles which had been heat
ed white-hot and cast at offending
mortals and objects, with none too
accurate aim, by their head god
Zeus.
The primitive Germans attributed
lightning to bolts thrown by a mali
cious god named Loki while the
dull-witted war god, Thor, pounded
on the sky with a hammer to make
thunder. In fact, writes Dr. Thom
as M. Beck in the Chicago Tribune,
almost all primitive peoples be
lieved lightning was a sort of ma
terial missile hurled by a vindictive
god. This theory died out in Eu
rope with the rise of Christianity,
since it was difficult to reconcile the
idea of lightning as a manifesta
tion of divine wrath with the ob
servation that it seemed to strike
church steeples more often than
anything else.
Still we should not smile too much
at the mistaken beliefs of these
long-dead Greeks and Germans. We
are not very well informed on it
ourselves. The average man knows
that it consists of electricity, that
it zigzags in Z-shaped straight lines,
and that it never strikes twice in
the same place. Armed with this
knowledge, he is two-thirds wrong.
Lightning is certainly a discharge
of static electricity, as Benjamin
Franklin showed many years ago.
But there is nothing at all straight
about a bolt of lightning, although
apparently this fact was not known
until lightning was actually photo
graphed. Actually it follows a me
andering course like that of a river
as shown on a map.
This figure is correct in other re
spects than appearance, for light
ning is actually a river of electric
ity. Just as water follows the course
of least resistance in flowing from
a high altitude to a low, so does
electricity move from a high to a
low voltage.
In a Velvet Gown
It is a far cry from the Arabs
at El Fustade near Cairo to the
looms of velvet on this continent,
says the Montreal Herald. More
than 2,000 years have elapsed since
our earliest records of velvets
among the Persians and East In
dians. From the Arabs the art of
velvet weaving went to the Span
iards, then to Sicily, and, in the
Sixteenth century, into France
\where it developed ‘under the skill
of the most creative and intelligent
hand-looms to power-looms, to meet
the volume of demand, the process
of weaving has gone on. Velvet is
woven in two pieces at a time—
face to face and cut with a knife
afterward, leaving a straight erect
pile—the test of all pile velvets.
First, heavy thick velvets were
made, later finer types of velvets
known as Lyons, then chiffon velvets
and after that the slenderizing,
draping material known as trans
parent velvet.
Glamorous Is the New Lingerie
By CHERIE NICHOLAS
tpOR the fair sex nothing so strikes
1 the right note as beautiful lin
gerie. Seeing lovely “undies,” and
coveting, is akin to that feeling one
has in a garden of flowers, to add
another and yet another to one’j
bouquet plucked from among na
ture’s loveliest. Just so does the
eternal feminine in us keep longing
for one more and one more of the
delectably colorful lace - trimmed
silken nighties, slips, pantie sets,
negligees, cunnipg bed-jackets and
others such as designers are this
season placing before the enrap
tured eyes of beauty-seeking wom
ankind.
Even so, the esthetic viewpoint is
but half the story, for there is a
practical side to the question that
those skilled in the art of dress
keep ever in mind, namely, a cos
tume to be fashion-correct and of
comely appearance must build from
the foundation up. Wherefore, it is
as important to have a wardrobe
of lingerie as of outer apparel.
Which is why creators of modern
lingerie are devoting so much of
time and talent, thought and study
to the fashioning of under garments
that because of their perfection of
lines and subtle fit, act as “first-aid”
toward the charm and style-right
ness of one’s costume.
The nightgowns this season are
nothing if not glamorous. Rich fab
rics and colors, beautiful finishes
and elaborate lace trimmings mark
them with distinction. Mostly they
are satin, but you do see some of
crepe and silk ninon and georgette.
Slips, too, are reflecting the in
terest in the daintier garments
and gone are the utterly tailored
effects. They are carefully fitted
of course and even when they are
CHANTILLY DRESS
By CUERlfi NICHOLAS
Nothing is so flattering, so “new”
for dressing up in the afternoon
and fcoing on for the evening date as
the simple, painstakingly tailored
dress of black Chantilly. This dress
has the street-length skirt which is
so much more popular this year
than the cocktail dresses of other
seasons. It is especially youthful
in design, but is as good for the
jou.ig matron as for the college
girl. Note the little flared pockets
which ad£ to the tailored effect.
not elaborately lace-trimmed as so
many are, they still have details of
lace and net trimmings, of tiny
edgings of val lace to appeal to
the well-groomed lady.
There are all manner of negli
gees and hostess gowns. The satin
ones, lavish with lace, are easily
the most popular this season. Bed
jackets of all’ shapes and types are
more fascinating than ever. Some
are made in cape design and tie
loosely in front. The model shown
Li the center inset is of allover
lace with wide satin border front.
In a way this charming little cape-
bed-jacket might be classed with
the so called lingerie accessories
which Paris designers are advo
cating this season. Such, for in
stance, is the “bib” to be worn
over night dresses. It is a grand
gift item for a convalescent or in
valid. It’s a frilly lace front piece
to slip on at a moment’s notice
over the “nightie.” The one pic
tured in the upper inset is done
in circular ruffles of lace with
ribbon ties about the throat. It is
said that it is. becoming quite a
fad to make your own lingerie ac
cessories.
Describing the lovely gowns pic
tured, the one to the left is of shell-
pink satin with deep appliqued yoke
of Alencon lace in the new light
ecru shade which is so good this
season. The lovely skirt edge, with
its lace slit up the front, features
the new trend toward fine details.
Soft yellow is used for the in
teresting nightdress on the seated
figure with its diagonal neckline and
one-side shoulder strap. The lace
motifs applied are carried out also
in the matching slip and panties
which form the perfect ensemble.
© Western Newspaper Union.
SILKS FOR SPRING
STRESS HIGH COLOR
Edward Molyneux, style author
ity, predicts a riot of color for
spring. In monotones as in prints,
color is the watchword.
A wide range of blue tones is
being accented in spring silks.
Misty blues and strong purple-
blues are new, and the middle tones
of blue also register. Purple is new
ly accented.
The capucine range is an impor
tant one, highlighting glowing yel
low - orange and pumpkin tones.
Henna and horsechestnut rank high,
with the former striking a new note
for evening. A hint of ashes-of-roses
overlays the copper range as it is
interpreted for resort and spring
1937. Brownish gold is another im
portant tone to watch.
Beige and other neutral tones are
expected to prove important, as a
contrast to the vivid color ranges.
The red range ranks high. Cherry
red, cerise, ashes-of-roses, mauve
pink and pale mauve red are lead
ing tones.
A wide range of green tones in
cludes bright yellow green, tur
quoise green, reseda green and
strong hues.
Ten New Hosiery Shades
Offered for Next Spring
Ten new hosiery shades for
next spring are shown in the ad
vance hosiery color card just re
leased by the Textile Color Card
association to its members.
The ten colors are: Glamour, a
sparkling golden tone; carib, a cop
pery hue with a rosy glow; cubatan,
a new “leather” type of tan; Dal
matia, a radiant copper; plaza beige,
a warm light beige; swanky, a
subtle medium beige; swanky, a
dark beige; noonday, a subdued grey
ish beige; avenue, a medium neu
tral beige, and moondusk, a me
dium grey of taupe cast.
Simple, Practical Frocks
\A7 HERE, oh where is the
^ ^ feminine wardrobe that
wouldn’t take on momentum
through the addition of just these
three simple, wearable frocks?
Surely like the Model T, it would
be hard to find. And the thrilling
thing — the important feature —
is that these frocks are planned
and patterned exclusively for the
modern woman who sews—for you,
a member of The Sewing Circle.
Pattern 1914 is a house dress
with a future. It is young and
practical. The new notched col
lar, ending as it does in twin
scallops below the yoke line,
gives the waist front balance and
brightness. The bodice is slightly
fulled to make this a comfortable
style to work in as well as one
that is attractive to look at. The
skirt is slim lined and simple—
as you would have it. Use dimity,
dotted swiss or gingham for this
number. Designed for sizes: 34,
36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 46 and 48. Size
36 requires 3% yards of 35 inch
material.
Pattern 1989 is the polite young
model caught with its back this
way, perhaps the better to show
off the beautiful shoulders and
chicest - of - chic descending lines.
You’ll run-up this frock in short
order but you’ll wear it endlessly
ar d with that happy confidence
which only a style with distinc
tion can give. Make it of rasp
berry wool crepe and trim the
collar, cuffs and hem with royal
blue. Pattern 1989 comes in sizes
14, 16, 18 and 20 (32 to 42 bust).
Size 16 requires 3 yards of 54 inch
material with 5 yards of braid
for trimming.
Pattern 1206 is a most attractive
newcomer to the blouse ’n’ skirt
category. An alliance of this sort
brings glamour and romance to
he gay wearer. Gold or silver
metallic cloth, or, perhaps shim
mering satin for the blouse with
a skirt of velvet will make a mil
lion dollar outfit. Make it yours in
a couple of hours. It is available
UncLp Phil
That Little Difference
It is just the little difference be
tween the good and the best that
makes the difference between art
ists and the artisan.
Duties are tasks the perform
ance of which you look forward to
with distaste, but once performed,
rejoice in forever after.
Those who get up early in the
morning think everybody else
should; but those who get up very
late don’t usually move the world.
If you can’t agree with the
tastes of the people, you are in for
much lonesomeness.
Difficult Rebuilding
Rebuilding a ruined house or a
ruined career is a much more dif
ficult matter than building new. It
takes more courage, more skill
and more ability. But it is being
done every day.
Scolding may not mean much,
but laughing doesn’t make the
baby cry.
Much better does a prune taste
out of a barrel in a grocery store
than stewed and on the table.
Man has never been reconciled
to man. He has always wanted to
make him over; as much now as
in the medieval ages.
Environment makes the man;
and it also makes him change it.
in sizes 14, 16, 18 and 20 (32 to 42
bust). Size 16 requires 2% yards
of 39 inch material for the blouse
and 2% yards for the skirt. The
blouse with long sleeves requires
2% yards 39 inches wide.
A detailed sewing chart accom
panies each pattern to guide you
every step of the way.
Send for the Barbara Bell Fall
and Winter Pattern Book contain
ing 100 well-planned, easy-to-
make patterns. Exclusive fash
ions for children, young women,
and matrons. Send fifteen cents
in coins for your copy.
Send your order to The Sewing
Circle Pattern Dept., Room 1020,
211 W. Wacker Dr., Chicago, I1L
Patterns 15 cents (in coins) each/
© Bell Syndicate.—WNU Service.
EMINENT DOCTORS WROTE
THIS OPINION!
“w:scolds result from
add condition of the
body... they prescribe
various alkalies”—ex
cerpt from medical journal.The
ALKALINE FACTOR in
LUDESrSt
MENTHOL COUGH DROPS 5^
HELPS BUILD UP YOUR
ALKALINE RESERVE
Soften Up!
Being hard-boiled on all »cca-
sions is one of the attainmelts of
a dull man.
Don't Sleep
on Left Side,
Crowds Heart
GAS PRESSURE MAY CAUSE DIS0MFORL
RIGHT SIDE BEST.
, If you tosa In bed and cantaleep on
right side, try Adlerika. Jpt ONE
dose relieves stomach GAS pressing
and
foul
on heart so you sleep soundlf.
Adlerika acts on BOTH ipper
lower bowels and brings out
matter you would never bafeve was
in your system. This old mltter may
have poisoned you for mdiths and
caused GAS, sour stomach, headache
or nervousness.
. ®r. B. L. Shoub, Nnm Yotk, reporter
In addition to intmttinal clcansMe, AdUrika
greatly reduce* bacteria and cabn bacilli.’*
Mrs. Jas. Filler: “Gas on my stom
ach was so bad I could tot eat or
sleep. Even my heart seemid to hurt.
The first dose of Adlerika Fought me
relief. Now I eat as I wish, sleep fine
and never felt better.'*
Give your bowels a REAL cleansing
With Adlerika and see how good you
feel. Just ONE dose relievts GAS and
constipation. At all Leadinf Druggists.
RELIEF
FOR
SOIE THROAT
COLDS
The Original
Cellophane
Wrapped Genuine
Pure Aspirin
WORLD’S LARGEST SELIER AT
IOc
StJoseph
GENUINE PURE ASPIRIN
A FAMOUS DOCTOR
A S s young man the
late Dr. R. V. Fierce
practiced medicine Ir Pa.
After moving to Biffato,
N. Y.. he gave to the drug
trade (nearly 70 years
ago) Dr. Pierce’s Favor-
He prescription. Women
who suffer from “nerves,"
irritability and discom-
. associated with functional disturbance*
ild try this tonic. It atiminates the ap-
te and this in turn increases the mtaae of