The Lamoni Chronicle OFFICIAL PAPER OF DECATUR COUNTY Lamoni, Iowa, Thursday, December 20, 1941, Page 1 BOYS IN THE SERVICE LIKE GIFTS Boxes of Candy Made a Hit With Service Boys - A Number have Written Their Thanks Letters of appreciation and gratitude for the boxes of candy and other articles sent to U. S. Servicemen from the community are being received. The letter from son of Ralph Johnson is typical of many. It reads: "Dear Friends: I was very much surprised and pleasantly too at the mail call when I was handed a box from Lamoni. I could not imagine what the contents of the box might be. When I found out it was candy you can be sure I knew what to do from there on. Speaking for myself and the rest of the fellows in the tent, we sincerely thank whoever was responsible for such a lovely treat. "We are having very lovely weather here at present, feel very comfortable in shirt sleeves during the day but the evenings are quite the opposite. We have to sleep under two blankets to keep warm. "At the present time I am acting as instructor teaching marksmanship to a group of officers and non-commissioned officers from the 125 field artillery regiment. The P. A. regiment has recently been turned rifle to carry in place of pistols so the Infantry is conducting the school for them. "In closing I again wish to thank you for the candy and wish you a very Merry Christmas. "Corp. O. R. Johnson "Camp Claiborne, La." ED SCOTT IS SAFE AT PEARL HARBOR SAYS CABLEGRAM Friends of the Rothmer Scott family will be glad to hear that their son Ed, who was on the USS Oklahoma at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii during the attack by the Japanese, came through the terrific bombardment without being hurt. His ship was hit and capsized but Ed was not injured. This good news was received Monday by his parents at New London in answer to a cablegram they sent on Saturday to a relative at Honolulu. Mrs. Scott asked that the friends of the family be informed through the Chronicle. WILLARD MOON TO HOSPITAL AFTER AN ACCIDENT AT MILL Willard Moon was taken to Decatur County Hospital Friday, following an accident at the mill in which he suffered two broken ribs when he fell in one of the pits. After being in the hospital over the weekend he returned to his home Monday morning and will remain there for several days. Two years ago Mr. Moon fell into the same pit and suffered a broken collar bone. ANNUAL CLINIC FOR T.B. WILL BE NEXT MONTH X-Rays To Be Taken At Leon High School January 13 - Downey Expects Between 100 and 150 Decatur county's annual T. B. clinic will be held on January 13 at the Leon high school gym beginning at 8 a. m. says Miss Downey, county public health nurse. Miss Downey reports that 150 took advantage of the clinic last year and there will be from 100 to 150 take advantage of the health service offered through the T. B. program this year. Miss Downey was in Lamoni Monday in the interest of the program. She will notify and arrange for X-ray service for every person who has come in contact with known T. B. [illegible] year. A number of persons will also be re-examined. Last year four people in Decatur County died of tuberculosis, one of the deaths being in the home and three in a general hospital. Four new cases were reported in 1940 and there were approximately 27 cases of the disease in the county. While these figures seem to indicate an increase of the disease, they have been discovered through the annual T. B. clinic. When a case of T. B. is discovered steps are taken to check the spread of the disease. An accurate knowledge of existing cases is essential in the eradication program and it is through the annual clinic that such cases are being discovered. JUNIOR DAIRYMEN READY FOR 1942 Dale Moon Is President - Will Entertain Dads Jan. 22 - Leaders are Dunsmore and Cunningham Dale Moon was elected president for the new year by the members of the Lamoni Junior Dairymen's Club at a recent meeting. Other officers are: Bill Ballantyne, vice-president; Duane Sandage, secretary-treasurer; and Jimmy Bucy, historian. Gerald Dunsmore, vocational ag instructor, will be the 1942 club leader and Curtis Cunningham, Graceland dairy farm manager, assistant club leader. The club will hold its first meeting of the new year on Thursday evening, January 22. Club dads will be invited to attend this meeting. The Lamoni boys organized their club in the fall of 1938 through the financial sponsorship of the Lamoni Cooperative Creamery under the supervision of Howard Wilson, vocational ag instructor. Five boys made up the charter members, they were: Dale Moon, Max Hall, Ronald Mortimore, Bert Smith and Lonnie [illegible]; the present cattle number inventory of the club exceeds thirty head. Any boy between the 4-H club age limits of 10 and 21 is welcome to make application for membership in this dairy heifer club. GOOD ATTENDANCE AMONG LEADERS OF NUTRITION PROJECT Increased interest is being shown in the nutrition lessons being given in the county as indicated by 100 per cent attendance of the leaders, assistant leaders and township officials from Fayette at the leaders training school held at the W. P. Salsman home last Thursday. Absences in Bloomington township were due to illness. It is important that those attending the follow-up meetings be on hand as promptly at 10 o'clock as possible with the supplies for the meal and for the beginning of the lesson. The following list indicated the time and places of follow-up meetings in Fayette township: The Friendly Neighbor club will meet January 8 with Mrs. Emmet Graves. Mrs. Henry Martin and Mrs. Vaughn McElroy will be leaders. The H. N. club meeting will be January 7 with Mrs. Ralph Lorance and Mrs. H. Hausheer will be leader. The JOT club will meet January 7 with Mrs. Walter Moon and Mrs. E. E. Anderson will be leader. The town group will meet Tuesday, January 6 with Mrs. Ralph Silver with Mrs. H. A. Gilliland as leader. The music chairman, Mrs. Joe Thomas, will meet with the town group on the date above. COUNTY FARM PROVIDES HOME FOR THIRTY-SIX PEOPLE Thirty-six aged people are being cared for at the Decatur County Farm. Both indigents and insane are admitted to the county home where they receive comfortable quarters, plenty of good food, efficient supervision and expert medical attention. Last year the net cost of the Co. Farm was $7,174.76 for 40 inmates. The average cost per person for the year was $174.99 and the average cost was approximately $4 less than it would cost to keep a patient at a state institution. Figured down to a weekly basis the county paid on $3.37 per person cost a week last year. For the past 10 years Mr. and Mrs. R. C. Oney have been steward and stewardess of the county home and through their efficient work and the careful supervision of the county board members the cost has been kept at a minimum. State inspectors report that the Decatur County Farm meets all requirements of the state and that the steward and stewardess are among the most capable in Iowa. Health Conditions The law requires that the county physician, Doctor Bowman, pay regular visits to the home. Once each week he makes his calls. "Surprising as it may seem" says Doctor Bowman, "I prescribe very little medicine for the inmates as their physical condition is better than one would expect. Most of their ailments are due to infirmities of old age." Dr. Bowman credits the physical condition of the inmates to good clean nourishing food served them. The marked improvement in their health after residing at the farm for a while reflects the importance of correct diets. Although the inmates at the farm probably had sufficient food to keep them from hunger before they entered the institution, many of them are benefiting from a nutritious diet for the first time in their lives. Sorghum is one of the favorite foods at the home and a lot of it is served. Doctor Bowman approves of the sorghum in the diet for the patients as it is one of the best sources of iron and other nutritious elements, far surpassing other foods such as spinach, which many parents try to feed children. The same food is served the inmates that is served on the table of the private dining room. As a guest of the board of supervisors and Doctor Bowman we were at the county farm for dinner recently and after eating in the private dining room we went to the main dining hall where we noticed the same menu had been prepared for the inmates. With the exception of sugar, bread, coffee and a bit of pineapple in the salad, everything on the table was raised on the farm. Meat, vegetables, fruit, mincemeat for the pie, jelly, butter and pickles, all came from the farm. Rooms Kept Clean Keeping house at the county farm is no easy task. Although the buildings are kept in good repair, they are old, a fact which any woman will admit makes cleaning a daily chore. To the credit of the county officials and the Oneys we would like to state that we discovered the claim that the county farm is ready for visitors and inspection every day in the year to be true. The corridors, stairways, and floors were polished and clean, and our visit had not been announced previously. Kitchen Duties In answer to our question regarding the preparation of meals, Mrs. Oney told us that it was necessary to churn almost daily as it required about three pounds of butter for the cooking and the tables; that a half bushel of potatoes were used for one meal; coffee is served once a day; milk twice daily; and pies and cakes are baked for Sundays and special occasions. Eggs used at the farm are supplied from their own flock and during the summer Mrs. Oney packs them in salt for use when winter cuts down the egg production. Mrs. Oney is assisted by Mrs. Anna Millsap and Mrs. Mary Murray. These three, with the assistance of a few special inmates, prepare the meals and do the canning. A visit to the fruit cellar revealed that between 4,500 and 5,000 quarts of fruits and vegetables have been canned at the farm this year. There are plenty of cabbage, carrots, potatoes and other vegetables in the bins and buried for winter use.

[Page 6] Home-made soap, something that used to be found on practically every farm, was one of the items we noticed in the cellar. Dairy Herd Although the county holds title to approximately 3,000 acres of land the county farm proper is only 240 acres. A fine Holstein herd is kept on the farm. Mr. Oney informed us that about 10 gallons of milk a day are supplied for table use and for feeding the four or five calves generally on hand. Inmates at the farm help with the chores and milking. The dairy barn is kept clean by one of the inmates who takes as much pride in his responsibilities as any workman. Inmates assist with all of the farming and gardening and most of them are willing and anxious to work. They tell the story of one patient who liked to work so well that he wouldn't stop. Chopping wood was his favorite form of labor and he was assigned to do a little clearing at the end of the farm. Every morning the inmate picked up his tools and started out across the field to his work. Investigation a few days later revealed that the inmate did not stop chopping when he finished the assigned work but climbed the fence and started clearing a bit of timber for the neighboring farmer. Inmates Inmates at the Co. Farm are classified as indigents and insane. Indigent patients are admitted to the institution by action taken by the board members on applications made. The insane patients are admitted after they have been declared insane by the commission and when possible they are kept at the farm rather than the state institution. One of the reasons for this is expense. At present 24 insane patients are that the state institution. Insane Patients A trip through the dormitories reveal which wards are for the insane and which are for the indigents. State law require[s] that white washable spreads be used on the beds of the insane while colored quilts are allowed on the indigent beds. Insane patients are harmless but nevertheless they present problems which only a person possessing experience and understanding can solve. A number of incidents occurred during our visit which proved that the board members whose duties it is to visit the farm at regular intervals, the Oneys and Dr. Bowman possess such insight and experience. Often the patients become obsessed with harmless illusions and occasionally they become beset by imaginary wrongs and fanciful situations which require tactful handling. To the visitor's eye the presence of the insane creates more responsibility and a greater problem than any other single factor, but it is a problem which is well handled. Indigent Patients For the most part the indigent patients are simply aged people whose lives have not turned out as they expected they would in their youth. Overtaken by misfortune and circumstances they find in later years that they can receive the care they so much need at the County Farm. After they are admitted they soon accept the routine and take their places with the others. If you look deep into the lives of some at the County Farm you can see traces of pathos and tragedy. Sickness, lack of care during their early life, hard work, poverty, misfortune, sorrow and lack of opportunity is written on the faces of some inmates. Most of them are sociable souls whose eyes light up when company comes, while others appear to have created a little world of their own and are hardly conscious of their present surroundings. Relatives of the patients are free to visit the farm as often as they wish and many take advantage of the opportunity. Officials also urge the public to visit and inspect the County Farm at any time.

At the Movies: Thurs., Fri., Dec. 25-26 "SUN VALLEY SERENADE" ____________ Saturday, Dec. 27 "WILD GEESE CALLING" ____________ Tuesday, Dec. 30 FUN NIGHT New Year's Eve Midnight Show "THE BODY DISAPPEARS" LOCALS and PERSONALS Mrs. Iona Roberts left Saturday for Des Moines to be with her son George and family for a few days. From Des Moines she will go to Knoxville to be with her daughter, Mrs. P. W. Nolan and family for the remainder of the holiday. ____________ Mr. and Mrs. Tom France and Mr. and Mr. and Mrs. Moroni Traxler are enjoying a Christmas visit with Mr. and Mrs. Paul Jacques of Chicago and Miss Wanda Lee France, who came Wednesday for the holiday. ____________ Mr. and Mrs. M. A. Hynden, Robert and Nancy, drove to Des Moines Saturday where Mr. Hynden and Nancy spent the afternoon while Mrs. Hynden and son drove to Ames to meet Bunny Black, State College student, who is spending his vacation in Lamoni. ____________ Corp. Ellis A. Hicks is spending Christmas vacation with his mother and sisters in Lamoni. He will return to Camp Claiborne, LA, Dec. 27. ____________ Miss Nina Waye Stafford, who is employed in Washington, D.C., arrived in Lamoni Saturday night and will enjoy two weeks leave with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd Stafford. Archie, the son who is in U. S. service, was unable to be home for the holidays. ____________ Young Bill Scott enjoyed a bus ride early Friday morning when he returned to Lamoni after visiting a few days with his mother, Mrs. Ruth Scott in Des Moines. ____________ Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Anderson left Wednesday for Des Moines where they will observe Christmas with their son, Scott and family. They plan to remain in Des Moines for a few days.

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker

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