An enthusiastic group of North-40 road boosters determined to make a strong fight against changing their highway number to 24 decided at their last annual meeting in Beloit to send W. F. Hughes to Chicago in June as a member of a committee to present their claims before the American Association of Highway Officials. Other members of the committee are L. F. Davidson and R. M. Shawhill, both of Glasco. The proposal by the American Association of Highways organization to route U.S. Highway No. 24 over U.S. 40 and 40-N from Kansas City sparked a vigorous and prolonged discussion, during which representatives of the 16 towns expressed their opinions concerning the proposed change.

A former Stockton boy foundoutonMondaywhat it means to look the gallows in the face and then hear the glad news that the fate had been changed to life imprisonment. That man is Walter McGee who was the first person in the United States to be given the extreme penalty for kidnapping. The sentence was commuted to life imprisonment by Governor Guy B. Park of Missouri.

The members of the largest class ever to graduate from Stockton High School received their diplomas last Friday evening at the high school auditorium in the presence of a large audience of relatives and friends. The group numbered thirty-six, and two of this number, Vesta Lambert and Lorenzo Fuller, had finished the prescribed course in three years.

A desire to enter business for himself led H. H. Snyder, 12 years cashier of the Stockton National Bank, to resign his position and purchase the Variety Store from R. E. Garland on Saturday. Although Mr. Snyder’s resignation will not take effect until June 1st, he has taken immediate possession of the Variety Store, and Mrs. Snyder is now in charge of this business. Regarding Mr. Snyder’s resignation, W. F. Hughes, the Stockton National Bank president, said, “I cannot speak too highly of Mr. Snyder’s record of service with our institution. He has been a most efficient employee and we regret overmuch to see him leave. However, we appreciate his desire to enter into business for himself.” Mr. Snyder will retain his membership on the bank’s board of directors. However, the cashiership will stay vacant for the present. Everett Hughes will soon commence work at the bank. Everett, now at Osborne, has been employed by the state highway department for almost two years. He has made a good record in this position and is recognized as a most capable young man. The banking business is not new to him as he has been employed at Stockton National while in school, during vacation periods. He and his wife lived here for several months before moving to Osborne and have many friends who will welcome them back into Stockton’s business and social circles.

An argument between twobrothers,whichstarted in Denver over a suitcase, finally culminated in Stockton last Thursday evening, with one of them taking a hatchet to the other’s truck and inflicting no minor damage. He is now in jail. According to the story told to D. A Hindman, county attorney, the argument started because one brother wouldn’t let the other have a suitcase to pack his clothes in Denver. Things went from bad to worse, and by the time the boys reached Stockton, they were ready to battle. They shoved each other around a bit, and then the one started to do his dirty work with the hatchet. He smashed the windshield, severed the gas line, and inflicted other damage too numerous to mention. On the complaint of the truck owner, the hatchet welder was arrested the following day and charged with destruction of property and disturbing the peace. Aid was given to the truck owner so he could patch up his truck and get out of town. Edward Davis is the name of the boy in jail, and his brother’s name is Orren. His wife accompanied Orren out of Stockton.

Crack athletes from all grade schools in Rooks County will be in Stockton this Saturday, making a supreme effort to outrun and outjump each other to be acclaimed winners of the annual track meet at the fairgrounds. The events will start at one o'clock. Contestants, both boys and girls, who entered the track meet must be under 16 years of age. They will be divided, according to weight, into three classes, and care will be taken so that no student competes in any class except his own. Each school will be allowed two entries in each event. The school winning first place in the meet shall be awarded a pennant designating them as champions, according to Alford E. Lambert, county superintendent. Ribbons will be given to all winners in the top three places, and awards or prizes will go to the first-place winners.

George Winterscheidt began his duties here last Thursday as a certifying officer for this county. He takes the place of Rex Jennings who was transferred to Hays two weeks ago. Before coming to Stockton, Mr. Winterscheidt was a certifying officer for Cheyenne County.

A rather sensational tale of how two gypsies promised to interpret Mrs. Freeman Alexander’s dreams if she slept with a charm under her pillow and then stole over $2,500.00 in jewelry and money was unfolded in the Kansas City papers last week. Mrs. Alexander is the wife of Freeman Alexander, a former Stockton resident, and is acquainted here. However, the following day, Mrs. Alexander issued a statement saying the gypsy woman came to her home and began pleading to give her a reading. She yielded to a $1.00 reading for a quarter, her first and most unfortunate experience with gypsy fortunetellers. While she was listening to the amusing tale, the second gypsy crept upstairs and ransacked her bedroom, taking what money she could find and Mrs. Alexander’s jewels. The version current around police headquarters was that Mrs. Alexander asked the gypsies’ aid in assisting her in straightening out the tangled skeins of her marital life and restoring happiness in her home at the reading. The story says Mrs. Alexander followed their instructions of sleeping with the charm, not noticing that anything was missing at that time, only to awaken the following day and discover her jewels and money had vanished. The gypsies did not return to give her any further directions as they had promised, so Mrs. Alexander told her attorney. Then, the attorney contacted the police. Mrs. Alexander filed a divorce suit on February 21st from Mr. Alexander who is president of Alexander, McArthur & Company bond brokers. They were married in 1919 and separated in January of last year. There are three children. Since filing the petition, Mrs. Alexander has been awarded $350.00 in a month of alimony, pending the trial of the case.

The list of Stockton attorneys was augmented last week when Wayne McCaslin arrived here to open a law office. He will be associated with his father, H. McCaslin, one of the best-known lawyers in this section of the state. The two men will practice under the firm name of McCaslin & McCaslin, although the elder member of the firm will remain in Osborne. Mr. McCaslin has rented the office in the top story of the Wizard Garage, which Judge W. K. Skinner formerly occupied. He graduated from the Washburn Law School in 1933 and was admitted to the bar shortly afterward. For the past two years, he has been practicing law in Lyndon. Stockton people who have met Mr. McCaslin are favorably impressed with him. He already has quite a circle of friends here who speak very highly of this young man.

Emmett Gallagher, Rooks County’s Better Housing Chairman, is anxious that the women listen to a special broadcast this Friday at 12:30 p.m. The program is coming over both networks in a national hook-up. He feels that this broadcast will be vital to Kansas women and help focus the women’s attention on the Better Housing program. The program will originate in Washington, and among the distinguished speakers will be Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt, Mrs. Mary T. Norton, a member of Congress from New Jersey, and Mrs. Grace Morrison Poole, president of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs.