Out of the past: April 28

1995

With Cape Girardeau County Presiding Commissioner Gerald Jones smiling like a proud father, Cape Girardeau's newly appointed school board members -- Harry Rediger, Bob Blank and Dr. C. John Ritter -- received congratulations yesterday; the three are sworn in today at a noon meeting at the school board conference room.

Southeast Missouri State University will eliminate its little-used bowling alley in the University Center and move its textbook services into that space; the Board of Regents approved the move Wednesday.

1970

Frank W. Lewis of Cape Girardeau is in Jefferson City to file on the Democratic ticket for representative from District 155, which includes most of Cape Girardeau; Lewis, who operates Wimpy's Restaurant at U.S. 61 and Cape Rock Drive, will run unopposed in the August primary, unless there should be another late filing today.

Census director Byron W. Mercer says the count in this district should be completed by tomorrow, the original target date; the count has seen few problems, save for last week's heavy rain, which left some rural roads water covered and put enumerators behind schedule.

1945

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Pfc. Joseph E. Riordan of Cape Girardeau owes his life to the fact he wears glasses; while fighting near Strasbourg, Germany, two machine gun bullets hit him over the heart; one bullet was completely stopped by his glasses case, while the other was deflected and lodged in his ribs; Riordan is receiving treatment and convalescing at O'Reilly General Hospital in Springfield.

Pvt. George Jenkins Jr. was wounded in action April 7 while serving with an infantry unit in the invasion of Okinawa, his wife, Betty Stark Jenkins, has been advised; he is being treated at a hospital in the Marianas Islands.

1920

Rotarians and their guests last night learned something about Mexico from two speakers; Augustine William Donly, a Canadian by birth, but who lived in Mexico 25 years, gave a lengthy address on the people and customs of our neighbors to the south; the other speaker was Col. John A. "Gatling Gun" Parker, who had intended to speak about the U.S. Army as a training school for American boys, but instead gives a spontaneous talk on Mexican history.

Officials with the Cape Girardeau Portland Cement Co. say they have no idea when they will attempt to resume operations; a strike of employees for a "closed shop" and increased wages some time ago closed the big plant; it is standing idle, while construction in Cape Girardeau and all Southeast Missouri suffers for want of cement.

-- Sharon K. Sanders