Out of the past: Dec. 10

1998

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Despite the number of area school districts looking for a new superintendent, Dennis Martin remains optimistic about Perry County's search; the school board has had 15 inquiries so far, and more are expected before the Dec. 23 application deadline; once that deadline passes, board members will meet to review resumes and then determine semifinalists; after that round of interviews, finalists will be chosen and asked to meet with staff, teachers and the community; it's similar to processes under way in Cape Girardeau and Jackson school districts.

The Cape Girardeau Post Office is gearing up for Monday, which is expected to be one of the busiest days of the year for the U.S. Postal Service; the last two Mondays before Christmas always are busy in the nation's post offices; normally the Cape Girardeau facility delivers 125,000 pieces of mail daily, and during the final week before Christmas, the total will surpass 200,000; "But during the next two Mondays, we could be handling 250,000 to 300,000 pieces of mail," said Matthew Peters, manager of customer services here.

1973

Interior finishing and equipment installation is being completed in the new Kerasotes Theater, a twin cinema under construction in the Town Plaza Shopping Center; although a definite opening date isn't available, tentative plans are to have the cinema ready for operation around Dec. 21.

With the energy crises holding outside Christmas decorations to a minimum this year, the usual rash of Yule light thefts has decreased, but vandals are apparently turning their energies to mailboxes; residents in the 1300-1700 blocks of Oakley Drive spent a cold Sunday afternoon collecting the remains of letters, magazines and Christmas packages apparently stolen from their mailboxes, ripped open and discarded in a nearby open field.

1948

Prosecuting Attorney Robert M. Buerkle say that any action to be taken on punch boards confiscated by the sheriff Wednesday will have to come from the Circuit Court and that his office plans no prosecution of those in whose places the equipment was found; but, he warns, action has been taken and henceforth anyone caught operating punch boards or similar gambling devices in the county will be prosecuted as long as he is in office.

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- The Rev. Walter Craig, who has served the parish of St. Ambrose Catholic Church the past 13 years, has been transferred to St. Matthew's Parish in St. Louis, the city of his birth; Craig, who celebrated the 25th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood in May, is an active participant in Chaffee's civic affairs, is a past president of the Chaffee Chamber of Commerce and at present is the vice chairman of the Scott County Red Cross chapter and chairman of the County Welfare Commission.

1923

Six hundred and nine dollars in cash and checks are stolen by an unidentified man who walks into the City Grocery at 119 Independence St., picks up the money from a counter and walks out while the proprietor, Morton Thompson, is waiting on a customer; the theft isn't discovered until Thompson completes caring for the wants of the customer; he had been counting the money preparatory to making a bank deposit, when he was interrupted.

Legal difficulties hold up action on a motion for the sale of the Cape Girardeau Northern Railway, and attorneys in Common Pleas Court agree upon a continuance to the February term, when, they say, an order for the sale of the road will be given.

-- Sharon K. Sanders