Out of the past: Dec. 23

1993

The virus Grinch may wind up spoiling Christmas for families in the Cape Girardeau area; the Cape Girardeau County Health Department says major increases occurred the past week in several reported illnesses, including gastrointestinal, upper respiratory illness, strep throat, pink eye and chicken pox.

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Local native Shari Fioranelli was named associate publisher of the Scott County News last week, publisher Jon K. Rust announces; Fioranelli, 43, started in the newspaper business in her early 20s and has been involved in various publishing positions throughout the years.

1968

Approximately 250 Christmas baskets and 300 to 350 dolls are distributed at the Salvation Army headquarters, 215 Broadway; Capt. Ralph Spicer, corps officers, says about 300 applications were made for the baskets, and other organizations in Cape Girardeau are helping provide food baskets for needy families for Christmas.

Petitions are being circulated throughout Cape Girardeau protesting the proposed city ordinance making it mandatory for every residence to pay a minimum of $2 per month for garbage and trash collection; the ordinance has been given its first reading and is scheduled for final passage at a special City Council meeting Thursday morning.

1943

Holiday gift buyers are coming early and are staying late, according to merchants who are working night and day to get all demands filled; the buying is tapering off a bit, but there are still many purchasers with Christmas money to spend; sales have been about average, but the presents selected were of better quality.

Unofficial reports coming back from Jefferson Barracks, where a large contingent of Cape Girardeau County men reported early Tuesday for induction into the Army, indicate a large percentage of them passed their final physical tests and were sent back home on the usual furlough; this group includes the largest percentage of pre-Pearl Harbor fathers yet to be called into service from the county, and several of the men have two or more children.

1918

On every train, the boys are coming home, some of them on furloughs for the holidays, but most of them with honorable discharges in their pockets showing Uncle Sam doesn't need them to fight any more; there were more uniforms seen on the streets yesterday than on any one day since the war began, unless it was on the occasion of a military parade.

The influenza epidemic strikes St. Vincent's College here, there being 39 cases of the disease at 2 p.m.; there are 18 new cases reported elsewhere in the city at that hour.

-- Sharon K. Sanders