50 years ago:

Fear of a Communist raid on his home led Whittaker Chambers to hide microfilm of highly secret State Department documents in a pumpkin on his farm in Bachmans Valley, known as the Clinton Thomas property and along the state road, Mr. Chambers said. He said he and his family were away from home so much he was afraid Communists might visit the farm during an absence and steal the microfilms. Mr. Chambers, now an editor of Time magazine and an admitted former Russian agent, said the government documents were intended to go to the Russian government but that they never reached Soviet hands. He did not identify the source of the microfilm copies, but apparently they were films of State Department papers which were stolen from files and later returned. The microfilms came into his possession about 10 years ago, he said, at about the time he first considered "quitting the Communist party." Indicating that the microfilms had been brought to his farm only recently, Mr. Chambers said they had been kept in Brooklyn, N.Y. Where in Brooklyn they had been hidden and for how long, he did not disclose. -- Democratic Advocate, Dec. 10, 1948.

75 years ago:

Officer Miller, the traffic policeman stationed at Westminster, was injured near Mount Pleasant Sunday evening. He was on his motorcycle in pursuit of a speeding twin-six Packard, alleged to have been running at a rate of 68 mph. As the officer gained on the Packard, a man on the rear seat threw an old tire out in front of the officer's motorcycle. He was thrown quite a distance. His ++ body was bruised and cut and his clothes torn. He fired four shots after the car but none took effect. The officer could not get the license number on account of the darkness. -- Democratic Advocate, Dec. 14, 1923.

Pub Date: 12/13/98