HomeMy WebLinkAboutBritish 1942 part 2r
over the a
banked for t
s•
f,
as
dive and ae hte went ou
the 11g the sur-
Ir
performance
Utter darkness cloaked the 0n1Y
and and
1i
rounding countryelde
al -
faint glows from Interlaken
11i
Cortland were to nn Z°�n»gneburg
1,800 feet. DrY-
C
I
Utude of
had melted into the blackness,
Groton,
don couldn't be socn or
1
there were no lights , r ogulehablo
Newflat , S'atervllleor Danby
In
Somewhere a few miles south theOf
Cha in Company
yon
thre
e Morse un"
was a lighted buildingnd
trong
co-opernllve person flashed a seared
What
light Into the steles.
flashesIn the City
4
i
to be explosivee
t° b° Sn
Cemetery signal-
a
f
Scouts experimenting had re-
ling system for which they
celved permission.
Flashlights Noted
warden's cloaked
Whenever a
turned inadvertently
fln.9hlight was as
i,paard It was plainly
notedVero
the unshielded flashlights
t
waved from the vicinity of Sheldon
flare
k
Court and the burning red
tossed from a window. Fire crack -
era were exploded also but these
concentrated In i
disturbances were
ona particular sector and the
N
authorities today were seeking
those who attempted futilely to dis-
turb the effort.
Stay-at-homes moved out to their
porches or lawns to witness the
blackout effect and complied per-
fectly with the order to remain off
the streets. After the all -clear was
sounded at 9:45 p.m,, ending the 15-
minute test, beaming wardens re-
ported proudly of the 100 per cent
performance by residents of their
sectors. Only three disappointed ,
wardens noted failure to comply. In
'
one instance a householder declinr-1
fo extinyruleh 11srhte for rellgin�
w
reasons. Another refused to answer
J'
the door.
One Accident Reported
Defense Council Chairman Melvin
G. Comfort, Co-ordinator Reilly,
and police proudly observed, "The
r
blackout was performed without a
single accident." Today this belief
was dispelled with the report of an
accident 119
at Upland Rd., where
Mrs. H. E. Baxter fell from
a sec -
and story porch where she had gone
to witness the test. She fractured
to arm.
State police who have-• witnessed
-blackout
other efforts
were quoted
as saying, "This is the best
we've
seen." The troopers, auxiliary
po-
lice, and council authorities
ex-
pressed amazement at the extent of
the
co-operation although all were
confident that co-operation would
be
obtained.
Another surprising development
was the hushed tones of all who
were witnessing the spectacle of
Ithaca's darkness, This was report-
ed by wardens and police repeat-
edly. Not a single telephone call
was received either at defense
headquarters or the police station
where a few were gathered to hear
a running report of the test over
the poiice radio by Chief William
Marshall who watched from West
Hill. The chief estimated some 500
cars had also taken to that hill to
observe the blackout. —
These blackout pictures were taken in co-operation
the Ithaca --Tompkins County Defense Council from
Hidl School. The photo above was athree-The
posure .lust before 9:30 P. m. Wednesday.
below was a 15-minute exposure begun 30 seconds
Aerial observers reported that and it glistened like a diamond
Cayuga Lake stood out prominently bracelet.
In the darkness while the ice coated Then when the lights came on
Inlet with its sprinkling of snow Ithaca seemed magnified a hun-
was like a pointing white finger. dred times. It appeared as a great
There were no lakeside cottage sprawling city in its brilliance after
lights showing off the lake which the darkness, Half -blinded by the
took on a grayish appearance un- sudden light wardens left their
der the faint light of the moon, posts to report or go home. As
Even the moon tried to hide behind they walked down the streets many
a wisp of cloud. -
Standing out like a bull's eye on
EL target was the race track lat the
Fairgrounds. The running track
wag whitened with snow which had
disappeared from the inner ring,
were accosted with the comment,
"You did well" and they happily
responded, "You did too, Thanks."
Additional stories about III
blackout will be found on Page