Cbe Battalion
Vol. 65 No. 14 College Station, Texas Tuesday, October 7, 1969 Telephone 845-2226
This was the aftermath early this morning as an explosion rocked the Corps area of the campus. Glass was shattered, peppered, and cracked by the blast; these shown were all more than 30 feet from the blast.
Windows In 4 Corps Dorms
Early Morning Blast
- ■ / -- - , ' — - -
WHERE IT BEGAN
^This tree, in the grassy area between dorm 1 and 2, was the location of the explosion
f which broke 31 windows in 4 dorms early this morning. Bark blasted from the tree and
1 falling leaves litter the area surrounding it. (Photos by David Middlebrooke)
■[College Station Post Office
Due to Open 6 Within Week’
By Payne Harrison
Battalion Staff Writer
Texas A&M and College Sta
tion should be getting a new op
erational post office within the
next week, though no definite
date has been set, according to
Ernest Gregg, postmaster of Col
lege Station.
The new station, located in
Redmond Terrace Shopping Cen
ter, will serve people in the south
and east portions of the city, in
cluding many students living in
apartments in that area.
“It was supposed to be fin
ished ’way back in July,” Gregg
said, “but because of labor prob
lems construction on the site has
been delayed.”
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300 Expected Wednesday
At Grad Student Orientation
An estimated 300 students are
expected to participate in the
graduate student orientation
scheduled for 3 p.m. Wednesday
in Room 113 of the Biological
Sciences building.
Tony Benedetto, president of
the Graduate Student Council,
said the meeting is open to all
graduate students and under
graduates interested in enrolling
in graduate school.
Benedetto said the meeting will
give graduate students an oppor
tunity to become acquainted with
University National Bank
“On the side of Texas A&M.”
—Adv.
Graduate College Dean George W.
Kunze and the 17 members of
the GSC.
Kunze will explain admissions
procedures and degree require
ments for graduation with the
various advanced degrees. Bene
detto said that the dean will also
pass out forms which will serve
as checklists for requirements for
advanced degree programs.
“New graduate students will
also be given a brief campusology
talk, primarily centered around
football traditions,” Benedetto ex
plained, “so that we will not have
the unpleasantness we had last
year simply because the new
graduate students didn’t know any
better.”
The need for a post office in
the area has grown along with
the new apartment complexes
being constructed there, he
addec(,
According to City Manager
Ran Boswell, Mayor D. A. An
derson has wanted a post office
in that area for some time and
is glad to see it come about.
Many people have complained
about having to drive through
the campus to do their mailing
at the main station, Gregg said,
and the new office will relieve
this problem.
The 988 post office boxes the
station carries will free many
of the people who are presently
doubled up in boxes at the main
station in College Station and
help ease the workload for the
employees there.
For the two men who will be
staffing the new station, Gregg
anticipates a heavy load of par
cel post mail from businesses in
the area, along with people mail
ing on their way to and from
work and people working in the
surrounding shopping centers
who used to go into Bryan to
do their mailing.
Gregg added that the two man
staff may have to be enlarged
due to the forthcoming Christ
mas rush.
By Steve Forman
Battalion Staff Writer
A shattering explosion at the
base of a tree just outside Dormi
tory 2, headquarters for the Corps
of Cadets, broke 31 windows in
four dormitories early this morn
ing.
No one was reported injured
by the blast, which occurred at
1:50 a.m.
The jarring explosion, set off
by what Campus Security officers
suspect was a bomb of some sort,
shattered glass from more than
200 feet away.
An eight-foot tall window in
each of two recently completed
lounges nearest the blast were
damaged, one cracked at the base
and the other completely blown
out.
Also broken out were pieces of
a lamp post light perhaps no
more than 20 feet from the ex
plosion.
Although the tree was not
blown over, bark and leaves were
scattered as far as 50 feet from
the trunk. On the side where the
bomb or charge was apparently
placed, bark was ripped from the
tree three feet above the ground.
The blast blew a hole about four
inches deep in the ground at the
base of the trunk.
Campus Security officers said
they heard the explosion about
three-quarters of a mile away.
They said they first thought it
was a sonic boom.
As one student in the Corps
area described the blast, “It was
as if an artillery round had found
its target here.” The walls of
the surrounding six dormitories
were said to have shaken and
the windows vibrated from the
explosion.
Campus Securtiy officers and
College Station police have found
no clues concerning either the
type of charge exploded or who
set it off.
“By the bits of glass found
embedded in the ground at the
base of the tree,” Security Officer
John Miller said, “it is possible
that it was nitroglycerine or some
kind of homemade bomb in a glass
container.”
“There were no debris in the
blast area that would indicate
that it was dynamite,” Miller
added.
Most of the windows broken
were on the third and fourth
stories of the dorms. One of the
windows looked as if it had been
peppered by a shotgun blast.
In all cases, the concussion of
the blast made the glass fall away
from the dormitories.
Most of the cadets were asleep
in their bunks when the explosion
occurred. Marc Powell ,a senior
on Corps Staff, was in the room
on the first floor that was nearest
to the blast.
“I had just fallen asleep when
the explosion blew my window
out,” Powell said.
Dormitory 1 had 14 windows
blown out and Dorm 2 had 11
wnidows damaged. The explosion
occurred halfway between the
two dormitories.
Farther away. Dormitories 3
and 4 each had two windows
shattered.
Developer Says Conditions Set
By Commission ‘Unfeasible’
By Jay F. Goode
Battalion Staff Writer
A Houston developing firm
representative said conditions im
posed on a University Oaks St.
subdivision plan approved by the
College Station Planning and
Zoning Commission Monday night
would make the plan “econom
ically unfeasible.”
John Garner, representing Mu
nicipal Engineering Co. of Hous
ton, hinted that the developer may
withdraw his proposal to develop
property between Dominik and
Highway 30, and west of Munson
St., into apartment units.
The plan approved by the com
mission calls for a 70-foot right-
of-way for Munson St., sidewalks
on Dominik, extension of Dominik
to the east by-pass, and paving
of Dominik by the developer.
“They are allowing too much
land for sidewalks and street
right-of-way,” Garner said. “The
costs will have to be passed on by
increasing land prices.”
The developer’s plans called for
a 56-foot right-of-way with a 28-
foot pavement strip for Munson
St., which runs north and south.
Both City Planner Lee Roy
George and the city engineer said
that the 56-foot width would be
sufficient.
“Tonight was the first I heard
of a 70-ft. right-of-way although
the plan has been before the com
mission eight times in the last
18 months,” Garner said.
Bryan Building & Loan
Association. Your Sav
ing Center, since 1919.
—Adv.
The approved plan was part
of a motion made by commissioner
Joseph R. Baur and amended by
commissioner Jim Gardner.
Part of Gardner’s amendment
which did not pass called for side
walks on University Oaks St. and
Highway 30, a study to eliminate
a potential traffic hazard at the
intersection where Cedar Lane,
Holly Drive and University Oaks
St. meets Munson St. The inter
section presents problems in traf
fic control because the streets
running east and west are offset
120 ft., George said earlier.
Cindy Burleson, a junior jour
nalism student at A&M, com
plained that the commission was
not carrying on its business so
that everyone in the audience
could hear. The complaint came
after Garner and the commission
had been carrying on a close
range discussion at the meeting
table.
As a result of the complaint,
maps were presented to explain
the plan.
called the commission’s attention
to a restaurant under construc
tion opposite the University’s east
gate which may not be meeting
the requirements of the city’s fire
code. The building does not have
enough exits, Gardner said. The
commission postponed action be
cause the fire code did not cover
the area in question.
Former Aide to Castro
To Discuss Cuban Politics
BB&L.
A political refugee from Cuba
who worked directly for Fidel
Castro and with Che Guevara,
Dr. Miguel Tarrab of West Tex
as State, will speak here Wed
nesday on “Cuban Political Pos
sibilities.”
Dr. Tarrab, 46-year-old mathe
matics professor, will speak at
8 p.m. in the Memorial Student
Center Ballroom under the
sponsorship of the Issues Series,
subcommittee of Great Issues.
Issues chairman Bill Webster
of Ennis said it will be a public-
free address.
Tarrab held several key gov
ernment positions in Cuba. While
living in England, he sought
sanctuary in the United States.
He is in process of becoming a
naturalized U. S. citizen and has
been on the Canyon university
faculty since 1967.
He was head of the National
Economy Department under Cas
tro before coming to the U. S. as
Deadline Nears
In Senate Filing
Filing closes Wednesday for the
offices of Student Senate vice
president, sophomore College of
Agriculture representative, senior,
junior, and sophomore College of
Education representatives, and
sophomore College of Liberal Arts
representative, announced Mike
Wiebe, Election Commission vice
president for publicity, Monday.
Wiebe said applications can be
picked up at the Student Program
Office in the Memorial Student
Center and must be returned there
before 5 p.m. Wednesday.
a refugee, and was also head of
the Market and Economic Re
search Department of Cuban
Commercial Offices in London.
He worked directly with Gue
vara for four months in Switzer
land and on several other occa
sions.
Tarrab represented Cuba on
several international councils
and organizations. He was Cu
ban liaison officer to the Gen
eral Agreement of Tariffs and
Trade, also in London.
He also represented Cuba to
United Nations conferences on
wheat, trade and development,
sugar and the Food and Agri
cultural Organization (FAO) on
commodity problems.
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