Battalion
News Dept. 845-2611
Business Dept. 845-2611
Inside Thursday:
Ward opposition urged, p. 2
Russian flu studied, p. 3.
Tennis loss to Houston, p. 7.
Candidates speak
at county meeting
Class of 19??
Battalion photo by Sheila Crocker
Brad and Alicia Evans, children of Mr. and Mrs.
Steven J. Evans of 1114 Westover in College Sta
tion, seem a little anxious to be students at Texas
A&M. Brad and Alicia, whose father is a member
of the Texas A&M staff, wait outside Harrington
Education Center, obviously eager to attend class.
By MICHELLE BURROWES
All eight candidates for the 6th District
Congressional seat spoke at a Brazos
County A&M Club meeting last night.
The candidates are running for the seat to
be vacated by Congressman Olin Teague.
Each candidate gave a five-minute
statement, followed by a question and an
swer period.
“Alcohol and drug abuse have done
more to decrease the productivity of our
workers more than any other factor,” said
Carl Krohn, a republican from Bryan. He
said he will work to put restrictions on ad
vertisements of alcohol as well as motion
pictures and television programming de
picting alcohol and drug abuse.
“Direct and indirect taxes are breaking
the back of the working man, while the
lazy man sits back,” said Bill Bowers of
Dallas. He cited other major problems as:
the erosion of the dollar, the Soviet
Union’s military overpowering of the
United States, and the farmer’s plight.
Ron Godbey, who served in the Air
Force, was a teacher and a meteorologist,
and is now a lawyer. He said that his broad
background qualifies him to serve the 6th
District well. Godbey said that major
problems are the regulation of the budget
and the oil and gas industry.
“I will vote against every funding bill
brought to the House, Wes Mowery said.
“The time has come to bring sanity to
spending. ”
Kay Jones, a homemaker and busi
nesswoman from Fort Worth, said she
takes the “common sense approach to
spending. “We must watch every expendi
ture,” she said. Jones stressed that she is
not obligated to any special interest group.
Chet Edwards, who worked for Rep.
Teague in Washington, said his first hand
experience with the federal government
qualified him for the job.
“I pledge experience, an open mind,
and effectiveness,” Edwards said.
“It’s time we gained control of runaway
spending, and put the government on a
strict budget, like the rest of us,” said Phill
Gramm, and economist on leave from
Texas A&M University. He said he as an
in-depth knowledge of energy, agricul
ture, and economy.
“If we gave as much time to farmers as
we are to giving away the Panama Canal,
the problem would solve itself,’’ Don
McNiel, and Alvarado businessman, said.
During the question-and-answer period
Prosecution introduces statement
Coleman claims self defense
By TERESA HUDDLESTON
A statement signed by Walter Joe Coleman says Lawrence Baugh was killed
while Coleman was defending himself against a homosexual advance from
Baugh. The confession was introduced as prosecution’s evidence Wednesday in
the Coleman murder trial.
Detective Bobby Yeager of the College Station Police Department read the
statement before the jury as he said it was told to him by Coleman on Jan. 14,
1977.
Coleman, 19, is charged in the Jan. 12, 1977 shooting death of Baugh, a former
lecturer at Texas A&M University. Coleman has entered a plea of not guilty.
Yeager said his first contact witb Coleman was when he served him a warrant
for his arrest at 1 a.m. Jan. 14. He said Coleman first told him “Richard” had
killed Baugh. But Yeager said that later that night Coleman confessed to the
murder.
Yeager said Coleman took police to where the body had been thrown. He said
they went out to the Navasota River and Coleman pointed out the area where the
Detective Ronnie Miller of the College Station Police Department appeared
before the jury Wednesday. On Jan. 13, 1977 Miller was a detective with the
Bryan Police Department. Miller said that on that day he was directed to the
1300 block of Beck Street where he found Baugh’s car. He said it was in a vacant
lot and difficult to see because there was considerable undergrowth.
If found guilty, Coleman could receive a minimum of five years and a
maximum of 99 years, or life. He is represented by Fred Davis and Kent
Cape rt on.
District Attorney Roland Searcy and Assistant District Attorney Larry Gatlin
are representing the state. Testimony will continue Thursday with Judge John
M. Barron Sr. presiding.
that followed, candidates were asked how
the felt about the minimum wage. Krohn
and Godbey said they approved of the
minimum wage. Powers, McNiel, and
Jones said they approved, but that an in
crease in the minimum wage increases in
flation. Mowery and Gramm said they op
posed the minimum wage laws.
Godbey, Mowery, Gramm and McNiel
said they were opposed to the National
Health Insurance Plan. Powers and Ed
wards said that protection is needed for
some cases, like cancer and heart disease,
but added that it should be done in the
private sector.
Krohn said he would like to see the gov
ernment support people if the medical
bills were over 10 percent of their salary.
Jones said she supports national health in
surance, but added that she would have to
look at each bill individually.
The importation of beef is opposed by
Godbey and McNiel. Gramm and Powers
said they favor a sliding scale of quotas and
tariffs. Krohn said he favors a tariff, while
Jones and Edwards said they would favor
some restraints. Mowery, who has been a
cattleman, said that American ranchers
raise superior beef, and restraints are not
necessary.
All the candidates supported federal
funding in education except Mowery and
Edwards, who said more funding should
come from the state.
The regulation of natural gas and the
maintaining of the present Social Security
system are favored by all of the candidates.
All the candidates favored the
Humphrey-Hawkins bill, except Jones
who said “We reward people for not work
ing now. We need to get people working. ”
Inflation was cited by McNiel, Godby,
Mowery, Jones and Gramm as the main
problem causing disunity in the country.
Krohn said the main problem was drug
abuse, while Powers said a strong defense
and economy were the main problems.
Edwards said the attitude that Washington
should solve all the country’s problems is
harmful to the country.
Media, politics
common bedfellows
By JUDY DUNN
A new type of political candidate is
emerging in the United States.
“An increasing number of members of
Congress have backgrounds in media,”
said James Dyer, a political science profes
sor at Texas A&M University.
Dyer is researching 1974 and 1976 pri
mary and general elections for the U.S.
House of Representatives. He has found
that 17 members of the House of Repre
sentatives were involved in radio, televi
sion, or newspaper careers shortly before
running for office.
“Suggesting that this is a fairly new
phenomena is the fact that 12 of the 17
were first elected in 1970 or later,” he
said.
Candidates with media backgrounds
have better chances of winning elections
as political paities weaken and ballots get
longer, he said. The voters’ party iden
tifications weaken, and as a result, they
vote for the candidate whose name looks
more familiar.
“Candidates with media careers have a
mechanism that produces name recogni
tion greater than that of almost any other
candidate prior to beginning the cam
paign,” Dyer said.
Television personalities seem to do
especially well in these types of races, he
said.
“We let the weathermen or newscasters
into our homes every night, and as a re
sult, we feel we know the television per
sonalities on a personal basis,” Dyer said.
The future depends on what happens to
the political parties, he said. If the parties
get stronger, then voters’ party identifica
tions get stronger and they will vote for
their party’s candidate.
“However, unless something changes
dramatically, political parties are likely to
continue to weaken,” Dyer said.
As this occurs, more and more televi
sion personalities will be elected, and the
result is a less responsible Congress, Dyer
said.
Thirteen student
positions vacant
Sophomore Gary Mehrtenes, an agricultural education major re
ceives an unexpected swim from his friends. With spring weather
'B^ttanorT^hotobyDaU^^Keahci.
Tis the season to be quaded
finally here, more than likely a few more Ags will be visiting the
‘Fish Pond.’
By PAIGE BEASLEY
Battalion Staff
Filing for Texas A&M University elected
student offices ended Tuesday, leaving 17
candidates unopposed and 13 positions va
cant. The student elections will be held
April 5 and 6, with run-off elections to be
held April 13.
About 229 students filed for the more
than 80 positions. This is an increase over
last year’s election, which attracted about
185 candidates, said Mike Barry, election
commissioner.
Election results, he said, with the excep
tion of write-in positions, will be available
by 12 midnight April 6. Write-in votes will
be tabulated the following day.
Barry said voting machines will be
placed at the Commons, Sbisa, Memorial
Student Center, the Guard Room, Soil and
Crops Sciences Building, and Zachry.
More machines are available and will be
placed at the shuttle bus stops if student
volunteers are found to manage them.
The off-campus undergraduate senator
position attracted the most attention, draw
ing 34 candidates. Also popular are the yell
leader positions. Five of 18 candidates will
be chosen.
Tree House fire
damages offices,
party room
By ANDREA VALLS
A fire at Tree House Apartment com
plex, 205 Jersey, caused considerable
damage to the manager’s and assistant
manager’s office Wednesday morning.
College Station Fire Department dis
patched three units and 27 workers at 1:55
a.m. to extinguish the fire, which was
under control in approximately 20 min
utes.
Fire Chief Douglas Landua said the
party room, where the offices are located,
suffered only smoke and water damage.
The offices suffered major damage to the
siding, roof, rafters and ceiling.
The fire was ignited by flames from a
barbeque pit, said Landua. Verda Shelby,
manager of the apartments, said the bar
beque pit was left smouldering overnight
because the complex was planning a resi
dent barbeque party for Wednesday.
No injuries were reported and a damage
estimate has not been assessed, Shelby
said.
Uncontested offices include the vice
president of external affairs, the Class of’81
secretary-treasurer and social secretary,
and various college representatives. Most
write-in votes will be for the individual col
lege representatives.
Backgammon
championship
tonight
By JANA THIEME
The first backgammon tournament at
Texas A&M University will end tonight as
three people have made their way into the
championship round.
The tournament, which started Tuesday
afternoon, paired up 50 contestants who
paid a 50-cent entry fee, for participating
in the first round.
The matches were all single elimination
matches, and were won on a five-point sys
tem.
The scoring in Backgammon goes like
this. The first player to get all of his men
safely home wins the game. If the loser has
not taken at least one man home and does
not have a man left on the winner’s innert-
able, he loses a “single” game. If he has
not taken a single man home, he loses
double, a gammon. If, in addition, he has a
man left on his opponent’s side or on the
bar separating the halves, he loses triple, a
backgammon.
For scoring in the tournament, the con
testant accumulates one point for a win,
two points for a gammon, and three points
for a backgammon.
Cindy Corti, Chairman of the
Backgammon Committee, said that a
major portion of the funds received would
go toward publicizing bacgammon and the
remainder to the Recreation Committee,
which sponsored the tournament.
“We are going to try and have the
backgammon tournament once a semes
ter,” she added.
Prizes in the tournament will be a velvet
backgammon set for first place, a pair of
Steve Martin tickets for second place and
tickets to the Dallas Symphony Orchestra
for third place.
The finalists in A&M s tournament are
Dan Thomson, Tim Starker and Amy
Anstutz. The three will begin playing to
night at the Memorial Student Center for
the championship.