ABOUT THE WEEK OF AUG. 22, 1963, New York’s basic gunning season for deer and black bear would run Oct. 25 through Dec. 3 in the Adirondack and Northern Zone counties. The Conservation Department also announced any further refinements in the party permit system for deer hunters, which included 13 permit areas and a statewide quota of 47,800 “bonus” deer.

Albert G. Hall, chief of the Bureau of Game, explained the party permit system had been expanded to provide additional harvesting of whitetails in areas where winter starvation had been high and over-browsing had caused critical range deterioration.

Except for party permit holders, the season limit remained changed, one deer and one bear per hunter regardless of the type of license. Deer taken during the regular gunning season had to have antlers at least three inches long.

Party permits allowed a party of licensed hunters to take one deer of either sex in addition to any deer legally allowed individual members of the party. In outlining the schedule for applications, Hall pointed out that all permits were issued on a first-time basis.

As in the past, archers had a 14-day jump on the regular gunning season, at which time they could take a deer of either sex and one bear on the special archery license. During the regular gunning season bowman could continue to use their special archery license, but deer taken then had to have at least three-inch antlers.

At HAMILTON COUNTY, Supreme Court Justice Michael E. Sweeney of Saratoga Springs ruled that the district attorney of Hamilton County need not be an attorney at law but could be a layman, as had been the case for more than 40 years. Justice Sweeney’s decision came as a result of a hearing at a special term of Supreme Court at Saratoga Springs in which Charles A. Drake, a Utica attorney, sought to restrain the Board of Elections of Hamilton County from accepting the designation petition of Edwin Galusha of Indian Lake.

Galusha, district attorney for the county since 1945, had filed a petition with the Board to run as a Republican candidate for reelection. Drake, who had a home in Inlet and was a legal resident of Hamilton County, also filed a designating petition to run as a GOP candidate.

Drake sought to have Galusha’s petition declared null and void, claiming Galusha was not an attorney at law, had no license to practice at law, had no license to practice in the courts and was not eligible to hold the office of district attorney in any county. Rejection of the Galusha petition would have done away with a primary battle between Drake and Galusha.

Arguing the matter before Justice Sweeney were Attorney Arthur L. Speiller of Utica, who represented Drake; Assistant Hamilton County District Attorney Harry Dunkel of Gloversville, who appeared for Galusha; and Attorney Charles Tracy of Speculator, Hamilton County’s attorney, who represented the Board of Elections.

Galusha was appointed district attorney in 1945 by Gov. Thomas E. Dewey, who was aware that Galusha was not an attorney but felt he was qualified as a layman. Tracy also cited a 1911 act of the state Legislature which stipulates that the district attorney of Hamilton County may appoint an assistant who must be a counselor at law and who must be a resident of Hamilton or any other adjoining county (Fulton, St. Lawrence, Franklin, Essex, Warren or Saratoga).

He said the act does not state the district attorney must be an attorney. Tracy said that for more than 40 years a layman has been acting as district attorney for the county and he upheld the election board’s right to accept designating petitions from laymen.

He said that in 1936, John J. Bennett, then state attorney general, ruled that a person, not an attorney, but otherwise qualified, may serve as a district attorney for Hamilton County. Justice Sweeney reserved decision following the hearing and later ruled “a layman is still eligible to hold the position of district attorney in Hamilton County.

He added, however, that the matter should be brought before the state Legislature.

State Comptroller Arthur Levitt had announced the distribution of monies representing supplemental advances for the months of April, May and June to the 65 Public Welfare districts in New York state. These moneys represented the federal and state share of anticipated welfare expenditures by the localities.

Hamilton County received $4,659.52.

At INLET, the Popular Award for the painting receiving the most votes from spectators at the previous week’s Old Forge Art Show went to Joseph Swartz, Inlet, for an oil painting, “Winter Farm.” Swartz had won the same award in 1962 for another oil, “First Snow.”

The Gaiety Theatre was advertising the following movies: Steve McQueen and Jim Garner in “The Great Escape;” Cary Grant and Doris Day in “That Touch of Mink” with Gig Young and Audrey Meadows; and “The List of Adrian Messenger” with George C. Scott, Dana Wynter and Clive Brook with Tony Curtis, Kirk Douglas, Burt Lancaster, Robert Litchum and Frank Sinatra playing disguised roles.

At RAQUETTE LAKE, Navy Lt. (junior grade) Gerald A. Dupuis, son of Mr. and Mrs. Philip Dupuis, Raquette Lake, was serving aboard the guided missile cruiser USS Little Rock, flagship of the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean, which had departed Villefranche, France, July 27 for Barcelona, Spain.

The Little Rock spent most of July at Villefranche after a six-week cruise that took her to Trieste, Italy; Rhodes, Greece; and Beirut, Lebanon. At Trieste the Little Rock crewmen gave a party aboard ship in joint observance of Little Rock’s third year as a guided missile carrier and of Italian Independence Day. An estimated 1,500 visitors attended the celebration.

An Atlantic Fleet unit, the ship normally operated out of Norfolk, Va.

At LAKE PLEASANT, two experienced campers, their wives and two children were found by searchers Saturday, Aug. 17, after being lost two days near Lewey Lake in Hamilton County, north of Speculator, in the Adirondacks. Found safe but hungry were Theodore Greene, 29, of Albany, and James Dunn, 28, of Schenectady, and their families.

The Albany and Schenectady couples were rescued after a diaper, hanging from a tree, led a search party using bloodhounds to the campers. State Police, forest rangers and volunteers began looking for the group after their cars and camping equipment were found unattended at Lewey Lake.

A “Husky” H-43 helicopter from Griffiss Air Force Base joined the search Saturday morning. Mrs. Karen Greene and Mrs. Frances Dunn, both 21, and their children, Mark Greene, 2, and Gary Dunn, 6 months, were taken by helicopter to the Indian Lake Medical Center from the Cedar River Ranger Station.

The two families became lost on a fishing expedition Friday afternoon. Earlier they had set up camp at Lewey Lake. They were found about eight miles from the campsite, but only a mile from a main trail through the woods.