m NOME NUGGET
_OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS_
VOL. LI. No. 82 NOME, ALASKA, MONDAY, JULY 11, 1949 Per Copy—15c
NEWS IN BRIEF
WASHINGTON, UP)—The com
munications commission announc
ed Friday a grant for a new stand
ard radio station to the Alaska
Broadcasting Co., Sitka, Alaska,
1230 kilocycles, 250 watts, unlim
ited time.
SEATTLE, f/P)—Alaska’s Bris
tol Bay and central Alaska sal
mon pack to date is far behind
last year’s figures.
The weekly report by the U. S. |
Fish and wildlife service disclosed i
Saturday the total pack as of July;
2 stood at 443,046 cases, compared
to 671.899 cases of a comparable j
date last year.
Regional totals to the week end
ing July 2 were (comparable fig
ures for 1948 in parenthesis*:
Bristol Bay 274,297 <505,816':
Western Alaska 285,220 <527,986';
Central Alaska 153.473 <137,204*;
Southeastern Alaska 4,353 <6.709*.
WASHINGTON. (/P)—A bill to
authorize the $21,580,000 Eklutna
power project near Anchorage,
was cleared for House action by
the Rules committee Friday.
The project would include a
dam at Lake Eklutna, a diversion
tunnel, a power plant with an in
stalled capacity of 30,000 kilowatts
and transmission lines to Anchor
age.
The bill also would give the sec
retary of interior general author
ity to construct, operate and main
tain hydroelectric power projects
in Alaska.
SEATTLE, (/P) — Schuster the
“Rooster” was back at his old
shortstop post for the Seattle Ran
iers Saturday night.
In a straight-across swap, the
Raniers late Friday traded infield
ed Bobby Sturgeon to Los Angeles
for Bill Schuster, who was a key
figure in Seattle’s 1940 Pacific
Coast League pennant drive. As
one wag put it: “Fowl for fish.”
Sturgeon was purchased last
winter from the Boston Braves.
Schuster, 39, was with Seattle in
1940 and then was sold to Los An
geles in mid-season of 1941. He
has been there since, with the ex
ception of two war years when he
was with the Chicago Cubs of the
National League.
ANCHORAGE. (TP)—Dedication
of the new, ultra-modern studios
of KENI, 5,000-watt radio station,
here Saturday before one thou
sand guests climaxed the latest
achievement in the career of Aus
tin E. “Cap” Lathrop, millionaire
Alaska builder. ^
Studios occupy the entire third
floor of Lathrop’s Fourth Avenue
Theater building.
Programs from the new studio
were sent yesterday for the first
time, including those from two
networks, ABC and Don Lee-Mu
utal.
NANAIMO, B. C. (fl3)—Winner
of the 18th annual international
cruiser race between America and
Canada, completed yesterday, was
M. C. Hopkins of Seattle’s Queen
City Yacht Club.
He completed the predicted-log
race with only 1.31805 percent
CONGRESS |
HIGHLIGHTS
Saturday, July 9, 1949
WASHINGTON, </P)— Congres
sional planners pondered today
over ways to cut government
costs, and how best a depression
might be blocked should one ap
pear.
Chairman Thomas <D.-Okla > of
a Senate appropriations sub-com
mittee, said $1,500,000,000 may be
clipped from the $15,900,000,000
military money bill passed by the
House.
Senator Dulles <R.-N. Y.> called
the administration’s proposed $ 1 ,
130,000,000 program to rearm j
Western Europe "too big.”
And a group of eight or more
Democratic Senators said they
will introduce a ready-made “anti
depression” bill next week, right
in the wake of President Tru
man’s mid-year economic report
to Congress.
Although the “anti-depression”
measure does not have the White
House stamp of approval, some
supporters say it will, at least,
provide some specific ideas for
translating the forthcoming Presi
dential recommendations into ac
tion.
It would, among other things,
provide: (I) federal loans for in
dustrial expansion; <2> federal
plant expansion, if needed, for
; private firms; <3> drafting of a
; $15,000,000,000 backlog of local
public works; (4) loans of up to
$1,000 to help pavless workers
1 move from “distress areas;” and
<5> a $3,500,000,000 emergency re
lief fund,
The savings in military costs,
which Senator Thomas said might
be made, include an item of $760,
000,000 which is listed as having
White House approval.
In the House-passed military
appropriations bill it was diverted
to the air forces from the $800,
000,000 the President had asked
for universal military training.
The House proposed that it be
used in maintaining a 58-group
air force.
Congress has taken no action on
military training.
Senator Dulles, sworn in Friday
as a successor to Democratic Sen
ator Robert F. Wagner, does not
now believe the $1,130,000,000
proposed for the first year of the
European rearmament program, is
needed.
“The effect of the program is
(Continued on Page Eight)
age error over the 174 miles from
Olympia to Nanaimo — one of
seven yachtsmen who completed
the course within 2 per cent of
their predicted time. Ninety-four
yachts entered and all but one,
the Fusilier, which developed en
gine trouble, completed the race.
Ten of the cruisers are sched
uled to continue to Juneau, via
Prince Rupert. B. C., in a revival
of the capital-to-capital race from
Olympia to Juneau.
The Alaska Steamship Co. an
nounced today that the port of
Teller will be added to the ports
of call for the vessel due to leave
Seattle on August 12th.
Truman Gives Up
Multi-Billion Tax
Increase Bequest
(By Sterling Green:
WASHINGTON, bP)—President
Truman today cancelled his call
for a four billion dollar tax in
crease. He bowed to a temporary
deficit spending policy to head off
any degression.
“No major increase in taxes
should be undertaken at this
time” — were the President’s
words. Also: “We cannot expect
to achieve a budget surplus in i 1
declining national economy."
In a stunning reversal of his
stand, Mr. Truman sent to Con-,
gress a mid-year economic report
wiped clean of his past demands
for price, wage or other business
controls.
Instead—stating that unemploy
ment is acute in' some areas—he
proposed 11 new laws to build up
jobs and production, boost con
sumer income and buying power,
■and loosen federal lending.
All the ideas were familiar.
Most were not drastic. They in
cluded public works planing, but
not more public works; the Bran
nan farm plan; expansion of so
i cial security and jobless pay; ex
I tended GI benefits.
Crisis action isn't needed, Mr.
Truman said, because the econ
omy still is strong and healthy. It
can hit a soaring annual output of
“well above three hundred billion
| dollars” in a few years, he pre
dicted. That is one-fifth higher
than today’s national production.
“But there is nothing healthy
about more unemployment or less
production,” Congress was .told
“Such trends can and must be re
versed by positive action, private
and public. . . .
“Our own people insist upon the
maintenance of prosperity, and
will not tolerate a depression.”
The President’s council of eco
nomic advisers, in an accompany
ing report, was somewhat more
optimistic in general tone than
Mr. Truman. It found the business
outlook reassuring. But agreed
that federal action is called for.
“We may have the unique and
fortunate experience of liquidat
ing a major inflation without fall
ing into a severe recession,” the !
three-member council reported.
In a sentence certain to win the
accalim of business, Mr. Truman
took his stand against any major
increase in taxes.
Only estate and gift tax rates
should be raised, he said. He add
ed that the transportation tax on
goods should be wiped out and
the “carry-over” of losses in cor
poration taxes should be liberal
ized.
The expected results: (a) Better
profit prospects for industry. (b»
A small net loss in federal reven
ue, in place of the thumping boost
in corporation rates and income
taxes which the President asked
in his January economic message
and for which he spoke again only
a month ago.
The President flailed at legisla
tors who insist on government
economy to the point of cutting
“essential national programs” like
(Continued on Page Six)
Three Rescued
After Week-Long
Plane Search
FAIRBANKS, (/Pi—'With a bot
tleful of beetles and chinful of
stubble, Dr. Melville T. Cook, 79
i
year-old Louisiana botany profes
sor stepped jauntily from a rescue'
plane last night with his wife and
pilot Bill Currington.
The trio, object of a week-long
search by more than 30 military
and civilian planes, were snatched
by a helicopter only 24 hours be
fore from the side of a 3.200-foot
mountain 50 miles north of the
Arctic Circle and 50 miles north of
Fort Yukon. Their single-engined
Cessna crash-landed on the tun
dra slope when Currington became
lost and the gas supply ran low.
A helicopter settled yesterday
afternoon on the mountain side,
picked up the Cooks and Curriryj
ton and flew them to Fort Yukon.
They were then flown here in a
Wien Alaska Airlines plane.
U. S. Officer Kills
Red Soldier In
Border Skirmish
FRANKFURT. Germany. (/Pi—
A young Russian soldier was killed
in a border gun battle between U.
S. and Soviet army patrols Friday
near Coburg, American officials
announced.
A U. S. army lieutenant shot the
Red trooper 200 yards inside the
American zone after “numerous”
Russian soldiers fired on an Amer
ican patrol, the announcement
said.
The U. S. constabulary com
mand said a protest would be filed
charging the Russians with firing
(Continued on Page Eight)
English Have State
Of Emergency
LONDON, UP)—King George VI
proclaimed a state of emergency
today to deal with a crippling
strike on the London docks.
The King acted on the recom
mendation of the cabinet after
wildcat dock strikers defied a
back to work call by the labor
government.
A total of 10,278 men—out of
the London dock force of about
25,000—failed to show up for work
this morning. That left 112 ships
idle in the tieup denounced by the
government as communist-led.
WASHINGTON. (/P)—'The gen
eral who headed the army’s pub
lic relations and a retired navy
officer were killed when a cabin
cruiser exploded on the Potomac
river yesterday. The dead: Maj.
Gen. Vernon E. Prichard, 57, and
Commodore Wilfored L. Painter,
41, USNR.
Harbor police theorized that gas
fumes collected around the boat’s
engine during refueling, and ex
ploded when the engine was start
ed. All of the ten persons aboard
were hurtled into the water. Most
of them escaped with minor in
juries.
News of the World
At A Glance —
Saturday. July 9, 1949
• By The Associated Press)
The life sentence of Josef Car
dinal Mindszentv was confirmed
today by communist Hungary’s
appeals court. The high court thus
rubber-stamped the findings of
the People’s court which last Feb
ruary convicted the 57-year-old
Cardinal of treason and black
market dealings.
Vatican sources and American
intelligence reports received in
Berlin recently have said the im
prisoned cardinal is in good phy
sical condition but that there are
signs of mental collapse.
The Cardinal was not present
during the review of his case by
the higher court. This is custom
ary under Hungarian law.
Three of the Cardinal's co-de
fendants received reduced sen
tences. The sentences of three
! others were confirmed.
Western nations have protested
the religious trials in communist
dominated countries as an inva
sion of human rights.
U. S. secretary of the treasury
John W. Snyder sat in for a sec
ond day with high British labor
■ government officials in an attempt
to find a solution for Britain’s
serious financial problems. He
will leave for Brussels tomorrow.
' On the conclusion of his European
j tour. Snyder will report to the
American President and cabinet.
The British government yester
day directed Britain's worldwide
empire to curb dollar spending for
the next three months as drastic
; ally as the home government. The
I directive affects colonial govern
ments.
Reliable diplomatic sources in
Manila said China’s Chiang Kai
Shek will arrive in the Philippines
tomorrow for talks with President
j Elpidio Quirino. He is flying to
1 Manila from Formosa, the island
off the Chinese coast he has built
into a bastion against the com
j munists.
What will the two leaders dis
I cuss? Some observers said Chiang
, wants the Filipino President’s
j support for an anti-communist
i Asian bloc led by the United
States.
In Tokyo, Japanese sources said
Premier Shigeru Yoshida has had
a talk with Gen. Douglas MacAr
thur over the mounting commun
ist violence in Japan and the seri
ous industrial unrest.
The visit of the Japanese Pre
mier to the Supreme Allied Com
mander followed closely a confer
ence between Emperor Hirohito
and MacArthur. Socialists and
communists are assailing the em
ployment policies of Japanese au
thorities. Ninety thousand work
ers are scheduled for dismissal
from Japanese railway jobs as an
economy move.
Early today 2,000 steel workers
and sympathizers broke into the
Japan Steel Manufacturing com
pany plant demanding the man
agement reopen it.
Monday, July 11, 1949
The Russians have choked off
(Continued on Page Seven>