Navy Activates
First Alaska
Reserve Unit
Alaska’s first Naval Reserve
unit, known as Electronic Warfare
Platoon 17-1, a unit of the inactive
Naval Reserve, was officially acti
vated recently at the platoon’s ra
dio station, Kodiak, Alaska.
Lt. <jg> Robert W. Willett, USNR
Officer-in-Charge of the platoon,
and three naval reserve enlisted
men were congratulated by Com
mander James D. Babb, Seven
teenth Naval District personnel of
ficer for their outstanding work
in building their station, despite
shortages of material and money.
All necessary radio equipment,
however, was furnished by the
Navy.
At the brief ceremony, the Com
mander pointed out the import-1
ance of such Naval Reserve radio
stations to the community as evi
denced by the work of units after
the Texas City explosion and dur
ing the Pittsburgh floods. On such
disastrous occasions the Naval Re
serve radio stations have served
as the only means of communica
tion from the distressed areas.
Commander Babb predicted
that “hams” throughout Alaska
will become interested once Pla
toon 17-1 is on the air, and will
wish to organize their own Elec
tronic Warfare Platoons. A suffi
cient number of such Naval Re
serve units would provide a de
sired network which would be a
vital system of communication
throughout the Alaska-Aleutian
area.
It was pointed out that as. a
member of one of these platoons a
“ham” will have access to equip
ment that he could not possibly af
ford for his own station and in ad
dition will receive expert training
on new types of equipment issued
from the regular navy supplies of
such material.
The four men who compose the
group are: Lt (jg) Willett, Robert
Blaisdell, William McMelleon, and
Larry Haslett.
Qualified men interested in or
Wallace Will Run
Fur President With
Third Party
•
'Continued from Page One*
will continue as a contributing ed
itor and will write a weekly page
for the magazine. He became edi
tor of the New Republic after re
signing from the cabinet.
Wallace’s announcement
brought a .statement from Sen.
Glen H. Taylor <D.-Idaho* that he
is considering the possibility of
running for vice president on a
ticket headed by Wallace.
The former vice president, who
was elected with President Roose
velt in 1940 and then dropped in
favor of Harry Truman in 1944,
said “thousands of people” had
asked him to "engage in this great
fight.”
The Progressive Citizens of
America and the new Progressive
party of Chicago had suggested
that Wallace enter the race, In
addition, a Wallace spokesman
said that persons from 18 states
and the District of Columbia had
make a similar request Monday.
The decision of the PCA to en
dorse Wallace last week caused
resignation of two of the organiza
tion’s top officers.
Calling for volunteers to support
his venture Wallace told his radio
audience:
“A new pa'rty must stand for a
positive youth program of abun
dance and security, not scarcity
and war. We can prevent depres
sion and war if we only organize
for peace in the same comprehen
sive way we organize for war.”
He said the Democratic party
has refused to change its policy
and asserted that its leadership
will “deprive the American peo
ple of their rightful opportunity
to choose between progress and re
action in 1948.”
ganizing an Electronic Warfare
Platoon, contact or write Com
mander James D. Babb, District
Personnel Officer, Seventeen t h
Naval District, Kodiak, Alaska.
PASSENGERS
and Express
\ Outbound on Flight 6
Deadline 11:30 A.M.
■ ja '^S- yl/ JJ1 y ■ ■ H ■ _ ^B
Englishmen Had
Prolonged “Lost
Weekend”
When England changed New
Year’s Day from March 25 to Jan
uary 1 in 1752 and adopted the
Gregorian calendar, thousands of
Englishmen suffered a prolonged
“lost weekend” — and it wasn’t
caused by an excess of holiday
conviviality.
According to the Encyclopaedia
Britannica, the change in the cal
endar made it necessary to wipe
out 11 days of the year, which was
done by declaring that the day af
ter September 2 was September
14, not September 3. This brought
England into step with the Catholic
countries, which had adopted the
Gregorian calendar in 1582. *
Incidentally, George Washing
ton was born “on February 22
(old style February ID.”
During the Middle Ages, March
25 was considered the first day of
the new year by most Christian
peoples, but in Anglo-Saxon Eng
land, New Year’s Day fell on what
is now Christmas—December 25.
At the time of the Norman Con
quest of England, however, Wil
liam the Conqueror ordered that
the year should start on the first
of January.
Still later, England reverted to
the custom observed by the rest of
i Christendom and began her year
on the 25th of March, and that
date remained the first of the legal
and ecclesiastical year until 1752,
when the calendar was adjusted to
the Gregorian system which is
still in use today.
The ancient Egyptians, Phoeni
cians and Persians began their
year at the autumnal equinox,
September 21, and until the fifth
century before the birth of Christ,
the Greeks regarded the winter
solstice, December 21, as the first
day of the new year. The notion
of celebrating New Year’s Day on
January 1 was introduced by Cae
sar when he adopted the Julian
calendar and postponed the P.o
man holiday of New Year’s from
December 21 to January.
Even today, New Years is cele
brated on a wide variety of differ
ent days. The beginning of the
Jewish year, for instance, falls
some time between September 6
and October 5, depending on the
date of the beginning of the month
of Tishri. The new civil year for
the Chinese begins “with the first
day of that moon in the course of
which the sun enters into the sign
of the zodiac which corresponds
with our sign Pisces.” The sun en
ters Pisces about February 19.
The Mohammedans keep holy
the first ten days of Moharram,
the first month of their year, and
in Siam, the new year is cele
brated for three days.
Guerrillas
Attaek Konitsa
ATHENS, (jP)—Guerrillas hurl
ed new attacks yesterday against
Konitsa, and military authorities
said the decisive battle for the city
has been joined.
The guerrillas seek Konitsa . as
the capital for the Communist
State newly proclaimed by their
commander, Gen. Markos Vafia
des.
The government garrison weak
ened by the repeated assaults,
withstood the new attacks and
kept outer defenses intact after 24
hours of fighting, a government j
communique said. Army reinforce- j
ments slogged toward the fighting
zone.
SS. Gretna Victory
Is ‘Christmas Ship'
SEATTLE, </P> — Designation of
the steamship Gretna Victory as
the Pacific Northwest “Christmas
ship” to Europe’s needy was dis
closed here in a week-end an
nouncement.
The 10,681-ton vessel, due here
from Japan about Jan. 26, will
take on 50 carloads of food and
clothing in Seattle, Tacoma and
Portland before its European voy
age.
Simultaneous with designation
ol' the ship was the announcement
of the arrival of a 3-ton carload
of food from Montana, including
100-pound sacks of flour, canned
milk and cereals already packed
for export. The shipment was
hauled free by the Great Northern
Railroad.
Nude Beauty
Hailed Into Court
NICE, France, (/P)—Mrs. Henri
ette Kennis, who presented her
self naked at a beauty contest
here, drew a suspended fine Fri
day. The judge carefully examin
;ed a picture of her in her birthday
suit after her attorney pleaded she
was “a work of art.”
Mrs. Kennis and her husband—
a lampshade manufacturer who
said he approved of her action—
were among the spectators at
what had been announced none
too literally as a nude beauty con
test. When the girls appeared
wearing certain articles of ap
parel, Mrs. Kennis shouted “fake,”
jumped up and showed ’em.
Nobody can recall who won the
beauty contest.
I
i Death is avoided in the proto
zoa, the tiny one-celled animal, by
the division of the individual into
■ two. Thus, scientists have argued,
the organism is in effect “im
mortal.”
Gruening Will Not
Call Special Session
Without Taxes
JUNEAIJ, (A3) — Gov. Ernest
Gruening said today he would not
call a special session of the Alas
ka legislature unless he receives a
specific promise from members
that “they will pass necessary leg
islation for meeting the Territory’s
financial obligations.”
The governor said Territorial
funds were in “desperate condi
tion” with the shortage particular
ly damaging to programs for edu
cation, health, pensions and veter
ans.
But he asserted there was no
reason to put the Territory to the
$50,000 expense of a special ses
sion unless he was assured of leg
islation enabling the Territory to
collect taxes needed to meet obli
gations. Governor Gruening said
he had received two requests to
call a special session, while “at
least a dozen others” urged him
not to do so.
At Ketchikan, meantime, Sen.
Norman R. Walker said he had
written the governor in a letter
due here today asking him to cal)
a session “at the earliest possible
time” to cope with financial prob
lems.
Walker said he had assurance
that two Senators who opposed a
net income tax in the regular 1947
session would supoprt it now. Wal
ker also suggested that a special
session extend the sale stax for the
benefit of Alaska veterans.
The Ketchikan Chronicle said
it understood Walker was seeking
pledges from fellow Senators to
support tax legislation.
NEW YEAR'S MASSES
AT CATHOLIC CHURCH
Thursday Masses at the Nome
Catholic Church will be as fol
lows:
8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.
At the Base: 12:01 p.m.
BERING SEA CLUB
Open 10 A.M. to Midnight
Dancing — Cards — Liquors
MINERS & MERCHANTS
BANK OF ALASKA
NOME :: ALASKA
LEWIS CAB CO.
Phone MAIN 144
SALE
TROMMERS BEER
$2.00 per ease
Polar Liquor Store
BLACK Phone Your
138 Orders