THE NOME NUGGET
Published Monday, Wednesday and Friday by The
NOME PUBLISHING CO. ,
Nome, Alaska
Telephone: Main 125 P* O* ®°x
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W. A. and EMILY BOUCHER.-..Editors
Entered as second class matter October 14, 1943, at the postoffice at
Nome, Alaska, under the Act of March 3, 1879.__
Monday, October 22, 1945 __
FLYING IS SAFE
If the aviation industry has anything to say about
it, one colorful phase of flying that followed World
War I will be missing this peace time. That is the barn
stormers who flew all over the country and thrilled
huge crowds at everything from county fairs to the big
metropolitan air shows with sky feats of derring-do.
The reason is simply that the barnstormers, being
good showmen, did everything they could to convince
their audiences that flying was a dangerous business, to
be indulged in only by daredevils.
The Civil Air Patrol, backed by most of the rest of
aviation, is now out to convince the nation just the op
posite. Thus, the “air shows” and exhibitions from now
on will emphasize the safety of flying and the ease with
which any one can take to the skyways.
RECONVERSION: A GOOD START
(New York Times)
John W. Snyder, Director of Reconversion, is to be
congratulated on the promptness with which he has
presented to the American people the Government s
economic program for reconversion to peace. He has
written a clear and vigorous, and for the most part a
well-reasoned report. He has made public an astonish
ingly large number of quick decisions.
The Administration is especially to be congratulated
on not fearing to act promptly and boldly on some of
the most crucial decisions that it had to make. Mr. Sny-1
der tells us, for example, that “we will not keep a sin
gle soldier or sailor in uniform longer than he is needed
by the Army or Navy, in order to hold down the totals
of temporary unemployment.” As he himself remarks,
“This policy may increase somewhat the immediate di
mensions of the task. But it is the shortest and most
efficient'road back.”
The same policy is to be followed regarding military
contracts, “all” of which are being “terminated imme
diately, except those required for experimental and de
velopment purposes and for the maintenance and sup
ply of the armed forces.” The War Department is tak
ing immediate action to cut its procurement of aircraft,
artillery, ammunition and other weapons by 94 to 100
per cent.
Mr. Snyder has announced so many governmental
decisions or intentions that it will require weeks and
perhaps months to analyze the implications of all of
them. But among many good decisions there are also a
number of very dubious ones. One of the most import
ant of the latter is the program announced for wages
and prices. We are told, for example, that as long as
some materials and products remain seriously short,
price ceilings on those materials and products must be
maintained as a barrier against inflation. * But wher
ever price ceilings will not be endangered, collective
bargaining (on wages) will be restored.” Proposals are
also put forward raising so-called “sub-standard pay
scales.
_ m i « •
In practice, prices and wages cannot De separated m
the way that Mr. Snyder implies. If wages are raised
at any point, market forces will tend to bring a corres
ponding increase in prices. If wages are raised and
prices held down, the elimination of marginal profits
caused by such policies will be certain to bring unem
ployment and a shrinkage of production below what
would otherwise be possible. The decision we make
on this matter must be primarily economic; it cannot
be made on political grounds. If we wish to keep price
control, we must keep wage control. If we wish to take
the controls off wages and allow them to be decided by
1 collective bargaining and the forces of supply and de
mand, we must allow a similar freedom for prices if we
seriously expect to get maximum production and full
employment.
I
INDIAN AFFAIRS BUDGET DUE FOR SCALPING
By JACK STINNETT—(AP) Feature Writer
WASHINGTON—It’s considered very likely here
that the Office of Indian Affairs is in for a scalping
when its 1946 budget comes up for consideration by
Congress. The reason is an odd one.
The office hasn’t been lacking in critics, but they
ney^r were numerous enough to slow its steady expan
sion. That probably is all changed now and just because
the discussion of raising Congressional salaries has
come so much to the fore.
When the Congressional salary bug started biting on
Capitol Hill and in several other places where reorgan
ization of Congress is considered vital to the progress
of government, some one dug up the Indian Bureau, as
it used to be called, as the “horrible example” of what
has happened to our government.
This first searcher out of vicious comparisons (no one
remembers now who mentioned it first) pointed out'
that the combined salaries of Congress are $5,350,000
(counting in the four delegates and resident commis
sioner) a year; while the Indian Office, if it gets all it
asks for, will have around $32,000,000 to keep itself
next year.
Of course, this is just playing with figures because
Congress costs the people considerably more than the
salaries of its members. Still, the fact that one little
bureau stuck away in the Department of Interior says
it needs six times as much as the total wage of Congress
is enough to raise eyebrows all over the place.
Some one, carrying the comparison a little further,
found that the Indian Office has more than 7,000 em
ployees; is asking for about 300 more; and all of this to
minister to something like 400,000 Indians.
No one knows exactly how many Indians there are in
the United States. Intermarriages and the wide range
of economic status make it practically impossible to
tabulate them accurately.
This means, say the figure tossers, that there is ap
proximately one employee in the office for each 55 In
dians in the country; while each member of the House
of Representatives has to minister to 300,000 or so per
sons and most of the Senators number their constitu
ents in millions.
Observers say that Congressmen, a little nettled over
the fact that they can’t take the bit in their teeth and
hike their wages, for fear of public opinion, are all set
to buck the Indian Office into the dust when it tries to
climb into the saddle for a ride toward more money
and more employees.
mo scsptggg or v\cjkbt tines_
ADDED INDUCEMENTS
FOR ENLISTMENT
Headquarters, Alaskan Depart
ment—The War Department re
cently announced a number of
added inducements to stimulate
enlistment or reenlistment in the
Regular Army. These include a
reduction in the enlistment period
for present members of the armed
forces to one year (plus any reen
listment furlough that may be
granted at the time of enlistment)
provided they have served honor
ably not less than six months.
Persons with less than six months’
previous service and civilians
seeking original enlistments, may
be accepted for periods of 18
months, two years, or three years,
at their option.
Other notable changes in the
enlistment requirements, incorpo
rated in the “Armed Forces Vol
untary Recruitment Act of 1945,”
are as follows:
1. Men honorably discharged
and reenlisted within 20 days of
discharge will be given the high
est permanent and temporary rank
they held on discharge, provided
they reenlist before February 1,
1946. This provision is retroactive
to the extent that any man dis
charged since May 12, 1945, who
reenlists on or before the twenti
eth day following receipt of the
new regulations, will be reenlist
ed in his highest permanent or
temporary grade. Likewise, men
who have reenlisted since June 1,
1945, in grades lower than their
highest permanent or temporary
grade, will be promoted to such
highest grade.
2. Mustering out payments will
be made to all enlisted men dis
charged for immediate reenlist
ment.
3. Reenlistment furloughs will
be granted to men with not less
than six months’ service on the
basis of 30 days for each year of
service, the total not to exceed 90
days. Every person granted a re
enlistment furlough may be paid
in advance a furlough travel al
lowance at the rate of five cents
per mile to his home and thence
to the place he will report for
duty.
4. Men who reenlist within 90
days after discharge after June 1,
1945, will be paid a reenlistment
bonus of $50 for each year of prior
service.
5. The GI Bill of Rights has
been extended to include all per
sons who enlist or reenlist within
one year after the passage of this
act. Free mail privileges have
been extended to December 31,
1947.
6. Any enlisted man of the Reg
ular Army who has completed 20
years and not more than 29 years
of active service may be trans
ferred to the Enlisted Reserve
Corps, of which he will remain
a member until his total service
equals 30 years. At the time of
transfer to the Enlisted Reserve
Corps, he will receive an annual
pay equal to two and a half per
cent of the average annual pay,
including longevity, he was re
ceiving for the six months imme
diately preceding his transfer to
the Enlisted Reserve Corps, mul
tiplied by the total number of
years of service, not to exceed 29.
One of the oldest official build
ings in Washington, D. C., is the
home of the U. S. Marine Corps
commandant, built in 1803.