THE NOME NUGGET
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NOME PUBLISHING CO.
NOME. ALASKA
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Entered as second class matter October 14. 1943, at 4he postoffice
at Nome, Alaska, under the Act of March 3. 1879.
Nome, Alaska. Monday. October 3, 1949
Northwestern Alaska Chamber of
Commerce Endorses Citv Sales Tax
_*
The Northwestern Chamber of Commerce held a pub
lic meeting September 27 and a discussion was held
concerning the proposed 2', Sales Tax by the City of
Nome for the purpose of deriving needed revenue for
many additional, necessary expenditures. A committee
was appointed to investigate the proposal and to report
its findings prior to October 4th.
The committee accordingly met on Sept. 30th, all
members being present. Also present was Norvin Lewis,
Clerk of District Court, who testified and furnished
valuable data.
A complete compilation oi iinanciai statistics cover
ing years from 1944 to 1948, inclusive, was furnished by
Mrs. Carrie McLain, City Clerk. From this testimony
and statistics the following facts were ascertained:
The Committee report:
1. Average yearly income of Nome from all sources
for five years reported on was, $73,529,60. Average
yearly expenditures of Nome for the same period was,
$72,433.12. This indicated to your committee that the j
average fixed annual expense was approximately $75,
000.00.
2. That no major construction of much needed streets,
drains, and other improvements was undertaken dur
ing the five years studied and only temporary repairs
were made within the limits of the budget.
3. That the City must raise during 1949 in addition to
fixed expenses an additional $25,000.00 breakwater
maintenance guarantee fund plus $9,000.00 additional
school maintenance, bringing the total minimum year
ly expenditure to approximately some $100,000.00.
4. That the City should raise sufficient additional
funds to enable substantial participation in the Federal
Grant of matching funds for streets, drains, sewerage
disposal, fire alarm system and fire mains.
5. The principle source of revenue is derived from
Real and Personal Property Taxes which since 1947
have advanced 100% over any previous year and it is
our opinion that further taxing of this source will be
punitive and prohibitive.
6. That the revenue derived from taxable items, mer
chandise, goods for sale (indirect sales tax) has been
AND WHERE IT STOPS NOBODY KNOWS
OCMfcLUATWM
_ MCR*V* GO* ROUND
Eurl]i<|ii:ik<k Jars
(Columbia (ilacin1
CORIX)VA </P) — The earth
quake which jolted Alaska early
last week did some face-lifting on
famed Columbia Glacier.
Capt. Charles Nelson, master of
the Alaska Steamship company’s
steamer Aleutian, reported sight
ing huge icebergs cluttering up
the steamer lanes.
He said the icebergs apparently
broke off from the face of the
glacier, near Cordova, and that it
was the first time he’d even seen
bergs of such size in the are-a.
Captain Nelson said the beach
under the face of the glacier also
showed the effects of the quake.
Huge mounds of sand had been
pushed up—either from the force
of the quake or from a sudden
SOURDOUGH CONVENTION
PHOTOS ON DISPLAY
i . 1
On display in the window of the
Nugget are two pictures of a
group of former Nome Sourdoughs
who attended the International
Convention of Sourdoughs last
i month in Los Angeles. Many fa
I miliar faces are to be found in the
pictures which were loaned to the
Nugget through the courtesy of
Mrs. Ralf Reat.
Prominently seated at the head
' table is Mrs. Garnet Martin, who
, presented the new presidnt, W.
| Browne, a former Nomeite, with
a life membership in Igloo No. 1, 1
Pioneers of Alaska. Mrs. Martin
is a past president of the Nome
Auxiliary.
movement of the glacier, induced
by the quake.
consistently a minor revenue for the City.
7. That all other sources of revenue appear to be de
clining.
8. That mercantile establishments in the City of Nome
have been licensed to sell over $2,500,000.00 in gross
sales during 1949. In addition services and other mer
chandise—not now licensed by selling in the City, will
sell an estimated $500,000.00 in goods and services,
bringing the estimated total gross sales in this area, to
over $3,000,000.00.
9. A levy of a 2% Sales Tax on above retail sales
would bring an estimated $00,000.00 additional revenue
to the City of Nome.
Therefore in due consideration of the foregoing your 1
committee unanimously favors the enactment of Con- j
sumers Sales Tax Referendum to be voted on October
4th Special Election.
Your committee further recommends and requests
that this Northwestern Alaska Chamber of Commerce
immediately endorse the findings of this committee and
requests immediate and concerted action be taken to
bring the foregoing facts before the public.
Signed:
GORDON OSBORNE,
ALFRED LOMEN,
THEODORE DUFFIELD,
STAN MORGAN,
H. R. HARPER.
- I
A meeting of the Board of Directors of the North
western Chamber of Commerce was called Saturday
afternoon and acted upon the committee’s report and
the following action was taken:
The committee’s recommendations were approved
and adopted unanimously.
Signed:
STEVE ANDERSON
TED DUFFIELD
JOE AMAROK
SAM MOGG
STAN MORGAN
PAUL DRYDEN
AL LOMEN
DICK CORNWALL
DON LYLE
A POT,flT
PAUL MANDEVILLE
GORDON OSBORNE
BUD HARPER
BILL WOOD
r 1 * ^ » > ■
■ i ————— m ■
Reasons given by the Board for supporting the Sales
Tax are:
First—That the present indirect tax of 2% on inven
tories might be reduced.
Second—The possibility of enactment of a Territorial
Sales Tax might prohibit the city from participaitng if
our Sales Tax is not already in effect.
The Chamber of Commerce also made three recom
mendations:
1— Sales made within the city delivered in transit to
out of town customers be exempt
2— Sales Tax on all sales of any single article be lim
ited to $1,000.00.
3— Medical and dental services be exempt.
NeWs of the World
At A Glance
• Continued from Page One*
would maintain planes and train
ing squads in Germany—just in
ca.-^e .
In Buenos Aires pro-government
newspapers indicated the Argen
tine government is about to de
value the peso.
Monday, October 3. 1949
• By The Associated Press
Russia has broken with the Na
tionalist government in China and
given recognition to the Chinese
Communist regime.
This blow to the Nationalist gov
ernment had been expected. In
New York T. F. Tsiang, chief Chi
nese Nationalist delegate in the
United Nations general assembly,
said:
“This so-called People’s Republic
of China <the Communist govern
ment*, being the child of Soviet
Russia, would naturally be recog
nized by its father.”
The Chinese Nationalists have
presented a complaint to theTr. N.
charging the Russians with back
ing the Communists in China’s
Civil War. The assembly, over
Soviet bloc opposition, has voted
to debate the charge.
Britain announced today that
she is ready to discuss recognition
of the newly-formed Chinese Com
munist government with 18 others
countries. The countries concerned
include the United States and the
other member nations of the North
Atlantic Alliance and the mem
bers of the British Common
wealth.
In a separate diplomatic action
Russia accused the Western Allies
of trying to split Germany by set
ting pu the new West German
government at Bonn.
A Soviet note delivered to the
representatives of the three West
ern powers in Moscow, charged
the United States, Britain and
France had broken Big Four
agreements to try to regain the po
litical and economic unity of Ger
many.
Tension was reported mounting
inside Yugoslavia as a result of
Premier Marshal Tito’s fight with
the Moscow-directed Cominform
‘Communist International Infor
mation Bureau).
Romania became the latest Com
munist country of Eastern Europe
to scrap her friendship treaty with
Yugoslavia. Poland, Bulgaria and
Hungary already had followed the
lead of Russia in denouncing their
alliances with Tito’s government.
There were unconfirmed re
ports in Belgrade that Tito was
shifting his troops from western
Yugoslavia to the eastern borders
facing Hungary and Romania.
There appears to be no fear in
Belgrade, however, that actual
war is imminent.
Meanwhile, a new effort to end
the conflict between Greece and
her Communist northern neigh
bors gets underway in the United
Nations.
A four-member Balkan concilia
tion committee has approved a
plan calling for invitations to Al
bania and Bulgaria to send special
the conciliation group.
LIVE TO 100. GET A REWARD
BERN, Switzerland, </P) — Any
Swiss who this year lives to be 100
years old has got a little surprise
coming from the federal govern
ment. The federal council has de
cided to award special honors, the
exact nature of which was not
given. The occasion is that Swit
zerland as a confederation be
comes 100 years old this year.