THE NOME NUGGET
Published Monday, Wednesday and Friday by the
NOME PUBLISHING CO. '
NOME. ALASKA
Telephone: Main 125 P. O. Box 818
$1.50 PER MONTH $18-00 A YEAR
W. A. Boucher-Owner-Publisher
Entered as second class matter October 14, 1943, at the postoffice
at Nome, Alaska, under die Act of March 3, 1879.
Nome, Alaska, Wednesday, July 19, 1950
THE PITTMAN-ROBERTSON ACT
The Pittman-Robertson Act provides a formula for
distribution among States and Territories proceeds of
excise tax levies on the sale of ammunition and arms.
Since 1937 the States have increased their take three
fold but Alaska was discriminated against and limited
to a flat $25,000.00. In 1948 Rhode Island sold 13,516
licenses and was allotted $53,903.10. Alaska sold 18,829
licenses and received only $25,000.00.
The fund is used for research to develop information
on which intelligent and effective conservation regula
tions can be based and important to the Territory.
Delegate Bartlett has introduced a bill to give Alaska
$75,000.00 which has passed the House and Senate Com
mittee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce.
i
AN OUTNUMBERED ARMY—WHAT IT MEANS
(By Clarke Beach)
WASHINGTON—Armies in the past have been even
more badly outnumbered than are the U. S. forces now
fighting in Korea and still have won the victory.
Yet when yoif look back over some of the campaigns
and battles of history, you find that an army fighting
against superior numbers has only about one chance in
ten of being the victor.
Maj. Robert B. Biggs, of the Army General Staff
Corps, makes this estimate in an article in the current
issue of “Military Review,” published by the Command
and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kas.
Major Riggs’ purpose, however, was to study the bat
tles in which victory went to the smaller army. Few as
they were, many were important. Four of them were
among the 15 decisive battles of the world, as listed by
the military historian, Sir Edward S. Creasy..
Major Riggs’ analysis indicated to him that victory
in practically all battles, from Marathon to the com
paigns of World War II, has depended primarily on the
human factor: That is, the leaders’ generalship and tac
tical skill and the troops’ discipline, training, morale,
bravery and determination. This has been true, he said,
whether the fighting was done with swords and spears
or with rockets in the newest jet planes.
DID U. S. DROP POTATO DUBS?
A new note in international affairs is occasioned by
Ihe protest of the Soviet Government which formally
accuses American airplanes of dropping potato bugs in
East Germany.
The charge, it is thought, forecasts a crop failure in;
East Germany. That the Russian Government makes
such a silly charge may be taken as an indication of
what the Communists might do themselves or as an ef
fort to inflame popular opinion for the purpose of sup
porting some reprehensible activity on the part of the
Communists.
In June, the German Government bought some 100,-j
000,000 pounds of surplus American potatoes to feed
the victims of a crop failure. Observers then speculated
that this dependence on the United States was the cause
of the so-called “potato bug” propaganda. Later., in
June, the East German Government notified several
countries of a “criminal American plot” to bomb its po
tato fiblds.
Getting ahead in life, acording to modern go-getters,
is convincing other people that you are more than you j
know yourself to be.. .. Faith in democracy is not to be
found in those who think that the master minds of busi
ness should run a country for the benefit of busi-j
ness.. .. Many speakers mistake tolerance for letting a!
minority of the population compel the majority to do'
something that the minority wants. . . . Politics being'
what they are you can expect government to be wihat
it is. 1
Communication |
Nome, Alaska,
. July 17, 1950.
An open letter to the publishers,
The Nome Nugget:
In the issue of your paped dated
Friday, July 14, 1950, appeared an
editorial entitled, “Alaska Legal-!
ized Gambling.” Assuming that
material which is published in
in these columns represents the
attitude of the publishers, I should
like to have the liberty of present
ing some thoughts in the opposi
tion to this view.
The editorial begins by calling
gambling “a leading form of re
creation in Alaska.” When I
checked my dictionary (The New
Winston, 1945) I could find no
reference to gambling as “recrea
tion.” Rather it was “to pursue a
! course accompanied by a high de
I gree of uncertainty or risk of loss.”
The editorial writer goes on to say
“it would be wise to ... turn a hu
1 man weakness into a government
I asset.” If we believe with Abra
ham Lincoln in government.” . . .
of the people, by the people, and
for the people,” then we can read
ily see that to capitalize upon the
weakness of a few might be gov
ernment by the people, but it i
would not be of the people, nor for
the people. And one might well
ask the question, “Has any nation
ever succeeded for long whose
sources of revenue were founded
I on human weaknesses?” It is un
thinkable.
Among other misstatements and
misrepresentations in the editori
al, I should like to point out the
one that “the tax burden should
be materially reduced” if gam
bling were legalized. The same
argument was advanced by those
who advocated repeal in 1933, but
as yet there has been no fulfill
ment of the prophesy. Instead,
taxes have gone up. and we find
our national crime bill due to al
cohol mounting. One economist,
Dr. Benson Y. Landis, estimates
that the loss in wages chargeable
to alcohol alone is $432,000,000 a
year.
I Can we who are so eamesly
seeking statehood for our Terri
tory be found guilty of enacting a
revenue law based on the weak
ness of our fellowmen?
“It is worth thinking about.”
Sincerely yours,
Clark H. Lewis.
The first school of veterinary
medicince was established in
| Lyons, France in 1761.
__
Korean Situation
(Continued from Page One)
lished an exchange of letters be
tween Prime Minister Stalin and
Prime Minister Nehru of India in
which the two leaders agreed
Communist China must be admit
ted to the United Nations before
a settlement of the Korean war
could be negotiated.
Secretary of State Acheson was
believed ready to tell Nehru the
U. S. wants peace in Asia but not
at the price of bowing to aggres
sion in Korea. The U. S. and most
non-communist U. N. members
were expected to insist that nego
tiation of a Korean settlement can
come only when North Korean
forces return to the 38th Parallel. I
Britain stopped all oil ship-,
ment sto Communist China. The I
foreign office said British needs
in the Far East have increased be
cause of operations backing the
U. N. resolution. Earlier this
month the British turned down an
America^ suggestion to limit oil
shipments ta Red China.
The war spurred demands in
Congress for a Pacific defense
pact along Atlantic Treaty lines.
The demands were heard as the
House opened debate on a $1,222,
500,000 arms aid bill for non
communist nations. Its passage
was certain.
President Truman will call for
more men, money and authority
in his message to Congress tomor
row. He addresses the nation by
radio tomorrow night.
Senatorial committees, mean
while, looked toward investiga
tions of the Korean military ef
fort and of sharply rising prices at
home.
Walter Reuther, president of
the CIO United Auto Workers Un
ion, proposed to President Tru
man that the U. S. invest more
| than a trillion dollars in a 100
year fight to wipe communism
from the earth. He proposed a U.
S. contribution of $13,000,000,000
a year to a U. N. offensive against
communism.
London reported three new
cases of suspected sabotage of Bri
tish warships. There was specula
tion that the incidents, said to
have occurred against three de
stroyers, were of communist or
igin. British ships have taken part
in Allied shelling of North Ko
rean positions.
Wednesday, July 19, 1950
i U. S. troops were on the offen
sive today with two fresh Ameri
can divisions thrown into the Ko
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rean war, but in the western front
a heavy communist artillery bar
rage possibly signalled the re
sumption of the main communist
attack.
Front observers said the time
for American retreat may be
nearly past, but President Truman
cautioned against hopes for quick
victory. The President asked mob
ilization of U. S. might in a ten
billion dollar program, authorized
the calling up of national guards
men and reserves if needed, and
asked Congress to remove limits
on. the strength of the armed
forces. He warned that free na
tions must guard against the pos
sibility of communist aggresssion
elsewhere in the world. The Pres
ident also broadcasts to the na- 1
tion tonight.
The same “Hell for Leather”
First Cavalry Division, veterans
of the liberation of Manila and
actually a mechanized infantry
unit, landed unopposed on the
east coast at Pohang yesterday,
just below Red lines. It quickly
drove seven miles inland. It wa*
disclosed the 25th Division had
come ashore at an undisclosed lo
cation and apparently already has
hit the enemy.
Communists on the main Kore
an battlefront before Taejon re
grouped and remassed their fire
power despite fierce allied air at
tacks. They began blasting mortar
and cannon fire at American posi
tions. An enemy spearhead 40
miles to the southwest drove out
South Korean forces defending
the town of Iri.
There was no evidence that the
gallant doughboys on the Kum
River front, with prospects of
lessened pressure due to arrival
| of new American troops, had any
intention of abandoning Taejon.
An Eighth Army spokesman said
“the men of the 24th United States
infantry • Division’s 19th, 21st and
34th regiments were dug in for
defense and showed determina
tion to stay.”
Gen. MacArthur’s communique
said the communists had made
“minor infiltrations and move
ments beyond contact of our
forces” around Taejon. It reported
South Korean troops standing
along communist invasion routes.
Allied aircraft struck hard at
Red tank and troop concentra
tions in the vicinity of Nonsan, 25
miles southwest of Taejon and left
Nonsan in flames. Other allied air
men smashed at communists di
rectly behind their lines as the
Reds feverishly tried to restore
supply route bridges blasted by
air attacks. The Reds needed the
supply lines to resume at full pace
the offensive brought to a halt by
stout U. S. resistance.
The defense department an
nounced XJ. S. navy and air force **
planes destroyed or damaged 45
Red Korean aircraft yesterday.
The arrival of the new Ameri
can troops, committed to the bat
tle zone on ten days notice, raised
hope that the time of American
retreat was past. More delaying
action was predicted, but the
buildup for the counteroffensive
was getting under wya.
The First Cavalry is command
ed by Maj. Pen. Hobart R. Gay.
It landed unopposed at a pier in
the little fishing town of Pohang,
66 miles north of Pusan, the chief
U. S. supply port in Korea. It
went ashore with artillery, engin
eering and signal units, and
mounds of supplies. The number /
of men landed was secret.
The 25th may have already been
in action at Yechon, 52 miles in- , )
land from the east coast on the
right anchor of a line held by ^
South Koreans. It was here that ^
«Continued on Page Three'