THE NOME NUGGET
Published Monday, Wednesday and Friday by The
NOME PUBLISHING CO.
Nome. Alaska
Telephone: Main 125 P. O. Box 618
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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.
Friday, July 13, 1945
NEW VETERANS* HEAD
(Cincinnati Enquirer)
President Truman’s appointment of
Gen. Omar Bradley to succeed Brig. Gen.
Frank T. Hines as chief of the U. S. Vet
erans’ Bureau will meet with instant ap
proval throughout the country. Not only
has General Bradley’s recent war record
endeared him to the hearts of all Ameri
cans, but recent criticism which has fal
len on the Veterans Administration,
whether just or unjust, has reacted to the
discredit of present officials.
When Frank Hines took office as ad
ministrator of veterans’ affairs, back in
1923, he was fresh from a series of ad
ministrative military triumphs, both in
the United States and Europe. He had
been chief of the vital embarkation serv
ice in World War I, and had formulated
the plans for moving the AEF to its for- |
eign stations. Later, when those same
soldiers were returning home, he saved
the country millions of dollars in adjust
ing rates with foreign governments and
speeding the troop movements. After the
war he went to a private steamship line
as vice president, but returned to gov
ernment service at the call of President
Harding.
The Veterans Bureau just then was in
some disrepute, but General Hines im
mediately set to work to put it in order.
He campaigned for the consolidation of
veterans’ agencies, and won his fight.
Certainly he did much to make the en
tire service program smoother and rftore
effective.
General Bradley comes into the post
with a background even more brilliant
than that of General Hines, who is now
66 years old. With the drive, the intelli
gence and the experience he has acquir
ed in years of Army service, the new vet
erans’ chief will contribute much to the
postwar job of veterans’ assistance — a
job which will be multiplied many times
over during the coming years.
—
(New York Times)
One vitally important problem facing
the Government, and all of us, is the
physical care of the men who have done ;
the fighting with their health and blood.
The appointment by President Truman
of Gen. Omar Bradley as head of the
Veterans Administration is a stroke of
inspiration which we believe everyone
will applaud.
The American public is assured that it
will have as its agent in administering
the program which Congress has out
lined one of the ablest generals in the
Army. The veteran will feel that truly
he has a friend in court, one who knows
at first hand what have been his priva
tions and his sacrifices and who will
make every effort to see that he receives
his just due under the law. General
Bradley’s appointment gives added
meaning to the popular description of
the veterans’ statutes, the GI Bill of
Rights.
BLUEPRINT K?R A VEBV 2Z2&Z1 WEAPON
WASHINGTON
NEWS-LETTER
By MARY LEE COUNCIL
Secretary to E. L. (Bob) Bartlett.
Delegate to Congress from Alaska
FEDERAL AID FOR AIRPORTS
INCLUDES ALASKA
Alaska is in line to benefit by
$10,000,000 representing Federal
aid funds for the construction of
publ'c a rports if legislation now
before the House becomes law.
The bill, introduced by Chair
man Lea of the House Committee j
on Interstate and Foreign Com- i
merce, embraces authorization for
appropriations for the United
States, including territories and
possessions, and the primary ob
ject of the measure is to provide I
Federal cooperative aid for a na- j
tional systm of airports.
To carry out this program as it|
concerns the territories and pos
sessions, the bill authorizes annu
al appropriations amounting in
the aggregate to $50,000,000 over
a ten-year period. Not more than
$10,000,000 of this amount is to be
expended in Alaska, not more
than $15,000,000 in Hawaii, and
not more than $10,000,000 in Puer
to Rico.
f At the request of Delgeate Bart
lett and with the cooperaion of
Congressman Alfred Bulwinkle. i
Chairman of the subcommittee
handling this measure, a special
provision has been written into
the bill which prvoides that the j
municipality in Alaska planning i
to construct a public airport will
bear 25% of the cost of airport
construction, rather than being re
quired to make a 50% contribu
tion, as in the States, Hawaii and
Puerto Rico.
_
I
WAGE DIFFERENTIAL
The outright discrimination
against Alaskans by the Army and
Navy in issuing an order that
henceforth civilian employees will
not receive the 25% wage differ
ential if recruited in Alaska but
will continue to do so if hired in
the States, is being fought vigor
ously by all agencies and individ
uals in Washington really conver
sant with the facts.
The ruling, which was put into
effect without proir consultation
with any of those agencies or in
dividuals, was termed by Delegate
Bartlett as being “simply fantas
tic. How these agencies can ex
pect two persons doing identical
work to have their pay established
by reason of residential qualifica
tions is beyond comprehension.”
Delegate Farrington of Hawaii
has joined in the battle. The order
likewise discriminates against
residents of the Islands.
REVENUE BOND BILL
REINTRODUCED
In order to include a provision
calling for municipal elections for
the issuance of revenue bonds for
public works purposes, Delegate
Bartlett has reintroduced the rev
enue bond bill which has stimu
lated so much interest in the Ter
ritory.
Under this legislation, approval
of the issuance of revenue bonds
by officials of municipal corpora
tions and public utility districts
must be had upon majority vote of
the qualified voters residing in the
municipality or public utility dis
trict concerned.
VETERANS ADMINISTRATION
TO OPEN NEW CONTACT UNIT
Delegate Bartlett has been in
formed that a Veterans Adminis
tration Contact Unit will soon be
opened at Fairbanks.
The authority to establish this
unit, consisting of a Contact Rep
resentative and a clerk-stenogra
pher, has been granted to the Re
gional Manager at Seattle. The of
fice will be opened as soon as
space can be found and personnel
procured and trained. Further in
formation reveals that the office
will be enlarged with the assign
ment of additional personnel as
the needs of the service require.
DECLARATION OF OWNER
SHIP OF LANDS IN ALASKA
UNDER CONSIDERATION
Delegate Bartlett has introduced
legislation to facilitate the carry
ing out of the act of the Territo
rial Legislature which provides
for the declaration of the owner
shpi of lands in Alaska.
Since the records of original
patents of all privately owned
land in Alaska are in the district
land offices, agencies of the Fed
eral Government, Mr. Bartlett’s
measure provides for the utilization
of those offices and the services of
the Registers and of the Commis
sionr of the General Land Office,
in accordance with the desire of
the Legislature. This personnel is
not to be compensated addition
ally for this work.
PRESIDENT SIGNS ALASKA
NATIVE BROTHERHOOD
RELIEF BILL
The President has signed Dele
gate Bartlett’e bill in the amount
of $6,000 for the payment to the
Alaska Native Brotherhood at
Sitka for destruction to its hall by
fire.
Congress has determined that
the loss was due to negligence of
the army in possession of the hall
at the time of the fire.
FAMILIES OF MILITARY
PERSONNEL
Believing that the reasons for
•
prohibiting families of military
personnel serving in Alaska to
live in the Territory no longer
are compelling, Delegate Bartlett
has urged the War Department to
rescind its order.
Favorable action has not yet
been taken by the War Depart
ment, but the Delega'e will con
tinue to work toward this end.