* OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
_ _ _ ...._ _ _ _ __ .... ___ _ __ __j_
VOL. LIII.- No. 25 NOME, ALASKA, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1951 . , • Per Copy—15c
NEWS IN BRIEF
WASHINGTON, (/P)—The Sen
ate passed by voice vote yester
day a bill to give $10,000-worth
of life insurance free of cost to
persons on duty with the armed
forces since last June 27.
It now goes to conference with
t the House, which earlier had ap
proved a somewhat similar bill
cutting off the insurance upon
discharge from the service. The
Senate bill would permit its ex
tension upon payment of premi
ums, as is now the case with
National Service Life Insurance.
r
DALLAS, (/P)—A Dallas man
was put under a $50,000 peace
bond not to strike his wife any
more with a sledgehammer.
The man explained in justice
of the peace W. E. Richard’s
coudt yesterday that “my wife is
cranky when the weather is bad.
So when the weather looked
threatening I hit her with a sledge
hammer.”
The woman is now in a hospital
with head injuries.
Richburg levied a jail sentence
and warned, “The next time you
hit her, you’ll either pay $50,000
or lay it out in jail.“
WASHINGTON, (&)— The Su
supreme Court refused yesterday
to rule on the validity of an Ore
gon law which prohibits the tak
ing of Columbia river salmon by
fish traps.
Pete Anthony and other owners
of such traps questioned the law
but the high court said no sub
stantial federal question was in
volved.
TEHRAN, Iran, (IP)— Peasant
Mohammed Sade set out poison
bait for a fox which had been
raiding his chicken coop.
Mohammed’s cow ate the poison.
Mohammed killed the ailing
cow and invited his family to a
feast. I
Seven of Mohammed’s relatives
died, the newspaper Ettelaat re
ported today.
BUENOS AIRES, {IP)—Just as
expected, the first Pan American
games are shaping up as a duel
between the always powerful Uni
t e d States and up-and-coming
Argentina.
With six final events completed
the U.S. led with 49 points in un
official standings, against 36 for
Argentina. As in the Olympics,
no official point total is kept, but
on a basis of 10, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 for
six places, others in the scoring
column are:
Mexico 21, Peru 14, Brazil 11,
Chile 7, Cuba 4, and Guatemala 2.
The six champions already
crowned include:
Men’s 10,000-meter run—Curtis
Stone, U.S.A., 31:08.6; Men’s high
jump—Virgil Sexems, U.S.A., 6
feet inches; Team foils fenc
ing—U.S .A.
MOSCOW, (IP)—!The death .of
Rear Admiral Maxim Skirganov,
58, was reported today. He is
credited with playing an active
part in the Bolshevik uprising at
Tallin, Estonia, during the 1917
“Russia Will Start
War When She Is
Readv; not Before”
j WASHINGTON, (&)—Lucius D.
Clay, former U.S .commander in
Germany, said today that suffic
ient western European defense
Any attempt to fix “a mathe
to make Russian aggression “seem
unprofitable/*
But to do thus, the retired gen
eral said, the present course of
re-arming western Europe and
supplying American ground troops
| to the north Atlantic defense force
imust be pursued “full speed
ahead/*
Clay appeared before the Sen
ate Foreign Relations and Armed
Services committees. He argued
that American troops be sent to
Europe “without limitations” for
the defense force being assembled
•by Gen Dwight D. Eisenhower.
He sharply disputed the testi
mony of former president Her
bert Hoover yesterday that to send
troops before the Europeans them
selves were fully prepared would
be to invite a massacre. \
“I do not subscribe to the the
ory that the Russians are super
men or super-fighters, o r that
Gen. Eisenhower, given a reason
able number of men would be
overwhelmed and massacred,” he
said.
Clay had many face-to-face
dealings with the Russian leaders
Business Will
Get Materials
As Needed
I ' „
WASHINGTON, l7P)—The gov
ernment issued an order today
aimed to assure that every busi
ness enterprise, public and pri
vate institution will get limited
quantities of materials needed to
keep their plants and facilities in
operation condition.
The order from the National
Production Authority (NPA) es
tablishes a special priority rating
for supplies for maintenance, re
pair and operations — excepting
materials going into end products.
The new order, a part of the
whole control program, came on
the heels of one regulating the
civilian use of rubber products—
affecting 40,000 items in all—and
at a time when a declaration of
national wage policy was immi
nent.
Manly Fleischmann, the NPA
administrator, said the new order
is designed to enable business and
industrial firms, schools and other
institutions to remain in good re
pair “so that they can operate at
a maximum rate consistent with
direct defense requirements.
NPA*s order permits business
concerns and other institutions to
apply a priority rating, called
“DO-97”, to orders for mainten
(Continued on Page Five)
revolution. Skirkanov had served
in the Russian fleet since enlist
ing as a sailor in 1913 and had
been a member of the communist
party since 1917.
Gen. Kepner Says
He Will Protect
Alaska
i r •
ANCHORAGE, (JP)— The head
of the Alaska Defense Command
* t * ' * .
says “we are no pushovers and;
anyone who thinks he can walk!
in and take Alaska is in for a j
rude awakening.”
Lt. Gen. W. E. Kepner said his i
organization is well prepared to
defend all of Alaska against any
nation that may “step in and try
to take it.”
“My mission is to defend Alas
ka and that means all of Alaska,”
Kepner said. “The force of men
here (Alaska) is well trained and
capable. We are prepared to meet
the enemy whenever and where
ever he may strike.”
The general made the state
ments Monday in commenting <ta
a report made by a preparedness
subcommittee of the Senate Armed
Forces committee in Washington,
D.C., last Thursday.
The subcommittee report said
that an all-out war with Russia
“would force this country to aban
don certain isolated areas of Alas
ka.”
The subcommittee report also
said it appears “reasonable to as
sume that little could be done to
protect the Seward peninsula area
from either bombing or actual in
vasion if the Russia desired.”
The Seward peninsula reaches
up into northwestern Alaska and
borders on Bering strait, a 60-mile
strip of water separating the Ter
ritory from Russian Siberia.
Kepner said certain areas of
Alaska are more vulnerable but
that “any portion that is impor
tant to us.”
“Our strength is highly mobile
and can be moved to areas where
it may be needed and when it is
needed,” he said. “If we are to
temporarily relinquish an area it
would be with the idea of making
it untenable.”
The subcommittee is beaded by
Sen. Hunt (D-Wyo.) The other
Still Seeking
Stanley Nichols’
Companion
«
KEY WEST, Fla., (JP)—Two de
velopments in the investigation of
the death of former U.S. Marshal
Stanley J. Nichols were reported
Monday by Peace Justice Roy
Hamlin.
He said the blue sedan which
Nichols drove here from Fair
banks, Alaska, was found in a
Miami parking lot over the week
end and new information was un
covered on the man who was with
the former marshal when he
checked in at the Floridian hotel
Feb. 10.
Nichols was found lying on the
floor at the hotel Feb. 12. He died
in a hospital four days later.
Hamlin said the man with Nich
ols was last seen Feb. 11 when he
attempted to cash a $100 Travel
er’s check. New facts about him
were uncovered from a card Ira
had filled out in preparation for a
trip to Havana with Nichols.
Hamlin said he gave the name
of Thomas Meffert of Fairbanks,
listed his age as 28, a native of
? .
Louisville, Ky., and a “profession
al sailor.”
A travel agency told Hamlin
that Nichols and the other man
bought tickets to Havana on Feb.
10 and the man. brought them
back the following day and col
lected a refund.
A warrant Ins been issued
charging the missing man with
stealing Nichols’ car, Hamlin said.
Dr. Ralph Herz, who performed
an autopsy on Nichols, said death
was due to natural causes.
- State attorney J. Lancelot Lee
ter asked the coroner’s jury to
withhold its ruling on the death,
saying: .
“I am not satisfied that there
was no Criminal intervention.”
The coroner’s jury has recessed
subject to call.
two members are Sens. Morse (R
Ore.) and Saltonstall CR-Mass.)
I . NOTCH BY NOTCH
Lifting The Lid
At Juneau .
Tuesday, February 27, 1951 i >
JUNEAU, (&)—'The Alaska Sen
ate whipped through seven minor
bills yesterday, but two side issues
stirred up' the 'main legislative
controversies. ?
The House passed 24-4 a billjto
make aliens eligible for old age
pensions if they have lived in the
Territory since 1935.
An attempt to amend it to raise
pensions from the present $80; to
$90 a month stirred an oratorical
storm before the proposed amend
ment was defeated 17-7.
The other warm dispute was
over the biennial inspection trip
by members of the legislature to
the Pioneer’s home in Sitka.
The Senate decided against par*
ticipating in the inspection junket
which Sen. John Butrovich (R
Fairbanks) labeled an “absolutely
disgraceful waste of money.”
The House voted to send only
the seven-member Territorial In
stitutions committee, probably Fri
day and Saturday.
Sen. James Nolan (D-WrangeU)
said the Sitka trip cost about. $950
in the last session. ,
The dispute also found brother
arrayed against brother. In* the
Senate, Steve McCutcheon (D-An
chorage) moved to cancel any Sen
ate trip. In the House Stanley Me
Cutcheon (D - Anchorage) argued
that legislators always bring back
valuable information front the in
spection.
The House fight to raise pen
sions to $90 monthly was mainly
the Third division representatives
against the field. Voting for the
increase were , six Third division
ers and Rep. Frank Degnan, Sec
ond division Democrat from Una
lakleet. Rep. C. A. Pollard, Third
division Democrat from Palmer,
voted.with the majority.
Arguments by Rep. Jack Scav
enius (D-Anhorage) fora$90 pen
sion to “do justice for the old
folks” brought charges of ‘politics*
and ‘vote-getting* talk from Reps.
Alden Wilbur (R-Fairbanks) and
George Miscovich (R-Flat).
Stan McCutcheon, Scavenius
and Rep. Wendell P. Kay (D-An
chorage) retorted they are willing
to raise taxes, if necessary, to pay
the bill. They denied any political
motives.
Rep. Glen Franklin (D-Bound
ary) interposed, saying that “you
willing tax-raisers wi 11 get a
chance without increasing pension
costs. We are going to be short on
meeting the budget now -and we
have to be practical.”
Reps. Waino E. Hendrickson (R
Juneau) and Amelia Gundersen
(D-Ketohikan) argued that aid to
dependent children needs to be
increased more than pensions.
Scavenius contended a special
session could be called next year
if any budget financing emergen
cy arises.
Bills passed by the Senate, all
still needing House action, inclu
ded: To increase per diem allow
ance for traveling territorial em
ployes from the present $1$ to $12;
bo legalize marriage of girls under
16 with the parents* consent if a
(Contfamed on Fast Two)
• • i V t