THE NOME NUGGET
Published Monday, Wednesday and Friday by The
NOME PUBLISHING CO.
Nome. Alaska
Telephone: Main 125 P. O. Box 61.8
$1.50 PER MONTH $16.00 A YEAR
W. A. and EMILY BOUCHER .Editors
Entered as second class matter October 14. 1943. at the postoffice at
Nome, Alaska, under the Art of March 3, 1879.
Friday, March 8, 1946
THE PENDULUM SWINGS
(Rocky Mountain News)
It’s a long worm that has no turning, or however the
saying goes. Anyhow we seem to be apporaching an end
of an era in politics.
For several years running now, the labor heirarchy
with its organized propaganda, has been quick to put
the smear of “reactionary" on anyone not approving 100
percent whatever the heirarchy wanted or not opposing
completely whatever the heirarchy opposed.
But now the tactic of dividing all Americans and
their newspapers and their lawmakers into two categor
ies—enemies and slaves—is reaching its come-uppance.
What’s going to happen to the big boys of labor is about
the same thing that happened to Wayne B. Wheeler
and the power-thirsty prohibition crowd. And the same
thing that happened to the big boys of Wall Street when
the investors and the public grew tired of being
damned.
The trend is seen in the various public opinion polls,
showing that labor union members have grown weary
of being shoved around and called out on strikes just to
demonstrate the labor bosses’ power.
The trend is seen in last week's 258-to-155 vote in the
House of Representatives, for passage of the Case Bill.
That blunder-buss measure was born in resentment,
drawn hastily, never considered by a legislative com
mittee—an example of how not to legislate.
Like most punitive measures, it would probably do
more harm than good. But with no chance to modify it
except in the hurly-burly of floor debate, in the show
down the Congressmen had to vote for the Case Bill or
nothing. So they voted for the bill, because they were
sympathetic with its main purpose, which was to cut :
down to size the too-powerful labor bosses.
Cool heads of the true friends of labor—we refer to
the workers, not union bosses—will be needed to per
suade the Senate to substitute a more moderate, work
able measure.
There are signs that the change in the political cli- ‘
mate is percolating even to high places in the labor
movement. For one thing that two-hour, city-wide
strike scheduled for yesterday in New York was called'
off.
It would have been a strike that had nothing to do i
with wages, hours or working conditions—merely a j
demonstration of power. Fortunately Philip Murray and
some other leaners wisely decided that this is no time
to be flexing muscles just for the hell of it.
In this reaction against labor bosses, let’s not forget
that the legitimate objectives of labor unions are ob
jectives likewise for the common good.
Those legitimate aims are steady employment, steady !
pay, the right to work in dignity without fear or dis
crimination, the right to a fair and expanding share in
the wealth which the worker’s efficiency and produc- j
tivity create. Let’s get back on that beam.
STRIKES, STRIKES — ??
By Bruce A. Gustin, in The Denver Post
What is this country coming to? Sunday night, Mayor
O’Dwyer of New York City appealed to C.I.O. president
Murray to use his “position and influence” to prevent;
a threatened strike which would tie up the city’s sub-!
ways, streetcars and buses. Just think of that! The ex
ecutive head of the biggest city in the nation and in the
world is forced to get down on his knees to a labor union
leader and beg that a strike be* called ofU so a commun
ity of seven million people can continue to exist and
STILL GROUNDHOGGING THE SPOTLIGHT
— - I-II I —
function in a normal way.
For more than a century and a half it has been the
proud boast of the American people that they lived un
der a government of laws. Now, these seems to be a
labor dictatorship in this country. Continuance of mu
nicipal services upon which the health and well being
of millions of inhabitants of large cities are dependent
is at the mercy of organized groups. And some of them
seem to have adopted a “public-be-damned” attitude
that is downright shocking.
In Houston, Texas, a strike of city employees has
stopped the removal of garbage and it has been piled
in the streets for nearly a week. Strikes in Detroit have
curtailed or threatened milk and bread deliveries. A
milk strike has been threatened in Cleveland. The
threat of an electric strike hangs over Pittsburgh.
Any kind of strike is serious enough, but work stop
pages which cut off food deliveries and vital utility
services in large cities are calamities. Calvin Coolidge
had the right idea—“There is no right to strike against
the public safety by anybody, anywhere, anytime.”
Surely it is possible here in the United States to work
out some peaceful and orderly method for settling all
these industrial disputes without resort to jungle tac
tics.
There seems to be no reason for a transportation
strike in New York City. Mayor O’Dwyer said he con
sidered the wage increase sought a “just cause,” so that
could be settled without any walkout. As to the union’s
principal demand that it be recognized as the sole and
exclusive bargaining agency for all civil service em
ployees, the mayor declared that cannot and will not be
granted because it is forbidden by law. Certainly the
union cannot expect the city to violate a state law. So
that demand should be withdrawn.
By MARY LEE COUNCIL
Secretary to E. L. (Bob) Bartlett, Delegate to Congress from Alaska
GOVERNMENT TO CONTINUE
OPERATING ALASKA SHIPS
It is understood an order ap
proving continued operation of
Alaska ships by the War Shipping
Administration during the months
immediately ahead will be ap
proved by John W. Snyder, Di
rector of War Mobilization and
Reconversion.
This action will allow the gov
ernment to absorb any deficits in
; 1
operating costs and is the result
of strong protests made following
I announcement that Alaska freight
and passenger rates would be in
creased many times over present
rates when the operation was re
turned to private ownership.
“It is estimated that well over
half a million dollars a month will
be saved the people of Alaska so
long as the service remains as a
; government operation,” Delegate
j Bartlett stated in applauding Mr. ]
Snyder’s move.
ALASKAN INTERNATIONAL
HIGHWAY COMMISSION
Recreation of the Alaskan In
ternational Highway Commission
has become a probability through
action taken by the House Fore gn
Affairs Committee in ordering a
favorable report on a bill for that
purpose.
The commission would be au
thorized by the President to coop
erate with any similar agency an
pointed in Canada in “a study for
the survey, location and construc
tion of a highway to connect the
Pacific Northwest part of contin
ental United States with British
Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan
and the Yukon Territory in the
Dominion of Canada, and the Ter
ritory of Alaska.”
Under provisions of the mea
sure'to be reported from commit
tee and introduced by Congress
man Mansfield of Montana, the
commission would be composed of
eight members, as compared with
<ive members of the former com
mission. one resident of Alaska,
two members of Congress and
five citizens of the United States.
r>ll appointed for a one-year term.
The commissioners would serve
without salary or other compen
sation except for necessary travel
and subsistence expenses while
travelling on business of the com-^
mission and for clerical hire and
other expenses.
An appropriation of $50,000 to
carry out the purposes of the mea
sure would be authorized.
CABINET COMMITTEE
TO STUDY ALASKA
The President has created a sub
committee of the cabinet to study
ways and means of developing
Alaska, according to an announce
ment made at a press conference.
The Cabinet committee will be (
composed of the Secretaries of In
terior, Commerce and Agricul
ture, whose departments all have
a vital interest in the Territory.
Delegate Bartlett has hailed this
announcement as evidence of the
President s keen interest in Alas
ka which he has expressed to the
Delegate on several occasions.
OPERATION OF OCEANGOING
VESSELS BY THE ALASKA RR.
Extension of the services of
The Alaska Railroad to include
.the operation of oceangoing ves
sels between Alaska and the con
tinental United States ha£ been
approved by the House Territories
committee in reporting Delegate
Bartlett’s enabling legislation to
the House.
The measure has the approval
of the interior Department, and
in a letter to the committee in
cluded in the report, Acting Sec
retary Chapman stated, in nart,
as follows:
“Steamship service of private
carriers between the States and
Alaska has long been unsatisfac
tory, although the rates have been
substantially higher than for com
parable service elsewhere. The
sh'ps used have been old and of
poor quality rnd irregular in their
operations. . . . Since 1942 the
War Shipping Administration has
been operating these ships, and
now that the war is over it is pro
posed to turn them back to the
private operators. . .. The steam
ship companies claim that they
cannot take their ships back from
the Government and maintain
service under existing freight
rates and passenger fares. On their