THE NOME NUGGET
Published Monday, Wednesday and Friday bv the
NOME PUBLISHING CO.
NOME, ALASKA
Telephone: Main 125 P. O. Box 6iti
$1.50 PER MONTH Slfi.00 A YEAR
W. A. Boucher . Owner-Publisher
Emily Boucher . Local Editor
Entered as second class matter October 14. 194.3. at he postoflrcf
at Nome, Alaska, under the Act of March 3. 1P.79.
Nome, Alaska, Wednesday, February 2, 1949
1948 GOLD PRODUCTION SHOWS INCREASE
(Territorial Department of Mines)
Despite preliminary reports recently issued by the
Federal Government that show a diminished output of
metallic minerals in Alaska, and especially of gold, dur
ing the calendar year 1948 as compared with the preced
ing year, other statistics bearing on the progress of
Alaska’s mineral industry during the past year that
have been compiled by the Office of Territorial Com
missioner of Mines tend to discount the importance of
the apparent decline in gold output.
Also, it appears certain that final figures on gold pro
duction itself will show a substantial increase above the
preliminary estimates for the year that have been an
nounced from Washington. It even appears possible that
it many prove to have been greater in 1948 than in 1947.
Statistics gathered and compiled by the Office of the
Commissioner of Mines show that during 1948 thirty
dregdes were in operation in the Territory as compared
with 11 during the previous year; and that 38 draglines
were in active use as compared with 35 during 1947. It
is logical to presume that the increase in heavy placer
equipment thus shown will mean a large output of gold.
Active placer operations that employed smaller equip
ment, mostly in the forrq of a combination of bulldozer
and hydraulic apparatus numbered 102, as compared
with 101 that were productive during 1947.
Offsetting whatever decline that may have occurred
in the production of gold is a substantial increase in the
output of industrial minerals and fuels, particularly
coal Final figures on the 1948 output of coal from
Alaska mines show a production of 409,000 tons. This
output exceeds by approximately 47,000 tons the previ
ous all-time high annual production-record, which was
established during the preceding year.
During the past several years production in the Ter
ritory of sand, gravel and stone, for use principally in
airport and road-construction, has taken rank in value
with gold, coal and platinum in accounting for the total
mineral wealth produced.
The indicated value of Alaska’s output of sand, gravel
and stone during the year 1947 was close to $5,000,000.
This sum is considerably greater than the estimated
value of the coal produc°d and approx'matelv half that
of the gold output for that year. Although definite in
formation on similar production during 1948 is not
available, it is believed that there may have been an in
crease rather than a decline in production of this im
portant group of industrial minerals.
’Next to the high cost of*equipmei>t and supplies and
the scarcity and high cost of available labor that has
continued to prevail during the past year, the greatest
handicap to the progress of Alaska’s mineral industry
undoubtedly was the uncertainty and inadequacy of
maritime facilities due to strikes and other controver
sies.
With these difficulties apparently settled by agree
ments covering a period of years and with lowered costs
of production, for which there seems to be some hope,
substantial even though not rapid recovery of the gold
mining branch of the industry may reasonably be an
ticipated during the coming year.
Further expansion, possibly on a large scale, in the
mining of coal and in the production of industrial min
erals during the coming year seems assured.
The unprecedented high prices being paid for metal
lic minerals other than gold, including lead, copper,
zinc and antimony, affords a strong stimulus for the de
velopment of any deposits of those minerals that may
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be found reasonably acessible to transportation facili
ties.
Premium prices offered by the Atomic Energy Com
mission for uranium and related ores have already re
sulted in active interest being displayed in the possibili
ties afforded in Alaska of finding and developing depos
its of those atomic raw materials in the Territory and
this interest is certain to grow during the coming year.
Altogether the outlook for progress in the mineral in
dustry in Alaska during the year 1949 appears favor
able.
I
THE ART OF SPYING
(Cincinnati Enquirer)
Spying is as old as the human race. Man has indulged
his curiosity in the goings-on of his neighbors, his friends
and his enemies snce he began to thnk. He has spied—
and has hired the services of spies—to glean facts on al
most every phase of living, from the highest halls of
government to the lowliest alley fence.
Military movements and strategies often have been
guided by spies, placed behind the enemy lines. Giant
business programs have been altered overnight -becouse
i of information which has been relayed, by industrial
spies, out of offices and workshops of competitors. No
nation which makes a pretense of ambition is without
its information system. This has been true since the
days of ancient Egypt and China. It was true in Greece
and Rome, and in the days when Portugal and Soain
were in the ascendant. It is true of the modern world—
in a most elaborate fashion.
No one wise in the ways of diplomacy doubts for a mo
ment that British agents are channeling back to London
a great maze of information about developments in this
^ountrv. Those “studies” are being made, under cover,
m hundreds of industrial plants as well as in the offices
of government. France is doing the same thing—and thr
United States would be lax indeed if she didn’t do ev
erything within the power of her State Department to
keep abreast of the evolution in progress in other lands.
In times of war, spying for an enemy government is a
most serious offense, punishable by death. In times of
peace the seriousness of the offense varies with the tvn^
of business handled. We’d hardly condemn to death
anyone who let a British automobile manufacturer
know, in advance, that a new type of sparkplug was
about to be marketed in Detroit. But it would be crim
inal to let anyone—even a friendly nation—know de
tails of our latest weapon of defense.
Spying, in itself, has become so common that no na
tion can be castigated for indulging in it. It is a port of
the industrial system of diplomacy. But citizens of any
country who knowingly act as spies for potential ene
mies deserve the‘heaviest penalties provided by law.
This, is seems to us, is true whether the offense is of the
past or of the present.
LIFTING THE LID
ATJUNEAU
iContinued from Page One>
ination of the traps over a 10-year
period. Such action was favored
l ist year in a Territorial refern
dtm.
Tne only dissenting vote was
cast by Sen. E. B. Collins, Fair
banks Republican, who said he
thought the Senate should simply
go on record in favor of Bartlett’s
measure. Collins’ statement
i brought an immediate response
from Sen. Victor C. Rivers, An
ichorage Democrat, that:
“We must fulfill the mandate of
the referendum.”
The Senate also unanimously
passed another memorial to Con
gress supporting a second Bart
lett bill to provide $15,000,000 for
an Alaska housing authority.This
memorial already had House ap
proval.
E. Glen Wilder, head of the
Alaska housing authority, told the
Senators that funds would be used
largely for loans to individuals if
uu horized by Congress.
It was memorial afternoon in
the legislature as the House passed
one previously approved by the
Senate asking Congressmen to
waive provision of the Jones Act
so Canadian vessels could carry
passengers and freight to and from
Skagway and Haines. *
The memorial, introduced by '*
Sen. R. M. MacKenzie, Ketchikan
Democrat, cited only “token serv
ice” by American ships to the two
towns.
The House vote was 21 to 1, with
the lone ballot against being turn
ed in by Rep. Alfred A. Owen, Jr.,
who said he feared it would be
“letting the camel get his nose into
the tent in competition with Amer
ican flag ships.”
The‘House spent more than 2V2
hours discussing a bill to tighten ,
wage collection statutes. It would
require pay days at least monthly
and make the Terri'ory foot the
bill for wage suits brought by the
m
commissioner of labor after hear
ings.
The measurt was held over for
final action today after the House
defeat an amendment proposed
by Rep. Glen Franklin, Fairbanks ^
Democrat, to make on employee ™
pay for any such cases he lost in
court.
A minor bill passed by tne ben
a e after previous House approval
provides an additional SI,500 tor
the treasurer’s office.
Other bills introduced included
one by Sen. Anita Garnick, Jun
eau Democrat, to give equal pay
for women and one by the House
labor committee to establish a
board of plumbers and make li
censing mandatory.
The Senate approved unani
mously today a memorial to Presi
dent and Congress for fifteen dol
lars per ounce bonus for all gold
mined in Alaska. The measure was
introduced yesterday by Lyng ot
Nome, Democrat. Jones, Nome Re
publican, and Barr, Fairbanks
Democrat supported Lyng in the
brief floor diescussion today.
Lyng said “the gold miner is
caught between high production
costs and the existing ceiling on
the price of gold which blocks the
re-establishment of the industry
as the principal economic asset of
Alaska.”
Sen. Jones told the Senate that
while the miners face the govern
ment price pegged at $35 an ounce
they could get $73 in countries
with free gold circulation, so the
bonus is well justified.
Wednesday, February 2. 1$49
JUNEAU, (ffi) — The Hou-e
passed a tax bill on raw fish yes