m NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
VOL. LI.~nT 25 NOME, ALASKA, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1949 Per Copy—15c
NEWS IN BRIEF
WASHINGTON, </P>—The Sen
ate Friday confirmed the nomina
tion of Joseph W. Kehoe to be U.
S. judge for the Second Division
of Alaska and Anthony J. Dimond
to be U. S. judge for the Third
District of Alaska.
VANCOUVER, B. C. (A’)-Two
tons of food and fodder were
dropped by an R.C.A.F. Dakota
yesterday to ten persons isolated
in the Halcyon and St. Leon Hot
Spring on Upper Arrow Lake, 250
miles east of here.
The icebound villages reported
earlier they had only two days’
provisions. The cargo included
900 pounds of livestock fodder.
JUNEAU, (/P) —Mrs. Elmer A.
Friend, 61 wife of the managing
editor of the Daily Alaska Empire,
died Saturday.
The Friends had lived in Sew
ard and Juneau since 1915. She
was active in the Pioneers of
Alaska.
Among survivors is a sister, Sis
ter Mary Jaune, St. Mary’s Acad
emy, Medford, Ore.
Christian Science services will
be held in Seattle.
TOKYO, —Former Viscount
Shigeyuki Ishikawa was in jail on
a charge of theft today.
He was arrested near a public
bath house. His loot, said police,
was Japanese underwear.
Hard times were blamed by the
ex-nobleman for his plight.
CAMDEN, N. J. {IP)—Two-year
old Judith Dischert died today of
burns received when fire wreck,
ed her crib.
Battalion chief William van
Pfefferle said there was “little
doubt” last night’s blaze — con
fined to the -crib—was started by
five-year-old Leonard Dischert,
the dead girl’s brother.
Detective Clifford Del Rossi
said several burned matches were
found around the crib.
Mrs. Dischert told Rossi that
Leonard admitted going into the
baby’s bedroom but became hys
terical when asked about the fire.
She said her son had been warn
ed repeatedly not to • play with
matches.
JUNEAU, {#•)—Sitka won the
Southeast Alaska bask e t b a 11
championship Saturday night by
upsetting the Metlakatla Vets. 55
39, in the finals of the “Gold
Medal” tournament. Juneau High
School took third place with a 35
30 victory over Mount Edge
cumbe.
SEATTLE, (yP) — Because he
used the term “S. O. B.” a bar of
soap and a suggestion for its time
honored anti-profanity use was
enroute today to President Tru
man from a Seattle woman.
Mrs. Isabelle J. Anderson, pres
ident of the Women’s King County
Republican Club, wrote the Pres
ident he should use it to wash his
mouth out.
- -
SEATTLE, <yP)—Mrs. lone At- j
wood Wilson, 41, wife of Leland
Stanford Wilson, Seattle electron
ic engineer, died Thursday follow
New Charter Will
Aid Better Ship
Service To Alaska
j WASHINGTON. (£>)—Improved
ocean transportation bet ween
Alaska and the Pacific Northwest
is expected to result from a new
steamship chartering arrangement
with the Alaska Steamship Co.,
Seattle, Wash., the maritime com
mission announced Saturday .
Under the new agreement, gov
ernment-owned vessels chartered
by the company for periods of
peak seasonal demand—the late
spring and summer months—will
be held in Lake Washington, near
Seattle, during the off-season
without charter cost to the oper
ator.
t
The previous contract provided
that the vessels be returned to
government reserve fleets when
not actually operating under char
ter and that the commercial oper
ator pay any cost involved as well
as the expense of returning the
ships to service.
The new agreement states that
Alaska Steamship company, al
though it will pay no charter fees
during the off-season months, has
| agreed to maintain the vessels in
! lay-up without cost to the govern
ment.
At the same time, Alaska
Steamship company advised the
(Continued on Page Three)
Internation'1 News
At A Glance —
Saturday, February 26, 1949
f'By The Associated Press)
The main defendant in the Bul
garian communist trial of 15 Pro
testant churchmen pleaded guilty
today to espionage and treason.
He is the Rev. Vassil G. Ziap
kov, Congregational church pas
tor and representative of the
United Evangelical Churches. The
heads of the Methodist and Bap
tist churches in Bulgaria previ
ously had denounced themselves
at length in similar pleas.
Ialmiro Togliatti, head of the
Italian communist party, said in
an interview the Italian people
would have the “duty to aid in the
most efficient way” any Russian
army which might be required to
pursue “an aggressor” on Italian
soil. •
His utterance went further than
that of French communist leader
Maurice Theorez on Tuesday.
Thorez said French commies
would Welcome Russian troops
should they drive an enemy onto
French soil. The French chamber
of deputies condemned the state
(Continued on Page Two)
ing a long illness.
Bom at Dawson City, Y. T.,
she was brought to Seattle when
she was six months old. She was
the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. F. N.
Atwood, pioneer Seattle couple.
In 1932 she was chosen queen
of the Yukon for the celebration
of the Sourdough Stampede here.
Survivors besides her husband
include a daughter Marilyn, a son,
Peter H., 21 months.
Army Plans To
Double Strength
In Alaska
WASHINGTON </P>—The army
announced plans Saturday to dou
ble its Alaskan forces and to
maintain its troop strength in the
Far East at the same levels of a
year ago.
At the same time it said U. S.
army forces in Europe will be cut
slightly under the deployment
j schedule for the fiscal year start
ing July 1.
Under this schedule the army
will have 127.000 men in the Far
East; 13,200 in Alaska and 92,000
in Europe. All told it will have
258,000 men overseas out of a to
tal of 677,000 allowed under the
proposed new budget.
The army issued a summary of
next fiscal year’s operations pri
i marily to explain how it intends
to use its manpower quota deter
mined by the $15,000,000,000 bud
get ceiling President Truman set
for the armed forces.
The report, however, also serv
| ed to dispute published rumors
(Continued on Page Three>
LIFTING THE LID
ATJUNEAU
Saturday, February 26, 1949
(By James Hutcheson)
JUNEAU, (JP) — The Alaska
House and Senate were at odds
today on a question of whether
old age pensions should be $75 or
$90 per month and the dispute I
headed for a conference of both1
Houses.
The House late yesterday re
fused to concur in Senate amend
ments to the pension bill by a
vote of 15 to 6, and made clear its
position that pensions must be a
maximum of $90.
The Senate had voted for $75
per month, an increase of $15 per
month over the present maximum
of $60. It also put) in provisions
requiring citizenship and nine
years’ residence. The House found j
no fault with these restrictive [
provisions.
Four Republicans and two
Democrats voted to adopt the
Senate changes. They were Re
publicans Doris M. Barnes, Frank
G Johnson Percy E. Ipalook and (
George Miscovich; and Democrats
Glen D. Franklin and James No
lan.
William A. Egan and Warren A.
(Continued on Page Seven)
«
States Trying To.
Bar Conununists
From Public Jobs
(By The Associated Press)
Thirteen states are considering
proposals to bar communists from
public jobs.
Some measures now before leg
islators would require people on
public payrolls, including teach
ers, to take loyalty oaths.
Other bills are aimed at keeping
communists out of a wide range
of positions.
M a r y 1 and and Illinois are
(Continued on Page Six)
Change Date For
Passage Of New
Labor Law
WASHINGTON, (/P) — Senate
leaders Saturday abandoned plans
to try to push the Truman labor
bill throught Congress by April 1.
“It’s now apparent that we can’t
make it by that time,” said Sena
tor Lucas 'D.-Ill.', the majority
leader.
Lucas added, however, that the
Democrats have no intention of
taking the priority label off the
labor measure. He said action w:ll
be “just as fast as possible.” But
he refused to name a new target
date.
Privately, there was talk in
Democratic circles that a new la_
bor measure might not clear both
branches of Congress before the
middle of May.
And in Atlantic City, AFL pres
ident William Green said it is
“touch and go” whether the ad
ministration measure will be
passed at all. Commenting that it
“hinges on a few votes in the Sen
ate,” Green said:
“The big .question is how the
southern reactionary Democrats
will vote.”
Chairman Elbert D. Thomas
<D.-Utah> asked the Senate labor
committee to put off until Friday
the start of its behind-closed
doors study of the labor bill.
Senate Will Tackle
Filibuster Issue
WASHINGTON. ^—President
Truman advised administration
leaders in the Senate today to
meet the filibuster issue “head
on” and seek a show down on
curbing it.
Senate Democratic leader Lucas !
of Illinois told reporters after a
White House conference that Mr. j
Truman had given that advice.
Lucas himself commented:
“This issue has to be met sooner
or later and we might as well
meet it now.”
That meant, he indicated, that
the fight over the filibuster would
not be put aside for any legisla
tion, but would be fought to a fin
ish.
“Diomede Island”
Still Name Of
Diomede Island
(:(/P> Special Washington Service)
WASHINGTON {&)—'The board
on geographic names has ruled
out the use in American docu
ments or maps of the Russian
name for the Diomede Islands.
The Diomedes, between Alaska
and Siberia are owned in part by
Russia, in part by the United
States.
The board voted down a pro
posal that both the Russian term
—Ostrova Diomida—and the con
ventional “Diomede Islands” be
approved for official use.
It approved the English form
only, and in effect outlawed the
Russian.
Little Diomede is the name for
Nome Sehool Kids
W ill Gel Fresh
Milk Tomorrow
Fourteen Nome School children
were on hand to meet Pan Ameri
can Airways’ plane today when it
arrived carrying the fresh homo
genize 1 milk* from Alpine Dairies
in Seattle to be served at the
school tomorrow, March 1.
Each child was given a sample
carton of milk, and enthusiastic
comments were forthcoming, the
main one being, however. “It’s
good!” The children were taken
to the airfield in a vehicle driven
by Tony Knill a representative of
the Walrus Club, sponsors of the
milk project.
Photographers were also pres
ent to record the event, as well
as several townspeople and Air
Force personnel.
The milk was brought by dog
team from the airfield to Nome,
where it is being stored at the N.
C. Company until serving tomor
row, complete with graham crack
fContinued on Page Five*
Fail To Rescue
Marooned Trio
SEATTLE, A rescue crew from
the coast guard cutter Cedar fail
ed yesterday in an attempt to res
cue a woman and two men ma
rooned for six days on Grass Is
land in the Gulf of Alaska.
Coast guard headquarters here
said that bad weather prevented
one of the cutter’s small boats
from making a landing in the lea
of the island.
The boat crew will try another
landing at high tide today. In
structions to be at the spot were
dropped to the trio by a coast
guard patrol plane from Kodiak.
Stranded on the island are Mr.
and Mrs. Fred Howard and their
son-in-law. Robert Zentmire.
Their power barge North Cloud
went aground on the rocks there
last Monday.
The three reported to the paAroI
planes by walkie-talkie radio they
were in good health and in no
need of supplies. They have been
sheltered in a makeshift hut built
of plywood and canvas salvaged
from the wrecked barge.
Word of their plight was
brought to Cordova, last week by
the barge’s engineer Le.onard
Holeman who hiked 28 miles over
ice packs and through waist-deep
snow.
the American island in the group.
Its Russian name is not used on
American maps.
The board, ruled that since the
larger island is Russian-owned, it
may be shown or listed either in
English—Big Diomede island or
in Russian, Ostrov Ratmanova.
Ruled out were such variations
as Bolshayt Diomida, Noo-Nar
Book, Ratmanoff or Rathmanova
island.
Board members were careful to
point out that the decision could
not be considered in any manner
a slap at Russia.
There was no precedent to fol
low and there is no similar cir
cumstance. .