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. Boucher .Owner-Publisher
Entered as second class matter October 14, 1943, at the postot'fice
•t Nome, Alaska, under the Act of March 3. 1879.
Nome, Alaska, Wednesday, May 10, 1950
HOPE IN INDIA
(Christian Science Monitor)
Wherever any two peoples are trying, across a racial
or religious frontier, to reach a basis of understanding
and respect for each other’s rights, they deserve the
good wishes and moral support of their fellow beings.
That sort of effort is represented in the meeting at
New Delhi, India, between Prime Minister Jawaharlal
Nehru of India and Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan
of Pakistan. They are reported to have reached agree
ment on the general outlines of a “bill of rights for mi
norities” in their respective countries which can be of
immense importance to the stability of Asia.
Not only do the Hindu-governed state of India and
the Moslem-dominated state of Pakistan crisscross each
other like a checkerboard, but there are significant mi
nority groups of Moslems in India and of Hindus in Pak
istan. These, on both sides of the borders, have been the
subject of persecutions, reprisals, and outright slaugh
Ck
if the mechanism of protective commissions under
both governments can restrain these excesses, then it
may be possible for India and Pakistan to settle other
differences concerning water rights, trade barriers, and
the disputed province of Kashmir.
CONFUSING THE PUBLIC
Two news items which appeared in a daily newspa
per not long ago explain the confusion with which the
public views certain governmental affairs.
One news item told of the plan of the Veterans Ad
ministration to construct a hospital to cost around $21,
000,000 and the other told about plans to abandon a
large Army hospital in the same state. Naturally, the
public wonders why it is necessary to build a hospital at
the very moment that others are being abandoned.
More than 1,000,000 persons have joined the Ameri
can Cancer Society as volunteer cancer fighters. . . A
box of candy usually brings a smile to the face of any
female, regardless of age. . . . We don’t expect people to
agree with what The Nome Nugget says all the time—
that would be expecting too much. . .. Not all the teams
in the big leagues are playing like championship base
ball should be played and is played on some sandlots.
... It won’t do any harm to plan an extensive vacation
trip. If you find out later that you can’t make it, there’s
no harm done.
SPRING TONIC FOR JANGLED NERVES
\ •JT'C--i—tir- rmnnriiMi'iiriftfnili~ ~T**’* ■>.
Minin** Leader
Speaks ()n Cold
As A Commodity
•>
(Continued from Page One)
ury department.
Many economists, sympathetic
to th(4 present treasury viewpoint,
try to forget that gold is basically
a commodity, with a continuous
and expanding use in private en
terprise. They also forget that all
gold deposits are limited in com
mercial content. Once exhausted,
the mine is permanently out of
business. . . .
‘‘I do not think anybody can
deny that gold is today the cheap
est commodity in world trade.
One searches in vain for one other
commodity entering prominently
into world trade which can still be
purchased at prewar prices. The
bulk of the world trade in gold is
I carried on in 1939 prices. * * *
i South Africa cannot continue to
be the bargain basement of the
world in order to maintain ex
j change stability for the benefit of
| all.”
Gold Producers Victims of Uncon
stitutional Treasury Regulations
“Gold producers are hampered
by regulations dating back to that
pass laws in spite of doubts as to
era when Congress was told to
their validity or constitutionality.
If the law did not give the New
Deal planners the desired freedom
of action, this was achieved by a
Department order, rule or prac
tice, under pretense o fauthority.
“There is a vast legal difference
between newly mined gold, a com
modity, and government gold
stocks for monetary use. Gold
mines are held by their owners by
direct grants from the govern
ment. Whether as claim location
or as patented ground these grants
are valid contracts, specifically
conveying the gold, and they are
property. Rights, acquired against
the United States, arising out of a
contract with it, are protected by
the fifth amendment of the Con
stitution which holds that no per
son—shall be deprived of proper
ty without due process of law, nor
shall private property be taken for
public use without just compensa
tion.
Gold Is Private Property
“All gold mines contain gold in
its natural state: that is the con
dition in which the Government
granted it to the owners, and that
is the condition in which the gold
producers find it. In or out of the
ground it still remains the private
property of the owners. Some gold
may be retained in its natural
state but usually gold must be
processed to insure its recovery
and avoid losses.
“When a producer is compelled
to yield up any of this processed
gold at a price fixed by the gov
ernment, and is denied the right
to seek another purchaser and re
ceive a higher price, it is clearly a
violation of his property rights
guaranteed under the fifth amend
ment. . i .
A Banking, Not a Mining Order
In construing the word "gold,”
in the first Executive order of
1933, the Attorney General held
that this meant "gold coin,” "gold
bullion,” and “gold certificates.”
It was, therefore, a banking and
not a mining order.
On August 2 new regulations
were made permitting sale and
shipment abroad of "gold in its
natural state.”
Then on August 28 the Presi
dent issued an order making it an
offense with $10,000 fine or 10
years’ imprisonment for export
ing, hoarding, melting gold coin,
bullion, or currency, all of which
had to be turned into the treasury
at $20.67 an ounce.
But on August 29, the President
issued an order that the Secretary
of the Treasury was authorized
to receive gold recovered from
natural deposits in the United
States, on consignment for sale,
and that “such sales shall be made
at a price which the Secretary
shall determine to be equal to the
best price obtainable in the free
gold markets of the world.”
As this was issued after the
criminal order of August 28, it
clearly shows that transactions in j
gold from natural deposits were
recognized as private property, j
entitling gold producers to “just
compensation” a dnafairirpc n- I
No Basis for Treasury Power
Over Newly Mined Gold
It is a long established legal j
principle that neither Congress
not any agency of Government
has the right or the power to fix ;
the price at which the Govern
ment buys. Maintenance of this ;
principle is fundamental to our j
freeeconomy.
The gold regulations are a pro
duct of the Treasury Department
and express the manner in which ;
they wish to have things done.
They have no legal force or effect
if they overstep the power con
veyed by the Gold Reserve Act.
Th regulations fix the price and
they also fix the compulsion to ^
sell to the Government. They de- i
ny gold producers the right to sell j
their gold, processed in its ex
traction, to anyone but a mint, or
one of their licensed buyers which
makes him merely a branch of the
mint for the purposes of a com
pulsory sale.
The fixing of the price plus the
compulsion to sell amounts to the j
taking of property without just j
compensation. A definite violation j
of the fifth amendment of the
Constitution. . . .
Justice for Gold Producers
There are two solutions to our
problem.
Step 1: Proceed against the
Government in the courts, with
several distinct cases each having j
a different set of circumstances. ,
We would thus seek a clear-cut j
decision defining the property j
rights of gold producers to mine |
and sell their product. The pre
cise questions we are raising have
never been before the courts.
There are no legal decisions
against the gold mining industry.
We have accepted the power of
Government without question,
like a lot of sheep. How much
longer will we submit to this?
Step 2: Cooperate, under a new
and honest set of regulations with
the Treasury Department, and sell
our product to them provided
they pay us the current world
price. They could do this now, at
any time. They have ample au
thority under section 3700 of the
Vote To Cut
Tax On (agars
WASHINGTON, (A3), The House
ways and means committee re
versed itself yesterday and voted
to cut cigar excises by $15,000,000
a year.
The slash, if finally approved,
would reduce the $45,000,000 an
nual tax on cigar smokers by one
third. The committee previously
had refused to cut the cigar tax.
At the same time the committee
voted to close a tax law ‘loophole”
which some members estimated
has been depriving the govern
ment of from $25,000,000 to $30,
000,000 annually. This was a tech
nical amendment dealing with tux
deductions taken by dealers in
tax-exempt state and municipal
bonds.
Gold Reserve Act of 1934. With
the approval of the President the
Secreaary of the Treasury is au
thorized to purchase gold in any
amounts, at home or abroad * * *
at such rates and upon such terms
as he may deem most advantage
ous to the public interest * * * any
provisions of law as to parity, to
the contrary, notwithstanding.
The Government did this in
1933 under the Presidential order
of August 29 and their legal right
to do this was confirmed by the
opinion of the Attorney General
which I have quoted.
The Government may not yet
be ready to grant us the benefit
of Step 2, but they may be willing
to do so if we proceed diligently
under Step 1. . . .
Gold mining has had a particu
larly raw deal but it is not the
only branch of the mining indus
try that is in trouble. Seventy
three percent of all metal mines
operating in 11 Western States in
1940, are now closed down. This
shut-down is due to world and
sectional politics. Much of this
could have been avoided if min
ing people had been more alert
but we have been too much en
gaged in the details of our own
affairs and have been inclined to
avoid politics.
That must be changed. Whether
we like it or not, we must get into
politics and the thousands of peo
ple in our communities must be
enlisted to support us. Likewise,
the thousands of stockholders in
ou renterprises, who now suffer
with us, must be alerted to the
end that we became articulate.
We must recognize and support
our friends and root out of office
those politcians in whom we
trusted, but who have helped or
permitted the mining industry to
be brought down to the desperate
level it now holds.
Tor Good Printing Call Main 125
1950 CENSUS—HAVE YOU BEEN COUNTED?
The Census is nearing completion. If you have not been counted
here or anywhere else, please fill out the form below and mail it im
mediately to the U. S. Census District Office at the address shown:
My address on April 1, 1950 was:
House Number and Street.Apt. No.
‘Or description of location^
City, town, village .. State.
Name of each person whose us- Relationship Sex Color Age at
ual place of residence was in this of this person M or Last
household on April 1, 1950. to head of the or Race Birth
(Last name) (First name) (Initial) household F day
..Li.|.
i
.......... ... •• ..
I
.i.1.!.
Cut out this form and mail to:
Aarnout Castel, Crew Leader, Bureau of the Census,
Box 168, Nome, Alaska.
Mail This Report In Immediately!