THE NOME NUGGET
Published Monday, Wednesday and Friday by The
NOME PUBLISHING CO.
Nome* Alaska
Telephone: Main 125 P. O. Box 61»
$1.50 PER MONTH $16.00 A YEAR
W. A. and EMILY BOUCHER.Editors
Entered as second class matter October 14, 1943, at the postoffir*
at Nome, Alaska, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Wednesday, May 14, 1947
Air Transport Outlook
(New York Times)
THE DOMESTIC AIRLINES have been caught be
tween the millstones of rising costs and commitments
for more modern equipment. At the same time, ground
installations are still wholly inadequate to care for the
demand for their services. The airlines are taking a
realistic point of view in the face of a drastic reversal
from a condition in which seats were almost unobtain
able to one which, up to a few weeks ago, found big
planes flying with load factors of 25 per cent or less.
They now seek measures through the Government, and
especially the Civil Aeronautics Board, which they be
lieve will lead to a sound structure for the future.
One of these measures is an increase in air fares of
10 per cent, recently approved by the Board. All car
riers are agreed that reduction in fares, rather than in
crease, is the desirable goal. They point out, however,
that in terms of the 1940 dollar the present rate of fare
is 3.7 cents a mile. So greatly have the costs of labor and
equipment increased that the lines estimate their break
even point can be reached only with a continuous load
factor of 75 to 85 per cent. The air lines further advo
cate a temporary increase in airmail pay. This pay has
ceased to be a subsidy; a profit of more than $10,000,000
was earned by airmail by the Postoffice Department
last year. An increase of rates here would provide a
profit on airmail and might well mean the actual salva
tion of some of the smaller airlines. These smaller lines
also are hopeful that the new outlook of the Civil Aero
nautics Board may lead to some redrawing of the exist
ing route-map to obviate duplications from which the
smaller lines are the greatest sufferers.
These questions are of importance to commercial
transportation and national defense, and deserve care
ful consideration both by the Board and by Congress.
i
For The Sake Of Peace And Safety
(Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
CONGRESS IS CONFRONTED with the necessity of
performing the essential and urgent duty of securing
the peace and safety of the nation by immediately en
acting into law a practical and efficient system of uni
versal military training.
The lessons of the past few tragic years, the turbu
lent and ominous state of world affairs and the insistent
demand from patriotic organizations and persons high
in the councils of national affairs demand this be done.
The most important factual arguments in favor of
the measure may thus be summarized:
World affairs today are conditioned by tension be-'
tween two forces:
One, of which the United States is dominant, com
posed of democratic societies anxious to liquidate the
conflict of both World Wars and by equitable agree-:
ment enlist all peoples into the work of peace.
Another, of which Communist Russia is the leader,:
determined to forestall peace and find, in the conse
quent dissention, the opportunity to impose its domin
ion over all others.
This can be done by war alone—sudden, ruthless, total.
Modern warfare has so compressed time and space,
so fearfully augmented the power of weapons, that an
unprepared nation, no matter how potentially strong,
cannot hope to weather attack more than a few days or
weeks.
Formal declarations of war, intervals permitting
training and mobilization, protracted maneuvers and
gradual conversion of industry, are things of the past.
A nation like the United States, with its vast wealth
and technology composing the only substantial obstacle
that remains in the path of arrogantly ambitious, inex
haustibly greedy Communism,, is compelled to main
tain its defenses at the highest possible degree of effi
ciency.
For the United States to be less than ready to repel
a!lark, less than able to strike back with devastating
p.cmp ness, is to invite aggression, disaster, extinction.
It is therefore the best individual and collective in
surance for Americans to establish and support a state
of constant military preparedness.
A system of universal training for our youth is the
first step, but only one step, in this direction.
In effect, what does military training mean to the
vrung man?
Physical fitness, mental quickness; close contact with
!~ds of other states, classes and conditions, and thus a
rchool in social democracy; knowledge of skills and arts
b'therto unknown; lessons in command and in obedi
ence: discovery and test of abilities otherwise dormant:
appreciation of patriotic principles and processes.
Would a year or two in this atmosphere make him
a militarist? Well, has it ever?
Hss America ever become militaristic, even after
1885, 1918, and 1945?
The tiny nation of Switzerland, where every man is
a soldier from boyhood to past middle age, is demo
cr Me, peace-loving and industrious, not militaristic.
But it has always been safe, because the price of de
feating its 450,000 men, in a population of 4 million, has
always been too high.
The aggressive imperialists of Communism would,;
of course, pay a much higher price to defeat America.
For once America ceases to exist, the globe becomes
Communism’s property and plaything.
That is why the cost of eliminating America must be
made prohibitive. A price representing fatal conse
quences to the bidder.
And that is why Congress must listen to the warnings
and facts which thfe American Legion and the American
people have presented spontaneously and through their;
responsible leaders.
We stand practically alone in an uncertain and
threatening world. Time is running out, space is no
longer a defense.
Let us train our manhood, for the sake of peace, saf
ety and civilization.
HEADING FOR THAT SKYSCRAPER
Washington
News Letter
_
REVENUE FROM
PUBLIC LANDS
The Senate has passed Delegate
Bartlett’s bill which would render
financial aid for public roads and
public schools in Alaska from the;
sale and other monetary disposi-!
tion of public lands in the Terri
tory.
The measure, passed several
weeks ago by the House, amends
the Mineral Leasing Act so that
37^ per cent of the money re
ceived from sales, bonuses, royal
ties and rentals of public lands in
Alaska will go to the support of
public schools, for the construc
tion and maintenance of public
roads or other public education
institutions, as the Legislature
may direct.
The extension of this benefit to
Alaska, insofar as 37 V£ per cent
of the money received is con
cerned, places the Territory on a
par with the States. The balance
of the receipts in connection with
financial disposition of public
lands in the States is divided, 52Vfe
>er cent going to the reclamation
fund and the remainder being re
tained in the Treasury of the
United States. Under Delegate
Bartlett’s measure, the remainder
of the income from leases in Alas
ka will be paid into the general
funds of the united States until
such time as the reclamation act
may be extended to the Territory.
The Senate, in passing the leg
islation, amended it by reserving
all money accruing from lands
within the naval petroleum re
serves for the federal treasury.
COMPENSATION FOR ALASKA
GAME COMMISSIONERS
Members of the Alaska Game
Commission will be allowed an
increase in compenstion in con
nection with official duties
+hrough a measure recently intro
duced by Delegate Bartlett.
At the present time a per diem
of $10 is paid to each member of
the commission in travelling to
and from and in actual attend
ance at meetings. However, no
compensation is allowed to the
members when they are actually
engaged in investigations, meet
ings, inquiries and hearings for
the commission. Delegate Bart
lett’s measure would extend the
payment of the $10 per diem to
the members while carrying on of
ficial work in addition to the reg
ular Game Commission sessions.
A provision in the bill makes
certain that not over $7000 is ex
pended for this purpose in any
one fiscal year which would
cover the expenses of all the com
missioners together.
JUDICIAL
BOUNDARY CHANGE
A small area now included in
the Third Judicial Division of
Alaska Would be transferred to
the Fourth Division if a bill re
cently sponsored by Delegate
Bartlett becomes law.
The region affected is bounded
on the east by the Canadian bor
der and extends south to Mount
Natazhat and westerly and north
westerly to Mount Kimball.
The proposed change in the
land district boundaries is be
lieved to be beneficial and neces
sary because the area involved is,
by reason of the construction of
the Alaska Highway and the
Slana-Tok Cutoff, now more ac
cessible to Fairbanks than to An
horage. It is also believed that the
change will enable the judges and
attorneys of the district courts to
maintain the efficient operation of
their offices and more readily
serve the convenience of the ex
pected influx of new residents.
An order has been drawn up in
the Interior Department which, in
effect, automatically alters the
land district boundaries in Alaska
whenever the judicial division
boundaries are altered, thereby
enabling uniform judicial divi
sions and land districts should
Delegate Bartlett’s bill prevail.
VISITORS
Dr. C. Earl Albrecht, Commis
sioner of Health for Alaska, is in
Washington from Juneau on offi
cial business. Dr, Albrecht, while
in the capital, testified before the
Senate committee hearing testi
mony for the Interior Department
appropriations, especially urging
restoration of funds for the Alas
ka Native Service for the care of
I the tuberculous.