SEWARD’S
All-qWeatkee
SEAPORT
Is Alaska's
Greatest Asset
Territorial Library (J.50
Vol. VI, No. 12
SEWARD, ALASKA, FRIDAY, AUGUST 12, 1949
Price 10 Cents
ATEC Building Modern
Phone Exchange Here
Wm. M. Maxey, president of the
Alaska Telephone Engineering
Corp., announced Wednesday that
his company has purchased the
Seward Light and Power Company
this week find work has already
begun to provide Seward with a j
modern telephone system. A new J
building will be constructed at j
Fourth Avenue and C Street.
The corporation is known by the j
initials of its name as "ATEC”. To .
develop a standardized telephone i
system throughout Alaska is the
purpose of ATEC. Besides Seward, I
the company has, or is working on. I
telephone systems in Wrangell, \
Nenana, Haines, Homer and Sel- ■
dovia.
Automatic System
ACS, of course, carries the long
distance toll calls in Alaska, but
the calls from the local telephone
exchanges may now be routed
through ACS.
In Seward, ATEC plans to in
stall a 1000 line automatic dial
system which is manufactured by
the Automatic Electric Company
of Chicago. This system is known
as the Stroger Dial System which
is sometimes referred to as the
“Step by Step" System.
Standard Service
This exchange is one of Bell
Telephone System’s standard types
and it is the plan of ATEC to in
stitute standard Bell practices in'
Alaska cities, even to the telephone
books.
beventy-five per cent ot the
world's automatic phone systems
are the Stroger or Step by Step
system. The first dial system in
Alaska is a Stroger at Kodiak, and
the Alaska Railroad in Anchorage
uses Stroger.
Engineering Experience
The seven men behind ATEC
represent a total of 125 years of
experience in telephone engineer
ing. Maxev leads with above 45
years of service in the United
States. Canada, the British Isles,
Argentine, Chile, Uruguay, Peru.
Mexico. France, Belgium, Germany,
Italy, Roumania. and a number of
other countries. He has worked for
38 years on automatic systems. He
was a major in the Army.
The corporation appreciates the
problem of providing local ex
change service in Seward for future
growth of the city. It was with
thought of the future that the prop
erty at Fourth Avenue and C
Street was chosen. As the city
grows it will h'ave to expand in
that direction, putting the tele
phone exchange in the center of
town.
Work Started
Work on the thousand line sys
tem has already begun, and Thurs
day morning A. V. Friedman, who
will manage the Seward exchange
and was formerly owner of the ex
change at Wrangell, started a
house-to-house survey to deter
mine the number of new tele
phones needed for immediate and
future needs. The house-to-house
count is always an essential step in I
telephone Engineering.
All new phones installed will be
dial type, although the service will
not become automatic until the
new building is completed and in
stallations in.
Mr. Maxey said he appreciates
fully the seriousness of the local
problem, since it is quite similar to
that of Fairbanks when he came
there to set up a relief condition
providing a fair grade of service.
Irvin Rheingen of Kenai is in
Seward this week with Mrs. Rhein
gen and their daughter, and Satur
day they will fly to Anchorage.
Mrs. Rheingen is postmistress at
Kenai.
LUTHERAN BAKE SALE
The Lutheran Ladies are plan
ning a bake sale to be held at
McMullens store Aug. 27 to begin
at I p.m.
Police Check City
Driver's Licenses
Chief of Police Leonard J. Clark
said Thursday that authorities are
checking for 1949 city drivers’ li
censes in conjunction with the an
nual vehicle check-up. Many peo
ple, Chief Clark said, have forgot
ten about procuring the new li
censes. The license fee this year
has been reduced to SI.00.
H i g h w a y Patrolman George
Puckett will work with city police
each morning between the hours of
9:00 and 11:00 a.m. and the check
will continue until all cars are
inspected. They will work on 4th
Avenue near the new fire hall.
To pass the inspection both head
lights and tail light must be work
ing and brake pedals should have
a two-inch clearance from the
floor board. The officers will also
check for defective horns, mirrors,
mufflers, steering, wipers, stop
lights, etc. Cars must also have
Territorial license plates.
ASC Announces
New Schedule
The Alaska Steamship Company
has announced its fall and winter
passenger schedule, specifying sail
ings from Seattle every Saturday
at 10:00 a.m.. throughout the per
iod October 1, 1949 to February 25.
1950 for Southeastern and South
western Alaska.
This schedule provides for week
ly service to Ketchikan, Juneau
and Seward with service every sec
ond week to Wrangell. Petersburg,
Sitka, Cordova and Valdez. Itiner
aries have been so arranged to pro
vide improved inter-port service for
Southeastern Alaska.
“Calls at Haines, Skagway, Ko
diak and Seldovia have not been
included,’’ Admiral F. A. Zeusler,
executive assistant to the president
of the company, ppointed out, “be
cause of the heavy losses sustained
in providing passenger service to
these ports during the past spring
and winter due to lack of traffic.
This will in no way affect the fre
quency o four cargo vessel sailings
to those ports,” he continued, “ex
cept, perhaps, to increase it.”
RAINBOW GIRLS' BAKE SALE
There will be a bake sale at
McMullens store on Saturday, Aug.
13. sponsored by the Rainbow
Girls. Mothers are requested to
donate to this' sale and baked
goods will be picked up upon re
quest to Mrs. Del Robbins, Mad.
116.
Milo Martin has purchased a 50
foot boat of the J-Boat type, which
he is now making ready for service
during the hunting season. The
Martin brothers have planes, but
Milo said that there were many
cases in which it is more conven
ient to use a boat for hunting, es
pecially near Seward.
E. Wells Ervin, prominent Anch
orage businessman, and L. A.
Moore, assistant to the general
manager of the Alaska Railroad,
were in Seward this week. They
flew to Kenai Wednesday. Ervin
has been vacationing with his fam
ily on the Peninsula for the past
couple of weeks.
Mrs. Isabel Foskett, of Belling
ham, Washington, has been visiting
her brother, Sam Gates, in Hope
for the past four weeks. She was in
Seward Friday, with Mrs. Annette
Clark, with whom she visited a
number of points on the peninsula.
Mrs. Foskett, who is in her 80th
year, has seven grandchildren and
seven great grandchildren.
Fishermen's License ,
Collections
To Be Enforced
Territorial Tax Commissioner j
will enforce collection of the $50 j
non-resident and $5 resident fish- |
ermen's license fee from all fish- >
ermen except non-resident halibut ,
fishermen. Resident halibut fisher- i
men must pay the $5 license fee. j
M. P. Mullaney, Tax Commis- j
sioner. Territory of Alaska, has re
ceived a written opinion from At
torney General J. Gerald Williams
regarding the recent ruling of the
U. S. District Court of_ the First
Judicial Division concerning the !
validity of Chapter 0(5, S.L.A. 1949, 1
an act which provides for licensing,
etc. of fishermen.
In his opinion the Attorney Gen-1
eral stated that the ruling of U. S. 1
District Judge Folta holds that j
Chapter 60, S.L.A. 1949. so far as
it imposes a higher tax on non- j
residents employed or engaged in
handling halibut in Alaska, contra-!
venes the Civil Rights Act and
hence is invalid. Attorney General
Williams expressed the opinion I
that the ruling of the court does
not state that this Act is invalid
as to the increased license fee of
$5 assessed to resident fishermen,
nor does it say that the S50 non- ,
resident license fee is invalid as
it applies to salmon, bottom fish,
crabs, clams or other fishery re
sources of Alaska. Therefore, under
the severability clause set forth in
Section 9 of the Act, the remainder
of Chapter 00. S L.A. 1949 and such
application to other persons or cir
cumstances is not affected by the
ruling of the Court. Hence, with
the exception of non-resident hali
but fishermen, others will be re
quired to comply with the law.
Plans Indefinite on
Kenai Meeting
The Chamber of Commerce has
not had a regular meeting since the
suggestion for a meeting of Kenai
Peninsula towns came from the
town of Kenai. Chamber of Com
merce officials, individually, and a
number of Seward businessmen,
have spoken of the proposal with
approval, and it is believed that a
plan may be worked out at the first
regular meeting.
The town of Kasilof is also in
terested in such a meeting. It is
! proposed to have a dinner at a cen
I tral point on the Peninsula to give
: the towns an opportunity to discuss
problems and work out practical
j solutions. The date for the pro
■ posed meeting has been tentatively
set for August 28.
Shipping News . . .
The SS Baranof is now docked
at Seward and is expected to sail
Friday. The SS Victoria was ex
pected to arrive about 7:00 a.m.
Saturday and the Coastal Monarch
should arrive some time Tuesday.
The Diamond Cement is expected
to leave Seattle for Seward on
August 15.
Two passenger trains were due
to arrive in Seward Friday evening
from Anchorage. The regular Fri
day evening train was expected to
arrive on schedule and the special
train for ship’s passengers was to
arrive somewhat later. The boat
train left Seward at 9 a.m. Friday
morning.
SECOND PREHEARING
CONFERENCE SET FOR
LINES SERVING PENINSULA
A second prehearing conference
in the matter of aplications for
certificates of public convenience
and necessity for Christensen Air
Service, Safev/ay Airways and
Alaska Airlines will be held in
Anchorage on the 15th of August.
The meeting will take place be
fore hearing examiner Lloyd Bu
chanan, because Alaska Airlines
has filed an ammendment to the
application. The three applications
are for certificates to engage trans
portation of passengers, property
and mail on the Kenai Peninsula.
Territory Gives $7,500
Toward Local Airport
Kids1 Picnic Will Be
At Big Bear Lake
Location for the children’s picnic
Sunday, August 14, h a s been
changed from Little Bear Lake to
Big Bear Lake. The reason for the
change is that the big lake is more
accessible.
Transportation will be furnished
for all children. They are asked to
be present on the corner opposite
the bank at 12:30 Sunday noon.
Parents are invited to accompany
the children if they wish to do so.
The affair is sponsored by the
Seward Branch Bartenders’ Union
Local 883. It is the first affair of
this type this local has sponsored
and They are making it clear that
all children on the Kenai Peninsula
are invited.
Chairman in charge of the picnic
is Walter Holben, and he is assisted
by R. I. (Red) Croxton. Refresh
ments will include ice cream, pop
and hot dogs.
Becomes Member or j
Dental Association
Dr. Horace L. Pope, director of
the dental health unit of the Alas
ka Department of Health, has be
come a member of the American
Association of Public Health Den
tists, Dr. John T. Fulton, president,
announced.
The Public Health Dentists As
sociation is concerned with » 1 -
vancing good dental services as
part of well-rounded public he..1th
programs. One of the Association's
current interests is the nation-wide
demonstration program to show
how topical flourine applications
can reduce tooth decay in children.
Dr. Pope was at the Seward
Sanatorium last winter giving den
tal care to the patients and is now
with the Alaska Department of
Health branch office at Anchorage.
MR. AND MRS. PIRET
LEAVE SATURDAY
Mr. and Mrs. Leon Piret. who
have been visiting their daughter
Mrs. Morris Dee for the past five
weeks, are leaving Saturday for
their home in Van Nuys, California.
They will fly to Anchorage and
thence to their home. Although
the Dee’s have been in Alaska for
about nine years, this is the first
visit for the Dee’s parents. Mrs.
Dee will accompany them to Anch
orage and will return Monday.
Territorial Engineer Frank A.
Metcalf revealed to Mayor Eugene
Lanier that the Territory would
grant the $7,500 needed as a match
ing sum to procure the $30,000 al
located by the CAA for improve
ment of the Seward Airport.
Before Metcalf agreed to auth
orize the $7,500 it was taken for
granted here that Seward would
have to raise the amount here,
since the federal government re
quires that local governments carry
part of the expense.
The tentative allocations by the
CAA call for $40,000 at Dillingham,
$60,000 at Palmer, $48,700 at Sel
dovia, $30,000 at Seward for a total
of $178,825.
A total of $1,657,750 from the 1949
appropriations remains for next
year’s airport work in Alaska, and
there will be no new appropriations
for 1950.
The reason the funds appropri
ated were not used was that Alas
ka could not accept federal aid.
due to lack of authority from the
•legislature. The legislature reme
died the situation this year and
thus removed the last obstacle to
receiving federal aid in airport con
struction.
Inspect Boat Harbor
The Territorial engineer also
made an inspection of the work
on the mooring float and approach
at the Seward Small Boat Harbor.
Metcalf approved the contractor’s
work and said it was according to
specifications. He is asking for a
few changes to improve the float in
regard to efficiency and safety.
Metcalf is accompanied by
Charles J. Davis, a member of the
highway patrol, and the two men
went with High w a y Patrolman
George Puckett on an inspection
of highways on the Peninsula.
TELEPHONE EXECUTIVE
MARRIED AT WRANGELL
William M. Maxey, president of
the Alaska Telephone Engineering
Corporation, and Clara Walker,
both of Fairbanks, were married
Sunday at the home of Frank
Webb, phone company manager at
Wrangell.
Mrs. Maxey traveled directly to
Fairbanks where they will make
their home. Mr. Maxie came to
Seward, where he announced that
his firm had purchased the local
telephone exchange as an addition
to their Alaska chain.
A. V. Friedman, who sold the
Wrangell exchange to ATEC, has
been appointed manager of the
Seward exchange and assumed his
duties this week.
Official U. S. Navy Photo
SOME RUG. Posing beside the giant Kodiak bear he kiUed in Alaska
is Chief Aviation Structural Mechanic Charles L. Kruger who is
attached to Navy Fleet Aircraft Squadron 114 at NOB Kodiak.
Kruger, who hails from Seattle, Wash., is having the hide cured to
keep as a vivid remembrance of his Alaskan adventure. The b?ar k i
is over 10 feet in length and animal was estimated to weigh r.hc t
1600 pounds. Full-crown Kodiak* are the world’s largest bears*