WASHINGTON NEWSLETTER
by Mary Lee Council
Secretary to E* I** (Bob)
Bartlett, Delegate in Con
gre£3 from Alaska*
SET 'lETT IE3ISLATI0N
Cor’E'ressional action was
complete*! last week on legis
laxion ?feich will allow the
Fish and Wildlife Service to
regulate the distance between
sat nets in Alaska waters
vfoon the House approved the
bill sponsored by Senator
Magnuacn„
The House had* before it
Delegate Bartlett’s committee
approved companion bill and
subs o it ate d t he Magnuson mea
sure for speedier passage on
the legislation.
Fox some P5 years the Fish
and Wildlife Service las con
sidered set nets as movable
gear and not ' subject to the
minimum distance requirement
of 1C00 feet between gear
which is considered fixed*
The need for the bill arose
from a court decision made
last summer .cl as si faring set
nets as fixed gear and thus
subject to the minimum 1800
foot requirement. Over the
years various distances have
been set by the Fish and
Wildlife Service in its year
ly regulations, ranging us
ually ‘between 300 and 600
feet* ”In the absence of
this bill,” the House commit
tee pointed out, ”gill nets
as well as salmon traps would
be governed by the law cover
ing the latter. Not -only
would this require a prompt
and drastic revision of the
rules of the Service tut it
would work hardship on vari
ous groups of fishermen with
out any compensating advan
tage."
additional judge for area
Delegate Bartlett testi
fied this week in behalf of a
second federal judge for the
District Court at Anchorage
before a subcommittee of the
House Judiciary Committee
considering legislation to
create additional circuit and
district judgeships through
out the country.
The legislation, sponsored
by Chairman Cellar of the Ju
diclary Committee, is a com
panion M7.1 to'one introduced
this week in the..upper house
by Senator Kilgore.
The Judicial Conference of
the United States has long
recommended a second Third
Division judge. The House in
the 81st Congress passed Del
egate Bartlett’s bill so pro
viding but no further action
was taken. In the 82nd Con
gress a further Bartlett bill
was approved by the House Ju
diciary Committee but a Sen
ate omnibus bill for several
judgeships was considered in
stead. The Alaska judgeship
was included in that measure
as it passed the Senate, - as
it was in the House version,
but the measure met with con
siderable opposition ana the
bill was recommitted to the
House Judiciary Committee
with no further action taken.
In the 83rd Congress an omni
bus bill including an additi
onal Alaska judge was passed
by the Senate but as passed
by the House the Alaska
judgeship and several others
were eliminated, action sus
tained oy the Senate.
Delegate Bartlett pointed
out to the committee this
week that the number of civil
cases filed annually' in the
Third Division has nearly'
trebled since 1947 and the
same is true of the criminal
cases begun annually* At the.
end of Jun3 in 1941* 140 civ
il cases Fere pending as con
trasted with 1,496 in Decom
ber of 1954. Between those
same dates the number of pen
dirg criminal cases went up
from 16 to 111. The civil
business in the Third Divi
sion is more than that of the
three other divisions com
bined. It is understood that
the court at anchorage last
December was at least five
years behind^ in its civil
calendar.
80-H0D DESERVED SPACES '
The agriculture Department
has informed the House Inter
ior and Insular Affairs Com
mittee that it favors the en
actment of Delegate Bartletts
bill to abolish the require
ment in force since 1893 that
the re. must be one-fourth mile
or 80 rods, between public
land claims in Alaska along
navigable waters.
In stating that enactment
of the bill ’’would lead to
greater-efficiency and ocono
my ir<: handling home site set
tlement work in the national
forests of Alaska, and would
not prevent the retent ion of
needed rights-of-way leading
inland from navigable waters7
Acting Secretary of Agricul
ture Peterson wrote:
"The principal interest of
this Department concerns
horoBsite tracts which would
be eliminated from the natio
nal forests for entry under
the <1898 act* These home
sites are tracts oftnot more
than five acres *foich art
laid out by this Department
On national forest lands fcr
meet the demands of settlers
along the sealanes and high
ways in the vicinity of cit
ies and towns* They are pop
ular with commercial fisher
men and laborers who desire
to build homes during their
spare time* The tracts are
usually'laid out in groups to
hake the best use of public
facilities such as roads,, wai
ter supply systems, and elec
tric service, and a require
ment that a • quarter-mile
strip be left between claims
adjacent to navigable waters
defeats this logical grouping
and serves no useful purpose?
FATHER CUSTER COMING
Eh the r Custer will be in
Homer on March 23rd and 24th
if road conditions permit.
Catholic services will be
held ^dnesday evening and
Thursday morning, at the Ca
tholic church*, Father Custer
comes over from Seward*
NURSES *' MEETING POSTPONED
The meeting of the Nurses*
Association, scheduled for
last Tuesday, will be held on
Tuesday, March 22nd,according
to Louise Walli.
WITH YOUR
TRADE-AT-HOME
MERCHANT
BEFORE YOU BUY
FROM THE CATALOG
We all know that Homer merchants
can’t stock everything.,«*but before
yon bay from the catalogue, check
the hometown merchant first* Com
pare his merchandise with that of
fered in the catalogue,, ’Don't be
af:"ai<? to talk with him. Give him a
chance to tell you about his stock*
BEFORE YOU SEND OUTSIDE
CHECK THESE THINGS
1; PRICE
2.QUALITY
; 3.-FREIGHT COSTS
4. YOUR CONSCIENCE
THESE ARE YOUR
HOMER FOOD CENTER
REX’S METAL OT*KS
pioneer hardware
TERMINAL OIL SALES
VERN MUTCH, DRUGS
UMINSKI’3
THE HOBBY SHOP
RAY CLOTHIERS
BANK OF HCMER
DON E, SMITH, INS,
MERCHANTS