SEWARD'S
All-cWeatKev
SEAPORT
Is Alaska’s
Greatest Asset
Seward Seaport Record
THE ONLY NEWSPAPER IN THE WORLD THAT GIVES A HOOT ABOUT SEWARD, ALASKA
Vol. VI, No. 84
SEWARD, ALASKA, FRIDAY, APRIL 21, 1950
Price 10 Cents
Army, Navy, Air Forces To Be!
In Seward For Holiday |
Mayor Eugene N. Lanier re
ceived a telegram from Fort
Richardson yesterday in reply to
the city’s offer to uarticipate in
the Armed Forces Day program
as proposed by Gen. Nathan
Twining. The wire read:
“Your response to our invita
tion to participate in Armed
Forces Day activities 20 May,
1950, has been received with
much gratification. Tentative
plans fur Seward include an
Army marching unit from Fort
Richardson. This unit will be
housed it* rthe Army Recreation
Camp area. The Commander,
Alaska Sea Frontier, plans to
send Navy band from Kodiak in
Navy ship. Weather permitting,
flight of jet aircraft from Elmen
dorf AFB will fly over Seward
during the program. Please ad
vise if an Armed Forces Day
speaker from Army, Navy or
Airforce is desired. Sgt. Willie
Williams, ACS representative in
Seward, is acting as Armed
Forces Day liaison officer *nd
will transmit your requests a,-td
desires to this headquarters.”
A.R.R. To Step Up
Schedules Next Month
The freight rush into the Ter
ritory is scheduled to begin
next month, according to infor
mation from the Alaska Railroad
and the.ctHimship lines.
Under the new freight sched
ules, which will go into effect
late this month, a local freight,
as well as a double-engined
night freight are planned out
of Seward to expedite the ship
ment of commercial freight to
Anchorage and Fairbanks.
The Ocean Dock at Anchorage
is to be opened for the handling
of materials for the Fire Island
and military projects, in addi
tion to railroad freight from the
Port of Whittier. Since ware
housing and other facilities are
not available at Ocean Dock,
all commercial freight is to be
routed through Seward.
As further assurance against
any possible congestion at Sew
ard, the Alaska Railroad has ob
tained permission to use the
Army dock here.
Alaska Steamship Company
and the Coastwise Lines will
begin to pour large scale ship
ments into Alaska in May. Un
der the ‘schedule effective May
18, two passenger ships and two
freighters each week will put
in at Seward.
ANOTHER TYPHOID CASE
REPORTED IN SPENARD
Another case of typhoid fever
was confirmed yesterday in the
Anchorage area, raising the total
in the current epidemic to thir
teen known cases and eleven
suspected cases undergoing lab
oratory diagnosis. The last case
is a small boy from the Spenard
area, health officials said, and
s probably a secondary case
which may have been infected
sy one of the earlier cases.
1115 Spenard residents attend
'd the free immunization clinic
set up at the Spenard School
Wednesday, through the co-oper
ition of their local physicians,
light surgeons from Elmendorf
i'ield, public health personnel
nd P.-T.A. volunteers. A similar
linic will be held next week.
At the health center clinic
ield last Wednesday for those
nable to go to their family phy
ician for typhoid inoculations,
7 persons were immunized by
>r. Robert L. Smith and Dr.
Wendell C. Matthews from the
.laska Department of Health.
Cub Scouts Present
"Country Fair**
The Cub Scouts are holding a
“Country Fair” on Saturday,
April 29, art 7:30 p.m., in the
Civic Center. The >Cubs have
been busy making games and
preparing other entertainment
for the Fair. This ,is the sixth
month since the Seward Pack
was started, and there will be
displays of .all the things the
boys have dsne in various han
dicrafts, just .as in the old style
country fairs we all used to at
tend.
| The Cubs are ^inviting every
one to come and play the games,
I patterned on tne midway, see
their side show and other pro
! grams, and have a good time,
j Bring all the children, at six
! tickets for a nickel, and one
ticket for a game, everyone can
affotd to come and play them
all. The money collected will go
toward the books and awards for
the boys. The boys will make
you welcome, and be glad to
show their skill.
See you at the Fair! April 29,
7:30 p.m., Civic Center.
Polls Open 8:00-8:00
For Primary Election
Next Tuesday, April 25, is
Primary Election. The polls in
Seward Precinct in the new City
Hall will be open from 8 a.m.
until 8 p.m.
Although the registration
books will .be closed in the City
Hall today at 3 p.m., any eligible
voter may register at the polls
before voting in the primary.
Whether you have already
registered or not, be sure to vote
Tuesday. A big vote IN Seward
is a vote FOR Seward.
The polls for those living out
side the corporate limits are at i
Mile on the highway.
MANY ELKS WILL COME TO (
SEWARD FOR CONVENTION j
Seward Elks will be hosts to!
more than 250 Elks and their \
ladies from Fairbanks, Kodiak, j
Cordova, and Anchorage at the
Territorial Elks Association con
vention to be held here May 3-7.
The visitors will arrive from
Anchorage by chartered train
and The Alaska Railroad is
bringing sleeper cars to Seward
to accommodate the visiting
Elks during their stay in this
port city.
LEGION AUXILIARY TO PUT
ON CARD PARTY APRIL 25
American Legion Auxiliary,
Seward Unit No. 5, will hold a
card party in the Legion Club
next Tuesday after election.
Bridge, pinochle and canasta
will be the order of the evening,
with dessert served after the
games. This is for all members
of the Auxiliary, Legionnaires
and their guests.
Mr. E. G. Baily of Mountain
View, candidate in the primary
election next Tuesday for Ter
ritorial representative on the
Democratic ticket, came down
from Anchorage on Friday’s
train. Mr. Bailey is a navy vet
eran and Boy Scout leader, has
been a commercial fisherman,
salesman and farmer. He was a
candidate for representative in
the last election and lost in the
primaries by just 12 votes. He
planned to return to Anchorage
Saturday morning.
Public Hearing On
Rivers, Harbors
Next Friday, April 28
Seward officials are again re
minding townspeople interested
in harbors, rivers, navigation,
flood control, hydroelectric
power and related water sub
jects, that the District Engineer
will conduct a public hearing
next Friday, April 28, in the
Civic Center at 8:00 p.m.
All interested parties are re
quested to be present or repre
sented at the hearing, including
representatives of Federal, Ter
ritorial, municipal and local
government agencies; also per
sons with commercial, industri
al, civic, highway, railroad, air
and waterway transportation in
terests, and property owners are
all deeply concerned. They will
be afforded full opportunity to
express their views concerning
the character and extent of the
improvements desired and the
need and advisability of their
execution.
Sponsors of improvements are
urged to present pertinent fac
tual material bearing upon the
general plans of improvements
desires and the economic justi
fication of the undertaking. Op
posing interests, if any. are also
urged to state the reasons for
their position.
Information Requested
It would be well for each
group to select a spokesman and
provide him with the following
data:
1. Character and amount of
resources, industry and business
of the tributary area; nature and
extent of past and present water
borne commerce. !
Z. List of vessels now using
harbor, with draft, dimensions
and capacity of each, including
small, commercial and pleasure
craft.
3. Nature, purpose and phy
sical description of the desired
improvements and evidence as
to their necessity, as for ex
ample: difficulties attending
navigation, tidal range and cur
rents: effect of winds and ice.
4. Annual value (in monetary
terms) of benefits that would be
realized from the desired im
provements. including any or all
of the following items; (a) sav
ings from prevention of dam
ages to vessels or other property;
(b) reductions in operating or
maintenance costs of.vessels; (c)
savings in freight rates or any
other reason directly attribu
table to the improvements. In
tangible benefits not susceptible
of evaluation in monetary terms
should be stated. Give a state
ment as to what proportion of
these benefits would accrue to
the general public as distin
guished from those evidently ac
cruing to local interests. j
5. Nature and extent of co
operation that may be expected
from local interests whereby the
cost to the U.S. of the improve
ments may be lessened; for ex
ample: rights-of-way and ease
ments necessary for the con
struction; assumption of main
tenance by local interests; cash
contributions toward first cost
and annual maintenance.
6. Possibility of coordinating
the navigation improvements
with other improvements involv
ing control and conservation of
water resources so as to lessen
their cost and compensate the
Federal Government for expen
ditures made in the interest of
navigation.
Should Be in Writing
Oral statements will be heard,
but for accuracy of record all
important facts and arguments
should be submitted in writing,
in quadruplicate with six copies
of all maps, photographs or
other illustrations, as the records
of the hearings will be forward
ed for consideration by the De-|
partment of the Army. '
Water Company Meets With
City Council and Attorney
McRae To Remodel
City Jail
Informal bids were received
by the City Council Thursday
evening on the remodeling of
the cells in the city jail. Of the
two bids submitted, that of
McRae Concrete Products, being
the lowest, was awarded the
contract to amount to $346.00
for the concrete work. Iron grill,
door and bunks are to be speci
ally made. The work is being
done on specifications by Police
Chief Leonard Clark.
It became necessary to re
model the jail cells after a par
ticularly heavy-fisted Eskimo
went berserk and decided to
leave the jail house a few weeks
ago. This man ripped out the
angle iron support of the bunk
bed with his bare hands and pro
ceeded to demolish the jail.
His single handed campaign of
destruction was so effective that
he was subdued with difficulty
and the help of tear gas. It was
clearly evident, however, that
some different arrangement of
quarters in the jail is necessary,
so as to confine such a charac
ter solitarily and safely. The
new cells will be modern and
strong.
Seward's Airport . . .
Information reaching Seward
today is to the effect that Tony
Schwamm, director of the Terri
torial Department of Aviation,
has stated that his department
is going ahead as soon as possi
ble on the engineering survey of
Seward airport. Every effort
is to be made, he emphasized, to
complete the Seward improve
ments this season.
"OUR HEARTS WERE YOUNG
AND GAY" MAY 4TH, 5TH
The Junior Class is about to
present their three-act play.
That’s always good news, of
course, but this year ‘Our
Hearts Were Young and Gay”
is the name of the play which
tells you in a nut shell just
what to expect.
This beguiling comedy, based I
on the same best selling novel
from which the very successful
movie was taken, is released for
amateur performance.
This play will be given for
the public Thursday and Fri
day nights. May 4th and 5th,
in the School Gym.
FREIGHT RATE REDUCTIONS
IN EFFECT APRIL 15
New freight rates, expected to
save Alaska shippers $180,000 a
year, went into effect on The
Alaska Railroad April 15.
The rates apply on carload
shipments of various items rang
ing from canned goods to build
ing supplies, drugs and medi
cine.
J. P. Johnson, general mana
ger, said that while the reduc
tions apply only to carload lots,
it is expected that other rates
will be lowered as the railroad’s
rehabilitation program con
tinues.
Under the new rates, carload
shipments between Seward and
Anchorage runs 74 cents a hun
dredweight as compared with 93
cents before April 15.
Oh’s and ah’s were the order
of the day Friday to passersby
at McMullen’s store, in the win
dow of which was a model repro
duction of Noah’s Ark, gang
plank and all, with Noah him
self standing on the deck and
innumerable little animals ap
proaching the fabulous vessel to
embark on their sojourn.
A special meeting of the City
Council last night was called
to discuss the water situation
with Mrs. Jean Thorne and Mr.
Frank DeLoughery, owner and
general manager of Seward
Water Supply Company.
The company had been asked
to show proof of intention to
rehabilitate the system or en
large the supply. When proof
was not submitted, the company
was served notice that the coun
cil would proceed under the pro
visions of Ordinance No. 36,
which provides that a board of
appraisers shall be appointed
to set a fair price for the pur
chase of the system by the city.
This the company also failed
to do.
At the meeting last night, Mrs.
Thorne set the selling price of
the system at 8200,000. The
council rejected this as being
too high, and again asked that
the company comply with the
terms of the contract and ap
point a representative to act
with an appointee of the city,
the two to agree on a third mem
ber to form a board to appraise
the value of the entire system.
When Mr. DeLoughery was
asked if they wished to have
their legal representative pres
ent, he replied that they have
none, that they can not think
of any one who could represent
the company. He was instructed
by the City Attorney, that it
is perfectly legal to appoint one
of themselves, either Mrs.
Thorne or DeLoughery; this they
refused or failed to do.
The firm of Plummer, Arnell
and McLaughlin, attorneys, reg
ularly appointed attorneys for
the City of Seward, was repre
sented in the meeting by Geo.
McLaughlin. He was instructed
by the council that if in three
days, or by Tuesday morning,
May 25, the Water Company
has not signified their intention
to comply with the terms of
the franchise by appointing a
member to the board of apprais
ers, the attorney is to institute
a suit for condemnation of the
system, which will then be ac
quired by the City of Sewrard.
Councilman Dick Myers was
appointed to serve as the city
representative on the board of
appraisers. Mr. Myers was em
ployed for 13 years by the water
company and is well acquainted
with the system.
LETTER OF THANKS:
We, who were burned out in
the fire at the Sanatorium Nurs
es’ quarters, want to thank all
the people of Seward who so
speedily clothed us and com
forted us with so many generous
gifts. Not only did the gifts
mean so much materially, but,
with so many of us strangers,
the spirit back of it was the
greater gift—to our so-low-down
spirits.
Again we thank you from our
hearts.
Mrs. Edith Grimes, Mrs. L.
Svalvik, Mrs. Elsie Clark, Mrs.
Clara Boysol, Miss Nancy Nobel,
Miss Ann Duncan, Miss Carol
Cooper, Mrs. Beulah Wilson,
Mrs. Ruth McElroy, Miss Doro
thy Bradke, Mrs. Josephine
Echols, Mrs. Elinor Sanborn,
Mrs. Alice Reay.
REBEKAHS GIVE DINNER
AND CARD PARTY
The Seward Rebekah Lodge is
extending invitation to the pub
lic to attend a dinner and card
party in the IOOF Hall, Satur
day evening. The dinner will be
served from 6 to 8 o’clock, to be
followed by an evening of cards.