Thought of the Week:
If you know a human who is
a better friend than a dog, we
would suggest you keep in
touch with him.
The Frontiersman
BOX 2051
JUNEAU Al
PUBLISHED IN THE INTEREST OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
VOLUME 15, NUMBER 11
PALMER. ALASKA THURSDAY, DEC. 6, 1962
TEN PAGES
PRICE 15 CENTS
Reporters—
Noiaitook.
The Rev. and Mrs. Clifford
McConnell left Nov. 18 for
Murray and Princeton, Kentuc
ky, where they plan a two
months’ stay with members of
their families. Son Clifford and
daughter Paulette are students
at Murray College. During the
McConnells’ absence, Rev. A. C.
Maxwell and Rev. L. A. Wat
son, both of Anchorage, will
serve as guest pastors at the
First Baptist Church in Palmer.
Mrs. McConnell is the adminis
trator at the Valley Presbyteri
an Hospital.
* * *
Ross Kopperud, seriously in
jured in a freak construction
accident a year ago, is now a
patient at the Kaiser Founda
tion Rehabilitation Center in
Vallejo, California, and is re
ported to be making excellent
progress after surgery on Nov.
23. He is the son of Mr. and
Mrs. Herbert Kopperud of Pal
mer. His mother accompanied
him to Valejo. Ross’s school
mates are urged to write to him
at Kaiser Foundation Rehabili
tation Center, 2600 Alameda
Street, Vallejo, Calif
.
Master Sergeant Jack D.
Bolton of Greenwood, S. C., has
arrived at Elmendorf Air Force
Base for duty with an Air Force
communications unit. Sergeant
Bolton, an electronics systems
technician, arrived there from
Langley AFB, Va.
The sergeant, son of Mr. and
Mrs. L. S. Bolton of Greenwood,
is married to the former Orfa
L. Plumley, daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. George Plumley of
Palmer.
• • *
MEA employees Willard
Johnson, Ben Dansie, and John
Gore were flown to Unalakleet
on Nov. 29 by manager Mason
LaZelle and were able to re
solve various operational prob
lems of the village power sys
tem during their weekend stay.
The Unalakleet loan applica
tion for funds for a permanent
power plant, to be installed in
1963, is now undergoing final
processing by REA.
AUXILIARY BUYS
ICE MACHINE
Recently installed at the Val
ley Presbyterian Hospital is a
new ice-making machine, pur
chased by the Hospital Auxili
ary, Mrs. Frank Clark, presi
dent, said this week. The total
cost of the machine, a piece of
equipment the hospital has
needed for years, was $426.02,
according to Mrs. Clark.
The purchase was made with
the assistance of Ralph Moore,
power use advisor at MEA, who
obtained the ice machine for
the auxiliary at cost. It was in
stalled in the hospital by
Harry Leckwald, who donated
his time, the president said.
The Hospital Auxiliary has
contributed $1,338.80 to the
hospital during 1962, besides
sewing and helping whenever
possible, Mrs. Clark pointed
out.
The members wish to thank
all of the organizations,
churches, and individuals who
have helped the auxiliary on
their projects this year, the
president added.
Assault Case Against
Lemon Appealed,
Hearing Is Monday
Charged with assault with a
dangerous weapon, John E,
Lemon, Wasilla businessman,
has been called to appear be
fore the Grand Jury in Anch
orage on Monday, Dec. 10, at
9 a.m. for a preliminary hear
ing.
Tried in an Anchorage court
on the same charges earlier
this year, Lemon's case was
thrown out. Since then, the
plaintiffs, two brothers with
the surname of Rebischke, both
Anchorage residents, have ap
pealed the case.
Considerable local interest
has been aroused by the inci
dent, since it involved the right
of a property owner to protect
his grounds against trespassing.
Lemon described the incident
as having taken place during
salmon fishing season, in the
latter part of July. He said a
party of three, two men and a
teen-aged boy, started through
the yard of his home (located
on the Hayflat near Cotton
wood Creek) at about 10:30 or
11 p.m.; that he challenged
Rendezvous Plans
Two Queen Contests
The 1963 Fur Rendezvous,
slated for February 19 through
24, will feature two queen con
tests, according to a decision
reached by the executive com
mittee of Greater Anchorage,
Inc., at a recent meeting.
W. J. Wellenstein, GAI presi
dent, has indicated that the
two contests will bracket Fur
Rendezvous week.
The selection of Miss Fur
Rendezvous will take place on
the evening of the 19th as the
major opening event of the
celebration. The following Sat
urday evening, February 25,
will be highlighted by a contest
to name Miss Alaska, who for
the past four years has been
chosen in July. As the Anchor
age area representative in the
latter contest. Miss Fur Ren
dezvous will compete with
other young ladies from
throughout the state.
The winner of the Miss Alas
ka contest will be sent by
Greater Anchorage, Inc., to the
Miss America Pageant in At
lantic City next September.
Wellenstein indicated that the
Miss Alaska contest has been
moved ahead in order to pro
vide a longer training period
for the winner before she goes
to Atlantic City. Both contests
Bids Asksd
Bids are asked for replacing
a boiler in a building located at
Shemya, Alaska. Value of the
proposed work has been esti
mated as under $10,000.
Sealed bids will be opened
publicly for the project on De
cember 13 by the U. S. Army
Enginer District, Alaska.
them, asking them where they
were going and what they
were doing; and that his ques
tions were ignored. He then
ordered the group to stop and
return the way they had come,
and the men replied with rude
and unpleasant language, re
fusing to comply.
Lemon then went into h i s
house, got his weapon, and
fired into the air to both sides
of the men, in an effort to
frighten them away from h i s
property. Lemon’s driveway
and yard were posted with “No
Trespassing” signs at the time.
The Wasilla man said that
fishermen constantly trespass
on his property during fishing
season; that his three children
enjoy playing in the creek that
runs through his land, and that
they are frequently ordered
out of the creek by passing an
glers, and that his dog has been
stoned and kicked. He added
that neighboring families who
live in the area of t h e creek
suffer the same trespassing
difficulties every year during
fishing season.
will be conducted under Miss
America rules and will be
judged by “outside” personal
ities."- -.•>
Mary Dee Fox, competing un
der the banner of the Harbor
House in 1962, emerged victori
ous in both the Fur Rendezvous
and Miss Alaska contests.
FRONTIERSMAN PLANS
CHRISTMAS EDITION
The Frontiersman will pub
lish its Christmas Greeting edi
tion on Thursday, December 20.
Local businessmen who
indvertently have not been
contacted and who would
like to use this medium to
convey holiday greetings to
their patrons and associates are
asked to call the Frontiersman
business office.
Fisheries Recommendations
Require Three-Country Study
PALMER CLINIC
OPENS DEC. 3
Dr. Boyd A. Skille, physician
and surgeon, opened the Pal
mer Clinic on Monday, Dec. 3.
His offices are located on the
ground floor of the Severns
Building, next to the Sears
store.
Office hours will be 9 a.m. to
12 noon and 2-5 p.m. on Mon
days and Wednesdays. Tuesday
and Thursday mornings are to
be left free for surgery, Dr.
Skille said, with the clinic open
from 11 a.m. to 12 noon and
from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. The phy
sician has tentative plans for a
clinic at Wasilla on Friday
mornings, with the Palmer
Clinic open from 2 to 5 p.m. on
Friday afternoons. Saturday
hours will be from 9 a.m. to 12
noon.
Mrs. Stella Monahan has
been employed as clinic nurse,
and Mrs. Skille, a substitute
teacher in the Palmer schools,
will fill in as receptionist in
her free time.
The telephone number of the
clinic is PI 5-4770.
Dr. Skille received his bac
helor of science degree and his
MD from the University of
Minnesota, and interned at the
St. Paul city hospital (Anchor
Hospital).
Committet Makes
Report te Chamber
Committee reports wiere on
the agenda of the Matanuska
Valley Camber of Commerce
at their noon luncheon meeting
yesterday at the Frontier Cafe.
A1 Brooks and Betty Mears,
members of a committee study
ing the school bond issue pro
posal, gave a report of their
committee’s activities the past
few weeks. Facts and figures
are being compiled that will
verify necessity and cost of
various proposals on the ballot,
which was defeated in the Nov.
6 election.
The Spa in Anchorage has
been contacted regarding costs
of operation of the proposed
swimming pool.
The committee will make all
findings public at a future date.
Santa Comes to
Town Saturday
Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus are
coming to town on Saturday,
Dec. 8 especially to assist with
the children’s party being plan
ned by the Matanuska Valley
Chamber of Commerce and the
Palmer merchants. They will
drive through town in Bob
Webb’s sleigh-bell equipped,
horse-drawn cutter sled, and
will make their first appear
ance on the Palmer streets
about 12:30 p.m.
Santa will drop in at the
stores to say “hello”,-then will
go on to the theatre, where the
party for area youngsters up
to the age of 12 will take place.
A free movie at 2 p.m. is
planned for the youngsters, and
there will be a gift for each
child attending. Santa plans to
be at the theatre at 1:30, and
will greet each child as he en
ters.
There will be adults on hand
to take care of the children at
he show, which will give moth
ers free time to shop or visit.
Scientific Reports
Back Halibut Move
Legislation will be required
by the United States, Canadian
and Japanese governments ap
proving the recommendations
made by the North Pacific
Fisheries Commission before
they can be legally adopted, Dr.
Fred McGinnis, president of
Alaska Methodist University
and member of the commis
sion, said Friday, Nov. 30, at a
dinner meeting of the Palmer
League of Women Voters.
The decision to open the East
Bering Sea to Japanese fisher
men for hailbut was made, ac
cording to McGinnis, on the
basis of reports from four
member scientific committees
from each of the three nations,
each committee stating that it
could not demonstrate that
there is any basis to ask con
tinued abstention by the Jap
anese. At present the Japan
ese take bottom fish and other
stocks in which we are not in
terested from the East Bering
Sea, but by the terms of the
1963 treaty are obligated to
throw back any halibut they
catch. Salmon in waters east
of the 175th degree of longi
tude remain off limits to the
Japanese.
In negotiations to regulate
fishing in the Gulf of Alaska,
the Japanese asked permission
to vend 16 trawlers to the area
next summer and said they
' would like to keep any halibut
they might take. This request
was refused by the United
States delegation, who stated
they would agree to no more
than four vessels, and these to
be for research purposes only,
to help the Japanese find ways
to harvest the fish the United
States doesn't want. They spec
ified that American and Cana
dian scientists must be on
board each vessel to evaluate
the effects of trawling in the
North Pacific and the Gulf of
Alaska, and that a joint report
would be made on the findings.
The Japanese agreed to these
conditions, the AMU president
reported.
The decision to remove
Queen Charlotte Island herring
from the abstention list has
considerably exercised British
Columbia fishermen, McGinnis
said, but added that the her
ring stocks will be under con
stant study, and if it appears
that they are being depleted,
they will be put back on the
abstention list.
“There is more known about
fish stocks in the North Pacific
than in any other place in the
world today,” McGinnis said.
He outlined the history of
Japanese fishing activities in
the North Pacific, beginning
with the first Japanese excur
sions into the Bristol Bay area
in the mid-thirties, when Cor
dell Hull, then secretary of
state, delivered an ultimatum
which forced the Japanese out
of the area.
During and immediately af
ter World War II, the threat to
North Pacific stocks from Ja- j
pan was almost non-existent, j
because the Japanese fleet was j
nearly destroyed. However, to- j
day Japan leads the world in j
the fishing industry, with Peru j
second, Red China third, the
Soviet Union fourth, and the
United States fifth. In ten
years w-e have dropped from
third place to fifth, McGinnis
said. He attributed the drop to
a change in our eating habits, |
and pointed out that fish is the 1
staple diet of the Japanese,
whereas ours is meat.
Under international law, a
nation owns the area three
miles out from shore, and there j
is nothing in the law which
protects our interests farther
out, he said. Alaskans have, ex
pressed an interest in a twelve
mile limit, which McGinnis
said he felt could be detrimen
tal, not only to Alaska but to
the rest of the nation, since it
would in effect shut American 1
vessels out of some strategic
areas of the world, and serious
ly affect the security and the
striking power of the United
States. On the other hand," he
[ said, some California tuna
fishermen are fighting for the
privilege of going within the
three-mile limit in some areas
of South America.
After the close of World War
II, the United States was faced
with the problem of drawing
up a treaty which would es
tablish a reconstruction pro
gram for Japan and establish
friendly relations with the Jap
anese people over the years. At,
the same time, the fisheries in-!
terests created a strong ’lobby I
for the protection of Northwest j
U. S. fishermen.
i ne resuu was two treaties,
the second dealing with the
handling of North Pacific fish
ing stocks. The treaty, official
ly adopted in June, 1953, estab
lished a commission made up of
four members from each of
three nations—Canada, United
States, and Japan. In addition,
30 to 40 advisors sit in on com
mission conferences. Each sec
tion has one vote, and each
country has the power of veto
—that is, all decisions must be
unanimously approved, Mc
Ginnis said.
Governor Egan has been
critical of the fact that the
commission conference meet
ings in Seattle the week of
Nov. 12 were kept secret.' Me-1
Ginnis stated, and went' on to
explain that the commission
does not wish to negotiate in j
the presence of the Soviet Un
ion or other governments not
included in the North Pacific
treaty; that other nations
should not have some of the
data, which is classified infor
mation; and that private indus
try would also be very inter
ested in knowing where the
best fishing grounds are.
(Continued on Page 10)
Firemen Seek $8,000 in Ambulance Drive
With $3,100 now in the ambu
lance fund, the members of the
Palmer Volunteer Fire Depart
ment still have $8,000 to raise in
their drive to purchase a new
ambulance.
The fire department ambul
ance serves the entire Matan
uska Valley area and makes
runs as far as Glennallen. The
present vehicle was lent to the
department eleven years ago by
the Anchorage Funeral Home,
and the upkeep is paid for
through fees collected for the
runs. The firemen operate the
ambulance on a strictly volun
teer basis. Time lost from
work, meals, etc. are paid for
out of their own pockets.
The volunteers point out
that the present vehicle, al
though kept in good condition,
is no longer safe to drive at
emergency speeds and that a
few minutes can mean the dif
ference between life and death.
It has room for only one lit
ter patient, whereas the great
er number of highway accidents
involve injuries to several per
sons. At present the firemen
must transport litter cases one
at a time, which can be far too
time-consuming when the in
juries are serious.
Space in the present vehicle
limits equipment to the resus
citator and first aid kit only.
Increased space in the new am
bulance would permit more
emergency rescue equipment to
be carried.
The firemen have sent let
ters to organizations and indi
viduals throughout the valley
asking for contributions for the
ambulance fund, and plan to
make personal contacts soon.
Contributions are beginning to
come in, with individual dona
tions as high as $50 having been
received.
The operation of the ambul
ance in the valley was under
the sponsorship of Beta Sigma
Phi for the first ten years. For
the first few years, Joe and
Virginia Gallant answered the
ambulance calls, Joe driving
End Virginia administering first (
aid. The ambulance was kept at
their home. About six years
ago, the Volunteer Fire Depart
ment offered to take over the j
driving and first aid duties, and
to house it in the City Hall
garage.
A year ago the fire depart
ment volunteers took over the j
complete care and control of j
the vehicle from the sorority. '
RACES PLANNED
AT INDEPENDENCE
THIS WEEKEND
Cross-country and giant sla
lom races are planned for Sat
urday and Sunday, Dec. 8 and
9, at the Independence Mine
ski area, according to Julius
Moor, proprietor of the Inde
pendence lodge. The races will
be under the sponsorship of the
Chugach Ski Club and Racing
Association,
The cross-country races will
begin at 12 noon on Saturday,
and the giant slalom will be
run on Sunday, beginning at
noon.
The club has invited all local
racers to participate in the
events, which will follow the
rules of the Northwest Ski As
sociation.
“The public is also invited
to attend and enjoy this impor
tant event,” Moor said.
Skiing is good at Indepen
dence, he added, with between
three and a half and four feet
of snow.
Highway DepartmMt
Investigates Tyonek
Investigation of the Tyonek
area is now being made by the
Anchorage office of the Alaska
Department of Highways, fol
lowing an inquiry to Robert
Sharp, deputy commissioner of
( the department, about the pos
sibility df letter*# fuTuk* being.
; made available for road con
struction on the Moquawkie In
dian Reserve. The query was
: made by Mason LaZelle, man
ager of MEA, the service area
of which extends to the Chuitt
River-Beluga-Tyonek area.
The local electric co-op board
of directors and manager feel
that a small amount of road
construction would tie the ex
isting roads and the oil com
pany-constructed airport to the
village of Tyonek, opening the
way for development of the
reservation and the surround
ing territory to the point where
extension of power to the oil
and coal-rich area would be
feasible, LaZelle said.
Wasilla Band,
Chorus Present
Christmas Coneerf
The Wasilla high school band
and chorus will present a
Christmas concert on Monday,
Dec. 10, at 8 p.m. in the high
school gymnasium.
Both chorus and band are
practicing several selections of
Christmas music. The chorus
will sing, among others.
“Christmas Counterpoint,”
“Carol of the Drums,” “We
Wish You a Merry Christmas,”
and Silent Night.”
Some of the band selections
will be “White Christmas,”
“Parade of the Icicles,” and
“Santa Claus Is Coming to
Town.”
The public is invited and
urged to attend the program,
for which there will be no ad
mission charge.
CHRISTMAS
GOODIES at
Maud's Rowers
BELLS OF SARNA
RICE BOWLS
CERAMIC
FIGURINES
BIRDS
MANY OTHERS
PI 5-4056
SANTA CUDS ABBITES SATURDAY
►
FREE MOVIE - GIFTS
SAT. DEO. 1-2 P.M.
OERTER THEATRE