The Seward Polaris &
VOLUME
5 ❖ INDEPENDENT * SEWARD. ALASKA * WEDNESDAY AUGUST 18. 1948 * UNITED PRESS SERVICE ❖ PRICE 10 CENTS
No 13
Reclamation Representative
Met With Council Monday
We learned last council night
that we had omitted the name of
one. Patrolman Puckett, one of
the two men who were compli
mented and given a vote of con
fidence by the council on August
2nd when a petition authorized
by a certain businessman and
signed by 55 persons was thrown
out and the officer underfire was
commended for his work.
We did not hear the name of
Patrol Office Puckett included
otherwise his name would have
been printed along with that of
Officer Turnbull.
* * *
At the City Council meeting
held August 16th Joseph M. Mor
gan presented the following in
regard to the Reclamation Bur
eau:
The Reclamation Bureau was
set up by Theodore Roosevelt in
1902 to establish irrigation pro
jects in the 17 western states.
As time went on the loss of
available water power at irriga
tion dams was realized and the
proposition of irrigation and hy
dro-electric was joined.
Boulder and Grand Coulee dams
ere Reclamation projects realized
under the dual program as out
lined by Congress.
The 80th Congress turned their
f eyes to Alaska and authorized
•the appropriation of 1,500,000 for
la survey of the Territory by the
[Reclamation Bureau.
The Eklutna Hydro-Electric pro
ject is. to come under the Bureau
of Reclamation and entails a four
mile tunnel to produce an es
timated 22,000 kilowatts of power
The reason for the tunnel is to
get away from the annual ice
situation, even if more expensive
in the beginning.
The cost of power to consumers
is gauged by the cost of the pro
ject and transmission. The trans
mission extends to the city boun
dry where wholesale power is
turned over to the retailer.
The city will have priority in
purchasing the wholesale power
end any excess may be sold to
private or other interests.
Pow'er is sold at a rate so the
principal is paid back to the gov
ernment over a period of 78 years
and this period has been short
ened to 50 years by the Reclama
tion Bureau with interest pay
able to the government at 3Vi%.
The Reclamation Bureau will
•» come in to an area on no condi
tion except that of a letter show
ing gthat the people are in accord.
¥ * *
A committee of five members
of the residents of the Veterans
Project was recognized by the
council.
* * *
Action on the rat and dog situ
ation was taken when Mr. Hardy
made application to take care of
Loth situations for the city. (More
information in a later paper.)
* * *
Considerable conversation was
the result of statements made by
Pat Friede that any expenditure
cf over $50.00 must be put up to
bids.. He referred to the employ
ment of the Painter truck as a
garbage or city service wagon at
i $3.00 per hour—Tactual working
time. The truck was hired by
Chief Kielchiski on the spur of
the moment as the regular city
dump truck was needed for as
phalt work on the street. As a
i result the operation will be put
out on bids immediately.
* * *
The ordinance against burning
rubbish will be enforced. The ac
tion causes a dangerous fire haz
ard.
¥ * ¥
The insurance situation turned
| up to startle the councilmen from
a state, of complacency. The
amount due is S1105.00 and the
tone of the statement was insist
1 ant.
¥ * *
It was learned that mathmati
I cal errors in the Henretta pro
gram as set up two years ago that
such items as basements where
there were none and the reverse
were made. A very close survey
by Mrs. Ling brought out the
facts and figures.
* * *
The matter of an ordinance
which would force all oil barrels
underground in the two alleys
between 3rd and 4th and 4th and
5th between the railroad and Jeff
erson Street was held up pending
the arrival of an ordinance pre
pared by the Fire Underwriters
Organization.
* * *
The matter of asking for bids
on the re-roofing of the Hospital
was taken up.
An estimate of 6000 feet with
aluminum covering at about $19.00
per square with approximately
$400.00 for labor was made.
It was stated that rent which
the city should have received from
the doctor’s quarters there was
not forth coming by reason that
the doctor had been taking care
of the children at the Jesse Lee
Home for the amount of the rent i
per month.
* * *
The light situation at the Mar- |
ine Ways was checked by coun
cilman Miller and Supt. Jordan.!
The entire area so far as con
duit, cable and transmission lines
• Continued on page 4
STEEL BARGE TAKES
HIGH TONNAGE OF
CAMP EQUIPMENT
•
Towing Steel Barge 730 and her
capacity cargo of general freight
including a high tonnage of con-1
struction supplies, the oceangoing
tug Portugbar departed Seattle
for Seward 9 p.m. August 11 on
the 15th Alaska Freight Express
northbound voyage.
Included in the 730's on-deck
cargo are four steel bridge col
umn-sections, two 46 feet long
and weighing three tons each and
two 57 feet long and weighing
four tons each. The columns will
be erected as one of the towers
for a railroad bridge support two
miles north of Mt. McKinley Park
on the Alaska Railroad.
Fabricated by the Puget Sound
Bridge and Dredging Company of
Seattle for the Alton V. Phillips
Company, the sections have cross
bracings incorporated in their con
struction The bridge, crossing a
gorge, will be 346 feet long and
is one of six being constructed
for the Alaska Railroad between
Mt. McKinley Park and Healy,
Alaska, on a joint venture con
tract between Alton V. Phillips
and Cascade Contractors, Inc., for
$450,000. The contractors also are
Turn to page (2) two
NEWLYWEDS LEAVE
FOR THE STATES
Mrs. Perry Stockton. Jr., the
former Edona Myers, Seward's
most recent bride.
The newlyweds left August 14
by plane for Seattle. They will
visit friends and relatives in
Washington. Oregon and Californ*
ia. including the brides sister and
brother-in-law, Mr. and Mrs.
James Richardson of Los Angeles.
They will continue on to Lara
mie, Wyoming where Perry will
continue his studies and Edona
will enter as a freshman in the
University of Wyoming. Perry is
a member of the Alpha Tau
Omega fraternity.
Project Business
Draws To Close
«r
The Veterans Housing Project
controversy between the city and
Contractor Howard is nearing an
end. The bills re-embursible are
being gathered and checked by
Attorney Hutton, Engineer Estes.
ex-Clerk Howell and Fred How
ard. They were presented in part
to the council Monday night.
Faced wilh some opposition in
the council (lead by ex-Mayor
Keating in the rear of the room)
nearly an hour was consumed in
cross questioning.
It was brought out that inas
much as there was little the city
had done keeping books. They
had dumped letters, receipts, in
structions, bills etc. into a box
and some could have been miss
ing. The city, so the attorney
said, had better do the best it
could with the information at
hand and settle quietly, dropping
a beligerant attitude and make
the best settlement possible. He
admitted he was instrumental in
obtaining an understandig that
if the re-embursible item of
stoves was to allowed by the
F.P.H.A. that each of the con
tracting parties should assume a
half and make a final settlement |
from that angle.
This was objected to by coun
cilman Seffrovich who contended
that taxpayers money could not
be used.
Councilman Miller asked why
the Bondsmen could not be made
to pay the difference.
"The answer to that,” said At
torney Hutton, “lies in the fact
that the city has made mistakes
and like any party to a con
tract or a business deal must
pay for them.
Questioned about a Surity Bond
the attorney explained that the
court would have to find in favor
Turn to page (4) four
Contract May Be Re
Written; Expired In ’42
lhe lease between the city and
the operators of the hospital ex
pired in 1942, having ben written
in 1932.
This instrument turned over to
the Methodist organization a com
pletely equipped hospital, includ
ing instruments, beds, mattresses,
blankets. X-ray machine and a
full list or inventory is appended
to the original lease.
There are no added features,
legally or otherwise which we
could find in the file which would
shown an entension.
Since the lease is expired a
new one should be written.
Quarters for the health nurse
should be allowed a saving of
$900.00 per year to the taxpayers.
Rent paid for the doctors of
fices should be $1200.00 per year
which would greatly offset the
cost of improvements such as a
lawn now7 desired by the superin
tendent and the new roof, which
it is apparent, is badly needed.
• The insurance should be paid
by the Methodist Women’s Mis
sionary Society, of New York.
These two items alone, the
Health Nurse quarters and the
doctors quarters will save the
taxpayers the amount of $2100.00
per year plus the cost of the in
surance.
A quarterly report can be made
by the hospital board which will
be appointed by the council.
In this way taxpayers will not
be assessed for a situation which
is not of their choosing.
It has been stated that the vet
erans organization have asked or
are planning on asking for a
change in the management of the
hospitalization agencies here and
this may come under their plan
ning.
Since the council must needs
rewrite a lease all these points
must be considered.
NEW SCHEDULE
ON LOT ASSESSMENT
A new schedule of lots
assessments has been made by
the Common Council of the Town
of Seward to read as follows;
4th Avenue is to be the basic
line dividing the town east and
west with the alleys used as the
block dividing line. i.e. lots 1 to
20 inclusive in block 10 and lots
21 to 40 inclusive in block 9
shall be assessed the same. Lots
east and west of 4th Ave. shall
decrease $100.00 per block
the exception of the Busine
Building District No, 1 as oi
(Continued on page 3)
I)
SEA, SURF AND HELL
i
■f
Coast Guardsmen, engulfed in the tearing force of hurricane*:
waters, fight for their lives on the swamped decks of a.loaded
madfiMl
ritSEE
WASHINGTON. D. C.—“Sea.
Surf, and Hell,” a U. S. Coast
Guard war reader comprising
more than 40 of the best true
stories of the Coast Guard in ac
tion from Pearl Harbor to the
surrender of Japan, will be pub
lished about November 1 by the
Prentice-Hall, Inc., New York
City.
The book which makes avail
able many favorite stories in per
manent forn for the first time, is
edited by Commander Arch A.
Mercey and Lee Grove. C. Sp.
(PR), with an introduction by
Commodore Ellis Reed-Hill. Six
teen pages of official Coast Guard
photos selected by Lt. Comdr. J.
J. Dixon, who contributes an art
icle on picturing the war, will be
a feature of the 324-page book.
The stdTies have been divided
into sections on shore duty, off
shore patrol, Greenland, the Bat
tle of the Atlantic, European and
Pacific invasions. Stories about
the Coast Guard from The Ameri
can, Collier’s, Life, Saturday Ev
ening Post, Time. National Geo
graphic, The New Yorker. Yacht
ing. and other magazines are in
cluded.
In addition to the work of pop
ular civilian writers, that of a
number of combat correspondents
is included.
A chronological history of the
Coast Guard, a brief dictionary of
sea terms, and other special fea
tures make the book useful as
well as an entertaining war me
mento.
The book will be priced at $3,
with royalties being turned over
to the service.