SEWARD’S
All-Weatker
SEAPORT
Is Alaska 8
Greatest Asset
Vol. VI, No. 15
SEWARD, ALASKA, TUESDAY, AUGUST 23, 1949
Price 10 Cents
Steamship Co.
Favors Seward
For Seaport
Calling its new service to Alaska
an extension of its huge coastwise
operation, Ben H. Parkinson, exec
utive vice-president of the Coast- j
wise Line, in a meeting Tuesday |
noon with the Seward businessmen
offered full cooperation of his
' company in solving transportation
problems of the Railbelt and all ‘
Alaska.
Parkinson, who has had a life- !
time of service in coastwise ship- j
ping, emphatically stated that Sew* j
ard with its great natural harbor'
and rail terminus has a great ad
vantage over other possible ports
in Alaska. With the completion of I
the new highway link, that ad- i
vantage will be so deeply en-1
trenched that the people of Sew- ,
ard should never spend a moment |
worrying about the future of the
city.
Parkinson reviewed the history \
of his company briefly to give local i
business men an insight into the
size and stability of the Coastwise
Line. Beside operating eight ves
sels in worldwise bulk service, the
company now has four ships in the
Alaska and coastwise service and is
expecting to add two more bottoms
in the near future.
During the war five of the six
ships of the company were casual
ties, and during that time the com
pany operated 42 vessels for the |
War Shipping Administration. It
operated the affairs of the LTnited
States Lines Company which ad
ded approximately 100 ships to the
pool, and such vessels as the Queen
Elizabeth, the Aquitania, the
Bouchfontaine and the America.
Besides this it operated 82 oil tank
ers in the largest tanker operation
in history. •
Know-How
“We believe that we have the
organization and the know-how to
efficiently operate vessels in the
coastwise, British Columbia-AIaska
trade and that We have proved this
to be true during the last year. We
are looking forward to increased
business and increased service ill
the months and years to come,”
Mr. Parkinson told the Sewardites.
Many times during his talk, Park
inson repeated that it is the hope
of his company to be able to coop
erate with all transportation agen
cies in bringing the best possible
service to the Territory. It is not
the duty of any one person or any
one firm to say what should be
done, he said, but he expressed the
hope that all parties concerned
would find it feasible to work out
a program of cooperation to their
mutual advantage.
Most ports, the executive point
ed out, have a waterfront associa
tion and dispatching office through
which dock facilities and longshore
gangs work on a cooperating basis.
In the absence of a waterfront
association he suggested that the
Chamber of Commerce or some
other group might get together
with all parties concerned to work
out a fair solution to all problems.
Jn that way the Coastwise Line
would find it possible to come first
to Seward. This would be of ad
vantage to the steamship company,
since the bulk of its customers are
in the Railbelt area. Seward would
then- have the reputation as the
best dispatching port in the Terri
tory.
The meeting was attended by 27
local businessmen who threw ques
tions at the steamship company of
ficial and his two associates, Bill
Sexton, company official and son
of the company president, and E.
A. Gardner, agent in Anchorage.
WILMA MYERS LEAVES TODAY
Miss Wilma Myers, youngest
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Dick
Myers, leaves Seward today by
plane for the States. Miss Myers
will attend Colorado Women’s Col
lege this winter, where she ex
pects to study journalism.
Local Cannery Has
Record Week;
Still Below Goal
Marvin Viale of the Resurrection
Bay Company announced that de- j
spite the fact that the local can-]
nery had set a production record j
last week in packing 1961 cases;
of salmon, this year’s pack is still
500 cases short of last year’s.
Only silvers are running ahead
of 1948 with prospects of a good
season ahead.. There are nine boats
operating in Resurrection Bay with
the "Yonderbound" of Casey Cob
ban and 'Clyde Gordon bringing
in the most fish.
A breakdown of figures for last
week showed that the cannery
packed 673 Cases of pinks, 85
chums and 1203 silvers. Both can
nery officials and fishermen at
tribute the week's heavy fishing
to the week’s closure between
August 6 and 15.
The total pack for the company
this season is 3783 cases. The total
pack for the corresponding week
last year was 4235 cases.
Expect Approval of
Public Works Bill
Delegate E L. Bartlett was in
formed that application forms are
being drawn up in the offices of
the General Services Administrator
in anticipation of presidential ap
proval of the $70 million Alaska
public works bill and with the
hope that even at this late date
in the congressional session an
appropriation will be made avail
able.
The bill, which passed both
houses of Congress within six days,
authorizes the construction of var
ious kinds of community facilities,
such as hospitals, schools, public
buildings, sewers, streets, and
water-supply facilities to be built
by the federal government under
the supervision of the General
Services Administrator. The pro
gram spelled out in the bill would
be in effect until June 30, 1955. A
formula is set forth which requires
public agencies, such as munici
palities in the Territory, to share
from 25 to 75 percent of the cost
of projects constructed, with the
overall return to the federal gov
ernment being 50 percent.
It is understood that General
Services Administrator will seek
from the present Congress now in
session a relatively small cash ap
propriation and a larger contract
authorization to get the program
under way. The outcome of that
request, however, is not at all as
sured due to the uncertainty of
adjournment of the first session
of the 81st Congress.
It is contemplated, if money is
made available, that a group of
public work specialists will come
to Alaska within the next month
or so to confer with Territorial and
municipal officials and to advise
all interested persons in the pro
cedure to be followed under the
terms of the measure.
METHODIST LADIES HONOR
W.S.C.S. OFFICER
Mrs. Clarence Meeker of Med
ford, Oregon, western jurisdictional
promotion secretary of Woman’s
Society of Christian Service, was
the guest Monday night of the
local W.S.C.S., at a special meeting
in the parlor of the Seward Meth
odist Church.
Mrs. Meeker has been on a tour
of the Territory, visiting all the
societies and promoting a four
point program which consists of
increased membership, increased
short term missionary work, 33 1/3
percent increase in missionary giv
ing and concentrated study.
Refreshments were served and
the guests enjoyed a moving
picture.
Mr. and Mrs. Charlie Chestnut
are taking a short vacation at Hope
this week.
Careful Study
Of Election
Issues Is Urged
A campaign to acquaint voters of
Seward with the details of the
three propositions to be decided in
the special election of September
3, will begin with the publication
of the ordinances in question by
the end of this week.
Mayor Eugene Lanier said Tues
day morning that only one copy of
the sales tax ordinance was avail
able at the moment. He offered it
for publication too late for the cur
rent issue, but it will be presented
to the public on Friday.
He expressed the hope that the
vafers make a careful study of all
three propositions and air their
views. One of the details of the
sales tax ordinance which deserves
particular attention is the specific*
use of the money collected.
Many of the voters are clamoring
for the funds to be used only for
purposes of education, health and
sanitation, while a few hold that
the money should be placed in tiie
general fund. This was the original I
intention of tHe council when the
ordinance was drawn up. A few
people are holding out for a one
per cent tax instead of the present
two per cent.
On the question of the $104,000
bond issue for the power plant,
there will be made available in
formation on the history of the
present municipal plant, and as
much technical information as the
public is interested in.
The question of a two-year term
in office for the mayor and three
year terms for councilmen is sub
mitted to the voters because the
law of the Territory demands *it.
So far there has been little public
interest aroused concerning the
question here.
Opening Of School...
The Seward Schools will begin
the 1949-1950 school year on Sep
tember 6. Pupils in grades 2 to 8
and students in the high school
will enroll at that time.
1st Grade Enrollment
*Aug. 29, 30 and 31
Enrollment of children entering
the First Grade will take place at
the office of the Superintendent of
Schools in the school building on
August 29. 30 and 31. The office
will be open for this purpose from |
10 a.m. until noon and from 2 to
4 p.m.
A child must be six years of age
on or before November 1, 1949, to
be eligible to start school this year.
Parents are requested to bring
some document verifying the
child’s age when enrolling the
child. This document may be a
birth certificate, a notorized state
ment verifying the child's age, or
a baptismal certificate, if the date
of birth is given thereon.
Parents are also requested to
have beginners given a physical
check-up by one of the physicians
in Seward before school opens.
A deposit of one dollar fifty
cents ($1.50) for books and other1
equipment is required of all pupils
at the Seward Schoofs. Parents
may pay this fee when they enroll
their First Graders, if they wish.
If not. the fee may be paid when
the children report for school on
September 6th.
This preliminary enrollment is
for the purpose of determining
how many First Graders must be
accommodated. Therefore, the pre
liminary enrollment should be as
complete as possible. Those unable
to enroll their beginning First
Graders in person should call the
school (Adams 126) and give the
child’s name and date of birth.
Sewardites Invited
To Scouting
Demonstration
The people of Seward are invited
to a Scouting demonstration put on
by the Boy Scouts of America
Troop 30 which will be given at
the Seward Memorial Church base
ment Tuesday evening, August 23.
This will be an excellent oppor
tunity for the people of Seward to
get acquainted with Scouting and
with the new Regional Scout Ex
ecutive, Mr. Gene Butler. Refresh
ments will be served.
Mr. Butler will preside at the af
fair, which besides the investiture
and demonstrations will include
a training session for the Scouting
committee and Scoutmaster. The
training session will deal mostly
with planning a Scouting program.
The Chugach area, for which
Butler is executive, includes Sew
ard, Anchorage, Palmer, Kenai and
Cordova. He is one of four execu
tives in the Territory.
More Land To Be
Made Available
An order signed by Under Secre
tary of the Interior Oscar L. Chap
man reduced the land reserved
from public entry on both sides of
the highways, feeder and local
roads in Alaska.
The order reserves all public
lands lying within 300 feet on each
side of tlie center line of the Alaska
Highway, 150 feet on each side of
all other through roads. 100 feet on
each side of all feeder roads and
50 feet On each side of the center
line of all local roads.
Up until the time the order was
Issued, 600 and 300 feet on each
side of the roads had been with
drawn from entry. The lands re
leased by this reduction will be
open to settlement under the
homestead and homesite laws on
September 14, subject to veterans
preference for a 90-day period.
The Alaska program is included
in an authorization bill reported by
the Senate Armed Services Com
mittee for public works inside and
outside the continental United
States, which would provide $130,
000,000 for military and naval con
struction in the Territory.
On a similar bill in the House
committee it was announced that
the House would take no action
this year. According to all inter
ested parties, this would mean a
virtual shutdown of all Army, Navy
and Airforce construction in 1950
in Alaska.
Senator Millard E. Tydings of
Maryland, chairman of the Senate
seq •aajjuuuioa saatAjag paiujy
(Turn to Page 4)
Fire Destroys
Green Lantern
Early Monday
A tolal loss was sustained in a
blaze which started in the wash
room of the Green Lantern Road
house Monday morning at 2 o’clock
and razed the dry log structure be
fore firefighting aid from Seward
could reach the scene.
Two of Seward’s three fire trucks
rushed to the scene as soon as the
alarm was received, but the fire
had gained such headway that it
was impossible to do more than
protect adjacent buildings. Only
the fact that there had been a
heavy rain of more than one inch
on Sunday saved the rainsoaked
property nearby.
Operated by Ted and Ruth La
Valle and Don Darned, the Green
Lantern in recent months had be
come Seward’s most popular place
of entertainment, with an orches
tra and floor show featuring Miss
Waialeale, a native Hawaiian dancer
recently from New York City.
The building, owned by Ray Lee,
was so completely destroyed that
only a couple of charred logs re
mained ot the original structure.
At the time of the fire only a cou
ple of employes were at the place,
the owners and performers having
gone to Kenai to put on a show.
When they returned at 4 a.m., the
fire had already burned out. Some
of the cash on hand was reported
saved, but ad stock, fixtures, and
e.en tiie clothing and personal ef
j fects of the owners and performers
i were completely destroyed — even
I the Hawaiian dancer’s fancy grass
j skirts.
i FAMOUS BIBLE TEACHER
| LECTURES HERE FRIDAY
A lecture by the internationally'
famous bible teacher, Dr. Paul
Rood, will be given at the I.O.O.F.
Hall at 7 p.m. Friday, the Rev. J.
Lloyd Dean announced Tuesday
morning.
In addition to his work as bible
expositor. Dr. Rood is president of
the International Child Evangelism
Fellowship, Inc. His lecture Frfday
will be supplemented with color
motion pictures of Eastern Europe.
With Dr. Rood will be the Ra?v.
Peter Deyneka, Russian missionary’,
director of Slavic Gospel Associa
tion, with missions in Europe,
South America and Alaska.
Others in the party will be Miss
Crozier, missionary at Afognak, and
her mother, Louise Robinson, also
of Afognak and Kokrines. The
group will depart on the SS Bar
anof Friday evening.
Buzz Business in Greece
w mm w i
Most people think there are already too many mosquitoes in the
world, but here is a man raising more. The little buzzers are being
used in insecticide tests as part of a drive for the eradication of
mosquito-carried malaria, sponsored by the World Health Organ
ization of the United Nations (WHO). WHO has just completed a
program of medical assistance, including malaria control in Greece.