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THE NOME DAILY NUGGET
VOL. 37. No. 117. NOME, ALASKA, MONDAY, MAY 18, 1936 Per Copy Ten Cents
Guffy Coal Act Is Unconstitutional
ADMINISTRATOR WRANGELL IS. ON TRIAL
Dr. Gruening Is To Come To Nome Wednesday
Commencement
Exercises At IJ.
Alaska Today
Dr. Gruening To Come To
Nome Wednesday, He
Declared Fairbanks
(By The Associated Press)
FAIRBANKS, May 18, — The
14th Annual Commencement Ex
ercises of the University of Alas
ka are being held here today in
the new concrete gymnasium of
the University.
Seventeen will be graduated,
among them two Nome boys—
Joseph Walsh, son of Mr. and Mrs.
M. J. Walsh and Aben Shallit,
son of C. Z. Shallit, Nome mining
man.
Others include Richard Dale,
Albert Dorsh, Donald Fowler,
Glen Franklin, George Henton,
Reino Huttala, Winnifred Mac
Donald, Helen Linck, Louis Smith
Edwin Stevens, Leonard Thomp
son, Paul Wickstrom.
Dr. Gruening, director of the
Territorial Affairs for the Inter
ior Department, will give the com
mencement address, and also ad
dress a banquet tonight, guests
at which will include Governor
John W. Troy, General Manager
of the Alaska Railroad Col. Ohl
son, Ike Taylor, head of the Alas
ka Road Commission, Harry G.
Watson, secretary to the Gover
nor, and regents from various cit
ies including Mrs. Grace Wicker
sham, and other prominent Alas
kans.
Andrew Nerland will present
the diplomas and Dr. Bunnell the
announcements.
Three of the graduates are
from Washington, one from Ore
gon, Montana and Indiana each.
The remainder are of Alaska, all
of whom gained their credits
here.
Dr. Gruening announced that
he plans to try and visit Mount
McKinley Park tomorrow, and
then fly to Nome Wednesday and
return here and leave via plane
with Governor Troy for Juneau
Thursday.
Sheriff Caught
Amateur Pilot
Gone 3 Weeks
(By The Associated Press)
SPOKANE, May 18, — Sheriff
Ralph Buckley today returned
here with Cecil W. McCollum,
amateur aviator, accused of em
bezzlement, from El Paso, three
weeks, less one day, after he took
off from Spokane for Portland.
He disappeared and authorities
found him later at Chihuahua,
Mexico.
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ADMINISTRATOR FOR
SOVIET’S WRANGELL
ISLAND TRIAL LIFE
Starving of Eskimos, Murder of Doctor
Wulfson Charged To Petty Ruler In
His Reign Famous Wrangell Is.
I
(By The Associated Press')
MOSCOW, Russia, May 18, — The So-called Little
Dictator of Wrangel Island, that bleak Soviet territory
in the Arctic Ocean, which caused several nations much
trouble, expense and loss of life, went on trial today for
his life, before the Soviet Supreme Court, charged with
starving Eskimos and murdering a member of the Polar
expedition.
Prosecutor General A. J. Vyshinsky told a story of
ruthless tactics and unscrupulous conduct of the petty
ruler—K. B. Semenchuk, Administrator of the Wrangell
Polar Station during the winter of last year, who made
humans drag dog sleds, and withheld food while nat
ives die of hunger.
The biggest crime against him, and his co-defend
dant S. P. Startsev, is the murder of Dr. W. F. Wulfson,
who died on a trip to barren Point Blason. Later his
body was found with marks of violence upon it.
The Presecutor said that Semenchuk had forbade
the Eskimos to hunt the animals of the sea, and had jail
ed them when they asked for food.
M. S. Babushkin,, noted Soviet Arctic flyer, is acting
as a special assistant judge during the trial.
The wife of Dr. Wulfson testified on the stand that
Administrator Semenchuk also tried to starve her, re
fusing her rations, and had then sought to drive her in
to the Arctic wastes. Other witnesses declared she
would have perished had she obeyed.
Search Missing
Hunter Council
Section Failed
Pilot Hermann of the NAT,
called by special telephone com
munication from Council, is mak
ing an aerial search today for a
hunter who left Council three
days ago and has not been heard
of since. People in Council tele
phoned to Nome to send a plane
so that a search could be made
from the air and possibly locate
the missing hunter.
The missing man is an Eskimo,
who it was reported wounded a
reindeer, came to town, obtained
a butcher knife and a file and
went back ouit to kill his animal,
saying he would return in about
half an hour. Searching parties
have not yet found him, and it
was thought possible he either
might have fallen into the river,
or fallen and sabbed himself ser
iously with the knife which he
carried in his pocket, and not in
a scabbard. Pilot Hermann re
turned to Nome without finding
any trace of him.
Hindenburg Is
Enroute Back to
New York City
(By The Associated Press}*
NEW YORK CITY, May 18, —
The German zeppelin “Hinden
burg”, weathering a heavy rain
storm and a forty-five mile head
wind, steadily sped over the Nor
th Atlantic ocean toward Ameri
ca. It is expected over New York
City about noon Tuesday.
State Department
Again Warns Japs
(By The Associated Press)
' WASHINGTON, May 18, —
The American state department
called new attention to previous
indirect warnings against the
Japanese armed expansion in
China.
At Moscow, Soviet reports told
of a new eastern border incident
saying that a Soviet patrol had
been fired upon by the Japanese.
Guffy Coal Act
Knocked Out By
Supreme Court
Supreme Court Decision Is
Six to Three Against
Guffy Coal Act
—
(By The Associated Press)
WASHINGTON, May 18—Di
viding six to three, the Supreme
Court struck down the Guffey
Coal Act on the same grounds
which invalidated the NRA, as
unconstitutional and an invasion
of States powers.
The majority, through Justice
Sutherland, held that the govern
ment is without power to regu
late the hours and wages in the
mining industry as in the manu
facturing industry. Dissenters
were Justices Brandeis, Stone and
Cardozo.
The court has not ruled on the
constitutionality of the price fix
ing provision of the law, which
was designed to regulate the Bi
timunous coal industry, but said
these are so related to the labor
provisions that it may fall later.
The majority opinion held that
the excise tax of fifteen percent
of the soft coal production with
provisions for refunding ninety
percent, was an adherence of the
terms of the law, and was "clear
ly not a tax, but a penalty." Sen
otor Guffey of Pennsylvania, was
among the crowded audience.
Court Appeals
Rules Out Big
Money Measure
Big Money Bill Judged Be
Infringing on States’
Rights, is Declared
(By The Associated Press)
WASHINGTON, May 18, —The
District of Columbia Court of Ap
peals held that the 1935 Relief
Act was unconstitutional, in a
sweeping opinion of three of the
five judges, who said that the
four billion, eighty hundred and
eighty million dollar law was
void because of the improper del
egation of powers to the Presi
dent and the invasion of state’s
rights, and lack of authorization.
The court said the law “attem
pts to reach and control matters
over which the constitution has
given congress no powers.”
Tugwell, in charge of resettle
ment for the administration defer
red any comment.
The opinion was written by as
sociate justice Orsdel.
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TOWNSENDERS ARE
DEFEATED PRIMARY
ELECTIONS OREGON
(Jose Party Vote For Roosevelt And
Borah Cast. McNary and Williams
(By The Associated Press)
PORTLAND, Ore., May 18, — The Primary elec
tion closed its books, leaving behind a smashing defeat
for the proponents of the Townsend Old Age Pension
Plan.
Senator Charles McNary, national committeeman
and Ralph Williams carried off the major victories ag
ainst the Townsend opposition. McNary in 1,389 pre
cincts steamrolled his way to the republican nomina
tion with 84,190 votes, almost double that given to
Brown who had 24,671, and Nelson 12,841.
Williams rolled up 58,116 in the same number of
precincts, and shut out his nearest opponent Charles L.
Paine, Eugene, Oregon Townsender, who got 38,763.
Roosevelt and Borah running without opposition
ran a close race as far as the total votes were concern
ed, with Borah slightly in front with 75,094, and Roose
velt 72,314—a strictly party vote.
However the delegates to the national convention
from each party are bound only to exercise their best
efforts to nominate them, after which they are t.> rely
on their own judgment.
Willis Mahoney. Portland Mayor appeared to have
the edge on John A. Jeffreys, a lawyer, for the demo
cratic senatorial nomination, polling forty thousand,
lour hundred and twenty-two votes to his opponents
thirty-four thousand, one hundred and twenty-seven.
ATLANTA, Georgia, May 13, — Roosevelt w m
Georgia’s 24 votes to the national convention by de
fault, no opponent having registered before the dead
line, to contest his entry
Chamber Nome
Prcpari?i£ Creet
Terri. Director
Matters To Be Brought
Attention of Grucning
Include Hospital
With the receipt by the Nome
Daily Nugget, today, of informa
tion that Dr. Gruening, director
of Bureau of Territorial and In
sular Affairs under the Interior
Department, planned on coming
to Nome Wednesday, steps were
immediately taken advising the
Northwestern Alaska Chamber of
Commerce, Thos. D. Jensen. Vice
President, of Dr. Gruening’s pro
posed trip and suggesting that a
Chamber Luncheon be held in his
honor at which time affairs con
cerning the Territory and more
particular of the Nome and Sew
ard Peninsula section, could be
taken up.
Plans Be Made
Mr. Jensen stated today that hf
would call a meeting of the Board
of Directors and lay out detailed
plans to meet Dr. Gruenink.
Among the subjects broached
which should come to his atten
tion, is that speedy work be in
stituted by the Interior Depart
ment in recommending that the
Nome Federal Building be rushed
to an active point; and that the
proposed regular airmail service
in Alaska be pushed to a success
ful conclusion before congress.
Hospital Subject
Another matter, one which is of
vital importance to Nome, is that
of the disposition to be made in
the matter of the Maynard Coliun
bus Hospital, which it Was re
ported, would be closed this sum
mer sometime, due to lack of
funds to carry on.
The proposition of having the
Office of Indian Affairs take over
the hospital and operate it, allow
ing whites as well as natives to
be hospitalized,should, be brought
to Dr. Gruening’s a
was suggesrted and it
ed that he might be
to take up the matt
ing, D. C., on his ret