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.... fftffkduuj the (Aim of, tfUndtck<yf(axf fflfotmc Aland
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Goals Of The Chamber Of Commerce
The discussion initiated by the
Chamber of Commerce’s new presi
dent, Dr. Bob Johnson, focussed
the attention of the members at
tending the last meeting on the
goals the organisation should strive
for.
^discussion o' this Jund should
fe#;-participated in* ; by f a larger
g^oup than that present—in fact
bjl all themembers: Hence, we wish
iot a moment to discuss it here. ?
The-function of the Chamber of
Commerce is sometimes obscured
by the many activities sponsored
by the group—the tangents that
occupy so much of the time and
attention of the members as
sembled.
The primary function of the
Chamber, we believe, is to strive
in every way possible towards the
economic growth of the communi
ty. Policies must be laid down
towards that end.
* We must be specific—our goals,
clearcut.
We .hear so much about the
need in Kodiak for more water.
A greater source of water supply is
needed. This is a realistic ap
proach. for its the development of
our fisheries that lyill always re
main our basic industry. Water
•and more water is needed. A con
tinuous study of this problem
should go on, with a committee
working closely with City Hall.
Better roads and more roads
are needed. Improvement of the
existing roads looms as the most
important. Paving of the roads
should be ttye concern of thje
Chamber.
An attractive city should be the
goal of the Chamber. A civic air
port—do we need one? This ques
tion should be subjected to the
closest scrutiny - and- if foirrni to
be a necessity, we should strive
for its accomplishment. Otherwise,
the project should be dropped.
Tourism—is it of benefit and if
so, what are we doing to attract
more tourists here. What are we
doing to care for them when they
get l here?
Good Base-Town relations—the
Chamber is the logical body to see
to it this is maintained.
In our opinion; the Chamber
should extend beyond the City’s
boundaries—it should promote
and encourage cattle raising.
Would a slaughterhouse aid this
industry? In this connection and
also as an aid to fisheries, the
Chamber should watch develop
ments in ihe cold storage situa
tion. Assist in making it a reality
—“for a cold storage plant ties in
with the fisheries, the marketing
of beef, poultry and eggs, etc.
The political front—the Cham
ber should keep abreast of the
legislative tren£—insofar as it ef
fects communities such as ours.
Legislative bills should be closely
scrutinized—a protest registered
when deemed necessary, encour
agement where it will help.
The goals of the Chamber should
be to promote—a healthy economic
climate here; encouragement and
assistance of industry already
here; a good feeling between the
newcomer and the established
businesses; promote Kodiak’s po
tential.
Pressure groilps have no place
in the Chamber/'An individual
subordinate h^s j&rsonal inter
ests for the good of a community.
That’s the way the Chamber works.
It is the only v/af it can accom
plish its’ goals.
In short—what is good for the
community—the Chamber should
/‘g&eatt; out for it.
FOR A SAFE $M -RBY
* ■V v
The Soap Box Derby culminated
in disaster this year.
The accident that brought about
its discontinuance could have been
more serious than it was. As it
was, the sad part of the whole epi
sode is that it left in its wake a
large group of disappointed spec
tators and saddened youngsters.
The soap box derby has come to
mean to American boys more than
just a homemade racer competing
with other racers of a like nature.
It is national in scope, and calls
for ingenuity of design, following
certain specifications, skill in
handling and ability to meet com
petition.
It starts the American boy on
the trail of a great truth—reliance
on h.s ability, following adequate
preparation.
The accident here should never
have happened. In the words of
Walt Miuor, who handled the
races this year and the years be
fore, it was due td ‘l*ck of ex
perience." Not wishing to take
the responsibility, and fearing an
other accident perhaps even worse
r -X' -
than the first, led to the decision
to call off the races, he said, even
though calling them off meant a
great disappointment to the boys
competing, as well as the specta
tors.
Lack of experience can only be
corrected in one way: A longer
practice period before the races.
Practice develops a boy’s natural
ability to handle his racer; helps
him develop confidence; gives him
a sure hand at the wheel.
These races should be continued
again next year. The announce
ment that they will be held should
be made very soon. This will allow
plenty of time for the construction
of the racers; allowing for think
ing on the boys part of all that
the, race entails; with long, range
planning the possibility of the
winrer of the local race going to
Akron, Ohio to compete in the na
tional races, could be considered.
A closer coordination between
the sponsoring group and the Po
lice . Department as to the place
and arrangements for the event
should be the first consideration.
Here, There and Everywhere
B; SIG DIGREE
Alaskans Are Evaluated
Alaska is a “solidly, stubbornly,
prideful American land,” says the
well-known historian James Warn
er Bellah in the August issue of
Holiday magadine.
A 5000-word article, the maga
zine’s cover, and many colorful
full-page pictures are devoted to
presenting a sweeping picture of
the Nation’s northernmost, west
ernmost, biggest and ruggedest
state.
Bellah tells readers “you can
live and work there in reasonable
comfort the year around—despite
the mere two hours of summer
darkness and the scant two hours
of winter daylight.
“There is no Skid Row in any
Alaskan town,0 Bellah writes.
“With seasonal empolyment a con
dition of life, some Alaskans plan
their living better than others,
thus live more comfortably in the
slack winter season ...
“Newcomers have difficulty ad
ius*ing to the high costs of food,
clothing and rent: but wages are
high* too, and it isn’t long before
a balance is struck. Then life set
tles into a routine much like that
in any small town Stateside . . .
“The first winter can be a
morale hazard if you make it one.
Children go to school in darkness
and return in darkness. But again,
in compensation, the sun is still
shining in summer when you
come out of the night picture
show.
“Alaskans work hard, on a sea
sonal schedule; they are imbibed
consciously or unconsciously with
the challenge of their vast land.
They marry young, raise large
families and their children for the
most part remain in Alaska.
“There is * a cheerful get-rich
quick flavor to life that seldom
pays off; it probably persists from
the gold-rush days which never
paid off either. This may be due
to the absence of huge corpora
tions to dominate commerce and
mold organization men. A young
Alaskan will get a local job—but
he finally keeps one hand free for
himself. He fishes and hunts as a
routine of life and, as a further
routine, he eternally casts about
for an opportunity to go into busi
iness for himself—however modest
ly. He has an extremely self-confi
dent and independent character.
You cannot be otherwise in the
eternal grandeur of this vast land.”
Some facts on how the tourist
dollar is spent was given by Dick
Ransonl of Phoenix, Ariz., inter
national field director of the North
American Highway Association,
who spoke before the Anchorage
Chamber of Commerce this week.
According to him, the tourist dol
lar is broken down something like
this:
The races should be considered a
highlight in the 4th of July events
—spectators and participants keen
ly enjoy it. It’s worth a little time
and effort to iron out preparations
and staging.
One final word that may be bet
ter said just before the races are
run off—a little more cooperation
from the spectators will help, too.
The big hazard is the milling
crowd who fail to stay alongside
the road. Possibility of an acci
dent could be cut to a minimum
if the spectators remained out of
harms way.
But even if it requires more
practice on the part of the partici
pants, more coordination between
the sponsors and the police, and
more control of the crowds, lets
still have the races.
“Of $100 spent by the tourist,
$23 goes for food; $19 for sleeping
accommodations; $13 for clothing;
$12 for service stations and gar
ages; $5 for drugs and sundries;
$4 for barber shop and beauty
parlors; $2 for laundry and clean
ing; $10 for transportation and
utilities; and $12 remaining goes
to many other types of business.”
Ransom also said that contrary
to general belief, “the other states
are not flooded with information
on the Alaskan Highway and on
Alaska.
He said that the Alaskan high
way is not bad and tough. “It isn’t
a rough road,’ he said.
According to an FBI bulletin,
this month marks the 35th anni
versary of the FBI Identification
Division. This is the method of
identifying people by fingerprint
ing which, according to the bulle
tin, has been a .significant factor
in law enforcement.
Strides made in this mode of
identification, are indicated by a
few statistics. Beginning in 1924
with a nucleus of 810,188 finger
print cards submitted by 987 pol
ice agencies, the Identification
Division now has more than 13,000
contributors and the total number
of cards on file exceeds 152 million.
To put it another way, a tower
of the fingerprint cards on file
would rise 101 times as high as the
Empire State Building in New
York City.
Each month approximately 1,406
fugitives from justice are identi
fied through fingerprint records
alone. Re-establishing the identi
ties of missing persons, unknown
deceased persons, amnesia victims,
and disaster casualties are other
public services furnished by this
fingerprinting division.
Griffin Memorial
Hospital Notes
ADMITTED
Patients admitted to Griffin Me
morial Hospital the past week in
cluded Lars Stangeland, Seattle;
Torsten Mikelson; Mrs. Joyce
Smith, Ouzinkie; Billy Brown, Kar
luk; Dewey Rinehart, Bellingham,
Washington; Emil Fondahn, Seat
tle; Mrs. Shirley Henley; Roy Sny
der; Kenneth Tillotson, Eugene,
Oregon; Paul Starnes, Seattle, and
Alex Chichenoff. Sr.„ Afognak.
DISCHARGED
Those discharged were Mrs. Ce
celia Carpenter * and infant; Ole
Gjertson; Miss Joanne Vickery;
Mrs. Susie Lee; Mrs. Ruth Lange;
Dewey Rinehart; Nick Malutin;
Emil Fondahn; Rudolph Sundberg;
Billy Brown; Mrs. Jeri Mansuy;
Roy Snyder; Mrs. Toni Diamond
and infant; Tichon Sheratin; Tors
ten Mikelson* Paul Stamnes and
Nick Katelnikoff.
BIRTHS
Kelvin Johnson, weighing 7 lbs.,
10 ozs., was born on July 11 to
Joyce and Norman Smith of Afog
nak.
Baby Girl Born
A baby girl, Helen Frances,
weighing 6 lbs. 4 ozs., was born
on July 10 to Grace Helen and
Sgt. Thomas Connelly, USA.
Sgt/ Connelly, who is attached
to the Alaska Communications
System in Kodiak, and his wife
have three other children. They
reside at ACS Qtrs. 212A.
Mrs. Mahle
Visits Family
Mrs. Harlan (Billie B.) Mahle *
and sons, Doug, age 4, and Jerry,
3 years old, arrived from Skag
w»ay Sunday to spend the next two
months here.
The visitors are house guests
of Mrs. Mahle’s mother-in-law, Mrs.
Sara Bandy, and her sister-in-law,
Carlene Mahle.
? . r • - .
Couple Apply For
Marriage License
An application for a marriage
license was made by Barbara Gail
Cooper .and Elton Williams, at the
U. S. Commissioner’s office this
week. -•’> - • *
Miss Cooper’s home address is
York, Pa. and Williams is from
Marquette, Kansas.
WAKEFIELDS MAY
Continued from Page 1)
crab plant is expected to start ope
rations this fall.
Participating * in the meeting
here: Aubin Barthold, Cliff Day,
Frank McConaghy, Vern Hilioker,
Del Valentine, Lowell and Howard.
Wakefield, Ralph Jones and Arn
old Hansen.
Famed Airport
New Subdivision
GLENDALE, Calif. (AP) — The
historic airfield where Will Rogers
and Wiley Post began their ill
fated flight to Alaska will soon be
just another subdivision.
The airfield was dedicated in
1929. Perhaps the most photo
graphed of all airports, it was the
backdrop for hundreds of motion,
pictures for three decades. ;
. A. ■ . , . - .' : ... ♦
Life*9 Darkest Moment a webster classic
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