HYDER - FIRST ALASKA TOWN THAT CAN RE REACHED BY PAC1FIC-YUKON-ALASKA HIGHWAY
SPECIALIZING IN
MINING NEWS OF THE
PORTLAND CANAL
DISTRICT
HYDER WEEKLY HERALD
r
SUBSCRIPTIONS
$3.00 PER YEAR
IN ADVANCE
VOLUME 11, NUMBER 7.
HYDER, ALASKA, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1934.
SINGLE COPIES 10 CENTS
1 KILLED, 3 HURT IN
ALASKA PLANE CRASH
Walter Holmquist, 20, of Jun
eau, was killed and three oth
er Juneau residents were se
verely injured when the Alas
ka Southern Airways seaplane
Baranof, piloted by Gene Mey
ering, crashed in heavy timber
near Pinta Bay, a short dist
ance from Juneau, a few days
ago.
Other victims of the crash
were Tom Moyer, who was on
a hunting trip with Holmquist
at the time of the accident,
and who sustained a broken
leg; pilot Meyering, who also
suffered a broken leg, and
Lloyd Jarman, mechanic of the
plane, who received a severely
wrenched back.
The crash was said tc have
been due to the plane being
caught in a down-draught
while attempting to land. T he
plane was demolished.
The plight of the victims
was not discovered until a
searching plane had been ;:ent
out from Juneau, after the
wrecked plane had failed to
return on time. Simmon Shel
don, pilot of the rescue plane,
spotted the wreckage about
100 yards from shore and took
the injured men to Juneau, af
ter placing them on his plane
by means of an improvised lit
ter. The body of Holmquist
was brought in later.
It was the (first fatal air
plane accident to occur in
southeastern Alaska since
Stephen Selig of Ketchikan
lost his life in a plane crash
near Karta Lake three and a
half years ago. Meyering,
who has visited Hyder on sev
eral occasions in the past three
years, is considered one of the
most reliable pilots in south
eastern Alaska.
n
Northland Line To Carry
Mails During Winter
The Northland Transporta
tion Company vessels operat
ing between Seattle and south
eastern Alaska, will carry a
limited quantity of mail during
the coming winter, according
to reports from Seattle. Only
first class mail and newspap
ers will be carried on the
Northland ships and no mails
will be dispatched on them for
points west of Juneau.
Under this arrangement, res
idents of southeastern Alaska
will have mail twice a week
from Seattle, with an addition
al mail every ten days when a
Canadian steamer takes mail
as far north as Skagway. The
southbound service will be sim
ilar.
I Plans For Increasing
Population Of Alaska
Under Consideration
Outlining the administration
policy of economic autonomy
to make the American territor
ies and island possesions en
tirely self-supporting, Oscar L.
Chapman, assistant secretary
of the interior indicated in a
recent statement that the ad
ministration might w.ork out a
plan to increase the density of
the population in Alaska.
“Alaska is underpopulated
with less than one inhabitant
for every ten square miles. The
possibility of colonizing the
Territory with a limited num
ber of American homesteaders
imbued with the old pioneer
spirit is engaging the earnest
study of the administration at
present,” Chapman said.
-o
Chinese Protest Over
Silver Program Fails
The protest of the Nanking
government over the action of
the United States in increasing
the price of silver will cause no
deviation from the present pol
icy, according to the tenor of a
note sent 'to the. Chinese gov
ernment last week by Sscre
clf State Cordell Hull.
The message indicated that
although the United States
will try to avoid disturbing the
economy of public finances in
China, it pointed out that the
policy under which the admin
istration is buying silver in
world markets was laid down
by Congress and cannot be
changed in its broad objective
by the President.
As a result, the Chinese gov
ernment imposed a ten per cent
tax on silver exports from
China in an effort to prevent
outflow of the metal.
o
Govt. Closing Signal
Corps Offices in Alaska
Making what is designated
as another step in what may
eventually be the complete
withdrawal of the government
from the communications bus
iness in Alaska, the Signal
Corps station at Livengood, a
short distance from Fairbanks,
was recently closed down but
has since been reopenend un
der private operation as a com
mercial station.
The Livengood office was the
ninth to be closed by the gov
ernment in Alaska under its
limited operations porgram.
-o
Dr. J. H. Carson, former Pre
mier mine physician and now
specializing in optometry at
Prince Rupert, was a visitor
for several days this week.
BIG DEVELOPMENTS
IN MONETARY POLICY
BELIEVED IMPENDING
Recurrent rumors 'of import
ant moves in the national mon
etary policy were emphasized
Wednesday in Washington re
ports stating that big develop
ments are expected to be an
nounced within the next few
days in connection with the
monetary policy as a result of
discussions which have been in
progress this week between
President Roosevelt, Treasury
leaders and banking and fi
nancial leaders of the country.
No details of what form these
may take have yet been re
vealed, although it is rumored
that they may include relaxa
tion oif foreign exchange re
strictions.
*
-o
Delegate Enroute To Capital
Alaska Delegate to Congress j
_
A. J. Dimond is now on his I
way back to the national capi- i
tal after visitinjr a large part j
of the Territory.
Following his. return from
Washington in August, the j
Delegate visitecf all the prin
cipal centers of population a'
far north as Nome, as well as
some c|f the outlying districts.!
He exjpects to be back at his I
desk in Washington by Novem- j
ber 1.
Before leaving Ketchikan for
the south, Mr. Dimond an
nounced an intention to visit j
Premier Patullo of British Col
umbia regarding the proposed j
International Highway, which
is one of the Delegate’s pet
projects, for which he has al
ready asked a congressional
appropriation of $2,100,000
for survey and construction of
the Alaska section.
Nearly Half Million Needed
For Rehabilitation Of Nome
AH least $426,500 of PWA j
funds will be required for the
rehabilitation of Nome and
recommendation for an allot
ment of that amount has been j
made to Washington by Col.
Elmer Clark, PWA represent
ative, who> was sent to the fire-1
razed city on Bering Sea by
Secretary Ickes some days ago.1
Of the proposed allocation,!
$275,000 would go for con
struction of a Federal building,
which would include quarters'
to be leased to the municipal
government. An additional
$135,000 would be loaned to
the municipality for construct
ion of streets, sidewalks, drain-!
age system, fire house and!
lighting system, and $16,500'
would be devoted to building;
bunkbouse accomodations for j
the homeless.
Astonishing Aviation
Developments In Alaska
Predicted By Roper
That astonishing develop
ments will take place in the
aviation industry of Alaska
within the next decade was the
statement made by Secretary
of Commerce Roiper when the
Federal Aviation Commission
opened hearings in Washing
.on a few days ago.
The people of Alaska are far
more air-minded than those in
the States, the Secretary as
serted, and he added that as a
result of his visit to the Terri
tory this summer plans are
now being made for install
ation of air navigation facili
ties. Roper also called upon
the commission to consider a
permanent policy for develop
ment o'f Alaska from the stand
point of civil and military air
needs.
-o
Mysterious Shooting in Juneau
Mrs. Mary Erwin, 51-year
old secretary in the NRA office
in Juneau, was found last week
on the Gold creek bridge in a
critical condition from a bullet
wound in her temple. The
wound is said to have been j
self-inflicted but no motive for ;
the act could be discovered.
Her husband and two small
sons reside in Petersburg.
Later reports said she died.
-O'
Great Air Race To
Australia Started Yesterday
Twenty flyers from eight dif
ferent countries started Friday
from Mildenhall, England, on
the great 11,500 mile flight to
Melbourne, Australia for a
prize of $50,000.
Famous American flyers are
included in the list of entrant:-.
-o—:
Fairbanks Men Receive
Russian Decoration
Recent press reports carried
the interesting news that the
Soviet government had con
ferred upon William Lavery
and Clyde Armistead of Fair
banks, the Order of Lenin, one
of the highest Russian deco
rations, as a reward for their
assistance in the rescue ,cf a
Russian scientific expedition in
the Arctic lart spring.
The investment ceremonies
took place in the famous
Kremlin, w here President
Cherviakov of the Soviet re
public pinned the meddls on
the breast of the two Ameid- j
cans, both of whom are air-!
plane mechanics.
ALASKA GOLD OUTPUT
MAY REACH $18,000,000
Higher price and increased
output may bring the gold out
put of Alaska for 1934 to $18,
000,000 or more, acc'crding yo
estimates based on shipments
so far during ithe year.
Gold shipments from Alaska
t othe United States during the
past nine months have been so
much larger than those of last
year that, coupled with 'ihe
new higher price for the metal,
there is every reason <to antici
pate an annual total as indi
cated above. Customs house
figures of shipments up to the
end of September disclose to
tal shipments of $10,274,822.
These figures, however, dis
close only gold that has been
shipped and provide no indi
cation of the considerable
quantities which Still remain
in the Territory and may not
be accounted for until the close
of the year or later. Produc
tion iof the Territory last year
under the old gold valuation
totaled in value $9,889,153, ac
cording ito customs figures.
-o
Ketchikan To Have Brewery
Ketchikan will soon have a
full-fleged brewery of its own,
if plans announced recently by
Lester O. Gore, local attorney,
reach successful culmination.
A group olf Ketchikan busi
ness men were said to be be
hind the project. The brew
ery is to be of floating type,
operating on a barge which
will be moored at a suitable lo
cation. The former schooner
Aluman has been converted (to
suit the purpose and the trans
fer of the brewing plant was
proceeding in Seattle. The ves
sel is 187 feet long.
The operating company is
designated as the Pilsner
Brewing Company of Alaska.
The plant will have a mini
mum capacity cf 100 half-bar
els a day and will employ 11
men. The firm expects to dis
tribute its product throughout
southeastern and western Alas
ka. The same company also
plans to establish a brewery in
Juneau and is said to have al
ready purchased the Juneau
plant equipment but will not
proceed further with the ven
ture until later.
Only one brewery is operat
ing in Alaska at present. This
is located at Fairbanks and dis
tributes its product in the in
terior and along 'the railroad
belt.
-o
Rev. and Mrs. G. H. Moody
and son returned Thursday
from a visit in the south.