HYDER - FIRST ALASKA TOWN THAT CAN BE REACHED BY PACIFIC-YUKON-ALASKA HIGHWAY
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VOLUME 10, NUMBER 4.
HYDER, ALASKA, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1933.
SINGLE COPIES 10 CENTS
STILL HOPE FOR FLOOD
PROJECT APPROVAL
That there is still reasonable
ground for hope that the Hy
der flood control project may
be authorized by the Public
Works Administration is indi
cated by Alaska Delegate to
Congress A. J. Dim'ond in a let
ter to the Herald.
Writing under date of Oct
tober 4, the Delegate stated
that there had been no change
in the status of the local pro
ject, adding, “which does not
mean, of course, that approv
al will not finally be given.”
Washington reports from oth
er sources indicate that scarce
ly more than a dozen flood
control projects of any magni
tude have so far been author
ized by the Administration,
which apparently intends to
leave such matters until the
general building program is
completed.
-o
Boat Sinks;Election Party
Has Trying Experience
Forced to hurried escape in
a rowboat from the sinking
Stewart motorboat Ellen off
Halibut Bay while enroute
from Stewart to Anyox last
Monday morning, an election
campaign party headed by W.
J. Asseltine, of Premier, Lib
eral candidate for the British
Columbia Legislature, and in
cluding Howard Campbell and
Donald McAuley, succeeded in
reaching an uninhabited, wind
swept shore, where, with Ern
ie Lewis, owner of the Ellen,
they remained unsheltered in
fog and rain until picked up by
the Union steamship Catala,
enroutte to Stewart, late Mon
day afternoon.
After leaving Stewart late
Sunday night, the Ellen wa:
said to have struck some sub
merged obstacle, probably a
log, while proceeding down j
Portland Canal some 50-odd ;
miles south of Hyder and set
tled so rapidly that the party
had barely enough time to es- j
cape to shore in a little two- j
man rowboat carried on board
the larger vessel before the
Ellen was submerged. The es
cape of the party was said to
havte been rendered still more
precarious by reason of the
small boat leaking badly.
After landing on the beach
the party built a fire and man
aged to keep fairly comfort
able despite the inclement
weather until their fire was
observed by the passing Catala:
which stopped to investigate
and picked them up. On ar
riving hehe the campaigners
were none the worse for their
experience and proceeded to
Prince Rupert on the rescue
ship to continue the campaign.
Delegate To Seek Advance
Of Alaska Election Date
A bill which Delegate Dim
ond will endeavor to have
passed as speedily as possible
when the second session of the
73rd Congress convenes will be
one advancing the date of the
Alaska election, says a Wash-|
ington, D. C., report.
Since approval of the last
amendment to the Constitution
does away with “lame duck”
sessions of Congress and pro
vides for the meeting of that
body in January instead of
March, it will be necessary to
hold the election in A'aska
considerably earlier than in the
past in order to certify the
election of the Delegate by
January. It is probable that
the bill will provide for ihe
election to be held in Septem
ber; in which event it will
mean that considerably more
votes will be cast, as many
electors will be in the Territory
in September who would have
gone south in November.
-o
Moose To Entertain Children
Portland Canal Lodge of the
Loyal Order of Moose will cel
ebrate “Mooseheart Day”, Oct
ober 28, by entertaining the
schoolchildrenof the district at
a special moving picture dis
play at the Community Club
talkie theatre at Premier. The
program will include five reels
of comedy and will start at
12:30 p.m. The entire pro
gram will last two and one
half hours. The picture pro
gram will be donated by the
Community Club. Transport
ation for the kiddies from
Stewart and Hyder will be pro
vided by the Moose. Cars will
leave Stewart at 11 a. m. and
from Hyder a few minutes lat
er.
Ketchikan Mails Due Thursday
Owing to rearrangement of
the sailing schedules of the
Noyes Boat Company, holder
of the Ketchikan-Hyder mail
contract, the weekly mails
from Ketchikan will arrive
hereafter on Thursday, accord
ing to advices received by the
Hyder Dock Company, local
agents of the Noyes company.
----
The motorship Windsor ar
rived from Ketchikan at mid
night Thursday, bringing the
mail from that port and a good
sized batch of freight for local
business houses. The vessel
sailed on the return trip about
1 a. m. Friday.
Mrs. Frank W. Fisher re
turned Thursday from a short
visit in Ketchikan.
COMMISSIONER BLACK
NOT ENTHUSIASTIC
ABOUT BIG HIGHWAY
That Canada cannot expect
much of a return from con
struction of the proposed Inter
national Highway to Alaska;
that British Columbia cannot
bear the cost of the undertak
ing; that there is no possibility
of the Dominion government
putting $16,000,000 into it, and
that the Canadians cannot be
stampeded in that direction by
ballyhoo from Seattle and Fair
banks or Dawson, were state
ments forming the highlights of
a Discovery Day speech made
in Dawson by Hon. George
Black, Speaker of the Canadian
House of Commons and chair
man of the Canadian commiss
ion appointed to examine into
the highway proposal in coll
aboration with the American
international highway com
mission. As qu'oted in press
reports, Mr. Black referred to
the project in the following
terms:
“There is a matter I would
like to refer to very briefly on
this occasion and that is the
proposed extension of the Pa
cific Highway through British
Columbia and Yukon. I am
told it has been said 1 am op
posed to the project. I am not
opposed to it, but I am opposed
to jumping into any important
undertaking entailing the ex
penditure of large sums of the
taxpayers’ money without look
ing the facts and conditions
squarely in the face.
“As a Yukoner, I say, if the
heavily burdened taxpayers of
Canada are willing to dig down
farther and produce the money
to not only build, but maintain
the road, I am all for it. If we
people of Yukon had to finance
it ourselves and pay for its up
keep it would never be built.
“A fairly careful estimate of
the cost of building a dirt road
north through British Columbia
to the southern border of Yu
kon is $12,000,000. Where
could British Columbia get the
money? Do you think the peo
ple of British Columbia want
to put it up? British Columbia
is one of the four western prov
inces which the Dominion gov
ernment is carrying.
“An estimate of the cost of
building through Yukon is $4,
000,000. Have we got it?
Where is Yukon to get that
money? Shall we tax our
selves for it? I don’t hear any
loud cheers at that suggestion.
There is no possibility of the
Dominion government putting
$16,000,000 in the undertak
ing at present.
“If we are honest we can’t
say> the road is badly needed.
There is no likelihood of the
road opening up any mineral
Large Ore Body Located
On United Empire Group
Reports from Stewart indi
cate that an ore body 13 feet
wide and heavily mineralized
with galena has been opened
up on the United Empire prop
erty as a result of recent de
velopment activities carried 'on
under the direction of Wm.
Dann, managing director.
The ore is said to run high in
silver, in addition to carrying
substantial values in gold and
other metals.
The company is making ex
tensive preparations for win
ter operations. Quantities of
lumber from the Hyder saw
mill have been sent up to the
property this week and a sur
vey is being made for an aer
ial tramway. The company is
alslo reported preparing to in
stall a two-machine compress
or. The development plans
are said to contemplate the
driving of a long crosscut tun
nel during the winter season.
--O
The Stewart Tennis Club will
hold a public dance in the Leg
ion Hall, Stewart, this (Satur
day) evening. Music will be
provided by the Premier orch
estra.
development in Yukon.
“Through Northern British
Columbia the road would have
to negotiate high mountain
passes. Very large sums would
be required each year to open
it up, repair damage done by
the winter’s snow and run-off
each spring. How long would
it be open each year? Possibly
three months. Not all of June.
The snow on the passes would
be to deep. Bridges on those
m'ountain streams would need
constant replacement. July,
August and part of September
is about all we could hope for.
How many would travel it?
At the risk of being called a
pessimist I cannot picture any
great concourses of million
aires heading North with their
limousines, scattering their
money to Yukoners along the
way. M'ore likely a thin line of
tin lizzies with camp equip
ment, people hanging onto
their nickels and dimes, and
camping by the roadside.
“No great crowds of people
would take a chance on a trip
like that unless they had a
much better road than $16,
000,000 could build over such
an extent of such country. If
there was a reasonable chance
of getting a return on the mon
ey or of bringing about a great
development by such expendit
uer, the government might con
sider it, but they can’t be
stampeded by any ballyhoo
from Seattle, Fairbanks or
Dawson.’’
GREEN ADVOCATES
MINING GRUBSTAKES
A Federal “grubstake” to
put unemployed men to work
mining gold in placer fields
was urged by President Will
iam Green, of the American
Federation of Labor, according
to the Washington, D. C., Her
ald.
Declaring the proposal to be
“thoroughly sound” and call
ing upon President Roosevelt to
adopt it, Green said:
“A President who has shown
his scorn of tradition and v:rn
out customs should find this
proposal interesting and allur
ing. I hope he finds it worth
a broad-scale trial.”
Declaring there is still plenty
of gold in the hills of we'l-de
fined placer regions, Green
added:
“Prospectors will find it, pan
it or dig it, and turn it into the
channels of commerce, to back
up credit to many times its val
ue, to feed those who mine it
and to relieve communities or
unemployed workers.
“Newly fledged placer min
ers, barring some lucky strike,
will not get rich, but they will
gain a wealth of renewed faith
in themselves and their coun
try.”
Wilson Funeral Services Held
The mortal remains of Jos
eph H. Wilson, late Village
Commissioner of Stewart, who
died suddenly last week, wove
laid at rest in the Stewart cem
etery Sunday afternoon, fol
lowing funeral services in St.
Mark’s Episcopal Church with
Rev. G. H. Moody, pastor, of
ficiating, assisted by the St.
Mark’s choir.
The last rites were attended
by a major portion of the
populations of Hyder a^d
Stewart and floral offerings
were numerous and beautiful.
The funeral was directed by
H. A. Stewart and the pall
bearers included C. B. Hag^r,
H. P. Gibson, O. J. Hutchings,
P. S. Jack and E T. Apple
whaite.
-u
Powder Arrives for Big Miss.
A shipment of 300 cases of dy
namite for use at the Big Miss
ouri mine in the renewed de
velopment operations of the
Buena Vista Mining Company
arrived Friday morning on the
ore steamer Griffcb and will
be followed by another large
shipment later.
-o
John Mellor, Stewart busi
ness man, left Monday on the
Catala on a business trip to
Prince Rupert.