Published hir
at Palmer
Jack Aliman
Editor
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"e have heard many colonists b3.y
chat they mere dissatisfied ' ith the
manner in which all the various elec
tions were held, insisting that be
cause of the inability to yet in to
the meetinns only the few living
close to town had any voice in the
lonination and election of officers.
Obviously, it is quite impossible
hr every colonist to attend a meet
ing at vie time, so to correct that
5 it nation ballot s w e r e m ime o r r an h e d
and mailed to each member of the
colony group for the purpose of nom
inating those to run for representa
tives from the various districts.
Ail that was necessary was to
choose three names from the list of
colonist residents in each district
and return it to the election com
cittee. 3.;.t how many were interested
enough to cast their votes?
'ell, we don’t know what the to
tal was, but in District number One,
containin' 60 eligible voters, there
were just fourteen ballots cast.
Pot a very large percentage con
sidering the importance of the issue
and she amount of work expended in
arranging the election so that all
ould have a voice.
If, In a half dream daring the
ri f ht,, you shou 1 d avaken 1'i th the
thought that someone had just fired
an eight inch cannon off under your
floor, don’t be too alarmed. It is
simoly the ground protestin£ the
. udden frost carping that is being
formed.
An inch and a half crack, for all
in the world like an earthquake fis
sure, opened up right through the
center of the earn the other nirht
■hth a boom that might h ve been the
■jowder house biot ins ur.
!■ "any signs of nearing Christmas
re aurarent. The postoffice ran
out of staims. Peonle arp more in
terested in vhen the next boct is
leaving, rather than v'hen the mail
/ill be in. And many mothers are
raving less trouble getting ~onny
to rack in the rood.
How about those dimes and nickels
you are getting from merchants in
your change?
T7hy not drop then into one of
the handy Xmas Fund boxes and help
the children enjoy a big time?
’Kember how even the most inex
pensive present thrilled you when
you were a little shaver?
Sourdough San nas in fron his
cabin out in the woods yesterday
and it was here at the office he
first heard of the tragedy that be
fell the Umber,a family.
Saddened, as w? s everyone else
in the valley, he shook his old
vhite head, and knowing, him vTe were
prepared for some of his old back
woods philosophy on the accident.
Sam likes to think out causes
and effects for himself, and after
a few moments of thoughtfulness he
started along a line that hadn’t
entered our head before.
’’Impatience said Sam, ;:Is the
cause of a lot of trouble in this
world. '.*hy do we all insist upon
immediate results the minute we
g it it intuh our heads to do some
thin’? Te all do.
”1’rinstance, he continued,
■Not long ago I got a reg’lar sash
tuh take the place of that there
candle*.- reased floursack I bin usin’
for a winder. That there colonist
neighbor of mine driv clean out’n
his way to nick it up at Art Shon
becks and deliver it tuh me.
”Course, life anybody else, I'
wanted to vet it in right away and
it was already giftin’ dark. I
cut the lows and slaoned in a kinda
fname, then found it was a little
tight. ell, I tried to force it
and busted twro of the panes. T'an’ t
nothin’ in the ww>rld but impatience
’’Same with this here business cf
startin’ a fire. See by the papers
every once in a T hile where someone
; its blowed ue. Some more of this
here impatience business. Eerysene
to start a fire! Ie st ano ther way
of sayin’ yer in a hurry!
'’Nov there ain’t no country m
i/orid. 7'here you -rant a pood quick
fire oftenor’n yuh do right here
in Alaska and we never used coal
oil.
San grinned and closed one keen
blue eye.
"One reason,” he chuckled, ’rras
’cause we didn’t have it. But vie
{ ot along jest the sane, and a bit
of experience vith nipped fingers
and the like showed us how. You
knoir that unwrote lav we have in
the interior about not movin’ away
from a trail cabin ’thout leavin’
shavin’s and dry kindlin’ in case
the next feller rdvht be frizz up
a bit. ell, that’s the result,
and ain’t nobody can say but what
yuh can git a fire goin’ in a
hurry. Birch bark’s rood, too.
Bettor’n shovin’s, I think, and I
c Iwrm rot sono around handy in
case T want a fire riaht quick.
Cheaper, too, savin’ nothin’ ’bout
it bein’ safe.”
Sari’s right, folks. G-et a few
scrolls of birch bark and see if
he isn’t. You won’t miss the big
newspapers as a fire starter, nor
curse the BIOYBBB for being so
small after you once get the habit
of having berk or shavings on hand.