HYDER « FIRST ALASKA TOWN THAT CAN BE REACHED BY THE PACIFIC - YUKON - ALASKA HIGHWAY
r
SPECIALIZING IN
MINING NEWS OF THE
PORTLAND CANAL
DISTRICT
HYDER WEEKLY HERALD
.. "
SUBSCRIPTIONS
53.00 PER YEAR
IN ADVANCE
--*
VOLUME NO. 8, NO. 38.
HYDER, ALASKA, SATURDAY, JULY 2, 1932.
BY THE YEAR $3.00
C. L, TURNER VICTIM
OF SAD ACCIDENT
Victim of one of the saddest j
tragedies that has so far oc
curred in the district, Clarence
L. Turner, one of Hyder’s best
known and highly regarded
residents, was instantly killed
last Saturday as a result of the
accidental discharge of a 30-30
repeating rifle in his cabin
home on Premier Avenue.
The remains of the unfortu
nate man were found by Chas.
G. Skoning, a neighbor and
close friend of the deceased, j
at 5:30 Saturday afternoon.
Mr. Skoning went to the cabin
to secure a pail of water. Re- J
ceiving no answer to his usual j
hail, he opened the door and j
was horrified to behold the 1
body of his friend lying on the j
floor in a welter of blood.
After ascertaining that Mr. ;
Turner was dead, he went to j
the near-by residence of Clyde
B. Hager, who summoned U. S.
Commissioner Chas, F. Sand
ford and Deputy U. S. Marshal
Warren S. Harding, who re
paired at once to the scene of
the tragedy.
Examination ot the premises
indicated that Mr. Turner had
been sitting on a chair in front ;
of a small table in the act of j
cleaning the rifle when the fat-1
al shot was fired. Five unex-,
ploded shells which he evident- i
ly had extracted from the mag-1
azine, lay on the table, togeth
er with a cleaning rod, to
which a fresh cleaning rag was
attached. Several other bits of
cloth, apparently intended for
the same purpose, lay on the
table beside the cleaning rod.
The rifle lay on the floor in
front of the table with both
ankles of the deceased resting
on the firing mechanism. Mr.
Turner’s body lay on its right
side close by the chair. The
features were calm and com
posed and a pipe which Mr.
Turner evidently had been
smoking at the time, lay on the
floor with the stem within an
inch of his lips, indicating that
ithadnot fallen from his mouth
until the body struck tire floor.
Following a general survey of
the premises, Dr. J. W. V03
bux-gh was summoned and a
coi'oner’s jury was enrolled
from among the nearby resi
dents by the Commissionei\
Dr. Vosburgh's examination
revealed that the fatal bullet,
the empty shell of which was
found in the firing chamber of
the rifle, had entei-ed the body
an inch or so under the breast
bone and ranged upward to a
point near the apex of the left
shoulder, passing through the
heart and lung enroute. After
leaving the body, the bullet
struck the ceiling above and
slightly to the rear of the chair
on which the deceased was
seated. Dr. Vosbui-gh stated
that death was undoubtedly in
stantaneous.
From the direction taken by
ROOSEVELT DEMO. NOMINEE
I
After an all-night session Thursday
night, accompanied by much squab
bling and -dissension, the Democratic
convention at Chicago yesterday
nominated Franklin D. Roosevelt as
the Democratic candidate for presi
dent of the United States. Smith was
Roosevelt's principal opponent hut j
could not muster sufficient strength i
to gain the nomination. The vote ;
lor Roosevelt was !)5t), for Smith. 1!10,
according to the radio reports.
the bullet, it appeared certain
that the gun must have been ;
resting butt down on the floor
by Mr. Turner’s right leg at the |
time of discharge and with the j
muzzle so close to his breast |
that the flame from the explos
ion burned both outer shirt and
undershirt and blackened the
flesh beneath.
Just how the gun came to be
fired will probably never be
known. It is equally mysterious
as to how Mr. Turner, who was
entirely familiar with firearms,
happened to overlook the sixth
shell in the gun after remov
ing the other five.
From evidence given by Mr.
Skoning at the inquest, it ap
pears that Mr. Turner planned >
to leave Saturday morning for i
Fish Creek to deliver a mess- j
age to Al. Soffe. lie was seen j
by Mr. Skoning standing by the
gateway to his home about 7
a. m. Saturday morning, but j
for some unexplained reason
failed to make the contemplat
ed journey, as Mr. Soffe testi
fied that he had not visited
him that day.
It is surmised, however, that
the deceased probably went a
short way up the Salmon valley
but decided to return before
reaching the Soffe camp,
which is situated near the
Mountainview property and
about fiva*miles from town.
However, this is pure conject
ure, as no one appears to have
seen him either leaving or re
turning to town and all efforts
to trace his movements after
he was seen by Mr. Skoning at
the gate were fruitless.
The fact that he was prepar
ing to clean his gun when the
| shooting occurred is considered
| practically certain evidence
that he went up the valley, as
it was his invariable habit to
clean the weapon immediately
on returning from hunting, a
pursuit that he had followed
considerably during the past
six or eight months. The ex
act time of the accident is also
problematical, as investigation
failed to disclose anyone who
[ heard a shot fired during the
! day. When found, the body
I was quite cold, indicating that
I death had occurred at least
; five or six hours before.
Everything on the premises
was found in perfect order and
arranged with a neatness that
disclosed Mr. Turner to have
|been a most exemplary house
! keeper.
I The coroner’s jury, consisting
•! of T. H. Evans, Harold John
i son, Joe Connors, Ray Snyder
1 Clyde B. Hager and J. II. Re
- gan, returned a verdict to th<
effect that Mr. Turner’s deatt
' was due to the accidental dis
NO ASSESSMENT
AFFIDAVIT REQUIRED
The act suspending the per
formance of annual assessment
work on mining claims for the
year ending July 1, 1932, does
[not follow the war-time precen
| ent and no affidavits or other
notices are necessary in order
| to hold unpatented claims on
j which the work was not done,
i according to a statement pub
lished in Mining Truth based
| on notices received from Wash
ington. The text of the sus
I pension resolution follows:
j “That the provisions of Sect
I ion 2324 of the Revised Stat
utes of the United States which
I requires on each mining claim
, located and until patent has
been issued therefor, not less
jthan $100 worth of labor to be
performed or improvements ag
! gregating such amount to be
| made each year, be and the
j same is hereby suspended as to
'all mining claims in the United
i States including Alaska during
the fiscal year from July 1, 19
j 31, to July 1, 1932.”
j It is pointed out, however,
j that unless further legislation
i is enacted, it will be necessary
to perform the usual amount of
labor before noon, July 1, 1933,
for the assessment year begin
ning July 1, 1932.
charge of a 30-30 Winchester
! rifle while he was in the act of
cleaning the weapon and that
death occurred between the
I hours of 7 a. m. and 5:20 p. m.
Investigation of his personal
affairs has revealed that he
was in excellent health, that
his financial situation was good
and that he was anticipating a
possible trip to his old home in
Farmington, Kentucky, to see
his parents and other relatives.
He was a person of customar
iily calm and philosophical dis
position, not given to depress
ion or worry, and was light
hearted and affable under all
conditions. He was greatly in
terested in base ball and other
outdoor sports and was look
ing forward eagerly to playing
with the Hyder ball team in
the soft ball series.
Deceased was 41 years of age
and is survived by his father
; and mother, a sister and three
j brothers, all of whom reside in
j the vicinity of Louisville, Ken
tucky. He was a veteran of
the Great War, having served
! in the U. S. Navy during the
period of American participat
1 ion and possessed an excellent
rating, being retired with the
rank of quartermaster, class A.
I As “Red” Turner, he was
known to virtually every indi
vidual in the community and
was highly regarded by all,
:' hence his untimely demise was
■ I a shock to everyone and deeply
, ‘deplored.
■ j In accordance with instruct
• j ions from the relatives, funera
1' rites for the deceased wert
i
Continued on Page 4
INDEPENDENCE DAY
CELEBRATION PLANS
Arrangements for the cele
bration of Independence Day
next Monday were completed
at a public meeting held in the
Chamber of Commerce build
ing Wednesday evening, with
E. D. Haddon presiding and a
representative gathering on
hand.
After extended discussion it
was decided that present con
ditions precluded any attempt
at extensive observance and
that the celebration should be
designed to provide the utmost
entertainment for young and
old at the least expense; a wise
decision in view of the string
ent times.
N. M. Traversy and II. W.
Thomas volunteered to act as
a committee to raise the necess
ary finances and Messrs. C. B.
Hager, Holger Johnson, Gus
Erickson and Ben Oien were
appointed by the chair to have
charge of the sports program.
Mr. Traversy was also dele
gated to look after the job of
decorating the streets, with au
thority to select his assistants.
It was pointed out that there
I is a sufficient supply of deco
i rative materials on hand from
last year to make a creditable
display.
The first part of the day’s
program will be devoted to the
children’s sports, starting at
1:30 p. m. at the base ball
park. These will be followed
by a soft ball contest between j
the Hyder and Stewart teams
of the Soft Ball League, start
ing at 3 :30 p. m. This will con
clude the afternoon program.
The early evening will be de
voted to a base ball game be
tween a combined Hyder-Stew
art team and the Premier ball
team, which will be the first
game of the season in the Hiam
Cup series. The game is sched
uled to start at 6 p. m.
The day’s program will con
clude with a dance in Pioneer
Hall under the auspices of the
Pioneers of Alaska.
■-——u-- ■ ■■■—
Inspector McDonald of the
British Columbia Provincial
1 Police forces spent the past
' week-end in Stewart verifying
1 the investigation made by Con
1 stable Potterton into the death
• of J. M. MacRitchie, member
of the Ernest Blue expedition
1 into the Henry Creek section
1 last winter, who died on Taft
' Creek in April. Inspector Mc
t Donald reported finding every
thing satisfactory.
Elmer Ness, Seattle tonsorial
aitist, has taken over the con
duct of the Traversy barber
shop and is handing out the lat
est and most approved brands
of haircuts and shaves to local
patrons who desire his accomp
lished services. Mr. Ness, who
arrived last week, anticipates
bringing his family here later.
Democrats Adopt Wet Plank
Radio reports Wednesday
night announced that the Dem
ocratic convention adopted an
out and out wet plank by a
vote of 934% to 213% at the
Chicago convention.
I
Government Offices Moved
The United States Customs
and United States Marshal’s
offices moved this week to
new quarters, the former being
now located in the Boundary
Gift Shop building, the latter
in the building formerly occu
pied by the Hyder Garage and
Service Station. The new quar
ters of the Marshal also con
tain the federal jail and are ex
cellently equipped for the pur
pose.
-o
LOCAL NOTES
The departure of Rev. H. R.
Cioss and family for Juneau
was delayed until this morning,
owing to the receipt of advices
from Juneau, their new locat
ion, indicating that the retiring
pastor of the Juneau M. E.
Church was somewhat delayed
in leaving that point.
Mr. Cross planned to leave
last Monday but decided to
lay over until today after learn
ing the situation at Juneau.
Hugh B. McGuire, well known
mining man,arrived on the Cat
al Monday evening in connect
ion with his local mining inter
ests.
W. R. Tonkin, pioneer mining
man of the district, arrived
Saturday from Vancouver to
look after his local interests.
Miss Grade Allen, Miss K.
McMeekin, P. Girisilo, C. C.
Smith and Chas. Graham were
arrivals from Prince Rupert on
the same vessel.
Mr. and Mrs McDermott and
family, of Premier, were out
going passengers last Saturday
morning.
: Charles Adam of Stewart re
; turned Saturday from Prince
! Rupert, where he underwent
an operation on his arm made
necessary' by' an old war
| wound.
J. H. Byles, auditor of the
i Premier Gold Mining Comp
! arrived last Saturday to checl
| the accounts of the company.
Rev. Evan Baker severed hi:
I connection with the Unitee
1 Church in Stewart Monday' anc
i left for his new station in An
iyox Monday evening.
J. Percy returned to Premie
I Saturday after a visit south.
—
E. Olson was among thos
j leaving for the south Saturday
NEW POSTAGE RATES
TO START NEXT WEEK
The increase of postal rates,
recently voted by congress to
help balance the budget, will
become effective July 6 and
will continue until July 1,1934.
Postage on all matter of the
first class, except postcards,
will be three cents, and addit
ion of one cent for each ounce
j to the present rate. The post
age on business reply cards
will be two cents each and the
postage on letters in business
reply envelopes will be three
cents an ounce or fraction
thereof The postage on air
mail will be 8 cents for the first
ounce or fraction and 13 cents
for each additional ounce or
fraction.
Postmaster Hill advises that eare
should be taken to see that letters
have proper postage attached. For a
limited time only, letters bearing in
sufficient postage will be forwarded
with postage due stamps attached for
2 cents additional. Thereafter letters
lacking proper postage will be held
and returned to the sender when his or
her identity is known; otherwise they
will be sent to the Dead Letter office.
To avoid this letters should bear the
return address of the sender.
o
Revenue Law Requirements
According to Burns Poe, Col
lector of Internal Revenue for
Washington and Alaska, the
new Revenue law requires ev
eryone who conducts a soda
fountain, ice cream parlor, or
similar place of business, or
who manufactures and sells
soft drinks, fruit juices, cax
bonated waters and similar
beverages to procure from the
Collector of Internal Revenue
and keep posted a Certificate
of Registry. There is a tax at
different rates on the manu
facture and sale of these dif
ferent products, the tax being
effective on June 21. Taxpay
ers should immediately request
Certificates of Registry and
forms upon which to return the
tax for the last 10 days of June.
Under the provisions cf the
law, all deeds or instruments
conveying real estate must
bear documentary stamps. If
the value of the property con
veyed exceeds $100 but does
not exceed $500, the tax is 50
cents. Over $500 the tax is 50
cents for each additional $500
or fraction thereof.
i -o
C. W. Goldsburgh, former
employee of the Premier comp
any, who has been away for
some time, returned on the Cat
ala Monday to resume employ
; ment with that company. It is
l understood that Mr. Golds
l burgh will be in charge of the
rehabilitation of the Porter- Id
aho tramway on Marmot river.
-o
J. Knight and Mrs. W. Har
ner were among the number ar
; riving from Vancouver on the
. Catala Monday evening.