HYDER - FIRST ALASKA TOWN THAT CAN BE REACHED BY PACIFIC-YUKON-ALASKA HIGHWAY! -
SPECIALIZING IN
MINING NEWS OF THE
PORTLAND CANAL
DISTRICT
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SUBSCRIPTIONS
$3.00 PER YEAR
IN ADVANCE
VOLUME 8, NUMBER 52.
HYDER, ALASKA, SATURDAY ' OCTOBER 8, 1932.
BY THE YEAR $3.00
SAYS OPINIONS
VEERING TO SILVER
Discussing the silver monetis
ation question, The Mining
World and Engineering Rec
ord,noted British mining journ
al, says in a recent issue:
“Some economists hold that
gradually, but surely, opinion
is veering to the side of mone
tisation of silver, as a supple
mentary coin to gold. Oppo
sition to the idea has been
strong, especially in those
countries in which supplies of
the yellow metal had become
largely concentrated. Produc
ers of the white metal were ac
tive advocates of monetisation,
and their motive was suspect
ed. A broader view of the
world’s financial structure and
economic problems is now be
ing taken, however, and the
question is being given serious
consideration, not only in high
official circles in Great Britain
but in the United States anti
France as well..
Recognition that silver, essent
ially, is no{ an ordinary com
modity has been spreading.
Gold is desired and preferred
to all other commodities in the
woild, but silver is desired and
preferred in the most populous
of the Oriental countries. The
v. ouv. i udiua
I feu 4JCU
by many economic students
and political executives that
the preferences of the other
half of the world and the chief
medium of exchange used by
them must he given recognit
ion, that silver as well as gold
occupies a unique place in the
world’s business. Until this
fact is recognized, potentiali
ties for expansion in trade can
not be realized.
The buying power abroad of a
millaid people is less than one
half what it was, because the
money which these use can buy
less than half the commodities
it did before. If by internat
ional agreement the price of
silver cojuld be restored by
stages to the normal level, the
inevitable effect in stimulat
ing business would be enor
mous.Sil
ver will ^e needed to supple
ment gold for exchange and re
serve purposes in the compara
tively near future. Why, econ
omists ask, should it not be giv
en an established position now,
as one important means of lift
ing the depression from which
all nations are suffering?”
-:-o-;——
Has Long Residence Record
Mr. W. II. Dodd, the new
government agent at Stewart,
possesses a record of unbroken
residence in the north that few
of the old-fimers can match.
Mr. Dodd spent 24 years at
Telegraph creek in his official
capacity of gold commissioner
and government agent wit hold
a holiday and until he came to
Stewart a few weeks ago had
not seen salt water since 1908.
U. S. Wcalher. Bureau
.. • * •
Expects Mild Winter
In view of the universal
hard times, it is gratifying to
learn from the Outside papers
that the United. States weather
bureau at Washington is ex
pecting the cioming winter to
be a comparatively mild one,
unless there should occur and
unprecedentedly sharp drop
in temperature. 'At- least this
is the normal expectancy, as a
result of an upwardTswing in
temperatures beginning in 19
26, weather bureau officials
announced recently.
The records show that the
weather moves in periods or
cycles of a few cold years, fol
lowed by a few warm years,
hence the upward temperature
trend since 1926, while not
pointing definitely to a mild
winter, is taken as indicating
that the coming season will be
comparatively warm.
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Unicorn Results Encouraging
John Hoyland, managing di
rector of the Unicorn Mines,
came down from the Unicom
property Thursday and reports
that work is continuing in a
satisfactory manner and with
very encouraging results.
School Children Undergo
Health Examination
Pupils of the Hyder public
school were given Friday the
annual health examination re
quired. by Territorial statute.
The examinations were made
by Dr. J. W. Vosburgh of
Stewart. To a majority of the
kiddies the experience of hav
ing the doctor listen to their
hearts, look down their throats
and thump their “innards”
was an exciting and much ap
preciated treat, judging by
their comments.
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Mail Boat On New Schedule
The Ketchikan mail boat,
following the new schedule an
nounced last week, arrived
this week shortly before 7 a. m.
Thursday morning, bringing
a heavy consignment of mail,
in addition to a quantity ot
general cargo.
Under the new schedule the
vessel will continue to arrive
here early Thursday morning
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Rustgard Says Fish Traps ....
Can Be Heavily Taxed
The legality of fish traps
| has been recognized by the
i United States, department oi
j commerce, and by the Alaska
legislature and there is no vvaj
j to abolish them by direct act
! ion except through the federa
.authorities, according to attor
| ney general John Rustgard.
lie believes, however, that th<
Alaska legislature -*may law
! fully levy such a heavy tax oi
tiaps as to make fishing tviti
them unprofitable.
GOOD INDICATIONS
j AT GEORGIA RIVER
A progress report on devel
! opment activities given out by
the Vancouver offices of Geor
i gia River Gold Mines, Ltd., a
few days ago said twp shifts
are n o w employed under
S ground on the company’s ex
tensive holdings on Georgia
river and some surface explor
ation work is also being done
on the outlying veins.
.The crosscut from the Bullion
tunnel level, designed to eut
the . southwest vein, has been
advanced 80 feet since work
was resumed some weeks ago
and the rock at the face was
reported as becoming more
heavily mineralized as work
progresses, indicating that the
vein will be encountered soon.
The ore in No. 1 tunnel on
this vein assays over $25 in
gold and its downward persis
tence to the Bullion tunnel lev
el, 200 feet below and about
400 feet from the surface, is
likely to be of greatest import
ance. Stoping on the camp
vein was said to have disclosed
ore running $30 per ton in
gold.
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First Heavy Frost Hits District
The first heavy frost of the
fall season descended on Ry
der Wednesday night, leaving
the sidewalks heavily coated
with the hoary whiteness of
; winter. Save at one or two
| points Jack Frost’s visit re
i suited in no damage to local
! gardens.
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Alaska S. S. Sailings Change
The October sailing sched
ule of the Alaska Steamship
Company provides for sailings
from Seattle at 10 a. m. every
Saturday morning. Two ves
sels will make the Alaska run.
arriving at Ketchikan on Mon
days. 'South bound vessels
of the line will leave Ketchi
kan Tuesdays.
Seeking New Industry
The Ketchikan Commercial
Club at & recent meeting dis
cussed the possibilities of se
curing a can factory for the
city. It developed that due to
the heavy run of fish this year
many more cans could have
been sold in the district if they
had been available.
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Clone’s Now At Thane
j • '_
Mr. and Mrs. C. N. Crone,
former local residents, are now
located at Thane, Alaska,
[where they plan to remain foi
i j some time, according to1 a let
i i ter from Mr. Crone received b>
‘the Herald this week.
Hyder Closed As Port
> .. • r
Of (Entry For Aliens
. . w *■% **«. V1
D. J. Mulcare, immigration
inspector, left Thursday for
Ketchikan, accompanied by
Mrs. Mulcare. Mr. Mulcare
will be connected with the U.
S., immigration forces at that
point.
The departure of Mr. Mulcare
is the result of an order of the
U. S. Immigration Bureau un
der which Hyder was closed as
a port of entry for aliens on
September 30. The order
means that the work of the lo
cal office will be conducted
through the Ketchikan immi
gration office and aliens who
seek admission to this section
of Alaska will hereafter have
to apply at Ketchikan for vis
| as. It is understood that the
closing of the local office has
! been under consideration for
[ some time and is in line with a
policy of economy and coordi
nation of offices wherever pos
sible without interference with
j public service.
I Weather Man Treats Juneau
Much Worse Than Hyder
Hyder did not enjoy, much
I pleasant weather last month,
I with only five days of sun
' shine during the month, but.at
I that old Jupiter Pluvius did not
! treat us quite as badly as he
. did Juneau, according to an
announcement by the weather
bureau station there that the
capital city was granted only
: 26 hours of sunshine through
I out the entire month of 3ept
! ember. The 26 hours of sun
dune officially recorded were
j .divided between eight days.
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Falling Tree Disrupts
Electric Light System
A tree falling across the
! electric power ..lines Tuesday
! evening left the town shroud
' ed in Stygian gloom from
about 10 o’clock until day
break and caused a hurried
hunting up of candles and
other primative lighting equip
| merit.
Snow Falls In Interior
'Considerable snow was re
ported at Thompson’s Pass on
the Richardson Highway Sep
•! tember 22. Chitina was blank
i eted with 6 inches of the beau
tiful two days later; there was
a foot of it at Giilkana and. a
little at Donnelly Dome and at
Rapids.
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Cocos IIuntei-3 Find Pirate Loot
j -
J Reports received in Seattle
| from the Cocos Island treasure
1 hunters headed by Col. J. E.
jLeckie, of Vancouver, said the
searchers for pirate gold have
! found a chest of silver coins
i dated 1625 and a number of
gold receptacles, supposed to
; be pirate loot from Lima, Peru,
j and other central American
] cities.
TERRITORY FINANCES
STOP ROAD ACTIVITIES
The Board of Territorial
Road Commissioners adopted
no road program this year and
does not-contemplate the ex
penditure of any Territorial
funds on road projects, owing
to, the depleted state of the
Territory’s finances, according
to an interesting letter on
Alaskan affairs received re
cently by the Herald from
William A, Hesse, Territorial
Highway Engineer.
, Mr. Hesse wrote that he
spends a large part of his time
in answering requests for road
money and trying to explain
the difficulty of building or
even maintaining roads with
out funds.
“I think I told you before,”
he wrote, “about our legislat
ure appropriating vastly more
than any possible revenues,
which means that. the money
appropriated for roads was on
paper only, and that it never
was and never will be avail
able for roads. It means that
the schools, the pensions, the
Pioneers’ Home and numerous
other activities for which large
sums were appropriated, will
need , and get every dollar of
the road funds and there, is
nothing that can be done about
it Theoretically, out of an ap
propriation of $300,000 for
roads we have $203,000 un
used. But in reality we have ,
nothing. In fact we should not
have used what we did.”
Pointing out that the last
Territorial legislature appro
priated $2,444,923, nearly 40
times as much as the first Terr
itorial legislature, despite a
smaller population, Mr. Hesse
continued:
“We have simply gone hog
wfld with expenditures and
thei'e is only one of two things
to be done. We must either
put on the brakes and curtail
expenditures or we must levy
greater taxes; but there is a
question in my mind if the in
dustries that are keeping the
Territory alive can endure any
greater tax burdens at this
time.”
Stating that he warned
people over a year ago that we
might have' nothing for roads
this year, Mr. Hesse added:
“We are now depending on
taxe&dhat are yet to come in—
suppbse they are not paid.
.The Territory now has
a cannery oh its hands, which
it was obliged to take for tax
es, and cannery buildings mean
little to the Territory when it
comes to paying sthool teach
ers salaries or running a Pio
neer Home.”
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Davis Now One of “the Finest”
0; ‘J. ‘Davis; former local
resident’ who went to Juneau
some WiPAths ago, is now a
member'df the Juneau city po
lice force, according to advices
from that city.