HYDER - FIRST ALASKA TOWN THAT CAN BE REACHED BY PACIFK-YUKON-ALASKA HIGHWAY
SPECIALIZING IN
MINING NEWS OF THE
PORTLAND CANAL
DISTRICT
HYDER WEEKLY HERALD
SUBSCRIPTIONS
$3.00 PER YEAR
IN ADVANCE
VOLUME 9, NUMBER 48.
HYDER, ALASKA, SATURDAY, AUGUST 19, 1933.
SINGLE COPIES 10 CENTS
LIMITING SUPPLY
TO AID SILVER
Limitation of the supply of
silver on the world market to
little more than current pro
duction is the basis, of the sil
ver agreements effected by
Senator Key Pittman at the
London Conference and which
are expected to materially
strengthen the position of sil
ver in addition to increasing
the price.
Details of the agreement pro
posals disclose that the govern
ments represented at London
were asked to forgo further de
basement of their silver coin
age and to substitute silver
coins for low value paper cur
rencies as far as possible.
Then the silver producing
and silver-using countries
concluded a series of agree
ments among themselves which
may be (briefly summarized as
follows:
India, China and Spain, the
chief holders of silver, agreed,
subject to final ratification of |
itheir respective governments,
not to dump their large silver
holdings on the market. India
agrees not to sell more than
140,000,000 ounces of silvei
during the four years begin
ning with 1934 and not to sell
more than 50,000,000 .ounce
in any one year. This, how
ever will not include silver sold
to European nations for use in
making debt payments to the
United States.
China is not to sell any de
monetized silver during the
four years of the agreement,
and Spain it not to sell more
than 20,000,000 ounces during
the same period.
The United States, Canada,
Mexicio, Peru and Australia
agree not to sell any silver dur
ing the four year period and
further agree to take from the
market 35,000,000 ounces of
silver and to use it either for
coinage or currency reserves.
In the view of such leading
financial authority as the Wall
Street Journal this will rough
ly balance potential sales from
silver stocks with government
purchases for impounding or
currency purposes in silver
producing countries.
“The agreement,” the Jour
nal says, “apparently trusts to
the ordinary industrial de-j
mand, plus what China may |
import according to her long
custom to satisfy monetary re
quirements, to raise the mark
et price in the face of current
production friom the mine?.
If any country should mean
while decide to use both gold
and silver as reserve metal,
that event would be a plain
windfall for the mine owners.
What this suggests as to re
newed pressure from the silver
Delegate Will Seek
Retention Marshal's Office
Replying to the plea of the
Hyder Chamber of Commerce
and citizens for the retention
of the local U. S. Marshal’s of
fice, scheduled for abandon
ment September 1 as an econ
omy measure, Delegate A. J.
Dimond, in a letter received
this week, said:
“The argument you make for
continuance of the office is a
forceful one, it seems to me,
and I should be glad to present
it, together with my own views,
on the subject to the Depart
ment of Justice. However, it is
hard to say what the outcome
will be. The Department has
ordered the closing of many
such offices throughout Alaska
and efforts to have them re
stored have so far proved un
availing.The De
partment is operating on a bud
get which reduces its appropri
ation 25 per cent.as compared
to last year, and restrictions of
ervice are being made all over
the United States proper, as
well as Alaska.
“You may be sure I will do
my best to see that the office at
Hyder is retained. . . . ”
Rufus Has Big Vein
A vein found by diamond
drilling in the Rufus Argenta
property, in Venables Valley,
Thompson River area, is at
least 33 feet in width and is
heavily mineralized, according
to reports received in Vancouv
er last week. The vein was
said to have been unusually
wide where outcroppings oc
curred on the surface and drill
ers are ascertaining whether it
held its full width at depth.
Miners report that the struct
ure is identical with that of the
Bridge river.
Big Warship Not Coming
Rumors that the British bat
tleship Dragon of the West In
dies fleet would visit the dist
rict this month are discounted
by information received in
Stewart to the effect that the
vessel in question will visit
Prince Rupert but will a <t i p
pear here.
producing States at Washing
ton next winter is obvious.
The Journal points out, how
ever, that the agreement, aside
from its implications as to mon
etization by individual nations,
“would in a manner stabilize
the market only in respect to
a movement out of it of 35,
000,000 ounces annually, in ad
dition to limiting sales from ex
isting government stocks to a
possible 40,000,000 ounces a
year, and adds that “the agree
ment will be only mildly effi
cacious in the way of ‘doing
something for silver.’
MACKAYE PARTY
LEAVES BY PLANE
FOR UNUK DISTRICT
The prospecting party from
Premier headed by T. B. Mac
Kay got away for the upper
Unuk River district Tuesday
afternoon, after a week’s de
lay, due to unprecedentedly
foggy weather for this time of
the year. The big, 75-foot
Canadian Airways seaplane,
which arrived from the Burn’s
Lake district August 7, started
at noon Tuesday on the first of
several trips to the camp estab
lished by Mr. MacKay last year
on MacKay Lake, near the
headwaters of the Unuk and
about 75 miles north of Hyder.
During the succeeding two
days the plane made several
additional trips to the lake with
supplies and equipment. On
several of the trips the plane
also carried a number of sight
seers from Stewart and Pre
mier.
The prospecting party includ
ed Mr. Mackay, D. L. Coulter,
Wm. Prout, Harry Kay, Ralph
Swartzfiguer, Ed. Edwardson
and Harry Melvill. Two mem
bers of the party1, Messrs. Mel
vill and Prout, were compan
ions of Mr. MacKay on on the
initial trip into the district last
year. The party plans to re
main in the Unuk district 45
days and will come out by
plane in the first part of Oct
ober.
Included among the several
thousand pounds of supplies
and equipment taken in by the
plane was a complete assay
outfit and portable diamond
drilling equipment.
Although no definite infor
mation of the findings made
last year has been obtainable,
it has been reported that some
very large and highly promis
ing gold quartz ore bodies
were discovered, which may
possibly account for the large
increase in the personnel of
this year’s expedition.
•O'
Pioneer Home Board
Decides For Sitka
Alaska’s new home for aged
pioneers will be located at Sit
ka, site of the present Pioneers’
Home, it was decided last week
by the commission authorized
by the last Legislature to select
a site for the new $250,000
home.
Reports from Juneau say the
commission decided in favor of
Sitka by a vote of 4 to 1 after
holding a series of hearings on
claims of various communities
wishing to secure the new
home.
The single dissenting vote was
cast for Anchorage.
Restrictions On Imported
Bakery Products Modified
Restrictions imposed by the
new government flour tax
which amounted virtually to an
embargo on importations of
bread and other bakery prod
ucts from Stewart, B. C., Jly
der’s sole source >of supply,
were lifted .this week when
the Internal Revenue depart
ment at Washington author
ized the immediate release of
bakery articles subject to the
compensating tax dn payment
of the tax to the local customs
collector.
Under the initial regulations
it was necessary to hold such
products at the customs office
until a release was obtained
from the district collector at
Tacoma, Wn., by which time
the imported bread or pastry
would be too dry to eat with
comfort, if at all.
Bread from Stewart was
placed on sale by local merch
ants a few hours after the re
lease of the embargo was an
nounced by customs collector
J. L. Abrams and Hyder bach
elors were considerably hap
pier over release from bread
making.
■o
Jetties Stand Hard Strain
The flood jetties installed on
Salmon River by the Territory
this summer were subjected to
a hard test last Sunday, when
the river rose to the highest
point reached this year. For
some hours the raging river
waters virtually covered all
but one of the jetty structures
but fortunately no damage was
done beyond the washing away
of a small section of log and
brush near the outermost of the
jetties. Later inspection re
vealed that the jetties sus
tained no material damage in
spite of the terrific strain to
which they were subjected by
the torrential stream. That the
structures were able to with
stand the ordeal is a most con
vincing evidence of the careful
planning and thoroughness of
the work of Representative J.
K. Green, who directed the
new flood diversion scheme.
-O
Premier On Big Program
Referring to the operations of
the Premier Gold Mining Co.
in the Caribou district, West
ern Canada Mining News says
of all the companies operating
in the Barkerville area, the lo
cal company has established
the longest and most intensive
working program.
Under the direction of its en
gineers, Messrs. Smith and Lee,
it has established three crews
on three properties on Proser
pine and Antler creek mount
ains.
NEW DISTRICT JUDGE
ARRIVES FROM SOUTH
George F. Alexander, newly
appointed judge of the First
Division district court, sailed
from Seattle for Alaska on the
12th and is probably now in
Juneau. Whether or not he
has taken over the position
from Judge Harding is not
known at this time.
Before leaving Seattle the
jurist said he was looking for
ward to his residence in Alas
ka with great enthusiasm, as
he had been told by Alaskan
friends that this is the best
country on earth.
-o
Woodbine Shareholders
Trying To Regain Mine
Vancouver shareholders of
the Woodbine Gold Mining
Company, at a meeting held in
that city July 14th, formed a
committee and steps were tak
en which may result in legal
action to recover a large num
ber of shares and sums of mon
ey which, according to an in
vestigation, were obtained by
allegedly wrongful methods.
It was reported at the meet
ing that the investigation re
vealed astonishing irregulari
ties and the oommitte was giv
en authority to take such action
as it deems advisable for the
restoration of the property in
valuable shape to the share
holders.
■O'
Hunting Season Opens Sunday
The open season on deer,
mountain sheep and mountain
goat will commence tomorrow,
August 20. The deer season
will extend to November 15,
with a bag limit of 3 for the
season. Only male animals
with horns not less than 3 inch
es above the skull may be tak
en. The goat and sheep seas
on extends to December 31,
with a bag limit of 2 of either
species during the season.
The grouse and ptarmigan
season will open September 1
and continue to February 28.
The bag limit is 15 grouse and
25 ptarmigan a day but not
more than 25 in the aggregate
a day.
-o
W. R. Tonkin Arrive*
W. R. Tonkin, pioneer mining
man, arrived from the Siouth
Saturday and has been busily
engaged during the week in
looking over a number of min
ing properties in the Fish Creek
area in company with Douglas
Campbell, local engineer of the
Consolidated Mining & Smelt
ing Company.