T
VOL. 2
PETERSBURG, ALASKA MARCH 23, 1928
NO. 35
Meeting Of The City Dads
Regular meeting of the city coun
cil (Monday evening, March 19tli)
not convened. No quorum. Post
poned to Tuesday, March 20th, ’28.
Meeting of March 20th. Minute?
read by Clerk Clauson (Mayor Swan
son in the chair). Minutes approv
ed as read. (Minutes of meeting
of March 4th)
Finance Committee report—Noth
ing at this time.
Fire and Water Committee—Noth
ing at this time.
Public Works and Public Pro
perty Committee—Nothing at this
time.
Police report—Nothing at this
time.
Public Schools Committee. Re
port—verbal—by Ohmer. Had to
do with the heating mechanism at
the school on reports of janitor and
some of school staff that the rig
wasn’t working properly. Ohmer
said that both he and Enge had in
vestigated, but had located no par
ticular trouble as the affair was
working very well at time of visit.
Forest Fryer, of the Fryer Macnine
Works, was present at the council
meeting, but said nothing at this
time. Ohmer suggested that Fryer
speak on the matter. Taken up
later under new business.
Light and Power Committee—No i
report at this time.
Communications — Long letter i
from J. Holton. Moved that it be
carried over for closer considers- ]
tion and the arrival of an attorney i
from Juneau who was expected to
be present on April 2nd. <
Report—verbal— from Bowman, i
Supt. of Schools, that leaks had de- i
veloped in number one building ana i
had been so bad that pupils were i
oblige dto move to dryer parts of s
the rooms. Agreed to look the i
matter up and repair.
i
Unfinished business—Report made i
that the garage ordered removed
from street some time ago was still l
in place. The City Marshal ordered 1
to have the building taken oh the 1
property in question before next ]
meeting night. More or less talk J
on this subject. This removal mat- 1
ter had been up before the council 1
so many times and nothing had <
been done that Marshal was in
structed he see to it that there’d
be no farther cause for council con
sideration.
At this time Fryer spoke on the
heating plant and the alleged
trouble. Said that he had found
nothing wrong with the plant be
. yond some dirt settlings in the pip
ing between oil pump and fuel
tank. Had renewed check valve
and done some refitting of pipe
so that the new check could be
easier reached. Had found the gen
eral mechanism of the burner poor
ly taken care of and dirty. Said
that if the machinery were cleaned
occasionally and handled with a
fair backing of intelligence there’d
be no bother. Suggested that the
thermostat be left alone—not dis
, turbed. Replying to questions from
Omer, Allen and others as to wheth
er or not later modeled appliances
of the same make of burner and
heating outfit could be fitted to
one in use, said: “It would be out
of the question to attempt to fit
* parts of other models to this par
ticular firing device even though
there was but little difference be
- tFeen this and other styles."
Reports made that the fire escape
beeu gpne over and made se
cure in accordance with suggestions
of the school committee brought in
before.
A request came in that the schoo
fund be creamed up to the turn
of $1500 to meet coming expens*
account. After consideration $120(
was set aside for purpose mention
ed.
Matter of fire equipment came uj
at this time. Thought that the out
fit on hand wa3 more than obsolets
and of little real good should a
i
respectable sized blaze hit the city.
Allen, at this time, spoke briefly ot
the Ford fire truck and LaFrance
pumping rig, combined, that the
Wrangell department had in com
mission. Thought that it a very
good piece of fire equipment and a
machine capable of doing good
work. Learned that the price of
same was around $2800. Ohmer
said that he had seen the machine
and had an idea that it would fit
very nicely into the town'- need's.
The clerk was instructed learn
what he could from manufacturers
relative to the machine spoken of
and others of different companies
putting out fire fighting machinery
Clerk instructed to file protest
with Henderson, Juneau, bearing on
the system of territorial school ap
propriations so that if matter came
before the next legislature the local
board would be heard along with
the protests from other localities.
Clauson appointed School Tax
Collector to succeed himself.
Appointment of Judges for the
primary election, April 24th, came
up. Postponed until next meeting.
Schoettler, speaking for the “U.
5. A. inquired about tbo r«ui uc
ihe old school building (Fisher
men’s Hall) which the organization
was using. Informed that the rent
was $1.00 per month. Mayor Swan
son informed the council that rooms
in the hospital building had been
rented for the . city at $10. per
month.
Matter of reorganization of the
fire company taken up. Seemed to
be the feeling of the council that
the department had backslid to a
position where it wa3 anything but.
Decided that reorganization work
be taken up at once and pushed
with vim enough, at least, to get
something efficient on foot.
Adjourned.
Broken Bones
A seriou3 accident happened to
Erie Ness, a fellow townsman, last
Sunday morning. In the vicinity
of the sawmill he experienced a fall
that fractured the right leg and
ankle bones so badly that it was
necessary to take him to Ketchi
kan where there are better hospital
facilities and surgical equipment.
X-rays by Dr. Jones showed that
the bones were splintered and much
out of position. Earl Ohmer's
shrimp boat, Charles T.f was quick
ly gotten ready and left with the
patient shortly after the accident.
Dr. Ellis, of Ketchikan will treat
the injured limb.
MARKET FOR KINGS
All buyers of king salmon seem
to agree that the season’s price of
the big fish will hold up right
along. In the Ketchikan district,
the other day, 22 and 12 cents were
offered. A few deliverleis have been
made in Rupert at mueji higher
figures. A report has come lu that
20 and 14 cents were paid at Sagi
naw**and Security Bays.
Too bad, Governor, but you know n ovv that there are even Congress
men who are against bureaucracy—at the ratio oi 130 to 12.
Worsted by Juneau
Well it’s all over even to the
shouting, and Juneau walks off
with the plum pudding and raisins.
It was the last of the championship
series in this part of the territory
and before last Friday no one knew
who the better basket ball players
were. Friday evening, before a
goodly crowd of fans in Wrangell,
the high school lads of Petersburg
and Juneau battled—and Juneau
won She won because she played
a better game of ball. Our boys
«. tsii oiun lurouguoui me
game. The score at the end stood:
Petersburg, 18! Juneau, 26.
The second stanza was different.
Juneau played as good a game as
before, and the locals played a
whole lot better. The breaks of
the game favored the P. H’s. and
the Juneauites wejht off and sat
down with 16 markers to their
credit. Petersburg had 23. The
line of shrimpers between Peters
burg and Wrangell plying back and
forth swelled the visiting crowd.
Excitement bubbled and fermented.
It all depended on Sunday. To win
the locals had to nail the two
games straight. They had one of
'em.
Sunday’s game was a duplicate
of Saturday’s. Both teams played
amazingly well. It was the breaks
of the game in this instance, too,
but they went to Juneau. When
the smoke had lifted the locals
figured up a total of 19 points
The Capitol’s contingent had 20.
Several .times In this ruction in
throws for the basket by the local
players, the ball rolled tantalizing
ly around the hoop undecided, and
then tumbled—on the outside.
Those are breaks that counted—for
Juneau.
There were 207 visitors in Wran
gell from this town and they were
treated royally. There was a plenty
to eat and there were refreshments
Everybody had a good time. To
Earl Ohmer goes a deal of credit
for good and extremely reasonable
transportation. The music of the
visiting (Petersburg) band was
highly appreciated.
SOON TO ARRIVE
Machinery for the Sather saw
mills at Scow Bay, taking the place
of the electrical outfit that has been
removed, will arrive on the nex*
Alameda. Things are about ready
at the plant fqr Installation and
work will go along rapidly once
the new power and cutting rigs are
here to assemble.
Commercial Club Doings
The fir'st matter considered was
that of a report of the Board of
Road Commissioners relative to
airplane landing grounds. Inform
ed that the general topography of
S. E. Alaska was against any out
la^ of money for fields. The water
ways were fair for hydroplanes and
it was considered better to depend
on this style of airship than to
spend time and money on ground
landings for those air vessels de
pending on land to light on Auv
way, a! the present time there were
no funds for the purpose.
Bearing on a request some time
back of J. C. McBride, Juneau
Customs official, for reports of im
ports and exports of Alaska towns
individually, a communication was
read that held the details of such
imports and exports couldn’t be
accurately gathered, and weren’t
made out for that reason. General
reports were quite close, but details
of each town’s receipts and ship
ments have not been.
A letter from the Bureau of Fish
eries stated that young trout of the
eastern brook variety would be
liberated in Crystal Lake, Blind
Slough, the coming summer
Ohmer, Ames and Schoettler were
appointed a3 a committee on ar
rangements to plan a program of
city appreciation of the basket ball
players. No particular date given
out as to when the entertainment
would come off. An endeavor would
be made to have the Wrangell P.-T.
A. dramatic league come over here
for the occasion.
A CARD OF THANKS
In the taking away of my wife,
in all of the funeral arrangements,
in my breavement, the good folk
of Petersburg have shown more
sympathy, real affection and sincere
aid than I thought existed. I can’t
find words to express myself in this
sad hour, but I certainly appreciate
everything that was done, and I
thank one and all for their helping
hands, sympathetic hearts and true
expressions.
Jack Thompson.
BROKEN DOWN
A 12 inch steel pin of the derrick
foot on the dredge sheared off Wed
nesday night, and this lays the
whole works up for approximately
three weeks.
Live hogs were shipped to a
Stiekeen farm yesterday.
Death Of Mrs. lack Thompson
The sad death of Mrs. Jack
Thompson came as a shock to ail
of the people of Petersburg and the
circumstances connected with her
passing make in them3elves a trag
edy and something of a mystery.
She was employed on the Robin
son fox farm, Turnabout Island, a
short distance (his side of Kake.
}The last outward trip of the Ameri
ca First—the mail boat to Kake—
Mr. Haho, the captain, went ashore
at (lie island as usual, and he found
the elderly lady sitting in a rock
ing chair, a rifle between her knees
her head tilted to one side, a bul
let hole in her head-and the floor
bloodsmeared.
There was evidence that she had
been dead for several days. The
blood on the floor was hard and
dry, the cooked food had started to
mould and there were other indica
tions that death had taken place
at least three days prior to this ar
rival of the mail boat. As Mrs
Thompson lived alone on the Island,
awaiting the return of Mr. Robin
son from the State3, there ifc no one
to make a statement nor are there
any direct clues as to whether the j
death was accidental or intentional
The general opinion is that the wo
man came in from out doors—she
had a cap on and overalls—and sat i
down in the chair and in resting {
the rifle butt on the floor it was t
discharged. The gun was of small r
calibre—25—, and the bullet struck a
her square between the eyes and i
-ol.u uuu au^uuj ua.CS.. C
There was no struggle. Death • a
must have been instantaneous ' t
When the gun was discharged, her e
head tipped to one side and every- i
thing was over. c
_ l
mr. nano teiegrapnea the Com- d
missioner, here, from Juneau, and S
that was the first news of her death e
The America First was Juneau's
bound after landing at the island. f
Mr. Robinson had arrived form Be- t
i attle just too late to catch the mail \
boat, so he had Earl Ohmer’s a
J shrimp boat Americ take him down a
and the vessel left town shortly be- c
j foro the wire came from Juneau, l
So he knew nothing of the accident j
and death until after the Americ \
reached the ranch. The body waa [
left, sitting in the chair a3 it was t
fund, and Wednesday morning of- t
fleers and a coronor’s jury went €
back to make examinations and hold c
inquest. The trip was again made d
on the Americ. g
Later—March 22nd—An adjourn- r
ed meeting of the coronor’s jury f
took place at 2 p. m. at the U. S. t
Commissioner’s office. At this time t
Dr. Jones (who wras also at the place n
of death) gave a detailed descrip- c
tion of the body’s position, prob- i
ablg time of death and the cause, \
the surrounding scenes, the possi- i
bilities of accident, the indications
of self destruction and his personal ]
views on the tragedy. g
The jury was then left to bring £
in its verdict. It was that Phyllis t
Thompson had come to her death t
by a self-inflicted wound from a
rifle of 25 calibre, on or about the ]
10th day of March, with probably
suicidal intention.
Taking into consideration all of t
the evidence, it was really a diffl- ]
cult matter to decide one way or t
the other—whether suicide or acci- j
dent. There wa3 much to support 1
both, although the seemingly pre- c
pared room, the drawn blinds, the t
tidy arrangement of furniture, the t
nature of the wound and the posl- t
tion of the body had a leaning to- i
ward an arrangement to Quit this J
vale of tears. There wm no note,
penned nor penciled, however, to
let any one know.
Mrs. Thompson was born at On
tario, Canada, 62 years ago, and
had been a resident of Petersburg
for 18 years. She was the wife of
Jack Thompson, who owns and op
erates a machine shop in the city,
and he is left, alone, so far as im
mediate relatives are concerned, to
mourn her loss. Mr. Thompson has
informed THE ALASKAN that his
wife has a brother living in Calgary
and a sister in Long Beach, Cali
fornia.
The jurymen in this case were
Marom Kinberg, A. J. Blatchford,
Hans Preuschoff, Wm. A. Dunkle
berger, J. W. Sehoettler and Knud
Stenslid.
Mrs. Thompson’s funeral, largely
attended, was held on the afternoon
af March 22nd, and internment was
n the cemetery across the Narrows.
The Present Mayor Will,
Likely, Be the New
Mayor
There doesn’t appear to be very
much excitement, so far, in city
politics. The day for candidates to
file has dropped astern and for the
mayoralty there is but one, the pre
sent incumbent, C. E. Swanson. It
isn’t probahle. thorafn,^
campaign expenses will be so gerat
as were those of Edwards of Seat
tle. Albeit the job is thankless
enough, and no one seems to want
it, some one must take it and we
could probably go a lot farther and
do much worse than putting Mr.
Swanson back. He is business man
enough to know that it calls for
strict economy to make a business
pay, and he will, undoubtedly, carry
this economy into city affairs. He
has held office long enough to know
about what the city will requiro
and pretty clearly what the imme
diate future calls for. If he will al
low no clique no coterie to boss
him—and we don’t think he will—
we'll get along very well. The Trad
ing Union faction has a very firm
undergrasp of things local in poli
tics. It doesn’t want to be disturb
ed and its desire is to coach city
officials so that it may have clear
sailing in its undertakings. Mr.
Swanson is a willing listener. In
real action we believe he’ll strive
for all around city welfare. We
believe him fair and honest despite
tales brought to us to the contrary.
The big thing is to help him. He
can’t do much alone, and it would
be well were he to have a council
with as much desire as he himself,
has.
Filing for the council are Rasmus
Enge, Chris Gromseth, Andrew John
son, Peter Jorgenson, Paul Lund
and Ed. Walwick. Mrs. Chris Tve
ten is on the ticket alone for the
three year term on the school board.
HER FIRST GENERAL ELECTION
Japan has just held her first elec
tion under full manhood suffrage.
12,000,000 men voted. Prior to
this election, only those who ownel
property had a right to cast a bal
lot. and the best the nation could
do was to muster a scant 3,000,000
voters. Eight labor members were
elected in the new political contest
and this marks the first voice of the
producer in the government of
Japan.