VOL. I
PETERSBURG, ALASKA MARCH 25, 1927
NO. 37
Ketchikan Commercial Club re
cently passed resolution urging the
abolition of closed season from
November to Frebruary. In view
of this action it might be well to
face the situation as set forth by
Mr. Babcock, Chairman, Interna
tional FfSheries Commission who
says;
“The present supply of halibut is
being maintained by resorting to
the new and far distant fishing
oanks, by more intensive fishing of
the depleted banks, and the use of
smaller hooks, which are outstand
ing features. * The Commission’s
work, which has been halted by the
^reck of the schooner Scandia, has
established the fact that depletion
is threatening. The Commission is
now laying plans to proceed with
work on which may be based regula
tions to preserve the industry.”
OUR CORRESPONDENT IS CALLED
Editor Alaskan,
Petersburg, Alaska
I am reading with interest the
“Sidelights on the Legislature” as
printed in your paper. In the main
A
I agree with the views of your spe
cial correspondent. I wish to criti
cize your characterization of Repre
sentative Tom Gaffney in one par
ticular, namely, that however you
may differ with him, let it not be
upon religious matters. “Tom” as
we like to call him is not yet under
stood by even “close” observers. I
have observed him in several com
mittee meetings and I wish to say
that however we may differ in. our
views of public questions (if we
differ at all), Tom does so on abso
lutely consciencious grounds. At
least it so appears to me.
I am writing you this letter be
cause it is supposed here in Juneau
that I am shaping the policy of your
paper, altho the fact is that you
shape your own policies. But be
cause of this view, I would like to
state my present position in order
that my relations with my col
leagues may not be misunderstood
and the public interest thereby hurt.
Thanking you for publishing this
letter, I remain,
Yours Very Truly
WM. L. PAUL.
Early Tuesday morning a fire de
stroyed the Sunny Point cannery
and warehouse at Ketchikan caus
ing an estimated damage of $250,
000, covered by insurance. All ma
chinery and 15,000 cases of salmon
were destroyed.
Only after battling for four hours
was the fire department able to get
the fire under control. In the brief
dispatch it was not stated what was
the origin of the fire. It is said that
Skinner and Eddy, owners of the
plant will start building operations
immediately and will have their new
plant in running order by canning
season.
Senator" Frame’s bill for an appro
priation of $200,000 for a road be
tween Anchorage and Matanuska is
the first single item of that kind
presented Alaska’s legislature. j
The City Council held its regular
meeting last Monday at which time
City Electrician MacKecknie report
ed the Blind Slough telephone line
repaired. But that oh account of be
ing grounded at several places it was
difficult to call thru but it could be
operated on a system of schedule.
Me stated that the plant was shut
down Sunday for inspection and re
pairs were made to the pit and the
voltage regulator. It was shut down
Wednesday because of a short cir
cut at Scow Bay. He approved of
the Council employing Mr. Preucsh
off to assist Ernest Young as oper
ator. He also made inventory of the
tools and equipment belonging to
Mrs. Moyes and had agreed with her
upon a price of approximately $140. j
for them.
PROHIBIT ADULTERATED MILK j
Dr.. Jones, City Health officer, re
commended that some drastic action
be taken to prohibit adultaration of
milk by dairies as several complaints
had been made recently. There is
reason to believe that preservatives
in the form of certain acids and
formaldehyde were being used. He
believed that an ordinance should
be adopted providing a heavy pen
alty for such adulteration.
He further recommended that an
ordinance be adopted prohibiting
spitting on the sidewalks, street and
in public places. The Clerk was in
structed to prepare the ordinance
upon the recommendation of the
tleallh Officer.
...... GARBAGE DUMP _
The Mayor reported that the
l
Council members wrho went out to.
investigate a place to dump the gar-1
uage had discovered no suitable i
?lace without building a roadway I
}ver the muskeg at considerable ex
Dense. The Marshall was instruct
ed to build a shute at some eonven
ent place so that the refuse could
je dumped into deep water. If this
:vere prohibited later, the construc
:ion of the road could then be taken
ip.
Jrdinance No. 36 was referred to
In regard to the City’s liability in
extending the' water main to the Citi
zen’s Dock. As the ordinance pro
vides that the city shall extend the
Drains only to the private property
line, it was decided that the Coun
cil had no further authority in the
matter until the existing ordinance
was either repealed or amended.
APPOINT JUDGES OF ELECTION
August Rhyd, E. Henshilwod and
C. D. Osten were appointed as judg
es and J. W. Shoettler and A. B.
Holt as clerks for the coming muni
cipal election.
C. Clausen, the only appilcant for
School Tax Collector, was appoint
ed to that office for the ensuing
year.
Councilman Enge stated that he
had been requested by Ole Holm and
other residents to bring up the mat
ter of building a new street between
F and G streets on Third street. The
present walk having been built and
maintained by the property owners
it vms decided that a petition shou d
be presented as provided by ordi
nance. A motion was carried to re
new, the old part of F street. Mr.
Enge further recommended that the
bridge across the slough on Hogue
yvJley be placed in condition for auto
traffic.
Mrs. Gabriel Sather received word
on Tuesday of the death of her
son-in-law, Ralph Casey, who lived
in Seattle. His death resulted from
a stroke of paralysis.
Love thyself last. Drink deep the
nectared anodyne of selflessness.—
Edwin Arnold.
Sidelights on
Legislature
The political pot is beginning to
boil. Outwardly all is calm, but un*
derneath there is a feverish activity;
Up to the present time, the bils of
importance are very few. In thej
Senate, Senator Will A. Steel has in
troduced the Controller Bill.
CONTROLLER BILL
There is a great deal of false pro
—
poganda being scattered in regard
to this bill. The first falsehood be
ing scattered comes from the Juneau
Empire and found in its headlines:
“BILL STRIPPING GOV. OF POW
ERS IS INTRODUCED” and “even
takes away from the Governor and
Secretary, all the furnitufe, equip
ment and paraphernalia of their re
spective offices belonging to the Ter
ritory and for which the Territory
has paid”’
As a matter of fact, no power or
authority is taken from the governor
except the power that Congress did
not give him. The governor will
continue to exercise all those pow
ers which Congress and the United
States has given him.
The only duties which will be tak
en away are those duties which are
strictly territorial.
Among the legislators, there are
a few who know exactly why they
are opposing the bill. Among these
are Joe Murray, a reactionary Re
publican who has always devoted
his talents to protecting big busi
ness and the federal machine; and
Robert Sheldon, an ardent disciple
and worshipper of the nefarious
Tom Marquam.
Others are opposing the bill be
cause in their simpleness they do
not realize that the dinners and
i
parties to which they are invited are 1
not in appreciation of their “states
menship” but are merely t.ne sugar
-•il poison of baited hook.- Among
this class is Walter Fisher, of Fair
banks, and possibly Thomas Scott,
of Cordova.
“Slim” Rydeen of Nome is count
ed as being against the bill for
unknown reasons. When he first
arrived, the word was that he
would support any extension of ter
ritorial power because of the sum
mary way in which he was fired
by the Bureau that builds road
around Nome. It is too early to
say what this man will do. He is
very deep.
Tom Gaffney is in a class by
himself, very sensitive opinionated,
ponderous, and gloriously inde
pendent. At least that is what the
“gallery” is saying.
Those who understand Tom bet
ter however insist that Tom is
broadminded, fair, and honestly in
dependent. We are inclined to be
lieve this and so we hope that the
“gallery” will withhold judgment
until a later time.
Perhaps the best gauge that the
public can have on the opponents
of the Controller Bill is in “Who
are being invited to dinner parties
bj Karl Thiele, Bob Sommers and
Harry Watson?”
Curious Arguments
The intelligent people of Juneau
are' using this argument against the
bill “Wickersham is to be the Con
troller; Will Steel, the Treasurer;
and William L. Paul, the Commis
sioner of Education.” Steel and
Paul are not eligible to the offices
created until one year after their
terms in the legislature have ex
pired, Steel in four years and Paul
in two years. Wickersham is of
I course eligible for an office,, but no
one( believes that he would accept
another political office. Wicker
sham is interested in writing books.
Will Parks Veto
A much discussed topic is “Will
Governor Parks veto the bill?”
Some of those who claim to know
him best say that Parks is too good
an American to defeat the will of
ihe people expressed according to
law. They say* that while he does
not favor the bill that If the peo
ple want such a gvernment, he will
sign the bill. *
General Belief
The general belief however is
that Parks will veto the Bill. The
argument is that while Parks is a
fine man, self-interest controlls him.
A number of things have occurred
which indicate very strongly that
Parks is doing everything he can
to protect John W. Troy. This line
of argument begins with pointing
out the fact that Parks appointed
the unspeakable Tom Marquam to
the position of regent of the Col
lege at Fairbanks, where he shines
forth as an example of bad citizen
ship to the impressionable young
college students—thanks to Parks.
What Will Happen
If Governor Parks vetoes the hill,
the hill will probably die. The re
sult however will be that Governor
Parks will face the most terrible
battle that any governor has here
tofore faced. He little dreams how
furious the people of Alaska can be
it he presses down the collar of the
Bureaucrats. Gov. Bone will be
lieve himself a very popular man
along side of what can happen.
This is just a forecast. All of this
may not happen. But it is pos
sible. At any rate Parks has a
chance to show whether he is a
statesman or a mere federal office
holder.
Will Alaska have a government
‘ of the people, for the people, and
by the people?"
The School Bill
Seeking to give greater territorial
aid to schools within our cities and
towns, William L. Paul has intro
duced housebill number 10. He
creates four classes of schools, the
hrst with a town population of
2500 and over; the second from
2000 to 2500; the third from 1500
to 2000; the fourth from 1500 and
under, granting to them aid as fol
lows, first class 75%; second class,
S0%; third class 85%; fourth class
90%. No maximum is set.
The Juneau Empire will oppose
the bill on the ground that the aid
is too liberal and will “increase
taxes.”
Forecast Of Legislation
It is whispered around the “cor
rodors” that certain other bills will
soon be introduced. H. H. Ross of
Fairbanks is said to have a bill for
the establishment of Territorial hos
pitals, one in each division. Chas.
Benjamin may introduce a measure
vitally affecting plants that use her
ring fertilizer; Charles Ferguson
will introduce a measure to tax
non-resident fishermen very heavily;
William L. Paul expects to intrduce
a graduated tax measure for traps
and seines, beginning with a tax
cf $250 for traps up to 50,000 and
!with $10 for seines up to 50,000.
March 23, 1927
Territorial Aid For Schools
*
The bill providing for territorial
aid to schools introduced by Rep
i« eminuecl on page two)
At the last meeting of the Peters
burg Commercial Club, President
Tom Elsemore announced the he
would try to get away to Juneau
this week. He is being sent by the
Club to represent their interests in
an effort to secure the building of
a road from tidewater to the munici
pal light and power plant. He will
also take up other mattei’s of im
j,ort to the community.
A communication was read from
the Alaska Monthly Magazine set
ting forth the marvelous growth
and circulation of that very admir
able magazine and an invitation to
the Petersburg Commercial Club to
prepare copy representing Peters
burg and its varied industries, op
portunities, etc., for a subsequent
issue of the magazine. The article
will be prepared and a number of
fine pictures from which cuts will be
made to appear in association with
the article. The Club also decided
to insert a full page add in that is
sue of the magazine. With the cir
culation of over 7,000 (their last
issue) which should be 10,000 in
another two months, the add and ar
ticle concerning our city will certain
ly have a large circulation as the
magazine reaches every State in the
Union.
CLEAN UP DAY
The matter of Clean Up Day,
which is to be next Wednesday,
• Seward Day) when all all business
houses will be closed, was thorough
ly discussed. Every able bodied man
who is willing to help in this clean
up of our city is requested to be pre
sent to do hre bit. Shovels, hoes, J
etc., will be provided by the com
mittee at the City Hall, Wednesday
morning. The Committee previous
ly appointed by the Club has inspect
ed the lay of the land and hopes to
have a large turn out of willing
workers. The Club adopted a mo
tion to request the City Council to
repair the Band stand, inclosing it
at the bottom, and decorate both it
and the City Hall with a coat of
paint. It is hoped that the citizens
generally will fall in line in clean
ing up private property and heep
ing it clean and sanitary in com- j
pliance with the city ordinance re
cently adopted.
The guest of the evening was Mr.
Frank Parrish who gave a very in
teresting address on how best to j
work for the progress and financial
in come tf local communities thru j
out the Territory. He especially,
spoke in commendation of the move;
made to enlarge the Petersburg I
facilities and also of the many
other recent improvements here.
HENDERSON REELECTED
COMMISSIONER EDUCATION
Lester D. Henderson, administra
tion messenger boy past and pres
ent, has been reelected to the same
office of Commissioner of Education
for the Territory.
His friends in Petersburg espe
cially, will be pleased to learn of his
reappointment to an office which he
has now held for ten years.
Now Anchorage again gets in its
memorial for the changing place of
capital of Alaska from Juneau to
Anchorage. Now, wouldn’t it hurt
Juneau to lose its federal brigade
and payroll? Go to it, Anchorage,
and humble the pride of the scorn
ful.
Bills galore, but “harmful bills
will not pass” says Senator Harry
Pratt. Wonder what he means, by
“harmful.”
NSTALL SCOUTS
The Petersburg Troop No. 79 of
the Boy Scouts, of America, operat
ing under the Tacoma Council, and
sponsored by the local American Le
gion Post, will hold the formal in
stallation of officers and troop at
the Sons of Norway Hall on Tuesday
evening March 29, at 8 p. m. The
Tacoma Council will be represent
ed by a District Deputy Commission
er who will take part in the cere
mony. The Scouts to be installed
will demonstrate the work and their
accomplishments thus far in Scout
craft, giving the history, description,
and composition of the American
flag, its adoption by Congress, the
respect due it, and in general the
principles of good citizenship and
pariotism taught in the organiza
tion. The Auxiliary to the Ameri
can Legion will assist in the enter
tainment of the boys and their pa
rents after the ceremonies.
AMERICAN LEGION’S PARIS
CONVENTION IN SEPTEMBER
The American Legion Auxiliary of
this city received word this week
thta each Department of the Aux
iliary is contributing 500 poppies
which will be made into two mam
moth wreathes to be placed on the
grave of the Unknown Soldier—one
on Mother’s day and one on Mem
orial Day. Each unit in the Alaska
Department is to contribute 100.
The local Unit has also ordered
500 poppies made by disabled sol
diers which will be sold at 10^ a
piece to be worn on Memorial Day.
All the funds gained in this way are
usd to help out the work being done
among the disabled soldiers and their
families.
WhRREN MAST
Warren Mast was brought in from
Duncan Canal this morning dead as
e. result of exposure in the water.
He was being towed behinh asmall
gasboat and evidently his towline
became foul nd he went to the bow
of his little boat to fix the line
when the boat swamped. The boat
became loosened from the gasboat
and was some distance behind when
McDowell who was at the wheel
saw the boat swamped. He im
mediately turned the boat around
and started to pick up Mast when
he too fell overboard. He called
to his partner and was helped
aboard and they both then pulled
Mast aboard. They worked over
him for some time and had him in
good shape they thohght but sud
denly about four hours after the
exposure Mast k eeled over in death.
Deceased was a resident of Pet
ersburg: for about four years and
leaves relatives either in Seattle or
Los Angeles.
The first of a series of Old Time
Dances which the American Legion
is putting on, was given last Wed
nesday evening at the Pioneer’s
Hall. A good crowd attended and
every one cavorted in earnest to the
old time tunes played by Mrs. John
Allen at the piano and Mr. Harris
Cii the violin.
These dances will be given weekly
and as the charge is only 50 8cents
the Legion hopes that many will
come and join in the fan.