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LOUIS F. PAUL,.MANAGER and EDITOR
For Services Rendered
In 1925 William L Paul, inde
pendent candidate for office of
attorney general, as a member
of the Territorial Legislature, in
troduced a bill which was known
as a graduated tax on trap
caught fish. He alligned nine
votes in support of the measure
and it appeared that this bill
which would have taxed the big
traps out of business was going
through to be put up to the
Governor.
N. O. Hardy, elected from Ju
neau asked that Attorney Gener
al John Rustgard be given the
privilege of the floor to speak on
this bill. The courtesy was ex
tended and “Honest John” argu
ed against the tax. His argu
ment that “it might influence
the Supreme Court of the United
States on a pending case”
swung Ben Grier against the bill
so that the record showed the
votes eight for and eight against
and so the bill died.
John Rustgard admits that he
perhaps as a district attorney in
the days more than twelve years
ago before he became attorney
general, prosecuted the P. E.
Harris Company for some miner
infraction of the fish laws. Just
what it was, he does not say but
chances are that the edmpany
was prosecuted for a lot lesser
crime and paid a much lesser
penalty than the present day
fishermen pay for alleged viola
tions of the same laws.
Anyhow, this same P. E. Harris
endorsed Rustgard’s candidacy
for judgeship—at Anchorage, pre
ferably and at Nome, if the U.
S. Attorney General would gaur
antee that John would have at
least four years of tenure in
office.
You ask what relation Harris
has to the candidacy of Rust
gard? Harris owns the famous
Admiral Quits
Legion in Huff
A
Admiral William S. Sims, U. S.
N., retired, honorary member of
the American Legion sent in his
resignation as a member of that
organization because delegates
to the recent Portland conven
tion went on record as favoring
immediate payment of the bonus.
He declares the act unpatriotic.
Well, well, well! These pay
tiiotic birds do chirp every once
in a while. With active service
salary of not less than $6,000 per
year and “retirement” pay equal
to three-fourths of his active
service salary, Admiral Sims is
not worrying about his next
day’s meals or a place to “flop”
for the night.
The difference between “re-1
tirement” pay and “bonus” is in
name only. The fellow who did
all the dirty work received his
$30 per month out of which he
deducted $7 or more for insur
ance, If married another $15
came off; then out of the bal
ance he “had to subscribe for
Libery Bonds” and buy his
smokes and pay for laundry
Then when Doughboy was dis
charged he was given a bonus of
$60 to help him get home on.
With Admiral Sims and other
officers getting from five hun
dred a month on up to a thou
sand dollars “retirement” pay.
it would be more in keeping with
the times if the admiral refused
the “bonus” which his govern
ment is giving him and place
himself on the same level as the
several millions who are now
Kelly Rock trap in the Bristol '
Bay section which trap alone j
catches more than 1,000,000 salnij
or per year. Under the graduated
tax bill, proposed by Paul the
basic tax on red salmon caught |
in traps would have been five
cents per fish.
1,000,000 reds X .05c equals
$50,000.00. ,
The tax Harris has paid by
failure of passage of this bill .
due to Rustgard’s opposition is,
$200 plus a small surcharge.
Now ask Why did P. E. Harris
endorsed Rustgard for Judge. ;
Harris and no other cannery
man or corporation will endorse
Rustgard or anybody else for1
federal or territorial appoint
ment unless they have perform
ed services of no small value
They fight those men whom they
cannot control or who refuse to
perform such services as saving
the P. E. Harris Company $48,800
per year in taxes on one single
trap.
If the electorate desires the
political combination which
plays it for a sucker and which
receives such political plums as
rewards for services, they are
welcome to such candidates. An
other four years of the kind of
fishery control Alaska has en
joyed the past several years and
cnly those who cannot move out
will remain—aside from the In
dians who are now laughing at
those who are in the predict
ment which like a boom-a-rang
now swings back to hurt the
white collared voter just as hard
as it has hit the rough neck
fisherman.
A vote for Rustgard is a vote
for the P. E. Harris Company
and a vote for the cannery sys
tem of stifling Alaska. Do your
duty and enjoy the kind of of -
ficials you send in to office.
.asking for their “retirement
'pay.”
G. 0. P. Blunders
-X
Last week Governor Roosevelt
delivered a speech on public uti
lities in Portland. Nothing espe
cially significant about that—
except that Roosevelt is the De
mocratic candidate for President
of the United States. He deliver
ed his speech over the Columbia
Broadcasting System and before
he was through speaking the
operator announced “forced to
discontinue at this point.”
Charles W. Myers, president of
Radio Station KOIN, Portland
I
through which Mr. Roosevelt
was broadcasting, stated that
the only information concerning
the cut that he had was that the
station had definite instructions
from CBS headquarters to cease
the broadcast at 11:45 p.m. east
ern daylight saving time.
From all reports, Oregon is
none too extravagant in its
sentiments toward President
Hoover and to be seemingly un- j
fair and discourteous to the De
mocratic nominee will not help
to solidify Hoover sentiment in
that state even if the cutoff was
a mistake on the part of the Re
publican captains.
-x—
New York’s “Broadway” is 15y2
miles long.
Egg consumption in the Unit
ed States is 204 per capita an
nually ,while in Canada it is 313.
It takes seven minutes to ride
the 500 feet to the top of Wash-'
irigton Monument'in the elevat
or. :
$1,000 Buys Praise for O'Malley
-x
Mr. Gunderson of Wrangell
sets forth his reason for praising
:he O’Malley “conservation” :
policies in the fishery adminis- i
tration. For some years Mr.
Ounderson was hurt by the O’
Malley regulations but this year,
because of the extension of the
fishing season three days after'
the regular closure, he made
$1,000 in his traps. Because of
this, he now says the O’Malley
policies are right.
There were operated in the
Wrangell Packing Company
some twelve seines this summer.
None of whom made any money
during July and August or even
during the three days extension.
Sixty men with families depend
ent upon them forced into vir
tual slavery because of the fact
that O’Malley through his dis
criminatory regulations has
made it impossible for them to
earn any money.
Since 1921 Wrangell has been
in the economic doldrums. They
have groped around for a solu
tion and hoped to get it through
^he building of the Wrangell In
stitute. They have hoped for a
mining development on the Stik
ine River. But the “boom” never
seems to come—it is always just
around the corner.
The men who work and bring
ir. the wages have not been
bunging in the wages even tho
they still work as hard and pay
as much for expenses as in the
past. That is due to the fact that
the “conservation” policy of O,
Malley has prevented them from
being satisfied wage earners. Ask
any or all the fishermen of
Wrangell if they have any praise
for Mr. O’Malley! Ask all of the
business men of Wrangell if
they are satisfied with the “con
servation” policy of 0,Malley!
We did and we failed to find any
[Who had any praise for him.
One man said “Kill O’Malley”;
another said, “When the country
is rid of O’Malley we will be able
to get decent, fair regulations.”
When O’Malley entered his
duties as Commissioner of fish
eries the resident fishermen were
able to earn sufficient to support
their families and to pay their
bills. As O’Malley “conserved”
Cogent Reasons
-x
Stroller’s Weekly declares that
Attorney General Mr. Rustgard
has been a firm friend of the
fishermen. He has saved the
territory .thousands of dollars by
his sound advice and able coun
sel.
Let the fishermen remember
this “cogent” statement. But 1st
them also remember:
That non-resident halibur
fishermen do not pay and are
never forced to pay the tax re
quired by law.
That the non-resident troller
has not paid any taxes in the
past three years nor have they
qven posted bond to pay taxes
that are required of resident
fishermen.
If you do not believe this
statement, turn to Mr. Walstein
C. Smith, territorial treasurer
and let him show that non-resi
dent halibut men and trollers
are paying the taxes that you,
Mr. Alaska Fishermen” are re
quired to pay or go to jail for if
you refuse to pay!
Mr. Rustgard’s dilatory tactics
are much to blame for this con
dition.
-x
A Bum Joke
-x
On the front page of the
Wrangell Sentinel is the follow
ing: >
‘ FOUND—A word of Praise for
Fish Conservation Policy of O’
Malley.”
Olie Gunderson of Wrangell,
trap owner found the word of
P r a i s e—and outside of Mr.
Gunderson, how many can find
that word of praise? ,
;he salmon, the fishermen found
,liat he had instituted closure
ueas whereby they lost trap
jites; and when the areas were
Dpened, they found that the cor
porations had grabbed the sites;
pther fishermen found that they
were prohibited from fishing in
areas which was directly con
trolled by the traps. The fisher
men found that the only way
that they could catch any fish
was through violation of the law.
If that is praiseworthy, then we
too will praise O’Malley for his
"conservation” policy.
Mr. O’Malley cut down the pro- j
duction of seine caught salmon |
from 100 per cent to 20 per cent
and he increased the trap pro- j
duction from nothing to 53 per
cen t—according to his own
statistics in the 1931 year book
published by the department. He
cut out many traps—we will
agree that he did this—but they
were not productive traps. He
cut out all competition so that
it became unnecessary to operate
"dummy” traps and protected
the corporations in the destruc
tion! of the June and July salm
on runs. The pack this year in
dicates that there can be no
denial of this statement for witn
fewer traps, the fishermen catch
only 20 per cent of the fish.
If that be praiseworthy, then
we have found something to
praise O’Malley for.
Mr. O’Malley enforces the re
gulation in section V of the 1924
laws which provides that "no one
shall fish for, take or kill any
salmon in any district in Alaska
for commercial purposes” during
[any closed period. But it is only
[the fishermen who have to re
jsnect that law for it is common
knowledge that the traps "fish
[for, take and kill for commercial
purposes,” salmon during the
closed periods. If this be praise
worthy, then we will join the
chorus and also praise him from
whom all Alaska’s blessings flow.
But so long as the fishermen
suffer, the resident business man
suffers from the O’Malley pegula
tions, we cannot join in any
chorus and find a word of praise
for the policy of Henry O’Malley.
LaFollettes Might
Switch
-x
The fighting LaFollettes,
whose name has been political
magic in Wisconsin for nearly
40 years, were believed planning
a bitter reprisal on the conser -
vative Republicans who defeated
virtually the entire progressive
ticket in last Tuesday’s primary.
Predictions were frequent that
Gov. Philip F. LaFollette, who
lost the gubernatorial nomina
tion to former Gov Walter J.
Koehler by 100,000 votes, and
Sen. John J. Blaine, who was de -
feated by John B. Chappie,
young newspaper editor by 20,
000 votes, would attempt to lead
their loyal followers into the
Democratic camp.
If these tactics are employed,
it was expected the progressive
leaders shortly would indorse the
Democratic candidacy of Gov.
Franklin D. Roosevelt. They j
have been virulent in criticism1
of President Hoover’s policies.
-x-—
Labor Neutral On
Candidacies
-X
William Green, president of
the American Federation of La
bor stated last week that the
Federation is maintaining a non
partizan political policy in the
present national campaign.
“Neither the executive board
nor myself has given official en
dorsement to any political party
or to the presidential candidate
of any party,” stated the presi
dent of the Federation. “The
executive council and myself arc
committed to the observance of
ft nonpartisan political policy*
r
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