News of oAmerica s Last Frontier
VOL 12 NO 31
KODIAK, ALASKA OCTOBER 4, 1952
PRICE 10 CENTS
CITY IS DEFENDANT IN $63,000 SUIT
Territorial Bond Issue
Awaits Voters Action
Territorial voters will be
asked to decide if the Territory
shall issue general obligation
bonds in a sum not to exceed
$12,5000,000 for school pur
poses on October 14.
Should 55% of the voters ex
press approval the money
would be used solely for con
struction, alteration and repair
of public school buildings in
the territory, Gov. Ernest
Gruening told the MIRROR
yesterd ay.
The MIRROR wired Gover
nor Gruening’s office for fur
ther information on the ter
ritorial bond issue.
The late Senator Engebreth
of Anchorage iiitro duced a bill
in the 1951 session of the Ter
ritorial Legislature designed
to get the voters opinion on
whether they considered a
bond issue a desirable method
of speeding up schoolconstruc
won.
The bill passed the Territ
orial Senate by a vote of 15 to
none against and the house
approved 19 to three.
“ You should note that if
voters vote affirmatively, by
55% as required in the act, in
the coming October 14, elec
tion the legislators have no
obligation to act an must still
decide whether they will vote
affirmatively to approve the
bond issue, ” the wire saiq.
The legislators must provide
a formula for the allocation of
these funds and determine
what schools will receive these
monies and in what porpori
tion.
In the event the voters ap
prove the issue and the legis
lature acts in favor of it a bill
must then be introduced and
approved in Congress to per
mit bonding. The Organic Act
forbids incurring indebtness
without congressional approv
%
Since the bill cannot be in
troduced before action of leg
islature , or toward the end of
March of 1953, it is doubtful
whether Congress can act on
this bill before June. That
means the money would not be
available until building season
of 1954, the Governor’s wire
said.
Lee S. Wakefield, owner of
the Wakefield canneries at
Port Wakefield, and his daugh
ter, Mrs. Carol Orne, left last
week to return to Seattle,
after spendin g the summer at
Port Wakefield.
City Election
Is Tuesday
Kodiak voters will be asked
to mark a ticket Tuesday with
a single slate of candidates. The
only names appearing on the
ballot are the candidates no
minated by the Progressive
Party.
Lee C. Bettinger is seeking
his seventh one year term as
mayor, V. W. Root, A1 Miller
and William Worth, incum
bent, are running for the two
year terms for councilmen
Bud Metzar, who completed a
two year term, is seeking the
one year seat on the council.
In the Kodiak Independent
School District school board
election two candidates are on
the ballot. William Stone, his
present term expired recently,
and Gil Jarvela are running
for the five year position.
Jarvela was nominated by a
caucus of out-of-town resi
dents and Stone was put'up by
the Progressive Party.
The polls will be lo cated in
the city hall and the doors will
open at 8 am. Voting will cease
at 7pm.
The registration? book for
voting in the c ity election will
be open at tne city hall until
4 pm today.
Stenlund Home
From Norway
John Stenlund returned to
Kodiak after spending the
summer in Sweden visiting
his sister and brother.
The visit to his birthplace
was the first time he had been
there in 30 years. He travelled
by air to Seattle and took the
train to New York, stopping
in Minnesota to visit another
brother.
From New York he booked
passage on a Swedish passen
ger ship. He visited his sister
and brother at Stensele,
Sweden. He returned to New
York on a Norwegian liner,
rode the train to Seattle and
flew to Kodiak.
He arrived in Sweden on
May 23 and left there on
August 16.
Miss Ann Zaldaris, district
nursing supervisor, arrived in
town Wednesday on business
of her office.
The new public health nurse,
Miss Kathleen Lepper, is ex
pected to arrive on today’s
plane.
Libel Suit Goes
To District Court
The case of the United
States vs H.F. MacDonald was
fransferred from U.S. Com
missioner Rose Walsh’s court
to • the Third District Court
Monday.
MacDonald is charged with
criminal libel by Mayor Lee C.
Bettinger. The complaint was
signed by Bettinger in October
of 1950.
The filing of charges against
MacDonald occured at the time
of the city election. He was
arrainged before U.S. Com
missioner A.M. Vokacek and
asked for a change of venue.
The case was transferred to
Commissioner Walsh’s court in
Anchorage.
No trial date had been set by
the Third District Court, the
Anchorage Times reported
Monday.
i
Elks Carnival
Starts Today
The Elk’s Club fall carnival
gets under way today and will
continue through tomorrow.
The public is invited to attend
and participate in the various
events.
Weather permitting the
events will be staged outside
in front of the club on Brook
lyn Avenue. If the weather is
inclement the booths and other
attractions will be set up in
side the club.
The Sunday program in
cludes a ball game between the
Elks and the Civil Service Club
at Kodiak Naval Station.
The carnival will continue
until nine pm on Sunday and
immediately following will be
a dance. Jules Radinsky will
be master of ceremonies.
Brooklyn Leading
In Series Games
The Brooklyn Dodgers won
the first game of the World
Series from the New York
Yankees 4 to 2 in the opening
game Wednesday.
The Yankees took the second
game easily by the score of 7
to 1.
Brooklyn won the third
game by a score of 5 to 3.
The annual Boy Scouts of
America drive will end in Ko
diak tomorrow. To date the
drive has grossed over $1,000,
George Sonntag said yester
day.
The Kodiak Garden Club will
meet Wednesday evening at
the home of Mrs, Ben Kraft.
MacDonald-Torgramsen
Ask For Damages
A $bc5,UUU damage suit was
filed against the City of Kodiak
this week by H. F. MacDonald
and Alfred Torgramsen.
The complaint charges that
MacDonald and Torgramsen
were “wrongfully, forcibly, by
criminal prosecution and
threats of future criminal
prosecution” compelled to
stop work on the reconstruction
of the Lyric Theater.
Prior to October the Lyric
Theatre was partially destroy
ed by fire. The complaint al
leges that the plaintiffs en
tered into a contract with the
city, “wherein and whereby
for a valuable consideration”
the plaintiffs should have the
right and privilege of recon
structing the building.
George B. Grigsby, Anchor
age attorney, is representing
MacDonald and Torgramsen.
The complaint was filed in the
Third District Court at Anchor
age.
The city has been given 20
days to file an answer to the
Stone Attends
Palmer Meeting
William Stone, superinten
dent of the Kodiak Baptist
Mission, left this week to at
tend the Regional Child’s Wel
fare Conference in Palmer.
The five-day meeting will be
attended by Represeritatives
of all children’s homes in the
territory and by members of
various organizations.
Miss Mary Setzekorn of the
Kodiak Baptist Mission home
at Ouzinkie will also attend
the meeting.
Plane Down
On Ice Island
An emergeny landing at T-3,
Fletcher’s Ice Island near the
north pole, Wednesday dam
aged a C-47 on a re-supply
mission to the tiny outpost.
No one was injured although
there were 12 men aboard the
plane. The nature of the emer
gency was not known.
A message from the pilot,
Capt. Richard Marsh, 10 th
Rescue Squardron, Elemen
dorf Air Force Base, indicated
the belief that replacement of
the two propellers damaged on
landing would enable the craft
to fly out.
Jack Woodland, Seattle
hardware salesman, was in
Kodiak on business this week.
complaint. Paul A. Duplex
Kodiak city attorney, will re
present the city in the case.
The complaint states that
prior to the fire ‘ the plaintiffs
were making a profit from the
operation of the moving pic
ture shows therein conducted
of not less than $500 per
month.”
The complaint further al
leges that MacDonald was re
ceiving a salary of $250 per
month as manager and Tor
gramsen was receiving $150
for said premises.” The salary
and rental fee was in addition
to their respective shares of
the profits, the complaint said
MacDonald and Torgramsen
claim that if the city had not
interfered the theatre would
have been reconstructed and
open for business before
December of 1946.
“That by reason of the
| wrongful acts of the defend
ants. . .the plaintiffs have
been jointly damaged in the
sum of $35,000;. . .H‘ E.
MacDonald has been individu
ally damaged in the sum of
$17,500 . . . and Torgramsen
for $10,500,” the complaint
states.
Court costs and attorney fees
are also asked by the plain
iffs.
The Lyric theatre building
burned again la+e in 1949 When
the Doghouse caught fire and
burned. Since that time the
city has asked Torgramsen to
clean up the debris. He has
removed some of the litter.
The city council has refused to
issue a building permit to Tor
gramsen on the grounds that
building plans were not sub
mitted for the reconstruction
of the'building.
School Paper
Resumes Publication
The student body of the
Kodiak High School will begin
publication of the monthly
newspaper, ISLAND STAR,
Miss Cherie Stover, business
manager announced this week.
Nine issues will be publish
ed. The staff proposes to de
vote one-fourth of the paper’s
space to advertising.
Members of the staff were
active this week solicting ad
vertising for the paper.
Mrs. Walter O’Brien return
ed home recently from Min
neapolis, Minnesota, where
she has been for several weeks
for special medical attention.