"News of cAmenca’s Last Frontier”
VOL. 15 NO. 39
KODIAK, ALASKA, DECEMBER 3, 1955
PRICE 10 €EWtS
Many Problems Aired
At FWS Fishery Hearing
Problems pertaining to fishing
in the Kodiak area and Alaska
were aired at the second Fish and
Wildlife Service hearing held this
year, last night at the Fisherman’s
hall. About a hundred fishermen
and interested persons crowded in
to the hall to hear proposals by
the Service agents.
Drastic changes in the existing
regulations evoked heated com
ment from some fishermen. The
first proposal, that of regulating
fishing gear coming to Alaska
from the States, by allowing only
> boats that have fished here in the
fast five years, met with approval
generally, of the majority. Donald
L. McKernan, Administrator of
Commercial Fisheries of Alaska,
pointed out that in 1943 there were
only 83 seine boats coming to Al
aska. In 1955 there were 440 boats
from the States.
Mr. BaJzo, Assistant Adminis
trator in charge of Management,
FWS in Alaska, presented the
FWS proposals for 1956. He point
ed out the proposals are still in
the discussion stage, and that any
fishermen affected by them have
until the 15th of December to make
suggestions or file opposition.
In an effort to build up the red
salmon run in this area, Balzo stat
ed that the FWS proposes to limit
fishing to within 500 yards of the
mouth of the Karluk River. The
limit at the beginning of the sea
son would be 100 yards from the
mouth, as in the past, and the new
boundary set up during the middle
of the run, from July 1 to August
33. This would increase escape
ments, he said.
Opposition to this was taken by
several fishermen. Chief Alex
Brown of Karluk pointed out the
villagers in that area were depend
ent on this fishing for a livelihood.
His chief argument against the
proposal was that it would place
their seines in a rocky area, where
it is impossible to fish. “Beach
seineing,” he said! “is the villagers
only means of making a living.”
Jacob Laktonen of Karluk also
spoke against the proposal.
Pat Cannon, at this point,
brought out the argument that the
fish traps in that area curtail es
capements. “The 13 or 14 fish traps
located there hold back the outer
run of fish,” he said. McKernan re
plied that there is a 24 Hour clos
ure on all types of gear. “We can’t
I discriminate against the type of
gear used,” he said.
McKernan stated, “There is too
1 much gear, too many • fishermen
and boats. The fishermen are im
proving in their methods. Al} this
■ decreases the fish yield.' Some
method must be found to increase
• escapement for the future’ of the
industry.” Commenting on the pro
posal to stop fishing gear from
coming to Alaska, Mckernan said,
“The law says we have the power
to curtail fishing.” It is the pro
posal of the FWS to invoke the
“Grandfather clause” to stop boats
and gear from coming to Alaska
from the States where they may
have had a poor season. Further,
another proposal is to curtail the
fishing of resident fishermen to
the extent of only allowing them
to fish in one area. “In other
words, if a fisherman fishes Prince
William Sound, he will not pe al
lowed to move into the jKpdiak
area, or Cook Inlet. This would be
curtailed by licensing.
Many of the fishermen spoke ve
hemently against such a proposal
Tiny Cichoski criticised the area
closure, as did Pat Cannon. The
latter made the counter proposal
that fishermen be allowep to fish
two areas, instead of one.
Cannon also brought up the ar
gument that closure of fishing to
only- boats fishing the arqa the last
five years, would eliiqipate boys
who have fished with thqir fathers
and who now desire to pwn their
own boats. He regarded that as un
fair to natives. Cichoski stated that
if he is prevented from fishing in
an area, the FWS would have
trouble on their hands.
The question then arose to the
effect of Japanese fishing on the
American run. Nick Gregory stated
he had fished Bristol Baj| and had
caught fish bearing the marks of
Japanese nets. McKeman asked,
“How do you know?” The latter
further stated that a study has
been made the last two years on
the subject, but no concrete evi
dence establishing this to be true
has been made. He said the Ser
vice is not overlooking this possi
bility. He stated the Japanese have
agreed to abide by the terms of
the treaty.
McKernan further stated that
the fish caught in the high seas
operation of the Japanese are ma
tured, on the whole, despite be
liefs to the contrary. “Fish going
into the Russian Rivers are small
er than the American fish,” he
said.
Another interesting point
brought out by McKernan was that
salmon have a high rate of mortali
ty before maturing. There is con
siderable loss on the spawning
grounds, and also when the sal
mon first go to sea.
Dr. William Royce, Assistant Ad
ministrator in charge of Research
also spoke. His talk dealt with fish
ing from a biologist point of few.
VET REPRESENTATIVE
HERE NEXT WEEK
The Veterans Administration of
ficer, Mr.! Joseph LaFournaise will
be in Kodiak from noon December
6 through December 10. He will be
at the Naval Station from Decem
ber 6 to 9 and at the VFW post
rooms from .noon December 9 and
10. c ’
All Veterans wishing the assis
tance of Mr. LaFournaise will con
tact him at either place. It is not
necessary to belong to the VFW to
receive the officer’s assistance.
A game hearing is scheduled
for 8 p. m., Wednesday, December
7. The hearing will be held at the
Union Hall, it was announced by
the Fish and Wildlife Service De
partment,
Edward Connors
Dies Of Injuries
Edward C. Connors died at the
Medford Community hospital early
Tuesday morning of injuries suf
fered when he was hit by a log
truck at Ashland, Oregon.
Connors, a former resident of
Kodiak has lived in the Oregon city
since shortly after he left here fol
lowing his retirement from Civil
Service. The accident, which cost
him his life, occurred as he was
using a crosswalk. He was struck
by the right bumper of a short log
truck, and was knocked 13 feet. He
was rushed to the Medford hos
pital, following the taking of X
rays, indicating he had suffered a
fractured hip and facial lacera
tions and bruises.
Connors had worked on the Na
val Station as an electrician since
World War II. He and his wife,
Margaret were old-time residents
of Alaska. Following the end of
the war, Ed transfered from the
contractors to a position with the
government. He remained here
until late July, 1954 when he de
parted for Seattle. He settled in
Ashland of this year. His only sur
vivor is his wife, Margaret.
ROTARY MEMBERS
VIEW WILDLIFE FILM
The Rotary members were en
tertained with a series of movies
under the heading of “A Variety
of Wildlife Pictures,” shown by
Kim Clark.
The pictures were well received
by the members and guests. The
pictures were filmed by Clark, who
was connected with the Fish and
Wildlife Service during their film
ing.
In keeping with their policy dur
ing “Palk Month,” Rotary members
had as their guests several service
men. Included in the complete list
of guests were: Warner Chapman,
Dodd Frazer, Larry Jackson, Don
Faunch, Gerald Elderkin, John
Mansuy and Ed Barnes.
Ed Barnes, who is instructor in
the minerology course now being
conducted, was a visitor and spoke
briefly.
CHRISTMAS MAIL BOAT
ARRIVAL TIME DEC. 12
Due to the excess tonnage offer
ings for the voyage of the Lucidor,
is was necessary to handle the Ko
diak general cargo aboard the MV
Galena. The Galena sailed from
Seattle yesterday.
Th arrival of the Galena will be
approximately the 12th of Decem
ber, it was announced by Clarence
King, agent for the company.
FLOOR SHOW PROMISED
FOR ELKS NAVY PARTY
Tonight the military and the
Elks join forces to make a hilari
ous evening at the Elks Club when
the latter stage the second annual
Elks Navy Dance tonight.
Tickets have been going fast, ac
cording to Bill Lavine, chairman
of the party, and everything is in
readiness for an enjoyable eve
ning. A five act floor show will
highlight the evening, and a buf
fet supper will be served.
Jury indicts Officials
Alaska Telephone Co.
New York—(AP). A Federal
Grand Jury indicted Walter F. Tel
lier, one of the Nations largest
over-the-counter securities dealers,
two Seattleites and others on
charges of selling some $900,000
worth of bonds in the insolvent
Alaska Telephone Corporation.
The Seattle men are Elton B.
Jones, secretary - treasurer and
counsel of the company, and Al
bert J. Proctor, president and gen
eral manager.
The indictment alleges a conspir
acy was perpetrated in which
worthless Alaska Telephone Cor
poration securities were sold to
cover interest payments on equally
worthless prior issues. U, S. Attor
ney Leonard P. Moore said one
thousand and four hundred per
sons were victimized in the metro
politan New York are#. The men
were indicted on thirty-six counts,
charging them with violation of
the anti-fraud section o£ the securi
ties act of 1933, mail fraud and
conspiracy. ■- ;
Jones described the indictment
as a “damned outrage.*’ He has
practiced law in Seattle for 25
years and held appointments as po
lice judge occasionally. He said
his only connection with {ssues and
securities of tjbC company was in
preparation of prospectuses, which
were filed, edited and corrected
under the direction of Seattle Se
curities Exchange Commission of
fice. He sa[<| he had met Tellier
only once apd hasn’t received a
cent from the sale of bonds except
as Attorney’s fees.
The company serves Southeast
ern and interior Alaska. Jones said
Proctor inherited the management
of the company, which is giving
vital service to the territory. Proc
tor said he was stunned and
“charges came as a surprise and is
a terrible blow after all the time
spent to keep the company operat
ing under many adverse condi
tions.
LIGHTING CONTEST
TO DRAW MANY ENTRANTS
The Christmas decorating con
test announced last week is prov
ing popular, according to the
many expressions of approval and
support given the two sponsoring
groups.
Kodiak should be well lighted
and decorated if plans of the Elks
Club and the Emblem Club are
carried out. Entry blanks are to be
found elsewhere in this issue of
the Mirror. The few simple rules
were published last week.
Substantial prizes are being of
fered, making entry into the con
test worth while.
ELECTRICITY FOR
FAR NORTH VILLAGE
Washington—(AP). Rural Elec
trification Administration an
nounced a loan of $312,000 to the
Kotzebue Electric Association at
Kotzebue.
This is the first loan north of
the Arctic Circle. The Association
plans to install three diesel genera
tors and build five miles of line.
They will serve 228 customers.
Island Man
Disappears
The whereabouts of John Ander
son of Afognak, who alledgedly
disappeared following an explosion
aboard the boat GPC-14 at Likpik
Wednesday, is being investigated
by the U. S. Marshall, Clarence
Dizney.
The fishing boat, owned by Carl
Peterson of Ouzinkie, is said to
have blown up and sank at the Af
ognak Island Bay Wednesday night
about 9 or 10 o’clock. At the time
of the sinking, Peterson’s brother,
Oscar, was aboard, having borrow
ed from the owner. The KFC 120
was said to be standing by at the
time. The only other crew member
aboard the sunken vessel was Fred
Fomin, who was taken aboard the
other boat. No word has been re
ceived as to John Anderson.
Anderson id 34 years of age and
resides at Afognak. He has a sis
ter, Mary Lane, who is postmis
tress at Afognak and two brothers
here in Kodiak, Bill and Nick.
John Anderson was aboard the
KPC 120, making repairs. Those on
board are said to have gone to the
side of the ill-fated boat for a visit
Thursday, and the burning occurr
ed later that evening. It burned
to the water line before stoking.
John Anderson’s mother is in
the Griffin Memorial hospital with
heart trouble. The news is being
kept from her until more details
are uncovered. It is not known if
he met with foul play, or is safe
ashore. The U. S. Marshall, Clar
ence Dizney, left for Afognak last
night and is investigating the ac
cident.
FOUR DELEGATES TO
GO TO GOP CONVENTION
Chicago—(AP). Alaska will have
four delegates to the 1956 Republi
can National Convention under the
apportionment plan adopted by the
GOP National Convention. This
boosts it to one over the figure for
1952.
Hawaii will have 10, an increase
of two. Under the present appor
tionment plan, the South will have
a bigger voice in selecting Repub
lican nominees of president and
vice-president.
Total number of delegates have
been boosted from 1,206 in 1952 tp
1,323, a net gain of 117. Southern
border states picked up a total of
96 delegates.
FIRST MATE AWARDED
DAMAGES IN BOAT MISHAP
* Seattle—(AP). A Superior Court
jury awarded Ralph M. Yates dam
ages to the amount of $9,700. He
suffered severe burns August 9,
1954 aboard a fishing vessel owned
by Libby, McNeill, Libby.
The accident occurred at Water
fall. Yates was first mate aboard
the 48 foot purse seiner, Libby Nb.
14. -
U. OF A. TO HOLD OPEN HOUSE
Alaskans will have an opportuni
ty Dec. 9 to tour their growing
University of Alaska and learn
from faculty, students and exhibits
how the institution is both pro
gressing with the territory an J tak
ing a lead in its development.