.LLEY FRONTIERSMAN
second class matter on Oct. 21, 1947, at the post office at
\«lmei, Alaska, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Business Manager A1 J. DeJulio
Lucille Kennedy Mick
Virginia Gallant
a Carter Wasilla Correspondent
ription Rates 50c a month. $5 a year
Mailed to a!! points in Alaska and the United States
On Taxes
There are many ways in which a city might raise money to
defray costs of government and services rendered.
A city might collect all gross income received within the city
and parcel out a bare living wage to everyone, as the communists do.
A city mignt lax all the property owners as the school district
does according to Territorial law. But there are many fallacies to
arguments claiming the fairness of such a tax. The big property
owners with large business holdings can write off the tax as a part
of the cost of doing business and pass it on to the consumer. Thus
the consumer is in reality paying the tax, although it is concealed
in the increased price of a given commodity. The small property
owner whose income comes from wages cannot do this, so he is
doubly taxed. Difficulties in assessing property equitably add
further inequalities in distributing the tax burden. In the Palmer
school district, for example, estimates of property value are left
largely to the discretion of individuals reporting them.
» A city might tax all incomes as the Federal government doeS
and the Territory tries to do. But here the difficulties involved in
collection and in determining what proportion of an income was
earned within the city limits become so staggering that tax over
head on such a small tax base would soon eat up the taxes. Such
a tax is impractical for a governmental unit serving a thousand
people.
A city might impose a tax on sales and services as do many
cities and states the country over. People say that this is a vicious
tax because it taxes the poor the same as the rich, because pro
portionately the poor pay a greater share of their incomes than
do the rich. But this is not entirely true. Tailored clothes, hand
some furnishings, cars, refreshments from the bar, jewelry, expensive
sja ^equipment—items which the poor man cannot buy—are badges
f ' A proclaim the rich man, and he buys them.
In Palmer, moreover, we have neither the very poor nor the
very rich. In comparison with other parts of the country, differ
ences in income are relatively small. Such a community, it would
seem, is ideally suited to the sales tax method of distributing the
costs of government, since the one argument in its disfavor does
not seriously apply.
Arguments in favor of the sales tax assume increased significance
in a community like Palmer. Here the city is the focal point of
business, religious and social activity for residents of the whole
valley; here government projects bring more or less temporary resi
dents who find it impractical to assume long-time property obliga
tions; here proximity to a huge military base assures a steady influx
of transcient guests. All these benefit from city services. It is only
fair that they be given a chance to share in the cost of maintaining
these services. Only through the sales tax is this possible.
The argument that sales taxes are easily and inexpensively
collected and become available as soon as they go into effect makes
sense in a community which cannot afford large overhead costs
and needs the money NOW.
We believe citizens of Palmer would be doing themselves a
service by voting YES to the sales tax proposal.
MUNSEYS RETURN
FROM CANOE TRIP
Mr. and Mrs. Park Munsey
have returned to Palmer follow
ing a four-day canoe trip to Swan
Lake. “We did a little fishing,
photography, and saw many spe
cies of animal, almost everything
except bear”, Mrs. Munsey said.
“It was a wonderful trip”, she
added. Mr. Munsey is employed
at the Co-Op creamery.
SON BORN TO DALE BRYANTS
An eight-pound son, David
Cliffrian, was born to Mr. and
Mrs. Dale Bryant at Valley Hos
pital Sunday, July 1.
Recently arrived in the Val
ley, the Bryants are living at the
Lazy Mountain Children’s Home
where Mr. Bryant plans to teach
I next year.
DON'T FORGET TO VOTE
TUESDAY. JULY 10.
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DEEP FREEZES _15 cu.,,
REFRIGERATORS _81/2,91/2 cu.«.
BOTTLE-GAS RANGES
WASHING MACHINES
Good Supply New on Hand
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GRASSER'S
HARDWARE A
SPORTING GOODS
> r OPEN THURSDAY TO 8 P. M.—CLOSED SATURDAY NITES
T
M.V.B.A. NEWS
To Hold Picnic
Summer days are here again!
Tho maybe by the time this gets
into print they will be over. Any
way. it gives us a fine feeling to
really warm up again.
It sets our thoughts along the
i trails to the out-of-doors and to
the picnic grounds. That's where
the com posit minds Parker. Ernie,
Arvid and myself ended with a
splash—right into Finger Lake,
up at Barry's place. Yep, we thot
it up entirely with our ov.n sim
ple minds. That’s where we dairy
men should hie ourselves one of
these days, and specifically next
Tuesday, June 10.
Yes sir, the members and fami
lies of the Matanuska Valley
Breeders’ Association will hold
their first annual picnic out there
and have a real, corking good
time. Here’s how:
At 10 o’clock next Tuesday
morning all members and fami
lies of M.B.V.A. are urged to as
semble at Barry’s picnic grounds
on beautiful Finger Lake. At 12
o’clock they will gather around
many tables Barry has amply pro
vided and sit down to a famous
Matanuska dinner.
The dairymen will provide cof
fee, weiners and buns, and ice
cream, the women are asked to
bring either a hot dish or a sal
ad. Also each family should pro
vide themselves with necessary
eating paraphernalia. The men
should have enough loose cash in
their pockets to defray the ex*
penses of their part of the dinne.-,
Baseball Game Planned
In the afternoon there will be
a soft ball game and other sports.
Boats will be at the disposal of
those who wish a ride out on the
i waters of the lake.
Then, while the sun is still high
in the western heavens, the emp
ty dishes can be stov.ed away in
the old jalopy and the men get
home to meet the cows waiting at
the gate.
Dairymen all over the country
have been some of our most suc
cessful in building and operating
j cooperatives.
As a boy, I was raised in the
atmosphere of a creamery coop
erative. My dad was for many
years secretary and manager of
our local cooperative creamery
and so I imbibed the gospel if
such an organization.
Those creameries of the middle
west were tremendously success
ful. The one at Clark’s Grove,
Minnesota, was the first coopera
tive creamery to be organized in
the United States, soon a century
ago. Getting together, and work
ing together; in those creameries,
the pioneer farmers learned the
lesson of strength in unity. But to
be successful, there had to be har
mony and complete understand
ing between all the members of
| the organization. And one of the
places they learned to get along
together was at their dairy and
creamery picnics, and in a later
day, the Farm Bureau gatherings.
So, let’s have more picnics! and
be at this one!—Herman Turner.
FOR SOLE
’47 11/2-TON STAKE BODY TRUCK
Excellent Condition—New Rubber Tires
(Can Be Financed)
SEE DAVIS AT MATANUSKA HOTEL
%
OflSTUUISt Lint
Offering Scheduled Freight Service Between:
California—Portland—Seattle—Alaska
S. S. CHARLES CROCKER
Arrive Seward .July 7
Arrive Valdez . July 14
S.S. NORTH
Leave Portland
Leave Seattle
Arrive Seward/Valdez .
BEACON
S.S. SEAFAIR
Leave Portland .
Leave Seattle .
Arrive Seward/Valdez .
July 8
July 13
July 20
July 10
July 16
July 21
Leave
Leave
Leave
Leave
Arrive
Leave
Leave
Leave
Leave
Arrive
SEWARD
S. S. TARLETON BROWN
Long Beach .July 16
San Francisco .July 20
Portland .July 26
Seattle .Aug. 1
Seward/Valdez .Aug. 6
S.S. JOHN BURGESS
Long Beach .July 21
San Francisco .July 25
Portland .July 31
Seattle .Aug. 5
Seward/Valdez .Aug. 10
A. R. Freight Depot
Utla 1*4
Captain T. Bie
Operating Manager
ANCHORAGE
333 Central Bldg.
P. O. Box M3
Phone 34401
George Hutton
Dlst. Manager
FAIRBANKS
P. O. Box 1301
Jameson Engineer
ing Building
Phone—East MO
Modern Coastwise Steamship Transportation
e
Valley Frontiersman
3
BEAUTIFUL. FRESH —
IVY PLANTS
SEVERAL VARIETIES
—Also Potted Plants—
Ready to sot out
Mat. Valley Gardens
MAUD HOSLER
OFFICE EQUIPMENT
ACCOUNTING FORMS
OFFICE SUPPLIES
Everything
for the Office
Expert Office
Machine Repairs
COMMERCIAL
STATIONERS
Reed Bldg., Opp. Federal Bldg.
Dial 30515—Anchorage, Alaska
— .. '*>
Passenger Service .
FROM SEWARD
SS DENALI SS ALEUTIAN
Mon., July 9—Thurs., July 12
Seldovia Juneau
Kodiak Wrangell
Juneau Ketchikan
Petersburg Seattle
Ketchikan
Seattle
. . Freighter Service. .
From Seattle
SS CHENA
July 13 for Cordova, Valdez,
Seward and Anchorage
SS VICTORIA
July 18 for Seward direct
FOR INFORMATION
Phone 22001
T. J. MALONEY, Agent
Office: Westward Hotel
Anchorage, Alaska
ALASKA
STEAMSHIP COMPANY