WASHINGTON I
NEWS-LETTER
The following points discussed
in Delegate E. L. (Bob) Bartlett’s
most recent Washington News
Letter are of interest to all Alas
kans.
By MARY LEE COUNCIL
Secretary to E. L. (Bob) Bartlett,
Delegate in Congress from Alaska
Proposed Statehood Amendment
Senator Butler gave notice this
week that he intends to propose
an amendment to the Senate ver
sion of the Alaska statehood bill
to prohibit the creation of native
reservations in the Territory dur
ing the time that the statehood
steps are being processed.
The proposed amendment re
calls the controversy which arose
when similar language was placed
in the statehood bill as it was re
ported last year to the Senate by
its Committee on Interior and In
sular Affairs. Delegate Bartlett’s
bill as it was introduced and was
passed by the House in March of
last year did not contain any such
provision, and both the Senate
and House versions of the new
statehood bills introduced in the
82nd Congress earlier this month
do not carry the provision.
Power Boats in Bristol Bay
The previously announced pro
posed regulation for the 1951 com
mercial fisheries in Alaska allow
ing power boats not to exceed 32
feet in length in the Bristol Bay
area was reaffirmed this week by
Assistant Secretary of the Inte
rior Dale Doty.
In making the announcement,
the Assistant Secretary stated
that arguments for and against
the proposal have been thorough
ly studied by the Fish and Wild
life Service and that “from the
standpoint of conservation which
is the basis of its authority to
regulate, the prohibition against
power boats cannot be justified
of supported.”
Russian Furs
Legislation seeking to prohibit
the importation of furs from Rus
sia was introduced this week by
Senator Young of North Dakota.
The bill, similar to the legisla
tion introduced by the Senator in
the 81st Congress upon which no
action was taken, would amend
the Tariff Act of 1930, as amend
ed. by inserting the following new
language:
“Furs or skins (dressed or un
dressed), or manufactures of fur,
raised, produced or manufactured
in the Union of Soviet Socialist,
Republics, shall not be entitled
to entry at any of the ports of
the United States, and the im
portation thereof is hereby pro
hibited. The Secretary of the I
Treasury is authorized and di
rected to prescribe such regula
tions as may be necessary for the
enforcement of this section.”
Legislation
Although only a limited num
ber of bills introduced in Con
gress is printed, thus making it
impossible for any member to dis
tribute bills to any general mail
ing list, Delegate Bartlett stated
this week he will make every ef
fort to secure copies of bills, in- ■
eluding those affecting Alaska,!
for anyone desiring them.
Requests should be addressed
to E. L. Bartlett, 1029 New House
Office Building, Washington, D.C.
- Committee on Public Lands
If the House of Representatives
approves a resolution submitted
to it this week, the House Public
Lands Committee will be desig
nated as the Committee on Inte
rior and Insular Affairs.
Action on the proposal is ex
pected within a week, and if fa
vorable, as anticipated, the com
mittee will bear the same name
as its companion committee on
the Senate side.
The committee, which considers
the major portion of Alaska leg
islation, is comprised of the six
former committees on Insular Af
fairs, Territories, Public Lands,
Irrigation and Reclamation, Mines
and Mining, and Indian Affairs.
Seward Postmaster
President Truman appointed
Clarence T. Larsen this week as
postmaster at Seward. The ap
pointment must be confirmed by
the Senate.
Visitors
Mr. and Mrs. G. S. Duryea have
been Washington visitors while
on a vacation trip in the east.
Mr. Duryea recently at Ketchi
kan with the Alaska Steamship j
Company as general freight and j
passenger agent has been trans- ;
ferried to Anchorage.
Clarence Rhode, Regional Di
rector for the Fish and Wildlife
Service in Alaska, and Howard
Baltzo, Assistant Regional Di
rector, are in Washington from
their Juneau headquarters.
Colonel John R. Noyes is in
Washington from Juneau in con
nection with his duties as Com
missioner of Roads for Alaska.
The Rev. G. Edgar Gallant of
Pius X Mission at Skagway is a
Washington visitor.
Mr. and Mrs. Cash Cole of Ju
neau are in Washington on a com
bined business and pleasure trip.
John Pfeffer called on Dele
gate Bartlett this week while in
Washington on vacation. Mr.
Pfeffer has served with the Civil
Aeronautics Administration in
Alaska for several years in the
communications section, most re
cently at North Dutch Island.
Mr. and Mrs. Laron Martin vis
ited Delegate Bartlett’s office
while in the east on a vacation
trip. Mr. Martin is in the insur
ance business at Anchorage.
FISHERIES COMMISSION
GIVES BIENNIAL REPORT
The biennial report of the Fish
eries Experimental Commission
of Alaska was recently completed.
The report covers fiscal years
1949-51 and is on government ac
tivities concerned with the ad
vancement of the fisheries indus
try.
Coffey Insures Everything—
Remember?
Tanana River Could
Move Early This
Year, Oidfimer Says
By DON CLARK
Nenana Ice Classic Manager
The Tanana River opposite Ne- \
nana has never in the memory of
most of the old timers frozen up
as low as it did this last year.
A1 Linder, with 41 years of
watching the ice go out, agrees
with other old timers, that the
river being so low could move
early providing a large flow of
water came down, simply by
raising it and jerking the ahchor
ice loose. There would go the
tripod.
Old Sol will have to do a lot of
shining before that large flow of
water comes down. A1 Linder
tempers this statement some what
with a description of an old timer j
named Calhoun who lived up
river from town across from the j
mission.
It seems that Calhoun kept a'
set of books comparable to those I
that might be kept by a public ]
accountant. In those books he i
kept a daily record of weather, j
snowfall, etc. He kept a twice
monthly check of the depth of ice
as well as any information he felt I
might be pertinent to the annual
spring break up.
A group of old timers, some 201
or more, used to buy a certain
number of tickets and take them
up to Calhoun who would form a
pool and do the ticket marking,
based entirely, of course, on his
scientific set of books. After a
few years had passed Calhoun
finally figured they were ready
for the kill.
After much checking and cross
checking of his records for many
years past, Calhoun picked (the)!
day. He then wrote a ticket on
each odd minute of the day from
mid morning until some time
shortly after six p.m. A1 says the
day Calhoun picked was all right.
It was a wonderful show of sci
entific ledgerdmain, only one
thing wrong with it. You guessed'
it, the ice went out on the even
minute and the members of the
pool nearly had heart failure.
Linder still wonders where that
wonderful set of records went
after Calhoun passed on. About
all that little story shows is that
a fellow standing on the deck of
a halibut boat in Southeastern or
a trapper above Fort Yukon pull
ing up his traps has as much
MERRILL MERCANTILE COMPANY
Valdez, Alaska
Aluminum Roofing Building Supplies
Celotex Glass
Sherwin-Williams Paints
Maytag and Westinghouse Appliances
Sporting Goods Toys Home Furnishings
Interior Freight Lines
Clay Prewitt and Cliff Steadman, Owners
Freight Hauling Between Valdez and Palmer
Phone 62-J-3
Weekly Freighter
Sailings Changed to
Leave Port Wednesdays
The Alaska Steamship Company
weekly Southwestern Alaska
freighter sailing, effective with
the motorship Susitna February
28, will depart from Seattle on
Wednesday instead of Thursday,
H. N. Peterson, general traffic
manager of the company, an
nounced today.
“We are making this change,”
Peterson said, “in order to give
the shippers a greater time spread
during which they may make de
liveries for the sailings eaeh
chance, or maybe more, than a j
man who has spent forty years i
within a mile of the Tanana j
River. i
week.”
The Wednesday departure will
move the weekly Southwestern
Alaska freighter two days away
from the weekly passenger vessel
and the bi-weekly Southeastern
freighter departures, each of
which is scheduled for Friday.
"It is expected,” Peterson said,
“that this change will further
facilitate freight deliveries at
Pier 42 and reduce truck time
here.”
LINNEBUR FAMILY
RETURNS TO VALLEY
The John Linnebur family re
turned to the Valley recently
from Oregon where they have
been making their home at Port
land. Mrs. Linnebur is a daugh
ter of Mr. and Mrs. W. Bouwens.
S'
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VALDEZ BAKERY & CAFE
Jack Suttich, Prop.
Now Baking a Variety of Breads
Sweet Doughs Pastry
CAKES DECORATED TO ORDER FOR SPECIAL OCCASIONS
FOUNTAIN SERVICE
CANTEEN BAR & MAYME’S LIQUOR STORE
"The House of Hospitality"
Valdez, Alaska
Gateway to the Interior
Mayme Snyder and A. Jarvi, proprietors
CHITINA LIMOUSINE SERVICE
LEAVES PALMER FOR VALDEZ
10:45 a.m. each Monday (Leaves Anchorage at 5:15 a.m.)
RETURNS TO PALMER AND ANCHORAGE
8:30 a.m. Tuesday
LEAVES PALMER FOR CHITINA
10:45 a.m. each Thursday (Leaves Anchorage al 9:15 a.m.)
RETURNS TO PALMER AND ANCHORAGE
8:30 a.m. Friday
Leaves Anchorage from 4th Ave. Travel Bureau
(Fourth Avenue Theatre Bldg.)
Leaves Palmer from in front of Post Office
Leaves Valdez from Valdez Hotel
All Through One-Doy Service — No Stop-Overs
_ i
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Pinzoii Bar
and
RECREATION PARLOR
Valdez
Serving the Best of Drinks
and Food
C. J. "Truck" Egan, proprietor
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