VOTI TUISDAY
to approve a new water
system for Palmer.
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PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
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VOLUME &. NUMBER 20
PALMER. ALASKA. THURSDAY. JANUARY 24. 1952
PRICE TEN CENT*
I
City Voters Asked to Approve New
Water System in Tuesday Election
Palmer residents, who have
many times in the past year about
the inadequate water supply, will
have a chance Tuesday to take
definite action assuring the city’s
own water system.
The polls will open Tuesday
morning at eight o’clock in Sev
erns’ Cabinet Shop (the tempor
ary city hall) where qualified
electors will vote on two issues:
All qualified electors of the
city of Palmer will be asked to
authorize indebtedness up to
$300,000 to pay for the city’s one
half share of construction costs
on the city’s new water system.
Only property owners who are
residents of Palmer will vote on
issue $250,000 worth of bonds to
the ballot permitting the city to
guarantee purchase of the water
system - at half price. Both real
and personal property owners are
included on the 1951 city assess
ment roll which will be* at the
polls for the purchase of checking
eligibility to vote on this ballot.
No New Taxes
The City Council has made it
clear through educational adver
tisements that the indebtedness
will be liquidated out of reven
ues from the water system, paid
to the city by water consumers
the same as they pay the Co-Op
at the present time. If the U. S.
Government should request that
the city issue $250,000 in bonds as
security for the city’s one-half
share of construction cost, the
bonds will be held by the govern
ment. The councilmen doubt that
the city will be asked to issue the
bonds, citing a 65 percent affir
mative vote to issue the bonds
if called upon to do so as a suf
ficient pledge of faith by the peo
ple of Palmer.
The polls will remain open un
til 7 p. m. Judges appointed for
the election are Mrs. Katheryn
Wilson, Mrs. Kathleen Moore, and
Mrs. Nan Curtis. Betty Mears was
named as alternate.
FIRE CHIEF ASKS
BETTER DIRECTIONS
ON EMERGENCY CALLS
Lauritz Loberg received pain
fully frozen ears and Hal Heckard
frozen fingers while answering
a fire call with the volunteer fire
department the night of January
I9.
Although the two trucks made
1 “dry run” in extreme weather
several men turned out for the
call that went into the telephone
office about eleven o’clock. A
fire reported at the Dawson home
on the Anchorage highway had
been extinguished before the
trucks arrived.
Fire chief Mitchell stressed the
need for persons reporting fires
to make some arrangement for
directing the trucks. Although the
drivers knew the general direc
tion to go in answer to the call,
the exact house was not known
and without anyone evident to di
rect the trucks, they were at a
loss. Upon calling in to the tele
phone operator they discovered
the fire, smoldering boards be
neath a heater, had been controll
ed.
SUSITNA LODGE CLOSED
FOR TWO MONTHS
Mr. and Mrs. Vic Cottini, own
ers of Little Susitna Lodge an
nounce that the lodge wiU be
closed for the next two months,
during which time they will make
a trip to the States on business
and pleasure. The lodge will re
open when the Cottinis return.
Court Dismisses
Three Cases Based
On Gambling Charges
The case against four men
charged with gambling at the T
and T Sourdough Bar following
a raid by the U. S. Marshal’s of
fice early Sunday morning, Jan
uary 13. were dismissed Monday
by U. S. Commissioner Dorothy
Saxton.
The action followed a move foi:
dismissal by Attorney George
McLaughlin at the time of the
trial Tuesday, January 15. Mc
Laughlin had claimed that the
testimony of prosecution witnes
ses did not prove that the fan-tan
game in progress at the time of
the raid was anything more than
a recreational card game.
The four men thus cleared of
gambling charges were S. R. Jus
tad of Palmer, Shrader Hawkins
of Anchorage, J. C. Tomasi of
Palmer, and F. W. McAlister of
Anchorage.
Upon the recommendaion of the
District Attorney, the cases
against Arthur W. Thompson and
Ralph Horton were also dismis
sed. Thompson wras charged with
maintaining and operating a
gambling establishment where
gaming or gambling was carried
on, and Horton was charged with
dealing or carrying on card games
in which gambling was a part.
Charges against these two men ■
were made following the same j
raid that resulted in the charges,
against the four men. Neither
Thompson nor Horton was
brought to trial. Upon his move
for dismissal of charges against
the four, McLaughlin observed:
“If there is no case on the charge
of gambling against the four men,
then there is no evidence in either
of the other two cases.”
SEVEN MORE DAYS
TO PAY SCHOOL TAX
Only seven more days re
main for more than two-thirds
of the Palmer School District
taxpayers to pay their 1951
school taxes, tax collector Wil
liam Head announced today.
The last day for payment is
Friday, February 1. After that
penalties are added. The tax
collector’s office will be open
all day Saturday of this week
for the convenience of tax
payers.
BLM OPENS UP
187 TRACTS IN
BIRCHWOOD AREA
The Bureau of Land Manage
ment started last Thursday to ac
cept applications for 187 tracts
near Birchwood. of which 183
are classified as homesites.
Eligible to file for these one-to
five-acre tracts are World War
II veterans only until after Feb
ruary 5. Thereafter a 90-day pre
ferential period will follow dur
ing which veterans only may ap
ply for any untaken lands. The
general public will have a chance
at any remaining tracts after May
8.
Applicants will be asked to
name the particular tract in
(Continued on page 8)
Anchorage Attorney
Named Demccralic
Kat’l Committeeman
Stanley McCutheon, Anchorage ,
attorney, was elected national i
committeeman by delegates to i
the Territorial Democratic Con
vention in the three-day session
which ended Sunday. Mrs. Louise
Miller of Ketchikan was elected
national committeewoman.
Divisional delegates named ot
represent the Territory at the Na
tional Democratic Convention
were:
First Division—Mrs. Louise
Miller of Ketchikan and Michael
J. Hess of Juneau, with Frank
Peratrovick of Klawock named
as alternate.
Second Division — William E.
Beltz of Nome, with Howard
Lvng of Nome and Frank Degnan
of Unalakleet as alternatives.
Third Division — McCutcheon
and Z. J. Loussac, with Zebb
Harris as alternate. All are from
Anchorage.
Fourth Division—Essie R. Dale
with Alex Miller and Ralph Riv
ers as alternates. All are from
Fairbanks.
Palmer’s Betty Mears was
named to the Territorial central
committee to represent the Third
Division along with Marion P.
Smith and Robert McFarland of
Anchorage.
Frank Barr of Fairbanks was
elected chairman of the Demo
cratic Territorial committee with
William Beltz as vice-chairman,
Robert E. Sheldon of Fairbanks
as secretary, and Z. J. Loussac as
financial advisor.
First of the 24 planks adopted
by the Democratic delegates in
their program was a recommen
dation of President Truman and a
pledge to support him for re
election. Immediate statehood for
Alaska Was the second planks
adopted. Other projects receiving
Democratic platform support
were: the inclusion of vocational
training in Alaskan schools,
abolishon of fish traps, and est
blishment of Pure Food and Drug
Administration inspection facili
ties in the Territory. '
Air Chaplain Clasby
And Famous Choir In
Program Here Sunday
People of Palmer and the Mat
anuska Valley will have an unu
sual opportunity to hear Colonel
William J. Clasby and his sing
ing sergeants in an inspirational
program at the school gymnasium
Sunday, January 27, at 8 p. m.
The Air Chaplain and his ser
geants have been acclaimed by
radio and servicemen's audiences
all .over the United States and in
the Pacific war area. They have
appeared on program series spun
sored over both NBC and ABC
networks. More than 10,000
troops were entertained by them
recently in their tour of the Paci
fic area. It has been reported
that their program w-as received
with more enthusiasm than pro
fessional entertainment provided
with much fanfare.
The Palmer program will be an
unusual one because it will mark
the final opportunity for Alaskans
to see and hear this unusual
assemblage of talent. Most of the
men are being returned to the
States on rotation.
A full two-hour program is
planned. Col. Clasby will deliver
one of his inspiring 30-minue ad
dresses, and the remainder of the
time will be given to skits and
songs from the choir.
There will be no charge for ad
mission. A voluntary collection
will be taken and all proceeds
will go tow'ard the Valley Presby
terian Hospital fund, according to
Ed Smith, chairman of the hos
pital fund raising committee. The
treasurer of the fund drive, Hugh
Johnson, reported Monday that
the local fund now stands at
$12,000. The hospital fund rais
ing committee is sponsoring the
program to be presented by Col
Clasby and his sergeants.
The military is co-operating
with the local program by provid
ing bus transportation for the
choir and its leader. Members of
Beta Sigma Phi will serve the
group refreshments following the
program. Representatives of the
Kiwanis Club will get the gym
nasium ready for the program.
Auditor Reveals Bank Shortages Near
$125,000 as Maze is Released on Bond
Jack Maze was back In Palmer
this week after being released
from the federal jail in Anchor
age on $20,000 bail posted by Lee
Hartley, his new employer, and
Pat Cartee. of Anchorage.
The former Matanuska Valley
Bank manager’s release followed
a Third District Court hearing on
Maze’s petition for a writ of ha
beus corpus on the basis that the
original bail of $45,000 was exces
sive and violated the intent of the
eighth amendment of the U. S.
Constitution.
In reducing Maze’s bail to $20,
000 Judge Anthony Dimond stat
ed that the U. S. Commissioner
in Palmer was not to be criticized
for setting the bail as high as she
did on the basis of facts available
to her. He pointed out that al
though bail is not a form of pen
alty it should be set high enough
so that in a time of agony and dis
pair the defendant might not feel
free to disappear.
During the hearing Maze testi
fied that he had turned over all
of his assets, leaving his family
virtually destitute. In offering to
help put up the bond if it were
lowered sufficiently. Hartley also
advised the court that he would
give Maze employment in his gar
age.
Shortage Estimated
In a statement to the Anchor
age newspapers, George Jones,
senior partner in the firm of
Jones and Anderson which has
been investigating the bank’s
shortages, placed the shortages
“in the neighborhood of $125,000.”
The investigation will not be com
plete for another two or three
weeks. He doubted that complete
recovery could be had even
though Maze turned over all of
his personal assets. Maze turned
over assets valued at $65,150 al
though there were property liens
amounting to $15,000.
In order to cover the shortages,
Jones stated hat it would be nec
essary “to liquidate” the Matanu
ska Press and recover on the bank
manager’s bond and a note sign
ed by the Palmer Drug Co. Jones
said that overdrafts amounting
to $62,794.84 were in the account
of the Matanuska Press. Maze
was an incorporator of the Mat
anuska Press and also held a
stock interest. Maze denied hav
ing any interest in the Palmer
(Continued on Page 4)
ARC Reports Rural Roads Open to
One-way Traffic; City Streets Cleared
Weasel Owners Prove
Themselves Knights
In Armor During Wind
An unestimated loss of money
and worry was averted through
the untiring efforts of the weasel
drivers who assisted farmers and
householders during the four days
and nights of high volocity winds
and impregnable snow drifts.
Verne Donaldson was one of
the first drivers to go out when
he took a repair crew of MEA
workers in his weasel to the
King’s Lake area where an esti
mated 30 miles was covered dur
ing the checking of an outage in
that region. Workers told of huge
drifts that would have made the
trip impossible in conventional
type vehicles.
Donaldson was also credited
with saving hundreds of dollars
worth of milk by shuttling full
and empty milk cans between
stranded farmers and the Co-Op
creamery. Hay. chicken feed,
grain, fuel oil and groceries made
up his return trips as well as a
“taxi” business for workers
stranded in town who could not
hav<T otherwise returned home.
Saturday night a hurried trip was
made south of town to bring a
sick baby to the Valley hospital.
Bill Cook and Roy Knapp were
kept equally busy with their
weasels.
All who were helped by these
men and vehicles had nothing but
high praise and thanks for them.
“I can't imagine what we would
have done without them,” one
grateful farmer said.
"SINGSPIRATION"
POSTPONED
The Union Service “Sing
spiration” regularly schedule-!
for the fourth Sunday of every
month is being postponed this
Sunday so that all local par
ishioners will be able to attend
the Col. Clasby program.
The Union Service will be
held Sunday evening. Febr
uary 3, at the United Protes
tant Church.
Newville Funeral,
Postponed by Storm
To be Held Tomorrow
The funeral of William Irving
Newville, originally scheduled for
Thursday, January 17. will be
held tomorrow, January 25, at
2 p. m. in the United Protestant
Church.
Father Albert Sayers, rector of
the All Saints Episcopal parish in
Anchorage, will officiate at the
church service. Members of the
Northland Pioneer Grange, of
which Newville was an active
member, will be in charge of the
graveside service at the local
cemetary.
Mr. Newville died at his Butte
farm home after a heart attack
Friday, January 11. Funeral ser
vices last Thursday had to be
postponed when the winds glut
ted the roads so that Mrs. New
ville and her daughter, Mrs. Dor
othy Graham, were unable to
reach Palmer.
The long, four-day onslaught
of high velocity winds ended
late Sunday night and weary
Valley residents, all of whom
survived the worst Valley blow
in many years, came out smiling
Monday morning even as they
surveyed the difficult digging
out process ahead of them.
Most residents were in agree
ment that the storm was the
w’orst the Valley had experienc
ed within present memories. Ac
cording to estimates the wind
reached velocities up to 80 miles
per hour during some of its more
savage gusts. And there was no
easing off as the wind approached
its finale; the gusts Sunday even
ing seemed more fierce than those
that had gone before. Out at
j King’s Lake, William Head re
! ported that his anemometer nev
er showed less than 40 miles per
hour, and it recorded gusts up to
70 m.p.h. When the wind blew
its hardest Sunday evening, Head
said he was too tired to look.
ARC Reports All Clear
This morning, after working
day and night for a week, the Al
aska Road Commission reported
that all the roads in the Valley
are now cleared. Most of the ru
ral roads have only one-lane traf
fic, but farmers can get their
milk out again, and customers
can havi ui. delivered. 'Superin
tendent William T. Zahradnicek
said that all busses reported in it
the school this morning, although
the driver on bus eight had been
unable to pick up students at
Jonesville, Eska, and Sutton. In
dividuals who made it down from
Jonesville this morning describ
ed the wind as ‘‘cutting it up" at
a terrific pace up there.
Palmer residents were surpris
ed to have their streets cleared
so quickly after the wind. Leo
Lucas worked on the downtown
area Monday morning with his
‘cat’’, and after he broke down
that noon, Jim Hermon took over
Wednesday morning Russell Fel
?.ien, the city’s new road mainte
nance man. started operating the
Alaska Railroad “cat" on loan to
the city. Mayor Carl Meier ex
pected that all Palmer roads
would be cleared by last night.
The Airport Road outside the city
limits, however, still remained
glutted with drifts this morning
Ironically, the city’s own new
road maintainer arrived in Palm
er on yesterday’s train.
Weasels Bring nl Milk
There was no estimate about
the losses sustained by dairymen
because milk couldn't be brought
in to the creamery. On Sunday
14 dairymen got their milk in to
the Co-Op creamery, mostly by
weasel. Bill Cook, Verne Donald
son, and Roy Knapp kept their
weasels going almost all day Sun
| day and Monday bringing milk
in. A total of 9,205 pounds was
delivered Sunday. Clifton Grover
alone had 1,849 pounds brought
in that day—three weasel loads.
Eighteen dairymen had not de
livered any milk to the Co-Op for
three days when the check-up
was made Monday. On Friday
milk was received from only
three dairy farms—a total of
1,047 pounds. This amount was
nearly doubled in Saturday’s haul
when six farmers managed to get
their milk in. The weasel business
had begun. Local stores were out
of milk on Sunday, and deliveries
to Anchorage did not begin until
late Monday.
The Lines Pass Test
The Valley’s utility lines bore
(Continued on page 8)