7
More Shopping Days
Until Christmas
Halley - Mkontiergman
PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
U PAGES
TODAY
VOL.. 4, NO. 14
PALMER, ALASKA. FRIDAY. DECEMBER 15. 1950
PRICE 10c
Estimate $46,750 For City Operation
New Pure-Pak Machine
Arrives for MVFCA
Dairy This Week
The delivery of milk in papei
containers from the Matanuskc
Valley Farmers Cooperating As
sociation dairy should start here
about the first of January, Clar
ence Bell, manager of the cream
ery said this week. The new
Pure-Pak machine for packaging
t of the milk arrived in Palmer
Monday via the Alaska railroad
and should be installed and ready
for operation within two weeks,
Mr. Bell said. The machine, man
ufactured in Michigan, was ship
ped from the states by boat to
Seward.
The new attractive cartons
were designed here in the Val
ley. The Pure-Pak machine's
operation, confined to packag
ing of the milk, lakes the flat
carton, opens it up, glues the
bottom, waxes it inside and
-out, fills it with milk and
staples the top of the carton in
a minimum of time. Complete
modernization of the dairy also
includes the installation of new
pasteurizers; coolers and other
processing equipment.
McKay of the Monroe
Machinery Company at I
has been here since November
11, supervising the installation
of the processing equipment.
After the milk is pasteurized
and cooled it is then run into a
surge tank equipped to feed
the milk on into the Pure-Pak
. machine as fast as it can be
packaged.
Entirely new innovations also
planned at the creamery will in
clude the making and packaging
of chocolate milk and orangeade.
Mr. Bell said that the personnel
at the creamery will also be in
creased. Glass bottles formerly
used for the milk will probably
be sold, he added.
Mr. Bell, Carl Rasmussen and
Clayton Esslinger conferred
with Army and Air Force of
ficers at Anchorage on Monday
on a delivery schedule for milk
' and ice cream to be supplied
the Armed Forces here by the
MVFCA creamery. The sched
ule to start February 1 for milk
will be 1.000 gallons per day
with that amount to be in
creased. Ice cream at the rale
of 7.000 gallons per month is
now being delivered to the
Armed forces and is to be in
creased an additional 2,000 gal
lons this month. Tne milk
which will go to the military is
recombined and will replace
1 frozen milk previously shipped
here from the stales for the
troops.
The Co-Op’s retail store on
Fourth avenue in Anhcorage was
closed December 1, to make the
sale of milk and ice cream ex
clusively wholesale. The Fourth
avenue store was the only
MVFCA retail outlet in Anchor
age for their ice cream and milk
which is now being handled by
several retail business establish
ments in that city.
TEACHER IS ILL
Gottfried Stevahn, teacher of
the sixth and seventh grades at
Palmer school, is ill and has been
in the Valley hospital all week
No Power Sunday.
! The Valley will be without
j electric power most of the day
Sunday, Mrs. Ruth Pierson,
manager of the Matanuska
Electric Association, an
nounced this week. The power
is to be cut off from 9 a.m. to
4:30 p.m. so that major changes
in installation at Eklutna sub
station may be made, Mrs.
Pierson explained. The bigger
transformers necessary to send
power to the Chugiak are to
be installed, she added.
It may be possible to make
the change over in less than
the time announced, but it
should not take more than the
seven and one-half hours stat
ed, unless something unfore
seen should occur, Mrs. Pier
son said.
3 Represent Palmer on
3rd Division Chapter
Formed to Fight Polio
Three Valley residents were
elected to represent Palmer on
the executive committee of an of
ficial chapter of the Infantile
Paralysis Association formed at
->chorage for the Third Division
this week. Palmerites named to
the committee, which is composed
of a membership of 20 persons j
representing towns and. cities of i
the Third Division, are Dr. Lee
L. McKinley, the Rev. Victor Alf
sen and Miss Florence O. Eby.
The official chapter for the
Third Division was formed at An-, i
chorage at a meeting called Tues-!
day by West Altenberg, regional
director of the National Infantile
Paralysis Association of New
York. An official chapter for
southeastern Alaska has already
been formed. The chapter for the
Third Division was formed by I
the unanimous vote of the 30 per- j
sons in attendance at the meet
ing Tuesday from Anchorage and
the surrounding communities.
Mrs. Dorothy Chamberlain of
Anchorage was named chairman
of the local chapter; Mrs. Robert
Atwood, vice-president; Miss Nor
ma E. Rucker, secretary, both of
whom are also of Anchorage, and
Miss Sophie Erickson, treasurer.
Miss Erickson is from Spenard.
The executive committee will
meet soon to appoint a medical
advisory committee, a woman’s
committee and a campaign chair
man, officers stated. It is antici
pated that there will also be local
committees formed in the vari
ous communities in the Third Di
vision to work with the official
chapter.
“Alaska did not. have an epi
demic but merely an outbreak of
infantile paralysis this year,” Mr.
Altenberg pointed out in address
ing the meeting Tuesday night.
He added that next year the ter
ritory may suffer a serious out
break, and explained that it was
necessary to form chapters in the
territory as only through official
chapters can funds be given to
Alaska to fight the disease.
At the regular meeting of the
Palmer Health Council to be held
December 21 at 7 p.m. at the Rec
hall, Miss Eby will give a de
tailed report on the formation and
work of the local official chapter
Santa Claus Makes Last-Minute Plans
For Fourth Annual Christmas Party
banta Claus is very busy on
last minute plans for the big
fourth annual Christmas party
for all Valley children to be held
here Sunday, December 24, ac
cording to word received from
him this week. The party, which
| is co-sponsored here annually by
Palmer merchants, will start
■ promptly at 2:30 p.m. at the Val
| ley theatre.
Finishing touches are also being
put on a beautiful candy house
here in preparation for Santa’s
visit again this year. Last year
he arrived just in time for the
Christmas party with the children
watching him come down the
chimney to step through a large
glowing fireplace and to greet
them all.
Plans this year also call for 650
bags of goodies to be distributed
to the children as Christmas
presents and containing an apple,
orange, peanuts, candy and a gift.
I Extra - special presents will be
| distributed to children whose let
\ ters to Santa are judged the best.
Letters to Santa Claus may now
be mailed in a box set up in the
lobby of the theatre.
The Women of the Moose will
again do the honors of sacking all
the goodies for the children. The
Moose Lodge of Palmer has ten
tatively agreed to act as ushers
for the big party and also to take
charge of the lost and found de
partment.
The party will start with an all
comedy show for children only
up to and including the seventh
grade. At 4 p.m. an extra show
ing will be held for other children
and any parents who might wish
to attend. There is no charge for
admittance to the theatre, A1 V.
Hagen, theatre manager ex
plained.
First Aid Instructors
Course Set for January
First aid instructors’ classes will
be held at Anchorage from Jan
uary 20 through 26, according to
word received this week by the
Frontiersman from the territorial
director of Civil Defense at Ju
neau. Students who wish to en
roll in the course are requested
to wire applications to either An
chorage or Juneau Civilian De
fense directors, according to the
announcement.
Anyone here who is holding a
Red Cross certificate as a first
aid instructor is also requested to
get in touch with the Anchorage
Red Cross office for additional in
formation on the courses. Any
one in Palmer who possibly can
take the course is urged to do so
by Civilian Defense directors, so
that they, in turn, may be quali
fied to hold classes here as a part
of the civilian defense plan.
P-TA to sell Pamphlet
On 'Atomic Survival*
“Survival Under Atomic At
tack,” a pamphlet issued by the
National Civil Defense office un
der the Security Resources Board,
will be placed on sale here by the
P-TA as its part in the local ci
vilian defense plan, it was an
nounced this week. The P-TA
executive committee voted at its
regular meeting December 6 to
send for the important pamphlet
in order to make it easily avail
able for residents of the Valley.
They have placed an order for 200
of the pamphlets which will be
sold at a very nominal fee. As
soon as the pamphlets are re
ceived an announcement will be
made of their arrival and where
they may be obtained.
MRS. GRIFFITH TO
RETURN TO HER HOME
Mrs. O. E. Griffith, mother of
Mrs. C. C. Bailey, is returning to
her home at Bremerton, Washing
ton, after an extended visit here.
She plans to leave Anchorage by
Stratocruiser on Monday.
EKLUTNA OFFICE
STAFF TO MOVE TO
NEW BUILDING HERE
The Eklutna project
will move into the finished por
tion of the new American Legion
building, which is still under con
struction, some time next week,
Byron G. Felkner, head of the
Eklutna project here said this
week. Two of the big drafting
rooms have been completed and
the staff will occupy them until
the remainder of the building is
completed. When the building,
which is located across the street
from the Matanuska hotel, is fin
ished, it will house the Eklutna
staff in 12 offices in addition to
a large storage room. There are
approximately 58 employes on
the project’s payroll, with 13 on
the office staff, drill crews of 38
men, and 7 surveyors. The office
has been temporarily located in
the laboratory of the Agricultural
Research Administration build
ing since the project got under
way here a few months back.
Locating the route for the 115,
000-volt transmission line to be
run from the old Eklutna power
plant to the substation to be con
structed in Palmer will also start
here next week, Mr. Felkner said.
T. M. Austin of the chief engi
neer’s office of the Bureau of Rec
lamation at Denver, Colo., arrived
here this week to assist in locat
ing the route for the transmission
line. Routing of the line will be
determined by flying over the
area in a helicopter and also by
walking the proposed route, Mr.
Felkner said.
FARM WORKERS TO START
SOCIAL SECURITY PAYMENTS
Beginning January 1, 1951,
many farm workers will start
paying social security taxes for
the first time in accordance with
a recent amendment by Congress
of the federal Social Security Act.
Fact sheets containing informa
tion concerning farm labor may
be obtained at the Matanuska
Valley Farmers Cooperating As
sociation’s general office, it was
announced this week.
Financial Statement
To Be Submitted with
Petition for Election
; The petition backed here by
businessmen for the people of
Palmer to hold an election to
decide for or against incorpora
tion of the town should be taken
before the judge of the Third Dis
trict Court within the next month
or so, it was announced here this
week. Harold J. Butcher, An
chorage attorney representing the
business men here met with the
steering committee on Tuesday of
this week to confer on incorpora
tion plans. The steering commit
tee, named by the business men
at the beginning of the incorpora
tion move the latter part of No
vember are Matt Perkins, A1
Hagen, Steve Ward, Frank Brown
j and John L. Sullivan.
"A bugaboo of taxes has been
I built up in the minds of some
of Palmer's residents, which
j should be cleared up," a spokes
man for the business men said.
; explaining sources of revenue
! on which the new city would
be operated.
Revenue sources would include
all revenues (the entire amount
collected) from liquor licenses,
oth cocktail bars and liguor
-tores; all revenue from juke
boxes, pin ball machines and
similar licensed mechanical
amusement devices (excluding
slot machines which are illegal).
In addition, 60 per cent of all
revenues derived on the payment
of licenses for all mercantile es
tablishments, professional men
and service operations such as
garages, tractors, bulldozers or
the like (including anybody who
sells his services for public con
sumption*.
It was pointed out that these
very licenses are being paid right
now but that the territory is
keeping them.
ttigni now mere are seven
bars and eight liquor stores in
Palmer with the former paying
$3,500 per year in licenses and
the latter $2,444, which would
all come back to the city, if in
corporated." the spokesman said.
The territory has special taxes
of $50 per year on pin ball ma
chines and juke boxes, or any
other licensed mechanical amuse
ment device, payable to the ter
ritory, and all these taxes now
retained by the territory would
go to Palmer if the city were in
corporated.
The city, if incorporated, would
have to have a city magistrate
and all fines for misdemeanors
committed within the proposed
city limits now assessed and col
lected by the U. S. Commissioner’s
office would revert to the city
(the entire amount would go to
the city).
In addition, miscellaneous rev
enues derived would include the
sale of dog licenses, the sale of
maps and plats of the city, build
ing permits, and if the city en
gaged in any services such as
garbage removal, or any public
utilities such as water, lights or
sewer systems, the revenue from
those services.
Real estate taxes cannot be
levied against government prop
erty but in lieu of taxes, pay
ments are made for services ren
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