THE FRONTIERSMAN
Entered as second class matter on Oct 21. 1947. at the poat office
at Palmer. Alaska, under the Act of March 3. 1679
T. O. SCHMIDTKE MILDRED JOHNSON
Publuher News Editor
SUBSCRIPTION RATES: $6 a year in Matanuaka Valley Area
MaMed to all points in Alaska and the United States $7.00 per year
Motional Advertiaino Rep.—WEEKLY NEWSPAPER REPRESENTATIVES
404 Fifth Avenue. New York 16. New York
HIE SEEDS OF FASCISM
Some thoughtful people have expressed a fear that
a form of Fascism may, in time, reach power in this coun
try. If it ever does, it will lie the evolutionary consumma
tion of a trend which has been subtly and insidiously un
dermining free institutions for many years.
The matter is not an easy one to discuss with any
precision. For one thing. Hie meaning of words often tend
to blur, and the problems and situations they are intended
to describe often lose contrast. One totalitarian state —
whether it be called Fascist. Communist, or anything else
is very much like another in its fundamentals.
That aside, the causes of Fascism, and the tools
which are used to create it, are spotlighted by history.
The technique is to bring about a marriage of the instru
ments of power in a nation—its government, its indus
tries, and its labor in cases where the unions are strong
and wield vast influence The ambitious leader uses these
instruments with the utmost care and the utmost cyni
cism—to achieve his purposes. He woos industry, by con
vincing it that by going along with him it will achieve
an advantage over labor. And he woos labor with pre
cisely the same siren song in reverse.
The stage is set for Fascism-or totalitarianism of any
kind—when the resources of a nation become overly de
pendent on its government And, certainly, we have mov
ed far in that direction. The government is the principal
customer of many huge,companies. Beyond that, gov
ernment, by its law and regulations, its bureaucracies, its
thousand and one departments and agencies, and its own
ousiness operations, plays a dominant role in the life of
the nation that would have seemed both impossible and
intolerable even half a century ago.
Wars-hot and cold-past, present and possible
have been enormous forces in producing this trend. A
fifty-odd billion dollar defense budget alone is a contin
uing threat to fundamental liberties. All we can do about
ibis is to minimize that threat in every way possible, by
working to prevent government domination of our lives
<n every area where the national security does not clearly
demand it.
Beyond this, the Fascist danger lies in areas which
have no connection with our safety in a chaotic world.
These areas we describe with a general term—the Welfare
State. This, carried to its logical conclusion, is a state in
which government is all things to all men, offering a dub
ious oradle-to-the-grave security. The cost in dollars—
tax dollars—is exceeded only by the costs in loss of liber
ty, self-reiiance, and individual pride and responsibility.
So the seeds of totalitarianism exist. Only an inform
ed and determined public, dedicated like its forebears to
the principles of freedom, can make sure that they will
not sprout into choking weeds.
BOATS—AND A MORAL
It doesn t happen often—but, now and again some
tj4 the taxpayers of this country get some kind of a break.
'A. Robert Smith, Washington correspondent of the
Portland Oregonian, reports that 'The Kennedy Admin
istration plans to retreat from its attempt to impose an
<annual tax on America's fast-growing number of boat
owners." The proposed annual tax would have been
$5 on boats between 14 and 16 feet in length, plus $2
more for every foot thereafter.
-According to Mr. Smith, the plan was licked by the
'organized and strong protests to-,Congress of boat own
ers. This may seem to be a very, small matter. But it pro
vides a self-evident moral for all the taxpayers, not just
the boat owners.
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THE AMERICAN WAY
That's What Schools Are For /
mj~A CALENDAR U
l Fact and 0
'Opinion
The International Committee
of the Red Cross entered the
headlines when President Ken
nedy agreed with a Soviet pro
posal to have the International
Committee carry out agreed
upon inspection procedures
during the current Cuban cris
is. What is the International
Committee of the Red Cross?
The American Red Cross has
released the following informa
tion about the Swiss organiza-1
tion: It is a group of 25 Swiss
citizens with headquarters in
Geneva, Switzerland. They are
completely autonomous—non
politicah non-sectarian. The
funds for the ICRC come from
an annual campaign which is
limited to Switzerland, volun
tary contributions from private
citizens, national Red Cross so
cieties and governments. The
ICRC is recognized by virtual
ly every nation in the world as
the neutral channel for nego
' tiation between belligerents in
the protection of victims of
war. and as a means by which
organzied relief can cross bat
tle lines or enter an area of
conflict.
LILUEiJ DflYS
IN THE
Vf)U£Y
Thursday, January 21, 1948
M. D. Snodgrass of the Val
ley filed for territorial office in
the House of Representatives
on the Republican ticket last
week.
• * *
For the third time within
recent weeks, the Matanuska
Valley Lodge was threatened
by fire, when flames last
week were discovered smoul
dering in a third-floor closet.
When the fire was discover
ed, in the room of Mrs. Eth
el Lyons, school teacher,
smoke had filled the ?oom
and fire had charred a con
siderable area of baseboard
in the closet.
* • *
The Anchorage-Palmer high
way still is in poor driving con
dition, Clyde King, Alaska
Road Commission foreman,
warned today. "If you don't
have to go, then stay home,”
Mr. King advises.
* * *
Twin problems of insufficient
Strange Things
By Heinie Snider
All women are good. Some
are better.
Jimmy St. Clair, who came
to Alaska in 1900 at the age of
25, and his partners, George
Murphy and Lars Anderson,
were working their placer gold
claims in the Cache Creek
country, located on the south
ern slope of Mount McKinley.
No sooner was gold discov
ered in 1906, than the stampede
to the diggings started the fol
lowing year. As usual, many
were Cheechakos, who had not
the slightest idea how to take
care of themselves, let alone
how to travel in an unknown
country full of swamps, mus
keg and mosquitoes. Among
them were a young man and
his wife, who were located
about six miles from the St.
Clair camp.
On a nice warm Sunday, Jim
suggested that as it was Sun
day, they visit their neighbors.
They found the man on the
bank of the creek, and he in
vited them to have something
to eat. Entering the hut, made
out of canvas and sticks, he ex
plained that his wife was sick.
The found the woman on a
bed made of spruce boughs. She
talked with the miners, and
showed a great dislike for the
country. Later, the man told
Jim and his friends that she
had been in bed for a couple
of weeks.
“I've got to get her to a doc
tor, but I don’t see how I am
going to do it,” he said des
pondently.
While the man went back
into the hut, the miners talked
things over, and it was decided
to transport her to Wade Lake,
where a small boat was moor
ed, to take her to civilization
and a doctor. They rigged up a
k^nd of stretcher of canvas and
poles with shoulder straps and
tenderly laid the sick woman
on the stretcher. The woman’s
weight was about 160 pounds,
but Jim said that before the
, trip was over she felt as though
! she weighed a ton.
In the muskeg, which was
swampy and covered with moss
j and short grass, they sank in
up to their ankles at every step.
They stumbled over hum
mocks. The bacon grease which
they had smeared over their
hands and face for protection
against the swarm of mosquit
oes had melted in the hot sun,
and mixed with the perspira
tion painting their faces like
Indians. Worst of all, since they
were holding the poles, they
had no chance of killing the
mosquitoes biting their hands
and neck.
For hours that seemed like
days, they dragged the awk
ward dead weight endlessly
through the muskeg. At last
they came to the top of the
slope that led down to the
lake, and carefully they set
the stretcher on the ground.
W'hile the men wiped the
sweat out of their eyes, the
young woman threw back the
light blanket and rose. Stand
ing beside the stretcher, she
turned to her husband and
laughed.
“I told you I’d never walk
out of this damned country,”
she said, and went running
lightly down the bank toward
the lake.
The four men stood there,
dazed. Jim looked at the man
briefly. The man’s face was as
white as the face of a dead man.
They all sat down for a short
while. Nobody said anything
but the Swede, who said, "Veil,
I be ?XX?QSMN!1!”
Jim got up first, walked over
to the man, shook his hand, and
led his partners back through
the swamp to their camp.
SPROUTS TOMORROW
The tdsfc you cjon’t put off to
day has a good chance of be
ing in the sprouting stage to
morrow.
Where in the
wide werld
are yen going?
WRIGHT
TRAVEL AGENCY
Wright Building
PI 5-4500 - PI 5-4515 Palmer
No matter where ... no
matter when, we can
make your travel care
free, your whole trip
more pleasurable. Leave
all details to us. The
scope of our service is
world-wide . . . the cost
to you: nothing!
ROMANTIC VENICE
BECKONS IR RESIST I BUY I
markets for produce raised in
tiie Valley and an influx of
homesteaders who are unpre
pared to finance themselves un
til new farms are in operation
are retarding the development
of the Matanuska Valley, C. W.
Peters general manager of the
Alaska Rural Rehabilitation
Corporation told the Anchorage
Chamber of Commerce last
Monday. Mr. Peters told Cham
ber members the Corporation
was set up to establish colon
ists on their Valley farms, but
he declared the day of govern
ment subsidy in the Matanus
ka Valley is past.
* * *
Palmer's four bars, closed
since Dec. 31 at midnight,
were back on a "business as
usual" schedule late last
I Monday. Decision on the lic
enses of the four, at first
scheduled to be announced at
1 o'clock Tuesday morning,
; was unexpectedly reached in
court late Monday afternoon.
A petition requesting the es
tablishment of rural mail ser
vice in the Matanuska Valley
still may be signed at the Pal
mer post office, for a few more
days, postmistress Mrs. Walter
E. Huntley announced today.
The list of signers already is
I lengthy, but all who are inter
ested are asked to stop and add
1 their names.
* » *
Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd Severns
are visiting the Valley this
week, while Mr. Severns in
spects Palmer for a suitable lo
cation for the cabinet shop and
small sash and door establish
ment he hopes to open here.
Although the chancel of St.
John Lutheran Church is be
ing remodelled, carpenters
Ed Ueeck and Alvin Weill
will lay aside hammer and
saw in time to permit regu
lar morning services this
week.
Baha’is to Observe
World Religion Day
The Baha’is of the Matanus
ka Valley invite the people of
the area to join in their obser
vance of World Religion Day
by attending a public meeting
at the Guffey residence, one
fourth mile off the Glenn High
way on Plumbley Road, at 2:30
p.m. on Sunday. Jan. 20.
Observances of this day will
be held throughout the world.
Man’s search for a way to live
peacefully in a unified world
has led the heads of many
churches and religious sects of
the world to realize the need
for the oneness of mankind and
religion, local Baha'is have
pointed out. Councils such as
the one called by Pope John in
Rome are meeting to look for
a way to bring together the
many thoughts, ideas, and be
liefs dividing the churches.
REBEKAHS
TO INSTALL
Gold Star Rebekah Lodge No.
11A of Palmer will hold its in
stallation of 1963 officers on
Friday evening, Jan. 18.
A potluck dinner at 6:30 p.m.
will precede the installation
All Rebekahs are asked to at
tend.
ST. JOHN
LUTHERAN
CHURCH
Rev. R. H. Fritz, pot tor
Palmer, Alaska
Divine Services 11 rOO A. M.
Sunday School 9:45 A.U.
THOUGHTS
OF A
LAYMAN
Giving to the Lord
We associate the name Le
Tourneau with various types
of modern road equipment.
Not only is this person a very
successful businessman, but
he is also an earnest Christ
ian. As a young boy, he gave
his heart to the Lord, and be
gan tithing. A tithe is one
tenth of your earnings. There
is a special blessing connect
ed with this kind of giving.
"Try Me,” God said, "and I
will open the windows of
heaven." It is no wonder,
therefore, that this poor
Christian boy was blessed
both materially, and, even
more, spiritually. His chief
concern has been to give his
fellowmen the upward look.
Cause and Effect
History proves that many
empty stomachs invite revolu
tions — full stomachs seek so
lutions.
*********************-r*
% Wasilla J
II Assembly of God *
* *
Rev Paul E. Riley. J
* Pastor *
* *
I Sun. School -10 a.m.|
| Morn. Church Serv. 11 a.m.|
j *Even. Serv. _7:30 pan.*
i * Prayer and Bible *
| Study, Wednesday 7:30 pun.*
* Phone FR-8-3161 !
u w M »». w » *
SUTTON COMMUNITY
CHURCH OF GOD
Sunday School and Worship Service
each Sunday Morning at 10:30
EVERYONE WELCOME
JOHN MARSHALL, Pastor
mm
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DO YOU NEED
directions ?
££& fZ!!Zsmost importe,‘t - *h= ^“Tho^inh7w
w,hkh ,has with
r„istiPBut ii is - -* *° p-^^sss.^
We turn to the Church. In the fhurrh « j • .
the companionship of others who with .w ^ ln®piration through
There, in prayer and worehip we k„L T ,0r * ^lter llfe
Father. We learn to follow the examnle of tv ^ ®s/"f1KS °f G°d, the
power „, Hie Spirit who alone enabled uelote^thflb^'.^
THE CHURCH FOR ALL .
The Church ia the greatest factor
®n earth for the building of charac
ter and good citizenship. It is a store
house of spiritual values. Without a
strong Church, neither democracy
nor civilization can survive. There
are four sound reasons why every
person should attend services regu
Sunday
Psalms
25:8-15
Monday
Isaiah
58:7-11
ALL FOR THE CHURCH
theChurch They
» . . * or hJS °wn sake. (2) For
his children's sake. (3) For the sake
larly and read your Bible daily.
Tuesday
Romans
15:1-6
T Wednesday Thursday""
I Cormth.ans I Corinthians
Oa±»lf 0.1 A sn
Friday
I Thessalonians
3:6-13
Saturday
John
16:5-13
Th« Following Butinow Ert.blUhm.nt. Ar» CortribuHwa. til. , 3:6'1--lUltlL
*• Church., of *22? vX *
THE FRONTIERSMAN
A LOCAL CITIZEN
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