THE NENANA DAILY NEWS
Application made April *1, 1918, at the postoffice at Nenana, Alaska,
for entry as second class mail matter, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
“WHERE RAIL AND RIVER MEET”
Published every afternoon except Sunday, by the Nenana Printing
Company, at First and B Streets, Nenana, Alaska.
R. G. Southworth.Editor and Manager
RATES OF SUBSCRIPTION
Single Copies.Two Bits
By the Month, by Carrier or Mail.$ 2.00
Six Months, if paid in Advance.*. 9.00
One Year, if paid in advance. 15.00
ADVERTISING RATES
Transient Display Advertising, per inch, per issue...$ .50
Minimum Charge . 1.00
Reading Notices, per line, per issue. .25
Legal Advertising, per line, per issue.20
MEMBER OF THE ASSOCIATED PRESS „
The Associated Press is exclusively entitled to the use for re-publi
cation of all news dispatches credited to it or not otherwise credited in
this paper and also all the local news published herein.
GIVE NENANA A CHANCE
It would appear, from informa
tion which has reached the office
of The Nenana Daily News that I
Nenana and Nenanaites are being'
i
discriminated against by the postal j
authorities. We refer to the in-'
structions recently forwarded to I
Fairbanks, directing that proposals'
for carrying mail between Fair- i
banks and Nenana during the com- j
ing winter be received at the Fair- (
banks postoffice and forwarded to
the chief clerk at Tanana. The fact
that Nenana might number among I
her citizens men who would wel- J
come an opportunity to bid for the;
privilege of carrying the mail be-!
tween the two town seemingly did j
not enter into the consideration. At
any rate, the Nenana office has re
ceived no similar instructions and it
is not possible, even to obtain a
copy here of the notice calling for
bids.
Nenana, in the opinion of the
News, is entitled to first considera
tion in this matter. Practically all
the men who are in a position to
handle such a contract, are located
here and their proposals should be
invited if for no other reason than
to insure a reasonable charge for
the service rendered.
In this connection it may not be
amiss to remind the postal authori
ties that of the two towns con
cerned, Nenana has the greater
natural interest in the contract and
will be the greater sufferer through :
an unsatisfactory service. Nena
naites therefore can be depended
upon to co-operate with and assist
the department in making a favora
ble bargain, if given the oppor
tunity to do so.
The contract, for which the postal
authorities are seeking proposals,
requires a weekly service at least
between the two towns between
October 20 and May 15- The con-!
tractor will be expected to carry i
all mail offered and the proposals i
should stipulate the rate per pound ;
desired for carrying the mail. |
Whether or not the contract is to |
be awarded on a weight basis is not
known in Nenana. An effort is be-'
ing made, however, to secure a copy
of the notice posted at Fairbanks,'
and when it is received, prospective
local bidders will be made aware
of the fact, in order that they may
send in their bids before the time
limit has expired. The proposals'
are supposed to be forwarded to !
Tanana before the end of the pres-1
ent month.
* * * * *
VICTORY CERTAIN
“Victory of the Allies is a cer- ■
tainty in my opinion, and I am sure '
the American army will be the one j
to deal the knockout blow,” said to I
a correspondent of The Associted
Press, Major General Eben Swift,!
last year in charge of Camp Gordon, |
Atlanta, Georgia, and now command
ing the American military mission
to Italy.
“I tell you we will win as soon
as we get enough men over here
and these men get hold of the fight
ing ideas peculiar to this war, as
they are rapidly doing now through
association with the French, English,
and Italian troops.
“I do not believe in bragging.
I prefer to admit all the claims the
enemy makes for himself. But giv
ing all the credit due the Germans
for their gains, I maintain we are
going to smash them. I know- the
American man, what kind of a sol
dier he makes, and I insist that he
is going to turn out a most for
midable fighter, standing compari
son with any soldier in Europe. I
have visited the armies of the Allies
and have seen the kind of men they
have, and I am sure we are going
to be proud of our soldiers when
they have had the advantage of
learning from our Allies and at the'
same time doing some fighting with
the enemy himself. The Germans
are not fools and I believe they al
ready fear us.
“One of the big factors in mak
ing our army great is that of dis-;
cipline. The men commanding our j
army are said to be merciless in!
matters affecting discipline, in ques- j
tions of putting the right officer;
in the right place, of eliminating!
favoritism and unfit men, and this ]
is as it should be. By merciless
discipline, however, I do not mean!
ill treatment of soldiers or anybody. !
“This army of ours that we are
building up will lead to the final
defeat of the Germans for some
what the same reasons, perhaps, that ^
Napoleon was defeated in Europe
after fifteen years of victory, or
that the Confederate armv was de
feated in our Civil War. Time is!
working in favor of the Allies1
The Germans have not succeeded
in obtaining any overwhelming de- \
cision in this war,and the day will \
come when the Allies, backed up1
by the great American man power,
will themselves demand and obtain
thedecision that we call victory. I
do not believe in paying eompli-j
nients to ours I es or our allies, un
less deserved, but this is the situa->
tion as I see it in its purely mili
tary aspect.”
REDFIELD SUGGESTS
NORTHERN SHIPYARD
- • j
JUNEAU.—In a letter to Gover- ■
nor Thomas Riggs, .Jr., Secretary of j
Commerce William C. Redfield' ex-j
presses regret that there is no ship-!
building yard in Alaska where light'
wooden vessels for government ser-j
vice can be constructed- The sec- i
retary suggests that such an in-!
dustry would have an excellent op-!
portunity here and would be allowed :
at once to bid on four wooden ves-'
sels and more later. He also sug
gested that the fishing industry em- j
ploy a sufficient number of boats to j
warrant a shipyard for the purpose |
of repairs and promised government
patronage to such an enterprise. !
NEW MEXICO FARMERS
OVERCOMING TROUBLE
LAS CHUCES, N. M.—Alkali,
the bane of the irrigation farmer’s
life, is to be eliminated in the Mesilla
Valley when the present elaborate
system of drainage ditches which,
the reclamation service is complet- j
ing are in operation. The ditches!
do not draw off the alkali in the!
soil but they keep down capillary!
attraction which draws the alkali
to the surface in solution and kills
the plant growth. With the water j
table kept at a low mark by the j
automatic action of the drain ditches'
the capillary attraction will no long
er exert this influence and alkali
will be kept blow the line of plant
growth.
” j
The heroism of American womej
in canteen and hospitals in Fran/.*
is revealed in a letter to the secre
1 tary of state from his sister, Miss
I Katherine Ten Eyck Lansing, who
! with Miss Emma Sterling Lansing,
another sister, has been engaged in
canten work with the American Red
Cross in France since September,
1917. The letter, which appeared
in a recent issue of the Official
Bulletin, follows:
“France, Thursday, June 6, 1918
“Long before you recive this you
j will have received the cablegram we
hope reached you through the am
, bassador and have been relieved of
[ your anxiety about us. We have
j been living through thrilling days
and I am still tired enough to be
> afraid that I won’t write a very
clear letter. This is the first chance
either of us has had to write, for
we have been tremendously busy.
“Of course, the first news we had
of the big German attack came a
week ago Monday. We knew that
it was all along the line near us, but
felt no anxiety about our own situ
ation, although two of the ladies
had decided to go to Paris that day
for the day—but decided no to, as ]
they were afraid there might be
some difficulty about getting back!
to -, (a place about 12 miles
from the front, on acocunt of the ^
movement of troops. The troops1
passed all day, and we knew they
were being taken to the different
points of attack.
“Tuesday morning there was some
excitement in the hall while I was
still in bed. I got up to see and
found Miss E— (head of the can- j
teen) had received a letter from an
English friend, couched in very am- j
biguous terms, but by reading be-j
tween the lines we made out that
he thought we should all go at once
to Paris while ‘the going was still 1
good,’ as he put it. After consulta
tion with the military authorities
we decided there was no immediate
danger. Tuesday the ambulances
kept going by with the wounded, i
and Tuesday night Miss E— took
one person and went to see if there
was anything to be done at the
evacuation hospital. We did not all
go, as she was not willing. About
10 she came back for five more
people. Emma could not go, as she !
was on night duty in the canteen,
but I went with four others, and I
never spent such a strange night.
As soon as I reached the hospital I
was asked if I would go into the
barracks where the more lightly
wounded were, and interpret be
tween the French doctors and Eng
lish.
“The hospital is a huge place with
wooden shacks for the different
wards and spreads over a great deal
of ground. I was taken into one of j
these barracks croweded with people, !
becoming more crowed as the night
went on. There were both English
and French, and I was asked to take
the names of all the English, their
regiments, enlistments, and so on, •
and find out where they were wound-1
ed. I was told what to do, then
left alone, and there I was all night,
the room crowded with French Al
gerians, blacks, and English.
“As the night wore on the poor
things laid down as they could on
the floors, under the tables, and on
the tables, bloody bandages all
around. I had made out all the Eng
lish papers by half past two. In the
midst of it, about one, we had an
air raid, and I can tell you the
bombs never sounded so loud as
they did out there, all alone with all
those wounded men. In the midst
of it some one operted the door and
called ‘a l’abri,’ and those who were
able left the shack and went to the
abri. I went out to see how it was
and found many of them standing
outside, as the abri was full- About
four it began to be light and I won
dered whether the others had gone
home, but as I was alone with all
these men I did not like to leave.
A little later some of the officials!
came in, and then began the task i
of fitting the papers to the men1
and getting them off in the train.
They wanted me to stay to read the
names, as they were so difficult to
pronounce. I made another list of
men who had to go off on stretchers. I
told the doctors, in French where j
they were wounded, and so on, and
9 j
did not get back to the house until
12 nooon. It was rather a long
stretch from 10 the night before |
especially as I had nothing to drink
or eat.
“In the afternoon I went to the |
canteen. Some of the people in-j
were beginning to leave, and the in
habitants were all gathered in knots
around the street. The military
movement through the town was
something amazing. Of course .ex
citement ran high. We spent all
our days and nights—until Saturday !
night— at the hospital, with only j
two people left at the canteen.
“I can’t tell you anything about;
it only with the most vivid imag
ination. I do not think anyone can
dream of such suffering, such pa
tience, such heroism, or such terri- j
ble wreckage, and until one has seen |
it they can not know what war |
means. We found more than we j
could do even with our lack of know- j
ledge, giving the men water, wash- \
ing their bloody faces, interpreting ;
betwen the English and the French !
doctors, and wishing we could go a !
hundred times as fast. One French !
boy I brought water to, and the
tears rolled down his face, he had'
waited so long for it—and for a;
French boy to cry like that means j
more than other nationalities
I have found that you can bear j
seeing the most horrible wounds if!
you are doing something. I was so i
afraid I would not have the cour-1
age, but when I was doing some- ’
thing I did not think of that side ;
of it. I went into the operating j
room—or, rather, the room where j
the wounds were cleansed and dress
ed—and gave water to the men on
the tables, but the hardest thing was
to give milk or water to the men
whose faces were completely smash
ed to pieces. No words could de
scribe such sublime endurance of
suffering.
I* riday night we had a heavy air!
raid. Miss E-, Miss L-, and i
I were in bed and were caught in 1
the house before we could go to
the cave, and I must say we were
prettty scared, not only for our
selves, but for those at the canteen I
and the hosiptal. When a break j
came we made a dash for the cave j
next door, but the next day we had ]
mattresses taken to one of the cham- !
pagne caves, and all 17 of us slept!
there at least tried to sleep.
1 he hospitals were evacuated i
Saturday, so after Saturday there!
was nothing more for us to do there, :
and we went back to canteen work. !
Saturday night came a telegram1
from the ambassador, asking the'
general to make possible Emma’s j
and my return to Paris. Of course,
we could not leave like cowards be
fore the rest of the unit left, so
we sent the telegram to him, say
ing that unless he had bad news
for us from home we preferred not
to leave -, telling him to cable
you that we were well and well
taken care of.
Sunday afternoon the first obus
(shell) fell in the town, and that
night it was decided that 10 of us
should leave, 7 staying, Emma and
I among them, but Monday morning
Miss E — said only the four who
could run cars were to stay. Some
went to-, and 7 of us came here.
We had musettes packed for sev
eral days ready to leave—excepting
two of them, with the only things
each of us could take, but as we
came in a big Red Cross truck we
each brought a suit case besides.
However, most of our things are in
two trunks in _:_.
“This is a very quaint, pictures
que town, with many old buildings. '
We went to 10 places to find a
place to stay and Emma and I are
with the widow of a doctor—a very
quaint house with a lovely garden,
where I am writing now—the house
much run down. We have a very
small room for which the lady allows
us to pay one franc a day. She
wished nothing to be paid, as we
are working for the French. W’e
take our meals at the hotel—very
near. All seven of us are scattered
around. A French canteen is to be
opened here, and we expect to help
in opening it, at least two or three
of us.
“Trains are uncertain, but this
letter may reach you as I hope it
will. Don’t worry about us, we shall
not run into danger, and if it comes
to us you don’t want us to run
away from it, .but take it as bravely
as other people do. We shall send
you word whenever we can.
“Lovingly yours,
“KATE.”
MEXICANS CROSS LINE
TO GET YANKEE WAGES
EL PASO.—For the first time in
the history of this port, the demand
for Mexican laborers far exceeds
the supply. On the books of the
government employment bureau are!
orders for 1,700 men to work in j
special industries closely related to j
war work. Yet the Mexicans are
crossing at the rate of 100 only a
day. These are being sent to the*
lignite coal fields, the farms and
railroads for track work. A rush of
Mexican laborers is expected to oc
cur when the suspension of the liter
acy test and head tax law becomes
known throughout the republic.
REPAIRS FREE
CAMP KEARNEY.—Automobiles
owned by officers of the 40th divi
sion are now being repaired free of
charge at the 115th mobile ordnance
repair shop here.
H©_M.E!
Kulturizad
WANT ADS
These little classified advertise
ments—For Sale, For Rent, Lost and
Found—Have performed a valuable
service for others. Perhaps they
will do as well for you. They are
inexpensive. Three insertions for a
dollar when the advertisement does
not exceed three lines. For each
additional line, add a quarter.
WANTED TO BUY—Steamer trunk
Inuire News office.
FOR RENT—Larpe well-built un
furnished cabin, across from the
Rust House. For terms apply on
premises.
POSITIONS WANTED—There are
three women cooks in Fairbanks
looking for positions as camp
cooks; also one man cook. All
hiphly recommended. Address i
Nenana News office
FOR SALE—Beaver Board, in plain
and oak finish. Doors and win
dows, sash stock and mouldinps.
Inquire Simson’s.
FOUND—A “Sleeper” in the Tavern
Cafe. Owner can have same by
identifyinp and payinp for ad, '
otherwise it will be donated to
the Red Cross fund.
PIANOS—For sale or rent. Inquire
Simson’s.
FOR SALE—Two tents, 18x30 and .
20x40. Inquire Simsons.
Highest Cash
Prices Paid for
RAW
FURS
SIMSON’S
l
SKOF
HO U SE
4
Thoroughly
Under New
ROOMS $1
Renovated
Management
BUNKS, 50c
MRS. BRAKKE
VV\\\\N\V\\\m\\A\\WHWi\\\\\N\\N\WWNNNWXNW
!j SAFE and RELIABLE SERVICE \
\ LAUNCH PEERLESS f
\ Leaves for Fairbanks Every Two Days, SAM £
Make your Reservations at the Portland ^
THE BEST
BUSINESS CORNER
IN TOWN
FOR SALE AT A SACRIFICE
Two Lots, 50 x 100
See W. H. GilcRer
1 *
[ keep cool I
BUY AN ELECTRIC FAN
/m/7
We Have Them In Six and Twelve Inch Sizes
AND THE PRICE WILL BE RIGHT
3-Foot WIRE FENCING, per yard - 25c
TANANA SHEETMETAL WORKS
*■
V