THE NENANA DAILY NEWS
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
TREASURY REDUCES SHIP
INSURANCE
It is evidence of the strongest
kind of the effectiveness of the
American navy that Secretary Mc
Adoo is again able to reduce the
war-risk insurance rates.
The present reduction on hulls
and cargoes through the war zone
is from 4 per cent to 3 per cent;
the reduction on the officers, must
ers, and crews of merchant vessels
through the war zone is from 50
cents to 25 cents per hundred dol
lars of pay roll. Both reductions
took effect March 18, 1918.
The first reduction of insurance
rates by the War Risk Insurance
Bureau was ma.de last October, when
the rate on cargoes was reduced
from 6 and one-half per cent to 5
per cent. The second reduction was
on November 23, and was from 5
' per cent to 4 per cent.
One of the most valuable uses of
the Liberty Loan is to render pos
sible this war-risk insurance on the
cargoes and men on our merchant
ships voyaging through the war
zone. Under the protection of tihs
insurance hundreds of millions of
dollars of American commerce has
been enabled to seek and reach the
foreign markets.
The reduction in the insurance
rate, the rates steadily decreasing
as American preparedness increases,
speaks in most convincing tones of
American efficiency. There is a
not inconsiderable number of well- ■
informed men and they are not all
Americans . by any means, ‘.who be-'
lieve that the American gunners
have not quite their equal in the
navies of the world.
*****
Reduction, Production—the 1918
watchwords.
* * * * *
Food will win the war—produce it
* * * * * . i
Save food or go on short rations
Make 12 ounces of bread do
where 16 served before.
t
* * * *
Uncle Sam is in a race against
Germany for ships—Are you with
him?
*****
If you run your household on
three pounds of sugar a month per
person;, when fall comes the grocer
won’t have to hang up the sign “No
Sugar.”
THIS IS LABOR’S WAR
| This is labor’s war- No element
| of the people of this country, or of
I other countries, would suffer more
than the workers from a German
victory—a German peace.
What the Germans mean by a
| “strong peace,” a “German peace,”
'was recently expressed by Gen. Von
j Liebert, a leading Prussian con
servative.
“For us there is but one principle
; to be followed, and we recognize no
: other. W’e hold that might is right,
We must know neither sentiment,
| nor compassion. We must have Bel
| gium and the north of France.
1 France must be made to pay until
: she is bled white. We must have 'i
strong peace.”
Mr. Gompers spoke well for Amer
j ican labor when he said:
“The republic of the United States
i is not perfect; it has the imperfec
tions of the human—but it is the
; best countiy on the face • f the
! earth, and those who do not love it
enough to work for it, to fight for
it, to die for it, are not worthy of
the privilege of living in it.
j “I say to the kaiser, I say to the
Germans, in the name of the Ameri
can labor movement:.. You can’t
talk peace with American workers;
you. can’t talk peace with us; you
can’t talk to us at all now. We are
fighting now. Either you smash
your t kaiser autocracy or we will
smash it for you.”
The workingmen of America have
a tremendous interest to serve, a
vital cause to defend, a work;* of
surpassing importance to accomplish.
What is vital to them is vital to j
America and to the world. That j
they see their duty and the great j
mass of them ere performing.^ with 1
unimpeachable loyalty is a cause for j
congratulation to the nation and to j
the world.
Conservation, concentration, and i
consecration—for the sake of those j
at the front..
* * * * *
“Save the crumb and you save the
loaf.
Save the loaf and you save the
wheat.
Save the ships and you save the men.
Save the men on land and sea.
And thus you save your counrty.”
The world is so full of good things
to eat
Buy That Libery Bond Today.
SYNOPSIS OF THE TRUST ACCOUNTS
THE ALIEN PROPERTY CUSTODIAN
V The following is a synopsis of trust accounts entered by the
alien property custodian at the close of business February 28, 1918.
Cash deposited with secretary of U. S. Treasury....! 4,371,383.02
Stocks ....... 70,694,238.15
Bonds ... .... 37,429.940 88
Mortgages ....... 4,625,334,97
Notes receivable ..'.1.;.i. 2,968,561.83
Real estate .......1. 2,511,848.04
Accounts receivable ........-... 48,755,243.90
General business, miscellaneous, merchandise etc: -v.
Business and estates in operation and
liquidation .L..-.....$11,052,337.24
Wool and silk ..■.; 58,206.00
Furs, hides, skins leather and other '
animal products .
Tobacco and tobacco products ..
Cotton and cotton products.
Foodstufs and other agricultural
products ....*
Metals ....
Minerals and oUs . ..
Textiles ....^.'.....V.....
Jewelry, precious stones, paintings
and objects of art...'...
Machinery and tools......
Household good, clothing, etc_....
Miscellaneous investments ..
66,443.01
829,006.00 .
881,024,28
204,461.62
175,316.14
194,609.87
53,541.53
J .X
278,521:67
40,154.33
81,499.20
76,129.44
13,991,244.63
Less- loans, accounts payable and other
claims .....4,615,212.38
■ %
9,376,032.25
Totals trust entered ....$181,732,583.04
rr>r*.. ■■‘.■fciV.Tl ^' ■
J
EXPENDITURES AND ASSESSMENTS OF
NENANA TOWNSITE
At the time of the issuance of the
second assessment for maintenance
and operation of Nenana townsite
on March, 15 a notice was issued ex
plaining the assessment in detail,
assessments levied, as follows:
The following data is now given for
the information of those who may
have cfc-erlooked the previous state
ment published in the local press.
To date there have been three
Roll Total
No. Work Assmt.
1 Clearing and Grubbing Streets. $ 4615.14
2 Maintenance and Operation. . 4224.38
3 Maintenance and Operation. 10892.80
Assessed to Assessed to
Sold Lots Unsold Lots
$2420.00 $2195.14
2289.96 1934.42
8087.77 2805.03
$19732.32
$12797.73
$6934.59.
ihe greater portion of Roll No. 1
was collected at the time of the
first sale of lots. The work covered
by this roll consisted of clearing and
grubbing streets from Main to “D”
and from Front to 5th, which was
done before lots were sold. The
total amount to be collected under
Roll No. 1 is $4615.14, and since
there is a uniform charge of $10
per lot within the area stated, it is
not considered necdSsary to itemize
it here.
Roll No. 2 is made up of the fol
lowing items, the proportion charged
to “expendable” (salaries, etc.) and
“non-expendable” (permanent con
struction) being also given:
General Engineering anti Surveying
Municipal Building ..
Temporary Townsite Office.
Townsite Office Toilet.
Waterfront Toilet .
Garbage Platform .
Fire Bell and Scaffold.
Sidewalk (Gravel on “A” Street.).
Salaries: Townsite- Clerk.
Janitor Service .
Inspection Service .
Furniture and Fixtures .
Stationery and Printing .
Office Supplies ..
Fuel .
Light .
Scavenger—Townsite Office.
Surveying and Drafting Insts.
Tools and Materials on Hand.
Non
Total Expendable Expendable
$ 381.07
1414.62
97.17
42.76
109.06
7.97
63.50
9.91
1050.00
63.00
91.20
351.23
24.00
10.79
149.62
23.70
45.20
208.11
81.47
$4224.38
$ 381.07
97.17
42.76
109.06
7.97
9.91
1050.00
63.00
91.20
24.00
10.79
149.62
23.70
45.20
$2105.45
$
1414.62
63.50
I
351.23
208.11
81.47
$2118.93
The total of the non-expendable
column given above, $2118.93, is
over half the total assessment under
Roll No. 2 and represents a tangible
asset. The total assessed to sold
lots was $2289.96, leaving a balance
of only $171.03 that could really be
termed intangible expense to the
taxpayers for maintenance and oper
ation of the townsite.
Roll No. 3, covering the second
assessment for maintenance and oper
ation, is made up of the following
items: ' ' 4
i\on
Salaries: Clerk, Watchman, Janitor
and Fire Protection Inspection
Fuel ..
Light (Townsite Office)
Light (Street) .
Sundry Chgs. Omitted from Roll 2
Stationery and Office Expense.
Scavenger—Townsite Office .
Maint. Bldgs, Grounds, Sts, Sidewalks
Municipal Building ..
Furniture and Fixtures .
Tools .-......
Surveying and Drafting Insts.
Fife Equipment .
Total Expendable Expendable
3515.13
103.44
21.79
335.65
18.62
50.39
50.00
92.75
4225.74
421.37
93.24
119.98
1844.70
*3515.13
103.44
2l/79
335.65
18.62
50.39
50.00
92.75
$10892.80
$4187.77
4225.74
421.37
93.21
119.98
1844.70
$6705.03
It is therefore apparent that the,
townsite has an investment in prop-j
erty amounting to $6705.03, which
is over 60% of the total assessment.
The amount to be collected under
this rill from present property own-;
ers is $8087.77, of which $1382.74 1
is charged to direct operating ex-:
penses.
Summarizing these figures, we i
find that property owners have been j
assessed in all the sum of $12,797.73 !
and that $11,242.96 of this amount:
is for permanent improvements and .
property which is an asset to the;
tonw, leaving $1554.77 which the:
people are required to pay out for.
the direct operating expenses of
the townsite. Assessments against
the unsold lots are paid out of the
fifty per cent fund, which fund is
composed of half the net receipts
from the sale of lots and was se
cured for the use of the various
government towns mainly through
the combined efforts of Mr. Christen
sen, Mr. Edes, Mr. Riggs and Mr.
Mears. The townsites are directed
to spend it for school buildings, ex
penses not considered assessable
against the lots, and for other gen
eral improvements. The disburse
ments from this fund for 1916 and
1917 were as follows:
Public School Building.$13,434.98
Auction Stand 1st Sale of Lots. . 15.08
Wire Fence for Pound. 57.15
Drain Boxes . 30.58
Flood Prevention; Ditches, Dikes, Etc.. 5,164.00
Waterfront Improvements .,. 111.20
^ i Clearing and Grubbing Reserve Blocks. 915.00
/ Salary: Manager, Aug. 1916 to Dec. 1917, inc. .. 3,460.00
, Travel Expense, Subsistence and Express. 481.76
' Roll No. l^Assessment Unsold Lots.. 2,195.14
\ Roll No. 2—Assessment Unsold Lots. 1,934.42
Roll No. 3—Assessment Unsold Lots. 2,814.01
ft#
Total paid from 50',i fund
$30,613.32
1
r 1 he amount available from the 50
pfer cent fund up to the present time
is-'approximately $30,600. Exact fig
ures cannot be quoted for the reason
that a statement showing the present!
status of this amount has not yet |
b«fn received from the General Land
Office. In order that fifty per cent I
of , the money derived from the sale j
of lots may be available each year, i
it is necessary to ask Congress ;.to i
take appropriate action; and while i
we have no guarantee that this will I
be done, we hope to be able to pre- 1
vail upon Congress to grant our s
yearly request. The amount avail- ]
able at Nenana from the fund will t
be approximately $8,000 per year.
i
ASSESSMENTS FOR GENERAL
IMPROVEMENTS
General improvements, ' such as
streets, sidewalks, water and sewer
systems, are charged almost entirely
to the abutting property. There
Itate been no assessments levied un
der these heads to late, but assess
ments will be levied in the near
future. The fund for all. work on t
the townsit^ are supplied by the c
Alaskan Engineering Commission i
from the railroad appropriation. <
This is in the nature of a loan to f
the townspeople and must of course i
be returned to the Commission and is [
collected by means of assessments c
levied against the town property.. In «
this manner the town is enabled to- \
GO TO
NELSON’S
SELLING OUT SALE
SHOES AND GENT’S
FURNISHINGS
Remaining Stock To Go At Cost
Hamilton HJHatcb
“THE RAILROAD TIMEKEEPER OF AMERICA.”
WM. TAYLOR
WATCHMAKER
AGENT
JEWELER
ENGRAVER
secure improvements which is prob
ably could not otherwise aford, since
the money to pay for these improve
ments is not available. A town with
a corporate entity and a well estab
lished business footing may easily
issue bonds for public improvements
but in the case of a new town, start
ing from nothing, with no fixed
property valuation and its future
size and prosperity more or less a
mater of conjecture or phophesy, it
is doubtful whether it wou'l present
suen an attractive field for investing'
capital as to render possible the
issuance of bonds to cover contem
plated municipaf improvements. In
this connection, it may be well to
state that improvements are not
taken into account by the townsite
management when levying assess
ments. Each lot sold, whether im
proved or unimproved, bears its pro
rata or proportion of the total ex
pense. This is in effect what is
termed “single tax,” since only the
land is taken into account. Town
site assessments, however, should not
be confused with the school tax,
which is levied by the Board of
School Directors on both real and
personal property according to its
value. The Commission has agreed
to extend the time for the payment
in the case of the more expensive
improvements over periods of from
one to four years, as follows:
Grading Streets .1 Annual Payment
Sidewalks . 2 Annual Payments
Water System .4 Annual Payments
Sewer System .4 Annual Payments
The construction of sidewalks and
the grading of streets within the
townsite is undertaken only upon
petition signed by a majority of the
property owners in each block. To
date there has been laid 8012 linear
feet of two-inch surfaced plank walk,
at a total cost of $13,264.26 or ap
proximately nineteen cents per
square foot. The cost of sidewalks
for the various sized lots is as fol
lows : ,
Width of
Walk
12 ft. .
6 ft.
4 ft.
The street
consists of 8640 linear
Width of Cost per
street lin. ft. lot
80 ft. .7564 $18.91
60 ft. .5673 14.19
Cost per 25 ft
lin. ft. lot
~ $2.24 $56.00
1.12
.75
grading: work to date
feet, at a
25 ft.
50 ft. 100 ft. 115 ft
lot lot lot
$112.00 $224.00
56.00 $128.80
37.50
total cost of $11,360.49. The cost
of this work per lot is as follows:
50 ft 60 ft. 100 ft. 115 ft. 140 ft.
lot lot lot lot lot
$37.82 $45.39 $75.64 $86.99 $105.90
28.37 56.73 65.24 79.43
WATER AND SEWER SYSTEMS
Water and sewer mains have been
laid in the business district and will
use early in May. The cost of the
probably be connected up for public
combined systems will be about $100
per 25-foot lot which, in four annual
instalments, will be about $25 per
year.
Owing to the townsite being under :
the management of the Alaskan En
gineering Commission we have been
able to save on material purchased
through the Commission and on the
reduced freight rates to the extent
of several thousand dollars. Also ,
the townsite has had the use of the i
money; expended for improvements '
free from interest charges, which has f
saved the townspeople at least $2,000 |
additional.
The townsite management does not
contemplate further extensive im
provements at Nenana. The para
mount object of the Alaskan Engin
eering Commission is the building of
railroads, and jurisdiction is main
tained over the townsites merely as
a factor of safetly during the con
struction period. It therefore fol
lows that only such municipal im
provements as are immediately nec
essary will be undertaken, for it' is
not the policy df the' Commission to
arbitrarily rule over the destinies of
towns along the line of the railroad,
but rather to exercise only such
lupervision as is necessary for the
purpose of fire protection and sank-1
tation until the railroad ik completed,
it which time the townsites wjjl be
turned over to the people, who may
then administer them as regular in
:orporated municipalities. Consider
ing that enana has been-in existence
inly twenty months, it will compare
favorably with -other Alaskan town
in the quantity and quality of its
public improvements, and also in the
:ost of the work. It is generally
tonceded that a well laid out town j
vith modern improvements is much I
more' attractive, both to residents and
to newcomers, than a town less for
tunate- Property values, too, are
higher and subject to much less fluc
tuation and the whole municipal
structure rests upon a more solid
and enduring foundation when the
town is administered with a view
of making it a wholesome and at
tractive place in which to live. The
policy of the Land & Industrial De
partment i sto develop these new
towns along the most modern and
approved lines and to work in hearty
cooperation with the townspeople.
The townsite management will at all
times welcome suggestions from
property owners on matters concern
ing the improvement or welfare of
the town, and the people generally
should feel free to bring to the
townsite office any suggestions,
| criticisms or complaints affecting
! their interests or welfare or the well
fare of the town; for it is only in
this way that ideas may be exchanged
and a closer cooperation brought
about between the property owners
and the townsite management. The
records at the townsite office are
open to the public at all times and
information concerning any part or
branch of the townsite wort? will a!-*'
ways be cheerfully and willingly fur
nished.
Union Hall Club Roams
HAt£ FOR RENT
Sea Erick Naltoii for ^J"arm*
f..
s
r *
THE BELMONT HOTEL
AND
POOL ROOM
UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT
EVERYTHING NEW
BASOFF A SOGURA. Prop..