Seward Is the Largest Halibut Buying Center North of Ketchikan, Alaska
Hemnrd Baily Gmeumy
MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
VOLUME XXI, NUMBER 80
SEWARD, ALASKA. FRIDAY, APRIL 9, 1926.
PRICE TEN CENTS
JAPANESE MUSHER. MEMBER SMITH PARTY
BACK AT WISEIN AND RELATES TALE OF
STARVATION AID HARDSHIP OB TOE TRAIL
RUN SHORT OF FOOD FOUR DAYS OUT OF BUT
TLES; NOW SUBSISTING ON HARDTACK,
PEANUT BUTTER AND COFFEE; DOG
LARDER GONE, TWO STARVE
SANDY SMITH 111 HEADED FOB POINT BARROW ALONE
EVEN AN ESKIMO WOULD STARVE IN BARREN,
DESOLATE REGION BEING TRAVERSED—
FEARS FELT FOR SMITH ON TRAIL
WISEMAN, Alaska, April 9. (AP).—James Miftano,
a Japanese, aged 70, employed by Alex Smith at Betties
returned today having traveled 200 miles beyond Betties
up John river where the party encountered snow storms
with the temperature averaging around zero. The party
went for days with little comfort and at night broke trail
thru the deep snow up the John river, averaging 15 miles
a day with their scanty supply of grub and dog feed. Leav
ing Betties they took on enough flour, bacon and ham to
last four days, and since that time have been subsisting on
hardtack, peanut butter and black coffee.
The portable radio was unable to communicate while
on John river, but got Fairbanks after crossing the sum
mit of the Endicott range, when the weather cleared with
the temperature dropping to and averaging 15 below zero,
with a strong East wind and snow, which upheld the<sleds
resulting in better time with Smith urging the men to
“step lively, there boys, we have to keep moving.”
The expected game has not been seen and no man
has been met. All men walked to save the dogs because
Smith lost two of them by starvation. One of them drop
ped on the trail and Smith said it wTas dead, but came to
life after a few hours and attacked the team springing up
from the rear. A musher shot the dog.
As a result of a scarcity of fuel, fire was only used
to make corn bread and coffee. Four days beyond the
summit the party split up, and when Smith sent some back
to Koyukuk, on the Yukon, the hardtack wTas divided, each
man got as his share ten pounds, but no dog feed. They
will retrace their trail to Betties. Smith continued on
toward Barrow trusting to reach an Eskimo cache or that
the airplane would drop supplies.
Minano reached Betties exhausted and famished as
he had nothing to eat for the last three days of the jour
ney and the dogs were starved. After having rested and
his dogs given food it took him two days to make Wise
man. Minano was shipwrecked 30 years ago near Bar
row on a whaler and married an Eskimo woman and spent
the balance of his time north of the Arctic Circle. He is
one of the discoverers of the Chandalar district and is
thoroughly conversant with Arctic conditions. His in
formation is considered authentic and much stock was ta
ken in Ms remark when he said the Smith party is the most
ill equipped ever seen by Eskimos, who shun the barren,
desolate region. Minano said that Smith expects to live
off the country, and asserted that an Eskimo would even
starve if he tried to do that and added that if Smith fig
ures that way he would fare illy if no relief from an air
plane is given him. The morale of the party was excel
lent.
NOME, April 9. (AP). —It is reported here there is
plenty of seal meat for Alexander Smith and his party on
Jones Island. Peter Brandt and three other Nome men
have a trading station near there, and all have known
Sandy Smith for years and can be depended upon to give
him assistance.
WASHINGTON, D. C., April 9. (£>)
—President Coolidge laying the cor
nerstone of the $10,000,000 National
Press Club building, declared: “With
out friendly attitude of mind by our
people and which the press can very
largely advance, all effort of the gov
ernment to maintain harmonious re
lations internationally would avail but
little.'*
The President said that the adher
-_ —'"A- _
ance to the World Court is “under res
ervations, which adequately safe
guard American rights.” He said the
United States refused to adhere to
the League of Xations because it so
wishes and will “refrain from interfer
ing in political affairs of other na
tions.”
ADMIRAL PEARY NORTHBOUND
The Admiral Peary, of the Pacific
Steamship Company, left the port of
Seattle last Monday bound for Seward
and westward ports. The Peary has
5,000 ties and 90 tons of general cargo
which will be discharged at this port.
Several hundreds of tons of cannery
supplies and general merchandise are
on board the vessel for points west
ward. It is expected the Peary will
arrive in port about April 15, next
Thursday.
EFFECTS ALL ALASKA DEPART
MENTS BUT JUDICIAL AND P O.
NUMEROUS BUREAUS AND DE
PARTMENTS WOULD BE UNDER
ONE DEPARTMENT.
PRESIDENT WILL SELECT HEADS
Existing Defects In Alaska Adminis
tration Led to Confusion and In
creased Cost which Under New Rule
Would Be Eliminated.
WASHINGTON, D. C., April 9. (JP)
—Heads of the departments under the
reorganization bill will be selected
from Alaska forces by the President
with the consent of the secretaries
who may transfer any Alaska depart
ment activities to any of the three sec
retaries. Work said, “it would be an
ideal organization £jnd would have
combined all Federal activities except
the Judiciary and postoffice under a
single department, but the existing de
fects in intra-departmental adminis
tration would lead to confusion and
cost of administration.”
Reorganization has been considered
since the late President Harding visit
ed Alaska with Secretaries Hoover and
Work, who have been working with
Jardine on the plan.
Senator Willis, chairman of the Ter
ritories Committee, who introduced the
Alaska Administration Bill, made pub
lic yesterday by Secretaries of Agri
culture, Interior and Commerce, said
he would press it for action at this
session.
HOPE TO WIPE OUT
WITH NEW VACCINE
DREADED DISEASES
DIPHTHERIA AND SCARLET FEV
ER MAY BE SUPPRESSED
BY NEW DISCOVERY
MINXEAPOLIS, Minn., April 9. (Jf)
—Physicians announced a new vaccine
for diphtheria and scarlet fever which
was recently discovered by Dr. W. P.
Larson, of the university of Minneso
to is a great success. The Minneapo
lis discovery is said to open the possi
bility of both diseases being suppress
ed and eventually be wiped out.
Dr. F. E. Harrington, Minneapolis
health commissioner, said plans are
being made to put both vaccines into
general use here soon in a prevention
campaign.
BOISE, Ida., April 9. (iS5)—Franklin
Rose, the missing air mail aviator is
safe and uninjured, according to a
special dispatch to the Boise States
man. He landed 65 miles south of Jor
dan Valley on Juniper Mountain, af
ter losing his way in a terrific storm,
and alighted in a grain field. The
plane is uninjured but the deep mud
prevented him from rising. Rose rode
horseback for 30 miles to a ranch and
telephoned from there. He has plenty
of gas and from a cleared field will
take off for Boise on Thursday.
SACRAMENTO, April 6. (JP)— For
the first time in history, outside of
comic opera and joke books, a poet
was saved fi^m prison cell by his pro
mise to refrain from writing verses.
The man, Charles Osman, pipefitter,
was arraigned on charges of cashing
worthless checks and when he admit
ted being a poet and exhibited some
of his work, Judge Charles E. Busick
declared the defendant deserved no
mercy for wrriting such stuff but freed
him on his promise to stick to his
plumbing and quit writing.
BASEBALL GROUNDS
TO BE WORKED OVER
BT LOCAL CITIZENS
| BALL PLAYERS, FANS AND CITI
ZENS ASKED TO ASSIST IN
CLEARING FIELD
TENNIS COURTS BE REPAIRED
Harriman Lake and Bath House Also
Come In for Improvement.
About thirty members of the Sew
ard Athletic Club responded to the
meeting last evening the first to have
been held since last December. Fol
lowing the election of officers the ex
ecutive committee wre given instruc
tions to attend the next Town Coun
cil meeting and confer with the coun
cilmen with respect to rental of the
i present S. A. C. quarters,
j Guy Barnett and Leonard Hopkins
; were appointed as a committee to take
over the matter of preparing the ten
| nis courts and, its management thru
| out the coming season. Tapes for the
| ground and other necessities will be
| purchased immediately, and the courts
' whipped into shape.
The executive committee will also
confer with the members of the Town
Council with respect to obtaining as
sistance of some sort, financial or oth
erwise, in preparing Harriman lake
and the bath house, for thig summer.
The famous Seward bathing resort
needs some shore work such as clean
ing out a few snags, submerged logs
and probably a few wagon loads of
gravel on the lake’s bottom, but it is
principally the bath house which needs
immediate attention. Mr. Shellhorne
was appointed as a committee of one
to get this most important matter un
der way.
But it was “King Baseball” that
came in for a long discussion. Seward
is going to have a ball team accord
ing to the enthusiasm displayed at'
last night’s, meeting. Tom Dyer was
appointed to make certain arrange
ments whereby actual work will begin
qn the ball grounds at ten o’clock
Sunday morning. Every member pre
sent last night asserted they would
turn out with their pick and shovels j
and have a whirl at it At least 25 j
others are expected 16 show up for j
duty as well as many other citizens
and fans who wish to assist in pre
paring a good field. A couple of motor
trucks will be on hand to haul dirt and
gravel besides other road equipment.
It was stated one good day’s work on
the field will put it in such shape that
little additional work need be done
aside from the actual leveling and
tamping down of the infield.
It was pointed out with the assur
ance that many ball games will be
played in Seward this season, provid
ing a suitable field was available, an
asset is thereby created speaking vol- i
umes for a community of this size. ]
And working the grounds over this I
early in the season assures a good i
ball diamond. As far as baseball ma
terial is concerned space prohibits
naming the long list of heavers wrho '
will be in Seward all summer. The
nucleus ofr a couple of fast teams is j
here now. With the every other day:
train service between Seward and An-1
chorage there is nothing to block nu-;
mrous inter-city games from being |
played this season. Then there are
the teams on the many boats plying
into this port. From a sporting stand
point, the local 1926 sport season
looms up like a bear!
FIREMEN FIND BODIES OF THREE
WILKESBARRE, Pa., April 9. (jP) !
—Firemen found the bodies of Pastor;
Dr. Alexander H. Nikolin, aged 52, of j
the Russian Orthodox church, his wrife j
and 14-year-old son, in the rectory with i
bullet wounds in their heads. The
priest had been recently discharged
from a sanitorium where he had been
confined during a nervous break
down.
ST. LOUIS, Mo., April 6. (JP)—An
hauser Bush Company, one of the larg
est brewing companies in the world,
is ready to make real beer on an in
stant’s notice, officials of the company
said today. They expressed the opin
ion that it will be only a matter of
time until their breweries will be in
full swing again.
THUNDEROUS CRASH. CHANGING SCENERY
SON OF OIL MAN FOUND DEAD NEAR BURNING
WELL WHERE STORED 6,000,000 BARRELS OF
OIL—TEN COTTAGES DESTROYED
in oil coins«conn on be
NO LOSS OF LIFE OCCURS; OCCUPANTS IN NEAR
VICINITY WARNED TO EVACUATE BEFORE
FLAMING SEAS OF OIL BROKE LOOSE.
# SAN LUIS OBISPO, April 9. (AP).—Heralded by a
series of thunderous explosions Reservoir No. 2, in a flam
ing sea of oil burst from its bounds at the Union Oil tank
farm, wiping several farmhouses off the landscape with
it sponge of flames as it engulfed the small valley to the
north of the main blaze. No loss of life occured for the
occupants had been warned and had evacuated the homes
before the flaming sea broke loose.
Reservoir No. 2, one of the largest of six great stor
age lakes aflame on the tank farm, its capacity being one
million and a quarters barrels. Just before the explo
sions and overflow, Number 2 had been burning quietly,
giving no indication oi what was to come, but steam gen
erated in the water lying at the bottom of the reservoir
caused a tremendous pressure which blew the top off and
caused the explosion and rapid spread of the fire.
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Cal., April 9. (AP).—A. H. See
ber, son of Wm. F. Seeber, was found dead 300 yards from
a burning oil reservoir of the Union Oil Company, on the
company’s 300 acre tank farm where was stored 6,000,000
barrels and which was abandoned after fire started from
lightning yesterday.
BREA, Cal., April 9. (AP).—Ten cottages and one
ranch house were engulfed by the flood of burning oil
from the reservoirs of the Union Oil tank farm, which
lightning ignited yesterday. The liquid flame flooded
orange and lemon groves here.
Reports coming from San Luis Obispo today said the
fire at the tank farm is waning.
HUD PITER ELECTED
PRESIDENT LOCAL S. A. C.
Harold Painter was unanimously
elected as president of the Seward
Athletic club at last night’s business
meeting, succeeding Burr M. Snyder,
who recently departed for the States.
For vice president, Dr. Tyler was
unanimously elected, succeeding Dr.
Roberts, and for director for the two
year term, D. E. Valade was unani
mously elected, filling the vacancy
caused by Mr. Painter’s new duties.
Leonard Hopkins was unanimously
elected secretary and treasurer follow
ing acceptance of the resignation of
Louis Tinkler, whose added duties at
the cable office makes it impossible
for him to devote the necessary time
to the work.
BIRTHDAY PARTY, SANDBECKS
Two birthdays were jointly cele
brated in Seward Tuesday, April 6,
when Sylvia Sandbeck, ten years old,
shared the day with her brother, Ed
win, thirteen years of age. The party
was held at the home of their par
ents and many little friends attended.
The afternoon was spent in playing
games of many sorts and eating of
two kinds of ice cream and three as
sortments of cake. Sylvia and Edwin,
both received some fine presents.
CABLE OFFICE OPEN DAY, NIGHT
Announcment is made that the local
cable office now maintains a 24-hour
a day service where formerly the of
fice was closed at night. Under the
new ruling the office is open day and
night, including Sunday, an innovation
which will be appreciated by the gen
eral public.
FIRE MEETING TONITE
The regular monthly business meet
ing of the local fire department or
ganization will take place this even
ing at 8 o’clock. All members are re
quested to be present,
adv;; H. FROST, Chief.
LONDON, April 9. (jp)—London, was
stirred yesterday when it heard of the
news that Premier Mussolini was shot
by a woman giving her name as Vio
let Albina Gibson. She is the daugh
ter of Lord Ashbourne and is the
Honorable Violet Albina Gibson, age
50. The press association said it was
“informed by a member of the family
of the late Lord Ashbourne that the
Honorable Violet Albina Gibson lady
was of eccentric temperament, and at
present was in Rome.”
PARIS, April 9. (/p)—A Havre dis
patch from Rome said the demonstra
tion in which the printing plant of
i II Mondo, an anti-Fascist paper was
| destroyed, was followed by the attack
I on Mussolini by the English woman.
SEATTLE TAKES SECOND GAME
PORTLAND, Ore., April 9. (JP)—Se
attle defeated Portland by a score of
8 to 5, when the Indians scored seven
runs in the eighth inning. Poyne was
replaced by Rachac, pitcher for Port
lad in the eighth because he was un
able to stop the slugging melee.
For Seattle, Best, Ramsay, Brett and
Jenkins were the batteries—For Port
land, Rachac, Payne, Burns, Couch
and Tobin and Berry, the latter two
catchers.
ALASKA DUE AT 7:30 P. M.
The S.S. Alaska, is posted on the
schedule board of the local office, as
arriving at 7:30 this evening from the
south. The vessel will depart at mid
night tomorrow for Seattle.
The eight page Seward Weekly
Gateway is without an equal in Al
aska. Ask for a sample copy and
see for yourself.
Amateur night tonite’^at the Liberty Amateur night tonite—at the Liberty Amateur night tonite
-at the Liberty Amateur night tonite—at the Liberty Amateur niftht tonite—at the Liberty Amateur-night tonite—at the Liberty