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Soldiers
Tell of Life
In Outposts
HEADQUARTERS, ALASKAN
DEPARTMENT — Desolate St.
Matthew Island, that pinpoint of
land half way between Siberia
and Alaska in the Bering Sea, was
known to the ten soldiers who
were its only occupants for near
ly a year as Post Mortem, or
Camp Beechuck. An Eskimo term,
Beechuck means ‘‘no damn good”
—or words to that effect.
True, the treeless island ' isn't
good tor much, but it proved its
value as a weather station, and
that was the business of the small
group of soldiers who occupied it.
For nine months after they were
put ashore from a navy destroyer*
in September, 1942, along with
approximately 100,000 pounds of
supplies and equipment the ten
exiles received no mail, saw no
other human beings, and had their
fill of canned food.
he U. S. Coast Guard vessel
Clover, which brought their re
lief, also carried the first mail
they had received. There were
only two letters, and one of the
precious envelopes was addressed
to Cpl. Har ryD. Lyons of Mor
gantown, W. Va.
‘‘The first and only letter I had
received in nine months,” said
Lyons, ‘‘and it was 9 ‘Christmas
Greetings’ card from my home
town church! Was I disgusted.
Nome Directory
HENRY JOSEPH
LALLEY
ACCOUNTING, INCOME TAX
AND SOCIAL SECURITY
P. O. Box 156 Nome, Alaska
IRA D. ORTON
Attorney At Lew
Im 1—Nevada Building
Nome, Alaska
Seattle Office:
1918-15 Smith Tower
Telephone Elliot 9899
O. D. COCHRAN
Attorney At Law
N. STRAND
HXW YOKE LIFE INSUBANOI
COMPANY
Phone Black 199
NOME, ALASKA
. - hagbnT
JEWELER AND OPTICIAN
Cert Hones la OipiMte EE
L O. 0. F. Ne. A-5
NOME, ALASKA
; Meets Every Friday—«K»9 P. ML
Odd Fellow Hall
I've still got the card—saving it
for a souvenir.”
Lyons said the ten soldiers miss
ed fresh meat and green vegeta
bles most of all. ‘‘We had 17 bak
ed hams when we landed on the
island and saved three of them
for Thanksgiving, Christmas and
New Year's dinners. We had a
real celebration on New Year’s
Eve and ran around camp beat
ing on tin pans and firing our,
rifles. We also celebrated every;
man's birthday when they came
around.”
Their supply of food was sup
plemented by an occasional hair
seal, wild birds, seagull eggs and
fish. ‘‘We lost all our salt in
shipment some way,” said Staff
Sgt. Robert L Garr of Salt Lake
City, the non-com in charge of
the small detachment. ‘We didn’t
miss it after the first two months.”
The island apparently was un
inhabited for several years prior
to the war, but there was evi
dence someone had violated game
reservation laws to trap white
foxes on the island. The trapper
left at least two items which prov
ed useful to the soldiers—a sled
which was used for hauling coal
and an empty beer bottle which
came in handy as a rolling pin.
Through a mixup, the ten sol
diers furthered their education in
the classics during their lonely
stay on St. Matthew. When they
left for the outpost, they took
along a number of books which
they thought consisted mainly of
murder mysteries and other
thrillers. «
“When we opened up the crates
of books, we found that we had a
set of Charles Dickens’ works,”
Barr explained. ‘ Everyone in the
detachment read every book we
had at least two or three times.
John Steinbeck’s ‘’‘Grape of
Wra'h” was good for several
weeks of discussion. We argued
over that boo* for hours, but I
understand that was the case back
in the States too.”
Biggest morale boosters were
‘he battery radio set which help
ed them keep up with world news
and other radio programs from
the States, and Pfc. Lynn (Doc>
Watt of Wichita, Kas., the de
tachment medic and ‘‘a guy who
was always good for a laugh.”
Doc. Watt, a mortician in civil
ian life, was described as ‘‘one of
those guys who is always carrying
on. and in good spirits.”
The soldiers’ favorite radio
programs were the so-called soap
operas, and there was one in par
ticular to which they listened re
1 giously every Sunday afternoon
Garr described this program,
which features various Hollywood
film stars, as ‘‘the next best thing
to a movie.”
Lt. Gen. Simon Bolivar Buck
ner, Jr., Alaskan Department com- j
mander, commended the ten men,
who volunteered for ‘he mission, I
for building and maintaining the
weather station, ‘‘completely iso
lated from the rest of the world,
and under the severest climatic
conditions.”
‘‘Their splendid work on this
mission reflects great credit upon
the individuals concerned and
upon the militafy service,” he
said.
The detachment included Garr,
*?• aL a£a aIa JL - * - -• . 9 t. I. A. .A A a A m
Lyons, Pfc. George Ruef of Sar
Francisco, Pfc. John R. Blue ol
Kansas City, Mo., and Pfc. Jacob
A. S'alker, an Eskimo from Noa
i.ak, Alaska, all from the Alaska
Scout Combat Intelligence pla
toon; Cpl. Jacob G. Oleynik of
Utica, N. Y.; and Pfc. Ray W.
Pemberton of Muskegon, Mich.,
radio operators; Staff Sgt. John S.
McRae of Portland, Ore., and
S‘aff Sgt. Ben F. Schlegel of
Bloomfield, Iowa, weather men;
and Private Watt, the medic.
The strangest thing about the
whole mission is that, desp:4e the
loneliness and miserable weather,
some of the men have decided that
it wasn’t such a bad life after all.
Asked how he would like another
such assignment, Lyons said:
‘‘Name the island—I'm ready 4o
go. I’d like it a lot better than
l do this big post, with its close
order drill.” Garr was of the same
opinion.
MILITARY
GOVERNMENT
REDICTED
LONDON, Apr. 14.—<AP>— De
feated Germany will be governed
by a joint American, British and
Russian “allied military govern
ment, with teeth in it”, a reliable
source close in touch with allied
armistice proposals, declared to
day.
The source added.
“Gen. Eisenhower as supreme
commander of the allied western
. .. ..• • • vr •ttttttttttYTVTVYTTTTTY TTVTT
! NORTHERN LIGHT & j
! POWER CO j
| KEEP YOUR DOLLARS FIGHTING! |
i BUY WAR BONDS 1
T 4
* 4
4444»»t4»44444t‘H"H"l’tt44444'l-4'H‘44'I"l'.H"I.'H.4»4'»44.H.^
4+++4++*+4++44'+44*4‘+4'++4+++4'++4'+*+++++44++4++++*+
* 4
! Notice! I
* +
T . T
♦ * 4
| EFFECTIVE APRIL 1, 1944, THE TAX !
4* 4*
| RATE ON TRANSPORTATION OF
PERSONS, INCREASES FROM 10% TO +
i 15%. t
j ☆ I
I ALASKA AIRLINES )
+ Weekly Trips to Anchorage and Fairbanks via |
1 McGrath. ..Call MAIN 66 For Information. J
^ 11111 n i * i ii 111111«11111 +++
front, will be given the greatest
authority in history _ even greater
than that exercised by the old Ro
man generals.
Besides commanding all allied
a'r-land-sea forces, Gen. Eisen
hower will exercise control over
civilian life in most of liberated
Europe.
The plan for Germany was dis
closed in a broad outlinei after i 1
was learned that no military gov
ernment was proposed for France,
but instead, Gen. DeGaulle’s com
mittee of National Liberation
would be given control of civil ad
ministration in liberated France.
and was to receive military rec
ognition as official authority but
was not gran'ed diplomatic recog
nition as the ‘‘French govern
ment".
♦' V %’ V %♦ %* %♦
COMPLIMENTS
—OF—
BOB KITE
SCAVENGER
♦ ♦ > A >4 4#4 ♦ >4 ♦ ♦ ♦
V V V V % 4
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| ARCTIC CLUB !
| Winter |
j Carnival |
I AND QUEEN I
! CONTEST !
* X
X *
4 WILL BE HELD IN THE
4* *
j Nome High School j
,j. *5*
I Auditorium \
I Sad., April 15 j
| 8:00 P. M. TO 1:00 A. M. |
II Many New Attractions, Games, Entertainment. |
VALUABLE AND USEFUL PRIZES!
+ Refreshments and Dancing!
it %
♦J* *
it The Arctic Club will hold a Balloon-Chasing X
i |
+ Contest for the kids Saturday afternoon at 2:00 -j.
+ X
+ o’clock. t
+ T
+ *
f Ten free admissions for the Carnival will be X
* x
1 given to the lucky ones. •>
J -J.
The balloons will be turned loose at the play- +
+ x
+ ground of the Nome Public School at 2:00 o’clock, +
t and the affair is open to all children of school %
+ %
I age.
* t
+ t
+ *>
Scorchy Smith....
Hearts and Halts
HEV/ TIGHTEN VOUE CORSETS, FAITH/ I'VE GOT TO \
GIRLS, HERE WE GO AGAIN/ GET TO SCORCHV RIGHT \
TOMORROW AT TEN A.M. WE AWAV/ THERE'S SO LITTLE )
|^-5?f HOP OFF/
Oh, Diana!
Business Call
YE GODS.*' I GAVE
FERNCLIFF A DATE
ON SLURP'S NIGHT
I GOTTA STOP
I
#yj SORRY,MISS, Bl/T I'M VHAfTlUG
||f|| FOR MRS. O'CABBY TO MATCH- I
-pl^SOME RI00ON AT THE 5 AMP 10,