THE NOME NUGGET
Published Monday, Wednesday, Friday, by The Nome
Publishing Company, Nome. Alaska.
Telephone Main 114 P. O. Box 518
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Entered in the Post Office in Nome as 2nd Class Matter
MEMBER OF ASSOCIATED PRESS
EDITORIAL
REMEMBERS ALASKA’S
NO. 1 CITIZEN
Believe it or not, the Prospect
or continues Alaska’s No. 1 Cit
izen. And it will ge a mighty
long time, if ever, that he will
be displaced from that eminent
position in the eyes of those cap
able of making a true estimate.
Despite the launching of many
new public and private enterpris
«s and notwithstanding the com
ing of many Cheechaccoes, the
Prospector is the man who is in
dispensable in turning up the
mineral wealth of Alaska, the
Territory’s greatest inland source
o1 current and potential produc
tion and industry.
Allowing that the fisheries now
yield the largest annual return
of any Alaskan industry, their
contribution is up practically to
the limit of possibility, while the
mineral wealth of Alaska is scare
ely touched.
Alaska must depend upon the
Prospector for opening her great
est latent asset. He is not nec
essarily confined to the man with
the pick, shovel and pan. The
Prospector of today also operates
with aid of the drill, the science
of geophysics and the geologist
and mining engineer.
No discount can be applied to
the man who gets out in true
old Sourdough style and search
es for float or pans the creeks
and sinks holes to bedrock to dis
cover hidden placer channels.
But for the Prospector, there
would be no foundation for all
the elaborate program of today
for expanded industry in Alaska
—no call for airfields, communica
tion. agriculture and other enter
prises that would be worth while
—no growing towns, no need of
national defense, no call for oth
ers to come and help build a
greater Alaska.
As a true testimonial of the
value of the Prospector, let there
be legislation to encourage him—
(setter and more liberal laws, fair
rates of taxation, more generous
~ a'lowana’S to encourage other?
to go into the hills and locate
and open the hidden treasures
that will justify other industries.
Don’t forget Alaska’s No 1 Cit
izon. Help him clear the way for
him, that Alaska may never
cease to progress.
Demands Alaska Salmon
Unions 1940 Outlined
At Portland Conference
PORTLAND, Dec. 1 —The con
ference of Alaska salmon union
representatives was concluded
with approval of “streamlined”
demands for presentation to em
ployers next spring.
The conferees, called by the
Maritime Federation of the Pac
ific, said their demands will in
clude guaranteed seasonal wages,
uniform wage and picket clauses,
and said season wages will be
asked in order “to thwart the
packers policy of speeding up
and then curtailing operations
during the canning season and
then negotiate gains made by
workers through agreements
with the packing industry.”
The conferees adopted a reso
lution asking federal relief for
those who lose employment due
to fishing curtailments in Bristoy
Bay.
Another resolution condemned
the Waterfront Employers Asso
ciation, farmers and Mayor An
gelo Rossi of San Francisco for
their ’’vicious attacks against the
Maritime Union and Harry Brid
ges.
The conference also endorsed
the proposed coastwise labor con
ference at Juneau sometime in
January.
I
' SEA ELEPHANT FOUND
IN ALASKAN WATERS
A Stranger To The North
A sea elephant or elephant seal
• a strange and rare form of sea
life, was recently washed ashore
on the beach at Kasaan on Prince
of Wales l.-land, Tongass Nation
al Forest, where on Nevember 6
it was viewed by Forest officers
from the launch "Forester.”
The only known herd of these
; animals is now found at Guad
| alupe Island off the coast of Mex
I ico. Apparently it has never be
I fore been recorded north of Cal
ifornia. Point Reyes and Point
Loma are both listed as local- j
ities where it was formerly
known. In 1929 one was killed
on the high seas about forty mil
es off Point Loma, San Diego, I
California, and the account of >
■ this capture states that it was |
| the first individual of the species i
; to be taken in California waters
J for many decades.
Formerly these huge denizens
of the sea were quite common
' off the coast of southern Calif -
j ornia where they hauled up in
| small herds on the islands and
the more inaccessible beaches of
the mainland. The large amount
of oil in their bodies and their
helplessness on shore tempted
the sealers and whalers, and be
tween 1855 and 1870 great num
bers were killed. It is recorded
that in 1892 there were but nine
elephant seals found on Guada- j
lupe Island and seven of these'
were successfully pursued and;
killed. Fifteen years later, in i
1907, forty were found at this,
remote haven and fourteen of ,
this nufhber were killed. From
this small nucleus the herd in- j
creased until dn 1929 a count re!
vealed 469 seals.
The elephant seal is the largest j
member of the seal family, the;
males attaining a length of 22
feet and a weight approaching
three tons. The common name is!
derived from the curious flexible
snout of the males, which, whenj
relaxed 6 to 10 inches below the
muzzle. This structure which1,
superficially resembles the trunk j
an elephant can be moved,
about and even raised to a ver-j
tical position. The speciman
found at Kasaan is reported to'
have been shot in Kasaan Bay i
several days previously. It was:
a large male 14 to 15 feet long j
and estimated to weight between |
3000 and 4000 pounds. When kill;
ed it was in excellent condition j
as shown by the heavy layer of'
blubber beneath the skin.
Little is known of its food hab i
its but the stomach contents of j
the Point Loma speciman indie-!
ate that these large, slow-moving;
seals feed on the bottom in 501
to 150 fathom of water on squids J
skates, ratfish and slow moving
| species of sharks. It only enemy'
other than man is reported to j
j be the killer whale. The speci
! man as Kasaan bore mute evi
dence of a previous encounter
with a formidable enemy, an old1
scar of immense size on its left j
side where a large piece of flesh
had been torn out.
It is interesting to conjecture j
if the occurrance of this south-j
I ern animal is in any way con-!
I nected with the reported occur
renoc of pompano, tuna, and oth j
er warm water fishes in Alaska l
waters this past summer. Per- J
haps Alaska may at some remote,
day once more boast the tropical;
climate which it did in the dim!
past, as is evidenced by the nu- j
tnerous fossilized tropical forms'
that have been found.
Several excellent photographs |
were obtained by the Forest Serj
vice and are being forwarded asj
evidence to the proper authorit- j
ies so that this extremely rare;
record may be officially recogniz j
ed.
HOLLYWOOD STAR-LITES
By Chuck Cochard
HOLLYWOOD (Exclusive) —
If the movie fans of the world
were to vote for the best picture
of this year right now your
Hollywood correspondent is con
fident that “Mr. Smith Goes to
Washington,” despite the protests
of our friends the Senators in
Washington, D C., would walk
away with all honors.
James Stewart, who plays the
role of the shy young Senator,
has easily turned in the most out
standing performance of the year
1939 for men. Frank Capra, the
director - producer, deserves
-
much credit because it is just
another hit in his long list of
grand pictures which include
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, It Hap
pened One Night and You Can’t
Take It With You.
The length of much-talked
about “Gone With the Wind” has
at last been settled—it will run
| three and one half hours with a j
| ten-minutes intermission. During
j the first year it will be road
| showed with two showings a day \
j and all iseats reserved. The'
I whole question now seems to'
I hinge on whether it will live up!
to those expectations of the mov |
ie-going public. However, there
j are those who have seen it that
say it’s positively one of the great
est in the history of the screen.
One way or another the patrons
will decide that.
—
Everyone in Hollywoid is wear
mg “Bangles” these days — and
“Bangles” is “Nonsense jewelry"
| The performance of that new- (
•)
I
comer to the American screen
i Ingrid Bergman in “Intermezzo”
'with Leslie Howard has the gos
sips raving plenty—she’s one of
the year’s brightest discoveries.
“We Are Not Alone” starring
Paul Muni with Jane Bryan and
Flora Robson is a great picture
and should please audiences who
like meaty subjects. Muni is at
his very best and Jane Bryan ad
vances a good many steps to
ward stardom. Despite the fact
that there are many heart aches
and a sad ending you will like,
it because of the fine theme I
running through the picture from !
beginning to end. Many persons
will not catch the drift of the'
story. Best scene: Muni’s last;
statement in the prison cell the!
night before his execution, Even!
if you do not like the film it will
give you something to think1
about.
“Another Thin Man” featuring
William Powell, Myrna Loy, Vir
ginia Grey, Otto Kruger, C. Aub
rey Smith and Ruth Hussey
marks the return of William
Powell to the screen after a long
absence due to a serious illness.
It is an excellent picture with;
Powell returning at the same!
place he left off more than 18
months ago. The story involves
another incident in the lives of
Nick and Nora Charles plus Nick
Jr., who has arrived since they j
last appeared together and Asta, j
of course.
-----__
Write to your friends and rela- |
ives on the ‘Outside’, using Sour- J
ough Stationery. They’ll get a big \
■cick out of jt. 11
- : i
BUT hiO R U B B E R S—Rainy days don’t spell discomfort for
Kayak II, C. S. Howard’s much publicized South American horse
who lost the “Pimlico Special’* to Challedon. Kayak wears a
raincoat when the going’s wet. Jockey George Woolf is up.
DREAM THEATRE
IOO% TALKING PICTURES
—MAM AO EMC N T C.H.CODE ^—-f
t \io\ltvnHsi &i/n 'J{\SLaiAil/\A U.S» f *
ONE SHOW 7:30 P.M.
T U S', S D A Y
CLAUDETTE COLBERT & GARY COOPER in
“BLUEBEARD’S EIGHTH WIFE”
He Thought He Know How To Tame A Wife
— But Gary’s In The Dog House Now
and “MARCH OF TIME”
Admission 75^ & 25^
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