Oldest Newspaper In Alaska. “The News of The Dav In Pictures’* Member Of The Associated Pres*
' ~~ THE NOME NUGGET
VOL. 43. No. 113. NOME, ALASKA, MONDAY, NOV. 24, 1941 Pe' Copy
Fire Razes Seward Business Area
-%
Two of Biggest Battles of War Are Now Raging
Half Seward's Business District
Burns Down In High Wind Last
Night, Damage Estimated $250,090
i -
SEATTLE. Nov. 24 (/4b — Of
ficial sources here said a serious
fire is raging at Seward, but no
details were immediate y avail
able.
Started From
Gas Stove Blast
SEATTLE. Nov. 24 UP)— Army
Signal Corps officers said a fire of
u" determined origin last night
and today wiped out half the busi
ness' district cf Seward. The
damage was not officially esti
mated.
It was said the b aze broke out
m a>‘ 11:30 p.m. and was con'relied
at 8:30 a.m. after destroying all
th ■ buildings on the east side of
Fourth Avenue, the main busi
ness thoroughfare for two blocks
di tance.
Soldiers from Fort Raymond
h Iped the fire fighters batt'e the
bl aze but were handicapped
w.aen the w-ater main broke, and
a high wind sprang up early this
morning. The fire fighters pump
ed water from the bay and used
dynamite, bulldozers and salt.
The blaze included the desiruc
tion of the Alaska Steamship of
fice, the Gateway Pub ishir.g Co.,
the Arcade Eu Idings. the North
ern Bar, Cameron’s Restaurant,
th? Overland Terminal Hotel
and Cafe, Hollingworth’s Clean
ing establishment sad numerous
a Tartments and buiness build
up ings. No army supp’ies w-ere re
F I Inst.
'i lie fi' > swept through the two
P ' inein:.! blr-ks of Snvard last
n tht :’e -t-roying two hotels, ap
!
artments and business buildings,
leaving hundreds of homeless.
Damage was estimated at $250,
000 with the fire still smolder
ing this morning.
The blaze started at 11:30 p.m.
in a barber shop when a gaso
line stove exploded. The firs fight
ters apeaivd to have had the
flame under control by midnight
but a 30-mile wind whipped it
cut of control and it s read in
bcth directions. The Arcade
block with apartments and busi
ness buildings was comp etely
d -troyed a id the blcck to the
nor h containing the S. ward and
N.otmrn Hotel, was leveled. The
fire stopped at the MeCullin Gro
cery, a concrete building. The
Brosius Apartments was also
razed.
The depot and docks were sav
ed sod there was no interruption
in transportation.
Co . O. F. Onison. general man
sger of th-e Aia ka Ra lroad
stated the fire did not jump 4th
Avenue and ail structures on the
west side of the street were
saved. Soldiers from Fort Ray
mond were given credit for sav
ing much in stock from buildings
and in fighting the blaze. The
m?n formed bucket brigades and
r,-cue lines. No n port of casual
ms .vas received here.
The depot wrs kept under a
continuous stream of water after
the recards were removed and
ro ling stock of the railroad
shunted cut of the way of the
flames.
The flames were checked two
blocks from the huge aiorage
ank.- of the Standard Oil Com
pany.
The Japanese government announced it was sending Saburo Ku
run (above), former Ambassador to Germany and who signed (the
Axis alliance focr Japan, to Washington. D.C. fnyn Japan by Trans
I
Pacific clipper in an effort to reach an accord with the United
States. The envoy received new instructions from Tokyo today.
Biggest Battles
Rage In Africa
And Russia
UNDATED, Nov. 24 (/Pi — In
two of the greatest battles of the
war ,in Europe and in Africa, the
Germs,ns claimed their Moscow
offensive was carried to a poirt
about 31 miles from the capitt’,
the closest yet: while the British
are veering somewhat from them
past optimism over the north Af
rican offensive. They acknowledg
ed that they had a tremendous
fight on their hands.
The Germans -aid, among new
gains on the central Russian
front, they captured Soln.etsch
nogorski about 31 miles north
west of Moscow.
In London, authoritative sourc
es said the battle of Libya is now
rounding out its first week and
entered its second stage to “dte
feat the encircled enemy,” but
fighting is so confused that it is
impessib e to say how the strug
gle of men and machines in the
deser: is proceeding. The first
phase of the offensive, he explain
ed, "was the moving forward of
armored formations to w-here we
wanted them to start—this was a
shouldering movement against
the frontier defenses.” This phase
he said has gone “extremely
well” and it is probable that the
RAF still maintained air super
iority over the Germans and It
a ians in the African theater. No
mention was made of the whip
hand which the EritLih Navy
holds over 'the Mediterranean
supply lines of the Axis, but
most London sources say the sit
uation of the Axis land forces is
"not at all good.” The British
Imperial army, he said, is fight
ing a foe “resolute, well 'com
manded and fighting very des
perately."
The Italian command said be
sides a great continuing loss of
tanks and armored cars, the Brit
ish lost as a captive to the Axis
one of their brigade command
ers, General Spelling, who was
otherwise not identified. Fifty
British tanks as w'ell as other
armored vehicles were put out
of action in the Tobruk sector
alone, the Italian command said.
The latest reports from Cairo
said, Gambut, midw'ay betw-een
T bruk and Bard.a, had fallen to
the British.
Russian dispatches admitted
that the revitalized German cen
tral front offensive led the fight
ing at Kalinin, 50 miles north
west of Moscow- a Russian with
drawal from battle-scarred Moz
haisk, 57 miles west of the cap
ita1; and an inch-by-inch retreat
southeast of Tula, munitions cen
ter a hundred miles below Mos
cow.
Hear Nazis
Planning High
Sounding Peace
_
WASHINGTON, Nov. 22 iJP) —
The White House announced that
it heard that Germany is plan
ning a conference, promising
some “high sounding formula for
I economic rehabilitation, restora
I tior*and independence for all Eu
; ropean nations” with England ex
; eluded from the list of those in
' vited. Secretary Steve Early
i made the announcement reading
; from pencilled notes.
Tobruk Garrison
Smashes Out of
\xis Circlement
UNDATED. Nnv. 22 </Pi — The
BrHish garrison, bcseiged at
Tobruk since April, smashed out
of the Axis encirclement while
other British imperial troops
tightened the jaws of a steel trap
on German armored forces east
of there. Cairo heaquarters said
the Tobruk troops, cutting thru'
the Axis lines, are driving stead
ily southeast after c?o*uring posi
tiens three miles outside of the
old line of defenses. The cam
paign is reported everywhere to
be “developing to our advan
tage."
Hitler’s field headquarters an-’
nounced that storm troops Cap
Hired Rostovondon which was
described as the “spigot of the
Russian oil barrel,” and cuts off
the vital flow of oil to central
Russia. Also, that the Nazi cen
tral front armies launched a
mighty new drive against Mos
cow. The Caucasus is the source
of 90 percent of the Soviet oil.
Soviet dispatches acknowledg
ed some reverses but said they
made a determined counterattack
around Ka’inin.
The Jaip press forecast the fail
ure of Kurusu’s peace or war
to the United States, declaring
that a stalemate appeared inevi
table as a result of the attitude
taken by Washington. The offic
ial newspaper Nichi Nichi front
paged a dispatch from its Wash
ington correspondent, reporting
that the United States saw no
room for further negotiations if
Japan continued to base its pol
icy on the three points proclaim
ed by Premier Tojo before the
Jap Diet.
British mi'itary dispatches said
General Sir Alan Cunningham,
in the five-day-old offensive in
Libya scored a decisive victory
in the first collision of massed
tank armies. The Germans were
smashed back three times in at
tempts to break out of the trap.
Armored Division
Reaches England
A BRITISH PORT. Nov. 24 (/Pi
— The Fifth Canadian armored
division landed safely at Britain,
the largest troop convoy ever to
reach Britain. An authoritative
source said it was escorted part
of the way across the North At
i lanti by U. S. warships.
PORTLAND, Nov. 21 (/Pi—Ala.j.
Gen. George White, aged 60, na
i tionally known fiction writer and
I commander of the 41st Division,
[died at his camp Clackamas
home last night. He remained on ■
duty at Fort Lewis until a few
weeks ago. A stomach ailment
has affiiioted him since last sum
mer.
He was a former Salt Lake
City and Portland newspaper
| man and prolific fiction and writ
er of articles under the name of
Fred White which appeared in a
number of magazines.
During the World War he was
a colonel on the staff of General
Pershing.
He is survived by a widow, a
daughter and a brother.
UMW Committee
Accepts FDR's
Work Proposal
WASHINGTON, Nov. 22 m —
The United Mine Workers pol
icy c; mmittee accepted President
Roosevelt’s proposal to refer the
captive mine controversy to a
board of arbitration, and recom
mended the immediate return to
work of all strikes in both cap
tive and commercial mines. The
President immediately named a
board consisting of John Pt.
Steelman, head of the Labor De
partment's conciliation service
as public representative: Benja
min fairless, president of the U.
S. Steel Corporation, represent
ing the steel industry; and John.
L. Lewis President of the Mine
Workers, for labor. The decision j
will end the walkout of nearly
half of the nation's soft coali
workers.
Japs Send Note
To Envoy Kurusu
TOKYO. Nov. 24 f/P) — The
Japanese foreign office sent a
new communication to its mis
sion negotiating with the United
States at ashirigton and new dev
elopments are expected "very
shortly.”
Domei said there was na im
modiate indication of the nature
of the communication. Domei
warned that optimism is not war
ranted.
It is understood that the for
eign office regarded the message
to the Japanese delegate as ur
gent.
Restore Licensing
Price Control Bill
—
WASHINGTON, Nov. 24 iJP\ -
The House Bamking Committee.!
in a eleventh hour reversal re-!
stored the licensing provisions to]
the Administration’s drastically,
revamped price control bill, but!
specifically exempted the fann
ers in the provision. In addition 1
to prohibiting the licensing of j
any farmer to sell any of his own |
products, the revised version also1
forbids licensing cf radio time. I
Selling and distribution of news
papers, book- and other printed]
matter is likewise exempted.
Stale Dept. Arranges
1-Power Conferences
WASHINGTON. Nov. 22 i.-Pi -
The State Department arranged
a four power conference o,n the
threatening situation in the Pac
ific. Secretary Hul is meeting
with Ambassador Halifax. Rich
ard Casey, Australian minister,
and Dr. A. Loudon, the Dutch
minister. A spokesman sadd it is i
for a general exchange of inform
ation and is not expected to make
any decisions. It is generally un
derstood that the recent Japan
American conversations will be
the subject.
U. S. Consulate at
Saigon Is Bombed
WASHINGTON, Nov. 24 UP) —
The State Department announced
that it was informed that the U.
S. consulate at Saigon, French
Indo-China, 'was wrecked by a
bomb last night. No member of
the staff was injured.
Navy W ithdraws
Guardboats From
^ angtze Riv er
SHANGHAI, Nov. 24 ..-Pi —
The U. S. gurJboat Wake left
Hankow for Shanghai, beginning
the withdrawal of the American
Navy's Kangtze River patrol be
tween Shanghai and Kankow.
The 370-t< n Wake is the last oc
cidental guardship left at Han
kow. U. S. Naval authorities
there also closed their warehouse
and I qu dated stocks. Two other
gunboats stationed on the Yang
tze below Hankow will presum
ably move down the river short
ly.
Sent Dutch Guina
WASHINGTON, Nov. 24 IP) —
The White House announced that
a contingent of American troops
will move into Dutch Guina to
protect the valuable bauxite
mines which supply the United
States with large quantities of
ray aluminum. Arrangements
have been made by the United
States with the Netherlands gov
ernment and with the govern
ment of Brazil giving approval.
Germany Prepares For
Settlement with France
NEW YORK. Nov. 22 —
Germany prepared to transform
her armistice with France into a
formal peace settlement in re.
turn sweeping concessions in
North Africa. reliable quarters
informed the Associated Press.
These quarters said Germany’s
desire for air bases and routes
to transport men and supplies, to
withstand the British offensive in
Africa, is behind the vigorously
pursued negotiations of the past,
ten days.
Smash German Attempts
Break Out Tank Wall
CArRO, Nov. 22 i/P — A Mid
dle East command 'Communique
said that repeated attempts by
German tank forces, to break
through the British wall on thier
west, were defeated in a big bat
tie in which half cf the Axis lank
strength, three divisions, in Lib
ya was reported des‘royed.
Military Aid Mission
Arrives at North Africa
CAIRO. Nrv. 22 f/P> — Brig.
Gen. Russell Maxwell head of the
United States military mision to
ihe British in Africa arrived by
air with five aides to take charge
of all phases of American mater
ial aid for the British offensive.
Hundreds of American techni
ciams. military and civil will fol
low.
“Anti-Okie Law” Is Held
Unconstitutional
WASHINGTON. Nov. 24 (JP, —
The Supreme Court held uncon
stitutional the California legisla
tion which prohibited anyone as
isting non-resident indigent per
sons to come into the state. Jus
tice Byrnes delivered the deci
sion on what was popularly
known as the “Anti-Okie law,”
intended to discourage the move
ment into the state of persons be
I lieved to become public charges.