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
Editor Bemoans
ivities Of Army
Wrangell Sentinel Tells of
Request Ban Publication
of The News
WRANGELL — Efforts of the
Alaska Defense Command to
curb publication of certain mili
tary news in Alaska, drew the
following interesting comment
from Lew Williams, editor of the
Wrangell Sentinel:
“Chances are we are just pav
ing the way for a trip to the
“brig,” or perhaps more proper
ly known as the Army guard
house, but the recent mall fcrtngs
« communication from Lieut.
Owen G. McKevitt, Public Re
lations Officer of the Alaska De
fense Command, U. S. Army,
highlights of which strike us
•worthy of publication even if we
■Rave to do a little time.
“Lieut. McKevitt, whose head
quarters is up at Fort Richard
son near Anchorage, although we
shouldn't have mentioned it, in
forms us that in the future the
Army is a deep, dark secret. No
censorship, mind you, just “co
eperation."
. “Though the President has no
authority, as yet, to exercise con
trol over communiations in the
Territory, the strategic import
ance of Alaska is such that any
information concerning the U. S.
Army therein assumes a great
importance and may be of value
to a potential enemy,” Lieut. Mc
JCevi.lt writes.
“Therefore we must ask your
cooperation in preventing the re
lease of any information which
we deem vital concerning the U.
S. Army in Alaska.” Which is a
fair enough request. Then fol
lows a list of Army activitsec
which are not to be used as sub
ject for “news, discussion or com
fr.ent.”
Here’s a list of ’em:
Movement of troops or airplan
es, either contemplated, current
or completed; movement of mater
ial or supplies; detai’ed descrip
tions and photographs of wea
pons and planes; construction of
airfields, housing for soldiers or
defense workers, either contem
plated, current or completed; pre
eence of high-ranking officers; in
no case the number of the move
ment of troops or the designation
of the unit, any ‘any information
of any sort which may disclose
the above either by inference, de
duction or intimation.”
In other words, the Army is re
ported building bases at Anchor
age, Fairbanks, Annette Island,
and a few other places but you
are not supposed to know any
thing about it. Congress quarrel
ed over the amount of the appro
priations for months, great vol
umes have been written regard
ing the Army’s work in Alaska,
pictures of the bases have been
printed time and again.
Every time additional money
is granted by Congress, the list
of bases on which the money will
ibe spent are listed. That grand
old provision about the freedom
of the press under our democratic
form of government has enabled
the American people to be in
formed about what they are do
ing to defend and protect them
selves. Americans are among the
few peoples on the earth who to
day still have the privilege of
controlling their Army instead
of the Army controlling the peo
ple.
We hope the system lasts and
we are confident it will, although
it appears from Lieut. McKevitt’s
communication that this may be:
our last chance to mention the |
fact that the Army is building
some bases in Alaska, in case1
<you haven’t ben hearing it for,
1
\ oung Blood
For The Army
w
Two steps are now being taken
which should help greatly in
building for the United States the
kind of any Army which has
been shown is necessary to its
safety.
First, arbitrary limits have
been set for active service with
troops. There will be no more
second lieutenants over 30, first
lieutenants over 35, captains ov
er 42, colonels over 55; not even
any major generals of division
of 62. Officers over those ages
now serving with troops will be
gradually transferred to “inside”
or “desk jobs.” It will be no
thing to their discredit. Many of
them have served faithfully and
well, but the lesson of World
Wars I and II have convinced the
War Department that “only
young and vigorous officers can
endure the rigorous demands of
field service.”
Second, the current maneuvers
are going to result in a vigorous
"plucking." Orders have gone
out to all commanders to report
the names of all officers not sat
isfactorily performing their du
ties. They will be reclassified;
either a new type of duty will
recommended, or permitted to re
sign. Here again, there is not
necessarily any discredit to offic
ers rec'assified. But military lead
ership is a special quality, and a
man may have loyalty, willing
ness and many other good traits,
yet not be cut out for active
leadership of a military unit.
The maneuvers now going on
are strenuous and exacting. Some
times they have entailed real
hardship and taxed the endur
ance of so'diers and officers to
the limit. They have approximat
ed war conditions more closely
than any similar maneuvers ever
held in the United States.
Maneuvers under such condi
tions give a better chance to test
officer leadership than anything
else short of actual war. Defic
iencies are apt to be starkly re
vealed. This is what maneuvers
are for. In World War I there
was time for very little of this,
and as a result, many officers
who went to France were under
trained and otherwise unfitted
for command. It is encouraging
to see that the War Department
is determined to prevent, so far
as possible anything like this
happening again.
This sort of weeding out al
ways causes some disappoint
ment and hardship, but it must
be done. It should be remember
ed that those thus separated
from active field command ma>
be just as loyal, just as devotee
just as faithful as those who re
main.
In a field, however, in which
men’s lives are at stake, nothing
less than this can be done. We
hope it is done effectively and
promptly.
the last few years.
In fairness, we should mention
tion that Lieut. McKevitt says
we “are welcome to publicize”
athletic, social, religious events
and reviews and ceremonies. All
of which we are glad to do, con
fident the Army is planning to
send something besides a foot
ball team into action when the
time comes.
Our associate Winifred Wil
liams, got off for Watson Lake
this week to try and find out
what’s been done at the Can
adian air base which figures ra
ther importantly in the mutual
defense of Alaska and Canada.
If we don’t get another communi
cation from Lieut. McKevitt in
the meantime, we trust she’ll be
able to write somthing about it
when she gets back.
MANILA SHIFTS TO WAR TEMPO
EASY-GOING CIVILIAN LIFE GIVES WAY TO
DRILLS IN PARKS & AIR MANOEUVERS
By H. FORD WILKINS
MANILA — This city, which is
closer to war and aggression than
! any city under the United States
•flag, is adapting its easy-going
i civilian life almost unawares to
| surroundings resembling an arm
! ed camp. Parks are being turned
into drill grounds and quiet, wall
ed nooks into target ranges.
A thousand young American
1 soldiers from Texas, Kansas,
Maine, Minnesota and a score of
other States who unobtrusively
arrived in transport a short time
ago are making the city their
own.
1 The arrival of this new Far
Eastern Army haut-posed a social
problem of considerable propor
tions. Manila matrons realized
; that these young Americans,
| many of them new to Army life,
were thousands of miles from
t home and apt to be homesick,
lonesome and at a loss to fill
j empty hours. Many have opened
; their homes to young officers tern
porarily without accomodations.
However, the number of matrons
has bpen considerable reduced by
the departure of Army and Navy
wives and children, as well as
civilian families.
Night Spots Closed at 1 a.m.
The social problem was fur
ther complicated by an executive
order which President Manuel
Quezon issued a year ago mak
ing Manila a 1 o’clock city. The
order is strictly efnorced in the
ity’s night spots and cabarets,
except in the outlying suburban
districts, where honkytonks op
erate clandestinely. Most of them
however, have been declared out
of bounds for Army men.
Aside from actual drilling op
erations, witnessed by early ris
ers, the most noticeable military
( advent is the increase of Army
' vehicles. Light and heavy trucks
and motor cycles add appreciab
ly to Manila’s already complicat
ed traffic problems. A'most ev
ery ariving transport and freight
ed carries wheeled ordnance.
Dewey Boulevard and Taft
Avenue, where ships land, be
come thoroughfares for disman
tled airplanes and gun mounts
on the way from the waterfront
to Nichols Field or Fort McKin
ley. In the late afternoons the
main business street is usually
crowded with soldiers and sail
1 ors.
,
Warnings Against Spies
i Posted warnings appear in
clubs and hotels, such as “don’t
speak of military matters,” or
“the first line of defense is keep
your mouth shut,” acting as a
constant reminder that Manila is
1 a cosmopolitan city with more
foreigners than Americans. The
| former are not always sympath
1 etic to democratic ideals, if they
are not actively engaged in fifth
column pursuits.
The commanding officer of the
Clarke Field Air Corps station
hit on a novel means of dispell
ing ennui among the fliers. He,
encouraged a beard-raising con
test, which produced some start
ling enters. Tlit: other -Armv
units promptly called the Clarke
Field unit “the Hair Corps.”
Newcomers Form a Choir
Many service men have be
come hungry for music. One
church capitalized on this by
forming a choir of soldiers and
I sailors. A downtown showroom,
' which advertises electric organs
‘ by impromtu concerts, is fre
quently crowded wtih eagerly lis
teing military men.
The gradual militarization of
the Philippines is not confined to
Manila. Manoeuvers take Filipino
and American soldiers afield fre
quently. Road-building and con
struction projects scattered thru
out the islands serve as a con
stant reminder to the rural pop
| ulace that the country is prepar
j ing for defense.
j The Commonwealth’s prepar
afcone for vi vilian doftingp Si pP
also reaching remote places. Each
community is organizing for pro
tection under wardens appointed
by the government. Blackout
practices, first tried at Manila,
with fair success, are now spread
ing into the provinces. There
church bells, native tambulis or
trumpets are used in lieu of
i sirens to warn the populace of
i approaching hypothetical airplan
i es.
A few air-raid shelters have ex
perimentally made their appear
ance in Manila. Precautionary in
j structions are being issued. Un
j derground shelters are jmpractic
al because of the low terrain. In
i expensive concrete shleters of
j the family type are in general
| use.
Evacuation Practice a Picnic
To Manila, the first evacuation
! pratice was great fun. Under lo
cal Red Cross supervision, an en
tire section of the city’s slum dis
trict was removed by bus to a
quiet town eighteen miles to the
east, fed an quartered with the
hospitable townsfolk and brought
oack to Manila the same day.
The evacuees, dressed in their
Sunday best, regarded the adven
lure as a picnic excursion. Some
}f America’s measures dealing
. with the menace of aggression in
I this part of the world are having
! less visible but more profound
' effets. Despite Mr. Sayre’s efforts
to apply export control with a
! minimum of disruption of local
' business, many phases of com
merce are affected. Prices of im
! ported articles have already
i risen 20 to 50 percent, while
many domestic products, espec
ially foodstuffs, are automatical
| ly rising in proportion.
SPRY, AT 11 6—Neighbors say that James Walter Wilson
(above), a former slave, is about 116 years old. He helps his son
grow tobacco near Vidalia, Ga., attributes his longevity to “obedi
ence and minding the laws of nature.”
zmrmm—fwa— ■ —
PASSENGERS AND EXPRESS TO
ALL PARTS OF ALASKA
Approximately One Dollar of Each Pare j
Is Spent for Passenger Insurance
WIEN ALASKA AIRLINES
NOME FAIRBANKS
RAINBOW SKYWAYS
Flying Instruction . . . Piper Aircraft Dealer
LEARN TO FLY
Farthest West Flying School
Eight-hour Dual Instruction Flight Course—$105
See: FRANK WHALEY, Certified Instructor
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DEFENSE /a T T T 7
BOND V ^ 1L
Q. I cannot find the word “Defense” anywhere on
the Defense Savings Staps I have bought. Are
they merely Postal Savings Stamps, or does my
money invested in these Stamps go into the De
fense Program?
A. The Money you use to purchase these Stamps
goes denfinitely into the Defense Program. The
Stamps bear the words “America on Guard,”1
which indicates that they are an integral part
of the Defense Program.
Q. What is the Treasury’s purpose in putting De
fense Savings Stamps on sale in retail stores
throughout the Nation?
A. To make it as easy as possible for Americans
everywhere to buy these Stamps, whioh, as ev
eryone knows, may be exchanged at many post
offices and banks for Defense Savings Bonds.
Note.—To buy Defense Bonds and Stamps, go to
the nearest post office, bank, or savings and loan
association; or write to the Treasurer of the
United States, Washington, D. C., Also Stamps
are now on sale at retail stores.