™E NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
VOL. LXII No. 34 NOME, ALASKA, FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 1960Per Copy 15^
Northwest Airlines Plane Explodes
In Flight With 63 Persons Aboard;
TELL CITY, Ind., UPI — Sixty
three persons died yesterday
when a Northwest Airlines turbo
prop exploded and creashed near
here.
Investigators today picked up
bits of human flesh and scraps of
metal to try to find why the plane
exploded.
“It’s obvious the plane came
apart in the air,” said Ed Slattery,
Civil Aeronautics Board informa
tion officer. “We will go through
all the possiblities, including a
bomb.”
Eight federal investigators con
centrated their ground search
around a still-smoking crater,
where the main part of the turbo
prop plane’s wreckage plunged 25
feet deep.
The tail sections of the plane
was found in rough hill country
a mile and a half from the central
crash scene.
The plane had been flying from
Minneapolis to Miami. It was the
third Lockheed Electra to crash
within the past 13 months.
The FBI dispatched its disaster
investigating team from Washing
ton to see whether federal law
had been violated in the crash
through sabotage or otherwise.
The four-engine Lockheed El
ectra left Minneapolis yesterday
for Miami. A crew of six and 18
passengers boarded at Minnea
polis. Thirty-nine more passen
gers boarded at Chicago.
The plane went down in rug
get terrain about halfway between
Louisville, Ky., and Evansville,
Ind. The hills are steep, like mid
get mountains and are heavily
wooded. Little was left of the
plane or its passengers.
“We haven’t really found any
thing that you could count a
body,” said a state trooper.
In the early excitement and
horror, observers thought the
wing was the body of a jet plane
and that there had been an aerial
collision.
About an hour and a half after
the news of the crash came out,
a person who sounded like a
young boy telephoned Chicago
police that a bomb had been
planted on a plane at Midway
Airport.
Police said they investigated
and were convinced the call was
a prank.
Chinese Sentence
American Bishop
20 Years for Spying
TOKYO, UP)—-A Shanghai Peo
ple’s Court sentenced American
Roman Catholic Bishop James
Edward Walsh of Cumberland,
Md., to 20 years imprisonment,
Communist China’s Peiping radio
reported today.
The broadcast said Bishop
Walsh had been under arrest since
October 1958 on charges of “plot
ting to overthrow the new China.”
Walsh is the last high non
Chinese Roman Catholic official
in mainland China.
The sentence follows by one
day the announcement of sen
tences ranging from five years to
life for 14 Chinese Catholics in
Shanghai. A Peiping radio report
accused Bishop Walsh of leading
them in a campaign to undermine
the Chinese Communist regime.
Among the charges against the
group were sheltering spies, stor
ing arms and ammunition, train
ing special agents, maintaining
radio contact with the Chinese
Nationalists on Formosa and at
tempting to undermine the Com
munist-supported church denoun
ced -by the Vatican.
City of Anchorage Asks
Permission to Modify
Eklutna Hydro Plant
WASHINGTON, UPI — Modifica
tion of the Eklutna Hyroelectric
project near Anchorage, at no cost
to the federal government, would
be allowed under a bill introduced
yesterday.
The City of Anchorage would
finance the changes, to increase
the project’s production.
The bill was introduced by Al
aska Senators E. L. Barlett and
Ernest Gruening.
“A higher dam to increase the
storage for additional power gen
eration is contemplated,” Bartlett
said. “It reflects the desire of Al
askans to assume responsibilities
consistent with the growth of the
' Alaska economy.”
ft
Alaska Senate
Passes “Prison
Boudoir” Program
JUNEAU, Ml—The Alaska Sen
ate passed yesterday a House
approved plan to permit honor
prisoners to have periodic over
night visits from their wives or
husbands. An opponent called it
a “prison boudoir” program.
The visitation system would
make Alaska “the laughing stock
of every two-bit master of cere
monies with nothing else to joke
about,” Sen. B. J. Logan of Cor
dova said in debate.
Sen. George McNabb said op
ponents of the program were tak
ing “a short-sighted, narrow
minded, cruel view.” He and other
supporters said it would help
hold families together and be an
incentive to good behavior in pri
son.
The program is outlined as part
of a bill setting up regulations for
care of prisoners. Spouses of pri
soners with good behavior records
would be permitted to make 24
hour visits every six weeks, under
rules to be adopted by the Alaska
Commissioner of Health and Wel
fare.
The visits would be at the place
of confinement, if facilities exist.
The privilege would be limited
to prisoners married longer than
six months and serving sentences
of more than six weeks.
TV D.A. KOed
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., UP) —
Actor William Talman, the hap
less district attorney who always
loses the case on the Perry Mason
TV show, lost his job yesterday.
CBS fired the 45-year-old actor
shortly after he pleaded innocent
to a misdemeanor charge of lewd
vagrancy. The network gave no
reason for the action.
Talman and six others are ac
cused of gamboling—without gar
ments—at a Hollywood party last
week. His trial was set for April
25.
Atty. Gen. Rader
Resigns Today
JUNEAU, (JV—Atty. Gen. John
L. Rader resigned today and
moves began immediately to clear
Senate Majority Leader Ralph
Moody as Rader’s successor.
Gov. William Egan, announcing
the resignation with regret, de
clined to say who his successor
would be. But speculation began
in legislative halls that Moody
would get. the job.
State Rep. John Hellenthal of
Anchorage, State Democratic
Chairman, said telegrams were
sent to Central Committee mem
bers seeking endorsement of
Moody.
Rader, 33 said he would remain
on the $17,000-a-year job until a
successor is named. Rader said he
planned to return to private prac
tice in Anchorage.
Liquor Regulation Bill
Still Slated for Action
JUNEAU, W) — The much
amended liquor regulatory bill
was still on the Alaska House’s
final - action calendar today. A
move to set a specific hour for ac
tion on it failed late yesterday.
The motion was by Rep. Dora
Sweeney, an opponent of the bill.
Central feature of the bill is a
provision which would end the
present uniform closing hours and
impose instead new 3-hour daily
closing periods. Municipalities,
however, would still be allowed
to require shorter operating hours
within their boundaries.
Bon Davis Named
Probation Officer
For Nome Area
Bon Davis has been appointed
the probation officer for the
Nome area, it was announced to
day by Victor Urban, probation
and parole officer of the Division
of Youth, at Fairbanks. Urban
said, “We are happy and fortun
ate to have a man of this calibre
for this work, whose interest in
the Nome people and Nome is in
his heart.”
Mr. Davis leaves today for Ju
neau where he will remain until
March 24 on an orientation study
after which he will go to Fair
banks for further instructions
and where he will listen in on
court cases and do some work with
both adults and juveniles.
He will return here at the end
of the month with Mr. Urban at
which time the office for handling
juvenile problems will be opened.
Mr. Urban also had praise for
Mrs. Carrie McLean. He said:
“I want to take this opportunity
to express my appreciation for the
services which Mrs. McLain has
performed. She took on the work
of Fee Agent with dedication, en
thusiasm, zeal and certainly with
her whole being.
“It was my pleasure to assist
her as problems arose. She was
a person who used common sense
and insight in assisting the juve
nile offender.
“Even in these last months, as
she was in the hospital, she con
tinued to plug away at the job.
“She is a person who is to be
held in high regard by Alaskans
in general and by the people in
Nome in particular. If we all go
about our appointed tasks, as did
Mrs. McLain, we will have a state
of which we can be rightly
proud.”
West Proposes
Arms Census
GENEVA, Wl — The Western
powers today proposed a world
wide census of existing armed
forces and weapons as a first step
toward a disarmament treaty.
French disarament expert Jules
Moch made the suggestion on be
half of the five Western delega
tions at another closed session of
the 10-nation disarmament con
ference.
He said the control of any ag
reed disarmament measure would
be an illusion without full infor
mation on the size and strength of
l existing armed forces.
Echoing the West’s most insist
ent demand, Moch said adequate
control and inspection to insure
compliance must be an integral
part of any disarament agree
ment.
He declared that one of the first
and most urgent tasks before the
conference is to agree that an in
spection system would not be re
garded as an espionage operation,
a charge repeatedly made by the
Soviet Union.
Moch said that if control pro
visions in Soviet Premier Khrush
chev’s plan for disarmament over
a four-year period were really
sincere, they may indicate a first
step toward East - West under
standing on this subject.
From Moscow, however, Prav
da made clear that the Soviet
government has not abandoned
its basic opposition to. the West
ern demand that a control system
be worked out before the major
powers agree to disarm.
Senate President
Beltz Collapses
From Exhaustion
JUNEAU, UP)—Senate President
William Beltz collapsed at his
desk today during the morning
session, but a doctor said later the
Unalakleet Democrat appeared to
be suffering only from exhaus
tion.
Beltz, 47, revived quickly and
smiled as he was ushered into the
legislative lounge to await the ar
rival of Dr. William Whitehead.
Whitehead treated Beltz in the i
lounge and then drove the Senate
President home for a rest. White
head said there was no indication
of a heart condition. The doctor
said, as far as he knew, Beltz
would be back for the afternoon
Senate session.
Lands Regulations Will Be
Discussed at Monday Meet
In the state courtroom on Mon
day there will be a hearing on the
proposed regulations covering the
classifcation, lease and sale of
uplands and tidelands.
Director Bell of the Division of
Lands, urges careful study and
consideration of these proposed
regulations. When they are once
adopted, they will have the force
and effect of law in governing the
activities of the Division of Lands,
until such time as they may be
changed after public hearing.
The Monday hearing will be
held at 1:30 p.m. Phil Holdsworth,
Commissioner of Natural Re
sources, will accompany Roscoe
Bell, director of the Division of
Lands, to this city for the hearing.
! Mushers Beware — Sturdy Opponents
i Hungrily Eye Arctic Dog Derby Prizes!
On April 9 and 10, hot on the
heels of Fairbanks Carnival Week,
the historic little community of
Nome, whis is the original site of
the early-day All Alaska Sweep
stake Races, and once held undis
puted title as the world’s dog
mushing capitol, will blossom once
again in the warmth of carnival
spirit, into a veritable hotbed of
dog racing, dancing, blanket toss,
games and fun. Sponsored by the
Nome Arctic Club, this year’s at
tractions, plus the sunny skies of
the early Arctic spring, should
make this April weekend the out
standing Dog Derby of recent
memory.
At one o’clock on Saturday af
ternoon, as the guns release the
teams for the first heat of 25
miles, they will signal the big
opening event of the two-day holi
day. The second heat, also a run
of '25 miles, will follow during the
next afternoon, whereupon the
prize money, totaling $2,500, will
be awarded the winners in each
heat, with the championship
mney to go, of course, to the
team trimming the total course of
50 miles in the least time.
Among contestants planning to
take part in Nome’s Dog Derby
appear such well-knowns as Ches
ter Topkok, sponsored in the An
chorage races this year by the
Nome Arcic Club; Isaac Okleasik,
sponsored last year in both the
Anchorage and Fairbanks races
by the Nome Arctic Club, and
Gareth Wright of Fairbanks, who
has won championships both at
the Anchorage Fur Rendezvous
and the Fairbanks Winter Car
nival. And finally, the Huslia
Hustler Himself, will fling down
the glove of challenge once again.
He is Cui Biffelt of Huslia, win
ner of the top awards this year
at both the Fairbanks and the An
chorage meets, and a formidable
musher.
On both Saturday and Sunday
afternoons, with the adults out of
the way on the trail, attention will
turn to the small fry races, where
competition always runs hot, tem
pers even hotter usually, and only
strong dogs and red-blooded kids
can stand the gaff.
Rides by dog team on the Bering
Sea may relax onlookers for whom
the rigors of watching the races
prove too strenuous. Moreover,
street-side — pardon us, seaside —
concessions will offer sustenance
and souvenirs of the day; every
thing from coffee and hot dogs to
choice carvings of ivory, displayed
under walrus hide umiaks, where
topflight Eskimo craftsmen will be
working. On sale also will be
raffle tickets on a 12-gauge
Browning automatic 129 shotgun,
or a $175 parka of seal or rabbit.
Selling at $1 each, the tickets will
carry a hundred votes for the
buyer’s choice of Queen of the
Trail candidate.
Additional attractions of the
two-day fete will include blanket
tossing, Eskimo games and Eski
mo dancing performed by the
most skilled dancers along the
Arctic coast. On Saturday even
ing, light-footed dog mushers and
friends will have a chance to dis
play their talents on the ballroom
floor, and an opportunity also to
witness the crowning of the love
lyQueen of the Trail. The Mush
ers’ Banquet on Sunday evening
will mark the grand finale of
Nome’s Dog Derby for 1960.