THE NOME NUGGET
Published Monday, Wednesday and Friday by the
NOME PUBLISHING CO.
NOME, ALASKA
Telephone: Main 125 P.O. Box 618
$1.50 PER MONTH $16.00 A YEAR
E. P. BOUCHER . Managing Editor
CLINTON GRAY . Production Manager
Entered as second class matter October 14. 1943, at the
postoffice at Nome, Alaska, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
LET S MAKE IT FIFTY
By BOB TAYLOR, Washington Representative
Some weeks ago, Hawaii appeared to be a shoo-in
for statehood . . . until some members of the Senate
Interior Committee, which was reportedly ready to
approve the bill, became conscience-stricken. They ad
mitted they had never visited the islands, and it seemed
downright immoral to vote on purely heresay evidence.
The Congressional Easter recess provided the op
portunity for first-hand investigation. And with the
gentlemen now7 back, oozing enthusiasm no doubt, and
with Alohas still ringing in their ears, the Senate may
get on with the matter . . . unless Alaska’s new bid
for statehood complicates the proceedings.
We have nothing against Hawaii, except maybe
the steel guitar, but we don’t like the way, Alaska, that
rugged old sour-dough pal of ours has been told to
stand aside for a Johnny-come-lately with a surfboard
under one arm and babe in a grass skirt on the other.
The administration position, we are told, is that
Hawaii is ready for this new responsibility, but Alaska
is not. Alaska, it is feared will be a poor relation, un
able to pay its way as a state. Rep. John Saylor (R-Pa)
and Rep. George Bender (R-O), are reminding the
world that the GOP platform of 1952 promised state
hood for both territories, Alaska under “an equitable
enabling act,” which they are now working on.
Looking at it another way, if Alaska belonged to
another nation—such as Russia, as it did — we’d be
pretty anxious to have it in the family. Alaska’s of
ficial flower, incidentally, is the Forget-me-not.
MAJOR SURGERY INDICATED
A House Government Operations subcommittee,
beaded by Rep. Charles Brownson (R-Ind), is stand
ing by with a sharp knife, waiting for the Truman
$7,500,000,000 foreign assistance budget to be rolled
in. They are also waiting for the reports of a dozen
teams of American businessmen, who visited 15 coun
tries, to indicate where and how much to slice.
The 55 business leaders, under the direction of
Clarence Francis; board chairman of General Foods,
were asked by Mutual Security Director Harold Stas
sen to survey this widely criticized “give-away” act
ivity. Here is the sanest approach yet toward giving
the taxpayer his money’s worth, and a patriotic public
service on the part of the investigators. We hope this
is a precedent.
Sen. Morse Talks
22 ,Hrs. Against
Tidelands Bill
WASHINGTON, Iff) — Senator
Wayne Morse (Ind-Ore) set a Sen
ate record Saturday for marathon
speeches but when asked ho*w it
felt to be the new champ, he re
plied, “Oh, there’s nothing to
that.”
He told reporters who crowd
ed around him after his speech
of 22 hours and 26 minutes that
his primary purpose was “to focus
public attention” on a bill to es
tablish state ownership of oil
rich submerged coastal lands. He
opposes the bill.
Morse took the stand that the
oil resources of these offshore
lands belong to all the states—
not just the few involved. He
did not spend all the time on that
subject, however, and dwelled too'
on such subjects as conservation,
education, rural electrification
and the filibusters.
The wiry, 51-year-old senator
took the floor at 11:40 a.m. Fri
*
day and kept going until 10:06
Saturday morning in an iron-man
performance dramatizing the
fight he and 20-odd other sen
ators are waging against the bill,
endorsed by President Eisen
hower.
Morse smashed all previous rec
ords for length of Senate speech
es, eclipsing the marks set years
ago by the late Robert M. LaFol
lette, Sr., and Huey P. Long.
He told newsmen afterwards
that he quit when he did because
“I had finished all I wanted to
say.” He said there was nothing
he wanted . right away except to
relax.
It was a remarkable demonstra
tion of stamina. The Oregon sen
ator never got more than a step
or two away from his desk. He
wasn’t allowed to rest his foot on
a chair, much less sit on it.
Morse was wearing a natty
double-breasted suit with a red
rose on its lapel. The collar tips
of his blue shirt were in utter
disarray and the rose was wilted
when he quit but otherwise he
was well groomed.
Alaska Building Trades
Protest Unemployment
Law of Last Legislature
The Building Trades Section of
the Alaska Territorial Federation
of Labor, affiliated with the AFL,
has protested to Gov. Heintzleman
the change in the Unemployment
Compensation law enacted by the
last legislature.
The protest claims that with the
classifying of construction work
ers as seasonal labor, over 7,000
workers will not receive compen
sation at the end of the season.
These workers, the protest says,
received a total of $700,000 in
benefits last year.
The protest demands a special
session of the legislature to rem
edy the situation*
WEATHER FORECAST
Compiled by the
U.S. Dept, of Commerce Weather Bureau
Mostly cloudy tonight and to
morrow. Winds light and variable.
Low temperature expected to
night 26, high Tuesday 43.
Nome data last 24 hours as of
7 a.m. today:
Temperatures: high 33, low 25.
Max. wind 21 mph from the W.
Sunrises 3:42 a.m., sets 8:16 p.m.
Temperatures a year ago today:
high 21, low -2. Extremes this
date since 1907: high 60 in 1940,
low -10 in 1924.
Grand Jury To Investigate
Fairbanks Police Dept.
FAIRBANKS, W)—A grand jury
investigation of the Fairbanks
police department has been re
commended and the police chief
Ray Skelton suspended in devel
opments following a city jail pri
soner’s death last Tuesday.
An inquest jury reported that
Verner Peterson died in his jail
cell “from chronic alcoholism, but
death was hastened by the lack
of attention, confusion and lack of
understanding in the police de
partment.” The jury also recom
mended that the grand jury look
into the department’s affairs.
The verdict was returned after
two days of testimony during
which differences between Police
Chief Ray Skelton and his officers
were aired.
Earlier, City Manager Donald
Eyinck suspended Skelton after
he had fired two members of the
force.
Urge Special Alaska
Session To Raise
Money For .A.R.C.
WASHINGTON, M—A special
session of the Alaska Legislature
. to raise taxes was urged in Wash
ington by Rep. Jensen, Iowa Re
publican, chairman of the House
Interior Appropriations subcom
mittee.
The Iowan’s recommendations
were given to newsmen by Dele
gate Bartlett, after a meeting in
which they discussed cuts the
committee has made in appropria
tions for the Alaska Road Com
mission.
Bartlett quoted Jensen this way.
“If they in Alaska expect the
U. S. Congress to change the
amounts which the committee has
recommended in the House bill, I
would suggest the new governor,
B. Frank Heintzleman, convene
the territorial legislature in spe
i cial session for the purpose of
‘ passing legislation which will in
crease the gasoline tax, license
fees on trucks, _and such other
revenue as the governor feels
should be increased.
“If they will get that done in
time—before the Senate Commit
tee marks up the bill—there is
the possibility that the Senate
will be more liberal than the
House has been, and then the
House conferees . . . will natural
ly be inclined to approve a great
er appropriation for roads in
Alaska.”
Bartlett said Jensen had ap
proved his release of the Iowan’s
views. The Alaska delegate him
self said he had no comment to
make on the suggestion.
Allies and Reds Will
Continue Exchange Over
Number Pledged by U.N.
By ROBERT B. TUCKMAN
PANMUNJOM, (j?) — Another
100 Allied prisoners—including a
bonus number of Americans, Brit
ish and Turks—were freed Satur
day as the Communists kept their
promise to continue the exchange
of sick and wounded captives be
yond the original limit.
The Reds said they would free
13 more Americans and 71 dis
abled South Koreans Sunday as
truce negotiators return to this
neutral zone for the first full
dress armistice talks since last
October 8.
Seventeen Americans, four Brit
ish, four Turks and 75 South Ko
reans came back Saturday, bring
ing the total to the 600 the Reds
said they would exchange in six
days, but of the total:
135 were Americans—16 more
than promised.
32 were British—12 more than
promised.
15 were Turks — equal to the
number of non-Koreans the Reds
said they would exchange aside
from British and Americans.
17 other included mfen from
Colombia, Australia, Canada,
South Africa, Greece, the Philip
pines and The Netherlands.
400 were South Koreans.
Both sides have said they would
continue the exchange beyond the
600 originally pledged by the
Reds and the 5,800 promised by
the U.N. Command.
Neither side has said how many
more it will trade, but some ob
servers have speculated the ex
change could go on indefinitely.
The U.N. Command proposed
Friday that sick and wounded be
exchanged continuously while the
hostilities continue. The Reds
have not replied.
I __
: -
Eisenhower Calls For
New Study Of
Immigration Problems
WASHINGTON, 05*1 — President
Eisenhower, citing 10 objections
to the McCarran-Walter Law en
acted last year, has called for a
new congressional study of im
migration operations.
The President’s views were set
out in a letter April 6 to Sen.
Watkins (R-Utah), chairman of a
Senate Judiciary subcommittee on
immigration.
Declaring then that he has re
ceived “a great many complaints”
that the McCarran - Walter Act
embodied “many serious and in
equitable restrictions,” Eisen
hower suggested an immediate
study of the law “with an invita
tion to all concerned to testify re
garding the provisions of which
they complain.”
PROPERTY TRANSFERS
Otto Worm has sold to Sam
Godfrey the south half of Lot 10
in Block 52 with all improve
ments.
THE NOME LIQUOR STORE
VVE CARRY A LARGE ASSORTMENT OF
FINEx LIQUORS, BEER AND WINE
Out-of-Town Orders Carefully Handled
ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES
GE WASHING MACHINE GE AUTOMATIC ROASTER
GE MAZDA LAMPS GE VACUUM SWEEPER j
GE HOT PLATE THOR GLADIRON
i '
Northern Light & Power Co.