NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS__
VOL. LVIII No. 152 NOME, ALASKA, MONDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1956 Per Copy— 15f
Nixon Says Sacrifices of Hungarians
Have Dealt Conhminism a Mortal
Blow From Which It Cannot Recover
WASHINGTON, W—Vice Pres-#
ident Nixon said today “interna
tional Communism has suffered a
mortal blow from which ft cannot
recover” as a result of the sacri
fices of the Hungarian people.
Nixon made this comment at
the airport here on returning
from a first-hand study of the
Hungarian refugee problem in
Austria.
Nixon said he will make “spe
cific recommendations” to Presi
dent Eisenhower within the next
•week on “ways we Americans caji
do our full share” in finding new
homes for the 175,000 Hungarians
who have fled Hungary rather
than continue to live under Com
munist rule.
“I am convinced, as I return
from a first-hand study of the
situation,” he said, “that the
courageous people who fought for
freedom in Hungary should be
considered a problem only to the
Soviet Union . . . (Communism)
has been exposed as a gigantic
failure.”
Nixon said “the whole world
knows” now that Communism
can “maintain its hold on the peo
ple it controls only by force. And
history tells a regime based on
force alone can be temporarly
successful as it is in Hungary
today, but in the long run it is
doomed to fail.”
Nixon arrived at National Air
port in muggy, overcast weather.
He seemed fresh despite his six
day trip.
Ishibashi Says He’s
Not Anti-American,
Just Independent
TOKYO, <£>—Japan’s new Prime
Minister outlined a course today
of continued friendship with but
greater independence from the
United States.
Prime Minister Tandan Ishi
bashi succeeded in patching to
gether a cabinet acceptable to the
quarreling factions of his Liberal
Democratic Party. But he had to
take three of the portfolios tem
porarily himself because of ob
jections to the men he had pro
posed.
The Cabinet was installed by
Emperor Hirohito yesterday. Ish
ibashi is the only holdover from
the old Cabinet of Ichiro Hato
yama, who resigned last week
because of ill health.
Nobusuki Kishi succeeded Ma
tnoru Shigemitsu as foreign min
ister.
Ishibashi, 72, told his first
news conference that Japan “will
not veer from the line of the free
nations of the world.”
“I have been wrongly accused
of being anti-American and
standing for anti-Americanism,”
he said. “Circumstances in the
future may force me to argue
against the United States on dif
ferences of opinion, but it will be
in the Interests of both nations."
STAR TURNED AROUND
AT CHRISTMAS PAGEANT
KUNA, Idaho, Wt—Some chil
dren, all in their early school
years, got out of line while put
ting on a Christmas pageant in
church this week. It was discon
certing.
Thirteen of them were to walk
across the stage, each carrying a
placard bearing a letter. All to
gether—if they’re in correct or
der and line—spell: BETHLE
HEM STAR.
But the “Star” bearers got
turned around and went in back
wards, so to speak, spelling out:
BETHLEHEM RATS.
Rescue Teams
Find All 21 Dead
On Italian Airliner
OSSANA, Italy, UPI—Rescue
teams climbed today to the
wreckage of an Italian airliner
missing in the Alps since Satur
day night and radioed that “All
21 aboard are dead.”
The dead included an American
couple, Mr. and Mrs. Harris Gray
Jr., of Greenwood, Miss. Gray,
42, was Mediterranean represen
tative for Coca Cola. Their two
small daughters, 6 and 14, were
waiting in Milan to spend Christ
mas with them.
Rescuers already had abandoned
hope for all aboard, saying none
could have survived the bitter
mountain cold.
The Italian Airline DC-3 had
plowed into the side of a moun
tain near the little village of Mal
ga Bon, to the north of 10,016-foot
Mt. Ginor in northern Italy’s Do
lomite Alps.
The plane vanished on a flight
from Rome to Milan with 15 Ital
ian passengers, four crewmen and
the two Americans.
Pope Proclaims Morality of Defensive
War; Says U.N. Should Have ‘Right
And Power’ to Prevent Agression
VATICAN CITY W—TOpe T1US
III has proclaimed the morality
of defensive war and called on
the world to give the United Na
tions “the right and power” to
prevent aggression.
In some of the strongest words
of his 18-year reign, the head of
the Roman Catholic Church con
demned Communism in his an
nual Christmas message for try
ing “to impose on all peoples, in
one way or another, a special and
intolerable way of life."
The message was carried by
radio to hundreds of millions in
countries around the world.
The Pope made it clear that, in
the eyes of the church, the free
dom fighters of Hungary had the
moral right to resist Russian
force with force.
"It is clear,” he declared, “that
in the present circumstances there
•
can De vermea in a nation me
situation wherein, every effort to
avoid war being expended in
vain, war—for effective self de
fense and with the hope of a fa
vorable outcome against unjust
attack—could not be considered
unlawful.”
Against Communism, he said,
“only "the unanimous and coura
geous behavior of all who love
the truth and the good can pre
serve peace, and will preserve
it.” As usual, he did not call Com
munism by name but he left no
doubt of his target.
The Pope said nations—such as
Hungary—which refuse to admit
U.N. observers should be refused
membership in the U.N.
For the second successive year
the Pope endorsed President Ei
senhowed’s “open skies” disarma
ment pledges.
It’s Official Now:
Santa Claus Is
On His Way!
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.,
(jT)—The Continental Air Defense
Command, nerve center of the
nation’s aerial watch towers, gave
the official word today: ■
Santa Claus is on his way.
CONAD began tracking Santa
on radar early this morning.
There was no identification trou
ble—the old gent had filed his
flight plan months ago.
Piloted by the CONAD’s radar
system, Santa was guaranteed a
safe passage to the ‘United States
by CONAD’s fighter-interceptor
planes.
Santa’s speed was estimated at
45 knots, his altitude 35,000 feet.
However, he may take advantage
of the prevailing jet stream to
hasten his trip.
CONAD assured the nation’s
youngsters it will track Santa
right on through to protect him
against possible attack by those
who don’t believe in Christmas.
The radar screen shows Santa’s
track is a wide one, indicating a
heavily laden sleigh.
Santa Claus’ Voice
Being Broadcast From
Alaska to States
SEATTLE, OR—S anta Claus’
voice can be heard these days
over the 10 meter shortwave ra
dio band from Katalla, Alaska.
His merry “Ho-ho-ho” and
“This is old Santa Claus,” is be
ing beamed to a number of ama
teur radio stations throughout the
United States. Among those who
heard him yesterday were a boy
and girl in New York State.
Santa confided to them: “It
sure has been cold up here at the
North Pole.”
He rang Christmas bells, He
laughed heartily in true Santa
fashion. He played jingle bells.
The call book gives the name
of the operatod as Willis M.
Cowles of KL7AN.
One amateur heard ol’ Santa
contact a dozen states in less than
half an hour.
APPEAL OF CHRISTMAS IS FELT
THROUGHOUT WORLD TODAY -
EVEN BEHIND IRON CURTAIN
-„- ■ ■ - <
Six Smothered in
Christmas Tree
Fire at Hospital
MINNEAPOLIS, WL-A gaily
lit Christmas tree shot flames and
smoke through a hospital yester
day, choking off the lives of six
persons and leaving seven others
in critical condition.
The fire, set off by defective
wiring in a Christmas tree light
chain, roared up thru a funnel
like stairway off the lobby of
Doctors Hospital. The 44-year-old
125-bed capacity medical center
was about half full, with 60 pa
tients.
The victims, all of whom suffo
cated, were identified as Mrs.
Ella M. Mullins, 82; Miss Caroline
Vale, 73; Mrs. Lydia Becken, 66;
Mrs. Sara C. Stone, 59; Miss Mary
S. Balliet, 47, and Clarence O.
Green, 53, all of Minneapolis.
A baby boy in an incubator was
rescued from the blaze only to die
a few hours later from a congeni
tal heart condition.
Firemen talked numerous pa
tients from leaping from windows
in the five-story structure.
Some patients were guided
down ladders, others—mainly the
elderly and seriously ill—were
swathed in bedsheets and carried.
Damage was estimated at S100,
000.
' The fire, which broke out about
3 a.m., was first noticed by Miss
Frances Menefee, about 65, the
night telephone switchboard op
erator. She said she heard a sharp
cracking sound like a light bulb
popping; then the flames burst
out and the lights and the switch
board went dead.
5 Military Planes Take
Hollywood Entertainers
•To Overseas Servicemen
BURBANK, Calif., UFi—F i v e
Military Air Transport Service
planes are taking 81 Hollywood
entertainers on a USO-sponsored
visit to American military per
sonnel in all parts of the world.
The planes left here yesterday
for the Far East, South Pacific,
Alaska, Europe, North Africa and
the Caribbean.
Johnny Grant, local disc jock
ey, making his 10th consecutive
overseas Christmas trip, headed a
list that included actress Rita
Moreno; singers Kay Brown and
Patty Lynn; starlets Nan Quinn,
Kathy Grant and Judy Bamber;
and composer-pianist Harry Bar
ris.
POET AND COMPOSER JOIN
ACADEMY OR ARTS
NEW YORK, —Poet Conrad
Aiken and composer Igor Str avin
sky were announced Friday as
new members of the American
Academy of Arts and Letters.
The academy is composed of a •
maximum of 50 artists, writers or
composers chosen from member
ship of the National Institute of
Arts and Letters.
I *«i the Associated Press
The appeal of Christmas was
felt throughout the world today
as Christendom prepared to cele
brate the nativity of the Prince
of Peace. The attraction was not
ed even behind the iron curtain.
The holiday promised to range
from a grim one in Hungary to
one of record prosperity in the
West.
Christmas began early today
for many Palestinian Arabs who
passed the dragon’s teeth barriers
between Israel and Jordan in
Jerusalem for the annual pilgrim
age to Bethlehem, or to visit
friends and relatives.
Shepherds Move Warily
Tonight, shepherds in the Ju
dean hills will still tend their
flocks as others did the night Je
sus was born. But many of the
limestone caves then used as
sheepfolds have been turned inio
munitions dumps, and the shep
herds move warily lest they touch
off land mines set along the tense
border between Jewish and Arab
ic territories.
In South Korea, it already was
a cold Christmas day where the
American servicemen played San
ta Claus to a record number of
Korean orphans. The 24th Divi
sion alone distributed candy, toys
and clothing to 4,000 Korean boys
and girls.
GIs Flay sama oiaus
“I never appreciated Christmas
so much as I do now that I am
away from everybody and every
thing.” said Pfc. Bruce M. Fritz,
19, of Syracuse, N.Y. “Half the
fun of Christmas is being able to
share it with others.”
GI’s in Germany, who have
played Santa to millions of young
sters since World War II, outdid
themselves, giving toys and gifts
by the ton in helicopters, Jeeps
and even tanks. Tomorrow, Ger
man folk by the hundreds will eat
turkey as the guests of soldiers
in mess halls and of officers in
their quarters.
Behind the Iron Curtain
Even in East Berlin, Commu
nists sought to give a Christmasy
atmosphere to the traditional
“Christmas Market”—the theme
of which, however, was political.
A big electric sign over the mar
ket proclaimed “peace, joy and
people’s friendship.” The booths
displaying goods for the shoppers
were somewhat overshadowed toy
<Continued on Page Eight)
CHRISTMAS SPIRITS
DAMPENED IN BAY
SAN FRANCISCO, (JV-D o n
Richfield, chief electrician on the
freighter Japan Transport, was
full of Christmas cheer as he re
turned to his ship early Sunday.
He took a bearing on the gang
way and charged on full steam
ahead. But somebody must have
moved the gangplank. Richfield,
44, made an impressive splash—
right into San Francisco Bay.
A longshoreman tossed him a
line and a policeman commented
that Richfield came up “cold,
smiling—and sober.”