Ralph Lomen and Wm. Ramstad
Propose Government Guarantee
Fixed Price of Tin For 8-10 Years
By FRANK W. VAILLE «
WASHINGTON, UP) — Alaska’s
baby tin industry wants the gov
ernment to guarantee it a fixed
price over a period of 8 to 10
years or for the first 10,000 tons
of production.
The proposal was made to a
House Mining subcommittee Fri
day.
Ralph Lomen, who alternates
between Seattle and Nome as vice
president of the Zenda Gold Min
ing Co. and Alaska Tin Corp.,
initially proposed the price guar
antee be applied for an 8-year
period.
But when George Abbott, com
mittee counsel, asked about the
possibility of applying the guar
antee to a specific tonnage, Lo
men declared:
“The quantity basis might be
superior to our program. That
way the government would know
exactly what it’s doing.”
He suggested the quantity could
be set at 10,000 tons which he
said would “take a long time” for
.the Alaska industry to produce.
The proposal got little encou
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ragement from government
spokesmen at the hearing.
Wylie F. McKinnon, director of
the Tin Office of the Federal Fac
ilities Corp. which operates the
government’s tin smelter at Texas
City, Tex., expressed belief the
government now has sufficient tin
stockpiled to meet present and
future needs.
In addition, he noted, the tin
smelter now is scheduled to cease
operation in June, 1956, if not
earlier. A proposal now is pend
ing in Congress to close it this
year.
Without this smelting outlet, he
said, it would be necessary to ship
Alaska’s ore to England or else
where for refining.
Lomen and A. William Ram
stad, president and business man
ager of Northern Tin Co., recom
mended the industry be guaran
teed a fixed price of $1.25 a
pound. Tin now sells for around
91 cents.
The $1.25 price, they said,!
would permit exploration of po
tential tin deposits, largely on the
Seward Peninsula where witness
es said there is a 1,000 square {
mile area known to contain tin
of varying quality.
Because of the present fluctuat
ing world price, there is unsuf
ficient stability in the tin market
to give investors any assurance
they will get their money back.
Ramstad said Northern since
1949 has sold 695,000 pounds of
concentrates at prices ranging
from 75 cents to $1.48 a pound.
It suspended operations last year
because of the uncertainties, he
said, and will not re-enter the tin
Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Nerland,
who have been away for a year,
are being welcomed by their many
friends.
Unlike many Alaskans who
reach retirement age, the Ner
lands claim Nome for their home
and have come back to be among
their friends.
A welcoming party was given
for Mrs. Nerland on Saturday at
the home of Mrs. W. B. McCarthy.
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Admitted: Helen Rock, Mar
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market under the present pro
gram.
He emphasized, however,
Northern was “not asking govern
ment aid to bail us out.” He said
the company had gotten into busi
ness voluntarily and could get
out the same way.
“We made enough to pay all
our debts but not enough to pay
any dividends to our investors,”
he said.
The two mining men estimated
Alaska’s tin production could be
increased to as much as 5,000
tons a year after possibly five
years. This would be roughly one
tenth of present U-S. consumption.
Lomen and Ramstad were join
ed in their plea by Gov. B. Frank
Heintzleman, Territorial Labor
Commissioner Henry Benson and
Delegate Bartlett of Alaska.
• Each emphasized that Alaska
tin production—in addition to its
national defense value in time of
emergency when overseas^ tin
shipments might be blockaded—
would also help the hard-hit econ
omy of the Seward Peninsula
area.
Benson estimated as many as
2,000 of the area’s 15,000 popula
tion could be employed in mines
he said could be developed with
government price guarantees.
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WEATHER FORECAST
U.S. Dept, of Commerce Weather Bureau
Cloudy with intermittent light
rain and fog with little change in
temperature. Easterly winds 10 to
15 mph. Lowest temperature ex
pected tonight 33, high Tuesday
42.
Nome data last 24 hours as of
7 a.m. today: Precipitation .35 in.
(Month total .75 in.) High tem
perature 40, low 34. Max. wind
17 mph from the SE. Sunrise at
2:13 a.m., sunset at 9:43 p.m.
Temperatures a year ago today:
high 59, low 32. Extremes this
date since 1907: high 63 in 1925,
low 21 in 1930.
Station Temp. Weather
Barrow 26 Fog
Kotzebue 39 Rain
Wales 33 Snow
Nome 37 * Rain
Unalakleet 44 Cloudy
Bethel 50 Cloudy
McGrath 43 t Cloudy
Anchorage 58 Part cloudy
Fairbanks 53 Part cloudy
Whitehorse 54 Cloudy
Juneau 53 Part cloudy
Ketchikan 57 Clear
Seattle 48 Part cloudy
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