EE NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
VOL. LVII No. 31NOME, ALASKA, MONDAY, MARCH 14, 1955. Per Copy—15^ ;
Senate Reduces
Net Income l ax
For Gold Miners
By JIM HUTCHESON
JUNEAU, (iP)—'The Senate Sun
day voted 12 to 4 to reduce the
mining net income tax on small
operators. The bill was sponsored
by Sen. John Butrovich <R-Fair
banks>, who argued that the
assessment amounted to a double
tax on the mining industry be
cause the industry also has to
pay the general income tax along
with everyone else.
The bill provoked argument on
the floor in which Butrovich was
opposed by another Fairbanks
senator, Ralph Rivers, a Demo
crat. Rivers said the tax w?as in
effect a tax in lieu of a business
license tax that other forms of
business have to pay, and that
the net income tax was actually
easier on the industry than the
type of gross tax that many busi
nesses have to pay in addition
to the territory's general net in
come tax.
The bill makes an exemption
in the tax up to $40,000 net in
come, where the three per cent
levy would start. It now starts at
SI0,000. River sought to cut the
exemption in half, to $20,000. The
bill does not alter the levy in the
upper brackets, where it goes up
to seven per cent above $100,00b
net income.
The status of the mining indus
try came in for considerable dis
cussion as the other Fairbanks
senators argued for special con
sideration for the smaller mining
operators. They were supported
by two Nome senators, Charles
Jones, Republican, and Howard
Lyng, Democrat.
Sen. Robert Ellis <D-Ketchikan>
scoffed at the idea of anyone
being considered a little man in
business when he nets up to
$40,000 a year and he discounted
the importance of the gold mining
industry on the theory that “they
just take it out of one hole in
the ground and bury it in another
in Kentucky.” He referred to the
pegged price of gold, which the
gold mining district senators cited
as a hardship on the industry, as
a “guaranteed price,” which he
said sounded pretty good to any
one from the fishing districts.
House Passes Bill to
Aid Native Students
At University of Alaska
JUNEAU, (#1—The House Fri
day passed several bills and sent
them to the Senate.
One is an act by Rep. George
McNabb of Fairbanks to provide
for up to 10 scholarships annually
at the University of Alaska for
native students. He emphasized
that the purpose was to prepare
them to go back to their own
people and help improve their lot
in the villages. The bill was
amended to provide that young
natives in rural areas wanting to
take training to be teachers, would
have preference.
Other bills passed by the House
included:
A bill to increase the Board of
Trustees for the Pioneers Home to
five from three, with at least one
to be a woman and at least one to
be from the Second or Fourth
Divisions.
A bill to create a new category
of offense—negligent driving—a
step lower in severity than reck
less driving. Another bill was
passed to provide more severe
penalties for reckless driving if a
person is injured as a result.
Expedition To
Work On New Map
()£ Mt. McKinley
BOSTON, (iP) — An expedition
left here yesterday to complete
field work in Alaska for a new
map of Mt. McKinley, North
America's highest peak, and 400
square miles around it.
The project was started 10
years ago by Bradford Washburn,
director of the Museum of Science
who will lead the current expedi
tion to survey a great basin at
the head of Ruth Glacier, which
flows off the south face of Mc
Kinley.
Washburn will be making his
21st Alaskan trip. Others in the
group will be Cartlon P. Fuller
and George P. Gardner, Jr., mem
bers of the Museum’s board of
trustees; Richard T. Kleber of the
Museum’s education department,
and David R. Fisher of Burling
ton, Ont. Fuller is a vice presi
dent, treasurer and director of
Polaroid Corp.
The map, for which observa
tions were made at two-year in
tervals beginning in 1945, is a
joint project of the Museum, the
American Academy of Arts and
Sciences, and the Swiss Institute
for Alpine Research.
The party will not climb Mc
Kinley but it expects to ascend
as high as 11,000 feet to make
observations. It will make a
photographic record of the area
on color, black and white and
infra-red film, and will also test
a new 10-pound shortwave radio
transmitter - receiver powered by
dry batteries.
The expedition will be flown
into and out the glacier basin by
ski-equipped airplane. Just north
of the site selected for the base
camp, McKinley’s cliffs tower
12,000 feet almost vertically.
Alaska Expected To Ask
For Federal Loan To
Bolster E.S.C. Fund
WASHINGTON, UP—Alaska is
expected to ask soon for a federal
loan to UP its unemploy
ment insurance fund unless other
sources of money are obtained.
Forrest Miller, acting head of
the Unemployment Insurance di
vision of the Bureau of Employ
ment Security, told a reporter to
day agency officials in Alaska
believe the fund will be exhaust
ed “roughtlv the end of next
week.”
He said, however, he doesn’t
anticipate it will take a great deal
of time to process” an application
for a loan.
Miller said he understands a
bill has been introduced in the
Alaska Legislature to advance the
fund money from the territory’s
general revenues instead of seek
ing a federal advance under leg
islation enacted two years ago.
Unless this alternative is fol
lowed by the legislature, he said
the territory undoubtedly will
have to apply for the federal loan.
Another agency spokesman de
scribed Alaska’s employment out
look as “pretty shaky.”
EARTHQUAKE IN ALEUTIANS
RECORDED IN NEW YORK
NEW YORK, OP — An earth
quake of moderate severity, pro
bably in the Aleutian Islands,
was recorded today at the Colum
bia University seismograph sta
tion.
Dr. Frank Press, seismologist,
said the quake, about 4,400 miles
from here was recorded at 8:22
a.m. E.S.T.
Dog Team Race
Set for April 3
Nome to Nome R.
The Arctic Club has announced
the first dog race of the season
for April 3rd and are offering
substantial prizes for the event
which will be about a six-mile
race.
This organization is endeavor
ing to create some winter outdoor
activity and hope that dog team
owners will respond so that more
races of different kinds may fol
low during the month.
Dog team racing had its start in
Nome and the sport has developed
in other parts of the territory as
well as stateside. •
The race will be held from
Nome to Nome River and return.
Five to nine dogs will be allowed
and no entrance fee will be re
quired.
All wishing to enter the race
must register by March 26 in or
der to run in the race.
The group is also planning to
have ski races while the dog
teams are out of town and more
details of these races will be an
nounced later.
If sufficient interest is shown
in this race, it is hoped to have
burden races, ski-dog races, wo
men’s races and possibly even a
‘cheechacco” rac^.
Budget Bureau Approves
Alaska Flood Control
Projects Totaling 9 Million
WASHINGTON, UP — Naviga
tion and flood control projects in
Alaska totaling nearly nine mil
lion dollars have been approved
by the Eudget Bureau.
The action was made known
today by Delegate Bartlett. It is
the last preliminary to submis
sion of the projects to Congress.
It will decide whether the proj
ects will be built and when.
The major project involved is
a diversion dam across the Chena
River near Mile 20 and a diver
sion channel from the Chena to
the Tanana River to provide
flood protection for Fairbanks
and the Ladd Air Force Base.
Cpst is estimated at $7,652,000.
Also approved by the bureau
are a 9-acre small boat harbor
at Juneau and a 5-acre boat har
bor at Douglas.
i
Lorna McCloud Crowned
Miss Alaska At Fairbanks j
Ice Carnival Saturday
FAIRBANKS, MV-Lorna Mc
Cloud was crowned “Miss Alaska
of 1955 in 10-below weather Sat
urday night as she stood on a
huge ice throne during final cere
monies of the Fairbanks Winter
Carnival.
She wTill be the territory’s rep
resentative at the “Miss Universe”
contest this summer at Long
Beach, Calif.
She wore a purple robe and the
traditional gold and ivory crown
was placed on her head.
Mrs. June Szczencinski was
named “Mrs. Fairbanks” and she
and her husband will receive a
trip tp Las Vegas and Reno, Nev.
Two other queens took part in
the ceremonies. They were Jan
Marksteller, Oregon’s Rose Festi
val queen of 1954, and Ann Ad
ams, queen of the 1955 Anchorage
Fur Rendezvous.
Heintzleman Turns Down House
Request For A Special Session
Bills Which Passed
The Legislature
Over the W eekend
By JIM HUTCHESON
JUNEAU, UP)—A lot of heavy,
concentrated work in both House
and Senate during the weekend
pushed a sizeable batch of legis
lation thiough each branch, with
the deadline tonight tor each
chamber to get its own bills over
to the other one.
At adjournment shortly before
6 p.m. last night the House had
passed 15 bills during the day,
while the Senate approved six
and three memorials. The Satur
day score was about as good, with
the Senate passing 15 measures
and the House approving 19.
After tonight, each branch will
have to spend its time on the
other’s measures, except by sus
pension of the rules.
Bills which passed one house or I
the other yesterday included a I
teachers’ §>ay increase, a bill to
eliminate the mining net Income
tax on smaller operators, the gen-'
eral propretv tax when it came
around for the second time on
House reconsideration and a bill
to authorize a $100,000 loan from
the general fund for airport im
provements, pending the collec
tion of increased motor fuels
taxes. ’ ’
The House also concurred in
minor amendment which the
Senate wrote into the gasoline tax
increase bill. It now goes to the
governor, where approval is vir
tually certain.
It provides for a three cent in
crease in the gasoline tax for cars
and trucks, making a total of five
cents a gallon. The tax will go
up one cent on aviation gas and
remain unchanged at the present
two cents on boat fuels.
Those who voted against the
one per cent tax on all property
outside of cities and other taxing
districts were Reps. Bronson,
Bullock, Fagerstrom, Gilbert,
Greuel, Locken, McLean, McNabb
and McNealv.
The pay increase bill for
teachers passed the House 21 to 2,
but had a “maybe” string at
tached. The bill p rovides the
teachers will get it only if the
legislature includes the required
$312,990 in the general appropria
tion bill. Estimates were made
that the bill, as approved by the
House, would mean an increase
of approximately $140 a year for
the average experienced teacher.
Kotzebue To Get One Of
Six Military Installations
Costing 19 to 15 Million
ANCHORAGE —Kotzebue is to
be included in the list of six
complete military installations
which are to be constructed under
supervision of the Alaska District
Corps of Engineers at a cost
which will run from $10,000,000
to $15,000,000 the District Engi
neer said today.
Coming up for bids this spring
are Unalakleet, with the bid
opening set for April 21 in the
Seattle branch office, of the Alas
ka District, 4735 E. Marginal
Way. Other sites for spring bid
ding are Fort Yukon, Homer,
Bethel and Chiniak. Gulkana, and
probably another site, are expect
ed to be scheduled for this com
ing fall.
JUNEAU, (A*»—Governor Heint
zleman said “no” Sunday to the
House of Representatives’ request
that he call a special session of
the legislature at the termination
of the present one, but he left
a little room to hedge on the
issue.
The House had asked that he
issue the call as a guarantee that
vital legislation can be taken care
of and to comply with the re
quirement of 15 days’ advance
notice.
In tht conclusion of his long
letter to House Speaker Wendell
Kay, the governor wrote:
“If conferences with leaders of
both parties in the House and
Senate indicate that a special
session is required to solve Any
specific matter impossible of
solution in the regular session, I
will then consider issuing a call.
“In like manner I will consider
calling a special session for any
unexpected emergency that might
arise during the biennium, or if
any employment security or other
program you may adopt proves to
contain any serious fault or de
fect.”
In his reply, the governor said:
“At this time I do not share the
fear of some of the members of
the House that a special session
will be necessary for the mem
bers to reach agreement on an
employment security law. The re
maining 10 working days of the
regular session appear adequate
for the purpose.”
The governor, recalling his
opening message to the legisla
ture, said:
“I pointed out that we should
not consider increasing benefits .
until the fund is stabilized and
that borrowing from the federal
government to restore the fund
is under consideration, but that
borrowing alone would not solve
the problems, but merely post
pone it.”
“I stated that we must not im
pose hardships on either employes
or employers and must take care
not to frighten off venture capital
we hope to attract for the devel
opment ot our resources.”
“This problem of employment
security gains emphasis with
each passing day. I cannot see
that the postponement of the day
of decision by the calling of a
special session will in any way
diminish your responsibility or
make a decision easier.”
Juneau High School
Basketball Team Wins
S.E. Alaska Championship
SITKA, 'J’l — Juneau jumped
into a quick lead, staved off a
Ketchikan spurt and then piled
up last quarters points Saturday
to beat Ketchikan 57-45, and take
the Southeastern Alaska High
School Basketball championship.
The All-Alaska playoff matches
them against Anchorage. In the
consolation game Saturday night,
Sitka defeated Sheldon Jackson
62-45.
The 2,000 spectators saw Ju
neau shoot into a quick 4-0 lead
in the opening minute and the
game then settled down to a
tight, shifting zone defense.
Juneau led at the quarter 12-8
and at the half 25-20. Ketchikan
tied the game midway of the
third quarter 28-28 and led at the
end of the period 35-34. With six
minutes to go, Juneau regained
the lead and went on to win.