™s NOME NUGGET
_ OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS_
VOL. LXIII No. 14 NOME, ALASKA, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1961 Per Copy 15<
State Senate Ends 2% Day Session
Over the Audit Committee Reports
By Ward T. Sims
Associated Press Staff Writer
JUNEAU (JPl — The State Sen
ate ended a 2V£-day partisan
wrangle over Legislative Audit
Committee reports last night, after
it was told the reports shouldn’t
have been issued in the first
place.
What had promised to be an
eye-opening investigation by the
Senate when it started the probe
Tuesday afternoon settled into a
tedious routine question and
answer session yesterday.
Sen. W. O. Smith wrote an end
to the actual investigation by pre
senting an attorney general’s
opinion which said the Legisla
tive Audit Committee reports
were issued in violation of state
law.
Atty. Gen. Ralph Moody said
the law establishing the Legisla
tive Audit Committee clearly sets
forth that the committee is to is
sue no report which has not been
approved by at least four of the
six members of the committee.
Because the law provides for
the prompt filling of any vacancy
which might arise on the commit
tee, Moody said, the death of one
member of the committee does
not change the requirement that
a majority of four sign a report
before it is issued.
Sen. William Beltz died last fall,
leaving one seat on the commit
tee vacant.
Sen. John Coghill, Chairman
of the Audit Committee, said it
was his contention that with the
death of one member, a majority
of only three members of the com
mittee were needed to clear the
reports for presentation.
Still hanging fire is a Senate
resolution censuring Coghill for
allegedly releasing to newsmen
material gathered by the Audit
Committee which was not includ
Alaska Will Receive
$9,164,000 Highway Aid
Ahead of Schedule
WASHINGTON W — Alaska
will get $9,164,000 in federal high
way aid released ahead of sched
ule by President Kennedy to sti
mulate the economy.
This is from a total of $49,486,
000 available to the state for the
entire fiscal year.
In the entire country, $724 mil
lion was made available early.
At the same time, Secretary of
Commerce Luther H. Hodges
wired all state governors urging
them to speed up highway con
struction “to the fullest extent
possible as a result of the avail
ability of these funds.”
Hodges suggested the governors
send him an informal report with
in 30 days.
Kennedy, in a special message
to Congress yesterday, said he
was making available for im
mediate use $274 million in fed
eral aid funds which normally
would have been withheld until
after April 1. Similar actions had
been taken in the last half of 1960
by the Eisenhower Administra
tion.
In effect, the states now can
spend as soon as they wish all
the Federal Highway Aid allotted
to them for the 1961 fiscal »year
which ends June 30. It had been
normal practice since last July
to parcel out these funds on a
quarter-to-quarter basis.
ed in the audit reports.
No Senator Ever Censured
No senator in the history of
Alaska has ever been censured by
the upper chamber.
Five persons were on the stand,
jointly, during most of yester
day’s afternoon session. They
were:
George Douglas of the account
ing firm of Andersen & Co., Seat
tle; Floyd Guertin and George
Nichols, commissioner and de
puty commissioner, respectively,
of the State Department of Ad
ministration; Robert Dyer, legis
lative auditor; and George Mor
rison, Legislative Audit Division
supervisor.
Nichols took sharp exception to
a Legislative Audit Committee
report that the books of the Di
vision of Aviation were so con
fused that its auditors were un
able to find the Airport Construc
tion Revolving Fund.
The fund cash balance on July
1, 1959, Nichols said, was $103,
000, with $266,000 due from the
Federal Government in reim
bursement moneys. Nichols said
he could give the committee the
actual balance of the fund at any
time since.
The Deputy Commissioner of
Administration said that while
the fund balance for periods prior
to July 1, 1959, were not available
now, they could be obtained by
working back through the books.
Sen. James Nolan questioned
the use of the word “inauditable”
by the Legislative Audit Commit
tee in describing the Division of
Aviation’s books, if Nichols’ state
ment were true.
“It is very dangerous and mis
leading term to be used on a pub
lic document,” Nolan said. “It
implies that the records cannot
be audited, which is not true.”
Dyer admitted that the term
“is not necessarily true. It should
have explained that the Division’s
books were ‘inauditable’ in the
length of time we were able to
spend on them”
The investigation was touched
off last week when Coghill told
newsmen legislative auditors were
unable to find the Airport Con
struction Revolving Fund in the
Aviation Division’s books, a
statement which does not appear
in the committee reports.
Coghill’s statement was chal
lenged immediately by Gov.
Egan, who said the Division’s
books were in order.
The two men carried on a run
ning battle of words over the
weekend and on Monday the Sen
ate took official note of the dis
pute and voted to investigate the
Audit Committee reports.
INVESTIGATION COST
AT LEAST $500 PER HOUR
JUNEAU W! — Sen. B. J. Logan
estimated today that the Senate’s
investigation of Legislative Audit
Committee reports cost at least
$500 an hour. The Senate was in
actual investigative session for
12 hours.
DOUBLE TALK . . .
JUNEAU (IP) — There was an
unscheduled, but persistent, wit
ness at the Senate investigation
into Legislative Audit Commit
tee reports yesterday.
For some unknown reason, the
Senate audio system was picking
up aircraft radio conversations
and blaring them forward along
with the words being spoken on
the Senate floor.
Bering Sea Lions
“Charter Night”
o
Set for Tomorrow
Over forty out of town guests j
are expected to arrive here today
and tomorrow for the Charter
Night ceremonies of the new
Bering Sea Lions Club, stated
president Dalton Foster.
Officers of the new service or
ganization are Dalton Foster,
president; James Muir, 1st vice
president; Don Perkins, 2nd vice
president; Robert Erwin, 3rd vice
president; A. F. Gavin, secretary;
Stan Harhut, treasurer; George
Lienard, lion tamer; and Sven
Larson, tail twister.
Directors are: Ernest Gustafson,
Ernest Crump, Richard McCor
mick and Pearse Walsh.
Charter members are: James St.
Amour, Frederick Fletcher, Bar
row Morgan, Robert Harwood,
Robert Renshaw, Dennis Mar
quiss, Hubert Gilbert, Paul Mohr,
Larry Flannigan, Joseph Unter
wagner, George Thiele, John
Zentner, William Merritt, John
Shelton, Jack Carpenter, James
Casey, Roy Conklin, L. J. Wood
ward, Del Kampmann, and Ralph
Chapman.
Among the guests from other
areas of the state are: the 49th
District Governor, Don Barry of
Anchorage; Fairbanks Club Presi
dent, Stan Davis and wife; Fair
banks Deputy District Governor,
Mel Harris and wife; Midnite Sun
Zone Chairman, Ben Potter; Mid
nite Sun District Extension
! Chairman, Jack Lane and wife;
College Club President, Don Van
Cleve and wife; North Pole Club
President, Jim Ford and wife;
Midnite Sun Club President, H.
Alexander; Delta Club President,
Carl Revord and wife.
Members from the Fairbanks
Club are: Lou Bianchi and wife,
Frank Lawson and wife, Elmer
Gagnon, Steve Carson, Bud Hag
berg, Dick Sticka, Jerry Camp
bell, Larry Meath, Ralph Bailey,
Bud Hilton and J. E. McCarthy.
Members from the Midnite Sun
Club are: Dean Ayres and wife,
Joe Pollestrine and Roy Tietjen.
—
Three Alaska School
Districts Will Receive
Funds Next Week
JUNEAU (4*) — The Office of the
U. S. Commissioner of Education
has authorized immediate pay
ment of funds to three school dis
tricts in Alaska which lie in fed
erally affected areas, the Alaska
Congressional Delegation said to
day.
The Kodiak Independent School
District will receive $26,142 of the
$41,007 to which it is tentative
ly entitled; the Petersburg Public
School District will get $4,587 of
its earmarked $7,196; and the
Unalaska School District $2,623,
which is its total tentative en
titlement for fiscal 1960.
Sens. Ernest Gruening and E.
L. Bartlett, and Rep. Ralph
Rivers said in a telegram to the
Associated Press here that Treas
ury checks comprising the im
mediate payments were certified
today and should reach the offi
cials of the school districts by the
end of next week.
WEATHER FORECAST
Partly fair. Low tonight -20,
high tomorrow -10. In the last 24
hours: a high of -3, low of -17.
Sunrise at 8:35 a. m., sunset at
3:45 p. m.
Temperatures a year ago today:
High of 10, low of -13.
Rebel Leader of Hi-Jacked Liner
Accepts Aslytim from Brazilians
RECIFE, Brazil & — Rebel
leader Henrique Galvao conceded
defeat today for his seaborne re
volution aboard the Santa Maria
and accepted asylum from the
Brazilian government.
The decision was reached in
negotiations with Brazilian au
thorities abroad the liner in Re
cife Harbor. Brazilian marines
were in command of the ship and
Galvao’s thin band of rebels was
disarmed.
At the same time, Galvao faced
legal action in a Brazilian court
from the hijacked ship’s owners,
who want him charged with
homicide, robbery and depriving
passengers and crew of their
liberty.
The ship’s regular skipper,
was directed by the owners to
file complaints in a Brazilian
court against both Galvao and
Gen. Humberto Delgado, Portu
guese exile in Brazil who said he
masterminded the seizure of the
Santa Maria.
Owners Will File Complaints
The owners, the Colonial Navi
gation Co., told Simoes Maia to
charge Galvao and Delgado with
homicide, robbery, injuries, de
priving passengers and crew of
their liberty and damage to the
610-foot liner.
Maia told for the first time
how he and his crew tried to
thwart Galvao at sea even though
the ship’s officers were under
gunpoint all the time.
He said faucets were left open
to deplete the fresh water supply,
in an effort to force a landing. He
indicated that Galvao’s inexperi
enced navigator had been led
astray at times.
Maia declared some of the Gal
vao band who seized the ship
Jan. 22 had come from the Soviet
Union and been trained in Rus
sian brigades. He said these
rebels had been in Cuba recently.
“This was an authentic case of
piracy,” he asserted.
Most of the rebels joined 366
of the ship’s crew and the near
ly 600 passengers in rushing
ashore by tug yesterday after Gal
vao finally brought the ship into
harbor amid mounting pressure of
threatened mutiny and riot aboard
the liner.
The passengers were taken to
the Recife Portuguese Club. Amid
festive decorations for Mardi
Gras, arrangements began to
transport them home.
The ship’s owners, the Colonial
Navigation Co. offered to see that
they got to their original desti
nations.
Pan Am Offers Aid
The U. S. Consulate said it was
ready to help any Americans that
requested aid. The 45 American
passengers were taken into the
| homes of Americans living in Re
! cife. Pan American Airways said
| it could fly back all the passen
gers from Belem, Brazil, 1,050
miles northwest of Recife.
The Americans — all of whom
travelled first and second class —
said they received comparatively
good treatment from their captors
at sea but the tension had mounted
steadily.
Portuguese and Spaniards in
third class complained they were
without water at the end of the
2,600-mile detour and had been
given little food. Some said they
i feared for their lives.
Fire Tragedy Strikes
Rep. John Nusunginya’s
Family Home in Barrow
JUNEAU UP) — Word was re
ceived here today of the death of
two members of the family of
State Rep." John Nusunginya in
a fire in the family home at Bar
row this morning.
According to word received by
Gov. Egan, the fire claimed the
life of Nusunginya’s wife and i
one of his children. The Nusung- j
inya’s were believed to have had
five or six children.
Word of the family tragedy was
relayed to Nusunginya at a meet
ing with Egan at the executive
mansion, in the presence of an
other Barrow legislator, State
Sen. Eben Hopson.
Egan called Pacific Northern
Airlines and requested delay of
the northbound flight until Nu
sunginya could get to the air
port. PNA granted the governor’s
request and held the plane until
Nusunginya arrived at Juneau
Municipal Airport.
BANK PRESIDENT RECEIVES
HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA
MARQUETTE, Mich. UP) — At
the age of 75, bank president
Ernest L. Pearce has achieved his
high school diploma.
Pearce, president of the Union
National Bank of this Michigan
Upper Peninsula city, was grad
uated from Graveraet High School
in a night school class of 18 mem
bers Tuesday night.
As class president, the white
haired banker made the gradu
ating speech.
Pearce quit school at 14 to take
a job. He returned last fall for
night classes.
Castro Ousts 120 Judges
Throughout Cuba
HAVANA UR — Fidel Castro
today fired 120 judges through
out Cuba in the second phase of
a sweeping court purge aimed at
removing all legal obstacles to
his rule.
In the December purge 13 Su
preme Court justices were ousted.
One of Castro’s chief complaints
against the courts has been that
they often awarded owners of
seized property to much compen
sation.
Antonio Nunez Jimenez, chief
of Castro’s Agrarian Reform Pro
gram, warned as long ago as
last spring that many judges
would have to change their way
of thinking or face the conse
quences.
The new dismissal decree, said
the jurists were thrown out to
assure Cuba a more “revolution
ary” application of justice.
The targets of the latest purge
were accused of counter-revolu
tionary activity “under protec
tion of their positions,” and some
of “manifestly immoral conduct.”
Some were described as too old,
others called inept.
It was believed some of the
ousted judges already have fled
the country or have sought asy
lum in foreign embassies, as some
of the ousted Supreme Court jus
tices did in December.
PRESIDENT "JK-2" ! I
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil UR_
When Juscelino Kubitschek was
President of Brazil, Brazilian
headline writers referred to him
as “JK.”
The newspaper Diario Carioca
Friday referred to the new U. S.
President in a headline as “JK-2.”