m NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
VOL. LXI No. 82 NOME, ALASKA, FRIDAY, JULY 10, 1959_Per Copy—15^
Supreme Court
Judging Legality
Of State Trap Ban
By FRITZ WITTI
WASHINGTON, UPi — Alaska’s
controversial fish trap ban was to
receive another legal going-over
before Supreme Court Justice
Brennan Friday.
Attorneys for three Indian vil
lages, where Alaska’s 11 remaining
fish traps are located, seek a pre
liminary injunction to keep the
state’s anti-trap law from stopping
their operation this year.
Both the state Constitution and
state law prohibit use of the huge
traps to catch salmon because they
keep the fish from going upstream
to spawn.
Because the fishing season has
already started at two of the vil
lages, attorneys for Kake, Angoon
and Metlakatla asked a prelimi
nary injunction pending appeal to
the Supreme Court.
The Alaska statehood act gave
the Interior Department the re
sponsibility of administering the
wildlife resources of the state un
tin January 1, 1960.
On this authority, the Interior
Department has banned all fish
traps except those at the three In
dian villages in question.
The state claims its right to
control the type of fishing gear
used, including fish traps, has been
upheld in district court.
The traps produce big catches
of salmon with less effort than
seining, gill netting or trolling.
Representing the villages were
R. L. Jernberg, C. L. Cloudy and
A. H. Ziegler, all of Ketchikan,
John W. Smith, acting mayor of
Metlakatla, and the Justice De
partment, at the request of the
Interior Department and Justice
Brennan.
The state’s position was pre
sented by Alaska Attorney Gen
eral John Rader.
Georgia Prison Hunger
Strikers Being Shifted
To Other State Prisons
REIDS VELLE, Ga., UP) — Offi
cials .reported that hunger strikers
at the Reidsville State Prison
dwindled to a mere 250 today and
that they are being transferred
elsewhere.
A spokesman for the State De
partment of Corrections in Atlan
ta said that as many as 140 are
being 'removed to the maximum
security rock quarry prison at
Buford, a distance of some 200
miles.
The remainder, he added, will
be dispersed to various smaller
facilities in an attempt to stamp
out the day-old hunger strike.
He emphasized that there has
been no disorder at the 2,900-in
mate state prison — that the war
den and other officers were in
full control at all times.
The corrections spokesman said
big prison buses carrying from 30
to 40 prisoners each were mobil
ized for the convict transfer. Some
40 state troopers were called upon
to assist.
The strike began with breakfast
Thursday to bolster demands for
improved conditions at the prison.
Varying numbers refused,all three
meals Thursday.
At breakfast Thursday, 400 con
victs refused to eat after posting
a nine-point list of demands in
their cell blocks.
Mayor Appoints Special
Committee to Study New
Telephone Rate Issue
The City Council continued the
telephone rate hearing until 9 p.m.
next Monday, at its next regular
meeting, when a date for a new
hearing will be set.
The council decided that the
proposed new telephone ordinance
was not applicable to Nome and
Nome Telephone Co. agreed to
submit another ordinance.
Mayor Steffen Andersen ap
pointed a special committee of
himself, Councilmen Keith Hed
reen and Clinton Gray, and City
Attorney von der Heydt to work
with the telephone company on
a new ordinance and the proposed
rate increase.
The increase asked amounted to
80 cents a month for a 4-party
telephone, a raise from $5.25 to
$6.05. Other increases are:
Main business phone, from
$13.60 to $14.40, an increase of
$1.30. Two-party business phone
up 90 cents to $9.80 from $8.90.
One-party resident phone up
$1.28 to $9.03 from $7.85; and 2
party resident up $2.50 to $7.75
from $5.25.
The company claimed they sus
tained a loss of $2,025 on their
capital investment from October
1958 to June 30, 1959.
The people present at the hearing
generally opposed the rate hike.
In another action Thursday eve
ning the council granted Moon
light Water Co. permission to
place water lines on the sidewalk
on the south side of front street
while the street is being paved.
12-Year-Old Dead As
Result of Homemade
Fireworks Bomb
PORTLAND, UP) — Fireworks
picked up on the beach as duds
after the 4th of July holiday killed
a 13-year-old boy here Wednes
day.
The victim was Jimmy Taylor
who died minutes after an ex
plosion in the basement of his
home.
The day after a fireworks dis
play at Seaside, the boy picked up
two pieces of unexploded fire
works and took them home. Wed
nesday he emptied the powder
into a metal can, and then sealed
the can. He then began drilling a
hole in the can, apparently to make
room for a fuse.
Detectives said the heat from
the drill apparently ignited the
powder. The device exploded like
a mine.
Physicians said a piece of the
metal penetrated the youngster’s
heart.
All Mexico Wild Over
Bantamweight’s Victory
MEXICO CITY, UP) — Mexicans
erupted with joy Wednesday night
when the flash came from Los An
geles that Jose Becerra knocked
out Alphonse Malimi of France in
the eighth round and won the
world bantamweight title — the
second to be held by a Mexican.
Untold thousands crowded
around radios in bars, restaurants
and homes shouted as Becerra put
Halimi down for a four count in
the eighth round of their Los
Angeles bout.
Then they went wild as he
knocked him unconscious with the
title winning blow a few seconds
later.
Negotiators Hint
Steel Conferences
Making Headway
NEW YORK, if)—Signs of horse
trading developed in steel contract
talks today.
Negotiating activity picked up
as time grew closer to a threat
ened industry walkout at midnight
Tuesday.
The industry and union bargain
ing teams, which met only briefly
Thursday and then recessed to re
examine their position, repeated
the process today.
After a brief joint session this
morning, the management and
union representatives split up
with a statement saying “the
parties have been exchanging data
and have recessed temporarily to
gather additional information
needed when conferences resume.”
The stated admission that
“data” was being exchanged could
cover many possibilities. It left
an encouraging impression. But
there was no word that industry
had made any increase offer.
“I don’t feel any change in my
pulse beat one way or the other,”
was the way R. Conrad Cooper put
it when asked by newsmen what
the prospects were. Cooper is ex
ecutive vice president of U. S.
Steel Corp., and the leader of the
industry’s fight against higher
pay demands.
Wildlife Group
Blames Federal
Thrift for Fire Toll
WASHINGTON, Ut) — Forest
fires in Alaska are a “tragic sym
bol of penny-wise, pound-foolish
conservation policies of the fed
eral government,” the National
Wildlife Federation said today.
“Both the Administration and
the Congress have refused to be
realistic about the enormous, pe
rennial fire losses in the vast ter
rity that has become our 49th
state,” a federation statement as
serted. “For the stupendous task
of protecting more than 225 mil
lion acres of public domain — an
area larger than all the national
forests — the Federal Bureau of
Land Management has been voted
only $387,900 for fire-detection
and pre-suppression work during
the next fiscal year.
“Last year BLM had $637,900
for pre-suppression activities. This
amount is a deplorable pittance,
but nevertheless was the most it
ever had. Able for the first time to
use airplanes extensively on patrol
and to employ parachute ‘smoke
jumpers’ to put out little light
ning-caused fires before they be
came big ones, the bureau reduced
the burned-over acreage from 5
million acres in 1957 to about 315,
000 in 1958.
This year, in a silly gesture
toward economy, the Budget Bur
eau recommended a $250,000 cut
in the program. Despite the plead
ing of Alaskans and national con
servation organizations, Congress
went along with the reduction, de
termined no doubt to prove it is
more important to cut a quarter
million dollars from the federal
budget than to save natural re
sources worth hundreds of
millions.”
The federation said fires were
now raging over 200,000 acres of
Alaska timfoerlands.
Harriman Tells Nixon
That Khrushchev Regards
Him Next U. S. President
WASHINGTON, UP) — Vice
President Richard Nixon was told
by Averell Harriman today that
Soviet Premier Khrushchev “re
gards Mr. Nixon as the next Presi
dent of the United States.”
Harriman, recently returned
from a visit to Moscow and an
interview with Khrushchev,
chatted with Nixon in the Vice
President’s capitol office.
On leaving, Harriman told news
men about his talk with Nixon
and his report on Khrushchev’s
comments.
“I told Premier Khrushchev
that I thought the next Presi
dent would be a Democrat,” Har
riman added with a smile.
Nixon will fly to Moscow July
22 to open a U. S. exhibit there
and visit with Soviet leaders.
Harriman said he told Nixon
that this trip is “of great impor
tance and his talks with Soviet
officials will give them a chance
to know American views better.”
Khrushchev is anxious to visit
the United States, Harriman said.
Detroit Hoochy-Koochy
Girls Get Dance Lessons
From Police Inspector
DETROIT, Ut) — Thirty-four
exotic dancers gathered at police
headquarters Thursday for a post
graduate course on permissible
stripping.
The course, held at the Detroit
Police Academy, attracted such
nightclub entertainers as Blaze
Fury, Reddie (no no) Sloan and
Senorita Yum Yum.
Presiding over the course was
Inspector Melville Bullach, head
of the police censor bureau. Bul
lach instructed the girls how to
strip in Detroit and stay out of
jail.
A majority of the city’s strip
tease colony turned out.
Bullach warned the showgirls
that while sex can be displayed
in Detroit night clubs “it can’t
be used to incite a riot.”
“I want to see your feet mov
ing,”- the gray-haired inspector
said, and gave a demonstration of
bumps and grinds which he said
are taboo in Detroit.
The girls laughed at the inspec
tor’s technique.
“He was great,” said Miss Sloan.
Others said Bullach’s shakes were
good but that he really “didn’t
put himself into the bumps and
grinds.”
Bullach explained the course
was part of a campaign to pre
vent the city from becoming a
wide-open town.
Senate Committee Order
Would Require Military
Purchase Alaska Milk
WASHINGTON, M — Service
men stationed, in Alaska would be
served fresh, grade-A milk rather
than reconstituted grade-C milk
under a directive given in a Senate
committee report.
In hearings on the defense ap
propriation bill, the Senate com
mittee heard testimony from Sen
ators Ernest Gruening and Bob
Bartlett, asking that fresh milk
be served Alaska soldiers.
In its report, the committee di
rects the Defense Departmnt to do I
so “unless a great disparity in cost
between grade A milk and other j
milk is evidenced.”
Anchorage Bidder
Lowest on Kuzatrin
Bridge Erection
Bids have been opened by the
Bureau of Public Roads in Ju
neau for the Kuzatrin Bridge.
Five bids were received. American
Services of Anchorage was the
apparent low bidder, with $210,
129.30. Second lowest apparent
bid was from E and B Construc
tion, with $229,007.40, followed by
Beck and Associates, with $236,
187.20. No awards have yet been
made, but the bids are under
study.
The bridge to be constructed is
the Cushman Street bridge from
Fairbanks, which was dismantled
last fall and shipped to Nome via
Seattle. It is a 300 foot long, two
lane structure, built in 1916. The
pedestrian walk will not be used
here. It has a pin connected truss,
and because the pins were diffi
cult to remove, they were dyna
mited and blown out.
If the awards are made soon,
it might be possible that the ma
terials for the foundation will ar
rive on the last boat, enabling
construction to be started in the
fall.
When the bridge was dismantled
in Fairbanks, Eva McGowan, offi
cial hostess of Fairbanks, was pre
sented a hard-top tin hat as offi
cial sidewalk superintendent, by
Munter & Co., who accomplished
the dismantling.
When erected, this will be the
biggest bridge in this part of
Alaska.
Governor Long
Will Sue Time-Life
WINNFIELD, La., UP — Loui
siana Govrnor Earl Long said to
day he will file suit Monday for
damages in excess of two million
dollars against Time, Inc., for
what he claimed were “slander
ous articles and pictures” in Time
and Life Magazines.
There was no comment on what
material in the magazines Long
referred to, but two of his legis
lative leaders — State Senator
B. B. Rayburn and State Repre
sentative Jessie McLain — were
upset Thursday night when they
read this week’s issue of Life
Magazine.
They were particularly critical
of a picture which showed the
Governor on the edge of a bed
in a Covington, La., motel last
week in bed clothes and without
his false teeth.
In a further comment on his
planned vacation in the west, the
63-year-old Governor said he
would leave his Winnfield farm
for Shreveport, La., Saturday and
then catch a plane for Fort Worth,
Texas.
Long, continuing to ignore
doctors’ advice to remain quiet,
drove to Winnfield from Baton
Rouge Thursday night.
JUNEAU, OP — A Seattle
couple aboard a 16-foot outboard
cruiser was reported overdue
Wednesday on a trip from Sitka
to Seattle.
Listed as missing were Earl
Price- 42, and his wife, Elma, 49.
The Coast Guard began a har
bor check of all ports between
Sitka and Ketchikan. The small
outboard cruiser was powered by
a 35 horsepower motor.