rn NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
VOL. LIX No. 12 NOME, ALASKA, MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 1957 ~ Per Copy—15^
Globemaster
Crash Lands on .
Ice of Cook Inlet
ANCHORAGE, UP)—An Air Force
cargo plane carrying 12 crew
lyembers and a soldier passenger
on emergency leave to the States
caught fire shortly after * takeoff
from Elmendorf Air Force Base
here last night and crash landed
on the ice-bound waters of Cook
Inlet.
None of the 13 aboard was ser
iously injured. They were hoisted
to safety within 10 minutes after
the crash by two Air Force heli
copters.
The C-124 Globemaster took off
at 8:08 p.m. enroute to McChord
AFB near Tacoma. A few min
utes later one engine caught fire
and the pilot, Capt. Theodore
Testy attempted to return to the
base but was forced down only a
couple of miles from the strip.
The big craft came to rest on
the ice about 20 yards from shore.
The ice in Cook Inlet is in big
floes, which are broken apart by
the tremendous tides in the inlet.
The landing was at low tide so
the ice along the shore was a firm
but rough emergency landing
“field.”
The rescue operation was car
ried out in freezing weather with
one helicopter hovering overhead
providing floodlights while the
other ferried the men to the hos
pital for observation.
Nenana Ice Report
Nenana reports that the
thickness of the ice up to dale
is 22 inches, with about 18
inches packed snow on top.
Water is six feet deep where
the tripod will be set up.
Weather has been warm in
Nenana for this time of year
and there is lots of snow.
Kay Recommends
Territorial Administrator
To Make Appointments
JUNEAU, —In a prelude to
the Legislature’s opening today,
ex-Rep. Wendell Kay of Anchor
age suggested to fellow Democrats
that it would be “politically wise”
to create a territorial adminis
trator to make all appointments
to boards and commissions.
The governor now makes the
appointmens, subject to confirma
tion by the Legislature.
Kay, speaker of the House in
the 1955 Legislature, suggested at
a pre-session party gathering that
such an administrator should be
elected by the people, in contrast
to the appointive governor.
He predicted the next governor
will be “a shrewd and practical
Republican politician.”
Kay also proposed re-enactment
of the territorial General Prop
erty Tax, which a Republican
controlled Legislature repealed in
1953.
WATCH DOG WATCHES
PORTLAND, Ore., ID-Two po
licemen found a man tampering
with the ignition wire of their
police car. *
Seated beside the man, calmly
watching, was a police dog named
Tiger the officers had left to
guard the car.
Mother to Land in Jail
Next Time Her Son
Misses a Day of School
CARLSBAD, N. M., US)—Mrs.
Frances Carrion will serve a two
day jail term the next time her
son misses a day of school.
Justice of the Peace Richard I.
Floyd suspended the sentence
and issued the warning after her
son failed to attend school all this
j week.
The hookey-playing junior high
schooler has missed 57 days this
! year.
Democrats Pick Vic Rivers as Senate
President, Greuel as House Speaker
JUNEAU, LP)—Democratic ma
jorities in the Legislature, which
opened here today, picked Sen.
Victor Rivers of Anchorage for
the Senate presidency and Rep.
Richard Greuel of Fairbanks for
speaker of the House.
Both were chosen at caucuses
of the Democratic members of
each House Sunday. There was no
announcement of the Rivers se
lection in advance of the Senate’s
convening today, ibut reliable
source^ said he was the choice
over Sen. William Beltz of Hay
cock and Noipe.
Rivers is a member of a well
known Alaska family. He, is a
brother of former attorney gen
eral Ralph Rivers, who resigned
his Senate seat from Fairbanks
to go to Washington as a “Ten
* nessee Plan” congressman.
Sen. Rivers last served in the
Legislature in the 1949 session.
He was defeated for re-election
in 1950 but was returned to his
seat by the voters in last year’s
election. He played a key role in
pushing thru the basic tax pro
gram in 1949, when he was chair
man of the Senate Revenue and
Taxation Committee.
Greuel, at 28, is believed to be
the youngest speaker ever chosen
for the Alaska House. He is start
ing his third term in the House,
where he served as party floor
leader last session. Hhis third
term makes him the “old man”
of the House in length of continu
ous service.
The Democrats picked Rep.
Burke Riley, Haines attorney, as
floor leader. He is a second term
er. He has seen duty in the offices
of Gov. Gruening during the lat
ter’s administration at later was
secretary of Alaska.
Rep. Ken Johnson, Anchorage,
was named by the Democrats to
head the important Ways and
Means Committee in the House.
This is the group which has the
big job of drawing up the appro
priations bill and passing on all
spending measures. Johnson also
held the post as a first term legis
lator in 1955.
I ' ' ' “
Chamber Prepares Report
For Secy, of Interior Seaton
Giving Needs of 2nd Division
-<3
Eartha Kiitt’s Song
Not ‘Monotonous’ When
Shoulder Strap Snaps
LONDON, WV-Sultry American
singer Eartha Kitt scored a great
hit on British commercial tele
vision’s big Sunday night pro
gram last night—her shoulder
strap snapped.
The slim little strap on the
skin-tight kown called it quits
shortly after the visiting singer
began her song “Monotonous.”
Millions of fascinated viewers
found the incident anything but
that as Miss Kitt grabbed the
dangling strap, gave an upward
pull and held on firmly for two
tense minutes until she finished
her song.
She said “it was a tenrible mo
ment. I felt like an idiot.”
Snowing in Los Angeles,
—Raining in Nome
LOS ANGELES, UPt—Snow fell
in downtown Los Angeles last
night for the first time in eight
years.
It melted on contact, however.
(While it was snowing in Los
Angeles it was raining in Nome.
And as of 7 a.m. this morning
many stations in Alaska, reported
above freezing temperatures, ac
cording to the U.S. Weather Bu
reau. See report on Page 5.)
In the higher suburban areas
and in the surrounding moun
tains it was another matter. Roads
were closed and scores of winter
sports fans were stranded for a
time.
The natives have a word for
this type of storm which dumped
rain, hail and snow over most of
southern California—“unusual.”
In Hollywood, the land of
make-believe, the snow was for
real this time, not movie-makers’
cornflakes. It drifted past palm
trees and dissolved after whiten
ing green lawns and parked oars.
In suburban Glendale, police
entered a new complaint in the
record book: “Juveniles throwing
snowballs.” No one was arrested,
however. Many of the younger
children had never seen snow.
Policeman Killed in
Saratoga Springs Fire
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.,
UP>—A $2 million fire tock the life
of a policeman and destroyed sev
en business buildings in this his
toric resort yesterday.
Six firemen were injured, 25
persons were left homeless and
more than 15,000 residents were
warned to boil drinking water.
Police said today a defective oil
burner was believed to have set
off the fire.
Patrolman Frederick Pettit, 50,
father of three teen-agers, was
killed when a wall collapsed in
an explosion during the fire.
Welcome Tomorrow Will Include
Eskimo Dancers, Reindeer Lunch
Plans are about completed for
the entertainment of the Honor
able Fred A. Seaton, Secretary of
the Interior, and his party com
posed of Anthony J. Lausi, Di
rector of Territories, A. M. Ed
wards, associate Solicitor, Divi
sion of Territories, and Leola
Tise, personal secretary to Seaton.
He is to have his wishes grati
fied as completely as possible
when he lands here tomorrow
morning about 10 o’clock as the
committee in charge is planning
to give him everything he has re
quested. This includes reindeer
meat for the 11:30 luncheon; an
ivory carver at work, Eskimo
dancers at the airport, a mineral
display showing the fabulous
variety of minerals of the Nome
area, and a conference with a
group of local citizens.
The Eskimo dances may be
held indoors if weather is unfa
vorable.
The Chamber of Commerce has
prepared a report for Secretary
Seaton, showing what they be
lieve to be the necessary or de
sireable measures for the econom
ic development and welfare of
the people of northwestern Alas
ka. The report covers many
phases of conditions here and
suggests remedies, the most im
portant of which are as follows:
STATEHOOD—
“In connection with bills now
understood to have been intro
duced in the 85th Congress to
grant statehood to Alaska and
the remarks of the President in
his annual budget message to
Congress, we respectfully protest
any legislation which would pro
vide for partition of any geo
graphic area within the Territory,
to be excluded from the new
State. However, we have no ob
jection to proper provision in any
such bill for withdrawal from the
grant of public land to the new
State, or from entry, of such lands
or areas in the interest of nation
al security considered essential
for national defense.
“We also recommend relin
quishment of Public Land Order
No. 82 withdrawing from entry or
mineral development a vast area
in the arctic region, including the
Cubik natural gas field, unless
considered essential for defense
purposes. In this connection, at
tention is directed to the fact that
approximately one-half of the
entire Second Judicial Division
is now withdrawn, including the
area mentioned and several na
tive reservations.”
DIVISIONAL LAND OFFICE—
Attention is directed to the de
sirablility of having a branch of
the General Land Office estab
lished at Nome.
ROADS—
The Chamber “recognizes the
fact that jurisdiction over the
construction and maintenance of
roads in Alaska is no longer vest
ed in the Department of the In
terior, but in the Department of
Commerce. However, we desire
to direct (Seaton’s) attention to
the urgent need of more roads in
this area as set forth in the en
closed Report, with a few addi
tional comments, with the sug
gestion that you may wish to
communicate such views by rea
son of (Seaton’s) visit to the Sec
retary of Commerce or the Bu
reau of Public Roads.
“Some improvements have been
made to the road to Council al
though much yet remains to be
accomplished, and some prelimin
ary work has been done on the
proposed road to Teller under the
! direction of the Territorial High
way Engineer.
“We are faced with an immedi
ate problem in this connection in
that in order for any construction
work to be done during the brief
summer season, bids must be ad
vertised and contracts let before
April 1. The Territorial Board of
Road Commissioners is charged
with the duty of allocating Feder- "■
al and Territorial highway funds
and determining priorities, which
procedure, we are informed, will
still be applicable under the re
cent Federal Highway Act for
Alaska. It is therefore urged that
every opportunity be given to
such Board and the Territorial
Highway Engineer to meet with
the Regional Engineer of the Bu
reau of Public Roads, or other
representative of the Department
of Commerce, with respect to
such funds and the administra
tion of the Act.
The trunk highway from Nome
to Fairbanks to connect with the
Alaska Highway is understood to
have received high priority with
the Board of Road Commissioners
and is again urged.”
FREIGHT RATES—
Freight rates to Alaska being
higher than shipment to Japan,
Hawaii, and Far East ports, the
Chamber urges that the matter
be investigated. They also voiced
an objection to the operation by
the Alaska Native Service of the
Motorship North Star in competi
tion with private commerce. The
Chamber stated that should this
service be discontinued “there
are a number of boats at Kotze
bue and Nome which would be
made available for coastal ser
vice, which would provide an ad
ditional payroll for white and
( Continued on Page Two )