Banker Cracks
Safe in Toughest
Job of His Career
Banker Marshall Crutcher of
Kodiak made a delayed arrival in
Juneau for the legislative session
* after the toughest bank-cracking
job of his career.
It was a chore that necessitated
drilling through a concrete wall
into the main vault, cracking a
safe and a four-day drilling job
through the four-inch thickness
of a hardened steel chest.
The little town of Homer, on
the Kenai Peninsula, was the
scene. The Bank of Homer was
the institution.
The head of the Bank of Kodiak
related after arrival here how he
was summoned to Homer a week
ago after the sudden death of Ar
thur T. Hewlett, 49-year-o‘ld head
of the small bank, from a heart
attack. *
No one could find any trace of
where the Homer banker had left
any record of the vault or safe
combinations.
Then, as Crutcher related it in
explaining his delayed arrival, he
got a drilling expert to pierce the
concrete wall of the vault from
outside—in 10-degree cold. It was
a job of an hour or so—a simple
matter compared with what was
to follow.
Then the vault-cracker poked
in with a long rod, found the re
lease which is designed to free
any bank employe who might get
locked in the vault, while some
one else worked the vault handle
from the outside.
The safe was next. The combi
nation baffled a locksmith. Then
he noted a slight blemish on the
safe’s steel face. It was the “open
sesame.” It covered a wooden
plug that had been inserted where
< the safe once had been drilled.
That took care of the safe.
Then came the steel chest atop
it, which held the cash of the
three-year-old, youngest bank in
the territory.
“The locksmith got the best
steel drill he could find,” Crutch
er explained. “He drilled for half
an hour with all the pressure he
and a helper could apply. The
drill grew dull but you could rub
a finger over the surface and
barely feel a dent in the herdened
steel. I came along to Juneau and
was advised that he finally drilled
through it Wednesday,” four days
later.
With a little outside help, the
bank carried on throughout the
episode.
Crutcher has been engaged this
week in rewriting the four-year
old territorial accountancy law,
which he describes as very un
satisfactory. He is head of the
Territorial Board of Accountancy.
He expects to be in Juneau
throughout the legislative session
as legislative representative for
the Alaska Bankers Association.
Former Army Sgt. Provoo
Convicted of Treason
NEW YORK, GPl—Former Army
Sgt. John David Provoo was con
victed Wednesday of treason.
He faces a sentence that could
be anything from five years in
prison to death for treachery
while a prisoner of the Japanese
during World War II.
One of the charges on vfriich
Provoo was convicted was that he
was at least partly responsible for
the death of a fellow prisoner of
war, Army Capt. Burton C. Thom
son, of Sioux City, Iowa. Thom
son was executed by their cap
tors on Corregidor after Provoo,
who was in favor with the prison
, a camp commanders, reported him
uncooperative and anti-Japanese.
Bill Would Create
24 Districts for
House Elections
By JIM HUTCHESON
JUNEAU, UP)—A bill to create
24 separate districts for the elec
tion of 24 members of the Terri
torial House of Representatives
was introduced Wednesday by
two Democrats and two Republi
cans.
It 'sets forth specifically that
two House members should be
elected from inside Ancorarage
and one each from Ketchikan, Ju
neau and Fairbanks.
The other 19r would be -elected
from specified areas inside each
of the four divisions, with each
division having the same number
as now.)
The bill sponsors are Represen
tatives Theodore Duffield (D
Nome), Wendell Kay (D-AnchoT
age), Lloyd C. Olsen (R-Anchor
age), and Herald Stringer (R-An
chorage).
The proposal would cut down
on the number of representatives
who are residents of larger cities
and specifically allocate seats to
outlying areas.
Areas aro'und major cities would
have seats.
Roughly it proposes these dis
tricts with one seat each:
Second Division — Three seats:
Anoatak - Kobuk and Fairhaven
districts; Cape Nome Recording
District divided into two at 64th
North Latitude.
Estimated 1,500 Killed
In Iran Earthquake
TEHRAN, Iran, UPi — Reports
reaching the Iranian government
Friday estimated that about 1,500
persons were killed yesterday
when an earthquake virtually
wiped out the village of Torroud,
in northeast Iran.
Fifteen truckloads of soldiers
and 16 army jeeps loaded with
blankets, medical supplies and
food were sent to the distressed
area.
The reports indicated that there
were no more than 50 survivors
at the most in the village, approx
imately 90 miles from Shahrudi
The quake apparently occurred
at noon yesterday. At that time
a slight tremor was feit in Tehran
but no' damage was reported.
Ice Pool Dates
Since 1917, when the Pool
was started, the ice has gone
out at Nenana as follows:
1917— April 30 .11:30 a.m.
1918— May 11. 9:33 a.m.
1919— May 3. 2:33 p.m.
1920— May 11 .10:45 a.m.
1921— May 11. 6:42 a.m.
1922— May 12. 1:20 p.m.
1923— May 9. 2:00 p.m.
1924— May 11. 3:10 p.m.
1925— May 7. 6:32 p.m.
1926— April 26 . 4:03 p.m.
1927— May 13. 5:42 a.m.
1928— May 6. 4:25 p.m.
1929— May 5 . 3:41 p.m.
1930— May 8. 7:03 p.m.
1931— May 10. 9:23 a.m.
1932— May 1.10:15 a.m.
1933— May 3. 7:30 p.m.
1934— April 30.t... 2:07 p.m.
1935— May 15. 1:32 p.m.
1936— April 30 .12:58 p.m.
1937— May 12. 8:04 p.m.
1938— May 6. 8:14 p.m.
1939— April 29 . 1:26 p.m.
1940— April 20 . 3:27 p.m.
1941— May 3. 1:50 a.m.
1942— April 30 . 1:28 p.m.
1943— April 28 . 7:22 p.m.
1944— May 4. 2:08 p.m.
1945— May 16. 9:41 a.m.
1946— May 5. 4:40 p.m.
1947— May 3. 5:53 p.m.
1948— May 13.11:13 p.m.
1949— May 14.12:39 p.m.
1950— May 6. 4:14 p.m.
1951— April 30. 5:54 p.m.
1952— May 12. 5:04 p.m.
Church Services
SEVENTH DAY ADVENTIST
Between 3rd and 4th Aves. on B St.
M. IREDALE, leader
Phone Main 110
Saturday
10:00 a.m. — Sabbath School
ASSEMBLY OF GOD
Third A venu e West
A. E. CAPENER, pastor
Sunday
10:00 to 11:45—Combined Sunday School
and Morning Worship
7:45 p.m. — Evening Service
Tuesday
7 p.m. — Cottage Prayer Service
Thursday
7:45 p.m. — Bible Study
EVERYBODY WELCOME —Heb. 10:25
COMMUNITY METHODIST
CHURCH
and LAVINIA WALLACE YOUNG
COMMUNITY CENTER
“There’s a Christian welcome here”
Second Avenue at West C Street
REEVES C. HAVENS, JR., minister
MISS ESTHER McCOY
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY CENTER
Sunday
9:45—Sunday School classes for all ages.
11:00 — Worship service in observance of
Dedication Sunday. The pastor will
conduct the Sacrament of Baptism and
receive new members, including the
youth preparatory class, into the church.
The senior choir will sing. Sermon top
ic, “We Have an Altar.”
3:30—Hospital Service.
7 p.m.— Gospel Hour. Singspiration fol
lowed by the showing of colored pic
tures on Africa by Rev. Joseph Ost.
8 p.m. — Youth Hour in the Social Hall.
Wednesday
7 p.m. — Senior choir rehearsal.
Friday
7:30 p.m.—World Day of Prayer service,
sponsored by all the Protestant chur
ches, at the Nazarene Church.
CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE
at Third and Division
LEWIS I. HUDGINS, pastor
Sunday
10:00 a.m. — Sunday School
Lesson, “Gaining or Losing the King
dom.”
11:00 a.m. — Morning Worship
Subject: “No Rest for Jesus.”
6:30 p.m. — Junior Society. All boys and
girls up to 12 years. Miss Francis in
charge.
6:30 p.m.—■ N. Y. P. S. Young People’s
Meeting. Subject, “For God and Coun
try.” Leader, Jack Decker.
7:30 p.m. — Evangelistic Service
Subject, “Doors and Opportunities.”
Presented by James Savok.
Tuesday
7:30 p.m. — Cottage Prayer Service
Wednesday
7:30 p.m.—The Glad Hour, with Melo
dy, Praise, Prayer and Bible Study.'
You are invited io enjoy with us
any and all of these services.
THE FRIENDLY CHURCH
WITH THE SINGING TOWER
THE EVANGELICAL MISSION
COVENANT CHURCH
REV. PAUL B. F. CARLSON and
REV. ROALD AMUNDSEN, pastors
Sunday
10:00 a.m.—Sunday School Classes for
all ages.
11:00 a.m.—Morning Worship Service in
English. Special music.
7:30 p.m.—Evening Service with choir
and other musical selections.
.Communion Service will be held
the first Sunday of each month.
8:00 p.m. — Covenant Navigators. A
y ung people's Bible study group.
Monday
7:30 p.m. — Cottage Prayer Service
When we cease to pray, we
cease to have power
Tuesday
10:00 a.m. — Pre-school children meet at
the Amundsen home.
Thursday
4:00 p.m. — Children’s meeting at the
Covenant Church.
7:30 p.m.—Mid-week Bible Study and
Prayer Service. Senior Choir practice
following service.
Friday
7:30 p.m.—Service in Eskimo language.
Translated songs.
NOME GOSPEL MISSION
OF ALASKA EVANGELIZATION SOCIETY
. VERN RIMLING, pastor
Sunday
2:00 p.m. — Sunday School
7:30 p.m. — Gospel Service
Wednesday
7:30 p.m. — Bible study
and prayer meeting
— All are welcome —
CATHOLIC CHURCH
REV. NEIL MURPHY. S.J.
Sunday Masses
8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.
Daily Mass
7:00 a.m.
Saturday Mass
8:00 a.m.
Saturday Confessions
4:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Arctic Sanitary Service
Phone RED 181
Pan Am Utilizes “Jet Air
Stream” on Pacific Hop
SEATTLE — The longest non
stop commercial airline flight in
the world is now being flown ac
ross the central Pacific Ocean by
Pan American World Airways
Stratoclippers.
The 3,900-mile ocean crossing
from Tokyo to Honolulu without
refueling is made possible by a
weather phenomena called “jet
stream winds.” These winds are
encountered at altitudes of about
23,000 feet. During the winter
months they blow steadily from
west to east at 70 to 80 miles
an hour, adding that much to the
cruising speed of eastbound air
craft operating at high altitudes.
A series of proving flight over
the route, coupled with extensive
studies by Pan Am meteorologists
during the past two months, have
demonstrated that scheduled
flights taking advantage of these
upper-air “jet streams” are both
safe and practical.
Pan Am’s eastbound Pacific
schedules formerly made a fuel
ing stop at Wake Island. By op
erating non-stop on a more direct
path the Stratoclippers shave 7
hours from former schedules and
a corresponding reduction in over
all flight time shows up for the
entire trip between the Orient
and the Pacific Northwest.
By a quirk of the international
dateline, one trip now arrives in
Honolulu eight hours before it
leaves Tokyo! The plane departs
Tokyo at midnight Tuesdays,
crosses the international dateline
i -
Methodist Church To
Observe Day of Dedication
The Rev. Reeves C. Havens and
the congregation of the Commun
ity Methodist Church will join
more than 9,000,000 Methodists in
observing the Day of Dedication
this Sunday.
Bishops Lloyd C. Wicke, Pitts
burgh, and Matthew W. Clair, St.
Louis, national chairman and vice
chairman of the Week of Dedica
tion Committee, state that this
period at the beginning of Lent
offers an opportunity for the en
tire church membership to renew
its dedication to spiritual living.
“The Day of Dedication has Be
come a bond of prayer and Chris
tian fellowship among Methodists
around the world,” according to
the Rev. Dr. E. Harold Mohn,
Chicago, executive director of the
church’s central promotional of
fice. “Reports have come from
hundreds of churches which Ob
served the day last year with
special prayer services, dedication
meetings and sacrificial offerings.”
Funds received are to be used
for emergency missionary pro
jects at home and abroad and the
work of the Methodist Committee
for Overseas Relief. One project
is listed as “A New Parsonage at
Nome, Alaska.”
Gifts this year are expected to
total $1,000,000. In the last four
years, more than three and a half
million dollars has been raised.
into the “previous day” at an
average speed of 355 miles an
hour and arrives in Hawaii at 4
o’clock Tuesday afternoon.
• •
For a wonderful vacation
when you’re Outside • • •
HAWAII
$225 ROUND TRIP (piustox)
from Son Francisco or Los Angeies
Pan American’s new Clipper* Tourist Service cuts air
fares from California to Hawaii by $43 one way and
$77.40 round trip! You fly in dependable double-decked
“Strato” Clippers. With the same experienced flight
crews...in the same fast flying time as Pan American’s
luxury flights. Only Pan American offers you scheduled
tourist service to Hawaii!
For reservations, call
593 First Avenue • Phone 12
* Trade-Mark, Pan American World Airways, hot.
Em JT r
WORLD’S MOST EXPERIENCED AIRLINE
I