2S NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS_
VOL. LXI No. 50 ’ NOME, ALASKA, MONDAY, APRIL 27, 1959_Per Copy—15*
By FRANK W. VAILLE
IAP Special Washington Service)
WASHINGTON, UP) — A recapi
tulation of the nine-year quest for
oil on Naval Petroleum Reserve
No. 4 in Alaska caused some head
shaking in the House Appropria
tions Committee recently.
Some of the members, Rep. Al
bert Thomas (D-Tex) in particu
lar, couldn’t forget the optimistic
testimony given by geologists dur
ing the time the exploration pro
gram was under consideration.
Thomas recalled one geologist
who told the committee: “You
can almost see it (oil) oozing out
of the ground, that is, when it
is not frozen.”
Instead of that, Thomas drew
from R. G. Tracie, consultant en
gineer to the Naval Petroleum and
Oil Shale Reserve Program,
agreement that he was substan
tially correct in assessing the re
sults as “essentially ... a dry
hole.”
Tracie added, however, that
many years were spent in Canada
before oil was found in an area
of similar size.
“What we did in Alaska,” Tra
cie continued, “Merely proved
that where we happened to drill
we didn’t find much.”
“But when you get to those
hearings of 10 years ago,” added
Thomas, “you cannot laugh off a
man like E. De Golyer and others.
“They said you can see surface
signs. I have never heard such
encouraging statements. Those
people are not novices in the
business.”
“There is no question but what
the physical conditions exist in
the reservoir,” Tracie replied, “for
a substantial oil discovery.”
Tracie and Capt. A. S. Miller,
director of the Naval program,
told the committee the explora
tion program — carried out be
tween 1944 and 1953 at a cost of
about 48 million dollars — un
covered one field of approximately
30 million to 100 million barrels.
It also located a large gas struc
ture believed to hold as much as
a trillion cubic feet, and a small
gas field at Point Barrow which
has been used for heating and
cooking purposes at the Barrow
camp.
Although the oil field was found
at less than 2,000 feet, Tracie said
it was all in frozen ground and
was “actually not” anything which
could be used on the basis of
present knowledge.
• • •
An Alaska woman artist, Claire
Fejes of Fairbanks, is returning
home next week after a success
ful three months outside.
Among her accomplishments
was a one-woman showing of
paintings done in an Eskimo whal
ing camp which attracted record
crowds to Seattle’s Frye Art
Museum.
The Smithsonian Institute n al
so showed interest in the paint
ings, which have an anthropolo
gical tinge by their recording of
Noatak Eskimo life.
Mrs. Fejes spent two weeks last
summer living at Sesualik, a Kot
zebue Sound community used by
Eskimos each summer in iheir
hunt for the white beluga whale.
(Continued on Page T- o.
‘No Improvement’
In Dulles’ Ailment
WASHINGTON, — X-ray
treatments to ease the cancer
pain of former Secretary of State
John Foster Dulles have been
stopped with no significant im
provement as yet, the State De
partment reported today.
Press officer ■ Lincoln White
said he was not aware of any
further treatments planned for
Dulles.
The former Secretary started
receiving X-ray treatments on the
lower part of his neck April 14.
Doctors attributed pain Dulles was
having to a possible malignant
tumor in the lower cervical ver
tibrae.
White said in a bulletin an
nouncing an end to the X-rays
after nine treatments that Dulles
is receiving appropriate analge
sics-pain-killers.
The State Department spokes
man said Dulles will continue to
stay at Walter Reed Army Hos
pital, where he has been most
of the time since a hernia opera
tion in February disclosed a re
currence of Dulles’ 1&56 abdom
inal cancer.
‘Double Charging’
Charged of Military
Alaska Transport
WASHINGTON, UFi — Despite
their statehood status, Alaska and
Hawaii still are considered over
seas areas toy the Department of
Defense and the Air Force.
And as such, a Military Air
Transport Service (MATS) spokes
man says, they don’t fall within
the scope of a department direc
tive requiring the military to use
commercial aircraft wherever pos
sible in the United States for
movement of troops.
Replying to criticism that the
M A T S’ operation sometimes
amounts to “double charging of
the taxpayers,” Brig. Gen. Robert
J. Friedman told a House appro
priations subcommittee that the
MATS operation into Alaska is no
different from its transport opera
tion throughout the globe.
“To be fully prepared, familiar
with the routes, and completely
responsive to the needs of the
combat commands at the very out
set of an emergency,” he said,
“MATS must operate in peace
time in much the same manner as
it will in war. As wartime opera
tion into Alaska is required, it is
logical that MATS should also op
erate into Alaska in peace.”
Criticism of tlfe MATS opera
tion came from Rep. Daniel J.
Flood (D-Pa) who cited testimony
by the Civil Aeronautics Board
“that if the military were to put
their traffic on the commercial
lines, they could do away with
subsidy.”
He said the C.A.B. had cited
the case of an Alaska Airlines
plane taking off for Fairbanks
and Anchorage daily except Sun
day from Seattle at the same time
a MATS plane also takes off for
Alaska.
“Here is a clear case of the
taxpayers being charged twice,”
Flood said. “They are being
charged subsidy for that Alaska
Airlines plane and they are being
charged all of the expenses of the
MATS plane that leaves simultan
eously. Why can’t we eliminate
that double charging of the tax
payers by putting the MATS traf
fic on that commercial plane?”
Army Engineers Will
Study Yukon Damsite
WASHINGTON, UP) — Army en
gineers have been directed to take
a new look at the feasibilty of
building a power dam in Rampart
Canyon on Alaska’s Yukon River.
Sen. Ernest Gruening said to
day the action has been directed
by the Senate Public Works Com
mittee at his request.
Earlier studies have indicated
the Rampart Canyon site could
utilize as much as 4,770,000 kilo
watts of installed generating ca
pacity — roughly twice that of
Grand Coulee Dam, now largest
hydroelectric plant in the United
States. The huge project would
cost from $900,000,000 to $1,500,
000,000.
Labor Sec. Mitchell
Wants ‘Strength’ In
New Labor Bill
WASHINGTON, UP) — Secretary
of Labor James P. Mitchell said
today he hopes the House will
“strengthen” the labor regula
tion bill passed by the Senate.
Earlier, Sen. John Kennedy,
chief sponsor of the measure, told
a reporter he did not see how
President Eisenhower could de
cline to approve the bill even
though it omits some Administra
tion recommendations.
Mitchell, talking with nev/smen
at the capitol where he testified
on his department’s appropria
tions measure, said his agency had
not yet completed its detailed ana
lysis of the bill as passed by the
Senate 90-1 late Saturday.
“I generally still believe the
Administration’s proposals would
strengthen the bill, and I am
hopeful the House will seek to
improve it to that end,” he said.
Mitchell mentioned limits on
secondary t boycotts and a ban on
organizational picketing as two
points included in the Administra
tion measure which he felt were
not covered adequately in the
Kennedy bill.
The Administration also wants
to let state agencies handle labor
cases in which the National La
bor Relations Board refuses to
take jurisdiction. There is no
forum now to handle such
cases.
Nome Musicians Return In Triumph,
With Accolades ‘To Beat The Band’
The Nome School Band returned
this morning from Anchorage,
where they participated in the 3
day Tenth Annual Western Alaska
High School Band Festival.
One of the band members
Susie Saito, daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. Edward Saito of the F.A.A.
here, had the distinct honor of
being chosen as one of the solo
ists at the massed band concert.
Susie was one of four students se
lected from about 900, and has
played the flute only this year,
without previous experience. Her
selection was played here at the
Band Concert on April 10, and is
entitled Orientale, by Ceasar Cui.
The three other soloists were
Gerald Grill, violinist of Fair
banks (He is the son of Emma
Grill who was with the school
here and is now director of music
in the Fairbanks schools), Sampy
Wall, a bass singer from Fort
Greely, and Chas. Fligel of Fair
banks, alto sax.
Good Ratings for Nome
Mr. Wm. Bixby, who has been
the band director this winter,
stated that all local students who
tried out before’the adjudicators
received fine ratings. The ratings
are either poor, fair, good or ex
cellent, or superior. Susie Saito
was superior, Judy Bixby, Mary
Jean Longley, Ruth and Earl
Towner were excellent; Fritz
Chambers, Rodney Boucher,
Cookie Johnsen and Davie Grant
were good.
The most outstanding group
was from Anchorage, a brass en
semble with tympani. Twirler and
flag swingers were also chosen
from the Anchorage group.
Busy from 7 A.M.
The students were kept busy
from 7 in the morning (for re
hearsals and try-outs), and were
under the direction of a guest
conductor, Robert Vagner, of the
U. of Oregon.
Other Alaska schools in the
Festival were Anchorage, Fair
banks, Palmer, Seward, Copper
Valley, Valdez, Eielson AFB, Fort
Greely and Wasilla.
The band was greeted by An
chorage students who, with their
cars, took the guests to private
homes. The hospitality and trans
portation back and forth to the
Four Unnamed Companies Show
Interest In Purchasing ACS Facilities
By FRANK W. VAILLE
WASHINGTON, UR — Military
authorities believe as many as
four companies may have an in
terest in acquiring the / govern
ment-owned Alaska Communica
tions System.
But the bare mechanics of any
sale which may be authorized
probably would take at least two
years.
Col. R. C. Angster of the Signal
Corps, stressed these views in tes
timony made public yesterday by
the House Appropriations Com
mittee.
An Administration proposal to
authorize sale of the system now
is pending before the House and
Senate Armed Services Committee.
Angster did not identify the
four companies he said are be
lieved interested in acquiring the
system, which provides long-line
communications to and within
Alaska for civilian as well as gov
ernment traffic.
He described one of the firms,
however, as a “coalition of small
telephone companies.”
Angster said he didn’t believe
the system could be operated
commercially at a profit at the
present time, but that the firms
were interested from the stand
point of future development.
Commercial receipts by the sys
tem totaled $3,555,409 in 1957,
$3,827,104 in 1958, and are esti
mated to reach $4,200,000 and $4,
500,000 in the years ending this
June 30 and next respectively.
In estimating it would require
a minimum of two years to com
plete the transfer should a sale
be authorized, Angster ,said it
would require an independent ap
praisal of the system’s assets “in
order that we may determine what
in fact, we have to sell.”
Congress is being asked to ap
propriate $5,676,000 for operation
and maintenance of the system
during the year beginning July 1.
school, morning, noon and night,
for several hundred visiting stu
dents, was a big project, and was
most capably handled.
The last evening of the 3-day
Festival, each band selected the
student who had contributed the
most musically and in other ways,
to the band. The Nome band was
unanimous in its selection of stu
dent body president Fritz Cham
bers,, who received a beautiful
Festival trophy.
Superintendent Wm. Angell,
who accompanied the group, said
he was very proud of the conduct
of the students, as well as of their
musical performance.
Massed Bands 'Overwhelming'
Mrs. Richard Lee Sr. expressed
the sentiments of many of the
2,000 people in the audience,
stated that the massed band, or
chestra and chorus performance
was the most overwhelming musi
cal experience she has ever had,
and was so glad she had the op
prtunity to be present.
Mrs. Emily Boucher and Mrs.
Ben Young, chaperones, expressed
appreciation to the people of An
chorage for all the courtesies ex
tended the band, and the regret
that all the parents didn’t have
the opportunity of being present.
They also stated that they re
ceived many compliments for the
band, and especially for the fine
work done by its director, Wm.
Bixby, who was praised by other
band leaders, the adjudicators
and many individuals.
The massed bands, orchestra
and choruses presented the well
known “Land of Hope and Glory,”
by Elgar, as the final number on
Saturday evening.
Many Nomeites Present
Many Nomeites and former
residents turned out to greet the
Nome band, some of whom were:
Mr. and Mrs. John Cooley and
son Johnnie, Mr. and Mrs. Ray
Tveter and son Paul, Gus Stein
wandel and daughter Margie, Mrs.
J. J. O’Leary, Rita Tavis and
daughter, Mr. and Mrs. William
Barber, three sons and daughter
Rosemary; Mrs. Eal Coulthard,
Jeff Jefford, Peggy Kraun. Julia
Nelson, Reba Leise, Jimmie Mays,
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Spear, Mrs.
Richard Lee Sr., Richard Lee Jr.,
Robert Grant. Mayor Steffen An
dersen was on hand to greet the
band on its arrival in Anchorage.
Mrs. Earl Towner arrived Satur
day evening fom Nome in time
to hear the last half of the pro
gram. Greetings were also sent
to Nome from Margaret Heller,
Walt Sipprell, Bill Woods, Gabby
Peirez, and Mrs. Swimm and
daughter.
This evening the band is being
honored with a no-host supper at
the North Star Grill tonight, ar
ranged by the parents of the band
members.
SUNDAY BASEBALL
National League
Pittsburgh 9, Philadelphia 2.
Philadelphia 10, Pittsburgh 5.
Los Angeles 17, St. Louis'll. *
San Francisco 5, Chicago 2.
Cincinnati 11, Milwaukee 10.
American League
Chicago 6-5, Cleveland 5-2.
Baltimore 5-3, New York 4-2.
Kansas City 4, Detroit 3.
Washington 2, Boston 1.
Pacific Coast League
Vancouver 7-1, San Diego 0-8.
Phoenix 8, Seattle 4.
Sacramento 4-6, Spokane 3-3.