2S NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
VOL. LIX No. 114 NOME, ALASKA, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 1957 Per Copy—15^
City Council
Meeting Notes
The first payment was made on |
the new grade school by the city j
to APW to the amount of $119,
815, it was reported at the regu
lar City Council meeting Monday
evening.
The completion of a new drain
which has been under construc
tion under the direction of W. W.
Laws was completed this week.
The Council approved the sale
of the south half of Lot 12 on
Block 48 to Robert Apok Sr. in
the new subdivision on 3rd Ave.;
also the railroad rightaway on
Steadman Ave. to Pete Reader as
it runs through his property.
A bid was received from Steve
Pederson for the west half of Lot
27 in Block 67 and referred to
committee.
A letter was read from the
Home Arts Club which has for
the past 20 years kept the play
field in equipment for the city
.stressing the fact that the equip
ment as now installed was not
safe. The matter was referred to
the School Board requesting that
the upkeep in the future be part
of the school budget.
It was reported that the city
was trying to acquire the aban
doned gymnasium on the former
military base as it is believed to
be on city property. If acquired,
it is proposed to use it as a recre
ation center under the sponsor
ship of some local organization.
An agreement was read with
the Bureau of Public Roads stat
ing that the roads thru town on
Highway Routes 130 and 141 will
be kept open by the BPR and
maintained with snow removal
and other repairs, making it safe
for travel. The agreement is for
one year, to be renewed.
In the matter of the housing of
delinquent juveniles, the city is
advising the Board of Juvenile
Institutions that it has two bunks
-available for this purpose which
can be used for either boys or
.girls but have no other space
available at this time.
The U.S. Engineers at Anchor
age are being advised that the
foot-bridge they installed on
Snake River is in need of mainte
nance.
Chamber Group |
To Suggest 1958
Road Program
By RUTH McLAIN
At the regular weekly meeting
of the Northwestern Alaska
Chamber of Commerce Monday,
the committee on roads was asked
to prepare a suggested program
of road building for the 1958 sea
son to be presented to the Alaska
Highway and Public Works De
partment and also to the Bureau
of Public Roads.
Recommendations for next year
will be discussed and decided
upon this fall, according to Dew
ey Goodrich, a member of the
Board of Road Commissioners,
and Frank Morris of the Bureau
of Public Roads.
Suggestions from the Chamber
committee on roads will be help
ful, they stated, in outlining fur
ther road building in the Second
Division.
Mr. Goodrich stated that he
expects to be able to arrange a
meeting of the Chamber commit
tee members with an Alaska
Highway and Public Works De
partment engineer in the near
future.
Chamber Vice President Jerry
Manning conducted a short busi
ness meeting in which final plans
were made for the trip to Fair
banks on Sept. 28 and 29.
A. Linus Pearson of Seattle was
welcomed as a guest at the lunch-1
eon meeting.
Contract Awarded
For Maintenance of
White Alice Systems
DAYTON, Ohio, Uft—A $2,630,
000 contract has been awarded
the Federal Electric Corp., Para
mus, N.J., for the maintenance
and operation of the White Alice
communications systems in Alas
ka, the Air Materiel Command at
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
here announced today.
The command also awarded
contracts to Puget Sound & Drake
Joint Ventures, Seattle, for ser
vices in maintaining and operat
ing Point Barrow Camp, Point
Barrow, Alaska, $800,000.
B-29 Bomber Crashes Into Houses,
Killing Pilot, Co-Pilot, 2 Residents
DAYTON, Ohio, (#)—Four per
sons were killed yesterday when
a crippled B-26 bomber, attempt
ing to land with one of its two
engines out, plummeted to earth
a mile short of Wright-Patterson
Air Force Base and Crashed into
a suburban housing development.
Authorities said the Air Force
bomber destroyed one home, tore
sections off four more, and start
ed fires in two others. Debris
from the wreckage injured one
person.
Killed were the pilot, the co
pilot, and two occupants of the
demolished house.
Air Force officials said the
plane developed engine trouble
just after takeoff and was granted
permission to return to the base.
It approached the field but dur
ing its descent it had to veer
sharply to avoid hitting a high
steel tower.
At an altitude of 70 feet, the
B-26’s landing gear tangled in a
high tension wire and the plane
plunged into the housing develop
ment on Dayton’s east side.
The plane brushed the tops of
two houses, tore the second story
from a third, bounced into the
street, sliced a section of porch
off another, and finally crashed
directly into the Van Zant home.
Flying debris from the wreck
age started fires in two other
houses.
Alaska Railroad Profits
Despite Competition
From Oil Pipeline
WASHINGTON, UFi — Despite
barely breaking even on last
year’s operation, Alaska Railroad
officials have no plans for a gen
eral freight rate increase such as
was suggested last spring.
This was disclosed today by
Kirkley S. Coulter, deputy direc
tor of the Office of Territories,
which operates the government
owned railroad.
Revenue loss as a result of the
Defense Department’s operation
of the Haines-Fairbanks oil pipe
line was about $3Vfe million for
the last fiscal year.
But because of improved busi
ness elsewhere and operating
economies the railroad finished
the year with a surplus of about
$180,000.
Boy, 9, Hospitalized
From Injuries Received
When Struck by Car
David Otton Jr., 9, is hospital
ized with slight injuries caused by
running in front of a car, accord
ing to the police report. The car
was being driven by Paul Mande
ville, who immediately picked up
the child and rushed him to the
hospital. The accident occurred
on the road near the power house.
Many Events Planned for Nome
Chamber and Pioneer Delegates on
Wien Courtesy Flight to Fairbanks
-4
Search on for
Survivors of Ship
Struck by Storm
HAMBURG, Germany, UP)—A
sea and air search continued to
day for other possible surviviors
of the hurricane-hit German sail
ing vessel Pamir. At least six of
the 86-man crew have been res
cued.
Survivors said they did not see
the Pamir go down after she was
caught in Hurricane Carrie 550
miles southwest of the Azores.
One survivor said he ws2.T
One of the men known to have
been saved said he was the lone
survivor of 22 men who got off
the Pamir in lifeboat No. 2.
The 3,103-ton Pamir left Bu
enos Aires for Hamburg Aug. 9
with a cargo of barley. The vessel
was used primarily as a training
ship for the German merchant
navy and those aboard included
about 50 cadets.
Witness at Girard Trial Says GI
Chased Japanese Before Fatal Shot
-4
Convicted Marine
Pleads for 90 Days
Sentence Instead of 30
LONG BEACH, Calif., UP>—A
Marine Corps sergeant surprised
a municipal judge when he told
him he preferred a 90-day sen
tence rather than 30 days.
Sgt. Richard K. Pattershell, 27,
of Camp Pendleton, Calif., was
ordered yesterday to serve 30
days for cashing five forged
checks totaling $625. He told Mu
nicipal Judge Vasey:
“If I serve 90 days I’ll receive
a bad conduct discharge from the
marines without a court-martial.”
With a 30-day sentence, how
ever, the marines could court
martial him, make him serve ad
ditional time in a military prison,
Battershell explained.
Judge Vasey granted the re
quest.
HUGE NAVAL FORCE
IN MEDITERRANEAN
WITH THE UJ5. 6th FLEET, (£>
—The mightiest concentration of
U.S. naval and marine forces in
the Mediterranean since the war
massed yesterday off the Aegean t
entrance to the strategic Dardan
elles for NATO military exercises.
The maneuvers, called “Deep
water,” will continue thru Satur
day with the participation t>f land,
sea and air forces of Greece, Italy,
Turkey, Britain and the U-S.
SOMAGAHARA, Japan, [fft—A
prosecution witness testified to
day that minutes before William
S. Girard fatally shot Mrs. Naka
Sakai he chased other Japanese
brass collectors on a U.S. firing
range.
The witness, Hidetsugu Oneze
ki, said Girard pursued six or
seven Japanese for more than 50
yards on the range near Somaga
hara.
Testifying at the final outdoor
session on the range, Onezekki
gave this account:
After chasing the scavengers,
Girard returned to his foxhole
and threw cartridge cases toward
the Japanese. Mrs. Sakai ap
proached and Girard called to her
in Japanese:
“Old woman, there’s really a
lot of brass, isn’t there?”
Mrs. Sakai went to a foxhole to
which Girard pointed and climbed
in, Onezeki said. The witness add
ed that he started toward the
same foxhole but stopped when
when “the soldier stood up and
pointed the rifle toward me.”
Girard fired at Mrs. Sakai and
she tumbled to the ground, One
zeki sadi.
Soldier Victor Nickel, the only
American witness for the prose
cution, said he believed Girard
fired at Mrs. Sakai as a joke and
did not tniend to hit her.
When the woman fell, Nickel
testified yesterday, “the Japanese
started to kick up a commotion.
Girard went over and when he
came back he was scared. He
asked, ‘What’ll we do next?”*
► Representatives of the Nome
Chamber of Commerce and the
Pioneers of Alaska will have a
choice of events in which to par
ticipate.
For the Pioneers there will be
a business meeting at 9:00 a.m. at
the Eagle Hall and another at 2:00
p.m. at the same place.
A mug-up is scheduled for Sat
urday at 5:00 p.m. at the Elks
Hall, and there will be a Grand
Ball at 10:00 pjn. at the Eagle
Hall.
On Sunday there will be a Me
morial Service at 9:00 ajn., fol
lowed by a tour of the dredge at
Engineer Creek.
At 12:30 pjn. Sunday there is
a luncheon scheduled at the Con
vention Hall at the University of
Alaska.
Election of officers and installa
tion start at 2:30 p.m., followed
by a banquet at 7:00 p.m. at the
Elks Hall.
The Fairbanks Chamber of Com
merce 'has announced a luncheon,
for Saturday at noon at ehe Uni
versity of Alaska, followed by a
tour in the afternoon.
A cocktail hour Saturday will
be held at the home of Mr. and
Mrs. Ed Rusing, followed by a
dinner at Traveler’s Inn to which
both Chamber and Pioneer dele
gates from Nome are invited.
A dance is scheduled for the
evening at the Eagles Hall as an
nounced in the Pioneer schedule.
On Sunday there will be an
open house at the home of Mr.
and Mrs. Jerry Nerland from 2
until 4 o’clock.
Reservations are being planned
through the cooperation of Wien
Airlines and the Chamber of
Commerce. All persons attending
who plan to stay with friends or
relatives are asked to contact
Dick Miller, as accommodations
are limited in Fairbanks.
'Packaged Smog
Sold as Souvenirs
In Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES, W)—Ever since
the land boom days that preceded
citrus and film production, south
ern Californians have had a, repu
tation for capitalizing on any
thing.
So now come two San Fernando
Valley men to package smog, in
cans and other containers, as a
souvenir “of the nation’s third
largest city.”
Carleton Young and Noel T.
Young of Van Nuys filed articles
of incorporation yesterday.
SCHOOL SUPT. ANGELL
LEAVES TO ATTEND
FAIRBANKS CONFERENCE
Nome School Superintendent
William Angell left yesterday for
the annual Superintendents Con
ference of Western Alaska which
is meeting in Fairbanks for the
first time.
He is expected to return Sat
urday.