HE NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
VOL. LVIII No. ‘86 NOME, ALASKA, FRIDAY, JULY 20, 1956 Per Copy—15#
U.S. and Britain
Will Not Help
Egypt With Dam
State Department
Will Not Submit to
Bargain by ‘Blackmail’
LONDON, tfl—Britain joined
the United States today in with
drawing its offer to help Egypt
finance its proposed Aswan Dam.
A Foreign Office spokesman
said that after close consultation
with the United States “we have
also concluded that in the present
circumstances it is not feasible to
participate in the project.”
The United States announced
yesterday that it has withdrawn
its' offer to help finance the giant
project.
A new Russian drive to expand
its influence in Egypt and the
Arab world was foreseen today as
a probable consequence.
The next moves in the tough
diplomatic struggle—which could
have a fateful bearing on the fu
ture of the Middle East—are now
clearly up to Cairo and Moscow.
Russia reportedly has made
several offers to help Egypt build
the dam. Some officials think she
will now push her offers. Others
express doubt and say that even
if Russia does agree to back the
project, she may not be able to
make good on it.
The decision not to go through
with the Aswan Dam deal was
described in U.S. State Depart
ment quarters as a “stiff warning”
that the United States will not
submit to bargaining by “black
mail.”
15 Beautiful Girls
Competing for Title of
Miss Universe of 1957
I.ONG BEACH, Calif., GO—Fif
teen beautiful girls from as many
different countries compete to
night for the honor of being
named Miss 'Universe of 1957.
The 15 fascinating ambassadors
of beauty were selected last night
from a field of 30.
Carrying America’s hopes in
the contest is lovely Carol Morris,
whose classic beauty led to her
selection as Miss U.S.A.. She will
match her charms with the fol
lowing other finalists:
Ileana Carre, 19. Argentina;
Lucienne Auquier, 19, Belgium;
Maria Cardoso, 21, Brazil; Marcia
Rodriguez, 19, Cuba; Iris Waller,
19, England; Anita Treyens, 18,
France, Maria Orschell, 19, Ger
many; Margaret Gouma, 20,
Greece; Sara Tal, 22, Israel; Ros
anna Galli, 21, Italy; Ema Bau
man, 18, Mexico, Loti Pern, Swe
den, Blanquita Heree, 22, Vene
zuela.
(For more about Miss United
States see Page 3.)
Sports New Uniform
Chief of Police Carl Webb
looks real sharp in his ndw 'ini
form which he initiated today.
The uniform consists of trou
sers of officer’s pink-gray with
green stripe and blouse of British
green with appropriate insignia
and patches of his office.
More Than 200 Passengers
' Moved Through Nome
Airport Yesterday
I The Nome Airport is busy all
the time these days with a con
stant coming and going of air
craft and all sizes and with all
kinds of cargo.
It is estimated that on regular
routed planes of Alaska, Pan
American and Wien Airlines,
more than 200 passengers moved
through the Nome Airport yester
day. Some arrived and departed
as well.
The CAA reports 625 landings
were made in June on the local
airport. This figure does not in
clude the many military planes
nor planes which landed without
contacting the CAA.
Hoffman Named
U. S. Delegate to
United Nations
WASHINGTON lift—'The Senate
i today brushed aside protests by a
small group of Republicans and
confirmed overwhelmingly Paul
G. Hoffman’s nomination as a
U.S. delegate to the United Na
tions. The vote was 64-22.
One of those criticizing Presi
dent Eisenhower’s choice of Hoff
man was Sen. Bridges <NH>, the
i chairman of the Senate GOP
policy committee.
Bridges told the Senate that
some of Hoffman’s actions and
statements led him to question
the wisdom of Hoffman’s repre
senting this country at the U.N.
"in this vital period.”
The nomination came under
sharp attack yesterday from Sens.
McCarthy (R - Wis) and Jenner
(R-Ind).
After Bridges joined in, Sen.
Monroney (D-Okla) said he could
not understand why some Repub
licans would try “to destroy the
man” he said was often credited
with having most influenced Eis
enhower to seek the presidency.
America’s Biggest
Civil Defense
Exercise Starts
PRESS HEADQUARTERS, Op
eration Alert (if*—The biggest civ
il defense exercise ever held in
the United States began at 11 a.m.
EDT this morning.
It was the third annual Opera
tion Alert, a U.S.-Canadian joint
exercise that sent more than 30
government agencies and depart
ments scurrying for cover outside
of Washington.
The test got under way with
this announcement from emer
gency press headquarters at a
secret location more than 100
miles from Washington.
•‘A simulated surprise attack
was launched against the United
States at 10 a.m. EST today with
the simultaneous mock bombing
of Hawaii and Puerto Rico as the
initial phase” of the exercise.
Seven minutes after that air
raid warning sirens shrieked in
Washington, and President Eisen
hower hurried into a meeting
with an expanded National Se
curity Council.
The plan called for theoretical
surprise nuclear attacks from
submarines upon Hawaii and
Puerto Rico. Next were scheduled
theoretical rains of H-bombs and
other atomic weapons of 73 areas
of the U.S. and 25 targets in Can
ada.
For the first time the Defense
Department is taking part.
Cities, states and other federal
agencies joined in the test.
It came on the heels of a heart
ening announcement by the
Atomic Energy Commission. It
reported yesterday that Pacific
nuclear tests have shown “real
progress" in development of
weapons for wide military use in
cluding defense against air attack.
House Appropriations Group Calls On
AEC to Speed Up Construction of
Government Atomic Power Plants
BUDGET BALANCED
1st TIME IN 5 YEARS;
$1,754,357,066 SURPLUS
WASHINGTON, UP—For the
first time in five years—and the
fourth since 1930—the govern
ment has ended the 1956 book
keeping year with a budget sur
plus.
The surplus on June 30 totalled
$1,754,357,066.
This fulfilled predictions made
earlier this year the Eisenhow
er Administration and met the
goal the administration has been
aiming at since it took office.
Not since the early part of the
Korean War had the last previous
budget balance been achieved. It
was balanced three times during
the Truman Administration, but
before that, not since 1930.
SEATTLE SWELTERS
IN 94 DEGREE HEAT
SEATTLE, UFi—The sun’s rd^s,
shining brightly in a cloudless
sky, sent temperatures rocketing
to near record highs in the Pacific
Northwest yesterday and left for
estry officials worried and resi
dents wilted.
The mercury reached 108 yes
terday at The Dalles, Ore., to tie
Yuma, Ariz., as the nation’s hot
spot. It was 94 at Seattle, highest
of the year there.
With no cooling trend expected
until this weekend, forestry offi
cials in both Oregon and Wash
ington moved quickly to head off
any major outbreak of woodland
fires.
Demands Shakeup in
AEC; Concentrate Fire
On Chairman Strauss
WASHINGTON, UR—Over ad
ministration opposition, the House
Appropriations Committee today
called on the Atomic Energy
Commission to speed up construc
tion of government atomic power
plants.
At the same time, the commit
tee majority demanded a shakeup
in the commission. It said the
United States is “bogged down in
inexcusable stagnation” in the
race to develop commercial atom
ic power and singled out AEC
Chairman Lewis L. Strauss for
special castigation as the man pri
marily responsible.
• The committee said the U.S.
“has been and is being frustrated
by an unrealistic administration
of this most vital need of gov
ernment.”
The committee quoted the 1953
pledge of the United States before
the United Nations that the U..S.
would “devote its entire heart and
mind to find the way by which
the miraculous inventiveness of
man shall not be dedicated to Ins
death, but consecrated to his life.”
The views were embodied in a
stinging report accompanying a
bill financing the AEC. The report
was drafted by Chairman Cannon
1D-M0). It was expected to draw
a quick rebuttal from Republican
members.
It asserted that the U.S. is be
hind Russia and Great .Britain in
atomic power and said “the Rus
sians and the British are going to
have atomic electric power sooner
than this country.”
The committee moved squarely
into the middle of a hot congres
sional fight by recommending
$400 million to put into effect a
program of government construc
tion erf atomic power plants. The
program—but not the financing—
was approved 49-40 last week in
the Senate and cleared the House
Rules Committee this week by a
5-4 count.
The plan is embodied in a Dem
ocratic-backed bill directing the
AEC to build large-scale atomic
furnaces to develop power for
AEC installations and to construct
smaller experimental reactors at
undesignated sites.
Republican opponents, as well
as some Democrats, insist that the
program might actually retard
efforts of private industry in the
atomic field.
FISHERMEN ENJOY THE
EMBARRASSMENT OF RICHES
SEATTLE, (jR—Fishing at last
is booming in Alaska’s Bristol
Bay. After a slow start that left
fishermen and canners depressed,
the sockeye have begun arriving
in good quantity.
However, the salmon industry
now is faced with an embarrass
ment of riches in the Bristol Bay
area. Fishermen’s catches are be
ing limited to the amount the can
nery equipment can handle.
McKeon’s Defense Wins Victory With Admission of
Training Methods of Marines as Evidence in Trial
PARRIS ISLAND, N.C., —A
senior marine drill instructor said
today it was not unusual to march
recruits into the marshes and wa
ters of this training base for dis
ciplinary purposes.
This testimony came from S.
Sgt. Edward A. Huff in the gen
eral court-martial trial of S. Sgt.
Matthew C. McKeon.
McKeon, 31, of Worcester, Mass.,
iS on trial for marching a 74-man
recruit platoon into a tide-swept
creek “to teach them discipline.”
Six men drowned.
Huff was asked: “Did you your
self ever tell your platoon in con
nection with their lark of disci
pline that ‘if you don’t snap out
of it, I’ll take you down to the
swamp’.”
Huff, who has been relieved of
his duties as drill instructor, re
plied, “I did.”
Huff’s evidence came immedi
ately after the law officer, Capt.
Irving N. Klein of New York
City ruled that the training meth
ods of marines will be admitted
as evidence. Whether those meth
ods had any bearing on McKeon's
conduct in leading a 74-man re
cruit platoon into the marsh-bor
dered Ribbon Creek has become a
sharp issue in the trial.
For McKeon’s attorney, Emile
Zola Berman of New York City,
it was a major victory.
In the course of the legal de
bate, one of the government pros
ecutors said, “The issue is not
whether he led (the recruits) on
a night march or into water, but
that he took non-swimmers into
deep water.”
The government has said the
water was 10 feet deep, while the
defense maintains thl depth is
arguable as a point of fact. Even
whether the men were non-swim
mers is at issue in the case.
A big, bluff marine master ser
geant testified yesterday he had
never heard of anyone drowning
in Ribbon Creek before the April
3 tragedy.
The red-faced sergeant, John E.
Clement Jr. appeared as an ex
pert witness for the government.
Clement told the court he was
present when a skin diver found
the last of the bodies.
“As soon as he pulled it out of
the mud” in the creek bed, said
Clement, “it popped to the top
like a cork ”
Earlier yesterday the govern
ment presented in evidence pic
tures of the bodies of the six re
cruits over the strenuous objec
tion of attorney Berman. Berman
said the only purpose the pictures
served was to inflame the court.
Berman asked Clement if he
had ever heard of any marines
being marched through the creeks
and marshes surrounding Parris
Island. The prosecutor objected.
“That is the only issue in the
case,” Berman retorted.
Clement said he was familiar
generally with the tides in this
area and the average was about
six feet. He said that at low tide
it was possible for a man to walk
across the creek.
It is a defense point that on the
night of the fatal march the tide
was two hours from ebb. That
night the tide crested at seven
feet, three inches.