SSI NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA —MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
VOL. LV No. 124NOME, ALASKA, MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1953Per Copy—15^
Asst. Air Secretary Roger Lewis Says
America’s Defense Against Attack
Must be Strong Retaliatory Air Force
ANCHORAGE, UP) — The Air
Force estimates that the new B-52
long range bomber will cost about
$3,600,000 when full production
is attained.
Asst. Secretary of Air Roger
Lewis indicated the cost in an
address prepared for dedication of
Anchorage’s International Air
port Saturday.
Lewis noted that the United
States paid Russia $7,200,000 for
Alaska in 1867 and said that fig
ure “will just about buy us two
Boeing B-52s when they get into
mass production.”
In his address, Lewis said the
Russians appear to be building a
heavy bomber similar to our B36.
“We have recently come upon
evidence that they are develop
ing, and are probably producing
a heavy turpo-prop (a jet engine
driving a propellor instead of
using jet thrust) bomber compar
able to our B-36, both in range
and performance,” Lewis said.
“In addition to these bomber
forces they have many thousands
of MIG-15 fighters ready to chal
lenge any nation for air superior
ity,” Lewis went on.
“Linked with this massive air
power capability, they now have
the atomic borrib and have given
positive indications that they
have unlocked the secret of the
hydrogen bomb.
“This powerfu1 force is quite
capable of launching an immedi1
ate attack on any point in Europe
and on most of the industrially
important cities in the United
States. We must therefore build
a defense against this threat—a
defense that includes a retaliatory
force so powerful as to persuade
any would-aggressor never to
provoke its use.”
Lewis was the latest of a grow
ing list of high Air Force officials
to warn in public addresses of
the mounting capability of the
Red bomber force and to urge
that a strong, long range fleet of
American bombers be maintained
(Continued on Page Two)
4,000 Iowa Students Riot
In “Homecoming” Rally
AMES, Iowa, CD — A football
victory riot of approximately
4,000 Iowa State College students
wore itself out early Monday after
80 police officers tried in vain
with tear gas to put down the
demonstration.
Traffic on the transcontinental
Lincoln Highway had to be de
toured for more than an hour
after the students threw a road
block of drainage tile across it.
The students, celebrating a 13-6
homecoming football victory over
Missouri Saturday, began demon
strating after their demands for a
Monday holiday from classes
were not met.
The police said they used up
all their tear gas in an unsuccess
ful effort to break up the demon
stration. When tear gas shells
were tossed, however, the stu
dents simply dispersed until the
fumes drifted away.
»
Estimated 10,000 Persons
Attend Dedication Of
New Anchorage Airport
ANCHORAGE, UP) — An esti
mated 10,000 persons attended
dedication services at the $11,000,
000 Anchorage International Air
port Saturday afternoon.
Brig. Gen. John Noyes, substi
tuting for Gov. Heintzleman, gave
the dedicatory address in which
he dedicated the new field to the
pioneers of Alaska.
In an accompanying airshow an
Air Force C-124 Globemaster ac
complished the largest airlift in
the territory’s history, landing 195
soldiers and crewmen at the new
field.
The dedication was this area’s
observance of Alaska Day, which
came officially on Sunady. On
Monday, stores were to be closed
in keeping with a new contract
with unions setting Alaska Day
as a holiday instead of Armistice
Day.
Two Persons Killed In
Crash of• Constellation
At Idlewild Airport
NEW YORK, UP) — An Eastern
Airlines Constellation with 27
persons aboard crashed in flames
after taking off from fog-shroud
ed Idlewild Airport at 12:56 a.m.
today.
Two of 22 passengers aboard
the four-engined craft were killed
and at least four others were in
jured critically and six more were
treated for burns and reteased.
Two of , the five crewmen were
injured. N
A steward who plunged through
flames to open a fuselage door
after the passengers were trapped
inside the plane was credited with
keeping the toll from going high
er.
* The crash, first to cause fatal
ities since the giant 4,900-acre
field was opened in 1948, touched
off an investigation by Queens
County authorities.
The takeoff came after a de
lay of more than an hour. The
plane was only about 200 feet
above the runway when it shud
dered and plunged through a
grassy marsh. The plane burned
fiercely as emergency squads
from the airport and nearby hos
pitals fought to clear the wreck
age.
One of Seattle's First Commercial
Plane Pilots Dies At Age of 57
SEATTLE, UP) — An Air Force
veteran of the first World War
and one of the first commercial
pilots in Seattle died Friday after
an illness of almost three weeks.
He was 57-year-old Anse N. Eck
man, owner of Buckhorn Lodge at
East Sound. Eckmann organized
the Alaska - Washington Airways
and Alaska Southern Airways.
Survivors include his mother,
Mrs. Harry P. Eckmann, Seattle,
and three brothers, Ray L. and
Harry N. of Seattle and Lloyd F.
Eckmann of Redwood City, Calif.
Planning For Korean
Peace Conference To
Start Next Monday
TOKYO, (Tuesday) UP) — Com
munist China last night accepted
a U.S. invitation to start planning
the Korean peace conference at
Panmunjom next Monday but the
Reds insisted on the right to settle
there who' will take part in the
full-scale talks.
The Communists didn’t yield a
step to U.S. demand that the
preliminary sessions settle only
time and place of the peace con
ference and not its makeup.
In a note to the United States
and the U.N. broadcast by the
Red Peiping • radio, the Commun
ists again insisted that non-belli
gerent nations take part in the
conference, making it a round
table meeting.
The U.N. has proposed a con
ference of belligerents only, with
Russia to sit in on the Red side
if the Communists invite her.
However, the Red note came in
the wake erf reports from London
that the foreign ministers of the
United States, Britain and France
have agreed secretly on a new
and different plan—a peace con
ference made up of the big five
and North Korea.
Such a conference would in
clude Russia and—for this meet
ing, anyway—Red China, rather
than Nationalist China.
The new plan reportedly is to
be presented at the coming Pan
munjom meeting, but the Com
munists gave no indication in
their latest message that they had
any inkling of such a move.
Dulles Returns From
Big Three Conferences
WASHINGTON UP) — Secretary
of State Dulles returned today
from the big three foreign minis
ters conference in London, and
predicted that results helpful to
ward world peace and security
will flow from the talks there.
“We had a very satisfactory ex
change of views which, I think,
will produce some results of in
terest toward peace and security
in the future,” he told reporters
at the airport.
Dulles said he would report
“first thing tomorrow morning”
to President Eisenhower.
An immediate task for Dulles
is to press for easing of tensions
in tv*o free world trouble spots—
Trieste and Palestine.
BOY SHOT IN WINDMILL
OF GOLDEN GATE PARK
SAN FRANCISCO, UP) — Five
boys went exploring atop the 75
foot tower of an old Dutch wind
mill in Golden Gate Park Sunday,
but only four came down alive.
Michael Legg, 12, took along a
.38 caliber pistol, which the other
boys said belonged to his father.
“Let me see your gun,” said one.
Michael passed it to him, tell
ing him he needn’t be too careful
because the trigger would have to
be pulled twice before the one
live round came into firing po
sition.
Soon came a deafening explo
sion. “I’m shot,” cried Michael.
Cecil Wells, President of All-Alaska
Chamber of Commerce, Murdered
And His Wife Beateii In Fairbanks
U.S. Will Stop Aid To
Israel Unless They Halt
Diverting Jordan River
WASHINGTON, (#) — The
United States has notified Israel
it will withhold American finan
cial aid until the Israeli govern
ment stops trying to divert waters
of the Jordan River along the
Syrian border.
Informed officials who reported
this today, said the State Depart
ment regards Israel’s Jordan
River project as a violation of
United Nations armistice in the
Israeli-Arab war.
The notice of intent to suspend
American aid was given about
two weeks ago. The Israeli gov
ernment is ignoring American
protests. Latest reports indicate
the work force on the project has
been almost doubled and flood
lights have been brought up to
permit night work,
i The United States gave Israel
about 65 million dollars in econ
omic aid *ast year as part of a
comprehensive plan tto better liv
ing conditions in the Middle East.
Tito Stands Fast On
Threat To Send His
Troops Into Trieste
BELGRADE, Yugoslavia, UP) —
Yugoslavs were puzzled today
over the latest Big Three develop
ment on the explosive Trieste dis
pute; but their leaders stood fast
in their threat to march in if Ital
ian troops move into Zone A.
There was still no official com
ment on the West’s invitation to
Yugoslavia and Italy to meet with
the United States, Britain and
France to discuss the burning
Trieste question.
Yugoslavia’s chief U.N. delegate
Leo Mates said yesterday in Wash
ington he thought his government
might be inclined to accept. But
President Tito and other speakers
already have declared they feel
such a meeting would be of no
use if Britain and the United
States held in advance to their de
cision to pull out of Zone A of
Trieste and turn it over to Italian
administration.
Tito repeated his threat to push
troops into the area comprising
the vital Adriatic port city of Tri
este the moment Italian troops set
foot in Zone A.
Italian Premier Guiseppe Pella
has threatened his government
will resign if the West backs down
on its latest decision.
One Hundred Twenty
Five Vote By 3 O’clock
In School Bond Election
Two hundred and fifty-nine
voters had registered with the
City Clerk before closing time last
Saturday .
At press time today, 125 ballots
had been cast in the special elec
tion on the bonding of the city
for $250,000 for a school addition
and improvements to the existing
structure. The polls will close at
6 o’clock.
> FAIRBANKS, (JFI — A medical
examination Sunday disclosed
that Cecil Wells, president of the
All-Alaska Chamber of Com
merce, was shot to death instead
of bludgeoned, as first thought.
Wells was slain and his pretty
young wife Diane was badly beat
en early yesterday when two in
truders entered their eighth floor
' apartment. •
Police Chief E. V. Danforth said
Wells was killed by a .38 caliber
bullet which smashed through his
brain and was found lodged be
hind his pillow. The ejected cart
ridge was found in the bed. The
gun is missing.
The results of the medical ex
amination deepened the mystery
surrounding the murder.
Mrs. Wells, a 28 - year - old
blonde, said she awoke Saturday
morning and discovered two
strange men just inside the apart
ment door. She said they began
beating her and she lapsed into
unconsciousness.
When she came to she crawled
into the hallway, screaming for
help. Wells’ body was found on
the bed. The couple’s 3-year-old
son was unharmed.
It was originally believed that
Wells had been bludgeoned to
death, but Danforth said internal
bleeding had caused Wells’ face
and head to turn black and blue,
thus giving the appearance that
his head had been crushed.
Danforth also said that despite
the fact Wells’ empty wallet was
found in the hall of the apart
ment building it was not believed
the motive for the murder was
robbery.
He said he found many valu
ables in the Wells’ luxurious suite
which had not been touched. They
included considerable jewelry
which was lying in plain sight.
The Chamber of Commerce
here received notification that the
All - Alaska Chamber . meeting
scheduled this week at Mt. Mc
Kinley Park has been cancelled
dut to Wells’ weath.
P-I Sees No Rise In
Canned Salmon Prices Due
Sketchiness of Pack
SEATTLE, (ffl—1The Post-Intel
ligencer said Sunday that despite
the disasterous failure of salmon
runs in southeastern Alaska this
year there is no indication that
the scarcity will bolster canned
salmon prices.
The P-I explained in its article
that although there is no informa
tion on holdover stocks from last
year it is generally believed they
are high. This is the reason the
industry is doubtful that the 1953
shortage will create any appreci
able price rise for canned salmon.
The newspaper said that declin
ing meat prices also have added
to the salmon canners’ woes since
consumers are passing up high
priced canned salmon even more
than before.
The article went on to say that
earnings for even some of the
financially strong packers have
dropped severely and most have
shown losses.