Chamber Membership Breakfast at 8 o’clock Thursday (tomorrow) morning
COME ONE - COME ALL - LET’S ALL GET BEHIND THE ORGANIZATION THAT GETS THINGS DONE FOR N.W. ALASKA
S NOME NUGGET
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN ALASKA—MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
VOL. LXI No. 18 NOME, ALASKA, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1959 Per Codv—15tf
Governor’s Succession Occupies House
With Divorce, Hiring, Purchasing Bills
JUNEAU, UP) — The questions!
of succession in the Governor’s!
office, state hiring and purchas
ing practices, divorce and execu
tive pay, were among the legis
lative grist before the House of
Representatives yesterday.
The proposals and action taken:
Two amendments were added to
the bill which would provide for
the Legislature to designate the
Governor’s successor whenever
the Secretary of State’s office is
vacant. The bill would also per
mit the Governor to fill a vacancy
in the Secretary of State’s office.
The amendments adopted were:
A Secretary of State appointed
by the Governor would have no
right to succeed to the Governor’s
office.
The Speaker of the House and
President of the Senate, in that
order, would automatically suc
ceed to the Governor’s job if the
Secretary of State’s office became
vacant. They would serve only un
til the Legislature could meet and
elect the Governor’s successor.
Hiring and purchasing:
A bill was passed to create an
eight-member (governor’s commis
sion on hiring and purchasing
practices. They would be legisla
tors and representatives of labor,
industry and the public named by
the Governor.
Originally the bill, by Represen
tative Richard Greuel, Fairbanks
Democrat, applied only to hiring,
but it was amended to include
purchasing.
Divorce:
Two bills, also introduced by
Representative Greuel, would
change Alaska’s divorce laws in
these ways:
A complaint in a divorce action
would have to be on file 90 days
before a trial could begin. Courts
granting divorces would have to
specify whether the persons in
volved could remarry. .
So-called uniform divorce recog
nition would be set up. A divorce
obtained in another state would
not be in effect if both parties
were residents of Alaska at the
time of the proceedings.
Executive pay:
Four motions to change the bill
which would fix the Governor’s
salary at $24,00 and the Secre
tary of State’s at $17,500, were
tabled. One would have set the
Governor’s pay at $28,000 and the
Secretary of State’s at $12,000.
The bill was kept on second
reading.
CARACAS, Venezuela, UP) —
Disturbances and arrests are
mounting in Caracas with the ap
proach of President-elect Romulo
Betancourt’s inauguration day.
At least 500 persons have been
rounded up in tire past'few days.
Caracas is filled with supporters
of former junta President Wolf
gang Larrazabal, who was de
feated by Betancourt in the elec
tion last fall.
Night Tornado
Rips St. Louis,
Killing 21
ST. LOUIS, UP) — The death toll
from the tornado that hit this
sleeping city with explosive force
early yesterday stood at 21 today.
Seventy injured remained in
hospitals.
The extent of the havoc wrought
by the twister in the teeming cen
tral portion of the city brought
surprise that the loss of life was
no greater.
“The reports on missing persons
are a bit cloudy, but we can’t find
out for sure that anybody’s miss
ing,” said Brig. Gen. Francis Har
daway (ret), Civil Defense direc
tor.
Relief workers still are measur
ing dimensions of the misery in
flicted by the twister. The Red
Cross estimated 1,400 homeless in
St. Louis and the county.
The Insurance Board of St.
Louis said 4,000 buildings were
damaged at a loss of 12 million
dollars.
President Eisenhower declared
the stricken city a disaster area,
making it eligible for federal re
lief funds.
The tornado struck without
warning and moved at tremendous
speed. It took only minutes to
blow itself out in the Busch Sta
dium area, after leveling a 380
foot radio tower and a 575-foot
television tower.
The Civil Defense Agency ack
nowledged it did not function
smoothly in spite of eight years
of preparation for such a disas
ter. C-D officials blamed the wea
ther bureau for not predicting the
tornado and sending out an alert.
The tornado followed almost the
same path of one in 1927 which
killed 78.
Alexandria, Va., Accepts
School Integration
Without Incident
ALEXANDRIA, Va., UPI — Nine
Negro children entered three pre
viously all-white public schools
in this historic southern city with
out incident yesterday.
They were admitted under court
order, and backed by a display of
police force, but there was noth
ing to indicate any need for the
guard.
Alexandria thus became the
third Virginia community to ac
cept integration since the collapse
of the state’s “massive resistance”
program.
Seventeen Negroes in Norfolk
and four in Arlington County, ad
joining Alexandria, previously
had been admitted to junior and
| senior high schools. Seven of the
nine in Alexandria were the first
to get into former all-white ele
mentary schools.
n A M F FRIDAY — February 13
1/lJL 1 1 JLa -8 P.M. to Midnight
DON’T MISS THE CROWNING OF NOME’S KING AND QUEEN OF HEARTS ! BAND FESTIVAL BENEFIT
1 I
Alaska's Highways
Major Issue In
Transition- Bartlett
JUNEAU, UP) — Senator Bob
Bartlett, Alaska’s senior senator,
returned to the capitol yesterday
for a series of talks with state offi
cials on transitional problems re
lating to statehood.
The Democratic senator, free to
travel from Washington by the
traditional Lincoln Day break to
permit Republican congressmen to
accept speaking engagements, met
yesterday with acting Governor
Hugh Wade.
Later today he was scheduled
to address a joint session of the
First Alaska Legislature.
At a news conference in the
Governor’s office yesterday, Bart
lett said the main purpose in his
visit here was to obtain views on
a proposed Administration omni
bus bill relating to Alaska.
Under terms of the present draft
of the bill, scheduled to be intro
duced in Congress about the first
of March, Alaska would receive
some 27million dollars through
fiscal 1964. The payments would
be in declining amounts, beginning
with 10V£ million in 1960, and
dropping to 2V£ million in each
of the last two fiscal years of the
period.
; Bartlett told reporters none of
I the federal funds, under terms of
I the present draft, would be ear
marked. However, the grants
would be suggested for specific
purpose — even though the state
-(Continued on Page Two)
‘Emulate Lincoln,’ Is New
Battle-Cry of G.O.P.
WASHINGTON, UP) — The Re
publicans, hoping to borrow a
page from their party’s first Pres
ident, aanounced this theme to
day for this year’s Abraham Lin
coln anniversary dinners.
“Emulate Lincoln’s example of
turning a ’48 defeat unto a ’60
victory.”
Republican National Chairman
Meade Alcorn announced the
theme in reporting that. GOP
speakers have been booked for
more than 150 Lincoln susquicen
tennial dinners this month in 29
states.
Lincoln, who was born 150 years
ago Thursday, was defeated in
1858 when he ran for the U. S.
Senate, but was elected in 1860.
MOUNTAIN SLIDE THREATENS
SWISS ALPINE VILLAGE
HERBRIGGEN, Switzerland, (41
— Freezing weather today halted
for the time being the movement
of a massive mountain slide poised
over this picturesque Swiss Al
pine village.
Pilot Hermann Geiger, after a
flight over Nadelhorn Mountain,
reported no further movement
during the night of the million
tons of rocks, earth and icej which
had been creeping toward the
edge of a cliff overlooking Her
briggen.
Wade Signs Legislators’ 2nd Pay Bill
With Douhts for Proper Financing
I
Proposal Would
Require Sessions
Away from Juneau
JUNEAU, UP — A bill intro
duced yesterday would require
the State Legislature to meet in
cities other than Juneau at cer
tain times, and also require the
Supreme Court to hold sessions
outside of this capitol city.
The Legislature, before adjourn
ing, could determine the site of
its next session as Fairbanks,
Anchorage, Ketchikan, “and if ac
commodations and facilities are
available,” Nome. The Chief Jus
tice would set a schedule of ses
sions in Anchorage, Fairbanks,
Ketchikan and Nome,
the Barrow area, and addressed a
Nome) and Eben Hopson (D-Bar
row) have urged Secretary Sea
ton to follow through on his No
vember statement he would try
to get natural gas supplies at Bar
row made available to Eskimo res
idents. They introduced a resolu
tion urging private or public ef
forts to tap a Naval pipeline in
the Barrow area, and addressed a
letter to Seaton explaining the
need of Natives for cheaper Ifhd
more abundant heating facilities.
Body Temperature Below
Thermometer Reading
Causes Death of Woman
NEWPORT, R. I., UPl — Mrs.
Rose Blondell, 63, whose body
temperature dropped so low a hos
pital thermometer could not re
cord it, died last night in a New
port hospital.
Mrs. Blondell was found Mon
day in a semi-conscious condition
in her unheated apartment. She
had lain helpless without food or
water for four or five days.
Efforts to take her temperature
failed because the hospital ther
mometer did not go below 95 de
grees fahrenheit — 4.6 degrees
below normal body temperature.
Harry James Jr. Hopes
For Air Force Band Job
DALLAS, Tex., tP) — Harry
James Jr., 17, who toots a trum
pet, like his dad, joined the Air
Force Tuesday so he can find more
time for music.
James is the son of the trumpet
playing bandleader, Harry James.
The youngster was a freshman
music major at North Texas State
College, Denton, Tex.
“There wasn’t enough time for
my playing at Denton,” he said.
“I’m hoping the Air Force will let
me keep at it all the time,” James
said.
The Air Force said he probably
will be assigned to a band as a
trumpeter as soon as he finishes
basic at Lackland Air Force Base,
San Antonio.
By BERNIE MORRIS
JUNEAU, UP) — Acting Governor
Hugh Wade has signed into law
the controversial legislative pay
bill.
It provides each of the 60 Alas
ka lawmakers an annual salary
of $3,000 and $40 expenses for
each day the Legislature is in
session. In addition, the presiding
officer of each house will receive
$600 for extra services.
The pay rate bill and an accom
panying measure were signed late
yesterday. The acting Governor’s
decision to approve the measures
was not made public until he sent
a 200-word message to the Legis
lature today explaining his action.
The companion measure to the
pay scale provision appropriates
$222,520 to cover the legislators’
salaries and expenses through the
end of the fiscal year on June 30.
A later appropriation measure will
be needed for the legislative costs
for the next fiscal year.
The signed bills — HB28 and
HB29 — thus became chapters One
and Two of the first session laws
of the State of Alaska.
Wade indicated he was reluc
tant to approve the two bills.
“I would have preferred that
these bills become law without my
signature,” the acting chief exec
utive told the Legislature. He
added:
“However, such a c jurse on my
part would only further delay a
matter which has already con
sumed enough time, some of which
Continued on Page Five
Eisenhower Emphatically
Denies Considering
Dulles’ Retirement
WASHINGTON, OP) — The
White House denied with double
barreled emphasis today all specu
lation that President Eisenhower
might be concerned over a pos
sibility that ailing Secretary of
States Dulles may retire.
Press Secretary James C. Hag
erty said Eisenhower had in
structed him to “say doubly”
what Hagerty had told reporters
last night — that rumors of Dulles’
retirement are “completely cock
eyed.”
Dulles entered Walter Reed Ar
my Hospital yesterday for a her
nia operation and treatment of a
recurring intestinal inflammation,
less than two weeks before his
71st birthday.
There have been published re
ports Eisenhower has talked with
Republican leaders about Dulles’
possible resignation, on physical
grounds, and even about men who
might be considered as his suc
cessors.
Hagerty said the President
stands firm on his news confer
ence statements yesterday that
Dulles is an invaluable Secretary
of State and deserves the prayers
of all Americans in Ms current
medical situation.