rrNews of cAmericd’s Last Frontier”
VOL. 5 NO. 13
KODIAK, ALASKA MAY 26, 1945
PRICE 10 CENT?
Jap Balloon Warning Issued Alaska, West
[Former Kodiak
Attorney Dies
Anchorage (^P)—Karl A. Dra
ger, 54, prominent Anchorage
attorney, died a the Providence
hospital last Friday after 10 days
1 illness following a heart attack.
Mr. Drager, former legislator,
eame to Alaska 25 years ago and
locatec in Seward. Later he re
sided in Ketchikan and Kodiak.
Surviving are his widow, Car
lotta; a daughter, Eunice; and 2
sons, Courtland, University of
Alaska student, and Karl Allen.
Mr. Drager is well-remembered
in Kodiak, and at the inception
' of the Griffin Memorial hospital
was active in legal work connect
ed with the project. Mrs. Drager
is a sister of Merrill Coon, local
Standard Oil agent. t
New Masonic
Group Formed
A new attempt to form a Ma
sonic lodge was begun this week
with the formation of a new
Masonic club, as yet unnamed, at
a meeting held Thursday even
ing at the Victory cafe, at which
46 were present.
Officers werr elected and in
clude Major H. K. Jackson, pres
ident; Emil Knudsen, vice-pres
ident; and H. R. Siver, secre
tary-treasurer.
A spokesman for the new
group said their project was un
dertaken because they under
stood the Wayfarers’ club, a sim
ilar organization started some
time ago, had become inactive.
Remember The 7th War Loan
Driving Lesson Has Unhappy Ending
A driving lesson administered
| by Stanley Nelson, Kraft’s groc
: ery manager, to Fred Olson, in
; the Kraft delivery van, ended
sadly Thursday morning about
9:30 when the truck got out of
control as it turned the corner
to go down Harbor avenue.
It first side-swiped the Or
pheum theatre, breaking off the
front bumper, and then swung
across the street and crashed in
to the outside stops of the Mecca
bar and came to rest among the
steps and against a KEA light
pole. It struck the pole with en
ough force that it broke about 6
feet below the 2 large transform
ers it supported, but the pole
miraculously hung together and
the truck was left there to hold
the pole up. The trucks wind
shield was broken and the left
fender crumpled. Neither occu
pant was injured.
A KEA crew rushed repairs,
instating a complete new pole
Power was off from 2 pm to a
bout 8 pm, affecting the area
from Kraft’s store to the Polar
Bear cafe and east to the Kodiak
Mirror. The power shutdown
forced the newspaper and the
bakery staffs to work most of t he
night, and the Orpheum theatre
did not start its evening perform
ance until 8:20. The Kodiak
Candy company, caught in a
rush of getting a 15,000 pound
order of candy out for Meier &
Frank department store, Port
land, Oregon, was forced to take
the afternoon off, and it was the
first day in some time that a full
crew had been present to work.
The next day two of the crew
were absent with colds.
It was reported that Mr. Nel
son has taken a violent kidding
about the driving lesson, in
which Gus Johnson, Kraft’s
hardware manager, shared, as he
had given the boy a lesson earli
er the same morning.
Asked yesterday if he had a
statement to make for the paper,
Mr. Nelson said: “Sure. Don’t
print it.”
Washington (^P)—Japanese
long range balloons have made
sporadic attacks on the western
part of North America for the
past several months, the Army
and Navy reported, some of the
balloons are known to have land
ed or dropped explosives in iso
lated localities but there has been
no damage to property.
The joint statement said this
is the first time the public gener
ally has been told of the balloon
attacks, although it was known
to many newspapermen and
others.
The statement said the dis
closure was being made so a pub
lic safety campaign could be un
dertaken to prevent possible
damage or injury from the bal
loons. There is always a possibil
ity, the statement said, that un
exploded bombs may be found in
isolated spots, concealed in
wooded areas or buried beneath
melting snow. With the approach
of warm weather and the end of
the school season, the statement
added “it is desirable that peo
ple, especially children, living
west of the Mississippi river, be
warned of this possible hazard
and cautioned under no circum
stances to touch or approach any
unfamiliar object.”
The balloons, which carry a
j few small bombs, are described
as gray-white or greenish-blue,
of paper, about 33 feet in diam
eter. The maiu purpose of the
bombs is believed to be to set
biush and forest fires. The bal
loons are unmanned and cannot
be controlled by the enemy.
Freddie Ka'elnikoff, Pete
Walkoff, Jr., Johnny Pestrikoff
and Nickie Katelnikoff, all of
Ouzinkie, are now in uniform,
having passed their examina
tions for the Army.
There will be a city council
meeting next Monday, starling
at the new time, 7:30 pm.
Alitak Resident
Found insane
George Strand, 62, of Alitak,
was adjudged insane yesterday
by a jury consisting of Jorgen
Fredrickson, George Blinn, Jack
Delane, Keith Roberts, James
Martz, and R. E. Dawson and
was committed to Morningside
asylum at Portland, Ore., by U.
S. Commissioner C. C. Naughton.
Strand was brought to Kodiak
Monday by Robert von Scheele.
A sanity hearing for Zenia
Summerland, 37, of Ouzinkie,
was held this (Saturday) morn
ing at 10. She was brought to
Kodiak Saturday on Charles
Madsen’s Kodiak Bear by depu
ty U. S. Marshal Paul Heriing
following a report that she had
taken a shot at man painting a
house.
Amos Alien, Negro shoe shine
parlor operator, is being held in
jail for observation on a com
plaint signed by Tom Nachand,
city night patrolman. His hear
ing has not been set.
Hunters Get 3 Bears
Lester Sorum and Jay Wiley
left last Wednesday and return
ed Sunday on a bear hunting
trip to Ugauik bay made with
Oscar Nelson on his boat.
Lester Sorum got a mother
bear, estimated aj 10,)U pounds,
with one shot, and t he ot In r two
were each credited with a Ifrge
cub apiece.
Sorum, who made the trip be
fore with a bunch and couldn’t
hit a thing and thus got the nick
name “Deadeye” pinned on him,
was especially pleased with his
one-shot performance this time
as usually it takes more to stop
Kodiak’s big game animal.
Marie Anderson, 9, broke her
right arm Saturday when she
fell while running.
GrueningBroadens
Overseas Stand
Anchorage (Special)—Govern
or Gruening has disclosed fchtr
he has recommended to the War
Department that Alaskans gH
overseas seivice credits for dis
charge regardless of where thagf/
are stationed in Alaska Be?
changed his original protest,
which asked overseas credits vs$*f
for those Alaskans statiossd
west of 154th'degree loDgitstSe
His request is under considera
tion in Washington.
"There are a few cases <where
Alaskans are serving in then
home towns,” he said. “There hr
no reason why they Btiouk!n*'t
get the same credits as tbeir
companions in the service.”
The Governor said he be«i
talked to servicemen in massy
cities and found this to he tkehr
attitude.
Himmler Dies With
His Socks On
British 2nd Army Hdqtra.—
Army officials are still undeeiefeui
as to whether to hold a fun«rsJ
for Gestapo chief Himmler in tks*
presence of German military
civilian bigwigs in Allied hands.
Himmler’B body lay on ihr
bare fioor of L uneberg villa onV'*3
it was placed in a coffin yester
day. Hii 'mler kiiled hiimelf Wed -
night by crushing a tiny glass
vial of poison between his teeth
as a British medical officer win
examining him. He was wearisg
only a pair of socks as his oth«o
clothing had been stripped frc»>
him previously.
The Mighty 7th
The Mirror recommends t3bs>
advertisement on page 5. Resei
it—heed it!
Confab Faces
Veto Problem
San Francisco (.d?)— The hog
powers have reportedly lined up
enough votes to bk>ek t&y
change in their absolute cob trait
of world machinery designed to
preserve peace. This issue o» ve
to of power of any of the Bif &
over settling internationa) dis
putes or using force to smash »»
aggressor is the most critical-re
maining as the conference enterr
its second month.
1 his is a general view of ‘.fee
steer.ng committee of the Uaitetl
Nations Conference, composed
of the heads of 48