"News of oAmerica’s Last Frontier”
KODIAK, ALASKA AUGUST 4, 1946
PRICE 10 CENTS
VOL. 5 NO. 38
Night Club
Deal Made
The Beachcombers, one of
Kodiak’s two largest country
Bight clubs, located on Mission
road, changed hands August 1,
at a reported price of $25,000.
Sale included land, buildings,
equipment and stock.
New owners are Arthur Kizer,
local taxi business owner, and
Hugh A baton, bartender, and the
latter has been named manager.
Previous owners were Ray Mar
tin, owner of the Club Liquor
store, and Jorgen Fredrickson,
owner of the Belmont Bar, who
purchased the business in the fall
of 1943 from A1 Lacosse, who
operated it as the Chicken Inn.
Included in the sale was the in
terest of Mr. and Mrs. Frank
Kempton, who have been active
ly managing the club and who
will now devote their full time
to their local place of business
the Idle Hour Bar.
The new owners announced
that the club will be operated 7
sights a week for the present.
Tax Structure
Seen As Benefit
Postwar spending will go to
communities ready for it, Stan
)--y Nelson, councilman and chief
speaker at the Chamber of Com
merce meeting Thursday told
the members, and one way to
get ready for it is to have an
equitable tax plan and sound
property values, be said. Speak
ing on the subject of taxes, Mr.
NelsoD explained the new uuit
plan of taxing on a square-foot
and type of structure basis.
The previous tax rolls had
many inequities, he said, which
the new plan is designed to pre
vent, besides saving costly work
in future years on the assess
ment.
People in Kodiak interested in
the betterment of the commun; y
should pay greater attention to
their civic affairs, in the election
of their officials, and in support
ing the officials in their attempts
to improve local conditions, of
which the new tax program is
one of the major steps, Mr. Nel
Bon stated.
He said it was realized that
®ich a new plan would contain
errors and problems to be cor
rected and solved, but that the
way to help was not to stand on
the street corner and criticize
but to consult the proper offi
cials so tne remedy could be
made.
During the business meeting
the chamber decided to approach
other chambers in the Territory
to undertake a program to secure
*larger appropriation next year
for the Bureau of Fisheries so I
No Trace Of Missing Plane Found
i
Must Register
Out-of-town Land
Juneau—Questions concerning
the woi kings of the land regis
tration act passed by the last
legislature were answered today
in an opinion from Attorney
General Ralph Rivers, who
wrote that the act applies only
to patented land outside incor
porated towns. The opinion fol
lows:
The Act requires that private
ly owned patented lands outside
of incorporated towns be regis
tered as to ownership, on or be
fore June 30, 1946, by filing in
the U. S. Land Office a sworn
statement or statements, signed
by 2 witnesses, giving name,
postoffice address, description of
land, acreage, use and character.
Failure to file results in a penalty
of $5. Provision for ultimate for
closure and sale to collect accru
ed penalties is also provided.
The purpose is to get abandoned
tracts which are patented back
into circulation.
The Act excludes land owned
by the United States, or any in
strumentality thereof. It also
excludes land owned by the Ter
ritory or subdivision, agency or
instrumentality thereof.
The Act does not apply to un
patented mining claims. Person
holding under lease would have
no obligation to register their
leasehold interest or any interest
less than absolute ownership. A
Lessee might wish to protect his
leasehold by seeking authority
from the owner to act for the
owner in complying with the
Act.
Radio Station
Makes Changes
Major changes in WVCQ rad
io programs for the summer
months were annoumed today
by Sgt. C. J. Wameling, station
manager. They include the fol
lowing:
1. Jack Benny, 8 pm Sunday,
now replaced by the Jerry Wayne
show featuring music and com
edy.
2. Sunday Serenade Born
2:30 to 3 pm is cut to 15 minutes,
with Dick Haymes taking over
the remaining quarter hour.
3. Eddie Condon, 5 pm Tues
day replaced with Duke Elling
ton and his music.
4. Charlie McCarthy, 9 pm
Sunday, replaced with Spike
Jones.
5. Russell Bennett Conducts
substitutes for Frank Morgan,
6:30 pm Thursdays.
vital work to protect the fishing
can be undertaken.
No single trace to the possible
i fate of a commercial plane mis
sing for two weeks since it left
Chirikoff island, 300 miles from
Kodiak, July 23, has been dis
covered, local Navy and CAA
officials announced yesterday.
The plane, a Stinson (SR-5)
land plane, was piloted by Bud
Thompson, mining man from
Anchorage, and the only other
passenger was Jack Gottcher, a
sawmill man from Seward. They
flew from Anchorage via Homer
to Chirikoff island and reported
when they left the island in bad
weather that they would stop at
Kodiak.
Navy PBY’s and the Coast
Guard joined in the search. No
planes were out yesterday, it was
reported by the Navy here, but
the search has not been aban
doned. The water between Chiri
koff and Kodiak islands has been
searched thoroughly for signs of
wreckage and Kodiak island
areas scanned in the hope a forc
ed landing may have been made
on beaches or elsewhere.
A weather statioc on southern
Kodiak island early in the search
reported an unidentified plane
overhead in the fog but the clue
was fruitless and no other re
ports of any kind have been re
ceived by the seacbers despite
the fact that all canneries in the
area were alerted within a half
hour after the plane was overdue.
Mr. Gottcher, who made the
trip to the island to inspect
cattle there belonging to Jack
McCord, with a view to purchas
ing them, is from Seward and
has a wife and children in Calif
ornia. Mr. Thompson has been a
resident of Alaska since 1932 and
has mining interests near Nome.
His mother resides in Idaho.
Boy Survives
12 Sulfa Tablets
What could have been a fatal
overdose of sulfadiazine tablets
ended with no ill effects Monday
for Ronn;e, age 2, eon of Mr.
and Mis. Donald Heaton.
Taken to Dr. A. Holmes John
son after his mother had discov
ered he had eaten approximately
12 of the tablets, the youngster
was rushed to the GM hospital
and his stomach was pumped
out in time to prevent the drug
from taking action.
. .
Bryan Thorsheim, owner of
the Kodiak Barber Shop, this
week purchased from T. A.
Horsman the latter’s equipment
in the shop, consisting of a bar
ber chair, mirror and various
items.
Mr. Horsman is going to de
vote his full time to his job as
photographer for the Freymuel
ler studio.
Local Girl Dies
In Sanitarium
Elizabeth Madsen, stepdaugh
ter of Charles Madsen of this
city, passed away at a tubercul
osis sanitarium at Milwaukie,
Ore., Friday, July 27, after sev
eral years’ illness. Funeral ser
vices were conducted there by a
Russian priest at 11 am Mon
day while simultaneous services
were conducted at the Madsen
home here at 9 am by Father
Gerasim Schmaltz. Interment
was in a Portland cemetery.
Mrs. Thelma Johnson, a sister
of the deceased, had visited with
her for a month and had left just
a few days before her death, to
return to Oklahoma and her
husband, who is to be sent over
seas.
Elizabeth Madsen was born in
Kodiak September 20, 1915.
Her mother, the former Mary
Metrokin of this city, died in
1927. Elizabeth attended school
here and then went to Chicago
where she took training in a
beauty operating college. She
returned to Kodiak and opened
a beauty parlor in 1935 in the
Sunbeam hotel.
She operated the parlor until
her illness prevented her work
ing, and after being bedfast here
a year was sent to the sanitar
ium October 24, 1939, for the
special care it could provide and
for a series of operations.
Two summers ago Mr. and
Mrs. Madsen and members of
the family visited her for three
months in Portland where they
engaged a hotel suite so she
could stay with them.
As she had expressed a wish
to visit home, Mr. Madsen made
arrangements last summer foi
her trip hare. Accompanied by
her father and a special nurse she
travelled from Portland to Seat
tle by ambulance and from
Seattle to Kodiak by boat.
She enjoyed her visit and was
happy with her room built dur
ing her absence especially for hei
in the new Madsen residence,
She stayed from May until Sep
tember and was then returnee
to the sanitarium. The serious
ness of her condition and tht
fact that doctors gave her only
a short time to live were knowr
here but because she receivec
the Mirror each week no printec
mention of it was made.
She is survived by Mr. anc
Mrs. Madsen, and her brothers
and sisters: Alf Madsen, loca
fisherman; Roy, in the Navy anc
stationed in the Philippines
Mrs. Thelma Johnson, Oklaho
ma; and Rose, Alice, Germaim
and Raymond, of Kodiak.
Coast Guard
Day Named
In recognition of the service
of the Coast Guard which ob
serves its 155th Anniversary to
day, August 4, Mayor O A.
Torgerson has proclaimed today
as U. S. Coast Guard Day. No
formal observance is planned.
The Coast Guard, as the foi ~
mer U. S. Revenue Marine
founded on August 4, 1790, by
Alexander Hamilton, is the old
est of America’s seagoing fight
ing services and has fought in
every war in which our nation
has participated.
When Alaska was purchased
in 1867 the Cutter Lincoln was
the first U. S. ship placed on
patrol in these waters for inspec
tion, survey and provision of
medieal, dental and judicial aid
to isolated communities.
The present-day Coast Guard,
which is part of the Navy in ;bis
second world war, has performed
a great variety of duties, both
within the United States and a
broad. In carrying out its func
tion of life saving, the Coast
Guard has undertaken the task
of developing improved methods
and devices for rendering emerg
ency assistance to aircraft and
surface craft in distress and t*>
rescue all survivors, whether
military or civilian.
Members of the Coast Guard
Women’s Reserve, the SPAH8,
are now serving with male per •
sonnel in Alaska in order to free
men for combat duty.
Signal Corps
Has New Hours
New office hours for the Alas
ka Communication System, cf
fective August 1, were announc
ed today ty Captain Roger R.
Stevenson, officer in charge.
The office will be ooen dai! v
from 9 am to 6 pm, on Sunday s
and holiday from 10 am to 11 am
and from 5 pm to 6 pm.
I Emergency wires only may l e
filed in the operating room dur
ing the closed hours of the receiv
ing office. The attention of the
operators may be gained by use
of the buzzer at the entrance
door.
Kodiak Island
Air Route Sought
Among 50 applications from
Alaska air services (o be heard
this fall by the Civil Aeronautics
Board is one from Carl E. Mai
tin, Jr., asking for the following
3 routes:
Kodiak to Naknek; Kodiak to
Cordova with intermediary
points including Homer, Sekh
! via and Seward; and a circle
route around Kodiak island.