The WiïUiïiK AMERICAN
ALASKA REINDEER
We are in receipt of a “government memorandum
for the press” in which Secretary Wilbur of the De
partment of the Interior gives complete information
regarding the reindeer situation in Alaska.
A few
weeks ago we ran quite an extensive article on this
subject and it will probably be of interest to those who
desire to have further information to learn that after
a great deal of research and the gathering of data Sec
retary Wilbur has sent an exhaustive report of the find
ings of various committees and his own recommenda
tions to George A. Parks, Governor of Alaska. The
Secretary’s letter to Governor Parks, under date of
March 30, follows, and seems to be the last word in the
matter:
“I am enclosing a copy of the Report of the Rein
deer Committee, dated March 23, 1931. The Report
is made by experienced gentlemen without prejudice.
It carries precise recommendations which I wish you
would make effective at an early date.
There are a few details which you will have to work
out, but otherwise it is all in order and meets with my
unqualified approval.
“The Committee examined, in detail, many witnesses
and they also had before them the complete report of
the situation as made by Mr. Sawyer and the confi
dential reports of the examiners of the General Land
Office.
“I am enclosing also a copy of a supplemental report
by Mr. Sawyer on March 30, after careful considera
tion of the Report of the Committee. I am in full ac
cord with the recommendations of Mr. Sawyer and wish
you would put them into effect as early as possible.”
LOCAL
Marie LaFrance, Alice Slater, Margaret Hoptowit,
and Theo Bird were the guests of Miss Roddy for a
waffle breakfast on Sunday.
Rev. W. Earl Cochran was the speaker on Sunday
morning at the Protestant chapel, giving a most inter
esting talk on “The Blue Prints of Life.” Mr. Coch
ran is the pastor of the Calvary Baptist church in Salem.
Marie La France, Alice Slater, Theo Bird and Mar
garet Hoptowit, four of our girls who are to be em
ployed at Hotel Davenport in Spokane, Wash., as
“outing” students during the coming summer are busy
at the task of getting their wardrobes in order. They
are due at the Davenport on May 15th.
Mrs. C. D. Riiney and three sons arrived in Salem
last Sunday and are located there for the present, ow
ing to lack of housekeeping quarters at Chemawa. Mr.
Rainey is a member of our academic force of teachers
and his family came here from near Lynchburg, Va.,
where Mrs. Rainey’s father is located on a farm.
Page 3
Supt. Lipps left last Thursday on a business trip in
to Idaho and also to Spokane, Wash. In the latter
place he was to assist in making arrangements for four
of our young ladies who are to hold positions as “out
ingstudents” during the summer at the famous Hotel
Davenport. At the time of going to press Mr. Lipps
was expected to arrive home at any hour.
Mrs. Katie L. Brewer, who was an employe at Che
mawa during almost the entire life of the school and
who retired last fall, came down from her home in
Tacoma, Wash., for a week-end visit with her daugh
ters, Mrs. Turney and Mrs. Mason, and old school
friends. She received a royal welcome. She was ac
companied on her trip by her granddaughters, Beda
Chamberlain and “Jackie” Denny.
Last Sunday afternoon the Y. M. C. A. and Y. W.
C. A. had their third joint meeting of this school year.
About one hundred members of the two organizations
attended this meeting. A number of the members par-
ticipated in the program, which included a piano pre
lude, “Berceuse” by Godard, played by Verna Starr;
“This is My Father’s World,” sung by a double quar
tet, and “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot,” by the Boys’
Quartet.
The speaker for the afternoon was Mr. Wil
liam E. Wright, director of religious education in the
Salem Presbyterian church.
Many of the students of our school have of late been
much intersted in corresponding with the students of
other schools. We have not been alone in this interest
as is proved by the following paragraph from The
Optimist of Thomas, W. Virginia, kindly handed us
by Mrs. Lobdell: “Pupils of the seventh and eighth
grades are having a lot of fun sending letters to and
receiving letters from pupils in other schools. The
latest received are from Chemawa, Oregon. Many
pictures and photographs are enclosed and pupils are
planning to send pictures of the mines, the falls and
other points of interest. Miss Burley and Miss Kot-
nik are teaching the children to be whole-country
minded, to take an interest in things beyond their
own county lines. Oregon is a long way off, but school
ideals are the same in Chemawa as here—to make the
best possible person of each boy and girl.”
In the absence of Supt. Lipps last Sunday evening
Asst. Supt. Ryan took charge of our chapel exercises
and made the address of the evening. He mentioned
various periods in our industrial development—the
stone age, the iron age, etc.—now placing us in the
electrical age. He also voiced the opinion that we are
in the “jazz” age as the result of too much prosperi
ty. He stated, and truly, too, that the development
of mankind depends upon the industry of the races.
If a people have too much wealth they become “jazzy”
first and are lucky if they do not, to some extent at
least, become criminals—any way they retrograde. Mr.
Ryan’s statements reminded us of an old saw to the
effect that ‘ ‘The devil finds work for idle hands to do. ”
It was a fine, sensible talk and we trust that our stu
dents took heed and will profit from it. In addition
to the address Mr. Melovidoff played as a violin solo
the “Meditation” from “Thais” by Massenet, the choir
sang its usual fine number and the orchestra also con
tributed.