The Daily Alaska empire. [volume] (Juneau, Alaska) 1926-1964, 1950-10-05
WHERE'S THE MONEY
YOU owe THE VETERANS, AL?

Your long statement which ap-
peared in the Daily Alaska Empire
in Juneau September 80 as a paid
advertisement by the Republican
Party Special Committee for In
vestigation of Corruption, Malfeas-
ance and MisfeaSance in Territorial
Government is full OF outright
falsehoods.
AS a veteran of World War II
and one who has been active in vet
GRAMS affairs since my discharge, l
have taken the trouble personally
to check the statements you make
relative to the World War II Vet
Grams Board. You state that this
bureau acquired yacht" with
taxpayers money and that the
Commission used the vessel for
fishing trips, poker playing and
parties" and that the yacht is now
at the dock in Juneau and is an
investment which has never been
fully explained.
The facts about this so-called
yacht" are that the vessel NAHA
was purchased from Tom Morgan
on August 10, 1916 by Charles E.
Judson, an Alaska veteran of World
War II, with the aid of veterans
loan in the amount of $7,700. judi
son had anticipated charter work
with the boat around Ketchikan,
but was unable to earn enough to
meet his loan payments with the
result that the Veterans Affairs
Commission had to repossess it in
June of 1947. The former Com
missioner subsequently sold the
vessel to Earl T. Forsythe Deem
Der 9, 1947 for $3.50, which was
the outstanding book balance ag-
ainst the boat at that time. When
Mr.. Forsythe failed to make pay
ments in accordance with the terms
of his purchase agreement, and
when liens against the vessel for
repairs threatened the preferred
status of the Commission as mort
gagees, the NAHA was again re-
possessed. The action in repossess-
ing was taken upon the advice of
Norman H. Banfield of the firm
of Faulkner, Banfield and Booch-
ever, and upon concurrence by the
Territorial Attorney General.
noh
was moored at the Juneau small
boat harbor during the time it was
in the possession of the Veterans
Affairs Commission and it was adj
vertised for public sale by invita-
tional bid. Continuous efforts were
made to dispose of the vessel, but
no satisfactory offers were received.
The Rev. A. B. Morgan, of the
Juneau Methodist Church, ulti-
mately made an offer of $4,000 for
the vessel and when it became OBJ
vious that this was the highest
bid obtainable, the boat was sold
to him January 6, 1850 for use in
missionary work. A reorganization
of the account covering the NAHA
shows that the net loss to the
Commission resulting from this loan
totaled S8,452.60.
So we see that Mr.. White was
in error in stating that the Com
mission had acquired yacht,
using taxpayers money; was in
error again when he said it was
used by the Commissioner and
his associates for fishing trips,
poker playing and parties; was in
error in stating that this trans
action had never been fully ex-
planned" and was in error in stat
ing that 'the loss to the taxpayers
on this deal was more than $l0,-
O00."
Mr.. White, the Republican boss,
went on to say that there is still
a mystery" about what became Of
$1,000 allegedly drawn by the for
mer Veterans Commissioner in
connection with purchase OF the
Glover Club cocktail bar in Juneau
by another veteran. There is no
mystery about it whatever. The
$1,000 together with another $4,000,
has been paid back to the Commits
sion by the Maryland Casualty
Company which bonded the former
Commissioner. The Company is
also seeking to recover an addi-
tional $1,000 from the veteran, who
defaulted on the loan, and this
will be paid to the Commission.
1t is true that action by the
Democratic 1949 legislature led to
the resignation of this official, the
former Commissioner of the Alaska
World War II Veterans Affairs
Commission. What Mr. White does
not say in his political advertise
ment is that the Commissioner
with whom he finds SO much fault
was a member of his own Repub-
lican party; that he had formerly
VE-~ ~ =