GENERAL WEEDING NEEDED,
ALASKA RAILWAY; PLANT
NEW CROP
Published in Ihe Seward Weekly
Gateway, Seward, Alaska; Satur
day, September 13, 1930
□
By DON CARLOS BROWNELL
t.Continued from lisi issue)
* * *
GOVERNMENT EXPERIMENTAL
FARMS
For 20 or 30 years the Govern
ment has maintained experiment
al farms in this part of Alaska,
with the avowed purpose of dem
onstrating the productivity of A
laska soil and climate. They were
originally established as an aid
to land settlement. Every year
bulletins were issued and dis
tributed free. A great deal of
money has been expended on
them, but SO FAR AS PRACTI
CAL BENEFIT IS CONCERNED.
THERE SEEMS TO BE NONE.
WHY? One reason I believe was
the diversity of activity. It would
have been better to have con
centrated on a FEW STAPLE
PLANTS, and denmonstrated the
BUSINESS POSSIBILITIES OF
THEM. Both the activities and
the financial support of the Gov
ernment farms still in operation
should be placed wholly under
the supervision of the Alaska
Agricultural College.
LAND CLEARING
The biggest inducement to farm
ing next to an assured market,
is clearing the land ready for
the plow. I suggest that within
a certain distance from the rail
road or auto road feeders, that
the Territory and railroad com
bine to clear A, or B, quality
tracts of land upon application
of anyone who will put a crop
in. The cost of such clearing to
be a lien against the land, but
on such easy terms of payment
that any farmer would be will
ing to assume it. The land clear
ing machinery could he assem
bled in the railroad machine
shops during winter months.
FREE HAULAGE OF ALASKA
PRODUCTS
Throughout this railroad’s his
tory at least three-fourths of the
southbound freight cars are emp
ty. The additional cost of haulage
of some of these cars were full,
would be slight, due to short
trains and the large locomotives
user. Therefore I believe it would
have been a wise practice in the
past, productive of great results,
if products had been hauled free
of charge when they were to be
shipped to other than railroad
towns to build up external trade
along he coast, or with the states
it would bo necessary to give ev
ery inducement possible. Free
haulage or at bare cost, should
be given to all farm products
whether fresh or canned: to rein
deer meat, to coal, to wood pro
ducts, and to ores needing smelt
ing. Modern business practice
sets its seal of approval on free
distribution of samples of a com
modity to create a demand for
i. The inter-town rate on produce
grown in Alaska should be low
ered to a point where such com
modity would he as cheap, at
j least as that exported from the
' states.
TAX UNCULTIVATED CLEARED
; LAND
I A great deal of valuable agri
I cultural land is owned by people
1 who do not care, and do not in
; tend to cultivate it. It is held
; just for speculation. To prevent
that and encourage its use, all
acreage once cultivated should be
! HEAVILY TAXED each year they
I are unused. Tax also all A and
I B grade uncleared land if with
| in 10 miles of a town and more
j than 10 acres in the piece. The
1 tax to he rated on the grade of
he land. I believe this provision
very important.
COAL
The original promotion of the
I r: ilroad was on the plan of haul -
l ng cioal to Seward for shipment
I by boat. Twenty-seven years ef
j fort by the different managers of
! he railroad has resulted in tiie
I shipment of only a few hundred
I tons to places outside of the rail
i road belt. The high cost of min
i ing. ransportation. loading on
^ ship, are deerring reasons. It
'would have been a good invest
i ment to HAUL AND LOAD THE
i COAL FREE. ON BOARD SHIP
i SEWARD, op at most the actual
| cost. If the price of “efficiency"
equipment, like the recently pur
i chased snow plow had been used
to build a small coal bunker
lire, o make loading aboard easy,
it would have been a thousand
times better spent to encourage
resource development. The ans
wer given by each succeeding
management to the request for
bunkers, has been that he bunk
ers would be built when there
was a demand shown for Alaska
coal in coast towns. In other
words, build up the coal business
and then we’ll reduce freight
rates and build the bunkers.
This is directly contrary to mod
ern business practice. If they had
been built, and a cost transpor
tation rate given, there is no
question hut that a flourishing
coal business would be estab
lished, at least along the Alas
kan coast, stopping the present
large importation of the foreign
product.
REINDEER AND MUSKOXEN
The m(#t valuable result from
a single effort ever shown in A
laska is the reindeer industry.
The Congressional appropriation
to bring the original herd of rein
deer here has brought great
wealth to the Territory and now
the present appropriation for
muskoxen may he just as valu
able in the future. I would sug
gest also a trial of the Lapland
er’s hardy milk goats. All of
such endeavor to be under the
supervision of the college.
PROSPECTOR
Prospecting has declined in A
laska for years. Many reasons
might be given. I believe a valu
able help and stimulant, to har
rock prospecting and development
would be to provide cheap trans
portation of ore both to and on
the railroad. To find the mineral
leads is much easier hail to de
termine theip value and quantity.
There are hundreds of out-crop
pings known to prospectors, any
one of which might prove a valu
able property, but because of the
expense of development work
nothing is done with them. I sug
gest that the Territory and rail
road combine to furnish trans
portation of ore from tin* prospect
to either terminal of the railroad
in this manner: The prospector
to take out ore, sack it and clear
a tractor path from the ore to es
tablished trail or road, then to
present his assay certificate and
application for transportation to
SERVING SEWARD SINCE 1905
Telephone Main 0
O. T. WELCH
General Mgr.
the proper person in charge of
his development. To insure devel
opment the haulage should be
done ONLY when the ore was
taken from either a shaft or
drift, and not from float or sur
face stripping. During the follow
ing winter the department would
get and deliver it to terminal
charging a fixed rate per ton,
to be paid only from content of
the ore, or to be a lien against
he prospect. Haulage not to be
underaken if cost would be out
of proportion to value of ore. de- i
termined from the assays. Road
Commissin tractors and railers,
could he ued for this work.
I suggest the Alaska College
be given sufficient money to
build a small commercial stamp
mill, to handle ore from pros
pects. The College Assay Depart
ment is already giving valuable
help to the prospector.
MAP OF RESOURCES
An aid in establishing new in
dustries would be a resource map
of the country within, say 25
miles, of the rails distributed at I
cost. The investigation for data \
and the preparation of the map.,
to be under the supervision of J
the Alaska College, using funds
provided jointly by the railroad
and the Territory. This map i
data need he only approximate1
at first; exactness would come j
from year to year. The map to \
include soil, timber, minerals, I
clays, limes, coals, sands, moss, i
berrie and also temperature, rain
fall. and water power data.
NATIONALITIES
Despite the general belief, Scan
dinavians do NOT take to farm
ing in Alaska. There is no one
nationality showing a preferance
for any pursuit up here except
tishing, and that is wholly in
Scandinavian hands. To try to get
any particular race to follow a
certain hands will be unsucess
ful for this country does not fos
ter colonization. The moment
farming is put on a profitable
basis (by providing a market)
Alaskans of all nationalities will
take to the soil. At present I be
lieve the most promising class to
be the rapidly growing mixed
blood young people who do not
find living in the states attract
ive.
Right here it is in order to voice
an opinion as to the value of
present school courses for mixed -
blood children. These people are
the most permanent residents of
i _(Continued on page 4)
I'nitcd Hintlicrlmod of
Carpenters ami Joiners
Seward Carpenter's Union 2304
Affiliated With A. F\ of L
Meetings 2nd anr 4th Tuesdays
— OLD USO BUILDING —
•R>s McCracken. President
\ (/. MrR;ie, Financial Secretary
—
I
International Longshoremen’s
and Warehousemt n's Union
Local :5<»
M<-e>s First uni 'l ai d Tin-da1 a:
~ l» nt Union Hall •
Pt esiden? - T,. Rogers
Secret arv - L. Dick
LUNCH AND BOWL
AT
IT'S NECESSARY
HEALTHY
FUN
OPEN 1 TO 1
See
Joe Lanier j
SHOE REPAIRING op
FURNITURE REPAIRING
CLASSIFIED ADS.
WANTED—Man of all worK—
country job, board and room
furnished. See Polaris or write
Bx 204, Seward. 86tfe
LOST OR STOLEN—Lady's bill
fold, black with red leather
trim, reward for return to Mrs.
Blanche Miller. 87tfe
FOR SALE—Double bed, coil
spring, innerspring mattress; 3
boys bicycles in good shape;
complete set of drums for sale
or trade for like value in mov
ie camera or typewriter. Call
Black 113. 83-4-5
PA. DUTCH WOMAN (real dutch
cleanser will give days house
cleaning service with helper)
for $C and 1 meal. Call Main
168. 82-3-4p
FOR SALE—Mason Hamlin Plant?,
$300. Call Mad. 184. 68tfc
Wanted — Experienced all-round
Presser. Seward Cleaners
For Sale—20 ft. Boat 45 H. P.
gasoline motor—12 X 12 Prop.
20 inch Helmswheel
Garfield 151 79-80-1-29
FOR SALE—2 lots in Cliff Add.
Block 7. Make offer. H. E. Par
ker, 3040 So. 158, Seattle, 88,
Wash. 63tfc
• GARBAGE HAULED *
VETS TRANSFER
Call
Monroe 109 58tfc
CHILDREN CARED FOR by hour
or day. Call Madison 138.
82-3-4-5p
FOR RENT— Light housekeep
ing rooms. Inquire Mad. 13 99tfe
Painting and paperhanging. J.B.
Coble. PHONE Garfield 5
82tfc
FOR SALE: Nw 3-room house
with shower on lot 50 x 100. Call
Madison 13. 75tfc
MRS. OVERTURF of, 3rd Ave.
will take in laundry work. 76tfe
MARINE ENGINES
IMMEDIATELY AVAILABLE
FROM SEATTLE STOCK
From 1 H.P. to 220 H.P.
For prices and information
Call
G. H. EVERITT
Madison 58
82 to 90 tfc
WANTED—Lady to share Apart
ment with employed young lady.
References required. Call at the
Polaris Office. 84-5c
FOR SALE— 18-ft. Motor Speed
boat, new Murcury 110 HP motor,
trailer—in perfect condition. In
formation at Polari Office. 83tfc
FOR SALE—1938 Chrysler Imper
ial Coupe. Dan Southard. Gar
field 85 after 5 P.M. 35tfc
FOR SALE—Buick 8—1937. Good
condition. $800.00. Davis. Polk
113. 84tfc
s: i: a "i !'.1' ro a tie pot.ARIS \n >vv
CABBAGE—Several verities
GREEN SPROUTING BROCCOLI
KOHL RABI
CAULIFLOWER
RHUBARB CHARD
LETTUCE
BRUSSELLS SPROUTS
PANSYS
ASTERS
MARIGOLDS
SNAP DRAGONS
SWEET PEAS
SCHIZANTHUS or BUTTERFLY
FLOWERS
NASTURTIUMS
CALENDULA
PLANTS will be AVAILABLE
MAY 10th
Mrs. Gibbons
TELEPHONE ADAMS 151