SAN FRANCISCO EDITOR SAYS
ALASKA SCENERY SURPASSES
THAT FOUND IN SWITZERLAND
at its mountains, to one who has ex
plored the beauties of the inland
waters of Alaska, sailing through
which one never loses sight of lofty
peaks of snow-clad ranges of moun
tains down whose sides cascade
streams in such number that no one
has essayed the task of naming them.
As a matter of fact the region
threaded by the waters of what is
known as the inside passage is prac
tically unexplored. Captain McGill
vary of the Admiral Evans probably
could tell the width and depth of
every bit of water over which he sail
ed his ship, but when asked concern
ing the name of some particularly
striking peak he was powerless to
answer because they were nameless,
as for the waterfalls they remain un
counted as well as unnamed.
There is work for some one with
imagination to perform in the inside
passage, and when it is done it will
add greatly to the attractiveness of
an excursion which presents so over
whelming an abundance of striking
and beautiful scenery and the point
of satiety is reached and an impres
sion of monotonousness is derived be
cause of the failure to particularize.
Over-indulgence in sweets tend to
cloy, and a seemingly endless succes
sion of scenes which could a few of
them be transferred nearer home
would prove powerful magnets, af
ter a while becomes commonplace by
the siglit-seer when he is given a
glimpse of something particularized
which will be easier retained as a
mental picture than a composite pic
ture of scenery.
That is why such objects as a
lighthouse on an island, although a
very ordinary structure, is welcomed
as a sort of relief and the appearance
of the prosaic wharf of a cannery,
with the background of buildings de
void of architectural pretense, be
comes a thing of interest, and, as
sometimes happens to be the case, if
there is a bit of clearing about the
neat cottage of the manager that has
been converted into lawn, its familiar
aspect makes a very successful ap
peal to that instinct which impels
man to rejoice over his own achieve
ments.
With the exception to two openings
to the sea, the inside passage is ac
complished over smooth waters whose
shores are lined with more or less
precipitous hills backed up by high
mountain ranges whose tops are cov
ered with perpetual snow. They are
clothed in dense forests of fir, 'so
thickly indeed, that the young growth
is constantly struggling with the old
er trees and winning in the contest,
and numerous trunks of blasted ap
pearance amply testify their inability
to survive against the more vigorous
youngsters and the dense under
growth.
This undergrowth is of such a char
acter that its clearing under present
labor conditions is out of the question.
It would probably cost as much to put
an acre of these fir-clad hillsides, and
the bits of level land often found at
their bases, in condition to obtain ag
ricultural results as would purchase
a well located city lot, and as a con
sequence, farming does not figure
among the leading pursuits of Alaska,
and the territory is still dependent
on the outside world for means of
subsistence.
That, however, need not be the last
word on the subject of the agricul
tural possibilities of Alaska. I have
referred to the Government Experi
mental Station at Sitka, where en
couraging results have been obtained
which are detailed at length in the
reports, the correctness of which can
be attested by visitors who are per
mitted to see what can be done in a
land where daylight is spread over
periods of months. Growing in the
open air may be seen many varieties
of flowers of familiar varieties, among
them: Azaleas, lilacs, poppies of ex
traordinary size, side by side with un
obtrusive “forget-me-nots. I saw no
roses, but doubtless they can be
grown, for the wild variety seemed to
flourish in the neighborhood of many
of the canneries.
the production of vegetables, but not
enough as yet to suggest the idea that
Alaska will ever become a formidable
competitor of California. On my re
turn from one of the numerous excur
sions ashore, which the trip permits,
I found placed against our stateroom
door three or four stalks of rheubarb
whose dimension when described may
suggest Manchausenism, but are here
by declared to be absolutely true.
They were at least five feet in length
and were surmounted with leaves fif
teen inches in width. I was told that
this growth was not exceptional, and
that it was exceeded by celery fully
six feet long.
Doubtless the latter statement in
no wise exaggerated the facts, for
my informant, whose business car
ried him to remote parts of the ter
ritory, and whose acquaintance with it
extends over many years, admitted
that it was so brittle it would not
bear transportation. He was also re
luctant to testify that the gigantic
stalks of rhubard would make as ap
petizing a sauce as the more modest
product of this state, but he insisted
that no where in the world could
such turnips and rutabegas be grown
as in Western Alaska. Potatoes are
soggy, but he firmly believes that the
tuber can be acclimated, and that
spuds of a good quality will some day
be produced and render Alaska inde
penent of the outside world.
At present the territory is wholly
dependent upon outsiders for just
those vegetables. The forward deck
of the Evans and all the available
space elsewhere on the ship was filled
with crates and boxes, all of them
consigned from California. There
were oranges, cantaloupes, cherries,
apricots, etc., in considerable quanti
ties consigned to the towns and to
the canneries lining the inland wat
ers of our possession which was once
issumed to be no better than an ice
berg but which has since its purchase
by Seward shown that it is rich in
other resources which may be ex
changed for the products of lands
situated nearer the equator.
Among the products of California
shipped to Alaska in considerable
quantities may be mentioned eggs and
chickens. The boxes and crates bear
ing them all bore the names of Peta
luma shippers. The chickens ap
peared to be fancy stock, but I was as
sured that they were destined to meet
the demands of the Chinese workers
in the canneries who under prosper
ous conditions develop a decided taste
for broilers, and also used by them
for sacrificial purposes.
“If the Chinese are so fond of
chicken,” I asked, “why don’t they
raise them up here?” “It would be a
profitable pursuit if they did not re
quire so much attention,” he replied.
Then he added for my information
that “the poor things cannot be taught
to go to roost wjiile daylight lasts,
and they actually wear themselves out
waiting for roosting time.” The only
way to break their disposition to keep
on the job of scratching was to drive
them into darkened coops at fixed in
tervals, and release them after they
had obtained a sufficient rest to re
sume their labor. It may be remark
ed, incidentally, that the chickens of
Alaska appear to be the only things
scratching for a living nowadays that
seem unconcerned whether they work
more or less than eignr nours uauy.
But people don’t go to Alaska to
study the habits of chickens or to in
vestigate the possibilities of agricul
tural development. i£ they are excur
sionists they are lit'.’ested principal
ly in natural scenery, but when they
disclose that the e.iide art of the In
d.ans, as exhibited in their totem
poles, or the tawdiv exhibit of Icons
in the Greek church at Sitka, share
attention with the g aciers the water
falls and the eternally snow-covered
mountains. Respecting the Greek
church, it is related that its priest
was formerly a verger, and that his
ordination was not long deferred
when the former incumbent removed
himself to New York. That he was
not familiar with the “art treasures
exhibited for a consideration was
made apparent by the necessity im
posed upon him of describing them
with the aid of a note book prepared
by someone else than himself, for he
experienced some difficulty in read
ing the writing. In view of the
fact that he did not intimate that
the paintings of more or less merit of
ten of less than more, were valuable,
he will be pardoned for trying to
earn the fifty-cent admission fee he
charged tourists which constitutes the
church's chief revenue.
Travelers who voyage a couple of
thousand miles by sea to gain an ex
perience are not apt to look forward
to a railroad ride of eighty-two
miles as a novelty, but the trip over
the White Pass railroad to Lake
Bennett from Skagway, deserves the
name. The highest point reached is
2200 feet above sea level, and it re
required some clever engineering to
attain this altitude considering the na
ture of the country and the distance
traversed in reaching the summit,
which is about half the length
of the entire road. Like some of our
early mining towns, Skagway is in
the decadent stage and is living on
memories of the past. The town
which formerly existed near the boun
dary line of the Northwest Territory,
and the United States, once boasted
15,000 inhabitants, and from all ac
counts they were a lively lot, a large
proportion of them belonging to the
class whose respect for the law fell
as much below zero as the tempera
ture of the summit on a midwinter
night.
The Muir glacier was made inacces
sible to tourists by the seismic dis
turbance of a few years ago, but that
of Taku is said to be almost as im
pressive. A favorable opportunity of
fering Captain McGillvary took his
ship into the bay and gave the pas
sengers a chance to witness a specta
cle surpassing any Switzerland af
fords. The foot of Taku is three or
four hundred feet wide, and in one
part is fully 150 feet high. The
moving stream back of it is said
to be over a hundred miles in length.
By the side of the living glacier is a
dead one whose appearance presents
a marked contrast to the glittering
stream of ice which extends through
a gap in the hills as far as the eye
can reach. From the foot of the live
glacier large masses of ice are con
stantly detaching themselves and fill
the bay with miniature bergs of blue
ice on which acquatic fowl, unmind
ful of cold feet, find a roosting place.
The blue of the bergs is more than
matched by the irridescent hues of
the foot of the glacier whose fractures
refract the light.
It is not possible to touch the
shores of both sides of the narrows
through which the ship passes on her
way to and from Skagway, but the
expression is admissible. She gets
close enough to both banks in many
cases to make the passenger feel
thankful that he is in the hands of
a skillful navigator and for an ex
perience that smacks of adventure.
GET YOUR CIGARS
AT |
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All Standard Brands
2 for 25c
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Chewing Gum, 5c Package
I SPECIAL NOTICE
All Periodicals and Magazines for Sale at the
Publishers’ Marked Prices
NORTHERN DRUG CO.
“THE DRUG STORE OF ALASKA"
UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT
“SERVICE” is our motto
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R. W. FERRELL, Prop.
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Baths.
OPPOSITE CORDOVA GRILL, CORDOVA, ALASKA.
PHONE 99
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SANITARY PLUMBING
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During the early part of July, in |
a party touring through the Wat-:
ers of Southeastern Alaska, was John
P. Young, managing editor of the San
Francisco Chronicle and author of
several books, accompanied by Mrs.
Young. Upon his return to the Cali
fornia city he wrote “Our Land of the
Midnight Sun,” telling of the wonder
ful scenery along the route, and of
his impressions.
His article was as follows:
“Let us pay another visit to the
Government Experiment Station,” re
marked a sentimental young woman
in the steamer Admiral Evans, while
she was lying at Sitka on the night
of July 8th. If she had been there
fifteen or sixteen days earlier she
might have postponed the excursion
at least three-quarters of an hour and
accomplished her object, which was
to gather flowers as near midnight as
possible, and simultaneously view the
setting sun, if that luminary can be
said to set in a region in which his
light is only obscured for a few min
utes in that particular part of Uncle
Sam’s dominions in midsummer.
That she should have made such a
suggestion and caused a party of
tourists to act upon it reminds me
that Americans have developed the
habit of neglecting the wonders at
their own door, so to speak, while
wandering over the rest of the world
In quest of them. Perhaps a thousand
Americans have made the trip to Nor
way, penetrating its fiords and gazing