The Cordova Daily Times
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VOLUME TWO. NUMBER 358. CORDOVA, ALASKA, WEDNESDAY MORNING, FEBRUARY 9. 191(5. PRICE TEN CENTS.
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Special by Associated Press.
The Republican territorial comniit
| tee met at Seward on Monday and
transacted considerable business. The
attendance was larger than is usual at
such meetings, owing to Alaska's mag
nificent distances.
Chairman Charles E. Herron pre
sided. and as Secretary Frank Cottei
was late in arriving from Anchorage
Elmer E. Ritchie, of Valdez, acted as
temporary secretary. Those present
were;
First Division — Geo. Irving, oi
Juneau, representing Skagway; W
W. Getchell, Douglas; Chas. E. Her
ron, with proxies from Juneau, Ket
chikan and Wrangel.
Second Division — Chas. Kennedy
t
|Candle, " ho also Iriid the proxies front
Nome and other precincts on Seward
peninsula.
Third Division — Geo. C. Hazelet,
representing Cordova and Chitina; E.
E. Ritchie. Valdez; E. L. Whitteniore
and J. .1. Finnegan. Seward and the
westward.
Fourth Division — Fairbanks and
Ruby, represented by Mr. Hazelet;
Iditarod and Tanana, by Mr. Herron.
Thos. Lloyd, of Fairbanks, was the
only one of the twenty committeemen
who was not present in person or by |
proxy. Mr. Lloyd is in the Kantishna I
and could get no word to Seward.
Seward was selected as the place
for the holding of the convention, and
I April lit named as the date. The prim
t_ __
nrics will be held on March 11. and die
qualification of voters is a pledge to
support the nominees of the conven
tion. Kach judicial division was al
lowed sixty delegates to the conven
tion A resolution prevailed that in
future the apportionment will be based
on the highest vote cast for a Repub
lican candidate at the November elec
tion.
Chairman Herron will at once issue
the call for the Territorial Conven
tion. for the purpose of nominating a
candidate for Delegate to Congress
and Attorney Cleneral. It will also
provide for the election of two dele
gates and two alternates to the Chi
cago convention and a National Com
mitteeman.
Special by Associated Press.
SEATTLE, Eeb. 8. — The govern
merit has issued official flood warn
inge, telling the people to prepare ti
avoid the lower river stretches am
seek safety in the higher places. Tlv
same sort of warning have been issuei
to till the railroads, and to all th
mountain communities. Avalanche
of heavy wet snow are what the rail
roads were told to beware of. Th
Great Northern railroad immediate!
discontinued traffic when the govern
meet issued its warning, but the N'oi
them Pacific and the Milwaukee road
continue to operate, although extrem
caution is being used, the number c
track walkers having been doublet
The trains are moving slowly, an
the service on the two roads operini
• has been largely curtailed.
The weather bureau reports that i
> warm wave is on the way, movirif
I north from Portland, and that wher
s it strikes people must be ready to ^joi
I out for trouble. The snow is report
> ed as just beginning to melt in th<
i mountains. Pntil the government is
- sued its warnings to the railroads tin
> people had supposed that the situa
r tion was much improved, but they uov
- know that the conditions are mor<
- dangerous than before,
s -
t SEATTLE. Feb. 8. — The school
f in this city reopened yesterday fo
. the first time in a week, as the snov
1 conditions have been largely allevi
; ated because of the army of hoveiers
whom *4ave been industriously work
ing to clear the streets, and the street
: ear tracks. Nearly all of the car
| lines are now running, although the
j full number of cars have not yet been
put on. Some sort of service is being
' maiotanied on all of the important
j lines, and in another day the diffi
• culty of transit will have largely been
j done away with. Floods are feared,
‘ and the rivers are already beginning
1 ! to rise, hut no flood damage has yet
j been reported.
i SKATTL.K. Feb. X. — Two-thirds of
■ the snow has already disappeared in
’ the lowlands, and as yet there have
- been no floods.
SEATTLE, Feb. 8. — Collector of
Customs James F. Pugh, in his annual
report to the department, states that
the total commerce of Alaska for the
year 1915 reached the new high mark
of $82,900,000. This includes both ex
ports and imports. Alaska sent out
twenty six millions more than it im
ported. The imports were twenty
eight millions, while the exports
reached the wonderful mark of fifty
four millions, almost as much as the
total commerce for the preceding
year.
The greatest gain in the exports was
in the value of the copper shipped
from the territory. For the year 1914,
the exports of copper were valued at
$3,365,000, while the past year the
value of the copper sent to the States
ran well over ten million, showing
the remarkable increase of 300 per
cent in a single year. The communi
ties which benefited from this in
crease in exports show also a large
increase in the value of their imports.
Cordova's imports in 1914 were $783.
834. while in 1915 the value of mer
chandise imported at Cordova is a
million. Cordova's imports far exceed
in value those of any other city in
southwestern Alaska.
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GERMANY'S MOTE
AFTER mi
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8. — The Lu
sitania negotiations, which seemed to
have reached such a serious stage yes
terday, are today once more In an op
timistic condition, and the tension in
official circles has been noticeably re
lieved. The mere use of the word 11
legal in the agreement between this
country and Germany,over the Lusi
tania sinking, is what lias been stand
ing in the way, and the American dip
lomats now feel that if the same result
can be obtained without definitely
calling certain acts illegal, that they
will not let a mere choice of words
stand in the way of a successful com
pletion of the negotiations. Germany
has agreed that reprisals will not be
directed against anyone else except
the submarines of the enemy. This
expression is offered by Germany to
take the place of an expression in the
American demands, which contains
the word illegal. This word at present
is incorporated in the draft of the
Lusitania agreement now under con
slderation. and the Berlin foreign of
fice wants it stricken out.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8. — Presi
dent Wilson and Secretary Lansing
conferred today in reference to the
Lusitania matter, and high adminis
tration officials say that a settlement
of the case looks very hopeful, the
President considering Germany's
latest offer almost, if not entirely,
satisfactory'.
iKEMNECOTT COPPER CO. TO
| EXPEND BID SON!
J The officials of the Kenneeott C’op
I per Corporation have announced that
j seven and one-half million dollars
I will be appropriated at its next annual
[meeting for the development and im
provement of its mines in Alaska. It
| is stated that the output of the com
pany's mines in the interior of Alaska,
[which have been producing nearly two
million dollars worth of copper ore
j each month during the past several
[months, will be increased and new
1 ore bodies opened up.
-.o:
THREATEN RAISE
! ARMOR PLATE
WASHINGTON, Keb. 8. — A num
ber of private manufacturers of armor
I
plate have informed the Senate naval
‘committee that they would raise the
price of armor plate $200 per ton, If
Congress decides to erect or purchase
■ an armor plate factory for the gov
! eminent. In the face of this declare
! tlon the committee voted in favor of
the government erecting its own
plants.
-:o:
! Clms. K. Herron, chairman of ttie
Republican Territorial Committee, and
i Chits. Kennedy, of Nome, who atten
ded a political meeting at Seward,
were in town yesterday. Mr. Herron
will go to Chicago, in the Interests of
his mining property to the westward,
and return to Seward in April. Mr.
, Kennedy takes the first boat from
Seattle for Nome, where he it oper
ating in the Candle district.
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■ If you do not receive your paper re
gular!'' -1)1' no the Dally Times office.
LANE TELLS WHY HE !
CHOSE SEWARD f
] r
_ If
That the vendors of the Alaska
Northern railway — of whom G. G.
Labaree, of Spokane, was one- asked
the government $2,700,000 for the pro
perty at first, and then finally came
down to the price at which the sale
was made, $1.1»>0,000, was one ot the
interesting facts brought out in the
recent testimony of Secretary Lane
before a sub-committee of the House
committee on appropriations.
That sub-committee was looking
into the deficiency appropriation item
of $2,000,000 to carry on immediate
work on the government railroad in
Alaska. It haled Chairman \V. C.
Edes, of the commission, before it and
made him tell his story, lint former
Speaker Cannon and some other
members wanted to know why any
money at all was spent in buying the
Alaska Northern. Hence Secretary
Lane had to journey up the hill and
tell the committee all about it.
He told the committee very much
more than he has ever told in public
before. The transcript of his testi
mony, which was taken behind closed
doors, is now- available, and proves
an interesting document.
"Of course," began the secretary,
"Congress put that whole question up
to the President for his decision—as
to what route or routes would best
UCV ClU|J .’UABBU. IHttl
pose of the statute—to have roads
built not to exceed 1,000 miles that
would best develop Alaska. The Pre
sident's judgment was based upon
figures presented by the original en
gineering commission, which was
formed in Mr. Taft's time, on figures
obtained by the commission which
made the surveys of the various
routes and upon general conditions.
He ultimately decided that the wise
thing to do was to follow what we
call the west side route, rather than
the east side route. Prince William
Sound, as you know, runs up into
Alaska from the south, and the main
ports on the east side of Prince W il
Ham sound tire Cordova and Valdez.
Out of Valdez runs the government
roud. not a railroad hut a wagon road,
which runs up over the mountains and
up to Fairbanks.
"There were those who advocated
putting in a railroad from there, tun
neling the mountains and following
the line of that wagon road. Cordova
is a town created as the terminal of
what is known as the Guggenheim
road, which runs front Cordova a lit
tle southward over the flats and then
follows the line of the Copper river
•tp to Chitina. and from Chitina south
easterly to the mines that the Gug
gonheime own in Kennecott, very rich
topper mines.
; "The, road was originally built to j ^
serve those mines. It is a wonderfully |
rich deposit of copper. They only ship',
out. as I understand, the richest of 11
their ores, and, the railroad and the L
mines Itelng owned by (lie same peo- ,
Itle. they can charge themselves any |
rate they see fit. The road is about ,
300 miles long, and they charge!;
themselves $23 a ton for that 300 mile ;
j hat’ll. On the basis of that traffic.
I which is pretty much all the traffic t
they have — there is a small per-ji
tentage that is not originated at their t
mines — they were able to make op-',
prating and maintenance expenses. In <
the last four years, lor which 1 sawji
the ligures. amounting to about $000.- ,
ooo. (
"That road could connect at (’hitina
with another road running north j
through the ('hitina valley, up to the
Tanana valley, and then across the j
Tanana river to Fairbanks. That route
would be a little bit shorter in mile
age than a route running from Sew-,
ard to Fairbanks.
"I do not intend to give all of the j
reasons the President had in his mind J
for his conclusion, hut these are some;
of them, f am sure. The purpose of
the statute was that Alaska should be
developed by this new road.
“Now. there was a road in existence.
To have gone north front (’hitina to
Fairbanks would have meant the ex- t
tending of that line, and would have c
left the country to the west without t
a road. By going from Seward to i
Turnagain arm. from there to the Ma-|c
tanuskn coal fields, from the Mata-|c
ntiska river up through the Stisitna \
valley, across Broad Pass down to the '
Tatiana, and then over to Fairbanks, j a
you have a main road which taps two|l
coal fields, the Matanuska coal field r
I which would supply the navy with , f
coal —that coal having been tested and jli
found very valuable for naval pur-|c
poses — and the Nenana coal field, i a
which is a high grade lignite that is, ti
J needed for the interior of Alaska to, v
supply the mines around Fairbanks. |
It is about 110 miles from the Nenana I a
coal fields into Fairbanks, and that ti
I road can be built on very good grades, ' ii
"So that, by building the west side d
| route you have a through road front jo
tlie interior of Alaska to the ocean; j
join have a good harbor; you have two11
coal fields, one to serve the coastal a
territory and the navy; and you open s
up a district that is very promising i;
agriculturally and much more promts- "
Ing mtnerally. There are prospector* p
all through the Mount McKinley coun-j
try, which comes within 10 or 12 miles
of the proposed route. p
"There are some small quartz pro- it
parties up that vallev, and its future t
i
i probably a different future from the f
ther gold propositions in Alaska, j
hich are pretty largely placer. They]
xpect to develop that as a real quartz
roposltlon. If so, of course, machin
ry has got to be brought in. and a
ailroad Is an absolute necessity be
ore the country can be developed.
“Then, by going up the Susitna val
F>y. you also have an opportunity to
trike across the mountains to the
westward into what is known as the
ditarod country, where there are now
ome placer mines, and a large ter^
itory that is generally known as the
(uskokwim country. Ttiat is not de-i
eloped and very little is known about
t, but it seems to be rather jfromis
ng.
"At any rate, by dividing this line
lorth and south you can switch over
o the west into the Kuskokwim conn
ry, which would not he a practicable
hing to do with a line running from
'hitina north. Moreover, the probn
lility is that this route can, on the
vhole, be built for as little money,
nd perhaps less, as the other route.
"We bought this road for $1,150,00ft.
(Continued on Cage Three.)
A! NATIONAL
I
✓ _j. I
_ |
The correspondent of the Post-In
elligencer in Washington says that a
urious fact, which sets this session
f Congress apart front any oilier in
ecent years, is the marked absence
f Alaskans. Ever since the Klondike1
ays, and down to this session, each I
inter has witnessed the gathering in
V’ashington of numerous Alaskans
nd Seattle people interested in Alas
a. Hut since the passage of the
ailroad bill, when they gathered in
arce to work for the measure, they
ave been dwindling in number and’
nly one or two. like such veterans
s Falcon Josiiu and 1>. A. McKenzie,
ave been seen about the capital this
'inter.
And although the session is well
dvanced. Delegate Wickersham lias
ot started a single fight, which also
i record breaking. And further, the
elegate seems to lirj^ve no Intention
f starting anything.
The writer comments on the fact
tat at times past Alaskans were usu
lly divided Into rival camps. This j
ession there is not enough of them
i tiie capital lo make one good camp,
hich may account for the prevailing i
race. i
A meeting of the Cordova fire d t
urtment will be held Thursday even -:
ig, and a full attendance of the mem- :
ci&is requested.
I’AUIS. Feb. S. — The war depart
ment Issued an official communique
this morning, stating that artillery
engagements of terrific intensity were
being engaged in that section
of the front between the LaBassee
canal to a point south of the Somme
river, Berlin official reports note the
same thing, no comment being issued
by either war office as to the advan
tage for either side being gained.
STATESMAN DIES
■■■- ■■
CLARINDA, Iowa. Feb. 8. — Colonel
\V. M. P. Hepburn, an ex-congress
man, died here today. Colonel Hep
burn was one of the leaders of the
Republican party in Congress for
many years, and made many notable
speeches on the floor of the House.
Hepburn was always recognized as
one of the ablest advocates of building
up our merchant marine by the use of
subsidies.
rail's ib
BILL MILS FOB
BUCHAREST, Feb. 7. — Another
■redit bill wtft introduced in the par
lament today, giving further evidence
if the active preparations being made
jy the government for military opera
ions. The new bill brings the total
imount to be expended this year on
he army up to $120,000,000.
-:o:
Geo. Hazelet returned yesterday
rom Seward, having attended a meet
ng of the Republican Territoria Cone
nittee.
J. E. Moulton, representing the Se
ttle Hardware Company, Is in town.
Mrs. J. C. Van Orsdel, of Anchor
ige, came to Cordova on the steamer
'forthwestern yesterday.