TAWANA LEADER
Vol. 1
Published Every Thursday at Tanana, Alaska,
BY GIBBON PUBLISHING CO.
Gee. Jf. Arbickte, Manager
No. 28
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AUDITORIUM NEEDED
The visit during the past week of a small troupe of tal
ented “wandering minstrels” did much to emphasize to the
people of Tanana the great need of a public hall of large
seating capacity.
The very limited space of the hall at Fort Gibbon,
packed to the doors, was altogether too small for the proper
production of a play or specialty acting that requires ac
tion. Considering the numerous handicaps under which
the players acted, their performances were highly creditable
and much enjoyed by our townspeople.
As Alaska becomes more and better known to the greal
Outside world it will, of course, be visited each succeeding
year by a corresponding increase in the number of visitors
—some for sightseeing, others are globe trotting, and many
on business; amusement enterprises will gradually begin
putting Alaska on their summer-route books. Tanana, sit
uate as it is at the confluence of two mighty rivers, is cer
tainly a point where all visitors will expect to see something
other than a prosaic native mission and the daily routine of
the military post.
The people of Tanana and Fort Gibbon are certainly
entitled to see and, as has been demonstrated, are willing
to pay generously for good attractions, consequently a large
town hall of adequate seating capacity is the one essential
to make such affairs possible.
OUR NEWEST NORTHWEST
In his “New York Day” speech at the Alaska-Yukon
Exposition in Seattle yesterday Gov. Hughes carried a tri
bute from the East to the far Northwest of the continental
United States.
Alaska was bought from Russia in 18G7 for reasons ol
international politics rather than in the expectation of im
mediate commercial benefit, like Jefferson’s Louisiana Pur
chase two-thirds of a century earlier. In 1874 people were
still branding it worthless in almost the same terms applied
in 1844 by Webster and others to “barren Oregon.” Each
new Northwest in turn—Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, Ore
gon, Alaska—has suffered such detraction.
Alaska cost about $7,000,000. Gen. Greely, writing in
the Geographic Magazine, computes that since the purchase
its exports alone have totaled $327,000,000. Its furs were
were 90 per cent, of all its products up to 1880. Since 1900
its fisheries have boen seven times, its minerals 13 times as
important as fur. Of gold $500,000,000 may still await the
miners; of many other metals found there no one knows
how much.
The greatest source of future value remains undevel
oped. Alaska is as large as Germany, France, Japan, Hol
land and Denmark. Almost anything that will grow in
New Yoi*k will grow in Alaska, and the commoner North
ern staple crops thrive at all the six agricultural experiment
stations and at private farm3 far beyon 1 the Arctic circle.
Special Agent Georgeson speaks well of the grazing. Alaska
should prove as fertile as Finland and can support in the
same ratio a population of 6,000,000. If Prof. Crookes and
other pessimists are right in predicting a world-wide wheat
famine, the Territory will become a vast granary, a posses
sion of untold value.
Alaska is a white man’s country. As in Norway, the
Remember
The Grand Hotel
WHILE STOPPING IN T A NANA
UP-TO-DATE ROOMS AND BUNKS, AI.SO GOOD DOG HOUSES.
FINE WINES, LIQUORS AND CIGARS,
Pool And Billiard Tables In Connection.
Charley Chanquist Prop.
JACK O’HARA
JACK HUNNEWELL
The Northern
SULLIVAN CITY
Again at the Old Stand in Our Brand-New Building.
We Carry Only tire Best Wines, Llqnnrs and Cigars
Discovery Roadhouse
JIM DRUMMOND, PROP.
Good, Clean, Comfortable Beds. <
Warm Horse and Dog Stables
NO BAR SULLIVAN CITY
coast is kept comparatively warm by a sub-tropic current.
It has progressive, electric-lighted towns full of educated
jeople. We bought no war in buying it; acquired no in
defensible claim to military dominion over millions of aliens.
The 27,000 natives are wards, not enemies.
If American colonial enterprise had never left the con
tinent, what reasons should we not have for pride in our
last outpost on the Pacific ?—N. Y. World.
The town of Tanana is to be congratulated on the suc
< essful institution of a local camp of the great Northland
order, the Arctic Brotherhood. A lodge of this character
means much to the community. There is scarcely a town of
any importance in the North but what has a thriving camp
of Arctics, and wherever a camp exists it is always taking
the initiative in furnishing amusements for the locality, and
everybody, young and old, are benefitted by having such an
admirable organization in their midst.* The Leader cordi
ally greets the new lodge sister—Camp Gibbon No. 25—and
extends its best wishes.
TRADING AT HOME
Perhaps there is no one question that is more persistently and
thoroughly threshed out hy the press of Alaska than that of patron
izing home industry. Pick up any paper and you are almost sure
to see an article along, these lines. The newspapers are continu
j ally fighting to retain trade at home for their home merchants; and
j yet, too often these same merchants, when they want printing done,
i sertd away to the states for it.
There are a few—a very few—Juneau merchants who follow
! this policy, who yet feel mortally offended if it were suggested to
! them that if they traded at home they would have more right to
expect others to trade at home with them In most cases the argu
ment is advanced that they can get their priming done cheaper in
Seattle than they can here. This is true in most cases. It is
equally true that the average consumer can purchase the average
commodity cheaper below than he can of his home merchant. And
it is truer still that this is false economy. For every dollar that you
— be you merchant or consumer—send below is gone, never to re
turn, while every dollar spent here stays here, is kept in circula
i tion. and ultimately will find its way again into the pocket of the
spender.
It may seem cheaper to send $4 to Seattle than to pay $5 for
the same article in Juneau—but is it? The $4 leaves the town, and
leaves it permanently. The $5 stays here and helps build up the
trade.—Juneau Transcript.
TWO DEAD MEN
Two men are dead in our little town, and one with money was
loadee down; and one was of the good long green- -a humble cog in
the Big Machine. Of what avail are the rich man’s rocks? They’ll
nail him down in a costly box; and gorgeous garlands the heirs
will bring, and the priest will preach and the choir will sing, and
prancing horses will haul the hearse—the price will come from the
dead man’s purse. But not a mourner is really sad; the eyes may
weep when the heart is glad. The dead man never had in his soul
another wish than to swell his roll; he lived to gather the shining
bones; he pinched a dime till you heard its groans. The other man
who has crossed the line, and whom we’ll plant in a box of pine,
was ever ready to help of cheer when old Miss Fortune was camp
ing near; to help the troubled or soothe their pains he'd go right
down in his old blue jeans; “to help a neighbor’s a pleasure, sure’’
—and that was the logic that kept him poor. He’s dead and gone,
and the people grieve; and they shed real tears—not the make-be
lieve.—Walt Mason.
Billy Hearst Would be President
Buffalo, Aug. 15.—“The peopls have made cowards of their
congressmen,” said Leslie. M. Shaw, the former secretary of the
treasury, before a large audience in the Chautauqua auditorium,
speaking on what he called “Evolution of Matters Governmental.”
“Never before has there been such an exhibition of cowardice
in the halls of congress,” said Mr. Shaw. “Every man who has
dared to follow his own convictions and vote according to those
convictions will be retired by the people when his name comes be
fore them for re-election.
“If Roosevelt, Taft and Bryan were to die tomorrow the nom
inee of one party would be William Randolph Hearst, and the
nominee of the other party would be Robert M, La Follette. And
the people of the country would elect Hearst.
“Uncle Joe Cannon is not a coward—in this respect he is ex;
ceptional in this congx-ess. Sherman is a brave man. He is true
to his convictions, but he has had a hax-d fight. And he has won.
“This country in the evolution of matters governmental has
now the most centralized government in the world, not excepting
Russia.
“We have got to that stage in our evolution where we expect
the executive department of the government to make the laws,
u urping the functions of the legislative department. The con
stitution has now become a book laid away on a table about which
gather now and then the directors of this government.”
CONGRESSMAN SULZER
EXPLAINS HIS SPEECH
Seattle, Aug. 19.—Congress
man William Sulzer, of New
York, explained in a newspaper
interview today that he must not
be taken too literally when he
suggests that Alaska should be
divided into three territories.
The number three is one which
naturally occurs to a person who
has followed the history of
Alaska, but the country is rich
enough to warrant a still further
division, Moreover, he did not
wish to be understood that such
a division was immediately desir
able and necessary, but ulti
mately it must come.
Mr. Sulzer is an ardent advo
cate of a territorial form of gov
ernment for Alaska; this, he
says, is necessary, and should
be granted immediately. The
HAS GOOD CLEAN-UP
ON TOFTY GULCH
Kglar & Wallick, on Tofty gulch ,|Sulli van creek district, last week
made their first clean-lip of the summer on their extensive open-cut
workings. Their secured $16,000 therefrom—double the amount they
expected to realize, consequently the world looks considerably brighter
to them.
They have spent most of the spring and summer stripping their
ground, and had about 75,000 square feet ready for the scrapers and
sluice-boxes, and intend to make things hum in that area during the
balance of the sluicing season. It is estimated that 9,600 square feet
had been scraped at the time the $16,000 of last week was washed up.
Will Prospect in the Novikaket
Charles Fernander, who recently sold his interest in the Dakota
association, Sullivan creek, to l.is partners, Messrs. Baker & VVinde,
and started for the I.inoko, stopped at the Novikaket on his way down
river, a.id after investigating the creeks thereabouts has decided to re
main in that country the coming winter to prospect.
August I’elky, one of the pioneers of the Novikaket distiict, is a
visitor in the city for a few days. He came here to secure a boiler and
ati outfit lor the winter.
great publicity which Alaska is
receiving through the fair en
courages him to feel that con
gress will be more liberal with
Alaska at the next session.
The Hamilton Watches have arrived
at outside prices and if you are nearly
blind I have the goods. Examination
free. Pick out a nugget and send home.
Lynn Smith, Jeweler.
See us for Cloth Posters.
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