THE FOURTH NOT PASSED UP
Tanana Came to the Front With a Very Creditable
Program of Sports This Time.
At the very last moment, when it
looked like Tanana would pass up the
Fourth without anything whatever in
the nature of a demonstration, some en
terprising persons set out and collected
ample money for prizes and a very cred
itable program of sports was arranged
for the afternoon.
Interest in the contests never lagged,
and the town can congratulate itself on
having made a start in a direction that
will lead it to greater things in future
years.
A. J. Campbell, J. C. Delm and Theo.
Dieterick were the arrangements com
mittee, and the winners of the events
were as follows:
Boys’ Race, 50 yards—Frankie Cuffe
first, Tommie Cuffe second; $3 and $2.
Hundred-yard Dash — Shultz first,
Wright second; $5 and $:>.
Obstacle Race—Dunaway first, Tom
mie Cuffe second ; .$5 and $2.
Egg Race—Johnson first, Henry Kok
rine second; $5 and $3.
Three - legged Race — Butler - 'Watch
man first, Lundine-Frederickson second;
$8 and $4.
Flag Race— Shultz - Wright - Warsh
man-Pemberton first, Corning-Wright
T. Lundin-O. Lundin second; $10.
Broad Jump—Watchman first, Shultz
second ; $o and $3.
High Jump—Shultz, Wright, Lundine,
Warshman, all tie; $8, split.
Pole Vault—O. Lundine first; $0.
Canoe Race—Basko first, Walter Nic
olai second; $10 and $4.
Horse Race—Teddy Shaw first, Billy
Corning second; $10 and $5.
Motor Boat Race—Sam lleeter first,
Billy Burnyeat second; $10 and $-1.
Potato Race — Tommie Cuffe first
Frankie Cuffe, second; $5 and $3.
Wheelbarrow Race—Green-O. Lundin
first, Dunaway-Underhill second; $10
and $4.
Joe Oats climbed to the top of the
Pioneer flagpole and secured the $20
goldpiece suspended there. Having won
the prize last year, he was compelled to
wait till the other climbers had tried
and failed before he went up.
WM. O’CONNOR
CAMPAIGNING
Labor Candidate Says He Will Win!
the Election Sure.
William O’Connor, the union labor
candidate for delegate to congress, ar
rived in Tanana on the steamer Kovu
kuk last Saturday night and remained
here until the departure of the Sarah
up the Yukon Monday evening.
He went around town and got some
what acquainted, but it can scarcely be !
said that he did any electioneering here.
Mr. O’Connor professes to be confi
dent of election. On the way down from
Fairbanks he spent a couple of days
among the miners on Sullivan creek and
is now on his way to the coast, where
he will visit all sections in which numer
ous laborers are employed. It is from
the laboring class that he is seeking
support and he believes they will vote
for him solidly.
The result of an election is a hard
thing to foretell, but under all the cir
cumstances it appears to the Leader
that Mr. O’Connor’s election is an abso
lute impossibility. However, his candi
dacy is not devoid of interest for the
reason that there is wide room to specu
late on which his vote will cut into the
deepest, the Orr or the Wickersham
forces.
His principal fight is directed against
AVickersliam, and the tliree main points
of attack—how incomprehensible!—are
Wickersham’s miners’ lien bill, his bill
for the inspection of mines, and his at
tempt to remove the power of attorney
and association claim evils. The work
ings of the human mind are past finding
out. Mr. O’Connor may be actuated by
the utmost sincerity. But when he un
dertakes to demonstrate that those
measures were intended as a slap at
union labor lie assumes a big contract.
The Kuskokwim River.
Extract from Bulletin 40, U. S. Geological
Report.
The Kuskokwim is the second largest
stream in Alaska and is perhaps the best
river for steamboating in that country,
with the possible exception of the Yu
kon. Steamboats of large size can ascend
the river about 050 miles to the conflu
ence of its two principal headwater
branches, the East and South forks, and
smaller steamboats have been up the
South Fork about 40 miles above this
junction and no doubt could also ascend
the East Fork for some distance. Boats
with a draft of two feet have ascended
Takotna river, a large tributary of the
Kuskokwim that heads against the
sources of the Innoko, for a distance of
about 60 miles to a point within 25 miles
of Ganes creek, whence supplies may be
forwarded 60 miles farther up the Ta
kotna to the mouth of Big creek, which
is only about 12 miles from Ganes creek.
The Kuskokwim has not been used to
any great extent as a route for the trans
portation of supplies, because the coun
try within its watershed has not been
prospected or developed, as has the
territory within the Yukon basin. An
other reason is that Kuskokwim Bay
and the estuary or tidal portion of the
river a mourn mis ueen consiuereu a
hazardous locality in which to navigate
ocean vessels, but this opinion appears
to be due more to the fact that this part
of the - Alaskan coast is mapped only in
rough outline, and is not known in a
detailed way, even by the very few who
have some personal knowledge of these
waters, rather than the presence of any
real dangers to navigation other than
those caused by lack of acquaintance
and proper charts for guidance. When
accurate surveys of Kuskokwim Bay
and the mouth of the river are made
and the channels that run through its
Headquarters for the Traveling Public
Pioneer and Tower Houses
Two First-class Resorts
The Rooms just fitted up and furnished at the Tower House may cost a
little more—they are certain to afford a lot more comfort
than can he had at other places.
Joe Anicich, Prop. Tanana, Alaska
THE TANANA RESTAURANT
Best Meals in the Camp
Short Orders at All Hours
Best of everything: on the Market. Service unexcelled in the North
Fresh and Delicious Bread, Pies and Pastries Always on Hand
extensive shoals are properly marked,
ocean vessels with a draft of 12 feet may
enter and ascend it to Bethel with safety
and dispatch. In fact, even without
these aids to navigation, vessels with a
greater draft than 12 feet have entered
this river and departed from it success
fully. The United States iish commis-!
sion steamer Albatross, of 63(5 tons and
a draft of 13 feet, ascended the Kusko
kwim about 40 miles in 18S0. A few
years ago another ocean steamer of good j
size, the Leelanaw, of 1,923 tons, went
up the siver to the second in the chan-1
nel 40 miles below Bethel. This point j
has since been known as Leelanaw An-'
chorage. In 1908 the Charles Hanson, j
of 192 tonsaind 12 feet draft, ascended j
the Kuskokwim with several hundred '
tons of freight to Bethel. Thus it may
be seen that the importance of this river
as a route of transportation has not
been fully realized, although it enjoys
the advantage of being one of the two
rivers in Alaska which can lie entered
by ocean vessels of commercial size.
j The other is the Xushagak, emptying!
I into Bristol Bay. i
Go toNussbaum’s Barbershop for first
| lass work.
NATIVES HOLD
AN ELECTION
The local Indians last Sunday evening
| held a mass meeting at the Mission and
j elected three selectmen to supervise
| their affairs for the next year. There
wei^; six nominations and the following j
were chosen: Chief William, with 28
votes; Chief Evan, with 20 votes, and
Paul Williams, with 24 votes. The
qualifications of the voters required that j
l each man taking part should be at least j
| 21 years old.
One of the things that the new board
will try to secure is a portion of the
I civilian labor required at the military
; post for the local natives. They contend
that there are many natives thoroughly
competent to do the labor required at
' the post, and do not think they should
i be discriminated against.
See Jack Cavanaugh for well water and
light express. Scavenger work a specialty.
LUNACY CASE
AT RAMPART
On the* up trip of the mail launch
Messenger she took on at Rampart .Spe
cial Deputy Pres Ireland, armed with a
warrant for the arrest of a man named
Preston, against whom a charge of lu
nacy had been laid ley three men floating
down the river in a small hoat.
Special Deputy Ireland disembarked
at Green’s camp midway between Ram
part and Fort Hamlin. The Messenger
proceeded and picked up the the down
coming mail fourteen miles above Fort
Hamlin. Returning, she reported to
the deputy that Preston was at Clem
Anderson’s camp, 24 miles above Green’s
place. He went up and arrested the
man and landed him in jail at Rampart.
It is said on being arrested Preston
showed no signs of being crazy. His
story was that he had been traveling
with the three men who complained
against him and so much drinking was
going on that he concluded to part com
pany with them. He pulled out alone
and the others overtook him. He went
ashore and they followed and abused
and beat him. His boat went adrift and
was picked up at Rampart.
It has not been learned how the case
ended, but it is not likely that Preston
was convicted of lunacy. From all that
can he found out the men laying the
charge were the crazier ami more blame
able.
Chief Charley Set Right.
Friends of Chief Charley of Minto
request the leader to correct the state
ment printed in these columns some
time ago that he was a principal in the
theft of liquor from the Hodman Alaska
Trading Company’s store. Chief Char
ley was already on his way home to
Minto at the time of the occurrence and
had nothing to do with it. At the time
the arrests were made some of the
natives themselves, on account of the
similarity of the names, believed Chief
Charley had been arrested. The paper
was just going to press and the head
man of Minto was done an injustice
that his friends do not like.