Keep Your Friends In
formed by Sending Them
The Chitina Leader
k
Opening of Bering Goal
Means Smelters for
Cordova
I
Ore Shipments From Copper River Valley Are Over $2,000,000 Each Month
FITH YEAR.
CHITINA, ALASKA, TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 1915.
NUMBER 54.
TWO TRAINS DAILY
C. R. & N. W. RY.
The development of the mineral belt tributary to Cordova
has resulted in increased tonnage and in order to facilitate the
handling of this business the Copper River Northwestern Ry.
will shortly inaugurate a train schedule that will afford mine
operators needed transportation facilities and cause Alaskans
to rejoice in the fact that a new era has dawned for the terri
tory.
While Cordova enjoys the distinction of having the only
broad-gauaged railroad in Alaska which was constructed at
an approximate cost of $20,000,000 an maintains a regular sche
dule a distance of 196 miles to the rich copper, gold quartz and
placer mines of the Interior, the latest innovation will cause our
residents, as well as the people in the states, to marvel at the
sendee about to be inaugurated.
Two trains a day—twelve trains a week-are to be run
over this road. One will leave Cordova even* morning for
Chitina and Kennecott and the other will start from the latter
places. Heretofore there has been from one to three trains a
week, and’ in order to give the extra service considerable ad
ditional equipment has been ordered, at a cost of several hun
dreds of thousands of dollars. It includes another rotary, a
number of standard make locomotives and engines and many
freight cars.
The trains will handle passengers, mail and freight, with
dinning car attached', and the volume of business offering has
justified the Copper River & Northwestern railway in going
to considerable expense in taking care of it. The Bonanza and
Jumbo copper mines at Kennecott are working to capacity and
their output alone has a value of from $1,500,000 to $2,000,000
per month. Extensive development work has been done during
the past summer on the Mother Lode Copper Mines property,
near McCarthy, and considerable ore has been blocked out and
is awaiting shipment to the smelter. The Alaska Consolidated
Copper Company has opened up a big ledge on the Kuskulina
and will be on a shipping basis this winter, while the owners of
the Lakina Mines, on Castle mountain, are now building a
wagon road from the mouth of Alii 1 creek to the mine on the
mountain, from which part tin1 ore will be hauled direct to the
railroad without transfer.
These are among the biggest producing copper mines and
when all are shipping their output Falcon Joslin’s statement
in Washington last year that a double tracked railroad through
the Copper River valley would be necessary within the next
five years to handle the ore production of this section will be
a reality in a much shorter time. With a stmulated copper
market many low grade properties are likely to be opened up
and negotiations are now pending for the taking over and
working of the large body of gold quartz at McKinley Lake, but
thirteen miles from Cordova, and along the line of the railroad.
Mining experts are on the ground making an investigation and
the assays of the ore are such as to justify the erection, at
once, of a hundred stamp mill, as most of the ledges have al
ready been cross-cut and show good values.
Every precaution has been taken in order to provide
against climatic conditions interfering with traffic on the rail
road' during the winter months. Three rotaries will be in
operation and a “Y” trestle is being built at Mile 39, with
snowsheds wherever needed, and the lumber will be here in a
few for additional section houses to be erected at Tiekel and
Shuslianna Junction. New trains crews will be put on and
more men employed on the railroad than at anytime since it lias
been in operation, all of which means a season of activity for
Cordova.
DELEGATE SAYS
Judge James Wickersham, of Fair
banks, Delegate to Congress from Al
aska, was an arrival in Cordova last
night and will spend several days here
before proceeding to the westward.
He Intends visiing Valdez, Seward and
Anchorage and at the latter place will
make an Investigation of the manner
In which the government railroad is
being constructed, in order to familiar
ize himself with that work before re
turning ti his duties at Washington.
Judge Wickersham is naturally in
terested in having the Commission
begin active railroad work from both
ends of the line next summer, as only
surveys have thus far been made in
the interior, where the people are
anxious to see the first rails laid to
the Nenana coal fields, as this fuel Is
badly needed for mining purposes.
In the opinion of the Delegate but
little or no opposition will be en
countered by Secretary Lane in se
curing from Congress the necessary
appropriation to rush the railroad to a
speedy completion. He explained that
Representative Fitzgerald and Con
gressmen from Georgia and Oklahoma
were strong in their opposition to the
the passage of the railroad bill, and
particularly bitter aganst the clause
jihlah-Monld empower the issuance of
$35,000,000 worth of bonds. This
clause was finally eliminated from the
act with the understanding that there
would be no fight made by these op-'
ponents of the original measure'
against the money being appropriatted
for the road at the coming session of
Congress.
Accordingly, as explained by Dele
of the interior has to do is to put the
of the Interior has to do is to put the
amount of money he thinks will be
needed by the Alaska Railroad Com
mission in the estimate which he fur
nishes of his expenses for the ensu
ng year, and congress will appropriate
the money without question. The
noney is there, and it does not re
quire an act of congress to get it.
An act of congress provides $35,000,
000 for the construction of the Alaska
railroad. The bill has passed, the
money has been appropriated. As the
secretary of the interior needs it, he
can ask for it.
-:o:
ALAMEDA SAILS SOUTH
WITH MANY PASSENGERS
The steamer Alameda sailed at 3
o’clock this morning with a good pas
senger list and a cargo of copper ore.
Those leaving from Cordova were as
follows:
C. C. Keenan and wife, P. B. Hyde,
P. Meehan, Mrs. Maude Rice, Mrs. D.
C Steel, N. Hawkinson, J. Moriarlty,
P. Baterno, P. A. Jones and wife, J.
B. Ferrell, Chas. Kitsman, Mrs. T. J.
Erickson, J. M. Rhodes, Chas. DiMme**
August Bostram, Mrs. A. J. Nelson,
Mrs. Harry Edwards, Harry Wagned,
Ben Johnson, J. D. Relgh, E. P. Short,
Elmer Swanson, D. C. Coder, Henry
Shoemaker, W. J. Nolan and wife, L.
C. Hess and wife.
NEW CANNERIES WILL BE
ERECTED THIS VICINITY
N. Hawkinson, of Bellingham, Wash.,
who has spent the past few weeks
along Prince William Sound, looking
up a site for the establishment of a
cannery, returned home today to make
his report to his associates. Mr.
Hawkinson was non-commitall as to
their plans but admitted that the best
reds to be found anywhere were in the
waters adjacent to Cordova and that
he intended to return north within six
ty days and begin the work of erecting
his plant, preparatory to next season’s
catch. Just where the cannery will
be located he was not at liberty to say.
-:o:~
KILLED JT
LONDON, Oct. 30—John Prentiss
Poe, the famous Princeton football
player, and one of the first of the
family to obtain national reputations
as football players, was killed recently
while fighting as a private in the Eng
glish army in northern France. Poe
was known in Alaska as he was of the
party which completed the boundary
survey between Alaska and the Yu
kon territory.
RAILROAD WORK
MENDED
SEWARD, Oct. 30—Seven miles of
steel rails have been so far laid from
Anchorage in the direction of the Mat
anuska coal fields which will be all
that the commission will do in that
regard for the present season. Of the
three railroad commissioners, Mr.
Riggs has left for Washington, and
Chairman Edes will follow on the Ad
miral Evans. Lieutenant Mears will
remain in Anchorage until the freeze
up and may stay all winter.
-:o:
OLD MAN
IS DEAD
LONDON, Oct. 30—Sir Charles Tup
per, who in common with the late
Lord Strathcona had earned the title
of “Canada’s Grand Old Man” died
here last night. Tupper was horn in
Nova Scotia, and educated for the
medical profession. He took an active
interest in politics and was elected to
the Nova Scotia parliament and be
came speaker of the house. When
the confederation was established in
1867 he took a prominent part in the
proceedings and was made Minister of
Customs. Always a Conservative in
politics he was later made Minister of
Railways and Canals, and through his
efforts the great era of railroad con
struction in Canada was materially
aided. In this post he carried out the
government policy for the enlarge
ment of the Welland Canal, deepening
of the St.Lawrence river, improvement
of the Intercolonial railway and the
construction by a private company of
the Canadian Pacific railway.
-: o:
Charles Kitsman has left for on a
trip to the states.
-:or
C. H. James and Thos. P. Thibo
dem, of Chisana, arrived in town on
yesterday’s train.
-:o:
The repair ship Prometheus ex
pects to return to the states sometime
next week.
SEATTLE. Oct. 28—A cable mes
sage was received here today froih
Louis Lane, whose power boat, the
North Star Is frozen up in the Arctic
ocean. The cable comes from Circle
City to which place Lane has mushed
from the Arctic, and states that he is
on his way to Seattle, coming out
through Cordova with a dog team.
FAIRBANKS, Oct. 28—Captain
Louis Lane of the steamer Polar Bear
is on his way from Circle to this city,
and on his arrival here will leave im
medately for the outside via Chitina
and Cordova. Lane sold his boat to
the explorer Stefannson before quit
ting the Arctic, and mushed with a
dog team from there to Circle. He is
accompanied by two men named Dair
and Burt who made the trip to the
Arctic last summer for pleasure pur
poses, and to secure some big game
trophies. Lane should reach this city
next Sunday.
:o:
NOME, Oct. 28—Although It Is more
than a year before the next territorial
election will be held politics are be
ginning to simmer here and a strong
Republican club has been organized.
Harmony prevails in the Republican
ranks of Seward peninsula for the
first time in years and the Seward Re
publican club starts off with a mem
bership of more than one hundred.
The club has gone on record as fa
voring Senator B. P. Millard, of Val
dez, as the Republican candidate for
delegate to congress and will instruct
their delegates to the convention to
fight for him first, last and all the
time.
Seward is favored as the place for
holding the convention and Judge
Schofield and former Mayor William
Gilmore will represent the republicans
of the Second division by proxies in
the convention.
Gilmore, who is a prominent attor
ney and was the Republican candi
date three years ago, has been en
dorsed by the local republicans to be
one of the delegates to the National
Republican convention from Alaska.
-:o:
THIS RUN
TACOMA, Oct. 29—The Pacific Al
aska Navigation Co., not to be out
done by its rival, the Alaska Steam
ship Co., ^has purchased two addi
tional boats to be put on the run be
tween this city and Cordova. The
boats in question are the lake freight
ers Rutland and Ogdensburg, and they
will both be given new names with
Admiral as a prefix. The two vessels
are of 1700 tons net burden but can
carry 3000 tons of ore each.
The Ogdensburg and Ruthland are
twin freighters and were built at
Cleveland, Ohio, in 1906. They have
a gross tonnage of 2,329 and a net
tonnage of 1,673; length, 242 feet;
greath, 43 feet; depth, 265 feet, with
a crew of twenty men.
-:o:
L. C. Hess, vice president of the
First Natioanl bank, at Fairbanks, ac
companied by his wife, president of
the Women’s Civic Club at that place,
came to town yesterday on their way
to visit the Panama exposition.
POLITICAL GAME
Delegate Wickersham left Fairbanks
on Saturday for Corilova coming by
automobile over the trail as far as
Chitina. He is on his way to Wash
ington, but will visit all the towns
along the coast before he enters upon
his congressional duties. He has made
no announcement of his candidacy for
re-election it is generally believed that
the Judge intends again entering the
race and that he would not be adverse
to receiving the Republican nomina
tion, if he can secure it.
While it is known that Judge Bun
nell is also seriously considering be
ing a Democratis aspirant for this
honor, it is said that at least one,
and possibly two regular Republicans
figure on throwing their hats m tne
ring. The latter believe that next
year spells victory for the G. O. P.
and they want to get under the wire
at the finish.
Of course many things may happen
before the presidential election, at
which time Alaska selects its Dele
gate to Congress, but there is every
indication that there wil be some poli
tics played in the territory within the
tweleve months.
.o.
That the copper properties on the
coast, in the vicinity of Prince Wil
liam sound, at Kennecott and Chitina
are looking good and that they all
have a big future ahead is the opinion
of Matt Larson, the well-known Fair
banks creek man, who returned re
cently. after spending a couple of
months investigating conditions in
those regions. Mr. Larson has some
extensive copper holdings in the Mc
Carthy district and his trip to the
coast was to lock after these.
The working mines along the coast
a're all doing well now as there is a
great demand for copper, but those
in the prospective stage are having
difficulty in getting new capital In
terested. The Bonanza mine, which Is
owend by the Guggenhims, is turning
out more ore than at any time in its
history, and large shipments are going
forward to the states every week.
Within the next few years, Mr. Larson
states that there will be enough copper
properties in operation to keep the
railroad going all the time. The busi
ness will be such that the railroad will
have little time for anything else.
As.soon as the war subsides, there
are a number of properties which will
be developed, as it will then be an
easier matter to get the capital neces
sary to do the preliminary work.
DECISIVE BATTLE BEING
FOUGHT IN MEXICO
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30—It was offi
cially announced today that skirmish
ing between the Villa and Carranza
forces at Agua Prieta had commenced.
The battle will be a deceive one and
if Carranza’s forces are successful
will mark the definite ending of Villa’s
power in Mexico.
-:o:
OUTSIDER WILL BUILD
SHIPYARDS AT KETCHIKAN
John Clark, of Centralia, Washing
ton, who spent the summer in south
eastern Alaska looking over the busi
ness opportunities believes there is a
fortune awaiting the man who estab
lishes a shipyard and marine railway
of the coast of Alaska, and has an
nounced that he will enter the busi
ness at Ketchikan next year. He
plans putting in a plant capable of
handling boats up to 120 feet long.
Nifty job printing at the Times.
Col. W. P. Richardson, president of
the Alaska Road Commission, arrived
in town Sunday on the City Puebla
and left today for Juneau, where he
expects to spend a few days before
proceeding to Washington, where he
will submit his annual report to the
War Department and also endeavor to
receive a much larger appropriation
than usual for the purpose of complet
ing the work on the government trail
from Chitina and Valdez to Fairbanks.
He estimates that it will take $1,000
per mile to put this road in condition
for automobile service.
CORDOVA 1D10
TO INSTALL
TELEPHONES
The Associated Press sends the fol
lowing dispatch from Washington in
reference to the establishmnt of a
wireless telephone at the Whitshed
navy radio station
If the wireless telephone company
which is conducting radio talking ex
periments will install a telephone
apparatus at the government wireless
station at Cordova, Alaska, the next
experiments will be conducted be
tween Alaska and the plant at Arling
ton, Va.
Captain Bullard, superintendent of
the naval radio service, said it may be
some little time before the arrange
ments can be made.
The possibility that Cordova may be
selected is another indication that the
government may have further plans
for the development of that part of the
country, according to the belief of
some of those who know Alaska condi
tions.
The government has already gdne to
considerable expense in placing one of
the most powerful naval plants in
Alaska near Cordova, and it has been
hinted several times that the port
might be made available for naval
coaling purposes.
STR. HAS 10
BE MADE THE
SEATTLE, Oct. 28—The Alaska
'.teamship Company has decided to
spend forty thousand dollars in re
novating their newly purchased steam
ship Kansas City. The boat will be
probably changed to an oil burner,
and the passenger and saloon accom
modations will be made superior to
any ships now running to Alaskan
points. The boat will run to south
western Alaska ports, the increasing
tonnage from Cordova southward mak
ing the purchase necessary.
-:o:
BOOTLEGGERS ROB AND
BEAT GOVERNMENT WITNESS
Charles Gilbert and Jack Stein, of
Anchorage, have been arrested and
held under bonds of |2,000 each on
the charge of having beaten and rob
bed John Teresin- It is believed the
men were actuated by a spirit of re
venge as they are reported to have
been doing a profitable business in
peddling whisky, when they were put
of commission by the activities of the
federal officials. Teresin is reported
to have been a witness against the
bootleggers. The men were tried be
fore the commissioner and were found
not guilty on the charge of peddling
whisky but were convicted of assault
and battery and fined $100 each.
-:o:
C. C. Keenan and wife were among
the outgoing passengers on the Alame
da, bound for a visit to California.
During Mr. Keenan's absence Frank
R. Townsend will be In charge of the
railroad car shops and rolling stock.
-:o.
Nifty job printing at the Times.
BE INSTALLED
Advices from Washington are to the
effect that when the U. S. S. Prome
theus returns here, to repair the dam
age done the naval radio station at
Whltshed, wireless phones are to be
installed, thus enabling Manager Gills’
to talk direct from here to Arlington,
Virgina, with but one relay, which will
be at Seattle when the new wireless
plant there is built.
The_government officials believe the
success which has attended the experi
ments of wireless telephony across the
continent has solved the question of
rapid communication and will permit
of Alaskans keeping in closest touch
with the outside world at a greatly
reduced cost.
STILL GUNNING
FOR SCALP OF
SEATTLE, Oct. 28—Edward Wade,
a former stenographer in the office of
Governor Strong, at Juneau, passed
through Seattle today bound for Wash
ington, where he is going to supple
ment in person the written charges
he has tiled with the president against
the governor of Alaska. Wade alleges
that not only has Strong offended the
democrats by retaining W. W. Short
hill as his private secretary, but he
has also given aid and comfort to the
republicans bp appointing W. J. Smith,
as territorial treasurer, it being well
known that Smith has always been a
republican. Among other caseB of
favortism to republicans in the official
appointments of the governor is men
tioned that of McDonald who was re
cently appointed game warden. Wad*
says that there are plenty of available
democrats for these positions, who are
fully as competent as the republicans
appointed by Strong.
FIR[ DESTROYS
SEATTLE
SEATTLE, Oct. 29—The Dodwell
Pier at the foot of Broad Street, from
which point large quantities of war
materials have been shipped to Vladl
vostock was destroyed last night bjr
an incendiary fire. There was much
merchandize from China and Japan
on the dock at the time, which was
also totally destroyed. The loss is es
timated at over a half million. Two
previous attempts to set fire to this
dock were made last Tuesday but the
flames were quickly extinguished by
the prompt work of the fire depart
ment. At the time of the prvlous at
tempts there was more property on
the dock than last night and the Brit
ish steamer Ixion with a 12,000,000
cargo was also endangered. Since
Tuesday the dock has been guarded by
additional watchmen, and the city and
federal authorities have been search
inf for the incendiary, and despite all
this the attempt last night waa suc
cessful. The Blue Funnel staeam
ships use this pier. The police are
positive that the Are was the work of
German sympathizers, who are try
ing to prevent the continued ship
ments of war supplies to Russia.
-:o:————
Among the interior placer mine op
erators who arrived In Cordova last
night were 0. H. Dittmer, of Cleary
creek; Henry Wagner, of Ooldstream;
Ben Johnson. E. P. Short and Mr. and
Mrs. Nolan. They came from Fair
banks to Chitina on the Auto stage.
--:o;
AU the Real News In the Times.