The Chitina Leader
CH1TIXA, ALASKA.
Entered as second-class matter, November 12, 1910, at the postoffice at
Chitina, Alaska, under the Act of Congress of March 3, 1879.
ONLY NEWSPAPER IN CHITINA
Published every Saturday by
WILL A. STEEL—Editors, Managers and Proprietors—HARRY G. STEEL
Office: Hotel Chitina Building. Cordova Office: Daily Alaskan
Seattle Office: 551 Colman Building.
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Six Months . 2.00
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Made known upon application. They will be found reasonable for the service
given. Official publication for legal advertisements pertaining to mineral lands
of the Copper River district.
CHITINA, ALASKA, TUESDAY, JULY 14, 1914.
DEMOCRATIC PRIMARIES SOON
Soon primary elections will be held throughout Alaska to
elect delegates to the Democratic convention to he held at
Skagway, on August 3rd. Cordova and Eyak will he entitled
to seven delegates and Committeemen Tom Price and James
Smith are preparing a call for a primary. At the Skagway
convention a candidate for Delegate to Congress will he named.
As yet tliei'e does not appear to he any avowed candidate,
although William T. Burns, a representative in the legislature,
lias indicated a willingness to accept the nomination. Mr.
Burns is a miner on one of the creeks in the Fairbanks
district and is said to have a large personal following and to
he strong with the laboring man. Another name, that the
Daily Alaskan suggested last winter, is that of Falcon Josliu.
He lias no desire, however, to enter into a contest for the
nomination, hut we still believe that if he could he prevailed
upon to make the run that the new Democracy of Alaska would
realize the wisdom of making him their standard hearer. In
our opinion he is better equipped than any other man in
Alaska to so represent this territory in the halls of Congress
as to secure the most beneficial results for all the people of
the territory. And if lie was the nominee and got into the fight
in earnest, which lie undoubtedly would do, all other candi
dates, including Judge Wickersham, would know that there
was a battle royal on.
HYSTERICAL TARRYTOWN
Half a dozen I. W. AY. agitators who sought to hold an
open air meeting in Tarrytown, the home of the Rockefellers,
were mobbed. The scalps of some of the speakers were laid
open. Others had their eyes blackened. The blackest eye of
all, however, was received by Tarrytown itself, and it was
given that town by its misguided citizens.
Free speech is one of the fundamentals of democracy. Even
a fanatic like Alexander Berkman should not be prevented
from saying what he wants to say. The law is there to take
care of all incendiary utterances he might make. For any town
to stifle free speech with mob attacks upon the speakers is no
credit. The only mitigating circumstance about the Tarrytown
assault probably is the fact that the entire community of
Rockefeller’s home town has been in a silly, hysterical frame
of mind for weeks.
The practical results from the assault upon the T. AAY AA~.
speakers are sure to be the reverse of what the Tarrytown
citizens had hoped. Had Alexander Berkman and his aids
been allowed to speak, their influence most likely would have
ended with their speeches. By denying them free speech and
mobbing them the citizens of Tarrytown have made “martyrs”
of them in the eyes of many. It is just such assaults that give
life to the I. AY. AAh movement. Berkman and his followers
would be soon forgotten if stupid police and over-enthusiastic
citizens would cease to keep them in the limelight by attacking
them.
AN EXPERT OPINION
Our old friend John Ballaine lias transferred the head
quarters of his heap much talk about Alaska from Washington
and Seattle to Seward. He has been north a few days but John
now knows all about the Portage Bay railroad route that the
“Guggenlieims” are boosting. Of course his suggestion in the
latter assertion is just a little nonsense that John’s discolored
vision can’t overlook. V\ e hope he is more accurate in other
parts of his assertions as follows:
“The facts about Portage Pass as a railroad route are at
last coming to be generally understood along the Alaska coast
and in the states, as they have been known for many years by
thousands of Alaskans who travelled over it during the Sunrise
stampede in 1896, ’97 and ’98, and in recent years. Instead of
a main tunnel two and a half miles long, and another of a half
mile, as the Guggenheim employed boosters of that route have
claimed, an accurate survey proves that a tunnel exactly five
and six-tenths miles would be required from Portage Bay to the
Turnagain Arm side of the pass.
“Moreover, such a tunnel would have to go under a glacier
coming down from the high mountains north of Portage Pass
and intersecting with Portage glacier. A tunnel of that length
is prohibitive, and in addition is physically impossible in the
opinion of engineers who have examined it, by reason of the
fact that the intersecting glacier from the north, which the
tunnel would have to go under, in all probability extends down
many hundreds of feet, and the tunnel would have to bore
through that solid mass of moving ice. The Portage Bay
joke has never given the people of Seward one minute of
concern.”
Work was started this morning on Cordova’s new bail
ground. It is expected that by the time the transport Buffalo
arrives the fore part of August that everything will be in
readiness to “play ball.”
There will be a few jobs for the faithful in assembling
exhibite from Alaska for the Panama exposition.
MISS DEMOCRACY HAS EMBRACED ALASKA
When it comes to passing legislation beneficial to Alaska
it seems that the present national administration disregards
all preconceived notions as “there isn’t time this session,”
“It’s too late in the session,” “If we depart from our caucus
program others will insist upon consideration of their bills,”
“We must not be diverted from the anti-trust legislation,”
“Alaska has had enough for one year,” etc. When it had about
been accepted as a certainty here we find the Senate giving us
$100,000 for the fisheries, $50,000 for assembling an Alaskan
exhibit for the San Francisco exposition, and the passage of a
bill exempting railroads from an obnoxious tax of $100 per
mile per annum. And who knows but that other measures may
yet be favorably considered before adjournment.
It is certainly refreshing to Alaskans to know that there
is an administration at the national capital that believes in
action where it concerns matters of real moment to this north
land. During the two previous administrations we were
satiated with promises of what was to be done for us, while
all the time the actions of departments tended to strangle
development and discourage the people who have their home
and interests here. The Democratic leaders in both the Senate
and the House are imbued with the spirit of President Wilson
and Secretary Lane. They really want to benefit us and are
going far out of their way to give us tangible evidence of
that fact.
And we believe that the people of Alaska are beginning
to recognize that their true friends at Washington are the men
in the Democratic party who are largely responsible for the
framing and the passage of legislation. This great territory of
Alaska has been taken under the protectorate wing of Miss
Democracy and the warmth of her favor is already beginning
to inspire hope and courage in the hearts of men and women of
this northland who had become sad and depressed over the
i injustice of the treatment that it had been the custom of other
! administrations to mete out to us. Although we have not yet
had time to experience the beneficial results of legislation
already enacted, there is a feeling that soon we are to come
into our own. And within a year or two we predict that a
wave of prosperity will be sweeping over this section of Alaska
such as will compensate the patient men and women who for
years have been hoping against hope and who had about
arrived at that stage where “hope deferred maketh the
heart sick.”
I
THE PAYMENT OF RAILROAD TAX
Now that the repeal of taxes on the railroads of Alaska
is practically assured, a bill to that effect having passed both
the House and Senate, and which will be signed by the Presi
dent, it may be .interesting to note that but one railroad in
Alaska has ever paid the taxes. The others have either
preferred to go out of business or to run the property in the
j hope that no prosecution would follow and that the tox would
<j eventually be remitte'd. The Copper River & Northwestern
j Railway, however, has regularly paid the tax of nearly
j $20,000 per year ever since the completion of their raih^nd in
j April 1911. And even the tax for the ensuing year has already
I been paid, as Clerk of the Court Lang received on June 25tii
from the railroad the sum of $19,525, for the 19514 miles of
j road in operation between Cordova and Kennecott. And now
to recover this amount it will be necessary that an act of
Congress be passed, for money paid into the treasury can be
recovered in no other way than by legislation.
TRUE WORTH IS APPRECIATED
It is refreshing- to know that at least there is one part of
Alaska where the long and persistent efforts of Falcon Joslin
in behalf of favorable legislation for this northland is duly,
appreciated, at least by some people. At the meeting of the
Cordova Democratic club there were various expressions of
appreciation for the good work that Mr. Joslin has done, and
a general desire was uttered that he might be the Democratic
candidate for Congress, as he is considered the most available
and best equipped man that the Democrats of this territory
could put forth.
POLL TAX GOES A GLIMMERING
1 he poll tax for the year 1914 is now due, if there be any
such word as due in connection with a provision of the Terri
torial Legislature that the federal authorities have declared to
be void. The right of the legislature to levy the tax is not
questioned but it was provided that the United States commis
sioners should be the tax collectors, at so much per. And the
attorney general gave an opinion to the effect that only
Congress had the power to increase the duties of federal
officials. Last year, however, the tax was collected throughout
Alaska before the decision referred to was made. Some refused
to pay on the ground that the act was illegal, and of course
they were not compelled to., This year no attempt has been
made by the commissioners to make collections. Delegate
^ ickersham has offered a bill in the House giving the commis
sioners authority to act in the premises, but there is not much
probability of it becoming a law this year. In the meantime
the citizens of Alaska are congratulating themselves that there
is at least one tax from which they are escaping.
EDITORIAL COMMENT
There is every promise of an unusual mining activity in
the (‘opper River country very soon.
Is there any wonder that the voters of Alaska feel like
becoming Democrats. Every few days we read of some friendly
turn that a Democratic Congress is doing us.
If those Alaskan senators at Washington keep on insisting
for legislation we may have two or three more remedial
measures put through before Congress adjourns. The abolish
ment of the Chugach forest reserve was almost put through
I this afternoon.
Why Not Invest? t
<r
•-- <•
With the building of the government railroad from ^
Chitina to Fairbanks, the future of the Town of Chitina ^
is assured. *
-
Lots are still offered at attractive prices and there ^
are many desirable ones remaining.
- ^
A few months later lots in Chtiina will be held at
largely increased values. Why not invest NOW ? ^
- A
V
GEO. C. HAZELET,
Agent Chitina Townsite Company.
TIN SHOP
IN SHUSHANNa
Xo more need to carry
STOVES and TINWARE
over the lon<{ trail to the
interior, as ive are pre
pared to fill all orders in
our tin shop.
W. H. CARSTENS & CO.
i SHUSHANNA - - ALASKA
Chitina GRILL
Good Eats for Particular People
I Prompt Service. Popular Service.
Next to Chitina Hotel.
—
(chitina : : : ALASKA.
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| 0, ADRIAN NELSON j
| Li. S. Mineral Surveyor |
J |
| CHITINA 5 - - ALASKA |
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CHITINA
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