Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-01-11
ALASKA'S FAIR FUTURE.
A TALK WITH THE TERRITORY,s
FIRST GOVERNOR.

An sreS Equal to that of all the States
East of the mississippi River-Magnifi-
cent Distances, With 70 COnVeniences
for Covering Then-Indians Who Are
Willing to Work.
Correspondence Of the Morning Ee4os.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 9.-Among the re-
cent arrivals il Washington is that of
Hon. John n. Kinkead, the first Governor
of our far off and little known possession,
Alaska. 1t is curious fact that after
paying S7,O00,0O0 for Alaska, after having
found 1t even as an unorganized territory
bringing an annual income of a quarter of
million dollars into the Treasury, and
after knowing that the people Of that sec
ton were actually suffering for some or
gained form of government, the authori-
ties should have been nearly twenty years
in taking steps to organize the simplest
form of civil government there. And it is
equally curious that after the law was
enacted organizing this government and
providing means to carry it into opera
tiOL, the Governor Of that country should
find it necessary to come here 10 urge that
the work be done.
You see," said, Gov. Kinkead, as he
sat in his comfortable room at WelCker's
and strOked his gray beard thoughtfully,
you see, il was a six months task to
get & letter here and get action of any
sort. 1t seems strange, don't it? But
it's fact. You see, we only have mails
once month from there. Then it takes
about month for a letter to make the
trip after it gets started. Then so little
is known here about the situation there
that 1t would be almost impossible to
| cover the ground in one letter so that it
would not be found necessary to ask
some further questions, and the result
might be that the session of Congress
would be past before action could be had.
! So | thought it best to come and press
my recommendations in person. l have
! not yet had opportunity to learn the
cause of the delay, but it is nevertheless
| fact that much of the machinery which
| the act organizing the District Of Alaska
! authorized and directed, has not yet been
| supplied. Even if all that the act con-
! templated had been supplied it would
have been quite insufficient to meet the
/ wants of that great and very valuable
country. But insteaG of that we have
! got as near nothing as may be. There
are, for instance, no land laws,
/ and as to the laws governing
the District or under which the govern
ment is to be administered, we have no
I directs the Attorney General to forthwith
! compile and cause to be printed and sup
piled TO us such laws and parts of laws
! as are applicable to the duties of Gov
{ ernOr, Attorney, Judge, Clerk, Marshal
/ and Commissioners, but although these
/ officers were most of them there the laws
were not presented for their guidance,
| and we were entirely without them, and
even without instructions of any sort.
/ On my arrival there the commander OF
/ the naval station who had been maintain
/ ing a police in Sitka, turned the force
/ over TO me, SO that was compelled either
! TO assume the obi alton or else rur the
/ risk OF troubles growing out Of dism ssal
| Of the entire force. The iusufficiehcy of
/ the present laws is shown by the fact
that although Ounalaska is made a
| Judicial point with a resi-
! dent Commissioner ana Deputy Marshal,
1 there is no authorized or direct commune.
! cation with that point, and to avail him
! self OF the District Court tribunal a
! prisoner or litigant must 90 by way of
san Francisco, dependent for the journey
upon occasional and private trauspOrta-
ton. and travelling a distance Of nearly
1000 miles, returning i'll the same man
Der. That you will remember is a cOun-
/ try of great distances and few accOmmo-
datiOns. Why, Ounalaska is 1920 miles
in direct line from Sitka, and the Fur
Seal Islands, which the Governor is
! directed to visit occasionally, as though
! they were few miles off the coast, are
! loo miles away, with no means of COM
muuication unless it might be by a
method similar to that mentioned to reach
! Ounalaska."