Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-08-06
THE PURCHASE OF ALASKA.

THE PURCHASE OF ALASKA.
history of the Purchase-President L lincoln
Alone Should Have Credit for 1t.
have lately seen it in print for the
irst time that VIM. II. Seward said
hat the one act of his lite most to be
,roud of was the acquisition of Alaska.
his, to those who are not ignorant of
he facts, is q remarkable claim. As L
vas minister plenipotentiary from the
United States at st. Petersburg, Rus
'ia, during the time of the purchase
Ind addition of Alaska to the Union.
md Seward Secretary of State-how-
sver. we might both claim to be the
beers of Lincoln in ability-Lincoln
vas our chief, and the honor of that
expansion Of territory belongs to him.
1t is the general-in-chief who wears the
'aurels OF victory, however CALAMITY
his subordinates may have fought. So
FAR, then, as Seward and myself are
concerned, I lay the facts before the
world for the award of honor.
Collins, having explored the route
from America, through Alaska, the
Aleutian Isles, and Siberia to St.
Petersburg, united with Sibley, the
President of the Western Union Tele-
graph Company, to extend their line to
the Russian capital. They placed this
project in my hands, and I got q very
favorable charter from the Russian
Government, one clause of which was
the privilege of q rebate" or g~ratuity,
in common phrase, for all words trans
mitted from the Pacific to st. Peters
burg on Russian lines. Another project
OF mine was to secure to American citi-
zens the perpetual lease of the splendid
coal mines on the island of Saghalien, on
the eastern coast of Russia. A third
was a grant of the Russian Fur Com.
pany's Privileges-for an equivalent
to an American company, in the vast
regions of Alaska. Heretofore the Rus
sian Pacific coast was not open even to
foreign consulships, but an American
consulship was o allowed.
These projects of mine were all cog
nate. The telegraph would free Us
from dependence on the enemies of the
Union by lines in our own possession.
The coal mines of Saghalien were al.
most a necessity of our commerce with
China. Japan, and the Corea. And GU,
acquisitions in Alaska would offer 6
combined force of Americans and Rus
slams against q wal with England
which then seemed imminent. Collins
and Sibley asked not only for a right
of way through Alaska, but for lane
grants for the lines and stations, all O
which were freely discussed by me and
Russian officials in o private and per
sonal way. I found the resources O
Alaska to be beyond price in minerals
and fisheries, and forests, and furs, anl
commercial promise. I wrote to Gov
John A. Andrew, of Massachusetts,, anl
other distinguished citizens and CAPT
tal:sts about these projects. A com
pany was formed in San Francisco, ant
L was engaged to contract with the Rus
san Fur Company for a transfer of 1T
chartered rights to the Americans.
Everything was favorable, when Sew
ard opened up his unfortunate Perkin
claim and completely disguised tn
Russian ~autocrat and Gortchakof witt
American projects. The Saghalien en-
terprise was cut short. The TELEGRAPH
line was refused the rebate" an,
dropped out, Notwithstanding Collins
Sibley, and I did oil we could to hav
the terms confirmed which had bee
made by the Minister of Telegraphs
Count Tolstoi.
Still, the advantages of the transfe
of Alaska were so apparent that, havin,
sounded the Russian authorities, I ha,
formal meetings with the Russian Flu
Company, and the terms were al
agreed upon. When the news came tina
Alaska was purchased outright by tn
United States, Seward sent me q treat
upon "trade marks" which I signe'
and delivered; but he negotiated tn
Alaska purchase, for which he had n
more reason to claim credit than fo
Jefferson's acquisition of Louisiana
There was no American SO odious t
the Russians as Seward, and I ha,
worked up the project and cultured til
tree until the fruit was ripe and fell
by the necessity of the case, into hi
basket.-C. M. Clay, IN New Yor
Oo.oo