The evening times., 1898-11-26
Congress Expected to Take Ac.
tiOn at the Coming Session.
GOVERNOR BRADY'S REPORT
Difficult to Prevent the Smuggling
Of Liquor Int the Territory.
Consensus of Opinion Among L'."d-
ing Citizens FarOrs High
License Law.


terror are of the opinion that Congress
Will, at the coming session. provide
system of taxation for Alaska. Early ac-
ton BY Congress upon the report OF the
commission to revise and codify the Grim
inal AMI penal laws of the United states
with regard to Alaska will be urged.
Gov. John c. Brady has called the at
tention of the Secretary of ,ne Interior to
the difficulty of preventing smuggling of
liquor into the Territory. According to
the present regulations intoxicating liq-
uors may be lawfully imported for medic
inal mechanical and scientific purposes
only. under permits issued by the collect
or of customs at Sltka. Special permits
to sell must be obtained from the govern
or. However without a fleet of revenue
cutters and steam launches to patrol the
lortuous channels Of Southeast Alaskan
waters. it has been impossible To enforce
these regulations Smuggling prevails,
and saloons are open i'm all of the towns
ana mining camps. the governor states
that the report Of the Commissioner OF
Internal Revenue FOR 1891 shows that the
deputy collector in Alaska received spe
ciaI tax from Ia retail liquor dealers, six
breWeries. eight retail and one wholesale
dealer in malt liquors. The court has
cndcaVoFed TO deal with those who en-
gage in this traffic but without satisfac-
tory results.
In order to obtain tn. opinions and ad-
vice of the leading citizens of Alaska,
the governor addressed a circular letter
la many of them upon the subject. Their
replies show consensus Of opinion in
favor of a stringent hish-hccnse law
which would tend To stamp out snug
CLING and the selling of liquor to the ma
lives. The governor strongly recommends
that the laws with regard "a the sale of
liquor in the District Of Columbia. en-
acted in 1893 and 1894 be made applica BILE
. To Alaska; provided. however. that no Ii
cense shall be less than $1G0O nor more
than $3.0e0. and that the governor. United
States marshal and district attorney be
constituted an excise board. 10 enforce
the provisions OF said laws. This course
the governor states would have the ap-
pToval of the majority of the citizens,
and would provide revenue ample enough
10 pay nearly all the expenses Of govern
/ ing Alaska.
For the reason that the laws of the
United States relating 10 mining claims
were by organic act Of 1884 declared to
be in force in the district of Alaska
! there has never been any difficulty with
regard TO the locating of mineral lands
in he Territory. The general land laws,
however, are not in force in Alaska. The
governor states: There are no surveyed
lands in Alaska. nor has any system of
survey been provided. II is impos ible
therefore, for a poor settler To acquire
homestead. If he were able and willing
! =, a. I,
no assurance that if viii be accepted by
the Government If he settles az a squat
ter and makes improvements he can not
tell how future surveys may affect him. "
The governor believes that Alaska
should and can pay revenue into the
4 United States Treasury. Under a high
license law he estimates that the liquor
/ traffic would yield an annual revenue Of
/ not less than $2eJ, 00J; tax of q few cents
( per ease of salmon would produce from
: $1,000 TO 5000; - cents per ton on wharf
age collected during the past year would
! have yielded $lG0,0y0 He recommends
/ however, that any system of taxation
for the Territory be deferred until land
| laws shall have been provida
/ Secretary Bliss in his am 4aI report has
urged that an appropriation of So coo be
made for the education of CHI dren in
| Alaska. Thirty thousand dollars has
! been hitherto appropriated annually and
/ has been expended by the Buriau of Edu-
/ cation in maintaining the schools al
! ready in existence. but many new towns
| have sprung up. whore educational faci j.
| ties are urgently needed Ii is said that
the native people of Alaska are now in
a transition state, ready to abandon old
customs and ideas and adopt American
ways of living. They are self-support-
ing; the young men are asking TO be liz
ccnsed as engineers and pilots. to be al
lowed 10 locate land and mining claims
Coy. Brady has recommended that the
rights and privileges of American citiz en-
ship be conferred upon them. He sus-
gets that the leading men OF the tribes
in southeast Alaska be invited to a con-
Vention at Sitka, where they could be
addressed by the governor and other Off
cials, and that sl.500 be appropriated to
defray the expenses of such convention