The daily morning Alaskan., 1900-03-01
SUNDAY SOCIAL.
ALASKA NEWSPAPERS.

if therc is one thing more potential than any other influence in attracting attention to and building up a new country, it is the local newspaper. So far as Alaska Is concerned, and indeed the whole of the territory Of the United States, the enterprise ot the newspaper proprietor has been one of the leading features in the opening up to popula- tiou and civilization of e'ery spot of new territory.
 With a few tools and a tent 10 house them. as was the first beginning of the DAILY ALASKAN in this cityl the news paper proprietor has been in the van Of those who blaze the trail. He has borne all the privations incidental to such pioneer work, has taxed his mental powers tO the utmost to make known to the outside world the glittering pos sibilnies Of the new location, has there by attracted capital and made fortunes for others. Even having done all this. he sometimes fails to gain a com petence for himself, merely because of the evanescent nature of human grat- itude. And sometimes he succeeds even beyond his hopes for they are always modest.
 Southeastern Alaska is well enough represented in the number Of her news papers, but the quality of them is quite another matter. The newspaper pat ronage Of Skagway has always been liberal. and she has two newspapers, one daily and one weekly, of a clear independent character, wholly devoted to the best interests of the district, and of which any community of its inpor. tance might well feel proud.
 Juneau is also liberal patron of her newspapers, but 1t must in justice be said that she gets return very incom- mensurate with the outlay. This pro- ces ds from the very simple fact that she has too many. There are two dailies and one weekly The patronage divided among the three leaves only al modest amount to each. and the two dailies have evidently not enough for either one ofthem to pay for eNPerien- ced news gathererS or expert writers.
 Neither Is there any gool newspaper judgment displayed by these two daily newspapers. 1rty Mttr uay they en- gage their printers in putting into type clippings from other newspapers that have no local bearing, or if they have the Items are what the printer calls "whiskered. and nearly the whole local news they do give is clipped from the DAILY ALASKAN.
 Juneau Is not ready for one daily, much more twO." said one ot Juueau's attorneys while on recent visit Co Sxagway. What we want Is first class weekly. one that will cover the whole field, collect all the news, ably photograph local sentiment, and be a newspaper of so prosperous an appear ance that we can proudly distribute it in the states. This would do for Us what the two dailies are unable Co do. For this most of Juueau's leading men would be willing to pay a yearly sub subscription equal to and in addition Co the published price Of subscription or any reasonable amount.
 Juneau already has a weekly news paper that Is credit to the district. It is better printed, more ably edited and prints more original matter than any weekly in the whole territory. All this Is to b. found in the Alaska Truth
 It Is also fearless and independent; SO fearless that long before the present. "entente cordiale " between Juneau and this city. it dared to mention Skag- way without deprccation or excuse.
 It would not be proper, perhaps, for the DAILY ALASKAN to offer, even in a paternal way, any suggestions to Ju- neau in regard to her newspapers, or to the newspapers themselves. But what the DAILY ALASKAN is anxious to see is Alaska newspapess whose editors are broad.minded enough to look beyond the confines of their own back yards, and to bury all sectional issues in the one paramount desire of representing the best interests of the whole of Alas ka, instead Of those of their own few acres. The example has been set them by Skagway. Our citizens took the first definite public movement to nave the capital of Alaska moved to Juneau, but it would need a second coming of Christ to convince the narrow-minded Juneau dalies of this fact.