Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1910-03-18
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AIaska,s Vast Riches.

Benjamin B. Hampton. editor OF
Hampton's Magazine, considers the
subject Of .sWho Shall Own Alaska
The Guggenheims or the People?" OF
so much Importance that he himself
has prepared an article on the subject
for the April issue of that periodical
A table of statistics shows Alaska
wealth to be anywhere from fifteen bil-
lion dollars to a trillion and half.
No man can estimate accurately
the wealth Of Alaska says Mr.. Hamp-
ton, wealth that is today the property
of the people Of the United States
theirs just as surely as if they We're
stockholders in a corporation. Nearly
one quarter of Alaska has not even
been explored. An Alaskan said recent
ly that the only two persons who really
know anything about Alaska are the
Almighty and Alfred H Brooks. The
latter is a member of the United States
geological survey, and we have what
he knows about Alaska.
Mr.. Brooks says that only 20 pei
cent of Alaska has been surveyed al
all. That is, only this much has been
passed over even in reconnaissance
surveys, which barely divide vast
stretches according to their geological
character. Survey in detail has COW
cred less than 1 per cent of the terri
tory. This affords at least some basis
for an estimate. What is known of that
/ per cent. added to what is known
of patch here and there. suggests
the possibilities for the rest.
There is sound reason to believe
there is s5oo,0o0.ooo worth of placer
gold in Alaska. There may be hun
dred or a thousand times that amount
LAS for lode gold mining, there is
practically only one deep gold mine
being worked in Alaska, the Tread
well-the Rothschilds are said to con-
troll that-and it has produced so far
$50 600, 900. There may be at least
s625, 100000 lode gold in Alaska.
LAS for copper. this one item alone
will some day make big crop OF
Alaskan millionaires. The government
survey experts say, sit is impossible
10 estimate the copper reserves" 9th
ers say there is another Montana there
another Arizona.
In coal, the official government fig
ures can be definitely obtained The
coal areas known at this time aggre-
gate 1888 square miles. three times the
area of Pennsylvania coal-bearine
felds-and much of Alaska's Goa
equals or betters PENNSYLVANIA in
quality. In unsurveyed areas there are
some fifty thousand miles OF coal
bearing lands Mr.. Brooks lowest esti-
mate of Alaska's coal reaches the stu
pendous total Of 15,1o4,5o0,ooo tons;
and, he adds, it would be conservative
to multiply this figure by ten, or ever
a hundred. no
| "There are thousands of tons o.
other minerals: silver. quicksilver, tin
lead, iron There is also petroleum
There may be vast quantities OF OF
under large areas. OF silver. 1,s17,oot
ounces have been taken out. 1ror
abounds.
cone great source of weaith-seai-
ing-has been exhausted already. Th'
total on this single item reaches thu
amazing figure of s125,ooo,ooo. Th'
salmon industry produces value o
SO 600, 900 every year.
It is estimated that there are
| 81 900 900, 900 feet of saw timber il
Alaska; probably there is twice tina
much There are agricultural and
grazing lands that may some day sup
port a population of ten million