The Alaska citizen., 1910-07-23
Fur Flies and Populations Shattered Meeting Held Last Thursday Night Wrkem
 Charges ShakeHord With Being Paid Lobbyist # the Interests
Wickershan

! to the voice of the tempter. He had opposed the bill for an elective leg islature which the delegate had intro ed. The president favored a bill pre- pared by branch of the war office. It had been introduced by Senator Beveridge, but it was so bad that the senator had to wash his hands i of it. The delegate read extracts from the bill, which provided that of the nine members, one or more might be army officers. He pointed out that there was nothing in the bill preventing the whole of the mem- bers being army officers. It said one or more, and that any officer ap- pointed as commissioner of the in terior should also be chairman of the road commission. The bill was plainly intended for the benefit of Major Richardson, and the fattest job was for the major. It was ad mitted at Washington that the major was the man intended for the posi- tion, and he had heard it said that Shackleford was to have been the attorney-general, an ideal appoint ment for that form of graft. GA voice: Another Abe Spring). The scope of the bill was very wide one, as some of the powers conferred show This nominative council could grant franchises, privileges, and the con trol of public utilities, and nowhere in the bill was any limit put on the power; no limit to the power of taxation; no limit whatever
 Shackleford and the Bill.
 The delegate stated that his only offence had been that as a freeborn Amor jean citizen he had refused to permit it's passage. He would rather have his right hand cut off than that the bill should pass. The Fill ipinos and the Porto Ricans elected one-half of their representatives and nowhere under the flag is such a form of government as the Beveridge bill in force. When Shackleford wrote the Orr platform, because Orr could not do it himself, he was prac tically endorsing Taft and the Bev eridge bill
 Wickersham also said that when he found out that the bill was about to be rushed through he demanded hearing. This was at first denied him, but he persisted, and at last was granted 15 minutes, which he stretched out to two hours, and more the next day. He said that when the senators realized the un-American na- ture of the bill they were furiously angry He said that Alaska is in debted to Senator Borah, of Idaho, for his work against the bill and also to Senator Nelson for getting the bill amended to include certain fea- lures taken from the Wickersham bill.
 Wickersham an lnsurgent.
 Referring to Shackleford's state ment that he was a good Republican Mir Wickersham said that as for himself he was a Roosevelt lnsur- gent Republican. Roosevelt, who is the greatest American of the day, had recommended self-government for Alaska. He (RoosevelD would never have proposed such measure as the Beveridge bill. He was an Insurg- ent because he was independent. He would rather be a Democrat than a hide-bound Republican. He would not submit to the party lash, even if the president himself held the whip. When ordered to get into line he would refuse. They could get 40 letters from the president and he would not do it.
 The Road Appropriations. Mir. Shackleford had said that he was opposed to the road approprla- tion, and that it was through him that we only got s100,00O. Major Richardson was an army officer and so would not lie. Richardson had said that $350,000 would last for two years, 1909 and 1910, and they gave him that amount. The major did not then appear personally, but wrote letter asking for $100,0O0 for extra work rendered necessary by wash outs and also for $5O,OOO for road in the Iditarod. The S100,000 was obtained at his request. The s5O,- 900 was subject to a point of order raised by senator from Arkansas, who opposed it. Richardson had ob- tained all that he had asked for otherwise.