The Penn's Grove record., 1911-01-20
minded students Of p~oliticsl

minded students of politics
nomics will recall that he was the man
who throughout the debate In the SEN
ate on the Payne-Aldrich tariff DILL sat
at Aldrich's right hand and furnish
ed all the references and documents
which that eminent champion of the
protected interests had need of in con-
Quoting his fight on the floor. The
connection between Aldrtch, Smoot,
Guggenheim and the Interests" Is OBJ
vious and notorious.
To Exempt Railroad From Taxation.
Now the Guggenheims own this rail-
road running from a harbor in south
ern Alaska, one Of the three harbors
free from ice at all seasons of the
year, up to the coal deposits which
are declared to be greater thai those
of Pennsylvania, Ohio and Illinois COM
bined. The Smoot bill exempts this
railroad from taxation of any sort, and
not merely the railroad company, but
all the railroad property which 1t may
hereafter acquire. In a moment OF
moderation Senator Smoot limited
these exemptions to a period of ten
years. 1t is perfectly obvious that
this railroad owned by the Guggen-
helms can proceed to acquire under ex-
listing laws the ships which carry coal
or copper from Alaska to San Fran
cisco or Seattle, and they, too. would
be free from either taxation or H.
cense fee. AS a piece Of special priv
ilege to be conferred upon a family
group of m%illionaires who already prac-
tically dominate the Alaska situation
this is perhaps unprecedented.
Asks Water Front Monopoly.
But this measure of Senator Smoot
Is not all of the story. Like most min
ing countries, Alaska is made up Of
a series of comparatively narrow can
yons which furnish the only entrances
to the mining district. The Guggen-
helm road controls the n through
which the Copper river runs and pos
sesses already a right of way 200 feet
wide which at some points is practically
the entire width of the gorge. That
! gives it a reasonable monopoly, If any
monopoly can be reasonable, of that
particular gateway to tidewater. But
no monopolist was ever quite salts
fed. The only harbor from which can
be shipped the output of these enor-
nous coal fields without interruption
through the winter season is Cordova.
Another bill, introduced so quietly that
hardly anybody had noticed it, gives
to this same Guggenheim road a right
of way along the water front of Cordo-
va, also 200 feet wide and covering
such a number Of miles that the road
will be able to fence in the town as
against any possible competitor.
Owning the transportation facilities,
all the wharfage, if this bill should
pass, and the steamship lines; and fur
Their, If according to the benevolent
proposition of Senator Smoot, they
| should be exempt from taxation wen
for the limited term Of ten years, the
| Guggenheims would practically own
| the territory of Alaska.
Judge Wickersham on Guard.
Out of this situation may spring ac-
ton of great good to Alaska. Its PEG
| pie thus far have no srmblance of self
| government. In all probability its
population is more purely American
than that of any state In the Union,
but 1t is governed as aro the F1lipinos
by a bureaucracy at Washington, and
- oaso;oIe onpoinfod FROM tho oapitoJ
without any consideration of their
knowledge of its needs. LIS present
governor was a newspaper reporter
here a few years ago, and Is raid to
be merely a fgurehead taking Lrders
from those who secured his appoint
ment. Practically Its only elective Of
ficer is its present delegate to en-
gress, Judge James Wickersham. M.
| Wickersham describes himself as mere.
~ a legalized lobbyist, having a voice
but no vote in congress, which Is of
course the fact. But he watches with
of that great northwest territory OF
ours for just such raids as that con-
templated by the Smoot resolution or
by the endeavor Of the ~Guggenhe1ms
to steal the water front. All he can
do is to argue before the commftte
on territories, or with individual mem
bers of congress. That he does with
a sincerity that proves convincing.
This Is the way he talked to me the
other day about this latest grab:
Would Give Guggenheims Control.
Il think that this is about the
smoothest gum shoe effort that the
Guggenheims have yet made in the d1-
rection of controlling the Alaska coal
fields. If made effective, it would give
them entire control and ownership of
the water front in front of the only
harbor through which the coal from
the Katalla and Behring river coal
fields could be shipped. They would
be in a smaller way in the position OF
the owners of a railroad that could con-
troll the entire water front of Chi
cago, Detroit or New York. They
could fix such rates for wharfage as
they might choose. The dangers OF
| the control of a water front by a rail-
road have been shown in many sec
lions of the country. They are noto-
rious in certain of the cities Of Long
Island sound, and were sc in Cali,
fornia until the people arose and de-
manded their own system Of wharves
and Of belt lines. But nothing 30 com
plete has aver been planned for tying
up the output of a section of unexam'
pied wealth and delivering its control
oyer to a small group of notorious mo.
nopolists as this project proffered by
the Smoot bill, but planned for the
benefit of Pierpont Morgan and the
Guggenheim brothers"
Rival Bids for Exposition.
In the commercial center Of Wash
ington, so far as this very un'
commercial city has a center. you
will see a flag flying from a hotel
announcing with yellow and green the
DEMONSTRATION - H. rO,,fh 20 nCfnh