The Alaska sourdough., 1911-10-24
PUBLIC OWNERSHIP

But, they dassent touch it. No! Coal enough to melt the glaciers
 Stars at lem from every turn,
 More than seven million acres,
 But, there's not ton to burn.
 Alaska Yukon magazine.
 It would probably not cost more than million dollars to build railroad into the Matanuska coal fields. With an investment of less than two million dol lars, the United States could, probably, build the road, and open the coal fields.
 ''The kingdom of Norway" says a Juneau man who is familiar with con ditions there, "operates iron mines in Lapland, and it has no steel trust prob lems. These mines were formerly held by private parties, and to get hold of them the Swedish government institut- ed condemnation proceedings. Subse- quently the United Steel Trust offered $50,000,000 for the property, but it was refused. Six thousand men are employ ed by the Swedish government in get ting out the ore. Ninety per cent of the out put is taken by the Krupp Gun Works of Germany.
 Of the machinery for putting the Al aska coal on the market, the railroad, IS just as essential as any. If private individuals furnish the railroad, cer- tainly they should be allowed large margin of possible profits, to compen- sate for the possibilities of loss. If the margin of profit is fixed low, the chan ces are altogether in favor of failure to induce capital to furnish the funds.
 There is just one practical way to insure the opening of the coal fields within a reasonable time-and that is Tor the government to own it's own road into the fields. The government of the United States has paid for railroads be- fore-it paid more for the Union Pacific than the Union Pacific should have cost, for instance, and does not own the rail road either.
 We might as we'll recognize the fact that the public ownership idea, whether we like it or not has come to stay Hundreds of cities all over the United States, are saving tidy sums for their citizens, by owning the electric light plants, and water works. Unquestion- ably, the public ownership or railways will be an issue in national campaign before many years, and sooner or later the American people are bound to try the experiment. Why not try it in Alaskas The idea could fail in Alaska as cheaply as anywhere in the United States, and that the idea will be tried out, must be tried out in America, some time is inevitable.
 Big capital must develop Alaska That big capital must be furnished by private individuals or by the govern ment of the United States. And, as Pinchot said in his speech at Juneau, the most that the coal fields can mean to us is cheap fuel.
 Alaska needs coal it is true, but there is seldom winter when there is not a coal famine on the Pacific coast Coal, in Seattle and San Francisco, many times in many winters, sells for as high price as $10 a ton in Pacific Coast cities. Half that sum ought to be suf- feient for coal either in San Francisco or Seattle, and coal should cost much less to the consumer on Gastineau chan nel.
 It is certain, however, that the price of coal will not be reduced, either in Alaska or on the Pacific coast, until the Alaska coal fields are open. And the only fair, practical and certain way to open them is for the government to open them, and to build railroad to the Alaska seaboard. No one ever has, and no one ever can monopolize water transportation on any ocean. The trans portation from the Alaska coast will regulate itself