The Washington times., 1911-06-26
THE PEOPLE WIN IN THE
FIGHT TO SAVE ALASKA.

1t will not be safe to jump at the
conclusion that the cancellation of the
Cunningham entries to Alaska coal
lands ends the fight against Guggen-
helm control. 1t is, however, a great
victory; and in the hour of its win
ming credit must be given to two men
who have peculiarly deserved and
earned it. One, and the better known
of these two, is Clifford Pinchot; the
other is Overton w. Price. Price was
assistant to Pinchot when the latter
was chief forester. 1t was Price who
really took the lid off the Alaska situ
alton. Price was the man who drew
the fire of Administration hostility to
| the Forest Service He was the first man
who risked his position and braved all
the powers of the Administration, be-
cause he believed it his duty to let
the country know the truth about what
was going on in Alaska and at the
Interior Department.
Overton Price, in the absence of his
chief, acting on his own responsibility
and on his conscientious conviction that
his duty directed that he assume all
the risks involved, started the fight, in
the summer of 1909. Louis R. CLAWS,
special agent of the General Land
Office, had discovered enough to con-
vince himself that the Guggenheims
were to be given the Alaska coal. He
was utterly unable to interest the
Interior Department, and finally, in
desperation, turned to the Forest Serv
ice in the hope that it would display
keener interest in the public welfare.
He was not disappointed. The matter
was taken up, and in the face of muz-
zling orders and all kinds of discour-
agement, Pinchot and Price pressed the
matter until at last they forced Con
gressional investigation.
Pinchot, Price, and CLAWS were all
sacrificed for their enthusiasm. Every
body who tried to save the public's in
terest, indeed, was ruthlessly Y stricken
down by the Administration. Pinchot,
Price, and CLAWS were dismissed early.
A. c. Shaw, law officer of the Forest
Service, was dismissed and barred from
practice before the Interior Depart
ment. Kerby, the stenographer who
testified to the truth about Interior
Department plotting, was dismissed
with an especially bitter arraignment
by his superiors.
Not only was everybody displaced
who tried to protect the Government.
The Congressional investigation by
the Nelson committee was set up, and
at great expense was pulled off, with
absolutely no other purpose than to sus-
tain the Ballinger regime and maintain
the hold of the Guggenheims on the
Cunningham claims. The scandalous
story of a stuffed record, made up in
December and dated September, on
which it was pretended that President
Taft had acted when he dismissed
CLAWS, is one of the most discredltable
incidents in the whole affair.
But public attention had been drawn
to the scandal with such magnetic eff
| feet. as the result of the work of Pin
chot and Price, that at last the Ad-
ministration has been forced to make
decision in line with public interest.
The Administration did everything
possible to avoid the responsibility of
decision. One bill was introduced by
Administration supporters to send to
the courts all the Alaska coal claims.
Later, another was pressed, to turn
over to the courts the Cunningham
claims. Both these measures were
killed, mainly because Pinchot told the
truth about them and the public came
to understand their real purpose.
In the end, unable to dodge the re-
sponsiblity, the Administration forced
Ballinger to retire, and put in his
place Walter L. Fisher, an officer of
Ballinger went back to his Seattle law
office, breathing threats of vengeance.
But the decision completely vindicates
his opponents. Ballinger is repudiated; !;
the Pinchot forces are sweepingly vim
dicated.
1t is to be observed that the de-
cision by Secretary Fisher points out
the need of new coal laws for Alaska
This is now the hope of the Gusgen-
helms. Completely controlling trans
portation, and having claims plastered
on practically the entire Bering river
coal field, they expect yet to clinch their
grip on the situation. Far from being
won, the fight for the public interest
has only carried an outpost-the real
war is still ahead.