The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1911-08-17
He Suggests That the
Government Build
Railroad There
WANTS SAFEGUARD
Declares Single Ownership OF
Coal and RaiIroads TO
be Calamity

Sew York City. Ex-rrcsiacn,
Theodore Roosevelt has an Article
entitled Alaska Again in the cur
rent number of The Outlook AZ
ter taking Issue with "a newspaper
statement that during the Roosevelt
Il administration the same course had
been pursued as had been pursued
later in connection with Controller
Bay, Mr.. Roosevelt discusses some of
the general phases of Alaskan de-
velopment and adds:
The government must itself con-
troll the development of Alaska, and
adopt as the guiding principle the
idea of shaping that development in
as Il whole. the syndicate Or other
developing agencies thus requiring
benefit only as an incident to con-
ferring it.
Tast Not Difficult.
~ do not think the task is a very
difficult one, ii only We, the people,
personally and through u repre-
scnta,ivrs, approach il with This pur-
pose clearly i'm nina, and ii we in
sisI that the agents OF the govern
mcnt act With an understanding of
the needs of the people and a reso-
lutte purpose TO see these needs ac-
romplished. even though it be nee
cssary to override the representatives
OF the great interests who wish to
prevent Alaskan development unless
il is shaped primarily to benefit those
interests"
Laws Were insufficient.
I'm the newspaper dispatch to
which | navc refclrcd it is limited
that acted as did because !
thought the law. then and still in
force, sufficiently protected the pub
lie interest. Perhaps this is meant
10 be ironical. II is CERTAIN that the
law did not sufficiently protect the
public interest. !, is for That reason
that, as president, | repeate ny urg-
ed that the laws pertaining to Alas
En be amended as | still urge chat
they be amended.
In the eastern states we have
suffered from the fact that the own
crship OF the coal and the ownership
Of the railways have been permitted
10 fan into the same hands. What
havoc such a combination can work
was shown when, during the anthra-
cite strike. the people OF II large sec
With Il winter coal famine which
would have caused disasters as great
ms those of the Civil war. The eff
fort to remedy this state OF affairs by
government action, after it had been
permitted to arise because OF gov
eminent inacti0n, was necessarily
lfhllSht vain llafGSnln anG SnHerllS
Tor many innocent holders of securi-
ties. 1t is, TO my mind, the duty OF
the United States government to pre-
vent a similar condition arising in
Alaska. ] do not believe in the poll
cy of sIate-owned railways as Il gen.
elal thing: but am quite willing TO
see the Panama railroad owned and
run by the government, rs il actual
ly is: and in the same way, if diff
iirultv occurs in connection with
what has been done in Controller
Bay, ! feel that it would be a good
thing for the United States to build
and operate the short line Of rail
way Cwith its terminals) which
woul. connect the bay with the coal
fields. Then. with the coal-felds
given owe to private developers on
Il leasehold svste mas simple as pos
sible, and on such terms as to guar
antee an ample profit TO those an
gagged in the work of development,
the trouble in connection with the
Alaska coal fields would vanish"