Valdez daily prospector., 1913-06-05
THURSDAY, JUNE 5, 1913.
Ex-REPREsENTATIvE DRIS-
 COLL.

Driscoll must be torn from his pedestal that some man of the Times selection may take his place. The unknown cannot rise of his own meritS--Only through the destruction of Dan can the Times man hope to succeed. Whats the name of the un- known? What is the sudden oc- casion of the necessity of Dams destruction? Whats the answer to the puzzle?'
 Thus does the editor of the News Miner interpret the report of the proceedings of the last hours of the territorial leeisla- ture, which, by the way, was printed exclusively by the Times, the evening paper evidently not having considered the first ses- sion of Alaska's lawmakers of sufficient importance to justify the expense of maintaining a correspondent at the territorial capital. No credit is given to the Hines correspondent for Verac- ity--in fact, it is even suggested bv the News Miner that the Times has gone out of it's way to mis- represent Representative Drls- coll, when, as a matter of fact we have printed the news of, the proceedings just as it came to us from Juneau. And we have suf- ficient confidence in our cores pondent to venture the assertion that the official report of the pro- ceedings of the legislature will prove tn t, truthfulness of the ac- counts which have appeared in inc Times from time to time dur ing the past two months.
 As for the attitude of Repre- sentative DriScoIl on the Willard election bill and the hospital site question we must confess that we are as deeply mystifird as the NcNS- hllI pl 'ltSSt' ''' M, "i'' equally ashamed of his conduct, although we are willing to give him the opportunity to explain his action before conforming him as a backslidcr. He may be able tO convince the people of Panama that he Willard bill, which he op- posed, was not an acceptable measure. He also may be able to offer a satisfactory explanation for his sudden change of front on the hospital site question, but we can tell him beforehand that he will have to do a lot of talking to convince Fairbanksans that his action was not dictated by the delegate, who. the News Miner tells us, is responsible for the muddle which has been fastened upon us--meaning the granting of an appropriation for the con- struction of a detention hospital without provision for the acquisi- tion of site.
 MT. Driscol's opposition to the Willard bill providing for a straight Australian ballot also sa- vors strongly of the Wickersham Influence, and should it. develop that the Fairbanks member voted against the measure because it did not feet with the approval of the delegate, we can assure MT. Driscoll that his excuse will not be we'll received here, for the people of the Fourth division, as we'll as the rest of Alaska, have long demanded the adoption of the simple and effective Austra- lian system of voting, and it was MT. Driscoll's duty as a legislator to work for that reform.
 But, as we already have sug- gested, MT. Driscoll may be able to offer satisfactory reasons for opposing the two measures in question, and if he does, the Times will gladly do it's share to- wards putting him right with his constituents. In the meantime, we are inclined to the belief that the Times has contributed less to his discredit than has the Fair banks member himself. We do not believe anyone has tried to drag him from his pedestal--it was simply a case of falling off. Fairbanks Times.