Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1914-02-19
THE ALASKAN ROAD A NECESSITY.

T HOSE who object to government ownership Of railroads in
making their arguments will do well to leave the Pana-
railroad out of it. That road is capitalized at OOO
900, and last year earned in net profits $2,18000O
about 81 per cent its capital stock The has not
operated the road with the object of earning dividends for ITSELF
but allows the surplus to accumulate 1t has surplus Of
$15379000 The rates high but the line is only so miles
long and the terminal charges compel proporonaly higher
rate than if the line of great length
The government plans to continue operating the railroad af
ter the canal is in operation adjunct thereto and WILL of
course not great surplus after the canal is opened
The proposed Alaskan road is different proposition Those
who oppose the building Of this road by the forget
that has already built several roads, at least paid for build
ing hem the only difference between what has done and what
proposes to do being in the fact that when the roads already
built they the property of the who used the
mens money to build them and with the Alaska road it is pro-
posed that after the government has built the roads will hold
on to them, and retain the ownership,
Of course the Alaskan road will not such dividends
the Panama road and for years will probably cause of
expense.
II question Of developing the governments property and
making it valuable At present most Alaska lands absolute
B worthless of lack of transportation They are so
situated that private capital will not undertake develop them
unless it given bonus the shape of lands and this would
simply be duplication of the building Of the Union and Central
Pacific and the passing to the company of vast tracts of
land What this might illustrated in California where
the Central and Southern Pacific hundreds of millions
of dollars worth of oil lands given them for building railroad
and also giving them the railroad
uncle sam mas given the railroads lands larger In area than
the whole state of Texas which has 2657S0 square miles This
would make tract land nearly three times large Oregon
and 242 times large RhodeIsand It is oneourh larger
than the German empire and twice the size of the United King
dom of England Ireland Scotland and Wales In 1910 Texas
farms alone valued at 81 5000O000 and this area we
away to develop the country Is it out of expend
hundred million developing the untold resources of Alaska
with its 5777S0 square miles of virgin land and mtess
sources? had in 1910 population of 64356 but produced
in gold alone than $40 OOO 900 yearly has timber
wealth. untold stores of copper lead and ro and is the only
American possession that yields tin Its value beyond all cal
cuaon but it is safe to that its mineral such
that its wealth can only be estimated in billions
The policy Of keeping this great territory for exploitation by
the individual rather than by great companies the correct
and the building Of the Alaskan railroad is wise measure
1t certainly has good behind it than the expendng
of the amount for useless bahps that can never by
produce anything bring any returns The Alas
kan railroad should be built by the government and work On
should begin at once.