Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1914-08-28
SIDELICHTS ON METHODS
OF LIFE IN ALASKA

The deep love which Mrs. Strone
claims for all who live in and know
Alaska finds its greatest proof in the
return of the old miners to Alaska
Inc bill authorizing the construction
OF railroads there passed last March
and the influx began Immediately
And this in spite of the fact that the
accomplishment of this railroad Is to
De no Aladdin's trick. It is estimated
that year will be required for the
selection Of the routes and for sur.
Veying them. And then the actual
construction of the road will necessi
tate another three years OF labor.
But 1t suflced that they knew the
road Will eventually be built.
This road. which is to cover more
than seven hundred miles. will con.
meet tidewater on the Pacific ocean
with the two great inland waterways
the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers
And. OF these. very few have been
even extensively prospected, let alone
exhausted. because conditions exist
Ing at the present time make 1t prac.
tically impossible. And this was an
other point brought up by Mrs. Strong.
interior Alaska Is already as fully
developed as 1t is possible for 1t to
be, minus a railroad" Mrs. Strong ex-
planned. And lack of transportation
facilities forms the sole reason. I'm.
agine a country so vast that a man
can pack upon his back all the food
his physical strength can endure. and
yet have 1t exhausted long before a
real interior can even be touched.
let alone developed. That is whN
happened to us. II Alaska remains
undeveloped today, it is because the
ingenuity Of man has been taxed to
Its fullest and failed. We did every
thing possible for human beings We
could not build the railroads our
selves. Therefore, the interior yet
holds its treasure"
1t was Kipling who wrote: IF
you've card the East a-calling'. you
won't never 'eed naught else" But
1t was Robert Service who immortal
lied the lure of the northland. THE
Lure Of Little Voices" voices out OF
the bigness and stiffness of Alaska,
which. once heard and needed. can
never be forgotten-or left unan-
swered.
And that typifies Mrs. Strong. Sew.
enteen years In Alaska, with the lit
flo vOicnco calling m Hin ~ oil The <{v,o
and nowhere else in all the world
means to her Just what the territory
of Alaska stands for.
Californian by birth, European by
education, and world cultured by trav-
ell. Mrs. Strong yet knows no love to
equal that for Alaska. Pioneer women
of any country possess a bigness of
devotion, a steadfastness of faith in
their own land, which dwarfs the
home" instinct Of old communities.
The pioneer woman of California is
passing, as well as the woman who
helped to mold the other western
states. But the pioneer woman of
Alaska is "a vital factor today in the
development and upbuilding of the
territory. both materially and moral
ly. So believes Mrs. Strong.
Alaska is such a wonderful coun-
try. and we are SO proud of It," she
said; and. simple as was the state
ment. none could doubt the depth of
its sincerity.
Juneau, the capital of the terri.
tory and our home" continued Mrs.
Strong. rs such a vastly different
place from what the great majority
OF people picture 1t to be. To those
who know naught of Alaska it seems
impossible to detach from the thought
of all Alaska the name given It as
many years ago Stewards Icebox.'
Yet to US that Is so absurd. For when
we left there last March the pussy.wil.
lows were in full bloom. while when
we reached st. Paul the lakes and
rivers were still frozen. juneau sim.
ply shares the reputation which the
whole Of Alaska has. that of being an
icebox'
"Of course. Juneau IL not New
York. But, on the other hand, II is
not q mountain fastness. Beautiful