Iditarod pioneer., 1915-02-13
SECRETARY LANES REPORT
 ON ALASKA MATTERS

Hope has again come to the heart of the waiting Alaskan in the promise of a railroad that shall pierce the mountains of the coast and reach the great Interior of this beautiful and promising land. The commission of engineers appointed by you to survey possible routes, which has with Is force spent the summer ln Alaska, has already returned, and will in short time submit to you its plans and surveys upon which may be based a conclusion as to the route and character of the railroad to be built Four coast points have been consld- cred as possible termini-Cordova, from which now runs the Copper River & North, western railroad, which could be extended northerly through the Chitina valley to the Tanana Valdez, from which now runs an excellent government road, extending through the Chtina valley to Fairbanks; Portage Bay, on the west coast of Prince William sound, where no settlement now exists, but which could be connected with Turnagain arm by tunnel and so on north erly through the Sustna valley to Fair banks; Seward, from which now extends the Alaska Northern for seventy--two miles to the eastern end of Turnagain arm
 Although the bill authorizing this work did not become law until March 12, 1914, the commission of engineers had been ap- pointed their subordinate engineers and other employees had been selected, their horses, supplies boats and outfits had been bought, and they were in Alaska and at work by the earliest day in summer when their work could be undertaken.
 "Congress supplemented it's railroad bill by the passage of another act of no less significance bill providing for the leasing of the great coal fields of Alaska. As this IS virtually the first bill to pass congress authorizing the leasing of any of our re- sources, it may be we'll to outline its pro visions It first provides for survey of the coal lands of Alaska, preference to be given to the Boring river, Matanuska and Nenana fields These fields would doubtless supply the needs of the far West for many years if made accessible The Nenana field is some thirty miles from the Panama river, and could feed the great Interior, while the Matanuska is but a short distance from Cook inlet, on the coast, and the Bering river field is near Controller bay and the city of Cordova. In the two best fields (Matanuska and Bering river) a res ervation is to be made for the government, not alone to supply the needs of our ships but to be operated in the event that the price of coal IS raised to such figure by monopoly as to make this price value The surveys are to be in forty acre blocks, and the leases are not to exceed 2560 acres, which is the average coal operation of the United States. As a coal mine under mod ern conditions Is much more than tunnel or shaft requiring a plant costing from a quarter to a half million dollars, 1t was necessary to make the acreage large enough to justify such an expenditure The leases are to be awarded through competitive bid ding or otherwise under general regulations made by the secretary of the interior, with a minimum royalty payable to the govern ment of cents ton and an annual rental of from 25 cents to S1 per year per acre applicable on the royalty. This last pro- vision as to rental is to make 1t onerous to hold lands undeveloped The leases are to be for not more than fifty years subject to renewal on new terms.
 "The utmost care was taken by congress to guard against monopolization of the fields Railroads are not permitted to hold more of these lands than will supply their 'wn needs. Leases may be transferred only with governmental consent. No one may be a shareholder or otherwise have an in terest in more than one holding. And for violation of its general and specific pro- hibtions criminal penalties may be imposed, Provisions against waste and for care Tn the operation of the mines gre required in each lease. The safety and welfare of the miners are safeguarded and an eight hour day for underground workers is specified. Wages shall be paid twice a month, and the com pany store as a compulsory base of pur chase is drowned on. The miners are to be insured the fair and just weighing of the coal mined and other measures may be pro vided in the leases which may be needed for the protection of the interests of the United States for the prevention of monop oly, and for the safeguarding of the public welfare
 'Leases may be forfeited by appropriate proceedings in court for noncompliance with the provisions of the lease or of gen. eral regulations, and the lease may provide for enforcement of other appropriate reme- dies therein.
 "To care for the strictly local and do- mestic needs for fuel, provision IS made that limited license or permit, for ten acres and running for not more than ten years, may be granted to any person with out payment of royalty. As Alaska con- tains may scattered coal veins easily acces- sible from mines and towns this is pro- vision that it is thought will make for gen eral relief Having provided in this man ner here most generously stated against those conditions which have arisen within the United States, and which have threat ened Alaska, congress has restored the coal lands of Alaska to the worlds use.
 ''Just as congress is advancing funds for the Indians with which to buy cattle and horses and blows, and thus make their other assets available and eventually make them elf-supporting, so congress also by this bill and by its Alaska railroad bill takes a long step toward making Alaska resources so available as to pay Alaska's cost of develop ment.
 "As in my report of last year, I again suggest that there is but one businesslke way of dealing with the removed affairs of so great territory, and that is by the creation of new piece of administration machinery which I have designated descrlp- lively as an Alaskan development board. Alaska should be administered as unit by men upon her soil In report sent to congress I have shown the confusion and curious admixture of official functions which