Iditarod pioneer., 1916-09-02
WHY KNOCK?

Nothing exasperang offensive to the clvl pride of community than that false and misleading statement should published with regard to it. One can forgive honeS based actual observation and can even toerat plain recital actual facts that reflect nulous ones honl city district But when visitor actually mISreresentS cod
 nS as he them order to give his own home town
 2>t it would that there mitigating circumstance whatever Fairbanks people known all over the territory boosler of their city and district and whenever they get q opportunity say word for the prosperity past present al prospective their city the public prints they take aVata9 of it. This connendabe; but should teach them at least spirit oration of other localities supposedly less favored tha their issue of the Fairbanks Ne"SMner eontalne 1he following
 Returning Fairbanks after absence of some months
 Luther C. Hess arrived the steamer Alaska thS morning
 During his absence from Fairbanks he has visited ldtarod
 Marshall City Ruby and other mining and none ot
 them look better to him than does Fairbanks
 ditarod looks like deserted village at the present tme
 he saws only about every five buildings being occupied
 There little mining in operation there now except the dredges and little employment for men, The Yukon Gold Company has dredge and Riley has in operation and expects have another working soon Outside oi theSe
 there is practically nothing doing One or two small o1htS
 are taking money but it does not amount to great deal,
 Mr Hess did not have an opportunity visit the Tolsto district he informed by reliable mining men that
 was greatly oyeresimaed camp The only thing found there good prospect The men who rushed there hI
 and saked claims have done practically development work
 all of trying sell the ground before any real strike made.
 The Fairbanks newspaper does quote MT Hess verbatim but it to presume that it gives the gst of his remarks As to Lalod looking like deserted village it probable tha to man coming from such metropolitan burg as fMrbaks does appear rather quiet but to gay that only one ouuhg five is occupied is putting rather strongly. As to his remarks about little mining being in opeaton except ny th drcdges this is probably comparative statement belh used as Fairbanks people probably to seeing large place operations small properties such as are operated ln 'h9 c' employing forty hundred appear not worth men tionng By the way we wonder just 10" many mines Ill ' Fairbanks district the present tune are eoNe a ah men as does Dave Srandberg the UpGrade or Al Walsh the summit or Frank Manley and Jonas Brew Willow creek or Riley X McNlan and Bates Co., Otter creek and trlbu linr Df of will be the Fairbanks to know that in the plant mentioned 250 300 employed when cohd tons permit emI wing full Mir Hess Is quoted as say ing that small outfits are taking out some nohe! but it does not amount great dea We imagine that som of the loads of bullion and dust brought in by the small outh mentioned would to amount to great oeai even to banker ',
 With reference the To-oi also would seem that MT Hess ie of his to deliver vlclous knock. O the authority of reabe mining he It Is greatly over
 estimated and that only thing found there is good pros ect The fact that during the past te" days owners o1 '"
 claims Boob creek have been in the city tor the pu1 pose purchasing machinery to work helr properties "ouo " cate that at least there something than one goo prospect The fact of the matter that there are nnune0
 d prospects, in the Tosto district and least three or tou
 claims upon which excellent pay has been found The statement from Idtarod with reference to the loo Tn all poH ability will found be very conservative and that ldtaro people, at least while believing intensely in the possibilities of tn new district not guilty ol oVerestmaung It.
 By the way odners say that there in sigh the Tolstoi district than there in the whole fairbanks ds tIict at the time the stampede to that pont started
 The reports that reached Fairbanks the effect that MT Hes was going o but creCge in the kukokwim country whou foundation concludes the News Miners story. While Mir Hes was in dtarod The Pioneer published to the effect tha Mr Hess contemplating putting dredge upon hs MarVe creek property of which he had but recently secured control extensive areas The Marvel creek ground admittedly lo' grade and the reasonable It was not suppose that Mir Hess had bought the property for farming purposes an miners explain that dredging furnishes the only profitable mean of working it.
 It is somewhat of mystery why who has extensv interests in Alaska should find it to issue daagn statements with reference any district within its bor even were the statements justified by the facts and more r ing still that Fairbanks newspaper should be found willing publish such statements ~ r rc for the information of Fairbanks people and newspapers particular The dtarod booming and its czens are no outing forth claims the bes mining on earth The can point to the fact however that production the ldtao district last year amounted 2lO0O0 and 1914 to S2JbO 000; the production of the Fairbanks district for 1914 wa 800 OOO the figures 1915 being hand The ldtao figures are for the ldtarod district alone; those for tarbank probably include the product of adOnng districts such as tn Hot Springs and regions which have comparatively ag output In actual output what known the darod dstnc probably the second largest producer of placer gold the terri ory and of gold produced within area prob ably leads all others It much say that ldtarod
 it has been the past few years the estimation o miner aorcrs and prospectors of the most inviting fields m tn North and the maintenance of the scale, which goo criterion will bear out this statement
 There not region in the North which offers many IT dceent to the pospecor does the immediately acen o dtarod the creeks which pros poets have found late but indications o fur activities which shall increase the output ot the dtarod h rct in years to come
 eomnarison with Fairbanks other Alaska Whe there is so much induce optimistic outlook why should be necessary to 'knock?
 IOCIC AT A DISC0TINT