Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1916-04-23

than frlg1d, and it compares faVorably with
that OF our north central states The Jap
anese current which flows along the south
ern shores of Alaska makes it so warm that
the sea never freezes at Seward The greater
part OF Cook inlet is open throughout the
winter, and the warm coastal waters give
the country temperate summer and win
ter that is only moderately cold. Here at
Sunrise they have kept records for eight or
nine years, and the winter temperature
averages about fourteen degrees above zero
rising to seventeen above in December and
February and falling to as low as nine in
January. The average springstemperatur is
about thirtythree degrees and in the sum
mer the thermometer has an average of
fifty-one, although it goes UP to seventy
eight and seventy-nine at some times.
The peninsula is about as far north as
Stockholm or Petrograd. This gives it long
days during the summer, and in parts of
June and July there is practically no night
at all. The growth of crops is produced by
the amount of sunlight they get, and for
this reason the people claim that they have
growing season quite as long as that in
the northern parts of the states This begins
some time in May, and continues until
along in September. The people add to the
growing season by starting their vegetables
in hot beds and hothouses and many sprout
their potatoes indoors, putting down layer
OF potatoes, then layer of earth, then
layer of potatoes and so on. When the
weather warns up they set out the sprouts,
and thus gain several weeks on Jack Frost
" =. i
days. and there is period of 135 days in
the summer during which no frost has been
recorded. The average growing season over
the whole region is perhaps ITO days, or as
long as that of much of the northern parts
of the United States proper
The most of this country is we'll wooded.
The best trees are in the lowlands and on
the lower slopes of the mountains, the tim
Der stopping at about 1000 feet The woods
are in groves OF spruce, hemlock and pop
lar, with patches of bushes and open mea-
dows between The open places have been
largely caused by forest fires, and you fire.
quently find considerable areas of dead and
down timber The trees are usually small. A
few of the spruces are more than two feet in
diameter, but many are no bigger around
than telegraph poles The poplars grow in
dense forests. They are TALL straight and
beautiful There are cottonwoods in the
lowlands that reach thickness of two or
three feet The best trees are on the best
lands and nearly everywhere trees large
enough for log cabins are to be had. So far
much of the timber is protected by the gov
eminent reservations, and in Seward they
pay high for lumber, which has been brought
from Puget sound distance as great as
that between Cape Cod and the Missouri
river This is SO notwithstanding there is
fairly good timber ten or twelve miles away.
Indeed, most people in Alaska think the
country is over-conserved. Uncle Sam
fears for posterity hanging, like Sindbads
cold Man of the Sea, around their necks.
/ have made some inquiries as to the cost
of clearing the land. It ranges from 500 to
several hundred dollars per acre. Even the
first figure seems high until one considers
that 500 in labor would not begin to clear
and prepare for cultivation any of the wood
ed farm lands of the states. Every acre of
oHOt CuISoSSC dHd
has cost more than that to cut down the
trees and get out >the roots. Such clearing
will be much cheaper here. The reason is
that the roots are close to the surface They
spread out like net under thin coating of
moss and soil, and as soon as the tree dies
the stumps can be torn out by good team
of horses. 1t is only in few places that
dynamite will be needed, and if the ground
is burned over most of the stumps can be
ierked out with log chain and team The