The Seward gateway and the Alaska evening post., 1917-10-05
SENATOR WANTS TO KNOW WHY ALASKA'S COAL INDUSTRY
 IS BEING SIRANGLE )

1 Those who are closely following the Alaska situation will be deeply inter ested in a statement credited to Sen ator McNary, of Oregon. This article was originally published in The Ore gonian of Portland, as a telegrom from Washington, and is here repro duced in full for two reasons. First, | it bears out what has been, said in papers friendly to Alaska's develop, ment ever since the industry was srangIed in the territory. Secondly The Oregoniuu was never partial to the Alaskan side of the controversy, while it is equally true that Senator |McNmy was in no way connected with the former agitation. 1t all comes at this late day as a complete vindication of all that has been said in defense of poor Alaska since the Roosevelt order of withdrawal, but after four summers work and millions expended in building the railroad, the statement credited to Secretary Lane that there is no possibility of getting Alaskan coal out during the coming fall or winter, is a somewhat start ling one. The article, in full, follows: Although assured by Secretary Lane that there is no possibility of getting Alaskan coal into the Pacific coast markets during the coming fall or winter Senator McNary, of Oregon, is doing his utmost to bring about the speedy development of coal in the Ma tanusia field, so that when the Alas kan harbors open up next summer the Pacific coast ports, now suffering from fuel shortage, may repIenish their supply
 When Senator McNary looked into the Alaska coal situation he was as tonished at some of the things he  found. He discovered that although congress, as far back as October 20, 1914, passed law authorizing the leasing of coal lands in Alaska, and although the interior department, on July l9, 1916, promulgated regula- tions for carrying that law into ef- feet, no leases have yet been made, and if the government railroad should be completed tomorrow there would be no coal ready for shipment to Anchor age, the present terminus of the gov ernment railroad.
 It has been known for some time that the Alaska railroad would reach the Matanuska coal fields during the present fall; it has been known that after the completion of this much of the railroad the government would be ready to transport coal at a reason able charge from Matanuska to An chorage.
 But there have been no leases, other than one small one to produce coal for the use of the Alaska railroad com mission, and in that instance the les see went into bankruptcy, and the commission took over his mine, thus bringing about the ludicrous situation of a government agency developing government coal land under a govern ment lease and paying for the leasing privilege
 When Senator McNary probed deep CT he found that there had been cap itaHsts interested in developing the coal lands of the MatanusIla field; ap-  plications for leases or inquiries re- garding them had been made, but the leases were never closed. Those who were interested were scared off, not so much by the law as by the rigid requirements and conditions of the regulations promulgated by the inte- rior department. And when he pre- sented the matter to Secretary Lane, Senator McNary was told that doubt less the regulations should be modi-