Douglas Island news., 1918-08-16
FIRST COAL
 LEASE GRANTED
The Government Has at Last Grant ed a Lease on the Boring
 River Coal Claims

At last a lease has been granted
 on Che famous Bering River coal field Of Alaska After twelve years
 of patient waiting somo pioneer Al- askaus have been granted the right and every official of the Department
 of Che Interior Is to bc congratulated
 as it is Che nrst move towards the
 real development of that section Of
 the territory. Falcon Josln, through
 Che Boring River Coal Company. of
 which he is Che president. has been
 granted a lease Co blocks 1S-9-2O-
 22-23 and 2i In the Boring River
 coal fields survey. representing D.
 42O acres an told. This area is lo-
 catcd between Lake Charlotte and
 Kushtaka Lake, which. as old-timc Alaskaus know ,is quite accessible,
 Carbon Camp. which is Co be re- named Boring. being just 2S miles
 from Che Copper River & Northwest orn Railway Che route being fairly casy for rail construction. President Josliu has appointed P. R. Van Campcu superintendent. hc being a wclI-known mining engineer opcrat- ing in various localities in Alaska He has already left for thc works with some men and supplies with instructions to begin development work immediately
 It win bc recalled that the old English Company which for many years attempted to develop this ground. had accomplished consider able iu che way Of preliminary de- vclopmcut work and at Che time it was said that the stripping hod fairly demonstrated Che value and extent of tho coal vein. Mr. Joslin, however. is wisely rciraining from any announcement. merely stating that he and his associates arc will ing to take a chance. that thcy firm ly believe that there Is a coal supply located iu that ground which i5' worth while uucovcring and that for thc first few months only develop mcut work win be pushed. hut it is hoped by the management that by next spring Che area win have been co thoroughly prospccted and Che development pushed Co such an eN- tent that it will then Doe determined just what Che value of tho coal vein may bo. Then the question of min ing and marketing tho coal with thc important matter of constructing Che short railroad connection with the Copper River road will be discussed. For Che present it Is enough Co say that Mir. Josliu has succeeded in h- naucing the company and will use every c0ort to quickly determine Che future worth of the ground
 At Che same time Mir. Joslin has rcorganizcd the old st. Elias on Company as che Chilkat on Com pany. George Hozclet. ot Cordoya. is manager or this organization and has begun the work Of thoroughly inspecting Che ground located back of Controller Bay and tho same plan Of procedure win be adopted Co as- certain Che extent and value of the oil In the ground. The announce meut Of these plans has caused no limit of enthusiasm at Cordoya. From 1906 to 1911. the period of Of thc railroad Cordova enjoyed construction boom similar Go Che prosperity attending any great railroad construction at the base Of supplies. Following the conn pletlon ot the road and the departure of several thousand working men, the reaction set in and for the two years 1912 and 1913 merchants and others severely felt thc changed con- ditious. Since Che end Of 1913. how ever. the town has been greatly de- vclopng It's industries on a substan- tial basis. Clam and salmon can nerics with the increased movement of copper ore through the town be- ing largely responsible for this con dltlon which has today made it ono of the most reliable and substantial towns on the Alaskan coast. Tho en- tire oil and coal area, generally known as the Boring River section, is naturally tributary Co Cordova and their successful development would mean everything to that port. lt is. natural. therefore, that those Cor dovans who have pinned thicr faith to the town and remained there through good and bad times should now feel Iubilant at the mere pros pect of the development of Che rich oil fields lying at their door. IT this company should be successful in de-
 veloping a workable mino Of mar
 ketable coal and at the same time
 have equal success in proving the oil
 supply. it will eventually be one of
 the most important industrial events
 tn the history of Alaska
 Aside from supplying tho local lC-
 mand and proving the incentive to
 the construction of smeltors. bunkers
 and other industries at Cordova, the
 future expansion of trade between
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