The Cordova daily times., 1919-05-07
BILL
ATTACKED BY
FALCON JOSLlN

| Oh yesterday DOil, Iell ILLS HOIHluS
for Katalla, accompanied by George
G.. HaZelet, manager of the Chilkat Oil
Company. Before coming to Cordova
Mr.. Joslin spent some time at Juneau
and in commenting on the work OF
the territorial legislature to a,repre-
sentative of the Daily Times he said:
"The legislature just adjourned did
some good work and some that, it
seems to me, was very bad. The ap-
preparation of $4,000 for roads and
the coordination of the work with
that of the federal road commission
was wise and constructive legislation.
1t is beneficial to everybody and hurt
full to none.
But the passage of the so-called
territorial shipping bill, it seems to
me, was a great mistake. During the
war, when ship rates all over the world
went up to five and ten times the nor
NAL, the Alaska rates remained prac-
tically stationary, and the Alaska serv-
ice was almost, if not quite, as good
as during peace times. There is no
doubt whatever that the ships held
in the Alaska trade during the war
could have earned ten times as much
as they did in the Alaska business. In
fact it was shown to the legislature
that during the last year 1.-THE year
1879 two ships on the Atlantic run
earned twice as much as the whole
feet on the Alaska run No one would
contend that the ships were kept on
the Alaska run for philanthropic rea-
sons. They were kept here, no doubt,
chiefly to haul Kennecott ores and the
great salmon food supply. But the
other shippers and people Of the ter
ritory got the benefit of good service
and normal rates when all the rest
Of the world were paying five and ten
times normal rates, and were often
without service even at any rate. The
Australian wheat growers were obliged
to see their crops pile up in ware
houses for three years, because there
were no ships to haul it at any rate
Then at the end of the year 1918,
when the cost of operation of the
Alaskan ships had grown so enor-
mously that the lines were forced
either to raise rates, quit the business
or go bankrupt, they appealed to the
United States Shipping Board for re-
lief and asked for exceedingly moder-
ate increases Of rates. They did not
ask an increase of rates in proportion
to the increase of their expenses, for
if they had they would have asked
for more than double the existing
rates.
For example, the five-year con-
tracts the ship companies had for fuel
oil at 70 cents per barrel at Seattle
expired in September, 1918, and the
fuel oil price Immediately went up 70
$1.S5 per barrel-more than two and
one-half times it's former price. Wages,
supplies, insurance and every single
element of the cost of operating ships
increased on an average not less than
100 per cent. Indeed, not only the cost
OF operating ships, but the cost of
everything has increased at least 100
per cent, as anyone buying the neces-
stiles of life can testify. This univer-
sal increase of cost is not confined
to Alaska; it Is the same in Seattle, in
New York or London.
Gould anybody suppose that ship
operating on the Alaska run could
continue to operate without an in
crease of rates when everything else
had doubled in cost? Ships on the
Alaska run are not above the natural
law. They can't do miracles. The
Increased rates they asked for, count
ing both the increase in 1918 and the
increase in March, 1919, aggregated
on the average less than 20 per cent
of the normal rates on freight and
less than 80 per cent on passenger
fares. Their expenses increased 100
per cent; they asked for less than 30
per cent increase in rates. Could any
reasonable person object to an in
crease so moderate?
For example, the increased rate on
eggs from Seattle to Juneau amounted
to one-half a cent per dozen, and the
total freight rate, including the in
crease, amounts to cents per dozen.
Eggs sell at 60 cents dozen, of which
one-half cent is the increased rate.
THE increased rate on beef, which
sells for from 80 to so cents per pound,
was only one-half cent per pound, and
the total freight rate on beef from
Seattle to Juneau is cent per pound.
"The increased rate on butter, which
sells for 70 cents per pound, was one
half cent. and the total freight rate
on butter is less than one-half cent
per pound.
1.-THE increased rate on potatoes
was one-fifth OF cent per pound, and
the total rate on potatoes is three
he 49,