The daily Alaska citizen., 1919-09-10

Old home aud To btGHl NiC anew, naturally posocS,c, a breadth of view and an originality usually to be found among the older aud mole not usually to be found among the older and more settled inhabitants of the East.
 Portland canal, that long, narrow glacial cut between the high mountains running along the border between the British dominion> aud Uncle Sams possessions, k now witnessing the formation of what promises to be a great mining camp The little towns of Stewart, F. C.. and IIvdcr |. s. almost touching one another over the frontier have become during the summer, bee-hivcs ol activity, Old pros pcctors from all about the West, urcd by the wonderful tales of the Premier mine, com mercial people looking for new opportunity, travcIcl, droirouS of seeing the beginnings of mining industry, and occasional adycnurcrs or adveuturrsscS of indifferent rcputc, seek ing to thrive upon the weaknesses of those whose daily task holds them under the earth, are tlocing together in these little commun
 ties. Roads are beginning to be constructed where nothing but devious mountain trails existed and soon the SIoW-9oing pony and
 Mexican saddle will be superseded by the horse team and the Ford automobile. No longer will the valuable ore of the Premier mine have to come over the mountain in sacks but perhaps by next summer wagons or motor cars will bring it to tide water and land it upon a great dock soon to be constructed One is impressed with the law and order and on the whole. the decenCy prevailing in these communities and perhaps little bit disap- pointed that they seem so different from
 those mining camps of romance where the gun is carried on the hip and personal differ enCes are settled in summary fashion, yet one feels that the day for that has gone by in Alaska and that the men who are developing this latest mining camp and especially the capable head of the Premier mine, are scrj ous, creative business men who regard min |ing as q great industry to be carried on with all the modern resources of science and or ganizcd on the soundcst basis as to produc- tivitv and labor conditions. It is indeed q promising district and one i'll which invest |ment values. rather than speculative pros .pccts, will, believe, soon be the order of the day.
 From what one sees of the Industries of this great land, its vast fisheries its fur mar kets, its endless timber and its valuable ore, it is evident that it is the great American store house of the future; that it's chief need is an Intelligent and unified administration. A little knowledge of the workings of its gov |ernment, or rather governments, conveys the impression that the system of checks and baI- ances has paralyzed, rather than protected, Alaska and that our public policy has been one rather of sterilization than of cOnscrVa- .tiOn The department of the interior, the de |partnent of agriculture, the army, the navy and the territorial government combine to create a bureaucratic system admirably adapt ed to check activity and hamper development.
 Intelligent thot for the morrow is not incom- patble with the development of present resources, and exclusion of capital, by reason of onerous regulation or inadequate proeCtOn will not lead to healthy industrial development or to attraction Ot d population i'll some degree commensurate with Ithe resources of the territory. From what one sees of the people of Alaska, one can easily believe them now capable of attending
 to their own affairs, not only from the mere standpoint of law, order and personal profit, but as trustees for the generations of Ameri- cans to come They are 100 lntell1gent t' interested in the future of the territory too alive to the permanent self-lnerest Ot their Town families settled in the land to allow those resources to be Wastefully expended. On the other hand they have the capacity and knoWl- ledge needed to develop them so that the peo-
 pie of the whole United States might profit much more largely from this great storehouse of plenty.
 The old Roman poet, Virgil tells of how