The Seward gateway daily edition, and the Alaska weekly post., 1919-02-21
SUGGESTS
 WEIR ON
 THE ALEC.
Editor of the Gateway

EulkOr oI tnR SateWAy'-
 Will you kindly give the Allowing communica- ton little space in your valuable pa- per have been requested to give my opinion on the question that is agi- tatins the railroad circles at this time. Now tho question of the A. F.. C. IS A QUESTION THAT INTERESTS EVERY MAN, in this part of Alaska. Now Mfr. Editor. we should not get two questions mixed up. l. F. the A. E. C. and tho management of this division. When the Commission start d in to do business in Alaska, they wanted to meet the people of this dis trict half way. What was the answer they received? AS everyone knows property prices were advanced beyond all reason, thus forcing the Commits ,ion to look elsewhere for corstuc- ton camp. Anchorage was the place ,eleeted. What Is the outcome An
 horage Is e fine little city.
 Ut is. true the Commission has no. lone the square thing by Seward, bu. vho Is to blame? It always takes two to make dispute. In this case, 1t was the people of Seward and the Com- mission. When the Commission started 1t Anchorage to do business all the rolling stock that came there was new and came knocked down ready to be put together. locomotives, cars, cranes and everything ready for service to- gether with the money necessary for wages, just what the Commission wanted to give us.
 "A. Anchorage they had little to contend with except to clear the right of way, throw up tho grade, lay the steel and go ahead. Now. on this divis- ion it was different. they had to raise ,he grade , build the bridges, make he rock cuts, ballast the track and till keep the trains running. The management of this di~:sion. rot like he Commission, was always on thH iob, morning, noon and night. F"' ,ould always find tho manager Of thiS division, Johnny on the spot. and to ,ap the climax. all he had to start with vas a locomotive that would not pull the hat off your head, a pile of scrap iron and two streaks of rust and all the time that this was going on, where was the Commission Were they ever here to see what was wanted? The answer Is. No!
 "The first season that the manage nent took over the road l have had to haul ties on push ear for three miles ! No ears! No engines! nothing suitable \ to work with and yet it was expected ' hat the local Engineer would accom- \ ,lish as much with such equipment Il:
 vas being done at Anchorage with al
 necessary tools and equipment. No" 1 f anyone wants to take 8 look at the 1 -oad between this city and mile 4, they | will find that they made fill ol about twelve feet, built a bridge o1 1 four spans across Ressurrection river drove their piling, built the bridge ant [ kept the trains running at the sam' 1 lime. It would have been eaiser tt build ten miles of new; road than te { build the two miles between miles [ and 1 under the conditions. On thu l whole line, from Seward to mile 40 The building and repairing of the roa' was done under the same conditions 1 Now Mr. Editor, I think it woult benefit the whole community if th'
 manager of this division was promot ed to the chair of the Railroad Com
 mission. Then he would have power t.
 do as he wants, HOW he can only do a ihe is told. '
 "Afser sil this dispute 1t would D