The Cordova daily times., 1919-11-20
NAVYC0ALINC STATION SURE
 FOR SEWARD

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 While the report of the navy Alaska coal commission has not been officially made public, anyone with good ere dentials who wants to know it's con- tents can get access to it, says an article in the Seattle Post-Intelligen- cer from it's Washington correspon- dent.
 The commission was made up of three naval officers, headed by Capt. S. E. W. Kittelle, as senior officer, the other members being Captain L. E. Gregory of the Bremerton navy yard and Lieutenant Roy Aikman of the marine corps. It went to Alaska last April under orders of Secretary Dan- iels, to investigate the navy coal sup ply in the harbor of Anchorage and Seward for a coaling station
 The report is very complete, and
  and drawings, altogether making a volume eighteen inches square and foot think.
 Some Faults at Surface
 The report states that from the workings done to date in the navy coal part of the Matanuska district, on Chickaloon river, there is 250,000 tons of coal of navy quality in sight, but that on the surface it is badly faulted. With depth, however, the re- ably be expected to be more favor able. The Kings river and the Coal creek sections of the same field are more even, and offer better working conditions. The veins in these two sections are reported to be in some places wholly undisturbed
 Altogether the report finds that the areas containing navy coal in the Mat anuska district is estimated to be good for a yield of 37,OO0,OOO tons, of which 1S,000,000 is in the Eska district and 19000OOO in the Kings-Chicka- loon districts.
 The report recommends that the navy department send up force of geologists and mining engineers to make a thorough and scientific test of the whole Matanuska field, includ- ing diamond drilling to a depth of 4000 feet, in order to determine the best location and the most practicable | methods for the mining operations |
 Costs S5.50 at Mine
 The commission finds that so far as known at present the coal will have to be washed for naval use, but it gives figures showing that the cost of mining and washing, based on mini mum production of 15O ,OOO tons a year, should not exceed $5.5O a ton at the mine
 In the matter of a site for a coaling station, the commission states that it made careful examinations of both the harbOrs of Knik arm, at Anchorage, and of Resurrection bay, at Seward. It eliminates Knik arm because of ice jams in the months from October to April, saying:
 Block ice shifts back and forth with the tidal currents and becomes thicker and thicker as winter ad- vances. This floating ice is caught in a jam at the Forelands, Cook in- let, both at ebb and flood, and piles up there in a way to make the pas sage of vessels very difficult. This, coupled with winter gales, fog, and what is worse than fog in Cook inlet -snoW-and the swift currents, make the pilotage of Cook inlet in the win ter very distasteful to the most ex- perienced and hardy navigators. One drawback to these waters from the standpoint of a marine engineer is that the waters of Cook inlet, and es pecially of Knik arm, are heavily with glacial silt, held in sus- pension and the water is thus made much thicker than the Mississippi river at its muddiest in freshet time. Consultation with several officers of steamers plying in Alaska waters brought to light the fact that this cir culation water had strong tendency to choke the condensers and would actually choke small gauge piping at turns, if allowed to stand. This de-