The daily Alaska citizen., 1919-12-03
TOO SMALL BY FAR

Alaska Road Commission by the war de pmtmcut for the coming year, which ac- corIiu- to the Seattle Times Washington correspondent k SlOOOOO is so small as to be more than disappointing to AIaskans and those people in the states who realize how badly Alaska needs more and better roads in bringiu4 about it~ desired develop mont. In fact that amount of money will not allow the commission to cover all the roads and trails under its supervision and make the necessary expenditures for main tcnancc and repairs.
 Roads, especially to the interior of Alaska. are an absolute necessity and not a luxury as might be said in connection with certain sections of the country, possibly some of the Alaskan coast sections. In here we must have roads in order to open up remote sections of mineral bearing ground to development and production. In no other way can the interior get its full growth and amy adequate measure of pros peIity
 The very least that the federal govern mcnt cau do is to give the territory every facility for development It is a mistaken idea of economy to shut down on the roads appropriation when the expenditure of an adequate sum would bring in returns where spending mere pittancc can cause no material benefit to any section. The gov cl1mcut is urging the miners of the gold producing sections of the country to in crease their efforts and work in order to make good the recent decline in the nation al gold output. Yet 1t fails to provide funds enough to make accessible mile after mile of gold producing dirt. Without roads the miner iS tied down to absolute inactivity under present conditions when everything iS combined to make the cost of operation excessive to so great a degree that local transportation must be made easy and cheap if he is to continue work.
 In order to do anything like the road work necessary during the coming season the Alaska Road Commission should re- ceivc at least $lOOO000 One hundred thousand dollars is so small that by the time it has been split between the four diyi- sions and divided in them hundred ways its beneficial effects will be almost negig- ibc And unless the amount proposed is increased many projects are almost sure to suffer. If the entire sum were expended on the NaIdoz-Fairbanks road, in mainten- ance and making such repairs as are neces- sary. it would hardly cover the cost of such work. Needless to say, the commission will hardly spend the appropriation in any such manner.
 On the lower end of the road, from the Keystone canyon to Valdez IS several miles of trail completely destroyed. The road thru the canyon. it is said, will have to be abandoned and a new section constructed over the hill and around the canyon. This work alone will cost more than $5O,OOO But until it is done traffic going from in- tcriOr Alaska to the coast must pay the prOhibitive tariffs of the Copper river rail road between Chitina and COrdOVa. 1t Is probably true that a considerable prOpOr- tion of the traffic of each year would go the latter route anyway, but most of the summer traffic. if a trail were available would go direct to Valdez where it could take steamers for the states and avoid the excessive rates for both passengers and freight over the Guggs' railroad. With a good road thru to Valdez, many people would take advantage of it to travel by auto to that point, and incoming interior ties would be able to ship their cars from Seattle to Valdez and come direct to Fair bop1yc of I,ucb lacc nynnncp than is nos