The Cordova daily times., 1920-07-15

veIOpment 1n wood pulp ana put
 very small attempt at development in
 the coal measures We cannot as yet
 estimate the extent or value of the
 oil, but we can only point out that
 oil development has been blocked by
 the whitening blight of bureaucratic mismanagement.
 Very recently it was noticed that
 the last Investigating body had made
 it's report to Secretary Payne. It has
 suggested various things, but no one
 of which is a practical solution of the
 problem and we are therefore no
 ment of the territory than we were be-
 fore. It is nothing more nor less than
 amusing to learn that this committee
 advocates as one of the remedies the
 mbining into one company of the
 two rival steamship lines operating
 to the territory. Such a combination would have no effect whatsoever, in
 fact, it would have practically no re-
 lation to the common sense, honest
 and practical development of the coal
 and pulp wood
 Mention is merely made of this to
 show how far afield these investigat-
 ing committees go in making up their
 report It might be we'll to state that their suggestion, if followed out,
 would be against the Sherman anti
 trust law and the Interstate Con- merce Act Also the steamship com
 panies for many years past have had
 to combat the statement of the pro-
 fessional politicians of Alaska that
 they were combined. Yet this latest
 report suggests and openly advocates just such a combination.
 Once they throw open the lands of Alaska to settlement and industrial : development on the same identical plan heretofore adopted in every state of the United States, and the question of transportation need never be dis - cussed. There will be boat for
 every thousand tons of wood pulp or
 paper or coal or coke. There need be no fear on that score. Tn place of
 discussing steamship transportation and suppressing the scandal surround ing the construction of the govern ment railroad, it would be much bet
 ter to first provide some new tonnage for either that railroad or the steam.
 ships to haul.
 And first, last and all the time no tonnage can be produced until Amer ican business men are permitted to operate in Alaska on the same plan as in the states No amount of talk ing will change that fact. No amateur investigators can produce carloads of freight
 Considerable surprise and some re.
 sentiment was expressed by Alaskans when it became known that Alfred H. Brooks, of the U. S. Geological Survey, had been named and had ac- cepted the position as one of the mem bers of the very recent Investigating committee. As has been freely sug gested, it is quite evident that the in quiry is being directed more toward some sort of justification for the gov ernment railroad in Alaska than tC fairly endeavor to investigate and re port upon general conditions in the territory of Alaska. The surprising
 thing about the Brooks acceptance : lies in the fact that he could sit in his office at Washington and without
 stopping, could dictate a brief show ing just what is the trouble with Alaska. For twenty years or more he has been making trips to the terri
 tory and up to date had always been . accounted good friend of the terri tCry, whose work in behalf of the development and exploitation of its greatest value But it should also be very pointedly brought out at this time that this same Alfred H. Brooks accepted an appointment in 1912 from the Taft administration as member of the committee to examine all rail : road routes, report on possible traf fic and tonnage and make recon
 mendations. One has but to refer to
 the official report of President Taft made toward the last ot his admins tration. This report carries the dis , tjnct recommendation Of MT. Brooks : covering the railroad routes to be fol. lowed in tn proposed construction. His report was thrown aside as a new administration came into being March 4th, 1913, and immediately the