The Alaska daily empire., 1920-03-11
SIGNS OF STORMS APPEAR WHEN
 CONGRESS- PREPARES TO TAKE
 UP ALASKA MA TIERS; FIGHTS ON FISH AND CENTRAL BOARD PLANS

SEATTLE, March 11-Alaska is likely to be the center of Con- gressional activity and controversy during considerable of the Spring. according to special dispatch from Washington to the Seattle Times. This will result from the proposal of the Senate and House Commit tees on Territories to give serious consideration to the plan of Secre- tary of the Interior Franklin K. Lane to consolidate Federal activi- ties of Alaska under the control of proposed Development Board and the purpose to attempt to pass a fisheries bill.
 The first fight over Alaskan mat ters is expected to center about the salmon fisheries industry and the other fights about the bureaus which would be abolished, as far as Alaska is concerned, by the Cur ry Alaska Development Board bills which also has the support of Sem ator Harry Now of Indiana. The Times special says another outburst will occur when Congress discovers that it has spent $50,000,000 for railroad with no freight to haul because no effort has been made to create traffic
 Alexander and Grigaby Do Not
 Agree
 The plans of Delegate George B, Grigsby and those of Secretary of Commerce J. w. Alexander on the fisheries question in Alaska do not agree. Delegate, Grigsby is also said to opposeea third plan. sug- gested by committee of the seat- tie conference held under the di- rection of the Bureau of Fisheries at Seattle last November. His ob- jections to the latter plan are not only that 1t does not directly pro vide for the transference' of the fisheries to Territorial control at specific time, but he does not like the proposal that two members of the Commission that 1t Is proposed to create should be men actively engaged in the fisheries business. He says the men engaged in the industry are partly responsible Tor the threatened destruction of the fn- dustry. M
 Congress Will Ask Departments
 For Statements
 The special says that in order to obtain a complete survey of the Alaskan situation before considering bills which are designed to center Alaskan authority in Alaskae Con- rress proposes to ask each bureau and department which deals with Alaska to report on it's activities. It is proposed in this manner to se- cure complete knowledge of the sit- nation and to lay the foundation for considering the advisability or centering all these activities under one authority to reside in the North.
 Committee May Visit Alaska
 Several members of the Territor- ies Committees of the Senate and House of Representatives may visit Alaska at not distant day in con- nection with the work that is pro- posed for the Territory.
 Chairman Charles F Curry of the House Territories Committee has asked J. L. McPherson. manager of the Alaska Bureau of the Chamber of Commerce, to assist in gathering data showing the scope of Federal activity in Alaska. He said that MT. McPherson has accepted the proposal of Chairman Curry tenta- lively. resigning his position as con sulting engineer of the Alaska En- gineering Commission for that pur- pose.
 Lane Responsible For Request of Departments
 Secretary Lane. just before his retirement from the Interior De- partment, it has ben learned. asked Senator Wesley L. Jones to intro duce the resolutions asking all the departments to report on their ac- tivities in Alaska. as a foundation for the intelligent consideration of |