Fort Mill times. [volume] (Fort Mill, S.C.) 1892-current, 1921-04-07
ALASKA: PRIZE PACKAGE

"Fifty-four years ago, March
80, 1867, was signed the treaty
whereby the United States pur-
I chased Alaska from Russia for
81, 100000. In the intervening
half century, we have taken from
the territory more than 10 times
the 20 millions of purchase mon
eff" says bulletin from the
Washington headquarters of the
= National Geographic society.
= Most Americans are of the
habit of thinking of Alaska as of
insignificant area, yet it is as
large as Illinois, Iowa, Kansas.
Minnesota. Wisconsin and Missou-
ri put together, with stable bits
from Nebraska and the two Da-
kotas added on.
TO most people also Alaska
is visualized as a land of snow
and ice, of GLACIERS and scant veg
citation. In point of fact the AL
askan climate is fairly diversified.
and along the ecoast there are
slight extremes of heat and cold.
. In the interior there is less rain
fall, and the long Arctic day pro-
duces a very dry and warm eli
mate.
Everywhere, except in the
extreme north, the vegetation is
luxuriant, its growth is rapid.
and fruits, vegetables and graz
iEg grasses flourish. Located no
less advantageously than the
scandinavian peninsular and with
an area almost twice as great as
that OF Norway and Sweden COM
lined, Alaska, nevertheless, has a
white population Of little more
than $4,000 as against the 8 mil
lions of Scandinavians.
1.-THE three great sources of
Alaskan wcalth are minerals, fish
cries and furS. To the end of
I915 the miEcs of Alaska had
produced more than 100000, 600
In 1916 the fisheries produced
nearly $20,000,0OO, and the. pei
tries more than half a million.
There are great deposits Of coal
as yet untouched and Of low grade
oars more precious which await
only the development of the terri
tory's own water power to make
them available at tremendous
profit.
Forests. too. are extensive
and suited for the production of
both timber AMI wood pulp. The
heaviest growth lies anlong the
coast, where two national reser-
Vations contained combined
area of q million acres with an
existing stand of merchantablc
timber exceeding 80 billion feet.
\ board measure. The forests com
prise the northwest extremity Of
the great northwestern belt Of
conifers which spans our CONT
nent and Alaskan spruce has been
found valuable for the construc-
tion OF the wooden frames of air.
planes. for which use it command
ed during the war the remarkable
price of nearly $3.50 per thous-
and feet.
In recent years Alaska has at
tracted attention as a producer of
meat for expectation to the Unit
cd States. The meat is derived
from reindeer herds which gra:e
on the mosses and grasses of The
far northern part of the terrific
rv which at one time were con-
sidered worthless and unproduc-
tive. The Alaskan reindeer herds
now contain more than 100000
OF the animals. all derived from
the 1,200 reindeer imported into
Alaska by the federal govern
ment % years go. In this period,
besides, many thousands of the
animals nave been slaughtered
for food. 1t is estimated that the
portions of Alaska unsuited for
other industries will maintain 4
to 5 million head of reindeer. In
the Scandinavian countries their
meat is highly priced. The rein
deer meat from Alaska is begin
ming to appear regularly now in
MANY of the meat shops of the
Unitrd States.
"The DEVELOPMENT of the lum-
ber industry, like that of all 9TH
err enterprises in Alaska, is large.
lv dependent mon the extension
of communications, especially by