The Idaho recorder. [volume] (Salmon City, Idaho) 1886-1927, 1921-10-07


For Alaska. Il may be said. Is quite a place. Its
area In nearly 000.000 square miies-an area equal
70 the combined area Of Norway. Sweden. Finland.
England Scotland and Ireland. area equal In
airs To the states Of Minnesota Wisconsin, Illinois,
Iowa. Kansas. Missouri. the Dakotns and Arkansas.
II has coast line 2d.0O0 miles long The Yukon.
2sbU miles long In Alaska and Canada. In great
central national read. by water In summer. the
Ice In winter. The south coast harbors Of tho
Alaskan peninsula are open the year round. though
Point Barrow II 300 miles north Of the Arctic cir
Gle and without sun for 20 days In winter. II has
half = dozen kinds Of climates There are 10000
square miles suitable for agriculture and grazing.
There are 1920 square miles Of forests. There
are gold. silver. tin. antimony. copper. lead. mar
bic. oil. COAL peat There are nsh and seals ana
reindeer.
Why. In tho 81 years since wa paid S7.20000o
for Alaska to the Russians II has returned tho
purchase money considerably more than one hun
dred fold. The output OF the fisheries alone
amounts to Sa7o.000.O00. The mines have pro-
duced total Of saas.0o00o0. OF which SSH OUoutO
the value Of the gold output. The total value
q Aiaska's mineral. fish aud fur products from
iS05 TO 1919 was splD.Oo0.0O0.
Yet there IL undoubtedly some thing wrong with
Alaska. The white population In 1910 was $1,000
In iplo u had Increased to 10000 The present
white population y estimated nj $4,000. In add.
ton TO 1900 nativcr. some Of whom are civilized
The Industrial population exceeds 5000
The total commerce for 1910 was slOo.o52 csD.
decrease Of Si7,so0.7p The total commerce
With the United States for 1890 was xiOa bS8OoS
a. against xi24. aspl Ia 1912 n decrease ~ ar
EosAa Canned salmon showed decrease OF y0.
ssavia: fresh fish other than salmon q decrease
Of tS7sa.O. The decrease Ia imports amounted 10
E"Ss%n. due largely to reduced mining and fish.
cry operations
1919 was only sioaeo0oo while tina, Of ipis WINS
t%ss2oa.oo. The mineral output In 1910 was the
smallest In any year since 1910. aud its value waS
arss than half that Of the output In 1910. which
VAS $ss.6ptsU. The value OF the annual OUTPUT
OF gold declined from $ia 7000o0 In 1919 10 So.
s@o"p In 1910 The copper output was $2a2s0.
OBS In 1917 In ieiS II was si7iso.000; In i9ip Il
HAS tSTxsna
80. when Senator Alber, II. Fail became sccre.
sary Of the interior he fell heir to q big lob for
IL under the interior department that Alaska
does large part Of Its complicated functioning
IL. and President Harding have been looking into
tho siiuatioa very seriously. They have held many
conferences They have apparently come to q con-
slnsion. which answers the oucstioo. What's the
matter with Aiasknf
'Teo much government II their conclusion And
their Idea Is that absolute authority should be
vested In single head aud that single head should
l. The President. OF course the SECRETARY of the
inieriof would have to do most all Of the work
But. t~lng II miner and developer himself. he Is
willing. Hs says:
There l. Just one way to develop Alaska and
that Is 10 'es' absolute authority In a single head
and that .1pFeme authority mus, b. the President
hiisissf Such bin. which viii vest this author.
hS Ia fte~i'.ni Harding. Ii now being considered
bi pfoier officials and. hops. win shortly be In.
trodgrsd In congrss When this liz accomplished
a. an sefr u viii be before very long. the re
tRhiltta,ion Of Alaska will begin la earnest"
ThFes bills snbodsing plans for the government,
OF Aiasaa before the senate aud house com.
nitlers on territories.
s-crslars Of the Interior Fall Is the last TO send
tentative measure 10 the committees He pr,.
po~es I. srs la his own department nil function.
pertaining TIA the development aud Use of natural
resoIros and construction work for the t.rritor,
Tie bin by Secretary Fall viii not prove morn
satisfying To the several departments which h,
cropo~A- ia invade than ,le Curry eiii which pro
poses Z" vest In mn Alaska development board the
admits sailon Of the territory or the cummlns bin
which ,ssis In the President power to reorganz.
sn fes III activities In The territory lie viii cu