The Cordova daily times., 1921-08-10

bad way, the belief being that war ring interests in the territory are responsible for unsettled conditions, and for the heavy loss of population
 TROUBLE oozEs OUT
 Tt was suggested not long ago that congress, before long. prob ably would be compelled to look into Alaska. Representative Madden. of Illinois, intimated in a speech in the house when the Alaska railroad ap- propriatiOn was under discussion, that there was not entire satisfac- ton with the way things were going in the northwest and further inti- nation was that the government built, government-owned and gov ernment-operated railroad was not the bowling success that its promo ters said it would be.
 "If President Harding goes to Alaska he will get an opportunity to hear both sides of controversy from residents who do not have an opportunity to visit Washington to lay their Information before the committees of congress. There are factions in the territory which have been at odds for years. Sefishness, it is said, is at the bottom of some of the troubles
 RlVALRIES HARMFUL
 There are rivalries in Alaska be- tween towns on the line of the rail road and the towns which have, or are supposed to have, harbor facili- ties. Men who seem to know about the situation say that the only thing that can be done is to take harsh measures to see to 1t that trade needs are given first consideration, with no attention paid to the de- sires of this man or that man that his property interest shall be bene- fitted at the expense of the com mercial interests of Alaska and the United States.
 Recently there have been further rumors that congress eventually may do something to straighten out Alas kan matters following the hearings which already have been held on gen. eral Alaska subjects, and following also On the accumulation of informa- ton which has drifted in and which may be authentic If the president will go to Alaska, however, action on the territory's needs probably will wait his return and his recom mendations.
 Ut may be that Secretary of the Interior Fall will go to Alaska if the president does not go. In the de partment of the interior there are piled up a good many Alaskan re- ports which. if studied, with a view to throwing out superfluities ana to keeping of the hubs of things, might throw light today on the real situa- ton.
 50 far as the government rail road is concerned. there are intima- tions that it is going to cost great deal more to complete than it at first was thought would he the case. The last dollar of the continuing ap- propriation originally voted has been granted and the understanding Is that if the road Is to be completed more money must be voted.
 "Way back in what may seem now to be the dark ages. the Alaska rail road was projected. There were in- tfmations at the time that the route selected was not the best possible, but that if it were laid out some where else certain great business in terests might benefit at the expense of the Alaskan people and of the people of the states as well.
 How true this was is rather hard to tell, but one of the charges now is that the railroad does not tap the territory which can procure freight enough to keep it going.
 The main thing today is that Alas ka is still in danger of losing more of it's population unless something