The Cordova daily times., 1921-03-26

ed at Salem in Company B, command 1 ed by Captain E. J. Harding After three years service he re-enlisted and was assigned to the quarter masters department. Our family went to Alaska aboard the United l States steamer John L. Stephens, in the fall of 1867, my father serving under Colonel George H. Weeks, who was in charge of the quartermaster's department.
 "The troops stayed on board the steamer for some time before being landed. On Friday, October IS, 1867, they went ashore to take formal pos session of Alaska for the United States. A company of the Ninth Unit ed States infantry was drawn up with the Russian troops on the rocky point on which the flagstaff was planted. General L. H. Rosseau represented the United States and Cap- 1 represented the Russian government The Rus sian captain ordered his men to haul the flag of Russia down. Then our men raised the Stars and Stripes, The soldiers of both nations presented arms and the guns of the Russian garrison as well as the guns aboard our ship saluted-,and that was all there was to it. Our soldiers moved into the Russian barracks and we | took over the buildings of the Rus sian American Fur Company. Most of the Russians sailed back to Russia
 Our soldiers were a pretty tough bunch, and Sitka soon was wide open. The Russians had named the place Novo Arkhangelsk, but had shortened | it to Sitka, so it has kept that name ever since. It was against the law to import or to sell liquor, but it was shipped in as coal oil. With 500 soldiers stationed there and with nothing for them to do, things were pretty strenuous at times. Finally the folly of keeping troops there was recognized, so they wese sent back to the United States.
 1 There were only four white boys at Sitka. Besides myself there were Eddie, son of Colonel Weeks; Louie Levy, son of Jewish merchant, and George Murphy, son of Sergeant Mur- phy. We four boys, with Vergius Kos timetinoff, a Russian boy, used to be inseparable chums. We went to school to Madam Konoplisky. Later q public school was established. My mother served as teacher till they could get a teacher from the states. ! General Davis sent to Boston and had his niece come out to teach the school One of the first things she did was to lick me because I wouldn't pronounce Q word the way she said was right. She asked me to name the capitals of the Pacific coast states. I said Salem on the William cite was the capital of Oregon. She said Pronounce that river with the accent on the "met." I said I had lived in Oregon, and we pronounced it with the accent on the lam" So she said, I'll liam" you. And she did We three white boys de- cided to run away and go to sea. We slowed away, but Louie Levy got cold feet and beat it back and gave use away, and my father tanned me so l lost all desire to run away to sea for some time thereafter.
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 The Russians had skin money. It was made of the tanned entrails of seals. When the two upper corners were cut off it circulated for cents, but when all four corners were cut off 1t represented cents. Our sol diers would trim the bottom of the four-cent skins even and pass them for cents, so they soon demoralized the currency system till the natives were afraid to take any skin money.
 Mrs c. A. Kincaid of Portland was my Sunday school teacher. Her hus- band was one of the members of the first city council We stayed there till 1871"
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 It is a rather interesting thing to know that soon after the transfer of Alaska to the United States there was a rush of town lot spectators, of. fice-seekers and other adventurers to Sitka. An election was held and city government was established. William c. Dodge, collector of customs, had been acting as mayor of Sitka.