The Snowflake herald., 1921-09-23


ations by congress through military committees.
The bureau OF public roads Of the agricultural
department. constructs public roads in national
forests. There is also territorial road COM
mission. There are actually four federal bu-
reaus which have funds for the construction of
wagon roads in Alaska.
The 1920 report of John Barton Payne secre
tary of the interior. contains many pages devoted
I" consideration of Alaskan conditions by him.
an addition 1t contains In full the report of the
AFtskah advisory committee, appointed by him in
Aprii OF 1870 to advise what immediate steps could
DC taken 10 better conditions what industries
coud De developed and what resources could be
exploited TO give employment to resident popC-
luton which In turn would give home market
for Alaska products. This committee was made up
OF Alfred IL. Brooks (chairman), interior depart
ment; ID. I. Saint. shipping beard; Otto Praeger.
second assistant postmaster general; f. A. Sher-
man. agricultural department.
1t the judgment of the advisory committee
that the wise course was to coordinate the differ
ent departments of the government having to do
with Alaska through a committee consisting of
representative from each department. Such
committee was named by Secretary Payne.
In Secretary Payne's personal comments and
the report of the advisory committee many inter-
esting and curious facts found. Here are
some of them:
The work of construction of the government
railroad is getting along slowly
The pOstofice department is not functoning
Mail to Alaska is shipped as express or freight
There has been shortage of labor
The leases offered by the forest service to max
of pulp and paper offer unacceptable terms
There is resident district forester.
There are BAT Withdrawals and reservations of
public lands; many serve no useful purpose.
Only about 8 per cent of Alaska's ocean water
ways have been charted.
Lighthouses and fog horns are needed some
ok
tons.
There was naval patrol In 1920; there should
be 20 boats
territorial police force is needed
The salmon fishing industry is menaced from
lack of protection and propagation Of the fish,
The territorial government wants full territorial
powers Of legislation Jurisdiction over fish, game
and land fur-bearing animals; transfer Of the
Alaska fund from the federal to the territorial
treasury
Alaskas coal output in 1919 under the leasing
law was only 10000 tons; she is importing animal.
ly 100000 tons.
With Oil of her own, Alaska draws on California
for $4,000 barrels of petroleum and it's products
There has been little investigation in tho
water-pOwer resources
Extension to Alaska OF the farmers loan act
and the stock-raising homestead act are needed
Ocean transportation is inadequate and rates
are so high as to cripple all Alaskan industrial
expansion. Indeed, the problem of getting Alaska,s
products to market seems to be the biggest nroh
lem of ALL 1t has many ramiications The liz
file fishing companies without vessels of thar own
have TO trust to the chance visit of indenendant
huyers The catch of these little comnan,os
amounts to millions. The big companies of course
have their own vessels. There are also certain
shipping regulations that must be altered Prob
obly a government shipping line will have to ha
established under the Jurisdiction of the interstate
commerce commission to break the private monon.
DIV in water transportation.
Secretary Fall does not purpose it is stated to
take over investigation activities of a sciant,e
nature now being done by various bureaus Rnt
he does plan to take over the functions and nar.
sonnel of the other departments and bureaus func.
t,oning in Alaska's long -distance government.