The Stroller's weekly and Douglas Island news., 1921-08-27
ALAsKA TWENTYTWO YEARS AGO

able in Juneau, was brought to light one day early th ccl the finder leaving with the editor of this pape n thrce-columu box on the first page of that pap' rntcd twentv-wo years before was the following fro member of the Joint High Commission appointed resident Mckinley to consider and settle the inteu ona boundary dispute between the United States an auada. the territory in dispute being Alaska and " on Territory The editor of the Post-Inelligencer Ina contested Mr. Payne to give his impressions of Alasl md here they are:
 "To The ost-nteIlgcncer-You ask my impressions of Alaska. I have verified the won dcrlul predictions of Charles Sumner minis great speech on the purchase of Alaska in 1867. The scenery is beyond description. One never tires of it. as it is am cvcr-changug panorama of na- turc in her graudest and most picturesque form
 "Thc resources of this country are great even i'm their present development, but the pio- uccrs have hardly scratched the surface even around the edges of a very small section. When thc placer mines are exhausted, it seems to me that there are untold riches in the legitimate business of reducing the gold ir abundant quartz that seems to be everywhere. There is much promise of copper and coal
 "Of the fishing resources it is unnecessary to speak
 "I ann told that cedar of a superior quality abomds. and the supply of spruce for paper and wood pulp is mcNhaustbe. People who fear that trusts and combines will control the eastern supply should turn their attention to Alaska for consolation
 "Bcttcr government should be furnished this important territory, with its increasing pop ula,iou They need more courts, more police, and. above all more common schools Every doI- lar raised by taxes that are not common to the citizens of the United States should be expended for the benefit of Alaska
 ''I was especially impressed with the char actcr of the people. They were citizens ot high class Nowhere have l seen the Fourth of
 July so universally and enthusiastically ccIe- bratcd as in Alaska The character of the people is tbc.bcst hope for Alaslas future.
 "SERENO E. PAYNE"
 We wish to call special attention to the last pan graph of the distinguished statcSmms s article m wlu he spoke of the high class and character of the people omd in Alaska, of their thorough Amcrcanism and ! iotism. concluding with "thc character of the peep $ the best hope for Alaska's utmc'
 Now. we submit that thc character of the people Alaska is just as good twentytwo years after the to going was written as it was thcn-that they are just strongly mbucd with Amercausm and patriotism al nave been at a times which have utcvencd within the wcuty-two years.
 The same issue fthe Post-luteligeucer which GO aimed Mr. Payuc's impressions of Alaska contained dtora ou Alaska, the closing paragraph of which sai
 "Thc visit of the members of Congress should result in a measure of improvement at the next session The people of Alaska have been very patient under the most mwarrantabe neglect Sessions of Congress- special and regular to q number of more than a dozen have passed into histo iucc then and the pcople of Alaska who have been vel patient under most unwanautoblc neglect' have not y otcd ca measure of improvement" They did not mo at the "ueNt session, nor have they noted it at an subsequent sessions And this latter in spite of the ia hat Alaska has had a delegate in every Congress sin hat of l906 But this is not in dispamgemeut of the e 1rts made by these delegates who were earnest a oucst in their labors or Alaska but who, labor as th night were able to accomplish but little for the Ter ory They were permitted to play around with insi ifcaut measures but that was aO When it came to any hing that meant something big for Alaska, they wei cu back to their seat behind the bench occupied by tl louzcd delegates from the Philippines and told to