The Nome nugget., 1923-07-21
LOCAL NEWS
MAIL CONDITIONS IN
 kOUGAROk PROTESTED
 AGAINST BY RESIDENTS

rom Une peOpie reSluiHS III tue Kougarok district. protesting against the chaAge made in the mail delivery route to that district.
 Dahl Creek, Alaska. July 4th EDITOR NOME NUGGET.
 Dear Sir:
 This now completely isolated com munity celebrated the Fourth of July by holding an indignation meet ing protesting against the unfair and unexplained new mail contract for the Kougarok. The new con- tract as we understand i. calls for a monthly service between Nome. by way of Teller and Davidson 8 Landing, to Taylor Creek. This route makes a wide detour around the most thickly settled parts of the Kougarok and does not serve sim gle individual until it reaches its final destination at Taylor Creek. the last settlement in the extreme northern part of the precinct.
 All the settlements along the. Seward Peninsula Railway such as the |. S. Roadhouse, the Nugget Roadhouse, Iron Creek. Sherretta Creek, Hot Springs, Mary's Igloo, Shelton, Coffee Creek, Dahl Creek, Coarse Gold and many small places are completely ignored. These set dement's have white population of at least 62 as compared with a population of at most 27 at Taylor Creek. In addition to having more than twice as many white people they have over 100 Eskimos that are now receiving considerable mail
 How the Department was induced to award such an unjust contract is mystery.
 The concensus of opinion here seems to be that the controversy in regard to the road problems in the Kougarok enters into this new mail route and powerful influences are at work to gain possession of our best argument for the location of road thru the Kougarok
 We have always contended that the road or roads as far as physi- cally possible, should be located where the minerals are, where the people live along the line of the greatest travel and where the mail route is. We have the minerals, we have the people, including Tay- Tor Creek as well and we have had the mail route which, for location. cannot be improved upon particul- arly now when the railroad is being reha bilitated.
 The instigators of this new con- tract apparently are trying to exc cute a "coup de main" and rob us of our thunder by transferring this most convincing argument to their side and in favor of the so called one man road between Davidson and Taylor Creek.
 We have no faults to find with the Commission for allotting $6,000 to this road this year. The more roads the better. We do not object to how the money is spent or who receives the greatest benefit from it. but we do protest against having our mail service taken away from us and used to influence future ap- propriations for private roads.
 The people of Taylor Creek com plain as bitterly as we do about the new contract and there is only one man there, the carrier they say, that is in favor of it.
 What the Kougarok wants and ought to have at the present time. is a four year contract over the old route. the carrier under bond, a monthly service for the winter and twice a month for July, August, September and October.
 In that case the carrier could out fit himself properly and the differ ence in the cost to the mail depart ment would be less than $500 per year.
 We loath the idea of airing our linen in the public press but the road problem and mail service in the Kougarok are vital problems and should be known.
 There are now several hundred pounds of important mail in the Nome office and more to come for this section and we earnestly hope the Postmaster will explain tke mis- take of the new contract and re-es- tablish the old route, which serves all the people and the difference in the cost to the government under the present and past contract is only s2.50 trip.