Seward daily gateway., 1923-07-21
JOHN [. BALLAINE
 GIVES SOUVENIR
(Continued from Page One)
the one MT. Ballaine presented to President Harding in Seward. The entire letter, now a valued historic document, is as follows:
 Copy of Original Letter nn4nhn. ID 1nno

October 10, 1903.
 To the President:
 I have established new town or Resurrection Bay, Alaska, and have named it Seward, in honor of William H. Seward, the Secretary of State i Who negotiated the purchase ot Alas ka from Russia. It is the Pacitlt | ocean terminus ot projected rall- road system, the Alaska central, ln- corporated in 1902 and now under construction, the purpose of which Is to open the interior of Alaska tL settlement and development.
 The Postoffice Department has re- fused my request to give tne name O. Seward to a poStoffice at this new town, on the ground that there are already two postoffices of that name in Alaska, one of them is small mining camp on Lynn canal, the oth- CT small fishing village on Brlstol' bay.
 Permit me to suggest that the great service rendered by Secretary Seward in the purchase of Alaska would be more appropriately commemorated ID the bestowal of his name upon 2 town likely to become the metropolis of Alaska, and in time one of the i'm portant cities of the Pacific coast. rather than in it's use to designate
 temporary mining camp " summer fishing village.
 If you agree with this view and can do so with pr riety, I earnestly re quest that you intercede with the
 DOS stoffice \ partment to the end that
 ..Go1x-orIo ho oiunn
 postoffice at the new town on Resur-
 rection Bay, in accordance with pc
 tition on file in the office of tn. Fourth Assistant Postmaster General I have the honor to be, with great respect, very truly yours, JOHN E. BALLAINE. On the margin in President Roose velts handwriting is the notation: My Dear MT. Bristow: 1 heartily agree with the patriotic sentiments expressed by MT. Ballaine. T. R. Tells of Interview MT. Ballaine told the Gateway ar interesting story about the results: T went with that letter straight t(
 MT. Bristow's office in the Postoffice ; Department" said he. T greeted MT 2 Bristow pleasantly, handed him th' letter, which he read, and waited while he read it. He turned to th' marginal endorsement in Presiden B Roosevelt's writing, signed '"T. R. E then without a moments hesitation 3 touched an electric button. Soon th' head of a Bureau entered. MT. Bris : tow said to him:
 z tissue an order discontinuinl the other two Stewards in Alaska ant k another one establishing postoffic' k under the name of Seward at Resu1 rection Bay. Also make out an orde appointing Lillie Gordon postmistres at this new Seward, as Mir. Ballain has requested. The President ask
 that the name Seward be given t - the new town on Resurrection Ba \ for patriotic reasons, ~nc I heartl H agree with him.
 Within ten minutes,' continue MT. Ballaine, "the Bureau chief re turned with the necessary orders which MT. Bristow signed. It was tn S same Joseph Bristow who snbse E quently was United States senate from Kansas.
 T went with another letter, als
 endorsed on the margin by Presider ' Roosevelt, requesting the Commil sioner of the General Land Office t take prompt action in approving tn
 survey of the Alaska Central Raj
 way. The Commissioner had the su @ vey approved and ready for me by o'clock that afternoon.
 "The two initials, T. R. accon \ plished for me in a few minutes wha
 otherwise would have taken monthl
 That was the way T. R. transacte
 business when it was deserving"