Seward daily gateway., 1927-04-04

UNCLE SANl'S ALASKAN BALANCE SHEET
 During the period from 1915 to 1924 the United States has spent total of $O9 8787 for all departments of the Federal service in Alaska exclusive of the cost of construction and maintenance of The Alas ka Railroad which cost $53 76 to build and $11 66675866 to maintain and earned $4 202915 leaving deficit for the ten-year period of $7 504, ,729.51
 During the period the total receipts to the Fed eral government from all departments in Alaska were $6801 86028 of expenditures receipts of $92, ,758,927.59
 Deduct the cost of such service as the Federal gov ernment pays for under the head of judges commission ers ma1sha etc., or which it accords to each State and the balance represents the price the people of the United States paying for the luxury of bureaucratic control each ten years for which we have reliable statistics
 These figures interesting in that they reveal the difference between privately owned resources which are converted into taxable items and conserved which are not taxable, and which depend for upon how we'll government promoter may perform ser vice that ordinarily falls to the lot of the trained man of business. As government employes-aside from those coming within the Civil Selvce-are dependent upon po- htica prefeent rather than the test of actual expert ence the government does not have the advantage in pick ing it's servants
 But assuming that each and every government en- poye represents the best that may be had in point of skill and trainng the very conditions under which he labors defeats initiative and confines him to cumbersome sy tenn evolved of theory rather than practice.
 It this system that is costing the people of the Unit ed States the deficit above pointed out Until that sy CIdlgeu WHeTpDy the government 1SeIf to legislation suitable to the needs of the nation and leaves business in the hands of those who through it's develop ment make possible, this defct will remain and grow even greater
 A policy which cannot produce a better showing than Uncle Sams balance sheet Alaska must have something wrong with it.
 One only onecture what the taxable revenues of Alaska would be ii it's natural the hands of the people-not theoretically, but actually
 Some gauge may be obtained by comparing the two items not entirely affected by conservation namely fish, cries and metal mining Of the taxable products of Alas ka 400 is represented by value of minerals of which $98,899325 represents gold and silver Topping the list is fish products valued at $38877755 In the a nua report of the Secretary of the Interior and which covers the tenyear period from 1915 to 1924 there is not one figure to indicate returns from oi coal timber
 Running parallel with this out of proportion balance sheet other interesting figures for the advocates of bureaucracy and conservation to ugge with In 1914 Alaska had 44O0O white population; in 1924 it had de- creased to 27,883.
 Such balance sheet laid before the stockholders of big corporation would result in housekeeping from president to general manager. Their successors would first seek the of the condition and immediately re- it. The stockholders in the United States govern ment not keen those in private corporation hence they do not take note of these things
 It's even bet that Secretary Mellon will not forget what the Governor of North Carolina said to the Cover nor of South Carolina when moentous questions put up to him in Europe. ":s..+a~
 The man afraid If ,,o+f;ooa+ ~,