The Daily Alaska empire., 1928-11-22
SEATTLE PAPER AIDING CROSS
 TO GET MONEY
Alaska Weekly Is Conduct ing Drive for Cash for
 Alaska's Pioneers

The Alaska Weekly in Seattld
 has taken up ". D. Cross under.
 taking to raise money for the resi-
 dents Of the Pioneers Home al
 sitka as a Christmas present, and
 the indications are that there will
 De fund fer the distribution
 among the old fellows over there that will make things more pleas
 ant for them for sometime.
 MT. Gross plan is to divide the
 money among the pioneers in the
 home so that they might have
 some spending money Of their
 own for which no accounting will
 be required, .
 In an editorial announcing it's
 purpose to, aid MT, Cross to raise
 some money, the Alaska Weekly in
 it's last issue, said:
 Some time ago MT. w. D. Cross.
 theatre man Of Juneau, conceived
 the idea of raising Christmas fund for the oldtimers who are spending their last years at the Pioneers Home at Sltka. His con- tentlon was that no matter how well fed and clothed and housed man might be that his happiness is mighty incomplete on Christmas day if he hasn't a few dollars to Jingle in his pockets. Accordingly he got busy with the result that last Christmas when the old fel- laws sat down to their Christmas spread. each man found on his plate the sum Of eight dollars as, gift from his friends throuehout ne Territory. It was crlenlng oit of holiday icy to the hundred and five old pioneers gathered round the festive board-the tur- key tasted better, the mince pie had an added flavor-every man had money and every one of them knew of something that he wanted to do with that money.
 We do not believe that there is a commonwealth in the United States that cares for it's aged who come to the autumn of life penni- less as does the Territory of Alas ka. The first act of the First Territorial Legislature. was to pro- vide home for those who had blazed the trails and had reached the non-productive age without al Since that day the people of Alaska have maintained mat home, not grudglngly, as an duty, but generously and gladly as an expression of ap- precistion for, services rendered. Ear too often our indigent old are treated as culprits guilty of he crime of poverty. To use John 3oyle OReilley's words they are given Charity scrimped and iced , n the name of cautious, statis- -ical Christ There is none of [ hat atmosphere about the Pio- ! leers' Home at Sitka. It is a pioneers home-not a poor house. ! Tn the old days in the North 10 one was asked where he came rom nor why. All that was re- luired to admit him to the fellow nip was that he play the hard { game of a hard country like nan and deal on the square with . he rest of the players. So to- lay the North does not ask it's old what they did with the money of producing years-many of them lad plenty of it. They may have brown it to the winds-they may lave been over-friendly with old |ohn Barleycorn-they may have 'een imposed upon by the hun- lreds of sycophants who live like ! 'arasites on open-hearted men of hee frontiers who Init it rich. Whatever it was makes no differ 'nce to Alaskans-they helped to 'uild the Northland and they ap- 'roach the end of the trail in need 4 helping hand-nothing else matters. e e
 We like the idea nat was