Evening star., 1936-03-02
Alaska Booster In CITY
DR.. c.. E. Bunnell, President of University
Urges Highway to the Orient.
IF UNCLE SAM ever decides to

send out an evangel in behalf
of Alaska, he need look no fur
L ther than DR.. Charles e. Bnnnell,
school man, jurist, scientist-and q
word painter on the Territory's glo-
ries. He would make the ordinary
my-own-my- -native-land booster shed
tears of envy.
Oficially DR.. Bunnell is simply
president of the University of Alaska,
near Fairbanks, the "farthest north"
institution of higher education in
America. Actually he is one of the
busiest individuals of record, with no
telling how many undertakings going
at the same time. His boundless
enthusiasm for all of it, whether it
be arguing for great highway to
the Orient, widening the influence of
the university, or digging up the
remnants of some gentleman who has
been dead several thousand years, Is
only equalled by his pride in the fact
that he played base ball and foot ball
at Bucknell with Christy Mathewson
when big Six" was on the way to
becoming a diamond immortal.
DR.. Bunnell is in Washington now
in an effort to interest Congress in
making additional provision for his
school. At the same time he's taking
advantage of the occasion to tell
few of the things he is convinced
people should know about the section
he calls home
Alaska Is Different Today.
The trouble is, DR.. Bunnell says,
the average citizen is inclined to
think of Alaska in terms of dog
teams, glaciers, icebergs, polar bears
and the like, forgetting that times
also have changed there.
I'VE have as much sunshine there
as you have here" he says proudly,
and what difference does it make if
it is spread over less time, he asks
with chuckle.
"And look"-and here the doctor
brings out pictures of fruit. flowers.
grain and stock-al the product Of
Alaska.
DR.. Bunnell is well equipped to dis
cuss his subject. He's been studying
it going on 36 years. Originally he
went to Alaska from the Bureau of
Education as an Indian school teach
er in 1900. That lasted three years.
Then he taught public school four
years; next practiced law Qearned at
BucknelD for several years, served as
a Federal judge under an appoint
ment from President Wilson for seven
years more, and finally, when the
university was set up in 1922, became
its first president.
Last of Land Grant Schools.
This university, which formerly was
an agricultural and mining school.
was the last of the land-grant institu-
tions. 1t started out under President
Bunnell with six students. Today it
has about 200, who are pursuing the
regular four-year course leading to
bachelor of arts and science degrees,
and in addition, he has about 400 on
short courses in mining and home
economics
The high price Of gold has stirred
new interest in mining, and extern
sion schools, which DR.. Bunnell has
established at Juneau and Ketchikan
have expanded until even night classes
are necessary. But right here DR..
i BunneI pauses to remark that he
wishes the people of Alaska would
! pay more attention to agricultural
pursuits.
Both men and women attend the
university, which charges no tuition,
and it is of more than passing inter-
est that the enrolment is not con-
fined to the Territory, several of the
States being represented.
On the purely scientific side DR..
Bunnell is directing archaeological
work on St. Lawrence Island, in the
Bering Sea, which in past ages was
an important point in the migration
from the Orient to America.
This is being financed by grant
from Childs Frick, son of H. c. Frick
the great industrialist, who is con-
nected with the American Museum
of Natural History. Thus far the evil
dences of five different waves" OF
migration have been definitely dis
closed. There is no way of telling
Bunnell adds, how vast span OF
of years may be represented by these
traces of vanished peoples.
The Alskan Range, a continuation
of the Rockies, Is an inviting field TO,
the study of seismology, terrestrial
magnetism and meteorology, and
after several years of effort, Br. Bun
nell has succeeded in obtaining q
seismograph.
Boosts Road to Orient.
The highway-and airway-to the
Orient, is one of the pet projects OF
DR.. Bunnells life, and if the Cana
dian government could be persuaded
to see it his way and spend the
$12,500,000 it would cost to build a
road across British Columbia, all
would be well. The Alaskan LEG" he
explains, would cost about $4,000, 600
Difficult as it was to roll back the
Western frontier, that task is not tc
be compared with the difficulties en-.