The Wrangell sentinel., 1943-02-05

and lack of space prevents
 printing 1t in full
 Alaska is the western hemis- phere's only fighting front, the only part or America which is in direct contact with the enemy. Challeng- ing as is it's present situation, our Territory will play an eTen more important and decisive part in the days to come. Alaska. too, has a rendezvous with destiny.
 The conduct of this all-out type of war has two aspects; on the one hand. We must overcome the enemy on land. on the sea and in the air.. On the other hand. NC must meet the assault Of totalitarianism and dictatorship by demonstra tin E through actions, that We can and will make democracy work. This last is precisely the task Of those assembled here.
 The Territory faces a substantial deficit before the end of the com ing biennium. =. The reasons Tor this foreshadowed decrease in rev enue are familiar to all of us; the mining of gold. has been suspend ed for the duration; and salmon hacking. our largest industry, is likewise curtailed owing to trans portation difficulties. labor and equipment shortages incidental to the war. These two industries have been the chief sources of territor- ial revenue.
 Reductions Possible
 After the legislature has formed its collective judgment of what the revenues of the next two years may be and how much they seem likely to fall short of requested appropri- ations. the legislature will have to decide whether these requests should be cut and if so, how much. If reductions insufficient to balance the budget cannot be agreed upon, then securing additional revenues will be necessary.
 It seems clear that some custom ary expenditures can be substan- tially reduced. For instance, at the last session the legislature appro- priated $600.000 for the construc- ton and maintenance of roads and airfields. Most of these were in the interior and related to gold mining. As this industry is suspended, and as the federal government is now engaged in a program of airfield and highway construction beyond anything which has ever been seen in the Territory, it would seem reasonable and appropriate to cut these Territorial expenditures.
 A drastic reduction in the ap- propriation for bounties is also presented for your consideration and decision.
 These two proposed savings on roads and bounties together total $422.000. Some other savings are no doubt possible, and their deter imitation rests with the legislature
 Cash Surplus
 In addition, the Territorial Treas ury at present has a rather substan- tial surplus ($SO1. .007.20 as com pared with $637.693.25 in 1940) principally because the war has made impossible certain expendi- lures appropriated for: s175,O 900 for the Pioneers Home extension could not be spent because priorities could not be secured; new school construction and repair could not be done.
 On the other hand, over three fifths of the Territorial budget of $4,385,49 goes for three ca e. gories; elementary education, well fare, and the pioneers home. Sup port of schools represents about a third of the total budget.
 In my judgment, it is not possible to make any substantial reduction in these three categories, although the determination as to that rests with the legislature.
 On the contrary, our primary and secondary educational system faces serious crisis, the extent oi which is revealed by the tremend- ous and increasing turnover oi teachers in the last two or three years. In the city schools there has been a turnover of AS per cent, In the rural schools the turnover has been 35 per cent. A few of the younger men teachers have left to enter the armed forces, but the majority who have given up teach, ing have done so to accept positions that offered both more pay and more security.
 Teachers Underpaid
 minimum salary for teachers was established in 1887: First Di. vision $500. Third, Second and Fourth s210O. This year, to meet the crisis, the Commissioner of Edu. cation gave all rural teachers a s200 bonus. Cities such as Ketchi. kan, Juneau, Anchorage and Fair. banks gave S200 to $500 increases However, many small cities felt un. able to afford to do this and theil teachers are still working under thu 1s37 salary scale which ia entirely