The Daily Alaska empire. [volume] (Juneau, Alaska) 1926-1964, 1945-10-31
Rivers Labels
New Land Bill
Deceit, Snare
Attorney General Reveals
True Intent OF Lat
est ICkes Grab

aSka land graD attempt Is SHOWN III
its true colors in an opinion writ
ten by Alaskas energetic Attorney
General Ralph j. Rivers, concern
ing Senate Bill 1851, recently in
troduced in the Senate of the
United States
The Attorney General has ad-
dressed his opinion opposing the
measure to Alaska's Delegate in
Congress, E. L. Bartlett, who had
submitted the measure to Mr.
Rivers. The Attorney Generals
reply to Delegate Bartlett states,
in full:
Thank you for sending me copy
of Senate Bill 1861 introduced by
Senator Hatch (by request) to au-
thorize the Secretary of the In
terror to lease public lands in
Alaska I note that you made no
comments by way of transmittal.
Although I know you have sent
copies to other persons and
agencies in Alaska my reaction
should be among the first as 1 am
familiar with the subject matter
Old Stuff
This occasion is reminiscent of
bill introduced about six years
ago designed to withdraw all lands
from entry within 80 rods of any
navigable or other waters except
under leases from the Secretary
of the Interior The excuse then
recited was an alleged necessity to
keep land available for future
| public use as the need might arise.
The answer was that the power
of eminent domain could always
be invoked for public purposes
! without hamstringing Alaska, SO
the bill got nowhere. In the in
term other measures have been
proposed, such as a bill to create
public purpose corporations under
the Department of the Interior, for
exclusive use and control of large
areas in Alaska. Needless to say
that bill did not become law. How
ever, the process never ceases, as
evidenced by unjustifiably large
reservations established by the Sec
rotary of the Interior under the
Wheeler Howard Act, and other
entertainments too numerous to
mention
Now for S. 1461. 1t provides, in
brief, that the Secretary of the
Interior may lease any of the
public lands in Alaska except those
already reserved, limits the terms
of such leases, grants power to
make rules and regulations, pro-
vides an ambiguous savings clause
and defines Public Lands as
hereinafter mentioned. Aside from
being consistent with the Secre-
tary's long standing campaign to
impose a federal leasing system
upon Alaska under his department,
S. 1851 is the worst bill I have
ever seen. It's approach is obviously
deceit and a snare. 1t starts out
by expressing the purpose of pro-
noting development of Alaska. 1t
then goes on to say that:
1.-The Secretary Of the Interior
may lease or grant revocable per-
mitS to use, for agricultural, in
dustrial, commercial, or any other
purposes, any of the public lands
of the United States in the Ter
ritory of Alaska in tracts not to
exceed 160 acres, any part of
which is now or hereafter in
Guided within a shore space res
ervaticn under Sec. ! or Sec. 10
of the Act of May ID, 1898, as
amended
Intended To Mislead
Said act as amended is COM
piled in 43 use. Sec. 371 and ex-
tends the homestead laws to Alaska
with the proviso that entries may
not be more than 100 rods in ex-
tent along the shore of any navi-
gable water and that shore space
of at least 80 rods shall be re-
served from entry between all such
claims. Since 1920, however, the
Secretary has had the power to
restore such 80 rod shore reserves
to the open public domain. Now
you will see that the language OF
the bill which would authorize the
Secretary of the Interior to lease
any public land in Alaska for ag-
ricultural, industrial, commercial or
any other purpose any part OF
which is now or hereafter in
cluded within a shore space res
eryation' is the type of ambiguous
phraseology obviously intended to
mislead the casual reader at the
outset into thinking that only such
shoreline reserves are meant to be
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