The Daily Alaska empire., 1950-06-14


 mately four percent of the popula- tion. For the Third Division the total vote was 4,313, or around eight percent of the population.
 "Rcap Alaskans For It
 But regardless of their. lack of interest in exercising the ballot, all real" Alaskans. according tol witnesses, are for statehood.
 T think you will find in almost every instance" said Mrs. John Ryan of Anchorage, that individ- uals who are not sympathetic with statehood now or are fearful of the consequences are not actual residents of Alaska"
 Mrs. Ryan did not explain the 6822 people who voted against statehood in the referendum of l946, although under .her theory of nonresident opposition this was surely one of the greatest election frauds ever perpetrated
 Opposition to statehood, many of The witnesses asserted, comes niairf~ ly from the absentee Interests"
 Until very recently, virtually all development in Alaska was carried on by absentee capital, which did Alaska almost as much harm as the building up of industries did good,' said Secretary Chapman.
 "The greatest opposition to state hood comes from the canned sal- mon industry corporations and from the large mining interests, also absentee corporations. said Mir. Warren Taylor in a written state ment.
 Change Not Wanted
 Delegate Bartlett. who echoed this idea, explained that the reason the interests" are against state- hood is that they do not want a change in tine status quo.
 On the ether hand, according to Ithe same witnesses and others who appeared at Washington, investors will come to Alaska as soon as it becomes state.
 We believe that capital will come into Alaska if it has to do business with state, rather than with bureau in Washington" said Mayor Loussac of Anchorage.
 Said Secretary Chapman: My department has been actively en- gagged in plans for a development program for the Territory. and we know the resistance that we en- counter from industry because AL aska, as Territory, does not have complete power to carry on its own affairs, and because indus usTialisis grow impatient at the delay occas- toned by tEe necessity of imple- .nenting plans by Federal action or by congressional Legislation"
 Capital Hesitates
 J Mrs. Ryan told the Senators: We have found hesitation on the part of capital interest due to the fact that they are not assured of the laws and the rules and the regulations under which they would operate under territorial status"
 Now one of the main objectives of statehood, as put forth in tie testimony of various witnesses, is that it would give the Legislature power that it does not presently have to change the laws, rules and regulations. And giving the Legis- lature this power, it appears, would assure prospective investors of the laws, rules and regulations under which they would operate.
 It is quite apparent from these statements that there are two kinds of capitalists, so far as Alaska is concerned. There is the kind that has already made investments in Alaskan industry. This kind is op- posed to statehood because it does not want a change in the status quo. The other kind have not yet made investments in Alaska but are only waiting for statehood and a change in the status quo to do SO. Unfortunately, the pro-statehood people did not produce single capitalist and prospective investor to tell the Senators that he will not make investments in the Ter ritory of Alaska but would make them in the State of Alaska. 1 Results of Hearing l As result of the week-long hearing at Washington on H. R. 33l, the bill has been somewhat im- proved, in the viewpoint of many Alaskans. Others, while admitting these gains, believe that there was insufficient improvement to make it generally acceptable.
 1 By an amendment proposed by Secretary Chapman, the new state would not get 50 percent of the net proceeds from the Pribilof fs- lands sealing industry. This was a net gain of around million dollars a year for the state treas ury. The old bill provided no in come from this source.
 | The Indian claims and Indian observations question, which many AlaSkans feel are doinp more to