The Daily Alaska empire. [volume] (Juneau, Alaska) 1926-1964, 1950-09-12
Tuesday, September IL, 1850
THE SILENT DOUBLE-CROSS

At this writing we have heard the stories of only
two members of the Alaska Statehood Committee on
the hiring of Randolph Feltus as lobbyist for Alaska
statehood. ss7sz s-e -..l 41t-
"a Last Thursday Delegate E. L. Bartlett, ex-officic
member of the Statehood. Committee, issued state
ment before the Committee on Interior and Insuar
Affairs In Washington
On the same day Ketchikan newspaper publisher
William Il Baker, a member of the Statehood Com
mttee issued statement in the form of an editorial
inshis paper. HST#: TSTStF
The two statements are interesting. They are
also contradictory and unconvincng.
The statehood lobbyist his full name is John
Hampton Randolph Feltus operated his business
under the name Randolph Feltus and Associates
Randolph Feltus it was alleged by Senator Schoep-
pei and admitted by both Delegate Bartlett and Mr..
Baker, had been public relations counsel for the
Soviet Republic of Poland. Public relations counsel"
is longer way of saying lobbyist"
One of the associates of Fetus was Robert Talbot
Miller a former employee of the State Department.
On July 26 1916, the Federal Bureau of Investigation
listed Miller as security risk and recommended that
his services with the State Department be terminated
Six months later he left the State Department.
Just how Randolph Feltus and Associates came
to be hired by the Statehood Committee without an
examination of their record is clear
ments have =
Delegate Bartlett Says that he asked George SIND
borg to check Randolph Feltus and Associates;
that sundborg had talked to one of Fetus former
employers and that Feltus had been recommended
most highly"
Apparently no other check was made. This is
strange In theshiring of Washington lobbyist it
would be more than good business sense to learn
whether he had previously done any lobbying
The law requires lobbyists to register and this
registration would appear to be the easiest place to
check the former connections of a lobbyist
On October 16, 1896 Randolph Feltus registered
as lobbyist for Soviet Poland His salary $4,000
a month.
This fact was matter of record, but the record
was apparently not checked by Delegate Bartlett or
any other member of the Statehood Committee.
Anyway, Feltus was hired. 1t appears that he was
hired by Delegate Bartlett although the delegate does
not say directly The delegate does say that the
ARRANGEMENT was approved by the executive committee
of the Alaska Statehood Committed
Mr.. Baker is a member of this executive COM
mittee. Mr. Baker says that he opposed to hiring
Feltus until after he appeared before the Statehood
Committee.
Feltus made his appearance before the Statehood
Committee members at Washington around the end of
April Then Mr.. Baker says, the decision was reached
to hire Feltus for short time
Delegate Bartlett said he was hired a month
previously on March 25 and that his services con
tnued for four months until July 25 His salary was
$500 month
At any rate on May 2, 1885, Feltus registered
as required by law as lobbyist for the Alaska
Statehood Committee.
1t is at once apparent that Feltus either did not