The Daily Alaska empire., 1950-08-16
SEN. BUTLER CHARGES Mt(UT(HE0N BENEFITS
 BY LAND PURCHASE
Legislator Says Gruening Approved Increase of
 Land Values

WASHINGTON, Aug. 16 - iR - Senator Butler (R-Neb) today ac- cused Alaskan Territorial officials of trying to collect $37 800 in federal airport funds through a subter- fuge."
 Butler, who has been leading the fight in the Senate against state hood for both Alaska and Hawaii. demanded a Senate investigation of a long series of charges involving the airport at Palmer, Alaska.
 In a prepared speech. supported by what he called "photostatic copies of certain pertinent documents" Butler told the Senate:
 1. That Stanley McCutcheon, speaker of the House in the Alaskan Legislature, collected S5,628 for put ting through the airport transaction and would benefit also from the project through his connections as a bank official.
 2. That Gov. Ernest Gruening of Alaska had placed his personal stamp of approval" upon the airport project.
 3. That a member of the Alaskan Legislature, Marcus F. Jensen of Douglas, had asked the US District Attorney in Juneau to make a full investigation of the transaction.
 A. That "a washout transaction" between the Alaskan Territorial government and the Palmer Airport Association, was arranged under which the Territorial government paid $150,000 for the Palmer airport and then received $145,000 of this back.
 Butler said this scheme" was used to enable the Territorial gov ernment to obtain $37,500 of federal funds to which it was not legally entitled.
 Butler said that $5O.O00 had been spent building a small airport at Palmer in 1946, before Alaska be- came eligible to receive federal air port funds on a matching basis in l949.
 Land Value Increased
 He contended the "Washout tran saction" was staged by increasing the value of land from $43 an acre last year to $1,172 an acre for the 127.94 acres involved in the $l50,000 sale.
 Butler also told the Senate it is his belief that McCutcheon, an air line president as well as attorney, banker and legislator. actually signed the name of Roland Snod- grass" to the airport voucher.
 Contending Alaska and its offi- cials now handle millions of dollars annually, Butler said there lis grave question here as to the philo- sophy and outlook of the present Territorial officials in whom has been vested the responsibility for the government of a federal terri tory"
 Butler said questions about the Palmer airport transaction had been raised by Frank A. Boyle, auditor of Alaska, on July 13. and opinions had been asked from the Alaskan Attorney General.
 q believe that the Governor of Alaska and a number of others in volved here should have the oppor- tunity to explain fully to the Con- gress their activities in connection with the Palmer land deal" Butler said
 The Senator said former Trea- surer of Alaska, lis now in prison serving a term of 10 years for em- bezzlement of public funds entitled to his care"
 Two other former officials, who served under this administration, were dismissed last year after the legislature found they were unfit for public service, he continued.
 Butler placed in the Senate record documents and data dealing with his charges and newspaper articles from the Daily News Miner on re- lated subjects.