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OREGON CITY, OREGON, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1917
Number 27
35th Year
OIEGOM CITY
CO
TIMBER LAND TAX
HELDTOJE JUST
DISTRICT ATTORNEY WINS NOT
ABLE VICTORY THROUGH
I SUPREME COURT . i
WILBUR WILL APPEAL CASE
Law Violator Defeated and Timber
Barons Held to Pay
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Full Assessment
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1 District, Attorney Gilbert L. B
B Hedges has been advised this B
H morning of the intention of Ju-
H lius Wilbur and his attorneys a
to appeal the decision against a
him to the United States su-, B
preme court on the ground that a
the indictment upon which he a
was convicted was faulty and B
not according to law. The no-. B
tification orders that the man- B
date under which Wilbur B
could be jailed immediately be B
held up for 60 days pending the B
appeal to the nation's high- B
est tribunal. District Attor- B
B ney Hedges secured the convic- B
B tion of Wilbur in Judge Camp- B
H bell's court. ,,.- B
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. Two decisions decidedly encour
aging to Clackamas county officials,
and one of them especially interest
ing to taxpayers, were handed down
in Salem on Wednesday by the state
supreme court. The first has to do
with the noted "Wilbur" case, ap
pealed from Judge Campbell's court.
Julius Wilbur was formerly the
proprietor of the iniquitious Friars'
club on the bank of the Willamette
at Milwaukie, where he is said to
have trafficked in liquor against the
state prohibition laws and the laws
of decency in the county. Wilbur
was sentenced to pay a fine of $300
and spend approximately six months
in jail when a jury in Judge Camp-
bell's court found him guilty of vio
lating the prohibition laws.
Represented by Charles W. Fulton,
ex-United States senator from Ore
gon, Wilbur appealed the case to the
supreme court following his convic
tion after the trial here on Decem
ber 18, 1916. The supreme court was
asked to grant a hearing and it was
' through the court's refusal yesterday
, to grant such a motion that victory
came to the county. Wilbur's attor
, ney's intimate that the case is not
yet ended, but in the county seat
their attitude was taken as a bluff. By
their action the members of the su
preme court yesterday sustained
Judge Campbell.
But the case that is perhaps the
most important to the taxpayers was
that settled when the supreme court
denied a rehearing in the case of the
Weyerhaeuser Land company against
Clackamas county. This company,
paying taxes on some 5000 acres of
, timber in the forests back of Molalla,
' has had the present case on the dock
ets since October 20, 1915, when it
sued the county for a reduction ' of
more than $300,000 in its tax assess
ment. In that notable case, conducted
throughout by District Attorney Gil
bert L. Hedges, with the assistance
of Deputy Thomas A. Burke, the cir
cuit court here ordered the county to
reduce the assessment to a certain
. extent, although not as much as the
company had asked. Not satisfied,
the Weyerhaeuser interests appealed
to the supreme court and the case
was tried there.
The supreme court decision revers
ed the circuit court in that it held the
Weyerheuser company to pay the full
amount of the assessment made by
the county. Its hopes blasted, the
company appealed to the supreme
court for a rehearing, but after con
sidering the evidence presented by
the company and by District Attor
ney Hedges for the county such a re
hearing was denied yesterday by the
supreme court. This leaves the mat
ter where it was in the beginning and
the timber barons will be forced to
pay the full and just amount of the
tax assessments aganst their heavy
timber holdings.
In the meantime attorneys for the
Weyerheuser company yesterday fil
ed complaints against the county for
the reduction of the last tax assess'
ments totaling close to $650,000 reduc
ed to slightly more than $250,000, or
a total reduction of approximately
$400,000. The reduction asked, the
complaints say, are based upon the
actual value of the timber land in
volved.
Lad Is Injured
Losing control of his bicycle at the
top of the New Era hill Tuesday,
Kenneth Hutchinson of Oregon City
suffered painful injuries and bruises
when he hit an obstruction at the
bottom of the hill and was thrown
from the vehicle. The flesh was
torn from an arm and he was badly
bruised. The lad is 16 years old and
a son . of Mrs. Ida Hutchinson of
this city.
PRESIDENT ASKS AID
OF SCHOOL CHILDREN
RED CROSS HAS PREPARED FOR
JUNIOR MEMBERSHIP WITH
SCHOOL ACTIVITIES
President .Wilson issued a procla
mation Tuesday calling upon the
school children of the nation to do
their part in the war by joining the
Junior Red Cross to assist in the
mercy work of the senior organiza
tion, i '
The proclamation follows:
"To the school children of the United
1 States:
"A Proclamation The president of
the United States is also president of
the American Red Cross. It is from
these offices joined in one that I write
you a word of greeting at this time
when so many of you are beginning
the school year.
"The American Red Cross has just
prepared a junior membership with
school activities, in which every pu
pil in the United States can find a
chance to serve our country. The
school is the natural center of your
life. .Through it you can best work
in the great cause of freedom to
which we have all pledged ourselves.
"Our junior Red Cross will bring
to you opportunities of service to
your community and to other com
munities all over the world and guide
your service with high and religious
ideals. It will teach you how to save
in order that suffering children else
where may have the chance to live.
It will teach you how to prepare some
of the supplies which wounded sol
diers and homeless families lack. . It
will send to you, through the Red
Cross bulletins, the thrilling stories
of relief and rescue.
"And best of all, more perfectly
than through any of your other
school lessons, you will learn by do
ing those kind things under your
teachers' direction to he the future
good citizens of this great country
which we all love.
"And I commend . to all school
teachers in the country the simple
plan which the American Red Cross
has worked out to provide for your
cooperation, knowing as I do that
school children will give their best
service under the direct guidance and
instruction of their teachers. Is not
this perhaps the chance for which you
have been looking to give your time
and efforts in some measure to meet
our national needs?"
WHISKEY BRINGS FINES
TO DAYTON MOTORISTS
Justice of the Peace John N. Siev
ers Tuesday assessed fines totaling
$125 against three Dayton, Or., citi
zens who were found guilty of trans
porting liquor in violation of the
state law, by a jury in the justice
court Tuesday. Paul Lpudenshu.
shen and W. H. McCain each were
fined $50 and their companion, J. T.
Ohlert, was fined $25.
There were five men in the auto
mobile party which Motorcycle Pa
trolman Meads stopped on the high.
way more than a week ago. Three
of the men objected to being stopped
and attempted to take their spite out
on the officer. The other two in the
party took no part in the fist fight
and at the trial yesterday gave evi
dence for the state. They were Sher
man Miller and Tony Cinamon. Rep.
resented by a McMinnville attorney
the three fined Tuesday served no
tice of appeal to the circuit court.
YOUNGSTER RUNS AWAY
Eleven-Year-Old Boy Has Not Been
Seen Since Wednesday
Everett Pendleton, 11-year-old
son of Louis Pendleton has disap
peared from his home and nothing
has been heard of the lad since late
Saturday night, when the father
heard he was in the vicinity of Maple
Lane. Everett has been gone from
home since last Wednesday night,
when he learned that his father was
looking for him in the woods where
the boy and an older brother had
gone to hunt in violation of the will
of the father. The boy came home
late in the evening and was told the
father had gone to look for him. He
left immediately. The lad formerly
lived with a family at Corbett, but
was sent back to his home because
he ran away repeatedly. He wears
a brown coat, blue overalls and a
gray cap and is about the average
size for his age..
MOOSE HOME READY
Lodges Will Dedicate New
With Much Ceremony
Hall
The new Moose lodge building at
Twelfth and Main streets is to be
dedicated by the lodge on October 2
and the members are making elabor
ate plans for the occasion. Other
lodges which hold their meetings in
the Moose hall will take part in the
dedication of the new building, in
eluding the Knights of Pythias, Py
thian Sisters, Artisans, Fraternal
brotherhood, and Knights and Ladies
of Security. Moose lodges from
Portland, Molalla, St. Johns and Sa
lem will send delegations to the city
for the dedication. Special cars
probably will come from Portland
and from Molalla. The new Moose
band of this city will take a prom
inent part in the affair.
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IS REAL WONDER
LITTLE LAD WEAVES THINGS
OF BEAUTY WHILE CON
FINED TO HIS BED
ORSE RACING A FEATURE
Some Departments Lack Quantity
But Old Time Quality is
There Strong
The outstanding feature of the
best collection of juvenile workman
ship ever gathered together in Clack
amas county is a display made' at the
county fair, in progress at Canby
this week, by Clyde Lorenz, who for
merly was a pupil at the Lone Elder
school near Canby. This little crip
pled chap, bedridden from the effects
of a childhood injury, has plied his
needle with sue1- wonderful skill that
his efforts have astounded his eld
ers of the other sex and made them
wonder at the deftness of the lad.
Clyde, who is only 14 years old
and unable to attend school, lies on
his bed and weaves most beautiful
patterns with his needle. He has on
display in the juvenile department at
the county fair a collection including
pillow tops, six table mats, two hand
kerchiefs and a collar and cuff set
for feminine adornment. The pillow
tops are great examples of the little
fellow's skill. One of them bears the
American flag crocheted in the three
colors and done so carefully that the
width of the lines are nearly perfect
and the size and placing of the stars
on their blue field is exact.
The juvenile department of the fair
this year is certainly the most inter
esting part of the exposition. It out
distances any previous attempts on
the 'part of the school children of
the county to collect their workman-
ship for display and, according to
such an authority as Brenton Vedder,
county school supervisor, who is in
charge of the department, it is big
ger and better than. any other juven
ile exhibition yet made. The children
have baked, canned and sewed a col
lection that in many cases puts their
elders to shame. Their jellies, their
cakes and their canned goods look de
lightfully palatable and their needle
work is a revelation in what young
hands can do when properly trained.
Most of the exhibits in this depart
ment are eligible for entrance in the
state fair contests and the school de
partment will transport most of the
displays to Salem at the opening of
the fair there.
Aside from the juvenile depart
ment the fair probably can claim no
outward superiority to the exposition
of .last year. The exhibits are not
nearly so extensive, either in the
farm crops department or the live
stock pens, but every article -display
ed is of a quality that the exhibits of
last year or any other year could not
beat, for they are near perfection.
The livestock pens contain' some of
the county's finest animals and fowls.
Of course, the part of the fair that
draws interest one year the same as
another, is the race program, and
this year there has been a collection
of fast animals at Canby that have
thrilled daily the large audiences in
the grandstand. An innovation on
the racing program were1 the automo
bile races of the opening day. Be
cause the contests were lmited to
stock cars, and that calls for amateur
drivers, there was not that degree of
speed that might be expected upon a
more noted speedway, and the entries
were limited to a few brave souls
who risked their lives on the course.
But the events were interesting nev
ertheless. Ed Fortune has been suc-
cssful this year in getting a good
entry list of race horses , and the
program each day has been fast and
snappy owing to the speedy starts
and the "quality of the horses.
The carnival company on the
grounds is furnishing amusement to a
great many with its merry-go-rounds,
ferris wheel and side shows. The
concession space is well taken up and
there are some popular booths about
the grounds. As is usual, the camp
ing grounds are occupied by a large
number of exhibitors and others who
are making of fair week the occasion
for a delightful outing.
This evening the band at the fair
grounds will render one of its popu
lar concerts and the customary dance
will be held at the band auditorium
to attract many to remain over dur
ing the evening hours. Tomorrow
has been set aside as all-county day,
and marks the closing of the annual
harvest exposition. A feature of the
program for the day will be the live
stock parade that has characterized
other fairs. An interesting race card
has been prepared and will start, if
prompt, at one o'clock.
Sues for $5000
Damages in the sum of $5000 are
asked in a complaint filed here Sat
urday by Lee Stanley Jacobs, of
Stafford, against M. C. Baker, of the
same community. Jacobs charged
Brown with the circulation of false
rumors about the former's family af
fairs, invulving the name of Mrs.
Baker and Mr. Jacobs.
LQREN
OUNCIL STARTS ON
CITY'S NEW CHARTER
EVADE CONFLICT IN BOUND
ARIES OF PRECINCTS AND
CITY WARDS
- i.1- -
. 1 1 . :
To avoid conflict with the recently
approved measure for holding munic-
pal and state elections at tnes ame
time, the Oregon uty council,
through Mayor E. C. Hackett, has
ordered City Attorney George L.
Story to prepare for publication a
new revised edition of the charter of
the municipality. , The volume that
it is planned to issue will . comply
with the provisions of the measure
passed by the voters last June and
will contain a complete revision oi
laws, amendments - and ordinances
passed since the" preparation of the
present copy some two years ago.
It will be necessary for tne coun
cil to devise some means of making
the boundaries , of the three city
wards the same as the boundaries of
the 11 precincts that are maintained
in state elections. The present char
ter provides for the election of nine
councilmen, three from each of three
wards. Mayor Hackett and, certain
members of the council, do not ap
prove of the idea of election council-
men-at-large and will work out some
schome to avoid this. T maintain
the present system of ward represen
tation Mayor Hackett will attempt
to solve the problem.
It may be necessary, in order to
maintain the ward representation
scheme, to ask the county court to
change the boundaries of the 11 vot
ing precincts in county and state elec
tions to conform with the municipal
boundaries. In any event, some
such pla will 'be incorporated in the
new charter, and Mr. Story will time
his' work on the volume so that its
inclusion will be assured. The city
council has given up hope of seeing
the charter which the Live Wires of
the Commercial club proposed to
submit for consideration through a
committee headed by 0. Di Eby.
FEDERAL LOCKS CLOSE
FOR DELAYED REPAIRS
The Oregon City locks were clos
ed Wednesday by government en
gineers t in charge pf the work thct
nas Deen going on or contemplated
there for some time. The present
undertaking will be the deepening of
the lower lock chamber and the pas
sageway will probably be closed for
six weeks, providing that inclement
weather does not delay the work.
The chamber will be increased in
depth from a low water stage of less
than three feet to a minimum of six
feet. The deepening of the lock has
been contemplated for several years,
and from one cause and another has
been delayed until the present, when
an appropriation of $80,000 was pro
vided through the efforts of Con
gressman Hawley to carry out the
plans.
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Decision of the state high- B
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H side road has evoked wide in- B
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otherwise.
Senator Vinton is particu
larly bitter in his criticism.
He contends that the support
of the Yamhill, Polk and
Washington delegations was
the only thing that made pos-
a sible the enactment of any
a kind of road, legislation in the
a last legislature.
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GIRLS TAG SOLDIERS
Honor Guard Buys Labels County
Cannot Afford to Get
Ordered to "tag" each of the 21
men who will comprise Clackamas
county's quota to leave for the nat
ional army cantonment at American
Lake on September 21, County Clerk
Iva Harrington had quite a problem
to solve until the Girls' Honor Guard
came to the rescue. Adjutant Gen
eral George A. White communicated
with Miss Harrington, telling her that
the men must be tagged. The state
evidently did not prepare to pay the
bill and the county had no funds for
such a purpose. The girls of the
Honor Guard settled the matter by
appropriating from their bwn funds
money to pay for the tags which will
label the young men who leave here
next week as Clackamas county's war
contribution. The girls will also pay
for baggage and equipment tags for
the men.
. "Friends of Soldiers" Meet
A meeting of the precinct chair
men, who have chargo of the local
campaign in behalf of the war library
fund, will be held at the Commercial
club parlors this evening to further
perfect arrangements for the cam
paign by means of which it is hoped
to aid in supplying proper and plen
tiful reading matter to the national
army and navy camps of the nation.
LUMBERMEN SEEK
RAIEIIISTIIG
INTERSTATE COMMERCE COM
MISSION WILL HEAR
GATEWAY CASE
VALLEY MILLS COMPLAINING
Discrimination Charged to Railroad
Companies. Gate Only
Swings One Way
The case of Willamette Valley
Lumbermen's association against the
Northern Pacific, Great Northern,
Spokane, Portland & Seattle, and
other railroads serving the states of
Montana, the Dakotas, Minnesota and
Nebraska, which was brought to ob
tain lumber rates from valley points
to destinations in those states on the
same basis as the rates in- effect
from other producing points in the
coast group to the same destinations
will be heard before Examiner Mar
shall, of the Interstate Commerce
commission, in Portland today.
For a long time the valley lumber
men have sought to obtain this re
lief through friendly negotiotions
with the interested carriers, which
were unable, however, to agree be
tween themselves upon the divisions
of the rates to be established. The
only remedy remaining to the valley
lumbermen was a resort to the com
mission.
Especial interest attaches td this
case because the Willamette valley is
said to be the only lumber producing
section west of the Cascade moun
tains between the Canadian and Cal
ifornia boundaries that is shut out of
the northern destination territory,
which is served by the rails of the
Northern Pacific, Great Northern,
Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul, and
the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy.
For years the mills in Washington
on the lines of the Northern Pacific
and Great Northern west of the Cas
cade mountains have had joint
through rates on ftie coast group ba
sis' to local points on ihe Union Pa
cific system lines precisely on the
same basis as the rates contempor
aneously in effect from points in the
Willamette valley or from Portland
to these same destinations in local
Union Pacific territory commencing
in southeastern Idaho and going east
thereof to the Missouri river.
"These rates from the northern
mills apply via Portland through
which, as a gateway, the lumber
traffic from the Washington mills in
the coast group passes on its way to
Union Pacific local territory," says
William C. McCulloch, a Portland at
torney who is to appear at today's
hearing as the representative of the
complainants.
"This same gateway at Portland
is not open, however, to the lumber
traffic of the Willamette valley that
seeks to reach the markets served by
the northern lines in the states of
Montana, the Dakotas, Minnesota and
Nebraska. The gate at Portland
opens to the south, but not to the
north. '
"The valley mills in this case as
sert that the gateway at Portland
should be open to traffic going in
either direction, and that the gate
should swing both ways, instead of
only one, and it is from this circum
stance that the case has come to be
referred to commonly as the 'Port
land Gateway Case.'
"Primarily the Willamette valley
lumbermen are directly concerned in
the outcome of this case and yet if
the relief asked for is granted there
can be no doubt that the beneficial
effect upon the valley as a whole and
upon the city of Portland as well and
its business interests will be very
marked. Unquestionably the open
ing of the Portland gateway would
permit the valley mills to sell in
these northern markets a very sub
stantial part of their production. The
relief -asked for by the valley mills,
however, is refused and contested by
the Northern Pacific, the Great Nor
them, the Spokane, Portland & Se
attle and the Chicago, Milwaukee &
St. Paul.
"These latter roads all serve mills
located on their lines in the state of
Washington, which enjoy coast group
rates to the destination territory in
volved in this case, and these roads
have for many years pursued a traf
fic policy of confining their distribu
tion of lumber to the territory serv
ed by them or their connections to
the mills located on their own roads,
and the desire to continue this traffic
policy leads them to fight against the
granting of any relief to the valley
mills in this case."
SOLDIER MARRIES
County Clerk Iva Harrington Tues
day issued a marriage license to Max
A. Hollmann of Hoff, Ore., and Miss
Anna Rothenberg of Macksburg. The
young man has been certified for ser
vice with the national army and has
received orders to report here for
transfer to the cantonment at Amer
ican Lake. He will leave Friday
I with the other 20 young men who
( comprise the present quota.
OREGON GIVES MUCH
MONEY FOR LIBERTY
STATE LOYAL IN FINANCIAL
SUPPORT. CONTRIBUTES
$15,000,000 TO WAR' .
Counting the total contribution
made in this state to the first issue
of Liberty loan bonds, Oregon has
contributed the huge sum of $15,000,
000 to the cause of the war against
Germany and her allies, according to
the most recent compilations of the
fiendish desearcher and statistician.
Considering that Oregon has a popu
lation estimated at 800,000 the total
contribution' shows a per capita con
tribution of $18.50, which is held to
be remarkable.
Of course, the total looks small
when the amount paid out for Liberty
loan bonds is subtracted. That
amount was $13,820,000. The next
largest contribution was that made
to the cause of the Red Cross society
of America, which obtained $1,005,000
of the money of the people of Ore
gon. The state contributed $42,000
to the Y. M. C. A. funds for work on
behalf of the soldiers. Approximate
ly $45,000 was provided by interest
ed citizens for ambulance units and
their equipment. With the collec
tion of $40,000 in the state toh. elp
buy ' so-called Liberty huts for sol
diers, there will have been contrib
uted $15,000,000 less $48,000. It is
estimated that this amount has been
made up through contribution to
other pariotic works and through the
funds collected by several lodge or
ganizations.
SPENCE ARRIVES FOR A
WASHINGTON CONFERENCE
The entire Oregon delegation and
Senators Brady, Poindexter and
Jones and Representative Dill, of
Washington, and Smith, of Idaho,
held a meeting at Washington on
Monday with W. H. Hurrah, of Pend
leton; C. E. Spence, of Oregon City;
C. W. Nelson, of Seattle;. R. Insing
er, of Spokane; S. C. Armstrong, of
Seattle, and C. M. Mackenzie, of Col
fax, to consider plans to have pri
mary markets established on the Pa
cific, coast with a, view to getting
$2.20 for coast wheat, the same price
as has been set for Chicago. ,
" Senator McNary presided and the
conditions in Oregon and Washing
ton were explained by Messrs.
Harrah and. Insinger. At the meet
ing it was decided unanimously to
endeavor to explain to the president
at a hearing ar.d secure the appoint
by him of a representative to inves
tigate fully the northwestern con
ditions, with authority to grant the
request for primary markets if he
finds that the conditions justify.
Senators Chamberlain and McNary
called on the president Monday after
noon and endeavored to obtain a hear
ing for the entire delegation and the
farmers' representatives.
Representatives of farming, ware
house and other interests of Oregon,
Washington and Idaho will also con
fer with President Wilson soon over
the fixed price for wheat which they
say 13 affected by the railroad rates.
Tri-state granges ' and other or
ganizations hope to have the presi
dent remove alleged discriminations
ia rates by which they say farmers
of that section are compelled to Bell
their wheat for 80 cents less than
the Chicago standard price.
RECEPTION READY
Recruits for National Army Will Be
Commercial Club Guests
Preparations for a public recep
tion to the 21 men who comprise
Clackamas county's quota for the
draft army to leave here on Friday,
are complete and provide for an in
teresting time at the Masonic temple
this evening. The reception will
start at 8 o'clock and a feature will
be the patriotic address of A. E.
Clark of Portland. Mrs. Carl Moore
of Gladstone will sing several selec
tions and remarks may be made by
local men. A musical program will
be rendered. The affair is under the
auspices of the Commercial club,
which will also see to the entertain
ment of the young soldiers between
the time of their arrival here tomor
row at 2 o'clock and their departure
early the following morning.
AUTO HITS "SAMMIES"
Local Guardsmen Fall Before On
Coming Machine. No Injury
Privates Roberts and McLeod, sta
tioned here with a detachment of in
fantrymen from the Oregon nation
al guard, were injured Saturday
afternoon when a light automobile
driven by Edward W. Gudhart, of
Portland, ran into them. The car
knocked Private McLeod to the side
of the road and knocked the other sol
dier to the ground, passing entirely
over his body. Mr. Gudhart, . who
gave his address as 988 Garfield ave
nue, ascertained that the soldiers
were not injured and settled for the
damage he did to their uniforms be
fore he went on.
Marriage License
A marriage license was Issued
here yesterday by County Clerk Har.
rington to Philip F. Put and Elsie
Louise Dahlstrom, both of Colton.
YUKON
COUNTRY
LAND OTSILENCE
CREATION'S UNSETTLED WASTE
WHERE BRAVE MEN TOIL
FOR GOLDEN GLITTER
COUNTRY OF FEW PLEASURES
Alaska's Coast Line, More
Than,
Distance Around World, Has
but Two Doorways
(M. J. Brown)
Right here I want to square you
away on some misiniormation ana
wrong impressions that so many
people have of Alaska.
Thousands of people know very
little about the geography of the
country and they scramble It with
the Canadian northwest and make
them one and the same.
You will hear a man on the outside
say ne is going to "wnite norse
Alaska," and over the pass. White
Horse is in Canada.
The world-famous Klondike gold
country is invariably located and
spoken of as being in Alaska. It is
not. It is in the Yukon Territory and
a part of Canada.
Dawson, famous Dawson, once the
greatest gold camp on earth, is al
ways spoken of as in Alaska, but it
many miles from Uncle bam s
territory. It is British. -
On a steamer from Seattle you en
ter Alaska near Prince Rupert and
for four or five hundred miles you
travel in Alaska until you reach
Skagaway. This is through the tail
of Alaska the coast end. Then you
cross into the Yukon Territory and
hike down the Yukon four or five
hundred miles more to the front door
of Alaska the coast end. Then you
cross into the Yukon Territory and
hike down the Yukon four or five
hundred miles more to the front door
of Alaska, and by that time it seems
to one he must have been through the
territory and come out again. While
he has only reached the front gate.
It's one whale of.. a territory, i v...:
If you would follow the entire
boundary lines of Alaska take its
coast lines and stay with them 1
around the entire territory you
would have- traveled farther than
around the worlds-more than 27,000
miles. This is a literal truth, but re- .
member that there are more than
11,000 islands included in the pur- -chase
from Russia.
But take my word for these fig
ures. JJon't you try to maKe tne cir
cuit. '
I seldom give a figure or statistic
in travel letters. To most people
they are tedious and dry' in such a
place. But to drive it in, to make
you comprehend what a moose of a
country it is, let me state it embraces
nearly 600,000 square miles, one-fifth
as large as the whole United States.
It is as big as Germany, France and
Spain put together. It is thirteen
times the size of New York state.
Now have you some idea of what a
bunch of land (not real estate) Uncle
Sam has up in the great North Land
the dominion of silence and vast-
ness?
A year before the writer was born,
1867, Czar Peter got hard up for
ready cash and he offered to job lot
the whole tumbled waste of unpeo
pled creation east of the Beclng
strait, to Uncle Sam for something
like $7,000,000.
Secretary Seward figured the deal
out and concluded' land was worth
two cents an acre just to look at, if it
wasn't good for anything else, so he
told his Czarship it was a go and the
purchase was made.
And history tells us this act of
Congress was bitterly criticized by
the press and people that we had
paid "$7,200,000 for polar bears and
icebergs." The deal was called "Se
ward's folly." And I am almost
tempted to give you a line of figures
of the enormous wealth that has been
taken out of this country in the past
20 years, from the mines and fisher
ies. But I won't.
Uncle Sam could give every man,
woman and child in Alaska and
mind you this includes every Indian
and Eskimo nine . square miles of
land and yet have some left over.
I said he could give. Wrong he
couldn't I should have said he
could apportion. Nobody would take
the land only in the mining camps
and near a few favored sections. No
body wants it it is absolutely with
out value. It would be impossible to
live on it.. A native would starve to
death on nine square miles. ,
I can go to one place in Alaska
and I expect to at the close of the
trip where I will be as near St
Petersburg as Cleveland and much
closer to China than New York. And
yet I will be in the United States.
The place is Prince Cape of Wales
a little north and west of Nome.
- And just stop a minute and con
sider there are but two entrances to
this great north land, only two roads
through which it is possible to enter
the interior of Alaska the White
Pass and Yukon railroad from Skag
way over to White Horse, and the
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