IDITAROD PIONEER
Published Every Saturday Evening at Iditarod, Alaska.
FRANK E. BECKER, EDITOR
1 t Cao. M. Arbuckle, Publisher No. 12
SUBSCRIPTION RATES:
une \ ear.$10.00
Six Months. 5.00
i One Month . . 1.00
I Single Copy . 25
Advertising Rotes on Application.
INCORPORATION ADVISABLE
On April 11 next tlie citizens of Iditarod will be
asked to decide upon the advisability of incorporating
the town.
The arguments which may he adduced in favor of in
corporation are numerous and convincing. Streets will
have to be graded, sidewalks and crossings constructed,
adequate police and lire protection provided, and regu
lations drawn up for the proper control of the water front.
These and similar duties can only be efficiently and eco
nomically performed under the supervision of a popularly
elected council.
One of the principal arguments brought forward
against incorporation is that if will lie the means of inflict
ing a burdensome taxation upon the citizens, particularly
upon the business section of the community. We believe
this fear to be groundless. It is more than probable that
the business men will be called upon to contribute a smaller
amount under incorporation than they have been accus
tomed to pay under the makeshift method of public sub
scription, whereby many who lack public spirit have
managed to escape their obligations. Another point to be
remembered is that under incorporation the city would have
added resources in the money collected for liquor licenses.
It is not necessary to install an expensive administra
tion. Given a conscientious and capable body of council
lors the necessary expenditures could be reduced to a mini
mum. A chief of police could be appointed who would also
act as fire chief and inspector of flues, etc. He could be
assisted by one patrolman for night duty. The duties re
quired of the council need not be severe, and it should not
be difficult to find someone who would undertake the duties
of city clerk and magistrate for a nominal sum.
Another argument in favor of incorporation is the]
necessity for a school and the establishment of a school
system, which will necessitate the expenditure of money
which can only be assured from the license moneys.
In face of the advantages of incorporation demonstrated
above, it is difficult to understand how any consideiable
body of the population can he opposed to it, and it is to he
hoped that the suggestion to incorporate will receive the
hearty endorsement of all who have the interests of the
camp at heart.
THE POSTAL SERVICE
Unless some drastic action is taken by the people of j
Alaska and their friends in congress, this territory is likely
to find itself ere long in a position which will' not only
seriously inconvenience the private citizen, but will make it
quite impossible to carry on any business whatsoever. Badly
as the people of the Iditarod have been treated this year by
the postal department, it is probable that few of them
realize that even the present miserable service may be cur
tailed, if not altogether discontinued. Yet such is the con
dition of affairs revealed by a casual glance at the report of
the first assistant postmaster-general for the year 1910.
Dealing with the unusual conditions which obtained
in Alaska the report points out that the appropriations
made by congress are quite inadequate to cover the cost of
such service, and it is frankly stated that if congress does
not come to the aid of the department and make more!
liberal allowances for this territoiv, the postoffices at Nome
and Fairbanks will have to he discontinued. Now it is
hardly likely that if the abovementinued offices were closed
we in the Iditarod would fare any better. As it is, the
present wretched service makes it almost impossible to find
out whether congress is taking any action whatever in the
matter. It appears, from the report, however, that the
postal authorities are in a measure alive to our necessities,
for the first assistant admits that present conditions are de
Merchanfs Cafe
Wedding Dinners and Large Parties
a Specialty,
Strictly First Glass, _ Open Oay and Night
Chas. E Miller & Ernest H. Slenter, Props.
_f;'^STAVEHUE TELEPHONE 63 |
Iditarod Stage Line
PAT KEYS AND PHIL WIAYHAN, PROPS. \
Telephone Main 64. Office at Ophir House, Willow St. J
TRIPS EVERY DAY EXCEPT SUNDAY 1
Leaves Flat Creek .9:00 a. m. I
Leaves Flat for Discovery Otter at.5:00 p. in.
Leaves Discovery Otter at.8.00 a. m. i
Leaves Ophir House, Iditarod.2:00 p. m.
Round trip to Flat, $8 ; round trip to Discovery Otter, $8.
------{
PASSENGERS, EXPRESS and FREIGHT \
_ i
JUST ARRIVED1
LADIES’
I
Good Selection, Goal Work. 2Ee each, 5 far $i.OC
G. J. Hurley, President J. P. Gleason, Vice President A. Bruning, Cashier
i
Corner First Ave, and Richmond St., Iditarod
General Banking Business Transacted Upon Liberal, Eut Conservative Lines
GOLD DUST PURCHASED UPON ASSAY VALUE
And we guarantee our assays against any of the government, assay offices.
Clippings from your gold furnished you for the purpose
of obtaining check assays if desired.
We solicit your business, and assure you of our courteous, prompt and
careful attention combined with fair treatment, whether
your account may be large or small.
plovable, and suggests that they should be promptly rem
edied by the repeal of the proviso which limits the amount
which the department may spend in salaries in the territory,
and the enactment of legislation whereby the postmaster
general could utilize the appropriations for clerks, etc., foi
the payment of such employees at inital salaries higher than
the present amount of $600, where local conditions warrant
such action. It is manifestly absurd that a man should be
expected to devote his time to the public in Alaska for such
a beggarly sum ; but such is the fatuous ignorance of many
of our national legislators regarding Alaskan affairs that it
is extremely doubtful if they will ever consent to an ap
propriation sufficient to insure an adequate and thoroughly
efficient service. At best we shall probably obtain an ap
propriation considerably short of the amount required.
With this we shall have to be content until that far off day
arrives when congress as a whole can approach Alaskan
questions with a fair degree of understanding.
ALASKA AS A STATE
Nothing will be accomplished through the introduction of a bill at
this time lor the admission of Alaska into the Union, save to call atteu
tion to the fact that there is in time to be a state—a great state, possibly
! number of great states--in the Northern territory. It will supp >rt a
population fully as great as iliat which now occupies the Scandinavian
peninsula, having all the resources of that peninsula and others peculiar
to itself.
While talk of statehood is premature, because it is frankly impos
sible that congress would listen tc the suggestion at the present time,
the fact remains that if Alaska were admitted into the Union on a full
equality with the original states and those earliest admitted, or even on
an equality with Texas, there would be a rush to Alaska such as had
never before been witnessed, and the development of the country would
proceed at a pace to astonish the world. To be on full equality with
the older states and with Texas, it would be necessary for the people of
Alaska to own their own land and all of their own natural resources,
with full power to develop them for their own uses, for the benefit of
themselves and their posterity
Given to the people of Alaska full self government, full control
over their own country, full power to make their own laws and regu
lations, it is safe to say that the resources of the country would be
handled, even conseived in the true sense, to a far better advantage
than they ever will be so long as Alaska is governed by congress and
by bureau officials in Washington city.
Owning i's lands, coal, gold, copper and the like, Alaska would he
among the richesi states in the Union. With the rapid progress of
development which would follow, it is safe to say that within a brief
span of years there would he a million people in Alaska, there would be
railroads built to all parts of the country ; mines and other resourced
woul 1 be developed, and Alaska would be worth to the rest of thecoun
fry far more than it is ever likely to be so long as it is kept in the
position of a mere dependency, with its development arrested to please
Eastern faddists.—Seattle P.-I.
J. P. Morgan has just paid $25,000 for an antique
pitcher. We imagine Manager Kelly would sell him a few
for less money.—St. Paul Pioneer Press.
“Twenty-five thousand bad eggs in Pittsburg.”—Ex
change Market or census report ?—Memphis Commercial
Appeal.
At a distance Esperanto looks like a scholarly vindi
cation of the typographical error.—Washington Star.
Aldrich, Ballinger and Cannon are the A. B. C. of
Republican dissatisfaction.—Memphis Commercial Appeal.
We take it that the Indian is one of the principal in
dustries of Oklahoma.—Milwaukee Journal.
This Wild Goose
Was Caught Young
Skeptics and others who believe that
“Lost Cabin” mines are but the fig
ment of some reporter’s vivid imagina
tion are invited to peruse the following
story, which comes to us all the way
from Nebraska. In it they will read
one more instance of tbo calm heroism
of the Northern miner. Here we have
a man with a broken arm and a game
leg. We also have a mine of fabulous
wealth. Winter is approaching (it is
July 8) and the hardy pioneer is con
fronted not only with death from star
vation, but from freezing also. Doe-.
:ie sit and quietly await his fate? No.
gentle reader, that is not the way ol
die North. The miner’s dreams turn
toward liis old home in Memphis, Tenn..
aid lie tLinks of the many comfort*
which the untold wealtli which lie had
unearthed could procure for his olr
maiden auut—liis sole surviving rela
tive. Quickly his mind is made up.
\t. all costs the world at large and tin
maiden aunt in particular must he noti
ied of the riches which await then
back of the cabin. Despite his broket
irtn—notwithstanding iiis game leg
regardless of tlie proximity of a liorri
hie death from cold and hunger.
Jeorge Powers sallies forth in seurel
if a wild goose which made ils winte
home in Tennessee. His courage is re
varded, for, presumably with tlie aii
if a little salt, a wild goose is secured,
ind despatched south with its goldei
.nessage.
It is not for us to criticize the stor\
ior to question tlie veracity or evei
lie existence of George Powers. No
jo. But we submit, with all deferent,
o the judgment of the hardy discov
u-er of the sheet of gold, that it was a
^erious error to entrust much a rnes
-age to a foolish goose who couldn’t
ell the difference between Nebraska
ind Tennessee. The proper animal to
tarry news of such a find is a wildcat.
But here is the story as we received ii:
nir readers can draw their own con
•lusions:
Blair, Neb.—Fred Grandon. a huntei
oere, while out along the Missouri
river a couple of days ago shot am
DR. B. F. BROOKS,
Physician and Surgeon
Over Merchants Cafe, First Avenue.
Telephone .'10
Dr. Heinrich Wortmann
Office at City Drug Store, Tel. 3(1
First Ave., Bet. Willow and Richmond
DR. E. T. BRADBURY,
Dentist
Over Merchants Cafe, First Avenm
Telephone 30-B
CHAS. D. CARTER,
Dentist
Offices, Pioneer Drug: Stores,
Flat Creek
McGowan, Clark' & Albrecht
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
Iditarod, Alaska Phone No. I
The Pioneer Attorneys of This Camp
ALFRED E. MALTBY,
fU. S. Commissioner]
Attorney at Law
Notary Public
Practice only in District Court. IDrTAROI
J. S. HARDING,
Attorney at Law
Room 1, Iditarod Hotel
Iditarod, Alaska
CHAS. E. TAYLOR,
Attorney at Law?
Notary Public, Conveyancing;,
Abstracts of Titles
Iditarod City
A. J. DALY,
Attorney at Law
WILL ARRIVE ON' THE FIRST BOAT
919-923 Leary Building, Seattle, Wash.
All Commissions Given Personal Attention.
DUKE E. STUBBS,
U. S. Deputy Surveyor
Civil and Mining Engineer
Assayer—Determinations ot Gold. Silver, Mer
cury, Platinum, Uranium, Lead, Tin,
Tungsten, Monazite
GEORGETOWN, ALASKA
The
Sideboard
Front St. J. r. Anderson, Prop. Iditarod
killed a wild goose which bore a mes
sage of untold wealth, a story of sick
ness and t ho abandonment of hope. A
large flock of geese wore flying iow,
and in passing over the blind where
Grandon was secreted he aimed at the
leader and brought him down. To his
surprise, when Grandon reached the
dead goose he found a small oilcloth
wallet fastened about its neck by a
thin coppei wire. G| enmg the wallet
Grandon drew out a piece of paper, evi
dently a page from a memorandum
book, in which was written with pencil
the following:
July 8, 1910.—Two hundred and
fifty miles due north of White
Horse Rapids, on Pine creek. I
have been sick since June lo, and
feel certain I am about to die. My
right arm is broken above the
elbow, due to falling on the side of
the mountain. I cm hardly walk,
and though there is flour in my
caoin i nave no way ot coo,ting it,
as my condition wi'l not. permit in -
to do the work. Kick of inv cabin,
200 yards up the gulch, where I
have dug, there is a body of almost
solid gold. It is not in nuggets,
but seems to be a sheet. It will
never do me any good. Winter
»ill begin in a few weeks, and if I
am not found before then I will die
by freezing. There is no hope. I
cannot walk. I came here from
Memphis, Tenn. Goodbye,
Georgo Powers.
It is the belief of Grand m and others
who have seen the note that it was
placed there by some Alaskan miner,
he goose being caught when young
ind unable to flv.
Two Ba?,'son Policeman Obtain Promotion
Sergt. Maj. Edward Telford, of Daw
urn, and Sergt. Maj. Walter J. Beyts,
of Fortyinile, have been promoted to
the rank of inspector in the R. N. W.
.VI. I1. Their new rank is more com
itonly referred to as that of captain.
Captain 'L’elf >rd entered the force 17
yearsago and Capt. Beyts 18 years ago.
'apt. Telford went to Yukon in 1891
with Capt. Constantine, and has been
n Dawson ever since. He was married
ast fall. Capt. Beyts was a member
d the First Canadian mounted rifle
contingent, which went io South Africa
md saw active service against the
Boers. _
Full line optical goods at Simpson's.
New Lien Law
To Be Given Test
Lawyers and others in tlie Fairbanks
district have expressed considerable
doubt hitherto regarding the value of
the new lien law, which was intro
duced by Delegate Wickersham and
promulgated last year. The law will
shortly be tested iti the commissioner's
court at Fairbanks, and its value or
otherwise as a safeguard to the miner
proved.
Four laborers of Engineer creek have
filed a lien on the dumps taken out of
the Wild Goose association by the lay
man, II. M. Henning. The claimants
are Job* Flannngan, who is seeking to
recover $160.19 in wages: Tim Sean
nell. who claims $110.75: John Dunn,
who asks for $652.50, and Barney
Walsh, claiming $261.25. The total
amount involved is $$90.99, and the
dumps on Henning’s lay have been at
tach 2._
Otter Association $1.53 to the Foot
Further details are now available re
garding the strike made on the Otter
association, Otter creek, two weeks
ago. At that time the showings aver
aged 5'J cents on the dump, and one
pan as high as $1 was obtained.
Continuing their development work
on the property, Capt. Worth, Billy
Shroyer and Billy Wise, who are the
laymen, have drifted up and down the
creek for a distance of 10) feet,
and, although results obtained
are not so high as the first find, the
dirt averages up to $1.53 to (lie foot.
The laymen consider this very satis
factory, and are now engaged in cross
cutting and blocking out ground for
their summer work.
When you visit Flat creek call at
Carroll's Globe Bakery and GofTee
House for a lunch.
Byes examined free—.Simpson’s.
WE SATISFY THE HUNGRY
! TODAY-SPECIAL SUNDAY DINNER-TODAY
Everything in Season
WILLOW STREET T. L, McGRATH, PROP.
TURN YOUR FACE TO
For inspiration
Corner Second Avenue and Willow Street
George Auten Dave Ferguson
dominion
Commercial Co.
Groceries, Hay and Grain
See Us Before Buying iDITAROD
Wa r in Co m fo rta b 1 e
RADIATOR IN EVERY ROOM
GOOD, WARM DOG HORSES
WILLOW ST, AND SECOND AVE.
I. NYHOLM, PROP.
SUppern’s Mill..
ROUGH AND DRESSED LUMBER,
SASH, DOORS, GLASS AND
BUILDERS’ SUPPLIES
Iditarod