DID WILLIAM L. PAUL EVER
OFFER HIS SUPPORT TO
THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY?
From time to time there appears
in the Juneau Empire a statement
as follows: (Taken from the issue
of November 1, 1924) ‘/That was
the issue (the forcing’ of Indian
children wholesale into public
schools) upon which Mr. Paul first
made his appearance as a potential
factor in Alaska politics. Upon that
issue he offered to organize the
Indian votes in the First Division
and deliver them to the Democratic
party if the Democrats would unite
with the Indians on this and other
propositions. His offer was accom
panied with the threat that if the
Democrats would not join with the
Indians the latter would join with
whomever would work with them.”
When this fabrication was first
published it came out something in
this form: “There is some possi
bility that Jack McDonald, candi
date for the legislature, would be
strongly supported by the Indian
vote.” This is not the exact form,
but carried that intimation.
The basis for the story is as fol
lows: In the pre-election contest of
1921 Mr. Paul had occasion to go
to the office of Harry Morton in
Juneau, and while there the subject
of politics came up. After a time
Mr. Morton saitl: “Paul, you are
not a Republican, you are a Demo
crat; your friends are in the Dem
ocratic party. All the leaders of the
Republican party are fighting you.
Why don’t you come out for the
Democratic party?”
Mr. Paul answered: “It is true
that the leaders of the Republican
party are enemies, and are for
large monied interests as against
the common run of people, but I
have full confidence that the Re
publican party will be restored to
the common people. And when you
come to talk about party principles,
the Republican party holds out the
most hope for the advancement of
my people. It is the liberal party of
the United States, standing for equal
treatment of all races. Whereas,
the Democratic party gets its sup
port from the solid South, which
is set up entirely upon race preju
dice. And the troubles we have in
Alaska today are due ot the Demo
crats who like to say they are
Southern born; men like John Troy
and Stroller White. And besides I
do not know the candidates on the
Democratic ticket or what platform
they are standing on, and even if
their platform was satisfactory I do
not know whether their word is good
for anything.”
To this Mr. Morton replied: “I
am very sure that you and Jack
McDonald could get together, and if
Jack McDonald gave you his word
I can assure you that his word is
good."
To this Mr. Paul answered: “Well,
I do not know if McDonald’s word
is good.”
Whereupon Mr. Morton said: “You
know, of course, that he is my
father-in-law.”
Mr. Paul answered: “I knew
that.”
Mr. Morton then said: “It won’t
hurt you if you did have a talk
with him, and may be something
could be done. I will speak to him
and let you know.”
Mr. Paul then went out, and two
days later learned that Harry Mor
ton had gone to Mr. John Troy and
informed him that an offer had been
made to support the Democratic
ticket, and wanted advice. Mr.
Troy’s reaction was, however, to
send Mr. Pegues to interview other
candidates to find if any bargains
for wholesale delivery of Indian
votes had been made. Upon inter
viewing Messrs. Cash Cole and oth
ers Mr. Pegues found no founda
tion for making charges of that
character, for the simple reason that
not a single leader of the Native
citizens of Alaska has ever traded,
or bargained or pledged a single
candidate to vote in a particular
way upon any public question.
We will not take the trouble to
deny this fabrication again, and only
do so this time because the public
might consider that there was some
truth in it if we were to allow these
lies to be repeated time after time
without denial.
PROSPEROUS FISHERMEN
The splendidly prosperous condi
tion that now obtains in the halibut
fishing industry should awaken the
people of the Territory to the fact
that the same conditions that pre
vail in halibut fishing can be made
to apply to other branches of fish
ing and there is no good reason
why they should not apply*
You cannot today find a single
halibut fisherman who is dissatisfied
with conditions that govern his
branch of fishery but on the con
trary every halibut fisherman you
meet is loud in his words of approv
al of these conditions.
There is no monopoly in the hali
but fishery either in fishing or mar
keting. All halibut is sold in open
competitive market and as the de
mand for this fish is strong good
prices are paid to the fishermen for
their catch.
It was indeed a fortunate day for
the halibut fishermen of the North
Pacific when the Poindexter amend
ment to close the market at Prince
Rupert and create a monopolistic
market at Ketchikan was defeated
in the U. S. Senate. It was also a
fortunate day for the town of Ket
chikan, as the contentment with the
present conditions on the part of
the halibut fishermen is evidenced in
the increase of trade at this port.
A satisfied contented people is the
object of civil government and the
purpose of laws is to bring about
that social condition.
If laws have brought about the
conditions that obtain in the halibut
industry, why is it not possible to
correct conditions in the salmon
fishery in the same manner. When
laws are enacted for the abolishment
of all monopolistic methods of fish
ing and marketing salmon then will
the same satisfactory conditions pre
vail in that branch that are so no
ticeable in the halibut fishery.
In order to bring about the de
sired conditions in the salmon fish
ery it will be necessary to convince
many good people that the prosper
ity of several thousand fishermen
and their families is of more import
ance than the prosperity of approx
imately one hundred cannery opera
tors- It will be necessary to con
vince them that the law of supply
and demand will operate to the
regulation of industry so that with
the abolishment of monopoly the
cannerymen will prosper.
When the common right of fish
ery is recognized and protected by
governmental agencies all monopoly
will cease and then the salmon sein
er will dispose of his product in
competitive market just as the hali
but fisherman disposes of his ea ch
today.
The idea that is now promulgated
by the cannery interests and the
United States Bureau of Fisheries,
that the salmon of Alaska cannot
be preserved except by monopolistic
methods of fishing, is so unfair, so
unjust, so un-American that it should
be combatted by every citizen who
has the welfare of this Territory
at heart. This proposition of turn
ing over the fisheries of Alaska to
monopoly for preservation has its
origin with the people who will be
directly benefited by the plan. It
is in direct opposition to the propo
sition contained in this article and
under such a system there can be
no contentment among the fishing
population.
With monopoly entrenched in the
salmon industry as it is today it
would seem to be quite a large un
dertaking to dislodge it but if the
signs of the times count for an\
thing they mean that the American
people are heartily sick and tired of
monopoly and when the time is ripe
for its abolishment it is reasonable
to believe that the Alaskan salmon
monopoly will receive the attention
that it deserves.
When monopoly in salmon fishery
is abolished and competition in the
industry is established then may we
look for prosperity and consequent
contentment among all the fishing
classes in Alaska.