Real Price Paid by U.
S. to Russia for Alaska
That the real price paid by the
United States to Russia for Alaska
was $1,400,000, instead of $7,200,000, as
is generally accepted to be true, is the
statement made by the late Franklin
K. Lane, which appears in the recently
published book, “Letters of Franklin
K. Lane" [Houghton Miflliu Co.]. The
other $5,800,000 involved in the pur
chase was money owing to Russia for a
friendly display of war vessels during
the Civil War, according to Mr. Lane’s
account.
Mr. Lane based his statement on in
formation coming to him from Charles
W. Glover, president of Riggs National
Bank, Washington, D. C., who handled
the warrants for payment and was told
by W. W. Corcoran, famous Washing
ton financier and founder of the Art
Gallery there, of the entire transaction.
The following extract from one of
Mr. Line’s letters, giving the account
of the Alaska purchase, is taken from
the volume mentioned above;
Washington, Dec. 29, 1911.
Last night I dined with Charles
Benry Butler, reporter for the su
preme court and a son of William
Allen Butler, for so long a leader of
the New York bar.
Id the course of the evening Mr.
Charles Glover, president of the Riggs
National Bank, told me this bit of his
tory. That when he was a boy, in the
bank one day Mr. Corcoran [W. W.
Corcoran] came to him and handed
him two warrants upon the United
States Treasury, one for $1,400,000 and
the other for $5,800,000. He said, “Put
those in the safe.” Mr. Glover did so,
and they remained there for a week,
when they were sem to New York.
Mr. Glover said:
“These warrants were the payment
to Russia for the Territory of Alaska.
Why were there two warrants?' 1
never knew until some years later,
when I learned the story from Senator
Dawes, who said that prior to the war
there had been some negotiations be
tween the United States and Russia
for the purchase of Alaska, and the
price of $1,400,000 was agreed upon. In
fact this was the amount that Russia
asked for the great territory, which
was regarded as nothing more than a
barren field of ice.
“During the war the matter lay dor
mant. We had more territory than we
aould take care of. When England,
however, began to manifest her friend
ly disposition toward the Confederacy,
and we learned from Eurooe that Eng
land and France were carrying on ne
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Private rooms, with spriDg; beds;
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Bath room, with sanitary toilet.
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Good, clean aog bouse.
gotiations for the reeomddi e im *
Southern States, and po-■ ibly < v me
manifestation by their fleet:- again:,
the blockade which we had instituted,
and which they claimed was not elect
ive and merely a paper block-adj, we
looked about for a friend, and Hi da
was the only European countiy upon
whose friendship we could rely, 5 i.erc
upon Secretary Seward seemed /rot •.
Russia a demonstrate i American
ports, of Russian friendship. Her ships
of'war sailed to both of our |coas:th< '
Atlantic and the Pacific,
demanding t! at : r :
demonstration shod
United .[States, out o ' th, mnUu r
fund. It was to be a
Q“The war came to a close, and itn
mediately thereafter Lincoln was as
sassinated and the administration
changed. It was not longer possible to
payj for this demonstration, «ec**e* "
under the excuse of war bu \;
was found for fpaytng Cm.-i., ti.n r..h •
the purchase of Alaska. To warrant
for $1,400,000 was the van a,,, for the
purchase of A! dm, tin wa. . r
$5,800,000 was Russia’s exj < nses in 1
naval demonstration in our be' ■’ bu
history only knows the fact that the
United States paid $7,200,'< for t! :
Territory, which is now demonstrated
to be one of the richest pond <d the
earth in mineral deposi . ’
Former Alaskan Fined
for Violating' Dry Law.
A Raymond, Wash., pa;>er of rcc : \
dale contains the following account of
the activities o' dry officers in c- mu
tion^with the apprehension oi a well
known former resident of Alaska, cum
monly known as “Jew Bob’’:.
“Armed with a search war
sued by Police Judge Swasey, t lief of
Police William G. Shumway . c
Commercial Hotel Tuesday evc-to. .
finding seventy-five quarts ol bonded
liquor. The officer planned
the day previous, and shortly
the raid he called in Night Officer Tut
tle and Countv Sheriff Oscar Chester!
to assist.
“The location of the liquor was a
novel one, the fiery lluid being found
in the lower compartment of the cigar
case in the office. Mr. Shumway, act
ing upon a ‘tip’ or piece of At at g v,
entered the office and went straight way
fco the cache, sliding b ■ b :i <•
case door, Instantly
‘by the neck’ through a hole in the
floor of the storage dt i-att ■
fixture. One by one iie dished’ out
the cache.
“The liquor, according to street tab:
was delivered at the hotel the evening
before by ‘runners’ from Seattle.
“The Commercial Hotel is being con
ducted by Robert Cock burn, he having
taken it undai lease several m >» .1 s
ago. So it was he who bee;-mo tl d> -
fend ant and before 1 dice J. : Swt
sey paid a fine of $225 and costs Wed
nesday, the charge beir z unlawful
session. "
“A state charge ... •>
against him ft ”, v. . im t>y tin
city. To this he plead guilty, being
sentenced to a fine o. n and si
days in the county jail, the jail sen
tence beiDg later withheld, , lu
the behavior of the defendant in the.
future.
“A real stirring, regular ‘Diamond
Dick’ episode, said to be a scene, of th*
*rum running, drama.' followed the
search when a party was robbed of
$lfiO in she alley of the Common- il
Hotel. It is said that the victim -
the driver of the car v-... t . .. w etl j
the liquor. TV t i
son to believe that the driver was in |
possession of a l.irg ..e u ;
have been guests of th. hotel ■ ! m,
time of the aeliverv cf th , .
are suspected of havinj stuged the
1 old-up, It occurred in broad day
; t, the victim, however, not making
complaint until hours after, it is said.”
c harges Domination
by Standard C:l Co,
' Washington.—Complete control and
domination of the oil industry by
Standard companies, in violation or
the 1911 dissolution decree of t ie su
preme court, was charged by S -ator
LaPolJette in the report to the S.—;ate
b the oil investigate. committee.
The report claims that the S* lard
Oil Company lives "the pi :< which!
the producer of crude oil r s at
the well, the price which the refiner
receives for his gasoline, and the retail
price paid by the consumer.”
Simp; * - Annihilated.
A magistrate recently passing on a
case made this decision:
“As to tfc: claim for A'll.-IO, it was
for a part-v ship debt, the partners
being the plain?iff and defendant, and
as neither partne k ;pt any books,*and
each disputes the other’s word emphat
ically, the debt was extinguished by
confusion anu iienco rejected.”—Case
and Comment.
e ying machine. In
quire Times otlice.
hou i at the
McGrath sta- ion are as follows:
Week Days- -Id a. m. and I p. m.
tys—9:45 a. m. and
4:.J0 p- ni.
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I Genera! Merchandise
3 We Carry Oregon City Woolen Mills Pure
Virgin Wool Clothing.
Logger Shirts Cruiser Coats Short Mackinaw Coats
Woolen Pants
sm
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McG 3 c-1 h, Alaska
Provisions Notions Furnishings
Indian Mitts, Moccasins and Snowshoes
Furs Bought and Sold White v.„! and Bog Feed j
DogHarness Collars Sled Lashings Tin!. Heaters
I
DIRECT SERVICE
:
i-.jv,*
attle
Via Inside Passage
1
kill I’i!
Personal Attention Given t a e Ordered
for the Kuskokwim. Send . t ov : Orders.
For Kates and Accommodations apply to
Kuskokwim Fishing & Tie: : -^nation Co.
7 Colman Dock. Seattle, Wash.
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