Show 11 THE HEEDS OF ALASKA Senator Shoup Is Opposed to Territorial Territ-orial Form of Government Boise Ida Oct H Senator Shoup has just returned from an official trip to Alaska taken as chairman of the senate committee on territories for the I purpose of acquainting himself with legislative needs there He is radically opposed to giving Alaska a territorial form of government at this time He says while he found opinion of the question divided there he ascertained to his personal satisfaction that those who would have to bear the burden of territorial government are strongly opposed op-posed to It Thd floating population naturally desires that Alaska be forthwith forth-with granted the full powers of a territory ter-ritory but that class would not share in the tremendous expense The senator is of the firm conviction that nothing would retard the growth of Alaska more than a territorial form of government The cost of maintaining maintain-ing such government would be enormous enor-mous and taxation would be equivalent to confiscation The cost of holding an election there would be almost enough to bankrupt the average state Senator Shoup favors giving Alaska a separate civil code however and he will report on it when congress convenes con-venes At presentAlaska is under the civil code of Oregon There is but one United States judge whose jurisdiction is so large as to appall the average visitor who takes the trouble to look over the map It is 2300 miles from end to end To get witnesses from distant dis-tant parts of Alaska to this court involves in-volves a tremendous expense to the government Senator Shoup will recommend the appointment of twq more judges for Alaska with an additional United States marshal and United States attorney at-torney for each new court so established estab-lished He will also recommend the appointment of more United States commissioners there being but nine at present and of a deputy marshal for each commissioner He will also recommend rec-ommend that the jurisdiction of the commissioners be increased so they can determine civil actions to a limit of 1000 He also favors granting them all the powers of a probate court The senator announces his strenuous opposition to making any concession to Canada in the matter of the boundary that would give the Dominion a port ont on-t present American coast |