23 



IMPORTS OF FARM PRODUCTS. 



During the fiscal yoar ondino- Juno 30, 1904, farm products were 

 imported into Alaska to the value of $3,840,899. This total includes 

 many things grown in tropical regions, as coffee, rice, sugar, tobacco, 

 nuts, etc., and it also includes whiskey, wines, beer, etc.. which are 

 manufactured from farm i)roducts, but dedtu'ting all of these, the 

 following interesting figures show the imports into Alaska for the 

 year named : 



I III ports into Ahiskii liiiriiuj the year ended June 30, lOOJ/. 



Animal products : 



Live ;iniiiials $100,900 



Dairy products 454,736 



Eggs 1G4. 471 



Beef, fresh, cured, and canned 272, .536 



Pork 241,111 



Other meat products^ 84,962 



Miscellaneous animal products 118, 806 



Total animal products $1,527,522 



Vegetable products : 



Vegetables, fresh, dried, and canned 333,550 



(irain and grain products 392,922 



Fruits 231,062 



Ilay 120,084 



Total vegetable products 1, 077. 628 



Total animal and vegetable products 2,605,150 



This will give an idea of the market that Alaska affords for these 

 products, a very large percentage of which could be produced in the 

 Territory. 



FORESTS IN THE INTERIOR. 



The w^'iter desires to call special attention to the forests in the 

 interior. They are of such importance that they should, in his opin- 

 ion, be accorded Government, protection for the benefit of coming 

 generations. The chief forest belt of the Territory lies in south- 

 eastern Alaska, and the most valuable portion of this belt has already 

 been set aside as a forest reserve. This is highly commendable; but 

 it is even more necessary to preserve the smaller timber of the inte- 

 rior. The forests make life possible there. Without them the white 

 race would have to live as do the Esquimo. To import the timber 

 needed for fuel, for mining, for buiTdings, and for structural pur- 

 poses of all kinds would be well-nigh impossible, and the prices would 

 be prohibitive. At interior settlements, right in the midst of the 

 forests, lumber is worth $100 per thousand board feet, and at the 

 mines, as, for instance, on Cleary Creek, less than 20 miles from the 



