228 GRAVEL AND PLACER MINING IN ALASKA. [bull. 263. 
Arctic Railway, from Nome to Anvil Creek, 12 miles long, the ties of 
which are laid for a portion of its length on a 2-inch plank bed, appears 
to serve a useful purpose. Only seventy days were consumed in the 
construction of the 12 miles. The Wild Goose Railway, also of 3-foot 
gage, from Council to Ophir Creek, has been constructed in a similar 
manner. Sixteen miles of a standard-gage railway, the Council City 
and Solomon River Railway, have also been completed. Considering 
the comparative cheapness with which railway material can be hauled 
at various points in Seward Peninsula, it is likely that short lines 
of railway will continue to be built by private enterprise to supply 
the several inland mining communities. 
The suggestion is here made that narrow-gage pole tramways laid 
over the tundra might in some cases be used in parts of Seward 
Peninsula for long hauls. They would be expensive to construct and 
maintain, but would not, of course, compete with winter transpor- 
tation. 
In view of the small cost of narrow-gage railways in Seward 
Peninsula and the small annual maintenance cost, as compared with 
what it would probably cost to maintain wagon roads, the Federal 
Government should aid in tramway rather than wagon-road construc- 
tion in that portion of Alaska. The light industrial railways now 
manufactured by various firms could be constructed with special 
modifications for the tundra country, and could be shipped, knocked 
down, to different portions of the peninsula. 
In conclusion, I would say that of the three provinces of Alaska 
above specified, the central Yukon province is most in need of Federal 
aid for highway construction. By this means placer districts now 
lying idle could be made to support a numerous population, and it is 
doubtful whether any other form of assistance would prove as bene- 
ficial as stimulating prospecting for new placer fields. 
FREIGHT RATES. 
FREIGHT RATES FROM THE STATES. 
The present freight and passenger rates from Tacoma, Seattle, and 
San Francisco to the main supply points of Alaska accessible by ocean- 
going steamers are given in table 17 (pp. 230-231). 
Freight rates are fairly constant from year to year, but passenger 
rates vary from one season to another, according as the different 
steamship companies are competing or temporarily combined. Return 
passenger rates maj r be reckoned at generally 25 per cent higher than 
north bound, but occasionally rise to 100 per cent higher. During 
1904 the return rates from Nome were double those outgoing. It 
