vided by the Federal highway act approved July 11, 1916, and subsequent amendments. There has been approximately $2,850,000 made available for the roads in and adjacent to the national forests in Alaska by Federal appropriation. In addition to Federal funds. cooperative funds have been made available by the Territory to the amount of $195,000, making a total available to June 30 of $3,045,000 for expenditure by the bureau on roads in the national forests of the Territory. The larger expenditures for the year have been made on sections of the Glacier Highway, Salmon River Highway, Tongass Highway, Sitka Power Station Road, Moose Pass Highway, Seward-Kena Lake Road, Girdwood-Crow Creek Road, and the Wrangell Highway. The total expenditures for the year amount to $554,350.97. Segregation of this amount by projects is shown in the following table: The amounts stated in these columns represent total of vouchers paid this fiscal year, but not in dire ratio with mileage constructed, in that considerable portion of payments made cover obligations incurre in previous fiscal year. The expenditures for the year have been directed toward the com pletion of projects previously under way and as a part of an adopte program of development. In addition to this program other projects, the objective of which can be reached by minor roads and trails for immediate use are being considered as a means of developing forest areas, mining districts, etc. The need of a number of minor projects and trails is now apparent where a form of stage construction upon well-placed line and grade over properly selected routes ill permit of immediate use and of future development without loss of funds expended in preliminary construction. Gravel surfaced highways have been constructed adjacent to the major coast towns and their justification is apparent in the rapidly increasing number of motor vehicles in these towns. A traffic census on the Tongass Highway at Ketchikan, and the Glacier Highway at Juneau, has been taken during the summer of 1926. This indicates a daily average between May 1 and June 30, of 430 cars per day for the Wards Cove Road at Ketchikan; and of 250 cars per day over the Glacier Highway at Juneau. TERRITORIAL ROAD COMMISSION The construction and maintenance of roads, bridges, trails, ferries, and shelter cabins in the Territory of Alaska, supported by appropriation by the Territorial legislature, is handled under the direction of the Territorial board of road commissioners. This board consists of the Governor of Alaska as its chairman, the secretary of Alaska, the treasurer of Alaska, and the Territorial highway engineer. The work is carried out under the provisions of the Territorial Cooperative road act of April 21, 1919, amended May 3, 1923. The Territory is divided into four road districts corresponding to the Judicial divisions, in each of which there is a divisional commission, consisting of a chairman-secretary appointed by the Territorial board and two advisory elected members. Under authority of this act all Territorial road funds in the first and second divisions were allotted to cooperative projects with the United States Forest Service and the Alaska Road Commission. In the third division funds were allotted partly to cooperative projects with these two Federal agencies, and the balance was expended under the direction of the divisional chairman. In the fourth division funds ere allotted partly to cooperative projects with the Alaska Road Commission, and the balance was expended under the divisional tairman. The Territorial highway engineer acts as consulting engineer on all projects, makes field inspection, and reports the status of the work directly to the Territorial board. Cooperative work with the United States Forest Service was supervised by the assistant district ngineer, Bureau of Public Roads. All Territorial funds allotted to operative projects with the Alaska Road Commission, as well as funds expended under the direction of the divisional commissions, were supervised by the president of the Alaska Road Commission in tis capacity as director of public works for the Territory, and the extensive organization and mechanical equipment of the Alaska Road Commission are likewise available for the use of the Territory free, except for fuel and other actual operating costs. The elective members of the respective divisional boards are asked for recommendations for road work in their districts, and such recommendations as received by the Territorial board, as far as possible, are either in whole or in part carried out by Territorial funds direct or by cooperative funds under the United States Forest Service or the Alaska Road Commission. However, it is obvious that sufficient funds are not available properly to care for all needed road demands, and that available funds must be applied to projects considered of greatest public need. In making distribution the board is guided by such recommendations and petitions as are in its possession and its personal knowledge and judgment of the various projects considered. The distribution of funds, owing to the limited amount available comparable with the demand, is difficult and quite often criticized due undoubtedly to lack of knowledge of the funds available and the projects upon which they are being expended. Under the present policy of cooperation with the Federal roadbuilding agencies practically all of the Territory's money is applied to necessary local road maintenance, and the major projects are cared for by the Federal Government through the United States Forest Service and the Alaska Road Commission. As a result of cooperation with the Federal road-building organizations in the Territory, through the Territorial road act of 1919-1923 making such cooperation possible, a more constructive distribution of road funds is had, making it possible to prevent duplication of organization and permitting the maintenance of one well-coordinated organization with sufficient funds at its disposal to do more effective road work for general Territorial development and projection of a comprehensive road system and program in the Territory at large. The Alaska Territorial Legislature at its 1925 session made the following appropriations for public works under the Territorial board for the biennium ending March 31, 1927: Public roads, bridges, trails, and ferries. Shelter cabins Telephone lines, second division_. $260, 000 20, 000 4,000 From the $260,000 the Territorial board is authorized to provide for the following special projects, if in its judgment found desirable: Aviation fields, second division___. Maintenance, Nome Harbor__ Aviation fields or hydroplane moorings, third division_. Aviation fields, fourth division_.. $5,000 5,000 10, 000 6, 000 20, 000 In addition, the Territory receives 25 per cent of certain revenues from timber sales in the national forests; 75 per cent of the Territory's portion is available for general road work throughout the Territory, and for the past year-July 1, 1924, to June 30, 1925amounted to $23,610.92. For the first year of the biennium the available funds for roads bridges, trails, ferries, and shelter cabins were allotted by the Territorial board of road commissioners to the four divisions of the Territory as follows: With the above funds the following projects were handled in arious divisions: FIRST DIVISION Cooperative with Alaska Road Commission: Haines-Wells, Pleasant Camp extension, Porcupine extension, Haines-Mud Bay, Haines-Chilkoot, Sitka National Monument, Sitka National Cemetery, Douglas-Gastineau Channel, Skagway-Smugglers Cove, and Good Creek-Salmon River; total-- $23, 600. 00 Cooperative with Forest Service: Glacier Highway, Petersburg-Scow Bay, Salmon River, Sitka power station, Tongass Highway, White Pass Highway, Wrangell Highway, Saxman-Beaver Falls, maintenance and construction; total_. SECOND DIVISION operative with Alaska Road Commission: THIRD DIVISION perative with Alaska Road Commission: Wasilla-Matanuska, Mineral Creek-Valdez, Granby Road, Kenai-Russian River, Strelna-Kuskulana, Anchorage-Eagle er divisional chairman: Seward-Nash, Palmer-Matanuska River, Moose-Palmer, Palmer- Moose-Pass-Palmer Creek. Cordova-Eyak Lake, Katalla-Bering FOURTH DIVISION perative with Alaska Road Commission: 15,025 ( 36, 000. 00 26, 850.00 9, 882. 86 3, 450.00 27, 400.00 Under divisional chairman: Cleary Creek, Fox-Olnes, Fairbanks Creek, College Spur, St. $12, 360.00 Among the cooperative projects listed above are included eight airplane landing fields. In addition to the funds reported above $2,149.10 was expended under Alaska Road Commission supervision on the maintenance of about 400 miles of telephone lines in the second division. The authorized allotment for Nome Harbor was turned over to the Federal Government for expenditure in accord ance with the requirements of the river and harbor act. These three activities represent new departures in territorial expenditures author ized by the last legislature. The Nome-Sheldon Tramroad and the Tolovana Tramroad, pur chased by the Territory several years ago and placed under the administration of the Alaska Road Commission, have been rehabili tated. They are maintained and operated as public trams or highways. COMMERCIAL AVIATION The Territorial legislature in 1925 authorized the Territoria board of road commissioners to divert from the 1925 biennial road appropriations the sum of $10,000 in the second judicial division $10,000 in the third division, and $20,000 in the fourth division for the construction of aviation fields, when in its judgment it was of equal economic benefit to the immediate district as a like amount expended on roads. As a result of this legislation, aviation fields have been constructed at the following places: Second division, Nome, Golovin Moose Point, Unalakleet, and Keewalik; fourth division, Kantishna Lake Minchumina, McGrath, Takotna, Ophir, Flat, Nulato, Ruby American Creek, Manley Hot Springs, Livengood, Beaver, Chan dalar, Wiseman, Rampart, Fort Yukon, Circle Hot Springs, Chena Hot Springs, and Chicken Creek. These fields vary in size from 300 by 800 feet to 600 by 1,400 feet. There are two aviation companies operating in the Territory both of which have headquarters at Fairbanks. They have ample equipment to meet the present demands, although public use of this method of transportation is fast becoming an important factor in the economic development of the interior portion of the Territory ALASKA FISHERIES The fishery industry of Alaska as a whole in 1925 showed an ex pansion over the preceding year in respect to persons employed and investment, but the total quantity and value of products decreased slightly. An outstanding feature was the marked growth of the herring industry, in which the investment and value of products in creased more than 50 per cent over the previous high record in 1924, when there had also been a great expansion of operations. Upon the basis of experience in 1924 and to meet new and chang ing conditions in respect to maintaining the aquatic resources of Alaska, the Secretary of Commerce made a number of changes in the |