I
In Rampart Grace Sltxnl outside the trading post, beneath a sign that
/ read Stoves and Tinware Through the open door she could see tin gixxls
1 stacked
in pyramids behind the counter Hour on the fltx»r and woven
\ln d ia n saddle blankets draped over a keg IXiwn at the dock the
steamer s whistle blew a low wheezing note and Raymond appeared
around the corner grinning, with muddy boots, and his hat on the back of
his head Grace stood still a moment longer breathing deeply and look mg
around her hoping to remember the rest of her life how exactly she felt
at that moment She shxxl on the porch of the Yukon store. Raymond
holding out his hand to her. and the boat reeled at the river s edge,
waiting to pull her away She closed her eyes and tried to freeze the
picture inside her There was a slapping sound
a ragged dog trotting
down the street Grace opened her eyes and watched a man in an Eskimo
parka toss dishwater out into the wagon ruts Two roosters crowed The
steamer s insistent call came again and Raymond took her hand and they
stepped quickly down the street past the open clanging heat of a
blacksmith s shop
An old man was boarding the steamer at Rampart an old character
called Captain Mayo, who was the oldest pioneer of Alaska ' I 8731 Years
before Grace was born he was a trapper and fur trader up in the wild
Yukon territory, subsisting only on wild meat Before that he was a
tumbler in a circus He was fu ll of fascinating tales Once he had been
piloting a little boat loaded w ith supplies up the river when he was
boarded by a mob of Indians, so great a number that their weight almost
sank the vessel Captain Mayo was tired of them carrying off his supplies
and he had been prepared for them he piled wood on the fire attached a
hose to the steam pipe and turned the hot steam into the pack The
Indians abandoned ship in a hurry
For the most part though, Captain Mayo appeared to be on g<x>d terms
w ith the Indians (»race observed that he knew many of them in the
settlements they passed She discovered that his character had been
w ritten into a novel by Rei Beach a local w riter who collected Alaskan
tales
They briefly crossed the Artie Circle and Captain Mayo let Grace look
at it through his telescope At Fort Yukon Raymond and (»race took a
walk together while Captain Mayo wandered off in the direction of
Halleys Roadhouse Later he told them that Mrs Halley, a squaw had
mistaken him for an old friend
When she heard Captain Mayo s name she th o u g h t she knew him and
fe ll on his neck He couldn I escape her embrace and was scared h a lf to
death fo r fear someone from the boat would come in and fin d him A fter
her husband e ip la in c d who he re a lly was she renewed her dem onstrations
w ith greater zeal and as ih c old man said she was strong as a moose he
thought he would never be able to escape When he fin a lly got away one
of his friends met him and asked him if he didn t want to go around and
meet some more old Indian frie n d s hul he refused em pha tically and said
Let s go aboard there s a storm ashore
NoleaG C
People were throwing scraps to a mob of w ild dogs on the shore as the
boat pulled back out into the river They passed Circle City and Eagle At
Dawson Captain Mayo disembarked to go visit his daughter Grace and
Raymond had to change boats, for this was where the Yukon turned
around and headed back up the river They made reservations on the
Selkirk . a steamer, a crowded little boat The river grew narrower and
rougher, w ith rapids and huge boulders to navigate On board Grace look
a mud hath and did some washing on the lower deck She and Raymond
tried making a hatch of candy in the galley, hul it turned out wrong
They steamed into Lake LaBarge in the evening and the water was so
rough they had to tic up on the marge for the night
Lake LaBarge led into the Fifty Mile River They reached Whitehorse
that morning and Grace. Raymond, and Bill went on a hike up Miles
Canyon to the rapids on the old gold rush trail of 98 The waterfall was
magnificent and the canyon treacherous, Bill recounted many tales of the
perilous and fatal trips over the trail
They were three weeks out of Fairbanks and had seen the last of the
Yukon River They took the train on to Skagway The news came to them
that the boat they d come to Alaska on the Admiral Sampson had sunk
off Port Townsend, rammed by another boat II had sunk w ith in four
minutes, and look two passengers, several of the crew and the captain
down w ith it
Skagway was a muddy little place of crooked streets and stumps of
trees, saloons and betting parlours Grace had noticed that up in Alaska
about the only jobs for women were leaching school, taking in washing,
and telling fortunes She walked up through the trees to see the grave of
Soapy Smith Soapy had been notorious in the Old West long before he
arrived in Alaska to take over the town of Skagway and swindle unwary
gold miners For a year he held the town under his fearful command --
robbery and murders were a daily occurance - until he was finally shot
by an irate miner in 1898. and Skagway s rip roaring days were over
Grace stood near his grave in the trees and felt that her sojourn in the
north was nearing its end A light rain fell The sky darkened and
lowered over her and the trees moved uneasily The crisp freshness of
the air clung to her clothing and brightened her face Soon she would be
leaching music to her students in a stuffy room in the city, living in the
canyon where the trains went by day and night Raymond would return
to La Grande and she would be in Hood River She wondered if they
would ever go to Alaska again She shivered inside her jacket and
pressed her hat to her head The wind was picking up She stepped
away down through the gloomy trees Behind her lay a calculating,
murdering monster with strange dark eyes who could never leave the
cold and desolation of the place It was growing dark
8 UFTER. LtfT DGf
JUWE lf?3
Another steamer carried them down into the maze of little islands
along the Alaskan coastline They touched land al Haines. Sitka.
Petersburg Wrangell and Ketchikan The Iasi afternoon in the Alaskan
te rrito ry the sky grew clear and the water was smooth as a m irror (»race
and Raymond sat out on deck until very late, enjoying the warmth of the
evening, reluctant to take their eyes off the scenery slipping past them in
the moonlight (»race was excited about returning home but she was also
gripped w ith nostalgia The boat moved gently under her Raymond
stretched out his legs and sighed liltin g his face up to the sky Smoke
from the steamer s chimneys glinted in the light of the deck lanterns
Grace began to feel sleepy
My but it w ill seem good to see you all I have fa ir ly devoured all
the letters from home It has surely been a good trip
such a va rie ty
of new and rem arkable th in g s to see
Letter G C to h e r m other
August 24 1914
She cooked all the way th ro u g h Alaska
Her biscuits went faster and faster
He ate tw enty two
W ith his M ulligan Stew
And said To wed me I w ill ask her
My dear Gagie
I a rrive d home at 5 35 th is m o rn in g and as there was no one at the tra in 1
though t I would slip in on (he folks at home and surprise them But just as 1 stepped
up on the p o n h I heard a b lin d raise and there stood fa th e r in his n ig h t s h irt w ith
a smile on his face that went across the window So that was no surprise
Then I went in and sat on the edge of the bed and talked business and about the
tr ip as long as I could stand it (w h ic h was o n ly a few m inutes* then I told them my
p la n s fo r the fu tu re And they were not surprised They were v e ry much pleased
though and fa th e r said We w ill c e rta in ly welcome her into our home And
m other instead of fe e lin g had about it seemed just as happy and said Well 1 hate to
give you up but I know it is the best th in g fo r you and Grace is an a w fu lly nice
g ir l
Just as soon as I could get away from home I went r ig h t up to Jean s and as
H lsw o rth and Aunt Hattie were in the room w h ile we were ta lk in g I didn I m ention
it to her u n til we were in the car and headed fo r the old Curtiss place Well she
giggled and I giggled and we both acted like a couple of kids And a fte r k illin g Old
Hank two or three limes and fin a lly ru n n in g out of gasoline he slopped fo r good
But we n o n got some more and rushed down to te ll George S as soon as I opened
(he door he stuck out his hand and said Congratulations old man
My fa th e r had heat me to it So he wasn t surprised
Several I have met today thought I was already m arried but I assured them I was
not m arried yet One g ir l who works at West s store says to me W hat is th is I hear
everybody ta lk in g aboup Raymond M cLennon is hack from Alaska and he is to be
m arried soon
Ba*.k to the Curtiss place it is a much p re ttie r place than I th o u g h t it was hul
lust looking at it is as ta r as 1 have gone I have been so busy shaking hands and
answ ering questions that I haven t had time fo r a n y th in g else today '
le tt e r R aym ond to Grace
I ji Grande Ore
September 9 1914