Lincoln County leader. (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, August 12, 1897, Image 2

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Lincoln County leader., August 12, 1897, Image 2

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Newspaper Page Textthe pW 1 ;tk over to .riuncu1 1 osfn't""1' .jlJICUllini R fl .S.'. CS I V 1 U si fl UBt I I ' V 1 I I I i V - l( Alas id lliigaii ic. J1""' 5 tM del"1 "I'M I! ri ' it HE United States (iovern uii'iit in 18(57 paid Itussia 7, a 0 0.(1 0 0 for Alaska. The terri tory bus paid buck her pu rutins mon ey in gold four times, having pro duced during the time it Ims been n part of the United States about $30, 000,000 of the pre cious yellow uietul. Tu-uu. the eyes of our for the world are turned toward frozen inquisition in the north, wilhin its borders has been dis covered an I'.lilorailo. The word Klon dyke, literally translated meaning Ieer Jtiver. is on every tongue and is known as the designation for a gold-bearing district greater in mea nml rieher in diameter than iiny the world has ever known, with the txtssible exception of California. Klond.vKe is the new open sesame to Aladdin's cave; it supplants 'Tike's I'eak or bust" in the fold-seeker's vernacular. "The days of "!I7" may become as cele brated a phrase ns "the dnys of '4!t," for the same fever that seized upon the people nnd dotted the Western prairies with em igrant trains hound for the Pacific const INDIAN IllVhll. is claiming victims by the thousands, all eager to brave the perils of the arctic eli de and wrest a fortune from the frozen iue. The icpoiled gold discoveries of the present day in Alaska and the reported gold discoveries of '-111 in California afford many parallels. To the aveniite mau the treasures uf the coast State were secin IiikI.v as inaccessible as are the riches of the Ynl.un and its tributaries. One was more ih in I'.ooo miles across n trackless desert and over Hiiow-boiiud mountain passes, beset by savages, whose deadly allacks iiiiirked the trail with blenching bones across the Western States; the other is nearly 7.000 miles by water. I'lZb" El, .o' "L"!'""! tain liaises to scale as iini?..riniii n ti...u.. - I,,... in,,. in uf the Swiss Alps, The fabulous tales of wealth sent out by the California pioneers were no less wonder?'!) than those brought back by the men who bin veil the last cold season in the Kb nd.vke mineral belt, and in both cases those who returned brought back with th.'in great nuggets of the precious muff that left little or no doubt in the mind of the hearer. The California miner in the mniir who hnd so many nugicets that lie was Hii ustonied to "go hatful blind" rinds his parallel in the Yukon miner who Haiins tn have "washed out" $212 in one panful of dirt a process that requires ten or twehe minutes. The Alaska and California gold fields re alike also In being placer mines. Placer Ii.liiw Im x.niitiitiilv culled "iioor mni.'a mining." for the reason that it is done without machinery, while the implements required lu the work are few mid of small cost. A placer miner ran get along very well with a pick, shovel and gold pan. If Ui dirt U uot rich he can accotnpllsh STOXK HOUSE AT THE FOOT OK CHII.KOOT PASS, better results by running it through a sluice box, but where the yield is lu nug gets instead of hue gold be prefers to "pan" it. The (.-rent Klondyke strike wua made last year, but nothing was known of it in the United States until June 15 of the present year, when n vessel culled the Excelsior arrived in San Francisco laden with miners from the Klondyke, who in turn were laden with gold. They told almost incredible tules of the richness of the newly discovered district, where for tunes had been accumulated in a few months. Experienced miners and "ten derfeet" seemed to have shared good for tune alike, and with some justice, too, for the credit of the discovery of the new S'i!d !;!! in due to the inexperienced men. Another vessel brought to Seattle a sec ond party of successful prospectors and a ton ami a half of gold. These men hnd endured peril and undergone great hard ships in accumulating the fortunes they brought, and they told a story thut had a dark as well as a bright side. To follow their example means a risk of wealth. health and even life, but for those who are willing to take the chances the pros pect they hold out is alluring. T h K'lnnHvIrn Iklat.!. The richest of the mines in the Alaska region seem to be in the Klondyke, a few miles over the British border. They were discovered, as has been said, by a party of "teiiilerfeet," who, against the advice of the old-timers in the distriet, wandered "over yonder in the Klondyke" and struck it rich. Eroni Klondyke comes much of the gold and from Klondyke seems to come all the excitement. A few "tender feet," going It blind, have stirred up the naiion. uut or ine region of their (lis covery has eon-e, it is estininted, .$2,000, 000 worth of gold during the nresent sum mer. Nearly all of that gold has found its way into the l nited States. If- lu linril to titll tvlw.t-n tl Al.lfll-n ..!.! fields nre located except that In a general way the licst or them are along the lukon Tlmr.i nrn n few "InHn" mirwta tt.tiit. In neini ani along the southeast coast of the i.-iiikii.i .ill- iiiiini m-t-.-ssiiiit- pail. 0 111, but the one is of low grade mid mining is made profitable only by the most careful nianageiueut. The placer mines, from which prospect ors nre said to he lining their pockets with gold, occupy the prominent place in the popular mind. These are in the region re mote from civilization, little known, and, on account of its uncertainties, danger ously alluring to the average man. This golil-m-oilui ing couiitrv of the interior is in the vicinity of the Yukon near where that great river turns to the west in its course to the sea. Before the discoveries in the Klondyke the most productive dis tricts had been along Forty Mile Creek, partly in British and partly in American territory, and the Birch Creek district, all in America n territory. Along all tf the rivers in this region, tributaries to the Yukon, geld diggings exist and in many places pay the prospector well for his trouble. Cook's Inlet is another place where the rumors of gold caused crowds of uupre- ." ' -k' '"e -listrict has not exactly borne out the reputation given to it by early prospectors. In all the immense country over which the placer milling extends it is estimated .inn up to last year there were 2.000 niin. ers. The districts In ti lib.h .. .. .i worked were in a broad belt of gold pro ducing rock tlip.,i.l. h .......... : T -. ........ M.ian. lenm enrryiug gold occur frequently. Through the BO 111 lien r n r..lia ll.a 1...... the gold-bearinir rock tl. iirsiiiNia liU cut deep gullies and canyons, and In their i i .i ","-. .i. ..in Keils the gold which was contained in the nicll U i.ii. .n,....i.v.l Tl... ..Ul .1.1. rock is comentratisl. The luiniug of thl eolllltrr tonslsts. thereforo. In viuI.mii out tne gravel of these beds. To Keach the Gold Klel.ta, The best way to reach the Klondyk) district? One gwi from Seattle by oceai steamer west anil a little north, and pass es through. Dutch Harbor, at the : " .... ." ttxnie ind of the Southwest Alaskan no- nlusnln. From there the steamer tun.. north and continues on to St. Michael's sian.l. a little nlnive the mouth of the L ukon. In llehrintf Sea. At that noint Ylllii.il I.. llnKrl.. passenger are transferred to the rivi l to the viw sicuucra to ueglu the loug journey up k . the Y'ukon, which winds northward and cast ward, and finally brings the traveler to I.awaon City, now the principal town in the district, although sixty-five miles from the Klondye fields. The cost of the trip from Chicago this way, as prospecting miners usually travel, is $251.50. It is divided as follows; From Chicago to Seattle (second class), $51.50; from Seattle to Dawson City, $200. In time the trip costs thirty days four from Chicago to Seattle, sixteen from Seattle to St. Michael's Island, and ten up the Yukon to Dawson City by the fast boat. The distance in general figures is 2,250 miles from Chicago to Seattle, 2,500 miles to St. Michael's Island and 1.HH0 mih up the Yukon to Da total at ii bout fi.000 miles. 43 MAP SHOWING TIIE Another wnv. the "mniintuin pmiio " a shorter in miles, but equally long in the time it requires and a great deal more ilLSf- 72 more directly north to Junenu, which is S!l!l miles from Sen 111., ii i.rt thmi imps hv lake and iver and over the mountains i to the new m n iib terr torv. 1.000 miles tn the nr..- niloint tni-intni-i The cost of the trip this way cannot be definitely stated beyon .Tin eu, bec after that noint it lenenrt, ., n after that point it depends somewhat on tile Dliri'nill mnile with till. I'liilllnnt In. diaus, who pack supplies through the pass, aim tne lengtn or time the overland part of the journey requires; but the Indians who act lis guides nnd nnck smmlies do wbo act lis guides nnd pack supplies do noiworK without big pay. Dawson CltT. Dawson City, the center of the new mining region, although sixty-five miles distant from the Klondyke. is said to lie n typical mining town minus the guns. Ihe British tiovernment enforces Its laws ' , , " Dawson, and those laws prohibit the ' of firenrins. rn four mui. tnv n....u lu use of firearms, co few nimi mrrv ,if,u The laws of the en mo nre ntifr,oii u mounted police, whose captain is a civil officer. Though there nre said to be 3,000 people in Dawson, few houses have been built, for the principal reason that lumber is $100 per 1,000 feet. The genernl fear is, of course, that there will be great suf fering there this winter, and It will bo In. creased, it is expected, by the rush of ttnprcpau-d prospectors who sailed for the new fields immediately on learning what luck- had befallen those who have but recently returned. Ill give 1111 ncclirnte iilen nt tlia mwl r living in Dawson City, the price list of a general store there is herewith given: Flour, per His $12 on Mouse lut in. ner Mi . i ivi CarMiou meat, tier lb ic. ItiMiiis, per lb. lo luce, ner u... Sugar, per lb. ltnciin. ner Ih. 40 Hatter, ner roll Kggs, per dozen !!!!!!".!!!! 1 SO 1 Ml ltctter eggs, tier dozeu 2 00 Salmon, each .(1 to 1 Ml 25 IS 1 00 M ; Ml 20 Ml 1 M) Ml 2 Ml S (10 utilities, ner lb Turnips, per lb Ten. per lb Coffee, per lb I irl.il fruits, per lb.. ('Mimed fruits l.euions. each Omnires. each Tobacco, per lb I.louiirs. ner drlnlc... Sliuvels Ticks t'nal oil. uer gnllou. . . 1 (Ml 1 Ml Overalls I'mlerwear, per suit... .$.1 to 7 Ml Hubber boot 10 to 15 00 n (Ml Alaska and Its Resources. In the purchase of Alaska, the TTnlto,! States acquired a territory more than half a million square miles in extent, a part of it within the arctic circle and' in me rvfciMii oi everlasting ice ana snow where, during part of the summer, there is continuous day and during the winter column. ms, ureary nignt. The AlnsVn. coast line is greater than our Atlantic W I i. .... i , i. .i . "'"iii sia onuiiiioiis, ureary nignt. The Alasknn board, but the entire population of white iiiiui ami ncrce inuians w called the Apaches of the North i. .. .. . . 'uriu r.sKimos anil nerce Indian. h are much more than that of a ward division iu Chicago. In acquiring the Alaskan territory, though the Vnited States moved its cen ter, figured lu geographical mines, not in area or population, as far west at San Jranelaco. The country now extends imiu uuoiii me uiitn degree of Innvim.i. in. .t ., . '"lt"nde 122,1 , eer, , . r ,0 of the Aa.kan mainlnn.l. Thl. I. Y.J. P no aeeo.mt of the little Island of Vt 1 mul ...u . . ' J .. ttn? of A'. " "r.w tb, . ""im woicn, since the nur. chaw of Alaska, ha really been our w ern land limit. The United States, there - fore, may almost say with England thut the sun never sets on its possessions. TX. - r V..t L1 j iic reai ukum icr. The principal river in Alaska, the Yu- nun, up nuau ijiobijvw :im a uu t- m ,u.n meir weary way to reacn ine gom neius, was cauea oy senwatka, tne Alas Nile. It rises a little more than 200 in a Dove MtKii. in tue soutnern part or Alaska, and then strikes northward, fol- I j ..: i ,1... iu,(iig it uiuiiu circle lo uie roi uciuik i. cuifii.rs uiio ut-iiriuK oca iiiiuuii uu e.iensive oiMia. rix nuuurea nines in from the coast it is more than a mile wide and the volume of its water is so great as to freshen the ocean ten miles uiii from land. The principal cities of Alaska are Jtt- ALASKA GOLD FIELDS. neau nnd Sitka. They are both thriving towns, and probably they will thrive from now on, for a time at lenst, as they have never thriven hefnrn A inai-.. i ,..i..i -e nr Z by n territorial governor, who now is J. Brady, recently appointed by President McKinley to aucceed James A Sheakh y ti. u ... " f1, ""enKiij. lUe Governor's resiilnnna lu i.. .!,.. d" . "1 f'T "si le from 8tlrriK "P the Among the things Alaska has done for present gold excitement one of the most forward was to involve it in disputes with England on the boundary question and the seal fisheries business. Both of these d isp 7 ! i" eit?n"d n,t hlte-willg- ed pence settled over the situation in each case and brought the suggestion of that newly invented English-American institu-tion-nriiitration. However, the boundary question is not settled yet. Character of the Population. Ihe census enumeration of 1800, !.- me population of the terri- tory as H0,32l, of whom 4.410 were whites I Mo l.l..i... i .... .... ""u's. fill,.. i ne noliiilnt in. f !. . 1 ii . L .,r.v wiities, blnoks. 1.5IIX linlr.i...,.,.i 1...1:.. ,. - -" iiiiuiiiis aim Eskimos. 1.1,, 35 natives not Eskimos (Iu ; 1.1ns). 2.125 Chinese and 8.400 Eskimos. 1 he number of whites has probably been more than doubled since then, however (is the Alaskan gold fever set in iu mild form three r fr years ago. One would hardly th.nk of going to Alaska for the social advantages of the place Neither could it be said that a reasona bly constructed Individual would go there for the climate. In winter the thermome ter falls so low in places that no one will recognize it; that it goes down to 70 de grees ..ud lower. During all this kind of win er up in the Yukon region little can be done but sit about a fire in a vain en deavor to keep warm, for darkness exists most of the time, and the life seems like that of a man uncomfortably seated at the bottom of 11 well. FACTS ABOUT ALASKA, I ....H2?E' ,ln 1S"T 'mm Run- , ";:.r. ;-'"M""': purchase uegotl ated by William H. Seward. Area la square miles. Ml. 400 riiilliailoll (census of 1101. 3nsn nf whom but 4.41.1 were whites. 8.4UO t Esquimaux ami I3.7;t.". Indluns hstlniatetl present population, 40,- t ITInclpiil cities. Sitka (the capital) t Juneau, Wrangel. I'lrcle Cl.v ' f . ..... i.i, . ,11111.1111., ..intinr 1 a It tmle HI. MS. f..oi- i, ...... ... iirnn. 18.100: Mnnnt U'rm'.l ir.jj,'- I1H F.I Ins, (iovenii.r of the territory'.' James b Brnily; residence at Sitka. Principal products besides gold. f,.r, fish and lumber. ' Principal occupations of the netinle hunting and fishing. people. iold first discovered In IS7B Ratlmated product of gold to ilniu I'rislnct of gold In lStm. 4.R70oi Klondyke In Kngllsh I. illver Tlierlver Is so designated uu the Klondyke gold fields partly In Amer. I'-aa and partly In Hrltlnl. t "rrttwi "aitMre'r ",l,",,o"wi ot Stvne of the present excitement Is tari'es PPr 0 ulX trlbi" I via C'kllkoot Pass about 4.000 tllllea. Time to make the route, thlrtr ilnra. "P by either , ("est of the trip, about $.too. Iravel possible uuly lu June and Aliens.. . July ruinate In winter severe In the n. treaie. winter beglanlug lu Vepte". l.nrlng June mil JiT eontlnnoii. diyllKht: during KecemuerViid JkZ ary contiuuous Vilght. lu p the liar t that Is M-rviilion uliou of future. ;iitlotiul V in the I'" 1 utllitt"'1 ahii,u plit lllfiltl 1 During the summer season th sometimes even a litii.. i.u i . for long. In that time tun th most ,.r.fit;.,nl .1.... . ' . ' il "i "y, ior that end ni earth (If it may be so cnllwli lui i i'w,ii..-u uiiecuy at tile BUD uu. me summer tirings ' one in such u way us to m l dreaded Jersey vuriety sceni h " u lil, ,lw. :i .. ' ih CauiK i.ac .in- silvery, IlllgCuc swpptlt- ih i,iuai-n ur u peaceful UrcaiD travelers who return vn. .1.. v...' iritory t gion tell stories of how brave andfc! iiild be 1 ... w,st- enough tu undetUb perils n J..,,rnoy to tiiinSumry (W actually break down nml 1, 1. .... in or sev peration nnd despuir uuilor the tonm' iu the icrriiiie pests. The ice ani mugnilicent distances" nf ,ha not the only drawbacks to Its njj ... j,,,.,..,-., ,K u) 1Ile B01U BeMi mosquitoes must ever ho mn,.n.i.i Uf course, iu the southern part of Al; irt was an, wueve jtinenii and Sitka nreiiMi me w.niers are not so rigoroiu. the weather is comparatively mi,tK niiiiiiucr IS H.IIM to he di. kr ,!l 11 Juneau und Sitka ore lufinitesiinuliij pared with the whole conntm- j,i' are not nn index to what is f u'niisliej fc! mer up ana rartlier inland. Industries nf Ainb. flls to t When travelers were asked ns hit two or three years aim wli.n princip il pursuits in Alaska thev rfpfc of course, that fishing and hunting 1, nlshed occupation for the greater ran. the population. What else was to ben pected from n population made upimt main of Eskimos and Indians? hd Mtka district there are ningnilirent esis ana lumbering is an industry, km the barren, icy north the nccnimii the Indian was to shoot nnd trap it bear, the fox. the otter and the .ilk.,,., mals whose fur would bring a price ii the markets of the world, tn ..nti, n seals and spear the whale and catch it otner nsn or game that could he turn-: into money. Salmon canning is the pn industry of the Kadiak district, and k been for vours. Of lute, however, the other industrial! A.usMi nave sunk ulniost out of sight U cause of the new gold rlnirv. Minim i course, is the industry of the white au Virgin cold might have lain iu "lain lid: in the rocks to a limitless extent and ii all probability the Indians nnd the b kmios would never huve touched it. M PBOSPKCTI.NO IS ALASKA. and furs nre the standard of vtilue M them, (iol.l liiiu no KsL-inwi Mt.uiijii-hs anil keeis no KRkitno hotly warm. Hut with the white man it was differ cut. He came, he mur. be ilit. nnd u the digging lie found richness, (ilitteriw goltl greetetl his eyes, and the fever ol gold is ppoii us, Work Inn Placer Mines. The Klondyke mines ure placcrs-th' most easily worked mines of nuv. and requiring the lenst expenditure. The methods of washing out placer gold " known us "sluicing" and "punning." Th former is employed where the yield l ot ordinurv value, while nil old-timers un- for the hitler in rich ground. In sluicing the dirt is shoveled into tb sluice box, through which wuter is raiW ly running. The box is of varying lenftb. nnd has holes bored in the bottom. Tht holes are filled with quicksilver; the dirt. Kravel and smnll bowlders are washed over the qnu ksllver, hut the gold ailbew to it. When a miner "cleans up." win"' times every night, sometimes once a wwk, the water is turned off und the sluice b"1 holes are cleaned out. In panning, the dirt is put into a pan about the size of a small dislipas l'hls pan is ninde of copper. The miner squats beside a stream, dips water in the pan, oscillates It with a motion that can only be acquired by experience, " gradually sloughs out the water, dirt, gravel, etc., retaining the gold In the pa (.told being the heaviest substance, it U of course the easiest to retain iu the pan. If It be In the shape of nuggets, the mint picks them out of the pan with his fineefi; if the gold be lu small particles, fine pW up .,.. u 11 .. . .... ....... muti. ne ones tne pnn in i" sun Ulld cnrefnllv .... .1 .1. In' V a piece of buckskin or other mnterial u or carrying tue precious metal. ' A pick, a shovel, a gold pan, water, n4 of course, some gold are the only essen tiala of placer mining. Mnchinery Is only ueceasarv in placer mining where lane areas t,f ground that yields only moder ately are worked, nnd then onlv for hr "roullc power In washing down the dltt ood Mews for Him. . lou are destined to mnrry rlche the seetvaa an Id, "but " "But what?" "Death will clnlin you two year b fore the event" Town Topic 1 . 3I1 valuiiu ainal or whole 1 com! ulaton tv spot :uiselvei n maite lits U111 Kvate sp the wh 'here It presi'n ., will wuty si uplexli ut to inlid ov visitor The ba Shlckaw irluigloi ir tur the )' Jure sat e sout a pee fee tet i-nersl ttorevi itiiple t 1 There lie wis fcord Guns ai there 1 if the an trivak wners ifflcierj :ratlot Thet I Ui Var liler oers it tin icier fd a Will 'tant huitf iinip at I ihe the jiisln mot itt A laU liri nw V8 rid ft 1111 at a e ho lo l i Ii