The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, August 14, 1897, Page 1

VOLUME PRICE FIVE CENTS. ME 10 ST0P THE AD RUSH That Is the Warning From Editor Swin- hart of Juneau. SPRING THE SEASON TO ENTER. Trails to the Klondike That Are Yet Impass=ble for Gold-Hunters. STRUGGLES THAT WILL RESULT IN DISASTER. Notwithstanding Frequent Stories | of Perll, There Is No Lull in Northward Travel. SEATTLE, Wask., st prominent G. B. rd at Aug. 13.—Among and well-versed men Swinhart, editor of the Juneau. f Topeka We lnesday, ec tland to purchase pr & newspaper to be pub- 1at Dawson City. When interviewed rossed the opin- kaguay , and g by the hun- he thinks it fool- men the i easing b d L to travel was over | Pass. There is about a mile near | mit where pack-horses cannot be | ed, butou both sides they are advan- | -cously worked. Mr. Swinhart further No!withstanding the reports to the , the trail over White Pass from | remains uncompleted and is | impa e after the summit resched. Yukoners who attempt to cross | his route to the lakes are obliged 1o | ) at greal expense to themseives anG ; take the Dyen route. It is duily reported | hat the trail will be completed in a day two, b e facts are 1 1ts comple- 1 1n time to reach the river before it is ctical imposstbibity. void this alleged route, ble to reach the lakes ove ite P road is a ct of | Moor bas built a wharf at | \zuay. eight miles this side of Dyea. expect Moore opened the trail to the t and found a much easier grade at the Chilcoot Pass, and at once uded that the other side was as easi led as the other up the Ci , and the White Pass road was soou tised. As a matter of fact three ago no one nad been along the en- Encugh bad been ascertained it across a ten-mile it one horse be- mped. Since then the trail in hand, he White Summit they is han C 1 t c [ « ossing are w to the left along the base of the mouniain in expectation of in- tercepting the Chilcoot trail. If they suc- cecd this, as they probably will, pack animals can be u-ed along the entire trail, and theaistance is about five miles further than by 'he Dyea route. The couniry be- yond White Pass summitis marshy and filled witn smali lakes, but it is impracti- cable, ii not impossible, to float from one ©i them into @ he lakes that are part of the Yukon waters The report is current, altnough Mr. Swinhart does not know it to be true, tha toil is cted from those who go over the White P. The blazing of the trail was originaliy a private euterprise of Captain Moore, a mail-carrier for the Canadian Government. The passengers on the wrecked steamer Mexice have given expression to their grateful appreciation of the efforts of the officers of the boat in their bebalif at the time of the wreck. A testimonial was adopted and signea by all the passengers as follows: METLAHKANTLA ISLAND, Aug. 7, 1897. jersigned passengers on the stesmer Mexico during her last voyage to Alaska, and t the time was 1ost at sea, desi s their deep sense of gra to Captain H. C. Thomas and ev for their prompt, brave and conspic ol ction in get the passengers bouts; their consiaeration and anticipa- »n of possible delay in resching land, by providing each boat with an ample supply of provisions and weter, and their untiring care and devotion to the comfort and wants of the prssengers nfter reaching land. We desire further to offer this as our testimonial to Cap- tain Thomas and Purser Rush for their urbane er, kindness snd atiention while on ipboard, contributing as far as possible to the comfort and enjoyment of each and every passenger. This afternoon the littls steamer Edith Jeft for Mary Island, Dyea and Skaguay with eight horses and considerable freight belonging to passengers that went up on the Rosalie last night. The Elith will be run in connection with the Rosalie and City of Seattle. The latter will make her first run to Dyea on Tuesday next, and has a capacity of 500 passengers, 100 horses and 800 tons of freight. \arles E. Peabody is manager of the Alaska Steamship Company, which oper- .tes these steamers, and when asked this yrning if there was an apparent cessa- tion in the demand for transportation to to He arrived in | to make the at- | lake and down | | packs on sleds. The gold-hunters come up the trail from behind the tall peak on the right. about one and a half miles long with a gentle slope downward, over which it is a great relief to drag The lake, so-called, is a bed of hard, smooth, glistening snow. | takes a steep pitch of 2co yards, down which the loaded sleds go like lightning. (From a sketch made on the spot for THE CALL.) Crater Lake is At its farther end it Not infrequently the riders are thrown and the sled and its load are badly wrecked at the bottom. camp at this place, as shown by the tents. declivit)" a pause is made and the packs tied on as securely as possible. Before releasing the winds between the mountain ranges to the left of the picture. PASS. Miners occasionaliy sleds at the top of this immense The trail on to the Yukon down with her cabins fillea with gold- dust the whole world w 1l be wild, and the | rigors of an Arctic winter, the bottomless morasses and perpendicular bluffs on the trail will all be unheeded. Captain Pesbody has private informa- tion that comes from the mounted police on the boundary line thatit is the pose of the Government to establish fifty- mile posts along the White Pass route, purpose of the Government to keep the trail oven for passage all winter. The steamer Utopia was expected to sail for the north to-night, but was un- able to get off. 1In view of a superstitious feeling among the sailors her departure will now be delayed unti! after midnight, so as not to sail on Friday. carry about 150 passengersand freight or Dyea. inconvenienced a good northward bound with nors and it is rossible that the steamer F T, now in Portland, will take a good many Puget many miners s, will be in a few days. The steamer Humboldt, operated by the company of which Mayvor Wood is mansa- ger, is expectea to arrive in port to-mor- row from San Francisco. The local man- ager, A. L. Hawley, says: *We calculate on shipping 107 tons of freight from here. It will not take us very long to load this { and we expect to be on the road to St. | Michael bright and early Sunday morn- ing, arriving there by August 25. We cal- culate on having our river barges put to- gether within ten days after we reach St. | Michael and believe that we will land our passengers at Dawson City by S8eptember 15. | on us don't disturb us any. Old mariners tell me it does not freeze up until about October 10. Professor Lippy says it did not freeze last year until October 12. In fact we expect to gzet our barges back down the river beiore it freezes up and have them | next spring. Every ticket for this trip is | sold. This shows how little faith the gen- eral public hasin these rumors. In factI believe they were started by people who pur- | which 1s construed to mean that it is the | These rumors about the river freezing | at St. Michael ready to make an early trip | | were interested in hauling people upto Dyea and Bkaguay.”’ et REPEATS THE WARNING. A. T. Webb Says a Gold-Fevered ! Mind Is Driving Many a Man { to Certaln Death. | | PORTLAND, Or. Aug. —A. T.| | Webb, the sefe and lock man, got back | cured data sctficient {2 ¢ "inge me that| many people are being deceived by this | Kiondike craze. My advice is to keep away from Klondike this fall. If you have plenty of money and can fight your | way through go in at once with horses, or wait uniil February and take dogs. There 1s gold at Kiondike, but not for every- | body. “The sights about Dyea are pathetic | ‘tbe Indians are. gage and had paid $150 for the use of the boat for six miles, and the Indiaps toride. So you see, for example, how independent From the time you land itis a game of skin, They will not look at vou in that country unless you have money. I paid §$10 per ton to have my fre'ght lightered from Dyea back to Skaguay, a mile and a half, and others paid more. The river at Dyea is about discussed chiefly the all-absorbing topic of the gold-country administration. | mour ted-police officer, possessing valuable frontier experience. Protests have been pouring in against the exorbitant royalty imposed by the new Sound horses north when she sails, which | regulations, but-it was decided for the present to disregard all such protests and await the Gold Commis- The change of 500 to 100 feet in frontage in creek claims was con- | his appointment. the law into effect. | which is anticipated by next spring sioner’s report on its practicability. lflrmcd, and in view of this reduction it was also Hecided to reduce the annual renewal fee from $100 to }51;. Walsh will start for the Yukon in about three weeks. The new regulations, as amended, were | sent up from Victoria to the Yukon at once, and with them go the advance guard of men who will carry It is expected a telegraph line from the head of Lynn Canal to Klondike can be built | before the winter sets in, and in addition to communication thus established with the interior there will be monthly dog trains going through from the Pacific Coast. It is stated upon good authority the Gov- | ernment is prepared to spend $250,000 this year in the development of the gold country, the population of | The sinking of the Mexico has seriously | Minister of the Interior offered the place of Administrator of the district to Walsh accepted, the Council confirming to exceed 20,000. CANADA PREPARES TO REAP THE HARVEST. OTTAWA, ONT., Aug. 13.—The Cabinet Ministers at the last Council meeting, held this week, g 13 The Utopia | As has been announced, the Major Walsh, a late Northwest from Alaska this morning. “The Kiondike gold craze is all tom- foolery,”” emphatically said he to a cor- respondent. “It is much exaggerated, and nothing but a gold-tevered mind is driving many a man to certain death in | the icy regions of the north. I had no hardships and lost nothing, but [ am not gowng into the Yukon this fall or winter. l | Itis no use. I have seen enough and se- 2nd humorous. Hundreds of the toiling miners can be seen among a continuous camp. Many are giving out and are going to dis in the mountain passes. Isawa canoe proceeding up the river carrying the outtit of two prospectors. In the carnoe were two Indians. The canoe was filled by the outfit of the owners,who were puli- ing their boat in freezing cold water to the hips. They had 3200 pounds of bag- twenty feet wide. A white man and an Indian run a canoe ferry there. One end of the skiff scarcely leaves one side until it touches the other bank. The ferry toll is 50 certs. “So far as Dyea is concerned, Skaguay is really the nead of navigation. It has better landing places. As for outfits, they were sold for less than they cost in Portland by disgusted and discouraged | | Yukoners. notes: Fiour, 0 cents per sack} three sucks of apricots were given away; plus tobacco was 20 ceats per pound; five gal- lons of pickies, 50 cents; beans, $L per sack; two horses that were bought for $12 and $i5 in Portland sold for $300 cash. Now about horses: In a week or ten da after this next trip of the Elder, horses will not be in demand there. There 1s no feed there except what is taken in. Hay is $60 per ton. The horses can be used only at the present time, and this winter all their bones will_be bleaching on the mountain passes. The most that can be expected of the animals taken in there now is just about two round trips over the passes. You can count on 200 pounds to the horse and about two trips now, and then their u-efulness is at anend. But the stories of remarkable prices being paid for animalsisail bosh. A man needs horses there now, but the demand will not last long, and so you can figure out how well it will pay to take them.” ok SKAGUAY IS BOOMING. Shown to Be the Best Port for Those Who Are to Jour- ney Overland. TACOMA, Wism, Aug. Hinkle, an old resident of Portland, passed through Tacoma en route home. | He was one of the Mexico's passengers< and came down ou the Topeka. He went north to investigate the business field on the route which traflic and passengers Taust take to reach the interior and made a thorough investigation of affairs at Dyea and Skaguay. When he reached Dyea twelve other steamers hud landed cargoes and passengers there. He estimates that each steamer left fully 500 tons of freight, “Dyea,” says Hinkle, “is practically dead. The arduous struggie required to transfer goods over the Chilcoot Pass has stimulated the miners to make a vigorous effort to discover another route. The White Pass, leading from Skaguay, has been selected ana several hundred men have b-en diligently at work getting it into condition for trav The trail the Continued on Second Fage. Alaska he replied thatit is on the increase. Every day there are additional applica- tions for passage to the galeway to the Kiondike, and he expects to see it con- tinue all winter. If the Portland comes FRENCH GULCH IN THE TRINITY MINING REGION. 13. — Perry | For instance, bhere are some) | | | last Saturday. THINIY S LHES YET UNEOLDING Quartz Now Coming in for a Share of the Excitement. LATEST STRIEKE IS A VAST VEIN. Discovery Made by an Old Miner of a Ledge Thick With Gold. MANY HEADING FOR COFFEE CREEK DIGGINGS. Horses In Great Demand to Convey the Hordes of Invading Prospectors. REDDING, CAr., Aug. 13.—Placer dig- gings and rich pockets are not monopoliz- ingtheattention of minersand prospectors in and about the Coffee Creek country. Quartz -1s coming in for its share of the excitement, and the very latest rich strike reported from the Coffee Creek fields is from a vein of quartz. 2 This rich strike was made public to-day and a small-sized sample of the ore was brought to Redding by a geatieman named Wilson, who bad just arrived from Yreka. The sample was about six inches long, five inches wide and about two inches thick. It was literally fiiled with gold and contzined about $300. The ore was taken from the ledge near the surface, Thne new discovery is sit- uated on Hickory Creek, a branch of Coffae Creek, and about nine miles above the Graves brothers’ celebrated find of A well-defized ledge two and a half feet wide and about 2000 feet long kas been thus far discovered, and ore taken indiscriminately from different parts of the ledge varies in richness from $75 to $2000 per ton. The discovery of $his property makes an interesting story. About three months ago an old miner named Aikensapplied for and was granted admission to the county hospital of Siskivou County, lo- cated at Yreka. After being at the County Poorhouse for two months Aikens conceived the idea that he could make a living at mining if given a start, and applied to the Super visors of Siskiyou County for means by which he could fit himselfout with a pros- pector’s outfit and enable him to begin operations. This the Supervisors refused to do, and Aikens returned to the Poor- house disheartened. He finally applied