The Nevada journal., 1858-08-06
Letter Concerning the New Gold
Fields in the North,


Oregon. The writer is well known I
us as a gentleman who never fails t
make himself acquainted with passin
events and facts, and his statements an
conclusions may be safely relied on i
preference to any other published. TIL
letter contains many items Of interes
not heretofore made public:
PORTLAND Oregon, July II, 1853.
DEAR SIR :-Yo want to know some
thing about the new "Caledonian mines
with us. 1 am pretty we'll posted OF
these new diggings, sufficiently SO tc
caution you against taking the fever
time, and short time at that. will tel
what many are are anxious to know
that to certain extent they are hum
bug. That there is gold north of this
point | am well satisfied, but l am not
as we'll satisfied of its ertent as l am OF
the gold felts of California. The Fra
zer River part of this great excitement,
is two thirds humbug. Frazer River
has but little to do with the "Caledo-
man mines," neither is Puget Sound the
route to take to the new gold fields.
The route is via the Columbia river to
the Dales thence across an open country
or the basin, being between the Cas-
cade and the Rocky mountains.
You know l have 40 interest in the
two routes = pro or con. The mining
region can be reached from San Fran
cisco by water, or via Shasta by land,
without touching at this point (Portland)
at all therefore, there can be no inter-
est in man living at Portland misrep-
resenting the position of the new mines,
OF the route to them. In pointing out the
proper route, I am guided by the expe-
rience of others -Mose uho hare been
both routes. That persons can reach
the new diggings by way of Frazer
River is fixed fact but it is not fixed
fact that supplies can be transported
that way except at a great expense,
and enormous risk. 1t is also a fixed
fact that persons can reach the mines
via the Columbia river from the Dalls
AND Wallawalla, but the most important
fact is, that an or team can tracel tile
whole distance! and what is more, not
withstanding the Hudson Bay company
have line of forts, and trading posts
on Frazer River, so, 60, 40 and 16 miles
apart, they never attempted to supply
these upper posts via Frazer River. but
have always supplied them from Fort
Vancouver, tier post only six miles
from here Oh the Columbia river. Their
usual time of sending forward their sup
plies from Fort Vancouver, for Fort
Colville, and Fort Thompson, and at
the northern posts has been in August
of each year, but this year, though Au-
gust has not yet rolled around, Mey hare
sent torward tier trains and aoW send
another. .Joracard tie last Of tbs month !
What does this prove ? 1t proves two
important facts: First-That the Hud-
son Bay company knew of those mines
early in this year; second - that they
plainly foresaw that goods would be in
demand, and that the proper way to
supply this section of country was by
the Columbia river, and not by way of
Puget Sound and Frazer River.
In my opinion there will be within
sixty days as great an emf grafton from
Puget Sound, as there has been immigra-
tretion because it is utterly impossible
for the number of persons who have
started to these new mines by way of
the Sound, to reach them via Frazer
River; starvation will overtake them
long before the mines can possibly be
reached, and if they are wise they will
take the back track.
l cannot believe that these new mines
are extensive enough, or that their rep
utation is sufficiently established for
richness to guarantee such rush from
such known mining regions as those of
California. ] cannot understand how it
is, or why it is, that Californians will
leave such country as California and
rush pell nell, helter-skelter, to an I'M
known, cold, bleak, barren waste, far to
the north, ,ctthoxt some reliable testimony
as to the object of their visit. Now if
such Juror should have been gotten
up in this valley-an agricultural dis
trict-there would have been teen some
reason in it; but such is not the fact, not
single farmer has taken the .fecer, and
not more than two hundred and fifty