Red Wing sentinel. [volume] (Red Wing, M.T. [i.e. Minn.]) 1855-1861, 1859-02-12
: ,EIDosAno o1rx.. ;Jan,y ID s186eTs

FRIEND i1-: With pleasure sit down
to acknowledges the receipt 81 yours Of last
summer. When I received it / was on the
point Of leaving California for Frazer River,
and did not have time to answer before I To-
Gated IN my new home {; but failed to To-
cate. failed TO answer your letter and failed
to make anything there, soft was, 4 general
failure all around. You have heard Of the ex-
element the discovery of the Frazer River
Gold diggings, raised throughout California.
and Of the thousands who left to go there
was among, the number. Sci
|. ! started from San Francisco the Goth day
Of May, in : sail vessel and after tedious
passage, Of twentyrsix days arrived at Vic
toria, Vancouver's, Island, where, l, in COM
pany with four others, built small boat
and loaded it with grub and started for
Frazer. Going up the straits Of Fucs and
crossing the Gulf o. Georgia, We entered
the mouth Of the river. It is two hundred
miles from the mouth, to Fort Yale, our dcs-
tination, which we, made in twenty days,
nard pulling: The Frazer is = very difficult
stream to ascend, and is filled with rap
ids and whirlpeols, 50 that soness days we
did not make more than three, Of four miles.
We were seven tdaysff6ms Victoria to Fort
Langley, ten from thence to Fort Hope, and
three from Fort Hope TO- Fort, YALE. Many
persons have been drowned and many Kill
led by the Indians in making this trip, but
with US were thirty: boats and upwards Of a
hundred and fifty men all we'll armed; so the
Indians did not see fit to modest us.
At Fort Yale we found the gold diggings
were reported far up the River,and that there
were but few diggings about the Fort which
would pay for working. The river was also
said to be too high to. expect good pay
There were at least Loon or s, 900 men about
the Fort, awaiting the good time when the
river should fall, when they would either
commence work there or go further up. The
River is not navigable above the Fort, and
the; only waysto reach the upper diggings is
by following an Indian trail over range Of
the Cascade mountains. This is no easy
matter, as found, by experience. No one
can form an idea Of the difficulties and hard
ships Of this route who. is unacquainted with
mountain trails, and none can be worse than
this. The Indians were also very bad on
this route. but parties, were starting daily
over the mountains, with provisions, blank
cts and mining tools upon their backs, trusty
rifles faver ready, and rcvolvers in their
>. man. = If them were found minus
heir heads. These indians 'a''eo o'"asn')
10 not scalp but cut the head IT 1T as a ."o"''
The whites finally turned out, burned u.c'wn
their huts, destroyed many tons of dried
salmon (Which constitutes their entire food
for winter) besides giving many Of them
a taste Of American lead, after which there
was no further trouble from them.
1packed, on my back, three loads over this
trail, one Of IS lbs, over an hundred
miles. In the upper country provisions
were scarce, and high all summer. When ]
left the forks Of Frazer and Thompson riv-
ers, which was on the 18th Of November
Flour was selling for $1.00 per pound, ba.
con 81 So, and beans LOO; although there
was pack trail opened between the Fort
and the Forks, stocked with animals, and
no diggings to justify such prices three or
four dollars being more than average days
work: '.'t& z .'T... . -,
ID The River contrary to all California
streams got worse, instead Of better, as it fell,
three-fourths Of the miners
have like myself returned, broke and bursted
up entirely. I am now working tho claim
that I sold when L left, by the month
+ = .n*aszs>1.s - n r
Christmas, I spent very quietly AID pleas
ant:y, An hours work in the morning, a,
good oyster; dinner, with plenty, Of old, Cog
MAC to wash:it down, and in the evening we
had a gatherins'at brother miners cabir,
with good company, an old eaohre deck, two
violins and plenty Of whisky to enliven us:
New Years the same, with slight variations
all serving to remind nae Of our Christmas
on Diamond Island. *saal*H -
.o1f1 .stiigaaH5"f. .aooea E. NJ. >
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