Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1884-07-23
down TIE yuK0N RIVER
travelling Twelve EundTed Miles I'm
search OF 6old.
s. f. Chronicle.

day upon Ed. Schieffelin. who last year
made trip Of Some 100 miles down the
Yukon river for tbs purpose of prospect
ing for gold. Ar. SchIeffelIn has been
a pEospector from his earliest youth;
first starting oat 10 this business at
the age of fourteen in Oregon, and for
the last fifteen years he has explored
this entire western coast, from Alaska
to Mexico.
We hired the II. l.. Herman" said
he. she vas a schooner Of 10 20 80
tons burden. and we left this port on
June IL, ISIS, and arrived At st. Mi
ehael's on July 18th. On August ID ve
got into the mouth Of the Yukon river.
The scenery is Of a most unlntsresting
description. On the north and west Is
a low range Of hills, and on the south
and east sides vast swampy country,
covered with uuderbrush and moss.
Where IL empties into the BehrinR Sra
the river il broad. having several
mouths. At present the principal OF
these separate streams has not been
found. and consequently u - extremely
difficult TO enter the river. But there
~ no dosbt that there Is a main mouth.
Ny reasons for 50 thinking are that the
known channels are toe narrow To per
nit Of the passage of the lce packs and
driftWood into the ocean For lUtU
miles this rIvei Is broad, full Of slougts,
islands and bars: IL then strikes range
of bills called the Ramparts. The char
acteT Of the river then changes, and for
i5c miles IT is deep, with strong cur
rent, and is from three fourths OF mile
TO a mile broad. Then lt opens out
again into a vast plain or tundra, which
lies above Fort Yukon. in British Pos
sessions. Then again 1t enters noun
! famous regions and branches out into
various streams"
"Do you think this river Is naviea-
| bleF"
"Of course il is. IL II uavigabie for
at least 100 TO 100 miles. Bot the
euuhtry will never amount TO anything.
| The climate will not permit OF II. The
| surface of the land Is AS completely
| covered with moss "a Is this floor with
carpet. The heat of the SUI can never
penetrate this messy covering, and II
il only ia a few places where the land
il SO exposed as to permit OF the sun :
rays lighting on 1t for any length OF
time. Then the country Is so denseiy
covered With a growth OF scrub and
brush vood that II efiectually prevents
the ground from thawlnR, and believe
the land Is frozen eternally."
is there anything To be realized from
this country"
I'VE can only expect fish and fur
The fish are splendid, the king salmon
being especially fine. 1t beats any sal
mon that | have ever eaten, even the
Columbia river salmon or anything
along the coast. 1t may eventually be
come mining country, but that viii
be when the rest of our mining ooun.
try is exhausted and our miners have
nowhere else to go. The difficulties
encountered on such an expedition are
extraordinary. There are no animals
there, and what Is more, there is ut
way of keeping them. A man has 70
pack his own supplies directly be leaves
his canoe. Besides, he has TO provide
himself with a hatchst, with which ht
has to cut his way through the brush
He can avoid this by taking To the top,
If the mountains aud following TIA,
moose trails. Aud then IN summer 1t il
worse, for it rains SO much during thu,
season that u man cannot keep himself
dry"
Are there any good indications OI
goldT'
"Oh. yes; you can fad gold almos
anywhere. But the only heavy golc
that WAS found in the country up to tn,
time We were there was discovered by
us in the gulche, of the mountain,
known as the Ramparts. But fine scal'
gold can be found on almost any O
the bars In small quantities. In tn,
kamparts SIS a day can probably b,
n Il ~. l..
amounting TO 80 or 81 per day"
Your idea of going up there was f.
prospecting"
Certainly. that was the object of on
trip. We we're tive 10 tue party, and W,
prospected from 1000 To 1900 miles aion,
the Yukon river"
Did you experience many hard
shipsY"
ave had plenty of hard work cuttin.
and wadina through that river, and oar
rying our hatchets and our supplies il
no joke. i can assure you. Aud then
mind you. we were all Arizona men
We had come straight from that no
country, and most of us had malaria il
our systems. One would have though
that we would not have been able {,
stand the change from the intense hea
To the extreme cold. But We did. Their,
was not "A cough or cold in our who'll
party. We all came back stronger. witt
the exception of one who stayed al
there. We were IN the country eighte, /
months"
"Have you any idea of going Their
again2"
mo, sir; nor would advise anybod,
To go there-not for any puTpose-unles
he wanted to die of starvation"
"what do you think OF Lieut.. Stoney'
expeditionf
"he CLAIMS to have discovered a rive
which empties itself into kstzebu
Sound. | oan hardly see how he Cal
lay claim To such a discovery, as th
presence of this river was eertainl
known To the white men resident N
there. Nor can 10 be very lar2
stream: First. because the keokuk rive
Is one which heads m that same countr
and emptits into the Yukon some CO
miles from it's mouth, as does also tn
Colville river, which runs into tn
Arctic. Now, both of these rivers ris
IN the country which lies between til
Yukon and the Arctic ocean. AND whicl
certainly has not sufficient expanse {
support any very large river"
Are there any white men In that sec
ton of tue country nowr
There are. No less than twelve mel
wintered there this year. They are al
prospecting. ! think our action ma
have induced these men 90 make tn
attempt, for they are all Arizona nleu
They made sure we would strike some
thing. and thought they would like &
be in with rs. they went trst To Har
I es.kpr.. fkan .r..l.sz.t l.
mountains, struck the head waters o
the Yukon. built there their boats
and shen came down stream TO tn
place where we made our richest dis
coveries-"
do you think they will stay Their
loneg"
mo. do not. think that most o
them will CONE down bv the S.. Paul
and I AIN pretty sure thew will be dis
gnsted with thear venture"
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