Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1884-11-04
The TOWN OF JUNEAU.
& Visit to Alaska's Three Year-old
Mining Camp.
I Globe. De mocrat Correspondent
Ashore-Keautfcs OF the Land.
scspe-Mountatn, Village
und Wood.
rRnIamah's Alaska Letter. !

| i1.uiaHlans Aluskl letteiI
When we steamed on mile and crept up
20 the wharf at Juneau the whole town and
| he Indian village were down TO see US land,
and ehen the lines were cast ashore, the
surio friends made rush for the assembled
Indians and the trading stores. The town Of
Juneau dates back as mining camp but .
little over three years. In 1873 the indians
gave fine quartz specimens to the officers Of
the man-of-w war, jamestown, and in the fol-
owing summer prospecting party was or
gained by Joseph juneau and Richard Har
ris. They camped at the present town site
On the lst of October and then following up
Gold creek TO the Silver Bow basin, three
miles back, found the rich plaeers and the
outciopying quartz veins.
! When the news of their find reached Sitka
there was a rush for the new Ell Dorado, and
camp sprang up that winter and has slowly
grown into an odd little town. 1t was first
called Pilsbury for one prospector, then Flip
town with miners grim humor, then Rock
well for the lieutenant who came from the
Jamestown with detachment Of marines to
keep the camp in order, aud fourthly Il was
named Harrisburg, and filthy Juneau. The
last name was formally adopted by the min
Frs az meeting helo i'll May, 1882 and in
the same conclave resolutions were passed
ordering all Cinnamon out Of the district and
warning the race to stay away, which they
have done
I When the sun Shines as it has done to-day
and for two weeks past, Juneau is as charm
ing u little mountain nook as one need seek
for. The mountains 90 so straight ND to
their 1900 feet that the little cluster Of white
houses at thn base look as though they might
he bits Of the lofty snow banks that have
tunlbled down the featherv cascades to the
beach. The site Of the mining camp in the
Silyer Bow basin is even more picturesque
and the trail from juneau plunges straight
up the mountain side, then down to a second
valley, and along the wild canyon Of Gold
creek and into the basin of the Silver Bow.
Al the way it leads through dense forests and
uxuriant bottom land, where the immense
pine trees, the thickets of ferns and devils
club, and the rank underground of bushes
and grasses continually excited ones wonder
We rose at $50 in order to go out to the
basin and get back before the ship sailed at
10, and in the fresh, dewy air and the pure
light Of the early morning it was a walk
through an enchanted forest and happy
valley. The trail wound up to 800 feet,
dropped 10y long jumps and slides to the first
level Of the canyon and reached ]. 800 feet
above the sea again in the basin. The DEVILS
club. tall thorny plant, with leaves twelve
inches and more across, grew in impossible
clnmps i'll the woods, and the sunlight falling
on these large leaves gave tropical look to
the forest The devils club is the prospectors'
dread, and the thorpy sticks used to do to
switch witches with in the Indians old nm.
vilized days. Echinopauax horrida is the
botanist's awful name for it, and that alone
Is caution enough for one to avoid it. There
were thicketS Of thimble-berried bushes
covered with large creamy white blossoms,
and clusters of white ranuncuius, white
coiumbine blue gcranium and yellow mon
key flowers grew in patches and dyed the
ground with their massed colors. The ferns
were everywhere, and under bushes and be-
side fallen logs delicate maiden hair ferns.
with fine ebony stems. were gathered by the
handful We met few well-dressed In
dian, huriying TO town and an occasional
miner who gave us CHEEKY greeting
Silver Bow basin is place to delight an
aesthetic miner in the way Of landscape, and
nny one with soul in him would surely
appreciate that little round valley sunk deep
in the heart Of great mountains, with snow
caps on every horizon lire glacier tipping
from great Iavine, and waterfalls milling
noisiIy down The slope. Timing ourselves by
orr watches, we fingered long on the las,
mile, sitting on log in the cool shade of the
forest. where the trail almost overriding the
little town. We could watch the people
walking in the streets beneath, and in the
still slumtcring sunshine almost catch the
hum of their voices. Pistol shots raised
crashing echoes between the high mountain
walls and set all the big ravens to croaking
IN huarSo concert