Madison times., 1885-09-05
IN ALASKA.
How the Land Looks 10 an Old Scout
AMI Miner.

San FrInci rul'e n.
An old pioneer Cal fornian writes to
Il friend and former mining partner in
this cty, from Granville, Burrard In
let, B. G. Ii ma: be sad, by way OF
preface, that the writer has had most
extraordinary and varied experience.
About the year 1914, he res ded in
one of the then border states OF the
west, and was student. of med cine,
and in very poor health-sutfer ng |
f ON ..consumpt on, the doctors sa d.
and il was agreed that nothing would |
save him but tr p a"ross the Rocky |
Mountains. He oined party OF trap |
pers and came through to Oregon IN
that year. Afterwards he drifted down
. into Mexico. and was hunt ng A aches
for the sta.e of Ch huahua. He was
on Mex can so when the war COM
menced IN 1916, and VS. brought
close to deaths door with severe at
tack of fever. During his sic ness he
was taken care of by an old Mexican
woman. who managed to keep him
hiudcn from the CIV | and MI tary au-
thorities till he became con>al scent,
when he eluded the officials and made
| his way to the An er can lines. conv v
ing some, important information to Gen.
TAYLOR. He then ent red the spy ser, ice
and was kept busy III the close OF the
: war often rum ng terrible rIsks.
q In 1913 he came thrOu III to Cal for
mia with Col. Graham command. and
encountered the usual Weiss tudei OF q
: miners life in the pioneer DAYS, in the
counties of Calaveras, TuOlumne and
4 Mariposa. He went north in the first
Frazer river eXcitement--then TO
CaribCo. X turning to Cal fornia. he
/ 10 ned an expedtio and went to South
n Ameri a, crossing two ranges OF the
o Ande', for the purpose of prospect ng
s the headwaters of the Amazon. The
ea.erlr.se panned out r.ch in ha T.
q trerdth escapes fIom huge ser entS,
ev d sposed wli beasts, venomous
Il insect an II Ounta n torrents but add
l. ed moth ng to tlc wealth of the party
4 He afterwa DIS tried Arizona, failed,
% and then turned his at ent on to 1.-The
a frozen north, ON ng the Russ an tele-
II graph exl clifton as head explorer, and
subsequently, engaged IN several roS-
I pecting eXcur lions under diihcult anu
10 dangerous circumstances.
tor several years h whereabouts
Of has not been known TO his Cal lorna
A. frion Is till the re option of the letter
" above ment oned. After brief ac-
ID count of log ring camp, v here he had
Y been putting IN his { me for ghteeu
,ff months, he gives a cha ter OF his pros
pec.ing AMI mining eXper. ce in BIT
,d ish Col NIB and Alaska. He went tC
the ST ckeen or Cassiar mines i'll 1874
L. whel he m with an acc dent-get
Enc, L ,rIt N, m, Il Sincatnt in "a
n. Cuence of VIII ch he came to Cal form
IN for repairs -afterward return ng Il
III Casi ar. After t 70 or three seasons
of unsuccessful min NO, he took up
ot farm lear the head of nav gat'on OF
ed the It ok, en-. The land proved pro
nt duct We. and he had good crops OF po
DIS tatoes, cabba es, turn.ps oats ant
of barley. Ha; WAS his prime pa. crop
No Abo t the time he was ia rly unde
he way his agr cultural venture, tn
mines fl led and the pacaers had t
on take the ira rs out of the oountry-ut
no terlv running the hav market, and a
nd turnips and potatoes would not Sc.
~ for monev his three years labor as
ma Her of the so went for moth ng. e,
cb cept to add to the sum Of what b
knew aboIt farming.
- He then we 1t to the Alaska mines
nv Harr sburg, between Sitka and Chi
~, cot The eve some very fair place
,ot m ncs in this ne geborhoOd, along tn
20 de Of nounta II on the manlan
and also Oh DO Iglass Island. but the
Ie, extent was very linn ed. and they WEI
all taken uD before he reached tn
=, place. He writes that the climate
~ that region is horrible -everlast' n
~. ~. ran and snow" 1t is the wor
.o .io place in all Alaska. The mines are Il
Un ne G stenaut Inlet. The great glac e
'S, 30 near the coast condcnse the clouds ;
;.i' they come up the MET, so there is RAJ
'' or snow nearl; all the { me.
40. On Douglass Island there are SON
20. good paying quartz mines, anu D
mill 5 now being bu Ii there.
In the Basin mines. on the mainlan
lei,' aa there is great deal of galena unite
az with the gold in qua,tZ, and son
o very beautiful specimens have be-
found.
on The Indians are employed in Il
'nu mines and they ar, good worker
ee. They are accustomed TO the rains al
40 M nd no more about beng wet tn;
,S! ~ beavers and muskrats.
Jim !, ain their houses says the WI tt
sthere is very strong odor-som
nao thing like that of wet dog g-ratber u
ps!i pleasant till one gets used TO it,
Is - The Indians all along the Alas
olu coast get plenty TO eat; their bill
70 fare including herr ng, salmon, ha
''o' but, codti III. seals and whales. RI
~, back ia led deer are very plentii
ine, a'ong the coast some of them bel
ionS maryels Of fatness. In the woo
10 1 there is great abundance and var
Q OF ty of berr ee. The. bears ges SO
OF they ..can hardly get about. MOI
Iha. ia sheep, marmots. minks, mart
So erm:ne, wease $. Otters. foxes. ana
en- , other fur-bearing an mails are pier
lst:, full OF the feathered tr be there
ano- geese. ducks. looms and divers a
WITH Other water birds, several varieties
ness Grouse. Gag, ,es, hawks, and jay bir
In SUNNI ng up his experience
}, all that territory, he concludes that AL
thar ka is a rough looking country, but
was better than it looks. There Is
ome: abundance of mineral wealth, but
ID OF a hard country to prospect The
>uno G ers, the fallen trees, the moss, 9
ant worse than all, the cold rains,
an enough to discourage the stout
nrosbector. Nevertheless, there
z, a. l. ,,,ny ironorfan l scOy