Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-08-31
AMONG THE GLACIERS.
An Interesting Description Of the Won.
ders OF Alaska.

An interesting DESCRIPTION OF the WON
ders OF Alaska.
A wAsHrNoroxrAN on Hn TnAvrIs-srrxA AND
IT'S OFFICIALS AND ISHABIrAxrs-THE LAND
QUESTION AND THE MINING NpusrRY--THE
WONDERS OF GLACIER BAY.
Correspondents of THE EVENING STAR.
GLACIER BAY, ALASKA, Aug. II, 1889.
We have "done" Sitka, the capital Of the
''district Of Alaska" as this immense acquisi-
ton from Russia, nine times as large as New
England, is called in the enactment approved
May II, 1884. which has given il all the civil
organization that it possesses There reside
the governor, judge, marshal, district attorney,
clerk Of court, (who is ex oficio secretary,
treasurer and recorder of deeds), collector of
customs and one Of the four United States
commissioners on whom devolves the admins
tration of affairs according to the laws of the
state of Oregon, which were extended over the
district by said enactment. We spent part Of
two DAYS in Sitka and met most of the above
mentioned officials and they appeared jealous
in the discharge of their duties but greatly
crippled for want Of sufficient appropriations
and further enactments by Congress to meet
the needs OF the increasing population and the
exigencies of the various interests that are
finding foothold here.
THE LAND LAWS
that prevail in all the states and territories
where the government has public domain do
not extend over this district except in respect
OF mining claims, whence we have the unique
fact that at the date Of Gov. Swineford's last
annual report, there we're only twenty-one per-
fected titles to land, embracing less than 100
acres in the whole of Alaska, and these existed
at the time OF the acquisition, and no provis-
Ia Cor
ton OF the public lands The population a
year ago was estimated at $500 whites and a.
5OO natives, including about 5000 Aleuts and
Creoles, and the export of fish, OIL ivory furs,
lumber, gold and silver for that year, at over
100000.
MINING INDUSTRY.
The work of mining the precious metals has
only just begun, and ''prospectors" are report
ing new finds" in many localities and are the
forerunners of a hundred new mining camps
soon to spring up.
The act of Congress organizing this "dis-
trlct' prohibits the impor tation, manufacture,
and sale of intoxicating liquors except for
medlclnai, mechanical scientific purposes
and the collector, with such assistants and
such facilities as are allowed him, is doing his
utmost to enforce the law, if we NAV Judge by
the seizures made by them on our ship, and by
the fact that we have not seen drunken white
man or Indian during our trip. Though Sitka
mas but about L. 500 or 1000 inhabitants. two
thirds OF whom are Indians, it has a great deal
OF history and no little of romance associated
with it.
1t is situated on Baranoff island and looks out
on beautiful bay, dotted over with thickly-
wooded islands having fringes Of rich, yellow
moss at their bases, the whole being overlooked
by Mount Vestovia and Mount Edgecomb as
guardians n oh T. ~
ground stands the now deserted 'castle" where
In pristine days resided the Russian governors,
and whose walls have witnessed many scenes Of
gay and gorgeous feast and revelry. Near by
are the governors residence, the barracks
and Custom house, and beyond stands the
double-domed Greek church, the one preten-
tlous edifice OF the place and in which the Gus
todlan showed us, for the consideration of half
a dollar each, richly wrought vestments, bejew-
eled mitre and crowns, and some meritorious
paintings lavishly overlaid with silver and gold
ornamentatlon. We also visited the mission
boarding school where are being educated
about one hunderd and thirty Indian and four
or 1--WE Russian youths Of both sexes, and wit
messed their exercises, including a creditable
performance by brass band Almost as a mat
ter OF course 1t rained night and day during the
whole OF our visit at Sitka, for the record
OF fifty years shows the average number of DAYS
per annum on which rain or snow has fallen
there to be l98, while some years il has been as
high as 264, the amount of precipitation being
ABOUT eight feet, with winter temperature
scarcely. If ever, below Is degrees above Zero
and ranging from As degrees to rs degrees in
summer.
IN GLACIER BAY.
Leaving Sitka yesterday afternoon and stop
ping only at KIlisnoo where, in the evening,
the Indians, in rich homemade blankets and
full paint and feather, improvised war dance
Tor our benefit. We found ourselves at day
hight this morning feeling our way through the
ice-how that fills the upper part Of Glacier bay,
mildest expression, when the rain ceased and
the mists cleared away, so that we have had
favorable day for seeing, clambering upon
and wondering at the great Muir glacier one of
the largest in the world accessible to tourists
and compared with which those of the Alps are
like spent forces and the ''Mer de Glaze" is
but baby sleeping i'll the arms of Mount Blanc
will not attempt description Of its magni-
tude and beauty, but will only say that before
landing we sailed up to within a few hundred
yards Of its deep blue face over a mile broad
and nearly three hundred feet in sheer height
and watched huge masses Of solid ice come
crashing down from its bold front like
the falling Of immense cathedral towers.
then heard the sound like deep peals
of thunder and saw the water beneath splash
its spray high in the air and then boil and
surge as the great fallen iceberg, weighing
hundreds Of tons. came slowly to the surface.
From some Of these bergs we replenished our
icechest. The top Of the glacier is so cut up
into pinnacles and crevices that 1t is impos-
sible to cross it, but We climbed high enough
over its moraines and out onto its margin TO
gain good point Of observation from which
to overlook its ridged and broken surface, with
lakes of clear water in vast receptacles of tur-
quoise or lapislazuli formed by its deep assures
and to hear the rushing of sub-glacial rivers
deep down under our feet. From the meas
urements made by Prof Wright, who spent the
month OF August, 1866, in exploring this gla-
cier, it appears that the average daily move
ment Of this immense ice-stream was forty feet
(seventy feet in the center and ten feet in the
margin) and the amount Of ice and sediment
carried by it each day into the waters Of the in
let was about lao, 100000 cubic feet.
In the sights and experiences Of today the
pleasure and wonderment of our trip to Alaska
have eliminated, and we shall now turn our
faces towards other scenes well satisfied that
promptings led us here. s. R. b,
The Man With Grievance.
From the Journalist.
As regularly as the seasons roll around and
summer succeeds spring we hear from the
man who believes the American press is going
to the dogs. He will bob up in Washington,
New York or elsewhere as certain as winter
will come and he wishes to impart the infor-
nation that journalism in America is q wicked
profession. The man who hates reporters is to
be found in every town and hamlet when Off
cial misconduct is about to crop out. To the
man who hates the light Of day to shine upon