The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1893-11-10

stock in trade consisting OF a hat full
of beads and a few plugs of tobacco.
The canny Scotchman who had charge
"pulled his freight as they say out
in New Mexico, and got himself to
the Gland of cakes" That was forty
two long years ago, but FIT. Selkirk
is still put on every map of the Brit
ish Northwest Territory. By dill
gent search we found the remnants of
the stone chimney and fire place
around which Col. Eelkirk used to
toast his shins during the long, cold
winter that he lived alone up here in
the woods. The remarks about Fl.
Selkirk would apply with equal force
to Ft. Reliance and Fl. Yukon farther
down the river, both trading posts
abandoned years ago.
Near this place we ran successfully
the give Fingers" and the "Rurk"
rapids, both of which seemed tame
enough after Miles canon. On May
Dist we passed the mouth of White
river coming in on the left and Stew
art river on the right. White river,
easily recognized by its milky flood, is
a stream as large as the Missouri,
whose entire basin is yet practically
unknown to white men. The Yukon
was now from one to two miles wide,
and with terrific current.
Many villages of the Tinneh tribe of
Indians were passed. and We overlook
some of these people descending the
river on RATS. They were very
friendly and sociable and quite talka-
tive. many of them being able to
speak English. On the evening of
the 22nd we passed the big Indian
Village of Klon-dek, mooring close
enough to the shore to exchange some
chaff with the inhabitants, but declin-
ed to stop despite their urgent invita-
ton. That evening we camped near
the pile of decaying logs that was
once the trading port of Ft. Reliance.
But the 23rd was the eventful day.
An amusing incident occurred just
after our start that morning. We
were running along pretty close to
shore and sighted upon one of the
river bluffs a white man, who as we
afterward learned had gone up there
from the post at Forty Mile to do some
prospecting. When he saw us he
knew at once that we were frssh ar
rivals from the "outside," as they call
the world in general here, and rushed
down to the edge of the bluff to get
the latest news. "Who's PRESIDENT"
he shouted in voice rich with Cork
oman accent. 1 rose in my seat and
was about to shout back to himfbe
name of the imam of destiny" but
Mcconnell got ahead of me and bawl-
ed out "John Payter st. john" 1
believe that have never in my life
heard such volley of cuss words so
artistically put together as came
down off from that bluff before we got
out of ear shot. We had q swift cur
rent and made fine progress this day,
and at three o'clock sighted on the left
bank two large log houses surrounded
by a number of smaller enes, and a
tall pole from which floated the Brit
ish flag. 1t was Buxton Mission, a
Church of England institution, and
the Indian village. Half mile far.
Their down on the same side. where
Forty Mile creek joins the Yukon, was
a collection OF thirty or forty log cab
ins surrounding big store house and
another tall pole from which "old
Glory" fioated in the breeze. 1t was
Post or Forty Milo as 1t
Is generally called, the farthest up
river port of the great Alaska Com
nercial Company, and is situated
about on the boundary line between
Alaska and the British Northwest
Territory. We tied up the Nancy
Hanks to a raft and went ashore, our
ong journey done, just forty-two days
rom Lake Labarge.
My letter is about long enough and
his is as good place as any to bring
t to a close. There are many things
hat 1 would like to tell about but
'pace and time forbid. My exper.
ences here this summer would make
wo or three pretty good sized letters,
specially trip that tsok alone into
he mountains in which for eighteen
lays 1 did not see single human be-
ng white or Indian. / would like
o tell of the big lynx that I killed
md OF the big moose, larger than a
lorse, that 1 didn't kill because 1 :
missed him, and could write a whele
HAPPIER about the Indians here, who 3
re, think. as fine Indians as can be 3
1und anywhere, all stories to the 8
ontrary Notwithstanding.
wish that Mark Twain, Rudyard !
Iipling or some other of that ilk
TOuld drop in here some time and