Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1894-05-31
DEGREES BELOW ZERO
An Adventurous Printers Experiences
While Gold Hunting on the Yukon.

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An Adventurous Printers Experiences
While Gold Hunting on the Yukon.
WILDER L. Cornell, a printer with a
love for adventure, has penetrated,
with several others, up the Yukon
river far into the interior of Alaska.
and a letter from him written Jan.
Ii. has just been received and pub
LShcd in the Salem, Oregon, States
man. Il climbed over the mountains
all last summer" he writes, land saw
mineral everywhere. There is not a
gulch, creek, bar, depression, or a place
where there is or has been wash Of
any sort in which you cannot find gold,
from color up to good pay; ana l
Know beyond question, that there is
mere district 1,500 miles long-from
near the head of the Yukon, northwest
to i\otzebue sound on the arctic side
ana 800 or 400 miles wide. with the
1uhon river as far as it runs north
ward as central line-in which gold
III greater or less quantity is found
! everywhere. There has been no good
! prospecting done More is being done
than ever before-with fire: it is easier
! than doing it in summer. Miners are
! just beginning to learn how to handle
/ frozen ground. and in time frost will
be little impeachment. l have confined
myself exclusively to quartz, and shall
! continue doing so, but l know many
| places where | can make a half ounce
of dust per day during summer A
years outfit here may be had for $500
. up. The two companies doing bust
ness here can supply about 500 more
men than are now here: with any
greater number some must suffer, and
that number is sure to come next sum-
mer, whether they are wanted or not.
Nobody should come here without
! money to keep him a year. 1t takes
that time to do anything. From June
L. to September Is may be called
summer. Men having claims opened
work about five months, but a part
of it is preparatory work. 1 have not
found yet what [ want, but Know
| will if / live.
l Il like this climate, and have better
health than | have had in twenty
| years. The cold does not trouble me
at all. [ enjoy it. We had 10 de-
srees below zero last week and l was
out every day-SO was everybody else.
The two White women at this place
take ride with dogs and sleigh every
day and enjoy it. The whole trick is
: in knowing how to dress for the cold
I The ESkimOs have taught us. We
G dress as they do, and 20 degrees below
: don't hurt us a bit. We have also
learned from them how to build houses
to keep out the cold. You can't do it
in any way but as they do it. Even
they-with their centuries of expert
ence and experimentation have
not discovered a means to keep the
cold from the cheeks and nose. Any
sort of covering to the face does not
protect it. The moisture from the
breath will cover everything it touches
y with ice, and in a few minutes the Ice
worse than the frost in the air. If one
L could hold his breath he would be all
right. The natives seldom go far alone
= in cold weather. With two together
Z each watches the face of the other,
> and at the first indication of freezing
i snow is rubbed on briskly and the
frost is soon gone. There is no danger
y when the thermometer does not show
more than 40 degrees below, and there
. are not SO many days of this kind in a
u winter that one need to expose him
self at all then. It takes one winter
9 to become acclimated. / felt the cold
u last winter some, but this winter l
have not. This is the country for old
y men. There are more of them here
u than in any other place [ ever saw,
L and it agrees with them One man
died from heart disease this winter,
u but that is the only death here for
years. In fact, [ like this country
and it's people and prospects. Frost
preserves everything here. No need
for cold storage. It is not often any
=, one leaves Juneau for this region after
y the LIST of May"