The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1894-01-27

the metal that has made such rapid strides
in the arts recently. 1t would seem odd to
Rocky Mountain miner to find this deposit
worked as quarry. An open hole $50 by
$50 feet large and 100 feet deep has been dug
out in the work OF thirty years. In summer
miners simply blast up the bottom and cut
down the sides of the hole; other workmen
break up the blocks, separate as far as possi
bic the iron ore, and run the whole up an
incline railroad operated by steam. The
refuse has been used in making aud extend
ing the dock at which the stuff is loaded into
ships. The water that falls and sweeps into
the mine is lifted out by common steam
pump. In winter the work of clearing away
the covering rock and cutting down terraces
goes ON with tolerable regularity even though
the latitude is above 81 degrees. The men
then work on an odd staging The mine is
filed with water and the men work on the
ice that quickly forms. One of the oldest
mining accidents happened when, one day, a
quantity OF cartridges were accidentally fired
beneath this ice staging splitting it up in all
directions. 1t is not often that miners are
thus in DANCE Of drowning.
Not only are the homes Of the miners odd.
1t is an odd community. 1t consists OF 100
men and three women in summer aud sixty
men and three women in winter. The steamer
Fox, famous in arctic history in connection
with the search for Sir John Franklin, makes
from two to three trips every summer from
Copenhagen to the camp, carrying applies
On the first trip out in the spring it carries
seventy men, and on theast one back in the
fall it takes nearly The same number home
A few come to the United States every year
While in Greenland they are supplied with an
abundance of bread and cured meats. with
weiss beer and coffee. They have some vege-
tables which are imported from the United
States, alld all the game and fish they want
Ducks and gulls swarm about the ford, and
/ the apparently barren mountains are the
/ homes Of many ptarmigan and rabbits. How
! ever, close season for the short game on
the other side OF the ford is wisely main
tanned The finest trout and salmon are to
be had for the taking, and the ARCTIC cod is
also easily gotten. The men are allowed to
go hunting and fishing almost at Will.
ONLY THREE WOMEN ALLOWED IN CAMP.
The women OF the camp are interesting.
The superintendent only is allowed to have
his wife and children and maid with him.
| Two chdred have been born in the snper-
intendents home in this old camp. The
first it is interesting to know, was Daniel
Smith the artist, whose father was the first
superintendent Of the mine The third wo-
man OF the camp is Maria. very fat and
. ;,Ilx III.
have a little stone house by themselves and
both are employed as servants. No other
women are allowed there because, in the
estimation of the authorities, the presence O
numbers would arouse passions and Jealous
feelings that would lead to crimes difficult to
punish in that far off land
Another most interesting feature OF tn,
fold is the Eskimo settlement called A1suk
eight miles below the mine Here is grour
OF huts built OF broken stone and sods, ant
lighted with hollow stone lamps. in which
seal oil and moss are burned There is I
white man with his family living here in
comfortable house as Indian agent, while
another comfortable house, built by the
crown, serves as an Eskimo hospital, il
charge Of well educated physician NC
government in the word takes such gooc
care Of its aboriginal people as good as ole
King Christian does of the Eskimo Con
slider what it means when it is said thai
neither seaman nor any other man can lnnc
there unless he can pass careful phJ sica
examination. a tourist would lind that III,
darkest of these Eskmos-even old Peter
the boss hunter of the village--has som,
white blood in his veins, while the hand
soonest of the girls, if dressed differently
would pass for north OF Europe immgranti
anywhere.
One might tell OF still other features 0
rare interest to be found near the Cryolit,
mine-of lofty Kungaut mountain OF til,
glacier at the head of the ford. OF the re
mains fthe homes of the ancient European
people who came there about the year 1000
but the curious in these matters have only tc
geJ permit + ON the Danish crown to v's
the land and charter a whale ship Then, i
lucky, they can visit the ford and see 10
themselves Difficult aud dangerous as sucl
a voyage would be, it is safe to say tina
tourists often go further and spend NOR
money for a small return than could he hi,
within the Arusk ford
Bits of Information.