Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1894-05-31
SEVENTY DEGREES BELOW I'm,
An Adventurous Printers Exparfar,,
While Gold Hunting on the Yukon

An Adventurous Printers Exparia-..
While Gold Hunting on the Ynkoa
WILDER j. Cornell a printer WIN
love for adventure. has tesar-.-.,
with several others. up the Yppo.
river far into the interior of Ais
and a letter from him written r,-
IL has just been received ANA ,--
lished in the Salem, Oregon. Srgr..
man. Il climbed over the mounr,in,
all last summer" he writes, "and san
mineral everywhere. There is NOT
guIch. creek, bar, depression, or a pIaos
where there is or has been wash ~
any sort in which you cannot find GOLD
from color up 10 good pay: and
know beyond question, that there 4.
here a district 800 miles lOng-fror
near The head of the Yukon, northwas,
70 kotZebue sound on the arctic side
and 800 or 400 miles wide. with tina
Yukon river as far as It runs noyrb
ward as central Ine-in which gold
in 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 il in summer. Miners ar
just beginning to learn how 10 handle
frozen ground and in time frost will
be little impeachment. | have con6ne5
myself exclusively to quartz, and shan
continue doing so. but l know many
places where l can make a half ounce
Of dust per day during summer.
years outfit here may be had FOR $500
up. The two companies doing busj
ness here can supply about 800 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
10 to September u may be called
summer Men having claims opened
work about five months, but part
Of it is preparatory work. l have not
found yet what l want, but Know
l will If live
Il like this climate, and have better
health than l have had in twenty
years The cold does not trouble me
at al. l enjoy it. We had 20 de-
grees below zero last week and | was
cut every day-sO was everybody else
The two white women at this place
take a ride with dogs and sleigh every
day and enjoy it. The whole trick is
in knowing how to dress for the cold
The Eskimos have taught us We
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 observation-disclosures, nave
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
with ice, and in few minutes the Ice
worse than the frost in the air. If one
could hold his breath he would be all
right The natives seldom 90 far alone
in cold weather. With two together
each watches the face of the other
and at the first indication of freezing
snow is rubbed on briskly and the
frost is soon gone. There is no danger
when the thermometer does not show
more than 40 degrees below, and there
are not So many days of this kind in
winter that one need to expose him
self at all then. 1t takes one winter
10 become accimatcd l felt the cold
last winter some, but this winter /
have not This is the country for old
men. There are more of them here
than in any other place | ever saw,
and it agrees with them One man
died from heart disease this winter
but that is the only death here for
years In fact, | like this country
and its people and prospects. Frost
preserves everything here. No need
for cold storage. 1t is not often any
one leaves Juneau for this region after
the LIST Of May"