The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-08-28
LAND OF DISAPPOINTMENT
Seattle Man Says Alaska Is No Country
for Human Beings To Inhabit.


Fred A. Fay, one of the Seattle men
who went 10 Alaska last spring to try
their luck in the Yukon placer mines Is
not enamored with the country. friend
in this city has received a letter from
him dated at Desdwood Greek, Alaska, in
which he says
Here I am laying in my tent, July 18TH,
chewing spruce gum. Bacon and beans
always did give me the heart burn; and
gum acts as an antidote. Wen, God hates
a coward. SO | am going 10 tell you the
ruth the whole truth and nothing but
the truth. so help me God. In the hrst
place. Alaska is the most barren. God
forsaken spot that the sun ever shone on,
and If. there ever was a place on this
earth that was not intended for haoita-
ton, this is il. Words utterly fail TO ex-
press ones contempt for this country. who
has had the misfortune to see IL.
The work that one must perform to
exist at all is the work OF animals rather
than men; Ii is one vast swamp, thou-
sands of miles in extent. covered with
moss, and frozen TO unknown depths. The
only resources OF the country has are the
fur-bearlng animals, and the natives are
the ones allowed 10 trap them. rive DOL
lars of gold has been brought IN here
TO every dollar taken out OF the mines.
There are only two sections TO-DAY that
are being worked. one is Forty Mile creek
Il -
Miller and Glacier creeks, and Mastoaoh'
Independence and Deadwood creeks. near
Circle City, the two sections oelns -oo
miles apart. Now there were about ten OF
them that paid more than wages, ana
about five men went out with from si''vw
to $50, 900; twenty-five men went out win
from 81, 900 to 5000; 100 made enough TO
buy grub for the winter, anu 0"o Hieh
went broke.
Now this section is so new, only struck
last fall, that il is hard 10 say just what
il will turn out, but every claim is opened
up some So far they are only gIup-
stake" and far poorer than Forty Nile
Now that is the extent OF all the mining
i'm this part of Alaska, with the exception
OF working bars on the rivers, paying ~
to S. per day. which is only half wages
.'The working season Is about sixty or
seventy days and one Is lucky III ne gets
in half of them. The wages are slo per
day, and one can save more, OUTSIDE at
$50 per day than here at $40. Bacon is
50 cents per pound, beans % cents, hour
ga ner sack. salt $3.50 for 10-pound sack.
and SO on; 40 cents per pound OF this is
for freight from Circle City to the mines,
about 100 miles. You viii see that IL doh
take long to eat up hundred uolials
worth Of grub. We are still eating Seattle
groceries. and have enough 10 iast us III
we get out, about the middle or August
We are out of sugar, ana II
cosis 60 cents per pound. l don't know
how much we shall order; ] guess about
one pound J hate beans and bacon worse
than ever
"As to the weather. / never saw inner.
M rain. scarcely, and sun all the time
,.,artv-tvo hours of the day. You can
hardly believe that for two months we
have had broad daylight twenty-tour
hours every day. We work nights mere
as much as days: in fact, We nave no
nights; the moon does not nave chdhce
20 get i'm it's work; by and by the moon
will have IL all 10 do. oh, the country
Is SO strange and Wild: now the heavens
are all right i'm the summer. but the eaTth,
~ r,vi The trails are through dismal
svamps. with water a foot deep, ana mos
ouitoes, it means that one has 10 De COW
cred with cheese cloth and long gloves
You can form no conception OF TINS teilI-
HE nlague: TO sleep is out or the aues-
80, rrbev dIsappear about the first OF
August then the black gnat comes-ten
ftroes worse than the mosquitoes, ana
then the cold weather comes-oo 10 ~ ue-
s,rees below zero. As one OF the boys who
came in with us said. II Goa Would To-
give him for coming in here TINS Tune ne
would never do 50 again. On, II Is ter
rIble country for a human beng 10 stay
IN and II space would permit l would
,nu ,,ot, more about II. The chances
Of making a raise here are about one III
a hundred
Most every one here keeps from one
to five dogs. which are used for maui
ing sleds in winter. In summer they are
not used nor fed. because food costs 100
much and they so around every one
tent and steal anything they see; they
will grab a pot and run off with IL, UP ~
over and eat the contents: they VIII eat
boots and gloves and socks and dish rags.
Oh. how they do annoy US; every one mas
10 build a high platform In the trees ana
put everything on H., and often the dogs
get on them. and when they do they VIII
,broc, everything down 10 the dogs be-
low and then such a feast In this case
the owner Of the dogs has to pay for the
goods
II often wonder when 7 shall see you
all. Sometime. l hope. I shall have more
money when l return than had when
came away: or never return.