Arizona weekly citizen. [volume] (Tucson, Ariz) 1880-1901, 1895-12-28
alaska.
Scenes and Incidents.-Early Settle
ment on the Yukon.-A Muir.
derous Miner.


and comfortable cabin last Monda
morning, and once across the threshol
we were again in the presence of the oil
Yukoner who last week delighted tie
News readers with his tales of adveI
ture in the interior years and years age
time when the Yukon country wa
almost as much of terra incognito a
the impenetrable forest of South Africa
The old gentleman had just finished hi
: breakfast and was busily engaged il
J blowing huge rings of smoke from
t we'll colored meerschsum, deriving from
! it the keenest kind of satisfaction.
: "Wen, l suppose you are after SOM
, more news. Did 1 tell you about tn
l time we had the first winter We spent oil
the Yukon? No? We stopped at tn
E mouth Of Stewart river and as we fOunC
small number of miners there we re
solved to camp until spring. No time
was lost In preparing suitable winte
quarters as bitter Geld weather was ex
pected any day and we knew the Their
mometer frequently went down ae low
as seventy-tive and eighty degrees below
zero, There were about thirty men al
told who put jn the winter there, most o
them, of course, being miners. 1t wal
their first season at the new diggings
and as they had been very successful ir
finding coarse gold they were naturally
very jubilant and looked forward to The
next season with eager anticipation. We
had had some little cold weather and
were expecting the river to jam and
freeze &C any time, when party of four
men arrived from up the river in appar-
ent great haste. A man named Leslie
was at the head of the party, and be
turned out before the winter had passed
to be the greatest scoundel that ever
went unhung. Another of the party was
named Patterson and the names of the
other two | have forgotten. They only
remained at our camp a ehort time and
then pushed on up the river. l never
knew whether Leslie had really ever
been on the Yukon before or not; he
| pretended be had, at least, as | learned
| afterward the story and cause of their
great rush. That spring Leslie was ID
| San Francisco where he met Patterson
and his companions. He told them OF
| having made a fabulous discovery on
| one of the tributaries of the Yukon the
| season before, that barrels of money
could be made out of it, but it would re-
quire some capital TO get two or three
years supply Of provisions and imple-
| ments needed to properly open up the
claim. The end of it was he took them
in as partners 8pd after laying in sup
plies for two years they all started for
the land of golden riches. So eager were
the investors to Inspect the spot which
I was to yield them such untold wealth
that after scarcely a breathing spell
with US they departed up Stewart ris er.
Within less than two days travel the
weather became very cold and as 1t was
thirty milee farther to the new Eldorado
| it was suggested that two of the party
remain at that point and build cabin
and Leslie and Patterson would continue
their journey to the claim and make an
inspection. This was agreed to and
early the following morning Leslie and
Patterson set out for the claim. Once
there Patterson was somewhat diScour8g
ed, the ground being covered with snow
and no gold nuggets larger than walnuts
being in sight. Leslie assured him, how
ever, that It was ell right aud there was
nothing TO prevent them from shoveling
out gold just as early in the spring as
the weather would permit working.
They returned to their camp and soon
had a comfortable cabin up for the wins
ter. Some two weeks afterward Leslie
proposed to Patterson that they GO out
and bring ia some fresh meat, to which
the latter readily assented. The evening
before taking their departure Leslie
cooked up pot OF beans for the break
fast of his two partners who were to re-
main at home. Upon their return the fol-
lowing evening they were surprised Pat
terson in reality and Leslie affected, to
find their comrades very sick and almost
at deaths door. After they had suffi-
GENTLY recovered they among other
things, in describing their symptoms,
said they had both been taken i'll about
the same time, their sickness was exact
ly alike, and both suffered freightfully
from nausea. No suspicion was ever
cast toward the brute who was the
cause of the suffering and the incident
passed over and was soon forgotten. a
few weeks afterward Leslie proposed
another hunting excursion, but said he
should go alone as he fought be would
have better luck. He left camp imme-
diately after breakfast the following
morning seeming to be 10 great haste to
get away. Another pot of beans had |
been prepared the night before for |
breakfast and had his proposed victims |
taken note of the morning meal they |
would have noticed Leslie ate none of |
the succulent friioles. He was scarcely |
out of sight when two of the men left at |
camp and who were eating the beans |
complained of their peculiar taste |
Patterson ate scarcely mouthful. His |
partners, however, had taken enough to |
make them very sick and their symp-
toms were identical with those of their
previous illness. Leslie returned late |
Ih the evening aud instead of finding |
his comrades all dead, two were COM
pletely worn out with their suffering,
but Patterson was as well as ever. All |
were in bed when he entered the cabin.
He soon disrobed, but instead of retir-
ing to his bed he sat at the fire and |
made a pretenee of cleaning his rifle. /
He had observed two of his partners
were weak and could make but feeble
resistance. and it is assumed he though |
if he could but get Patterson out of the
way it would be no trouble whatever to
dispatch the two sick men. Patterson
happened to arse about that instant and |
as he approached Leslie the latter lift
ed his rifle and fired point blank at his
heart. BY marvelously quick move
ment Patterson knocked the rifle down
ward and as the weapon was discharged
the ball passed between bis legs and
into the cabin wall inhicting DO damage.
Being powerful man Patterson instent-
ly wrenched the gun from LeslIe'e
hands. With a face blanched with
terror and horror stricken at the failure
of his Infamous act he turned and leap
ed out of the cabin with bound. Pat
terson followed and fired several shots
in the in the direction the would-he
murderer had taken, but it was learned
the following morning that none had
taken effect. The thermometer stood