The San Francisco call., 1896-07-21
Men Who Inaugurated the Boom
Are Threatened With
Lynching.
HUNDREDS ARE PENN1LEss.
They Declare the Boosted FL Dorado
Is Barren of Hidden
Wealth.

SEATTLE, WASH, July 20.-Eighty-tw
prospectors who left Cooks Inlet as late as
June 25, are ready to vote that much
vaunted country one of the greatest min
ing fakes ever doomed in the West. By
the steamships Willapa and Al-Ki, which
arrived from the north this morning a
majority of these miners reached this city.
More viii come on the next steamer. A
few found work in Juneau, and half
dozen got work at Kodiak. Prospectors
are now f1ocking from the inlet by every
kind of craft they can get away in. The
schooner Port Admiral left there on June
% with all it could carry for Seattle, but it
has not reached this port.
Among all the 1000 or more gold seekers
who went up in the spring, not single
man, these returned miners declare, had
up to June 25, found a claim that justified
working. At least a dozen of the dissp-
pointed men arriving here to-day were
interviewed, and all told the same story.
Not one could be found who had a single
sample of gold dust with him. OF work
at the inlet there was none. Men offered
to work for those having what they called
good claims for 81 to 81 so day. supply
their own tools and board themselves, but
could get nothing to do.
Indignation has been running high
against the few men instrumental in get
ting the rush started last spring. Among
these are Dusey & Ladd of San Francisco
and Wakefield & Jefferson of Seattle.
Lsdd runs hsh-salting station; Dusey a
store at Sunrise City. They carried up a
lot OF southerners on the Albion. Wake
field & Jefferson carried people on the
Lakme from Seattle. Threats of lynching
Dusey, Wakefield and Jefferson were
freely made. Dusey became alarmed,
sold his store and quietly left the inlet,
and is said to have hidden in the hills
somewhere near Kodiak. Wakefield, who
came out some time ago, was met ut Sitka
by returning prospectors, and was advised
TO turn back. He persisted in going on,
and was warned to be on the lookout.
Il hope that nothing will happen to
him, +" said Charles Hicks, owner of ma
chine shop and foundry in this city, and
who is one OF the returning parties to-day;
'but am very much afraid that Wake
field will never come back" Almost the
same thing was said by others.
Among the men here tonight from
Cooks Inlet are ]. G. Brockway, onessof
seven from San Diego who formed the San
Diego Mining Company and spent about
$1,000 in outtIting; G. II. Anderson OF
Colorado, Ed. Tevlin of Montana, J. A.
Mathhorn, Olaf Woodhouse, T. w. Stone
OF Salem, Charles Morgan, Jack Perkins
of this city, all of whom are old miners.
These men say that from 500 to 700 men
at the inlet have not money to get out OF
the country, and there is no way of earn
ing it. One stranded Oregon crowd offered
to work for 81 80 a day to earn money to
bring them out. They could not get it.
At Sitka the men called on Governor
Sheakley and laid the case OF the stranded
men before him. The Governor said he
would have to send relief vessel to bring
them out
There is plenty of provisions there yet.
Flour sold as low as 80 cents a sack.
Brockway of San Diego sold his provisions
for less money than paid for them in San
Francisco, and out OF about $500 spent for
his outfit did not get back a cent. He
leaves for San Diego in the morning.
Hicks said:
II place the gross outlay paid by men
going in there at $150,000, and scarcely
any of this sum was got back. There
never was better body of men together
than those who went to the inlet. They
set to work and worked hard, and If there
was any gold there they would have dis
covered it. The country has been given
good prospecting for 200 CT 800 miles
around the inlet and there's nothing there.
Il took up three claims on Canyon Greek,
prospecting about thirty-five days in all,
andbrought back just Is cents. I'll sell the
three claims for two bits to-day. The men
braved all kinds OF dangers and prospected
every water-course. The Shushitna Shu-
wilma, Kaneal and Indian rivers, Chilkaru,
Kanic and Seattle creeks and all the other
creeks were Drospected thoroughly with
out success. They worked for bedrock,
and thousands of holes were sunk at enor-
nous labor and privation. spent an en-
tire day washing sand. and secured but
five colors. None of the men can possibly
make the costs of the trip, for the gold is
not in the country. Many of the men
thawed out their prospect holes with fires
built in them to get the frost out of the
ground, SO anxious were they to get bed
rock"