The islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1891-1899, 1896-07-30

NORTHPoRT, Stevens county WASH

NoRTHPoRT, Stevens county Wash
ington.
EDITOR ISLANDER, Dear Sir:-]
thought it would be interesting te
your readers to give description o.
one of the richest mining camps in the
world. Northport is $50 miles north
east of Spokane on the Columbia river
Colville reservation is on the west side
opposite Northport and the Canadian
boundary is twelve miles to the north,
Trail, seventeen miles to the north
west, and Rosland, b. c., seven miles
from Trail. There is fine city built
on the top of very high range of
mountains, this place is u wonder to
the world for its richness in gold and
silver. Nelson is north Of this place,
which also is wonderful for its richness
in silver, the places mentioned COM
pose the richest mining camps in the
world. | was on the reservation but
was too late, there were three thousand
men in the woods before I came and
all the mountains claimed, I killed a
lot of rattle snakes and left. There are
good mines Oh the reservation. / came
back to Northport, there were thOus-
ands of people there when l came back
and lots of them in want of food, hum
dreds of families came here w tn their
| wagons and are how in distress, l
talked with them and they told ME
they had fine farms in the PalOuse
country and the more they raised the
poorer they became until their mort
gage debts closed them out, nearly all
| the farmers in that rich farming cOun-
| try are in the same fix, aud this dis
tress is brought on by the gold stand
ard theory. The gold bugs will say
how the laboring man will suffer with
fifty cent dollar and try to blindfold
the poor to get their votes to accom-
plish their gold standard, it makes the
rich, richer, and poor, poorer, if the eyes
of the poor class were opened they
would see they had to pay $3.50 for
every gold dollar they get, or in other
words the gold standard depressed
labor so that a laboring man has to do
$3.50 of labor for one dollar in gold and
the farmer has to sell $3.50 worth of
produce from his farm to get one dollar
In gold. The gold standard drove me
away from my home. could not pay
taxes for two years so had to leave a
mother and children in tears, it took
strong mind to leave his wife and
children, not knowing that he ever
would see them again, but am only
one of millions that the gold standard
has brought to poverty. Oh, how the
gold bugs sympathize with poor labor,
fifty cent dollar, poor men open your
eyes and don't be blindfOlded any
longer on this gold standard corrup-
ton. They will tell you it IS over-prO-
duction and you will see thousands of
people starving in this rich country.
Oh poor men open your eyes and vote
for equality, not for the rich gold stand
ard.
Now 1 will continue giving an &C
horne in poverty, but after hard trips
and tears of distress III the mountains
I am getting my reward at last. /
own a one half interest in quartz lead
which assays twenty dollars In gold
and one hundred ounces in silver per
toa. After we located and filed OH this
claim, seven miles of this lead was
claimed, SO we hunted the mountains
but could not find any more claims
that [ would file on, low grade l
wouldn't pay any attention to, so came
back to NOrthport and there made the
acquainsance of four men who wanted
me to go to Il new place in the noun
tains, told them could not go with
them, but they would not take no for
an answer so / went with them, we
were one week i'm this place in the
mountains. / struck quartz lead
which is three and one-half feet wide,
Of which one assays one thousand dol
lars to the ton, there is terrible ex-
element here now, experts are here
thick, we have five locations. / will
write more after a while, now / have
to give little of the bitter RS we'll as
the sweet. There are thousands of men
here from all parts of the world, but
for labor they are one year ahead of
time, there are two hundred men for
every job, I don't know what will be-
come of them.
Packing seventy-five or eighty
pounds on my back going through the
mountains would make me think of
the CLAIMS that can be got OH the Sound
for the digging. All OF you that haven't
lost your ranches by the gold standard
Course to humanity stick to your land,
| for have seen no place like the Sound,
and can see the cloud is bursting; the
shy Will NC CiCdt III 4~OFCIAOCA1 1CC
coinage of silver will gain the day, then
| the poor will save their farms and get
back to prosperity. I have been Re-
publican all my life until the Republi-
cans left and they joined Wall street
and Rothchilds then I joined the side
that is trying to redeem humanity
back to what they were before the gold
standard took effect. Now 1 am Pop
ulist from head to foot and any poor
man that will vote for the gold stand
ard is blind to himself and an enemy to
the poor; I helped to open the eyes of
many Republicans and Democrats since
| left home, and if God will give me
strength, will do so until the poor are
redeemed from the power of the gold
standard and gold bugs. 1 close by
hoping to see my Friday Harbor friends.
Love to all. G.. MCKAY.