Cottonwood report. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1893-1901, 1897-12-24
STAMPEDE 70 FORT yukon
HUNGRY MINERS LEAVE DAWSON
flight By Both Boat and Overland
Utter Desolatfon and Scarcity of
Food VIII Prevent Development
This Winter.

Seattie, NOV -lWchty -uNc hch al
rived here yesterday on the City of Seat
tie, direct from Dawson City. They were
divided into two parties, the last one of
which left Dawson October l6
They came out over the Dalton trail. !
They are reported to have about $4,000.
in drafts and gold dust. All tell stories
of food shortage in Dawson that is al
most a famine.
The last person to leave Dawson was
Jack Dalton. When Dalton left the
steamers Alice and Bella had reached
there loaded light 1t is said that the
Bella had nothing in her cargo but whis
ky and billiard balls. She brought no
provisions
The Canadian mounted police charter
ed the Bella and gave all who wished free
passage to Fort Yukon. The Bella is re-
ported to have left with about 1900 or
1900
According to the statements made by
members of the Dalton party there is IL
able to be trouble of the most serious
kind this winter in Dawson. Billy Leak
told one of the men in the party ahead,
whom he met at Dyea, that all the peo-
pie talked about was the food famine.
Men were gathered in groups and cursing
with might and main the new corners
that were constantly coming into the
Klondike loaded with scarcely any pro-
visions. The mounted police were offer
ing free transportation to the grub piles
further down the Yukon, but to countless
hundreds who had labored hard all
through the summer accommodating a grub
stake the prospect was uninviting, to say
the least These men figured that it
would take them all their savings in gold
to pay their living expenses at Fort Yu-
kon during the winter, and that in the
spring they would not have enough gold
left to pay passage money back to Daw-
son City, to say nothing of purchasing
enough food to subsist on until they could
get started again. To these poor fellows
the offer of the mounted police was no
better than the prospect at Dawson of be-
ing compelled to winter on half rations
until the supply boats could reach the
diggings in the spring.
Only One Salvation.
John w. Brauer. the United States
mail carrier, who left Dawson September
27, said:
There is only one salvation for the
miners who are now at Dawson, and that
is for them to undertake the awful win
ter trip from Dawson to Fort Yukon, a
distance of 400 miles. There is food at
Fort Yukon, there is none at Dawson,
and just as sure as the stars shine ter
rible suffering will be the fate of the
Dawson miner unless he leaves there
before spring. will make my statements
conservative, and say that when left
Dawson the men who were there had on
an average four months food supply
Some did not have a months supplies;
some had four or FIVE The last restaur.
ant closed the night left. 1t had been
selling nothing but beefsteak, for which
the hungry paid $3.50.
when the people realized that no more
boats would be up the river, they knew
that starvation threatened them, and
the great stampede began. The first to
leave went to Fort Yukon. l guess there
were about 100 in the party that left the
first day. One boat came up from Fort
Yukon with several newspaper mer
aboard, among them correspondents Wal
and McGillvray. They brought the news
that the Hamilton had unloaded all hel
cargo and tried to get over the bar light
and failed in her efforts, though sh,
drew but two feet of water. This new
increased the excitement and made tn,
rush toward the food centers great.
Stampede From Dawson.
ION September IA Bert Nelson of Sc
attic and myself left Circle City AM
started to pole up the river to Dawson
City, distance of 800 miles. At the tim
we started from Circle City the miner
had about all taken their departure. l
took us ii days and three hours to max
the journey, arriving at Dawson Septem
Der 26. Captain Hanson, with two In
dams, who had left Fort Yukon, beat u
into Dawson by about an hour and hall
Hanson gathered the Dawson miner
together and made a short speech, il
which he advised all who did not hav
provisions to last them all winter t
either get out of the country to civiliza
ton or try to reach points in the Yuko
country where it was known that foo
could be found. Tat night was tn
greatest one in the history of Dawso
City. The miners, as soon as they ha
heard the news, made hasty preparation
to get out, and nightfall saw these gol
seekers and men who can today sell on
for many thousands leaving by the hur
dreds for down the river and up the rive
The little steamer Kinukuk, which was t
make the trip from Dawson to Pelly
where Jack Dalton's trail starts. wa
brought into play. She was besieged b
would-be passengers who offered as hig
as $3.50 that they might be aboard Will
she made her journey of SITS miles t
Pelly. The Kiukuk left Dawson ON tn
afternoon of September 81, with IL or l
passengers.
"The next day We made up party, il
GLIDING Herbert Raymond of Seattl,
Bert Nelson of Seattle, Harry Robertso