Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-01-07

the head of Cooks inlet are several
rivers that are not yet on any map.
They spring from the glaciers in the
Alaskan mountains, and are shallow
and rapid and icy cold. One Of these
is the Knick river. Creasing had come
down the Knick from his trading post,
at which he is the agent Of the Alaska
Commercial Company.
There's white ~heep In the mountains;
at the head Of the Knick river" said
Creasing. But the country is all tumbled
up into mountains and volcanoes and
glaciers. and the river Is mighty teacher
Gus and ice water all the way down"
Creasing took me up to his camp in his
sloop. and l prepared to continue tne
journey up river. l bought a boat ana
hired four Indians for the. trip one as
guide. the others to man the boat. The
river is one of the most difficult for navi-
cation 1 have ever been on. 1t is full OF
shail4Ws and GuieksanHst h rs 'he nd foios
towed the boat all the way up. sometimes
waist deep. at others up to their necks IN
the icy water. 1t took us two weeks ana
was then above the timber line, and be
gan my search for white. sheep. When
we got into the mountains our sheep
proved to be only Alaskan goats. SO we
Indians kept telling me we would get to
sheep soon, but l found they knew no
more about it than l. We came to a hut
built on piles in Il swamp near the river.
In this I found a whole white sheep SKIN
Then l knew / was on the right track.
We made a permanent camp at the ioot
of the mountains, and hauled the boa
out of danger. 1t rained constantly, and
the mosquitoes were the largest ana most
savage / ever saw or felt.
Packing up flour mixed with baking
powder and little bacon for provision
with plenty of ammunition and blankets,
f.lI a
climbed two days through thickets, OF
devils club a shrub with leaves like
rhubarb. each of which is armed on the
under side with barbs that tear ana cut
The formation of the country Is basaltic
rock and the mountain sides are steep
and the rocks columnar in shape. me
rock crumbled under foot. and every Tor
ward movement meant the poSSlplllty O.!
long fall. At night we slept in the ram,
| under ii small canvas shelter, the In
dams sitting back to back all under a
blanket stretched over three sticks. IT
took five trips into the mountains to get
the number of skins | wanted. when we
found the sheep ! had the most exciting
and adventurous hunting l have ever eX-
perienced, and have killed big moose .na at
Minnesota and Manitoba, elk north OF
Pagoda Peak on the White river IN Col,
orado. Rocky mountain rams. ana pun
walrus in Greenland. But the chase
greater danger than any of the others.
| had got a number of ewes ana lambs
after four hard journeys, but desired par
ticularly to get some rams. One evening
about s oclock-it was as bright as noon
in this latitude-l saw some rams up the
mountain side. could see their big horns
outlined against the snow as they lay at
rest or browsed around the rocks. The
next day we went after them. After a
fearful climb. which was made very
slowly and carefully that We might not
frighten them, l stalked them to within
10 yards. Some of them were feeding,
others lying down. The Indians are very
jealous of the white mans rifle, and al
ways want the first shot. john. the big
Iniun." my guide. said he would Kill the
first sheep. 1t was ticklish business, but
| told him to fire away, holding myself IN
readiness to back him up. He picked
out the biggest ram of the lot: and shot;
He missed. He fired five times, and
missed every time: The rams scattered
at his shooting and ran down the noun
tain side and along a lateral divide. A
big ram that weighed over 900 pounds ran
ledge directly over the valley. The big
ram passed directly below me. 800 yards
away. ! was lying fiat when ! shot at
him. and brought him down in his tracks.
We're running along. with the Indians
shooting across at them. They were 200
yards away. The Indians had succeeded
in killing two. One big ram ran along
1
and missed. He became confused and
turned back. l shot at him several times
and missed. At last bullet kicked up
the gravel, giving me the elevation, and
the next shot reached him. tumblinS MIN
1000 feet into the canon. We got 1--WE hne
rams out of the lot. and with this was
obliged to be content. ! brought back al
together Il hides and heads.
We skinned the rams and ewes in the
mountains and dressed the hides with
salt. 1t rained or showed necessarily, 50
We could not dry them. We had incredi-
bly, hard work getting them down to the
down the river. We Travelled with the
current, stopping to fish and shoot. The
Alaskan rivers are alive with salmon.
and anyone strong enough can eaten c,,
the shores with salmon almost as large
and a good deal stronger than they. But
an Alaskan boy is a plucky little begSar
Tmeh hr comes rzz iU hears each o Of Which
weighed over 1900 pounds. but the hides
are useless in summer. and | was COM
PEELED to leave them. There We're plenty
of moose also. But it was a hardship to
mosquitoes and a yellow fly that is the
most insidious and painful insect | know.
Alaska derives its name from the IN
dian word Al-ay-ek-Sa, meaning great
and the name hits it off exact
ly. 1t is one of the greatest possessions
of the United States. and the most inter-
eStinS and wonderful. But 1t IS only nan
made. 1t is tumbled up into volcanoes
that belch vapors almost constantly.
glaciers that cut paths across it. and it is
the greenest spot on earth, where vegeta-
ton grows rankly and grass in the
swamps and on the islands is six feet
high, and berries. the. most delicious ]
ever ate. may be picked by the ton. 1t Is
rich in timber. in gold, in fish and in furs.
1t presents wonderful possibilities in the
way of cutivating fur-bearing animals,
which l am inclined to believe can be
make a paying industry. The tides in
Cooks Inlet rise to a height of 80 feet.
it one of the most dangerous
bodies of navigable water in the country.
This season Is men lost their lives in it,
and probably hundreds more before them.
The sands of Alaska carry gold richly.
In the Yukon country are vast coal beds
so soft that they can be whitfield with
knife. The country is so big and the eX-
tent of it to the westward so great that
If one draws a line exactly midway be-
tween the coast of Maine and Attu. the
most westerly of the Aleutian islands. it
would strike out in the ocean 500 miles
west of San Francisco. 1t is a possession
worthy of better government, and should
receive the earnest attention of Congress