The San Francisco call., 1897-04-13
ONE DOG WORTH
A DOZEN HORSES
Paying Market for CANNES
in the Yukon Mining
Country.
Large Numbers of the Animals
Shipped in for Service in
Sledging.
Sell for Fancy Prices, While Equine
Beasts of Burden Cannot Be
Given Away.

| horses in this section of the Northwest.
| This unique condition of affairs results
| from the great and growing demand for
dogs 10 be used IN hauling sledges in the
Yukon country, Alaska. While thou
sands of horses for which their owners
cannot get So per head are roaming over
the plains of Eastern Washington and
| Oregon good-sized CANNES are bringing
from SIS to $50 each in the local market.
AT Juneau their value is double that sum,
and On the Yukon River q good dog brings
$lo0. To the YUKON miner the dog has
become what the reindeer is to the lap
| lander and the pony to the cowboy oi
| a most valuable one.
Every steamer sailing for Alaska for
three NJ months past has borne northward
| several dozens of CANNES destined for ser
vice in front of heavily laden sledges.
They are taken by boat to Dyea, at the
head OF saltwater navigation, and there
| put into harness to assist in hauling the
precious outfits and supplies over the
| Chiikoot Pass and down the farther
| slopes to the series of fresh-water lakes
! forming the headwaters of the Yukon S
| tri ibutaries
| Up to May, when the ice breaks up, dog
teams glide over the smooth surfaces OF
| the lakes with surprising rapidity, con-
s dering the loads they are hauling. There
are portages TO be made around dangerous
| rapids, and here again their services are
| invaluable. Arrived al the central posts,
| such as Forty Mile or Circle City, both
men and dogs take a rest, but in most
cases the dogs are soon put into harness
| again for trip to the digginls along the
| numerous creeks where shining gold is
| being wa ashed out.
The sledgedogs are too valua BILE lot to
be we'll cared for when care is possible.
| Their owners first tho ught in this respect
| is to obtain for them plenty of food, which
| consists principally of fish, usually salmon,
| caught in the Yukon River by the natives.
An ordinary dog will eat daily two pounds
| of FIRE sh fish. At Forty Mile last winter
dried salmon sold at 20 10 so cents a
pound, and bacon that was fit only for
dogs TO eat sold for 3715 cents pound.
In some of the larger camps on the Yukon
dog boarding houses have been esta b.
ished where the CANNES are properly
| cared foT at from $6 to SIS month, ac-
cording to the season and price of dog
| food.
| The native Yukon dog is much more
| yaluab Bile than the i'm portations from
Puget Sound. The dogs must be accIi-
| mated in order to stand the seventies OF
| the winter. 1t is found that dogs taken
| from Montana and Dakota endure the
Yukon winters with less suffering than
those bred in the milder climate of Puget
Sound. Two splendid specimens of na-
tive Alaska dogs were brought to Tacoma
lew days ago, their owner finding it
|
steamer than to have them boarded at
| Dyea during his trip down for supplies.
| The animals weig 50 and So pounds, re-
| speedway. the larger one having cost its
owner s1I7 al Circle City. These animals
are stout, we'll proportioned and muscled.
and have exceptionally short and heavy
necks. Their ears are short and lifted
| like those of the Esquimau dog. Their
coats are dark, and the hair, when not
| close, is smooth and heavy enough 10
| form comfortable protection against the
| Arctic winters and also the YUKON mos
| quitoes, by the side OF which the ferocity
| OF the New Jersey variety pales into in
| significance.
| An especially prepared dog food, m ade
| out of meal and coarse meat from the
| packing-houses. is being manufactured in
the form OF a cracker and seems likely 10
come into general use in Alaska.
! Buchskin moccasins are provided by
many owners to keep the feet OF the faith
| ful little draft animals from being worn
| raw on the ice and snow. They are about
| nine inches long and made much after
the pattern of q child's stocking. Pack
| saddles are coming into use this spring
/ These are SO arranged that the dogs can
| carry weight of from ten to twenty
/ pounds, besides drawing sled. The sad
| ale bags fall on either side, and straps are
| arranged TO prevent the pack sliding for
| ward or backward.
| A Tacoma dealer has built up large
| business in the manufacture OF dog har-
ness. The collar is made 10 slip over the
| dogs head, obviating The necessity of
| backing it about the animals neck when
| the drivers hands are cold and mum b.
| The collar is made of leather faced with
sheepskin and stuffed with deer hair.
| The names are inclosed in the collar and
attached 10 them are buckles for fasten-
ing the traces. On each collar are placed
| rings, 10 which the traces of dog in the
lead may be attached, making it easy to
| drive teams i'll tandem. Traces to the
! harness for native dogs are made OF heavy
web material, because the dogs eat the
leather harness They devour the collars
on sight ii permitted. This peculiar
| craving makes it necessary to keAp the
| animals separated when harnessed, so
| they will not masticate each others COL
lars. When the web traces become oily
| the dogs chew even them, and it is only q
matter OF time when the web trappings
| become food for the hungry CANNES.
| This spring several ingoing parties have
| taken in burros and small horses in lieu of
| dogs for draft and general service beasts
| 1t is claimed that pony or burro will draw
5000 pounds on the frozen surface of a
| lake. Another advantage claimed is that
| they can be more protitably used as pack
| animals during the summer. Circle
| City firm works train of thirteen horses
hauling from 500 to 1900 pounds each on
| sleds and requiring but three drivers. All
| returned miners, however, unite in de-
claring that the dog is holding his own
well against the com petition of the horse
| and will be needed there in large numbers
| for yrars to come. 1t is expected that
within few years the Government will be
| able to supply many reindeer from the
herd now established at Point Barrow.
u. NJ. McClaine and A. M. Stearns, two
EASTERN miners, have just started north
with new kind OF freight conveyance.
1t is a water and ice craft com oined
The main part is a box built like large
watering trough, eight feet long, twenty
TWO inches wide across the bottom, three
feet across the top and twenty-five inches
high. Beneath the box are two runners
| hve inches Ugh and little longer than
the bed. The party has six OF these con-
| veyances. which will be used as sleds on
land and boats on water. For use in the
water two Of the sleds will be Joined to-
gefher by blocks at the ends, making a
stronger water craft. To each side OF the
conveyaace log will be attached to rem