Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1897-09-09

4
parents moved to the western country
before she had an opportunity to ge
above the grammar grades. At thai
time her father had considerable
means. but he exhausted it in an en-
deavor to locate gold in Colorado ant
California. Miss Wilson was 16 years
old when her father died and ut once
determined to make her own way in the
world. She went TO Seattle and found
employment as domestic on steamer
bound for Alaska. She found her wa,
to Circle City and became the cook and
general housemaid for a number oil
miners.
Miss Wilson was not satisfied with
this kind of life. She had had some
experience in mining while accompany.
ing her father on his pilgrimages and
she 'crossed lots" In Alaska on her ow
account. The result was that she 10.
Gated copper mine which is now being
worked and which is said to be banning
out as prolifically as any of the gold
mines that are making the Kiondike
fields famous. Miss Wilson had no
sooner staked her claim than her pos
session was disputed by number of
men, but besides mining she had
learned from her father how to use
rifle and revolver and for days she sat
the sole guardian of her claim.
Her possession was finally recognized
and several of the men who disputed
her right of occupancy are now work
ing with or for her, and it is estimated
that she is not worth less than So .OOo,-
600. The young woman said recently:
81 was in Chicago five years ago after
my father died. Then | was a COM
monplace restaurant waiter or dish
washer and no one cared for me. Now I
am worth perhaps 100000 in money,
and am being constantly followed by
young men of good families who would
be glad to take wife. might as well
say now that am not marrying at this
time. / do not know when l shall 20
back to Alaska. 1 may never go back,
for / don't mind saying that have had
an abundance of the kind of living they
have in that country. My mother and
l can live now wherever we see fit, and I
want to tell you that we shall not have
our rooms facing in alleys, as we have
been compelled to since father died.
"The copper mine in which am the
principal owner was all my own find.
The funniest part is that found it less
than quarter of mile from where we
were making our headquarters. There
were indications that others had dis
covered the presence of copper ahead
of me, but the gold fever must have had
full possession of them because they
passed it over. l secretly prospected
my find for month before anyone else
found it, and then three men claimed
prior ownership. Then / had to make
personal defense. and this ] did. [
never had to fire shot, but 1 would
have done so without hesitancy.
No; / would not advise any young
woman to go to that country who has
not had some experience with miners
or who is not prepared to defenI her.
self and undergo the severest hard
ships. In that country self-preserva-
ton is truly the first law of nature.
Men forget all their chivalry and al
though women are scarce they are not
any special interest among men.
Alaska miners are not sentimental.
They are looking for riches and they
do not care how they get them"
An evidence of how the law is admin
istered in the Yukon country is given in
a letter received at Victoria, B. C.. A
packer named Rice contracted to take
n rnor'S outfit pvor ba troI -
the man went to work on the trail. The
man went to work, but when it was
finished Rice refused to fulfill his con-
tract. When Rice's train reached the
summit with load it was seized by the
mounted police and a vigilance COM
mittee and was uuloaded. Rice will
not be allowed to do any packing until
he fulfils his contract with the man
who worked on the trail.
The first letter mail to be dispatched
from this country to the Klondike re-
gion under the new reciprocal arrange
ment with Canada, effected by estab-
fishing an Internal ional exchange be-
tween Dyea, Alaska, and Dawson City,
will be forwarded from Seattle by
steamer leaving there September IL.
From that time forward letter mail
will go over the new service regularly
once a month. The last opportunity
to send newspapers and reading mate
rial generally into the gold region until
next spring was afforded by the paper
mail" the last of the season, which was
forwarded by steamer leaving San
panciscO SeDtpmber &
A bit of good news for the miners has
just been bulletined by the North
American Trading and Transportation
company. 1t is to the effect that full
quartz mill sent by them into the klon-
dixie country had arrived at its destina-
ton in excellent condition.
Different Case.