Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1897-08-29
VIEWS OF KIoyDIKE
HANGERS WHICH THREATEN THE
rxrxpERlENcED.
HARD FACTS ABOUT PLACER MINING.
A uerief That the Land of Snow ana
Ice WI, peeomc n Great and Pow
spfsg Ceuntry--CeGent Reasons for'
the Rash.
lcorrnsnondencc Of the DIspatch)


yer has broken out N England and al
through Europe. one hears OF the goiu
Acids everywhere and hundreds OF voices
are heard 10 declare an intention OF Wy
Ing 10 win from fortune when the eomhi
spring arrives.
Not even the diamond fields of Africs
or the anterior gold discoveries created
the excitement throughout Britain am
Europe that the KloDdke finds have
aroused. In the first place, II is definitely
settled now that the Klondike region i
all British soil. That in itself surs ~
average Eng.ishman to vigor. for be feek
that II he makes the journey there ne =
still under the protection OF his own nag
AND subject to laws which his na'"ia'
prejudice causes blm to believe are en-
tirely lust. Say II softly, but ii Is true
aIso that the Britisher feels he VIII not
bo at the mercy OF what he terms the
YANKEE prospector." and that under the
laws Of the Dominion Government he VIII
have a distinct advantage
The general impression here Is that the
Klondike region Is bound 10 be developed.
Ii is held. and very logically, too, II
seems. that where such wealth OF mine
raj deposit is ciear,y apparent, ciViilza-
ton will force thick settlement. Con-
seryative men here believe that wlthlh
the next quarter of a century a great
CITY viii spring up IN the Klondike region,
10 which numerous smaller cities VIII pay
tribute. and that here will be found
what comes nearer being the tabled
Eldorado than anything else upon when
the eye Of man has yet rested. This may
almost be said TO he the national opinion
and such being the case. Il requires no
losician 10 determine how intense the
national feeling on the subject must be.
notice the general sentiment as ex-
pressed In the London newspapers, which
fairly TEEN with kl0ndike tales and adj
vices. The London newspaper Is not as
quick TO reflect public opinion as the
newspaper OF the United states, but
when any one subject attracts the at
tention OF all the newspapers In sufficient
degree TO warrant plenty Of space being
given 10 1t. then II may safely be rees-
oned thai the public Is as one man In
terested therein. The discussion Is intel
iigent and conservative FOR instance
here is what one newspaper says:
There seems little reason 20 doubt that
In the newIy-dscoyered gold-felds we
are face 10 face with one OF those unex-
pc Ted happenings, which. at least thrice
already within the present century, have
sufficed 10 change the character ana d.
rect tho development Of a Continent In
a few years time, in all human prooa-
bility, the country that Is now ice ana
snow win be transformed by the magic
influence OF gold.
But II is almost certain that IL will be
al the cost Of an army corps or so OF hui
man lives. Twas ever thus. Souters
discovery OF gold in California In the
autumn of 1917 was followed by the mad
rush OF 'ie when I'm one single week &c.,,
0e9 people set out from the Eastern States
TO cross tho great plains. of whom not
more than third ever returned TO their
homes.
-Four years later. when gold was first
found In Australia, a similar scene was
re-enacted. and again In South Africa at
a comparatively recent date. In each
case the discovery Of the precious metal
has resulted primarily In deplorable loss
OF life. and In each case. too, it has
given birth TO great cities-San Fran
cisco. Melbourne, Johannesburg-to wit.
There is no reason TO doubt, nay, II
Is an almost absolute certainty, that the
history of the past i'm California, in Aus
tralia. and in South Africa Will be
the history OF the future in British
Columbia Only. probably, there will be
far greater loss of life Nature Is very
stern in these icy solitudes and alto
gether pitiless. 1t may well be that the
the year 1Ss7-the year of the opening up
OF the Kondilie mines-will DC q year
rendered forever hideous 20 all English
speaking posterity by the memory of IAN
unparalleled tragedy.
INFLUX or THOUSANDS,
already. the authorities are viewing
with I'll concealed dismay the influx of
tens of thousands of men, mad with the
lust for gold and reckless. because igno-
rant. OF the terrible vengeance Nature
invariably exacts from those rash enough
10 venture, unasked and unprepared into
the regions she has seen lit to dedicate
20 the reign OF the Frost King. And the
worst of IL is nothing can appa-
rently be done TO save them from them
selves. The gold-fevcr mas laid hold
upon these armies of immigrants, and
they rush blindly TO evils they know not
OF. Death is a bogey that loses its power
of fright when gold 10 to be won,
"And what sort Of country Is this,
into which men are pouring at this pre-.
sent moment at the rate Of hundreds per
day? II Is a bleak. terribly inhospltable
land. inhabited until lately by a few
mi-barbaric people. many . whom have
long known the royal metal, yet
have despsed it, except perhaps, as a
means OF personal adjournment Negeta-
ton straggles out 10 blum upon bluff OF
stunted pines. with patches of white
moss. which weary the eye with un-
ending monotony
Rocks and orags which have TO be
surmounted by the intrepid traveller. in
crease In size making the shortest land
tourney lfScariOlS and difficult. There
IL no break TO the monotony OF the scene,
80 one nights camping place differs
scarcely at all from the last. The cli-
mate Il arctic: for a short period the sun
has considerable power, but for the great
er part of the year the land is plunged
In the horrors of that winter which may
not be described; frozen up by cold
which cannot be imagined, save by those
who have undergone IL.
While II is true that the average Briton
has a very dim idea OF the geographical
features OF the United States. the Kion-
dixie excitement has made 1t clearly APP
parent that when II comes 20 English pos
sessions the Englishman is thoroughly up
10 date. He knows all about Alaska
and how England fought 10 have IL" In
stead OF Uncle Sam, and is thoroughly
familiar with the climatic condition of
that portion OF British Columbia which
contains the Klondike. l quote from "A
London newspaper the statement given,
being those made by correspondent
who signs himself subscriber
AN EMBELLISHMENTS ADVICE.
"1'he goid-bearlng alluvial deposits lie
IN the basin of the Yukon river. IL is a
mighty stream. 5000 miles long. at least
Eighteen hundred miles from its mouth
its turbid waters are swollen by those OF
the ksondike, and Il IS precisely AT the
Juncture OF the two streams that the
richest finds have been made. Until re-
Gently the only dwellers In the district |