The daily morning journal and courier., 1897-07-24
THE KLONDIKE RUSH.
Stories Told by Returned Miners of Wild
 Times In Dawson.

Times In Dawson.
 San Francisco, July 23.-Despite con- tinued warnings by the men returned from the Klondike gold fields, the rush of prospectors from Pacific ports shows now signs of abatement. The demand for transportation has caused steam ship companies to charter extra vessels in haste, to make the trip to the north before the cold weather puts a stop to navigation.
 The steamboat Portland sailed yes- terday for St. Michael, carrying 125 passengers, the full limit, and loaded almost to the point of danger with pro- visions. John McGraw, ex-governor of Washington, sailed for the Klondike on the Portland, and so did A. J. Ballet, formerly captain of Yale crew.
 The Pacific Coast Steamship company has chartered the Oregon Railway and Navigation companys steamship George w. Elder, and will run her from Portland, Ore, to Alaska. Her first trip will probably be made about July 30. The steamship Islander will sail for Dyea from Vancouver, B. C., on July 25. The steamship Capitano sailed yesterday. The North American Trad ing and Transportation company has chartered an extra steamship, the Grover Cleveland, which will sail on August 5 from Seattle for St. Michael, carrying 1000 tons of provisions and about seventy passengers.
 The ships which are to sail before Au- gust have sold all their passenger ac- con7nodations and later passenger lists are rapidly filling up.
 A letter. has been received here from Edgar Misner, who went to Dawson City by way of Juneau last March. The letter is dated June 19, and is in part as follows:
 "We reached Dawson about o'clock in the morning and found one of the liyeliest mining camps l ever, saw. There are about 4,000 people here, and saloons, dance halls and restaurants never close. The gambling tables are always crowded and thousands of dol lars change hands in a. remarkably short time. Men who this time last year did not have dollar now count their wealth by thousands. Nearly ev- erybody has a sack of gold dust with him as big as policeman's club.
 ''The sun sinks out of sight now about 10:30 p. m. and comes up about a. m. At midnight, however, it is al- most as light as monday. There is nc night. At Dawson there is little saw mill; and rough houses are going up in all directions, but for the most part il is a city of tents. On the shore of the river are hundreds of boats and others are getting in every day.
 .'Klondike has not been one particle overrated. I have seen gold measured out by the bucketful Just think of a man taking $700 out of one pan of dirt Mrs. Wilson, wife of the Alaska Com merciaI company's agent, banned $154 out of a single pan in one of the mines [ am to take charge of. This Is without doubt the richest gold strike the world has ever known.
 with all the new men in the coun- try many miles of new ground will be prospected, and from the lay of the land | think other gold fields are cer- tain to be located. Of course every foot of rich ground has an owner, SC the newcomers have to depend on new strikes. Every day rumors of new dis coveries reach here, which at once start stampedes, and hundreds rush out tc stake claims.
 "This rushing out is awful work You have to. race through deep, slushy swamps and fight millions of mos- auitoes, climbing mountains covered with soft moss and thick brush It is very hot in the middle of the day Yesterday the thermometer was 97 de- ,grees, and on top of it came a rumol that gold had been found on a creek seventy miles away. So at night the oe1y nto1 Alice started for the creek loaded tc the guards with men and small boats My duties kept me here, but my brother went out with the rush to put down his stakes. The gold is here, and the mar