The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-09-19


Weaver. acting commissioner of labor,
today gave the Associated Press
COPY of a letter on the terrors of the
trip across Alaska to the Alaskan gold
fields. The letter has just been re-
ceived from Samuel c. Durham, sta
tistical expert Of the government de-
partment of labor. who had been as
signed by Commissioner Wright to
make an investigation of the opportu-
mites which the gold regions in the
Yukon valley and adjoining territory
afford for the remunerative employ
1nent of American labor and capital.
The letter is as follows;
Lake Lindemann, Alaska,
Aug. 26, 1897.
commissioner of Labor, Washington,
d. C:
sir left Dyea Monday morning at
II O'Clock and arrived here Tuesday
evening at Z My four Indians started
ahead Of me. but I have not seen any
thing of them since they started, and
4 am waiting for them here. When [
reached the foot of the summit a ter
rible storm was raging in the pass and
I presume the Indians went into camp
somewhere on the other side to await
better weather.
1t has been storming-rain, sleet and
snow alternating - since Tuesday
morning. l had an awful experiment
coming across the summit. l started
out With my hand bag strapped on my
back, thinking, as it weighed only 40
pounds. / could carry it. managed
70 struggle along the head of naViga-
ton for canoes six miles from Dyea,
and there was forced to employ an In
dian packer, paying him $40 TO carry
my grip 10 camp. l. miles from Dyea.
spent the night at Sheep Camp, which
is merely a collection of tents, and
started for the summit at s o'clock on
Tuesday morning in a driZZling cold
rain. / employed a packer to carry
my grip from there to Lake Linde-
mann, paying SIG. At the foot of the
summit we met perhaps 100 Indian and
White packers, who had cached their
packs on the trail above and were re-
turning TO Sheep Camp to await the
abatement of the storm. We were
warned that it vas dangerous to at
tempt to set over, but as the wind was
blowing the way We were going, we
decided to so ahead. as ! felt sure my
packers had gone on and [ wished to
be here when they arrived. The dis
tdnce from the foot Of the summit to
the top is said to be three-quarters of
a mile, but it seems like four miles.
The trail aScendS an angle of 40 de-
grees, skirting preeipices where a mis-
step would hurl one 1000 feet below.
crossing the lace OF glaciers as smooth
as glass and in many places traVersing
the polished surface OF great granite
b0ulders hundreds Of feet in extent,
Every hundred yards or so mountain
torrents, fed by glaciers, and on the
present occasion augmented by rainfall
rush across the TRAN ard have TO be
WadeG, the water often coming to the
knees Add to this a gale blowing 80
miles an hour with sleet and snow
rushing horizontally through the track
and temperature at 50 degrees and
You Viii have a faint idea of the hor-
rors OF my passage across the sum-
nit
a PILGRIMS PROGRESS.
after struggling up a steep ascent
Of % 10 50 feet [ would be forced from
Shee- exhaustion TO rest for moment,
but would scarcely stop before the
chilling wind would cut me to the mar
row and I would have to continue my
course to keep from chilling to death
Before 1 reached the summit I was
wet to the skin and my boots were full
OF water, and the added weight of the
water made it almost impossible to
proceed. l finally reached this camD
at the head of Lake Lindelnann. about
o'clock in the evening. having been II
hours in covering y miles, so thorough
~ exhausted that [ could scarcely
drag one foot -fter the other I had
letter from a friend to a gentleman
who IS in camp here and was kindly
received py him and made as com
Portable as possible in his tent AS
my Indians had not arrived I had no
chanse Of Undertaking and was
forced to accept his offer of a sujf of
warm, dry underclothing; this. sup
plemented by q half a teaeup of rum.
brought some warmth back to nv
body L remained in bed al day yes
Terday, TOO thoroughly worn out to
move. had some fear of pneumonia.
but with the exception of some sore
ness, l am feeling fairly web this
morning.
THE sun has lust made its appear
ance, and old timers say we are likely
TO have good weather by tomorrow.
This climate is very treacherors
changes being very sudden. On the
ocean side of the mountains il rains
more than half the time. and rains
hard. On account of the continuous
rains the soil washes down the steen
mountain sides, and where there is 2
level place YOU VIII ind a bog into
which q man or horse sinks to tha
knees at every step. This is one of the
worst features of the trails, and makes
it almost impossible to use horses.
HARDsHIPs OF THE TRAIL.
Many Of the DOGGY places have be.n
corduroyed, and l suppose by next
summer the Skaguay trail. which IS
now practically impossible on account
OF the bogs, viii be in fair condition.
Al present the condition of affairs on
both trails is terrible, and hundreds Of
men are bound 10 starve and freeze Ia
death If they continue 20 come this
Way. / passed al least a thousand men
between Dyea and here. and not more
than 100 have got through outfits this
side OF the summit Every 80 wards
along the trail are piles of goods. and I
suppose there are provisions To tho
value Of 100000 scattered along the
trail. Prices for packing and for an
kinds Of service are practically pro
hioitorS' for most Of those who are at
tempting to get in and many are car
iylns over their own outfits. Some Of
the Indians carry as much as 2e0
pounds at enc lead and make the trim
from Dyea TO Lake Linderman in tvo.
days, returning 10 Dvea on the third
day, thus making two trips q week
White men carry from IS to 100 and l25
pounds. and IL takes man with an
adequate outfit q month TO get 10 the
lake.
There are many here who have been
five or six weeks packing their outfits
over, and are not ready to start down
the river yet. Al who have come ia
SlSaguay or Dyea within the last week
or two who have come in with a sl1fi-
cient outfit, have paid 40 cents or more
pound or do not get in at all.
There are about 299 men here and
80 tents. Probably three or four boats
are getting away every day. with from
two 60 ave passengers
There IS one saw mill here with a