Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-08-07
FAMOUS GOLD FIELD
Official Report on Alaska, by Experts,
Now in Press.
NOTES TAKEN BY TEE EXPEDITION
Comprehensive Statement of Con-
ditions and Of the Output.
MINERS AND THEIR LAWS

Reconnaissance of the Gold Fields of
Southern Alaska" by George F. Becker Of
the. geological survey, and Geology Of the
Yukon Gold District, Alaska" by Josiah
Edward Spur. in manuscript, was sent to-
day to the government printing Office to be
set up in type. The copy has just been
finished and is the result of the notes taken
by the expedition sent out to Alaska last
year by the geological survey. The notes
contain much that is of interest at the
present time. The district is covered very
thoroughly, and every detail that would be
of Information to the persons intending to
visit the country is given. In regard to
the now celebrated Klondike district, Mr..
Spur says in his report:
THE latest excitement in the country &C.
CURED during the latter part of August,
1885, when it was reported at Forty Mile
that rich placers had been discovered upon
the waters of Klondike river. Klondike, a
miners corruption of the Indian name,
Throndak water full of fish, enters the
of Sixty Mile, and fifteen above the old
Fort Reliance. Upon the coast survey
chart 1t is given as Reindeer river, but no
one except Schwatka, who christened it in
1888, has ever known it by that name.
FavOrite Fishing Ground.
ION a bar at its mouth was located an
Indian fishing village of perhaps one hun
dred population during the season. for, as
its name signifies, it has long been a ia
vcrite fishing ground for the Indians, but
until late years it has not been invaded by
the miners. With the announcement of
gold there was a genuine stampede to the
rev region, so that in the winter of 1886
~ Forty Mile was almost deserted. 1t is
estimated that three hundred men spent
fha ,tr,fD L.,
at the Eew town of Dawson, established on
the bank of the Yukon at it's mouth.
Messrs. Harper and 10 La Deu, traders at
Fort Selkirk and Sixty Mile are the found
ers of the new camp, which is expected
to rival the older settlements.
The district properly includes Klon-
dixie, with its main branch, Bonanza, which
Is twenty-four miles long, and enters Klon-
dixie three miles from its mouth; Hunker
creek. flowing with the main creek not far
from the mouth, and the drainage of In
dian creek Kettleson's fork rises in a
mountain divide opposite the head of Bo-
which is described as being very long
branch of Indian. At least ten miles
below Kettleson's fork Phil creek comes
ir from the east, and still further down.
perhaps four miles, the main Indian creek
is met with, and five miles up this is Gull
ter's creek. But the more important parts
OF the district are at present upon Bo-
nahza and Hunker creeks. Upon the for
taken out in August and September, 1896.
Since that time, according to later infor-
ma ton, 400 claims had been located up to
January, 1897, and about half as many upon
Hunter creek, and the Indications, at the
time of writing, are that there will be a
great increase in population in 1S97-'9S. But
there appears to be plenty of room for
many more prospectorS and miners, for al
though 1t Is difficult to state the area OF
the new field from data at hand, it Is not
far wrong to say that gulches and creeks
which have shown good prospects are
spread over the area of 100 square miles.
Estimate of Production.
AN estimate of the gold production for
1s36 is as follows, from the Alaska mining
record: Birch creek, 10000 other dis.
tricts, $s00.000; total, 100000. All other
placers outside of the Yukon s215,0Oo
Cooks Inlet placers included in the last
$4,000
for the Alaskan gold production, 1896: For
~ Mile, 100 population, $469,U00; American
creek, 30 population, $15,UO; Birch creek
800 population, s90tV0; MyEook creek. u
population, $1,000; Koyuku river % pob-
ulation, 5000, other districts, % popula-
ton, $lo,UOU. Total, LEO popua tion 81, 4UO,-
900.
While much more conservative than the
the figures given by the director of the
United States mint. for several reasons.
One is that s1,40o0O0 represents not only
the product of Alaska proper, but the add
ed output OF British creeks; another is that
While the figures given below are compiled
from the returns of bullion which has
found its way 10 market, ours express
the amount actually turned out
Statistfcian's Figures.
The report further states that Statisti-
clan Charles G. Yale Of San Francisco
places the production at $2,sdl ,S0G61, which
is corrected by the director of the mint to
s., Oh ,263 for 1896.
The difficulties in the way of speedy de-
veicpment, Mr.. Spur says, are many
First and foremost is the climate, the
Short summer season, during which work
can be done, and the long, cold winters
I he ice breaks up in the interior about the
LIST of May. ard by the LIST of June, the
flood season having passed, the miners are
at work. Winter comes Oh again about the
last of September; the ground freezes, the
creeks and rivers stop running, and under
old methods very little work could be done.
AT present, however, in a great number
of gulches, especially where the gravel is
deep and timber plentiful, the process of
mining by burning and drifting is employ
ed to advantage. The frozen ground is
thawed by fires built upon the surface
shafts are sunk, until the pay streak is
struck, when the rich gravel is taken out
and laid by until the spring.
''ProSpectors have also found 1t more adj
NdntdScOuS 10 make tnclr search IOr 1dV0f-
able localities at the time when the frozen
ground renders travelling through the
swampy, moss-covered country more easy;
and for this reason, more and more every
year, prospecting is done in the winter.
The claims are thus located, and the miner
is ready to begin work with the first spring
thaw.
The Tempe Failure.
.'Frosts are frequent during the summer,
and 1t is stated that in the winter the
temperature has often fallen as low as 70
degrees Fahrenheit, in the vicinity of Forty
Mile.
1T is easily seen, therefore, that in spite
of The richness of the soil the Yukon ais
trict can with difficulty become an i'm
portant vegetable producing country. Root
crops have been tried with encouraging re-
suits in many localities, especially at Fort
Selkirk, where last year potatoes of a
pound weight were raised A small garden
near Coon Hill, on Forty Mile creek, also
produced a good crop of cabbage and tur-
nips, and at missions on the lower river
turnips of great size were seen; however,
there is always an uncertainty In the CROP
The report states that the Introduction Of
beeves has been tried on a small scale In
| the swamps about Circle City grass grows
TO the height of three or four feet in sum-
mer, and makes excellent hay. Alaska
| however, is rot self-supporting from an