Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1897-07-21
The KLONDIKE GOLD FIELDS
Reviewed by an Expert Who
Has Been There.
PLENTY OF IT TO BE FOUND
But the Season for Operation Is Short-How
II Is Gotten Out Commissioners To Be
Placed There to Preserve the Law.

Washington, July 20.-Dr William H
Dali, one OF the eurators of the National
museum, Is familiar with the country in
which the Kiondke gold fields are located
through having been on several geoogi-
cal expeditions to Alaska adjoining the
gold district and says that in his opinion
the reports from there are probably not
exaggerated. o5
He says. when l was there l did not
find gold, but knew of it baing taken out
in profitable quantities for fifteen years
or more 1t was first discovered in 1885,
In 1880, when l was up in that country,
my last trip having been made two years
ago the party Of prospectors who make
mining profitable. business, started out.
The gold is found on the various tribu-
tarfes of the Yukon and have been with
in a comparatively short distance of
Klondike Lake l made one trip to Cir
Gle City, just north of the boundary of
Canada.
The gold bearing region of America
extends into British Columbia, Northwest
Territory and Alaska. The Yukon river
runs along that district for 800 or 900
miles. The bed of the main river is in
the lowland valley
THE yellow metal is not found III pay
ing quantities in the nlain river, but in
the mountains on either side. me mud
and mineral material rs carried into the
main river. while the gold is left on the
rough bottoms The gold is covered by
frozen gravel in winter. During the sum-
mer, until the snow is all melsed, The sur
face is covered by muddy torrents. When
the snow is-meted and the springs begin
to swell the streams the gold is seen. In
winter, in order to get at the gold, the
ind + IN 1iQ intO the
gravel formation. Formerly they strip
ped the gravel off until they came to the
gold. Now they sink a shaft 10 the bot
tom of the gravel and tunnel along under
neath in the gold bearing layer. The
waylin which this is done is interesting,
as it has to be carried on In cold weather,
when everything is frozen The miners
build fires over the area which they wish
TO work and keep these lighted over that
territory for the space of about twenty
four hours. At the expiration of this
period the gravel viii be melted and
softehed to depth of perhaps six inches.
This is then taken off and other fires built
until the gold bearing layer is rea ched.
When the shaft Is down that'far fires are
built at the botto against the sides of
the layers and tunnels made in this man
ner, Blasting would do no good on ac-
count of the hard nature of the material,
and would blow out just as out of gun.
The matter taken out,cont tanning the gold
is piled up until spring, When the tor
rents come down and it Is panned and
Graded by these. 1t is certainly very
hard labor. see many reasons why the
gold field should be particularly rich.
The streams which cut through the mines
have probably done so for centuries, rur-
ming them down several hundred feet and
bringing them down to the beds of gravel
''It is country in which III is very hard
to find food, in which there is particularly
mo game. Before the whites went into
that region thsre were mot more than 300
na tives They have hard work to support
themselves on account of the scarcity of
game