The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-07-25
CUREDOF THE GOLDFEVER
TWO MEN WHO WENT TO ALASKA
AND HAD QUITE ENOUGH OF 1T.
A Trip to the Headwaters of the Yu-
kon Made Them willing to Return
and Work for a Living.
Kansas City Journal.

There is no fever so contagious as gold
fever, but there are at least two men in
Kansas City who will not be affected by it,
no matter how glowing the reports from
the Klondyke diggings. They are ]. G. and
]. L. Baker brothers, who went to Alaska
in the spring of 1891 They, too, were after
gold. They returned the same year, and
have since followed the more congenial and
generally more profitable occupation of
florists. The Messrs. Baker were seen by a
reporter for the Journal at their home on
Denver avenue, and talked entertainingly
of their Alaskan experiences. Both warn
men against going into the Alaskan in
terror unless they are physically strong, ac-
customed to hardships and willing TO en-
dure them in almost endless number, and
are able to lay in provisions for at least
eight months. Both j. L. and j. G. Baker,
although vigorous, healthy men, were brok-
en- DOWN by their Alaskan trip and were
compelled to return home the same season.
They left Kansas City March 10, 1891;
sailed from Seattle for Juneau and thence
crossed the Chilcat pass At Juneau they
met Missouri Fee''-no one knew him in
Alaska by any other name. Fee had just
come out of the interior via the Latuga
pass, the one Lieutenant Schwatka, the
Arctic discoverer, subsequently explored,
and, finding the Bakers from Missouri, he
took considerable interest in them. He ad-
vised them not to go into the Interior and
asked them to accompany him with party
to Latuga bay, on the coast northwest of
Juneau, where he said a man could make
an ounce of gold a day beach mining. The
Bakers considered this proposition serious
ly, but finally decided to push into the in
terror and Missouri Fee and his party
started. They never reached Latuga bay
and were never heard from afterwards.
The Baker brothers were members of a
party of seven. They crossed Chilcat pass
early in April. Each man had provisioned
himself for eight months, at a cost of
about $3.50. They canOed up Lynch canal TO
Wilson'S trading post, whence the start
over the pass was made with sixty Indian
packers. The pass was exceedingly diff
cult to cross owing to the breaking up of
the winter, but the Indian guides and
packers, anxious to make a few dollars in
the early spring, lied about its condition
and induced the party to make the early
start. The white men carried only their
guns and cartridges.
WALKING WAS GOOD.
The walking was fairly good the first day
out, but the second day the party had to
cross some bad rivers, swollen by the melt
ing snow. They reached the timber line on
the west side of the divide the second night
out. Thence travel was rough the divide
steep and the snow, which in many places
one hundred feet deep, broke through
under the weight of a man. Snow shoes
were found too cumbersome for use in
climbing the steep grade. The party made
slow progress, being five days in crossing
the divide. Whenever a camp was made
there was a roll-call to see If any of the
Indians were missing. The third night out
a German who started with the party could
not be found He was searched for, but
without success and the party was Just
breaking camp when he came struggling in
No further stop as made and he was COM
PEELED to toll along without rest over the
divide, as the leaders would not risk camp
on the summit.
I'VE were miles from TIMBER said J. L.
Baker, and were compelled to keep moving
to avoid freezing AT the top of the divide
the sun never sets al that Tune of year. We
were many hours on the march, probably
more than full day of tWenty-tour hours.
There were many narrow escapes from
snowslides. We could hear the snow break
ing all around US with "a noise like the con-
slant cannonading of artillery. The mon
Ster slides could be seen shooting down the
mountain sides, carrying along trees and
powders and everything in their paths We
had crossed one place, and were barely over
when the snow broke with a laundering
sound and shot down the mountain. 1t
would have meant instant death had any
OF our party been struggling behind; or
had we been ten minutes later in crossing,
the entire party would have inevitably been
swept thousands of feet below, and this
tale of hardshps in Alaska would have
never been told.
Il believe the angle from the timber line
to the top of the divide is not less than As
degrees. The Indians went ahead and broke
the crust of the snow, forming path for
the rest of the party. A terrific wind was
blowing against US all the way. The seen
cold n
man dare not stop moving long enough to
study the grandeur of it. L am glad 1 saw
it, but l don't want to see 1t again. We
were greatly in need of water to drink, but
it could not be obtained. We were not al
lowed to eat snow Finally we reached
what appeared to be a lake in the crater
of an extinct volcano. We had walked On
it a short distance, when the Indians began
to shovel away the snow, working like
demons. I could not understand the mean
ing of their excitement for a moment, bat
in a very little while they had made an
opening eight feet deep, out of which the
water seeped as from spring.
A CRITICAL MOMENT.
"There was no ice underneath the snow;
it had evidently been melted by heat from
below. The outer crust of The snow was
able to bear a heavy weight. There was not
| living thing in nature there. We soon
came to another lake. and thence the coun-
try began to descend more rapidly. 1t was
a gradual descent, however, very different
from that on the west side of the divide
The trail led through long canyon, where
the walking was very good. The cliffs were
not more than five hundred or six hundred
feet high. Under the crust of snow we could
hear roaring sound, like the rushing of
water over powders. A spring freshet was
raging along its course under our feet"
Il had a better view of that freshet than
any one else in the party" interrupted J.
G.. Baker, who had been listening to his
brothers story, and occasionally making
suggestion I'VE had gone some distance
down the canyon when one of the men fell
through the SHOWS crust. Get on the shady
side OF the canyon shouted some one, and
l hastily started for the shade
I'VE had been walking in the sun because
it was possibly warmer | made haste to
get over to the edge of the canyon too en-
ergetically and sank to my armpits in the
snow, and was barely able to bear up my
weight by extending my arms out over the
crust about me. The snow was not as deep
as the length of my body, and my feet
dangled without any support. Gradually the
opening made by my body enlarged, and l
could the water rushing in mad rage
three or four feet beneath my boot soes
carrying with it powders as large as bar
rel. 1t was an appalling moment The men
threw me rope which l carefully fastened
under my arms, and cautiously lifted up
my weight with my hands on the crust OF
the snow, and after a few minutes, which
seemed to me to be hours succeeded in
rQIfiO0 I al m nd