The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-12-19
GENERAL MILES PLAN.
Picks Out What He Considers Safest
Routes to Klondike.

Routes to Klondike.
New York, Dec. 1S-General Miles
believes expeditions should be sent over
several routes to the Klondike region
at once in order to have double chances
of one getting through quickly in case
the other is delayed, says a, correSpon-
dent of the Tribune at Washington
General Miles has made special study
of Alaskan affairs, having been re-
sponsible for the military protection
of the territory when he commanded
the department of the Columbia from
1883 to 1886 During that time he sent
three expeditions through Alaska. The
first was under Lieutenant Frederick
Schwatka, in 1888. the second was I'M
der Lieutenant AbercrOmbie in 1885,
and the third was under Lieutenant
T. Allen in the same year Lieutenant
Abercrombie conducted an expedition
up the Copper river valley and Lieu
tenant Allen went up the Copper river,
thence across the divide and down the
! Tanana to the Yukon, thence to Boring
sea.
General Miles says: 81 believe that
the expeditions should be sent-one
over the Dalton trail from Dyea to
Dawson City, Belle Isle or Circle City;
the other from the mouth of the Cop
per river to Belle Isle. The Dalton
through our territory, being principally
! along the upper Yukon river in British
Columbia Hence, to send an expedi-
ton by that route, will require the ap-
prevail of the Canadian government,
and probably the two governments will
cooperate in this humane enterprise.
I'VE could at least clear the trail and
make the route practicable as far as 1t
extends within our territory and if per
ie DIV w CO1lt0
cend< by that route. The route from
the mouth of Copper river extends en-
tirely through our own territory and in
my opinion is practical for sending
supplies to the places already men
toned, or to point near the boundary
where q depot of supplies, an asylum
and hospital could be established. l
have therefore recommended that con-
gress give authority for the sending of
two expeditions with food and hospital
supplies with as little delay as pos
sible.
''Of course the sending of military
escort by water from Puget Sound to
the mouth of Copper river and to
Chilkoot pass will involve considerable
expense. The cost of delivering food
into that remote country particularly
at this season of the year will neces-
sarily be very great but it need not be
a wholly gratuitous expenditure. Many
of the men that are in a suffering con-
dition have sufficient gold to pay for
supplies and gratuitous issue of sup
plies should be made only to those
who are in a destitute condition. An
important feature of sending expedi-
tons through the interior, especially
by the Copper river route would be to
conciliate the natives who are liable to
become hostile and they would be ex-
ceedingly useful as guides and inter
prefers and can be so employed in
blazing the trail placing landmarks,
transporting stores and in many other
ways facilitate the purpose of this en-
terprise. If they are not conciliated
and disturbances should occur, which
would make them hostile, an Indian
war might ensue in that territory
which would be the most expensive of
any Indian war which the government
has ever had to encounter"