The herald., 1897-11-29

toms trail starts, was brought into play
She was besieged by would-be passen-
gers who offered as high as $3.50 that
they might go aboard while she made
her Journey of 175 miles to Pelly. The
Kiukuk left Dawson on the afternoon oi
September 7th with twelve or fifteeen
passengers.
"The next day we made up party,
including Herbert Raymond of Seattle
Bert Nelson of Seattle, Harry Robertson
of San Francisco and myself We start
ed up the river in small river boat, the
same one we had used in going from Cir
Gle City to Dawson. We left Dawson
about o. m. and were soon on our way
up the river.
"When Jack Dalton left Dawson a
couple Of days later, the situation there
was the same as it was when we left
and I can tell you about that in very
few words. The only things you could
possibly buy were sugar, baking powder,
spices and some dried fruit. NO flour,
bacon or anything of that kind could De
purchased from any of the stores, simply
because they did not have them. so
long as the stores had any provisions
prices remained the same. 1want to say
that the stores treated the men all right
and never advanced prices, notwlth-
standing that they were aware OF the
shortage and knew that they had but TO
ask for high prices and receive. knew
of an instance where a private party
sold to a miner a sack Of flour for $50 anu
bacon at 81 per pound.
H. A. Ferguson said: 1.-THE situation
at Dawson was relieved by the exodus
To Fort Yukon. 1 doubt if there will be
any actual starvation there, but there
will be a shortage. The old-timers have
provisions enough to carry them
through. The stores are practically
cleaned out. All they would sell was
five pounds of sugar to the man. Flour
could not be had at all. One or two sacks
were quickly picked up at $500 sack.
Wages are still SIS a day, but they are
sure to go down to IS by next summer,
and IS a day there is no better than $l.50
a day outside"
Thomas Magee, ST., the well-known
capitalist of San Francisco, in an inter-
view with the correspondent of the AS
sociated Press said: 1.-THE excitement
over the failure of the steamers to bring
food up to Dawson continued when the
Dalton party left. The police took charge
for two days of the stores and ware
ghouses of the Northwestern and Alaska
commercial companies as a precaution
only. Flour was selling at 81 pound
and no sale of less than fifty pounds
was made. No plans had yet been form
sulated to avert the starvation of those
iwho are short of provisions. Those we'll
Supplied have not much sympathy with
those who are short, because of the fact
that the majority of these latter went
in with little food, although abundantly
warned at Lake Bennett in advance.
"It had not been discovered up to Oc-
itober 18th who shot the two men In
Dawson who were caught stealing food.
One was found dead, and the other was
fatally wounded and died at the hospital
1t is believed that secret organization
exists for the purpose of shooting
thieves. The organization of hunting
parties for the winter, to hunt moose,
was talked of and will be carried out.
"Dysentery and accompanying fever
were general at Dawson last summer.
They were caused by miasma from the
swamp on which the business part of
the town is built and the absence of
dlIldSc anu 0CNSldSC. AiiCSC SCiAoA-
tions will be greatly intensified next
summer, and an epidemic is predicted.
The river water is bad, but there Is one
fine spring of water at the Catholic hos
pital.
Nothing was talked of but the grub
question. The solution will probably be
a public committee to gather up volun-
tary or forced contributions, the food
thus gathered to be publicly dispensed
and paid for by work or cash by those
to whom it is given.
"The Yukon river was practically
closed twice, about September 30th and
again about October 25th, but the ice
ran out again and left the river free,
so that all the belated parties who had
taken such risks of being left out in the
wilderness, most of them short of pro-
visions, too, probably got to Dawson or
near it. This reopening of the river
twice was phenomenon never known to
occur before.
with a persistence hitherto unex~
planned many parties from Dawson. as
we'll as newcomers, went up the Stew
art river. Nothing whatever except
good claims has yet been discovered
there The belief however is that rich
discoveries will be made there yet.
Jack Dalton and Mr. Maloney, law
yer of Juneau, have purchased of Hugh
Ferguson and Alexander Mcdonald,
Skookum claims Nos. and 2 for $50, 500.
It is reported that a large advance has
been offered to the buyers. Skookum
claims are looking up because some of
them have yielded on initial work as
large returns as any found elsewhere.
Thomas Magee, jr., has purchased in
terests on some of the best creeks Ell
Dorado, Bonanza and Skookum. He will
return to develop these claims very early
in the spring. Business in connection
with them was what brought him out.
"An agent of the Rothschilds, who in
vested 100000 last fall, has made ar
rangements to return in the spring be-
cause of the failure of the September
steamers to take passengers down the
Yukon early enough to give reasonable
assurance that ocean connections would
be made at st. Michaels Hundreds who
were intensely anxious to get out of the
country for the winter will try later to
get out over the ice and lakes with dog
sleighs this winter. Many of them will
suffer greatly, because competent guides
and dogs are both scarce This bust
ness of the failure of the steamers to get
up the river with provisions and down
with passengers will have to be recti-
fed. Lighter draught boats with more
power and steam capstans for use in
getting over bars will have TO be ready
next June.
"Hundreds Of intensely disappointed