The Saint Paul globe., 1897-10-07
KLONDIKE EXCITEMENT DRAINED
ROSSLAND AND VICINITY OF
IT'S POPULATION.
WILL RETARD Development
w. b. CAMERON SAYS THAT RE-
GARD GOLD AS GRAVEL.
MUCH OF IT GOES TO SALOONS.
Story Showing How Little One Man
Knows About AnOthers Sue
cess-Trip Out and Return.

w. B. Cameron, associate editor Of
city, returned last night from an ex-
tended trip through the West, in the
course of which he visited the Kootenai
and the coast cities. In conversation
with reporter for the G l o b e, Mr..
Cameron said:
1.-The activity on the coast since the
tale Of Klondike flew round the world
is like ozone to the man who has lived
with the depression of the past five
years, and as his foot touches the pave
ment of Sound city, he draws a full
breath and gets something Of the in
fection. The grizzled gold seeker Of
the Sierras brushes elbows with the
man from Australia or Johannesburg
on Seattle and Victoria streets, and
treasure hunters from London and
Berlin throng the wharves and depot
platforms. They come on every boat,
they leave on every boat, and still the
town Is filled. Where will it end?
Thousands have gone this year, tens
| of thousands probably, will go next.
The coming five years is likely to wit
ness the greatest mining excitement in
this country since the days Of 40
'"There is much rivalry between Sc
attic, Victoria, Vancouver and Tacoma
for the Yukon business. So far, Sc
attle seems to have had somewhat the
best of it, though next spring the Ca
madam towns, backed by the Canadian
Pacific railway, will make strong
bid for the large end. They are ad-
vertising the fact that no duties are
collectable on goods for the Klondike
purchased in the Dominion.
81 saw plenty of yellow metal from
the new land Of gold at Seattle, and
there seems hardly doubt that the
richness Of the country can be much
exaggerated. The miners, however, ar.
for the most part very reticent about
the amount Of mineral they have taken
out. One man, who had mined in Ari
zona, Montana, Colorado and the other
gold-producing states, told me that II
it were possible for him to secure all
the gold on even one Of the small
creeks which flow into the Klondike.
he would not want the United States
treasury for it. He says there will be
$25 900, 600 taken out of the country ill
for many years to come.
THE miners all wear huge nuggets
on their watch chains and carry bag
or two Of them about in their pockets.
It seems hard for them to become
accustomed to the use of the ordinary
money of commerce again. They dis
tribute nuggets at the hotels, to the
walters, the bartenders and the serv-
ants. They appear to regard gold like
so much gravel. Many of them have
been in the country for several years
and are out for holiday. They will
return in the spring. Some of them
never mined at all, but owned claims
in which they have sold interests at
figures ranging from $4,000 to $4,000
They will tell you that the country has
not been prospected yet, that the
ground has only been scratched ill
places, and that nobody has got dowli
to bed rock. On many of the claims
they will not look at $40 dirt ground
which pays only $40 to the PAM, but
cover it up with the gravel that has
been worked over.
Perhaps half the gold taken out
finds its way behind the bars at Daw-
son, or into other equally Improbable
resorts. / heard a man at Seattle en-
quiring of one of the returned miners
for a friend who had gone into the
Yukon some years before. He asked
him how he was getting on.
L don't know replied the non-com-
initial gold digger.
'' Has he made any money!
"'Couldp't say was the laconic re-
ply.
what was he doing when you left
there?
"'Well,' said the miner, slowly,
when I quit the town to catch the
boat, 1 left him shakin' dice with
saloonkeeper for ten dollars a flip. 1
believe he was about three hundred
ahead"
How about the Kootenai district?"
asked the reporter.
1T is a rich country and will be all
right in time replied Mr.. Cameron.
They have some magnificent mining
properties there. The celebrated LIE
Roi lifts about 5000 worth of gold ore
a day, and pays 100000 a month in
dividends. 1t is beautiful rock. 1 went
down 500 feet in the LIE Roi. There is
a saloon man in Rossland who draws
between $4,000 and $4,000 a month as
his share of LIE Roi dividends from
stock he holds, and there is boarding
house keeper whose receipts reach
about like amount from the same
source. There are properties adjoin-
ing this mine which are likely to prove
quite as valuable. Belfttlers of the
Kootenai country try to make people
believe that the lie Roi is the only
mine there, but time will show the
falsity of such statements. The coun-
try is extremely rich in silver, par
ticularly around SLOGAN lake, Sandon
and Nelson, and many Of these mines
will nav quite as we'll as the LIE Roi or
any other gold property
HAS the Klondike excitement af-
fected the Kootenai?"
Yes; it will retard development
there, probably, for some time 1 knew
men in Rossland who owned valuable
property in town, with buildings upon
it, as well as promising mining claims
in the vicinity, who might have done
nothing more than hold their interests
and In five years become rich, yet in
two days after the Yukon craze struck
the town they were ready to sacrifice
everything they owned for enough
money to land them at Dawson with
a years provisions After all, it seems
to be as much spirit of adventure, the
old instinct of savagery inherent in US
all that animate men at such. times as
the thirst for gold.
"I met the two greatest men in the
West, James Hamilton Lewis and Rus
SELL the cowboy artist. RussellS pic
lures at Great Falls and Butte are
alone worth trip to Montana to look
at.
.I wish to say a word about the rail-
roads l went out over the Northern
Pacific and returned over the Great
Northern The scenery along both
roads is magnificent, on the western
slope of the Rockies and through the
Cascade in particular l could dwell