The San Francisco call., 1897-11-29


um. He will return to develop these
claims very early in the spring. Business
In connection with them was what brought
him out. An acent4of the Rothschilds
who invested $50 900 last fall has made ar
rangements to return in the spring. Be-
cause OF the failure of the Septem ber
steamers to take passengers down the Yu
kon early enough TO give reasonable as
surance that ocean connection would be
made at St. Michael, hundreds who were
intensely anxious to get out of the coun
try for the winter will try later 10 get
ever the ice and lakes with dogs sleighs
this winter.
Many of them will suffer greatly, De-
cause competent guides and dogs are both
scarce. THIS business of the failure of the
steamers to get up the river with provi-
sions and down with passengers will have
to be rectifed.
Lighter draught boats with more power
and steam carstans, for use in getting over
bars, will have to be ready next June.
Hundreds of intensely disappointed per,
sons are now in Dawson who, like myself,
would have given any pecuniary price in
their power to get out by steamer, but
could not | was better off in the wilder
ness and walking than in that hole OF utter
discomfort and starvation this winter.
The people there are being largely pre-
vented from developing the enormously
rich country by nearly utter isolation and
scarcity of food. The work to be done is
sufhclently hard and trying at BEST and
Its great difficulties should not be in
creased, as this and last winter they enor-
mously are and were. a railroad is the real
want. Ii steam boats were run from Lake
Bennett TO Dawson they could not travel
continuously. The obstacles Of the canyon,
the White Horse and the Five Fingers
rapids, are not to be removed, nor can
sand and gravel bars and snags be erased,
and if they all could river and lake naviga-
tion would only be for summer. A railroad
would be for all of the year. The Dalton
trail goes over very easy country OF re-
markably light grades. Its two SUBMITS
are exceedingly light and the saltwater
terminus at Haines Mission, Chilcat, is an
exceedingly fine one.
"a. Cal Berger is in the field surveying
this route. We passed him fourteen
miles from Chicat. He is reported to
have capital behind him. He said his
company will begin work by the first of
January. Mr.. Macarthur, surveyor sent
by the English Government, went over
the Dalton trail last summer. He was led
by Mr.. Dalton. He was well satisfied
with the route and the grades. OF course
my opinion in this matter is worth little,
but | feel how important it Is that rail-
road should be built through that coun-
,,to
of great extent and richness are TO be
found in that country through which we
passed. ana it is my deliberate opinion
that California and Australia are likely to
have their past ard present vastly out
distanced by the development OF the next
ten years in that wide region. OF course,
too fairly paying placers and wide low
graded quartz will be the rule.
"In saying this l am not dreaming of
adding stimulus to the Wild and bind
helter-skelter rush of aimless people who
have been and will be tum bling in all
sorts of unprepared shapes into that Wild
country. 1t was study, in this connec-
ton, to see men, apparently almost crazed
with haste, breaking their necks almost
in rushing over the Skaguay trails to get
on toward Klondike, and later on to see
them in Dawson loafing around the muck
hole streets there doing nothing, waiting
for rich strikes which they expected and
did not find. Nearly all OF them were
short of provisions. The great aiority
were suffering from the blues and intense
disappointment. Eight out of ten OF them
wished they had not corle- 1t was gener-
ally prophesied at Dawson that there would
next summer and fall be nearly as great
hegira OF outgoers as OF incomera. Some
very rich rlkeS, none OF which were
made last summer and fall, may change
this. Trans portation both ways on the
the river can hardly be overdone.'
Mr.. Magee thus graphically describes
his trip out over the Dalton trail:
"The town of Dawson boasted of only
one steamboat. named the Kiukuk She
was Old, rickety andsutterly broken down.
She had Just made two trips up the river
200 miles TO Selkirk, taking over eight
days in each case to make the TRIP. One
would not have cared to make short |
trip on her in calm weather on an inland |
river. Yet 200 passengers at least in Daw-
son, utterly disappointed by the non.ar-
rival of the big steamers from ST. Michael, |
were willing to trust their lives for over !
1900 miles down the Yukon on this old !
shell. Twelve OF US ARA uged to have her
bought and make this trip on her. but |
Captain Hanson OF the Alaska COm mer- |
cial Com pany persuaded US not to do so. |
because it was exceedingly doubtful that |
even if she made the trip to ST. Michael |
in safety we would find an ocean steamer
there. Therefore we decided to go up the |
Yukon 10 Fort SelkIrk (Pelly), 200 miles
further, to Chilkat.
Seven days were spent upon this !
steamer, and instead of taking US to Sell !
kirk she took us distance of about |
hin ety. five miles only. Her machinery |
broke down from one TO three times day
and she was constantly running aground.
On one occasion. through mismsnage-
meut, she was driven headon at full |
speed onto rocky shore. where her bow !
was torn away and her whole frame
shaken. But for double protection in her |
bow she would have sunk. At The end OF |
the seventh day. surrounded by heavy !
pack ice in the river. the trip was given
up and we all returned to Dawson. This |
move cost us 5000 pisce.
After this failure to get up the Yukon,
met Jack Dalton in Dawson. He had
lust come down from Selkirk with three
large RATS containing about five carcasses |
OF cattle and horses and 200 sheep. This
meat he sold for 81 to 81 20 pound. 1t
will prove of vital value in keeping the
wolf of famine from the people of Daw- |