The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1897-07-23
Thu. ALASKA GoLD FIELDS.
Their D~e-criptfen and the Peculiar MsD.
n~r of werxinE rh~so Described by Dr.
w. H.. Dali Of tf~ NatIonal Museum.

49, ~ ~ As
W. II. Dali Of tfs~ NatIonal Museum.
Washington. July 2o.-Dr. William
II. Dali. one Of the curators OF the
national museum. is familiar with the
country in which the Klondike gold
fields are located Trough having been
on several geological expeditions to h
region i'm AIaska adjoining the gold
district. u he say hat i'm his orin-
ION the reports frosn there probably ar,
not eyaggerated- He says: When 4
was there I did not find gold. but knew
OF ii being taken out In profitable guam
titles for fifteen years or more. 1t was
first discovered there I'm 1866. In 1850.
when l was up i'm that country. my
last trip having zen mad two years
ago a party of prospectors. who make
mining n profit. started out. The gold
is foundo on the various tributaries OF
h Yukon and I have been within n
comparatively short distance Of the
Klondike fields. I made one trir to
Circle City, just over the boundary
OF Canada.
The gold bearing belt OF northwest
u ~ iNa FiNdku AL II EPlb u
extending into British Columbia. what
is known a the Northwestern Terri
tory and Alaska The Yukon really
runs along i'm that belt for 500 or GOO
miles. The bed Of the main river is
in the low land OF the valley. The yell
low metal Is not found in paying guam
titles in the main river. but In the
small streams which cut through the
, mountains on either side. These prac-
finaIl as mach ant th, rn1l Th. ~.
and mineral matter In carried into the
main river. while the gold Is left on
the rough bottoms OF the side streams.
In most cases, h gold lies at the bot
tom Of the thick gravel deposits. The
| gold is covered by frozen gravel In the
winter. During the summer. until the
snow is all melted. h surface is COW
cred by muddy torrents. When the
snow is melted and the springs begin to
freeze. the streams dry up. At the APP
proach Of winter. in order to get ut
the gold. the miners find IL necessary
to dig into the gravel formation.
Formerly they stripped the gravel
off, until they came To the gold. Now
they sink n shat to the bottom OF the
gravel and tunnel along underneath. in
the gold bearing layer. The way in
which this is done is interesting. as il
has 10 Toe carried on i'm cold weather
L bfb IN nv III
ers build~ fires over the area where they
wish to work and keep these lighted
over that territory for the space OF
about twenty-four hours. At the eN-
piration Of this period the gravel VIII
be melted and softened to a depth or
perhaps six inches. This Is then taken
off and other fires built until the gold
bearing layer is cache When the
shaft is down that far fires are built
at the bottom. against the sides OF the
layer, and tunnels made in this man
ner. Blasting would do no good. on &C
count of the hard nature OF the mate
rial and would blow out just as out OF
a gun The matter taken out contain
ing the gold is piled up until spring.
when the torrents come down and IL
panned and Graded by these. Ii II
certainly very hard labor.
Il see many reasons why the gold
fields should be particularly rich. The
streams which cut through the noun
tains have probably done SO for cen
turtles, wearing them down several hun
dred feet and washing out the gold
into the beds and gravel.
1T is a country I'm which IL is very
hard TO find food. as there tx practi-
caliy no game Before the whites
went into the region there were no,
more thar 300 natives. They have hard
work To support themselves, on account
of the scarcity OF game"