Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-08-17
LETTER FROM KLoND TX
The Formation of the Ground Not Indicative
ofGold.
Dawson Like California in Palmy
DaysLClaims Paying Big Money
Everything Getting High.
From the Seattle Times.

From the Seattle Times.
One of the most interesting stories that
have come from the Klordike country is in
the shape of diary kept by Samuel Clark.
who left fer the gold region in the spring
He has been working a claim there since
June 10. He says:
I'VE arrived in the city Of Dawson. n.
w. T., Yukon, at pm, June 10. the date
and hour we calculated on when sitting in
our Juneau cottage previous to starting.
We made the remaining siXty-five or sew
enty miles slowly and nicely, and the roll
ing hills to our left and the rocky ones
to our right encouraged us more and more
But the formation. that kills Inc, for a
gold section-black lava, white and gray
sand, limestone and slate. and nothing
at all to indicate the immediate vicinity of
the countless millions which lie unearthed
among the gulches. Men and boats, boats.
boats, everywhere. The little village on
the upper side of the mouth Of the Klon-
dixie was moving mass Of men And
such tales, marvellous tales, of golden beds
and countless bags Of gold that were com
ing from the mines above. 1t is the grand
| est place on earth, or under it. either.
THE Barry Bros. will gamble $500 that
they have more money than any man on
the Yukon can lift. They have 100000 on
hand, have paid $4,000 more for claims
In clean dust and still they wash and clean
Up and have untold wealth beneath their
ground. Many claims pay thousands of
dollars to the day, and some clean up from
two to five thousand twice day and think
nothing of it. Every can, bucket pot and
sack on the claims is used: they cannot gel
vessels of the proper kind fast enough
Two men left on the last steamer the other
day with seventy five pounds of dust each
Men Come down fl ON the claims with a
pack of gold on their backs at night and
throw 1t in corner, and there IL is. Moth
ing is locked up or hidden away: gold is
seen everywhere and every man has some
circle City claim owners are here contract
ing Tor all the men they can get at 81. 80
day, pay to begin from this place and
equal amounts of provisions given on the
claims for what they have here. Average
pacon is from 80 to 10 cents pound: -four
Is w per hundred weight; sugar, % to 80
cents a pound: beans, 10 cents; rice %
cents, and so on down. There is now
mere near the bacon to fill tn. demand
Fresh moose is 30 cents pound.
Harry Ashe runs dance hall and gam
ping hell and his receipts are from 81 900
TO 1900 day. There is a constant lam
at the box all the time at night Busine -
Is booming and no place on earth exhibits
.ne same rush and prosperity as does Daw-
son on the Klondike. Every man can work
at anything. Lumber is $135 a thousand
PEOPLE are paid big for filling sacks with
moss to chink Jog cabins. One woman
aSk ss man to fll sack with chips from
a tree near by and gave him 81 25 for his
nve minutes trouble. Gold is more plenti-
fui than water for that Is scarce The
river Is muddy and the springs are colored
from the moss. Dogs bring from $50 70 s;5
each Boats are selling at all prices.
received two letters when I landed
mere. The mounted police brought them
from victoria We will sell 100 pounds of
ing day and night. Men stand and watch
eacn log sawed and grab the lumber as
soon as 1t is ripped up. Saloons are rum
nIng everywhere, and drinks are so cents.
IC Inn hferh&
are out everywhere. New stakes will soon
be made. town site is now located AT
the mouth of the Stewart, and men are
rushng up there l may soon follow them,
as there the next rush will be. Ferry
prices across the river 81 for a man and
the same for his pack. Town lots are SELL
ing from $15 to 5000, the latter price being
for front lots 5Ox1OO. man can sell anv
price. Packing is % cents a pound to the
mines, fifteen miles away. Every one is
at work here. Siwash dogs carry off the
clothes. washrags, anything eatable on
earth. open grub boxes and do divers sorts
OF sleight-of-hand performances. The
weather is cloudy and warm, some wind
and a few mosquitoes. No darkness at all
light all the time.
June 15-Dawson is booming; work for
all. Bought one-gallon can sirup-cost 60
cents In civilization-s250; one can milk, 80
cents; one loaf bread, so cents. Have been
out to the diggings. All the best ground
is In swamp and the rock Slides but
gold Is In all places, where no sane man
would ever dream of looking. The mines
were discovered by a squaw man, who was
salmon fishing, in the bedrock which came
to the surface in the only little spot in the
creek. There they dug twenty feet in
frozen swamp and morass and thicket in
this strangeSt place on earth for gold. In
Berrys claim he took out s13150O in
space of Toxic and 20 feet down by burning
and drifting under in the pay streak Other
claim owners about him did still better
Claims were 800 feet up and down, from
rim to rim. In places they are one-quarter
of mile wide and all pay, and in others
not so wide. Down narrow creek men
are filling rubber boots, tin cans canvas
bags, in fact, anything that will hold dust.
1t Is all heavy gold. 1t is estimated that
$6,O0O,000 has been taken out so far, and
not one-half of the Bonanza and Eldorado
claims even open to bedrock.
There are Stampedes all about to differ
ent sections. Saw much good ground when
we were just out, but could not get to bed
rock, for the surface water ran us out,
and the country is too fiat to drain. These
are winter diggings. l will probably stake
off some in the morning, and have sixty
days to prospect in before recording, but
even then frost will come. Wish 1t was
frozen eleven months in the year. Some
few nice rock claims are staked. There
is room for 100000 men yet on the Klon-
dixie and side streams If they are all good.
The country is not half prospected, nor
any idea of the extent of its wealth known
as yet; been discovered only ten months"