The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1897-08-28
ALASKA A LAND OF GOLD
MANY DECLARE ITS MINES The
RICHEST EVER KNOWN.


RICHEST EVER KNOWN.
reports That Recall Fabulous Eldorado-
Recent Discoveries Seem to Indicate
That in Alaska Is the Mother vein
of the Gold of North America.
Those familiar with the history OF
gold mining declare that the gold fields
Of Alaska are among the richest both
In quality and in extent that have ever
been known. The stories that the
Spanish explorers heard about Edo
RADIO were n more wonderful than those
which are now coming down from Alaska
with every steamer, except that the
Spaniards heard Of gold already mined
and refined, whereas the Alaska gold
is not yet dug. The Standards never
got their gold; the Alaslzans are 9et-
ting it by the ton. Here, for instance,
is quotation from the issue Of June
30 Of the Alaska Mining Record Of
Juneau. It relates to the arrival Of
one Jack Hayes, the mail carrier for
the Yukon district. Hayes left Ju-
neau on January IA and completed his
tour Of duty on June 26. After an in
terview with him about his expert
ences, the Record says:
"Much excitement prevails all
through the Yukon district over the
Klondike discoveries, and all kinds of
stories of the riches there are told,
many Of which Mr.. Hayes says are
true. It is true that two tenderfeet,
railroad men from Los Angeles, CAL
Frank Summers and Charles Clemens
have struck it rich. They went in
o year ago and located on the Klondike
last fall. Clemens sold his interestfor
$35, cash, and his partner, Sum
mers, held on two weeks later and got
$4,000. The money to pay the men
was taken out Of the dump which had
been lifted from the shaft on the claim
during the winter. These two men
had each PANIED out $4,000 on their
claim while prospecting it. The man
that bought Clemens interest bound
the bargain with 1882 nugget which
had been taken from the Klondike.
Summers is single man. Clemens
has wife and two children in Los
Angeles. It is said that both will come
out on the next boat via St. Michael,
bringing with them their little for
tunes. Neither man had ever had any
experience in mining.
"Alec Mcdonald took one pan from
his claim which tipped the scales tc
the tune of $500, and offered a wager
of $1,000 that he could pick his dirt
and in twenty minutes get pan tina,
would go over 100 ounces ($1600). NJ
one cared to cover the wager.
"Dick Lowe is panning for living,
and is taking out the modest sum Of
800 day.
I'm a personal letter dated OF Circle
City, March "a, Oscar Ashby says in
part: e..
"a'Our town, is very quiet at present.
every one having gone to the big ex.
element at Klondike. Everybody has
gone crazy over it. This country ha!
an rnp4rsiiufed future. Tnere are
thousands of acres that men will not
in fact, cannot, look at until provisions
are cheaper. I understand that wage!
here will be $12 a day. There is moi
enough help to supply the demand or
the creeks. Dogs are worth all kinds
ofmoney, from $75 to $500 EACH"
There are one or two men in New
York who know Alaska mining anc
Alaska mines well. A Sun reporter
asked one of them to talk about the
gold diggings Of Alaska. He did So
after STIMULATING that his name should
not be printed. He opened drawer
of his desk and out of number O.
specimens Of ore secured a chunk a:
big as mans thumb. i It was a:
heavy as q bullet.
"This," he said, as he laid it ava,
in the drawer again, "was picked W
on the surface soil six years ago. An
other piece as big as my, fist that wa
pickedsup at the same place we hav'
been offered $3.50 for. Now, whel
there is gold like that lying ,abou
open to the air, there is just one in
ference to be drawn. It comes from
some place. The man who finds tn
place is rich. The man who tells tn,
world in general what he is looking TO
and why under such circumstances i
a.fool. By the same token he usual,
dies poor and complains of 'harl
times, signs for the return of the sgoot
old days of 49, Why, man, '49 wa
nothing to this! johannesburg is n,
such centre Of gold fields as is Juneau
''But there is this difference between
California in 40 and Alaska in '97
Alaska is oil staked out. The new
has not gone abroad until the peopl
near at hand, the people who hav
spent money, time, and their YER,
lives in developing the country, tn!
people, in short, who deserved tho re-
ward had seized on everything il
sight. Down along the coast in tn,
Quartz lOdes the stamp mills have bee,