The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1897-07-30

A correspondent writing from Day.
son City, in the Klondyke gold fields, to
the Chicago Record. under date of June
49, says;
This newly established town Of shacka
and log cabins, situated on the Klon-
dyke river, where 1t emptles into the
Yukon, promises to be one of the chief
gold-mining camps of the world
Fourteen miles from Dawson City,
twelve miles up Bonanza creek, which
empties into the Klondyke river one and
one-half miles from the Yukon, gold
was discovered by "slwash" George
carmack and his two Indian brothers.
in-Iaw last August, The. credit for
the discovery really belongs to the In
dams A stampede from CirGla City,
Forty Mile and other camps was the re-
suit OF this find. but few had much
faith In the new region even after they
were on the ground, and In spite OF the
rieh prospects on the surface, II was
generally regarded as a ''grub-stake"
strike on which one might succeed In
getting winter outfit. A little later,
however. the prospects found on the
river called forth the half-skeptical re-
mark that III It goes down II Is the
greatest thing on earth" Then o few
began 20 believe In the new digglngs
but many old miners even yet would
not stake, out claims, thinking the creek
too wide for gold. A number OF side
guiches along the Bonanza were staked,
among them Eldorado, which was rich
In gravel near the mouth. But so little
Faith was manifested In the region that
claim holders could not get grub" from
the stores In exchange for their pros
pectS There was general fear that
these might be only Skim diggings."
Pay Dirt at FL Dorado.
In December bed rock was reached on
No. II, FL Dorado, and fahnlously rich
pay dirt was found, Then more holes
went down In hurry. Everywhere
were discovered prospects on bed rock
ranging from IS to $3.50 to the pan. The
gold was nearly all coarse. stnl the
great OF the strike was not realized.
Some OF the best claims were sold by
their owners for few hundreds or a
few thousands. Drifting was carried ON
by the usual winter process of "huring,"
and the pay dirt taken out as rapidly as
possible under the difficulties OF In
tense cold. Pans as rich as $500 were
discovered. and nuggets containing
gold worth as high as S215 were brought
to light. Claims jumped up enormous
ly In price. but still many men sold for
small part OF the value Of their hold
ings They seemed wholly unable TO
realize their good fortune. Doubts were
still expressed about the dumps holding
out to the prospects,
Then the test-slucing-cam In the
spring when the Ice melted and the wa
ter ran down from the hills. Then the
widest hopes OF the toiling miners were
realized Despite the 1ateness OF COM
mencing work and the scarcity or men
about $l.5OO.e00 Hns taken out of FL Do
rado, alone on some OF the richer
claihns men who secured ground to
work on shares--60 per ceut-ciearef
5000 to $4,000 apiece, In from thirty
days 10 two months drifting. AS high
as $4,000 was drlfted out OF one
claim. the other sums being less. From
seventy-fve feet Of ground on Nos. Is
and rs. I'll Dorado. $4,000 was taken, or
81 500 per running foot, and the pay not
cross-cut, for II frequently runs from
vein to vein. being In places one hum
dred and HfSy feet wide.
big Prices for FL Dorado Claims.
Ground has sold here this spring for
over 81 900 a running foot. or at the rate
of $500, 900 for claim OF i've hundred
feet. Men on whose Judgment reliance
can be placed and who base their opln-
ions on what their own ground and
that Of others has yielded, tell me that
there are claims here from which over
Si,0O0,O0 will come. Last winter men
on '1ays' (percentage) left so per cent
dirt because they had better In sight
and only a limited time before spring
to get out ore. Owing 90 the large num-
Der OF men on lays" the production Of
almost every claim Is known, and 10
oyerStatement Is possible, since so
many are Interested In the amount OF
gold produced AS soon as siuicing
was fairly under way the price OF claims
Jumped again and but few would sell
II might almost be said that no one
would part with q claim on III Dora
do. On Bonanza, where the pay, ex-
cent on a few claims, Is not as rich az
on Ell Dorado, owners who had looked
in vain for the S., $40 and $50 pans,
winch were plentiful on the rival creek,
were disguised with their moderate
gains and were willing sell. Thus many
claims having twenty 20 nifty per cent
dirt and three to seven feet Of It were
sold. on the boat which takes this let
ter down the Yukon, will be many
men, some Of them having been in this
country only few months, when the
Strike was made, who VIII take with
them to the mint from 10000 10 100000,
the result either OF working the ground
or OF selling out. The men who sold
were paid almost entirely out OF their
own ground, the men who bought taxi
ing the dumps and these. when slulced,
paying for the claims and having o
handsome margin for the purchasers
In some instances enough gold was
rocked out to make first payment on
the claims before sluiclng was possible.
Many OF these men, to my personal
knowledge had neither money nor cred
It to get grub" last fall.
Present Dangers ofthe "Trip.
But those chances nre OF the past; let
no one imagine that they stu exist.
Claims are held by their owners now
up IN the hundreds Of thousands, and
those Of less desirable quality ore dear
IN proportion. TO gct bargain. In
claim is Impossible ut this stage Of the
fever here. one might as well stand on
State street nov and think OF getting
the Palmer house lot at low rnlo, be-
cause at some time In the past II was
cold for q song Tho value OF claims 10
now clearly known. Most Of them have
passed Into second hands, The present
owners paying for them In many cases
10000, $4,000, or 10000, ana holding
and working them as straight business
propositions That there will be other
1Indh ~ Rnid In other crOoka In lltblV