The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1897-12-29

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float wildcat and worthless property.
There is no doubt that much of the
stalking and stampeding referred to
has been done at the instance Of these
companies and for this purpose, so
that there will be no lack of KIondike
ana Yukon claims on the mining mar
kets next year. 1t will be for the
buyer to distinguish between the gen.
ulne properties and the fake.
Next to the big purchase of bonanza
claims by the n. A. T. and T. Co., the
most important business transaction
here-more important than that, in
deed, in its wider bearing, is the entry
into the field of commercial COMPETE
ton Of the Hudson Bay Company. It
came in through an alliance with the
Alaska Commercial Company. The
papers were signed, it is said, several
months ago in San Francisco.
will add here few pages from my
diary, which gives further details of
the more important happenings re-
ferred to here or will serve to convey
a clearer idea of the life of this far
northern camp than is given other
wise.
October T.-Jack Dalton, carrying my
dispatch of even date, started UP stream
early in the morning, weather very cold
and the ice has begun running in the
river again. He has snow shoes and will
have horses at the Pelly, but no dogs
He expects by tomorrow to overtake his
party Of dozen who left yesterday in
polling boats and has every confidence
that he will get out speedily.
j. ]. Mckay arrived down with a barge
load of eleven girls fer the dance houses.
None of them had provisions.
Monday, October B.-With blankets and
provisions for three days started with
three others for the forks of Ell Dorado
and Bonanza. There is to be a meeting
there in the morning of miners to take
some action with regard to the strike.
The Klondike and Bonanza creeks are
frozen and the trail is good. We car
ried our packs and made good time, pass
ing through constant procession of
packers and dog teams. The sharp air
vibrated with the oaths of the drivers
and the cries of the dogs. We passed
several women on the trail, and ore GO
ing our way kept our pace to her des-
tination. The Bonanza. as we got up
some distance, was overlooked with water
and the trail led along the rough side
NIL, although the packers ana their
steeds slashed along the creek. We
met in the wood four men carrying the
body Of man in a blanket. His name
was VIM. White, and his home was in
Victoria. He had died of pneumonia in
his cabin on Bonanza. They were taking
the body to Dawson for burial. The body
was slung between two of the men, while
the other two rested. Just before we
came up to them they laid their burden
in the snow and sat down beside it to
rest.
We arrived at the mouth of FL Dorado
at o'clock and stopped at the Miners
Home. Quite a town had been built
here, on the steep side of the Bonanza
facing FL Dorado. The Miners Home is
a saloon, not a hotel. 1t is a big log
house with a windowless loft. Travel
ers are allowed to spread their blankets
on the floor of the loft and to cook their
coffee on the stove in the saloon with
out charge, although of course they are
expected to patronize the bar where
drinks or cigars cost 75 cents each.
Tuesday, October 19-The meeting of
miners was attended by about 300 men.
A committee was appointed to visit every
claim on the two creeks to learn how
many men were working at one dollar an
hour and to report their names at q
meeting tomorrow. I went with the
committee all the way up Bonanza as
far as the claims are being worked.
which is in the nineties, but only one
man was found who could be thought to
be working for the dollar an hour The
men called upon him to come out of the
hole and put a rope down to him. He
took hold of it and was hauled out. They
told him that he must quit work until
he was paid full wages. He went into
his cabin and the men passed on. Our
party continued up Bonanza for a mile
past the last stake, which is numbered
162. Excellent indications are found in
the new diggings, wherever the work has
progressed far enough. In the eighties
from six cents to one dollar were report
ed in the gravel. Away up the creek we
met a man coming down. He was carry
ing a small pack but was evidently worn
out and had the look of man who had
had an experience. He asked us where
he was and said he had been lost in the
hills for two days, that we were the first
human beings he had seen in that time:
that he had had little sleep as the cold
was too severe. We directed him to
cabin down the creek, where we had
lunched and left some provisions for our
return. When we returned we knew he
had found the cabin and the provisions.
October 23.-Thermometer Is below. A
mist rises from the river almost to OBJ
scure it. A boat containing five came
down and attempted a landing but could
not make in TO the shore, there being so
much floating ice between them. When
it seemed certain that they could not get
in, one of the men took line and at
tempted to reach the shore over the float
ing ice. He had hardly started when the
boat was pushed suddenly further away
by the interference of ice and the rope
was torn from him. He failed to get in
and it was impossible to reach him. He
got on a cake of ice and the four men
passed on down the river around the
curve and out of view. When last seen
through glasses the men in the boat were
struggling to reach the man on the ice
Friday, October 29.-"Nigger'' Jim. with
something of the $4,000 he is said to have
received for his interest in the big sale
| OK Bonanza claims, began to gin up the