Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1897-07-22
FIND LOADS OF GOLD.
MINERS RETURN FROM ALASKA
WITH FORTUNES.
Wealth Awaits the Efforts of Daring
and Hardy DiEgers-Stories Are Not
Overdrawn-CorrO Accounts
Tales Of Richness Told.

l Oh the nlCuneSS OF AIOnOykc Nl0l"0s
Tales Of Richness Told.
More stories of the golden wonders Of
| the arctic mining camp in Alaska are be-
| ing told by the returning miners. The
stories OF the great gold find are sur
rounded with the frozen breath of winter,
for the new gold field is almost within
| reach of the arctic circle, and the miners
are snow and ice bound for six months in
| the year. Fortunes await the daring and
the hardy who have money enough to buy
a seasons provisions and strength enough
/ to withstand the extreme cold. Those
who We're in the gold region of Alaska
| have been able to withstand everything.
| and are now returning to warmer and
more civilized climes with plenty of
| money. In the summer the miners find
the climate delightful. Those who do
not care TO fight the rigors of the journey
over the divide north of Juneau reach the
| gold fields by the steamer route along
the Yukon river. But the fight for gold
is one in which all the natural forces of
winter are combined against those who
seek some of the convcniences of cities.
| The miners who have returned to San
| Francisco and Seattle have not exhaust
| ed their tales of the wonderful richness
of the arctic mining camp in the Clon-
| dyke district. They are raising their
voices, however, in solemn warning to
those who would go to the gold region
without sufficient means and plenty Of
supplies.
| Later and more authentic news places
the amount of treasure brought down
from the Clondyke by the steamer Port
land at $1,5OO,0OO, and there is good rea-
son to believe that the sum was nearer
| $2,00O,OOO.
Every man was ordered to place his
| gold dust in the ships safe, but this was
not done. Many of the miners. perhaps
half of them. secreted their dust in bIan-
| kets and satchels, which were taken eth
| err to statcrooms. or, as i'll some instances,
| were thrown carelessly about the ship
| Others deposited small bags of gold in
| the ships treasure box and carried far
| larger amounts in their valises tucked
| away in statcrOom hunks. Clarence J.
Berry, enc of the Clondyke kings, brought
down at least Ssh 600, not cent Of which
the Portland had on record. This state
| ment is made on the authority Of Capt
William Kidston.
l
One OF the most interesting of the many
Clondyke stories is told by William Stan
ley. He is 30 years old and has family
of seven children. When he left Seattle
for the Yukon year ago last March he
was poor. One of the sons cared for the
family, while another and the father
sought fortune in the Alaskan placers.
Mr.. Stanley made the statement that he
l l.
sion on the Clondyke. In less than three
months he and his partner took out $780,
600 from claims Nos. - and 26, Ell Do
RADIO creek. This great sum Of money, in
credible as it may seem. simply represents
the yield Of prospect holes-shafts sunk
here and there in order to find bedrock to
ascertain the actual value of the claim.
They have actually in sight on these two
properties over $1.00O,0OO. They are
5OO-foot claims. and every prospect hole
gives up dirt running over $1,000 to the
lneal foot Stanley and his partners, the
Worden brothers, also own claims Nos.
SO and "a, Eel Dorado, known to contain
equally high-paying dirt. They also pur.
chased for $4,000 spot cash half-inter-
est in claim No. 80, Ell Dorado, and they
also own valuable claims on Bear gulch,
Last Chance gulch and Indian creek. The
pans on the claims run from $500 to $3.50.
Five pans taken at random yielded $3.50.
Advice to GoId-seekers.
Miners who have returned advise and
hrge those who contemplate going to the
Yukon not to think of taking in less than
one ton Of food and plenty of clothing.
While it is poor mans country, yet the
| hardships and privations to be encounter
ed by inexperienced persons unused to
frontier life are certain to result in much
suffering. They should go prepared with
at least years supplies. There are at
present about $500 people in the country,
and that number is about all that can be
accommodated this winter. Provisions
are high, as it costs 10 to Is cents a pound
to land goods at Dawson City, and it is
impossible to get more provisions in this
year than will supply the present popula-
ton. If miners rush up there this sum
mer, unless they take with them their
own supplies. they will suffer great hard.
ships The fare to Dawson City from San
| Francisco is $50, and it will cost at least
$500 to transport supplies for one man.
The first discovery Of gold on the Clon
dyke was in the middle Of August, 1896
by George Cormnck, on a creek emptyine
into the Clondyke on the south called by
the Indians Bonanza. He found $16O tt
the pan on a high rim. and. after making
the find known as Forty Miles, went back
with two Indians and took out 81 400 in
three weeks with three sluice boxes. The
| creek was soon staked from one end te
the other, and all the small gulches were
also staked and recorded. This is proba
bly, the richest placer ever known in the
world. The miners take out gold so fast
| and there is so much OF it. that they dc
not have time to weigh it with gold scales
| They use steelyards.
News Of Minor Note.
Bellamy Storer, the new United States
l ,,,;p;ctor To Rolv;iD1 orr;x-a1 1,;S ,n,1