The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-07-26

glaciers transport the material as far as
they 60, when the floods of water carry II
on still farther. Gold, being heavier than
the other materials associated with II,
lodges in the crevices or in the rough
places at the bottom of the streams. SO 10
speak, nature has stamped ana panheu
the gravel first and prepared the way Tor
man to finish the work. The amount or
gold found in the placer mines is evidence
hot so much, perhaps, of very rich vein
as of the disintegration OF very large
.'The mother lode has been looked for
In vain in California, and perhaps viii be
in Alaska. But it exists somewhere up
the streams on which the placer mines are
found. The discovery Of gold In glacial de-
pOsits far away from its native place is IA
miliar to American geologists.
Il have encountered placer mines in
glacial deposits near Aurora. in southeast
ern Indiana in Adams county, in southern
Ohio, near Tftusville. in western Pennsyl-
vania. where, 1 see. there is new excite
ment. But in all these cases the gold had
been brought several hundred miles by
glacial ice from Canada or the region about
Lake Superior. These gold mines were near
the edge of the glacial region where there
had been much asserting action OF both ice
and water.
TT is evident however, that in Alaska
the transportation of the gold has not gone
so far. The difficulties of this transporta-
ton into the Klondike region and the short
ness of the season will continue to he great
drawbacks to working the mines. The pass
north of Chllcoot is 7,000 feet above sea level
and but few miles back from the ocean.
But from Taku inlet, near Juneau. reader
access can be had This route was followed
by Schwatka. and Mr.. Hayes. of the United
State geological survey, few years ago,
and has been partially surveyed with refer
ence to a railroad line. and reported To be
available. The only other way is by a river
which is open to navigation only a short
time each year, and is q great way round.
The general climate conditions on the
north side of the mountains are much bet
ter than those on the south side. on the
south side the snowfall is enormous, but
on the north side the air is dryer. Schwat-
ka and Hayes went in the summer down
the Yukon valley about to the Klondike
region, and from there struck off west,
passing north of Mount St Elias and down
the Copper river. They had dry weather
all the time, in which camping was pleas
ant while Russell, the same season, was
driven back by inclement weather from
ascending st. Elias on the south side. II
is therefore, not impossible that eXplora-
tions southwest of the present gold nelds
may be carried on with comparative ease.
But at present that whole region is bare of
means of subsistence.
There is imminent danger that many
will get in there before winter with insufii-
cient means and starVe. An English mis-
sonary and his wife have been in that gem
eral region for many years and report the
people as being so near the verge of starVa-
tion that they do not dare both to winter
in the same village lest they should pro-
duce famine. So they live in separate
villages during the winter. Eventually the
reindeer which Sheldon Jackson is intro
ducing into the lower Yukon region will be
available both for transportation and food,
being much superior to dogs in that they
can procure their own food But for the
present every necessity must either be
packed over the Chilcoot pass or brought
around by way of the Yukon.
"AG to the ultimate yield of the mines or
the prospect of finding more, we have moth
ing but conjecture to go upon. The geolo-
gists who have visited the region were not
the ones who discovered the gold. What
the prospectors have found points to more.
The unexplored region is immense. The
mountains to the south are young, having
been elevated very much since the climax
of the glacial period. With these discov-
cries and the success in introducing rein
deer, Alaska bids fair to support a popula-
tion eventually of several millions. The
United States must hold on to her treaty
rights with Great Britain for the protec-
ton of our interests there If England ac-
complishes her unreasonable designs she
would shut off from all communication
with the Klondike region, except by way Of
the Yukon