The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-07-25
THERE ARE MANY PERILS.
TerrOrs of an Alaskan Winter-Law-
less Element in Control


JOPLIN, Mo-, July 24.--"Alaska has Sc
rious drawbacks at .this time of the year
and people are foolish to go there before
spring" said s. A. Turner, an engineer,
who spent two years up in the Yukon
country and returned last fall. mo work
can be done until May, and it will take
small fortune to live upon until prospect
ing can begin, and it would require very
strong nerves to enable man of small
means to survive the awful feeling of home
sickness that settles over one under the
conditions that exist in that bleak, desc
late country. To be there through the
long winter months is bad enough even
when one has an abundance of food and
good shelter, but to go in the condition in
which many rash people are going with
only small amount of money, is to go to
a place of intense suffering and great pri-
Vatons and perhaps to DEATH People do
not seem to realize that everything there
costs dearly. l paid $2S for single board
large enough to make a sluice poX two
years ago, when there was no great rush
TO that region Now everything will neceS-
sarlly be more expensive, for there will be
greater demands Tor food, wearing apparel,
shelter, etc. AT that time board was from
$500 to $l2 per day, according to condl-
tIons, and single meals were 81.
THE cold was intense, and many had
struggle to sustain life. OF course there
is gold there in abundance, but it takes
hard and expensive work to get it, and
the fabulous stories told of fortunes wait
ing there to be picked up are gross exag
gerations."
MIR. Turner went from Seattle, Wash,
with about one hundred others to Circle
City, Alaska. The journey consumed about
sixty days, and was fraught with dangers
and hardShipS. He put in two months pros
pecting, and got out about 81, 700 in gold
dust, and then determined to get back to
civilization when he had an opportunity to
Ia co lA n 0otNl IL of hoN.r
ever, may have been overcome to some eX-
tent this summer, since trading posts are
being established in British Columbia TO
provide the miners with supplies. These
posts to be located along the route
from the southwest corner of British Co
lumbia up to the Klondyke country, at a
distance of fifty miles apart, an account of
which is given in a private letter, written
by an Alaskan miner, located Oh the Yukon
river, to a Missouri friend. The letter
so many new settlers are expected that
numerous additional trading posts are to be
established along the route from Cook
inlet, the point of debarkation for the Yu-
kon country through British Columbia, up
to the Yukon riyef ad The most aXaila6le
Lynn canal and up the Chilkat river and
across the Chilkat pass, then down the
lakes to the Lewis river, which is followed
to it's mouth to the upper Yukon. Another
good route is up Lynn canal through Chill
kat pass, across the divide and then down
a chain of lakes to the Lewis river. which
flows into the Yukon. From the mouth of
the Lewis river the Yukon is followed
down to FOrty-mile creek, SiXty-mile creek,
the Klondyke and other tributaries of the
Yukon which flow through the gold fields.
Most of this route is through British terri
tory. Soon after leaving Lynn canal Brit
ish Columbia is entered, and the gold hunt
er does not again enter Uncle Sans DO
main until after a long voyage down the
Yukon river he crosses the Hist meridian.
which is the eastern boundary line or
Alaska.
lumbia a chain of new trading posts is to
be established by f. M. Stevens, a nephew
OF a member of the Canadian Parliament,
who has applied to the Canadian govern
ment for d special permit to locate trad
ing posts at a distance OF nifty miles apart,
over territory reaching from the Klondyke
country to the southern boundary line OF
British Columbia. Such posts will be
blessing to the miners going to and from
the gold fields and will doubtless prove a
profitable investment to the promoter OF the
cat present Juneau is the general outfit
ting point for nearly all places in the in
terror of Alaska, but with these new trad
ing posts established many supplies can be
purchased at them and the miners can
thereby save themselves a great deal OF
packing, for the route across the noun
tains is a very arduous one, and 1t is only
after reaching the Lewis river that the
route ceases to try the metal of the hardt-
est and most determined prospectors. Upon
reaching the Lewis river the rest OF the
route can be made by boat or raft without
what is most needed in Alaska at pres
ent is some kind Of government. At Fort
Cudahy and other English settlements the
best of law and order prevail, but on the
American side there is, no semblance of
authority Even in Circle City, with pop
ulation of 800 people, there is not magis
trate or police officer to repress lawless
ness and as many tough characters are be
ginning to come in with the miners, seri-
Gus trouble is likely TO result unless some
better system of government for Alaska is
soon formula ted. The better class Of peo-
pie are very DESTROYS of having one or two
companies of United States troops sta
toned near the boundary line, in the gold
country Their presence would exert
wholesome influence over the adventures
and bad men who are always to be found
in isolated mining camps.