Evening journal., 1897-07-28
THE KLONDYKE PROJECT
What Willard Salisbury, Jr.,
Has to Say About 1t.
RAILROAD ROUTE PRACTICABLE
WILL REDUCE THE TIME TO
REACH THE KLoNDYKE TO
ABOUT THREE OR -FOUR DAYS.
GOLD OUTPUT is SIMPLY FABU-
LOUS.

ABOOl lthEE Oh tOOh LAY >. |
GOLD OUTPUT is SIMPLY FABU-
LOUS.
Willard salisbury, Jr., one OF the d. |
rectors OF the Yukon Mining, Trading |
and Transportation Company, has this |
to say about the Klondyke project:
The intention of the company is to !
build railroad from Taku Inlet to Tes-
lin Lake, which line will be within Ca |
madam territory, with branch through
the lower end OF Alaska, along the
Taku to Juneau, the great outitting
point at present for the Yukon-Klon-
dyke miners.
Steamers from San Francisco, Seat
tie, Tacoma and Vancouver will be able
the whole year to land at The COM
pany's wharves and discharge freight
to be carried over the railway $50 miles
to Teslin Lake, whence steamboats, will
distribute it to all lake and river points.
Teslin Lake Is a large body Of water
and the real reservoir of the upper Yu
kOn country.
THE time required to reach Klon-
dyke when this line is in operation will
be about three or four days, while the
quickest communication the Canadian
government has been able to make un-
der the most favorable circumstances
with its surveyor, William Ogilvie,
now at Klondyke, has heretofore been
six weeks.
HEAVY COST FOR FREIGHT
1T costs now about $40 per ton to
gek freight from Seattle OF Victoria, b.
c., to the Klondyke and passage via st.
Michael Island, and the mouth Of the
Yukon, about 5000 miles, Is $3.50.
Freight cannot be got into the country
now in any other way and the rates are
prohibltive except for food and abso-
lutte necessities. 1t takes practically a
whole season for a passenger on the
river boats to get into the country. The
mouth of the Yukon is frozen up and
filled with ice long after the headwaters
$500 miles away and much further
south are clear, and four to six-mile
current must be overcome for 1,SO0
miles when boats carrying freight down
stream from Teslin Lake would be aid
ed by the current when loaded and run
back light when breasting 1t.
1T is more than likely that the mer-
chants and business men OF Juneau Will
establish a pack trail over the Taku
route pending the completion of the
railway and so hold their trade. A pack
trail for mules from the head of canoe
navigation on the Tuka to Teslin Lake
could be readily and cheaply establish
ed and would itself almost revolution
ize the methods of getting into the Yu-
/ kon fields. Leaving the steamer thilly
miles from Juneau the miners wolild
| canoe some sixty miles and then with
a mule train eighty miles to Teslin
Lake. when boats could again be taken
to any Yukon river point. This would
hold the Yukon trade for Juneau and
with the Tako-T -Teslin road built with its
projected extension to Juneau itself.
the future Of that thriving town as a
distributing centre would be assured.
while the Klondyke is the centre Of
the present large gold finds, some other
find will likely soon equal or surpass H.
and it is especially interesting to read
the late report of William Ogilvie, ID
l.. S., of the Canadian government, resi-
dent until recently at Fort Cudahy, That
/ rich finds of coarse gold have been
| found on the HOotalinqua (the New
J berry river, of Schwatka), the imme-
diate outlet of Teslin Lake.
1T is especially noticeable that the
miners are all working upstream from
the old diggings. Circle City and Forty
| Mile. the first rich finds, are almost de-
serted. and as the streams further south
! (up-stream) are prospected, the richest
finds are made. This strongly supports
the reports of the projectors Of the Tes'
lin Lake railway that the Yukon golC
fields are only a northern continuation
of the old Cassiar fields. and the west
ern slope of the Cassiars, which ha'
never been prospected. may be readily
i reached by the Taku and Teslin route.
Mr.. Salisbury has copies of all Off
cial reports and maps of the country
and private reports and data furnished
the company by the explorers they hav'
employed, and says that these report
state that the Taku route is entirel!
practicable and comparatively very eas.
for railroad construction.
Mr.. Salisbury continued: Mr.. Pack
ard mas covered the distance on foo
from Teslin lake, about 90 miles, travel
ing light. to the head Of navigation ol
the Tal1u, in thiTty hours actual tray
cling time, about three miles an hour
practical demonstration that tn
country is not so bad to travel over.
ITO this company, known as the 'Nu
kon Mining, Trading and Transporta
- tlOn Company, the Hdflldmeul ol blll
ish Columbia, at it's last session, CAV
full lowers to build its line, and lam
grant of 100000 acres, which grant
were confirmed by the Dominion Parlia
ment at Ottawa in May last, with add
tional privileges and concessions"
Mr. Salisbury, who visited Ottawa i
the interest Of the company at the las
session Of Parliament, ridicules tn
idea Of the Canadian Government treat
ing the American miners harshly. Tn
Canadians want the country developed
he says. and there is gold enough in tn
Yukon to occupy the adventurous gold
seekers of the world for twenty year
in washing its placer beds, while gold
bearing quartz lodges have been foun
for hundreds of miles. running from 81
to 500 to the ton. The possible gol
output is simply fabulous, and Nj
Salisbury expects the present report
to be greatly exceeded when this sea
sons wash is reported.
CzrArr nNr nNAT ODTTON