Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1897-07-28
ALASKA THEIR GOAL.
Hundreds Prepare to Sail for the
New Gold Fields.
GREAT WEALTH IN SIGHT

citement over the Clondyke mines IL
on the increase, and hundreds of peo.
pie are preparing to sail for Alaska
The steamer Por land, which brought
down over $l.OO0,OOO in gold, is on
her return trip, and will be crowded
to her utmost capacity.
| Conservative men who have been
in the country claim there is room
for hundreds more In Alaska. They
admit that all of the fields I'm the
vicinity Clondyke have been taken,
but every river In Alaska is In their
Judgment, filled with gold. which
can be secured II the Inen are willing
to risk the hardships.
Inspector Strickland of the Cana
dian mounted police, who came down
on the Portland, says:
"When left Dawson City a month
ago there were about 500 claims
staked out, and there were between
1000 and 5000 in there. We can
safely say that there was about
81 800. 900 in gold mined last winter
The wages in the mines were $15 a
day, and the saw mill paid laborers
$40 day.
1.-The claims now staked out will
afford employment to about 5000
men, believe. III a man is strong
and healthy, and wants work he can
fined employment at good wages.
Several men worked on an interest,
or what Ia termed a ''lay," and dur
ing the winter realized from 5000 to
$4,000 each. The mines are thirty
five to 100 miles from the Alaska
boundary"
A detachment Of mounted police at
the Northwest territory, which
passed through Seattle two years
ago, struck it rich. Five of the
twenty guards returned on the Port
land with gold amounting to 500, 900.
The other 10 remained in Alaska to
engage in mining.
Mrs. Z. A. Gage, wife of the son of
the Secretary of the Treasury, came
down on the Portland. She went
north on 1t and was at st. Michaels.
She said in an interview:
1.-The country is enormously rich.
The present gold diggings are only a
very small part of it, and there is
little doubt that there are millions
only waiting for the miners to come
and dig out. The men from the
Clonkyke are not the men to exag-
gerate. for i have talked with people
whom know to be truthful"
1t is declared that there is no dan
ger of food giving out, all reports to
the contrary are not honest. The
North American Transportation and
Trading company will not allow a
man to take any food north from
Portland, but it will guarantee to
furnish him food for a year at less
than 81 a pound. He can secure such
a guarantee before leaving this city
SO that starvation will not be one oi
the difficulties to stare men In the
face.
\ A letter from Dawson City, under
date of June Is, contains many inter
esting facts. The writer, Arthur
Perry, a well-known citizen of Seat.
tie, says:
"The first discovery OF gold on the
Clondyke was In the middle o
August, 1896. by George Cormack,
on acreek emptying into the Clondyks
on the south, and called by the In
dians BOnenza., He found SLIGO tc
the pan on a high rise, and, aftel
making the find known as Forty
Miles, went back with two Indian
and took out 81, 400 In three week.
with three sluce boxes
"The creek was soon staked from
one end to the other, and all tn
small gulches were also staked ,ant
recorded. About Sept. 10 a man bI
the name of Whipple, prospected
creek ,emptying into the Bonanz,
and named 1t Whipple creek. III
shortly afterward sold out, and tn
: miners renamed it FL Dorado u
"When first reached the new cam
, l was invited by two butcher boys
= Murphy Thorpe of Juneau, an,
: George Stewart from, Stuck Valley
Wash, to go down their shaft an