Pike County press. (Milford, Pa.) 1895-1925, 1897-12-03
HUNGER In DAWSON.
RETURNING GOLD SEEKERS SAY A
FAMINE IS LIKELY.

r~"@NAN.
YaIIon coustry-A stampede From the
cold District MetropoIis-An Interview
with Thomas Magee. sr.
Seattle, wash.. Nov. sO-sThe steam
er City Of Seattle has Just arrived at
this port with rs gold seekers direct
from Dawson city. They were divided
into two parties, the last one Of which
left Dawson Oct. 16. Among those in
the party were Thomas Magee, Sr,
Thomas Magee, Jr., OF San Franciscoi
Swift Water Bill Gales, Joe Boyle, VIII
liam Huskins, f. Eckert f. Robertson,
H. Raymond. Bert Mason, John W.
Brauer, w. H. Chambers, e. w. Pond,
e. A. ]. Gillespie, Thomas Wilson, p.
McGraw, Jack Dalton and William
Leak They came down over the Dali
ton trail. They are reported to have
between them about $780, 900 in dust and
nuggets.
All tell stories of food. shortage in
Dawson that is almost a famine. The
last person 20 leave Dawson was Jack
Dalton. When Dalton left. the steamer
Bella had reached there loaded light. 1t
Is said that the Belia's cargo consisted
of whisky and billiard balls. She
brought no provisions. The Canadian
government mounted police chartered
the Bella and gave all who wished
free passage to the Yukon. The Bella
is reported TO have left about Oct. IL,
with 200 men.
According to the statements made by
members Of the Dalton party, there is
! tf,l, -, q lrffd
kind this winter in Dawson, Billy Leak
told one of the men in the party ahead
of him whom he met at Dyea that all
the people talk about at Dawson is the
| food famine. Men were gathering in
groups and cursing with might and
main the newcomers that were con-
stantly arriving in the Klondike loaded
with scarcely any provisions The
mounted police were offering free trans
portation to the grub placers farther
down the Yukon to Fort Yukon, but to
the countless hundreds who had la
bored hard all through the summer ac-
cumulating a grubstake, the prospect
was uninviting to say the least
The men figured that it would take
all their earnings in gold to pay their
living expenses at Fort Yukon during
the winter, and that in the spring they
would not even have enough left to pay
passage money back to Dawson, to say
nothing of purchasing enough food to
subsist until they could get started
again. To these poor fellows the offer
of the mounted police was no better
than the prospect at Dawson of being
compelled to live on half rations until
the supply boats could reach the dig
gings In the spring.
statemant Of Thomas Magee, sr.
Thomas Magee, Sr., the well known
capitalist of San Francisco, in an in
terview said
"The excitement over the failure OF
the steamers to bring food up to Daw-
son continued when the Dalton party
left. The police took charge for two
days of the stores and warehouses oi
the Northwestern and Alaska CONNER
cial company as a precaution only
Flour was selling at 80 a pound and nj
sales Of less than so pounds were made
No plans have yet been formulated Il
prevent the starvation of those who ar'
short of provisions Those well sup
piled have not much sympathy with
those who are short because of tht
fact that the majority of these latter
went in with little food, although
NdIHtu Ut LANE DtniNNi ~
advance. 1t had not been discovered
up to oct l6 who shot the two men IN
Dawson who were caught stealing food
One was found dead; the other, fatally
wounded died at the Catholic hospital
1t is believed that secret organization
exists for the purpose of shooting dowr
thieves. The organization of hunting
parties for the winter to hunt moose
was talked of and will be carried out
"Dysentery and accompanying fea'
lures were general at Dawson last sum
mer, caused by the miasma swamps OF
which the town is built, poor drainage
and sewerage. The sickness will b'
worse next summer The river wal
bad, but there is one spring of water al
the Catholic hospital. Nothing wal
talked but the grub question. The So
luton probably will be a public com
mittee to gather up voluntary or en-
forced contributions. the food thu
gathered to be dispensed and pait
for by work or cash by those to whom
It is given. The Yukon river practically
closed about Sept. 80 and again abou
Oct. rs, but the ice ran out again and
left the river free so that the parties
who had taken chances of being lef
out In the wilderness, most of then
short of provisions, too, probably got e
Dawson, or near it, This opening Of thu
river twice was a phenomenon nevel
known to occur before. There was M
new mining excitement. With a per
sistence heretofore unexplained many
parties from Dawson as we'll as new
comers went up the Stewart river
Nothing whatever except good claimi
have as yet been discovered there. Tn,
belief, however, Is that rich discoveries
will be made there. Jack Dalton ent
Mr.. Maloney, a lawyer Of Juneau, hav'
purchased of Hugh Ferguson and Alex
ander Mcdonald, Skookum claims Nos
and for $82.5OO. 1t is reported that Z
large advance has been offered to tn,
buyers. Skookum claims are LOOKING
up, because some of them have yielded
In initial work as large returns as anl
, found elsewhere"
Lizzie de KaIb's Statement.