The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-09-02
THEY WILL STARVE.
THOUSANDS OF HORSES ON sKAGUAY
TRAIL ARE DOOMED.
After snow Flies They Wfn Decsne
Useiess-Pepslasfea - the Mush-
room City May Yet Feed On Horse
FIesh-7hfrteen TAossanA AMI
of Blockade PFospeeters.

When cold weather sets IN the thous-
ands OF horses on Skaguay trail are DOOM
ed Already ma3y far seeing men are
predicting q state Of affairs on the CUES
ton at Skaguay which presages III for
those who are calculating on making piles
OF money IN Specializing In horses or
operating pack trains. One Of the men
who secured passage for a dozen horses
yesterday TO go TO Alaska on the City Ct
Seattle expressed his fears on the specu-
latlon in terms which may well be con-
sldered prophetic. He said:
We'll. suppose I Will have 10 sell those
horses for meat in a month or two"
VIII the 1900 or 500 horses which VIII
be at Skaguay and scattered along over
the trail be of any use after the snow
comes and settles on the trail from six
70 sixty feet IN depth? Very few have
given the subject any thought In case
the horses are found 20 be useless when
the cold weather sets in, what Is 10 he
done with them2 The scheme of the
passenger above quoted is certainly an
ingenious one, and offers the best solution
OF the difficulty.
To ship them back will be out of the
question; TO winter them viii never be
attempted There remains but two things
to do-to shoot them or to eat them
The Skaguay jam was predicted. but
nothing could prevent IL. People would
rush in with the crowd. Two other
clouds are looming up on the horizon
Of the golden sky--one the starving OF
men on the Klondike and the other the
starvation or slaughter OF $3.50 horses at
Skaguay.
The leading feature of travel to Alaska
at the present time Is the large number
OF horses taken north. All gold hunters
who have gone so far as to express their
opinions In figures on the need OF horses
have declared that every man with his
outfit OF supplies should have at least
three horses in order 20 get over 10 the
lakes without delay: that Is that three
horses TO the man are absolutely needed
70 convey the supplies over in time for
the prospectors 10 get down the river be-
fore IL freezes up and Is closed to naviga-
ton.
II Is asserted that there are 5000 men
at Skaguay. Supposing that 1,0eo of this
number will either go over by the Chill
koot pass or remain in business at Skag-
uay, there are still 5.000 men 10 go over
the White pass. The most extravagant
estimate of the number OF horses at pres
ent on the White pass is 1900 and this
number is probably twice the number
really there If three horses are needed
to the man. there is necessity for Il. 900
horses. and IL there are only 1900 there
the prospectors need about l3 900 more
horses to get them over before the Yukon
freezes.
All OF the recent boats going north have
been taking horses in l.9eral proportion
10 the number OF men going, and this week
VIII see more horses than ever going 10
Alaska. The woods have been secured
for horses. the prairies lar and near have
been drawn on for cayuses and ponies,
and steeds of every description have been
Nfff ~f
taken north are novices at packing. and
will prove utterly worthless when put to
the test. Inferior feed and poor quarters
will decimate the number and the perilous
trail viii Kill many more, so that IL Is
altogether probable ar all the horses
which are taken to Skaguay before the
cold weather arrives viii be useful.