The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1897-08-10
TO SHIP 'EM WIVES
BELIEF IN SIGHT FOB THE POOR
BACHELORS OF KLOHDIKE

When the Nights Get Cold They Suffer Ter
ribly and Innsmerabis Plans are Pro
posed to Send Them Wives-One A1an
| Wants to Train Gophers to Pick Out the
Have a. Many Foolish Schemes for GET.
| ting RIch-Evsrybody Thinks His Plan
is tho Very Best Thing.
| Chicago, Aug 9.-Many and queer are
| tahe schemes that nave grown out Of
the Klond.ke craze. They recall the
faoled days when magicians had the
| power to conjure up wonderful genii and
set them to doing strange and uncanny
| things. The very air IS full Of schemes.
some alluring, some preposterous, some
| audaciously novel. 1t is the heyday Of
the dreamer and enthusiast.
Legitimate Klondike enterprises. min
ing, trading and development companies,
with an aggregate capital of s64, GOO
are on the market. Following in the
wake of these come the projects OF the
Missionaries.
IF 1 were to give you the details OF
some Of the schemes that have been sub
mitted to me recently for making money
in the Klondike," said one Chicago cap
italist, you would think some insane
asylum had been thrown open. and the
inmates turned loose. Some OF the IDEAS
are not bad in themselves, but are I'M
practicable, owing TO the condition OF
the country. Others are SIMPLY the
rankest form Of lunacy, while others yet
are downright swindles. People who
would not even think Of suggesting a
fraud in connection with ordinary ousi-
ness have no hesitation in boosting up
a fraud in a mining boom. AS a rule,
however, the irresponsible schemers are
merely wild eyed cranks, who have an
honest confidence in their own plans.
Inventors, spectators, promoters and
prospectors are going about like modern
genii with propositions for making every
body immensely rich. Acquiring great
wealth depends solely upon immediate
use Of a little ready money. Shares in
the Consolidated Transaiaskan Gopher
company, Offered at 81 each, Will return
dividends Of so q minute as soon as the
company gets TO work The idea is to
take contracts for tunneling claims with
trained gophers Nothing is impossible,
nothing ch.mericaL
Men with seedy garments and faces
bearing all to plainly the marks OF hum
ger and want, rub elbows with portly,
well fed individuals and talk glibly about
millions to be had IN various ways.
Newspapers are full OF advertisements
calling for financial aid in developing
Alaskan projects, offices Of transporta-
ton lines are besieged by hundreds OF
i,npecunious beings who seek to make
their wits pay the price Of passage to the
Eldorado, and on every street corner
people are encountered with Klondike
schemes in varying forms OF develop
ment. Women have got the craze as
badly as men and some OF their hobbies
are, il anything, even more outlandlsh.
Importation OF young women into
Northern Alaska as wives for the miners
IS the project OF an elderly dame laid
before the officials Of the North Ameri-
can Transportation and Trading COM
pany. She figures that at least 1000 Of
the 10000 hardy prospectors in the Klon-
away and would be willing ITO pay
good price for the proper kind Of help
meets. 81 am organizing company.
she said, land want your Endorsement.
You can make money out Of the trans
porta ton and board Of the women, and
the commissions from the miners will
insure my company big profit. Now,
l want you to take some OF the stock
in pay for the passage Of myself and
two or three agents while We run UP
there to make arrangements and"
But Mr.. Weare shut her off and made
his escape.
Charlotte Smith, the eastern Socioio-
gist, wants to transplant 1000 or more
work'n women from sweatshops and
factories to Klondike camps. Hers is
not a money-making scheme-she is Ia
boring solely n what she thinks the best
interests OF humanity. Transportation
from life Of drudgery, with a bare pit
lance in the way OF wages. to homes N
Alaska would, in Miss Smiths opinion,
be blessing which thousands OF women
would be glad to embrace. To carry
out her plans funds are needed, but no
big subscriptions thus far have been re-
ported. In the meantime an enrolment
is going on of those women who are
willing 20 take their chances in the fro
zen north.
Another woman wanted TO get s., 900
to use in organizing a company 10 locate
gold placer claims. She was endowed
with powers OF cla.rvoyance and could
unerringly point out hidden deposits of
precious metals She had done so with
great success in California and Colorado
AMI would now like TO try her hand in
Alaska. Suggestion that clairvoyance
should enable her 10 pick out hacker
was taken as a personal insult, and she
departed in high dudgeon.
Scores OF women, some ot them good
looking and % seeming refinement. nave
announced their willingness TO marry
anybody in the shape OF miner who
has made lucky strike, and in evidence
of good faith have put their names and
house addresses on record. Others want
% visit the Klondike as cooks, as nurses,
as domestics. in any capacity 50 long IS
they can get there without any outlay
for fare. and with prospect O. big wages
al The end ot the trip.
Women appear also as promoters OF !
mining and development projects. Some |
Of them can talk inteiligently about the !
country and lis prospects, and have a /
way OF setting on, Their pro- !
positions. One, a little keener than her |
n the hun; for the dolalrs OF |
the public. has sprung a plan by which 1
stock may be paid FOR on the installnent |
basis a the rate OF twenty-five cents a I
week a share. In the sp-ing-most OF |