The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-09-06

$4,000 in a find outside of the recent Klon-
dixie discoveries. Up to the present time
there has never been any gold discovered
in paying quantities in the creeks flowing
from the east with the single exception
of the Stewart river This is due to the
fact that there is an entirely different geo.
logical formation upon that side.
"A deposit of limestone covers the gold
bearing paleoZolc rocks on that side and
only where the paleozoic rocks came to the
surface. Hence the eastern bank was
Stunned and the Klondike river flowing
from this neglected side or the river lay
for years undiscovered. The paleozoic for
nation is found upon the eastern side of
the Yukon river, only south OF the klondike
river, and runs for a short distance up
these eastern tributaries until limestone
and coal formation is reached when the
nation is interesting feature of the
country that is almost unknown. Some or
It has been dug and burned, but, its COM
mercial worth is still undetermined.
THE gOld-bearing district is at least
hundred miles wide, and extends in q gem
orally northwestern direction from Hoota-
lnqua river practically to the Arctic
ocean. The extent of this gold-bearing sec
ton in the extreme Northwest along hoyu-
kuk river Is almost unknown. rms seems
to be an extension of the old Cassiar dis
trict in that the rock formations are ABOUT
the same. 1t will be seen that this Alaskan
gold section is the northern extension OF
the great Rocky mountain gold bearing
belt. An indication Of the age or the coun-
try IS the fact that the rivers nave reached
not like California streams in that they are
wide, sluggish and shallow, showing that
the erosion has ceased, and that they are
gradually filling up. This means that these
rivers have been flowing for many years.
For this reason the gold deposits Of Alaska
are being covered up rather than uncOV-
cred. In some of the creeks II appears that
gold has been disturbed by freshets and
often washed out altogether. This causes an
irregularity in the deposits and an uncer-
tainty in the working OF creek:
pay streak may be struck and worked for
a few hundred feet and then run out. Thls
same streak may be located further up or
down the creek, the intermediate section IN
which no gold is found apparently having
been washed out by some freshet in the
past This irregularity in the pay streaks
makes prospecting uncertain, ana Wnen
coupled with the frozen condition of the
ground prospecting becomes dlncult ana
uncertain indeed.
THE only way in which prospecting can
be done is by sinking holes down TO the
bed rock This is necessarily slow work,
and 1t may be that the prospector Will SINK
his hole only a few feet away from the
pay streaks in one of these barren places
and miss the gold altogether. Another rea-
son for the uncertainty Is the naTroWneetsEs
OF the pay streak compared with the width
Of the creek bottom, and the prospector
may miss it. The next man that prospects
that section may run into gold IN almost
every spot where another man had faned.
There has been no quartz OF any value
found in the country, but as a matter OF
fact quartz mine prospecting mas not Dee "a
prosecuted There has been small seam
of quartz with gold in 1t found in one OF
the claims in Franklin gulch, and IL is my
idea that when the source of the gold IN
this region is found it will be from such
seams in the bed rock. There is not SIN
gle quartz mine in that whole sectlon.
There are mineral veins in which gold, Sill
yer. copper and lead are found In varying
quantities, but have not seen any distinct
quartz lodges
out a round million dollars from Bonanza
ana Edorado creeks. Eldorado produced
about 100000 of this amount from the hrst
irfx three
creek Half a dozen claims produced the
majority of this amount-probabiy $o0oO
The claims that turned out TINS large
amount are: No. 2, F. Phiscater: No. o.
Clarence Berry; No. s, Lamb & McNamee
Nos. IA and Is, owned by Sloane Brothers;
who afterward sold TO knauSe d Co., ana
No 49, owned by T. /. Lippy.
1.-The story has gone out that many OF
these amounts We're made in rev weeks
or few days. This is not correct, owing
t. the peculiar way in which these mines
are worked The finds actually represent
the work of the winter, for the men work
all winter digging out the ground ana pll.
ing up their dump, anc then washing out
in the spring, when the water begins 10
run The largest single pan of which there
IS anv authentic record was thirty-hve
ounces, or about $3.50, taken out by Wllilam
Ogilvie the dominion land surveyor on the
Berry claim. There are about twenty
rlairns on Bonanza creek that will compare
favorably with those on Eldoradc. There
are altogether about three hundred claims
on Hunker, Eldorado and Bonanza creeks
that will be worked quite extensively this
winter.
ssThere are about six hundred claims that
have been recorded in the Klondike dis
trict The Indian river, which empttes into
the Yukon about forty miles ABOVE the
Klondike will be thoroughly prospected
this winter. Dominion creek tributary
of the Indian river has been located on ex5
tensively and there are about one hunore,n
claims in that district. Stewart river Will
be given considerable attention this win
ter and next year. There has been nothlng
done there since the old bar diggings, ana
no gulch diggings have been attempted.
A little gold comes out of those every year
there will be a rush there when the new
corners find that the Klondike is entirely
taken up After that it will be necessary
10 branch out in the almost unexplored dis
tricts between Forty-mile creek and the
Arctic ocean. / expect that the new gold
diggers will force their way into all or these
sections and there may yet be hnds IN these
unexplored regions.