The Springfield herald., 1897-07-23
THE REAL ELDORADO.
Marvellous Tai = of the New PIncers In
Aihska-Big Quantities of Gold
Verify Them.


Seattle, Wash, July ia special to
the Post-lntcllisencer from Port Town
send, Washington says:
At B o'clock this (Snturday) morning
the steamship Portland from st. Mi
cnaels FOR Seattle passed up the sound
with more than ton of solid gold on
board, and siXty-cight passengers. In
the captains cabin are three chests ana
large safe filed with the precious
nuggets. The metal is worth nearly
SIOO,0oO, and the most of it was taken
out of the ground in less than three
months of last winter, and in size, the
nuggets range from the size of n pea
to n guinea egg.
OF the siXty-eight miners aboard
hardly man has less than $1,000. and
one or two have more than 100000 in
yellow metal.
one peculiar feature noticed is that
the big strikes We're made by tender
feet willie the old and experienced
miners of many years experience are
suffering indiscribablc hardships and
privations in Alaska and the northwest
territory, and have only few thou
sand dollars to show for their labors
Fortune seemed to smile on the mex
ing districts late last year, as nearly
all of them were fortunate.
The steamer Portland, which brought
down over S1.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
that there is room for hundreds of men
more in Alaska. They admit that all
of the fields in the vicinity of Klon-
dyke have been taken. but every river
in Alaska is. in their Judgment, filled
with gold, which can be secured If the
men are willing to risk the hardShipS.
Inspector Strickland of the Canadian
mounted police. who came down on the
Portland. says: when | left Dawson
City, n month ago, there We're about
800 claims stakcd out. and there are
between 1000 and 5000 ,nnn in there.
We can safely say that there were
about 81 100000 in gold mined last win
ter. The wages in the mines We're S1o
n day. and the sawmill paid laborers
SO day.
The claims now staked out will af-
ford employment to about 5000 men,
1 believe. If n man is strong, healthy
and wants work he can find employ
ment at good wages. Several men
worked on an interest. or what is
termed n lay and during the winter
realized from $1,000 TO $4,000 apiece.
The mines are thirty-five to 100 miles
from the Alaska boundary"
A letter received from Dawson City,
under date of June 18th. contains
many interesting facts. The writer,
Arthur Perry, n well-known citizen of
Seattle, says: "Tlrc first discovery of
gold on the Nlondvke was in the mid
die of August. 1896. by George Cor
mack, on n creek emptying into the
Klondyke on the south, called by the
Jn n
the pan on high rim, and after max
ing the find known ms Forty Miles went
back with two Indians and took out
81 400 in three weeks with three sluice
boxes. The creek was soon stalicd
from one end to the other. And all the
small gulchcs We're also staked and re-
corded. About September 10th n man
by the name of Whipple prospccted
creek cmptying into the Bonanza and
named it Whipple creek. He shortly
afterward sold out and the miners re-
named 1t El Dorado.
"When first reached the new camp
I was invited by the butcher boys
Murphy Thorpe of Juneau and George
Stewart. from Stuck Valley, Washing
ton-to 90 down in their shaft and pick
n pan of dirt. as they had just struck
n rich streak To my surprise 1t was
S2S3.50. In fourteen pans of dirt they
took out 81 .JG5 right in the bottom of
the shaft, which was four by eight feet.
March Goth, Clarence Berry took out
$500 TO the pan. Jimmy McLain took
out over 5000 to the pan: Frank PMS
cater took out S135 to the pan; four
boys from Nanaimo took as high rs
S125 to the pan. They We're the first
men to get hole down to bedrock and
got good pay. They had numbers Ia
and 10.
I'm fact big pans We're being taken
out on nearly every claim on this creek
until 500 or S2O0-dollar pans were
common. April 18th. Clarence Berry
took in one pan thirty-nine ounces,
Si95. and in two days panned out over
81 200. April 14th. we heard that some
boys on No. 30 El Dorado had struck
1t rich and taken out $500 in one pan.
This was the banner pan of the creek,
and Charles Meyers. who had the
ground, told that if he had waited to
pick the dirt he could have taken 100
ounces just as easy"
Chance for Trouble.
Pittsburg. July 1S.-Thc events of to-
,f,,f, 4 iss