Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1897-07-29
FIND LOADS OF GOLD.
MINERS RETURN FROM ALASKA
WITH FORTUNES.
Wealth Awaits the Efforts of Daring
and Hardy DiGsers-stories Are Not
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Accounts
ra,.. Of Richue.. Told.

Tales Of Richness Told.
More stories OF the golden wonders OF
| the arctic mining camp In Alaska are be-
ing told by the returning miners. The
stories Of the great gold find are sur
rounded with the frozen breath of winter,
for the new gold field, is almost within
reach Of the arctic circle, and the miners
are snow and ice bound for six months In
the year. Fortunes await the daring and
the hardy who have money enough to buy
q seasons provisions and strength enough
to withstand the extreme cold. Those
who We're in the gold region of Alaska
have been able to withstand everything,
and are now returning to warmer and
more civilized climes with plenty OF
money. In the summer the miners find
the climate delightful. Those who do
not care TO fight the rigors of the journey
over the divide north Of Juneau reach the
| gold fields by the steamer route along
the Yukon river. But the fight for gold
is one in whicA all the natural forces Of
winter are combined against those who
seek some Of the conveniences Of cities.
The miners who have returned to San
Francisco and Seattle have not exhaust
| ed their tales of the wonderful richness
of the arctic mining camp in the Clon-
dyke district. They are raising their
| voices, however, in solemn warning to
nose who would go to the gold region
without sufficient means and plenty Of
| supplies. t
Later and more authentic news places
the amount of treasure brought down
from the Clondyke by the steamer Port
land at 1900 900, and there is good rea-
son to believe that the sum was nearer
| 100000.
Every man was ordered to place his
| gold dust in the ships safe, but this was
not done. Many Of the miners, perhaps
half Of them, secreted their dust in blan-
kets and satchels, which were taken eth
er to staterooms, or, as in some instances,
were thrown carelessly about the ship.
Others deposited small bags of gold in
| the ships treasure box and carried far
| larger amounts in their valises tucked
| away in stateroom hunks. Clarence j.
Berry, one Of the Clondyke kings, brought
down at least $S4 ,000 not cent Of which
the Portland had on record. This state
ment is made on the authority Of Capt.
William Kidston.
Story Of Fortunate Miner.
One OF the most interesting of the many
| Clondyke stories is told by William Stan
| ley. He is 30 years old and has family
| of seven children. When he left Seattle
| for the Yukon year ago last March he
| was poor. One of the sons cared for the
| family, while another and the father
| sought fortune in the Alaskan placers.
| Ir. Stanley made the statement that he
| would not take 81 900, 900 for his posses
| sion on the Clondyke. In less than three
months he and his partner took out $780,
600 from claims Nos. % and 20, Ell Do
RADIO creek. This great sum Of money, in
credible as it may seem, simply represents
| the yield of prospect holes-shafts sunk
here and there in order to find bedrock to
ascertain the actual value of the claim.
They have actually in sight on these two
properties over $1,000,000. They are
500foot claims, and every prospect hole
gives up dirt running over 81 900 to the
ineal foot. Stanley and his partners, the
Worden brothers, also own claims Nos.
53 and 81, Eel Dorado, known to contain
equally high-paying dirt. They also pur-
chased for $45,0OQ.spot cash half-inter-
est in claim No. 81, FL Dorado and they
also own valuable claims on Bear gulch,
Last Chance gulch and Indian creek. The
pans on the claims run from $500 to $3.50.
Five pans taken at random yielded $3.50.
Advice to Colo. Seekers.
Miners who have returned advise and
urge those who contemplate going to the
Yukon not to think of taking in less than
one ton Of food and plenty of clothing.
While it is poor mans country, yet the
hardships and privations to be encounter
cd by inexperienced persons unused 10
frontier life are certain to result in much
suffering. They should go prepared with
at least years supplies. There are at
present about $500 people in the country,
and that number Is about all that can be
accommodated this winter. Provisions
are high, as it costs 10 to 10 cents pound
to land goods at Dawson City, and it is
impossible to get more provisions in this
year than will supply the present popula-
ton. If miners rush up there this sum-
mer, unless they take with them their
own supplies, they will suffer great hard
ships. The fare to Dawson City from San
Francisco is $3.50, and it will cost at least
$500 to transport supplies for one man.
The first discovery of gold on the Clon-
dyke was in the middle Of August, 1896,
by George Cormack, on a creek emptying
into the Clondyke on the south called by
the Indians Bonanza. He found $160 to
the pan OH high rim, and, after making
the find known as Forty Miles, went back
with two Indians and took out 81, 400 in
three weeks with three sluice boxes. The
creek was soon staked from one end to
the other, and all the small gulches we're
also staked and recorded. This is proba-
bly, the richest placer ever known in the
world. The miners take out gold so fast,
and there is so much of it, that they do
not have time to weigh it with gold scales.
They Use steelya rds