The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1897-12-02
with the correspondent of the Associated

with the correspondent of the Associated
Press, says:
''The excitement over the failure OF
the steamers to bring food up to Daw-
son continued when the Dalton party
left. The police took charge for two
Northwestern and Alaska Commercial.
company as precaution only. Flour was
selling ut 81 pound, and no sale of less
than fifty pounds was made. No plan,
have yet been formulated to avert the
starvation of those who are short of pro,
visions.
''Those well supplied have not much
cause of the fact that the majority of
the latter went in with little food, al
though abundantly warned at Lake Ben
nett, in advance.
ut had not been discovered up to Oc-
tober 10 who shot the two men in Oaw-
son who were caught stealing food. One
was found dead and the other fatally
wounded. 1t is believed that a secret
organization exists for the purpose of
shooting down thieves. The organiza-
ton of hunting parties for the winter to
hunt for moose was talked of and will
be carried out.
'Dysentery and accompanying fever
were general at Dawson last summer,
caused by miasma from the swamp ON
which. the business pe ti1n Of the town
i'd biilf. AMI Absen re of Drainage and
sewerage. These conditions will be
greatly intensified next summer and an
epidemic is predicted.
Nothing was talked about but the grub
question. The solution will probably be
n public committee to gather up volun-
tary or enforced contributions, the food
thus gathered to be publicly dispensed
and paid for by work or cash by per-
cnoc who orn now in nowcDp whp lii,n
myself, would have given any. pccuniary
price in their power to get out by steamer
but could not.
'The people there are being largely
prevented from developing the enormous
ly rich country by the nearly utter so-
lation of the place and scarcity of food.
The work to be done is sufficiently hard
ties should not be increased. A railroad
is the real want. If steamboats, were
run from Lake Bennett to Dawson they
could not travel continuously. The OBJ
stacles of the canon. the Whitehorse and
the Five Fingers rapids are to be re-
moved, and sand and gravel bars and
snags erased. and If there could be all
only for the summer, while a railroad
would be for all the year. The Dalton
trail goes over very easy country If re-
markably light grades. Its two SUBMITS
are exceedingly light and the salt water
terminus at Haines Mills mission, Chill
kat. is an exceedingly fine one.
"Of course. my opinion in this matter
is worth little. but / feel how important
it is that n railroad should be built
through that country. Quartz and placer
mines of great extent and richness are
to be found in the country through which
we passed, and it is my deliberate opin-
ion that California and Australia are
likely to have their past and present vast
" outdistanced by the development Of
that wild region.
Eight of ten of the men now hero
wished they had not come. 1t was
prophcsied at Dawson that there would
next summer and fall be nearly as great
n hegira of outgoers as of incomcrS
Some very rich strikes like those made
last summer and fall may change this.
TRANSFORMATION both WAYS on the river
can hardly be overdone."
In the opinion of Mr.. MaGee no such
amount as $1,00O,00O was brought down
by steamer. A very small amount of
gold dust can he brought overland. and
he did not think that the drafts carried
would exceed $4,000.