The Breckenridge news. (Cloverport, Ky.) 1876-1955, 1897-12-01
Starvation Threatening the PeO-
pie at Dawson City and
at Fort Yukon.
rIany of Them Have Not a Months
Supplies And None Can
Be Procured.
IS MEN BACK FROM DAWSON CITY.

SEATTLE, Wash, Nov. 29.-Twenty-
FIVE men arrived here yesterday on the
City of Seattle direct from Dawson
City. They were divided into two par
ties, the last one of which left Dawson
Oct. 10. The party consisted Of Thomas
Magee, ST. Thomas Magee, Jr., of San
Francisco; "Swift Water Bilp' Gales,
Joe Boyle, William Huskins, f. Eckert,
H. Robertson, H. Raymond. Bert Ma
son, John w. Brauer, w. H. Chambers,
E. w. Pond, E. Ash. j. Gilhspie,
Thomas Wilson, p. McGraw, Jack Dali
ton, William Leak, Arthur Celine, Jo-
seph Fairburn, j. Smith, T. Warren
and Jim Stephenson. They came out
over the Dalton trail. They are report
ed to have between them 100000 in
drafts and gold dust.
All tell stories of food shortage in
Dawson that are almost famine. The
last person to leave Dawson was Jack
Dalton. When Dalton left the steamers
Alice and Bella had reached their des-
tination. 1t is said that the Bella's
cargo consisted of whisky and billiard
balls. She brought no provisions. The
Canadian governments mounted police
chartered the Bella and gave all who
wished free pass to the Yukon. The
Bella is reported to have left about Oct.
~ with 200 men.
According to the statements made by
members of the Dalton party, there is
liable to be trouble of the most serious
kind this winter in Dawson. Billy
Leak told one of the men in party
ahead of him, whom he met at Dyea,
that all the people talk about at Daw-
son was the food famine. Men were
gathering in groups and cursing with
might and main the newcomers that
were constantly coming into the Klon-
dixie loaded with scarcely any provi-
sions. The mounted police were offer
ing free transportation to the grub
placers further down the Yukon river,
at Fort Yukon, but to the countless
hundreds who had labored hard all
through the summer accommodating a
grub stake, the prospect was uninviting
to say the least.
The men figured that it would take
all their earnings in gold to pay their
living expenses at Fort Yukon during
the winter and that in the spring they
would not even have enough to pay
passage money back to Dawson, to say
subsist until they could get started
again.
John W. Brauer, the United States
mail carrier, who left Dawson Sept. 81,
said:
There Is only one salvation for the
miners who are now at Dawson City
and that is for them to undertake the
awful winter trip from Dawson to Fort
Yukon. distance of 400 miles. There
Is no food at Fort Yukon, there is none
at Dawson, and just as sure as the stars
shine terrible suffering will be the fate
of the Dawson miner. unless he leaves
there before spring. L will make my
statement that when l left Dawson the
men who were there had ON an average
four months food supply. Some did
not have a months SUPPLY, some had
four or five. The restaurant closed the
night left. 1t had been selling moth
ing but beefsteak, for which the hungry
paid $3.50.
"When the people realized that the
boats would be unable to get up the
river they knew that starvation threat
ened them and the great stampede be-
gan. The first to leave went to Fort
Yukon. ! guess there were about 10 in
the party that left the first day. One
boat that came up from Fort Yukon
with several newspaper men aboard,
among them Sam Wall and Mr.. Nc
Gilvray. They brought the news that
the Hamilton had unloaded all of her
cargo and tried to get over the bar light
and failed in her efforts, thought she
drew but two feet of water. This news
increased the excitement and made the
rush toward food centers all the great.
er. On Sept ii Bert Nelson of Seattle
and myself left Circle City and started
to pole up the river to Dawson City, a
distance of 800 miles. At the time we
started from Circle City, the miners
had about taken their departure. Ii
took us II days and hours to make
the journey, arriving at Dawson Sep
TENDER &c.
Captain Hanson, wi two Indians
who had left Fort Yukon, beat us into
Dawson by about one hour and half.
Hanson gathered the Dawson City
miners together and made short speech
in which he advised all who did not
have provisions TO last the winter to 60
to civilization or try and reach points
In the Yukon river country, where it
was known that food could be secured.
That night was the greatest one in the
history Of Dawson City. The miners, as
soon as they heard the news, made
hasty preparations TO get out and night
fall saw the goldseekers and men who
can today sell out for many thousands
81 dollars, leaving by thousands for
down-the-river or mp the-river points
The little steamer Kiukuk, which was
10 make the trips from Dawson 10 Pelly,
where the Jack Dalton trail starts, was
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