The herald., 1898-02-01
A WORD OF WARNING
THE KLoNDIKE A POOR PLACE
FOR THE LABoRING MAN
Ex-Supervisor John 2. Barnett of Ven
tura County Sends Brief Budget
of Frozen Facts

John 2. Barnett of Ventura county has
found that it is not all gold that glitters
particularly when the glittering quail
ties are supplied by wild-haired stories
concerning the Klondike, such as have
been freely disseminated by many who
have returned for supplies" within the
past few months.
| Mr.. Barnett was for several years
supervisor in Ventura county and was
| one of the best known citizens of that
section. Early last summer he left for
the Klondike and is now sorry that he
did so. if letter written to Los An
geles friend is any indication of his
present true state of mind.
The letter is dated at Bonanza Gulch.
Northwest territory, october 81, 1897,
and runs as follows:
Il will give you the promised letter
if it ever reaches you. arrived at Daw-
son City on the last day of September,
after having been out fifty-e eight days
from San Francisco.
This is a very hard country. While
they have some gold here. there is a
great deal said on the outside that is
exaggerated and a great many claims
made for this country that have dis
covered to be unfounded in fact would
not advise any man to quit good job
and come to the klondike. | will give
you a partial list of the prices prevail
ing here for necessary articles of food.
Flour sells for Sl.25 per pound, coffee s.,
candles $50 per twenty-pound box, sin
gle candles frequently selling for 81;
beef brings S1.25 per pound. Everything
else runs in proportion. There is great
shortage of food of all kinds and many
people will have to go out on the ice as
soon as the river freezes over or starve.
The hotel gives meals for $3.50 or three
meals for $40. So you can readily see
how the newspapers get their stories
about men getting 81 an hour or from
$40 to SIS a day for working on the
claims.
Now, about the gold fields. I have
investigated only in the immediate
neighborhood of this camp, in which
there are probably about 500 claims
Probably only five or ten per cent of the
whole number are paying. | know
number of men who have been here for
five years and today they have not grub
enough to carry them through the Win
ter. and they are not whisky heads,
either. A man has to work every day in
the year. You will hear different story
told by these people when you get in
this country from what you hear in the
states, and see in many of the newspa-
pers. AS a matter of fact. the Alaska
Commercial Trading company and the
Northwest Territory Trading company
have nearly all the best mines in the
northwest.
Il have a steady job and expect to
work all winter for 81 an hour. If
have money enough in the spring to buy
as much grub as 1 have on hand now, l
will try my luck in the gold fields. But
it will be on Uncle Sans territory No
Canadian government for me. 1t cost
US s45 duty on our little outfit. When
you make kick the Canadians will ask:
Well, why did you pass the Dingley
bill?'
Everything is staked out here, so
there is no chance to do any prospect
ing until spring. When l have spent "A
year or so in this country l will have a
better knowledge of the place but l am
satisfied that this is a poor place for a
la boring man. If you sit down and think
of all the hardships you can imagine,
you will have but half an idea of what
must be endured to get to and live in
this country"