The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1898-08-29
DAWSON HAS A
BUSTING RIVAL
IN kTL|N CITY
J: Steady Rush to the
New Diggings.
IT'S A POOR MANS LAND
SURFACE PROSPECTS VERY
;: PROMISING.
In Claims Within Large Area From
Eight to Twenty Dollars Day
Can Be Taken Ou+ With
Pan and Rocker.
IT'S A POOR MANS LAND
SURFACE PROSPECTS VERY
: PROMISING.
BY HAL HOFFMAN.
sDecia! Correspondents of The Call.

LAKE BENNETT, Alaska. Aug. %
(by steamship Farallon to Port Towns
ends Aug. 2S).-For the first time in
over year interest in the Klondike
gold creeks is overshadowed by some
thing else, the discovery of new gold
diggings about 500 miles nearer than
the Ell Dorado of the Yukon Valley.
Reports which continue to come up
the lakes from Atlin Lake are very en-
couraging. Men are rushing into the re-
gion and have been since my first report
OF two weeks ago. Travel by steamship
Is very expensive, especially when one
carries along an outfit sufficient for d
season. Many have come to Lake Ben
nett and found they did not have
money enough to go farther, or food
enough to last them while they built a
boat. They have, consequently, gone
back to Dyea, Skaguay or Juneau for
more money and more grub" Beyond
question there will be large-sized
winter camp at the new diggings-per-
-haps three Of them. Three towns have
already been started. One is at Dis
; cevery Camp, eight miles UP Pine
Creek, another at the mouth of the
creek, on the lake, and the third at the
-rnunication between the Takou arm of
Lake Tagish and Lake Atlin.
Lumber is exceedingly scarce. The
erection of buildings is greatly i'm
peded. Communities of tents are
springing up as they did at first at
Dyea, Skaguay and Dawson, to develop
later into substantial cities. There is
hardly enough lumber to construct
sluice boxes for the claims. Every board
shipped in is gobbled up before it leaves
the water or is bought ahead. A small
saw mill is making proportionately as
much money as can be taken out Of the
best diggings in Alaska.
A half dozen other creeks which have
been prOspected show rich colors to the
pan on the surface. All are reported to
present d large area of gravel which at
the surgace prospects indicate that
from SIS to $50 a day may be taken out
with pan and rocker. If this estimate
holds up a large area of the Atlin Lake
district viii be a poor mans country.
This is already beginning to be quite
generally realized.
First reports Of the Attn diggings
were exaggerated by those coming out.
The fact is, however, that there is gold
and considerable of it on Pine and
Spruce creeks; that bedrock has been
reached in but half a dozen places, and
the surface prospects of the entire
region, hundreds of miles in extent, are
very. promising. It is quite possible
that by next spring Dawson may have
very lively rival in Atlin City. at the
mouth of Pine Creek.
Food is very scarce. Nearly every
man took in only enough to last while
he staked a claim. More provisions ara
going in and many are coming out af-
ter food. All kinds of provisions are
very high.
Real estate spectators are sending
the widest kinds of reports out and
making desperate efforts to get them
printed in San Francisco and Seattle
newspapers. Twenty thousand dollars
Is said to have been offered for Discov-
cry claim on Pine Creek and refused.
Juneau has sent in an expedition to
open a trail from Takou Inlet, near that
place, to Atlin, a short and compare
lively easy route to Lake Atlin.