The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-04-19
FORCED TO TURN BACK
Rsber Lost His Outfit in the Ava.
lanche at skaguay.
SNOW WAS PACKED SOLID
Some o. the Bodice OF the Victims Were
Found Standing Uprieht-smoth-
cred TO Death by the Avalanche.
Couldn't Move q Muscle.

Charles Reber. formerly a member Of
the grocery Arm of Reber Brothers at
S36 South Main street. returned to
Butte yesterday from Alaska. where he
lost his OUTFIT In the Skaguay ava
lanche. and was compelled to turn
back to lay in q new stock. Mr.. Reber
did not accompany his outfit when IL
left Dyea and hat is why he was able
to return to Butte to tell about It.. He
left Butte for Alaska about the first
OF the year and arrived In Dyea on the
18th Of January. where he secured en-
ployment as clerk in a store, but did
not make up his mind to go into the
Klondike until about a week before the
horror OF the Chilcoot pass. He invest
ed his funds In an outfit and vent into
partnership with X. Poulin and A.
Jones. W young men from st. Louis,
and another named Poulin from San
Francisco. They sent their outfits on
ahead. expecting to follow in about a
week. On Sunday evening. April 3. a
telephone message was received at Dyea
from S~tonehouse. the first cache above
Sheep Camp. giving the first informa-
ton of the avalanche. Stonehouse is
only about Is miles from Dyea and
Reber his partners went to the
scene of the horror the next morning
and remained there during the day as
sisting in the search for bodies.
The snow was packed in so solid"
said Mr.. Reber. that II was hard work
digging II OUT. When ] left In the even
ing they had taken out AZ bodies. They
had all been smothered and not one of
the bodies was d~isfgured or mutilated
and not a single bone In them broken.
Several men were taken out alive. A
number were ound standing upright.
One man who was taken out alive said
the snow was packed about him so
firmly that he could not move a mus
Gle. One OF his arms was appraised and
he tried to move his fingers, but could
not bulge them"
Before ne left Dyea Mr.. Reber had
heard that SO bodies had been taken out,
but, he said. II would ake 500 men a
whole month before the snow was re-
moved suficiently to get out all the
bodies. For several weeks prior to the
slide II had been raining on the trail
and the Indian guides and old timers
warned people that the trail was unsafe
and that an avalanche was likely to oc-
cur. but the excited goId-seekers would
not heed the warning.
The first slide was at Scales, the
cache between Stonehouse and the top
Of the trail." said Mr.. Reber. 1T caught
several people but no one was injured,
and they all decided to get out. They
procured a long rope. on which all took
hold. m started back to Dyea. They
were caught as they neared Stone
house. All the bodies. except a few that
We're ahead of the main body, were
found along the rope"
Mr.. Reber knew none Of the bodies
he saw and did not know that a Butte
man named Millett or Miller was among
the number until ne read II in the pa
pers. The frightful accident deferred
many men from attempting to cross the
trail later.
The Dyea trail is the best end cheap
est of ALL" said Mr.. Reber, but II Is a
winter trail only"
One of the bodies taken out OF the
snowslide was that of a mar from New
York who had $40. 900 in paper money
and drafts on his person. He was evil
IDENTIFY going to the Klondike to invest
in gold properties or engage in bust
ness of some kind.
The Klondike rush" said he, has
entirely subsidized. II fell off so or 20
per cent. in two weeks. BY this time. I
the towns up there that have been de-
pending on the klondike travel are
about dead. II Is estimated that about
TO- 900 men passed through Dyea this
spring. but there will be little more
travel that way now until next fail.
or course when n~avigation opens on the
Yukon. In June or July, there will be a
lumber who will go In that way"
Mr.. Reber said he met several Butte
men at Dyea who had brought dog
teams with them n were very much
disguised when they learned that dogs
were not much good and We're more
bother than they were worth. lone
horse Is worth 20 dogs" said Mr.. Reber.
Regarding the spinal meningitis cpl
demic In Alaska he said the matter was
greatly overdrawn. About 81 died at
Skaguay and 20 at Dawson. Mr.. Reber
expects to return to Alaska In the fall.