The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1898-04-09
BURIED IN SNOW.
81 Persons Lose Their Lives ON
ChilkOOt Pass
By a SnOWslide Which Swept
Over the Trail.
MANY MORE CAUGHT
But Were Taken Out Alive by
KlOndikers,
Who Thr0nged the Trail at the
Time.
MANY MORE CAUGHT

Skaguay, Alaska, April 4-via Seat
tie, Wn-, April Sat about noon today,
on the Chilkoot trail, between the Scales
and Stone House, a large number Of
people were overwhelmed by a snow
slide.
Later it is believed that between SO
and 100 people were killed. Thirty-one
bodies have been recovered and identi-
fed and rs were brought out alive.
The dead We're crushed under an
avalanche of snow and ice, which came
down from the mountain side upon the
left hand side of the trail at midway
between the Scales and Stone House.
At this writing the known dead are:
Gus Sebarth, Seattle.
Frank Sprague, Seattle.
Steve Stevenson, Seattle.
Tom Collins, Portland, Ore.
c. P. Harrison, Seattle
w. L. Riley, Seattle.
One woman, name unknown.
Ed Atwood, New York.
Q. Beck, Sanford, Fla.
L. Weidlein, Kansas City, Mo.
Mrs. Ryan, Baltimore, Md.
John Morgan, Emporia, Kan.
- Grimes, Sacramento, Cal, who
has a brother in business at Dyea.
Two of the seriously injured are Wal
ter Chappey of New York and John c.
Murphy, of Dixon, South Dakota
The point at which the accident &C.
CURED is some five miles above Sheep
Camp. The nearest telephone station is
four miles distant. The telephone wires
at this point were carried away by the
slide. This fact makes it difficult to
obtain further particulars at this time.
A binding snow storm was raging all
day upon the summit and as a conse-
quence many of those in the vicinity
were making no attempt to travel. Sc
barth, Sprague and Stevenson, of Seat
tie, were travelling together as partners
| and were found side by side in bed
Thousands of people were encamped
in the vicinity n of "a
time and were soon upon the scene rem
der1ng such assistance as was possible
On receipt of the news, points below
Dyea telephoned up to know if assist
ance was required and received answer
to the effect that five thousand people
were at work on the debris and were
only In each others way.
All day Saturday and Sunday a
southerly storm with rain, wind and
snow, prevailed in this vicinity, and it
is believed the softening of the snow on
the mountain side by those agencies
was the cause of the avalanche. The
quantity of snow and ice that came
down in the slide is estimated at thous-
ands of tons. 1t swept directly across
the trail, which, Notwithstanding the
fact that the weather was unsuitable
for travel, was thronged with way
farers. The last vestige of the trail in
the vicinity was wiped out of existence
and where it led is now a mountain Of
snow and ice, under which are many
dead bodies that cannot be recovered
for days to come.
Later reports bring the information
that the bodies of three more unfortu-
mates have been taken from the snow.
One is that of Garrison, initials and res
idence unknown; Richie, initials and
residence unknown; Durbar initials
unknown; residence, Seattle.
There was a preliminary slide at 2
O'Clock in the morning. People were
digging out their goods when the second
slide occurred about noon.