The Brunswick times. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 188?-1900, 1898-02-06
GOLD HUNT.
EXPERIENCES or A YOUNG MAN lE
THE KLoNDlKE REGION.

sunaringa of tl.s afiners Tricks Played
~ the Insepse Cord How the Pros
psetors work called on - Act u JUS
tlee In asinsrs Quarrel.
The following private letter from
Lake Marsh, N. w. Il. dated Dec 70,
1897, recently received IN New York
from young man who has gone to the
Klondike region 10 search of fortune
gives a very graphic picture Of the sort
a life these fortune seekers lead
Since writing you last have been
OF on trip Or st least was IN the mid
die Of It then; only home for few
days 10 ice those men from Dawson. !
was ID hopesthat the next time should
write would DO able TO tell you had
struck something, but am not sure
that what have found will pan out
very much. ! had fairly good surface
prospects, and 1t may turn out good
ground; that can only be told when I
reach bedrock, which Is from 20 to rs
feet down. / had to leave the hole to
help bring Fred Johnson and his party
back, a. they all had their feet badly
frozen. Fred will most likely lose tho
toes on his right foot. The day DO had
toes frozen it was 81 degrees below,
zs.lseen 81 degrees below. had
my nose bitten, -s'ss1 eek was.
a pretty sight, but it is All fse2lB lE0sss.
tell you it is funny living in q tent by
yourself when the cold is az bad as that.
/ did it for two weeks and got along all
right, but some Of those out had pref
ty hard time Of it, Frozen faces, hands
and feet were the order Of the day.
Now, do not put mo down for liar
when tell you Of some Of the funny
tricks the cold plays on you. When 1
startad, took IL leaves Of bread with
me, and at the first camp made
found them frozen put loaf ia
pan and put some water on II to thaw
IL out, but 1t would burn before it
would khaw knife would do no
good, for ii was az hard as n brick 50
had to cut my bread with saw, just
as would piece Of wood With the
ash we catch do the same way--rip
them down the middle with saw and
take Ratchet and chip off the scales
Now s.are is one you will not believe,
but 10 Is asue: / took bucket Of water
of my stove and put II right down be-
side the redhot stova. The side next
the stove kept warm. but tha oth6l side
- froze solid. Such is life in the a1atic.
will tell you just how we prospect
ut this TINE Of the year. Everything
has 20 be hauled by sled. and one has to
take grub enough 10 last At least q
month. In fact that Is about all one
man can take. We have what are known
a Yukon HIads. They are feet long
and Is inches wide, the runners an inch
and 4 hs.if broad On slod we put a
tent stove t,at Ii feet long and about
Id inches wide and as tall. The pipes
fit one inside another aud go IN the fire
bog. Then 40 the blankets, sack Of flour
$50 pounds and beanss about 10 pennds;
Aacon, 10 pounds; fruit. rice, oatmeal,
eto; pfe1 shovel. Ak. saw, anger, gold
pan and what extra clotnas one cares Is
take. In all. when the sled II loaded
there are between $50 and 500 poun<Ia
which 0no has To drag over fallen tim.
ber, rough ground and deep snow. and
1T times take the whole load Off and
pack it and tho sled up steep hill
one cannot mako more than five to seven
miles III d day, and that only IL one
keeps going al the time Whom It il
possible, we always take the river or
lakes Then il Is easy pulling. and
where thera is no snow on the ice the
sled almost runs ly self.
When we e0Ne 70 . place that we
think we would like to prospects we
pitch the tent aud build big fire over
the place we intend to dig TO thapw che
!. ground, which is frozen solid In this
part az the country for about six feet.
Sometimes we keep the fire going all
night and ia tho morning commence to
dig. II there is any wash. which
means gravel that has been washed bsl
the action Of water, IL il taken as
good sign. and we usually pan the dirt
right below ii We may find color, 4
but that ID not often the case When ii
Ia, ono cannot work fast enough 10 get
to bedrock and see whnt " there, II
we tind black sand, which usually Is
found where gold is. il il taken as a
fairly coed sign Whom | speak Of col
ors. + can Emo pieces 81 gold. perhaps
50 inc you have 20 use 4 glass 20 SEQ
them Tho days are very short now,
The sun il up about 80. and tits dusk
at 1850 So Won soc our days work is 4
short one But after you got the hole
started you either have to keep at work
ar else put fire Ia she hole to keep il
fi1nwEu. 80 yuu see one mas 60 pe as it
all tha time.
Ia tha hole have under way got
three colors in nay second pan. About
three feet down below that struck
sort Of clay for about four feet Then a
wash Of gravel and stone some Of which
weighed IS 70 100 pounds. for about
two and half feet and my anger
showed below that for nearly ave feet
clay and some wash in it. What will
be below that do not know, but will
find out, you can bet, the first chance /
have.