The record-union., 1898-04-14
FUN ON The SKAGUAY TRAIL.
ET IS NOT ALL A STRUGGLE
FOR LIFE.
The Weather Warm and Pleasant,
and the Trail Crowded
With Men.

F. f. Cook, who is one of the army
of gold seekers struggling toward Daw-
son, writes the following cheerful let
ter to relatives in this city:
Skaguay Trail, Tagish Lake, April Sd
We are here on the lake saving lum-
| Der to make a boat. We have been
two days putting up a frame to saw
on and tlllng one saw. The other boys
knew nothing about filing a saw, and
l did not know much. so it took me
| two days to get the saw so it would
cut, but L got it, and after spelling two
logs we got one board, so we have got
a starter for lumber
! The camps on this trail are like
| towns. There are tents all around u.s.
| and nearly all the men are green at
! the business, but if the timber holds
out L think we will all get boats of
| some kind. There are several carpen-
ters in the camp, and saWmill is go
| ing up here, SO we can buy a boat if
we cannot make it ourselves. But as
time is no object, we are going to try
and make it ourselves
We killed our OK when we got here
and are selling the meat at % and 80
cents pound, and 1 think we will sell
it nearly all, so we will get our money
| back on the OK, besides the work we
! got out of him and what meat we
want to keep.
| We are all We'll, and have been all
| the way through. and are all getting
so fat we can hardly get around. The
| clothes that we used to wear in Ne
vada are all too small for us and the
pants VIII not button around our
waists, but if the weather gets as warm
as they say 1t does l guess we will all
come down again
We have had a few very cold davs
/ and nights. but most of the time the
weather has been mild and pleasant.
We have been without our coats most
OF the time. Travelling along the road,
or at work, we do not dress anv warm
| er, If as warm, as we did in Nevada.
So, taking it all round. we have had a
very good trip. We did a good deal
Of hard work on the trail, and had lots
! of fun to go with it.
There are people here trying to take
! outfits over the trail that never did
such work in their lives and know
nothing about it, and it is fun to watch
then. Some have horses. some oxen,
! dogs, and some are working by hand.
/
the best. We made no little fun for
the others with our OK Sometimes he
would baik and lie down in the trail.
and stop everything. Then the fun
would begin We would try to get him
/ up, and other men would yell al us to
get out of the way. One day he laid
GOWN in the trail going up a steep
hlIl and we had the road blocked for
quarter of mile. I got club and
/ peat him over the head until I got
/ tired. Then a woman came up and
sat down on the ground and began to
pet him, and she would look at me as
much to say she would like to use the
club But we finally got him up and
! out of the way.
L cannot tell you much about this
country yet for it is all covered with
! snow, and the lakes and streams are
all frozen over. But as far as | have
seen it is high mountains and deep
canyons, with plenty of timber and
water. and when we find any bare
ground we find a good deal of grass
and some clover
The hills are nearly all rocky and
| steep, and the timber does not grow
very high up on them. but timber is
plenty along the lakes and streams. It
/ is small and scrubby, and a tree two
| feet through is a pretty big one. but
| they spIint and work very well. and
the wood cuts easy. but is very hard to
! break
The mounted police carry mail
through to Lake Lebarge.