The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-03-14

The much-boasted all-Canadian route to
| Dawson via the Stickeen river and trail,
/ Lake Teslin and the Hootalinqua river, is
failure. Between 10o and I.0oo men. after
| struggling for days to drag their sleds
| through the mushy ice with which the
Stickeen is covered, are stalled at various
| points along the river. None have gone
| further than twenty miles up, and many
| are going back to Wrangel in disgust.
| Others will camp where they are until the
river is clear of ice and the sternwheelers
begin to run. All their labors for the past
two months viii count for naught. as IL
Will be nearly three months before the
| steamers can move them. The four big
| outfits. which are stalled by the failure of
the Stickeen to prove available for winter
travel. have chartered the river boats. and
| the hundreds of Individual prospectors will
| have TO wait month after the river opens
| This is the dismal news which the steamer
| Cottage City brought back from Fort
| Wrangel yesterday afternoon. Several OF
| her passengers were men who have given
| up the fight against overwhelming odds,
| after toiling for weeks on the river ice.
Among these was Anthony La Forrest
Brown. who has been trying since early
last spring 10 get into the Yukon country.
lie packed a thousand-ponnd outfit over
the Chilkoot pass, but finding Ice begin
ming 10 freeze in Lake Bennett, sold it rath-
er than remain seven months at the lake.
His attempt on the Stlckeen was COM
menced early in January. He has spent
several thousand dollars. and is anything
bur a ''aultter.' but he has had experience
enough to recognize the iupossibility OF
doing anything on the Stickeen. When
seen by Post-Intelligencer reporter last
| night. Mr.. Brown said:
THE Stickeen route is an absolute fail
ure far as winter travel is concerned
! Such is the opinion of the go men who have
spent from seven to eight weeks trying 10
| pull their outfits up over the ice and none
! of whom have been able TO get more than
twenty miles up the river The only men
who have reached Telegraph creek with
their outfits started early in December
when the weather was very cold. They
endured great hardships but had hard ice.
| Since early in February The thermometer
has seldom been below 20 degrees above
zero and as a result the ice on the river is
very soft. II is almost impossible TO pun
a sled through II against the cold wind
that is always blowing down the river
Horses sink into II so far tnat they are alb
solutely of no use and can do little or no
work. THE eight weeks l have been at il
have been harder. much harder than TAX
ing my outfit across the Chilkoot pass late
last summer. j saw there was no chance
20 set to TeslIn lake until late IN the sum
mer and decided to give up the trip and
go back 10 Boston.
1t was on January - when j. J. Wheeler
OF Duluth. Oscar Croker of New York cl.y
and / arrived al Fort Wrangel. We ex-
pected to push up the river over the ice
10 Telegraph creek in a few days and get to
Teslin lake Ia FIVE or six weeks. The first
delay Vas in getting TO the mouth OF the
river. For ten days after we arrived the
boats We're unable 20 ianc al the island
eight miles from Wrangei from which
point the strong Ice could be reached. The
floating Ice was 50 thick that the boats
could not be pushed through IL. We were
in a hurry 20 get through and were going IN
light. We had hut SO pounds Of supplies
ana 10 pounds OF outfit for each p,an In
this way We had 10 make but two trips
The ice was soft from the very. start
We absolutely could not make any time on
the river We got up a; in the morning 20
get the benefit OF any crust that there
might be early in the morning. BY noon
have 20 quit for the dag. The wind was
= grea; dra whack IL always blew and
always blew IN our faces. Al times water
would he a foot deep on the icy surface OF
the river This made the work much hard
Cr. When We went into camp il was very
hard 10 find wood. The cottonwood We
/ could not burn ard spruce was very scarce.
/ Finally after getting - tbs twentv-mile
point NC decided 20 camp and investigate
the upper river. Hope OF colder weather
ard better Zee further 49, stream had
caused us 10 keep on as long az we did
Getting snogshoeS ! made a trip twelve
miles further up the river. The surface
See was tust soft and Ire outlook so had
that l decided 20 turn back. Ny COM
parions vent into camp AZ tRenty-rnile
point and viii wait theTe untl the boats
pick thsn m.
between - and I.as0 men are scattered
along rhe river between Twenty-NNe
point and the island. Only n very few
have been able 20 set further up than
Twen,y-M,,e- -Four big oathtS are stalled.
two not having been able 20 ge- away
from the stand. Hardly anyone on the
Tiyer Is making any progress. except the
newcomers Hao vii rot believe but that
etsey can Go waaS others have failed IN
doing
The Mckenzie Marn outar have get
Va the river further saau any az the otaer
large crews. They are fourteen mics
from tae meGth ard IN camp. There are
several hundred men n the ogtfit. and
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