The San Francisco call., 1898-04-19

the discoveries, is held to have some speculative value. For that reason the whole winter has witnessed a con- stant succession of stampedes, and creek after creek, gulch after gulch, has been staked off and recorded. The Gold Commissioners office is a small, single-room, roughbo affair. and his corps of assistants through a great part of the winter consisted of two men. He had several others in the early fall, but for the lack of provisions was com- pelled to send them to Fort Yukon. The work of recording was thus made Quate to meet the conditions, and thus every day, and all day long, there were drawn up in front of the office a score of the latest stampeders, stamping their feet and swinging their arms to keep from freezing-often unsuccess- fully-while they awaited their turn to record.
 With the moment that the exodus up the river and the exodus down the river of last fall and the early winter relieved the town of the fear of star vation that oppressed and paralyZed 1t, the prospecting of new creeks began and interest in mining revived and in- creased with each day, as almost each day brought it's rumors of new finds and new locations. These rumors were so frequent and most of them had so little foundation that as the winter dragged its slow length along they came to be little regarded and only those who took the pains or paid the price to keep properly posted knew what to believe. There were num- Der of these, however, who, having money, were in position to take ad- vantage of the situation. and they kept scouts out watching the work of de- wall aaly Ac often as good prospects were found these bought up the neighboring claims where they could at bargain prices.
 A few men, taking advantage of the necessities of those who lacked money and particularly of those who lacked provisions, bought up, or secured op- tions upon claims for the purpose of sending them out to be sold, or of- fered for sale in the mining markets of the world. Numbers of men found relief from very embarrassing, not to say distressing, situations by this means. They found a ready market with these so-called brokers or agents for any claim upon almost any creek at varying prices, of course, ranging from S25 to S200. In most cases, how ever, the broker paid but a few dollars In money, if any, supplied the stam- peder with provisions, taking an option on the claim at fixed price ranging from $500 to $500 and over, according 10 the location, the money to be paid only in case claim was sold Brokers who had good stock of provisions often had several men constantly em- ployed In stampeding and securing claims on these terms. That was in the early winter Later this business got so far beyond the Gold Commits sioner's ability to record for all appH- cantS that he made a terSe law of his own that no man should stake more than four claims In one year. He based this ruling on the law which requires every claim owner to be upon and work his claim continuously for three months in the year, and there being but twelve months in the year no man could do that, he argued, for more than four claims
 Numbers Of claims were sent out dur Ing the early winter. All this time development work was going on and every now and then big pay was struck on this and that among the newly To- cated creeks. With each new find came panic among those who had bonded claims, or who, as agent or broker, had sent them out to be solo at figures quoted for comparatively un- known ground. Some of the speediest Journeys from Dawson to Dyea were made by men who came out to recover deeds that had been sent out earlier or to otherwise head off and stop pos- slole sales Of claims that had increased in value by s5O,000 to S100, 900 since the papers were signed at Dawson.
 Among the earliest of these strikes was that on Hunker. Several among the men who were forced to go down the river In tn" fall for lack of provis- ions held claims on this creek which they valued at from 5000 to 5000. The strike Wa3 made before communica- ton had been re- established by the ice on the river. No sooner had tie first dog team reached Dawson from Circle City giving the sign that travel was possible than race was on to reach these men for the purpos of buying their property before they became aware of It's value. Several small for tunes were made in few days in this way.
 Then came the strike on Bear Creek and after it on Dominion and on Sul- phur and other creeks. Many claims on tn ;se creeks had been sent out under options that v-lued them at $10UU or $lo0O. Their values suddenly ran up In Dawson along a scale from S10,000 to $lO0,O0O, and messenge:s were sent scurrying out over the ice and snow 600 miles to Dyea with instructions to get into telcgraphic communication as QuiShly dS poSSlUlc WlLn the agent who held the authority to sell and to with draw them from the market at the price previously given.
 Dawson has been literally isolated all winter. While individuals started "out" at comparatively frequent intervals no one came in. What was going on in the world outside was only to be guessed at. The first mail from the outside reached Dawson on February 2S, and it was the end of the first week in. March before it was distributed. This brought money to many and in- telligence to all of the lively interest th"t was felt by the people in 'the States" concerning the Klondike and this again quickened activities
 It Is expected with the clean-up and the arrival of tho great army of peo pie now on the way that this summer will see in Dawson the liveliest mining camp that has ever been planted on the earth. l think that there must be 15. 900 people on the tEail On the lakes they were marching in single file over the trail as far as the eye could see. each with his outfit on his sled and nearly all running with sail set before a fa. Vorable wind. It was a most remarka- ble sight.
 The cleanup will be retarded some what by the scarcity of nails necessary