The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-12-09
Facts About New District Told
BY Pioneer Prospector.
RICH ALMOST sevono BELIEF.
4. .. StoeI Tells Of His Experiences
IN the Early Days Of the New Eli
aovadO-T6ok Out $50 In FSur
Hears Work Prom Prospect
1 HoBe-Paaeers That Yield SO Per
Day with OnIy Crude Appliances.

An ever new and interesting tale Is that
Of the marvellous riches Of The placers Of
the Atlir cosinsry, in the Casssar mining
district Of British Columbia Although tad
and retold, ike tho fables Of the ARABIAN
Nights II does not iosl lie fascination and
charm. The difference lies Ia this. howes :
err. that the stories OF the miaera from the
Attn country are backed up By solid facts
I'm the form of bsickgksn sacks filled with
smooth. hard. round. yellow nuggets Of
gold, the most precious thing In this mate
rial world.
There has arrived In Seattle pioneer OF
the Atln mines In the person - A. j. Stoei.
formerly a mining man OF Livingston
Mont Mr.. Ssoel Is by long odds the largest
individual owner of mines In the Atm
country. He Is the chief owner of COM
pany which has title 10 over sixty proper
ties covering the best creeks ia the district.
One OF the first to enter the new EIdorado
of the north. Mr.. stoel prospecfed the vafi-
Gus gold bearing streams, and with his
own hands washed oat the gold before ne
located his claims. In this manner ne pro-
cee-led from creek TO creek In the district
following the Information received from
mining associates who, like himself. were
practical prospectors. lie was enabled 10
purchase heavily in the first days OF the
district until his Individual holdings have
reached the total OF sixty claims.
Pioneer I'm the New Dtggings.
II spent three months In the AtIln c0s.r-
try being one OF the frs: 30 reach there
after the discovery OF gold on Pine creek
Mr.. Stoei said last night at the Northern
hotel. ION this account / am set down sls
. pioneer In the distr!c, by the later COM
erA. Thine fiies very quickly In that coun-
try. ! Went from Skagway TO Ailin about
the middle OF last August, expecting 10 lie
gone two weeks Ii was three months be-
fore l could gel away. and my experience
IT. just like hundreds or others in the coun-
try.
1.-THE mines OF the Atiin country are es-
sentiaiy summer disgIngz. Bedrock Is
found from six inches 10 ten feet aa a
rule, although hi sorie places have heard
of saafts being sunk TO a depth OF twenty
four feet TIE gold is found from the
grass roofs down. ! have seen men take a
handful Of sod from the surface or lie
ground. and shaking Il over pan. wash
out the coarse gold nuggets. In ali of the
creeks which have bssD located, notably
Pine. Birch. Otter, Mc0ee. Willow Wright
and Dixte. ine iocators have almost invari-
ably found ground which yields wages from
$40 Fer day Upwards. The bench ground ID
sometimes richer than the plarers OF the
streams This Is true notably on Willow
creek. where there Is Il swaia which MAS
formerly the bed uf Pine creek
can tell you of the character Of this
ground from my Own actual experience al
though IL may gonnd almost unreasonable
The old bed OF Piae creek for a distance ~
one and q half miles makes a aetour In
= n,i-circular form from the main stream
I'esween the swais and The creek the bench
ground lea perhaps. forty 20 fifty feet
above the creek beds. ont OF one hoe on
one OF these bench claims John S,udt,.e
and ! dug SO In coarse gold In about fonr
i HouIs Mork. ~ was simply prospect
hole We We're not looking to ind the
fIcnest ground on the claim, either ar
course every Bit Of this ground Is taken IN
now. ~
Rich Dirt On the Creek.
you have Doubtless heard of the Glenn.
UP made by Capt. Sperry on Pine cre-ak-
He worked under very unfayoralle ctrcur,-
stances With the most crude appliances ana
yet AT the end of three weeks ne had 60 o,a
In hard gold. The discovery of Ottar ,rsak
ssseueu ine fact that the ricn placers of
tie camp Were bot confined tn ore stream
TN otter creek. the pr0speetors easiiv ffund
pans OF art running from 81 TO s. each On
Mcsse creek, an sxpers miner. being senf
IN 10 investigate the stream manned an.
SD our or prospect hole In 1--WE mans
using water which had 10 bs, heated on s,s
count Of the cold weather ~
a. II II u safe To say now that there will he
lnWV prospscters In the district nex, vaar
Ine trading and transportation neonl,. ava
Gil making calculations 10 hsnsil. n nrayf
the Journey from Skagway 10 Atlin se ro,.,
.hro =, - n e alilieiit one occupying from
Ing up. and when the snow has hs.,s,,,a
packed there viii he = stage line nsiny
sis,sns. from TIE summit of White pass IL
Atm. trarsstng part of the way over ,hs
frozen rivers and lakes Of the ro1t. ssar
~. re - rcsardea as The Quitting point far
"nnrins the past season prices Of all com.
moditi.s IN the new camp have t.aen y.ry
high. Lumber has sold as high as r. Giants
per 1907. Two sswmIlls have been estmb.
., since then, however, and next year
there will he plenty OF humber for h9,il},,,a,
My own idea IS that Attn CITY viii a. ~
main Distributing point for the new ear,n
II IL about eighteen miles mon, S,,v,,-'et.
ieke. into wiseh some Of me Ytssss.
streams or the camp empty. Last ran ,ra,,s
81 across Attn lake TO the mines was ~
email boat and steamer the latter 49,.
dminusiye affair. Next season b,s,,.',s.
tnere VIII De steamers In plenty ara ,hry
VIII he able 20 make the run eles. -,
Eenrsett 10 Atlin City, '''f"
Mr.. Steel is A typical fronslersman u
Is nauvs or New York bat came 10 ms
Rockies when he was IS wears ala ~ ~