Mexico weekly ledger., 1898-11-24
FIXED FOR THE WINTER.
A Word About Dawson City, Which


Correspondents Of the Ledger.
DAWSON CRY, NORTHWESTERN TER
RrroRY, Oct. 5.-This lie to let you
know we are still alive and fright eide
up with care" We arrived here Sept.
10, bringing down q raft of logs from
the mouth Of Indian river. Myself and
partner have constructed a cabin m
mile southeast Of Dawson, near mouth
of Bonanza creek have good supply
Of wood prepared and placed close to
our cabin door, and feel that we are
safely and snugly domiciled for the
long, long winter that we know awaits
us.
The cabins are built Of pine logs
chinked with Arctic moss, being rooted
first with small pine logs, then a foot
Of moss and six inches of earth, and
with q good stove are quite comfort
able In the severest weather. Our cabin
Is built up about 500 feet high 10 the
side Of the mountain and you may
imagine It was no small task carrying
all our goods such a distance up an
almost perpendicular zigzag trail, bat
we chose this high situation forheslth's
sake.
II takes a man with q strong consti-
tuition and nerves Of steel to get along
in this country. Both sides of the
Klondyke are lined with cabins for a
distance of four miles. 1t is estimated
that 5000 to 1000 people r thus liv-
ing In this small territory. Some OF
them have lays on claims, some have
other employment and still more are
idle. Provisions are plentiful II one
has the wherewith to buy.
The worst thing about Dawson is it's
unhealthy location, being built in q
swamp. Typhoid fever has been
epidemic for six weeks past, but is
lessening as the weather grows colder.
1t is impossible to say how many have
died, as no reports of the death rate
are over sent out. There is also
pneumonia and scurvy here. Dawson
City is law and order town. Ofcourse,
there r gambling places and saloons
galore, but they r held In check by
the Canadian mounted police, and IL q
man gets into trouble with this ele-
ment it is usually his own fault. There
are no gaming devices tolerated on
street corners, no arms carried or loud
or profane language allowed on the
streets. Some of the country towns
In the States could proitably take
pattern after Dawson in this respect.
The houses are mostly built OF logs.
One building, larger and rather more
conspicuous looking than the rest,
will attract the attention of the
stranger as he walks up main street
from the south. The building reminds
one Of q large tobacco barn Of a we'll
to-do farmer of southwest Missouri.
Over the entrance OF this huge log
edihce Is painted in large letters,
"Canadian Bank of Commerce, Capital
Paid Up, s6,Ooo,0OO."
The population OF Dawson, including
Klondyke City, ON opposite side of
river, is fully 10000. The town is fast
building up. Carpenters are earning
s5 to els per day. There are no new
strikes Of value reported, though there
were a number of bench claims taken
during the summer season on the
gold bearing streams near Dawson
that are proving rich. There are still
some chances on this line and we still
feel we shall be successful in finding
a lucky spot by staying with it, which
l shall do olong as my health justiHes
1t. / learned soon after coming here
that all the Purcell party had left for
the States, with the exception of eight
or ten men.
The VIM party have just finished
their cabins one mile east of Dawson
near the trail and r comfortably
located. Henry Sanders, of st.
Charles, NO., is working a claim on
shares about % miles up Bonanza. Pat
McCarty, OF Lincoln county; Curd, of
Fulton, and Jack Mansfield have
cabins here near mouth of Bonanza.
I'M informed that DR.. HALEY left
for San francisco in August. Hope
he is ere this time safe with friends at
home. I have heard from home but
twice since l left, nearly nine months
ago, while / know dozens of letters
have been written me and lost on the
way. The mail facilities are being
much improved and we are assured
that our mail during the winter will
reach Us as often as once every two
months.
The United States and Canadian
governments are building cabins every
fifteen miles from Circle City to BEN
nett for returning miners and mail
carriers to stop in over night and
every thirty miles a man lie located to
keep ths house warm, also to keep a
restaurant and mail station, where the
carrier can stop and change dog
teams, SO that the mail may go on as
usual. This news is hailed with de-
light By the people here, as heretofore
Dawson has never received any mail
during the winter months.
There are three newspapers pub
lished in Dawson, the Klondyke Neus,
the Midnight Sun and the Golden Mug
get. Ali have s fair circulation. There
is said to be provisions enough here
to last two years. The warehouses
are piled 70 the roof, besides huge
piles of -four stacked up on the streets
and covered with tarpaulin. The
transportation companies own all the
stores and make the prices. They are
robbers in disguise. The following
are some Of the present prices aad
they are not particular about selling
even at these figures, hoping to get
more later n
ut--- n1n $500 -