The San Francisco call., 1898-03-19

cnly thing to do was to cache the extra property. take blankets and provisions and fellow the trail of Indian Paul, whom l had dispatched with message to Lieutenent Richardson as soon as I landed. I warned them to keep going until they got there. They made prep arations at once, and at daylight thirty moved out. At noon the camp was
 clear. With my party l had three
 days short allowance of provisions.
 During that day twenty-five or thirty more people came dropping in. AS all seemed helpless and bewildered, I con-
 cluded to hang on there as long as pos
 Slble to keep them from stopping and
 dying on the trail. Fortunately, on the 14th a miner, Mike Malloy. came along
 with extra provisions in his pack, and
 supplied me with flour and bacon to
 last for week with a fair margin for
 destitutes. By the 18th I had 250 peo-
 pie on the trail between the Jam and
 Fort Yukon. On the morning of the
 22d two men, Joe Carroll and Fred
 Cash, came into camp. They had been
 travelling all night to get to me. They
 had been started by Lieutenant Rich ardson after Paul's arrival with tobog-
 gans and dogs, but had been compelled
 to leave the toboggan thirty-five miles
 away. finding open water in the river and dense underbrush on land. We
 started next morning for Fort Yukon
 with these two hauling provisions and
 blankets on a small sled. We made
 ten miles that day, there being no trail.
 That night Paul came into camp with the tobOggan. :.
 We reached the post on the 18th and
 found that the people ahead of us
 had been from five to seven days in coming through. Many had been three and four days without food They had wandered away from the north bank out among the islands. and when they got to Fort Yukon found themselves on the other side of the river with open water between. Lieutenant Rich ardson had discovered them through
 glasses and had them ferried across,
 housed them in tents and had been feeding them, pending my arrival. They
 had been holding meetings night and
 day after getting settled, invited the
 lieutenant to be present, reviewed the situation of their employment, and
 when l arrived they asked my advice. going over the whole ground again. In
 the meeting when the lieutenant was present motion was made to demand outfits and take them if necessary This
 was not put, however l made a prop
 osition that I would issue thirty days provisions to any who were willing to go to work cutting wood for the steam
 boats, for which they would be paid S5 cord, the issue of provisions to he gratis. They very generally accepted the conditions. Some had already gone to work putting up buildings. On the 18th It was reported to me that there was combination up at the Alaska Commercial Companys cache. three and one-half miles above, that had or ganiZed and armed for the avowed pur- pose of seizing the cache. That after noon l went up with Lieutenant Rich aTdSon. Harry Davis, the agent said the men had been holding meetings in the neighborhood for several days: that they had sent committee to him demanding seven months outfits de- claring they had seventy five men armed, and if he did not grant it they would take 1t by force. A committee was waiting on Davis when I arrived They demanded of him seven montts' provisions and clothes for nine months. and said they would give their notes for the amount at one year. Davis de- clined. I asked if any were absolute. ly destitute. One of the seven said he was.
 'I explained that would give orders on the store to feed those who were destitute. AS both companies offered work at good wages I believed they should accept it rather than pursue the course they were doing. If there were any bona fide miners there who were destitute I would endeavor to secure them food on credit and would recom mend that the Government secure the bill. I came away without any definite answer from them, but leaving Lieu tenant Richardson at the cache That night about 10.30 o'clock I received a note from him saying he believed they intended to attacl. the cache the next morning. 1 wrote a proclamation talk ing possession of the caches in the name of the United States for the pro- lection of the citizens in Northern Alaska, and warning all persons rnir ct t-aC inc T one posted on the door of the cache and another on tree in their camp. and early next morning I started LID to the cache. About twenty-five men who had volunteered accompanied me un- armed, as I deemed it wise not to make any demonstration of force. When had arrived within half a mile of the | cache and near a thicket of birch a 1 man by the name of Noblett came ont | and met me and said that the miners | wished me to come to their camp and | talk the matter over. This I declined | to do. He then came out plainly and said it would be safer for me to go to | camp, as if I attempted to go to the | cache I would be fired upon.
 While talking to me I noticed him | raise his hand as if giving signal, and between twenty-five and thirty men armed with rifles appeared i'' the edge | of the timber and covered myself and | party. Noblett then said they had possession of the cache. AS I had left | Lieutenant Richardson there and as | had heard no firing, I told him he was a liar I told him he could fire, as I | was going to the cache just the same. | He then asked me if I was willing to | make the same proposition I had made | the day before, and I told him I would | make no more propositions. He then | asked me if I would wait a few mo- | ments until he could talk with his men. ! I saw him go to consult with some men | in the timber about seventy-five yards | away. In few minutes he came back |