Lyon County times. [volume] (Silver City, Nev.) 1874-1907, 1898-08-20
NEWS FROM KLONDIKE.
Charlie Bavard says the Country is
Rank Failure.


Alaska last February:
DAWSON CITY. June 23d, 1895
Well / have just arrived here and found four
letters from home, which cost me 81 apiece
There were about 500 people standing in line
to get their mail, and sometimes it is two or
three days before a person can get into the
Office. Men will spread their blankets at the
doors and 1t takes about two weeks to distrib
ute the mail tJoe Gallagher is not in it,. 1t
is almost impossible to get letter when trav-
cling in this )untry. and the first thing a man
does when he gets here is to look for news
from home. There are about 10000 people on
the streets of Dawson. boats are tied or in
a string for or miles along the shore and the
shore is perfect city of tents. The people are
all disguised and dissatisfied and are selling
their outfits and leaving as fast as the steamers
can carry them. Some try to brace up and
have courage, but before Winter there will be
grand scattering amongst the crowd l shall
go down on the American side as there is moth
ing here for new corners; all Is located for 30
miles around Dawson City. The Canadian
government has very poor mining laws. No
claim will be recorded for any one who is not
in the ring" For instance, man staked out
claim and went to have IL recorded. they sent
an inspector to the location. prospected it and
found it rich, and when the man went back TO
the claim he found it located and recorded by
the ring" So a man who is not on the inside
has no show whatever. The few rich mines
that are here are not in operation and the own
ers say they will not work them until the roy
atty is taken off, which is ten per cent. on the
gross output. SO there will be no work for men
here this Winter. l was told to-day that II the
mines were worked that wages would be 81 per
hour but men could only work five hours a
day. 1t costs 50 per day to board at the hotels.
and 81 so night for a single bed Tobacco has
been 81 per pound until recently. but is now
only So. man killed a moose the other day
which sold for 50 per pound. A glass of whis
ky costs Soc. Flour is now $l2 per hundred.
SO many are selling out that groceries some
cheaper than they were. This place consists
of gam bling dens. dance houses and restau-
rants. and the whole business is great fake
to rob everyone who comes here. The millions
in the world who have been dreaming of
wealth to come from the KlOndike will never
realize their dream. My opinion. and IL Is that
of thousands here. is that this country is
great transportation company fake. There is
no Use to look for quartz. as IL is of too low a
grade to work Tell the boys promised to
write to- Ia stay away. The mounted police
here handle forty or fifty thousand men just a.
they pea,e-tell us what we can do. etc.-and
you never get a civil word cut OF them. 1 will
be glad when can breath free air again. Lou
Vincent aud wife. from Dayton, are camped
near us. find plenty OF good men here. who
would divide their last biscuit with a man. No
one can get here for less than $3.50. and when
once here you can not walk out. The fare back
to San Francisco via Dyea Is $3.50 so the poor
devils without money grub viii be com
PEELED u stay and face the Winter which
means sickness. starvation and death to many
/ he road up here is long. rough and dangerous.
Ny first experience was the snow-slide. which
l escaped by less than 100 feet. l could hear
the cries OF many poor souls who were caught
begging for help. helped to take out great
many dead bodies and a few living men. My
outfit was buried 10 ieet und er snow and ice.
and after digging it out much of it was stolen.
We built our boat at Lake Bennett. aud on The
9Th of June started for Dawson, aud were COM
PEELED to row our way over the rough lakes
against heavy wind aud through dangerous
rapids. 1t took us fourteen days to reach Daw
son. We encountered one heavy wind storm
which drove US to shore. A great many were
ions, and some lost their lives. Every 60 miles
between Lake Bennett and Dawson there Is a
station where each boat has to stop and regis
ter, and give the name and number of the boat
Our boat was No. l3,lll. We did not go down
the White Horse Rapids but rode the FIVE fn-
ger Rapids, which are almost bad. Several
were drowned in these rapids just before We
arrived. saturday. Jake. Ed Ross and l started
up the Klondike river and went about two
miles to where bonanza Greek comes in We
travelled up that several miles over the rough
est trail l ever saw. through mud and slush
and a heavy growth of timber We finally came
to log cahin where an old man was living and
cooked our dinner. This man said he had
lived there two years and did not have as much
now as when he came. His partner worked
himself to death. This creek, remember is
considered on of the richest In the world. but
am informed that there are very few paying
claims on 1t. Further up the creek we came to
the point where Bonanza and Eldorado creeks
unite and there crossed on a log bridge. Up
about two miles Is the Chas Lam mine. which
Is good one. He Is idle now waiting to get
water to wash his dump. His mine is said to
be worth $50000). but there are plenty above
and below him that do not pay to work a
man named donaldson has the richest claim In
the Klondike according to report. and was
said to be taking out $50 to the pan When we
got there we found he was taking out about
S5c. to the pan, and this Is about the size of the
whole country q. ID. BovARD.