Pike County press. (Milford, Pa.) 1895-1925, 1898-06-03
DALTON OF DALToN's TRAIL.
Exhibitions of Pride, Nerve and Gen.
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Exhibitions of Pride, Nerve and GEN.
erosity by citizen of Alaska.
A man from Harvey county, Oregon
who is spending a few days in San
Francisco, is an old friend of Jack Dali
ton of Dalton's Trail fame, and knows
how the Alaskan trail builder came tc
be called Dalton. For that was not HE
name in the States.
Jack Dalton lived for several years
In Harvey county" said the Oregon
man, but there he was known as Jack
Miller, which is his real name. He
brought with him to Harney county a
span of fine horses, and after a while
somebody who did not like him--and
he was such an Independent fellow that
he had good many enemies-spread
the report that the horses had been
stolen, and sent word to man in I'm.
atilla who claimed that he had lost
just such a span. The upshot of II
was that a warrant was issued for his
arrest All of Miller's friends-and
was one of them-believed that he
could easily clear himself and prove his
ownership of the team if he would sub
NIT to arrest and let the case come to
trial But he was too proud to do any.
thing of the sort. He said that any.
body who wanted to believe him thiei
was welcome TO think so, and would
still believe it If he went through a
hundred trials; but he had done moth.
Ing wrong, and didn't propose to be ar.
rested until he had done something to
be arrested for.
Miller had killed his man, and so
the officers set cautiously about the
business of arresting him In fact,
they showed so much caution that Mil
Ter reached the coast in safety and
shipped for Alaska. There he as
sumed the name of Dalton, thinking It
was less likely to draw trouble after
him than his own name, and as Dalton
he has been known ever since. But
nobody need ever tell me that Jack
Miller didn't rightfully own those
horses, even If he didn't want to be ar
rested. He sent for his wife, and they
made their home at Juneau until the
died.
Miller killed a man named Egan
year before the trouble about the hors-
es. He and Egan had a quarrel which
they settled in a friendly way. They
shook hands over it and took a drink
together and Miller supposed that was
the end of IL. But an hour or so after
ward, as Miller was mounting his
horse, Egan stepped up and yelled,
Well settle it now!' Miller leaped
from his horse, drew his gun, and
stopped to let Egan's bullet pass over
him. AT the same instant he shot Egan
through the head. He was exonerated
by the Coroner's inquest and was new
er even brought to trial.
But five years afterward a friend of
the dead man named Thorpe took
party of gold seekers over Dalton's
Trail. He had long before sworn to
avenge the murder of his friend, and
proceeded to do it by destroying bridg-
es and spelling the trail, upon which
Dalton had spent $4,000 and no end of
thought and labor. Dalton heard what
he was doing and went to meet Thorpe
and his party. He told Thorpe that
from that point the trail was danger
Gus, and some one was likely to be
hurt If they followed it. Thorpe and
his followers took the hint and struck
out over another route, in which they
soon got into such difficulties, as Dali
ton knew they would, that they could
neither go on nor retreat. Dalton then
sent a marty tO hpir. than ouf opd ,,iIot
them back to his own trail, which he
told Thorpe they would then find per-
fectly safe. The seeker after revenge
went on his way and left the trail
alone after that. One of his party had
both legs crushed by fall, and Dalton
took this man to his own house and
nursed him for six months"