The herald., 1898-01-23
hi be provided in abundance during the
summer.

Hi be provided in abundance during the
summer.
THE RELIEF SCHEME
SKAGUAY, Alaska. Jan. II, via seat
tie, Jam 22.-Thirty persons have arrived
here during the past week from the
Klondike mining region. They say there
is food enough at Dawson to last until
the yukon river is open for navigation
next spring. Supplies must be received
by that time, though, if suffering is
ayerted. In reference to the proposed
government relief expedition all agree
that It will be impossible to forward sup
plies down the river on the ice. In the
first place, the Yukon river between
Dawson and Pelly is so rough that dos
trains can haul but a small amount OF
provisions-barely enough for the party
accompanying them, and the route is
impossible to horses. Then, the -Lewes
or Thirty-mile river is still open ana II
is with considerable difficulty that dog
teams and men on foot can make their
way along the shores. The winter in the
Interior up to the present, has been re-
markably mild, and it is the opinion of
old timers that the Lewes river will not
freeze over this winter.
Inspector of Mines James McGregor,
who left Skaguay some weeks ago with
seven tons of provisions and fifteen
horses, has only reached White Horse
range. 1t will be impossible for him to
take the horses down the Lewes unless
he can build RATS and float them down
the river, and this is confessedly haz-
ardous undertaking. He and his party
are now building a road around White
Horse rapids and are making fair pro-
gress.
MINING LAWS
Among this weeks arrivals was COM
mittee representing the miners of the
Klondike country, en- route to ottawa,
where they will interview the Canadian
government concerning the mining laws
and endeavor to secure their amend
ment. The committee is composed of DR..
Wills, formerly of Belleville, Ont, for
the past three years northwest mounted
police surgeon at Dawson; Max Landre-
vile, an ex-member of the Canada n
parliament, and E. ]. Livernash of San
Francisco. The members of the COM
mittee declined to discuss their mission,
stating that they did not feel inclined to
make any statement for publication un-
til they had conferred with the Cana
dian government. 1t is understood,
however, that they have with them pc
tition bearing several thousand names.
asking for a revocation of the royalty
clause the alternate claim section and
that claims be restored to the original
siZe-500 feet.
Speaking of the food situation, Dr.
it7tI
Dawson by the first water the situation
will be relieved. II is no use to try to
sled provisions down the Yukon to Daw-
son. 1t cannot be done owing to the
fact that the Lewes river is still open
and the great ridges of ice which block
the Yukon below the Big Salmon. If
the American government wishes to
send in supplies to its people in Dawson,
the only feasible plan is to freight sup
plies to the foot of LIE Barge on the ice
and have them ready to ship down the
river as soon as navigation opens, prob
ably about the 18th of May.
"There will be much suffering in Daw-
son. There always is. Food will be
scarce and scurvy will break out, but the
situation will be no more serious than it
has always been at that time of year.
The question of the right of the Can
adian customs officials to levy duties
on American goods at Lake Bennett is
explicitly raised by Wills Thorpe, well
known cattleman of Washington. In
November last Thorpe drove 80 head OF
cattle from Skaguay to Lake Bennett,
where he slaughtered them. The ques-
tion of duty was not broached until a
few days ago, when Mr.. Thorpe re-
ceivcd a communication from Captain
F. G. Wood, inspector of Northwest
mounted police. stating that he had been
requested by the collector of customs
at Tagish to call upon Thorpe to pay
the duty, s16 a head.
Thorpe was also told that in case of
refusal to pay the duty Captain Wood
would send men to secure the beef, or
as much of it as was necessary to cover
the duty Thorpe called upon Captain
Wood, whose headquarters are tempo
rarily located here, and formally re-
fused to pay the duty demanded on the
ground that the cattle were killed on
American territory and not i'll the Can
adian dominion as claimed by the Can
adian officials. He also objected to the
duty Of SIG per head, claiming that n it
were legal for the Canadian customs
officials to collect duties at Lake Ben
nett, in this case the duty should be
levied on dressed meats and not upon
live cattle.
Thorpe will lay the matter at once be-
fore the United States government and
in the meantime he has warned the
Canadian customs officials not to seize
his beef until such time as he can re-
ceive a reply to his communication from
Washington.
Mr.. Thorpe claims that, according to
a survey made by Dominion Land Sur
veyor William Ogilvie. Lake Bennett is
clearly within American territory and
that the Canadian government recog-
nized this when they established their