The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-01-03
ROOD SHORTAGE At DAWSON.

TIE San Francisco Examiner has been
loadest among newspapers declaring tha.
there would ae TO famine ard 10 ssarya-
s1an in TIE kioEdike. The Examiner = not
noted for the correctness OF lis views. Its
eoaciusaons IN this instance ara based
upon SUBSTANTIALLY the sarre presentation OF
facts as were forwarded fr5El Dawson By
ether correspondents. Mr.. Livernasa sends
20 tnAt paper from Dawson November .
tina following:
The feed situation has not materially
S-aL-e1 ssaee NY last dispatch. Let iasT .
se no anea ssnsss. There vii not 5e fam
me. A considerable number nave less
1000 than taey should have 20 tide them.
eyer me winter, bQt many have gnors Isaa
49, ny require. and i is safe e say mat
ne sencinE away % several hundred
parsons relieved the kl0niike Of the fan-
ger which threatened. and aow many ars
gong 70 Dyea. taking with them cay
eaoaSa tood for the journey. and selling
,ns1r surplus supplies. Those who are sell
Ing are trading Numerically on the panic
tesEng resulting from the unequal aistribu-
slon oe food have seen outfits weighing
ma. ten and made Up Of -four. beans;
as whole at $3.50 pound. Flour has
commanded as high as $50 sack (hfty
Pounds In few cases. and so in many
prices"
IL the situation IS no worse than th!a q
relief expedition should be sent in. II is
NOT denied that there 10 q shortage OF food.
and that some Will suffer" None should
suEer. II 1t can be prevented.
The Poss-Intelligencer thinks the si.ua-
Con Is exactly. fairly and completely sum
marzed in the following editorial from the
san Francisco Chronicle:
1T There Is something hopelessly a. vari,
- nne re VIII the Law Of supply and demand s,
IN Dawson. and that the price OF staple
Iroyendsr like beans and bacon. stands 90
u and H.5o pound. Yet both statements
topsyturvydom. where Gilbert ana Suili-
van made laws to suit themselves, an
ebundanes Of food usually means decline
m price. Are we TO believe that. IN the
practical life OF Dawson, IL means Just the
reverseE No oae who is accustomed 10 use
MS common sense will think 50.
The actual state OF the food supply on
the klondike. as may be judged from
certain provident miners have enough TO
from hand to mouth. If all the provisions
wsns put s together and ao,sa out a. The, hey
most or tbs population might keep body
and soul together until spring. 1t IS not
certain that they would, though they might
BUT there Is no commune on the klon-
dixie to compel the fortunate to divide with
the unfortunate. and the history OF all
VIII sh9w ses INA, ss so5
to keep what It has for itself. There is
but cold charity in the presence of famine.
IL man has food enough to tide him over
he conceais the greater part OF II and let's
his hungry neighbor shift for himself. See
ing that this would be the case. about ona-
third OF the eager gold hunters at Dawson
have hurried away TO the coast, but even
this lessened demand for food has caused
no drop IN prices
with things in such a state at the OPEN
ing OF the Arctic winter, the government
VIII be fully justified in going on with it's
work Of relief. There IS or will be IN
hundredfold more need Of 1t than there
was to succor the picnicking whalers off
the Point Barrow and Herschel island -four