The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1898-02-05
FACTS ABOUT THE YUKON

''The Year Book of British Colum-
bia," which has just appeared, con-
tains much information regarding the
Canadian Yukon. The manual is
really a digest of all official reports,
and of all facts collected personally by
trustworthy travellers regarding the
whole fascinating region of which
Klondike is at present the center OF
attraction. The vastness of the gold
bearing area of the Yukon staggers
Imagination.
"The Yukon district comprises an
area approximately $4,000 square
miles, within Canadian territory, over
150, 1000 square miles of which is in
cluded in the watershed of the Yukon,
or almost equal to that of France and
greater than that of the United King
dom by over 10000 square miles"
The gold field lies in the same min
eral belt as California, and is con-
tinuation of Cariboo and Cassiar,
famous for their gold diggings many
years ago. In an area that is from $50
to 600 miles long and from 10 to so
miles wide, embracing about 100000
square miles, rich gold prospects have
actually been found. When it is con-
sidered that Klondike is the only part
of this territory which has been ex-
plotted, one is prepared to expect that
the Yukon will prove the largest and
richest gold field ever known. Q During
1897 some s3,5OO,OOO was taken from
the creeks near Dawson City.
every dollar in gold lifted by the
ordinary process of mining costs
dollar to produce it. This will be
found particularly true of the wealth
of the Yukon. OF the 10000 people
who started this year, $500 each by
way of expenditure would be moder-
ate estimate indeed. That represents in
itself s5,OO0,0O0, as against S3,50O,00O
mined, and in reality $40, 100000 would
be nearer the total of the expenditure
in reaching the Yukon alone. Again,
If we except the estimate that at least
1000 persons will start for the mines
in 1898. at an average s500'the amount
expended will be $4,000, 900 for one
year. While the expenditure for one
year reaches that enormous total, the
gold that will be taken out of the
creeks of the Klondike during the
next 10 years is estimated at S65 5,000,-
600 or $75, 100000. The individual
finds and clean-ups range from $1,000
to s150,OOO. Pans of gold have aver.
aged all the way from $3.50 to $500.
In the rich diggings, however. SO and
Sl2 pan was fair average. From
the evidence of Mr.. Ogilvie, DR.. Daw-
son and many others more or less COM
petent to form an opinion, it is un-
doubted that the whole Yukon ter
ritory is rich in precious minerals, aud
that it will take many years before de-
velopment has reached it height"
A description of several of the 278
claims along Bonanza and Eldorado
creeks is given, in which it is stated
that 100 of those on Bonanza will yield
$50, ,0OO, 900, that claim No. 80 will yield
not less than $1,000 by itself, and 10
other claims will yield more than $780,
600 each. Needless to say all the
ground within miles of Dawson City
has been staked off.
How a country like the Yukon can
support and successfully accommodate
the thousands of people who are about
to rush in, is question which cannot
be easily determined; but q note Of
warning is necessary as to the capa-
'bilities of country wholly ,unde-
veloped to maintain for any length of
time from 100000 to SOC, 1000 persons,
whose livelihood must depend upon
mining, and, in the absence of success
in that, on the resources which they
carry with them. The year book de-
scribes tie severe climate Of the whole
region, sets forth the terrible hard
ships of prospecting a-country where
the bedrock is under crust of moss
and frozen sand, tells what mining un-
der these forbidding conditions entails
for the workers, of whom nine out of
ten need not expect success, and gives
some idea of the risk to health and. life
from cheerless, comfortless existence
in mining "shack."
The Canadian government has just
received a report from Major Walsh,
written on Christmas eve at Big Sal
mon river, in which ae discusses the
food problem as it will have to be faced |
after the territory is filled up with the |
new population that will go in next |
spring. He calculates that the river |
boats will not be able to land more |
than one-half the supplies necessary to
sustain the estimated population next |
summer. He does not believe that |
sc, 900 people can get in. One part of |
his report contains important warning,
of which the public should take notice.
He says:
81 am Informed that Is to 20 agents
and brokers have come out from Daw-
oSh SAofb Soi yibS Wlba ouOA, sOmS
say hundreds, some say thousands, of
for entries of mines on all |
the streams in the neigh borhood of the I
river, upon which streams /
belieye there never was an ounce of
gold found, and on all other streams
In the district and to the mountain
tops, with the hope that they can be
put on the market and be readily
seized by the gullible public of the
United States and Canada. They are
;rying to initiate the brokers of South
Africa and Rossland, and there is no
question but that it will be injurious to
he country and to good properties
hat may be put on the market" :"
CAN'T BE DONE.