The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-08-02
SPECULATION IN DAWSON.
placed venture-Tons Of Old Pa
efs Are Now An tar kiondike-

DAWSON. July I3.--Tf there WAS ever
city with more spectators In proportion
TO the population than are 20 b. found IN
Dawson At the pressn, time. history fails
10 record IL. Nearly every orc VINO has
come In has brought something which he
considered would sell az a big profis. and
the different things which have been se-
lectsd to lure the hard-ear8ed dust and
nuggets from the imprisoned Arg0nauis
and the horde Of newcomers has bean as
varied as the stock Of mammoth depart
men, store All kinds Of fancy groceries,
lemoBs. oranges and other fruits. oysters.
crabs and CLAIMS. potatoes, turlips and
onions have been brought IL. Several men
made nee little stake in bringing in live
poultry and their success has induced a
score Of others 10 initiate their experience.
and they have gone outside in great haste
to bring In chickens 70 sell az 81 each.
One man started from Bennett with syl
head of sheep. and the people OF Dawson
would undoubtedly have resaiei them
selves heartily upon fresh mutton mad not
The sheep scow been wrecked on Lake
Tagish. the shores of which are now
strewn with sheep carcasses.
But the most prolific speculation has
been In newspaper They were light to
carry. not easily damaged, and because OF
the thrilling war news and the fact that
the people had been SHUT IN ali winter
without news or fresh reading matter
caused the almost universal opinion on
the outside that every late paper when
could be brought In would sell readily for
81 each. A thousand papers would sell al
25 cents on the passes and at Lakes L!nde-
man and Bennett this spring as fast as
they could be handed out. Furtaer down
the lakes they sold In isolated places at
81 each, while IL was current that IN Daw-
son and on the creeks they sold readily al
8 and even so each. As paper weighed
less than 4 quarter Of a pound. Il WAS
quickly seen that the speculation Of taxi
ing in papers Was one which promised
immense returns. The result IL that Daw
son has been inundated with late papers,
and 81 the 900 persons who brought In
papers probably not over twenty made
money out OF the venture. while even these
did not realize enough TO pay them for
the risk.
Triiby Collins. the hustling ex-newsooy
OF Seattle, who earned fame as pie-eater,
recently arrived with an edition OF 5000
late papers. He had been al Skagway all
winter. knew how to sell, knew the trails
perfectly. and was all prepared to coma
pers in Skagway during the winter and he
threw II all into the venture believing
that his 5000 papers would sell for 81 each.
He did not sell fifty Of them. and Is out
all his money.
Apparently the people of Dawson con-
slider newspapers at - cents each a luxury
that they can do without Although there
are estimated 10 be 100 people here. nos
over one man IN a hundred Will buy pa
per. When a steamer arrives from Lake
Bennett she Is met a; the bank by thou
sands or eager men. What's the war
news?" Is shouted from shore. Some
ready passenger volunteers the inf0rma-
ton that thee has been no battle and
consequently nothing of interest to relate
What Is the latest paper?" * the next
question. Very promptly comes a response
from some man on the steamer who has
papers TO sell. The answer may be July
T." when some other paper speculator will
epeak up and say. Il have the Gtht' Al
though he may have but one copy Of the
paper. that copy ruins the sale OF the pre-
vious issue. The owner sells IL for 81 10
some saloon keeper who lacks II up In
his place OF business and the crowds come
and read 1t. Sometimes dozen OF the
laies. papers VIII arrive and then an equal
number OF saloons are supplied. The local
newspapers grab at the latest news and
rehash II. On several occasions men have
rented halls and charged a small ad.nis-
sion to those who wanted to hear the news
read. and 1T any time after the arrival OF
a steamer groups Of men may be- seen
listening TO a reader on a street corner
reading the news. Carriers who have TAX
en- papers out on the creeks have sold rs
high twenty papers At 30 cents each.
and the last man only sold SIX copies Of 4
late date on n trip up Bonanza and r.
dorado 4 former hotelkeepsr Of Sheep
Camp, who made a flying trip In and had
an assortment OF some IL GO late papers,
only sold about 80 In all. lie dii well.
however. because he managed 20 sell the
unsoli copies In bulk to the Alaska Com
merclal Company for wrapping paper at
10 cents pound. which was less than
half OF the freight he had paid on them
TO say nothing OF the first cost ~ the pa
pers Now that tons more have come
down the river. there Is no market what
ever for old papers and there are enough
papers here now 20 paper tire inside ana
outside OF every house in tho kiondko
region,