The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-01-24
DAWSON UNHEALTHY PLACE.
FIFTEEN DOLLARS A DAY THERE
IS ONLY EQUAL TO TWO DOL
LARS HERE.
COUNTRY SEEN IN VARIOUS LIGHTS.
Market Quotations On q Number OF
the Necessaries and Luxuries
of Life.

r. G. Murray, relative OF his, VINO
for come years was clerk of the courts
in Ashland county. Wis. Mr.. Murray
left Ashland last summer and reached
Dawson City after a hard trip. While
the letter bears an October date, 1t
will prove interesting to any one with
the Klondike fever. 1t is as follows:
Dawson City. Oct. 49, 1871 arrived In
DawsNn Sept. 13, after long hard trip OF
800 MES down the Yukon river. l wrote you
in my last letter at Lake Lnderman, about
Aug. %, | think, that we were over the noun
tain pass and ready to cross the lakes and
float down the river. l have not had line
from you yet and hardly expect to. as the
mail is so uncertain. 1t has been lost twice
in the river since l have been here, but
want you to keep writing, and l may hear
from you. | will have you send by diner
ent address next time, and will enclose en-
Velope for you.
Well. I must tell you something about the
trip and about myself. l wrote you several
letters until we reached Linderman. From
there we had very hard time crossing Lake
Bennett, Lake Tagish, Marsh and Lake La
Berge, and had to row three-ton boat most
of the way, account of the wind. The
river Is very dangerous, and we saw great
many accidents, especially at the Canon and
the White Horse. which are very big stretches
Of water. We went through them without &C
cident. but l hardly think that l would do it
again as the White Horse has drowned sew
eral men whose graves are on the bank. The
although they were very swift. After the Yu-
kon river is reached it is not so bad. The
current runs eight miles hour, and all
there is TO look out for is sandbars The
rivers in this country all run down hill, and
the only way to get a boat up stream is to
pull 1t up with rope, and had all wanted
of that at Dyea, when it took us three days
to pull our boat six miles. On the way down
we caught all the fish and ducks we could
eat. The ducks were so plentiful and tame
at certain places along the river that you
thQn IUIth or 7 Oh,
surprised on arriving at Dawson to find ducks
selling for 81 and So apiece and fish rs cents
a pound.
Well. so much for the trip. There were all
kinds of people on the river with us, doctors,
lawyers, preachers and women, married and
unmarried.
down. near Stewart river. and sold them in
Dawson for $50 per thousand
Now for Dawson. AS 1 said before, we ar
rived here Sept. 13, and we might as well
have jumped into hades. We sold part of our
provisions on the way and were short when
we got here, and had only four months pro-
visions left. They had provisions left
here, but were expecting boat loads from st.
Mtchaels. and information was received that
the boats were all hung up on sand bars
betoW Circle City, and all the hundreds Of
people that came In here were all short like
ourselves. Well. to be brief, two steamboats,
finally arrived on Oct. 1 and Oct with
small loads. which cut no figure, so the gov
eminent offered all those that were short
eighty miles below Circle City, or about 400
miles from here. About 400 men went down
on the steamboats, and about 200 more in
small boats. and more are leaving every day.
as 1t Is their only salvation. great many
prefer to stay and steal, but II they are
caught 1t Is all day with them. Two men
the mounted police have a number more in
their jail. The people build caches for their
pr %ds III, houses on poles.
We'll had to send my partner down TO
whit IaFk
with about six months grub. Since then I
nave taken In another partner with a good
1utnt SO. II somebody doesn't rob me. will
be able to live through the winter. but I
am not certain.
About LOCO will go out to .Dyea on the ice
IN FEBRUARY, which Will be cold and dam
gerous trip Of 600 miles with dog teams and
1t will take about 1,OO0 to go that way. I NAV
be one Of them.
Dawson is located at the mouth Of Klondike
river on the Yukon, on a little fiat at the foot
of the mountains. and is low, wet CRANBERRY
marsh and very unhealthy. People will die
OH here like sheep next summer. Typhoid fever
ana pneumonia seem to be very bad here.
and the hospital here is crowded The grave,
yard is within 100 feet of my house. and I
see quite few funerals every week
NOW about myself and the prospects OF
course people see this country in yarious
lights. l for one think that under Favorable
conditions that this is good country, but
very pad one at present, unless man has a
good claim, and there are only few Of them
anything to sell here at present can make
fortune, as money has no value here Flour
Is $500 barrel, or SIS for a f1fty-pound sack;
bacon $3.50 pound, beef $1.75, mutton 81 rs
candles Sl6O apiece, and everything else in
proportion.
They use candles In the mines and cannot
get along without them. I could have made
fortune If l had brought in 100 boxes of
candles, they only cost cents a pound on
the outside, but l was like everybody else
did not know these things Everybody was
nrnr To
many men ruined themselves working to get
here with their outfit. 1t was terrible trip
and many time, If it wasn't for bracing
UP the balance of the boys I could have
cried like kid. with my feet all blisters and
back nearly broke carrying heavy packs UP
the mountains day after day, but came out
of It all right, and am as tough as a bear
Well, about Dawson. Money Is no object
here much The big companies get 1t all The
town is all saloons and dance halls, and all
have gambling outfits. Hurley in its palm
lest days was not patch compared to this
town: The miners spend their money like
drunken sailors. Whskey Is so cents a
drink. guess they all make it themselves
| or doctor it up, as it is $40 per gallon here.
Wages are SIS day, quite high, but there
| is nothing in wages here. Two dollars a day
in Ashland is as good as SIS here, but a man
can make stake here II he Is lucky.
| leased one-half interest in two claims here
when first came. but will probably have to
quit them, as 1 cannot get any candles to
work with, and no tallow to make them out
made
| $1,000 this winter or more. but will probably
| have to go to work by the day.
All the hotels and restaurants quit business
| three weeks ago. Board and lodging when
| first came was $3.50 a day. 50 for meals,
| $3.50 for lodging. Meals in restaurants from
| 81 to S5. l worked two weeks since I came
| for $100 per week and built myself nice log
| house in town. 14x16, on a governmet lot
| which get for nothing. 1 can sell 1t now
for 5000. L did not know I was SO good a
mechanic as l am. have as cosy a house
| as you ever lived in. I also helped ]. D.
| Hayes build his. He lives next door to me.
| about fifty feet away.
We will probably work together this winter,
either by the day or take chances working
out lays or options. 1 have got very poor
partner for work, but he has lots Of provi-
Is fairly strong, but it may give out doing
heavy work, but am going to try it. There
are great many men here with their fam
| lilies, but am glad that mine is not here at
| this time. l may strike something, but there
| are thousands here in the same fix II
| have my health I won't come home broke.
but this is a hard country, and this place is
doomed to death. There are only few rich
is plenty of $40 a day digging, which could
be worked If provisions were cheaper
| We have church here and sisters hos
pital, but the sisters could not get here this
| winter. They charge $40 a day in the hos
| pital and S. for the doctors.
l wish Kelly was here; he could do well
if he had an outfit; but 1t costs money to get
them here, and it is almost suicide to get
Michaels In June. I would go into the log
ging and wood business If Kelly was here.
Timber don't cost nothing up river and is
worth $50 to $50 per thousand here. Wood Is
twelve-foot lengths, two or three four-foot
cords into one. Lumber is $40 per thousand
| feet; slabs Is cents apiece. Nothing sells for
less than so cents. Smoking tobacco 81 a