The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-12-03
4 4 lGI BOUND GRAVE.
.Sr Or A FuNERAL IN A REMOTE
alaska CAMP.
....,tr Of Death Among Rough
r,.spsctors-Jos Harton's Last
-4.ss.x Piace-simpie Hat Inn
s.essive Ceremonies OF n""''

4
~ Z long time, growing all the
wb1e gradually weaker and weak
-. until now for some weeks me
s...,rs had detailed one of their num-
p a stay with him continually ana take
y - rim. A separate cabin, twelve py
go .ss. had been built for hospital ana
io. nl ~. sIck man had been made as com
ness ~ ~ ~ nossble. The poor fellow was
LIZ y, hodly pain and out or his head
oi'sn s,S asai Of the time: and from our
- ~hlch was barely fifty yards dis
ssps1 - could sometimes hear the cries
- saA altered In his delirium.
,ssrAsv morning we started out to fell
80 m fuel for the fires in our prospect
49, n ne upper guich. two miles away.
n,,- rpiehbors' cabins seemed strangely
Gss., There was entire absence OF the
Ss,rsi camp work out Of doors, and nobody
~. rnoving outside OF either the principai
csbn u the hospital
~ lett that we should learn pao news
~ ~ q. rext met our friends, but still we
~ ~ laavine camp until we should heir
~ ~ x 3hsrn, As we stood around our door
,ssSsr1 acrosp the narrow gully which
i-.stsa the two camps. man came
scss.,.N ina corner Of the cabin nearest
- W. sAw It was Williams, who had
~ ~. acting as nurse to the Invalid. He
pssu . mid careful man, and though Of
~ svtsrtor lust the sort Of person to do
rrds exss sr !; no woman were at hand to
sucn
o9 y. = uvr.t mia steps In our direction ard
~ went down on the little cordu-
~ foot bridge to meet him. Williams
esca vas serious and his manner subdued,
srS We OWNED the news he had to tell
s ~ he communicated It. Presently.
ssssr sxchanking few words, they came
welt ~
hue s,Vup ..a vyu,,ams ..d,ed at haIf
-. s,.,ht -,
pay .,as ,sr,ot. camn death had
g W. ,osnsa ~ sacb other NOT know
CONF !, vr,cs o,,r Feelings. For more
ins y" y g hsa been torether and
tn1u c,..s...... .ba faces NJ the less than
s'''Ss - - n fha two OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
80. ..ss~hhors.-wera all the human
,..N. - =. IA sasn With the sole exception
INV "a Tndian who. visiting a cache in
- ~. .s,,,nstv sor SUNNY of ancient moose
~ sa..s .ccomnanled by his daughter to
49,, ire nack. had stayed over one night
- csmn nearly three months ago. No
othsr whites were within 100 miles Of US
rcs.sh,v much further. and we appeared
- ~ cufta az the trail. of the natives as
III,
Ana nov NOR Joe was dead. It was not
~ ART fine IN the history OF any of us
FRAT we had lost friends in the same way;
hnt somehow this seemed to touch us more
c,nselv. We had never seen death take a
twentiath mart Of the eptire population of
our town Al 4 single blow. and a propor-
t,or greater than that left us when Joe
purton died.
-
w q delayed going up the gulch for
little and accompanied Williams back
to his party's camp to offer our sympathy
and our services But among so many
willing and anxious to help there was not
much for each one OF us to do, and George
and / soon went on to our tree-felling.
Ted and Frank, who were old hands at
such work. went over to the saw-pit and
whipsawed s sixteen-inch spruce, getting
out enough boards for coffin, Ted was
lightning" on all work with hammer and
saw. and when we came back to camp at
night We found him just putting the finish
Ing touches on smooth1y-planed casket.
Joe was Free Mason, and a brother
memh In his party, who was al metal
worker, 'ade Of sheet-copper a fraternity
emblem OF suitable size to be put on-the
coffin lid. My tribute to the dead mans
memory was rendered when that evening
In our cabin etched his name, residence,
age and date of death on the plate. For
this purpose ! melted part Of the beeswax
had In my mending kit and spread Ii on
the metal and scratched the inscription
through II with my kHife-bladc. biting 1t
out afterward with acid.
The next day. shortly after o'clock, we
were summoned to Joe's funeral. 1t was
unique and Impressive ceremony, though
necessarily devoid of the pomps of obse-
quies In the gentler surroundings of civil
ization; but to us its very simplicity and
rudeness only heightened it's effect upon
our minds and hearts. Not a man Of the
TWO camps failed Of attendance. The win
dows Of the hospital cabin had been re-
movedsand the door was shown wide omen.
and although the thermometer Indicated a
temperature ten degrees below the freez-
ing point every head was barred as we
'a nn1 'nlo the presence OF the dead,
had been for sn ,,,a,e,, n,,,.r,, 800. rne,.
not very cornforta HE couch uas a,ontv.
tracked coffee herrias throryn ~, AZ ~,
IL the little SQUARE nov sto,,a g., a. osrvor
Ind sending fortb their charactaristto So
.ance as thew SLOWLY scorobaa on ,ha ~
ron. took the place ~ Inc nerf,,roe ~ IL
,ense and flowers. ana n, ~ y,,air ,,,ooaa,,
.offin. which was s,,nnortea ~, ~, ,,o,,r,,
aw- horsas q, az s,sils,1 ~ ~ W. Iousn
',r sstaa III .lie ihiaoie Oh the capin lay
~, ~ i.iehu Worn-out hody wrapped in the