The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1899-03-09

The Intelligencer this morning pub
fishes another of Mr.. Sam Hugh Broc-
kunler's interesting letters from vest
ern Ontario, where, with Mr.. Edward
stifel. another Wheeling young man, he
is engaged In extensive gold mining
operations. Most interesting are his
descriptions of weather cold enough to
put u thermometer out OF the business
and of a hunt for caribou.
Special Correspondence OF Intelllgencer.
RAT PORTAGE. Ontario, March IL
know just how cold forty degrees below
zero is. Was not satisfied with the
timberlng done at the shaft during my
absence. and, as 1t was particular job.
gave It my personal attention during the
twenty-four hours the day and night
shifts worked upon It.. The mercury
had frozen solid, which you know indi-
Gates forty degrees below, and after we
had been out long enough to get thor
oushly chilled. with icicles pendant
from beard and eyebrows, like verit-
able Santa Claus. we wondered wheth-
err life was really worth living. Even
the hard work failed to warm US to any
extent, and, although well mufled, we
had 10 watch nose, ears and fingers to
keep them from freezing. Occasionally
we invented pressing business, which
took US to the blacksmith shop, and
thus obtained few moments Of
warmth. Oh, yes. indeed, next summer
we will tell You how fine and invigorat-
ing II was, but just now the gloss Is al
worn Off. and, to tell you the truth, the
temperature was far from comfortable.
During the night the northern lights
shone out in all their splendor Plain
prosaic words seem too cold to describe
the beauty OF the Aurora Borealis. I'm
agine an arch OF light stretched across
the heavens. with here and there n
broad vertical ray shooting skyward.
These bands of light have all the colors
of the spectrum, changing from one
shade to another, as they pass across
the arch with graceful wave like mo-
ton. They look like large rays OF
light shooting through some immense
grating placed below the horizon.
Amidst 1t all one hears faint sounds.
each one resembling sky-rocket when
II starts off, ony uf course. great
deal more subdued.
The display IS awe-inspiriag and my
feelings as l sazed were akin to those
brought out by the sight OF Niagara.
Once again | thought OF the lines so
aptly describing the feeling produced by
that great wonder:
II came to see;
] thought to write:
I was but dumb
One popularity OF the cold spells Is
the enormous appetite5 that the men
have; the psychological explanation Is,
believe, that We need more steam and
therefore consume more fuel. At any
rate. il keeps the cook very busy and
our fifteen men get away with one hun
dred pounds of -four and one hundred
and seventy-five pounds o: meat per
week, not 10 mention tea, coffee, pota-
toes and other food.
Having had surfeit of salt horse"
l took Jimmy Brooks with me and
started up 10 Caribou Lake In search OF
deer. We gfided along easily on our
snow shoes and did not realize how deep
the snow was until we tried to wade
through 1t without the help of the awk-
ward-looking, but extremely necessary
snow shoe. The road was unfrequented
and of course had never been brush
ed" so We had to proceed carefully and
look out for air holes.
Jimmy was armed with an old Snider
% carbinc, while had repeating Mar
lin. i0-shot.
All. the sight to gladden. sports
mans eye as we rounded point on the
lake. Three caribou scrapins n hole In
the SNOW and ice In order 10 get
drink Of the water beneath!
They were fully four hundred yards
away, but it would DE impossible 20
get nearer 50 setting our sights we
dropped on our knees, and for few
moments the shots resembled a skir-
mish. But hold my sights on them,
above them or below them, could not
bag any game. and having emptied my
rifle, ] looked around at Jimmy In
sheer disgust. There he was pumping
away with his old carbinc. but like the
Spanish guns, his metal was not equal
10 his ambition.
Then ] looked Mt the deer again. At
first they ran 10 one side, then 10 an
other seeming 10 be utterly bcwilder-
ed and unable to locate us. bu; ut last
they got the wind and went trotting up
the lake at n two-minute gait.
Utterly weary and discouraged, we
made back tracks. Next day In over
hauling my gun I found the forward
sight had so. knocked to one side
two hundred yards. so I was somewhat