Omaha daily bee., 1899-12-10
STILL LIFE IN FROZEN Zone
Cut of from Balance of World Eight
Months in the Year,
CHARACTERISTICS OF NOME GOLD CAMP
BoodleIsm Seems to Have Tainted
Nome omcinls-Typhoid Fever
Fashionable AiIment-Gospc1
Distributors strike IL Rich.

Nome the ice bound gold camp on the
frozen chores of Bering sea, has long been
cut off from communication with the rest OF
the world by the close Of navigation, and no
access will be had to its Isolated riches
until navigation again opens in June. It
is true that a Seattle United States mail
contractor has promised the delivery OF
mails monthly at Nome during the winter,
but from the tenor of tho announcement of
his project by tho Nome newspapers 1t is
apparent that the people OF that city place
little credence in his promise. Navigation
closed on Bering sea late In October, and in
view OF tho approaching winter all of the
many vessels plying to that port made haste
southwark to escape tho ice. Mail Con-
tractor Richardson has a contract for the
delivery of winter mails to st. Michaes.
which is several hundred miles below Nome.
He proposes to land the fret overland mail
in st. Michaels, eighty days after the close
OF navigation. He promises to carry mails
between Nome and st. Michaes for 81 let
ser. The mail will leave juneau for Tanana
on the 1st and 18th OF every month. From
Tanana to st. Michaels 1t will be carried but
once a month. The distance from Juneau to
Tanana is about 500 miles and from Tanaua
TO st. Michaels about 900 miles, a total dis
tance OF z, 400 miles. He does not promise to
land any mail in Nome. several hundred
miles above st. Michaels, until some time in
January or February Ho has thirty men
and dog teams at work between Tanana and
st. Michaes. Only letter mail will be car
ried and it takes eighty days in winter to go
from Juneau to st. Michaels.
Pictures OF the Community's Life.
ono can hardly imagine the destiny or
usefulness of a newspaper published in such
n Of 4 hn- nj ba world
yet Nome has two of them that must keep
the inhabitants posted in such matters as
uay Interest them during their long hiberna-
tion. With no means of getting any in
formation from without, and with but
handful Of readers huddled together on the
icelocked sands of a frozen sea who must
necessarily know pretty nearly all about
each others affairs, the publication of
newspaper seems great deal like whstling
10 keep up ones courage. Both CT Nomes
weekly papers are creditable publications.
In point OF size they are not imposing being
only four column folio, but in Typography
and in the character of the reading matter
they contain they are neat and enterpris-
Ing Their contents doubtless reflect the
character OF the community in which they
are published. They quite literally sup
piled with advertisements, for when they
receive fabulous prices which fill with envy
the souls of publishers of older communities
who boast of large circuations for their
publications. In the two copies at hand are
found advertisements fer two transporta-
tion companies, three meat markets, five
hotels, five restaurants, one lodging house,
one general merchandise store enc sheet
metal works, one hardware and tin store
one barber shop, one drug store, one bakery,
one sign painter and wall paper hanger one
surveyor, one mining engineer and seven,
teen saloons. Six physicians have modest
cards, and some seventeen lawyers hang out
their Shingles" There is one second hand
dealer who luXuriates in the name Of But
ton One merchant named Lane advertises
water for sale at the rate of two buckets
for 25 cents.
Tho butcher, who seems to be the most
enterprisng and progressive, and who
therefore has hs advertisement in big
type, is significantly named John Kill, and
an item indicates hat he really does kill
for the supply of his market where one
would expect that he would have his meats
shipped in from some slaughtering establish
ment. Tho item referred to says: "V. f.
Folmer camo up from Seattle on the Alpha
in charge of forty-nine cattle and $50 sheep
consgned to John Kill Of the Nome City
market"
modest item In the column OF local
brevties refers to a former Omaha man:
"William Snyder, famed a rocker maker
in the Klondke, has taken up his residence
in Nome"
Men Count for Little.
The tendency of the people of that golden
soiled community to eschew all topics except
such as relate to dollars IL. eXempifed in
their newspapers Almost column is de-
voted to a robbery, in which restaurant
keeper had lost purse containing $1,7OO.
while just below it the pathetic tale of
grewsome tragedy is told in seven lines, as
follows:
This forenoon man in a boat was seen
drifting out to sea. No attempt was made
10 go to his rescue and about 80 the boat
disappeared from sight and the unfortunate
man s without doubt either dead or will
meet his death before assistance can be
rendered him."
Such isolated and prosperous gold camps
as Nome is pictured to be are generally
turbulent and full of lawlessness, but II
Nome be so its newspapers fail to reflect it.