The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-11-30
ABANDONED N FAR NORTH
STORY OF HEARTLEss CRUELTY
AND DECEPTION.
Victims Of Swindling Mine Promo
ters-seventy Men aaa Women
Struggling, In Scattered Parties,


COLUMBIA. 3. c.. New z.-AnoIheT
tale OF privation. suffering and disappotnt-
ment from the far north has reached CO.
lumoia. The victims number about seven
". including one or two desicatsiy nur-
fured women, and are nov struggling, In
scattered parties. up the shores of the
Athabasca. painfully telling, poorer than
when they set forth full Of hope. toward
the little city OF Edmonton. Il appears
that during the spring of ISIS. company
was formed In Chicago. which Was 10 go
into the klondke by way Of Edmonton.
and the overland route. and after arrival
70 do mining. prospecting and purchasing
business In Canada's Eidorado. The band
numbered some thirty In all. start was
made. but the usual mistake Of too heavy
an OUTFIT having been committed, the ex-
pedition was soon in difficulties Dis=en-
sions arose, the need of a strong competent
leader was realized and after a stormy
meeting. the command of the party was
taken from those that lad hitherto WELD
ed IL, and an invitation sent 10 the Hud-
son Bay Company. In Winnipeg. TO fur
nish one of their northland factors. VINO
should act as guide. leader and friend.
In answer 10 this invitation the company
sent one of It's retired officers, Mr.. Mclean,
servant whose worth had been tested
by long years OF faithful service. especial
iy IN that particular part Of the great
north through which the party designed to
travel.
until late in the fall of the year. when Mr..
Mclean returned with bag Of specimens.
OF copper ore carrying gold. and lead ore
carrying silver. which he asserted had
been taken by himself from rocks border
Ing the Great Slave lake. The well known
integrity OF the man caused these facts
to be accepted without cavii. Samples Of
the rock were assayed. giving results As
high as 81 per cent copper and $50 ounces
IN gold. to the ton. on the strength OF
these assays the Chicago promoters found
wanted-in fact the shrewdest mining men
in that city almost fell over one another
In their frantic haste TO be In on the
ground floor. Mr. Mclean was introduced
everywhere. dined and wined and made
70 act as an innocent stool pigeon in one
OF the most graceiess swindies OF the
century.
Some OF the ore found It's way to Ottawa,
and even so conservative a man az the
director OF the geological survey became
wildly excited: so much that he i'm
rsdiateiy dispatched one of his most trust
ed officers to the Great Slave lake.
AZ for Mclean. he considered his fortune
as already made. and only too gladly con-
scented to return once more to the far
North. He sailed by the first brigade Of
boats down the Athabasca. In June. with
A fresh detachment of tenderfeet and a
small supply of stores. This was the last
OF the old officer Today il Is feared that
he is suffering horrible privations on the
edge of the barren lands. having been
abandoned without money. food or outfit.
by the enraged dupes he had unwittingly
led into the frozen North. chasing rain
bows
The tale ha. not yet been told from be-
ginning TO end. but the gaps seem easy
to bridge. The officer of the geological sur
vey met some of the members of the Chi
cago party at Fort Resolution. and after
examining, at their request, the samples
of mineral collected during the previous
year was compelled TO tell them that they
had nothing but lot of useless trash,
without even trace of either god, silver.
copper or Iced Some gold buttons were
then produced, which a so called assayer
one OF the original Chicago party, was
said to have obtained out OF piowpipe sam
rles. No rock similar In character 10 that
upon which he was said TO have operated
could be found, and II became apparent
TO the poor dupes that they had been the
victims of misplaced confidence, and that
all the trials and privations through which
they had passed had been endured In vain.
Under the circumstances the action they
then took may he understood. though GER
tainiy IL had no excuse. Mclean, who was
In all probability as innocent as anyone in
the party. and only guilty OF want of
discretion and a too great confidence in
human nature, was absent. exploring for
fresh claims and possible placer ground. to
the northeast of Fort Resolution. some 200
miles In the country Of the Yellow Knives.
| They refused to send their steam launch for
him In September, as agreed upon, deciar
ing that as far as they were concerned he
might stay where he was until the crack
of doom. The party then broke up-with-
out hopes means or desire for a longer
taste of the adventurous life Of the North,
and the members are now struggling as in
dtviduai units To reach civilization-no easy
task with 800 miles of upstream naviga-
ton ahead and an Arctic winter coming on
Putting the patches and fragments of the
story together. the truth of the matter
seems To be that n parry Of cunning and
utterly INSCRIPTIONS promoters sent into
the far North samples OF exceedingly rich
ore, which they substituted. without his
knowledge. f0f the lean rocks Mclean had
Coieeted-his utter ignorance of mining
and minerals making such an exchange
simple and little likely OF detection. Using
him as "a stool pigeon. he was sent out
with these samples. and without suspect
ing II. served decoy.
For utter heartlessneSs this latest swim
die Is as had any OF its numerous prede-
cessors. When the tee goes OUT next May
and the Vos ayers Of the Great COMPANY be-
gin 10 use the waterways Of the North.
they are likely 10 some xrewsonle
sights. and to have 20 bury many poor
wretch who came Ia his end through the
wilss OF devils ia human shape, living on
the fat OF the land in Chicago.