The record-union., 1899-09-29
ALASKA is NOT A PARADISE.
CHARLES SPENCER FOUND NO
GOLD MOUNTAIN.
But He Says the Cape Nome Beach
Sands Are All Right VIII
Return There.

Charles Z. Spencer, a well-known
Sacramentan, has returned from the
Alaskan gold fields, whittier he Went
in July 1858. When he left Sacra-
mento it was to find a mountain OF
gold, but he fell among swamps and
Sloughs of Despond instead With
rare exceptions he pronounces most OF
the Alaskan country a huge fake"
Good Americans, old prospectors, hon.
est men, told him that the Kotzebue
Sound country was bad. The reported
strikes elsewhere were largely failures,
sprinkled here and there with a few
paying claims. He went to Dolphin
Bay and wintered near Fish River,
along one of its tributaries, which were
200 or more people wintering. He found
that the oldest district of all, made
famous by Libby, Blake, Melsing and
Mordaunt, its pioneers. In this coun-
try were a few good claims-all the
rest exaggerated or barren.
Mr.. Spencer was at Cape Nome and
Council City, too, 80 miles away. AT
Cape Nome there were many fraudu-
lent locations, made by bogus powers
of attorney He found misleading
statements in American newspapers
regarding almost everything, but par
ticularly regarding the mining dis
tricts of the country. In all districts
a few good claims were to be found,
but poor chances for the average man.
This was true of FL Dorado, Discovery,
Blake, Bonanza, Nome, and the new
districts. Nome he thought richer
than Dawson, especially along Anvil,
Glacier, Snow and Dexter Creeks. But
these regions are all located and there
are no openings there.
THE beach claims are wonderful,
he said, land claims are probably
taken up from Sledge Rock fifty miles
toward Port Clarence. You can get
good sands two feet or more down,
and you have the ocean to pump from
for sluicing Even with simple meth
DDS men are making fine wages"
Continuing more in detail, the re-
turned prospector said:
1T is undoubtedly the richest sand
beach discovery in the history of the
world Men make with the rocker
from SS to $30 and often several hun
dred dollars per day. 1t was the great
needy people, as there had come to
Nome 200 or 1900 men from Kotze-
bue Sound, also a large number from
up the Yukon country, without food or
money, and this discovery proved their
salvation These men went to work
on the beach, but the companies that
had bought up many of the beach
claims from the original locators
caused the arrest of several hundred
of them by the military. The officers
called upon the companies to give
bonds for the feeding and lodging OF
the prisoners, and in default turned
them loose, and they Immediately re-
turned to their work on the beach
They have all done so we'll that they
! are amply able to either buy their
] winter provisions or pay transporta'
| ton out if there should be facilities for
leaving, which is very doubtful, unless
| the transportation companies act very
promptly.
Colonel Ray said the Government
would provide transportation as fast
as possible and provisions for those
that could not get out, SO people that
have relatives and friends there need
not suffer too much anxiety about
them"
while the fuel question is a serious
one, still the beach is lined with good
dry driftwood from the Yukon River,
1t is found on the banks of the Snake
River, which empties into the sea al
Anvil City There is much drift, and
on the dry creek that puts into the
Snake Immediately back of Anvil City
there are thousands of cords of good
dry driftwood driven in there by a
storm, tide and the ice"