The Nome nugget., 1900-01-01
{ BIG CROP THIS WINTER.


 apple and grape in autumn, so does the stampede bud and bloom and ripen in the Alaskan winter climate The crop in Nome has been unusually large this season. It has been considered a dull week that did not furnish a we'll titled, full-grown and well-ripened stampede. Nearly every section of the country within radous of seventy five miles of Nome has been stampeded to since the first "mushing" weather, in the early part of the winter. The result has been some very rich finds of placer goId, giving promise of the opening mp of several new districts, large in extent. easy of access. uniform pay streaks and in some cases exceed ingly rich.
 Winter stampeding is peculiarly Alaskan. Winter here being the best time of the year for "mushng" with dog team or hand sled, it naturally follows that that is the tune selected in which to make long or rapid jour neys. What the automobile is to Paris, the Jenriksha pusher to Japan, the horse to the Kentuckian, the burro to the Mexican. so the dog is to the Alas kan, and it will be a long time, if ever, before the dog will be supplanted. It is surprising what feats. travel and hauling, can be accomplished by a well-trained dog team
 But we digress. The Aggression is pardOnable however. for the dog is a mighty big factor in stampede. There is always the suspicion that stampede is propagated in the inter- est of some roadhouse or duck" at N''le other end of the line, who very conveniently happens" to be there with feH sotries 'or noocn'A 'A But notwithstanding this fact, TO old pros pector will miss stampede to join in the first rush. Tt might be all right this time." he argues with himself, "and if don't go I'll be kicking my self for a thousand years for it." So he goes, often after only an hours preparation for ten days trip in the dead of an Arctic winter. For this reason stampede to some new creek is easily created. In stampede com paratively few of the participants have any definite knowledge of the value of the reported strike, or the locality of the find. They blindly join in-the predominant idea being to get there get there among the first. This being the case, it needs but a word, wink or sign from one friend or acquaint- ance to another to immediately throw him into the stampeding frenzy. It is mysterious wonderful-with what rapidity a stampede craze will spread through an Alaskan town, whose in habitants are largely composed of old time miners. Instances are frequent where half the population of consid- erable town have had their dogs har- messed and sleds loaded ready for the trail within an hour after the first whisper of the magic words new strike!" tipped to friend by re turned prospector. Often a stampede will occur in the middle of the night, while the thermometer is cOquetting with the 30 below zero. Women, too, frequently play an important part in stampedes. They often arrive at discovery" among the very first and s-Sure valuable claims in the new dis trict. Several ladies of Nome enjoy the distinction of being swift "mush- CTS" on stampede. and it takes a mighty good male man" to beat them stalking a claim.
 However. we may look at it. the stampede idea has been a good thing for Alaska. Though much time and money have been wasted and spent, and many severe hardships endured on stampedes, the foundations of which were based on fraud and deceit, the general result has been good and caused the development of many rich sections of the country.
 Nome's population is composed of mighty good stampeding timber. and it needs but the faintest whisper of a new find to start the frenzy blazing down the line. There need be no fear  that any considerable quantity of gold will long lie undiscovered in any near vicinity of its live and energetic citizens.