The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1900-12-19

Among the guests at the Normandie is
Alice Rollins Crane. of Dawson City. Alas
ka. who in addition TO being enc Of the
richest women in the KIondike possesses
the unique distinction Of being the only
woman general manager Of a mining COM
pany in the United States. She is at pres
ent in Washington on a Government mis-
zion.
Mrs. Crane IS a remarkable woman and
is regarded in the K1ondil1e as one Of the
shrewdest and most energetic mining op-
orators IN that EIdorado Of America She
, personally ovcrIoolzs the operations of
fourteen mining claims in which she owns
q controlling interest. She left Alaska last
fall and after her mission in Washington
is accomplished she viii visit her rela-
| tives. some of whom she has not seen for
several years, and viii return &c Alaska
early II the spring.
In addition to her astute business quail
fcatiens Mrs. Crane is an author OF dis
/ dnetion. She has written several books
and tales Of frontier and Indian life, and
one OF her works. Smiles and Tears FROM
the Kfondike' . q collection OF short stories
of mining life il Alaska, viii be issued
! shortly.
Mrs Crane Is about forty years os age,
bat in spite of the fact that she has done
4 great amount OF rigorous work and en-
dured many fardshiPs, she locks fully five
years younger She is of medium height.
Her face is CHEEKY, with frmness and de-
eisioa stamped il every feature Her eyes
are clear and grey and hair a rich and
KaFy golden brown. An entertaining talk
Or. she has a wonderful fund Of anecdote
and stories of life in the Klondike. She
is a native Of Virginia, and her girlhood
days we're spent in the society circles Of
Washington, New York, and BostoIs- She
prepared herself for a literary career and
became an artist Of no meansability. After
che began to write she drifted into news
paper work and WIS at different times
connected with some of the leading jour
nails in the country. After the Haymarket
riot Ia Chicago. in 1885, while she was con-
nected with the press in that city, dis
guised as a nurse, she entered the Cook
County Hospital and helped TO care for the
wounded reds. Each evening she wrote
story On the information she had &c
uuired during TIE day from the wounded
Anarchists
Several years afterward Mrs Crane.
with her son Fred, went to Arizona,
where they spent considerable tine hunt
ing and living among the Indians. Dur
ing this tine Mrs. Crane made a careful
study Of the Indian character, their ira
tiitio1s, and She customs ana folklore of
the various tribes. She wrote a number
OF valuable articles concerning the red
men, and later when about TO go TO
Alaska, received q commission for her
services from the American Bureau Of
Ethnology. During her sojourn in AriZo-
ma Mrs. Crane became interested in min
ing N that region she secured posses
sion OF valuable mining property, and
personally looked after the workings Of
the mines, thus gaining 2 thorough
knowledge of the subject that became
invaluable when she later went to Alaska.
These ventures were almost without ex-
ception successful, and great PROFITS we're
realized from them
In 1897, when the cry of gold from Alas
ka caused a general exodus Of fortune
seekers from all parts of the United
States, Mrs. Crane determined to go to
the Klondike- The start was made in
the fall Of 1891. Railroads were utilized
| as far as possible, and then sIedges were
used to convey the supplies the remain
ing distance. FiEe hundred miles from
Dawson City Mrs. Crane was deserted b.
= treachsrous guide, who took with him
The greater part Of splendid outfit with
which the journey had been commenced.
Nothing daunted she obtained from some
friendly Indians a canoe constructed Of
skins, and in this frail craft, with no
companion ether than an Indian boy, she
padded 500 miles down unknown streams.
! through swirling rapids. TIL after seven
weeks OF hardship and privation. Dawson
City was finally reached The undertaking
was an exceptionally hazardous and dar-
ing one.
Upon arriving at Dawson, Mrs. Crane
had only a small portion OF her original
supplies left and but little money She
secured small plot Of ground and IN
aided laid the foundation for d small
in M rrh oh Etn reT F.--
several Government officials
a number of capitalists in the States,
trusting in her good judgment had com
missioned her to invest for them and she
at once began to prospect in the Klondike
district, registered and bought q number
OF claims Several Of them did not show
pay dirt at first, but after being thorough
ly worked began to yield such enormous
profits that Mrs Crane soon acquired one
of the largest fortunes in the Kl0Rdike.
During the time she was there a period
OF nearly three years, Mrs. Crane wrote
articles for several of the large Hewspa-
pers, including the San Francisco Ex-
aminer- She is an expert photographer
and has one Of the finest collections OF
Alaskan views IN existence.
Upon her return to this country a stock
company, composed of the capitalists
whose mining interests she had cared for
while in the Klondike, was formed and
Mrs. Crane was chosen general manager.
with power of direction over all proper
ties c Iatrolied by this company
II i not generally known ttsssssstt Alaska
has great natural Sources as an agricultu-
raj district as well as mining. This, how
ever Mrs. Crane holds 10 be the case and
ber visit to Washington II this time is
made fer the purpose of urging that Con-
gress grant special homestead laws for
the public lands in the Yukon Valley.
rz4 cu4 hac hna,
caused recently by the fact that there are
in the mining districts of Alaska and I'm
the Klondike large numbers Of miners
who have failed to get any gold from their
claims and who are penniless, provision
less and without shelter from the riqor-
Gus winter that has come upon them 1t
IS Mrs Cranes opinion that IL these lands
were open for public disposal the miners
who have been unsuccessful would At Cuee
settle there build homes and develop the
natural resources Of the country The
idea has found ready advocates IN num-
Der Of Congressman and department Off
Gals, and q bill Incorporating the de-
tails viii probably be introduced in
Congress at an early date.
The idea Of farming in Alaska seems
inecBEruous st first blush" she said last
night in discussing her plan 1T La Nor
mandie but that IS doubtless due TO the
fact that Alaska is generally regarded as
q bleak and barren country where vege-
tation is very sparse. Such is not the
case All along the Yukon there is a
rich alluvial sell black and loamy, in
which the grains raised in the States viii
grow readily.
There are thousands OF men VIII, bays