The Savannah morning news., 1900-07-24
GEORGIAN IN THE KLONDIKE.
Varying Fortunes of Young james
Western Logan.


From the New York World.
A young Georgian. James Western Lo-
gan, started for the Klondike region in
August, 1897, when the first real excite
rIent of the Alaskan gold fields had be-
gun. He was a newspaperman in San
Francisco, working on daily as a re-
porter. II was as a representative of
that paper that he went 10 the Klondike,
though he had the gold mining project
in his mind at the time. To-day he has
received from his property in Nome $751;
900 in cash, and has retained properties
from which he expects to bring gold
worth million this fall
Taking his wife along, and leaving his
two children with relatives at home, he
went by the Skagway route, made the
Chilkoot pass ascent with three tons of
provisions, and finally wintered from Oc-
tober of that year till January, 1895 on
the banks of the Peliy river, where II
joins the Yukon. The hardships of that
long winter are to be imagined the Their
mometer going on several occasions 90 10
degrees below zero.
During their stay on the Pelly the pair
prospected for gold, and on one occasion
young Logan got so far from camp with
two Indian guides, who pretended to
know where there were some itch de-
poslts of gold, that a blizzard coming up
they became lost and we're five days
finding the trail again. Their food was
absolutely exhausted and the Indians, IN
able 10 10 otherwise actually made a
mocassin SOUP of those they wore on their
| feet. Logan says that this was the FIN
| est soup he ever tasted, was not n ell
! disaEr eeahle. having gone thirty-six hours
without fooc.
Along about the last Of February the
faithful pair limped into Dawson, with
out a dollar left, their food all gone, not
from having been eaten, but because
they could not carry it further and the
situation was terrible. Young Logan
was full of resources. and it was not
long before he had located several of the
most valuable claims around Dawson.
His wife. also, located other claims, and
by March. 1898, he was offered $4,000 for
his holdings. Spurning these offers for
his interests he set about the task of re-
turning to San Francisco for his two
children. leaving his wife at Dawson to
look after their property. In June 1898,
he left Dawson via St. Michaels. He dis
posed of part of his holdings 90 Califor-
MIA parties for a little working capital
and in the latter part of the summer of
1898 started again with his children, one
a boy of 6. the other a girl of 3.
They were delayed on the road so long
this trip, again going over the Skagway
trail, that by the time they reached Daw-
son the Canadian government had CON
fiscated all of their claims under a new
resurvey law, shortening the time for
working the claims under the old law and
thus he was left at Dawson with a family
and no money. To add 10 the misery OF
his condition. his wife whom he had left
with caresses on going out to the states
for The children, refused 10 have anything
to do with him. He handed her the
lovely little girl and led up the boy both
of whom he had trudged hundreds of
miles with. carrying them In his arms or
pulling them over the Klondike SHOWS in
the sleds when the dogs were exhausted.
and then his lies partner told him her
heart was no longer his He found in the
house boarder who had been there
through the summer and TO him he laid
the cause of his trouble. This turn Of at
fairs was a frightful revelation to Logan.
and he was thrown into a state of fever
ish excitement, which finally turned into
real fever. and for three months he was
as one dead. Presbyterian minister
from Canada took charge of his case and
nursed him back TO life.
He went on to Nome in company with
a nephew of Admiral Schley, whom he
had known at Dawson. The two entered
in July. 1889 they set out after the covet-
ed gold. Up to that time at Nome only
the Tundra and hills around had been
worked, and though the gold was panning
out In paying quantities. il did not seem
20 Salty young Logan. One day he was
missing from the camp, and was not seen
for a week He returned one evening with
sums $3.50 in dust in a bag, and reported
that he had found gold thick az sawdust
i'm the ruby sand. This started the SIAM
pede for the beach. and claims were To-
Gated as fast as they could be recorded
Logan was given the fun credit for the
original discovery OF this ruby beach gold
in all the subsequent publications on
Nome. He and his associates located
some $50 acres. and he took out of one
hole twenty feet square and three feet dee ,
more than $40 900 in three weeks with
this money he returned TO the states in
/ September, 1899, and at once set about the
task OF securing capital for working his
| property.