Waterbury Democrat., 1900-11-05
SITUATION A NOME.
Department Commander Ram
 Calls 1nteresting Report {.
ARRIVAL OF TROOPS WAS TIMELY.
fhe DsaoA Practically woRked Out Last Xear-ASaslka Natives Psrash- ing Eor Want of E0od-Govsrn-
 meat Relief Recommended.

I0ChV AGA1SX AAGCOAA 3AA0&SAs .A WASHINGTON, Nov. 5. - Brigadier | General George NJ. Randall, commanding he department of Alaska, under date of sept. 20, at St. Michael, has submitted ,is annual report. A great deal of the | eport is devoted to conditions at Nome, which he found upon his arrival at Q crit | cal stage. 1t was difficult to obtain con tictions by jury trial in the United States commissioners court, which emboidened \ he lawlcss. Labor organizations. pre- vented men from working for less thgi | t\ an hour and were the cause of musl teNtitution and want and destruction 2 pro. >erty.
 FLNy 1s.OoO people arrive2 at Nome i, lune. Claim jumping was the order oi l he da S Nearly every one seemed to mink h, Nhad a divine right to take pos .ession Na claim or town lot wherever | 'ound. M wy property owners were dis posed to de. Ncd their rights by taking the aw in their \wn hands. The arrival of troops prcvel ed bloodshed and serious iisorder. -A
 On the reques of the chamber of conn nerce the military took charge, thorough
 examined into all complaints and where the, rights of property could be de- ;ernined placed t in the possession of he lawful owner. Captain W. A. Beth A, WuO uCkeu uS yuuSe uuhoCatS III tASoS .ases, is highly praised by General Ran Hall. "a . The sanitary conditions were placed lnder the charge of Major Charles E. Eber, surgeon, who has heretofore re- ported upon conditions. The energetic efforts of the military improved these conditions during the summer.
 There were about 500 men working on :he beach at Nome with machinery at ,ne ti,:e and many declined to give an swers concerning the prospects for gold, while others admitted they were taking put only from $4 to S6 day. The beach was practically worked out last year. The tundra is believed to be rich, but 1t would require large capital to produce re- suits. There is a large area of country which has not been prospectcd where gold can yet be found, but it requires meu of experience to develop such Q country. General Randall discusses the various points where mining operations nave been tn progress, which have come to the knowledge of the public in reports cided to establish permanent military post on the island of St. Michael.
 General Randall = votes. considerable space to the nativ of ska and says that the Eskimo has bEen unnoticed by those he has befriended and has been all lowed to die for the lack of proper care and food. For years he has extended his hospitality to adventurous white men, and his hut has been the shelter for ship wrecked sailor and frostbitten miner. From all points. Cape York, Port Clar- ence, Topek, Golofn bay, Yukon river and elsewhere, reports have been receiv- ed of sickness, starvation and mortality so great that it promised to wipe out al- most the entire race. Lieutenant T. H. Jarvis of the United States revenue serv- ice reported these facts to General Ran dalI, and the tug Meteor was placed at his disposal for relief work and about 100 destitute natives cared for at Nome. The revenue cutter Bear has been dis tributing supplies to the destitute na- tives, while others in the vicinity of Fort St. Michael have been cared for by the commanding officer of that post. The work of Lieutenant Jarvis is highly com. mended by General Randall.
 In closing this particular feature of his report General Randall says:
 ''In many parts of the United States
 provision has been made for the Indian Reservations have been set apart for
 him and food and clothing supplied. h Alaska 1t was not necessary heretofore
 to do much, but the great rush of white
 men that followed the discoveries of gold
 has completely changed everything. The game and fur bearing animals have about
 disappeared, and the natives means o1
 sustenance are gone.
 '1 therefore recommend that the gov ernment afford some relief to the nativei
 until such time as they can take care o1 themselves"