The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1900-07-26

Senator Robert A. Ravenscroft,
who made the trip to Cape Nome in
company with Mr.. John Shartzer
at which point they met the party
leaving Oakland in May last, arrived
home from his long journey on Mon
day morning last, and in converse
tion with THE REPUBLICAN carried
on at long distance lover the tele-
phone) we are enabled to give short
write-up of the Senator's travels, his
experiences and the condition of
things at Nome and the prospects for
the success of the Oakland party of
gold hunters.
The Senator left Seattle, Washing
ton, a day or two in advance of the
party leaving Oakland in May and
went to Skaguay where he was joined
by MY. John Shartzer. They took
the interior route to Nome, passing
over the White Pass trail after which
they entered Lake Bennett, in North
Britisht Columbia, and passing
through it entered Lake Marsh.
Leaving Lake Marsh the White Horse
Rapids were entered, the trip being
made in river steamer. These
rapids at the time Senator Raven
scroft made the, trip were extremely
dangerous, the melting snow from
the mountains pouring vast vol
ame of water into the narrow gorge
through which the river runs. The
trip was made in safety however,
and the body of water known as Lake
Leberge was passed through. Thirty
Mile River was then entered which
with the Teslin River forms the
Lewes River. At Fort Selkirk, at the
junction of the former stream and
the Pelly River, which forms the
Great Yukon. the dangers of the trip
came to an end Dawson City, the
metropolis of the klondike district,
was reached after boating down the
Yukon from Fort Selkirk for several
hundred miles and the great gold
fields were entered. Everything was
on the jump and it is estimated that
the cleanup of the Dawson City
district alone this spring will amount
to over twenty millions in gold.
A few days were spent in Dawson,
after which the real journey to Nome
was begun. A river boat was again
taken and the trip down the Yukon
to tide water resumed. On the way
every mining camp of any impor-
lance, including Forty Mile, Fort
Cudahy, Circle City and Fort Yukon
were visited. Here the same activity
as that evidenced at Dawson was to
be seen. Men of all classes were en-
deavoring to gather as much gold as
possible, prior to going down the
leaving Dawson were as drop in the
sea compared to the thousands re-
manning in the district.
The trip from Dawson to st. Mich
aels. on Norton Sound, was made
without incident. At the latter place
Messrs Ravenscroft and Shartzer en-
parked in large steamer for Cape
Nome, arriving at that point on May
25th, two days after the party from
Oakland had disem' rbed from the
steamer Garonne.
The machinery which was purchas-
ed by the company at San Francisco
and shipped to Nome three weeks
ahead was on the beach awaiting the
arrival of the party and at once prep
arations were made to get it set up
and in running order. The engine
and pump which had been mounted
on some heavy timbers prior to the
shipment from San Francisco was
transported up the beach one and
a-half miles from Nome and across
Snake River where it was set up and
operations in earnest begun on the
morning of July end, when the first
shovelful of gold-bearing sand was
thrown into the sluice box and the
water turned on to wash it out. The
machinery is of the heavy type and
is composed of a five-inch centrifugal
pump driven by seven horsepower
gasoline engine of the same make as
that used to drive the presses in this
office. Once the sand is placed in the
sluice box the actual labor of those
engaged in the work is at an end as
the box is of sufficient length to carry
the sand after it has been washed out
to the sea. The gold from the sand
is retained in the box by a series of
small Stats or pieces nailed securely
to the bottom and the gold being the
heavier soon finds its way to the bot
tom of the box where it lodges and is
retained by the strips whilst the sand