The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-02-06
LAW NEEDED At CAPE NOME.
TROUBLE THERE FEARED IF CON-
GRESs FAILS TO ACT.
Gov. Brady and Postmaster Wright
Recite the Need of Established
Government in View of the Anti
cipated Rush There This spring.

NEW YORK. Feb s-There will be law
lessness and reign OF terror in the new
goldhelds at Cape Nome, Alaska, next sum
ner, in the opinion Of John G. Brady,
governor Of the territory, and George y.
Wright. postmaster at Cape Nome, unless
orgress takes steps to establish civil gov
eminent on a firm foundation and makes
laws defining the proprietorship OF claims,
Gov. Brady and Mr.. Wright are In the
east endeavoring to obtain the appointment
Of United States judges at Sitka, Circle City
and Cape Nome. An extraordinary rush
Of gold seekers to the last named place IL
expected next May. when Communication
with the outside world Is reopened Mr.
Wright believes that before the end Of the
summer there will be 6e0o persons in
Cape Nome
I'VE want the general land laws ex-
tended to Alaska, so that we may have
homestead rights" said Mr. Wright last
night. otherwise we cannot help having a
great deal Of trouble. We are without the
legal form OF government We have or
ganized one OF our own, electing a mayor.
a council. a chief of police ana other Of
iicers, but II has no standing in law. There
were 1000 men there last year and they
sgreed among themselves to observe each
others rights, but IT will be different when
we have coco
I'm law nobody has any right to the
beach, between the high and low water
marks, where there are rich deposits OF
gold. Ii ought TO be laid of in small plots
for the sale Of the mineral rights.
Though gold was discovered In Cape
Nome year ago last September. We did
not get the news In Seattle until last MAY.
We suspected, al first. that II was scheme
Of the steamship companies 10 get pas
sengers. as the Yukon business was get
ting slack. / telegraphed to Washington
TO be appointed postmaster and was APP
o hk ire I lffat 70 \earraa
July Z, where there was not sluice box
in the district.
Lumber came in later, and about 81, 800
900 Of gold was taken out last summer. One
claim in Anvil creek paid sl75,ca in five
weeks. ] know because L handled the
lnnnev. Three claims In Snow gulch paid
$500 90.
'Gn the Yukon the gold is wen below the
surface, but at Nome IL lies near the top
OF the ground. Many claims have been
staked out. but there is vast region still
to be explored The formation is very
peculiar Back OF the beach. which is white
sand, and rising ten feet above il. II a
FIAT strip called tundras. which extends
from two 10 four miles back to the noun
teins. This has a layer of moss and peat
on top; then comes layer of blue clay
from six to fifteen Inches thick, and then
white sand TO bedrock twenty-five feet be-
low. The gold In the white sand runs
from fifty cents TO $3.50 pan and the pay
streak of ruby sand, on the bedrock. runs s.
TO the pan, besides coarse gold
'onc OF the steamers lock $50 tons OF
sand, shovelled az random from the beach,
to San Francisco last year. II was put
into a smeiter there and yielded 5000 in
gold The beach has been prospected for
fifteen miles Nobody knows where the
gold came from. Some think that Il was
from hills brought down by glaciers. and
some think 1t was thrown up by vol
cano
Gov Brady wants Alaska to come In
as state, when the population has been
increased by the rush next summer He
Is the one man that all the people there
have absolute confidence in. III we are
admitted TO the union We can take care
Of ourselves.
Miners began coming down from the w.
kon last fall and more will come II we do
rot get authority 10 protect ourselves We
shall have trouble"
In Delaware last week the National Cane
Nome Mining and Transportation Companv
was organized, with a capital of s., ca 0o
10 establish a steamship line and very
with machinery claims covering go acres
of beach and tundras. Francis II. Thurb.r
+. n Morning and George Crawford are the
incorporators.