The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-03-15
STALKING CLAIMS IN THE SEA.
Rich Find. of Gold Made I'm the
uehring Waters.

VICTORIA. II. c.. March H.-Accord-
ing to advices which reached here from
Nome a number. of hardy miners risked
their lives to stake claims out in the
Behring Sea, putting up their stakes 1
! the ice to cover the rich ground discoi
cred by them beneath the frozen ocean.
The richest strike was made on J.
i cember ). about three miles up the lxst
from Cape Nome on n sand bar -
was nearly Inaccessible. william Al
strong staked discovery claim and
W. Slater No. l above. Others soon 4
lowed and many claims were stak4
Slater. in Interview, said:
Il don't think claims were ever stai
below the water here before. 1t "
hardly safe to cross the bar. as a gd
deal OF flood water had come over
places and made the ice soft. We W.
over ice not foot thick in places. n
got there safely. and after putting 4
stakes in the ice we had to cut out n
feet of ice to reach sand and grayfl,
which is very rich
Mr.. Slater said he believed he and his
partners could hold their claims summer
and winter. for the northeast and south
west stakes were on the edge OF she
water and they would know all summer
just where their claims were. William
Sutton, another stalker on the bar. said:
The bar runs parallel to the coast for
one hundred miles or so. or the place
where the claims have been taken II is
about three hundred feet out and about
the same distance across. As SON as the
ice is thoroughly set there will be a num-
Der of claims staked in the Behring Sea-
Advices from Nome include news to the
effect that the stories of finds in the Kus-
kokwin district are without foundation.
]. Dinsmore. Nome miner. had returned
there in December from the Kuskokwin
and he told of how he and other unfor=
tunate prospectors who had run short OF
food in that country had to eat their
dogs but not word could ne say of gold
being found there. Leaving Weare, on
the Yukon, he said he had gone up the
Tanana about seventy-five miles and then
struck out in a southerly direction until
he had reached the kuskohwin's head
waters.
He and his partners prospected for
three hundred miles down that river, put
ting down many holes, but not color
was found Had provisions not run out
Dinsmore says he would have prospected
the entire country. but when they were
about three hundred miles from the heal
of the river the larder gave out and after
eating three Malamute dogs and chewing
deerskins and moccasins to sustain life,
they at length reached the Tanana. hav-
ing lived on three pounds of tea for some
days.
At the Tanana food was secured and the
Yukon was soon reached
strike had been made according to
stampeders from the Kaughrock country
who had reached Nome when last advfces
left there, on American Creek, tributary
of the Agiepuk. The first finds were
made by several Laps who arrived at
Teller, with prospects averaging II cents
to the pan. The gold was coarse in grain
and deep red in color. There was quite
a stampede after the Laps had shown
their gold and it was afterward reported
that a good ind had been made.
Stampedes to Norton Sound were also
occurring. although with what result was
not learned. There was much winter
work going on at Nome on the different
benches and creeks.
In Grass Gulch nearly every bench
claim in the district was being worked.
James Dollsrook & Co. who have claim
on Nickels Gulch. were reported to be
taking out pans running all the way from
81 to S25 in value.