The Nome nugget., 1901-09-24
IN eooD SPIRITS
Bound For the Outside Wftk Small Pokes to Spend the Winter-The District Said to Be Promising But Little Work Has Y ct Been Done.

Some sixty men and three women ar rived in Nome Saturday morning from ,the Koyukuk. All were seemingly in good spirits and all had more o'' less gold inAheir pokes The entire party were en route to the outside to spend the winter, and nearly all expressed their intention of returning to the koy- sukuk gold fields next spring. The amount of gold dust which the koyu- kuk pioneers had with them >i, said to have been between s3Oo0 and S4npi0. the largest individual owner of dust be ing T. C. McNamer of Forest Grove. V, Or. Mir. McNamer is credited with having about SIC. .000, among which was fine collection of nuggets, the largest being worth about *40o.
 Among the argOnants was W. A. Wood, of San Franc ,co, who went up the Koyukuk last spring to wind up the affairs of the A. F.. Co in that region. Mir. Wood left Bettles three weeks ago. He thinks that there will be enough provisions this winter in the district. although it may be necessary to freight some grub this winter from Bergmann, 70 miles below Bettles, to the latter place and Coldfoot. the new town at the mouth of Slate creek. The develop nent of the district was greatly retard- ed, Mir. Wood and others of the party say, by a late spring and season gen erally backward and disappointing. Nevertheless he believes it has q prom ising future.
 A nota ble discovery of this year is on Union gulch, about b miles above Cold foot. Gillespie, one of the discOverers, found a $500 nugget on the gulch, The producing creeks are Emma creek, on which McNamer is interested, Gold ?. creek and Gold Bench. McNamer's two claims on Emma creek produced S3O,- 900 this year: MorrisonBros., on Myr- tie, took out $25, GOO last year, but their cleanup this season was small, most of their work being dead work"
 Some work was done during last win ces, but it WAS not extensive. It will take time and capital to develop the FKoyukuk extensively. It costs D cents pound te get provisions from Bettles to COldfoos in summer and 90 cents in winter; and 15 cents from Bergman. MT. Wood says there are between 300 and 400 men who will winter on the ,-Koyukuk.
 Another pioneer from the Koyukuk was M. w. Greer, fermerlyo of Portland Mr. Greer went into the Koyukuk countryfrom Dawson in May, 19o0 go ing across country by way of the Chan delar river. Only Cheechacoes were in the country, and while it was well staked it was not at all we'll worked. Fumes and ditches had been built and much deadwork done but scarcely a claim had been prospected to see if it contain ed anything. The result was disap- pointing, of course. Mir. Greer con- firms the report of MT. Wood.
 Last winter grub was extremely scarce, and men even went down to Fort Yukon to get supplies. On Sept. 16, last year. the steamer City of Paris arrived with 90 tons of provisions. In less than q mcath there was no flour sMr. Greer. fc2rs that t':ere will be shnngry men on the koyukuk before next spring, as he thinks the supply of provisions is not sufficient to last the 300 or more men who are s.ill in the country.
 w. C. Fonda, another Koyukuk pic. neer, came over from St. Michael with the rest of the party. He and four others have the scurvy and are going out on account of their health. 'Three hundred men will winter at Bettles and Coldfoot. 75 miles above Bettles, '' .Mr. Fonda said. "tImma and dold lcrneks are the best creeks yet worked in the Koyukuk, and are being worked by their owners, very few men being employed. Almost every mine owner works his or his partners claim. Gold Bench .turned, out over $80,0OO this war, but thereare so many owners and the price of grub so high that the average per man will not be more than good wages. Iaveraged $6 per day in June and July, but the first week in August made Sl2.5O day, and meant co have stayed by it, but 1 was taken sick and had to give it up. Bettles is at tlle head of navigation, and grub has to be sledded 75 miles to the mines, or poled up in summer in small boats, and that is what makes four $26.5O per sack and beans 30 cents per pound, but