The Nome nugget., 1902-03-19
Latest News FrOm a MuCh- TaIked-Of Section.
NOT MUCH ACTIVITY
Except on Gold Creek, Where a Few
 Dumps Are Being Taken Outline s0rpund for the Most Part Is Shal. aaw-The Strike on Union 0ulch.

the A. C. Co. and later with the N. C. Co at Bergman, in the Koyukuk coun- try, arrived Thursday evening with a team of five dogs, 26 days out of Cold foot, only P of which, however, were spent travelling. The trip was made via the Chandelar to Fort Yukon, thence up the Yukon to Dawson. Mir! Powers has spent most'of the winter at Bergman, but prior to his departure was for several days at Bettles and also at Coldfoot, leaving the latter place Dec. 21. Up to the time of leaving, the winter in the Koyukuk. like in Dawson, was very mild, but shortly before the Holidays it turned considerably colder, the fall in the temperature being ac- companied with more or less wind, swhich made travelling anything but pleasant.
 Hort Yukon is very quiet this winter, there being population of but IA souls. Circle City is afflicted with the same complaint, and that which in ''95 could truthfully lay claim to being the largest log cabin city in the world has not over 40 or 50 people. Eagle, with its company of soldiers, seemed quite lively to MT. Powers and looked good to him. Fortymile is also great deal livelier than it has been for some time past.
 In speaking of existing conditions in the Koyukuk and the outlook for the future Mir. Powers is very sanguine, though not disposed at all to engage in any boom talk. Ot the contrary, his statements. may be taken as coming from man more inclined to be con- servative rather than the reverse. About the mines there is greater ac- tivityathis winter than ever before, and for the first time since the camp was struck dumps are being taken out dur ing the cold weather. Practically all the creeks so far located are shallow and workable to advantage in the sum- mer only, but an attempt is being made this winter to take out an accumula- .tion of dirt similar to Che methods in vogue in the Klondike. The bulk of such work is being done on Gold creek, which is the deepest ground so far dis covered in the district. A great deal of prospecting is being done, and the .prediction is freely made that addi- tional discoveries will be made .befOre spring. The latest strikes were those on Union gulch and on some tributaries of Hammond river, both of which were located last fall. It was on Union xulch that the famous $669 nugget was picked up, the largest ever found in the district. Hammond river which is a;tributary of the middle fork of the Koyukuk, is little stream which has been but little explored, and is pre-. sumably about 100 miles in length. Nc one has ever been to it's source. but il is known to head somewhere in the range of mountains whose opposite side slopes to the Arctic ocean. One thing that speaks we'll for the camp is that very few people there are broke. Last summer there was work for everyone the current rate of wages being S1.@ an hour or $S day and board. There were three claims extensively worked on Myrtle creek. Emma and Colo creeks gave employment to many, ane there were probably fifty men steadil! engaged .on Gold bench. Mir. Powers estimates last seasons output to have been $2OD. 900 or better. The KoyukA gold asaays from sl9.2o to .sls.e 60 at th' mint, ahd passes at the camp for sl7 al ounce. Currency, what'little there il of it, is. exchanged at that rate withou any discount. Contrary to expectation there was but very little jumping o .ssclaims on January ]. In speaking of the grub situation Mir. Powers said there was no shortag' in any line except butter. At Bettles which is 65 miles below C0ldfoct an'
 the head of steamboat navigation
 there is only the company store, il charge of Volney Richmond, but the,
 have an ample stock of everything ex
 cepting butter to carry the cam
 through until the middle of June, in
 cluding fresh eggs, potatoes an
 onions. In addition to the ,compan
 store thsye. gre also at Rettles'the post
 office, fepr or five saloons and severa
 restaurants and lodging houses. Georg
 Rice, well known from Juneau to S'
 Michael, is running saloon and danc
 hall Business was very prosperou
 last summer, but naturally is quiet
 present. Mir. Rice will be in Dawso next month en route to the oat''d'