Condon globe. (Condon, Gilliam Co., Or.) 189?-1919, 1903-06-18
rEN poLLARs ALErrER.
High Rate on Private Postal Roui
from Cooke lnlse 20 Norua.

High Rate on Private Postal Route
from Cooke lnlst 60 Nome.
Through snow and Ice. 1,S00 miles
ls the trip Of an Alaskan mail car
rier."
w, V. sullivan. son OF Former Sen.
ator Sullivan. OF Mississippi, made this
statement. according to the st, Louis
Republic. Mr.. Sullivan had Just re
turned from a two years cruise In
Alaska waters on board the United
States revenue cutter Rush.
This trip" he continued. ''is from
Cooks Inlet to Nome. and by the route
Travelled Is $500 miles.
"The last boat leaves Nome about
Nov, s and 1t carries. down a mighty
precious cargo-gold dust, discouraged
miners, escaping wives. the soubrettes
who come up In the spring. marry the
successful prospectors and then de-
sert when the winter shuts up the
town from the rest Of the world and
the last mail sack Uncle Sam brings
through the Aletian Islands for six
months.
Then. while you people down here
In the big cities are sQuabbllng for /.
cent local postage the men up In Nome
are getting ready to pay the heaviest
postal rate In the world. By Dec. 25
they've got the Christmas hunger for
home news and New Years day they'd
give side Of bacon for a sight Of IA
mlllar handwriting on an envelope,
Bacon Is still about 80 cents slice In
the eating houses.
But just about Jan. the midwin-
ter Alaskan mail starts north from
Seattle. It Is carried up by the owner
and operator Of the enterprise. who
runs q private mail service not recog-
nized or promoted by the United States
government. He collects letters from
Seattle to Cooks Inlet. making the
trip on any vessel that Is scheduled to
stop at Sitka, Douglas Island. Juneau
and all the points Of any Importance
along the coast.
only letters are carried and these
must be written on onion skin paper,
for bulk Is the chief consideration,
and. besides the rate Is so much a
pennyweight.
when Cooks Inlet Is reached the
letters are packed In tin boxes made
to conform to the carriers body and
At into the lining OF his coat. The
carriers costume, from the fur cap to
the Mozinski boots. Is exactly like that
Of the Eskimos, and the principal items
in this outfit are matches, gun and am
munltion.
From Cooks Inlet to Nome the
trail runs 1900 miles and touches no
mans hut or dugout. The carrier can
make forty miles a day on snowshoes.
He has studied the country so thor
oughly that he knows when he shoots
bird and cooks 1t for dinner Tuesday,
over a fire Of scrubby brush, where,
fifty miles ahead. he can find more
game and fuel for the cooking Of Wed
nesday's supper. After supper he
crawls into fur sleeping bag, drop
ping or into cozy snowbank for a
snooze through the darkest hours Of
the long night.
The greatest obstacle are the tor
rents that flow too rapidly to freeze
The crossings are made at the narrow
est places and the carrier strips, makes
a bundle Of his clothes, throws it
across or carries 1t on his head, and,
wading and swimming, he reaches the
opposite shore and scrambles into his
furs.
I'm his thin pockets he carries a for
tune, for the thinnest letter taken on
the route costs the sender $40. Usual
ly but one trip is made each winter,
but last season he broke the record by
making two rounds. doing this by
using dogs and sled part way. His
winters work netted him over $1,000,
to be blown in on the gayeties Of Nome