Alaska sentinel., 1905-02-16
THE FIGHT FOR JUSTICE,
Life and Adventures of
 Rufus SylYerter.
Samuel Sylvester, in Lewiston Maine
 Daily sun.

Daily sun.
 Continued
 The lumber in this locality Is the best in Alaska. l have known this mill to saw out over 27,00G feet of lumber from one spruce tree.- Spruce, yellow cedar and hemlock is the timber here. The conditions when this mill was built were such that my brother got in dobt, and not being able to meet his obliga tions sent to me for money to help take care of those whom ho owed. l sent him $4 300, and am told this money was the salvation of the mill property, this sum with the good results of the store, which he and his partner, Boh, owned, kept his creditors quiet and so there was no financial wrcckage to clear away and every creditor got his own with interest. After time the canner- ies commenced to make q demand for salmon cases to ship canned salmon in, and the mill got on paying basis and has so continued.
 These are some of the facts that lead up to the time of Rufus Syl- 1 yester's death, which occurred in Seattle, Washington, March 2,1900. He had me telegraphed for and l reached his bedside three days be- fore his death, and remained with him these last days of his life.- His health had not been good for some years. Having several years before a desire to visit some of the old familiar places where he had spent so many years of his life, he was iourneying along with his dog and outfit on the river when one day he broke through the ice and only got out after great difficulty This accident nearly cost him hi- i life and resulted in heart trouble that was so bad at times that he told me on his death bed that an assurance of ten years of life and health would not tempt him to sui fer what he had passed through when one of these attacks came upon him.
 Such in part, are some of the facts in the life of Rufus Sylvester could quote many kind words spoken of him. All the Indians that ever talked with me about him would say, Your brother was a good friend of mine" 1 will quote the words of Hon. John Grant, member of the B. c. Par lament for eight years, and for mer mayor of the city of Victoria. At the time of my brothers death he was in Seattle and sought an in troduction to me, and in the course of his remarks said: q have known your brother for nearly forty years; he was in British Columbia for many years and was known by many men, and there never was man that knew him that ever knew of his doing a wrong thing; I know this, and you could not find one that would make a bad remark or say an unkind word about him. We have camped and slept togeth- CT a great many days and weeks and have done many thousand dol lars worth of business with each other. Your brother had but one fault, and this kept him from being worth many hundreds of thousands of dollars--he was too kind-heart- ed; he always helped every one that asked for help, if he could."
 "Well," I said, this is not bad fault.n
 Mr. Grant replied, "No, I am so sorry he has gone.'
 Rufus Sylvester left a will that he made two years previous to his death, and in this will he asked that his only brother, Samuel Svl- vester, and his only nephew, Dr. Warren Rufus Smith, and his old friend and partner, Robert Reid, be executors of this will. Robert Reid and l qualified as executors. Warren R. Smith did not, as his duties were then as now such that he could not well do so, being a professor in one of the institutions of learning in Chicago, and he, not considering his services particular Iy essential under the circumstan- ces. After matters went along for two years, very smoothly, appar- ently, Capt. Wilson died and 1 immediately went to Alaska. The commissioner would not receive me as eXecutor, and here begins one of the greatest schemes to take the property of widows and orphans by an official in high authority, that ever came to my knowledge.
 For the readers who are not ac- quainted with the history of Alaska perhaps a better understanding of my subject may be gotten by refer