Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1905-11-09
Letter from Or. tiesrae Shiley.
Of Ala jkd.

Letter from Or. Gesraa Slilley.
/. Of Ala jAd.
On Board S. 5. Corwin, Oct.
8, 'O5. Dear Father: We are
lying off Cape Prince Wales
waiting for daylight and good
weather, to go through Behring
Strait. 1t is cold and the wind
howls outside but the water is
comparatively smooth under
shelter of the cape. The Cor
win is a stout saip of 200 tons
burden, formerly U. S. rev.
enue cutter, but has been re-
modelled until now she is very
comfortable and is the best boat
THAT runs to the Arctic.
We have a full cargo for
Arctic ports and a number of
passengers. mostly miners for
Candle. Candle promises to be
a good country this winter,
about 300 miners. There are
also some passengers for Deer
ling, which is at the mouth of
1.-THE Immachuck river. about 30
miles from Candle. There will
be four or five mining outfits on
the Immachuck this winter:
The miners are a fine set of
fellows and are all glad that !
am going to Candle. Last
winter there was a doctor at
Deering, but he had only a few
drugs and there were no drugs
at all in Candle. All my friends
lin Nome think | will do we'll in
Candle this winter. 1t is a
camp where there is lots of
gold dust in circulation. No
money less than quarters circu-
|lates in Candle. There are two
road houses there, but will try
. and get in with some one who
has a cabin if | can, as want a
place where | can study. Next
Summer | expect to have a
small stock of drugs as wrote
) you in a previous letter.
!, | will tell you of a trip took
last night that may interest
YOU. In Nome | met a Mr..
Andrews. special representative
for Alaska of the N. Y. Life
Ins. Co. He appointed me
medical examiner for the Arc
tic. Indeed he had little choice,
as | will be the only physician
on the Arctic coast this winter.
However, | was appointed and
had an examination to make at
Teller, which was the Corwin's
first stop on her northward
: voyage. We had on board
about Is Eskimos, natives of
:, the Diomede Islands. They
: had two large boats made of
J. walrus hide, about Is feet long
a and 6 foot beam, besides con-
81 siderable p under that they had
t traded for i'm Nome. The ma
tives paid no fare, but were
J working their way, so the cap
. tain ordered them to lower a
skin boat and take us ashore.
They put the skin boat in
y the water, we climbed in and
: loaded in five sacks of mail, one
r trunk, two malamite dogs, nine
natives, the ships purser, my
: self and two other passengers
n The natives raised the square
rugged sail and we started
across Grantley harbor for Tel
!, Ter, ten miles away. 1t was
about 8 p. m. when we started
, and a fine night. The stars
! shone brightly in the heaven:
:, :, and the water was alive will
u phosphoresence. We had a fail
wind and the way that Skin
h boat flew over the water would
r make a white mans boat lool
] like it was standing still. Their
IS was one native at the tile
) and one a-hold of every sheet
h Once the wind freshened ;
little; the boat heeled over til
| thought wewere going to shi]
some water, but the natives a
t, the sheets lowered the sail
e little, while others took it il
s. from the bottom, SO we did no
S. ship a drop. Mr.. Eskimo ca
rs certainly handle a skin boat t
le perfection. We soon saw tn
y lights of a reindeer station
> north of Teller, and soon afte
1.-THE lights of Teller itself. w
y ran inside the sandspit, the ma
n tives lowered the sail and pad
III died the boat up to the landing
x. where we arrived so minute
after leaving the ship. w
started on the return voyag'
Y about $50 p. M, but we ha'
le the wind dead ahecd and