Evening star., 1905-10-16
WONDERS IN ALASKA
ITS GREAT DEVELOPMENT AND
FUTURE PROSPECTS.

special POST OIuce inspector JOHH
Clum of the Alaskan postal service has
returned to New York from his annual tour
through the great peninsula with batch
Of fresh impressions. Inspector Clum is
especially detailed from the New York
office to establish new post offices. appoint
postmasters and clerks, hire teams and
take all measures necessary TO keep the
mail service abreast of the development of
that country. He has spent every sum-
mer since '9S ION the inside as the Yu-
koners phrase it.
1.-The country up there is developing won-
derfully," said Mr.. CIum. What before
the Klondike discoveries was vast, primi-
tive waste is now gradually becoming a
civilized community. Substantial business
men are moving in with their families.
Where there were twenty-five fourth class
post offices In 1898 there are about three
times that number now. The wild west
days of the peninsula are over.
MY principal business this summer was
to clear up the congestion at Fairbanks.
the big camp on small creek flowing into
the Tanana, 900 miles from the Yukon.
This new Eldorado has been the only big
camp since the rush to Nome in 1900. Since
then the whole country has been gradually
opened up and little settlements have taken
root here, there and everywhere
Fairbanks City Wonder.
But Fairbanks is the biggest wonder
of them all. Nearly 10000 people are go
ing to winter up there beyond the arctic
circle. 1 never saw frontier camp where
so many men went in with their families.
They have schools, churches and half
clusively.
1.-The new discoveries of gold continue
and promise to be as great as former ones.
The section around Fairbanks Is very rich
and I understand that fully Sb,ooo.oU IN
gold has been taken out this season "A
strike was made 120 miles. from Fairbanks
on the Katchina creek, which, according TO
reports is also very rich. ADout>Soo miners
will winter there. The whole Valiey Oh the
Tanana. which is one of the large tribu-
taries of the Yukon is wooded and abounds
in game and fish. making living somewhat
easier than usual for the prospectors.
Of the successful prospectors in general are
Scandinavians. They seem TO nave
placid persistence and doggedness that tne
dippers of English descent don nave SO
generally. They keep risht at ~. oissins %
one shaft after another stratching along
on moor dirt until they strike IT rlch- your
Yankee Is more apt to throw up the 1on IN
disgust after a few months OF poor PICK
iness Not many Swedes come away, ana
those that do have mostly struck good pay
dirt.
The Klondike Region.
..Tbe Klondike region. which you know is
mostly in Canadian territory, is improving
too Many public improvements are under
way. and the communities there are as
suming a substantial character Capital
has gone in. bent on making money from
the dirt which the pick and shovel miners
thought too poor to pay for working. Big
bitches for placer mining are being dug by
companies as investments.
Just before / left l saw a big dredge
in the creeks in the klOn-
dixie country with pile of taiings behind
it as big as city block. 1t Will clean up a
pretty fortune for its operator, l am told
He took big chance with 1t, though. II
cost him $4,000 to build in the east and
s13O,CoO to cart up there and put in posi-
ton. There are plenty Of men who have
sent up big machines equally valuable
which haven't turned out to be profitable
and are now rusting in the creeks
."There are also big copper deposits around
Valdez in southern Alaska. l understand
that experts In the pay or some olg Mon,
tana copper men have been up there all
summer and report rich deposits. good
many people are mining tin In placers.
Large deposits of the more desirable ledge
tin were also reported around Tin City. A
New York company has recently put up
stamp mill near Tin City. and expects to be
sending down tin for next seasons market.
Transportation Facilities.
AS for transportation facilities, you can
understand the great Improvement in them
WREN / say two weeks ago I was in Nome.
1 went up there with two trunks and ordi-
nary heavy clothes this trip In '9S when
/ first went in, l packed one hundred
pounds Of dunnage across White Pass on
foot and padded down the Yukon in a
canoe to put in new post offices. But for
three or four years now there have been
steamers plying regularly up and down the
great river and narrow gauge road has
even been built across the White Pass
There's a weekly steamer for the outside
from Nome now In the open weather. In
the winter will send in the weekly mail
by rail across the pass and thence by dog
sledge down the 1,20D frozen miles of the
Yukon, giving as well a weekly service to
al points along the great river
THE telegraphic service put in by the
military authorities continues good and
does no little commercial business. One
or the most successful wireless services
in the world is maintained across an arm
Point Safety, a distance of about hum
dred miles. This gives the public a direct
line to Nome which could be got In no
other practicable way.
Two more narrow gauge railways and
one broad gauge are being constructed.
slow owing to the difficulties experienced
in getting the material there and the many
obstacles still met with in construction.
THE mail service is getting better all
the time. in proportion with the improve
ment in the roads and trails. A board of
territorial revenues yearly on them. and the
change is perceptibie, although not half
enough so.
Col. II. C. Loomis, past department COM
mander OF the Kansas O. A. R.. died at