Amador ledger., 1905-12-01
Adventures in the North.

water near the shore is quite shallow.
At 8 a. IN. our ship dropped anchor
about a mile from shore, and gaso-
line launches landed those who chose
to go ashore for the modest sum of
two dollars, same price for returning.
Nome has many very good buildings,
and lies along the water front about
two miles. 1t was raining so there
was but little satisfaction in ssighu
seeing. We sailed southwark just
before noon, hu1rying because a
storm seemed imminent, and there is
no harbor here. The Ohio is the
most luxuriousIy finished, and furn-
ished steamship L have seen in the
north, aud the officers and crew take
pride IN making everything comfort
able and homelike for the passengers.
On the second day out storm
from the north began, which increas-
ed tosa gale and we went at furious
speed under steam and sail. The
wind was quartering to our course,
and the ship rolled badly, water
frequently coming over the leeward
sail. Nearly all the passengers were
seasick, ! am especially subject to
that horror, and for thirty-six hours
my plight was so wretched l had but
one wish-that the ship would go to
the bottom, and go quickly. On the
afternoon of the third day the storm
still continued and we we're nearing
Unimak Pass. For two days the
clouds had prevented the captain
from observing the sun at noon, it
was so foggy one could not see a
ships length, and to crown all, the
ships log, which measures the dis
tance travelled, became deranged.
The wind had blown US somewhat out
of our course, no one knew how
much, and the Pass is only few
miles wide; sails were lowered and
steam shortened. 1t was an anxious
time for few hours, but just as the
captain was on the point of turning
the ship about, and facing the storm
until lie could determine our
location, the fog lifted enough to
show a familiar headland, only a
short distance from US. Full head
of steam was ordered at once and
everybody breathed easier. The next
morning the storm had ceased, the
rocky bluffs at the southern end of
the Pass were just visible above the
horizon, and only the heavy swell of
the sea remained to lessen the plea
sure of the voyage. Five days of
splendid weather followed, while the
ship skinned across the North
Pacific, often with not wind enough
to fill the sails.
On the morning of the 9Th day, the
peaks of Vancouver Island showed in
the northeast, and we divided our
interest between watching them con-
stantly grow larger and palmer, and
the whales which appear in unusual
numbers lately all along the coast.
Many believe that the shock of the
cannonading in the great battle on
the Japan sea, caused the whales to
cross the ocean. About noon we
passed the lighthouse at the entrance
OF the straits of Juan de Fuca and
a view of the United
States once more. The afternoon was
quite change from the monotony of
chess, whist, books and the story
telling, for fleet of fishing boats,
two ocean liners, the the towns of
New Dungeness, Port Angeles and
Port Townsend, and the spires OF
Victoria away to the north, showed
that we were again in civilization.
Just after dark the myr1ads of cleo
trio lights on the hills and along the
water front showed where Seattle, the
young giant of the northwest, is fast
becoming no mean rival of San Fran
cisco.
At $50 in the evening, the ship
was tied to the dock and we we're
soon installed in comfortable hotel,
our first act was to get a sack OF
grapes, pears, plums and peaches,
and enjoy a luxurious feast, for
we had seen no really good fruit since
going into the Yukon basins. The
next day several things claimed our
attention, such as re-shipping some
freight, leaving sack of gold dust
at the U. S. Office, buying tickets
for Portland and having our baggage
transferred and checked. ALI this
made us too late for the noon train, so
we went to Tacoma on the "Flyer,"
a small passenger steamer that
makes several round trips daily.
At Tacoma we visited an uncle
of Mrs. McK., whom she had not seen
for years, he included US all in his
welcome and we passed the night at
his house. Tacoma was for several
years rival of Seattle, but has long
been left hopelessly behind in the
race for becoming the metropolis of
this fast developing region. Still
Tacoma is city of no small impor-
tance having some $1,000 inhabit-
ants, immense sawmills, a smelter,
many manufacturing plants and a
hustling spirit of ''get there.' 1t has
but one great railroad, the Northern
Pacific, local road running about