Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1906-02-15

The following letter from
Dr.. Geo. Smiley was mails d
November % and reached the
Valley February 18th. The
DR.. is now located way up near
the North pole.
Candle City. Nov. !, 1905. -
Dear Folks: | suppose you re-
ceived the letter / wrote on
board the Corwin and you know
| have reached here safely. /
bave not written since because
there has been no mail going
cut and do not know vet when
this letter will go. ] reached
Keewalick, IL miles below here,
about Oct. Z, but the trail to
Candle was no good and bad
TO stay there about a week; got
here Oct. Is and rented a cabin
the l8, paying Sl00 till July 1.
Prices are pretty high here;
eoft coal $40 a ton and none for
ale, potatoes S6 per 100 lbs,
fresh beef SOC per pound, wood
$50 a cord, etc. Nothing less
han quarters in circulation
here. Miners go in a store and
luy provisions and pay in gold
dust. Cigars and drinks are a
quarter. They play black jack
in the saloons, betting running
from 50cto S100 and somatim IS
$1,000 on the turn of card has
been bet here this fall. Most
of the working men spend their
money this way.
My cabin is built of spruce
logs and | have a sea captain
with me at present, Capt. Vol.
stodt, master of sail and mate
of steam; was mate on the Cor
win coming up here. He has
Teen all over the world, is thir-
1y-fve years old and been to
sea for twenty years. | am 60
ing to learn navigation from
him if he stays with me long
enough. We do our own cook
ing and live we'll. We buy our
bread at 25 cents a loaf, but
cook everything else; use most
ly canned cooked meats and
some eggs which we can still
buy for SOC a dozen. Later we
will have to use the canned
ones. | bought a nickel plated
lamp, Rochester burner, for $5,
and burn it mostly, but burn
some candles. Coal oil is Sc a
case of ten gallons.
Yesterday we went down the
river and got some spru ;e logs,
hauled them home on sled and
today cut part Of them up. To
night we are drying them in
the house. They were logs
that got away from a broken
raft and were frozen in the ice.
We will get more of them while
tie wealth er is warm. 1t was
/ ne to wo k outside today, be-
ing something below free: ing.
Tonight it is 8 below.
In Nome bought a fur c6a
and cap and felt shoes and
heavy wool underwear, two
suits. Up here l bought 9
reindeer skin sleeping bag for
.S25. Have a canvas bag to &C
outside which is for use on the
trail. Willhave a native woman
line the sleeping bag with
,voolen cloth as | do not like to
sleep in the fur. They are very
warm to sleep in and are not
heavy like blankets. Will get
Il pair of water mucklucks to
90 over the felt shoes. | have
overshoes but they are too
heavy. | am the only physi
clan on the Arctic ocean this
winter, the farthest north in
Alaska and so far as | am
aware on the American conti-
nent also. | am a trust up
here, you know, but my prices
:ra reasonable. | am one of
he good trusts the republican
] arty talks about. | am in
tarnest when | say my prices
:re reasonable. but you might
rot think so. For consultation
:nl a few tablets | get $500
Removed a small piece of steel
from a fellows eye with a
piece of cat gut for $500. Have
had two infected hands, besides
many cases of other kinds.
There is not much money in
circulation here; some gold
dust, a great deal Of credit, and
they pay at the cleanup in the
spring. Last year no merchant
lost a dollar. This year the
camp is larger and probably
4ha1y will loco q c,ooll onoo,,nf