The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-01-18

In the meantime there was naught
20 show for II but bunch. But 1t was
coming. AS he would stake his last
ounce on a good poker hand. so he
staked his life and effort on the bunch
that the future held in store a big
strike or the Upper River. So he and
bis three companions. with dogs, and
sleds, and s~nowshoes. toiled up the
frozen breast of the Stewart, toiled
on and on through the white wilder
ness where the unending stiffness was
never broken by the voices of men.
the stroke Of an ak, or the distant
crack Of a rife. Gold they found on
che bars, but not in paying quantities.
and In the following May they re-
surned to Sixty Mile.
Ten days later, Harper and Joe La
due arrived at Sixty Mile, and Day
Hight, strong to obey the bunch that
had come to him, traded a third In
terest In his Stewart town site for a
third interest In theirs on the Klondike.
They had faith In the Upper Country.
n Harper left downstream, with n
'raft-load Of supplies, to start a small
post at the mouth of the Kondike.
why don't you tackle Indian River.
Daylight" Harper advised. at part
Ing. There's whole slathers of creeks
and draws draining In up there, and
somewhere gold Just crying to be
found. That's my bunch. There's a
Dig strike coming. and Indian River
amt going to be a million miles
away"
"And the place is swarming with
moose" Joe Ladue added. Bob Hen
derson's up there somewhere. been
there three years now, swearing
something big Is going to happen.
living on'n straight moose and pros
pecting around like a crazy man."
Daylight decided to go Indian River
q futter, as he expressed It; and lin
gered a few days longer arranging his
meager outfit. He planned to go in
light, carrying a pack Of seventy-hve
pounds and making his five dogs pack
as well. Indian fashion. loading them
with thirty pounds each. Depending
on the report OF Ladue, he intended TO
follow Bob Henderson's example and
When Jack Kearns' scow. laden with
the sawmill from Lake L%inderman.
tied up at Sixty Mile, Daylight bun
died his outfit and dogs on board.
turned his town-site application over
TO Elijah to be filed, and the same day
was landed at the mouth OF Indian
River. He continued down Hunker
70 the Klondike, and on to the sum
mer fishing camp of the Indians on
the Yukon.
Here for q day he camped with Car
mack. a squaw-man. and his Indian
brother-in-law. Skookum Jim. bought
a boat. and. with his dogs on board,
drifted down the Yukon to Forty Mile.
Then It was that Carmack. his broth
erin.law, Skookum Jim. and Cultus
Charlie, another Indian. arrived in a
at Forty Mile. went straight TO
the gold commissioner. and recorded
three claims and a discovery claim on
Bonanza Creek. After that. In the Sour
dough Saloon. that night, they exhibit
cd coarse gold to the skeptical crowd.
Daylight. too. was skeptical. and this
despite his faith in the Upper Coun-
Try. Had he not. only a few days be-
fore. seen Carmack loaflng with his
indians and with never a thought of
prospecting? But at eleven that night.
sitting on the edge of his bunk and
unlacing his m~occasins, a thought
came to him. He put on his coat and
hat and went back to the S~ourdough.
Carmack was still there. flashing his
coarse gold in the eyes of an unbe-
sieving generation. Daylight ranged
alongside OF him and emptied Car
macks sack into a blower. This he
etndiod for a long time. Then, from
hfs own sack. into another blower, he
emptied several ounces OF Circle City
aad Forty Mile gold. Again. for a long
tme. he studied and compared. Final
~, he pocketcd his own gold. returned
Carmacks. and held up his hard for
silence.
Boys, I want to tell you-all some
thing he said. She's sure come-the
up-riyer strike. And 1 tell you-all, !
clear and forcible. this IL It. There
nint never been gold like that In q
blower in this country before. It's
sew cold. It's got more silver In It.
you-ail can see II by the color. Car
nack's sure made 4 strike. Who-all's
ut faith TO come along with met"
No one volunteered
~-Then who-a1l n take o. job from
- cash wages n advance. "a oole m