The Nome daily nugget., 1914-03-26


 ro ad. in 1907, the development of the Kougarok district did not justify the extension of the road to Taylor. Since that time several ''bOnanza" claims have been opened up and now work ing and 1t has been proven by actual rrospecting that over 50 miles of the KouEarok river can be dredged at a profit under better conditions ot transportation.
 One. PA cubic foot dredgs has been in actual operation for the past two summers, miles north of Taylor; another will be built at Taylor next summer, During the same period three hydraulic plants were in opera ton within a radius of 10 miles oi that place and numerous small out fits were working with sluices and rockers
 The eward Peninsula railroad has not been in operation since 1911, due to the excessive federal tax of $1OO yer mile for which the government commenced suit to collect in 1910. Previous to that year the government never attempted to enforce the col lection of said tax.
 It is understood, however, that this road will be in operation next season, though without it's extension to Fay Tor, it wll not give the miners of the richer placer fields on Seward benin sula the relief they are asking for.
 At the present time about 1000 tons ut freight year are shipped into the Eougarok country, the greater part oi which is sent from the states, via Teller, situated on Port Clarence bay, tLence by stern wheel steamer through Great Salt lake, and Mary's river, to DavidsOn's Landing, 50 miles, thence by team distance of about 45 miles 10 Taylor.
 Table of Freight RatSs.
 Per ton $. NJ. seattle to Teller (same
 as Nome) .. e. .$l2.O0 to $l6.0D Meme to Teller .. .... 1000 Teller to Davidson's
 2 Landing .. e. .. .. 1O.0J navidsons Landing to
 l, Taylor in sumerm. .I2O.OO to 2OO.0t depending on condition of trails).
 davidson Landing to
 Taylor. in winter =. 4O.0J On account of high divides and no leads. it is almost an impossibillty , to transport heavy machinery in sum- , 7: CT from Davidson's Landing to Tay- , Tor. The dredge pipes, etc., for hy- draullc plants, now in operation i1 tne Kougarok. were hauled during the supplies and fuel are hauled at that time, necessitating the ordering of goods almost year ahead, besides the tieing up of large amount of capital.
 T With the building of railroad from Shelton to Taylor to connect with the Seward Peninsula railroad, moderate freight rate per ton from Nome to Taylor, 1t is safe to predict q tonnage of over 5000 tons to the Kougarok alone; this. with the pas- senger and local freight to Iron creek , and Nome river fields there should be } profitable investment on a road tha; } only run about four months in the year during the open mining season. r AS noted before. this statement is fned entirely to the gold placer mining and the necessity of transport 5 ation in connection herewith. but Ii f would be a mistake if some mention
 was not made of the quartz develop mcnts.
 Along the line of the Seward Pen T insula railroad and projected exten 8 sion. hundreds of thousands of dollars } have been spent in development oi s prospects of merit. One sample stamr D mill has been installed within one mile of the present line. The owners claim they have richer ore and more r extensive. at least as far as they 6 gone down. than the great Treadwel
 lode at Juneau.
 eI Sample lots of 25 tons have beer d shipped from each of three differen e copper prospects to the Tacomi al smelter, giving smelter returns o e over $75 per ton. The opening uI
 of these prospects would be aided b, e better transportation. besides adding e materially to the tonnage of the roat