Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-06-25

the Yukon and behind them mountains
that arc covered with grass. and still
larther on peaks clad in their silvery
garments of perpetual snow At one
place FAR back from the river rising
"u' OIL a park OF the grecncst of green.
arc rocky formations which look like
castles. as clean cut and symmetricnI
as any to be seen OH the banks of the
kline and down in the river itself are
other great rocks more terrible ,h,n
.hht OH winch the Lorelei sat and sang
20 the destruction of the sailors no
meath One such formation Is koryn
rs TIE Five Fingers" 1t consists of
hFe mighty masses OF reddish brown
rock that rise to the height of a sin
Story mouse. right in the channel
We make our trip down this part of
the river between 1 and O'Clock in
the morning, when, at this time Of the
year the sun is just rising The cur
| rent is swift and 1t takes careful pilot
| ing. The ship must go Just RICH, or II
Will be dashed to pieces against the
great rocks. The captain guided tho
| barge OF cattle to the heart of the
chahnel. He puts the barge and the
steamer right in the heart of the cur
ient ana we shot down between two
| Oh theSe mighty fingers of rock with n
rush into the rapids below. As ~.
| pass II seems as though the rocks are
not more than three feet away on each
| Slde or our steamer.
il''le farther on ride under
precipiccs OF sand that extend straigh,
| up from the water as though they were
| cut by knife, and the strata are as
| regular as those of layer cake The
| GIFTS rise to the height Of the Wash
lngton Monument. They seem to he
| made Of volcanic ash or glacial clay
rhey are absolutely bare of vegetation
save for the lean spruce and pine on
the tops.
AS l have written. we passed the
rive Fingers between l and o'clock
III the morning, when the sun is lust
rising. This is the land of tn. mid
night sun, and there are places not far
from where we where no one or
TWO days of the year the sun does not
sink below the horizon. Even here, at
midnight IL Is hard 10 tell sunrise from
sunset. There is long twilight. and
the glory OF the rising and setting sun
seems almost comminGled l have seen
one sunset on the Yukon which was
lost in the moonrise. and to this day
am not sure whether the sun was
setting or rising | only know that
u was light until o'clock in the morn
Ing, and that was able TO make notes
at midnight by the light that came
| in through my cabin windows
AIR Is CLEAR AND
Sky OF A DEEP HUE
And this brings 10 mind the great
change in the skies of the Yukon and
/ interior Alaska from those OF the rainy
southeastern part of the Territory. we
have left the wet lands and arc now
in the dry belt OF the great Yukon
Valley The air here is as clear as
that of Colorado. The sky Is deep
blue. The clouds are often snow
white. and they chase each other over
til" heavens. making moving patches
of blue velvet plush on the green hills
ham tsN..,- 60, L..
The clouds hang low. and we seem to
he on the very roof of the world. with
the deep dcathlike valleys below" We
are in the country of Robert Service.
! the poet Of the Yukon. and some of his
verses come to our minds:
/ I've stood In some mighty
| That's plumb-full OF hush to the
brm
I've watched the big, husky sun wal
low
In crimson and gold. and grow dim.
/ Till the moon set the pearly peaks
cleaning,
/ And the stars tumbled out. neck and
crop;
And I've thought that I surely was
dreaming.
With the peace o. the world piled
top"
( There are no settlements on the Yu-
w
! son. The distance Is 400 miles, and we
{ do not see n half dozen people at any
/ stop of the steamer, although there
are here and there deserted camps
with the abandoned cabins OF Drospec-
tors and woodchoppcrs. One such is
1T ChiSana, near the mouth of the
I White River, II rose during; the rush
to the Chisana gold mines. and for a
| time was thriving village, with Il
/ government telegraph office, hotel
I OF two stories and a log stable that
/ would accommodate a dozen horses and
! numerous sled dogs. The White Pass
! and Yukon Company built the hotel
and the stable, expecting to bring the
! miners in by its steamers and send
them into the interior with horses and
dogs. IL kept relays Of teams here
} and had kennels for the dogs. II nd
good business until about two years
ago when the bubble burst and the
j camp busted" To day the chisana
, Hotel is deserted. MI of the cabins
except that of the woodchoppcr are
( empty and under the wires leading
! into one OF them is n notice. written
in pencil: Government Telegraph:
Closed August 5, 1914"
/ The woodmans cabin is open. There
is II horseshoe nailed over the door and
u rifle stands on tho porch at the side.
/ on the wall at the back Of the hut
/ Il dog harness hangs to peg. The
| skin of freshly killed bear is tackled
/ UP on one side. and the remains Of rab-
! bit skins lie here and there on the
] ground.
/ The cabin itself is not more than
! eight feet in height. 1t has earth
/ banked up about the foundation. 1t is
! made of logs well chinkod, and there Is
! weatherstripping OF baESinS nailed
| to the doorposts. The door is frame