Denver labor bulletin., 1918-08-10
ON THE YUKON


The Yukon is about 200 miles longer
than the Mississippi, but it is 1000
miles shorter than the Missouri Mis-
sissippi, measured from the Rocky
mountains in Montana, and from Itas-
ca lake in Minnesota. 1t is properly
called one of the great rivers of North
America, and it is as difficult to navi-
gate as the most contrary of them.
Like the Missouri and the Mississippi,
south of their junction, il sometimes
spreads over a vast eXpanse of coun-
try, but that is not conducive to trav-
cling unless one is aboard a very light
and very fiat-bottomed craft. From
Fort Selkirk, where the stream is
formed by the junction of the Lewes
and Pelly rivers, 1t flows northwest
ward into Alaska, where il takes a
generally southwest course, emptying.
after meandering in a manner that
would put the St Johns of Florida
to the blush, into the Bering sea.
1t used to be told of the early ex-
plorers of the Mississippi that, after
entering the delta, they never knew
how they got inside, and that, after
passing thru it to the gulf, they never
knew how they got outside. 1t was
many years before navigators fixed
upon landmarks which enabled them
to steer in anything like a straight
course, and until that splendid engi-
neer. Captain James B. Eads, came
along with his jetties, they were un-
certain whether they would find a
channel, or would ground on a sand
bar.
The mariner regards the delta of
the Yukon as hopeless The stream,
to begin with, empties great quanti-
ties of sediment, so that not only the
passes, but sections of the sea beyond,
are filled with the deposit. Only a
few feet of water can be found for a
long distance from the mouths of the
twenty-six outlets. AS a consequence
of this condition. seagoing vessels are
forced to transfer their freight to
stern -wheelers at st. Michael, seventy
miles to the north, from which place
there is navigation for larger craft to
Dawson during the summer months.
In the upper river, steamers ply be-
tween Dawson and White Horse. the
terminus of the White Pass & Yukon
railroad. and navigation is continuous
between White Horse and the mouth
of the river
The Yukon sprang suddenly into
fame with the discovery of gold on
Klondike creek, one of its tributaries.
and the town of Dawson. which is sit
uated in the Province of Yukon, Can
ada, at the confluence of the creek"
and the Yukon river, and owes its ex-
istence to this discovery, is. to this
day, the principal community of the
region. The name of the Porcupine,
koyukuk and Tanana rivers will re-
call memories of the days when thou
sands of adventurers were hitting the
Yukon trail" Mining, whether for
gold or for less precious metals, has
now settled down to a regular busi-
ness in the section; the days of law
lessness are past, and much of the ro-
mantle atmosphere that once hung
around Alaska is gone; yet the Yukon
river offers many inducements to the
traveller and the explorer.
Roger Foster, who has recently
made the journey up the Yukon, and
has written of it interestingly in the
Springfield Republican. says that the
primeval forests on the river banks
have. in most places, no inhabitants
save moose, caribou, bear, lynx and
other wild animals. "Some of them,"
he continues, "can be seen from the
boat, upon the shores or swimming in
the water. Here and there are few
Indian cabins, or the lodge of wood
chopper, who supplies the steamers
with fuel, and a few mining camps,
now almost empty" The country is
still rough, but not inhospitable. The
old Alaskans are a sturdy race, this
witness testifies; intemperance among
them is rare, which is not true of the
Gamers of clans and salmon on the
coast. The land is full of prospectors.
winter after winter" Mr.. Foster
writes, "for fifteen years many of
them have gone alone or with single
partner into the wilderness to search
for mines. After careful
inquiry l could not find single case
where a prospector had retired with
n fortune, or even n competency. as
the result of his discovery"
1t is confessed, by this and by other
travellers in the far Northwest, that
there is a fascination about Alaskan
life which, despite its privations,
makes men loath to leave and eager
to return. And, in passing, it may
be said that, by reason of disturbed
conditions elsewhere, more sightseers
have been going into Alaska from the
United States in the last two years
than ever before, and majority Of
them come back pleased with their ex-
perience.