The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1921-01-27
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who had some wonderful spruce timber. He
framed up the wing for US, built ribs and spars
for the stabilizer and the aierOn. OF course each
one of US had piece of linen for patching; we
pooled our supply and covered the wing. The
dope Lieutenant Kirkpatrick, the only chemist we
had in the party, able to concoct from celiu-
lose nitrate, unrefned banana OIL and several
quarts of amyl acetate, proved not very eff
cacious as the linen about f1abby when it
dried as it had been before Wetting. But we took
a chance the wing anyhow. Still another
delay held at Prince George, however, for al
most ten days in all, and got first &C
quaintance OF a real frontier town. We got &C
quainted with hard-boed miners of the old type
with lumberjacks-great tall Scotchmen and little
French Canadians, who in about twice
week for the fun of spending their money.
Our next stop to be at Hazeton, at the
head of navigation the Skina river, and at
time the main point of distribution for the region
beyond. Hazelton is right in the mountains and
these are covered with high timber. Due to the
frost, when the timber is removed and the
land plowed level and cultivated during the sum-
mer, when it thaws out again next spring, it is
rolling and rough the Of the sea.
Knowing Of these conditions. went on by train
to inspect the landing field before making the
jump in planes. Finding its dimensions in
adequate, Captain. Street arranged to have the
grain cut from field adjoining to make
for to alight with safet
sour next Jump VAST to land US in Urted States
territory again. but to reach Wrangell. we had to
jump the Coast Range mountains at least
that is what we thought we had to do from our
maps, which showed the trend of a river or of a
mountain system, and depicted everything else as
perfectly smooth level country. In point of fact
the region has never been explored surveyed.
Fortunately, had clear day for take-off.
When began to ascend for hop over the
mountains we found that the mountains rose too
and higher than had. Instead of being 5000
and 1000 feet as shown on our map, when we
reached height Of 1000, found we needed
5000 more to get over the top, and when we tried
-irf tho md oc7sF-
range at all with a valley the other side but
just close packed mountain peaks filed with snow
and ice between These glaciers looked like level
OF dark green water. At WrangeH, the only
landing field available a little island in
the Stickine river, which, high tide wasn't an
island at all. We landed in about six inches of
water which had grown to foot before we took
off.
From WrangeII we went by way of ChfIkoot
Pass and Skagway to WhitehOrse. This is the re-
gion made so famous in the early days of the
gold discovery. Formerly it took about three
months to make the trip in winter, travel was
by dOg-sleds; in summer, on foot by pack-train
The once famous mines OF this region now in
active. Their surface veins have been striDDed
and high-grade mining in this country is too ex-
pensive because of inadequate transportation IA
cilities.
From Whitehorse to Dawson we flew over the
route patroiIed by the Canadian mounted police
The trail runs in almost an airline that shows ND
practically all of the way, dotted with the neat
little road houses at intervals OF 40 to 80 miles
apart. The police, in full regalia-bright-red
Jackets and blue trousers-are snappy looking
fellows, well disciplined and giving wonderful
service to the country. They were of tremendous
assistance to US wherever we encountered them
We crossed Lake La Barge, so well known TO read
ers Of Services poems which breathe the very
soul and spirit of this far northern region. This
lake is at once the basin Of the White river and
the source of the Yukon, unless, indeed II be
one and the same river with different names in
different localities
"Crumrine had blown out tire at Whitehorse
but, filling his casing with rope packed tightly he
wrapped the outside with rope, taking OF with
US to Dawson. and landing safely despite the hard
jolt from his mended tire. We arrived at Dav-
son, by chance, on August IL, the gala day of the
country. Discovery Day" it is called, for Just
p years before the first Alaskan gold was dis
covered Bonanza creek. The people made US