Hyder weekly herald., 1932-06-18
BLUE PARTY REPORTS
 DEATH OF COMRADE


 their 115-mile journey over the difficult and almost unin- habited region north of Mezia- din lake, Ernest Blue, local at torney, ,and Tom Walters, who left March 8 enroute to the lit tle known Taylor creek section north of the Bell-Irying river, in company with !. M. Black ie" McRitchie, returned to town Tuesday af! ernoon to re- port the sudden death Of Me Ritchie while the party was still a considerable distance from their objective on what is known as Taft creek, an easter ly tributary of the Bell-Irving.
 Bronzed by sun and wind and with their normally robust frames worn to almost attenuated thinness by their struggle against the changing ele ments, both men showed plainly they had undergone tremendous hardships Cn the long journey back to civilizat- ion after McRitchie had been laid at rest in a lonely frost bound grave be- side the raging waters of Taft creek.
 Owing to the difficulties of travel incident to the spring breakup, the trip from Taft creek required P days Ii; nf l;n average of less than five miles per day.
 According to MT. Blue, McRitchie first showed indications of the illness which apparently caused his death on April 18th. while the party was at Bowser Lake enroute up the Bell-Iry- ing. However. he did not become ac- cutely i'll until April 26th. after they had reached Taft creek, after hasten ing across the Bell-Irving, which was already showing signs of breaking up.
 Proceeding a mile or so up Taft creek, they decided to camp, as Me Ritchie was in no condition to under take further travel. Up to this time McRitchie apparently did not consid- CT his condition serious and insisted that he would be all right in little while. On April 26th he suffered q violent attack of pain in his stomach which continued several hours before he was relieved. Death came to him suddenly two days later, while he was lying on his bed and apparently in no danger of immediate dissolution. Al though both were only a few feet away, neither of his companions were aware of his passing until MT. Blue, turned to tell him that some broth he was preparing for the sick man was ready. Judging by the symptoms dis played, McRitchie's death was the re- suit of long standing stomach trouble, for which he took large quantities of baking soda, at times consuming as much as a package week
 Following McRitchies demise Mess IFS. Blue and Walters attempted to reach the No. 8 cabin on the Yukon telegraph line, situated about 27 miles away, but found the country so wild and rugged and travelling conditions so bad that progress was next to i'm possible. Ten days of the hardest kind of travelling found them only 10 miles from their starting point. Real izing the futility of trying to continue under such conditions. they reluctant ly decided to return to the Taft and make their way back to Stewart after caching their outfit. Before leaving for the telegraph cabin they buried McRitchie in a we'll constructed coff- fin of hewed balsam poles and parts of one of the three toboggans on which their supplies were trasported. The grave was dug in frosty ground and covered with stones to prevent depredations by animals. Later a large wooden cross was erected to mark the grave.
 The return trip to Taft creek re- Quired five days of difficult travel, de- spite the fact that they were then better acquainted with the route.