Klondyke Nuggets Part 6

"Between Fort Reliance and Forty Mile River (called Cone Hill River by Schwatka) the Yukon a.s.sumes its normal appearance, having fewer islands and being narrower, averaging four to six hundred yards wide, and the current being more regular. This stretch is forty-six miles long, but was estimated by the traders at forty, from which the Forty Mile River took its name.

"Forty Mile River[13] joins the main river from the west. Its general course as far up as the International Boundary, a distance of twenty-three miles, is south-west; after this it is reported by the miners to run nearer south. Many of them claim to have ascended this stream for more than one hundred miles, and speak of it there as quite a large river. They say that at that distance it has reached the level of the plateau, and the country adjoining it they describe as flat and swampy, rising very little above the river. It is only a short distance across to the Tanana River--a large tributary of the Yukon--which is here described as an important stream. However, only about twenty-three miles of Forty Mile River are in Canada; and the upper part of it and its relation to other rivers in the district have no direct interest for us.

[Footnote 13: Forty Mile townsite is situated on the south side of the Forty Mile River at its junction with the Yukon. The Alaska Commercial Company has a station here which was for some years in charge of L.N.

McQuestion; there are also several blacksmith shops, restaurants, billiard halls, bakeries, an opera house and so on. Rather more than half a mile below Forty Mile townsite the town of Cudahy was founded on the north side of Forty Mile River in the summer of 1892. It is named after a well known member of the North American Transportation and Trading Company. In population and extent of business the town bears comparison with its neighbor across the river. The opposition in trade has been the means of very materially reducing the cost of supplies and living. The North American Transportation and Trading Company has erected a saw-mill and some large warehouses. Fort Constantine was established here immediately upon the arrival of the Mounted Police detachment in the latter part of July, 1895. It is described further on in an extract from Inspector Constantine's supplementary report for the year 1895.]

"Forty Mile River is one hundred to one hundred and fifty yards wide at the mouth, and the current is generally strong, with many small rapids.

Eight miles up is the so-called canon; it is hardly ent.i.tled to that distinctive name, being simply a crooked contraction of the river, with steep rocky banks, and on the north side there is plenty of room to walk along the beach. At the lower end of the canon there is a short turn and swift water in which are some large rocks; these cannot generally be seen, and there is much danger of striking them running down in a boat.

At this point several miners have been drowned by their boats being upset in collision with these rocks. It is no great distance to either sh.o.r.e, and one would think an ordinary swimmer would have no difficulty in reaching land; but the coldness of the water soon benumbs a man completely and renders him powerless. In the summer of 1887, an Indian, from Tanana, with his family, was coming down to trade at the post at the mouth of Forty Mile River; his canoe struck on these rocks and upset, and he was thrown clear of the canoe, but the woman and children clung to it. In the rough water he lost sight of them, and concluded that they were lost: it is said he deliberately drew his knife and cut his throat, thus peris.h.i.+ng, while his family were hauled ash.o.r.e by some miners. The chief of the band to which this Indian belonged came to the post and demanded pay for his loss, which he contended was occasioned by the traders having moved from Belle Isle to Forty Mile, thus causing them to descend this dangerous rapid, and there is little doubt that had there not been so many white men in the vicinity he would have tried to enforce his demand.

"The length of the so-called canon is about a mile. Above it the river up to the boundary is generally smooth, with swift current and an occasional ripple. The amount of water discharged by this stream is considerable; but there is no prospect of navigation, it being so swift and broken by small rapids.

"From Forty Mile River to the boundary the Yukon preserves the same general character as between Fort Reliance and Forty Mile, the greatest width being about half a mile and the least about a quarter.

"Fifteen miles below Forty Mile River a large ma.s.s of rock stands on the east bank. This was named by Schwatka 'Roquette Rock,' but is known to the traders as Old Woman Rock; a similar ma.s.s, on the west side of the river, being known as Old Man Rock.

"The origin of these names is an Indian legend, of which the following is the version given to me by the traders;--

"In remote ages there lived a powerful shaman, p.r.o.nounced Tshaumen by the Indians, this being the local name for what is known as medicine man among the Indians farther south and east. The Tshaumen holds a position and exercises an influence among the people he lives with, something akin to the wise men or magi of olden times in the East. In this powerful being's locality there lived a poor man who had the great misfortune to have an inveterate scold for a wife. He bore the infliction for a long time without murmuring, in hopes that she would relent, but time seemed only to increase the affliction; at length, growing weary of the unceasing torment, he complained to the Tshaumen who comforted him, and sent him home with the a.s.surance that all would soon be well.

"Shortly after this he went out to hunt, and remained away for many days endeavoring to get some provisions for home use, but without avail; he returned weary and hungry, only to be met by his wife with a more than usually violent outburst of scolding. This so provoked him that he gathered all his strength and energy for one grand effort and gave her a kick that sent her clean across the river. On landing she was converted into the ma.s.s of rock which remains to this day a memorial of her viciousness and a warning to all future scolds. The metamorphosis was effected by the Tshaumen, but how the necessary force was acquired to send her across the river (here about half a mile wide), or whether the kick was administered by the Tshaumen or the husband, my narrator could not say. He was altogether at a loss to account for conversion of the husband into the ma.s.s of rock on the west side of the river; nor can I offer any theory unless it is that he was _petrified_ by astonishment at the result.

"Such legends as this would be of interest to ethnologists if they could be procured direct from the Indians, but repeated by men who have little or no knowledge of the utility of legendary lore, and less sympathy with it, they lose much of their value.

"Between Forty Mile River and the boundary line no stream of any size joins the Yukon; in fact, there is only one stream, which some of the miners have named Sheep Creek, but as there is another stream further down the river, called by the same name, I have named it Coal Creek. It is five miles below Forty Mile, and comes in from the east, and is a large creek, but not at all navigable. On it some extensive coal seams were seen, which will be more fully referred to further on.

"At the boundary the river is somewhat contracted, and measures only 1,280 feet across in the winter; but in summer, at ordinary water level, it would be about one hundred feet wider. Immediately below the boundary it expands to its usual width, which is about 2,000 feet. The area of the cross section measured is 22,268 feet, the sectional area of the Teslintoo, as determined by Dr. Dawson and already referred to, is 3,809 feet; that of the Lewes at the Teslintoo, from the same authority, is 3,015 feet. Had the above cross-section been reduced to the level at which the water ordinarily stands during the summer months, instead of to the height at which it stood in the middle of September when it was almost at its lowest, the sectional area would have been at least 50 per cent more, and at spring flood level about double the above area.

"It is a difficult matter to determine the actual discharge at the place of the cross-section, owing to the irregularity in the depth and current, the latter being in the deep channel at the east side, when I tried it in September, approximately 4.8 miles per hour; while on the bar in midstream it was not more than 2.5 miles per hour; and between the bar and the westerly sh.o.r.e there was very little current.

"The river above this for some miles was no better for the purpose of cross-section measurement. At the boundary it is narrow and clear of bars and islands for some miles, but here I did not have an opportunity to determine the rate of the current before the river froze up, and after it froze the drift ice was jammed and piled so high that it would have been an almost endless task to cut holes through it.

"The current from the boundary down to the confluence with the Porcupine is said to be strong and much the same as that above; from the Porcupine down, for a distance of five or six hundred miles it is called medium and the remainder easy.

"From Stewart River to the mouth of the Yukon is about 1,650 miles, and the only difficult place in all this distance is the part near the confluence with the Porcupine, which has evidently been a lake in past ages but is now filled with islands; it is said that the current here is swift, and the channels generally narrow, rendering navigation difficult."

CHAPTER III.

ADVICE TO BEGINNERS.

Men who are thinking of going to the Klond.y.k.e regions and taking a trip of this character for the first time, will do well to carefully read the chapter on "Outfit for Miners." It is a great mistake to take anything except what is necessary; the trip is a long arduous one, and a man should not add one pound of baggage to his outfit that can be dispensed with. I have known men who have loaded themselves up with rifles, revolvers and shot-guns. This is entirely unnecessary. Revolvers will get you into trouble, and there is no use of taking them with you, as large game of any character is rarely found on the trip. I have prospected through this region for some years and have only seen one moose. You will not see any large game whatever on your trip from Juneau to Dawson City, therefore do not take any firearms along.

You will find a list of the implements for the miner in the chapter on "Outfit for Miners."

The miners here are a very mixed cla.s.s of people. They represent many nationalities and come from all climates. Their lives are certainly not enviable.

The regulation miner's cabin is 12 by 14 with walls six feet high and gables eight feet in height. The roof is heavily earthed and the cabin is generally kept very warm. Two, or sometimes three or four men will live in a house of this size. The ventilation is usually bad, the windows being very small. Those miners who do not work their claims during the winter confine themselves to these small huts most of the time. Very often they become indolent and careless, only eating those things which are most easily cooked or prepared. During the busy time in summer when they are shovelling in, they work hard and for long hours, sparing little time for eating and much less for cooking.

This manner of living is quite common amongst beginners, and soon leads to debility and sometimes to scurvy. Old miners have learned from experience to value health more than gold, and they therefore spare no expense in procuring the best and most varied outfit of food that can be obtained.

In a cold climate such as this, where it is impossible to get fresh vegetables and fruits, it is most important that the best subst.i.tutes for these should be provided. Nature helps to supply these wants by growing cranberries and other wild fruits in abundance, but men in summer are usually too busy to avail themselves of these.

The diseases met with in this country are dyspepsia, anaemia, scurvy caused by improperly cooked food, sameness of diet, overwork, want of fresh vegetables, overheated and badly ventilated houses; rheumatism, pneumonia, bronchitis, enteritis, cyst.i.tis and other acute diseases, from exposure to wet and cold; debility and chronic diseases, due to excesses.

Men coming to Klond.y.k.e should be sober, strong and healthy. They should be practical men, able to adapt themselves quickly to their surroundings. Special care should be taken to see that their lungs are sound, that they are free from rheumatism and rheumatic tendency, and that their joints, especially knee joints, are strong and have never been weakened by injury, synovitis or other disease. It is also very important to consider their temperaments. Men should be of cheerful, hopeful dispositions and willing workers. Those of sullen, morose natures, although they may be good workers, are very apt, as soon as the novelty of the country wears off, to become dissatisfied, pessimistic and melancholy.

CHAPTER IV.

OUTFIT FOR MINERS.

In giving any advice for outfits for miners, I should first state that it is a great mistake to purchase anything whatever before arriving at Juneau, Alaska. This has been a supply point for that region for upwards of ten years, and store-keepers and supply companies carry in stock exactly what is necessary for the miners. You will find that their prices are reasonable, considering the difference in cost of transportation at any point you might decide to purchase from in the United States; in fact it is the saving of money to buy in Juneau.

In the matter of clothing, of course, it must be left to the individual taste and means of the purchaser, but the miners usually adopt the native costume of the region. The boots are generally made by the coast Indians and are of different varieties. The water boot is made of seal and walrus. It is important to take a pair of rubber boots along.

Additional boots can be purchased at Dawson City. The native boots cost from two to five dollars a pair. Trousers are generally made from Siberian fawn skins and the skin of the marmot or the ground squirrel.

The outer garments are generally made of the marmot skin. The people at Dawson City who are not engaged in mining, such as store-keepers, clerks, etc., generally wear these garments. Good warm flannels are important. Everything in the way of underwear is made of flannel, such as s.h.i.+rts. The cost of flannel s.h.i.+rts at Dawson City is $5. Rubber boots at Dawson City are $10 to $12.00 a pair. Blankets and robes are used for bedding, and should be purchased at Juneau. Wolf skins make the best robes. Good ones cost $100 apiece, but cheaper ones can be obtained from the bear, mink, and red fox and Arctic Hare. Warm socks are made from the skin of the Arctic Hare.

If you have any delay at Juneau, you will, probably, be asked to take trips to the Giant Glaciers, but my advice is to stay in Juneau until the steamer is ready to start for Dyea. You will need all the rest you can get before starting up the Pa.s.s.

In the matter of provisions, the following is a list which is considered sufficient to last a man on his trip from Juneau to Dawson City:--

20 pounds of flour, 12 pounds of bacon, 12 " " beans, 4 " " b.u.t.ter, 5 " " vegetables, 4 cans of condensed milk, 5 pounds of sugar, 1 pound of tea, 3 pounds of coffee, 1 1-2 pound of salt, 5 pounds of corn meal, A small portion of pepper and mustard.

The following utensils should be taken:--

1 frying pan, 1 water kettle, 1 Yukon stove, 1 bean pot, 2 plates, 1 tin drinking cup, 1 tea pot, 1 knife and fork, 1 large and 1 small cooking pan.

The following tools should he brought as part of the outfit:--These will be found absolutely necessary to build a boat at Lake Lindeman:--

1 jack plane, 1 whip saw, 1 cross-cut saw, 1 axe, 1 hatchet, 1 hunting-knife.

6 pounds of a.s.sorted nails, 1 pound of oak.u.m, 5 pounds of pitch, 150 feet of rope, 1 Juneau sled.

It is also necessary to have one good duck tent and a rubber blanket.

A good piece of mosquito netting will not be heavy and will also be very great comfort on the trip.

Do not forget to put in a good supply of matches, and take a small supply of fis.h.i.+ng tackle, hooks, etc.

It is very important that you have a pair of snow gla.s.ses to guard against snow blindness.

It will be interesting to know the prices at Dawson City for supplies: