Seward Weekly Gateway
VOL. IV, SEWARD. ALASKA. SATURDAY. S XO. 7
SIX MEN SHOT IN
RAILROAD FIGHT
Copper River & Northwestern Gang Open fire
Ipon Alaska Home Company’s Surveyors
When Latter Begin Work in
Keystone Canyon.
List of wounded:
E. Christy, shot In foot.
Thayne Heckman, of Seattle; shot
in thigh.
Fred Reinhardt, shot in left knee.
John Phillips, shot in hip.
Chris Olsen, shot in breast over
heart.
V. Hutchins, shot in hand.
Rival claims for possession of Key
stone canyon, the only pass through
which a railroad can be built from
Valdez, resulted in bloodshed this
week, although the first report that
men had been killed proved to he un
true. _
Killing Reported First
By Cable to The Dally Gateway.
Valdez. Sept. 25— Shot from ambush
in Keystone canyon, one man is dead,
three dying and two mare seriously
injured, all employes of the Alaska
Home Railway. It is!believed that the
shooting "a- done by agents of the
Guggenheitus to keep the Alaska
Home railway out of the canyon. One
of the wounded men is named Hick
man. He is shot through one hip. The
name> of the others are not yet known.
A crew of men employed by the
Alaska Home Railway were engaged
in constructing camps at the entrance
to Keystone canyon when they were
fired upon by assailants in ambush and
six were wounded, four of them fa
tally. The attacking party is assumed
to have been in the employ of the Gug
genheim ( 'upper River vS: Northwest
ern railroad.
The Alaska Home Railway men
were at work peaceably, not interfer
ing with anyone and as far as they
COuU; >et no one e’-e " as near.
Th.* nows of the shooting came to
Valdez immediately by wire and sev
eral -core of -peeial deputy marshal
were -ont out at once with ri lies and
are -enuring the adjacent woods in
search > the bu-hwhaekers. An am
bulance was sent to bring in tin*
wounded men.
Popular indignation U running high
ar • cai . vt - >ei..\ advocated.
Nobody Killed
V; <. Seta. 2»5 All of the -i.\
Ala-ka Home Railway men -ho! by the
Cue_'et;h‘ ii u tny in Keystone canyon
ye- • rda\ are 1 ;viin«'. though at .east,
on*-. t *iri— ol-rn. i- dangerously
•»viii:t vitli a si * through * he
breast above the heart. Two of the
GutfiA nheim leader- are in jail and
only lack of a leader for a mob pre
vented an attempt to lynch them.
A party of -tirveyor- and laborers in
the employ of the Ala-ka Home Rail
way -tarted to make a preliminary
survey in Key-tone canyon, fifteen
mile- from Valdez, yesterday morning
FEDERATION TO
OPPOSE TAFT
By Cable to The Dally Gateway.
Washington, D. C., Sept. 27—The
American Federation of Labor an
nounces that it will oppose Secretary
Taft as a candidate for president, cit
ing injunctions issued by him against
strikers when he was a federal judge
as a reason.
Taft’s Manager Denies
Columbus, Sept. 27—Secretary Taft’s
campaign manager, H. L. Vorys,
denies that there is anything to the
charge that Taft made an injunction
decision against organized labor when
on the federal bench. t
and when 100 yards inside of the can
yon were tuet by a ritle tire from be
hind a barricade at the side of the
canyon. The Alaska Home men ad
vanced and were warned by Ed Hal
sey, leader of the Guggenheim gang,
that if they did not stop they would be
shot.
Thinking the threat was only a bluff
the surveyors went on with their work
when a ritle fusilade wounded six of
the party. The Alaska Home men
were unarmed and could offer no re
sistance, so they picked up their
wounded and withdrew from the can
yon.
Officers Arrest Two
News of the assault was telephoned
to Valdez and Deputy Marshal Wy
brant went out with a score of special
deputies. They arrested Halsey and
his chief assistant and brought them
to town. In spite of the efforts of the
officers the prisoners were roughly
handled by citizens before they were
placed in jail. Halsey is a former
deputy United States marshal.
Public feeling and excitement run
high and deputy marshals were kept
busy all night breaking up street
crowds to prevent a mob from organ
ganiaing *o attack the jail In an effort
to get the prisoners and lynch them.
At 9:30 about 400 or 500 men gathered
in front of the Owl drug store on Mc
Kinley street and a good deal of loud
talking was heard but the crowd was
dispersed before any act of violence
occurred, although a leader at the
right moment could have rushed the
mob to the jail.
It is plain that the Guggonheims in
tend to keep the Alaska Home Rail
way out of Keystone canyon if possi
ble. The Copper River A North
western claims exclusive right of
j»o>ses>ion of the right of way in the
canyon, although it abandoned the
i< id last year and moved to Katalla.
Roth companies are working in tin1
canyon now and more trouble is
teared.
Truce Follow s War
Value/.. Sept. 27 The foremen of
tm>:h railroad camps met in Keystone
canyon tliis morning and the survey
party of the Alaska Home Kail way
wa> allowed to go through without
trouble. Kverything is quiet all along
the line today.
(iov. Hoggatt Sent to Valdez
Juneau, Sept. 2s Idnder instructions
from the secretary of the interior
(iov. Hoggatt sailed today for Valdez
an the cableship Burnside to take
charge of the situation there and re
port to the department. The Burnside
is instructed to move at the utmost
speed.
WILL NOT LAY
KATALLA CABLE
By Cable to Tbe Dolly Gateway.
Washington, D. C., Sept. 24 — The
acting secretary of war decided today
not to extend the Alaska cable to Ka
talla this year. All operations with
that end in view are called off.
May Abandon Katalla
Seattle, Sept. 26—It is announced
that the decision is practically made
by the Copper River & Northwestern
Railroad to abandon Katalla as the sea
terminus of the line on account of the
enormous expense necessary to con
struct an artificial breakwater. Cor
dova probably, Valdez possibly, will
e made the terminus.
TAKE ACTION ON
TRAIL TO KENAI
Chamber of Commerce to Fol
low up Encouragement From
Maj. Richardson.
At a special meeting of the chamber
of commerce held in the Coleman
house last night it wasvited to make
a formal request of the Alaska road
commission for the construction of a
trail from mile29 of the railroad to Ke
nai on Cook inlet. .1. B. Cameron stated
that the matter had already been con
sidered by Maj. Richardson, chairman
of the commission, when he was here
last last summer, and that Capt. Arm
strong, who has had charge of con
struction of the Sunrise trail, is willing
to recommend it.
The chamber promptly voted to ap
point a committee to draft an address
to the road commission, asking for the
Kenai trail. Sentiment was unanimous
and enthusiastic for the proposition
that the government ought to he en
couraged to build all the trails in this
part of Alaska for which money can he
secured.
Another resolution instructed the
same committee to prepare a compli
mentary resolution of acknowledgment
to the Alaska road commission for the
construction of the Sunrise trail and
the Bear river trail and complimenting
the commission and Capt. Armstrong
on the etlicient work done.
Mr. Cameron, Judge Hildreth and
others spoke in the most complimen
tary terms of the work done by Capt.
Armstrong on the Sunrise trail. All
of the large number of men who have
traveled over it in the past few months
have done the same. T. will not he |
pleted until early next month and the
cost will considerably exceed the orig
inal appropriation of $15,000, hut Capt.
Armstrong was authorized by Maj.
Richardson when work began to spend
what ever might be necessary to com
plete it.
It is estimated that the proposed
trail would he sixty miles long and
will cost $50,000.
ACTIVE WORK
AT ILIAMNA
The lliamna country is becoming
iively with copper development and
steady work is in progress on several
big properties, reports W'arriner K.
Smith, chief engineer of the projected
railroad tnto the interior from Dianna
• •ay, who came to Seward on the Dora
to go outside on a short trip. He will
return this fall as the interests he rep
resents at e pushing work.
I*. Thomas, the California man who
(•(‘presents heavy capitalists in that
state who have acquired large copper
properties in the lliamna region, also
came over to go to San Francisco, hut
will return this fall.
About lifty men are working on
copper properties back of lliamna and
more will be sent in this winter. Cop
per development it that region is on in
earnest with money behind it, J. F.
McLean, a Seattle lawyer, was sent in a
month ago as United States commis
sioner, and the illicit stills and hoot
teg dispensaries have moved out to be
supplanted in popular interest by
copper mining.
Remarkable Copper Specimens
Specimens of copper from the prop
erty near Luke Clark owned by Hicks,
Von Hardenberg, Nelson and the
Brooks estate, were brought in this
week by H. B. Nelson and may be
seen at the Palace saloon. The col
lection includes bornite, glance and
chalcopyrite, all from one ledge 200
feet wide, which has been traced and
located 9000 feet. All the ore speci
mens are plainly of high grade and
several pieces of peacock would be
hard to beat anywhere.
The Cordova Alaskan tells of nu
merous copper strikes back pf that
burg. _ »
Copper was quoted at $16.50 to $17 on
September 11. Silver was 8&|.
.1
s
NOME FAVORS
LOCAL RULE
By Cable to The Daily Gateway.
Nome, Sept. 27—At the republican
primaries last night to elect delegates
to the territorial convention at Juneau
resolutions were passed in support of
immediate territorial government and
indorsing Roosevelt’s administration
and I Kdegate ('ale.
\\\ T. Perkins and R. S. Ryan will
1)0 supported by the delegation tor
delegates to the national convention.
Says Alaska Is for Home Rule
Seattle. Sept. 2»> Congressman Sul
zer of New York arrived from a trip
through Alaska today and asserts that
he found the people of the territory
everywhere crying for home rule.
Sulzer will introduce a bill in con
gress to prohibit fur seal hunting for
twenty-five years to replenish the
herds. Tie has great faith in the tin
mines of Seward peninsula and urges
that experts bo sent there to examine
the deposits.
Dora Brings Hining Men
The steamer Dora arriving from the*
westward Tuesday afternoon brought
twenty cabin passengers, mostly min
ing men from Iliamna and the penin
sula.
The Dora reports that the steamers
Tyonic and Tonquin have both gone
up the inlet. The Tyonic broke a
crank while on her peninsula trip but
repaired at Kodiak.
Portland Sails Westward
Steamer Portland arrived in port
this morning at 6 o’clock and sailed
for Seldovia and Kodiak at 9:30. She
brought eleven cabin and about the
same number of steerage passengers.
Her local cargo was fifteen tons.
Bring Gold From Caribou Creek
Prof. Herman and A1 Drees are in
from Caribou creek with pokes of
placer gold of unknown size but which
are said to have come from a good
strike that has been little known.
The cruiser Buffalo carries 170 offi
cers and men.
WICKERSHAM TO
QUIT THE BENCH
Sends Resignation to President
With Request for Early
Acceptance.
WILL PRACTICE IN FAIRBANKS
Successor Will not Be Named Until
Roosevelt Returns from
Southern Trip.
By Cable to The Dally Gateway.
Washington, D. C., Sept. 28—The
president today received the resigna
tion of Judge James Wickersharn,
judge of the Third judicial division of
Alaska. Judge Wickersharn asks that
his resignation be accepted and his
successor appointed soon, but this will
not be done until the president re
turns from his southern trip late next
month.
Judge Wickersharn's resignation
came as a great surprise. No reason
is given but it is understood that he
will enter the practice of law at Fair
banks. _
Wickersharn for Delegate
Juneau, Sept. 28—Judge Wicker
sham is boomed here to head the
AlasKa delegation to the republican
national convention. The movement
started as soon as the announcement of
his resignation of the judgeship was
given out. He is very popular in
Juneau. _
Judge Wickersharn hasjust returned
to Fairbanks after holding court sever
al months in Juneau and Valdez.
ERUPtiONON
UMNAK ISLAND
The ashes which tho steamer Olym
pia carried to Nome from a peninsula
volcano were not from Ferry island,
or any other of the Bogoslov group, as
reported in the cable news, but from a
nameless peak on Uranak island, west
of Unalaska. Mount Makushin. on Un
alaska island, is also having one of its
intermittent periods of smoking up,
and the man who >ent out the story
from Nome that there was a shower ot
lashes from Ferry island must have
been smoking up also.
I This information is brought In ('apt.
Fond and other ollicers of the Buffalo,
and District Attorney L. V. Kay. who
came home on the cruiser from Unalas
ka, where he went to wind up the Jap
anese poaching cases. Ail were some
what surprised when they read in the
Gateway cable dispatches that the
Olympia had weathered a storm of
volcanic ashes while passing the penin
sula and that the men on board the
steamer had panned tine gold from
ashes which fell on her deck. A few
! stray ashes fell upon the Buffalo but
nobody aboard was thoughtful enough
to sift gold dust out of the debris, and
it was carelessly swept overboard.
The peak in recent eruption is 100
miles west of Unalaska and plainly visi
ble as far as Unimak pass. It is pour
ing out a large volume of smoke and
ashes. Mount Makushin seems to be on
a sympathetic strike, but is not doing
much.
The first eruption made a shower
of ashes which covered Unalaska and
Dutch Harbor two inches deep. The
native inhabitants were terror-stricken
and ran wildly about in the belief
that the world was about to see its
finish. _
Work is in progress on the bridge
across Resurrection river on the Bear
river trail under the direction of An
ton Eide and will be completed soon.
The trail was cut through the woods
and the necessary grading done by the
^farmers interested, with J. D. Johnston
in charge.
Gov. Brady has resigned a9 national
bank examiner for Alaska and is suc
ceeded by William A. Kelly of Sitka.