Yukon Valiev News
VOL. III.
RAMPART, ALASKA, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1900
No. 17
GHANDLAR AND ITS MANY CREEKS
Has Every Appearance of Good Placer Country-Men Shoveled in $1
a Minute Each While Water Lasted’—Something Regarding Routes
Mr. R. Donaldson, bookkeeper for the
Northern Commercial Company at Ram
part, received a letter this week from a
cousin at Coldfoot with the following
information about the new Chandlar
district:
“You must have heard by this time
of the new strike made on the Chandlar
about sixty miles from this point.
“There has been nothing much done
as yet, as it was almost impossible to
get grub over there until the past few
weeks.
“Last fall on the head of Rig creek
(one of the largest creeks in the dis
trict, being forty miles or more long)
Newton, Bolds and Jones were panning
and raised good prospects Newton
went out one morning and panned
out of the gravel in two hours—all fine
money. They afterward set up boxes,
and owtng to the shortage of water were
only able to shovel about five minutes
at a time. Their shoveling paid them
' about a dollar per minute per man.
This creek lias many small ones enter
ing it nearly its whole length on which
good prospects have been found. There
are also many more creeks which have
prospected very well, namely, Big
Squaw, Little Squaw, Tobin, 'Wood
chuck, Big McClellan, Little McClellan,
Rock, Dictator, Crave, Slate and nu
merous others,
“The formation of the country shows
that it has had a run of gold through it
for a number of miles. Many think the
best ground is still to be found.
“It looks more like a placer country
than any in this section, the hills being
worn down smooth, the creeks mostly
large but well confined between the
hills, making prospecting much easier.
In most places when you get well to the
head of the creeks there is very little
timlier, and in many places they have
to haul it ten or twelve miles.
“There is quite a numlier of new
comers in the section already and many
more they report on the way. But I
think, myself, that the best trail would
be from Tanana, as there is a trail
which the mail carrier lias to Betties;
also one to Coldfoot, and a good trail
cut to the diggings from this point. The
distance is about the same from Fair
banks via Circle and Fort Yukon as it
is from Fairbanks via Tanana, Betties ,
and Coldfoot, tlie latter route being the
lletter one owing to the grub| supplies,
as a man can travel from Fairbanks to
Tanana light and from there to Betties
light, and through to Coldfoot, where
he can get his supplies, have them
freighted or haul them himself the
balance of the trip, about sixty or sixtv
five miles, there being cabins up all
along the line. Coming the other way
they will have to take sufficient supplies
to carry them to Circle, then to Fort
Yukon; from there they have a haul of
about 170 miles to take their pro
visions.”
HOLIDAY
PASTIMES
A. B. Dance Christmas and Pioneer
Bali New Year’s Eve the Prin
cipal Announcements.
A dance l>y the Arctic Brotherhood
Christinas night will he the first public
gathering of the holiday season.
For a while the A. It's held hack in
the belief that a g'*»l many jK-ojile
would want to attend the Christmas
festivities at Hot Springs, which prom
ise to lie very att ractive; hut it appear
ing that hut few ore none would make
the trip any way it was resolved to have
the pleasantest time possible at home.
The only oilier affair of a public na
ture announced up to the present is the
grand Pioneer hall to l>e given New
Year's F.ve Olcourse it will la* great,
audit the number attend from acrosa
the divide, and especially from lint
springs. that it is hoped there will, it
• ill lie the huge-t affair in the neslern
days tier camp
i
THE NATIVES j
TO POTLATCH
People of Fort Hamlin and Tanana
Asked to Join Ramparters
in the Feast.
The natives will potlatch at the vil
lage above the mouth of Itig Minnnk
creek.
That is what has finally been decided
upon, after agouti ileal of factional feel
ing ami bickering among the parties
at interest.
Mike Hess Frank, a mighty hunter
ami a man of distinction among the
primitive |ienple of the Yukon, heltl out
for the village on the op|M>site shit- of
the river la-ing maile heaihpiarters for
the holiiluy feast, ami for awhile there
was i la infer that an umlerstamling would
not Ik- reached; hut it seems that Frank
luts eohelutletl to accept his ih-fcat ami
go in for harmony.
The natives from Fort Hamlin wilt all
I* down. Those from Tanana are also
invited, but up to today it has not
l>een learned whether or not they will
come.
Preparations for the feast are under
way and there will Ik* plenty of good
things to eat.
WEATHER CONDITIONS
Date Max. Min.
Dec. 11 — 13 —21*
Dec. 12—11 —2*i
Dec. 13 — 9 —32
Dec. 14 —28 —35
Date Max. Min.
I)ec. 15 —.'!4 —.‘i(i
Dec. 10 — U —35
Dec. 17 — 5 —15
Oumlicr dI days: ( lear, S: partly
cloudy, 0; cloudy, 2.
Snowfall: Nolle.
Kkkokrii'k E. Kadkr,
Voluntary Observer.
Local and General Notes
Harry Hurruss starts across the di
vide with freight tomorrow (Thursday).
Word conies from lloosicr that the
How of water has let'll overcome so that
work may be proceeded with there.
Mr. and Mrs. Strickland have returned
to Slutc creek after a short visit in town.
Neither themselves nor Mr ami Mrs.
Nichols will lie in for the holidays.
Clement Anderson came in from Hav
Kiver ll>>t Springs the first of the week
for supplies. He sprained Ids knee on
I be trip and will return wheu it is lat
ter. Eil Power is still at the springs.
TO FIGHT ON
Wickersham’s Foes Gather
Bitterness as Time
Goes By.
(From the Fairbanks Times.)
Washington, Nov. 25.—There can be
no question now but what Senators
Nelson and Hansborough will continue
to assist Senator McCumber in bis pro
test against the confirmation of Judge
Wickersham, of the Third district of
Alaska. While not officially stated by
them, or any one speaking for them, it
is known they depend much on the
rejMirt of District Attorney Hoyt, of
Nome, who was ordered to make an
investigation.
It is known that Senator McCumber
wrote the president in June urging a
new investigation and said he could
place in the hand of the investigator
new facts concerning the old charges..
It has been ascertained that these spe
cific cases were in regard to where
\\ ickersham is alleged to have decided
cases in favor of Captain Barnette, a
banker at Fairbanks.
While a new investigation has been
ordered it is said that it is not to be
takca as a change in Mr. Roosevelt’s
former position, but it is known that
he replied to Senator MeCuml>er by say
ing that if the facts were as he had pre
sented them he would act accordingly.
In his letter to the president it is
known that McCumber represented to
the president that the newspapers of
Alaska considered Wickersham unfit for
the position.
Seattle, Nov. 25.—District Attorney
Hoyt, who is here conducting the Newth
lhsltish trials, refuses even to refer to
the Wickershain subject ami made no
continent whatever when shown the
above dispatch. It is not even known
if he has his rejsirt w ritten.
Alaskans now here declare that if the
ti^cht comes up again it will lie far more
bitterly fought than before.
Chapman and Sinclair are re|*>rted to
have drifted into water on Russian
creek. It was not learned whether or
not the flow was sufficient to stop thei"
work. Others on the creek had not got
to lied risk at last accounts.
The late cold weather dosed the open
s|Mce in the river at the ii|>|ier end of
town. It ha» not U'cn known to dose
so early tieforv, and two weeks la-fore it
disappeared liets were offered, with no
takers, that it would tie o|a-n .liter
Christmas.