Yukon Valley News
VOL. III.
RAMPART, ALASKA, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 9. 1907
No. 20
BIRTHDAY
CELEBRATED
Frank Smith’s Friends Entertained
When He Passes the Half
Century Mark.
Friday evening, Jan. 4, a number of
friends of Mr. and Mrs. Frank M. Smith
assembled at their residence in response
to invitations to celebrate Mr. Smith’s
fiftieth birthday.
The time was occupied with vocal and
instrumental music, with cards, and in
social intercourse. Supper was served,
and the evening was one of rare pleasure
to every one present.
It is seldom that so much vocal talent
assembles at a private house, eepecially
in a mining camp. Mrs. Mustin sang in
both French and English. Messrs. Hos
burg and Seyler contributed a duet in
German; Mr. Marion, a Canadian boat
song in French; Mr. Duncan, Scotch
songs; Mr. Heeter and Mr. Davidson,
songs of their own composition; and
others vocal selections which were duly
appreciated.
At whist, Mrs. Boucher won the ladies’
first prize, and Mrs. Ballou the booby;
Mr. Sheiiuin gentlemen’s first prize and
Mr. Sundborg the booby. At solo, Judge
Green was the worst and hardest loser.
Two of the most interesting persons
piesent were baby Mary Drake and baby
Jimmy Smith, both of whom enjoyed
themselves hugely.
Mrs. Smith proved a hostess of amia
bility and tact, and Mr. Smith received
many hearty congratulations on having
crossed the half-century mark amid such
happy home surroundings.
Besides Mr. and Mrs. Smith and baby
Smith, those present were:
Mr. and Mrs. S. E. Heeter, Mr. and
Mrs. J. F. Drake, Mr. and Mrs. VV. B.
Ballou, Dr. and Mrs. 0. I). Carter, Ser
geant and Mrs. Mustin, Mr. and Mrs.
George W. Woods, Mr. and Mrs. Horace
Boucher, Miss Peck; Messrs. C. It. Peck,
J. W. Duncan, K. Donaldson, Louis
Iverson, Henry Squires, C. A. Davidson,
Judge J. Lindlcy Green, Jules Marion,
Walter Sundts>rg, William Mann, Lewis
Shequin, Ernest Floyd, Louis Seyler,
W. W. Crockett, M. W. Sinclair, Harry
Burruss, A. L. Collins, Sam Callahan,
Herman Kosburg, John Wield, Dr. J. H.
iludgin, Ed. Hopkins, Maurice Farrell.
At Valdes Lice. 17 fire destroyed the
budding of the Valdes Hank an.l Mer
cantile company, the store of the same
firm, the St. Klia* hotel ami the tele
phone building. It wax discovered that
the liank safe had been blown. How
much the robber* got away with had not
been determined.
DAVE SCOTT
IN SEATTLE
Writes a Friend that He Will Enter
Business There—Other Old
Ramparters.
Through the mail this week a friend
received a letter from 1). IV. Scott, for
merly of What Cheer Bar, dated Seattle,
Nov. 14. The following extracts from
the letter will be of interest on account
of the news they contain of other Kam
parters, as well as of the writer:
“I suppose you will know long before
this reaches you that I am a l>enediet.
I was married two weeks ago in Chester,
111., and'we came here on our honey
moon; also to make our future home.
We have just rented furnished flats.
They certainly are nice—so, also, is the
price; but really everything is high
here, especially in the house renting
business. Nearly every rooming house
in the city is full to overflowing.
“Jim Dalton is married and has
bought a ranch of fifty-five acres near
Watsonville, Cal. He has fifteen acres in j
fruit trees, the balance plow land.
“Jim Green is here in Seattle, stop- j
ping at the Benton hotel. He expects
to return to Rampart next spring.
“I expect to stay right here in Seattle
and am going into business.
“Mr. and Mrs. John Stanley are living
here in Seattle; they are both looking;
fine.
“I have not seen Mrs. Green yet, but
am going to make it a point to hunt
her up.
“Say, you would hardly know the
people after they are out for awhile,
they all take on flesh so.
“1 saw G. A. Ketterer the other day.
He is going to Los Angeles for a visit,
then to St. 1‘aul. He does not know
what he will do yet.
“G. H. Wand was also here, lie went
to California; then he was expecting to
go to Minneapolis.”
COPPER RIVER & N. W.
BACKED BY MILLIONS
The Copper Hiver an<l Northwestern
railroad anil the copper mines that went
with that property when it recently
|U.«*ed into the hands of the tiuygen
heims and J. I’icrpoij Morgan, repre
sent a money value supposed to very
closely approach a hundriil mill ion
dollars.
It lias ta-cii given out that a Heel of
vessels will lie put on l*-tween Seattle
and the railroad terminus on the Alaskan
coast, and tliat several thousand men
will tie employed in onler to complete
the road as early as possible.
BIG BOOM
IN QUEEN CITY
J. W. Young Says a Population of
400,000 is Looked For by the
Year of the Fair.
J. Wesley Young, who closed out his
mercantile business in Rampart last fall
anil joined the exodus to the outside, is
in the office of The Trustee Company,
investment trustees, at Seattle.
In a letter dated Nov. 20 Mr. Young
writes a Rampart friend that there is a
tremendous boom on in Seattle. He
says the city is growing at the rate of
5,000 per month, and that most people
figure that by fair time, 1909, Seattle i
will have about 400,000 population.
“I bought a double corner here a few
days ago,” wrote Mr. Young, “and was
offered an advance of f 1,500 two days
later, but didn’t sell.”
The Trustee Company has commenced
the erection of the finest building on the
coast, to occupy a full half block on
Third avenue and to be eighteen stories.
Mr. Young writes that Mrs. Young is
well, but don’t like the rainy weather,
and is talking of visiting Southern Cali
fornia. Also, that A. J. Balliet is estab
lishing a good law practice, and that
John Bock, like several thousand others,
is in Seattle in the real estate business.
BIG WINDSTORM
FOLLOWS SNOW
Following a foot of new-fallen snow,
one of the severest windstorms known
in this part of Alaska set in early last
night and was still in progress, though
with slightly less force, this afternoon,
Mail started out both ways this morn
ing. Ed Uiederman, down bound, had
to face the wind. Joe Minard, the up
bound carrier, had his buck to the storm.
He was also accompanied by Jules Ma
rion and William Mann bound to the
Chandlar by way of Fort Yukon. A. V.
Thorns and Wallv Laboski also started
for Hot Springs this morning.
All of them w ill certainly have to con
tend with had drifts. On the river the
trial is doubtless obliterated. Fortun
ately the weather is mild.
The heavy snowfall caused Minard to
get in a 'lav late with the down-coining
mail. Uiederman got in from Tanana
on time, Monday night. It will be a
wonder if be does so well on his run
Istck.
The local signal office had new*. that
it was raining and water was running at
Kaltag yesterday.
THE NOME WAV
OF DOING THINGS
Men Who Find a Paystreak Sent to
Jail While Others Get Posses
sion of the Claim.
(Nome Gold Digger, Dec. 6.)
It in a notable fact that wherever or
whenever a paystreak is found, the dis
covery is invariably followed by legal
proceedings, in some instances both
criminal and civil. Some time ago pay
was found on a claim at the head of
Irene creek, known as the Yellowstone,
and the result has been the same as
usual Already four men have been
arrested, and there is a probability that
more will be heard from the ground in
controversy within the next twenty-four
hours.
According to the story told, Chas. V.
Ewing, .1. C. Cornell, E. M. Burden and
Jack Stanton were on the ground, when
a couple of men sent out by T. M. Gib
son arrived on the scene and formally
took possession of the proj)erty The
“possession,” however, was not admit
ted by the parties who were already on
the ground, and they asked the new
arrivals to step into the cabin. Here a
parley took place, and as Gibson’s men
refused to leave they were locked up in
the cabin for several hours.
After they were released they came to
town and had their opponents arrested
on a charge of kidnaping, and this is
where Gibson got in hiB fine work. As
soon as Stanton, Ewing, Cornell and
Burden had been brought into town, in
the custody of the United States mar
shal, Gibson starts out twenty men and
four horses to take possession of the
property l>efere the men arrested have
an opportunity to return to the ground.
There the matter rests at present, but
the men who were arrested have gone
out to reconnoiter the situation this
afternoon, and there is liable to be
further developments at any time.
MUCH SICKNESS
IN THE CAMP
There ia an epidemic of cold*, la
grippe and pneumonia in Kainpart. '
I’p to last night eight aerioua caws
had developed, all ol which were among
the Indian* except one—that of lieu
Mayo, who ha* pneumonia. He wan
improving.
A 6-year-old girl of Joe, a native,
died thix morning. The child had al
ways been sickly.
Prana-ally evrrytiuly was strickcu
with a severe form of had cold.