Yukon Valiev News
VOL. III.
RAMPART, ALASKA, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 7, l!KXi
No. 11
MAIL MEN’S
HARD TRIP
Carrier Ed Uietlernuin, accompanied
by Carlo Jackett and Charley I’itka,
arrived with the up-bound mail today
at noon. They left Xanana Sunday.
Carrier Biederman reports hard trips
both ways.
He left here last Wednesday and went
all the way in a small .boat. The river
was running full of ice. At The Rapids
the water was so low hundreds of rooks
were above water and the boat, fast in
the ice, bumped through them in great
danger of being wrecked Below The
Rapids, the boat being encumbered with
ice, four of the dogs were set ashore to
lighten the load. In running along the
water’s edge two of them broke through
the ice and one drowned before the boat
could reach him. The other clung to a
cake of ice anil was rescued.
On the return trip the sleigh broke
through the iee below Morelock creek.
Pitka was in front, Jackett in the sleigh
and Biederman at the handle bars. As
the iee gave way Biederman jumped on
she hind part of the sled, but it went
down and let him into three feet of
water. The sled was pulled out so
promptly tlr.K the mail did not get
damaged. A tire was built to keep
Biederman from freezing.
The mail had not arrived from up
river at 1! o’clock today. I'nless it gets
in Biederman will continue on the up
run tomorrow.
Mail will depart up and down each
each Thursday during the winter.
8WIFTWATER
LIKE A TRAMP
Seattle, Oct. 10.—Attired in a very
dilapidated Hiiit ami wearing a large
hrown beard, anil in a generally un
kempt ami unwaalied condition, “Swilt
water Bill" t hitc* appeared in the eiuirt
here today to answer charges made in
liankruptey priem)tli(l. lie »tated
that he hail not attempted to defraud
hi* crcditur*, and that a hat money he
hod made at Kuirl»ank* had hrrn di**i
puled in alimony to Id* wife, attorney’*
fee* and guinhling. lie *aid lie lo*t
in a game •■! him kj.u k ten dm*
ago at Yakima, ami that he Mpiaiidered
» large amount a hen he tirvt eame to
Seattle.
GOSSIP OF
HOT SPRINGS
Hot Springs, Nov. 6.—C. K. Corbusier,
the mail sujierintendent, arrived from
Xanana yesterday and left today. lie
had a team of nine fine dogs and was
accompanied by I'itka Mi nook as dog
puncher.
Mails arrive and depart every six days
over the Fairbanks-Gibhon route. Tan
dem horse teams dash in ami out, re
minding one of the days of the overland
stage.
The distance from here to Fairbanks
over the mail trail is 80 miles; to P'ort
Gibbon 50 miles.
The new hotel for use this winter is
about completed. It is a fine two-story
log building, :S0 by 60 feet, with hot
springs water throughout. The con
struction of the new hotel will not la*
attempted until spring. All construc
tion for the winter is nearly finished.
Many fine cabins are occupied by
families here. Gil Edgar and wife, Jack
Price and w ife, Sellander and wife, all
Fairbanks residents, are here. Calder
head, the Dawson steamboat man, is
also here with his family. Sociability
reigns, and skating, dancing and cutter
rides are the order of the day. The gay
social season is just getting under way.
The new winter trail from Glen and
Eureka to the springs has been com
pleted. Cy Noble is making the first
trip over the same today.
F. G. Manley intends to keep the
public informed as to the success of the
Keystone drill as a prosjieeting ma
chine. The drill bored 750 feet last
month.
FREIGHTERS
BACK HOME
S. K. fleeter ami Smith A Burru**,
freighter's returned friun acroM the
tlivide today.
They *ay the late fall of enow hcl|«-d
the trail, which was* very laid.
On the way over Smith A Burma* hast
a sdeigh Mnaahed hy the rough lock*
giving aw ay.
At the m-vonderoming of Big Miimok
S<air<lough Mike broke through into
four feet of water and wet |iart <>t hi*
cargo la»l Sunday. Light dub tool
made the eroaalng in mtfety, amt the
mark* lliey left Uni Mike into trouhlr.
THE PAPERS
FROM NOME
In tilt- mail which arrived from Tanana
at noon today were copies of the Nome
Gold Digger of Oct. 10, 11 and 12.
Strange enough, they were the latest
jiapers giving news of the outside world
to be received iu this camp. When the
fact is considered that Fairbanks, with
two splendid papers printing the tele
graphic dispatches, is only ldO miles
away, it makes stranger still the fact
that direct mail service is to this day
denied between the great center of the
Tanana valley and the most important
settlement on the American Yukon—
open, as the two joints are, to overland
travel the year around. But the lines
of red tape have been stretched other
wise, and otherwise, apparently, they
must remain until they rot away.
Among the almost ludicrous but
wholly reasonable conclusions in an ar
ticle in the Gold Digger of Oct. 11 is one
that S. J. Marsh—who mushed to the
Arctic ocean and back last summer—
must either starve to death or depend
on the Eskimo for sustenance during
the winter just closed in. Mr. Marsh
went ouerland by way of Fort Yukon to
the border of the frozen ocean, cxpeet
ing to connect with supplies which were
to l>e landed for him by the steamer
Robert Dollar at Point Beecher, some
hundreds of miles eastward of Point
Barrow. On reaching Point Beecher
and finding no supplies, Mr. Marsh very
promptly mushed hack over the five
hundred miles to Fort Yukon, went by
steamer to Fairbanks, and is now pre
paring to stampede to the new Chandlar
diggings, four hundred miles away,
where he will act as I'nited States com
missioner and recorder. Such is life in
the far north.
The Kolicrt Dollar failed to go further
than Point Barrow, and Mr. Marsh’s
supplies were sent hack to Seattle, with
the supposition, may l>e, that the man
would "wolf it” around the shores of
the Arctic ocean till he died or got
shanghaied by some short-handed
whaler.
Canal by Contract.
A M-iiMitioii wa» lausv-l in Waalitiitc
Ion hy I’rtuhh'iit Kinwi vell unnmimiim
tlml ili«* ranal romnii»i>ioii I no I . I«. t. t
to liair thr work ilomr In i-oiitrai't ull<I
that hi- ai>|>rovi*l tin- roiiimittn-'a rrr
oiniiM-tKlatitHi. Tin* roiitiiiimiion luiil
Iwi-li la-mignl for lat jol» lor Irii-mla ol
•riiator* ami i-oiigrvmnuvn.
TO MOVE
TO HUNTER
Messrs. \V. B. Ballou and William
Mann go out to Ruby creek today to
take apart the pij>e o{ the Ruby ha
draulic works and get the plant in shape
to be moved to Hunter. The material
will not be placed on Hunter till after
the season is further advanced and the
trail is at its best.
The lift will probably be set up on
discovery, and it is exjieeted to have it
melioration by the middle of June. It
it! proposed to work out discovery and
Nos. 1,2 and;! below, which will take
several years to accomplish.
The works will start up with 2,000
feet of flume, 30 inches wide on the
bottom and 22 inches deep, and over
5,000 feet of hydraulic pipe. The plant
ought to be adequate to the work in
prospect.
The Hunter creek ground has steadily
paid better than wages under the old
methods. The hydraulic plant, under
Mr. Ballou’s management, handled the
dirt satisfactorily on Ruby creek. Mr.
Mann is thoroughly familiar with the
Hunter property.
Every condition seems favorable for
a splendid success in the Hunter ven
ture, and it is altogether likely that
next summer will mark the lieginning
of a long period of increased production
on this old and near-by creek, which the
new wagon road has placed in easy ac
cess of machinery and all kinds of
supplies.
RIVER’S CLOSE
IS NOW NEAR
After running ice continuously since
tiie morning of Oct. It), the river at
Rampart is very near its close. The
ice stopped for some time at the mouth
of Rig Mi nook creek at 7 o’clock this
morning, hut was m>t strong enough to
withstand the pressure from alsive, and.
commenced moving again.
The water is very low and the current
sluggish. The thermometer at 7 o’clock
was It deg. Iielowr, marking the coldest
weather of the season. The weather is
clear.
The ofieiiiiig and closing dates since a
record has Urn kept are as follows:
liiil
T»«r Hi»»
,
M... a.
May IV
*«> J4
JU»J«
I NMt.
Or* il
>o«. •
In. *
>«. ft
V.». •
Jrnr 0|»n. (Uf.
MW* May m. iv. M
MW* M... II. S,«. ||
MU* M«» M DM. •
!*• Mat I*.