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The ALASKA
SOV'R'DOV GH
Vol. /. No. 9 Douglas, Alaska, Tuesday, October 31, 1911 10c a Copy
The Wandering Boys of Alaska
Probably, among the inhabitants of
the Northland, there are more lost sons
of anxious mothers, than in any other
place on earth.
Back east there are thousands upon
thousands of anxious mothers who
await the arrival of the letter that
never comes. When the driver of the
“ R. F. D. ’ ’ preceeds a cloud of dust
down the road, a mother shades her
diiii eyes with her thin hand, and won
ders if thith time he has brought that
letter from her son in Alaska; when
the shrill treble of the carrier’s whistle
is heard in the city streats, another
mother rushes to meet him with a
trembling heart—perhaps now he has
brought the letter from the boy in Al
aska. But probably not. Probably, in
too many cases, to the day when the
word goes forth to the boy in Alaska
that “mother has crossed the distant
mountains where letters are not for
warded,” she will shade her dim eyes
with a thin hand as the “R. F. D. ”
preceeds a cloud of dust down the road
or tremble at the shrill treble of the
carrier’s whistle on the city streets,
expecting the letter which never
comes.
“Oh hearts that break and give no
sign,
Save whitening lips and fading tres
ses! ”
Periodically the governor sends to
the newspapers in Alaska a bulletin
of names of wandering boys, whose ad
dresses are wanted by the “folks at
home.” This week, five anxious moth
ers through Mr. Shorthill, have asked
for word of four forgetful sons and
one forgetful father—Fred William
Rummell, who for 15 years has been
putting off that letter; Kenneth Mc
Leod, silent for four years; John Lloyd
Copenhaver and J. B. Renwick, and an
anxious daughter for word of her fath
er, Thomas Wylie.
Where are they? Where are the
thousands of wmndering boys in Alas
ka, whose aged mothers eat their hearts
through comfortless dispairs.
Some of them are Duried under the
Yukon snows. Some lie at the bottom
of lake LeBarge, some, pierced with
bullets, in rude coffins in far Northern
graves, and some in the prison at Mc
Neil ’s island, but by far the larger
number, hale and hearty, postpone the
writing of letters home to the tomor
row1 which never comes. Year in and
year out, while mother shades her dim
eyes w’ith her thin hand as the “R. F.
D. ’ ’ proceeds a cloud of dust dow*n the
road, year in and year out he postpones
the waiting of the letter to the morrow
which never comes.
The wandering boy in everywhere
in Alaska—he is in the hills prospect
ing, he is in the mines, he is on the
deck of every steamer which whistles
in the harbor, he sleeps in the cabin of
nearly every fishing schooner, ho is
tending bar, mushing the trails, look
ing for w’ork—every occupation in Al
aska has its quota of Wandering Boys,
who ought to write that letter home,
but postpone it from day to day.
YUCATAN HERE
The Yucatan, looking very strange
without her cabin, arrived in Juneau
from Nome last Thursday. The cabin
was taken off when she was wrecked
in Icy Straits.
The big boat was sold to the under
writers while she was a wreck, but
was leased by the Alaska Steamship
company to make this trip to Nome.
She carried south a thousand tons of
copper ore, and a considerable quantity
of canned salmon picked up from the
various canneries.
The Victoria will be the last boat
from Nome, bringing out the people
who are operating the dredges, and is
to leave Nome on November 1. Navi
gation has closed on the Yukon river,
the Last boat leaving Dawson on Oct.
twenty-fifth.
TEMPORARY EMBARRASMENT
Some temporary embarrassment has
been caused the California Nevada
Mining company by the failure of ex
pected funds to arrive from the New
York office, and the local officials have
been compelled to postpone a pay day.
The company have had three shifts of
men employed working on the tunnel
whieli is to connect the workings with
the Gastincau channel beach, but work
has recently been suspended.
“I am personally acquainted with
the stockholders of the California
Nevada, ” said Judge Winn to a rep
resentative of the Sourdough Saturday,
“and I have not the slightest doubt
the last boat leaving Dawson on the
but that the delay is due to unforseen
here in a few days.”
The California Nevada company has
a $300,000 investment in the Gold
creek basin.
THE AUDIENCE WAITED
A large Douglas audience listened
to “Paid in Pull,” by the May Rob
erts company, at the Natatorium last
week. The play deals with a heroine
who is married to a villian, who is em
ployed by a single gentleman, who de
veloped excellent material for a hus
band. After the act in which the vil
lian got his, the audience waited for
several minutes after the curtain w-ent
down. After that they began to get
impatient, the manager appeared, and
announced that he was very sorry,, but
that was all that Eugene Walter had
so far written. The audience decided
not to wait until Walter wrote the last
act, marrying the heroine to the right
man, and departed. Douglas audiences
believe that a play should always turn
out right.
THE LAW OF SALT
A little litigation involving 102 sacks
of salt occupied Commissioner Winn’s
court for the better part of a day last
week. H. Weise brought suit against
F. H. Magill of the Peerless for $75
dollars for the salt which Weise’s
agent., William Semar, testified bad
been delivered to the Peerless, of
which Mr. McGill is the owner. Ma
gill testified that the salt had been sub
sequently turned over to Weise, and
left at his warehouse in Kake. The
commissioner rendered judgment in
favor of the plaintiff.
BOBBIE
The young scion of the house of
Walker, it has been definately decided
will be known as “Bobbie.” He is
the son of Register Walker, of the
United States land office.
MOUTH OF TUNNEL, COPPER RIVER AND NORTHWESTERN R. R.