FOR GOLD AND
THIEF GETS IT
RAIN AND LACK OF ASSISTANCE
MAKE LIFE MISERABLE FOR
PROSPECTOR.
HURT WHILE WORKING ALONE
Quartz Specimens, Which Look Like
“The Real Molasses” Are Brought
Here for Assay and Owner Will Re
turn to Willow Creek.
By FORREST BERRY.
June 19 last, accompanied by an
other man, I left Anchorage. We ar
rived at Matanuska in due time, wait
ed there quite a while and then board
ed the tender of a locomotive with 200
pounds of hydraulic outfit and sup
plies for Wasilla, nine miles farther
up the main line. Evidently the “skip
per” took us, together with some
dozen others, for a “gang” of railroad
construction workers, for he pulled us
right on through the new town—and
incidentally through the rain—into the
woods and up the line to the end of
steel. But we wanted to stop at the
canvas station already passed, and
when we awakened him from his rev
erie he very obligingly backed up and
dropped us off and then vanished into
the Little Susitna valiey.
Uneventfully we proceeded to Mile
32, via the Schough Transfer, lunch
ed, thence packed over the pass and
dropped down into Willow creek val
ley, through snow, mud and rain to
our destination.
We packed all our needed supplies
two miles up the mountain to Wet
Gulch, set up our two tents, packed
dry wood for kindling up there on
our backs—only scrub willows grow
above the timber line—and all in a
drizzling, bleak, constant, chilling
rain. It rained for sixteen days with
-only an occasional foggy intermission
to get a fresh hold. July 4 it snowed
ten inches.
>oaking Wet All the lime.
We worked in the creek building
dams. We worked in the mud digging
ditches. We also worked to get and
keep a fire. What, with the green,
soggy, willow wood and only a few
slivers of dry spruce we hardly could
cook our food, keep out the dampness
and dry wet clothing in: a constant ,
pelting downpour. We slept in wet
garments and in a wet bed most of the !
time.
Then one day the man that had come
with me left me. We had built a fine
dam, lined a 200-yard ditch and dug
about half of it through black loam
muck and blue clay and scrub willows.
We had not got the water in the ditch,
had not begun to put through the
gravel, and so had made no clean-up
when I was left alone. I had a ten
* inch canvas hose at the intake, drop
ping to a six-inch final and a four
inch nozzle. It was rocky ground.
My boxes were heavy, new, green
lumber. It was work for two men.
I had been ill. I had only a short
time previously undergone two surgi
cal operations at the government
hospital. I believed in my ground,
however, and so I buckied on the ar
mor of desperation and attacked the
work alone.
Ditch Is Completed.
I completed my ditch, attached hose
and nozzle and set my boxes, packing
gunnvsacks below my riffles to hold
the black sand and fine gold and turn
ed on the water. Although it rained,
I was exceedingly happy. Especially
was I happy when I saw that I was
putting through a full cargo of grav
el and tumbling down the bench
loam and boulders at a rate to make
a sourdough’s heart glad. But as al
ready stated, it was a two-man job,
and I overworked and overchilled my
blood in the icewater—my boots soon
became leaky—and headaches and
vomiting with a ten-day lay-off re
sulted. Cleaning up, however, I saw
that I was getting good color, and
so I was enthusiastic and filled with
optimism.
Then one day I lifted a great slab
of schist rock mucking out my “glory
hole,” slipped, hung onto the rock like
a drowning man to a spar, fell on my
back with the rock on top of me, sus
tained a fractured rib, lost conscious
ness and lay in the mud and rain for
hours. It was dark when I returned
to earth, and the rock was still hold
ing me to its fond embrace.
Chilled Through and Through.
My hands seemingly had turned to
ice, and my blood to icewater. All the
Stars had turned to purple-white air
ships and were rushing around in a
mad swirl that never got them any
where except all around and above
and about me. But I wriggled out
from under the rock, rolled over and
crawled across the creek and into my
tent and into my bunk. There, with
wet and muddy gardments I lay until
« t was dried out. After a good rest
I was able to get about my camp.
I never saw a soul until I went down
| the mountain again to my old cabin.
There I experienced the enviable joy
of finding that the cabin had been
broken into and that most of my sup
plies were gone. Luckily, however,
there remained some food. I had
brought with me Aom Seattle a nice
new flyrod, which went with the rest,
so I fished with a willow bush and
caught all I could eat.
Thief Visits Tent.
My next surprise occurred when I
was able to get back to my tent up at
the mine. There I had left upwards
of $100 worth of food supplies, not
to mention tools and camp outfit, i
This, also, had been visited in my ab- j
sence. Most of the food was gone, j
and the bedding had been tied and
suspended to the pole and the tools all
piled nicely together ready for a re
turn trip. Then I went to look for the
five gallon gasoline can of black sand
I had cached so carefully away where ‘
no prying eye could find it, and dis- j
covered that the sand also had van
ished, but the can had been left be- |
hind. So I was saved the trouble of I
packing out my summer’s clean-up.
I took my little old Savage and
hiked out over Bald mountain. At!
the little Susitna river I constructed!
a raft of dry spruce logs, having de- J
cided not to swim its icy current j
again as I had in June. I had taken I
along my little axe and some spikes !
to make the raft.
Raft Is Overturned.
The raft held me up beautifully
and I was just shaking hands with
myself over my bit of success when,
with an extra hard punch with the
pole I sent the improvised craft into
the quick water, and in a flash I was
at the bottom of the river, with pack,
gun and a very little gold dust. This
| accidental cold bath saved the life of
| a black bear I had noticed feeding on
the far side of a little pond. Night
came on and I trudged many miles
before I slept again in my wet clothes
at Wasilla. This is the way I avoid
taking cold in such cases.
But Willow creek is all right, and
despite thieves, rain and other ob
stacles too numerous to mention, I
am going back as soon as I get the
result of the assay on some quartz
I brought out with me, which looks
like the real molasses.
BOMBS FROM AIRPLANES.
Simple Device That Aids in Dropping
the Missiles Accurately.
At the numerous aerial bombing
schools pilots and observers are
taught how to drop bombs acurately
on stationary and moving objects on
the ground and on captive balloons.
Bombs of all classes are used, from
the eight pound high explosive bomb
to the 200 pound bomb as well as the
phosphorus and rochambite bombs.
The instrument that is used in di
recting the placing of a oomb on the
object aimed at is a simple device
and is provided with several adjust
ments that can be made almost in
stantly. One of these gives the speed
at which the machine is traveling, an
other is an ordinary water level, and
both in conjunction with two mirrors
which show- the pilot the ground be
low serve to aim the bomb. The wind
has to oe seriously considered when
dropping bombs, and most bombs are
1 dropped up wind.
Bomb dropping is a most import
! ant branch of the air service, and pi
| lots have been known to drop bombs
1 on enemy trains and transports from
! fairly good heights and also on the
j vital parts of bridges and on depots
! and railway junctions, munitions
, plants, aerodromes and submarine
bases.—Scientific American.
ALASKA CONSCRIPT
HAS TRAVEL RECORD
I A. M. CULLENS HASTENS FROM
WRANGELL, TO DENVER,
COLO., TO JOIN COLORS.
DENVER, Colo., Oct. 1. — The
draft registration and the succeeding
call of selected men for service pro
duced some unusual tales of distances
travelled to answer the call, but few,
if any, can compare with the record
set by A. M. Cullen, of this city, local
officials say. Cullen, when he £ot
word of his selection for the draft,
was in Wrangell, Alaska. He started
home at once.
The Alaska Bankers’ association
is the name of an organization re
cently formed at Juneau. B. M. Beh
rends has been chosen prsident, R. C.
Woods of Fairbanks, vice-president;
H. H. Post of Juneau, secretary, and
T. S. Scott, of Cordova, treasurer.
Captain A. M. Jones, commanding
officer at Fort William H. Seward,
sustained a serious rupture recently
while working in his garden at the
post, and was taken to Juneau for
treatment, owing to the absence of
the post surgeon.
TACOMA EXCELS
OTHERS IN SIZE
AMERICAN LAKE CAMP CAN AC
COMMODATE 46,099 OFFICERS
AND MEN AT ONCE.
SITE COVERS 75,000 ACRES.
Land Was Presented to Government
by Pierce County, Whose Citizens
Bonded Themselves for $2,000,000
to Buy It.
TACOMA, Wash., Sept. 27.—Squads
of soldiers from Pacific coast and in
termountain states are taking their
?rst army drill at Camp Lewis on the
shores of American lake, near Ta
coma.
It is the largest army cantonment
in the United States and when the full
force of the selective draft is carried
out, not later than October 5, it will
contain 46,099 officers and men. The
cantonment site covers 75,000 acres
and embraces seven lakes, forest,
stream, prairie and salt water reser
vation. It was presented to the gov
ernment by the people of Pierce coun
ty, Wash., of which Tacoma is the
largest city. They bonded themselves
for $2,000,000, bought the land and
turned it over to the government. At
that time it was intended to use it for
a division post, as war had not been
declared.
The site was selected by Maj. J.
Franklin Bell, now commanding the
department of east, who first surveyed
it in 1895 and saw its value as a train
ing ground and strategic point.
City Built in Eight Weeks.
When congress created the national
army the government built on this
site a military city in eight weeks,
employing 10,000 men and costing
$4,000,000. This is exclusive of the
base hospital now under construction,
which will cost $504,000 and will have
equipment worth another $500,000. It
will have a capacity of 6,000 beds.
Permanent water, sewerage and light
ing systems have been installed, suffi
ciently extensive to meet the needs
of a city of 200,000 inhabitants. The
barracks and mess halls are built in
rows for miles. The stables at the
remount station will accommodate
15,000 horses and mules.
The Nisqually prairie where maneu
vers will be held is seven and one
half miles long and four miles wide.
The climate of the Puget sound re
gions will allow for training twelve
months a year. The earth formation
sheds water easily.
Veteran Made Commandant.
Maj. Gen. H. A. Greene, a soldier
for more than forty years, was made
commandant at the post with four
brigadier generals under him. Many
of the younger officers, 1,400 in all,
were trained at the Presidio, of San
Francisco, at the first officers’ camp.
Provision has been made to teach
the men every form of modern war
fare. Trench work, throwing of hand
grenades, machine gun practice, rifle
usage and the like. Camouflage also
will have its place and men from the
moving picture studios of California
will aid in this.
Postal authorities have urged the
correct addressing of mail so that the
thousands of soldiers will have no
trouble obtaining their letters. Here
is a correct way to address a letter:
Private John H. Smith,
Company H, 264th Infantry,
Camp Lewis, Washington.
Ihe company and the regiment, as
well as the arm of the service, is ne
cessary to insure delivery.
PANCE RETURNS $200
TO RED CROSS SOCIETY
Two hundred dollars was realized
for the Red Cross last night from the
All Nations Masquerade ball in Ro
barts’ hall. The affair, which mark
ed the opening of the social season,
was the most successful of its kind
ever given in the city.
Special features arranged in con
nection with the dance were staged
in the most artistic manner, and
were received with enthusiastic ap
plause.
Mrs. W. A. Leet and Sergeant L.
Thompson were the principals in a
tableau, entitled “The Soldier's Fare
well,” during the rendition of which
Brice Howard sang the “Star Span
gled Banner.” Another tableau was
given by Miss Georgia Anderson,
representing “Columbia,” during
which Mr. Howard sang “Columbia
the Gem of the Ocean.” Mr. and
Mrs. Harry Whittemore appeared in
a fancy costume dance typifying “The
Spirit of New Russia.”
Masked dancers who were awarded
prizes follow:
Best national costumes, Mrs. Frank
Polley and W. J. Daykin; most beau
tiful costumes, Mrs. Daniel Vucetich
and Mrs. E. J. Halford; most humor
ous costumes, Mrs. Effie Hamilton
and H. Rasmussen; best sustained
characters, Mrs. F. A. Dixon and Sid
ney Anderson; best advertising cos
tume, Miss Belle Neff.
ABSENTEE LANDLORDISM.
Irish Farm Lands Bought by Gov
ernment.
As long ago as 1903 Great Britain
undertook a solution of the Irish land
question by the subdivision of the
great estates owned by the English
gentry. In thirteen years the gov
ernment has expended $550,000,000 in
the purchase, subdivision and settle
ment of 9,000,000 acres of land, or
about one-third of the total area of
Ireland.
An unhappy, povery-striken coun
try has been converted into a nation
of contended land owners. It is ex
pected that by 1920 tenancy will have
almost ceased to exist, at virtually
no cost to the empire. The money
appropriated for the purpose is being
repaid by the purchasers in install
ments, with interest.
A royal commission for England
and Scotland is now engaged in mak
ing a census of estates, and is fram
ing a new law under which land will
be subdivided and sold to returning
soldiers at the close of the war.—
Century Magazine.
MOOSE CREEK
W. C. EDES, F. MEARS AND A.
CHRISTENSEN AND HENRY
BAXTER CONSTITUE PARTY.
WILL INSPECT COAL MINE
Chairman William C. Edes, Commis
sioner F. Mears, Andrew Christensen,
head of the land and industrial de
partment, and Henry Baxter, left to
day for the Baxter coal mine at Moose
creek, where recently one of the best
veins of high-grade bituminous coal
has been struck. It is expected that
the engineerng commission will as
sist Mr. Baxter in further developing
his find by constructing a spur from
the line of the railroad to the mine, a
distance of about five miles.
CONTRACTORS DANIEL B. PAT
TERSON AND A. C. CRAIG
CO**PLETE FOURTH AVE.
BOARD IMPROVEMENTS ARE IN
Installing of Water Pipes Is Pro
gressing Rapidly and Trouble Caus
ed to Sewer System by Slipping
Earth Is Overcome.
Eleven thousand dollars is the ap
proximate cost of the newly-laid ce
ment sidewalks on Fourth avenue.
The improvement extends along both
sides of the main business thorough
fare from B street to K street, a dis
tance of eight blocks. The walks are
twelve feet wide, with a curb six in
ches wide and eighteen inches deep.
Daniel B. Patterson and A. C. Craig,
who had the contract for laying the
walks, began their work August 5 and
practically completed it September 30.
Re-surfacing will be done in the next
few days at several places where
heavy rain or travel marred the ce
ment when it was in a soft condition.
Repair Work Delayed.
This work of a repair nature was
delayed by the contractors until they
had finished pouring the entire length
of walks. They were anxious to com-1
plete their main task before the ad
vent of very cold nights.
“The townsite management,” said
Mayor J. G. Watts, “furnished the ce
ment, gravel and miscellaneous sup
plies required for the sidewalk im
provement and the contractors fur
nished the labor. The largest item
of expense with reference to the job
is cement. It cost about $5,500. Grav
el and miscellaneous supplies cost
about $1,500. The contractors for la
bor and their own compensation will
be paid about $4,000. The final ac
counting on the work has not yet
been made but the exact figures will
not differ much from the present es
timate of cost.”
Laying of Board Walks.
The laying of board walks has been
completed on all streets, where such
improvements were contemplated, ex
cept on K street between Seventh and
Eighth avenues. This small stretchr
will be finished in a day or so.
Work is progressing rapidly on the
laying of water pipes. A six-inch
wooden main has just been laid in the
alley between Eighth and Ninth ave
nues from D to H streets, and an iron
main in the alleys between M and N
streets and N and O streets from
Eighth to Ninth avenues.
Iron water pipes will be laid this
week in the alleys between Second
and Third avenues from H to K streets
and between First and Second ave
nues from F to D streets.
Hillside Slips Three Feet.
Slipping ground caused a little de
lay to sewer work. The sidehill on
E street near Third avenue slipped
about three feet and filled a stretch
of sixty feet of sewer trench. The
first efforts to protect the sewer exca
vation with timbers proved futile, the
moving ground, which slipped very
slowly, breaking the timbers as if
they were matchwood. More substan
I tial timbering was put in, and the
i trench has now been excavated again.
HEALTH OFFICER
ASSIGNED TO ARMY
DR. C. C. BENEDICT IS ATTACHED
TO FOURTEENTH INFANTRY,
STATIONED HERE.
Dr. C. C. Benedict, city health offi
cer, v ho for some months has held a
lieutenant’s commission in the officers’
reserve corps of the United States
army, yesterday received orders from
the war department detailing him to
active duty in the medical corps. He
was attached to the Fourtenth infan
try, which is stationed here.
As long as the fourteenth remains
in Anchorage, Dr. Benedict will con
tinue to perfrom the duties of city
health officer.
A statement of the license moneys
for the fiscal year ending June 30 for
the first judicial division, issued by
Clerk of the Court Bell shows $88,
852.11 collected outside of incorporat
ed towns. Of the license moneys col
lected inside of incorporated towns Ju
neau paid $30,483.55, Ketchikan $20,
743.25, Douglas $14,058.12, Wrangell
$9,303.38, Petersburg $8,388.71, Haines
$4,763.56 and Skagway $3,391.50.
HffiffiffiffiffiffiHiiiiSiaiaiifitfiaiffiffiaiaiffiifiifiifiifiKaiifiifiififfiassfiffiffiifiifisaiiiitfiffiffiifiSfiiiiifi
IT HAS always been my contention that if the people were better informed on this
particular subject, there would, not be near as many cripples, paralytics, imbeciles
or half-men as we do meet in this age. I have always believed that the govern
ment should make it its business to educate the people as to what this Blood Poison
means and what it does- to them or their children. At that, I believe the time will
come when this disease will have the same attention that Tuberculosis or Consump
tion now has.
In the mean time each man or woman must be their own guardian and to ascer
tain whether or not this dread disease lurks in their system. There are unfortun
ately not always visible evidences, but wherever there has been a suspicious infec
tion, even years back, there is always sufficient doubt whether the disease is still
in the system. Make sure, either way. If you are clear it is worth something to
know it. If you are not'clear it is worth a whole lot more to you to know it.
Have an examination made of your blood. You will then soon know where you
stand. Perhaps it won’t hurt YOU a great deal, but it is not fair to those that come
after you, your Children.
I make tests and examinations of the blood, urine and sputum. I treat Acute
ajid Chronic Contracted Diseases, Blood Poison and Skin Disorders, Nerve Affec
tions, and Lost Vital Power. If you are in doubt about yourself, come and get my
help. You will get it straight, and don’t keep putting it off. Things like these don’t
improve with age. Remember that.
DR. A. W. LUEDERS
626 Fourth Ave.
Opp. Telephone Office
ANCHORAGE ALASKA