Wllistorial Sketches and Experi
ences of Trail-Blazers Who Made
Alaska the Empire of the North
PIONEERS OF ALASKA
EDITED BY
CHARLES L. KEMP,
Secretary Anchorage Igloo No. 15.
i tiL
EERS
Want Employment Given to Ameri
cans Only, Save in Cases of Emer
gency, Particularly on Government
Work.
At a meeting of Igloo No. 15,
Pioneers of Alaska, held Friday night,
the following resolutions were
adopted, after a spirited debate:
Whereas the people of the Territory
of Alaska have demonstrated their
patriotism and devotion to Hag and
country by the record of the1 territory
in the support of the war with men
and money; and
i Whereas, this record has placed
Alaska in the front rank for patriotic
service, among the states of the
Union; and
Whereas the time has come for de
manding a standard of Americanism
which shall leave no doubt of the
patriotism and devotion to flag and
country of the people of these United
^JJbtes; and
Whereas, there are those among us
■who secretly disapprove of America
entering this world war for the cause
of Liberty and Justice, and who are
covertly aiding and abetting the enemy
by disparaging the noble purpose of
the United States in this war, and by
■ inventing excuses for Kaiserism; and
1 Whereas the time has come when
the progress of the nation to its man
ifest destiny as the leader of the civ
ilizations of the world, past, present
and future, demands that this class of
persons in America be marked for
identification and segregated from the
rest of the people, thereby insuring
the safety of our lives, our property
and our institutions; and
Whereas one of the chief sources of
comfort and means of maintenance of
this class of persons, is their employ
ment, at cheap wages, made by large
corporations, and even upon the work
of government projects:
Now, therefore, be it resolved by
Igloo No. If), Pioneer of Alaska, in
^gular meeting assembled:
That the next session of the Terri
torial legislature he requested to pass
^fiaw which shall require that all
Corporations employing men in Alas
ka be required to give preference to
citizens of the United States, other
things being equal, as a matter of ab
stract justice and as a pledge of
loyalty, and
That the legislature, in the exercise
of its prerogative, memoralize the
congress of the United Staes to pass
a law which shall forbid the employ
ment of aliens upon any government
I work, except when required by an
• emergency; and,
lie it further resolved that a copy
of these resolutions be sent to each of
the candidates for the territorial leg
islature, with the request that such
candidate announce his position on
this question prior to the election;
also that a copy be sent to the gov
ernor of the territory, the delegate
from Alaska in congress, the secre
tary of the interior and the president
of the United States, and that a copy
be given to the press.
Abated this 17th day of May, 11)18,
at Anchorage, Alaska.
ARTHUR G. THOMPSON,
SAMUEL McNIHCE,
WILLIAM L. HUGER,
C. H. PACKARD,
Of Committee on Resolutions con
sisting of five members.
Adopted at the regular meeting of
Igloo No. 15, Pioneers of Alaska, at
LAi^horage, May 17, 1918.
CHAS. L. KEMP, Sec.
Learn One New Thing Each Day.
If you weigh 200 pounds on the
earth you would only weight 80
pounds if you were on the moon.
-
OUR DAILY SPECIAL.
Familiarity Often Breeds a Black
Eye.
PRINCE RUPERT
IS A BUSY PLACE
PRINCE RUPERT, B. C., May 18.
—Fully 300 fishing boats are operat
ing out of Prince Rupert this spring.
Form the little weather-beaten craft
carrying two or three men and a
single dory, up to large steel steam
! ers, the fishing fleet is busier than
. ever this spring for the price of haii
! but is high enough to pay the fisher
| men handsomely.
Where two or three men may sell
from 3,000 to 5,000 pounds of halibut
at war-time prices, the industry at
present is returning what may be
termed by the average man “big
money.” But the men must under
stand their work. The treacherous
waters and terrible storms act as a
deterrent to the venturesome small
fishermen who tempt fate in the hope
of making a big haul. The small boats
fish along the mountain-girted shores
of the Skeena district and off the
Queen Charlotte islands. The large
steamers, however, to whom a catch of
100,000 pounds of halibut is but a fair
voyage, frequently make long
voyages.
Fishermen assert that the halibut
banks are not being depleted, although
it is noticeable that the larger boats
are obliged to make long voyages each
year.
I _
PIONEER VALUES
QUILT PRESENT
_
Some time last February Mrs. Gag
ne, of Fox, sent a silk patchwork quilt
'to Miss Fitchett to be disposed of and
the proceeds turned In to the orphan
fund. The quilt was turned over to
a member of the Pioneers, and at a
meeting of Igloo No. 4 the raffle was
held. The holder of the lucky num
; her was A. W. Van Sant, who, hav
' ing no immediate use for his prize,
turned it over to the igloo to be dis
j posed of as it saw fit.
In due course of time it was sent
to the Pioneers’ home at Sitka and
I became the property of Peter Hughes,
who has been at the institution for
i some time, stricken with paralysis.
During the fore part of April the lo
! cal igloo received a letter froih Su
perintendent Shop at Sitka, thanking
Van Sant for his donation and stat
ing that the present owner values his
quilt highly and refuses to go to
sleep at night unless the quilt is
thrown over him and insists that it be
put on his chair in the morning be
fore he is placed in it by the attend
ant.
G. P. Goodman, a prominent Yukon
j mining man, while on his way to the
Tenakee Hot Springs, was a Juneau
visitor. He stated that the strength
of the Yukon mining district would
I be measured by the output of the
Mayo region. Because of the high
price of labor and materials the out
put of the mines last season was ma
terially lessened but the future min
ing is assured and normal conditions
will bring a record in mining. Mavc
! is lbO m les from Dawson on the
Stewart river.
WHAT HAVE YOlT DONE?
What have you done for America.
Or what are you going' to do
To pay the debt you owe her
For what she has done for you ?
Are you going to stand by idly
And pay no heed to the call
That Uncle Sam is sending out
To his children one and all?
If too old to shoulder a musket,
Or dig in a trench, or fight,
At least you can show your loyalty
By giving the widow’s mite.
Freedom hangs in the balance
Now what will your answer be,
Government by free Americans,
Or vassals of Germany?
Don’t put it off till tomorrow;
Do what you cantoday,
And thank the great Jehovah,
You are living in the U. S. A.
—JOHN C. ANDERSON
NAMES IS NAMES.
A. Redhead is a contractor in Tor
onto, Ohio.
DOINGS OF IGLOO NO. 15
A joint meeting of Igloo No. It
and the Woman's Auxiliary, Igloc
No. 4, was held in Pioneer hall on
! Friday night, May 17.
The special business of the meet
ing was to devise ways and means
for raising a money contribution tc
the Red Cross, and to determine the
character of the work to be under
taken by the Pioneers, during the
drive.
As a preliminary to the real drive
j work, voluntary cash contributions
I were received from those in attend
I anee, to the amount of $60.
An entertainment and dance was
I scheduled, to take place on Thursday
the twenty-third. A unique feutim
of this entertainment will be the op
portunity afforded each one to stale*
a claim and extract therefrom a nug
get. This is not a “fake stampede.’
Reliable authority vouches for th«
fact that the gold is there. A bonus
in the form of a prize, will be giver
the one finding the largest nugget, al
so the one securing the larges
“poke.”
Resolutions bearing upon the em
ploymcnt of labor on governmen
work, which appear elsewhere on thi:
page, were passed at this meeting.
Richerd E. Shank!in was admittec
to membership by initiation.
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f THE PIONEERS j
| By a Member of Ketchikan Igloo.
The word Pioneer has its own defini
tion in connection with the peaceful
j conquest of an undeveloped and un
explored country. In its real mean
ing it was applicable to the great west
in the middle part of the last century.
At the time of exodus of the Mor
mons and the discovery of gold in
California, the latter infusing an ad
venturous spirit into many indolent
minds. The travel of the former was
an all overland route, while those to
California were partly by way of the
Isthmus and around Cape Horn. Then
the Oregon trail. These are events due
to certain causes which brought on
i this great western movement; relig
; ious persecution, the discovery of gold
in California and the fur, timber and
; fish of the Oregon country. Although
1 the Great West was known to early
I explorers, voyagiors of the Hudson's
1 Bay Co., frontier’s men, and mission
1 fathers, official and scientific expedi
tions, like the Lewis & Clark party,
Gen. Fremont and Alexander Hum
boldt, whose names are still identified
! with parts of that country they ex
t plored. Those are historical facts
with which most of us are familiar.
I will confess my revue to Alaska
and its Pioneers. The meaning of
Pioneers is the vanguard, those who
| prepare or pave the way, or make it
possible for others to follow.
There is one period in the history
of each country in which the Pioneer
lives. He cannot be perpetuated, only
in memory by his posterity and those
who follow the trails he blazed for
civilization. In the history of Alaska,
the Pioneer stands foremost as the life
of each was instrumental in making
Alaska what it is today, and in the fu
ture, for, since the advent of the
northern argonaut, this Gerat North
j land, the last frontier, has become the
! vast treasure vault, and store house
for our nation.
After the acquisition of Alaska by
the United States from Pussia, the
country lay practically dormant for a
number of years with the exception of
the sealing, fishing, and trading in
dustries along the coast and Bering
sea.
The first gold discovery that at
tracted the attention of the outside
; world to Alaska, was that of the Sti
1 kine by “Buck” Choquette in 1861, and
i the Gassier district which lay within
! the Canadian boundaries. The first
i Pioneers recognized no line of demar
! cation in his search for the hidden
! treasure. It may be said here, that
i when the “S. S. Pacific” foundered off
j Cape Flattery in 1873 and 500 Cassiar
| miners found their watery grave,
; many secrets of the north went with
j them in addition to their golden har
j vest. Many who went forth and brav
ed the fiery Stikine, with its lurking
dangers, did not stop at their first
goal, but went on, faced the hardships
and privations of the northern winters,
and finally, in the early eighties, es
tablished what is today one of the old
est mining camps in Alaska. Cicle
City on the Yukon.
The discovery of gold at Juneau
made that part of Alaska the rnecca
of the prospector, and was for many
years the distributing point for the in
terior by way of Chilicoot Pass, and
the Dalton trail. Jack Dalton, tha
outstanding figure of Alaska Pioneers
knew long before the great i*ush ii
’98, the possibilities of the interior.
The discovery of the Klondike in ’9<
set the world in excitement. Th<
Pioneers that were here, and thos<
who came after, took their differen
routes for the new Eldorado via Th<
Stikine, Chilcoot Pass, Dalton trail
and the all water route by way of St
Michael.
The Nome rush is familiar to al
Alaska Pioneers. Those few years
1897 to 1900, were the beginning o
cur modern Alaska. Years were ush
; ered in and out to test the fittest
| Many live today and talk of by gorr
! days, days of adventure, sunshine an<
j frost, each has his own story and eacl
! story is part of the history of Alaska
for it was the Pioneers who made tha
history. Today we find them in thei
Igloos, of which there are 16 in Alas
: ka taking an active part in present af
j fairs and future destinies of Alaska
And why not?
Men of all wolks of life, trades, an<
i professions, who had received trainin;
j at universities and other education!]
i institutions and who took a specie
| course in that great school, the Uni
I versity of Hard Knocks, which Alas
! ka so will afforded; men of all nation
| alities, but only one country, the lan
of the North Star have spent th
prime of their lives, energy an
, knowledge to conquer this boundles
unknown, that great block of ice se
adrift by the Muscovite and turne
| into a glod brick by the Pioneers fo
; Uncle Sam. As I said before, the Pic
I neers paid little attention to bundar
lines, their aim being that of the Pic
neer who loves the great outdoor c
i nature’s vast domain.
i
A few that have seen four score an
: more, and who camped on the scorche
banks of the Hassyampa, that dribble
through the sandy desert of Arizom
cared nor feared little for the frigi
| and long winters of the north. Thei
! heads are now crowned with the silve
white, their physique is not toda
j what it was 20 years ago, but that ir
domitable spirit of ’98 is still aliv<
and will be alive and active, till th
last echo of the irrequiem has re
sounded. Their memory will live i
the hearts of those who will be blesse
by the deeds and work of the Pioneer,
j to make this frozen waste a prospei
* ous common wealth, as long as th
; midnight sun casts her long shadow
over the endless stretches of Alaski
! reflected through the long winte
1 nights, by the Aurora Borealis.
I will define a few of the Pionee
classes that I met, and who have bee
contemporaneous, or preeeded my aei
vent.
Many of the Pioneers were not fa\
ored by Cornucopia, like some wh
■ left, who only remember Alaska wlie
j looking over a daily paper, that ma
make some comment on the land, tha
made it possible for them to be func
tionaries at social gatherings. Bu
the Pioneer would not exchange hi
mackinaw, or parka, for the full dres
or Prince Albert, nor his shake roc
cabin for a silver domed mansion o
Fifth avenue. No. He is watching
for Alaska is still in the making, he i
watching the children at play, fror
the school house comes the sound of
the bell and brings him back to his
school days, when he stared at the
map in a mystified mien to know what
that protruding neck of the North
American continent was. Little he
dreamed, that in two or three decades,
he would be one of the many to solve
that mystery of his school room geo
graphy—Alaska.
Alaska’s beauty and wonders were
described in poetry by Adelbert Cham
isso (Kotzebue Expedition) long be
fore R. W. Service crossed the Chil
coot pass. Prof. Meyer, and Lieuten
ant Schwatka gave the world the
first authentic description of the Yu
I koh, as also Whymper, Dali, Ogelvie,
and Dawson. Of the navigators who
piloted the ships through northern
) waters in the early days we recall Co
) gan, Moore, Healey, Jarvis, Connell
) Oliver, Lane, and many others.
) Our old-time fishermen must not
) be overlooked. The men who carried
the light of Christianity and Educa
tion to Alaska and its natives. The
’ names of Duncan, Kashevaroff, Ori
1 mont, Jaques, Jackson, Rowe anei
Lopp are identified with Alaska his
' torv.
; Also the men who went forth with
‘ out ceremony, only with determina
: tion and stick-to-it-ism, and put the
‘ rivers and towns on the map: Juneau.
> Dalton, Harper, Ladue, Henderson
■ Mayo, Linderberg, Pedro, and many
more. These were all Pioneers and
1 I are classed with thrit typical throng
, I known as the Alaska sourdough, and
f may sing the chorus of the song that
- j is his.
. | From the Arctic shores to Dixon’s lee
21 From Circle to Attu,
I The North Star flag our emblem be,
II Alaska, 1 love you.
CASSIAR.
JOHN A. WESTLAKE
OLD
PIONEER ON
LAST LONG TRAII
Dies in Council Bluffs, Iowa, at Hi<
Daughter's Home, While En
Route to Ketchikan.
(Ketchikan Miner)
Another of Ketchikan’s pioneei
sourdoughs has gone on the last trail
which ends in Eternity. This was the
news brought to Ketchikan on tin
Humboldt last week by Mr. H. E
Westlake, son of the late John A
Westlake, who died in Council Bluffs
Iowa, on March 22, at the home o
his daughter, Mrs. W. C. Moore.
Mr. Westlake, who made his honn
in Alaska for the past twenty years
was the owner of extensive mining
properties on the west coast of Prino
of Wales island. Last fall, he lef
Ketchikan accompanied by W. H. Gil
mour, who has since died, bound t'o
the home of his son at Aurora, Xe
braska. Early this spring he startei
for Ketchikan, accompanied by hi
son and daughter-in-law, Mr. an<
Mrs. H. E. Westlake, but on reaching
the home of his daughter at Counci
Bluffs, he became so ill that the jour
ney was delayed, and he died shortl;
after his arrival. Mr. and Mrs. West
lake continued their trip north, arriv
ing here last week.
Mr. Westlake leaves two sons an<
one daughter, Mrs. W. C. Moore, o
Council Bluffs, Iowa, Frank Westlaki
of St. Edwards, Nebraska, and H. E
Westlake, of Aurora, Nebraska, nov
of Ketchikan.
Mr. Westlake came north twent;
years ago, traveling north via the oh
Ashcroft, B. C. trail, coming dowi
the Skeena river on a raft. His ad
ventures, hardships and voyagings ii
the early days were those of the ear
ly pioneers of the north and have in
terested his friends here many ;
time.
0 $5,000 PRIZE OFFERED.
a LONDON, May 13.—A prize o
y J $5,000 has been offeerd by the Britisi
t Automobile Association for the bes
- invention enabling coal-gas to be use(
t as a propellant for motor-cars an<
s motor-cycles. The cost of the installa
s tion must not be over $100 and it;
f weight may not exceed 140 pounds.
nj -
Learn One New Thing Each Day.
s You can soften pure gold by boil
n ing it constantly for four days.
The freighters to Dime creek seem
j to be about the only persons in Alas
! ka who are making big money. It is
in fact stated that a man carrying
his pack on his back can make almost
as much per day at Dime creek as he
could packing over the Chilkoot pass
in the early flays. In the short dis
tance of six and one-half miles the
(freighters are clearing $80 per ton
i because the trails are practically im
passable on account of the lack of
' snow.
Roy Lund recently broke the over
land record between Fairbanks and
Nenana by covering* the distance in
j one day—actual running time 11
i hours.
—
! John Kehoe, who has been in Alas
ka for twenty-three years, and is con
ducting a ranch on the Lower Yukon
river, is on his way to the states to
j purchase goats with which to stock
! his farm.
The first white child to make the
trip over Broad Pass recently arrived
at Anchorage, making the trip from
j Nenana with her mother and other
; passengers of a freighting outfit, in
eight days’ traveling time. She was
: little Ethel Morrison, daughter of
I Mrs. L. M. Morrison.
j The trustees of the Alaska Pioneer
home at Sitka recently held a meet
: ing at the governor’s office and pas
j sed pensions in favor of the follow
, i ing applicants: F. W. Ritter, of An
chorage; J. D. Vickory, of Seward; J.
;! Feb rant, of Kasaan; Wm. Shergen,
of Sitka; David Englund, of Anchor
age; Abbie H. Williams, of Nome;
and Matt Kauppiva, of Fairbanks.
Sam Kohn, pioneer and resident of
Alaska since ’84 passed away at the
hospital at Juneau recently. He is
! survived by a sister, Mrs. Foster, of
i Cody, Wyoming.
Jack Bishop and wife, former resi
dents of the Ruby district, are now
> conducting a grocery store in Seattle.
.; -
r The salmon cannery located at
; Goose Bay on the west shore of Knik
t arm will be torn down and the ma
- ■ chinery transferred to the company’s
• canneries on Icy Straits. Geo. Forrest
- i of Juneau recently said that according
1 to his and other’s beliefs the fishing
;! business this year will receive the
1 greatest wave of prosperity in its
' existance. Three salteries and one
1 j cannery will be built during the early
-1 spring at Sawmill bay opposite
■ Latouche.
—
- | Word has been received in Cordova
that William O’Connor, U. S. Commis
1 sioner, has resigned, and that M. J.
f j Conroy has been appointed to fill his
J i place bv Judge Fred M. Brown.
!
j OUR JOE MILLER CONTEST.
"Solo King” Burns, of Juneau, Alas
': ka, claims that the oldest joke is the
i one about the traveling man who was
i about ten miles per hour and stopped
■; at every crossing. The traveling man
I bawled the conductor out about the
■ | slowness of the train and the rotten
■ [ ness of the service in general.
II “Look here, sir” said the conduc
| tor, with dignity, “I’ve been on this
j train for 20 years, and I-.” “Well,
| well,” interrupted the traveling man.
t j “You must have got on a few miles
i j further down the line than I did.”
i I NINE STARS IN FLAG.
l| HONOLULU, T. H„ May 11.—
- In honor of nine relatives now in the
; service of the United States army or
navy, Governor Pinkham of Hawaii
has had framed a neat service flag.
| Seven of the governor’s relatives are
- in France and two are training for
overseas service.