VOLUME 2.
CHITIXA. ALASKA, SATURDAY. SEPT. 30, 1011.
NO. 2
Local News
Perry McCarthy and Billy Lynch,
old timers in the Kennicott paseed
through Chitina for Cordova Satur
day
Gifford Pinchot arrived from Cor
dova on Friday’s train and is regis
tered at the Hotel Chitina.
U. S. Marshal H. P. Sullivan was
in town from Valdez last Wednesday,
and took Opal Hopkins to Valdez for
trial. Mrs. Ora Burrows accompan
ied them as matron.
An engine broke through the sluice
box near the roundhouse Wednesday
morning and delayed trains both
ways for half a day. Senator Poin
dexter was thus delayed and 6pent
the time seeing the sights in and
around Chitina and meeting people
generally. The senator is a jolly good
fellow and we are wondering when
to expect him as a permanent resi
dent.
Mrs. Geo. Love, of Valdez, accom
panied by W. J. Holden, a capitalist
of Boston passed through Chitina
this week enroute to McCarthy’s min
es in which property they are interes
ted.
F. Hodges and Louis Farrier of
Cordova, are Chitina visitors this
week.
J. Roy Ames, of Denver, was in
town Monday. He is figuring on the
Peter Mehan property.
Oscar Hogland. of Boston, is reg
istered at the Hotel Chitina.
Forbes Rickard, who a few weeks
ago went to Valdez creek to inspect
•some property came through town
this week and reports that he found
some very promising ore and says
that preparations for working it will
be pushed this winter. The machin
ery will be taken in over the trail
from this point.
The force of men now at work on
the surfacing and repair work in the
railroad is 570 and this will have to
be increased after snow falls to any
great ^epth in order to keep the track
open.
The local editor of the Leader ac
companied the Poindexter party on
the special train to Kennicott, re
turning Friday morning.
Work on the warehouse of S.
Blum & Co. was begun this week and
will be completed before cold weath
er. This will give us a good stock
of feed to draw on in case of short
age this winter.
Friday morning the newly elected
school board secured from General
Manager E. C. Hawkins the donation
of Lot 20, Block 17 for school pur
poses and Senator Poindexter broke
the ground for the new building af
ter short speeches by Mr. Hawkins
and the Senator. Mr. Poindexter
said that he considered it the greatest
honor that could be conferred upon
him by any community, and wielded
the shovel until he reached frozen
ground. The school, house will be
erected with as little delay as pos
sible.
Mr. E. F. Gray, accompanied by
his foreman. J. W. Arnold left for
a few' week’s visit to the states on
Saturday. Mr. Arnold has not been
outside for fourteen years.
When in need of Job printing of
any kind give us a call.
SENATOR POWER MAKES
ABIE AND ELOQUENT TALK
United States Senator Poindex
ter, accompanied by his son Gail,
came in on the Tuesday evening
train and was the guest of the Chit
ina over night. After he arrived a
meeting was quickly arranged and
the proprietors of the Hotel Chitina
very kindly converted the hotel lob
by into a brilliantly lighted hall with
seats arranged for more than were
expected to attend but the chairs
were soon filled and many were for
ced to stand throughout the speaking
which lasted for an hour. Taking a
\ position besides the clerks desk, Sen
ator Poindexter, after a few intro
ductory remarks by Judge Healy.
spoke of his mission to Alaska and
his interest in the welfare of the in- j
j habitants. He made a most favor- j
' able impression upon his hearers
with his first sentences and as the
informal talk proceeded every one
was convinced that the Senator was
here for no other purpose than to
gain information at first hands and
as he said, to learn of the needs and
resources and to study the actual con
1 ditions upon the ground. He con
trasted the reception he had received
at Cordova with the one given him at
! Chitina and complimented us upon
the wide-awake hustle of the town.
■ He discussed the question of trans
. portation in a fair and businesslike
: manner and closed by a carefully
guarded argument on the coal ques
tion, promising to support with ev
ery means within his power, what
ever measures seemed to him most
likely to bring the best results to the
people of Alaska and at the same
time be equitable to large blocks of
capital invested within the territory.
His remarks on self government for
the people brought out hearty ap
plause and the encouragement thus
given caused the Senator to show his
appreciation by warming into elo
quence. The speechf while extempor
aneous, was replete with many epi
grams and showed a wonderful
knowledge of everything pertaining
to Alaska.
COPPER MINES
l I
|
■H - BB
—
i Perhaps the largest deal in cop
: per property that h=i. jeen made in :
I this section was consummated this
i week when the Pete Erichsen mine
1 on Glacier creek twelve miles east of
I the Bonanza mines passed into the
hands of Cappel, Radclvffe & Co.,
who propose to begin active opera
tions at once upon this famous prop
erty. The mine is said to be one of
! the richest in copper in Alaska and
unless every one familiar with the
situation has been entitrely mistaken
it will outstrip the Bonanza mine it
self. The wealth of this mine lies in
a true fissure vein of native copper:
lying in altered greenstone and is
; from six to twenty feet wide and has
been .follewed for over half a mile.
The preliminary work will include
a 150-foot tunnel in onto the vein,
and until such time as the spur of.
the railroad from mile 102 is put into
that locality it is proposed to haul the
ore out on the ice in the winter.
The samples of ore which have
been coming from this mine from
time to time frequently shows great
nuggets of pure copper while the
surrounding body runs from twenty
to ninety per cent copper.
S. B. Combast, Chief Engineer for
I Cappell, Radclyffe & to., with his
two assistants, Dave McCurdy and
P. B. Dunkle passed through Chitina
Friday after having passed on the
value of the property and while rath
i er reticent finally admitted that
: this was the best prospect in this
section of Alaska, and that the com
pany was prepared to push active
operations at once.
Thus aontner valuable property
passes from the discoverers and or
iginal owners to a stronger corpora
tion that is financially able to oper
I ate on a large scale.
nil KEUT IKK
>■' The work of repairing the railroad bridge at Kennicott,
which wa^ washed out by one of the peculiar freaks of nature,
has been completed and traffic is again resumed to the
Bonanza mine.
Icy lake in the Kennicott glacier has an underground outlet
running twelve miles under the glacier, shooting up through an
aperature in the ground known as a pot hole. The lake is two
miles long, three quarters of a mile wide, and over 700 feet
deep. Through an enlargement of this outlet the lake was
suddenly drained.
A prospector named Truesgate, who lives in a cabin nearby
witnessed the breaking of the lake and seeing the white walls
where the lake had been feared that the entire Copper River
country would be inundated and the railroad carried away. He
immediately started out to give warning and was surprised to
learn upon his arrival at McCarthy’s, or mile 191, where the
Copper river runs under the bridge to learn that only fourteen
bents and 400 feet of the embankment had been carried away.
The immense pressure of the water forced through the
pot hole with a tremendous roar, caused a fountain that shot
high in the air. It is expected that the lake will again grad
ually fill up. , .
POTATO RAISING AT STRELNA
The agricultural possibilities in the interior are looming
up and from present indications it is quite probable that Cor
dova will be largely supplied with fresh vegetables by Alaska
farms next summer.
There are at present four different ranches under cultiva
tion at Strelna. all of which are dose to the railroad. Over
seventy acres of land have been cleared, nearly all of which
will be plowed before the end of the season.
Jack Howard has ten acres upon which he will raise a ci’op
of potatoes. A". J. Dwyer also inteuds to engage in the spud
business. He has had men and horses employed in plowing his
ranch, on five acres of which potatoes will be planted. This is
on the silt alongside of Strelna creek. If he is successful in
growing vegetables on this soil it will mean a great deal for
the agricultural possibilities of the Copper River valley.
The railroad company has already promised the ranchers
a low rate on their farm produce to Cordova in order to allow
them a good margin of profit in competition with the green
truck shipped north from Seattle. In order to encourage the
tilling of the soil all those engaged in this work will be given
employment during the winter months, when the weather will
not permit them to work on their properties- Those who owe
horses are also assured by the company of their assistance in
obtaining freight to haul from the railroad to mining proper
ties.
This is the proper spirit and is in keeping with the policy
of the Alaska Syndicate to lend every aid to the prospectors
and ranchers in their efforts to develop the resources of the
country.__
THE SIGH OF THE FIXES
I am dreaming tonight of the breath
of the pines.
And the song of the murmuring
brook
Of the ocol mossy slopes on the old
mountain side,
And the lilie3 that grow in the
nook.
For an exile I roam where the wild
poppy blooms,
In golden and scarlet array.
But Oh, how I long for the sigh of
the pines.
In my dear mountain home far
away,
I cannot-forget where our own water
fall
Fell o'er the rocks singing in glee;
Xor the sweet quiet pool where the
mockingbirds swing,
Singing sweetly to just you and
me.
And the green mossy banks where
the violets bloom,
In yellow and purple coats gay
; But oh, how I long for the sigh of
the pines,
j In my dear mountain home far
away.
Close by the rocks the ferns wave
their hands.
To the sky where the summer wind
blows,
And the great golden butterfly steals
to> its home.
In the heart of the wild summer
rose.
Where the blackberry climbs in a
tangle of vines,
With a wealth of white blossoms
today^
But, Oh, to be there 'neath the soft
sighing pines.
In my dear mountain home far
away.
ORA BURROW*.
NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION’ OF
PARTNERSHIP.
This agreement made and entered
into this twelfth day of August, 1911,
by T. W. Cloninger and I. J. St.
Clair.
Witnesseth, That it is mutually
agreed that the partnership hereto
fore existing under the firm name of
St. Clair & Cloninger be and here
by is dissolved and that all accounts
for and against the said firm shall
bee paid and collected by T. W.
Cloninger.
I. J. ST. CLAIR.
T. W. CLONINGER.
GOLD QUARTZ STRIKE
AT MT. M’KINLEY’S BASE
William Johnson reached Seward,
several days ago and reports the dis
covery of gold diggings at the head
if the Kahiltna river, near the base!
of Mt. McKinley. It is said that he
took out ?300 in coarse gold in one
week’s time. Johnson hails from the
Iditarod country having been grub
staked in that region. He expects to
return to his discovery within a
couple of weeks. A shortage of grub
forced him to come out.—Seward
Gateway.
Everyone in Chitina will regard
Senator Poindexter as the friend of
Alaska no matter what others may
think. ,
At the close of his remarks Judge
Healy spoke briefly as to what would
interest the visitor in the way of
sight-seeing in the section.
The success of the meeting was
largely due to Messrs Palmer &
Cloninger of the Hotel Chitina who
made the meeting possible by fur
nishing a suitable room.
If Senator Poindexter should run
for office in Chitina today he would
poll every vote.
Job work at the Leader office.
SUFFICIENT ORE
•
J. M. Garrison, who located the
Garrison claims about five years ago
on the Kuskulana is in town trading
with our merchants. Mr. Garrison
has been a miner nearly all his life
and his opinions are considered val
uable owing to his extreme conserva
tiveness. He has been in Mexoco for
some years since he located here but
returned last spring and will remain
for several weeks yet. He says he
has fair prospects but further than
that he wilt promise no more. In
his opinion the Kuskulana locators
have good prospects but the depth
and quantity of ore is only problem
atical. He thinks that if any prop
erty in that locality will warrant a
spur of the road it is those of the
Gray group which has been more
worked than any of the others. The
Kuskulana has been pretty thorough
ly gone over anu the McCarthy lying
closest to the glacier was the first
to be located.
He is not over enthusiastic over
cither his own or other mines in
this locality, but it will be remem
bered that the Gray mines lay some
four miles back from the river and
the prospects here have passed be
yond the experimental stage and ac
cording to Mr. Gray himself, enough
ore is in sight to insure the build
ing of the spur road.
NOTICE.
All persons indebted to the Chit
ina Grill prior to this date are here
by notified that said bills are due
me personally.
JOE JANEY,
Chitina, Sept. 25, 1911.
' Local News
A. V. Dose, president of the Gol
! eonda Hydraulic Mining company,
passed through Chitina last week en
i route to Valdez and Cordova, He
carried with him numerous samples
of ores from the company's property
o nthe Golconda. the ore in generate
appearance resembles that taken
from the Ole Berg mines at Spirit
Mountain and is said to contain
in gold in addition to the nickel anil
copper. Preparations for mining on
an extensive scale were completed
j this season. They have supplies on
; the ground for another year.
Ebe Sorenson and Ed Murphy are
in town from their property on Dewr
! ey creek, having finished their work
j for this year.
The Sunday school under the sup
ervision of Mrs. Forrester should
have a larger attendance. Every
child in town would be benefitted
by an hour spent at the Red Dragon
each Sunday.
Cordes & Simons are erecting a
building which they say will be used
as a road house this winter in con
nection with their other business.
Several cars of ore from the Ken
nicott mines came flown the line
last week. There was considerable
i of a congestion of business at the
j mines owing to tne washout of the
pile bridge across the river at that
point. The biidge has been repaired
and r.o more delays are anticipated
from that source this year.
The Chitina Grill, formerly owned
by Joe Janey, has been purchased
by Palmer & Cloninger and will be
operated in connection with the Chit
ina Hotel and Bar.
Janies McConnell of the Kusku
lana was in town last week purchas
ing supplies for the winter and is
Mrs. Ora Burrows is acting as
matron at the federal jail at pres
ent.
1 George Shade has resigned as
guard at the jail and it is understood
that a man from the states will take
j his place.
Mr. and Mrs. Jesse Forrester are
moving into a more commodious res
idence on the Heights.
WORLD WIRELESS
CHAIN COMPLETE
With the completion of the wire
less telegraph station on Anadir bay,
in Siberia, across Bering Strait from
Nome, and the establishment of com
munication between the Nome station
and the Anadir station, the world
chain has become linked up, and
Nome and Alaska are on the world
circuit.
The new station was erected by
the Russian government. It con
nects by wireless with Vladivostok
and thence by regular land wire»
through Siberia to Europe.
Marshal Joe Brown was a visitor
to Cordova the first of the week.
Job Work at the leader office.
---- - 1 1 -- -
-.
R. J. Barry, general agent for the
Copper River & Northwestern rail
way and the Alaska Steamship com
pany, will go to Fairbanks on the
first stage, whi<;h leaves Chitina next
Tuesday. He is making the trip to
the interior for the purpose of con
sulting with the people there as to
the best methods of conducting a
campaign to have the summer mail
routed via Chitina.
In order to accomplish this end it
will be necessary to impress upon
the Alaska Road Commission the
necessity of putting the trail in shape j
for vehicles of all kinds, including
automibiles.
At the present time Fairbanks is
convinced that a shorter route to the
outside, during the summer months,
is the crying need of the Tanana val
ley and newspapers are devoting
their best efforts to bring about the
fulfillment.of that need. A fight is
also to be made for the necessary ap
propriation from Congress to car
ry on th^s work. In the event that
the trail is put in good shape for
automobiles the Orr Stage company
has guaranteed to put new machines
on this run and give a service that
means eight days for the trip from
Fairbanks to Seattle.
Mr. Barry will also interview the
road house keepers along the trail
and point out to them the benefits to
be derived from shipping their sup
plies over the railroad, as against
the excessive cost of freighting them
in over the old trail, via Thompson’s
Pass.
FOUND—A ladies gold ring. AppI#
at the Leader office.