Cordova, January 6
The steamer Santa Anna is being
overhauled at Seattle at an expense
of $25,000 and she Ms to be put on;
the run to the westward, taking the j
place of the Dora. As the Santa j
Anna is an oil burner, she will prob- ^
ably make Cordova her home port.
This will mean a considejable in
crease in the business of this port,
as the crew will be paid off here and
passenger and freight transfers will
be made here
A party of Standard Oil people :
came up on the Alameda and w<ve!
landed at Grindell bay, on Prince i
of Wales Island, about 40 miles!
from Ketchikan, and not far from :
the fishing station at Shakan. The
party consisted of A. E. Hammond,
A. G. Orr, B. H. Hodge, Marcus Ken
dall, J. H. Crammond, G. V. Bigelow
and J. J. Tomlinson. The last |
named ge.ntleman was the original j
locator of a townsite at that point
and it is the intention of the Stand
ard Oil Company, it is said, to take
over the townsite and to establish a
large oil station there.
George Woodman, a mine operator
from Shushanna, will be a passenger
for Seattle on the return trip of the.
steamer Alameda. He is going out
to purchase a Keystone drill for
prospecting his property, No. 2 above
on Skookum gulch, and hopes to re
turn on the next trip of that vessel.
Mr. Woodman has good reason to
believe his ground is rich as Charles
Range took out $30,000 from one of
the adjoining claims last summer.
While coming out ove.r Skolai
Pass last week, Mr. Woodman saw
large numbers of mountain sheep.
He said that game in the, Shushanna
country is far more plentful than
last year.
The first private wireless system
established by the Alaska Steamship
Company on the Alameda proved a
success on the trip up the coast. One
advantage over the old system is
that it is practically noiseless. The
system is to be installed on all of
the company’s vesesls.
Cards have been received here
announcing the marriage of Miss
Florence Hull and Mr. Wesley Earl
Dunkle on Tuesday, December -22,
at the home of Miss Hull’s sister,
Mrs. Margaret Hull Badger, in Ober
lin, Ohio. Miss Hull was formerly
employed as stenographer at the
Kennecott mines. Mr. Dunkle is a |
mining engineer in the employ of i
the Alaska Syndicate and is well
known in Cordova. Mr. and Mrs.
Dunkle will be at home in Cordova
after January 15.
The latest report-from the Tolo
vana district is that two holes sunk
on Amy and Myrtle creeks failed to
show pay. R. A. Jacobson, a civil
engineer who had just returned to
Fairbanks declared that no pay had
been struck in the district up to
December 20. ,
“Some good prospects have been
found and I think that the prospect
ors of the Tolovana have better thah
an even chance of developing a pay
streak,” he said.
“Of my own knowledge, I know of
i but one outfit that reached bedrock.
That was on Olive creek, within a
few hundred fee.t of the Tolovana
river, in the flats, and nothing was
found. The hole was sunk by Don j
Doggett and was but 22 feet deep.” |
Cordova, January 7 |
William Stewart, one of the oldest
pioneers of Alaska and the, Yukon,
died at the Pioneers’ home in Sitka
last Sunday night. The immediate
cause of death was ulcer of the
stomach. He was about 68 years
of age, a native, of Scotland and un
married. He had no relatives in ;
1 this country so far as is known.
William Stewart was one of the
real trail-blazers of the country, a
prospector and miner of the old
type. In the early ’80s he. went to
I Juneau in the company of Dick
Harris and Joe Juneau. In 1885
he was rocking the bars of Stewart
river, which stream w'as named in |
his honor. In 1886 he was at Forty
Mile and was one of the discoverers
on Franklin Gulch of that stream.
He came out as far as Juneau
after several years in the interior,
but was again caught in the Klon
dike excitement and went to Daw
son in 1897. Two years later he
was again following the stampede
to Nome, arriving there in the fall
V>f ’99- In 1912, by invitation of 1
his old partner, How'ard Hamilton,
he went outside to make, his home,
but the irresistible call of the north
caught him at Seattle and he again
came to Juneau.
%.\11 of the oldtimers in the north
speak in the highest praise of the
deceased. The little cabin which he
built for his Juneau home in the
early days is still standing and is
located back of the Koski boarding
house, at Fourth and Franklin
streets. It was built in the, early
eighties.
The dead man entered the Sitka
Pioneers’ home less than a year
ago.—Skagway Alaskan.
Thos. Knight, F. W. Guest ana
George Redmond, who boarded the
steamer Alameda at Juneau and
came to Cordova as stowaways, have
had an experience that is not in
tended to encourage emigration of
“broke” men to Alaska. When
their presence on board the steamer
without money to pay fares, was
discovered Captain Warner ordered
them fastened to stanchions on the i
upper hurricane deck, where they;
were kept for several hours exposed
to wind and rain.
Upon arrival of the steamer here;
they were turned over to the mar-1
shal and afterwards arraigned be.- j
fore Commissioner A. J. Adams on j
the charge of vagrancy. Guest and
Redmond, who did not have any j
money, entered pleas of guilty and)
were fined $50 e.ach; Knight, pos- j
sessor of $1.30 in real money.,
entered a plea of not guilty and
was assessed $75. The men were
remanded to jail to serve out the
amounts.
A Seattle paper states that the j
United States assay office received
for the past year the value of $8,
700,700 in gold bullion. From
Alaska the amount of $6,271,000
was received.
Nome produced $2,712,000; the
Iditarod $1,361,000, and the Tanana
$919,000, according to the figures
for the amount of bullion received
at the assay office. •
Hughey Day, who is known all
over Alaska as one of the first mail
carriers in this district and one ot
the founders of Douglas, died at a
hospital in Douglas on December 31,
of convulsions.
Mr. Day was the first mailcarrier
in Alaska, and for years carried
mail from Juneau up the Taku and
over to Forty Mile. He was an ex
tensive property owner in Douglas,
and had been sojourning at Tenakee
Hot Springs for some time, endeav
oring to rid himself of chronic
rheumatism. He was seized with j
convulsions at Tenakee and was
rushed to the hospital. He had been
a resident .of Juneau and Douglas
for thirty years and had traveled
nearly all over Alaska. He was a
member of the orde.r of Pioneers.—
Juneau Dispatch.
Letters from Wiseman bring the
information that the old creeks in
the. Koyukuk district and several
new ones are showing up good this
winter.
Postponement of the annual auc
tion in London of sealskins from the
Pribilof Islands has been authorized
by the Senate.. Secretary Redfield
reported that no foreign buyers
would compete this year. Sales of
about 4,000 skins will be deferred
until the situation caused by the war
has passed.
Some of the miners who have
their coal supply near the edge of
town on many occasions have, lost
coal from their coal pile and it is
stated that to check this constant
filching they have charged some of
their coal with nitroglycerine. An
explosion can be expected in the near I
future.—Nome Nugget.
The new silver discovery in the
upper Stewart river basin, known as
the Mayo district, may prove another
Cobalt. Mushers who recently ar
rived a^ Dawson -tyv^r the winter
trail from Mayo and who have been
on the properties of late say that a
rich ledge five feet thick is located
on the discovery claim, and much
other rich loose material is found on
the same claims. They also report
the silver found in shafts several
miles in either direction from the
discovery claim. One thousand
tons of the silver ore are being
hauled to Mayo Landing this winter
for shipment to the smelter by
steamer as soon a& the river opens.
Cordova, January 8
The cable repair ship Burnside
arrived this afternoon from Seattle
and immediatel ycommenced testing
the cable to locate the break between
Cordova and Valdez that has existed
since December 18th. The tests
showed that the break is about 17
knots out from Cordova. The ves
sel will leave early in the. morning
and it is expected the cable will he
in commission before night.
The Burnside is now in commanl
of Lieut. H. W. Gregg, who succeeds
Lieut. Clark Lynn, the former com
mander, and departed from Seattle!
at 2 p. m. last Saturday. Only one
stop was made, and that was at
Ketchikan to take on fuel oil.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 8.—When !
the members of the Alaska Engi
neering Commission were in Alaska
during the past summer they made,
requests from the various commer
cial bodies interested that certain
statistics be furnished them. They
were, to be in the nature of possible
tonnage and development in connec
tion with the various proposed
routes. Much data was gathered
and presented by Valdez, Seward,
Knik, Fairbanks, Cordova and other
sections.
From blanks sent out to miners j
and operators in the Copper River
country the Cordova Chamber of
Commerce reports that work has.
been done on 581 copper claims, 1S*8 j
placer gold claims, and 78 gold
quartz claims, while there are 350,
000 acres available of agricultural
and grazing lands. In development
and assessment work on the mining
properties over three and a half mil
lion dollars have been expended.
The report shows further an ap-1
proximate southbound tonnage per j
month of 115,000 tons, provided the;
ore was all brought to the coast for |
reduction, in conjunction with the,
coal of the Bering River tiled® and |
the lower grade ores of Prince Wil- ;
liam Sound. The report of the Cor- '
dova Chamber to the commission
also contains the following informa
tion and claims:
“This showing makes no estimate
of coal tonnage from the Bering
River fields, because the commission
is in a better position to do this than
the chamber, and we have given no
estimate of oil from the Katalla
fields, notwithstanding those fields
are producing the coal oil, gasoline
and distillate that practically sup
plies Prince William Sound.
“The report makes no estimate of
northbound tonnage, which must of j
necessity be great in the develop- j
ment of properties and their opera
tion, because the chamber had no!
way of arriving at same: neither]
does it include any tonnage from thei
Alaska Syndicate properties, for the;
reason that no report was made by
them. It is, therefore, simply an ap
proximate estimate of ore tonnage
along this route from properties
that have been held and money ex- j
pended thereon for a period ranging
from 5 to 15 years.
"In all American territory there!
are but three natural railway out-:
lets from interior Alaska to the ]
southern coast. The first, from the.!
east and embracing more than one-1
third of the territory, is through the ;
Copper River valley, reaching the'
Tanana rivar well up, and serving!
that entire valley, as well as the
Forty-Mile district and the upper j
Yukon, in American territory. The j
second is through the Susitna val-!
ley. over Broad Pass, reaching the
Tanana river well down toward its j
mouth. The third is through the
Kuskokwim valle.v, striking the.
Yukon 500 or 600 miles above its
mouth and not touching the Tanana
district. The last route is elimi- j
nated, so far as this discussion is (
concerned, because of ice conditions
in Bering Sea.
“The proposition, therefore, re-1
solves itself into this, that there are i
but two practical routes from all in- |
terior Alaska to the southern coast
for railways, namely, one through
the Copper River valle.v and the ■
other through the Susitna valley. ;
“These two sections are separated ,
from each other topographically by j
high ranges of mountains and j
divides commercial possibilitie.s. The
Copper River •mute has been proved j
to be Msrhlv mineralized, as appears!
from the attached reports, in copper |
gold, silver and le,ad, while that o' !
the Susitna is principally adapted to j
agriculture and grazing.
“Tonnage is the one essential of j
every railway enterprise. Without,
tcnnage it must prove a failure.
"We. assert, without fear of con- j
tradiction that the Copper River
route is the only route which prom
ises any return upon the investment,
or even operating expenses, for
ye,ars to come, because it is the on'y
route that possesses tonnage. In
making this assertion, we do not
wish to discredit or disparage the
agricultural resources of any section
of the territory, but we do maintain
that agriculture in Alaska must Pe
de.veloped in connection with the
mineral industry, and its succe s
must depend upon that industry.
Tills has been the experience or the
entire Pacific coast.
“It therefore follows that the
practical way to open up this coun
.
try for permanent settlement iB
through the development of the
mines and fisheries, following up
with agriculture, as fast as eondi- ,
tions require. If this method is
adopted, Alaska will have a popula
tion equal to that of Norway or
Sweden wihtin the next 25 years.
“This chamber asserts that this
can only Ije done by exi ending the.'
line lrom Cbitina to tie interior,
with the necessary feeders to the
ore showings hereto attached, and
with a branch line tapping the Ber- i
ing River coal fields, thus bringing'
together at a common point on the
coast the vast bodies of coppe.r and
goid ore of tnc interior and the coal
that is necessary for the.ir reduction, i
If this plan is adopted it will place
a permanent population in the only
district that has sufficient tonnage j
to justify the construction of a rail- 1
way, and this population would con
sume the agricultural prodcts tha‘ ;
might be raised in other sections and .
the whole of the territory would
thus he. developed.
“This construction of a line from
Chitina with its necessary feeders,
together with a line opening up the
Bering River coal, will cost not toj
exceed $15,000,000 leaving $20.-1
000.000 to he. expended in other sec
tions of the territory. The work can |
be accomplished in two seasons,
whereas any other route will require
at least double that time.
“If it is urged that this section is
■already supplied with transportation
wrG answer this is but partially true
A railroad passes through the ex
treme southern portion of this vast
tonnage-producing section to a mine
owned by the same corporation that
controls the railway. No branches
or feeders have been built to other
properties, nor are they likely to be
built, now that the government has
entered the railroad field. Even
though this corporation should de
cide to extend the road to other
properties in order to increase its
tonnage, the freight rates must of
necessity be too high to permit of
the development of many properties
because of interest charges. No
corporation expects to earn less than
6 por cent on its investment, where
as the government can well afford to I
take 3 per cent or even operate a i
few’ years at a loss in order to de
velop its territory.
“A low freight rate Is the key to
the development of Alaska, and the
government is the only institution
that can give that rate.’’
-o—o— o
LOCAL AND SOCIAL i
MC CARTHY NEWS
The body of Louie SchonDerg, the
Shushanna trader, murdered a few
days ago, was found in a deserted
cabin near the beach, where he haa
evidently been dragged after being
shot. Keys were missing from his j
person and it is supposed the slayer ;
believed that Schonberg had a cache j
of gold around his store. The slayer !
had not been found at last reports.
Mr. Schonberg was a man about 5‘i
years old, an old “sourdough” and
came here from Oawson Et the time
of the rush into Shushanna.
A dance was enjoyed New Year's
eve? in Mr. Peter Johnston’s Hall, a
number of Kennecott people com ng
down for the occasion. The pro
ceeds of the dance were used for
relief purposes and two relief tents
with stores to he erected near the
summit of Rohn glacier, there being
quote a long stretch without any
places of shelter. The first tent is
to be erected 10 miles beyond the
McCloud roadhouse: the other, 10
miles further on, leaving about an- j
other 10 miles until the relief tent;
(now up) the other side of the sum- |
mit is reached. |
I Overland hotel j
X t
X Dining Room X
J and Restaurant X
X X
X CHITINA, - ALASKA ;
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X of Everything in the Market X
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l Commercial Hotel %
^ John Palmer, Projir. J
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t> FIRST CLASS BAR AND DINING ROOM
0 O
>> CIIITIiSrA. ALASKA <»
t> O
\ STEAMSHIP COMPANY
Ta»t and commodious steamers sailing between Seattle, Ketchikan,
Wrangell. Juneau, Skagway, Cordova, Valdes, and Seward, via
INSIDE PASSAGE.
Sails from Senttle— Sails from Cordova
January 8!.MARIPOSA.January 16
January 16.ALAMEDA.January 24
Eegnlar freight service for Ketchikan. Juneau, Sheep creek,
Treadwell, Douglas. Cordova, Ellaraar, Valdez and Eatouclio. Explosives,
S. ;S. Seward. S. 3. Seward, Oth; S. S. Eatouohe, loth; S. S. Cordova.
KOth of each mouth.
This company reserves the right to change schedule of steamers
with cut notice.
Tickets ou sale at up-town office Alaska Steamship Bldg. Baggage
or freight will not ho leceivad at dock later than one honi before
sailing time. .
F. B. TRACY, T. J. TALLENT,
General Agent. Ticket Agent.
► ** * *** ♦♦*♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦••£
£ THE LEADING AND FIRST CLASS HOTEL X
f THE PLACE TO STOP IN CHITIXA
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Travel East I
OVER THE ||
“MILWAUKEE”
The Newest and Shortest Line to the East
Crossing the Cascade Mountains, the Kittitas Valley, the Colum- II
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and wonderful development.
TWO FAST THROUGH TRAINS DAILY
“The Olympian” and “The Columbian”
The NEW ALL-STEEL TRAINS to
BUTTE, MILES CITY, SIOUX CITY, *
MINNEAPOLIS, ST. PAUL, MILWAUKEE and CHICAGO
' For further information regarding fares, train service, reservations, etc.,
call on or address
City Ticket Offices, Alaska Steamship Co. or Alaska Coast S. S. Co.
Cordova, Alaska,
| City Ticket Offices, Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway
443 Hastings St. West, Vancouver, K. C.
OK Ji
Second Ave. and Cherry St., Seattle !j
* THE COMFORT HOTEL OF CORDOVA *
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