1902.] on Gold Mining in Klondike. 61 



It only remains to be seen whether the cost of production can be 

 so far diminished that this far North- Western Territory will be able to 

 compete with other regions which are more favourably situated. 



That the inhabitants have the necessary enterprise and energy I 

 know from what I have seen of them. It is, in fact, most interesting 

 to note how in this isolated country native grit and intelligence have 

 brought the best men to the front. One naturally associates the 

 element of luck with placer mining, and no doubt many fortunes were 

 made and lost by sudden strokes of chance. But in no mining 

 district have previous experience and knowledge been of less avail. 

 The conditions were so strange, that the old and experienced miners 

 sometimes made the worst mistakes, and the men who succeeded were 

 those who were sufficiently alert and intelligent to adapt themselves 

 to the new conditions. One finds among the leading miners — men 

 who have come from all places and from all classes of society — 

 men who two or three years ago were workmen, hotel clerks, store 

 assistants, or farmers. 



I cannot conclude without a word of tribute to the magnificent 

 work which has been done by the Canadian North-West Mounted 

 Police, and the excellent way in which the inhabitants have settled 

 down under their rule. A mere handful of this fine military force 

 have sufficed to introduce law and order into the country, from the 

 time of the great rush in 1897. The perfect quiet which prevails, 

 and has always prevailed, on the Canadian side of the frontier, 

 contrasts most favourably with the lawless scenes that took place till 

 recently at Skagway and other places in American territory. Even 

 the disorderly population which migrated into Klondike seemed to 

 lose its character on Canadian territory, and the six-shooter was no 

 more seen. 



I doubt whether any better example exists of the manner in which, 

 in any part of the world, the finest features of British character will 

 prevail — the firmness, good temper, and love of order which are the 

 dominant characteristics of our most successful colonists. 



[H.-A. M.] 



Vol. XVII. (No. 96.) 



