866 



YUKON DISTRICT, THE CANADIAN. 



This statement illustrates the difficulties of giv- 

 ing detailed facts regarding the gold output of 

 the Yukon. The value of the chief creeks is now 

 well known, and any that fail to reach the mark 

 have been compensated for in the past by new dis- 

 coveries. The correspondent of the Toronto 

 Globe, commenting on the spot upon this esti- 

 mate of $16,000,000 as a result of the ensuing 

 " wash-up," declared that the result would be 

 nearer $25,000,000, and mentioned rich mines that 

 had been omitted from the calculation. Early in 

 January two Ottawa geological experts R. G. 

 McConnell and J. B. Tyrrell reported briefly to 

 the Interior Department regarding the general 

 situation, and the following is a summary of their 

 report: They declared that the productive part of 

 the Klondike gold district, as at present known, 

 covers an area of 1,000 square miles, and is be- 

 tween the Klondike and Indian river tributaries 

 of the Yukon and east .of the latter river. The 

 region is traversed by a multitude of streams 

 flowing in deep, troughlike valleys. The larger 

 creeks are separated by long ridges, gashed by the 

 smaller streams, and terminating upward in even 

 slopes or lines of rounded hills. The forest 

 growth, which generally covers the district, con- 

 sists principally of black and white spruce, with 

 some birch and poplar. The approximate area of 

 1,000 square miles of known gold fields refers to 

 the district traversed by the gold-bearing creeks, 

 and not to the actual area of pay gravels. The 

 latter are confined to the bottoms of a few of the 

 valleys and the lower slopes of the adjoining 

 ridge's, and occupy a much smaller area. The 

 rich creeks, so far, are only four Eldorado, 

 Bonanza, Hunker, and Dominion and the greater 

 portion of the yield of the past two years has 

 come from the Eldorado and Bonanza. The 

 proved portions of the four producing creeks have 

 an aggregate length of about 30 miles. A number 

 of tributaries of the producing creeks and other 

 streams such as Bear, Sulphur, Too Much Gold, 

 and All Gold have yielded small amounts. The 

 gold occurs in the gravels flooring the bottom 

 of the valleys, and in a remarkable moraine or 

 glacial deposit which forms a southern slope of 

 Eldorado and Bonanza creeks for some miles, 

 and which was also found north of the latter 

 creek for some distance above its junction with 

 Eldorado. The stream gravels have a thick- 

 ness of 2 to 8 feet, and a width along the 

 most productive portions of Eldorado and 

 Bonanza creeks of 100 to 400 feet. They extend 

 across the valley bottoms and increase in width 

 with the gradual enlargement of the latter to- 

 ward their mouths. The gravels are everywhere 

 auriferous, but the concentration is irregular, 

 and the gold increases in quantity toward the 



bottom of the section. The greater part of the 

 pay is usually found within a foot and a half of 

 the bed rock. A considerable portion of the gold 

 is also found in the soft, decomposed, and shat- 

 tered country rock, on which the gravels i.-i. 

 into which it has sunk often to a depth of two 

 feet. The beach gravels are of less important 

 than the stream gravels, and, so far, are worked 

 to a considerable extent only along Bonanza and 

 the lower part of Eldorado creek. The hilUidc* 

 on the lower portions of the creeks could be 

 washed down by strong streams. Attention is 

 called to the necessity of wagon roads, which 

 could easily be built through the whole country. 



The final official announcement of gold pro- 

 duction in the Yukon for 1899 was $7,000,000, and 

 this sum must have been doubled in fact through 

 evasion of the authorities and the tax. 



Telegraphic Communication. On Oct. 5, 

 185)5), a Toronto newspaper received the first <i\ 

 patch by wire from Dawson City to Skagway. 

 Thence the message went to the coast a six days' 

 voyage and then it was telegraphed from N \\ 

 Westminster to Toronto. This was the result of 

 a charter granted in 1898 to an English company, 

 with which the late Sir John Fender was con 

 nected. and the removal of the almost complete 

 isolation of the country quickly had a beneficial 

 effect upon general conditions. 



Dawson City. I). C. Eraser, M. P., on Oct. 13, 

 185)5), gave the following description of the Yukon 

 capital, which he had just visited: "In the ii\ 

 of Dawson, which has from 8,000 to 10,000 in- 

 habitants, better ord>er prevails, and great < i 

 curity for life and property, than there is in any 

 other Canadian town with the same or a smal lei- 

 population; and this is all the more surpri-iiig 

 when the cosmopolitan character of the people 

 there is considered. Although there are an en or 

 moils number of men of sterling character in and 

 about Dawson, yet there is quite an element that 

 needs watching, and to the North we>t mounted 

 police alone is due the satisfactory condition of 

 affairs at present existing there. A few mounted 

 police in Dawson without any effort through 

 the knowledge the lawless element has of how 

 they will be dealt with if they transgress keep 

 the town in most excellent order. Such as come 

 for trial before those charged with the adminis- 

 tration of the law are summarily dealt with. No 

 lecturing or moral suasion is attempted by the 

 presiding official. If the prisoner is found guilty 

 he is either fined or, as is usually the case, -ent 

 to jail with hard labor on the wood pile, the latter 

 punishment being one that every criminal in 

 Dawson dreads. Dawson has several fine blocks, 

 with plate-glass fronts, and the premises in every 

 respect are modern." 



