312 THE UPPER YUKON 



rugged mountain, no matter what hardships 

 she had to endure, nor what amount of money 

 she would have to spend in getting her equip- 

 ment together. Of the seven men who accom- 

 panied her, five lost their courage and left her. 

 two men stood by her until she was within 500 

 feet of the top, then the sixth man slunk away, 

 leaving only one who was brave enough to go 

 with her to the finish. This man was G. W. 

 Handy, a German, living at Cordova, Alaska. 



Her first attempt to scale the mountain was 

 made in the previous year, 191 1. She under- 

 took this journey in August, but her outfit 

 being entirely insufficient, she was compelled 

 to beat a retreat, having reached a height of 

 8700 feet. 



The next year, on April 22, 1912, she left 

 civilization at Kennecott, Alaska, the end of 

 the Copper River Railway. This year the 

 dangers and hardships were worse than they 

 had been in the previous year, but she had a 

 better equipment. Above the base of the 

 mountain all of the outfit had to be carried on 

 the men's backs. On the fourteenth day out, 

 three of the men turned back and left her at a 

 height of 8700 feet, and six days later two 

 more men, including the leader, left her. 



The chief danger after the last desertion 



