136 ALASKAN MINERAL RESOURCES IN 1905. 
PENNY AND CRIPPLE RIVERS. 
There was little mining on Penny River in 1905. To the west, in Cripple River Valley 
work was carried on chiefly on Arctic. Nugget, Oregon, and Hungry creeks. There was also 
some prospecting on streams at the head of Cripple River, but the principal project was 
the construction of the Cedric ditch, which is described in another place (p. 142). 
IRON CREEK. 
Much interest has been aroused during the past year by the developments on Iron Creek. 
This stream is a tributary of Kruzgamepa <>r Pilgrim River and joins it a little more than 
10 miles below the outlet of Salmon Lake. The presence of gold has been known for some 
years and a moderate amount has been produced, but the cost of supplies has retarded 
development work. Mining is carried on almost entirely in the upper part of the creek 
valley, although some line gold has been taken out below. On this pari of the stream the 
gold is coarse. Nugget s of considerable size have been found, the largest of which, value! 
at about $650, was taken out last summer. Some difficulty is caused, on a number of the 
claims, at times of heavy rain by Hooding, but a more general and serious difficulty is small 
water supply for sluicing. To remedy this condition one company had in course of con- 
struction dining the sununei four ditches, three of which are about .'$ miles long and the 
fourth about 11 miles long. These will furnish about 500 inches of water when finished. 
The work was just fairly started when winter set in, but will be carried to completion next 
summer. 
SOLOMON RIVER. 
PLACER MINING. 
The season of L905 was not an important one on Solomon River because of its gold out- 
put, hut attracts attention rather because in it a movement was started to supplant the 
methods in general use for handling gold-bearing gravels by others more economical in 
their operation and thus to reduce the cost of production and increase the amount of gold 
gained. Among the mechanical devices employed the mosl expensive and the most impor- 
tant from the standpoint of its capacity is the new dredge launched on Solomon River at 
Oro Fino, 5 miles north of Solomon. This fine dredge (PI. I, p. 1) is of the Bucyrus type 
and was completed about the middle of sununei-. The gravels here are not of great depth 
and while the deepest excavation yet necessary was but 23 feet, the elevator can be oper- 
ated to a depth of 28 feet !>elo\\ the water's level. There are 0b buckets in the chain, each 
with a capacity of (i cubic feel and weighing 1,150 pounds, the total weight of chain and 
ladder being 149,000 pounds. The buckets are required to elevate not only the gravels] 
but about 1 foot of the mica-schist bed rock an important matter, since on its ability to 
do so may depend the success of the dredge. Neither dredge nor steam scraper will clean 
a hard limestone bed rock. The power used is steam, but the machinery is so constructed 
that electricity may be substituted at slight cost and with little loss of time. At present 
the greatest item of expense is coal, since the entire plant requires but three men for its 
operation. It is proposed, however, to decrease the expense by using electric power, gen- 
erated either by water or possibly at the beach, where fuel is less expensive owing to de- 
creased freight charges. 
The gravels to he exploited were thoroughly prospected, before the dredge was built , with 
a traction drill which proved itself well adapted to the purpose. 
About the middle of summer a steam shovel was installed on the first tier of benches west 
of Solomon River. Practically no work was expended on pay gravels during the few- 
weeks after the machinery was put m place, that time being devoted to the construction 
of a bed-rock drain, but the plant is ready to he put in operation as soon as the ground is 
ready in the spring. 
Gravel is loaded on cars of 21 yards capacity by a 1-yard dipper and drawn up a low incline 
by a small hoi-;tinL r engine to a platform, where it is dumped at the head of the sluice DOXesj 
