200 ALASKAN MINERAL RESOURCES IN 1906. 
been found. This is probably due in part to the fact that the con-a 
glomerate itself carries no great values and in part to the fact that] 
much of the conglomerate has not been affected by erosion and 
therefore the gold in it has not been re-sorted. 
The placers to be described here have little in common, and there- 
fore few general statements can be made. So far as they have been 
opened up, neither high values nor extensive pay streaks have been; 
found. It is by no means impossible that somewhere in the con-l 
glomerate belt erosion- has found a rich layer in the conglomerate 
and that more valuable placers have been formed than any thus far] 
discovered. 
These placers have the advantage of being more accessible than 
most of those in the Yukon basin. Most of them are not over 10 or 
15 miles from steamboat transportation on the Yukon. As they lie* 
in the lower parts of the plains of considerable streams, they could 
probably be reached with water carried in ditches, provided there is a 
sufficient body of auriferous gravel to warrant the outlay. 
NOTES ON DEVELOPMENT. 
FOURTH OF JULY CREEK. 
Fourth of July Creek was not studied by the writer. The besi 
information obtainable indicates that the bed rock is limestone anc 
slate with some conglomerate. The gold is said to have its source in 
the conglomerate. The deposits are reported to be from 10 to 20 
feet thick, 6 to 15 feet being made up of muck and 4 to 5 feet of gravel, 
of which 3 feet is said to carry values. The gold is flat, fine, and 
bright colored. The largest nugget was valued at $2.25. As a rule 
the bed rock is deeply weathered. One bench is reported to carry 
values, but the relations are obscured by the abundance of slide 
matter. 
A trail 10 to 12 miles long leads from Nation, on the Yukon at the 
mouth of Fourth of July Creek, to these placers. Though many 
claims have been staked and considerable prospecting done, the 
ground thus far productive is limited to a small group of claims. 
The total output since the discovery in 1898 is estimated at between 
$25,000 and $30,000 in value. Plans are said to be under foot looking 
toward larger operations in this field. It is reported that half a 
dozen men were at work here in 1906. 
WASHINGTON CREEK. 
GOLD. 
Washington Creek flows through a northward-trending valley, 
whose floor is from half a mile to a mile in width. The bed rock for 
the lower 3 miles of the creek is black slate or shale of Cretaceous age. a 
a Collier, A. J., Coal resources of the Yukon: Bull. U. S. Geol. Survey No. 218, 1903, pp. 28-32. 
