POOR YESTERDAY—ROLLING IN WEALTH TO-DAY.

The San Francisco correspondent of the New York Sun, who saw the arrival of the Excelsior, sent to his paper by wire a graphic description of the sensation created. He said:

"San Francisco has not been stirred by any mining discovery since the opening up of the great bonanzas on the Comstock Lode in Nevada, nearly thirty years ago, as it has been by the stories of two score sun-tanned and hard-featured miners who have returned from the new Klondyke camp on the Yukon River in far Alaska.

These stories would have excited derision were it not that all these men were able to furnish ocular proof of their tales with pounds of yellow gold. Not one of the party went into this camp last Fall with anything more than his outfit and a few hundred dollars. Not one came out with less than $5,000, a dozen cleaned up from $10,000 to $20,000, while half a dozen averaged from $20,000 to $90,000. Scores of them left claims that they valued at $20,000 to $1,000,000, which are now being worked by their partners or by hired laborers. They are not boasters nor boomers. In fact, they are careful to warn any one about venturing into the Yukon country unless he is young, vigorous and brave, able to bear hardships, and has from $500 to $1,000 for outfit and current expenses after reaching the new gold fields. Perhaps it is these very conservative views which have made their talk take such powerful hold on the popular imagination.

All returned miners agree that the best way to reach the new gold fields is by way of Juneau. The journey is mainly by land over a snow-covered trail, down numerous streams and across lakes. The only very dangerous place is Chilicoot Pass, which is dreaded because of the sudden snowstorms that come up without warning and that have proved fatal to many adventurous miners. The distance is 650 miles, and it takes an average of twenty-five days to cover it.

Dawson City has now a population of nearly 3,000. It is beautifully situated on the banks of the Yukon near the mouth of the Klondyke River, and seems destined to become the mining centre of the Northwest territory. The people now live in shanties, each built of a few strips of weather boarding and canvas. There is a sawmill in operation day and night, but it cannot supply the demand for its products. Lumber sells at the mill for $150 per thousand, but when delivered at mines the price jumps to $450.

One of the peculiar features of the new camp is the lack of shooting, due to the fact that the Canadian Government does not permit men to carry firearms. Police disarm miners when they enter the district, so that there is not any of the lawlessness and crime which marked early placer mining in California. There is much gambling, and play is high. An old miner, Alexander Orr, who spent eight Winters in Alaska, but will not return, said:

"Dawson is not like most of the large mining camps. It is not a tough town; murders are almost unknown. The miners are a quiet, peaceable kind of men, who have gone there to work and are willing that everybody else shall have an equal chance with themselves. A great deal of gambling is done in town, but serious quarrels are the exception. As a gambling town I think it is equal to any I have ever seen, and this, by the way, is always the test of a mining camp's prosperity. Stud poker is the usual game. They play $1 ante, and often bet $300 or $500 on the third card."

Orr sold out his claim for $20,000, and the men who bought it made the purchase money in four months. Perhaps the best idea of what has been done in the new camp can be gained from the following short interviews with returned miners:

William Kulju said: "I brought down just 1,000 ounces of dust and sold it to smelting works. I worked at Eldorado Creek, near Dawson, and was in that country about a year, and had a couple of dollars and a pack last Summer when I went in. I sold my claim for $25,000, part cash and the balance to be paid as it is taken out. Now, I am taking a trip to the old country—Finland—and am coming back next year."

Fred Lendeseen: "I went to Alaska two years ago, and when I left there six weeks ago I brought $13,000 in gold dust with me. I have had considerable experience in mining, and say without hesitation that Alaska is the richest country I have ever seen. I have interest in a claim near Dawson and am going back in the Spring."

Greg Stewart: "I had a partner and I sold out my interest for $45,000 and put my money back again at interest in mines. My partner had 1,500 ounces of dust, but it fell short four ounces on the way down. The dust will go over $17 an ounce, but we are all waiting for returns from the smelting works. I brought a few hundred ounces with me, but I get interest of 2 per cent. on short loans. I expect to return next Spring."

John Marks: "I brought $11,500 in gold dust with me, but I had to work for every bit of it. There is plenty of gold in Alaska—more, I believe, than the most sanguine imagine—but it cannot be obtained without great effort and endurance. The first thing for a poor man to do when he reaches the country is to begin prospecting. As snow is from two to five feet deep prospecting is not easy. Snow must first be shoveled away, and then a fire built on the ground to melt the ice. As the ground thaws the shaft must be sunk until bed rock is reached. The average prospector has to sink a great many shafts before he reaches anything worth his while. If gold is found in sufficient quantities to pay for working, he may begin drifting from the shaft, and continue to do so as long as he finds enough gold to pay."

Albert Fox: "I and partner went into the district in 1895 and secured two claims. We sold one for $45,000. I brought 300 ounces, which netted $5,000. Everybody is at Dawson for the present. The district is apt to be overrun. I wouldn't advise anyone to go there this Fall, for people are liable to go hungry before spring. About 800 went over the summit from Juneau, 600 miles, so there may not be food enough for all."

Robert Kooks: "I've been four years in Alaska. I had a half interest in a claim on Eldorado Creek, and sold out to my partner for $12,000. I bought a half interest in a claim on the Bonanza, below the Discovery claim, and my share is worth easily $15,000. I brought $14,000 in gold dust, and shall return in the Spring, after rest and recreation."

J. B. Hollinshead: "I was in the diggings about two years, and brought out about 1,500 ounces, which I suppose will bring $17 an ounce. I'm not sure about going back, though I have a claim on Gold Bottom Creek, fifteen miles from Bonanza. It is less than a year since I located my claim. My dust will bring over $25,000."

M. S. Norcross: "I was sick and couldn't work, so I cooked for Mr. McNamee. Still I had a claim on the Bonanza, but didn't know what was in it, because I couldn't work it. I sold out last spring for $10,000 and was satisfied to get a chance to return to my home in Los Angeles."

Thomas Flack: "My dust will bring more than $6,000. I have an interest in two claims on the Eldorado. One partner sold out for $50,000 and another for $55,000. I had an offer of $50,000, but refused it just before I came out."

Thomas Cook: "It is a good country, but if there is a rush there's going to be a great deal of suffering. Over 2,000 men are there at present, and 2,000 more will be in before snow falls. I've been at placer mining for years in California and British Columbia, and the mines at Dawson are more extensive and beyond anything I ever saw. Last year I did very well at Dawson. I have a claim worth about the average, they say from $25,000 to $50,000, on Bear Creek, across the divide from the Bonanza."

Con Stamatin: "I was mining on shares with a partner. He's still there. We worked on Alexander McDonald's ground in Eldorado for forty-five days and took out $33,000. We got 50 per cent. and the other half went to McDonald. Then we divided our share, and I came away."

All miners unite in saying that the only fear for the coming winter is the lack of supplies. The Alaska Commercial Company promises, however, to send in all that is needed. Living is high now, as may be seen from these quotations of prices when the miners started for home: Flour, $12 per hundredweight; (following are the prices per pound) moose ham, $1; caribou meat, 65 cents; beans, 10; rice, 25; sugar, 25; bacon, 40; potatoes, 25; turnips, 15; coffee, 50; dried fruits, 35; tea, $1; tobacco, $1.50; butter, a roll, $1.50; eggs, a dozen, $1.50; salmon, each, $1 to $1.50; canned fruits, 50 cents; canned meats, 75; liquors, per drink, 50; shovels, $2.50; picks, $5; coal oil, per gallon, $1; overalls, $1.50; underwear, per suit, $5 to $7.50; shoes, $5; rubber boots, $10 to $15.

Miners who have reached San Francisco do not act like people who have suddenly jumped from poverty to comparative wealth. They are level headed. They went to the best hotels, and they are living on the fat of the land, but they do not throw money away, and not one started in to paint the town red. They have worked so hard that they appreciate the value of money. What they delight in most are theatres and other amusements. They say no one knows how to enjoy these if he has not spent a year in Alaska. Three-quarters of the miners will return in the Spring when they are well rested."