■' % 
 
 To face lille page. 
 
 130 
 
 (ifhJtfiSan 
 
130 
 
 — I— 
 
 188 
 
 ue 
 
 MAP 
 
 showing the Country 
 
 between 
 
 W & MACKENZIE WVE31S 
 
 hnn latest official Aources 
 
 StauiLf Mile* 
 
 OtiMurvtf^ riMr* art i inhmttd - 
 
 aa 
 
 
 THE ROUTES 
 
 AND 
 
 MINERAL RESOURCES 
 
 ov 
 
 NORTH WESTEKN CANADA. 
 
 m 
 
 E. JEROME DYER, P.R.G.S. 
 
 Honorary Secretary of the Incorporated London Chamber of Mines, London. 
 
 Publwhed untUr the Atupicea of 
 THE INCORPOBATED LONDON CHAMBER OF MINES 
 Hwith which are affiliated the Auatralaaiati and Canadiari Chambers of Mines, London). 
 
 LONDON : 
 
 GEORGE PHILIP & SON, 82, FLEET STREET, E.G. 
 LIVERPOOL : — Philip, Son & Nephew, 45—51, Sooth Castle Stbbit. 
 
 1898. 
 
 Mil rights rtserved.) 
 
 'fUzfiiStn^XneuSt LonUun. 
 
r/v 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 In my capacity as Honorary Secretary of the 
 Incorporated London Chamber of Mines (with which is 
 affiliated the Canadian Chamber), I have had continuous 
 occasion to remark the need of an abridged hand-book 
 upon the mineral resources of North- Western Canada. 
 
 The gold discoveries in the Upper Yukon Country 
 have made this want even more keenly felt, for it is 
 believed that throughout the vast expanse of the 
 Northern Dominion there are innumerable openings for 
 the intrepid mineral explorer with the fascinating 
 possibility of many " Klondikes " awaiting the pick and 
 pan of the adventurous pioneer. Meanwhile millions of 
 many nations that have heard the name and news of 
 " Klondike " are eager for more information of the Great 
 Territory of which this newest marvel in goldfields is but 
 a spot. 
 
 Shaping my efforts by the numerous enquiries that 
 have come before me, I have endeavoured to compile a 
 work to meet the demand, and have embodied other 
 necessary information that I think will interest those 
 concerned. 
 
 The chief consideration, after ascertaining the 
 existence and locality of payable minerals, is how to 
 reach them. A considerable proportion, therefore, of 
 this book is devoted to the question of routes. On this 
 subject, for obvious reasons, I write from the point of 
 view of a resident in England and show that there are 
 many routes into the N. W. Territories and the Yukon 
 from the East and South East which are, perhaps, 
 superior to those from the Pacific Coast. This 
 question, together with Mining Fields being developed 
 and those prospective, is dealt with in Part I. 
 
 Special attention is drawn to the Mackenzie Biver and 
 Bay, for the discovery of an evidently immense tract of 
 gold-bearing Country in the Mackenzie- Yukon lends a 
 deeper interest to the value of Mackenzie Bay by 
 making it a means of opening up a Commercial route to 
 the Bay by way of Beh'ring Straits and the Arctic Ocean. 
 Its superiority over the Yukon River Boute is also 
 
 a2 
 
iv. 
 
 pointed out. Dr. Dawson's views — that Mackenzie Bay 
 will one day serve British North America as the White 
 Bea serves Russia will, doubtless, soon become fact* 
 The inimitably rich resources of this huge territory 
 reached by the Mackenzie, Peel and other rivers flowing 
 into Mackenzie Bay are indicated, as also are the 
 advantages of a direct route from Hudson's Bay through 
 Chesterfield Inlet, or from some other point leading from 
 this great arm of the sea. 
 
 Fart II. and the Appendix consist wholly of a 
 
 classified digest of the chief works of reference, books of 
 travel and exploration, recent reports and other publica- 
 tions of the N. W. Territories together with extracts from 
 various official reports, leading newspapers and expert 
 authorities upon the resources, chief waterways, routes 
 and distances around and throughout the far Northern 
 Dominion, and more particularly of the Yukon-Mackenzie 
 Country and the means of access to that region. 
 
 I would direct special notice to the accompanying 
 map which is based upon the most recent information 
 and discoveries, and has received the best attention of 
 the Publishers. 
 
 Whether this book fulfils the object with which it is 
 
 written or not, I shall be quite satisfied if it directs 
 
 some attention to the splendid work of the Geological 
 
 Survey of Canada under the brilliant directorship of 
 
 Dr. G. M. Dawson, to whom I must acknowledge my 
 
 chief indebtedness. Nor can the name of Mr. Wm. 
 
 Ogilvie be omitted in any present day work on Canada's 
 
 Mining Industries : a name, practically, synonymoua 
 
 with the World's greatest goldfields, whom the "Times" 
 
 (London) describes as a man of indomitable courage and 
 
 sterling integrity, whom the " Toronto Globe " names 
 
 " The Modem Cato," to whom thousands of Miners will 
 
 owe more than they can ever repay and to whom this 
 
 Book's greatest attraction is due. The many others to 
 
 whom I am indebted are mentioned below along with 
 
 such publications and special reports as I have quoted 
 
 in Part II. and the Appendix, and to some extent in 
 
 Part I. 
 
 E. JEROME DYER. 
 
▼. 
 
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 
 
 List of Authorities consulted in tlie preparation of 
 
 tliis Worlc. 
 
 Report of the Select Committee of the Senate appointed in 1888 
 to enquire into the Resources of the Great Mackenzie Basin 
 (many of the names mentioned below — indicated by an 
 asterisk — gave evidence at this Committee). 
 
 British Columbia Year Book (Gosnell's) for 1896—97. Victoria 
 
 (B. C), 1897. 
 Exploratory Surveys in 1887—88 by Mr. Wm. Ogilvie (Ottawa, 
 
 1890), and Mr. R. G. McConnell (Montreal, 1890), and by Dr. 
 
 G. M. Dawson (Ottawa, 1890). 
 
 Annual Reports of the Geological Survey of Canada for the years 
 1886 to '95, inclusive. 
 
 Official Handbook of the Dominion of Canada, published August, 
 
 1897. 
 Reports on the Yukon and adjacent country by Mr. Wm. Ogilvie 
 
 during 1895, '96 and '97 (Ottawa, 1897). 
 
 Summary Report of the Geological Survey Department of 
 Canada for 1896. 
 
 Annual Reports of the Minister of Mines for Canada for 1894 — 96. 
 
 The 12th Annual Report of the U. S. Geological Survey referring 
 
 to Mr. Frederick Schwatka's exploratory tour through the 
 
 Yukon Valley in 1891. 
 Canadian Pacific Railway publications for 1880, and also for 
 
 1896, '97. '98. 
 Chartered Hudson's Bay and Pacific Railway publications, com* 
 
 piled by Col. J. Harris, F.R.G.S., F.R.C. Inst., London, 1897. 
 
 Journals of the Royal Geographical Society of Great Britain 
 
 (numbers referred to where quoted). 
 " The Early Chartered Companies," by Geo. Cawston, Barrister- 
 
 at-Law, and A. H. Keane, F.R.G.S., London, 1896. 
 
 " On Snow Shoes to the Barren Grounds," by Caspar Whitney. 
 London, 1896. 
 
 ♦' The Barren Grounds of Northern Canada," by Warburton Pike. 
 London, 1892. 
 
 *' Through the Sub-Arctic Forest," by Warburton Pike. London, 
 1896. 
 
 *• History of the North-West" (3 vols.), by Alexander Begg. 
 Toronto, 1884. 
 
" Tho Great Lone Land," by Major W. P. Butler, C.B., P.R.G.S. 
 
 London, 1874. 
 "The Wild North Land," by Captain W. P. Butlor. P.R.G.S. 
 
 Montreal, 1874. 
 
 "The Great Fur Land (Sketches of Life in the Hudson's Bay 
 Territory)," by H. M. Robinson, New Yorlt. 
 
 " Our North Land," by Chas. R. Tuttle, of the Hudson's Bay 
 Expedition of 1884. Toronto, 1885. 
 
 "Life and Labours in the Far North West," by W. Henry 
 Barnaby. London, 1884. 
 
 "History of Canada" (8 vols.), by Wm. Kingsford. London, 
 
 1887—96. 
 "By Track and Trail through Canada," by Edward Roper. 
 
 London, 1891. 
 
 " Manitoba and the Great North- West," by John Macoun, M.A., 
 
 Dominion Government Explorer of tho North-West. London, 
 
 1883. 
 " British North America " (Stanford's). London, 1897. 
 British Columbia Development Association's publication. 
 
 London, 1897. 
 Bulletin de la Soci6t6 de Geographic, Paris, 1875. 
 Narrative of Discovery and Adventure in the Polar Seas and 
 
 Regions, by Professurs Leslie, Jameson and Hugh Murray. 
 
 Edinburgh, 1830. 
 
 Geology of the Mackenzie River, by G. P. B. Meek, Chicago 
 Academy of Science, 1868. 
 
 Reports by Dr. R. Bell on the Geology of Canada, 1882—84. 
 
 Boat Voyage through Rupert's Land and the Arctic Seas, by Sir 
 
 J. Richardson, London, 1851. 
 A Voyage of discovery, for the purpose of exploring Baffin's Bay, 
 
 &c., by Sir John Ross, in 1818, London, 1819. Geological 
 
 Appendix by Dr. McCulloch. 
 Narrative of a Journey to the Shores of the Polar Sea in the 
 
 years 1819—22, by Captain J. Franklin, London, 1823. 
 
 Appendix 1, by J. Richardson, M.D. 
 Journal of a Second Voyage for the Discovery of a North-West 
 
 Passage, &o., 1821—23, by Captain Parry, London, 1824. 
 
 Journal of a Third Voyage for the Discovery of a North-West 
 Passage, &c., by Captain W. E. Parry, London, 1826. Appendix 
 by Prof. Jameson on Geology of Coimtries discovered during 
 Captain Parry's Second and Third Expeditions. 
 
 Narrative of a Second Expedition to the Shores of the Polar Sea 
 in the years 1825—27, by Captain J. Franklin, London, 1828. 
 Appendix 1, by J. Richardson. 
 
vu. 
 
 Narrative of a Second Voyage in search of a North-West Passage, 
 &G., 1820—33, by Sir John Robs, London, 1836. Appendix on 
 Geology by Sir J. Boss. 
 
 Narrative of the Arctic Land Expedition, &o., 1838—35, by Capt. 
 Back, London, 1836. (See also Journal Royal Geographical 
 Society, vol. iv., 1886). 
 
 Narrative of an Expedition in H.M.S. "Terror," 1S3C-37, by 
 Captain Bacic, London, 1888. 
 
 Narrative of the Discoveries on the North Coast of America, &o., 
 1836—39, by Thomas Simpson, London, 1848. 
 
 Some account ot Peel River, North America, by A. K. Isbister, 
 Journal Royal Geographical Soc, London, vol. zv., 1845, p. 332. 
 
 Narrative of an Expedition to the Shores of the Arctic Sea in 
 1846—47, by Dr. John Rae, London, 1850. 
 
 Journey from Great Bear Lake to WoUaston Land, and Explora- 
 tions along the South and East Coasts of Victoria Land, by 
 Dr. J. Rae, Journal Royal Geographical Soc, vol, xxii., 1852. 
 
 Journal of a Voyage in Baffin's Bay and Barrow Straits in 
 1850—51, by P. C. Sutherland, M.D., London, 1852. Geological 
 Appendix by J. W. Salter. 
 
 On the Geological and Glacial Phenomena of the Coasts of Davis' 
 Strait and Baffiu s Bay, by P. C. Sutherland, M.D., Quarterly 
 Journal Geological Society, vol. ix., 1853, p. 296. 
 
 A Summer Search for Sir J. Franklin, by Captain Inglefield, 1853, 
 Contains a Geological Appendix. " Arctic Manual " of 1875. 
 
 Tha Last of the Arctic Voyages, &c., 1852—64, by Sir E. Belcher 
 London, 1855. 
 
 On some additions to the Geology of the Arctic Regions, by 
 J. W. Salter. Report of the British Association for the Ad- 
 vancement of Science, 1855. 
 
 Further Papers relative to the recent Arctic Expeditions in Search 
 of Sir John Franklin, &c. London, Government, 1855. 
 
 On the Geology of the Hudson's Bay Territories and of Portions 
 of the Arctic and North-Western Regions of America, by 
 A. K. Isbister, Quarterly Journal Geologicol Society, vol. xi. 
 (Also reprinted, without map, in American Journal Science 
 and Arts, second series, vol. xxi., 1856, p. 313). 
 
 The Discovery of a North- West Passage by H.M.S. " Investi- 
 gator," Capt. R. McClure, 1850—54. London, 1857. Geological 
 Appendix by Sir R. Murchison. 
 
 A Personal Narrative of the Discovery of the North-West Passage, 
 by A. Armstrong, M.D., late Surgeon and Naturalist to H.M.S. 
 "Investigator." London, 1857. 
 
 Arctic Explorations by Dr. E. K. Kane, American Journal Science 
 and Arts, second series, vol. xxiv., 1867, p. 235. 
 
Vlll. 
 
 Report from the Select Committco on the Uudson's Bay Coiupaiiy, 
 &o. London, Government, 1857. 
 
 A Narrative of the Discovery of the Fate of Sir John Franklin, by 
 Captain McClintock. London, edition of 1859. Geological 
 Appendix by Professor Samuel Haughton. 
 
 Report of the Assiniboine and Saskatchewan Exploring Expedi- 
 tion, by H. Y. Hind, Tofonto, 1859. 
 
 The Polar Regions, by Sir John Richardson, Edinburgh, 1861. 
 (Reprinted from Encyclopedia Britannica, Eighth edition, 
 1860). 
 
 Scientific Results of the " Polaris " Arctic Expedition. Nature, 
 vol. ix., 1874, p. 404, 
 
 A Whaling Cruise to BafiBn's Bay, &o., by A. H. Markham, 
 London, 1874. Appendix C, List of Geological Specimens, by 
 R. Etheridge. 
 
 Manual of the Natural History, Geology and Physics of Green- 
 land and Neighbouring Regions, &c.. Edited by Professor 
 T. R. Jones, London, 1875. 
 
 G4ographi4 de I'Athabaskaw-Mackenzie et des Grands Lacs du 
 Bassin Arctique, par I'Abb^ E. Pet' tot. Bulletin de la Soci^t6 
 de G6ographi6, Paris, tome X., 1875. •.•t . 
 
 L'Expedition Polaire Americain^, sous lea ordres du Capitaine 
 Hall. Letter by Dr. E. Bessels. Bui. Soc. G6og., Paris, 
 vol. ix., 1875, p. 297. 
 
 Narrative of a Voyage to the Polar Sea during 1875—76, &c., by 
 Captain Sir G. S. Nares, London, 1878, Appendix xv., Geology, 
 by C. E. De Ranee and H. W. Fielden. " 
 
 Geology of the Coasts of the Arctic Lands visited by the late 
 British Exdedition under Captain Sir George Nares, &c., by 
 Captain H. W. Fielden and C. E. De Ranee, Quarterly Journal 
 Geological Society, vol. xxxiv., 1878, p. 656. 
 
 Narrative of the Second Arctic Expedition made by C. F. Hall. 
 Washington, Government 1879. Appendix iii., by Prof. 
 B. K. Emerson. 
 
 Encyclopedia Britannica, Greenland, by Robert Brown. Polar 
 Regions, by 0. R. Markham. (Geological sketches appended 
 to both these Articles.) 
 
 Three Years of Arctic Service, an account of the Lady Franklin 
 Bay Expedition, by Lieut. A. W. Greely, New York, 1886. 
 
 Reports of the Royal Commission on the Mineral Resources of 
 Ontario. Toronto, 1890. 
 
 Notes to accompany a Geological Map of the Northern portion of 
 the Dominion of Canada. East of the Rocky Mountains, by 
 Geo. M. Dawson, D.S., P.G.S., Montreal, 1887. 
 
> 
 
 >: 
 
 +- 
 
 is. 
 
 Descriptive Sketch of the Physical Geography and Oeiology of the 
 
 Dominion of Canada. By Alfred R. 0. Selwyn and G. M. 
 
 Dawson, Montreal, 1881. 
 "Canada— A Geographical, Agricultural and Mineralogical 
 
 Sketch," by T. Sterry Hunt. Quebec, 1863. 
 Beport on the Climate and Agricultural Value, General Geological 
 
 Features and Minerals of Economic Importance of part of the 
 
 Northern Portion of British Columbia and of the Peace River 
 
 Country. By Geo. M. Dawson, 1880. 
 Lecture by Mr. Wra. Ogilvie, delivered Victoria (B. C.) on 
 
 November 5th, 1897. Government Printer, Victoria (B. C), 
 
 1897. 
 Annual Reports of the Governor of Alaska for each year, from 
 
 1884—95 inclusive. Washington, U.S. 
 
 The 6th Annual Report of the Ontario Bureau of Mines (1897). 
 The 18th Annual Report of the British Columbia Board of Trade 
 
 for 1896-97. 
 *Jan:es Anderson, Explorer, Franklin Search Expedition (quoted 
 by his son before the Committee of the Senate, Ottawa, 1883). 
 •His Lordship Bishop W. C. Bompas, N.W. Territories. 
 
 Archibald Blue, Director Bureau of Mines, Ontario. (Summary 
 of Geological Survey of Canada for 1896.) 
 
 F. G. Hinde Bowker, N.W. Territories. (Literview, Pall Mall 
 Gazette, London, October 28th, 1897.) 
 
 Inspector Constantine, Cooomandant Yukon Police Division. 
 
 (Reports of the Commissioner of the N.W. Mounted Police 
 
 for 1895 and 1896. 
 *Hon. Wm. Christie, Lute Chief Inspecting Factor, Hudson's Bay 
 
 Company. 
 *His Lordship Bishop Clut, Mackenzie River District, N.W. 
 
 Territories. 
 tDr. G. M. Dawson, C.M.G., F.G.S., Director of the Geological 
 
 Survey of Canada. 
 Thomas Deasy, Chief of Fire Department, Viofioria, B. C. 
 
 (Extracts from Letters to Commander Wells, R.N., London, 
 
 August 27th. 1897.) 
 
 Russell L. Dunn, M.E., London. {London Mining Journal, 
 
 October 2nd, 1897.) 
 fProf. J. B. Hurlbert, Geological Survey of Canada. 
 
 W. A. K. Isbister, Explorer N.W. Territories, 1844 (men!iioned 
 elsewhere). 
 
 Joseph Ladue, Yukon Pioneer, Dawson City. (McClore's Maga- 
 zine, September, 1897.) 
 
 Sir J. H. Lefroy, President Geological Beotion British Association, 
 1880. 
 
 A * 
 
> 
 
 X. 
 
 fProf. Maooun, (Geological Burvoy of Canada. 
 
 B. G. McConnell, B.A., Oeological Survey of Canada (mentioned 
 elsewhere). 
 
 Hon. H. G. Macintosh, Lieut.-Govemor of N.W. Territories. 
 (Interview, Palt Mall Gazette, 16th September, 1897.) 
 
 *Donald Mclvor, Manitoba. .,■.: , - 
 
 •Wm. J. McLean, Chief Trader, Hudson's Bay Co. . ' f 
 
 'Malcolm MoLeod, Q.O., Ex- Judge, Ottawa. A 
 
 •Stuart D. Mulkin. N.W. Territories. ' ' "^ 
 
 Wm. Ogilvie, F.B.G.8., Survey Department of Canada (mentioned 
 elsewhere). -v. -...>•-,. - 
 
 •Prank Oliver, Editor, Edmonton, N.W. Territories. 
 Roger Pocook, Journalist, London (for many years in the N.W. 
 Territories, and Special Correspondent Lloyd's Weekly, 
 London, October and November, 1897). 
 
 •His Lordship Dr. Beeves, Bishop, Mackenzie Biver District. 
 
 Hon. Lindsay Bussell, Surveyor General for Canada, 1881. 
 
 Hon. John Schultz, lat^ Lieut.-Governor of Manitoba. (27th 
 Annual Beport of the Department of Marine and Fisheries of 
 Canada for 1884. 
 
 Inspector Strickland, Yukon Police Division. ic:'K~< > 
 A. E. Ironmonger Sola, Klondike Pioneer, and Author of 
 " Klondyke, Truth and Facts." London, 1897. 
 
 J. Burr Tyrrell, B.A., Geological Survey of Canada (Chesterfield 
 Inlet Expedition of 1893. Ottawa, 1897). 
 
 J. W. Tyrrell, C.E., D.L.S., Geological Survey of Canada (Chester- 
 field Inlet Expedition of 1893. Ottawa, 1897). 
 
 , H. de Windt, Explorer (Strand Magazine, London, October, 1897, 
 and London Times, July 23rd, 1897). 
 
 Professor N. S. Shaler, Harvard University, U.S.A. -^^- 
 
 Dr. W. H. Dael, Smithsonian Institute, Washington, U.S.A. 
 
 Professor Geo. P. Wright, Professor of Geology, Obcrlin College, 
 U.S.A. 
 
 Wm. Van Slooten, M.E., U.S.A. 
 
 J. Edward Spurr, Geological Survey, Washington, U.S.A. 
 
 Dr. Geo. F. Becker, Geological Survey, Washington, U.S.A. 
 
 And others, together with the many reports, publications and 
 newspapers mentioned along with their respective extracts. 
 
 * Gave eyldence before the Committee of the Senate, 1880, mentioned 
 at the beginning of this Lint. 
 
 t Also gare eridence before the 1896 Committee, and am identified 
 with several works quoted separately. 
 
SI. 
 
 INDEX TO PART I.-ARGUMENT. 
 
 Introductory Chapter 
 
 What has hitherto prevented Mining developnaent 
 
 The first and following Mining developments ... 
 
 A matter of the highest importance to commercial men 
 
 The Colonizing power of gold discovery 
 
 ■ ^Present wealth and future piospeota of the N.W 
 Territories ... ... ... ... ••• ••• 
 
 The great future of the region 
 
 The question of access 
 
 The great keynote — gold 
 
 A splendid future of mineral developments 
 
 Mining Fields now being Developed 
 
 British Columbia 
 
 First discovery of gold and subsequent work 
 
 Vancouver Island ; gold and coal 
 
 iVOOvODfty ••• ••• ••■ ••• ••• ••• 
 
 ■''•'■ Gold output and characteristics of the country ... 
 
 '•' Other minerals 
 
 .. n. —'<':. Classification of B.C. ores 
 
 . . Government mining grants 
 
 ' Mining wages 
 
 Dr. Dawson's opinion of B.C. mining prospects 
 
 Ontflrio >•• ..• ••• ••. ••• .i. ••* 
 
 Free grant lands 
 
 ^ 1CK61 ••• ■•• *•• ••• ••• #•« ••• 
 
 . ,, V ■,.•-,. The new value of nickel 
 
 The minerals and metals of East Ontario 
 
 Petroleum nprings and salt wells 
 
 The oldest mining district 
 
 Lake of the Woods district 
 
 Lake of the Woods gold output 
 
 A new goldfield 
 
 Northern Ali>erta 
 
 Gold on the Saskatchewan River 
 
 The Yulcon Country 
 
 Befetenoe to Part IL and Appendix 
 
Xll. 
 
 ... . , INDEX — continued. 
 
 Mining Fields awaiting Development ... ... ... 12 
 
 Important Extracts from a notable report 12 
 
 - Extent of auriferous ooantry in the N. W. Territories ... 12 
 
 Location of various mineral deposits 18 
 
 An immense petroleum area ... 18 
 
 Bich fields beyond the Klondike district ... 18 
 
 The new gold discoveries at Michipicoton 14 
 
 The Canadian Chamber of Mines, London 14 
 
 Professor Wilmott's Report on Michipicoton 14 
 
 Position of the new field 15 
 
 Boutes to the Michipicoton country .. 15 
 
 Gold-bearing country north of Lake Winnipeg 16 
 
 A New Mining Field 16 
 
 ' Boutes to the field 17 
 
 Numerous quartz veins 19 
 
 Promising field for prospectors 20 
 
 Soil and climate ... 20 
 
 Extracts from Geological Notes on the North-western 
 Territories by Geo. M. Dawson, C.M.O., D.5., F.Q.5., 
 
 Director of the Geological Survey of Canada 20 
 
 Slave Biver, petroleiun deposits 20 
 
 Salt springs ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 21 
 
 Great Slave Lake 22 
 
 West end of the Lake — Bitumen 22 
 
 Geological definition 22 
 
 Mackenzie River, from Great Slave Lake to Bear Lake 
 
 i\i T cr ••• ••• ••• ■•• •■• ••• ••* ••• Av 
 
 Geological formation 28 
 
 Bituminous shale 28 
 
 Liard Biver 28 
 
 Graphite and iron ore 24 
 
 Beds of lignite ... ... ... ... ... ... 24 
 
 Great Bear Lake and vicinity 25 
 
 Bitumen, alum, shale and brown coal . , 25 
 
 Limestone rocks, saturated with petroleum 25 
 
 Oftlu. ••• ••• ••• •«• ••• ••• ••• ••• MV 
 
 Mackenzie River and vicinity, below Bear Lake River ... 26 
 
 Peel Biver ... • 26 
 
XIU. 
 
 INDEX — contimied. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Country between Great Slave Lake and the Mouth of 
 
 Coppermine River 26 
 
 The copper mountains .. 2^ 
 
 a'' V Mode of occurrence of the copper 29 
 
 . . Country North of Copper Mountains 80 
 
 Chromic iron * ... 80 
 
 Arctic Coast, West of the Maclcenzle River 80 
 
 Continental Coast, from Maclcenzie River to Boothia 
 
 Peninsula 31 
 
 Boothian and Melville Peninsulas, and vicinity 84 
 
 Melville Peninsula 84 
 
 Northern Continental Shore East of Hudson Bay, with 
 
 Baffin Land ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 85 
 
 Copper and iron ores ... 86 
 
 Coal formations 87 
 
 Coal outcrops 88 
 
 Routes to the Yukon and Far N.W. Territories of Canada ... 89 
 
 Routes to the Yukon from the West Coast 89 
 
 •• ■^ Railways from the West Coast 40 
 
 Objections to short costly railways . 40 
 
 ■'■ Railways from a dividend-paying poiui, of view 40 
 
 "^ ' ' ' Good waggon roads V. short railways 40 
 
 Travellers and Traffic v. Railway Shareholders 41 
 
 • ■ . White Pass and Stikeen routes 41 
 
 " „ The White Pass route 42 
 
 The Stikeen route 42 
 
 '"" ' ^ Ugly features of the St. Michael's Chilkoot and Taku 
 
 • • . River routes 42 
 
 The St. Michael's Route 48 
 
 ' - " The Chilkoot Pass Route 48 
 
 The Taku Pass Route 43 
 
 Chief object of these pages 48 
 
 Routes and approaches from the East and South East ... 43 
 
 Overland from Edmonton 48 
 
 A bad feature in the railway question ... 44 
 
 Liard and Peace River routes 44 
 
 The Mackenzie River route 44 
 
 Route from Hudson's Bay to the Yukon 46 
 
 The Route of the future 45 
 
 Hudson's Bay 46 
 
XIV. , V ' 
 
 INDEX — continued. , 
 
 FAOZ. 
 
 Safety of navigation in Hudson's Bay 46 
 
 Resources of the Hudson's Bay country 47 
 
 The route '.fter lea^-ing Chesterfield Inlet 47 
 
 A water«ray between the Inlet and Great Slave Lake ... 47 
 
 The Great Slave Lake section of the route 43 
 
 The Mackenzie Biver section 4d 
 
 Navigation of the Mackenzie 48 
 
 Country tapped by a Hudson's Bay route 49 
 
 The navigable area of the Mackenzie and its resources ... 49 
 
 The Peace Biver 49 
 
 Tlie Liard Biver 49 
 
 The Peel Biver 50 
 
 Serviceable tributaries of the Mackenzie ... 50 
 
 A report of great value 50 
 
 Summer route firom the Mouth of the Mackenzie to 
 
 tll6 JL UKOH ••• ••• ••• ••• ••» ••• ••• OX 
 
 Winter route from the Mouth of the Mackenzie to 
 
 the Yukon ... ... ... ... ... . > ... 51 
 
 Valuable discoveries on this route 51 
 
 The through Peel Biver route 52 
 
 Mr. Ogilvie on the through Peel Biver route to the 
 
 headwaters of the Stewart Biver 52 
 
 The Up-Porcupine route via Tatonduc Biver 62 
 
 Navigation of rivers by the Mackenzie Mouth Boute ... 58 
 
 Proximity of Yukon and Mackenzie navigable waters ... 53 
 
 Official particulars which establish important facts ... 53 
 
 Route via Behrlng 5trait and Mouth of Mackenzie ... 54 
 
 The Arctic Ocean route ; important points 54 
 
 A noteworthy extract bearing upon the navigation of 
 
 Canadian Arctic seas 55 
 
 An important adjunct; Arctic Sea Fisheries 55 
 
 . Whaling in Mackenzie Bay 65 
 
 Taking machinery, etc., to headwaters of the Peel, 
 
 Stewart, and MacmUlan Bivers 55 
 
 American whalers in Mackenzie Bay 56 
 
 An attractive opening for British enterprise 56 
 
 The Archangel of North America 57 
 
 Comparisons with Arctic seaports in Northern Europe 
 
 and Asia ... ... ... ... ... ... a., oi 
 
 The Canadian Dominion's future 67 
 
XV. 
 
 INDEX TO PAKT II -AUTHOKITIES. 
 
 SBOnON PAOB. 
 
 1. Untold wealth of Alluvial Gold in the Country 59 
 
 The Yukon Goldfielda 60 
 
 The Elondyke Biver and District ... 64 
 
 1888 Committee's Beport and Evidence of Bishop Glut ... 67 
 
 Mr. W. Ogilvie'« 1887 Beport 67 
 
 Important and Beliftble Newspaper Bepoits, commencing at 
 
 Beport of Inspectors Constanttae and Strickland 76 
 
 The Stupendous richness of Klondyke 77 
 
 New Gold Discoveries of great richness 80 
 
 A Quartz Beef on the White Pass 61 
 
 A Stupendous Output of Gold predicted for 1898 ..v ... 81 
 
 The Great •• Bush " of 1898 82 
 
 Klondyke's Marvels, by a Yukon Pioneer 83 
 
 A Miner's Life on the Elondyke 84 
 
 A New Field in Alaska ;. ... 84 
 
 An Interview with an Alaskan Pioneer 84 
 
 Interview with a Elondyke Miner ... 87 
 
 Ontario Mining 87 
 
 The Biohest Man in the World... 88 
 
 Mr. Wm. Ogilvie on the Yukon Goldfields 88- 
 
 Value of Yukon Gold 89 
 
 2. Quartz Reefs in the Mountains and at the Headwaters of 
 
 xne riivers ... >>• ... ... ... ... ... ... 90 
 
 Wm. Ogilvie's 1896-97 Report on Quartz Beefs .,. ... 90 
 
 Inspector Constantine's Beport 91 
 
 Interview with Dr. Dawson 92 
 
 3. The Source of the Klondyke Placer Gold 93 
 
 Quartz Beefs in the Bockies towards the Mackenzie Biver ... 94 
 
 Quartz Beefs on Stewart Biver and Headwaters 94 
 
 Formation of the Yukon Goldfields 95 
 
 4. Other Minerals 97 
 
 Beports of 1888 Committee and Expei-ts, commencing page.. 97 
 
 Mineral Besources of the N. W. Territories 99 
 
 Evidence of McConnoU and Prof. Bell 99 
 
 Evidence of Anderson, the Explorer, and Dr. Dawson ... 101 
 Evidence of Wm. Christie and J. Burr Tyrrell ... ...102 
 
 Discoveries of Gold, Iron and Copper; Chesterfield Inlet 
 
 and Lake Athabasca 
 
 ... 102 
 
XVI. 
 
 INDEX — continued. 
 
 SECTION PA0JI 
 
 Petroleum Fields of Immense Value 103 
 
 Ironstone and Copper, West of Chesterfield ialet 103 
 
 5. Coal for Visiting Steamships, Manufactures and Mining 
 
 inuusiries ••• #•• ••• ••• •■• ••• ••* ••• ^v% 
 
 Evidence of Professor Macoun and Dr. Hurlbert 104 
 
 Evidence of Wm. Ogilvie and M. McLeod, Q.C 105 
 
 Coal near the Mouth of the Mackenzie 106 
 
 A Fore-runner of Great Coal Discoveries 106 
 
 Coal on the Yukon ... 106 
 
 6. Hydrauiio and Placer Mining 107 
 
 Report by Mr. Wm. Ogilvie 107 
 
 Gold in the Stewart Kiver (R. G. McConnell) 107 
 
 Placer Mining in the Klondyke Country i08 
 
 Prospecting with " Rocker " and Pan 112 
 
 7. Furs, Ivory, Ac lis 
 
 Evidence of Experts 113 
 
 London Sales of Hudson's Bay Company's Furs, etc. ... . 118 
 Large and Excepj'onally Fine Specimens of Ivory found ... 114 
 An Alaskan Plain strewn with Ivory Tusks 115 
 
 8. Steam Navigation from Vancouver via Behring Straits to 
 
 Mackenzie bay and tlirough to Mackenzie River 116 
 
 The only Navigable Channel ; a Safe Harbour 119 
 
 ^. Whaling and Sealinf" off the Mouth of Mackenzie River; 
 
 Splendid prospects 120 
 
 Valuable Ivory Deposits 122 
 
 Whaling Statistics 123 
 
 Inspector Constantine's Bf^port on Mackenzie Bay and the 
 Whaling there 124 
 
 Whaling Profits and Particulars 125 
 
 Whaling in the Arctic Ocean via Mackenzie River 126 
 
 10. Navigability, <&c., of the Country's Seas, Rivers and Lakes 126 
 
 a. Distance between Mackenzie and Yukon Rivers 128 
 
 The Mackenzie River and Tributaries 128 
 
 b. The Porcupine, Rat and Bell Rivers 129 
 
 Bell and Rat Rivers, and McDougal's Pass 181 
 
 c. The Peel River 188 
 
 d. The Yukon River 184 
 
 A Trip np the Yukon 184 
 
XVll. 
 
 INDEX — continued. 
 
 SECTION 
 
 e. The Klondike Biver 
 
 /. The Tatondiic, Porcupine and Peel Rivers 
 
 g. The Stewart River 
 
 h. MacMillan River 
 
 The Porcupine Mackenzie Route 
 
 *. The Pelly River 
 
 j. The Lewes River 
 
 h. The Liard, Francis and Dease Rivers; also Dease and 
 
 Francis Lakes... 
 
 The Liard River 
 
 ; Dangers of the Liard Route 
 
 From the Liard to the Pelly 
 
 Gold on the Liard and Francis Rivers 
 
 Francis Lake ... ... ... ... 
 
 Road from Francis Lake to Pelly Banks 
 
 i. X/Case Xvive?* ... ... ... ... .*• .* 
 
 m. The Peace River 
 
 Coal on the Peace River 
 
 Distances and description of the Peace River 
 
 Agriculture on the Peace River 
 
 n. Old Stikine Route 
 
 The New Stikine Route 
 
 The Stikine Route Railway 
 
 The C.P.R. and the proposed Stikine Railway 
 
 Gold on the Stikine : 
 
 0. The Tes-lin-too (Hootalinqua) River 
 
 p. The Big Salmon River 
 
 q. The Tahl-Tan River 
 
 r. The Chilkoot (Taiya) Pass 
 
 A Railway Line from Chilcoot Inlet to Fort Selkirk .. 
 
 a. The Chilkat Pass 
 
 t. The White Pass 
 
 V. The Taiya Pass Route 
 
 w. Taku Route to Lake Teslin-too ... .. 
 
 A Significant Incident 
 
 X. Taku and Windy Arms 
 
 y. Large Rivers Flowing into Hudson's Bay 
 
 11. Distances of Chief River, Sea, Lalte and Overland Routes 
 
 Routes from Liverpool to the Yukon Goldfields 
 
 W. Ogilvie's Distances, 1896 
 
 P&OB 
 
 .. 186 
 
 .. 18G 
 
 .. 189 
 
 .. 141 
 
 .. 141 
 
 .. 142 
 
 .. 142 
 
 142 
 .. 148 
 .. 144 
 .. 144 
 .. 145 
 .. 145 
 .. 145 
 .. 146 
 .. 146 
 .. 146 
 .. 146 
 .. 148 
 .. 148 
 .. 150 
 .. 152 
 .. 162 
 .. 153 
 .. 168 
 .. 158 
 .. 154 
 .. 154 
 .. 154 
 .. 155 
 .. 155 
 .. 156 
 .. 156 
 .. 157 
 ., 158 
 .. 158 
 
 .. 160 
 .. 160 
 161 
 
XVUl. 
 
 INDEX — continued. 
 
 SECTION 
 
 PAOB 
 
 161 
 168 
 168 
 
 Goverument Map MeasurementB 
 
 The Upper Felly 
 
 Dawson's Distances from Fort Selkirk to Taiya Inlet 
 
 Distances from Head of Chilkoot Inlet to the Boundary Line 
 on the Yukon River between N. W. Territories and Alaska 165 
 
 Distances from Fort Macpherson to Fort Chipewan 166 
 
 Distances to points on Peace River from Fort Chippewyan on 
 Athabasca Lake ••• ... ... ... ... ... ... 168 
 
 Athabasca Landing to Great Slave Lake ... 168 
 
 Lengths of some of the Chief Lakes 169 
 
 Route from Athabasca Landing to the Peace River 169 
 
 12. Ice on Rivers and Lakes 
 
 Ice on Mackenzie and Tributaries 
 
 Ice on Great Slave Lake 
 
 Ice on the Stikine 
 
 Ice on Dease Lake 
 
 Ice on the Liard 
 
 Ice on the Peace 
 
 Ice on the Lewes 
 
 Ice on the Yukon 
 
 Ice on Lake Bennett 
 
 Ice on the Churchill River 
 
 174 
 174 
 
 13. Restrictions to large Foreign Joint-Stocl< Companies on 
 
 the British Yulton 172 
 
 14. Climate 
 
 Daylight in the N.W. Territories (Actual Sunlight) .. 
 
 Mean Temperature at Fort Franklin, Great Bear Lake, 
 
 Lat. 66° 12' 175 
 
 Small Snowfall on the Mackenzie 175 
 
 The Open Sea at the Mouth of the Mackenzie 176 
 
 Important Changes in the Climate 176 
 
 16. Indians and Esquimaux 177 
 
 Employment of Indians : their numbers 177 
 
 Trading with the Indians 178 
 
 16. Fish (freshwater) and Game ..:... 178 
 
 17. Corn, Vegetables and Pasturage 180 
 
 18. Difficulties of Routes from the South 182 
 
 169 
 169 
 170 
 170 
 171 
 171 
 171 
 171 
 171 
 172 
 172 
 
XIX. 
 
 INDEX — conLinued. 
 
 SECTION 
 
 19. Sub-Apctio Winter Travelling; Reindeer, Dogs, etc. 
 
 Dog-Trains for the Yukon 
 
 Prices and Particulars of Dogs 
 
 River Travel in Winter 
 
 Reindeer Transport 
 
 River Travelling on the Yukon 
 
 20. Population of the Future 
 
 The " Rush " of '98 to alter the face of the Country... 
 New Comers must go fur Afield 
 
 21. Present and Prospective Routes to the Gold Fields... 
 
 St. Michael's Route 
 
 The Chilcoot Pass Route ... ... ... ... ••• 
 
 The Chilcat Pass Route ... ... ... ... 
 
 The Taiya Pass Route 
 
 The White Pass Route 
 
 Behring Strait to Mouth of Mackenzie River 
 
 The Mackenzie River Route 
 
 Edmonton Route via the Mackenzie River 
 
 The Peace River Route 
 
 The Liard River Route 
 
 The Stikine River Route via Teslin Lake 
 
 The Taku River Route via Teslin Lake 
 
 Bound's Overland Route 
 
 Dalton's Overland Route 
 
 The Edmonton Routes 
 
 All Canadian Routes .. ... 
 
 The Most Likely Route from Edmonton to the Yukon 
 
 The Churchill Route from Hudson's Bay 
 
 The Old Hudson Bay Route from York Factory at the 
 Mouth of the Nelson, Hudson Ba^', to the Mackenzie 
 
 xtlVGr ••• ••• ••* ••• ••• ••• ••• ••• £\Jij 
 
 U. S. America v. British Routes to the Yukon Goldfields ... 203 
 
 The Chesterfield Inlet and Mackenzie River Route 205 
 
 Another Route from Mackenzie River to the Stewart 
 Headwaters ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 205 
 
 ^22. The Chesterfield Inlet Route 20C 
 
 The shortest Route from Europe to the Yukon Country ... 207 
 
 London to Klondyke in a Fortnight 208 
 
 The Hudson's Bay to Klondyke scheme 210 
 
 Trade Routes from the East to the Yukon 212 
 
 
 PAGB 
 
 • • ■ 
 
 180 
 
 • •• 
 
 188 
 
 • •• 
 
 188 
 
 • •• 
 
 189 
 
 • • • 
 
 189 
 
 • •• 
 
 190 
 
 at* 
 
 190 
 
 • •• 
 
 192 
 
 • • t 
 
 192 
 
 • •• 
 
 198 
 
 ■ • • 
 
 108 
 
 • •• 
 
 198 
 
 • •• 
 
 198 
 
 • •• 
 
 193 
 
 • ■ « 
 
 198 
 
 • •• 
 
 198 
 
 • •• 
 
 194 
 
 • ■• 
 
 194 
 
 • •• 
 
 195 
 
 • •• 
 
 195 
 
 • •• 
 
 196 
 
 • • • 
 
 19G 
 
 • •• 
 
 19G 
 
 • • • 
 
 196 
 
 • .• 
 
 196 
 
 • • • 
 
 199 
 
 • •a 
 
 200 
 
 • ■ • 
 
 202 
 
 |23. To Chesterfield Inlet from Athabasca Lake 
 
 215 
 
zz. 
 
 INDEX — continued. 
 
 SECTION PAGE 
 
 24. The Sub-Arctic Territory of North Canada 217 
 
 An Important Un-Mapped Biver 219 
 
 Extracts from the Explorer Anderson's Diary 220 
 
 Agriculture on the verge of the Barren Grounds 220 
 
 The Chesterfield Inlet Coimtry 221 
 
 25. Important Comparison with Northern Russia and Asia ... 228 
 
 Some Particulars of Archangel 223 
 
 Populous Towns in Sub- Arctic Europe and Asia ... ...228 
 
 The Possibilities of the Mackenzie-Yukon Country 224 
 
 26. Hudson's Bay and its Territory 225 
 
 Extent and Besources of the Territory 225 
 
 The Hudson's Bay Sea Boute ... 227 
 
 Exports and Cost of Transport 227 
 
 Hudson's Bay 227 
 
 Navigation of the Bay 228 
 
 Besources of the Hudson's Bay Territory 229 
 
 Minerals in the Hudson's Bay Territory 280 
 
 The New Importance of Hudson's Bay 231 
 
 I Agricultural Possibilities 232 
 
 Advantage in Distance of the Hudson's Bay Boute 282 
 
 A Passenger Boute of National Importance 283 
 
 No Obstructions to Navigation 234 
 
 Period of Open Navigation in the Bay and Bivers 234 
 
 Economic Advantages of this Boute to Europe 285 
 
 Becord of Wrecks in Hudson's Bay ; only one in 374 Years ... 286 
 Important Evidence of the Bay's Navigation 286 
 
 27. Dangers of the Chilltat, Taiya, Chiil^oot and White Passes... 287 
 
 ao. uenerai ... ... ... ... ... ... .. 
 
 A Yukon Outfit 
 
 Joe Ladue's Food Outfit for Twelve Months 
 
 Klondyke Market Prices, July, 1897 
 
 Another Table of Prices 
 
 A Light-Weight Outfit 
 
 A 12 Months' Outfit 
 
 Fares and Time from Liverpool to the Klondyke 
 
 How a Miner " Pegs-Out " on the Yukon 
 
 The British Columbia Boimdary question 
 
 Hints to the Mining Novice 
 
 Condensed Foods for the Far N. W. Territories 
 
 The Table of a Year's Food 
 
 The Klondyke Food Pack 
 
 Termination of the Hudson Bay Company's Charter 
 Appoudix ••• «•• ••• ••• ••• •*• •• 
 
 242 
 248 
 244 
 
 244 
 245 
 246 
 246 
 247 
 248 
 248 
 252 
 254 
 257 
 258 
 258 
 239 
 
THE 
 
 ROUTES AND MINERAL RESOURCES 
 
 OP 
 
 N. W. CANADA. 
 
 PART I.— ARGUMENT. 
 
 Until a few months ago the Canadian Dominion was 
 
 chiefly known, written about, and lectured upon as a 
 
 country of great and promising agricultural capacity, 
 
 excepting that portion west of the Eockies known as the 
 
 province of British Columbia, which enjoys such world- ] 
 
 wide repute as a country of well-nigh illimitable resource 
 
 in its mining, agricultural, pastoral, timber, and fishing 
 
 industries, as to need little more than passing reference 
 
 ia these pages. 
 
 Well-informed people, however, had kept themselves 
 posted up in the reports of the Dominion's ably con- 
 ducted Geological Survey, and were aware of the 
 boundless stores of mineral wealth, only awaiting man's 
 enterprise and ingenuity to locate it and his energy to 
 unearth it. 
 
 There were, however, many circumstances which hithertourc- 
 pre vented mineral exploitation, but the most potent development^ 
 hindrances were the inaccessible character of the country 
 and the want of a prospecting community. Means of 
 access would soon have been forthcoming had a pressing 
 demand arisen, but this could only be provided by popu- 
 lation. The steady growth of an agricultural people 
 could not supply this want, it required the colonizing 
 influence of gold discoveries. 
 
 The majority of mining men are rovers ; here to-day, 
 Australia to-morrow — so to speak — and South Africa the 
 next day. Had it not been for the gold-mining attractions 
 
 B 
 
The first and 
 following 
 mining 
 developments. 
 
 A matter of 
 tho highest 
 impoirtance to 
 commercial 
 men. 
 
 of the last-mentionud countries, follovvinj,' those of 
 California fifty years ago, this roving hand of adventurous 
 men would long ago have turned their attention to this 
 most promising land, and hrought it well on to the high 
 road of mineral development, instead of it being as it is 
 to-day merely in the groping stage. 
 
 On the decline of the Californian diggings tlie miners 
 gradually scattered and many found their way into 
 Canada, chiefly along the Columbia and Fraser Eivers, 
 and in the late fifties tho placer mines of Cariboo 
 became known. These were followed by the Cassiar 
 "rush," and ultimately led to the discovery of magni- 
 ficent gold-bearing quartz in Kootenay, where a large 
 amount of British capital has been invested during the 
 last two years. 
 
 As the Cassiar placers were worked out miners 
 drifted further west and north, prospecting on the Dease 
 and Liard Eivers, and along the Lewes into the Yukon 
 district. Others sought the snow-bound regions of 
 Alaska, ultimately finding their way on to the gold- 
 bearing tributaries of the Yukon Eiver. The wonderful 
 discoveries on the Klondyke creeks of 1896, and last 
 year, *97, are the result, and are believed by the highly 
 qualified ofiicers of the Canadian Geological Survey and 
 other experts, to be the very probable forerunner of 
 greater and richer discoveries in that immense gold- 
 bearing region between the Yukon and Mackenzie Eivers 
 which Dr. Dawson describes as occupying a total 
 approximate area of 192,000 square miles. (See Section 1. 
 Part II.) 
 
 The prominence which this vast region will occupy 
 amongst the gold-bearing countries of the world, and the 
 important position it will take in the eyes of the world's 
 commercial centres, may be gauged by the facts that the 
 above-mentioned area is nearly equal that of France, and 
 greater than the United Kingdom by 71,000 square 
 miles, and that almost all supplies must be imported, as 
 the soil and climate are unsuited for any appreciable 
 agricultural production. 
 
8 
 
 A considerablo proportion of the North-Western p,|'®o°°K*jS'^ 
 Territories of Canada may be unquestionably termed tiisoovery. 
 sub-arctic, but in this hitherto shunned region there is 
 ever}' reason to believe the proud and promising Dominion 
 will find its greatest source of wealth. But what cares 
 the gold- seeker for snow-swept plains and ica-locked 
 streams ? These obstacles may throw him back beaten 
 and bruised to-day, but the sesame " gold " brings him 
 back undaunted on the morrow and passes him through. 
 Countless numbers follow on his track and the history of 
 a new country, possibly a nation, begins. The story of 
 California, Australia, and South Africa is again repeated. 
 Such is the colonising power of gold discovery. 
 
 The permanency of this new field will depend upon present wealth 
 the existence and value of quartz reefs which all experts prospectTof 
 declai-e must exist to great extent in close proximicy. It toriea". * 
 is reasonable to believe that the value of these reefs will 
 be in proportion to that of the adjacent placers, t!i3 
 extraordinary richness of which is vouched for by the 
 highest authority on the district — Mr. William Ogilvie, 
 who has repeatedly declared that out of two Klondyke 
 creeks alone — the Bonanza and the El Dorado — 
 £15,000,000 worth of gold will be taken, and that Canada - 
 has in the Yukon district 100,000 square miles over the 
 whole of which rich prospects have been found. But 
 Mr. Ogilvie also reports having tested quartz reefs in the 
 neighbourhood which yielded gold at the rate of 1,000 
 dollars worth to the ton. Inspector Constantino, chief 
 of the police during 1896 also reports the country being 
 full of quartz ledges more or less valuable, and that the 
 befct paying streams are those which, rising in the Eocky 
 Mountains, run into the Yukon from the East. "When 
 to these official statements is added that of Dr. G. M. 
 Dawson, the chief of the Geological Survey of Canada — 
 "the entire range of the Eocky Mountains extending to 
 the Arctic regions is rich in minerals," and referring to 
 the rich Klondyke placers — *' where such large deposits 
 of heavy placer gold have been found there must have 
 been at some time large quantities of gold in quartz at no 
 
 b2 
 
The great 
 f utnre of the 
 regioa. 
 
 The questica 
 of access. 
 
 The great key 
 note— geld. 
 
 very great distance and these quartz veins still exist," 
 (see Section 2. Part II.), one's eyes are opened to a 
 long and widening vista of future possibilities for the 
 North-West Territories. 
 
 It must, consequently, be taken for granted that the 
 Western side of these sub-Arctic mountains — on the 
 tributaries and at the headwaters of the Lewes, Yukon, 
 Pelly, Macmillan, Stewart, Peel, Porcupine and other 
 rivers — will be the scene of great activity in years to 
 come, when the glens and mountain passes of this wild 
 region will resound with the whirr and thud of mining 
 machinery and the strident march of civilisation. 
 
 It is quite reasonable to suppose that the Eastern 
 side of these far Northern ranges may also be found 
 equally rich as is the case further South in the neigh- 
 bourhood of the Liard and other aujacent rivers, and 
 still further South in the States. And in the pursuit of the 
 yellow metal are there not in this region vast stores of 
 other concomitant products such as coal and iron which 
 may open up such a field of industry in this far North- 
 West Territory as not even the most sanguine has 
 dared to forecast ? 
 
 The question of access, as has already been pointed 
 out, has been one of the obstacles to mineral exploitation 
 of North- West Canada in the past. But the solution of 
 this matter only awaited the striking of a note in a 
 certain key and all difficulties surrounding the question 
 became mere details to be summarily swept aside 
 before The Great Purpose. This key note was struck 
 in California fifty years ago when similar difficulties 
 were dealt with as drift before a cyclone. One of these 
 difficulties was a 2,000 mile waggon journey through 
 an unknown country that was not only heartbreaking in 
 its trials, but was infested with robbers and hostile 
 Indians who ravaged, murdered and despoiled in a 
 manner sufficient to terrify the most courageous, ex- 
 cepting those lured by the keynote — gold. " 
 
 This keynote was next struck in Australia, and 
 18,000 miles of what was then considered a desperate and 
 
perilous voyage was undertaken by scores of thousands 
 without a moment's hesitation. New Zealand, Mexico, 
 Columbia, South Africa, West AustraUa — all countries 
 where trials had to be endured — each struck this irresis- 
 tible keynote, and a new era of prosperous development 
 set in for each. Great cities arose, costly railways were 
 built, manufactories were established and splendid 
 fortunes were made ; the countries were developed. The 
 richer and more permanent the fields the greater the 
 development, and the more magnificent the cities and 
 industries. 
 
 "With these examples before us there is every reason a spicnaia 
 to anticipate a splendid future of mineral development inincrai 
 for the Canadian North- West Territories, now that the 
 magical keynote has been struck in the Yukon, and with 
 this a development of trade, manufacturing and agricul- 
 tural production which will not only bring wealth to the 
 Dominion, but will give this great British possession a 
 position in the world which will qualify it to play no 
 unimportant part in those questions which concern the 
 world's welfare. 
 
 (levclopmeiit. 
 
 Mining Fields now being Developed. 
 
 Before dealing with the important question of means 
 of access to the Yukon and other far distant portions of 
 the North- West Territories, a brief reference might be 
 made to the mining fields of the Dominion now being 
 worked, and those that might be termed prospective. 
 
 British Columbia. 
 
 (See, also, Appendix). 
 
 Gold was first discovered in this province early in First discovery 
 the fifties, following the great Californian rush of 1849. subfiwt 
 At first, and for many years, it was nearly all placer or 
 alluvial mining in valleys on the banks of rivers or along 
 old creek beds. Splendid returns were made on many 
 occasions and there were several " rushes " to different 
 parts of the country. In the year 1863 gold to the value 
 
 work. 
 
6 
 
 Vanconver 
 Island; gold 
 and coal. 
 
 Eootenay. 
 
 of £800,000 was taken out of British Columbia placers, 
 but from about that time returns declined until in 1893 
 the annual output was valued at only about £70,000. 
 About 1890, however, quartz mining, under modern 
 methods, v^as introduced and a new era in the industry 
 set in for the province. The Cassiar and Cariboo fields 
 have not yet been exploited for quartz and are still being 
 successfully worked for placer gold.* 
 
 It is said that from the time the traveller enters 
 British Columbia through Hell's-gate Pass till he reaches 
 salt water, or the extreme west of Vancouver Island, he 
 cannot get away from minerals. At Alberni and Barclay 
 on this island miners claim to have had assays running 
 £2 to the ton, while the placers on China Creek are said 
 to be miniature El Dorados. Gold mining on Vancouver 
 Island is not done on a very extensive scale, though 
 prospects appear promising enough, but the coal mines 
 are big enough to supply the world. Since these mines 
 were first worked in 1836 they have yielded 11,000,000 
 tons, woi'th £6,600,000. For the last six years the output 
 has represented £400,000 per year. 
 
 It is on the mainland, however, in the Trail district, 
 the Slocan, East Kootenay, Boundary Creek, Harrison 
 Lake, Cariboo and Cassiar, that the great mineral 
 development, in gold mining chiefly, is looked for. 
 
 The great gold-producing district of British Columbia 
 is the Kootenay, which is by far the most important 
 mining sub-division of the province. Its richest part 
 is that known as Trail Creek on either side of the 
 Columbia Eiver. Its chief centre is Eossland, a town 
 with a population of 5,000. 
 
 This district is by no means a new one. It was 
 first discovered in 1824 by H. B. Coy voyageurs and 
 further exploited by miners travelling into Canada from 
 California along the Colimibia river. A "rush" to the 
 district took place in the early sixties, but the difficulties of 
 mining the low grade surface ores in the district, the want 
 of means of communication and gold rushes elsewhere 
 
 (*Se0 Apj^endix—" Another ^ew Gold Field in British Columbia.") 
 
drove (or drew) the miners away, and it was not until the 
 last six or seven years that systematic efforts were made to 
 open up the fields. The results have been most encouraging. 
 In 1896 £773,000 worth of gold and silver was 
 produced in the Kootenay and last year (1897) it is 
 expected there will be a large Increase ; £2,000,000 
 worth of gold being the estimate, though five years ago 
 the lode-gold production was practically nil. : 
 
 British Columbia's record in gold production up to a,fd^oharacter- 
 date is the very respectable total of nearly £12,000,000, ^^o*^\g*^® 
 while the total value of the output of mineral wealth is 
 set down at £20,000,000. This is not brilliant compared 
 with some of the Australasian colonies, but it must be 
 remembered that gold mining in British Columbia has 
 scarcely passed beyond the surface-scratching stage. 
 As showing, however, the rapidity with which develop- 
 ments are taki'.g place it is recorded that in 1896 upwards 
 of 112,000 mineral claims were staked out, 8,000 of these 
 being in West Kootenay. Another point to be borne 
 in mind is that there is scarcely a square mile of the 
 province that is not in sight of gold-bearing country. 
 
 Mining in British Columbia is not altogether confined other minerals 
 to gold. Various minerals are worked, the chief of which 
 are ^ilvor, lead, iron, cinnabar, and copper. Coal is also 
 found in several localities, especially on Vancouver Island 
 and in the south-east, in the vicinity of the Crow's Pass. j 
 Here 20 outcropping seams were recently discovered, 
 having a total thickness of from 132 to 448 feet. Just 
 outside the border on the Canadian Pacific Eailway lino 
 and on Queen Charlotte Islands large seams have been 
 found. On these islands, also, there are very rich 
 undeveloped anthracite fields. 
 
 The Standard of August 28th gives the following ciassmcatiou 
 classification of British Columbia ores : — (a) Coarse- Columbia ores, 
 grained pyrrhoUte, or " iron ore," containing very little 
 gold ; (6) ore containing iron pyrites, arseno-pyrites, and 
 other compounds, in which the silver value exceeds the 
 gold ; (c) typical ore of the principal mining camps, 
 divided into two classes, the first of which yields on an 
 
8 
 
 Government 
 mining grants. 
 
 Mining wages 
 in British 
 Colnmbia. 
 
 Dr. Dawson'a 
 opinion of 
 British 
 Columbia 
 prospects. 
 
 Free Graut 
 LandH. 
 
 average 2-6 oz. of gold, 1'8 oz. of silver, and 2-5 per cent, 
 of copper to the ton, and the second about half the 
 quantity of each. According to the mining regulations, 
 a Crown grant is given on completion of £100 worth of 
 work, while a claim held as a location requires that its 
 owners each have a free miner's license and do £20 
 worth of work per annum, or pay £20 into the provincial 
 treasury. Wages run from 12s, to 20s. a day for shifts 
 of eight to ten hours. 
 
 Dr. Dawson, the recognised and greatest authority 
 on mineralogy in Canada, states — " Everything that 
 has been ascertained of the geological character of the 
 province, as a whole, tends to the belief that, as soon as 
 means of travel and transport shall be extended to what 
 are still the most inaccessible districts, they also will be 
 discovered to be equally rich in minerals, particularly in 
 precious metals — gold and silver. 
 
 Ontario. 
 
 {See, also, Aiypendix.) 
 This province bears the reputation of being the most 
 beautiful and healthful in America, if not in the world. 
 It may also truthfully be said to have the most fei'tile 
 soil, the richest area of mineral country, and the most 
 liberal land laws. 
 
 Its immense area of 222,000 square miles only con- 
 tains a population 2,114,000, thus providing wide scope 
 for the industrious immigrant. A word or two for the 
 intending emigrant bent on agriculture. 
 
 Any head of a family, whether male or sole female, 
 having children under 18 years of age, can obtain a grant 
 of 200 acres ; and a single man over 18 years of age, or 
 a married man having no children under 18 residing 
 with him, can obtain a grant of 100 acres. 
 
 Such a person may also purchase an additional 100 
 acres at 50 cents (28. Id.) per acre, cash. 
 
 This province is known to be extremely rich in 
 minerals throughout its entire extent, which, however, 
 is practically unexplored ; but enough is known to prove 
 
9 
 
 that the disti-icts north of Lakes Huron and Superior 
 are enormously rich in gold, iron, silver, copper, nickel 
 and other minerals. 
 
 The nickel deposits ai'e practically of illimitable extent Nickel, 
 and enormous value. They are situated at Sudbury, 
 near the north shore of Lake Huron. Their importance, 
 which was first recognised six or seven years ago, has of^fj"®^!^*^"® 
 been much enhanced by the recent decision of the 
 Admiralty to use nickel-steel armour plating for our new 
 ships of war, as only one other large deposit of the 
 metal is known to exist — namely, in the French Colony 
 of New Caledonia, where it is much less accessible than 
 at Sudbury. The nickel occurs in association with 
 copper, in the form of pyrrhotite, and it was for copper 
 that the mines were originally worked. The presence 
 of nickel was only discovered through metallurgical 
 difficulties in treating the copper ; but since 1890 the 
 mines have been worked for both by a Copper Company, 
 a concern consisting chiefly of American capital. The 
 ore contains from 2 to 3 per cent, of nickel, and the 
 deposits have been proved to be very extensive. The 
 deepest shaft occurs in what is known as the " Copper 
 Cliff Mine; " it has been sunk to the eleventh level — say 
 about 700 feet — and the ore shows no sign of giving in. 
 Other nickel companies have now been formed for ex- 
 tending the industry, and Canada looks forward with 
 good reason to developing it into a leading source of 
 wealth. 
 
 In eastern Ontario there have been considerable Ooid, galena, 
 
 finds of gold, galena and mica, while the quarrying of anTiii^biefn 
 
 apatite, or phosphate of lime, and marble of excellent ^' ^"**'*°" 
 quality, are both profitable industries. 
 
 In the southern district, near Lake Huron, are the Petroleum 
 famous oil springs, from which petroleum is obtained IStw^ii^"^ 
 in immense quantities. In 1896 the value of the crude 
 petroleum Vv-as valued at 1,155,616 dollars, and of natural 
 gas 276,301 dollars. Further to the north, in the same 
 district, are prolific salt wells, which send forth an 
 abundant supply of brine ; the salt obtained from which 
 
10 
 
 The oldest 
 Mining Libtrict 
 in Ontario. 
 
 The Lake of 
 the Woods 
 Districts. 
 
 The Lake of 
 thoWoodsGold 
 Output lias 
 already trcV>]ed 
 the total Out- 
 put of Onto I io. 
 
 forms a large item in the commerce of the place ; and 
 north of Lake Superior, in the Thunder Bay district, 
 rich ores of silver are found ; while eastward, on the 
 Grand Eivcr, there are extensive mines of gypsum, or 
 Plaster of Paris. There are also considerable areas of 
 peat beds in sever il parts of the province. 
 
 The oldest mining district is at Hastings, near the 
 eastern border of the province. Gold was first found 
 here in 1866, when the discovery caused considerable 
 excitement for a time. The ore, however, proved re- 
 fractory to the processes of that day, and very little gold 
 was produced ; but within the last year or two a marked 
 revival has taken place ; there has been a large expendi- 
 ture on modern plant at several mines in the distiict, 
 and the prospects are improving. It is at the other end 
 of the province, however, near the Lake of the Woods 
 and the Eainy Eiver that most activity prevails. Here 
 an immense and richly auriferous region has been 
 opened up quite recently. The area is 250 miles long, 
 and about half as broad. Gold occurs only in quartz 
 veins, but unlike the Hastings ore, it is nearly all free 
 milling. Dr. Coleman, the expert of the Bureau of 
 Mines at Toronto, has just returned (August, 1837) from 
 an oPi'icial inspection of the gold fields, and rcporluj very 
 favourably upon them. The whole thing is still in its 
 infancy ; the oldest mine has only been worked for three 
 years, new ones are being started almost from month to 
 month, and further prospecting is still being carried on 
 under a Government concession. But already the 
 results have trebled the gold output of Ontario, and 
 Dr. Coleman expects a large and rapid increase. 
 *' There is every prospect," he says, " that a number of 
 mines will be producing gold in 1897, and that the total 
 will rapidly increase. The area of the auriferous 
 country is so enormous, and the ores as a whole so 
 easily treated, that within a few years a very large 
 output may be expected." In addition to these two 
 principal gold fields at opposite ends of the province, 
 mines are now being worked at various intervening 
 points near the shore of Lake Superior and at Lake 
 Wahuapitae. 
 
11 
 
 Perhaps the most important of the many mining fle?d^^°^^' 
 discoveries made in Ontai'io was that recently made on 
 the Michipicoten River, near lake Wawa. Mr. Blue, 
 Director of the Ontario Bureau of Mines, returned in 
 October, 1897, from inspecting this new find, and 
 reports the discovery of a vein of quartz then yielding 
 600 dollars of gold to the ton. (This new field is referred 
 to at greater length further on, under the heading of 
 " Mining Fields Awaiting Development.") In short, 
 great activity prevails throughout Ontario. 
 
 Northern Alberta. 
 
 This section of the North- Wt^'t Territories of 
 Canada is the only remaining portion, excepting the 
 British Yukon, in which gold mining is carried on. 
 For some years past, since 1863, an average of about 
 60,000 dollars worth of gold has been washed out of the 
 bars and banks of the Saskatchewan River. In the 
 early days 10 to 15 dollars par day was the average 
 earnings of the miner, but the return now averages very 
 little over 1^ dollars per day. 
 
 New interest has been lately aroused in the possi- 
 bilities of this industiy, from the fact that soma 
 Americans, who made tests in 1896, found that only 
 about ten per cent, of the gold was saved by the hand 
 " grizzlies " used by the miners. 
 
 For many years placer mining has been carried on Gold onitho 
 along the big Saskatchewan River, chiefly on the north Kiver. 
 branch, about 200 miles north of Calgary, where fair 
 wages are now being made every summer; the same 
 bars being worked year after year and never becoming 
 exhausted. Last year (1896), says the Calgary Herald of 
 September 16th: "A small boom was started by dis- 
 coveries of high gold values in the black sand with Vv'hich 
 the river abounds. Some 30 mining scows are now at 
 work taking out the black sand, but for want of sm3lting 
 facilities and improved methods, little is yet known of the 
 
 real value of the diggings There is gold on 
 
 the bars of the south branch of the Saskatchewan, as 
 well as on the north branch, and of the two rivers ; old 
 
12 
 
 placer miners, who have worked on both, give the south 
 branch the preference. On some of the bars, near the 
 Hat Eiver, plenty of gold is being taken out. .... 
 On the famous Livingstone bar there is, this summer 
 (1897), a gold camp, where we found miners who were 
 perfectly satisfied with their lot, one making splendid 
 
 wages. 
 
 The Yukon Country. 
 
 Partn ana Under this heading the astounding gold discoveries 
 
 ^e??m!d to**^ ^° °^ *^® Klondyke tributaries, the Stewart, Indian and 
 other rivers tributary to the Yukon, as well as further 
 south on the Lewes, Pelly, Hootalinqua and Big Salmon 
 rivers, are all fully dealt with in Part IT., under Sections 
 1, 2 and 10, and throughout the Appendix. 
 
 Important 
 extracts from a 
 notable report. 
 
 Kstent of 
 auriferous 
 country in Iho 
 far N.W. 
 
 Mining Fields Awaiting Development. 
 
 {See, also, Appciulix — ^^ Another Ncio Gold Field in 
 British Columbia.") 
 
 As Canada's great development, which the world is 
 looking forward to in high, and in some cases jealous, 
 expectation, will be the direct outcome of vigorous and 
 systematic mineral exploitation, a short review of those 
 richly mineralised fields — many of which, though now 
 wild forest or desolate waste, will probably be Canada's 
 busiest and most populous centres — should prove inter- 
 esting, and, perhaps, helpful to many who contemplate 
 sharing in the operations which are to bring about this 
 magnificent expansion of wealth and industry. 
 
 Before proceeding with the very cursory survey of 
 the Dominion's Mining Areas, which only await man's 
 enterprise and skill to yield up their riches, an important 
 extract from the report of the Select Committee of the 
 Senate (Canadian Dominion), appointed to enquire into 
 the resources of the Great Mackenzie Basin, in 1888, 
 might be quoted : — 
 
 " Of the mines of this vast region little is known of 
 that part east of the Mackenzie Biver and north of Great 
 Slave Lake. Of the western effluents of the Mackenzie 
 
13 
 
 enough is known to show that on the headwaters of the 
 Peace, Liard and Peel Eiverg, there are from 150,000 to 
 200,000 square miles which may be considered auriferous, 
 while Canada possesses, west of the Eocky Mountains, 
 a metalliferous area principally of good yielding rocks, 
 1,300 miles in length, with an average breadth of 400 to 
 500 miles, giving an area far greater than that of the 
 similar mining districts of the neighbouring Republic. 
 
 " In addition to these auriferous deposits, gold has ^^^1*"°" °' 
 been found on the west shore of Hudson's Bay, and "ii»erai 
 
 •' ' deposits. 
 
 has been said to exist in certain portions of the barren 
 grounds. Silver on the Upper Liard and Peace Rivers, 
 copper upon the Coppermine River, which may be con- 
 nected with on Eastern Arm of Great Bear Lake by a 
 tramway of 40 miles, iron, graphite, ochre, brick and 
 pottery clay, mica, gypsum, lime and sandstone, sand 
 for glass and moulding, and asphaltum, are all known to 
 exist ; while the petroleum area is so extensive as to An immenso 
 justify the belief that eventually it will supply the larger ^^ '^eumarea. 
 part of this continent, and be shipped from Churchill, 
 or some more northern Hudson's Bay port, to England. 
 
 " Salt and sulphur deposits are less extensive, but 
 the former is found in crystals, equal in purity to the 
 best rock salt, and in highly saline springs ; while the 
 latter is found in the form of pyrites, and the fact that 
 these petroleum and salt deposits occur mainly near the 
 line of division between deep water navigation and that 
 fitted for lighter craft, give them a possible great com- 
 mercial value. The extensive coal and lignite deposits 
 of the Lower Mackenzie and elsewhere, will be found to 
 be of great value when the question of reducing its iron 
 ores, and the transportation of the products of this vast 
 region, have to be solved by steam sea-going or lighter ' 
 river craft." 
 
 No important mention is made in the above extracts of K'*^*^ ^/l?^ 
 
 \ , bejond the 
 
 the regal mmeral which is now creating such a sensation Kiondyke 
 
 . . district. 
 
 in the Yukon-Mackenzie country, particularly on the 
 tributaries of the Kiondyke River. But the above report 
 was handed in years before the marvellous goldfinds of 
 
u 
 
 The new roUI 
 discoveries at 
 MicbipkotoD. 
 
 The Canadian 
 Chambei' of 
 Mines, London 
 
 ProfeMor 
 
 Willmotfa 
 Report. 
 
 the Bonanza and El Dorado Creeks came to light. The 
 country between the Yukon and Mackenzie Rivers, 
 described by both Dr. Dawson and Mr. Wm. Ogilvie, 
 covering an area of 150,000 square miles of auriferous 
 country, comprises the largest and most attractive — be- 
 cause of its fascinating possibilities as evidenced by the 
 Klondike goldfinds — fields for the gold prospector in the 
 Canadian Dominion — or, perhaps, in the world. This 
 region is dealt with at some length in Sections 1 and 2, 
 Part- II. 
 
 The Montreal correspondent of the Standard 
 (London), of November 12th, 1807, writes that " The 
 excitement caused by the gold discoveries in the Yukon 
 country has led to reports of new Klondykes all over this 
 Continent, most of them with very little foundation. 
 But in the case of Michipicoton, in Ontario, official 
 investigation has established the genuineness of the gold 
 deposits, and given some indication of their probable 
 extent. Mr. Archibald Blue, Director of the Bureau of 
 Mines established by the Ontario Government, visited 
 the new gold fields some weeks ago, but he was not able 
 to do more than establish a registration office, to prevent 
 disputes between the prospectors already rushing into 
 the country. He saw enough, however, to warrant him 
 in sending Professor Arthur B. Willmott, M.A., B.Sc, 
 to make a further investigation of the district. Professor 
 Willmott visited Michipicoton in September, and on his 
 return prepared a preliminary report, which has been 
 issued by the Ontario Government as a bulletin of the 
 Bureau of Mines." 
 
 This report runs into many pages, and anyone pro- 
 posing to visit this promising field should read the whole 
 publication at the offices of the Canadian Chamber of 
 Mines, 165, Fenchurch Street, London, or at the High 
 Commissioner's Office, Westminster. 
 
 Professor Willmott sums up as follows : — " From all 
 that I can learn from prospectors, from the number of 
 finds of free gold, from the quantity of quartz pebbles in 
 the lower parts of the streams, and from the great re- 
 
15 
 
 semblance of the country rocks to the Lake of the Woods 
 region, I think there is every reason to believe that the 
 Division will well repay careful prospecting, and that in 
 a few years gold mining will hero be established on as 
 profitable a basis as in other parts of Ontario." 
 
 This field has an advantage over almost all other Position of tbe 
 
 « T 11,. 1 1 1 111' • • • T li Michlpicoton 
 
 Canadian goldliclds that should bring it into rapid favour field. 
 — if its prospects are good enough, it is easy of access, it 
 is situated on the North-East shore of Lake Superior, 
 between the Lake and the Canadian Pacific Eaihvay, 
 and may be reached from either. The lake route h pro- 
 bal)ly the easiest, and was chosen by ^Ir. Blue for his 
 hurried visit. Michlpicoton is about seventy-five miles 
 directly North from Sault Ste. Marie by steamer, which 
 lands passengers about two miles from the mouth 
 of the river. There is an Indian reserve in the bay, so 
 that it is not difficult to obtain canoes for the rest of the 
 journey. 
 
 Professor Willmott, having more time at his dis- Routes to the 
 posal, took the inland route, travelled by the Canadian 
 Pacific Eailway to Missanabie, and thence with two 
 Indian guides by canoe. Missanabie is forty-six miles 
 in a straight line from Lake Superior ; but the prospector 
 follows a circuitous route, in order to take advantage of 
 the lakes and streams. There are two routes from 
 Missanabie, both starting* in a South- Westward direction 
 through Dog and Manitowick Lakes. Thence one 
 follows the Michlpicoton Eiver round one-third of a 
 circle to its outlet, a probable distance of sixty-five miles. 
 There are on this route six portages, all well travelled, 
 but some of them very rough. The Big Stony portage 
 is five-sixths of a mile long, and the Long portage one 
 mile and two-thirds. The others are short. Below tbo 
 Long portage the river winds about in a gravel plain for 
 nearly ten miles, with considerable current, making it 
 necessary to " pole " in many places when ascending. 
 For this reason, and because of its shortness, the route 
 which diverges from the lower end of Manitowick is 
 usually taken. This ascends a small stream in a South- 
 
 flcld. 
 
IG 
 
 Gold-beaiinfi 
 country North 
 of Lake 
 WiDDlpeR. 
 
 western direction, passes through a number of small 
 lakes, over the height of land and down Wawa Lake to 
 its South-Wc3t end. Thenco an old Canadian Pacific 
 construction road may bo taken to Michipicoton, a 
 distance of seven miles, or a portage of two miles to the 
 Magpie River, and a further portage of a quarter of a 
 mile at the mouth of this stream. At present two teams 
 are transporting goods across the " tote-road to Wawa 
 at exhorbitant rates. This route from Missanahie is 
 very direct — little over fifty miles — and can bo made in 
 two days by two men travelling in a light canoe. The 
 portages are numerous but good, except the Big Stony 
 one. At the time of the construction of the Canadian 
 Pacific Railway roads were built by the contractors for 
 the purpose of getting in supplies. Though these roads 
 are now overgrown with small brush and the bridges 
 across the creeks have decayed, they afford to the pros- 
 pector a comparatively easy entrance to the interior. 
 
 The following extract from the Summary Report of 
 the Geological Survey Department for 1896 describes 
 an exploratory work by Mr. J. B. Tyn'ell, of the Canadian 
 Geological Survey made last year in the country lying 
 along the Grass River to the North of Lake Winnipeg. 
 Grass River is a tributary of Nelson River which flows 
 into Hudson's Bay : — 
 
 A New Field for Mining Enterprise North of 
 Lake Winnipeg. 
 
 Report of a Survey by J. W. TYRRELL, B.A., of the Geological 
 Survey Department of Canada. 
 
 " On the 29th of June (1896), I left Selkirk, Manitoba, 
 accompanied by two canoemen who had been with me 
 through two previous seasons, and the following day 
 reached Selkirk Island, near the mouth of the Saskat- 
 chewan River. On the morning of the 1st of July we 
 were taken by a small fishing tug northward to Limestone 
 Bay, and thence we proceeded by canoe along the north 
 shore of Lake Winnipeg and through Playgreen Lake to 
 Norway House. 
 
11 
 
 " Hero two Indians and an extra canoe were hired, ^f^^^^^^. 
 and we turned westward into the country lying to the "^y^- 
 west of Nelson River, exploring Goose-gut, Pine and 
 Wolf Bivers ; returning from the latter stream to Nor- 
 way House, where the two Indians were paid off. 
 
 '• We then descended Nelson Rivor to Cross Lake, 
 where two other Indians were hired, and the descent of 
 the Nelson Rivor was continued to the north end of 
 Sopaywisk Lake, whence we crossed several portages 
 and small Lakes until we reached Burntwood River, . 
 which was ascended to Nelson House, where the Cross 
 Lake Indians were paid off and allowed to return 
 home. With one canoe, and the two men from Selkirk, 
 I returned to Paint Lake, and then ascended Grass 
 River, through Setting, Herb and Reed Lakes to its 
 source in Cranberry Lake. From the south end of 
 Cranberry Lake, we crossed the Cranberry Portage to 
 Athapapuskow Lake, and thence descended Goose River, 
 through Goose Lake, to Sturgeon River, which was 
 descended to Cumberland on the Saskatchewan River. 
 
 •' From Cumberland we ascended the Saskatchewan 
 River to Fort h la Come, where the canoe was 
 stored for the winter, and we drove to Prince Albert, 
 arriving there on the evening of the 9th of October 
 three months and eleven days after leaving Selkirk, 
 having travelled in all about 1,100 miles, largely over 
 routes previously unexplored. 
 
 " From Lake Winnipeg and the Saskatchewan River, Northern 
 the horizontal Palaeozoic limestone was found to extend PaUeozoio 
 northward to the south end of Hills Lake, on Pine River, ^^'"^«*°°« 
 and Herb Lake, on Grass River. Thence, the northern 
 limit of the limestone extends westward, keeping to the 
 south side of Grass River, and generally forming an 
 escarpment from fifty to one hundred feet high. Goose 
 and Athapapuskow Lakes lie in a deep bay in the face of 
 this escarpment. West of the latter lake the northern 
 edge of the limestone is known to extend along the south- 
 west side of Beaver Lake, and thence onward towards 
 Lac la Ronge south of Churchill River. 
 
18 
 
 Lanrentian 
 and Haronian 
 rooks. 
 
 Largest Ha- 
 ronian area. 
 
 "North oi' the limestone escarpment, the country is 
 underlain by Archaean rocks, which have usually a 
 gently undulating surface contour. From the Nelson 
 Eiver westward as far as longitude 99° 30'' they consist 
 chiefly of gray and reddish-gray Laurentian gneisses and 
 granites. Along the Nelson River these are cut by 
 numerous dykes of dark-greon, highly basic traps, and in 
 the vicinity of Pipestone and Crosrt Lakes they are 
 associated with an area of micaceous, hornblendic and 
 sericitic schists, stretched schistose conglomerates and 
 fine-grained slates of Huronian age. 
 
 " On the South side of this area, and near the edge 
 of the gneiss, is an eruptive mass of light greenish-gray 
 anorthosite, and a gabbro containing a large quantity of 
 mispickel, associated with some copper-pyrites. 
 
 " On the South side of the Indian Reserve Island in 
 Cross Lake, the hornblende-schists are cut by wide veins 
 of coarse, white, pegmatitic granite, containing large 
 crystals of black and white mica, some of the latter being 
 nine inches in f^iameter, and very possibly indicating 
 deposits of commercial value. On account of the evenly 
 rounded natu'-'=t of the surface, and the want of blasting 
 materials, n ^ne ot the larger crystals could be taken out, 
 but some of t.c smaller fragments obtained were clean 
 and unbroken. 
 
 " Thinly foliated green schists, probably of Huronian 
 age, were again found on another Pipestone Lake, on the 
 way from Cross Portage to Burntwood River. 
 
 "But the most extensive and interesting area of 
 Huronian rocks was discovered on the upper part of 
 Grass River. Beginning a short distance east of Herb 
 Lake it extends almost continuously westward through 
 Reed, Elbow and Cranberry Lakes, and crossing to the 
 drainage basin of the Saskatchewan River, underlies parts 
 of Athapapuskow and Goose Lakes. 
 
 " Seven miles east of the north end of Herb Lake, 
 the Huronian rocks are first encountered, in a hill of 
 massive or slightly foliated diabase largely altered to 
 
19 
 
 chlorite, and a short distance further west is a ridge of 
 dark-gray micaceous schist studded with rather large 
 crystals of staurolite. On the east side of Herb Lake is 
 a ridge of thinly foliated light-grey micaceous gneiss, 
 containing a good deal of white mica, and cut by many 
 veins of white quartz. 
 
 ** On the west side of the same lake, and extending 
 south to Wekusko Point, is an eruptive mass of coarse 
 gabbro, approaching a diabase in texture. South of this 
 is a considerable area of dark-green, slaty schists. On 
 the south-west side of the lake these are cut by another 
 large eruptive mass of a finer grained and more typical 
 gabbro. The schists are also disturbed and altered by a 
 large mass of red granite. 
 
 " Almost everywhere the schists are cut by larger Numerons 
 and smaller veins of white quartz. The river above Herb ^ 
 Iiake runs for a considerable distance along the line of 
 contact of red granite on the west, and Huronian schists 
 and conglomerates on the east, above which it crosses an 
 area of coarse, dark-grey gabbro, returning, near the 
 entrance into Eeed Lake, to the red granite. Near the 
 contact are many quartz veins, associated with a good 
 deal of iron-pyrites. 
 
 " On Eeed Lake, the Huronian rocks consist chiefly 
 of fine-grained, green slaty schists, holding much pyrites, 
 and cut by many stringers of quartz. 
 
 " Above Eeed Lake the country becomes more rugged Rocks of Reed 
 and the hills more precipitous. The river circles round Lakes, 
 an area of basic igneous rocks, as far as Cranberry Lake, 
 often occupying a valley along the line of contact of these .;. 
 
 rocks with the surrounding granite or gneiss. Near the 
 contact, the rocks have been much disturbed and are cut 
 by many veins of quartz, often containing a large 
 quantity of pyrite. 
 
 " On Cranberry Lake the Huronian rocks are of ion 
 altered to a silvery sericitic scaist. The same schists 
 extend across the water-shed to Athapapuskow Lake, and 
 thence continue westward, perhaps beneath the un- 
 distm'bed Palaeozoic limestones. 
 
 c2 
 
20 
 
 Promising 
 field for pro8« 
 pectors. 
 
 Baperfloial 
 deposits. 
 
 Holland 
 climate. 
 
 *' This area of Huronian rocks, extending about 
 seventy-five miles from east to west, and an unknown 
 distance towards the north, presents a good field of 
 exploration for the prospector for gold and other precious 
 metals, on account of the number and variety of eruptive 
 masses that break through it, surrounded by zones of 
 highly disturbed and fissured rocks. 
 
 " From Nelson Eiver westward to longitude lOO*' 
 30', and from the north end of Lake Winnipeg northward 
 to beyond latitude 56°, the country is generally covered 
 with a coating of stratified clay, varying in thickness 
 from a few feet up to fifty, sixty, or even one hundred 
 feet. This clay is of much the same character as that of 
 the Eed Eiver valley, having been, like it, deposited in 
 the bed of the old post-glacial lake that once occupied 
 the basin of Lake "Winnipeg. The rivers have, as a rule, 
 out down through this clay to the underlying rock, but 
 away from the water-stretches, rock-exposures are not of 
 very frequent occurrence. The soil is rich and fertile, and 
 since summer frosts do not seem to be very prevalent, 
 the country will doubtless produce in abundance all the 
 hardier roots and cereals grown in the province of 
 Manitoba, and cattle, sheep and horses could be success- 
 fully raised. If the country were made accessible by a 
 railway passing through it to Hudson Bay, it would 
 certainly support a considerable agricultural popu- 
 lation." 
 
 Mr. Tyrrell returned to Ottawa on October 16th. 
 
 Fetroloum 
 deposits. 
 
 Extracts from aeological Notes on the North-Western 
 Territories by QEORQE M. DAWSON, C.M.G., 
 D.5., F.a.5., Director of the Qeological Survey 
 of Canada. 
 
 Slave River. 
 
 The district to the south of Athabasca Lake, on the 
 Athabasca Eiver and its tributary the Clearwater, (not 
 included by the accompanying map), and also on Peace 
 
Eiver, is characterized by a great abundance of pitch and 
 petroleum deposits and springs. These are described by 
 Su- A. Mackenzie, Sir J. Eichardson, Prof. Macoun, Dr. 
 Bell and others {Cf. Eeports of Progress Geological 
 Survey, 1875-6, p. 169, 1882-84, p. 32, c c). It is inte- 
 resting to observe the recurrence of such deposits at 
 intervals along the Mackenzie valley to the Arctic Sea. 
 
 At the " Lightening Place of the Hummock " on Slave 
 Eiver, thirty miles below Fcrt Chipewyan, the limestone " 
 beds were noted by Eichardson to contain mineral pitch , 
 in fissures (J. B. V., vol. 1, p. 137.)* 
 
 About half-way between Athabasca and Great Slave Saitspringi. 
 lakes. Salt Eiver joins the Slave Eiver. Of this stream, 
 Eichardson write —"The Salt Eiver flows in from the - 
 westward, a short >?ay below the portages. We ascended 
 it for twenty-two miles, including its windings, but not 
 above half that distance in a straight line, for the purpose 
 of visiting the salt springs from whence it derives its 
 taste and name. Seven or eight copious saline springs 
 issue from the base of a long even ridge about six 
 hundred feet high, and spreading their waters over an 
 extensive clayey plain, deposit a considerable quantity 
 of very pure common salt in large cubical crystals. The 
 mother water flowing into the Salt Eiver gives it a very 
 bitter taste, which it retains until near its junction with 
 the Slave Eiver, when the addition of some fresh water 
 streams, renders it only slightly brackish. A few patches 
 of greyish compact gypsum were exposed on the side of 
 the ridge from whence the springs issue." (Ist 
 Expedition, p. 518.) * 
 
 Captain Back, who accompanied Eichardson, again 
 visited these salt springs in 1833. He writes : — " There 
 were no mounds like those seen in 1820 ; but just at the 
 foot of the hill which bounds the prairie in that quarter, 
 :here were three springs, varying in diameter from four 
 to twelve feet, and producing hillocks of salt, from 
 fourteen to thirty inches in height. The streams were 
 
 * Journal of a Boat Voyage through Rupert's Land and the 
 Arctic Sea, by Bit J. Biohardson, London, 1851. 
 
22 
 
 dry, but the surface of the clayey soil was covered, to 
 the extent of a few hundred yards toward the plain, with 
 a white crust of saline particles." (Narrative of the 
 Arctic Land Expedition, p. 80.) Petitot states that, 
 according to the Indians, the Caribou Mountains, 
 between Salt Eiver and the Peace Eiver, contain much 
 rock salt. (Bui. Soc. G6og., Paris, vol. x, p. 140) 
 
 Great Slave Lake. 
 
 GreaVsiave Eiohardson describes the west shore of this great body 
 
 e, Bitumen ^j ^ater as composed of horizontal strata of limestone, 
 forming a flat country (2nd Exp., appendix p. xxiv.) In 
 his Journal of a Boat Voyage (vol. i, p. 152,) he writes : 
 — "In the vicinity of the westernmost channel of the 
 delta [of Slave Eiver] and from thence to the efflux of 
 the Mackenzie, the whole western shore of the lake is 
 limestone, associated with a bituminous shale, and 
 belonging, as well as can be ascertained from its fossils, 
 to the Erie division of the New York system, which 
 includes the Marcellus shaJes." He also refers to the 
 limestone as being bituminous, and speaks of fossil shells 
 of which the cavities are filled with bitumen. 
 
 of GreSiiave Capt. Back's description and specimens (Arctic Land 
 i*ke. Expedition, p. 544, et seq), show that the north side of 
 
 Great Slave Lake, from the entrance of the north arm 
 westward, consists of Laurentian rocks. The hills are 
 said to be rocky, low, grey and rounded, and gneiss, 
 porphyry and granite are the prevalent materials. The 
 large islands and promontory which occupy the centre of 
 the eastern part of the lake are, on the contrary, •* of the 
 trap formation " and exhibit long lines of high mural 
 precipices, sometimes distinctly columnar. Back com- 
 pares these to those formerly seen by him near the 
 Coppermine, and refers them to the same formation. 
 Near the western end of the long island, Peth-the-nu-eh, 
 he says the Indians obtain greenish-grey 'marl" of 
 which they make their pipes. The same point is shown 
 by Petitot, as composed of black serpentine, which he 
 also notes is used for the manufacture of/pipes, (Bui. Soc. 
 
23 . 
 
 G^og., Paris, vol. x., p. 143). Specimens of slaty 
 magnesian limestone were obtained by Back from the 
 south side of the long island. Similar limestone is 
 associated with the series of the Coppermine Eiver, and 
 there is every reason to believe that the trap formation 
 here should be referred to the same great Lower Cambrian 
 series. ,. 
 
 Pebbles of a jasper conglomerate, which evidently 
 exactly resembles the jasper conglomerates of Lake 
 Huron, were collected near the east end of the lake. 
 The rock was, however, not seen in place. (Arctic Land 
 Expedition, p. 547). 
 
 Mackenzie River from Great Slave Lake to 
 Bear Lake River. 
 
 In the appendix to Franklin's Second Journey, Devonian and 
 
 T,. , T . ,1 1 , . Cretaceous I -, 
 
 Richardson writes: — "the only rocks seen m situ rocks. i 
 between Slave Lake and the Forks [mouth of the Liard] shale, 
 where a bituminous shale of a brownish-black colour, in 
 thin slates, and a slate-clay of a pure yellowish -grey 
 colour, which, as well as the bituminous shale, forms 
 steep banks," (appendix p. xxiv). In his subsequent 
 Journal of a Boat Voyage, (vol. i., p. 164), he describes 
 on the same part of the river, " bituminous shale " and 
 "greyish-green slate-clay," which weathers into a 
 tenaceous clay, and adds: — "The whole banks of the 
 river seem to belong to a shale fo^-mation ; but from the 
 want of induration of the beds, they have crumbled into 
 a slope more or less steep." Though TentacuUtes 
 fissurella is noted as occurring in the bituminous shale, 
 it appears probable that the general surface of the 
 country in this vicinity is composed of Cretaceous or v 
 Laramie beds, through which the river has cut in some 
 places to the subjacent Devonian rocks. 
 
 Eichardson did not ascend the Liard River in any of Liard Biver. 
 his journeys, but learned that, "for twenty-four miles 
 upward from its mouth, it flows through sand and shale, 
 with limestone occasionally cropping out," while seventy- 
 five miles up it is a high hill, named the " Noh'hanne 
 
24 
 
 Neighbouring 
 part of Becky 
 Moontains. 
 
 Graphite and 
 ixoD ore. 
 
 OretaoeoQS and 
 Laramie. 
 Beds of lignite. 
 
 Butte," on the summit of which is a salt spring. From 
 this hill, Mr. McPherson brought specimens of limestone, 
 " similar in lithological character to those procured from 
 the Eock by the Eiver's Side." (J. B. V., vol. ii. p. 203). 
 This observation may be regarded as approximately 
 fixing the western edge of the Cretaceous and Laramie 
 rocks in this latitude, while the limestone seen further 
 down the Liard, may be that underlying these rocks, 
 exposed by the river in places. In loose fragments of 
 limestone at the mouth of the Liard, Kennicott collected 
 fossils which, according to Meek, are referable to the 
 Hamilton group. (Trans. Chicago Acad. Sci., vol. i., 
 p. 69). 
 
 The Eocky Mountains, where approached by the 
 Mackenzie below the mouth of the Liard, are described 
 as consisting of a number of ridges running S.S.W., or 
 S.W. by S., 'vith abrupt eastern faces and longer 
 slopes to the westward, thus corresponding with 
 the outer ridges of the same range much farther south, 
 and probably indicating a similar prevalent west- 
 ward dip. A few specimens obtained from this part of 
 the range are not sufficiently characteristic to be of 
 much value, but some of them, from near the Liard 
 Eiver, are said to be indistinguishable from those of 
 Limestone Point, in Great Bear Lake, noted further on. 
 (2nd Expedition, appendix, p. xxvi). Specimens of plum- 
 bago and specular iron were also given to Eichardson as 
 derived from this part of the mountains, (p. xxv). 
 
 The valley of the Mackenzie near the mouth of Bear Lake 
 River, is occupied by rocks referred by Eichardson to the 
 " Lignite formation," which, with little doubt, represent 
 the series now known as the Laramie. The formation 
 "may be characterized as consisting of wood-coal in various 
 states, alternating with beds of pipe-clay, potter's clay, 
 which is sometimes bituminous, and slate-clay, gravel, 
 sand and friable sandstones, and occasionally with porce- 
 lain earth. The strata are generally horizontal, and as many 
 as four beds of lignite are exposed in some parts." (2nd 
 Expedition, appendix p. xvii.) The lignites were observed 
 
25 
 
 to be on fire in various places, both by Sir A. Mackenzie, 
 in 1789, by Bichardson and others. Four sections seen 
 in the banks of the river are detailed by Bichardson — 
 (1) at the mouth of Bear Lake Biver, (2) five miles above 
 the mouth of the river, and (3) ten miles above the same 
 point. (2nd Expedition, appendix pp. xix-xxi.) A detailed 
 description of these beds and the lignites they contain is 
 again given in the Journal of a Boat Voyage, and 
 fossil plants obtained from the shales are figured, 
 (vol. i., p. 186.) 
 
 Great Bear Lake and Vicinity. 
 
 The greater part of the north-western and western i-aramie 
 shores of Great Bear Lake, together with the low land Bituminous 
 
 sbale, alnin 
 
 at the base of Great Bear Mountain, which stands on sulphur, ai^d 
 the promontory to the south, appear, according to 
 Eichardson's notes, to be formed of rocks referable to 
 the Cretaceous or Laramie. He describes slate-clay and 
 shale more or less bituminous, plastic and bituminous 
 coal and earthy clay, with selenite, pyrites, poor clay- 
 ironstone and efflorescenses of alum and sulphur. At 
 the base of Great Bear Mountain, are bituminous slate 
 and slate-clay, holding brown coal. The indications on 
 Petitot's map, however, show that Umestone and granite 
 project through the newer formations in places, forming 
 the hills in the centre of the promontory on the west 
 shore of the lake, as well as Great Bear Mountain. 
 
 Other rocks described on Bear Lake Eiver must be LinjeBtone 
 
 Kocks aaXVL' 
 
 assigned to the Cretaceous, or possibly in part to the rated with 
 Laramie. At the mouth of the river, however, rocks, 
 both of the limestone series and the Cretaceous, evidently 
 occur, the former probably constituting a projecting ridge. 
 A hill is described on the north bank of the river, at its 
 mouth, composed of limestone rocks similar to those of 
 the ridge at the rapid above referred to. Parts of the 
 limestone are saturated with petroleum, and petroleum 
 springs were observed by Franklin. 
 
 On Bear Lake River, a little below the rapid, a small Salt, 
 stream flows in from the southward, near the sources of 
 
m 
 
 which the Indians procure an excellent common salt, 
 which is deposited from springs by natural ovaporation. 
 (1st Expedition, appendix p. xiii). 
 
 The Bamparts 
 to the 
 Kanows. 
 
 Sandstones at 
 the Narrows. 
 
 Feel Biver. 
 
 Mackenzie River and vicinity below Bear Lake River. 
 
 In latitude 66J, about 30 miles below The Eamparts, 
 is a perpendicular sandstone cliff, about one hundred and 
 sixty feet high, which presents the same castellated 
 appearance with that above noted. The beds are hori- 
 zontal, and rest on horizontal strata of limestone. (2nd 
 Expedition, appendix p. xxxv.) Beyond this point, to 
 " The Narrows," north of which the river divides and 
 becomes estuarine in character, several outcrops of 
 sandstone, marl-slate and shale were observed, all 
 probably referable to the Cretaceous or Laramie. 
 
 At The Narrows the sandstones are said to contain, 
 "small, rounded, and also sharply angular grains of 
 opaque, white, green and blue quartz with grains of 
 lydian- stone and coal." (J. B. V., vol. i., p. 222.) These 
 silicious materials are, in all probability, fragments of 
 the cherty beds of the limestone series. Such material 
 forms a great part of many of the coarser Cretaceous 
 beds of the Eocky Mountains where they have been 
 geologically examined south of the latitude of the 
 Peace Eiver. 
 
 The Peel Eiver, which flows into the Mackenzie not 
 far below The Narrows, is said to show "the shale for- 
 mation in its banks," (J. B. V., vol. i, p. 222), while 
 Isbister mentions that alum-shales occur along it to the 
 point at which it leaves the mountains. (Quart. Joum, 
 Geol. Soc, vol. xi., p. 511. Joum. Eoyal Geog. Soc, 
 vol. XV., p. 343.) 
 
 Country between Great Slave Lake and the mouth 
 of the Coppermine River. 
 
 The following notes, embracing the information avail- 
 able, for the tract of country above defined, are extracts 
 from or abstracts of those given by Eichardson in 
 Appendix I., to the narrative of Franklin's first journey 
 
27 
 
 (1819-22). The route pursued by the expedition is 
 sufficiently indicated on the map by the chain of lakes 
 running from Great Slave Lake to the upper part of the 
 Coppermine River, to the north of which the ;iver itself 
 was followed. 
 
 Of the country north of the north arm of Great Slave gaK^Port 
 Lake, Richardson writes : — " The granite formation Enterprise, 
 continued for a considerable distance on our route 
 towards Fort Enterprise, but it contained more and 
 more foreign beds as we advanced to the northward. 
 . . . . At the mouth of Yellow Knife River, and in 
 Lake Prosperous, mica-slate prevailed. Between Rocky 
 and Carp Lakes, the granite contains many beds of 
 mica-slate, and the country is tolerably well wooded " 
 (p. 520). " At Carp Lake [lat. 63° 35'] the hills are of 
 lower altitude, have fewer precipices, and more rounded 
 summits ; the valleys are less fertile, contain gravelly 
 soil, and nourish fewer trees. This appears to be the 
 commencement of the gneiss, or as it may be termed, in 
 this latitude the Barren Ground formation, for it seems 
 to exist throughout the great district to the eastward of 
 the Coppermine River, termed the Barren Grounds by 
 the Indians." (p. 520.) 
 
 " The country about Fort Enterprise consists of short Bocks at Fort 
 
 _ . '' . , ^ . n , , -I Enterpriae. 
 
 and very obtuse conical, or sometimes round-backed 
 hills, of moderate elevations, never disposed in mountain 
 ranges, but entirely unconnected and separated from 
 each other by inclined valleys of moderate extent. Their 
 summits are almost universally formed of naked smooth 
 rock, and generally of a species of durable red granite 
 that has been more than once mentioned as composed of 
 well crystallized reddish felspar and grey quartz. Large, 
 irregular, but somewhat cubical, fragments of this rock 
 are scattered over the surface of the hills, or rest upon 
 their very summits, by two or three angular points, as 
 if left exposed there by the decay of the less durable 
 
 material that enclosed them The acclivities 
 
 of the hills, generally speaking, consist of gneiss wrapped 
 in a mantle form, round the granite." (p. 520.) 
 
28 
 
 Following this general description (pp. 522-523), are 
 local details respecting the vicinity of Port Enterprise ; 
 granite, micaceous and hornblendic gneiss, greenstone, 
 mica-slate and clay-slate, being mentioned. 
 
 The following notes embody the principal recorded 
 • ' observations : — 
 
 Eleven and a half miles on a north-westward course 
 from the last mentioned locality (Point Lake), greenish- 
 grey clay-slate occurs. The rocks at the west end of 
 Point Lake were then found, for some miles, to consist of 
 granite and gneiss, probably Laurentian. The shores of 
 
 Red^Rock j^gd Rock Lake are characterized by reddish and 
 
 greenish-grey clay-slates, with hills apparently of trap. 
 One of these " bore an exact resemblance in altitude and 
 form to Salisbury Craigs, in the neighbourhood of 
 Edinburgh." In latitude 66° 45' 11", gneiss and syenite 
 hills were again observed on the north bank of the east- 
 and-west reach of the river. These, I suppose from the 
 description, to form an eastward projection from the 
 large area of these older rocks between the Coppermine 
 and Great Bear Lake. Beyond this point the rocks noted 
 are as follows : — Dark red sandstone ; dark purplish-red 
 compact felspar rock, with a light reddish and greyish 
 
 Cambrian felspar and quartz rock, the low area characterized by 
 these rocks is bounded to the northward, and eastward 
 by a lofty ridge of trap rocks, which constitutes the 
 famous Copper Mountains ; reddish-grey granular foliated 
 limestone ; deep red sandstone, grey sandstone composed 
 of grey quartz and felspar, pale red sandstone with quartz 
 concretions, greyish-white siliceous sandstone with 
 imbedded portions of the pale red kind ; greenish fels- 
 pathic trap, greenstone, flesh-red felspar and hornblende 
 in concretions, with hornblende and amygdules of 
 prehnite, hard wine-yellow limestone with thin layers of 
 flint incUning to flinty-slate. 
 
 encTwFttfLaiie ^^® abovo notes, taken in conjunction with Eichard- 
 
 snperior son's description of the Copper Mountains, appear to 
 
 show, in so far as lithological criteria may be depended 
 
 on, that representatives of both the Animikee and 
 
Keewenaw series of the Lake Superior region may occur 
 here. The interest attaching to the Copper Mountains j^o„QtJ55|' 
 is so great as to justify the quotation of the paragraphs 
 referring to them. They are as follows : — 
 
 "The Copper Mountains appear to form a range 
 running S. E. and N. W. The great mass of rock in 
 the mountains seems to consist of felspar in vai'ious 
 conditions ; sometimes in the form of felspar rock or 
 clay-stone, sometimes coloured by hornblende, and 
 approaching to greenstone, but more generally in the 
 form of dark reddish-brown amygdaloid. The amyg- q^^^^^ 
 daloidal masses contained in the amygdaloid, are either J^ronKh'the* 
 entirely pistacite, or pistacite enclosing calc-spar. ^^ck. 
 Scales of native copper are very generally disseminated 
 through the rock, through a species of trap tuff, which 
 nearly resembles it, and also through a reddish sandstone 
 on which it appears to rest. "When the felspar assumed 
 the appearance of a slaty clay-stone, which it did towards 
 the base of the mountains on the banks of the river, we 
 observed no copper in it. The rough and in general 
 rounded and more elevated parts of the mountain, are 
 composed of amygdaloid ; but between the eminences 
 there occur many narrow and deep valleys, which are 
 bounded by perpendicular mural precipices of green- 
 stone. It is in these valleys, amongst the loose soil, 
 that the Indians search for copper. Amongst the Mode of 
 specimens we picked up m these valleys, were plates of of copper, 
 native copper ; masses of pistacite containing native 
 copper ; of trap rock with associated native copper, 
 green malachite, copper glance or variegated copper ore, v. 
 
 and iron-shot copper green ; and of greenish-grey 
 prehnite in trap, (the trap is felspar, deeply coloured 
 with hornblende), with disseminated native copper : the 
 copper in some specimens was crystallized in rhomboidal 
 dodecahedrons. We also found some large tabular 
 fragments, evidently portions of a vein consisting of 
 prehnite, associated with calcareous spar, and native 
 copper. The Indians dig wherever they observe the 
 prehnite lying on the soil, experience having taught 
 them that the largest pieces of copper are found 
 
80 
 
 Country north 
 of the Copper 
 Mountains. 
 
 Cbromlo iron. 
 
 associated with it, We did not obaorve the vein in its 
 original repository, nor does it appear that the Indians 
 have found it, but judging from the specimens just 
 mentioned, it most probably traverses felspathose trap. 
 We also picked up some fragments of a greenish-grey 
 coloured rock, apparently sandstone, with disseminated 
 variegated copper ore and copper glance ; likawise 
 rhomboidal fragments of white calcareous spar, and 
 some rock crystals. The Indians report that they have 
 found copper in every part of this range, which they 
 have examined for thirty or forty miles to the N. W., 
 and that the Esquimaux come hither to search for that 
 metal. We afterwards found some ice chisels in 
 possession of the latter people, twelve or fourteen inches 
 long, and half an inch in diameter, formed of pure 
 copper." 
 
 " To the northward of the Copper Mountains, at the 
 distance of ten miles, in a direct line, a similar range of 
 trap hills occurs, having, however, less altitude." 
 
 A rolled piece of chromic iron was picked up on the 
 banks of the Coppermine Kiver by Dr. Rae, when 
 accompanying Sir J. Richardson, in his search expedition 
 in 1848. (J. B. V., vol. i., p. 327.) 
 
 Banges \ 
 parallel to 
 the coast. 
 
 Cretaceous or 
 Tertiary. 
 
 Arctic Coast, west of the Mackenzie River. 
 
 The Arctic coast, west of the Mackenzie, to longitude 
 148°, was explored by Franklin. The shore is described 
 as low, but a short distance inland, there is a range of 
 mountains running nearly parallel to it, comprising, from 
 east to west, the Richardson, Buckland, British and 
 Romanzoff chains. The low land, at least as far as the 
 west end of the Richardson chain, is probably underlain 
 by Cretaceous or Laramie rocks, continuous with those 
 of the Mackenzie basin, as beds of lignite were observed 
 at Garry Island, off the mouth of the Mackenzie, and 
 near the Babbage River, opposite the west end of the 
 Richardson chain. There is, however, nothing to indicate 
 that these rocks terminate to the west at this place. 
 (2nd Expedition, appendix, p. xxiii.) 
 
31 
 
 Continental 5hore from Mackenzie River to Boothian 
 
 Peninsula. 
 
 From Sir J. Richardson's description of the rocks J^*^^^^, 
 along this coast, for about 270 miles east of the itooks. 
 Mackenzie, or to the promontory of Cape Parry, they 
 are referable, with little doubt, to the Cretaceous, or to 
 that formation in conjunction with the superposed 
 Laramie 'series. 
 
 In the lay west of Cape Bathurst, cliffs of sand and 
 slaty-clay are noted. The extremity of Cape Bathurst is 
 composed of cliffs of slaty-clay, which when dry, has a 
 light bluish-grey colour. East of the Cape are beds of 
 " alum-shale " said to resemble that of Great Bear Lake, 
 previously referred to. At Point Trail, in this vicinity, ^'^™* shales, 
 cliffs or horizontally bedded "bituminous alum-shale" 
 of a brown colour and interspersed with crystals of 
 selenite and ironstone concretions, had been on fire. 
 " The burnt clays, vaiiously coloured, yellow, white and 
 deep red, give it much the appearance of the rubbish of 
 a brickfield," (2nd Expedition, appendix, pp. xli-xliii.) 
 
 The circumstances here met with, apparently, exactly 
 reproduce those presented by similar shales of the Fort 
 St. John group (Cretaceous) on the Smoky River, a 
 tributary of the Peace. (Report of Progress, Geol. 
 Survey of Canada, 1879-80, p. 57 b.) 
 
 Slate-clay is again noted in cliffs at several points 
 further east, to the bottom of Franklin Bay, and at one 
 place, the shaly strata were actually observed to be in 
 a state of combustion. (2nd Exp., appendix, p. xliii.) 
 
 In his subsequent Journal of a Boat Voyage (vol. i., p. Bichardson's 
 270), Richardson remarks of Cape Bathurst : — " I believe 
 that this promontory, from its northern part to the 
 bottom of Franklin Bay, is the termination of the 
 sandy and loamy deposit and bituminous shale, 
 which, throughout the whole length of ^he Mackenzie 
 rests on the sandstone and limestone beds so frequently 
 noted in the preceding pages, and fragments of which 
 may be traced among the alluvial islands in +be estuary 
 
32 
 
 - of the Mackenzie, and in Liverpool Bay." {Cf. Bell on 
 Cretaceous rocks overlying Devonian limestones on 
 Athabasca. (Eeport of Progress, Geol. Survey of Canada, 
 1882-84, p. 14 cc.) 
 
 EztensiTe 
 Cambrlao area 
 on the ocast. 
 
 Bllnrian or 
 
 Devonian 
 
 limestones. 
 
 Bae Blver. 
 
 East of Cape Parry, for over seventy miles (Cape 
 Lyon to point Tinney), "the rocks forming the coast 
 line are slate-clay, limestone, greenstone, sandstone 
 and calcareous pudding-stone," and are recognized by 
 Eichardson as belonging to a formation differing from 
 that m«t with further west. (2nd Exp., appendix, p. xlv.) 
 Naked ridges of trap rocks are mentioned in some places, 
 *^d splintery reddish limestone, slate-clay and limestone 
 inocxstratified, compact bluish-black limestone and other 
 rocks are described, the dips observed being generally 
 to the north-eastward. Though the notes are rather 
 imperfect for this part of the coast, it is believed to be 
 occupied by an extension of the Cambrian rocks of the 
 Coppermine, possibly with outliers of the Silurian or 
 Devonian limestone in some places. 
 
 In his Journal of a Boat Voyage (vol. 1., p. 283) 
 Richardson makes the following additional important 
 remarks respecting this portion of the seaboard : — 
 " The quartz-rock beds acquire occasionally a pistachio- 
 green colour, as if from the presence of epidote. 
 A similar stone occurs at Pigeon Eiver on the north shore 
 of Lake Superior ; and the limestones and sandstones of 
 the latter district, with their associated trap rocks, as at 
 Thunder Mountain [now classed as Animikie] correspond 
 in most respects with those between Cape Parry and the 
 Coppermine Eiver." 
 
 Beyond the district above described, from Point Clifton 
 to Cape Hearne, in Coronation Gulf, '* The whole coast 
 consists of a formation of limestone precisely similar to 
 that which occurs at Lake Winnipeg and Parry's Penin- 
 sula." (2nd Expedition, appendix p. xlvii.) The strata 
 are said to be nearly horizontal. 
 
 On Eae Eiver, which flows into Coronation Gulf 
 from the west near the mouth of the Coppermine, lime- 
 
33 
 
 Btone, bluish-grey quartz-rock and high cliffs of "basalt" 
 are described from specimens and notes obtained by 
 Dr. Eae, who ascended the river for about twenty miles 
 in 1849. Among the limestone and quartz-rock, Dr. Eae 
 discovered layers of "asparagus-stone or apatite, thin ^atiteana 
 beds of soap-stone, and some nephrite or jade." In 
 this connection Eichardson further adds : — " From the 
 similarity of the various rocks associated in this quarter, 
 to those occurring at Pigeon Eiver, and other parts of 
 the north shore of Lake Superior, I am inclined to 
 consider that the two deposits belong to the same 
 geological era, both being more ancient than the Silurian 
 series." (J. B. V., vol. i., p. 312.) 
 
 Near Eae Eiver and Eichardson Eiver, immediately to "Basaltic 
 the north-west of the mouth of the Coppermine, and 
 also on the western side of the Coppermine Eiver, 
 Eichardson describes a series of lines of "basaltic" 
 cliffs. "All these precipices face towards the south- 
 south-east, or east-south-east, and radiate between west 
 and south-south-west from a point in Coronation Gulf, 
 at which they would meet if prolonged. (J. B. V., 
 vol. i., p. 316.) 
 
 A notice of the rocks near the mouth of the Copper-mine Rocks between 
 and of the Copper Mountains has already been quoted anSor^tBear 
 from the narrative of Franklin's first journey. Nothing 
 material is added to this by the observations in his 
 second journey, but notes are there given of the rocks 
 of the Barren Grounds between the mouth of the 
 Coppermine and Dease Bay on Great Bear Lake. Eocks 
 of the Coppermine Eiver series are described as extend- 
 ing westward to the height of land and consists chiefly 
 of purplish grey-spotted sandstone and conglomerate. 
 (Appendix p. 1.) So far as noted, the westerr slope 
 appears to be composed of " granite " and " porphyry." 
 
 Eastward from the mouth of the Coppermine, the Coast east of 
 rocks of the coast and small islands lying off it, are ^°pp°"^^° 
 described in the narrative of Franklin's first journey as 
 similar to those of the Coppermine Eiver, as far as 
 Cape Barrow. . 
 
 D 
 
34 
 
 Galena. 
 
 At Galena Point, fourteen miles south of Cape Barrow, 
 on Batliurst Inlet, a narrow vein of pure galena was 
 observed traversing gneissic rocks. (Ist Expedition, 
 p. 581.) 
 
 Bocks and 
 minerals 
 described by 
 Jameson from 
 the east coaBt 
 of Melville 
 Peninsula. 
 
 Wast C!oast of 
 Hudson Bay. 
 
 Boothian and Melville Peninsulas and Vicinity. 
 
 In Agnew Eiver, on this coast, copper ore was found 
 by Ross, and massive beds of trap are mentioned in the 
 appendix as occurring in the Saumerez Eiver, though 
 this is included in the area of country generally charac- 
 terized by granite. 
 
 A specimen of lead ore was found on a hill in lat. 
 69° 13' 14" on the west side of the Gulf of Boothia, 
 {Op. cit., p. 115.) 
 
 Melville Peninsula. 
 
 The rocks referred above, in a general way, to the 
 Archaean, probably include areas of Huronian. Jameson 
 mentions as among the prominent varieties of rocks de- 
 rived from this region, " Granite, gneiss, mica-slate, clay- 
 slate, chlorite-slate, primitive-trap, serpentine, limestone 
 and porphyry." In association with these the following 
 minerals occur : — " Zircon and beryl, also precious 
 garnet, actinolite, tremolite, dalage, coccolite, rock 
 crystal, calc-spar, rhomb-spar, asbestos, graphite or 
 black lead, specular iron ore, magnetic iron ore, 
 chromic ore or chromate of iron, titanic iron, common 
 and magnetic iron pyrites." Some of the " transition 
 rocks," noticed by Jameson, should probably also be 
 classed with the Archaean, and in addition to several of 
 the minerals above mentioned, in these were found 
 tourmaline (schorl) and molybdenite. (Narrative of 
 Discovery and Adventure in the Polar Seas and Regions, 
 by Professors Leshe, Jameson, and Hugh Murray, 1830.) 
 
 Between this point (Cape Esquimaux) and Repulse Bay, 
 in the course of the two journeys above referred to, 
 granite and gneiss weie observed in a number of places, 
 and no mention is made of other rocks in situ, though 
 among specimens collected, and reported on by Prof. 
 
35 
 
 Tennant in the appendix, hornblende and mica-slates and 
 chloritic and talcose slates are noted. On an island near 
 the south shore of Eanken Inlet, Dr. Eae " picked up 
 some specimens of copper ore, but the ore did not appear 
 to be abundant." 
 
 Northern Continental Shore, East of Hudson Bay, 
 with Baffin luind. 
 
 In the Transactions of the Geological Society, vol. ii. steinhaner on 
 (1814.) Eev. Mr. Steinhauer describes a number of 
 specimens sent by the Moravian missionaries from the * 
 
 Labrador coast, and gives localities for labradorite, and 
 for the soap-stone used by the Eskimo in making 
 lamps, &c. 
 
 Dr. Bell specially mentions the occurrence of mica Micaand 
 and graphite on the north shore of Hudson Strait, as 
 being of possible economic importance. 
 
 Graphite. 
 
 In a supplement to the appendix of Capt. Parry's West coast of 
 Voyage for the Discovery of a North-west Passage in ^ ° ''^' 
 the years 1819-20 (Natural History) C. Koning describes 
 the most characteristic rocks of the west coast of Baffin 
 Bay as " gneiss and micaceous quartz-rock, with some 
 ambiguous granitic compound, in which hornblende 
 seems to enter as a subordinate ingredient (p. ccxlvii). 
 
 Dr. P. C. Sutherland, in the Quarterly Journal of the Remarks by 
 Geological Society (vol. ix., 1853, p. 299), describes the 
 east coast of Baffin Land from Lancaster Sound to 
 Cumberland Sound, as follows : — " On the opposite 
 (south) shore of Lancaster Sound, at Cape Walter 
 Bathurst, the crystalline rocks are again recognised, and 
 from this point they occupy the whole coast southward 
 to Cumberland Strait (Sound) and probably considerably 
 beyond it. To this, however, I believe there is one 
 exception, at Cape Durban, on the 67th parallel, where 
 coal has been found by whalers ; and also at Kingaite, 
 two degrees to the south-west of Durban, where, from 
 the appearance of the land as viewed from a distance, 
 trap may be said to occur on both sides of the inlet 
 d2 
 
Books of 
 Frobisber Bay. 
 
 Copper and 
 Iron ores. 
 
 36 
 
 Graphite is found abundant and pure in several islands 
 situated on the 65th parallel of latitude in Cumberland 
 Strait, and on the west side of Davis Straight. 
 
 A considerable collection of rocks and fossils, made by 
 C. F. Hall, chiefly in Frobisher Bay and its vicinity, is 
 described by Prof. B. K. Emerson, in Appendix III. to 
 Hall's Narrative of a Second Arctic Expedition. The 
 greater number of these specimens consist of ordinary 
 Laurentian rocks, including granite, gneiss, magnetite- 
 gneiss, hornblendic gneiss, mica-schist, etc. In associa- 
 tion with these, in Frobisher and Field Bays, magnetite, 
 apatite, bornite and pyrite were found, together with 
 crystalline limestone holding cocolite. At the head of 
 Frobisher Bay, from a hill named by Hall " Silliman's 
 fossil mount,"* which appears to form part of a some- 
 what extensive development of nearly horizontal cream- 
 coloured and sometimes magnesian limestone, a number 
 of fossils were obtained. 
 
 Mr. F. M. Endlich, in a list of minerals obtained in 
 the Howgate Polar expedition (1877-78) enumerates, 
 among others, the following from Cumberland Sound : — 
 Muscovite, crystals and large plates; chalcopyrite, 
 pyrrhotite, apatite, (Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collect- 
 ions, 1882, p. 171.) 
 
 In this appendix to M'Clintock's voyage, Professor 
 Haughton gives the following, respecting the south shore 
 of Pond's Bay, or inlet at the northern extremity of 
 Baffin Land. (Lat. 72o 40'). "In this locality, a 
 quartziferous black mica-schist underlies the Silurian 
 limestone, and is interstratified with gneiss and gamet- 
 iferous quartz-rock, all inclined 38° W.S.W. (true)." 
 M'Clintock states the inclination or dip of the beds as 
 35° to the west, in the same volume, (p. 156). 
 
 ffiKpsum ^^'^^ *^® appendix to Parry's Third Voyage, we 
 
 learn that in association with the limestones of the east 
 side of Prince Eegent Inlet, are subsidiary beds of 
 
 Notes by 
 Endlich and 
 Hanghton. 
 
 '*' The position of " Silliman's fossil mount " is shown on the map accom- 
 panying Hall's Life with the Esgaimauz. London, 1801. 
 
37 
 
 gypsum. Gypsum also occurs on the west side of the 
 inlet in North Somerset, where it is said to occur in 
 " beds several feet thick, extending for at least 30 miles 
 through the country." (App. p. 147.) At the first- . , 
 mentioned locality brown haematite was also found, 
 apparently derived from the limestone. 
 
 " Coal, sandstone, clay-ironstone and brown haematite Coai formation 
 were found along a line stretching E.N.E. from Baring 
 Island, through the south of Melville Island, Byam- 
 Martin Island, and the whole of Bathurst Island. Car- 
 boniferous limestone, with characteristic fossils, was 
 found along the north coast of Bathurst Island, and at 
 Hillock Point, Melville Island." 
 
 From a comparison of different coal exposures noted liOcaUtieB of 
 
 tossUe and 
 by M'Clintock, M'Clure, Austen, Belcher, and Parry, in rock-specimen 
 
 the Parry Islands, Prof. Haughton has laid down the 
 
 approximate outcrop? of some of the coal beds. These 
 
 he finds to agree remarkably well with the trend of the 
 
 boundary of the formation drawn from totally different ~. ■ 
 
 data. Lists of fossils and rocks from the following 
 
 places, with notes, are given : — Hillock Point, Melville 
 
 Island (lat. 76" N. ; long. Ill" 45' W.) Bathurst Island, 
 
 north coast, Cape Lady Franklhi (?) (lat. 76° 40' N. ; 
 
 long. 98° 45' W.) Princess Eoyal Island, Prince of 
 
 Wales Strait, Baring Island (lat. 72° 45' N. ; long. " 
 
 117° 30' W.) In connection with this place, it is 
 
 noted that the carboniferous sandstones underlie the 
 
 limestones, and that "it is highly probable that 
 
 the coal beds of Melville Island are very low down 
 
 in the series, and do not correspond in geological 
 
 position with the coal beds of Europe " (p. 385).* 
 
 Cape Hamilton, Baring Island (lat. 74° 15' N. ; long. 
 
 117° 80' W.) Cape Dundas, Melville Island (lat. 74° 30" 
 
 N. ; long. 113° 45' W.) Cape Sir-James-Eoss, Melville 
 
 Island (lat. 74° 45' N. ; long. 114° 30' W.) Cape Pro- 
 
 ♦ Dr. Armstrong in his Narrative of the Discovery of the North-west 
 Passage (p. 409), says of tke same place, " In Ptincess-Royal Island, besides 
 the characteristic Silnrian limestones, there are black basalts and red 
 jaspers, as well as red rocks, less altered by heat, but showing a passage ^ , 
 Into jasper." 
 
38 
 
 vidence, Melville Island (lat. 74" 20' N. ; long. 120° 30' 
 W.) Winter Harbour, Melville Island (lat. 74° 35' N. ; 
 long. 110° 45' W.) Bridgeport Inlet, Melville Island 
 (lat. 75° N. ; long. 109° W.) Skene Bay, Melville Island 
 (lat. 75° N.; long. 108° W.) Hooper Island, Lyddon 
 Gulf, Melville Island (lat. 75° 5' N. ; long. 112° W.) 
 Byam-Martin Island (lat. 75° 10' N. ; long. 104° 15' W.) 
 Graham-Moore Bay, Bathurst Island (lat 75° 30' N. ; 
 long. 102° W.) Bathurst Island, Bedford Bay (lat. 75° 
 N. ; long. 95° 50' W.) [Vesicular scoriaceous trap rocks 
 were found here by M'Clintock, though no such rocks 
 are mentioned elsewhere in connection with the Car- 
 boniferous.] Comwallis Island, McDougall Bay. Silurian 
 and Carboniferous fossils were found together at the last 
 mentioned place.. The questions raised by these are 
 discussed by Haughton on page 389. 
 
 Coal outcrops. Respecting the coal seams which have been dis- 
 
 covered in the Arctic Archipelago, Prof. Haughton further 
 remarks : — " If the different points where coal v/as found 
 be laid down on a map, we have, in order, proceeding 
 
 ; ■ from the south-west, Cape Hamilton, Baring Island; 
 
 Cape Dundas, Melville Island, south ; Bridgeport Inlet 
 and Skene Bay, Melville Island; Schomberg Point, 
 Graham Moore Bay, Bathurst Island ; a line joining all 
 these points is the outcrop of the coal-beds of the south 
 of Melville Island, and runs E.N.E. At all the localities 
 above mentioned, and indeed, in every place where coal 
 was found, it was accompanied by the greyish-yellow 
 and yellow sandstone, already described, and by nodules 
 of clay-ironstone, passing into brown haematite, sometimes 
 nodular and sometimes pisolitic in structure " (p. 388). 
 
39 
 
 Routes to the Yukon and far North- 
 west Territories of Canada. 
 
 {See, also, Appendix.) 
 
 The points of view from which a new country must 
 be viewed are (1) the value of the resources, and (2) the 
 routes or means by which these resources can be 
 reached and brought to market. It has been, already, 
 conclusively shown that the North- Western Territories 
 of Canada contain mineral resources alone of such 
 splendid promise as should insure, now that the ball 
 has been set rolling on the Upper Yukon, this great 
 Dominion a swift and, perhaps, startling accession of 
 wealth and eminence. The problem that now appears to 
 be taxing the ingenuity of all men concerned in the 
 development of Canada's sub-arctic region is that of the 
 easiest and most economical routes. 
 
 Taking Vancouver as a starting point, it is found The Routes 
 
 ° , , . . , to the Yukon 
 
 that there are at least nme or ten routes more or less from the west 
 used: — (11 St. Michael's, the Up- Yukon Eiver route; 
 (2) the Chilkat Pass; (3) Bound's Trail; (4) Dalton's 
 Trail ; (5) Chilkoot Pass ; (6) White Pass ; (7) Taku 
 Inlet ; (8) Stikeen Eiver. There are' two routes from the 
 Coast to Telegraph Creek, the starting point on this route ; 
 one via the Stikeen River, the other (9) *Overland 
 and through British Territory from the Kitimat Arm of 
 Douglas Channel, 308 miles from British Columbia 
 Coast to Telegraph Creek ; and (10) the Fraser River — 
 from Ashcroft (B.C.) on the Canadian Pacific Railway, 
 800 miles to Lake Teslin, 600 miles further to Dawson 
 City. These are all so condemned and approved alter- 
 nately by newspaper critics and returned travellers that 
 it would require volumes of descriptive and technical 
 detail to properly represent their respective merits or 
 demerits. The second part of this volume briefly deals 
 with these different routes, in the shape of extracts from 
 various official authorities, publications and newspapers. 
 (See Sections 10, 18 and 27, Part II.) But a few words 
 might be said respecting the different railway schemes. 
 
 * This route has not yet been surveyed, and, therefore, cannot be des- 
 cribed, but IL id said to offer an easy'grade route tliroueh All-Canadian 
 territory, much of it good agricultural country, and skirts some of the 
 active mining fields of B.C., and several prospectiTc ones. 
 
40 
 
 Railways from 
 theWest Coast 
 
 Objections to 
 Bhort costly 
 railways. 
 
 The subject of 
 railways 
 viewed from 
 a dividend- 
 paying point 
 ol view. 
 
 Good waggon 
 roads vermis 
 short railways. 
 
 It is proposed to build a railway from Skap;way 
 Bay to Bennett Lake ; another from the Taku Inlet to 
 Teslin Lake ; another from the Stickeen Eiver to the 
 last mentioned lake ; and other lines are proposed from 
 the West Coast, all terminating at some lake or river point 
 a few miles inland and hundreds of miles from the Yukon. 
 The question that arises respecting these proposed short 
 railways is : — While offering a certain advantage in the 
 matter of taking passengers and goods over the first few 
 miles of a 600 miles' journey during the short summer 
 season, what prospect do they present of returning divi- 
 dends to shareholders ? In a twelvemonth's time Dyea, 
 Skagway, Telegraph Creek and other shipping termini will 
 be furnished with numberless transport contractors, with 
 whom railways will never be able to compete unless 
 trade and passenger traffic become enormous ; a pros- 
 pect that certainly looks likely to be realised, but which 
 at this stage appears too speculative a contingency upon 
 which to build costly railways. 
 
 The gravest objection, however, to these railways is 
 that, for the most part, they only cover the narrow 
 coastline between the shipping ports and the inland 
 waterways leading to the goldfields, and are, 
 therefore, of little service from September to June of 
 each, year, when these waterways are frozen over. 
 (See Section 11, Part II.) Railways that are built over 
 the mountainous coast country of this part of the American 
 continent, and which can only command full traffic for little 
 over four months in the year, will require to charge rather 
 heavily during those few months if shareholders are to draw 
 the dividends anticipated. It must also be remembered 
 that, unlike an agricultural country, or, indeed, any 
 other country in the world, the railway traffic, excepting 
 in passengers, will be altogether one way; the return 
 journeys will be almost wholly unremunerative. 
 
 Unless some means are devised of getting heavy 
 traffic over the ice-laden lakes and rivers"'' it is difficult to 
 see the wisdom of building all these short and expensive 
 railroads until such time as sufficient encouragement is 
 
 * Section 19, Part II., refers to the use of dogs or reindeer for this 
 purpose, bnt there is no donbt that mechanical science will soon overcome 
 the difficulty. The traction engine supplies a key with which some genius 
 will solve the problem. (See Appendix.) 
 
41 
 
 forthcoming to build a line from the terminal point of all 
 the coastal railways right through to the goldfields. At 
 present good waggon roads to the navigable waterways 
 and inland trails are all that is needed when the 
 question is considered from the profitable investment 
 point of view. As to building a railway 600 miles into 
 a gold-mining country like the Yukon, before its wide- 
 spread richness and permanency have been thoroughly 
 established, and which, during the summer months, 
 when the bulk of the carrying trade would be done, 
 could never compete against the Mackenzie and Yukon 
 Rivers' traffic, it is sufficient to say that no government 
 would be so unwise as to countenance such a project. 
 
 There is no intention of questioning the value which Travellers and 
 
 ^ "^ Traflio V. Bail* 
 
 these coast lines will prove to traffic during the short ^vay share- 
 
 1 holders, 
 
 open- waterway season, but with three or four short 
 
 costly railways, all with the same object and converging 
 
 towards the one point, competing against all-waterway 
 
 routes and good waggon roads, and, more particularly, 
 
 against each other, it is difficult to see how they are 
 
 going to pay. There is no doubt that the proper course 
 
 was for the Canadian Government to have had rapid 
 
 surveys made of the most likely routes, before any 
 
 charters were granted, and to have selected the best for 
 
 a State railway, which should have been constructed at 
 
 once. This would, at least, have stopped many schemes 
 
 now afoot in which much disappointment and loss will 
 
 be experienced. 
 
 As the case stands now, several charters have been 
 
 granted for different railway projects, on some of which, 
 
 it is said, preliminary operations have already begun. 
 
 If possible, and not too late, it would be a wise move for 
 
 the various companies, or concessionaires, to join forces 
 
 and decide upon one railway only. The advantages of 
 
 such a course are obvious. 
 
 The White Pass and the Stikeen proposed railway ^'^^ White 
 routes are, no doubt, the best known at present, and, of stikeenKoutes. 
 these, all information to hand at the beginning of this 
 year (1898) gives the palm to the first-mentioned. It must 
 be noted that railway routes are referred to, not roadways. 
 
4i 
 
 White Pass 
 Bonte. 
 
 The Stikeen 
 Boute. 
 
 Ugly f/jaturea 
 on uie 8t. 
 Michael's, 
 Chtlkoot and 
 Taku Biver 
 Bootes. 
 
 Skagway Bay, the starting point of the Whita Pass 
 Route, has the advantage over all other seaports in this 
 region, in having deep water, excellent shelter, and a 
 good landing wharf for large steamers at all tides and 
 seasons. The route, after leaving the Bay, proceeds 
 along a flat for four or five miles, then over the coast 
 range — the highest point of which, 2,600 feet, is reached 
 17 miles from Skagway. Thence it descends to Lake 
 Bennett, 35 miles from Skagway. A survey reports that 
 the steepest gradient for a railway by this route is only 
 3 feet in 100. The line continues to a point on the 
 Hootalinqua Eiver 90 miles from Lake Bennett, thus 
 giving a railway of 125 miles from the sea, to an unin- 
 terrupted direct waterway to the Yukon.* From this 
 point on the Hootalinqua it is 400 miles by the Stikeen 
 Route via Teslin Lake to the sea. Of this distance 
 nearly 150 miles must be covered by a railway from 
 Telegraph Creek to Teslin Lake. 
 
 Navigation is open at all times of the year by sea to 
 Skagway, while the Stikeen River is closed by ice for at 
 least six months and Teslin Lake for nearly a month 
 longer every year. But the Stikeen River labors under 
 other disadvantages as compared with the Skagway. 
 Even when open the river is somewhat difficult to navi- 
 gate by vessels drawing not more than four feet, and lines 
 have to be taken ashore at one particularly bad spot. 
 Teslin Lake is closed long after the Hootalinqua River 
 opens, and ice forms upon it sometime before it appears 
 on the river. It is a well-known fact that ice remains on 
 the lakes longer and forms earlier than on the rivers of 
 this region, though on Tagish Lake and other lakes 
 amongst the coast ranges the mountain streams keep the 
 ice from forming and clears it off much earlier than on 
 the lakes further inland. 
 
 These facts, certainly, give many points to the 
 White Pass Route over that of the Stikeen. 
 
 There are three other routes, of which a great deal 
 has been said that is misleading. The following sum- 
 ming-up of Mr. Ogilvie's latest utterances (Lecture at 
 
 (* There is an alternative scheme of extending this line to Fori Selkirk 
 instead of the Hootalinqua Biver.) 
 
43 : , ,..,; . 
 
 Victoria, B. C, November 5th, 1697) discloses some 
 ugly features upon these routes. 
 
 The St. Michael's or Up- Yukon Route :— Only 2^ ^'t'! Mioh»er» 
 months' open navigation, and treacherous sand-bars, I'outo. 
 which are likely to limit vessels to only one trip in the 
 season. 
 
 The Chilkoot Pass Rente :— So rough and moun- Ks rSS^* 
 tainous that, Mr. Ogilvie remarks, " it would probably 
 be necessary to suspend the road by iron girders from 
 the cliffs on the road to Sheep Camp, and from Sheep 
 Camp to the head of the climb the road is yet more 
 difficult." 
 
 Taku River Route:— The dangers from the Great r.r/e?Route. 
 Taku glacier, and obstacles to navigation caused by 
 enormous gravel-bars, form permanent objections to this 
 route. 
 
 However, the object of these pages is not so much Jbj|™°o? these 
 to deal with the routes from the west coast as from the pages, 
 point-of-view at which Europe, and more particularly 
 this country, must regard the development of these far 
 north-western territories of Canada, in which mining, 
 the fisheries and furs, must ever be the only possible 
 industries of any extent, though circumstances may 
 bring about a wide development of the great petroleum 
 areas which extend throughout the entire length of the 
 great Mackenzie basin, though in some favoured localities 
 in the South limited agriculture may be carried on and 
 stock grazed during the short summer. 
 
 Routes and Approaches from the East and South East. 
 
 The main highway into the great auriferous territory 
 in the far north-west, between the Yukon and Mackenzie 
 Rivers, will ultimately be from the east, or, to be quite 
 correct, from the south east. The exact route will be 
 determined by such mining developments as occur 
 throughout the North Western Territories within the 
 next few months, but for the reasons which follow, the 
 Mackenzie River is certainly destined to play a chief 
 part in the opening-up of these sub-arctic regions. 
 
 Residents of Lower or South-East Canada will no ^°^^ . , 
 
 Overlana irom 
 
 doubt favor those routes of which Edmonton — a terminus Edmonton. 
 
u 
 
 A bad feature 
 in the railway 
 qncBtion. 
 
 Liard and 
 Peace River 
 xoates. 
 
 The Mackenzie 
 Biver route. 
 
 on a branch of the Canadian Pacific Eailway — is the 
 starting point. (See Map.) 
 
 A through-railway route to the Yukon from this 
 point would pass through good ag)icultural country for 
 the first few miles, but the rest of this gigantic under- 
 taking — over 1,000 miles in lengtli — would pass through 
 regions absolutely unproductive for all practical purposes, 
 excepting in the matter of furs, and such minerals as 
 may be discovered. 
 
 A feature of this question ',hat must be kept in view 
 is, that railways to any goldfieMs in the far North- West 
 Territories, can only pay on the outward journey ; there 
 will be httle or no freight on return trips, and few 
 passengers, so far as any appreciable addition to receipts 
 are concerned as compared with the cost. The length 
 and cost of this line, together with the competition of 
 cheaper routes, must rele/,'ate the consideration of its 
 construction to some future period when possible dis- 
 coveries along its proposf-d route may be sufficient to 
 warrant reconsideration. A waggon road is another 
 matter and one will no doubt be made by the Government 
 if the Survey Party nov on the route report favourably. 
 (See Edmonton Boutca, No. 14. Section 21, Part II.) 
 
 There are summev routes from Edmonton to the 
 Yukon along both the Liard and the Peace Eivers, but it 
 is very 'unlikely that either will ever be popular. The 
 dangers, length and unceasing toil — the greater portion 
 being- up a swift stream of the former, and the same 
 drawbacks though with fewer perils but greater length of 
 the latter, will never permit these river routes to be 
 much favored, excepting by travellers residing in or 
 about the districts through which these rivers flow. 
 (See Sections 10 and 11 in Part II., for description and 
 distances.) 
 
 The route from Edmonton to the Yukon goldfields, 
 via the Mackenzie Eiver, is preferable to any other from 
 this point because of its ease and inexpensiveness. The 
 great attraction of this route is, that out of its entire 
 length from Edmonton to Dawson City, 2,458 miles, 
 2,182 miles are down stream. There are only three 
 
45 
 
 portages between the starting point and Great Slave 
 Lake, and two or three short ones about 1,000 miles 
 further on in McDougall's Pass, which altogether 
 scarcely exceed a mile in length and are described 
 by Mr. Wm. Ogilvie (1887-88 expedition)—" The Pass 
 is wide and level, the valley being nearly a mile wide at 
 the bottom, and very flat. It is almost treeless. Lakes 
 in the Pass reduce the portage distance to less than half 
 a mile." Mr. Ogilvie passed along this portion of the 
 route in June with his canoes, thus showing that the 
 waterways in this Arctic region are free from ice almost 
 as early as the lakes on the Lewes Eiver. There are 
 Hudson Bay Posts at certain intervals, so that during 
 the summer months this down-stream journey should be 
 quite a pleasant trip. The only up-stream portions are 
 on the Peel and Trout Rivers, and up the Yukon, 260 
 miles, to Dawson City. (See under Sections 11 and 21, 
 Part II., for distances and particulars.) 
 
 Route from Hudson's Bay to the Yukon. 
 
 The summer route from Europe to the Yukon The Route of 
 
 , the future, 
 
 and the whole of the North- Western Territories, north 
 
 of about Lat. 55', will, undoubtedly, be from Hudson's 
 
 Bay by way of the Great Slave Lake and Mackenzie 
 
 River ; and the easiest and most direct course of such a 
 
 route would be via Chesterfield Inlet. The notes and 
 
 extracts in Part II. of this work, under Sections 11 and 
 
 22 dealing with the distances, and giving the descriptive ■ 
 
 particulars and resources of the country which such a 
 
 route would tap, should be read in order to understand 
 
 its many advantages. Its chief value lies in the almost 
 
 direct course which it provides between England and 
 
 the Yukon goldfields ; but it also possesses almost equal 
 
 attractions in the vast extent of mineral country, Arctic 
 
 whale and seal industries, freshwater fisheries, and an 
 
 almost untapped fur country which it opens up to 
 
 European markets, and the enterprise of European 
 
 Capitalists. Perhaps its chief advantages are that 
 
 throughout its entire course of over 1,000 miles from 
 
 the Great Slave Lake it is navigable by river steamers ; 
 
 and four-fifths of this river route to the Yukon country 
 
 is down stream. 
 
46 
 
 HadsonV liay. 
 
 Safety of 
 Naylgation 
 InHudson's 
 Bay. 
 
 By reference to Section 25, Part II., it will be seen, 
 on the high authority of Dr. Bobert Bell, Assistant 
 Director of the Geological Survey of Canada, that the 
 greater portion of Hudson's Bay and Straits is quite 
 open to navigation throughout the whole of the year, 
 while the same authority states — "I have a record of 
 the principal phenomena of the seasons at Martin's 
 Falls on the Albany Eiver, extending through a period 
 of fifty years, and from it I find that the river is open 
 there on an average for six months of the year. I have 
 also a record of dates of the opening and closing of 
 Hayes Eiver at York Factory, extending over 50 years, 
 from which it appears to enjoy an average of fully six 
 months of open water. The Nelson Eiver is open for 
 a longer period." There are no accounts procurable 
 respecting Chesterfield Inlet, but it is reasonable to 
 assume that this great arm of the Bay is open for a 
 period not very much shorter than that of the rivers 
 just mentioned. 
 
 In referring to the safety of navigation in Hudson's 
 Bay and straits, Dr. Eobert Bell states that he obtained 
 a record from the Hudson's Bay Company which shows 
 that " there have been almost every year during the 
 past two centuries ships of various classes and sizes 
 navigating the strait without loss, and it seems almost 
 incredible that such a number of voyages could be made, 
 extending over 874 years, without the loss of over one, 
 or, as is claimed by some writers, two small sailing 
 vessels ! " 
 
 The navigation of Hudson's Bay will be suJQfioiently 
 dealt with by quoting from the report of the 1884 
 Hudson's Bay Committee, which states — '* No evidence 
 has been given that goes to prove that Hudson's Strut 
 and Bay, proper, ever freeze over, or that the ice met 
 with in those waters is sufficient to prevent navigation 
 at any time of the year ; that Hudson's Bay and 
 Strait appear, from all evidence taken, to be singularly 
 free from obstruction to navigation in the shape of 
 shoals or reefs, and, during the period of open water, 
 from storms or fogs." 
 
41 
 
 These extracts surely prove the practicabiUty of the 
 Mackenzie Eiver route so far as Chesterfield Inlet— 
 or any other port in Hudson's Bay — is concerned. 
 
 The chief consideration in the question of opening 5f^^°^,' 
 up a shipping route from Europe to Hudson's Bay is Bay country, 
 that of freight. This subject is dealt with at consider- 
 able length under Section 25, Part II., under the 
 heading — " Hudson's Bay and its Territory." But the 
 amazing gold discoveries on the Yukon and in the 
 country between this great Alaskan waterway and the 
 Mackenzie Eiver, and the probable early development 
 of other rich mineral areas in the far North Western 
 Territories, present additional and urgent reasons for 
 the opening up of this direct route from England to the 
 Yukon-Mackenzie country. 
 
 The next section for consideration in this Chester- The route alter 
 
 leaving 
 
 field Inlet route is that between the Inlet and the Great chesterfield 
 Slave Lake. Mr. J. W. Tj-rrell proved in his exploratory 
 tour of '98 that deep navigable waters extend 250 miles 
 beyond the Inlet to the head of Aberdeen Lake, and 
 he describes himself and companions as being the first 
 white-men who had ever been on this lake. (See 
 Section 22, Part II.) Writing of his journey along the 
 Doobaunt Eiver, just before entering Aberdeen Lake, 
 he states — "The surprising and most delightful feature 
 of the locality was that upon the shores there was 
 strewn an abundance of driftwood. At first sight its 
 occurrence was unaccountable, but the mystery was 
 readily solved, however, by finding that ive Imcl readied 
 the confluence of another large river flowing in from the 
 west. Much of the driftwood was of large size, and 
 judging from the slightly battered condition, one would 
 infer that it had come no very great distance, or, at any 
 rate, through very few rapids." 
 
 This account leads to but one conclusion, viz., that a waterway 
 
 , . . between the 
 
 a large unexplored river, free from any serious impcdi- iniet and Great 
 ments to navigation, extends from near the mouth of 
 Doobaunt Eiver at Aberdeen Lake to some point directly 
 west, or nearly so, and to some unknown distance, possibly 
 
48 - . 
 
 to branches of the Great Slave Lake. The total distance 
 from Aberdeen Lake to the navigable branches of Great 
 Slave Lake is somewhat about 150 miles. Branches 
 flowing east from the Lakes and this large river 
 undoubtedly cover the greater part, if not the whole, of 
 this distance. Under any circumstances the country 
 is level and easy to travel. Well-defined Indian and 
 Esquimaux tracks from the Inlet to the Lakes have 
 been known to exist for years. 
 
 siave^Lake The Great Slave Lake, about 250 miles in length, 
 
 route?" °* ^"^^ ^^^ ^*^ eastern branches are the next section of this 
 route. The Great Lake is well known to be navigable 
 for large river-steamers, and so also are Artillery 
 and Golden Clinton Lake, but the channels connecting 
 them, though well-defined on maps and apparently 
 extensive waterways, are lacking official records. 
 
 River Section!^ The Mackenzie Eiver Section comes next in this 
 
 route. The following extracts from a report on an 
 exploration in the Mackenzie and Yukon Basins in 1887, 
 by R. G. McConnell, B.A., of the Geological Survey of 
 Canada, supply some most valuable information con- 
 cerning the navigation of the Mackenzie Eiver, its lakes 
 and its tributaries : — 
 
 Navigation of " The Mackenzie Eiver and its continuation. Slave 
 
 the Mackenzie. .,,« -n^.i 
 
 Eiver, are navigable from Fort Smith at the foot of the 
 
 Slave Eiver rapids to the Arctic Ocean, a distance of 
 over 1,300 miles. A small steamer, built by the Hud- 
 son's Bay Company at Fort Smith, in the winter of 
 1886-8, now makes annual trips from that post down 
 S' ve Eiver and the Mackenzie as far as the mouth of 
 Peel Eiver, which enters the latter at the head of its 
 delta, and thence thirty miles up Peel Eiver to Fort 
 Macpherson. ... It follows from these dates (see 
 Section 12, Part II.) that the Mackenzie, disregarding 
 the obstructions in low water from rapids, cannot be 
 considered as navigable much before the 10th of June, 
 nor later than the 20th October." 
 
 On reaching the delta at the mouth of the Mac- 
 kenzie and passing through the left-hand channel for 
 
 K^ ' 
 
12 miles, the Peel River is reached. Fort Macpherson 
 is situated 14 miles up the Peel on the left bank. 
 
 Country tapped by a Hudson's Bay Route. 
 
 Before proceeding further with a description of this 
 routo, a short reference might be made to the immense 
 area which the Mackenzie River, its lakes and tributaries, 
 would open up were they connected with the sea by a 
 direct route through Hudson's Bay. 
 
 A vast and very rich fur country between Hudson's The navigable 
 
 " T 1 » • /-v IT area of the 
 
 Bay, Athabasca Lake and the Arctic Ocean would Mackenzie, 
 be tapped, as well as the copper and otherwise highly 
 mineralised country of the so-called "Barren Lands." . 
 The magnificent freshwater fisheries could also be 
 operated upon as well as those of the Arctic Ocean by 
 means of this great navigable waterway. Excepting 
 a 14-mile break of rap'ds, the Slave River is navigable 
 through to Lake Athabasca, in the surrounding country 
 of which there are evidences of innumerable mineral 
 deposits of great apparent value. The navigable 
 Athabasca River continues further, affording command 
 of a large extent of country of high pi'oripactive value, 
 and, excepting a break of rapids 70 miles in extent 
 (capable of being made navigable by improvement) 
 Athabasca Landing is reached, whence there is a 90-mile 
 road to Edmonton, the terminus of a branch of the 
 Canadian Pacific Railway. The magnificent Peace The Peace 
 River, extending from Lake Athabasca right through to 
 the Omenica goldfields of British Columbia, and navigable 
 throughout, excepting for three or four rapids which 
 make portaging necessary, forms a part of this great •: 
 
 navigable waterway system. The northern arm > of 
 Great Slave Lake, Hay River, and other smaller streams, 
 provide further means of supplying this proposed main 
 artery of trade. 
 
 About 200 miles down the Mackenzie from Great TheLiard 
 Slave Lake is the Liard River, which is navigable by 
 steamers for quite 200 miles to the mouth of the Nelson 
 River, which is also navigable for small steamers for at 
 least 100 miles further on. Canoes can, and do, proceed 
 
 E 
 
50 
 
 right on — with occasional portages — to the head waters 
 of the Liard, where the ftcvourable route from Edmonton 
 to the Yukon Goldfields is met with. 
 
 Mr. E. G. McConnell, in his report, which I quote 
 on a preceding page, states : — 
 
 WTe?** "Of ^^^ other tributaries of the Mackenzie, Peel 
 
 River is the only one which can be considered as navi- 
 gable. This is ascended annually, as stated above, by 
 the steamer "Wrigley" as far as Fort Macpherson, 
 and, if necessary, could be followed much further, but 
 the exact distance is not known." 
 
 fiSiutari^'^of ^^^ there are many short tributaries of the Mac- 
 
 the Mackenzie, kenzie which might prove valuable arteries in connection 
 
 with the fur trade, the mining industry, and trade v/ith 
 
 the Indians and Esquimaux. Of these the Nahanni, the 
 
 Dahadinne, the Carcagou and the Arctic Red River are 
 
 the most important on the "West so far as exploration has 
 
 gone, and the Willow, Blackwater, Great Bear (connecting 
 
 with Great Bear Lake) and the Hare Skin rivers are the 
 
 most important in the East. 
 
 hi|he8t*m. ^^ The Report of the Select Committee of the Senate, 
 
 fhe*Macirenzie a-ppointed to inquire into the resources of the Great 
 
 River, Mackenzie Basin in 1888, states in reference to the 
 
 Mackenzie River : 
 
 ♦' There is a river navigation of about 2,750 
 miles, of which 1,390 miles are suitable for stern- 
 wheel steamers, which with their barges may carry 
 300 tons ; the remaining 1,360 being deep enough 
 for light draught sea-going steamers. There is a 
 total of about 6,500 miles of continuous lake, coast, 
 and river navigation, broken only in two places ; 
 that the two breaks in question are upon the Great 
 Slave and Athabasca Rivers, the first being over- 
 come by a 20-mile waggon road from Fort Smith 
 southwards on the Great Slave River, and Ihe latter 
 being a stretch of 70 miles on the Athabasca, of 
 questionable navigation above Fort McMurray, 
 down which flat boats or scows descend, but cannot 
 
• 51 
 
 ascend, and which about 50 miles of waggon road 
 would overcome, while some improvement of the 
 rapids might make the whole river navigable ; that 
 with suitable steam crafts this river and lake navi- 
 gation may be connected with Victoria and Van- 
 couver by way of the mouth of the Mackenzie Bivcr, 
 by way of the Arctic Ocean and Behring Straits and 
 Sea, and it (the Mackenzie) is now connected on 
 the south by 90 miles of waggon road, between 
 Athabasca, Athabasca Landing and Edmonton, w^ith 
 navigable water in the Saskatchewan." 
 
 From the Peel River the summer route generally ^onjI^^t'S? 
 taken to the Yukon is by way of the Trout (or Poplar) ^'^^^ ^h™f 
 River to McDougall's Pass, where lakes reduce the the Mackenzie, 
 portage distance to less than half-a-mile. The Pass is 
 wide, treeless, very j3at, and easily traversed. -' 
 
 An 8-mile creek, navigable by boats, leads to the 
 Bell River (navigable by river steamers), which takes 
 one to La Pierre's House, a few miles further on. From 
 this point to the Porcupine River — also navigable by 
 steamers — is about 30 miles. The junction of the 
 Yukon and Porcupine is 290 miles distant. (See Notes b. 
 Section 10, Part II.) 
 
 The mid-season route from the mouth of the Mac- The mid-season 
 kenzie to the Yukon is the same as that just described, mouth of the 
 excepting that, instead of taking the McDougall's Pass the*YSton. 
 route, a portage of between 48 and 50 miles is done. This 
 portage is some miles longer if La Pierre's House is the 
 objective point, but the shorter distance is from the Peel 
 River, near Fort Macpherson, to the nearest point on 
 the navigable Bell River, from which there is unob- 
 structed navigation for steamers along the Porcupine to 
 the Yukon River, or up the Porcupine River to its head- 
 waters. 
 
 In 1872 a Mr. James McDougall made thorough Valuable dis- 
 explorations of these routes — both by portage and water thiTroutc" 
 ways ; he discovered the Pass which bears his name — 
 and reported that it was not more than 35 miles 
 
 b2 
 
52 
 
 The tlirongh 
 Peel River 
 xoQte. 
 
 Mr. Ogilvie's 
 report ; the 
 Peel Kiver 
 route to the 
 Stewart Biver. 
 
 The Upper 
 Porcupine 
 route via the 
 Tatondnc 
 Kiver. 
 
 between good steamboat navigation on either side. He 
 also declared that a good road could easily be made. 
 
 Mr. McDougall made a most important discovery of 
 coal on the Trout Eiver only a few navigable miles from 
 the junction of Peel and Mackenzie Bivers. (See Notes 
 B, Section 10, Part II.) 
 
 The Peel Eiver supplies a route that will be largely 
 used when the object is to reach the gold-bearing reefs 
 at the head waters of the Stewart and Macmillan Eivers. 
 The Peel — described by the Senate Committee of 1888 
 as " a gold-bearing stream " — is a river that, so far as 
 official records go, enjoys the distinction of having been 
 explored by only one man. Mr. W. A. K. Isbister 
 journeyed down this river in 1844, and his report is to 
 the effect that it is 300 miles in length, and has no 
 serious obstructions to river steamer navigation. 
 
 In his report of exploration in the Upper Yukon 
 country of 1888, Mr. Ogilvie furnishes evidence which 
 shows that the navigable Beaver branch of the Stewart 
 Eiver is only separated from the west branch of the Peel 
 by some "low terraced sand-hills." The latest official 
 maps contain this important west branch of the Peel, but 
 it is absent from the earlier ones. (See Section 10, 
 Part II.) 
 
 The Upper Porcupine forms another very important 
 route to the Yukon goldfields from the mouth of the 
 Mackenzie Eiver. This route, also, has been explored by 
 one man only — Mr. Wm. Ogilvie, 1887-88. A summary of 
 this interesting journey is contained under Note F, 
 Section 10, Part II. of this work. 
 
 After crossing to La Pierre's House, or some ether 
 point on the Bell Eiver, the journey is continued to the 
 junction of the Porcupine and Bell Eivers. Instead of 
 proceeding along the Porcupine to the Yukon Eiver, the 
 opposite direction is taken. The Porcupine is navigable by 
 river steamers up to the neighbourhood of its headwaters. 
 There are one or two other rivers by which the Yukon 
 may be reached from the Porcupine headwaters in addi- 
 tion to the Tatonduc Eiver route, but these are sufficiently 
 referred to in notes F, Section 10, Part II. The total 
 
53 
 
 distance from the Bell Biver to the headwaters of the 
 Porcupine, following the river windings, is about 220 
 miles. 
 
 In his report of exploration during 1887-88 Mr. E. Navir»tion 
 
 _,___, ,,-r,. ,,^,.,o. r r* t of rivers by the 
 
 G. McConnell, B.A., of the Geological Survey of Canada, Mackenzie 
 
 ' o J mouth route, 
 
 states : — 
 
 *' On the west side of the Eocky Mountains, 
 
 the Bell, Rat, and Porcupine Rivers could easily be 
 
 navigated for three or four months of the year, by 
 
 small steamers, from Lapierre House down to the 
 
 junction of the latter with the Yukon. Above the 
 
 mouth of the Porcupine the Yukon, beyond a stiff 
 
 current of from four to five miles an hour, presents no 
 
 obstacle to navigation as far as Rink Rapids, a distance 
 
 of over five hundred miles, and below the mouth of the 
 
 Porcupine it is navigable to the sea. Stewart Eiver, 
 
 the principal tributary of the Yukon on the east in 
 
 the district examined, is reported to be navigable 
 
 for a distance of nearly two hundred miles above 
 
 its mouth, but has not yet been ascended by the 
 
 steamers plying on the Yukon." 
 
 "The navigable waters of the Mackenzie are The navigable 
 separated from those of the Yukon in Lat. 67-20 N. ySifonand''* 
 by a distance of about sixty miles only.* A cart B^re"^** 
 trail was staked out some years ago by the Hudson's SiSy «)*d^m. 
 Bay Company across the interval separating these 
 rivers with the intention of supplying the Mackenzie 
 River district with goods by way of the Yukon, but 
 the project fell through and the road was never 
 built." ' • 
 
 The facts established by these official reports and official 
 the extracts from authorities in Part II., are : — that fstaw^" 
 unparalleled gold discoveries have been made on the Yukon fact^*°* 
 Eiver; that the richest finds are made in those rivers 
 flowing in from the East — in the Eocky Mountain ranges ; 
 that the further up the rivers the richer the gold ; that 
 the headwaters of these rivers will be the scene of great 
 
 » Mr. Jas. MacDonsall made several explorations in this neigbboturhood 
 in the seventies, and declares thati the distance between good steamboat 
 navigation on either side was only 35 miles. 
 
u 
 
 An important 
 snmmary. 
 
 The Arctic 
 Ocean Boate ; 
 importaut 
 pomts. 
 
 milling activity ; that the Peel River — after leaving 
 the Mackenzie — offers the best means of providing a 
 through-navigable waterway route to these headwaters, 
 and that the Mackenzie River will be the shortest, 
 easiest, most direct, least expensive, and most popular 
 route from the E?.st coa°t — taking an English port as 
 the starting point. 
 
 Route via Behring Strait and mouth of Mackenzie. 
 
 The following important statement — the more sig- 
 nificant in view of the recent gold discoveries in the 
 Yukon -Mackenzie countiy — was made in the summary 
 handed in to the Dominion Government by the Select 
 Committee of the Senate appointed to inquire into the 
 navigation and resources of the Great Mackenzie Basin 
 in 1888, p. 10 :— 
 
 " That with suitable steam crafts this river 
 (the Mackenzie) and its lake navigation may be 
 connected with Victoria and Vancouver by way of 
 the mouth of the Mackenzie River, the Arctic Ocean, 
 Behring Strait and Sea." (See Sections 8 and 9, 
 Part II.) 
 
 It is not for one moment proposed that the Arctic 
 Ocean offers a regular means of reaching the upper 
 Yukon goldfields that can compare or compete with 
 other routes, but, putting the common prejudice against 
 Arctic Seas aside, there is abundant proof available to 
 show that this route to the mouth of the Mackenzie 
 River is quite as safe — perhaps more so in its season — 
 as the Yukon River. Besides, it can take deep-sea 
 vessels, whereas the Yukon requires especially shallow 
 di-aught vessels of light tonnage for its navigation. River 
 steamers are certainly i-equired from 4ihe mouth of the 
 Mackenzie to the gold-bearing region, but only for 250 
 miles in one case (the Peel R. route), and 500 miles in 
 the other (the down Porcupine R. route), as against 
 about 1,800 miles by the Yukon. The distance from 
 V^ictoria — taking time into consideration — is in favour 
 of the Arctic Sea roi^+^e. From Victoria to the mouth 
 of the Mackenzie — via ^he Arctic Ocean — and along 
 
55 
 
 the Peel River to the region of the headwaters of the 
 Stewart River is about 4,450 miles, whereas from 
 Victoria to the mouth of the Stewart River — by way 
 of St. Michael's and the Yukon — the distance is about 
 4,400 miles ; a difference of fifty miles in favour of the 
 St. Michael's route, but ocean travelling? is admittedly 
 more rapid than by shifting sand-bauk obstructed rivers. 
 Besides, this ocean route gives from three to four 
 months open seaway as against ten weeks on the Yukon. 
 (See Section 25, p. 163, Part II.; "A prophetic state- 
 ment by Dr. G. M. Dawson.") 
 
 In respect to the navigation of Canadian-Arctic Seas, ^ noteworthy 
 
 f o 1 /. , . extract bearing 
 
 and the development of their ricn mineral and ushmg upon the 
 
 1 » 11 . r » 1 naviRation of 
 
 resources, the followmg extract from the report of the the Canadian 
 special Committee of the Canadian Senate of 1888, 
 p. 308, is important as confirming the opinion long held 
 by navigators, that, taking the proper season in the year, 
 the Arctic Coast of British North America can be navi- 
 gated with ease and safety : — 
 
 " In a memorial from Sir Roderick Murchison 
 upon the same subject he speaks thus (p. 394) : ' In 
 respect to one of these courses, or that by Behring's 
 Straits, along the coast of North America, we know 
 that a single sailing vessel passed to Cambridge 
 within 150 miles of the mouth of the Back River, 
 and returned home unscathed, its commander having 
 expressed his conviction that the passage in question 
 is so constantly open that ships can navigate it 
 without difficulty in one season.' " 
 
 An important adjunct; Arctic Sea Fisheries. 
 
 The advantage of the Arctic Ocean route to the Whaiingin 
 Yukon-Mackenzie countiy rests in its serviceability as a Bay. 
 means of combining the highly remunerative whale, 
 seal and walrus fisheries in Mackenzie Bay and the 
 Arctic coast, with the advantages it offers of reaching 
 the goldfields and taking machinery and supplies to the ^*^h^ery and 
 head-waters of the Peel, Stewart and MacMillan rivers. he^wa%M^f 
 (See Part II., Section 8, re navigation of the Arctic s^^i^^'aaci 
 Ocean and the Mackenzie River, and Section 9 re Dr. 1^*^™"*°^ 
 
66 
 
 American 
 whalers in 
 Maokeueio 
 
 K 
 
 A splendid 
 opening for 
 British enter- 
 inrlse. 
 
 The future im- 
 portance of 
 Mackenzie 
 Bay. 
 
 Dawson's opinion and whaling in Mackenzie Bay ; and 
 also Section 2 re quartz reefs at the head waters of the 
 rivers.) 
 
 The whaling industry (combined with the capture 
 of the seal and walrus) is one of great value in Mac- 
 kenzie Bay. This bay is said to be the best whaling 
 ground in the world, but, curiously, it is only exploited 
 by San Francisco whalers. They have established head- 
 quarters at Herchel Island, about 90 miles from the 
 mouth of the Mackenzie Eiver, as, being subjects of the 
 United States, they are debarred from coming within the 
 three mile shore limit. Even as it is they are said to be 
 acting contrary to International Law. Inspector Con- 
 stantino reports that there were 1,200 men (all United 
 States Americans) on this island in the 1895 season, and 
 the Hon. John Schultz reports that their profits are 
 enormous. (See Section 9, Part II.) 
 
 Why British whalers, with the greater advantages 
 they could command by being British subjects, do not 
 establish themselves in this industry in these prolific 
 waters, is a question often asked by well-informed 
 authorities in Canada (see Section 9, Part II.), but 
 irvariably answered with the reply that the industry 
 could only be conducted from Victoria or Vancouver, 
 from which places, however, no whaling is carried on. 
 
 This is a reason in which there is a notable want of 
 spirit — because of the fear of American competition, and 
 perception — because of the splendid opportunity that is 
 lost. 
 
 In view of the great mining development that is 
 promised in this region, there is little doubt that the 
 Mackenzie Bay fishing industry will shortly assume 
 considerable importance, as whaling vessels now going 
 to those fishing grounds comparatively empty will 
 fill up with supplies for the goldfields, and to supply 
 those miners who take the Mackenzie and Peel Rivers' 
 route to the fields. Besides, as before mentioned, 
 heavy machinery and supplies can be easily taken by 
 
m 
 
 this deep sea route to the quartz reefs at the rivers' 
 headwaters. 
 
 Considerable scepticism is felt in respect to the ^NOTt?*"*** 
 prospective value of the mouth of the Mackenzie as a America, 
 commercial seaport. Dr. Dawson, however, dispels 
 any doubt in this direction by proving that the circum- 
 stances of Mackenzie Bay and the "White Sea are almost 
 parallel, and that what is being done so successfully in 
 Sub-Arctic Russia should be done equally well in Sub- 
 Arctic America. (See section 24, Part II.) 
 
 Other examples are shewn in the prosperity of comparison 
 many cities quite as far north as the mouth of the seaports in 
 Mackenzie. Besides, northern Asia affords even more Kuropeand 
 telling comparisons, numbers of British vessels going many 
 degrees further north on ordinary shipping business 
 and with nothing like the promising prospects held out 
 in this easily reached bay, into which the mighty and 
 far reaching Mackenzie discharges its great volume of 
 tepid waters. 
 
 The future of British North America is a fascinating ^o^jIqi. ,. 
 problem to speculate upon, the only danger being that future, 
 the more one studies the indications of its enormous 
 resources, the more boundless become its possibilities, 
 until one passes into a state of bewilderment at the 
 apparent extravagance of the prospect. Its agricul- 
 tural, lumber, and fishery resources are rich and promis- 
 ing indeed, but when its future mineral development 
 is added the vista widens out beyond all human calcu- 
 lation. 
 
\ 
 
THE 
 
 ROUTES AND MINERAL RESOURCES 
 
 OF 
 
 N. W. CANADA. 
 
 PART II.— AUTHORITIES. 
 
 WJierever the word ** evidence " is used m a 
 headline f it must be understood thai the 
 matter immediately following is an extract 
 from the Beport of the Select Committee of 
 the Senate appointed to enquire into the 
 Besources of the Mackenzie Basin for the 
 Government of the Doviinion of Canada ^ 
 1888. 
 
 Section X. Untold wealth of Alluvial 
 Gold In the Country, 
 
 General Summary of the 1888 Senate Committee. 
 Of the mines of this vast reffion little is known of The rich 
 
 ° mineral 
 
 that part east of the Mackenzie Eiver and north of the resouroeB of 
 _ , _,, T , r^, ,t , ~, - , this great ares- 
 
 Great Slave Lake, Of the western affluents of the 
 
 Mackenzie enough is known ta show that on the head- 
 waters of the Peace, Liard and Peel Eivers there are 
 from 150,000 to 200,000 square miles which may be 
 considered auriferous, while Canada possesses west of 
 the Eocky Mountains a metalliferous area, principally of 
 gold-bearing rocks, 1,300 miles in length with an average 
 breadth of from 400 to 500 miles, giving an area far 
 greater than that of the similar mining districts of the 
 neighbouring Eepublio. 
 
60 
 
 Botmd&rles 
 and Area of 
 the Yukon 
 District. 
 
 Character of 
 the Country. 
 
 The Yukon or 
 Felly Biver. 
 
 Dr. Dawecn'B 
 Ezpeditloii. 
 
 The Yukon Goldfields. 
 
 The following account of the Yukon Goldfielda 
 district is embodied in a report J^sued from the office of 
 the High Commissioner of Canada, August, 1897. ' 
 
 The Yukon district is a vast and, as yet, little known 
 tr.i,ct of country which forms the extreme north-westen^ 
 portion of the North- West Territories of Canada. It is 
 bounded to the south by the northern line of British 
 Columbia (lat. 60 deg.), to the west by the eastern line of 
 the United States Territory of Alaska, to the east by the 
 Eocky Mountain ranges and the 13Gth meridian, and to 
 the north by the Arctic Ocean. The district has an area 
 of 192,000 square miles, or about the size of France, and 
 of this rea 150,768 square miles are included in the 
 watershed of the Yukon Eiver. 
 
 The region as a whole is naturally mountainous in 
 character, but it comprises as well a lr;rge area of merely 
 hilly or gently undulating country, besides many wide and 
 flat-bottomed valleys. It is more mountainous in the 
 south-east, and subsides generally and uniformly to the 
 north-westward, the mountains becoming more isolated 
 and separated by broader tracks of low land. The average 
 base level may be stated at a little over 2,000 ieet. 
 
 The Yukon or Pelly Eiver provides the main drainage 
 of the region. This river passes from Canadian into 
 American territory at a point in its course 1,600 m'les 
 from the sea. The 200 miles of its course in Canada 
 receives the waters of all the most important of its 
 tributaries — the Stewart, Macmillan, Upper Pclly, Lewes, 
 White Eiver, etc. — each with an extensive subsidiary 
 river system, which, spreading out like a fan towards the 
 north-east, east, and south-east, facilitate access into the 
 interior. 
 
 In 1887 an expedition was despatched by the 
 Canadian Government to the Yukon country, under the 
 personal charge of Dr. G. M. Dawson, now Director of 
 the Geological Survey of the Dominion, and that gentle- 
 
di 
 
 man's exhaustive report, published among tne proceedings 
 of the survey in 1888, contains the most authentic 
 information at present available on the geology, topo- 
 graphy, and general characteristics of the district. 
 
 The immediate necessity for the exploring and 
 surveying work undertaken by the expedition arose from 
 the fact that somewhat important developments of placer 
 gold-mining had been attractin.j a yearly increasing 
 number of miners and prospectors into a portion of the 
 region in question ; and the work decided on included 
 also the preliminary determination of the point at which 
 the Yukon or Pelly Eiver crossed the 141st meridian, 
 which line constitutes the boundary between the 
 Canadian North- West Territories and Alaska. 
 
 So far as is known, it was as late as the year 1878 that The first Goia- 
 
 prospeotora. 
 
 the first gold-prospector entered the country, and from 
 
 that time onwards small parties of miners and prospectors 
 
 regularly have made their way thither. The route 
 
 generally taken is vid the head of Lynn Canal by the 
 
 Chilkoot Pass and the Lewes Biver, whose upper waters 
 
 lie within thirty miles of tide water. While gold has been Rfycia*"*"® 
 
 found from the outset in the bars of the Lewes Biver and 
 
 its affluents, it was generally in unremunei'ative quantities 
 
 for the conditions under which mining could be conducted 
 
 in that remote and difficult region. In 1881, however, 
 
 paying placers were found along the Big Salmon Eiver. 
 
 In 1882 the Upper Pelly Eiver was prospected, and in 
 
 1884 mining operations were successfully carried on on 
 
 that river and the Tes-lin-too, a southern tributary of the 
 
 Lewes. In 1885 mining was begun along the Stewart 
 
 Eiver, which soon attracted the greater part of the mining 
 
 population. Cassiar Bar, on the Lewes, with rich 
 
 deposits, was discovered early m 1886 ; while in the 
 
 autumn of that year came the sensational discovery of 
 
 " course gold " on Forty-mile Creek, still further c'own 
 
 the main river than the Stewart. The announcement of 
 
 this fact drew off nearly the entire mining population to 
 
 that place in 1887. , . 
 
62 
 
 Dr. Damon's 
 Reportk 
 
 Gold yields on 
 the Lewes and 
 Tes-lin-too 
 Elvers. 
 
 Gold on the 
 hig Salmon 
 and Upper 
 Pelly Kivers. 
 
 Yield on the 
 Stewart River. 
 
 Forty-Mile 
 Creek. 
 
 Of the results of the gold discoveries to that date, 
 Dr. Dawson writes as follows in his report : — 
 
 " Taking a general view of the gold discoveries so far 
 as made in the Upper Yukon country, we find that, 
 though some small bars have been worked on the upper 
 part of the Lewes, and ' prospects ' have been obtained 
 even in the streams flowing into Bennett Lake, paying 
 bars have been f ouna on this river only below the mouth of 
 the Tes-lin-too. The best of these are within a distance 
 of about 70 miles below this confluence, and the richest 
 so far has been Cassiar Bar. This is reported to have 
 yielded, in some cases, at the rate of 30 dollars a day to 
 the hand, and gold to the value of many thousand 
 dollars hag been obtained from it, chiefly in 1886. In 
 1887 only three or four men worked here. All along the 
 Lewes below the Tes-lin-too many bars occur which, 
 according to the reports of prospectors, yield as much as 
 10 dollars a day ; and the same is true of the Tes-lin-too 
 itself, both below and above Tes-lin Lake. Bars of this 
 kind are, however, considered scarcely remunerative at 
 present. 
 
 " Gold has also been found for a long distance up 
 the Big Salmon Eiver, and on the Upper Pelly as far as 
 it has been prospected. The Tes-lin-too, Big Salmon 
 Eiver, and Pelly have each already atforded some good 
 paying ground, but in consequence of the rusli to Forty- 
 Mile Creek only about 13 miners remained in 1887 on the 
 first-named river, four on the second, and two on the 
 Pelly. On the Stewart Eiver, as much as 100 dollars a 
 day to the hand was obtained in 1885 and 1886, and 
 probably over 100,000 dollars worth of gold has already 
 been obtained along this stream. It has been prospected 
 for a distance of 100 jto 200 miles from its mouth 
 (according to varying statements), and the gold found 
 furthest up is said to be somewhat ' coarser ' than that 
 of the lower part. 
 
 " Forty-Mile Cieek is reported to be a river of some 
 size, but more rapid than most of those in the district. 
 

 
 63 
 
 It has, according to miners, been prospected for about 
 ICO miles from its mouth, gold being found almost every- 
 where along it as well as in tributary gulches. The gold 
 varies much in character, but is quite often coarse and 
 nuggety, and very large amounts have been taken out in 
 favourable places by individual miners. Few of the 
 men mining here in 1887 were content with grcmd 
 yielding less tlian 14 dollars a day, and several had taken 
 out nearly 100 dollars a day for a short time. The 
 amount obtavied from this stream in 1887 is reckoned 
 by some as high as 120,000 dollars, but I believe it would 
 be safe to put the entire output of the Upper Yukon region 
 for the year at a minimum of 75,000 dollars, of which 
 the greatest part was derived from this stream. 
 
 *• The number of miners in the whole Upper Yukon 
 country in 1887 may be stated at about 250 ; of these, 
 200 were on Forty-Mile Creek, and it was estimated that 
 at least 100 would winter on the creek to be ready for 
 work in the spring. 
 
 " Forty-Mile Creek is what the miners term ' a bed- 
 rock creek' — i. e., one in which there is no great depth 
 of drift or detrital deposits below the level of the 
 actual stream. It is so far the only locality which has 
 been found to yield ' coarse gold,' but from the extremely 
 wide distribution of 'fine gold ' it may safely be predicted 
 that many more like it remain to be discovered. 
 
 " Mining can scarcely be said to have begun in the done^hithi^* 
 region more than five years ago, and the extent of country 
 over which gold has been found in greater or less quantity 
 is already very great. Most of the prospecting has been 
 confined to the banks and bars of the larger rivers, and it 
 is only when their innumerable tributary streams begin 
 to be closely searched, that * gulch diggings ' like those of 
 Dease, McDame, and other streams in the Cassiar district, 
 and possibly even on a par with Williams and Lightning 
 Creeks in Cariboo, will be found and worked. The general 
 result 80 far has been to prove that six large and long 
 rivers — the Lewes, Tes-lin-too, Big Salmon, Pelly, Stewart 
 and White — yield 'fine gold' along hundreds of miles " 
 
64 
 
 Dr. Davson's 
 opinion of 
 tntnie 
 ptoBpeots. 
 
 of their lower courses. With the exception of the Lewea, 
 no part of the head waters of any of these have yet been 
 prospected or even reached by the miners, and scarcely 
 any of their innumerable tributaries have been examined. 
 The developments made up to this time are sufficient to 
 show that when means of access are improved, important 
 bar-mining will take place along all these main-rivers, and 
 there is every reason to anticipate that the result of the 
 examination in detail of the smaller streams will be the 
 discovery of much richer auriferous alluviums. When 
 these have been found and worked, quartz-mining will 
 doubtless follow, and the prospects for the utilisation of 
 this great mining field in the near future appear to me 
 to be very promising." 
 
 {For distances and further particulars of the streams 
 and resources of this territory, see Index.) 
 
 The name 
 " Kloudyke." 
 
 The Klondyke River and District. 
 
 William Ogilvie, of the Department of the interior, in 
 his report to the Surveyor-General of Canada, dated 
 November 6th, 1896, says the name Klondak, Klondyke, 
 or Clondyke, as it is variously spelled, is "a mispronun- 
 ciation of the Indian word or words Thron-dak or Duick," 
 which means plenty of fish, from the fact that it is a famous 
 salmon stream. It is marked Tondack on old maps. It 
 joins the Yukon from the east a few miles above the site 
 of Fort Eeliance. 
 
 The first 
 
 discovery 
 
 of Gold ou the 
 
 Klondyke. 
 
 Concerning the discovery of gold on this stream he 
 says : — " The discovery, I believe, was due to the reports 
 of Indians. A white man named G. W. Carmach, who 
 worked with me in 1887, was the first to take advantage 
 of the rumors and locate a claim on the first branch, 
 which was named by the miners Bonanza Creek. 
 Carmach located here late in August, but had to cut some 
 logs for the mill here to get a few pounds of provisions 
 to enable him to begin work on his claim, the fishing 
 at Klondak having totally failed him. He returr i with 
 
 ■'%..■,■ 
 
65 
 
 a few weeks' provisions for himself, his wife and brother- 
 in-law (Indians), and another Indian, in the last days of 
 August and immediately set about working his claim. As 
 he was very short of appliances he could only put together 
 a rather defective apparatus to wash the gravel with. The 
 gravel itself he had to carry in a box on his back from 30 
 to 100 feet. Notwithstanding this the three men working Splendid 
 very irregularly washed out 1,200 dollars in eight days, 
 and Carmach asserts with reason that had he had proper 
 facilities it could have been done in two days, besides 
 having several hundred dollars more gold, which was lost 
 on the tailings through defective apparatus. On the same 
 creek two men rocked out 75 dollars in about two hours, 
 and it is asserted that two men in the same creek took out 
 4,008 dollars in two days with only two lengths of sluice 
 boxes. This last is doubted, but Mr. Leduc assures me 
 he weighed that much gold for them, but is not positive 
 where they got it. They were newcomers and had not 
 done much in the country, so the probabilities are they 
 got it on Bonanza creek. A branch of Bonanza, named ^°K]o^|yij^ 
 Eldorado, has prospected magnificently, and another jj^amiflcentiy 
 branch named Tilley Creek has prospected well ; in all 
 there are some four or five branches to Bonanza Creek 
 which have given good prospects. There are about 170 
 claims staked on the main creek and the branches are 
 good for about as many more, aggregating say 350 claims 
 which will require over 1,000 men to work properly. 
 
 A few miles further up Bear Creek enters Klondak, ^i^nuruia 
 
 and it has been prospected and located on. Compared a^'erfuj 
 
 with Bonanza it is small and will not afford more tha. '"™*'- 
 20 or 30 claims, it is said. 
 
 About 12 miles above the mouth Gold Bottom Creek 
 joins Klondak; and on it and a branch named Hunker 
 Creek after the discovery very rich ground has been 
 found. One man showed me 22-75 doUai^. he took 
 out in a few hours on Hunker Creek with a gold pan 
 prospecting his claim on the surface, taking out a panful 
 here and there as fancy suggested. On Gold Bottom 
 
 V 
 
6G 
 
 Creek and branches there will probably be two or three 
 hundred claims. The Indians have reported another 
 creek much farther up, which they call Too Much Gold 
 Creek, on which the gold is so plentiful that, as the 
 miners say in joke, " You have to mix gravel with it to 
 sluice it." Up to date nothing definite has been heard 
 from this creek. 
 
 Boope on the 
 Klondyke 
 gold fields. 
 
 Indian OsMk. 
 
 The Stewaxt 
 Bivei. 
 
 From all this we may, I think, infer that we have 
 here a district that will give 1,000 claims of 500 feet in 
 length each. Now, 1,000 such claims will require at 
 least 8,000 men to work them properly, and as wages for 
 working in the mines are from 8 to 10 dollars per day, 
 without board, we have every reason to assume that this 
 part of om: territory will in a year or two contain 10,000 
 souls at least, for the news has gone out to the coast, and 
 an unprecedented influx is expected next spring. And this 
 is not all, for a large creek called Indian Creek joins the 
 Yukon about midway between Klondak and Stewart river, 
 and all along this creek good pay has been found. All 
 that has stood in the way of working it heretofore has 
 been the scarcity of provisions and the diflSculty of 
 getting them up there even when here. Indian Creek is 
 quite a large stream, and it is probable it will yield 500 or 
 600 claims. Farther south yet lies the head of several 
 branches of Stewart Eiver, on which some prospecting 
 has been done this summer, and good indications found, 
 but the want of provisions prevented development. 
 
 Good qaartz 
 on Klondyke 
 tributaries. 
 
 Good quartz has been found in place just across the 
 line on Davis Creek (see my map of the 141st . . . ), 
 but of what extent is unknown, as it is in the bed of the 
 creek and covered with gravel. Good quartz is also 
 reported on the hills around Bonanza Creek ; but of this 
 I will be able to speak more fully after my proposed 
 survey. It is pretty certain, from information I have got 
 from prospectors, that all, or nearly all, of the northerly 
 branch of "White Eiver is on our side of the line, and 
 copper is found on it, but more abundantly on the 
 southerly branch of which a great deal of it is in our 
 
67 
 
 territory also ; so it is probable we have that metal too. 
 
 I have seen here several lumps of native copper brought ^pp" *°* 
 
 by the natives from White Kiver, but just from what part 
 
 is uncertain. I have also seen a specimen of Silver ore 
 
 said to have been picked up in a creek flowing into 
 
 Bennett Lake, about 11 miles down it on the east side." 
 
 (For distances and further particulars, see Index). 
 
 Bishop GLUT'S Evidence. 
 
 In the Peace and Liard rivers certainly there is gold rivers ris^g 
 in large quantities. It is found in the sand bars, and I l,°tween°tiw*' 
 fancy that mines will be found in tho Eocky Mountains, Mackcmiie 
 and that the gold is carried from that part the same as Rivers, 
 in British Columbia. ... I should imagine there 
 are considerable veins of gold in the Bocky Mountains. 
 
 Extracts from the Report of Mr. WILLIAIM OGILVIE, 
 Dominion Land Surveyor. 
 
 I have heard the amount of gold taken from the Mining on the 
 
 , Stewart Biver. 
 
 Stewart Eiver in 1885 and 1886 estunated at various 
 
 amounts. . . . Many agree that 30 dollars (£6 5s.) per 
 
 day, per man, was common on many of the bars of the 
 
 river, and instances of as high as 100 dollars per day 
 
 having been earned were spoken of. 
 
 I cannot here enter into the reasons for it, but I ^J|,^i,g 
 unhesitatingly make the assertion that this corner of our ™*^"4"fi?'l 
 territory from the coast strip down and from the 141st meridian 
 meridian eastward will be found to be a fairly rich and 
 very extensive mining region. 
 
 Up to date of mailing, November 22nd, (1896,) very fa^'ooodX^ 
 rich prospects have been found on the few claims gf^*"*"!*' 
 prospected on : from one dollar to the pan of dirt up to 
 12 dollars are reported and no bed-rock found yet. This 
 means from 1,000 to 12,000 dollars per day per man 
 sluiciug. 
 
 ly. 
 
 F 2 
 
68 
 
 CuDAHT, 9th Deoember, 1896. 
 
 MarveUoasIy 
 rifih yields. 
 
 The richest 
 mining area 
 ever found :— 
 official report. 
 
 Since my last the prospects on Bonanza Creek, a 
 tributary of the Klondyke, and tributaries are increasing 
 in richness and extent until now it is certain that millions 
 will be taken out of the district in the next few years. 
 
 On some of the claims prospected the pay dirt is of 
 great extent and very rich. One man told me yesterday 
 that he washed out a single pan of dirt on one of his 
 claims and found £3 worth of gold in it. Of course, this 
 may be an exceptionally rich pan, but 5 to 7 dollars per 
 pan is the average on that claim it is reported, with 5 
 feet of pay dirt and the width yet undetermined, but it 
 is known to be 30 feet, even at that ; figure the result at 
 9 to 10 pans to the cubic foot and 600 feet long : nearly 
 4,000,000 dollars at 5 dollars per pan, one-fourth of this 
 would be enormous. 
 
 CuDAHY, 11th January, 1897. 
 
 Some of the claims are so rich that every night a few 
 pans of dirt suffices to pay the hired help when there is any ; 
 as high as 204 dollars has been reported to a single pan but- 
 this is not generally credited. Claim owners are now 
 very reticent about what they get, so you can hardly 
 credit anything you hear ; but one thing is certain — w»j 
 have one of the richest mining areas ever found with a 
 fair prospect that we have not yet discovered its limits. 
 
 Extracts from the Report by R. Q. McOONNELL, B.A., of the 
 Geological Survey Department of Canada, 1888-89. 
 
 Banks of Macken'.le Delta and the Peel Eiver are; 
 composed of alluvial sands and clays. 
 
69 
 
 The "Daily Chroniole," 5th August, 1897, states:— 
 
 Of all the 800 claims staked out on Bonanza Creek 
 and Eldorado Creek not one has proved a blank. 
 Equally rich finds were made on June 6th to 10th on 
 Dominion Creek. Not less than 300 claims have been 
 staked out on Indian Creek, and the surface indications 
 are that those are as rich as any of the others. The 
 largest nugget found was picked up by B. Hudson on 
 Claim 6, on the Bonanza, and was worth 257 dollars. 
 Next in size was one found by J. Clements on Indian 
 Creek, worth 231 dollars. Bigger pockets have been 
 struck in other regions, but nowhere has so general a 
 find been made. 
 
 Every claim 
 peReed out a 
 
 Erize; no 
 lauka. 
 
 " In all, about seventy-five lucky miners have reached Portnnestakea 
 
 *' •' . out In one 
 
 St. Michael's. Some brought but a portion of their season. 
 
 elea,n-up, preferring to invest other portions in claims 
 they know to be rich. Among the most lucky are J. J. 
 Clements, of Los Angeles, who cleaned up about 175,000 
 dollars. The last four pans Clements took out were 
 worth 2,000 dollars, and one went 775 dollars. He 
 brought out 50,000 dollars, and invested the rest. Pro- 
 fessor Lippy, of Seattle, brought out about 50,000 dollars, 
 and he has 150,000 dollars in sight, and claims his mine 
 is worth 500,000 dollars, or more. W. Stanley, of 
 Seattle, also cleaned up 112,000 dollars ; C. Berry, 
 110,000 dollars; H. Anderson, 55,000 dollars; P. Keller, 
 50,000 dollars ; T. J. Kelly, 38,000 dollars ; W. Sloan, 
 of Nanaimo, 85,500 dollars ; and at least thirty more 
 vrho did not talk, but stood guard over their treasure 
 in the state room. Then there are about twenty more 
 men bringing from 5,000 dollars to 20,000 dollars. All 
 this gold is the clean up on last winter's work. It must 
 come out via St. Michael's, and the bulk of the supplies 
 must go in that way. The two great transportation 
 compan' pushing in supplies, are the North American 
 Trading c.ud Transportation, and the Alaska Commercial 
 Company." 
 
70 
 
 The following appeared In the " Daily Telegraph ' 
 August 12th, 1897:— 
 
 of 
 
 goM washed' "^^ Conversation with a representative of Renter's 
 
 dSlifers^hand. ^B^^^V' ^^' Harry de Windt communicated his impres- 
 pan. sions regarding the goldfields at Klondyke. 
 
 ** He said : ' There is no doubt that extraordinary 
 rich finds have been made at Klondyke, although it is 
 not possible to vouch for the accuracy of a great many 
 of the accounts. Mr. Ogilvie, the Dominion Government 
 Surveyor in Alaska, with whom I stayed just a year ago 
 to-day, has since written home saying, that he had, with 
 his own hands, washed 560 dollars worth of gold out of 
 one pan. Another case for which I can vouch is that 
 of a fireman on board one of the Yukon River steamers, 
 who last year was earning 8 dollars a month, and has 
 just returned here with 170,000 dollars worth of nuggets 
 and dust.'" 
 
 In the "Financial Guide" of August 9th, 1897, appeared 
 the following : — 
 
 No ui-fpunaed "Klondike practically defies competition. In the 
 
 country ''reeks course of the present century there have been several 
 
 * rushes ' to so-called mining camps, but the present 
 excitement has a solid foundation. Klondike is not a 
 
 * pocket ' district. It is gold bearing throughout, and its 
 water-courses, as we are told in an American despatch, 
 'literally reek of gold.' One can best judge of the 
 importance of the wonderful finds at Klondike by the 
 value of the precious metal won there in a few months." 
 
 " Daily Telegraph," 22nd July, 1 897. 
 
 " A telegram from New York, daiod July 23rd says, 
 that there were on that date still 4,000,000 dollars of 
 gold dust to come down from St. Michael's. The 
 
71 
 
 special correspondent of the Daily Telegraph wired on 
 July 22nd :— 
 
 " 'The Dominion Government at Ottawa, is using n^Jilo^'he"**' 
 every effort to complete the organisation of the district *'^^,J^ 
 in which the goldfields recently discovered along the corroborated. 
 Klondyke and other creeks are situated. This action 
 has been taken in view of the fact that the Government 
 is in possession of information which corroborates the 
 first accounts given of the richness of these placer 
 diggings.' " 
 
 " Under date July 25th, Eeuter's special corre- 
 spondent at Victoria (British Columbia) wires : — 
 
 " Never in the history of the Pacific Coast has there 250.000 square 
 
 , , .. . ■ . Li.' 't L 3 miles declared 
 
 been such excitement as is at present bemg manifested by Dr. Dawson 
 
 in connection with the recent gold discoveries on the r?ch^in*eoid.^ 
 
 Klondike placers, which undoubtedly appear to be the 
 
 richest ever found. Their actual extent is unknown, 
 
 but the total area of the auriferous region in Canada, 
 
 in which they are situated, extends to nearly a quarter 
 
 of a million square miles. Dr. Dawson, of the Geological 
 
 Survey, classed this whole area alike, and gold-bearing • 
 
 gravels have been found in the bed of every stream." 
 
 " Accounts received from the mines tell of fabulous au accounts 
 richness. No one knows how much gold has been taken fabufoua tich^^ 
 out. Miners have brought out all they could carry, and country*'^^ 
 others have remained behind because they have found 
 more gold than they could bring away. 
 
 " One man speaks of seeing in one cabin four five- 
 gallon cans full of gold dust. Another tells of a bank 
 out of which nuggets stuck like pebbles. 
 
 "Dougall Mc Arthur, a miner, who has returned Reports not 
 with a fortune, stated yesterday, that the reports of ^^^^sgerated. 
 fortunes being made in a day are not exaggerated. He 
 declares that there is no danger of the country becoming 
 overcrowded, as there are mines enough for all." 
 
72 
 
 SfdSffiSthe "^'- ^®"T (M'- Clarence Berry, of Fresno, Cali- 
 
 J^* to the *pan ^^^^'^t "^^^f together with his wife, went to Klondike 
 notoncommou three years ago), says, 'Klondike is the richest goldfield 
 in the world.' Some of the pay streaks are nearly all 
 gold. One thousand dollars to the pan is not uncommon, 
 and over 100 ounces have been taken out in a single pan. 
 It is not unusual, Mr. Barry says, to see men staggering 
 along with all the gold dust they can carry. 
 
 Even women " * Several women have recently returned from Klon- 
 Bxnau lottones. dike, with gold dust valued at from 10,000 dollars to 
 60,000 dollars which they had dug up themselvee. 
 
 " ' Thousands of gold seekers of both sexes, and all 
 classes, are hurrying to the Pacific coast cities in the 
 hope of reaching Klondike, content with any mode of 
 getting there. 
 
 SstriiStao'/'the " ' '^^ Alining towns in Colorado, CaUfornia, and 
 
 Bo°th being Montana, are being deserted by the miners ; every man 
 with sufficient money is starting for Klondike. The 
 same feverish excitement prevails in San Francisco and 
 other Pacific coast cities, and the remotest parts of the 
 country are rapidly catching the infection. Men of all 
 classes are throwing up their work and starting for the 
 land of gold. At Seattle half the poHce force has re- 
 signed, and the street cars have nearly ceased runningi 
 as a result of men leaving for Klondike.' " 
 
 G^jW b«ing " According to the special correspondent of the British 
 
 the field by the Columbia Beview the shipments of gold from Klondike 
 
 ton even dnriug 
 
 this first season for the scasou approximate {^20,000,000 equal to 
 £4,000,000 sterling. Says the journal in question : — 
 
 " The richness of the auriferous gravel deposits on the 
 banks of the Yukon River have been known and 
 recognised on the Pacific seaboard for several yeais, 
 but every succeeding summer has brought reports of 
 new discoveries on the higher reaches of the river or 
 tributaries, and coarse gold-dust has found its way into 
 
73 
 
 the banks, until the reoent arrival of two steamers at 
 San Francisoo with upwards of two tons of bullion from 
 the Klondike diggings has created an excitement in 
 Western America unparalelled since the CaUfomian gold 
 rush of '49 and the Cariboo excitement of 1858. Much 
 of the dust lately brought down is very coarse, and the 
 emptying of leather sacks on the bank counters, where 
 several hundredweight of gold could be seen in one 
 heap, has sent up a real and intense gold fever, the 
 effects of which are plainly discernible in London. 
 
 To quote the New York correspondent of the Daily 
 Mail: — 
 
 " * The continued excitement over the Klondike gold "^^a^^^o^gjjj 
 discoveries, and a widespread demand for information tha reports of 
 
 . rapid fortune! 
 
 about goidfields have resulted in the leading newspapers being made. 
 
 throughout the country issuing special supplements 
 to-day, giving reports from Klondike, as well as the 
 cost and the methods of getting there, and other useful 
 information. The New York papers devoto great space 
 to interviews with lucky men from Klondike, who con- 
 firm the recent reports of rapid fortunes made in the 
 diggings.' . . 
 
 New York " Tribune," July 14th, 1897. 
 
 The San Frsmcisco correspondent of the Tribune gives 
 some interesting particulars regarding the recent dis- 
 coveries. He writes : — 
 
 '• Forty Alaska miners came in here to-day (July 14) miners arriving 
 by the steamer " Excelsior." bringing over (^500,000 in muuon*'doHari 
 gold dust from the new Klondike mines. °' *°*** 
 
 «' T, S. Lippy and his wife, of this city, brought down 
 ^60,000, which represents their work, since April, 1896. 
 Mrs. liippyi who is a small wiry women, tanned black 
 by the sun, was the first woman to cross over the divide 
 
74 
 
 from the new Juneau to the new oamp. She did much 
 'hustling' in the winter, and she showed a noble pair of 
 moose antlers as a trophy of her skill with the rifle. 
 
 SSJffbSSof "As the United States Mint was closed for the day 
 
 •ndtaStjMifc' when the miners arrived, they packed their sacks of 
 
 gold dust to Selby's office. There a picturesque collection 
 
 of bags was produced. Some were made of deer hide, 
 
 and held as much as |||2,500. 
 
 " Several of the miners ran out of even canvas bags, 
 and were forced to put their gold in tumblers and fruit 
 jars, which they covered with writing paper. They 
 looked like fruit or jelly put up by country housewives. 
 All the bags were weighed, and then, as fast as the 
 weight was recorded, they were slit open with a sharp 
 knife and the contents poured upon the broad coimter, 
 which has a depression in the middle. The heap of gold 
 dust looked like a pile of yellow shelled corn. 
 
 BKffsof eoid " At Dawson, near the camp, men come in and leave 
 
 grocers' saoks of gold dust on deposit, and these are thrown 
 
 tm«a of floor. Under the counter by the storekeeper as though they 
 
 were bags of flour. The whole country is wild about 
 
 discoveries, and everyone who can get an outfit is pouring 
 
 into Klondike." 
 
 London "Standard" August — . 
 
 The following are extracts from an article which 
 appeared in the London Standard one day last week : — 
 
 ^"Smationof " '^^^ recent discoveries of gold on the Klondike 
 veportg. Greek afford ample confirmation of the reports brought 
 
 us during the past few years of the auriferous richness 
 
 of the Yukon Valley 
 
 ufloojm "In 1895 the value of the gold obtained from the 
 
 of %r*"*** Yukon placers was 709,000 dollars. Last year the total 
 ■SSm!*****" was more than four times this sum; and this year it 
 
 may be anything between ten and twenty times as much. 
 
 If there is anything in the rumours which have come 
 
76 
 
 along the last few days, other districts as rich as, or g^iS^SS^'^S 
 
 richer than, Klondike have been located. There is g^jft^^ert 
 
 nothing inherently improbable m this ; on the contrary, J^^^®* 
 nothing could be more probable in the circumstances. 
 
 "Daily Telegraph," July 2l8t, E897. 
 
 " There is every reason to believe that the Klondike ^^[jJlJI^f^ ^^ 
 Gold Field will rival those of California and Australia. Australia. 
 
 "Mr. C. H. Mackintosh, Lieutenant-Governor of ^S^oiex- 
 the Canadian North-West Provinces, admits the truth tremeriohress. 
 of the reports regarding the extreme richness of the 
 district." 
 
 " Financial News," Ijondon, 26th July, 1897. 
 
 " Among the people who have just returned from Marvellous 
 the new Klondyke gold mines are men who had been for 
 more than ten years facing the dangers and hardships of 
 the frozen North in the hope of making a rich find, and 
 signally failed. Now they come back with fortunes 
 stowed in their gripsacks and stories of untold millions 
 to be picked up in the country of which so little is 
 known. 
 
 "Fine gold dust in small quantities was found at Proof of heavy 
 the mouth of the Porcupine Biver, a stream that joins waters of the 
 the Yukon about 100 miles west of the boundary. °'°^^ 
 
 " The gravel is frozen solid the year round, and has Purpose of 
 3 tha\ 
 separated. 
 
 to be thawed out in some way before the gold can be S^rs.° " *"" 
 
 " Through the ice the miners burned holes with fire, 
 and then blasted out the pay dirt on the benches of 
 bed rock." 
 
76 
 
 Blcta prospect 
 for Tradiug 
 Companies. 
 
 The world's 
 richest Fields. 
 
 Prospects 
 contmne 
 tocreasingly 
 encoaraglng. 
 
 Where a 
 Company's 
 prospectors 
 will operate. 
 
 An OfDcial 
 declares the 
 Roldflelds 
 to be 
 inexhaustible. 
 
 " The Alaska Mining Becord, published in Jnneatkt 
 contains letters stating that the stories told are not 
 exaggerated. ' One hundred dollars to the pan is very 
 common. One can hardly believe it, but it is true, 
 nevertheless. A very hard country to live in on account 
 of the mosquitoes and poor grub, 'but healthy and a 
 show to make a ten strike.' There is nothing a man 
 could eat or wear that he cannot get a good price for. 
 First-class rubber boots are worth from an ounce to 
 25 dollars per pair. The price of flour has been raised 
 from i dollars to 6 dollars and was selling at 60 dollars 
 when we arrived.' Another letter says : — ' It will pay 
 to bring anything here which can be carried in.' " 
 
 "Westminster Gazette," 2l8t July, 1897. 
 
 " The latest advices state that discoveries of a sen* 
 sational chtiracter have been of almost daily occurrence 
 in the lUondike district, and it seems now beyond doubt 
 that one of the richest gold-fields hitherto known exists 
 within Canadian territory on the Yukon." 
 
 INSPECTOR GONSTANTINE, January 23rd, 1897. 
 
 " Placer prospects continue more and more en- 
 couraging. It is beyond doubt that three pans on 
 different claims on Eldorado Greek turned out 204, 212, 
 and 216 dollars; but it must be borne in mind that 
 there were only three such pans, though there were 
 many running from 10 to 50 dollars." 
 
 << There is an immense reach of country beyond 
 which has not yet been prospected. ... Of all the 
 200 claims staked out on the Bonanza and Eldorado 
 Greeks not one has proven a blank." 
 
 INSPECTOR STRICKLAND, in the Toronto "Globe," 
 August 8rd, 1897:- 
 
 He believes the placer goldfields of the country in- 
 exhaustible, as there are hundreds of streams known to 
 be goldbearing which have not yet been prospected owing 
 to scarcity of men and difficulty of getting food. . . . 
 He had, himself, actually seen one ordinary mining pan 
 yield 595 dollars worth of gold. 
 
77 
 
 After gold is discovered, the miners cut down a ^eth^of 
 quantity of timber, and then they bum a hole, or rather goaen earth 
 two holes, about 6 feet long by 4 feet wide, putting in ^^^^^ ^ 
 two fires in each hole during the day. Each of these 
 fires will probably bum out about 8 inches of dirt. 
 
 The Marvellous richness of Klondyke. 
 
 From the " Bullionist," 18th October, 1897. 
 
 The news from Klondike is of a mingled character, 
 but nothing could be more emphatic than statements 
 contained in the New York papers within the last few 
 days as to the enormous quantities of gold obtainable in 
 the neighbourhood. In a dispatch received by the 
 Journal of that city from Mr. Joaquin Miller, the well- » ,^zzica " 
 known American poet, who writes from El Dorado »' J^io^'^y'**' 
 Gulch, Klondike, he says that "he has been fairly 
 dazzled with gold." He describes in detail sixteen rich 
 claims, several yielding over 80,000 dollars per foot. One 
 owned by Captain Ellis, of California, yields over 1,000 
 dollars per pan, or 10,000 dollars every 24 hours. That 
 gentleman showed Mr. Miller three bags, each containing 
 60 lb. of gold dust, also numeroas oyster and tomato 
 cans and old boxes filled with gold dust, and invited 
 Mr. Miller and others who were present to help SheipVhein"* 
 themselves. The latter remarked: "Wherever we go nuggete? 
 we find men with heaps of gold." On Sunday the 
 New York Herald pubUshed a communication from Sitka, 
 in the adjoining American territory of Alaska, announcing 
 that marvellous gold discoveries had been made in Cook Marvellous"- 
 Inlet; in the same region. The newly discovered gold- «iiscoTery. 
 field is said to be easily reached, and to have a mild 
 climate and a fertile soil. 
 
 London "Standard's" Special Correspondent, 26th August, 1897. 
 
 It is reported from Klondyke that miners who ^^^j?®*^ 
 possess buckets full of gold are living on two spoonsful potatoes, 
 •f beans and a bit of bacon daily. A steamer has started 
 to return to the East with several tons of gold of the 
 ^alue of over three million dollars, heaped on deck, under 
 
78 
 
 tarpaulin, like bo much ooal or potatoes. M'Eay, a 
 returning miner, says there is more gold than any man 
 has yet dreamed of. A Correspondent, quoting the 
 statements of this msui, says the miners' tales make 
 one's heart jump and the pulse tingle. 
 
 From the Special Correepondcnt of "The Standard "of London, 
 
 SIst August, 1897. 
 
 The steamer ''Portland" having failed to meet at 
 
 St. Michael's the Yukon Biver steamer with its tons of 
 
 gold worth several millions of dollars, brought to Seattle 
 
 only 18 miners with 575,000 dollars of gold. . . . < 
 
 offloiai report Mr. Ogilvie the Dominion Land Surveyor, whose 
 
 of 70,000.000 -i . i. -i- • XT u 1. 
 
 douaraofgoid Capacity or mtegrity .... says, m November he 
 
 informed the Authorities of the Dominion that 
 
 60,000,000 of gold was in sight. This quantity he now 
 mcreases to 70,000.000. 
 
 ReuteKs Agency, Seattle, August 30th. 
 
 The matest The Steamer Portland arrived here to-day. . . . 
 
 worid'Bhito?/ She brought gold to the value of about 500,000 dollars 
 . . . . Old timers, who reahze the state of affairs, 
 predict death and distress during the winter. Those who 
 are returning now, however, admit that the strike o£ 
 gold was, and is, one of the greatest in the world's 
 history. They also predict further gold finds in future 
 
 • • • ■ 
 
 From "Morning Posfs" correspondent. 
 
 New York, August 29«A, 1897. 
 
 Glowing " The steamer •' Portland " arrived yesterday at 
 
 coniiiryB° * Port Angeles with 100,000 dollars in gold, and a party of 
 
 ^ . . Gold early pioneers returning home from the Klondyke gold- 
 
 ^ °^^' fields. The passengers are full of glowing descriptions of 
 
 the mineral wealth of the country, and speak of goM galore 
 
 NewoiBcoTery in all directions. They say nothing of the terrors and priva- 
 
 janotiou of tions described by later adventurers in the same region. 
 
 Porcupine They speak of a splendid gold discovery in the Monnet 
 
 mooeding Greek, 800 miles from the mouth of the Yukon Biver, 
 
 §^i^° and outside the ) boundary of British America. The 
 
 wealth there is said to exceed that in Klondyke. When 
 
 asked to reconcile the smallness of the quantity of gold 
 
 brought in his ship with the glowing statements of the* 
 
79 
 
 passengers, the Captain of the " Portland " explained gJSSJ""^ 
 that he was compelled to leave St. Michael's before the gjg^^'^^ 
 arrival of the treasure boat from the Yukon. Mr. Ogilvie ertiin»te. 
 is quoted as saying that the 600 claims already staked 
 in the Klondyke region will yield 70,000,000 dollars m 
 gold to their owners." 
 
 "Standard" (London) 27th August, 1897. 
 Beuteb's — ViCTOBiA (B.C.), August 2Rth. 
 According to an apparently authentic report from Jjl^^J^^^** 
 Dawson Cit3% gold to the value of six million dollars is awaiung amp 
 there awaiting shipment in June. 
 
 '* Daily Chronicle," 4th September, 1897. 
 A report received at the Department of the Interior 
 to-day (Washington, 3rd September), from the Governor 
 of Alaska, states that two-and-a-half (2^) tons of gold 
 dust have been shipped this season from Klondike. 
 
 New discoveries of gold are constantly being made. 
 
 Mr. Thomas Deasy, Chief Officer of the Fire Depart- 
 ment of Victoria, British Columbia, writing to Commander 
 WeUs, B.N., Chief Officer of the Metropolitan Fire 
 Brigade, on August 27th, 1897, states : 
 
 " Situate as the writer is at Victoria, the nearest ThematMi 
 
 shipping port to the mines, he has an opportunity to ewtb. ^ 
 truthfully depict everything connected with the greatest 
 goldfields on earth. From Cassiar to Alaska, covering 
 thousands of miles of Canadian territory, gold has been 
 found. Scarcity of provisions and long distance from 
 civilisation retarded the miner. The frozen North had 
 terrors which only the most hardy of mankind could 
 endure. Snow and ice, precipices and gorges, dangerous 
 rapids on the rivers, impenetrable woods on land, every 
 mile meant privation. At last a whisper was circulated 
 in the nearest camps that untold wealth could be found 
 further up river. Places where miners made good pay 
 were deserted. Towns and villages added hundreds to f 
 
 the rush. Eventually the news reached cities, and 
 thousands are on tho way to the Mecca of the North. 
 At the present writing two steamships are on the way 
 
80 
 
 out with tons of gold. The great Yukon oountry is no 
 place for the 'tenderfoot.' Strong men, with means 
 enough to outfit for a year or two, will be successful. 
 The country will produce more wealth each succeeding 
 o*'°*(Bdu")on y^^^' I* is practically uiideveloped. Hundreds of 
 tiSie Mackenzie, thousands will Scatter over the numerous creeks and 
 rivers, eventually opening up mines on the Peace, Pelly, 
 and Mackenzie. From this city many left in the first mad 
 rush, and many will return to winter. Those remaining 
 took into consideration the difiEiculties to be surmounted, 
 and preferred to await until next spring. If 10,000 men 
 should delve all the coming winter, only a small expanse 
 of territory will be opened up. 
 
 New Qnld discoveries off great richness. 
 
 The first copy of the International, published at the 
 new town of Warder, on Lake Tagish, in June this year 
 (1897), states :— 
 
 Two prospectors have come in from the middle fork 
 of the Salmon Eiver, a sect'on that has never been ex- 
 plored, bringing a quantity of gold taken out there in a 
 few week's work. The amount of their cleanings was 
 close to 1,000 dols. An interesting feature of the 
 matter is that this gold is washed from the decomposed 
 surface of a mountain which they declare to be all ore. 
 The mountain is porphyry. The gold is found all 
 through it. They do not claim the rock is high grade, 
 but they assert that it is all good ore. A. H. Pettengill, 
 ex-chief deputy county auditor, who now owns and 
 operates naining interests on Upper Kettle river in Stevens 
 Country returned to Colville recently from a trip across 
 Golville reservation, and if his statements are true, the 
 portion of the Colville reserve lying along the boundary 
 line between Stevens and Oakanogan Counties will rivai 
 even the palmiest days of Cripple Creek. A Mr. Allison 
 bonded the claim from the original owners for 10,000 dols. 
 In a very short time he secured 30 sacks of ore. No- 
 one is allowed to visit the works of the mine, which are 
 a little more than the mere uncovering of the vein.^ 
 
81 
 
 How wide the pay-streak is, is yet a matter of the most 
 random conjecture, but no one will doubt that it is 
 wide enough, forout of less than 50 lbs. of the ore from the 
 ledge, 800 dollars in pure, yellow gold was pestled out in a 
 common mortar. 
 
 A Quartz Reef on the White Poas. 
 
 The correspondent of the Pall Mall Gazette writing 
 from Vancouver, on September 9th (1897), states that news 
 had just reached Vancouver of the discovery of a ledge 
 of quartz 20 feet wide, which assayed from 86 to 73 dels. 
 per ton. 
 
 It was discovered by a man named Wade, who, on 
 a trip from Lake Bennett, at a point contiguous to the 
 White Pass, picked up four pieces of quartz rich in gold. 
 He then uncovered the ledge above mentioned with a 
 wooden spade and took some pieces to the Treadwell 
 Mine for assay. 
 
 A Stupendous Outp.'Jt of Odd predicted for 1898. 
 
 The Daily Mail correspondent states in the issue of 
 October 11th, 1897 — " Judge Malony, of Juneau, Alaska, 
 who is returning with a party from Elondyke, says that 
 not one-fifth of the gold now in sight has yet come out 
 of Elonkyke. He is afraid to offer predictions of a 
 fabulous yield, lest he might be charged with exaggeration. 
 Mr. Galvin, of the same party, who sold one claim on 
 Bonanza Creek for 100,000 dollars, predicted that 250 
 tons of gold, or 130,000,000 dollars would be shipped 
 from IQondyke next year. His companion placed the 
 amount at 800 tons." 
 
 "Westminster Gazette," 10th November, 1897. 
 
 The son of Mr. Lyman Gage, the Secretary of the PrevionB 
 Treasury, has just arrived at Butte, California, from the Kiondyke's 
 Yukon gold district. He confirms previous accounts of confirmed?'** 
 the richness of the Klondyke Valley, and asserts that 
 the first steamer that gets away in the spring will bring 
 15,000,000 dollars worth of gold from the Klondyke. 
 
82 
 
 Interview with Mr. HARRY de WINDT, In "Strand Magazine," 
 
 October, 1897. 
 The big boom (ou the Yukon) oommenoed in 
 September, 1896, when one George Gormack found gold 
 in large quantities. Then came the inevitable rush. In 
 the following Spring, when water was available, gold 
 was washed out in pounds' weight. Four pans went as 
 high as 200 dollars. The pan, about which one hears so 
 much, is an ordinary sheet-iron thing of 18 inches 
 circumference and 4 or 5 inches deep. Some men made 
 money at the rate of 17 dollars per minute, and fortunes 
 of 100,000 dollars were made in less than two months, 
 although the miners had only just commenced to work 
 their claims. 
 
 The Great ** Rush '* of 1898. 
 
 Mr. H. DE WINDT in the Strand of October, 1897. 
 The spring of 1898 will see the great rush, but 
 there's plenty of room. 100,000 miners might go pros- 
 pecting in the Yukon Valley, and be lost to one another. 
 My impression is that there are streams richer even than 
 the Klondike — the Pelly, the Lewes, the Porcupine, the 
 Big Salmon, the Tanana, the White, the Hootalinqua, 
 and the Stewart Bivers, for example, especially the 
 last-named. All are navigable tributaries of the Yukon. 
 
 Beuteb's Tbleobam, 
 
 Victoria (B. G.), 
 
 October 11th, 1897. 
 Miners are coming out overland from Klondike, 
 with large amounts in gold and drafts. 
 
 They report a shortage of provisions, but declare 
 that the richness of the goldfields is not exaggerated. 
 
 " Daily Mail," 12(^1 October, 1897. 
 Telegram from its B. G. Gorbespomdent. 
 One year ago, Alexander Macdonald, a Yukon 
 prospector, was penniless ; to-day he is believed to be 
 the richest man in Klondyke, and unable to tell whether 
 he is worth 5,000,000 or 20,000,000 dollars until the 
 clean-up next spring. A year ago he could not pay cash 
 for his food. 
 
83 
 
 Klondyke'8 Marvels, by a Yukon Pioneer. 
 
 "Daily Ghroniole," London, 26th October, 1897. 
 
 Mr. A. E. Sola, a young Englishman who has made 
 his fortune at Klondike, is at present on a visit to this 
 country, writes a Chronicle contributor, and it was my 
 good fortune to have a chat with him yesterday at the 
 Hotel Cecil, where he is staying. 
 
 Mr. Sola is now managing director of the British 
 North American Trading and Exploration Company of 
 New York, having transferred to it for a good round sum 
 his claims in Klondike, and thus having passed beyond 
 the miner's stage, is in a position to speak freely touching 
 Klondike, its hardships and its resources. Mr. Sola can 
 speak with authority both as to the hardships and 
 resources of Klondike. He spent from three to four 
 years out in that terrible region ; though he has amassed 
 a great fortune, he still shudders to recall the sufferings 
 lie underwent during his four years' search for gold. 
 
 " What is the truth about Klondike, Mr. Sola," I 
 began. " Is there gold there or not ? " 
 
 " Gold. Why there is, in my opinion, so much pro'rtici^« 
 
 gold there that gold may yet be demonetised owing to ^^fond'K'^ 
 
 the prodigious yield which the Klondike district will f^^*- 
 
 give. Why, the supply has as yet scarcely been tapped. 
 
 There has been up to the present a slight trickle of gold, 
 
 but the main stream of precious metal has yet to flow. 
 
 I say ' yet,' you observe. The gold standard will not be 
 
 with its back to the wall yet awhile, for the reason that 
 
 the luck of winning gold at Klondike is surrounded with 
 
 such awful hardships and such perils. But when the 
 
 difficulties of access to the region have been overcome, 
 
 when the transport question has been solved, and the 
 
 present comparatively rude methods of getting the gold 
 
 have given place to more scientific methods, there will be 
 
 a rush of gold from Alaska which will astound the world. There will be a 
 
 , msh to 
 
 I was there from three to four years, and perhaps I ought Kioudyke that 
 
 to know something. . . . To go there without £400 tiie world. 
 
 or £500 is to court disaster, disappointment, and possible 
 
 death. 
 
 « 2 
 
84 
 
 In winter the 
 KIo .dyke is 
 reached by 
 travelling over 
 the frozen 
 lakes and 
 riven. 
 
 Heartbreaking 
 work searching 
 for gold ou the 
 Klondyke. 
 
 A Miner's Life on the Klondylce. 
 
 " Say, now, a man arrives at Dawson City with a 
 year's supplies," Mr. Sola went on. " He will naturally 
 wait until the cold weather freezes the river, and he can 
 take his provisions on a sledge with dogs, if he can buy 
 the dogs. He locates a claim at last. He has to build a 
 log cabin, by no means easy work in winter time. He 
 then builds a big fire, which is left to burn on the bank, 
 the snow having first been cleared away from the 
 ground. Th-* fire burns all night, and the next morning 
 the miner starts to dig the thawed earth. Then he must 
 put in another fire and again dig, keeping this up imtil he 
 strikes bed rock, twenty feet down, and perhaps he finds 
 no gold there in paying quantity. He must build another 
 fire, and start another hole somewhere else. He will be 
 disgusted after several of these holes are made, and will 
 have to clear out and start another claim. Now that may 
 go on time after time, unsuccessful always until the man's 
 heart is broken and his patience exhausted. Now that 
 is what happens in the great majority of cases. A pretty 
 prospect, isn't it ? " 
 
 A new field to 
 divide 
 
 attention with 
 Klondyke. 
 
 A New Field in Alaslca. 
 
 8t. James' Gazette, October 18th, 1897. 
 
 The New York " Herald " publishes a despatch from 
 Sitka describing the wonderful gold discoveries at Cook 
 Inlet, Alaska, in United States Territory. The newly 
 discovered region is easily reached, and has a mild climate 
 and fertile soil. A party of miners from th e new gold- 
 fields have, it is stated, reached Sitka with over 200,000 
 dollars in gold dust and nuggets. It is generally believed 
 in New York that this district will divide attention with 
 Klondike next year. 
 
 An Interview witli an Aiaslcan Pioneer. 
 
 "Pall Mall Gazette," October 28th, 1897. 
 
 Maok™°osh's ^^' ^' ^- Hindo Bowker (whom the Hon. H. C. 
 
 aair.pie of Sub- Mackintosh, at a banquet given him in London in 
 
 Arctic America ' -nx «. • 
 
 September, in reply to Lord Duuenn's compliments^ 
 
85 
 
 facetiously intiroduced as an example of the effects of life 
 in the North "West territories, of Canada on the human 
 constitution) was recently interviewed by a correspondent 
 of the Pall Mall Gazette. He stated that ho went to 
 Alaska with Lieut. Swatka on an expedition to Copper 
 Eiver and had been there ever since— over nine years — 
 until ho returned to England. 
 
 " A month or so ago, and am going out again as soon 
 as I can get away. 
 
 "I never suffered from want of fresh meat all the Plenty of meat 
 time I was out there. There are any quantity of Moose 
 and Cariboo in the interior. 
 
 " The climate, is of course, severe to the new comer. |[^i^°J°[* "' "^ 
 The winter is a bit tedious but the yarns of the perpetual Arctic night 
 Arctic night are the merest bunkum. Even at its worst buniinin. 
 there is always light from 9 o'clock in the morning to 
 3 o'clock in the afternoon, and in the summer months it 
 hardly ever gets dark." 
 
 It was not easy to picture to oneself that the tall 
 indolent figure iu immaculate evening dress, who inter- 
 spersed his conversation with critical comments on the 
 quality of his Kiimmel, was the man who, for the last ten Tho effect of 
 
 . ten Tears in the 
 
 years, had roughed it at the back of the beyond. He seemed, 'ai North west. 
 
 as he lolled in a comfortable armchair in front of the fire, to 
 
 be recounting, with languid impartiality, the experiences of 
 
 another man in whom he was mildly interested, to be 
 
 telling, without a tinge of boastfulnoss or vain-glory, a 
 
 fltory of very matter-of-fact achievements — a typical 
 
 pioneer of the Empire at the end of the nineteenth 
 
 century. 
 
 " Does it pay, all this?" he continued, in answer to Docs it pay? 
 a question I had slipped in. "There can bo no doubt 
 about that. The second year I was out there I washed 
 out 2,000 dollars worth of gold. And now ? Well, that 
 is my own business, and no one's else's, isn't it ? But 
 last year, in Dawson City, I met two partners who had 
 made 150,000 dollars as the result of two months' work. 
 Many of the fellows out there made anything between 
 100,000 dollars and 50,000 dollars during the yc:»r. 
 
86 
 
 Trade with 
 the NatiTes. 
 
 wmn«w- 
 
 oomeiB have 
 aohauoe? 
 
 Prospeotson 
 the Htewart 
 Biver. 
 
 Dawson City, when I left last spring, had about 8,000 
 inhabitants, and most of them were doing well. No ; all 
 things considered, when I left, the prices of provisions 
 were not exorbitant. Two American transport com- 
 panies were catering for Dawson City, and, on the whole, 
 traded on fair lines. The normal price of a sack of flour 
 was about 6 dollars, though in times of scarcity I have 
 known it go as high as 50 dollars. Beans which, after 
 flour, was a staple food, were sold for 15 cents a pound ; 
 a pound of bacon cost 60 cents ; a pound of coffee 25 
 cents ; a pound of tea one dollar, and so on in proportion 
 to the goods. The yams of the startling prices you were 
 just referring to are either apocryphal, or are the result 
 of exceptional circumstances. Trade with the natives, for 
 example, deals in fancy values. I, myself, have sold a 
 sack of flour for 60 dollars. You see, a native comes 
 along with a leg of moose. He offers it for sale. I ask 
 him how much he wants for it. He says 60 dollars. 
 What does he want to buy ? A sack of flour. Well, I 
 happen to have a sack of flour to dispose of. What is 
 the price of it ? Sixty dollars 1 Very good ; he will take 
 that sack at my price, and I get my leg of moose. You 
 see its nothing but barter on the hard pan, but the figures 
 are picturesque. This winter there probably will be some 
 famine prices, and a good deal of real hardship. 
 
 " And will the new comers have a chance this 
 spring ? " 
 
 "Certainly. Why not? There is plenty of room 
 in the country, and there is gold in every creek, I believe. 
 The Stewart Eiver, for example, has not been touched, 
 and I should not be surprised if it did pan out richer than 
 the Klondike. What I should advise young fellows, who 
 are not afraid of roughing it, to do is to form an expedi- 
 tion of some ten or a dozen strong. They should make 
 a headquarter' s camp in some unexploited district, and 
 then every man ought to go off on his own account and 
 prospect, with the camp to fall back on. You can cover 
 a lot of ground by that method. Every man should have 
 a capital of at least £200, and provisions for two years. 
 
87 
 
 Then, even if he does not strike it rich, he cannot come 
 to much harm. But it is no use going out there without 
 some funds, and without proper equipment. Oh, yes, 
 there will be a big boom in Klondike next spring. And, a wg !.ooni 
 
 " . . . nest Spring. 
 
 as one result of it, sorae fair rubbish will be shot on the 
 market over here by the small companies. You see, 
 J. know the sort of claims some of the promoters have 
 bought. I could cell you a story about a certain 
 syndicate. However, I wont. In fact, I could tell you 
 several stories " 
 
 Interview with a Klondyke Miner. 
 
 "Star," Ist November, 1897. 
 
 Mr. Fred Price, of Wimbledon, who lived at Seattle 
 for ten years, and then went to the Yukon goldmining in 
 1894, stated recently to a Star reporter : — " I'll tell you 
 how rich the diggings are. Imagine a stretch of ground 
 80 feet wide from Wimbledon to Waterloo. Well, that 
 is the Bonanza Creek. It yields from 50 to 1,000 eo to i.ooo dois. 
 dollars a yard. And remember that is merely one pay yard, 
 streak on the Klondyke." 
 
 " What do you think of the Klondyke promotions?" 
 
 " I do not think any syndicate has got ^ old of many outiookfor 
 
 •^ •' ° ■' syndicates. 
 
 first-class claims. You may depend upon it that if a 
 man has a good one he won't be in a hurry to part with 
 it." Mr. Price returns to the Klondyke next March to 
 look after his claim. 
 
 Ontario Mining;. 
 
 " Times," 12ih October, 1897. 
 
 In the opinion of some mining experts the Western 
 Ontario gold.fi elds are as promising as any recently 
 exploited. Mr. Blue, Director of the Ontario Bureau 
 of Mines, who was sent by the Provincial Government 
 to the newly-discovered fields along the Michipicoten 
 Paver, reports to the Government a new vein of extra- 
 ordinary richness struck near Wawa Lake, assaying 600 
 dollars to the ton, and states that these results seem 
 likely to be maintained. 
 
88 
 
 "Times" (London), October 13th, 1897 (Reutei's Cable). 
 
 ^wfl ^ids^rot Miners are coming out overland from Klondike with 
 
 exaggerated. large amounts in go] a and drafts. They report a shortage 
 of pvovisions, but declare that the richness of the gold- 
 fields is not exaggerated. 
 
 "The richest man in the world." 
 
 "Canadian Gazette," October 7th, 1897. 
 
 Mr. Joaquin Miller, in a recent letter from Dawson 
 City, speaks of Alex. Macdonald as " The John Mackay 
 of the Klondike," and adds, concerning him : " They say 
 Macdonald is a very conservative man in his calculations. 
 He made his millions by locating claims, having nothing 
 at all to begin with but a rich claim, not a dollar to buy 
 with. I hear he is probably the richest man in the 
 world." Mr. Macdonald referred to is a Canadian, a 
 native of Ashdale, Antigonish county, Nova Scotia. 
 
 The only 
 
 trustworthy 
 
 inloimatiou. 
 
 Mr. OgUrie 
 admits the 
 extraordinary 
 richness of the 
 gold deposits. 
 
 130,000,000 dols. 
 worth ont of 
 two creeks 
 ouly. 
 
 Mr. Wm. Ogilvie on the Yulcon Ooldfields. 
 
 The " Manchester Guardian," 2l8t October, 1897, from its Corres- 
 pondeht, Montreal, October 9, states : — 
 
 Mr. William Ogilvie, of the Dominion Land Survey, 
 has returned to the Pacific Coast from the Klondike, where 
 he has spent the last two years as the representative of 
 the Dominion Government. Mr. Ogilvie first went into 
 the Yukon country many years ago to delimit the frontier 
 of Alaska, and he has been there, with occasional 
 furloughs, ever since. His official reports give the only 
 trustworthy information published as to the Klondike 
 goldfields, and his return to civilisation has therefore been 
 eagerly looked for. While protesting against the ex- 
 aggerated reports published in the newspapers as to the 
 fortunes made in the new goldfields, Mr. Ogilvie admits 
 that the deposits are of extraordinary richness. In an 
 interview he has stated that he believes that one hundred 
 claims on Bonanza Creek and forty on El Dorado will 
 yield about 60,000,000 dollars before they are exhausted. 
 In addition to this there is a vast unexplored region from 
 
which returns almost as great may be looked for, and 
 
 Mr. Ogilvie estimates that while the greater portion of 
 
 the work will be done within the next ten years, there is 
 
 every indication that placer work will be continued for at 
 
 least twenty years, and tliis without any attention ^eing 
 
 paid to the quartz mining which, it is certain, will follow 
 
 the hydraulic operations. Talking of the reports of 
 
 wonderful amounts of gold taken out in a single pan, Mr. ][^oantB^ 
 
 Ogilvie gave some of his own experiences. Mr. Ogilvie f^gie pans. 
 
 went into one of the richest claims and asked to be 
 
 allowed to wash out a panful of gold. The pay streak 
 
 then was very rich, but standing at the bottom of the 
 
 shaft, looking at it by the light of a candle, all that 
 
 could be seen of the pay streak was a yellowish-looking 
 
 dirt, with here and there the sparkle of a little gold. 
 
 Mr. Ogilvie took out a big panful and started to wash it 
 
 out, while several miners stood about guessing as to 
 
 the result. Five hundred dollars was the top guess of 
 
 the miners, but w^hen the gold was washed, dried, and 
 
 weighed it came to a little over 590 dollars. Speaking of 
 
 the quartz to be found in the Yukon, Mr. Ogilvie stated 
 
 that he had made a number of tests roughly for several 
 
 men. One man brought in a sample from a quartz 
 
 ledge which he had discovered. Mr. Ogilvie weighed 
 
 out several samples, crushed them, washed out the gold, 
 
 and found that the ore made 1,000 dollars to the ton Sie*Y^kon 
 
 even by that crude method. Other samples he tried ^o*i^wort^f 
 
 made 100 dollars more. If the ore had been properly sold to the ton. 
 
 crushed and quicksilver used to amalgamate, the results 
 
 would presumably have been much higher. 
 
 Value of Yukon Qold. 
 
 "Engineering and Mining Journal, 9th October, 1897. 
 According to the officers of the Selby Smelting 
 Company, gold nuggets from the Yukon are worth from 
 17 dollars to 18 dollars per oz., and gold dust from 16 
 dollars to 17 dollars per oz. The Yukon gold contains a 
 large proportion of silver and some iron, the latter giving 
 it a fine rich colour. 
 
90 
 
 Section 2. Quartz Reefs in the Moun- 
 tains and at the Headwaters of 
 the Rivers. 
 
 Gold-bearlne 
 quartz 
 picked tip. 
 
 The quarts 
 from whicu all 
 this gol i)(l^ 
 come will yv*< 
 be discovere ^ 
 
 Oold-boarlng 
 quartz found 
 at nnmerons 
 places in this 
 North-West 
 Territory. 
 
 Good quartz 
 found on the 
 liillB.—oopper 
 and silver also 
 found. 
 
 Extracts from the Report of Mr. WILLIAM OGILVIE, 1896. 
 
 Pieces of gold-bearing quartz had frequently been 
 picked up along the river in the shallow drift, but none 
 had been found in place, nor did it appear to me that 
 much search had been made for it (no quartz crushers 
 being on the field miners had no inducement to look for 
 quart?: I'oeis). 
 
 I think it may, with confidence, be asserted that 
 rich finds will yet be made of both coarse gold and gold 
 bearing quartz. It is not likely in the nature of things 
 that such a vast extent of country should have all its 
 line gold deposiLed Uo sediment, brought from a distance 
 in past ages oi the world's development. If this is not 
 the case, the mafcrix from which all the gold on these 
 streams has ccne must still exist, in part at least, and 
 will no doubt be discovered, and thus enrich this other- 
 wise gloomy and desolate region. 
 
 From the indications I have mentioned it will be 
 seen that this corner of the North-West is not going to 
 be the least important part of ?.t, more especially when 
 we consider the fact that gold-oearing quartz has be n 
 found in it at numerous places, and much will no doubt 
 be worked. 
 
 Good quartz has been found in places just across 
 the line on Davis Creek. . , . Good quartz is also 
 reported on the hills around Bonanza Creek. ... I 
 have soon several lumps of copper brought by th& 
 natives from White River. ... I have also seen a 
 specimen of silver ore said to have been picked up in & 
 Creek flowing into Lake Bennett. 
 
91 
 
 CuDAHT, 22nd January, 1897. 
 
 A quartr lode showing fine gold in paying quantities Qnarta fonna. 
 has been located on one of the creeks, but I cannot yet 
 send particulars. I am confident from the nature of the 
 gold found in the creeks that many more of them — and 
 rich too — ^will bo found. 
 
 CuDAHY, 23rd January, 1897. 
 
 I have just heard from a reliable source that the 
 quartz mentioned above is rich, as tested, over 100 dollars 
 (over £20) to the ton. The lode appears to run from 3 
 to 8 feet in thickness. 
 
 "Financial News," 13th August, 1897:— 
 
 Chicago, August 11th. — A gigantic Chicago Cor- Quartz reef 
 poration, with a capital of £5,000,000, has been or- companies 
 ganised to get at the gold quartz mines in Eastern 
 Alaska. John Cudahy, the packer, is at the head of the 
 Company. New York and London syndicates are, it is 
 alleged, trying to get the property, but without success. 
 
 Extract from inspector Constantine's Repoil, January 20th, 1896. 
 
 " The country is full of quartz ledges, more or less Quartz 
 valuable, and it only requires a short way of getting in prospecta 
 from the south, with the assurance of a certainty of 
 supplies, in order to develop them. . . . In a 
 country where a man has to pole up a rapid river for 
 some hundreds of miles in summer, then pack his food, 
 clothing, camping and working tools on his back, or in 
 winter either haul himself or with a dog, consideration 
 as to where he can get his food and clothing is of vital 
 importance to him, and he is governed accordingly. 
 This accounts for the number of men working on the fo'^f^n^*" 
 Forty-Mile and creeks emptying into it. Even here transportation 
 food has to be packed on men's backs in the summer at a 
 charge of Is. Cd. per pound, and in winter by dogs at 
 5d. per pound. This is for about 85 miles only. ... 
 
02 
 
 The Peel River 
 route \7lll 
 reach the 
 richest 
 Btreams. 
 
 Means required 
 for getting 
 Qaartz 
 Machinery 
 on the field. 
 See Feel Biver 
 rente. 
 
 The work done so far has shown up a large yield of 
 gold. . . . The true value of the mineral wealth of 
 this part of the country will not be known for many 
 years, as new discoveries are being made each season. 
 . . . Gold has also been found on Indian Greek, 
 Squaw Creek, and other small streams flowing into 
 Yukon from the Eastward." 
 
 The best paying streams are those running into the 
 Yukon from the East. 
 
 Extraot from Inspeotor Gonstantine's Report, November 20th, 1896. 
 
 " Many old miners state that this Creuk (the 
 Klondyke) is fully as rich as any found in California in 
 the early days. New creeks are being found daily, all 
 prospecting well. . . . Without doubt before long 
 rich quartz will be found, but not worked until some 
 means of transporting the necessary heavy machinery is 
 provided and supplies can be got in at reasonable cost." 
 
 iCQO per ton 
 qaartz reefs. 
 
 On January 23r(i, 1897 :— 
 
 " A quartz lode showing free gold has been located 
 on one of the creeks. The quartz I understand from a 
 reliable source, is rich, as tested over 100 dollars to the 
 ton. The lode appears to run from 3 to 8 feet in 
 thickness, and lies about 19 miles from the Yukon 
 Eiver. Coal is found on the upper part of Klondike, so 
 that the facilities for working are good and convenient. 
 
 QnartB lodes 
 practically 
 fnezhaustlble 
 1 000 dollars to 
 the ton. 
 
 "Standard" 31 8t August, 1897. 
 
 ... He (Mr. Ogiivie) also tested the quartz and 
 found it yielded at the rate of 1,000 dollars per ton. . . 
 The quartz lodes are practically inexhaustible. 
 
 "Daily Chronicle" Correspondent's interview with Dr. GEO. HA. 
 DAWSON, C.M.Q., F.G.8,, Ottawa, August 16th, 1897. 
 
 The monnteins «« The entire range of mountains which extend more 
 
 to the Arctic " 
 
 Sea rich In or less Continuously from the extrems end of South 
 
 minerals. 
 
 America to the Arctic regions is rich in minerals. 
 
Take .... for example .... until the 
 recent Klondike discoveries appear to throw previous 
 placer mining into the shade. ... 
 
 . . . . Where such large deposits of heavy Bich quartz in 
 
 t 13 1- t t 3 LA. LA. V. i the hills where 
 
 placer gold have been found there must have been at the rWers riM. 
 some time large quantities of gold in quartz at no very 
 great distance, and these quartz veins still exist. 
 
 Financial Bulletin, August 2l8t, 1897, 
 Another phase of the possibilities of the Pllondike There must 
 
 ■*■ , be contiguous 
 
 that has been overlooked is the fact that where there is quarts ledges, 
 so much placer gold in the beds of streams there must be 
 contiguous quartz ledges. "When the placer gold becomes 
 scarce, ledges will be searched for and found, and then a 
 second era of prosperity will have come, which will be 
 more lasting than that which is now in progiess. — The 
 Boslander, July 27th, 1397. 
 
 Section 3* Source of the Klondyke 
 Placer Gold. 
 
 "Chambers' Journal," September 4th, 1897. 
 
 There is no reason to suppose that even the Klondyke 
 is the very richest of the rivers which flow down from 
 the Eockies and carry with them the drift from the 
 auriferous rocks. Between the left bank of the Yukon 
 and this mountain range is a vast region absolutely 
 untrodden by man. It contains, in the upper reaches of 
 the Stewart and Macmillau Eivers, hundreds of creeks Gold on the 
 quite as favourable for the reception of floating particles of^l ^ew«t 
 of gold as the IGondyke. And even this river remains R"?eS!"'""**° 
 unexplored beyond the place which the Indians know as 
 Too-much-Gold Creek. Dr. Dawson estimates that the 
 auriferous alluvium in and around the Yukon watershed 
 
94 
 
 Tta« placers 
 have their 
 origin iu the 
 Rocky 
 Mountains. 
 
 Qnartz reefs 
 extending to 
 the Kooky 
 Moontains. 
 
 is spread over an area of a round quarter of a million 
 square miles. This estimate takes no account of the 
 possibilities of lode-mining in the hills where the quartz 
 veins exist. The placers of the Klondyke appear, as we 
 have hinted, to have their origin in the Bookies ; 
 but no scientific investigation has yet been made with the 
 idea of locating the veins, and of ascertaining their 
 approximate extent. But a United States Geological 
 Survey party last year found in a range of small 
 mountains situated between the Yukon and the Tanana 
 and crossing the Alaskan boundary in a north-easterly 
 direction not far from Forty-Mile Creek, evidences of 
 quartz gold which persisted for over 600 miles and gave 
 promise of the presence of the metal ' in well-nigh un- 
 limited ' quantities. This range joins the Kocky Mountains 
 a little north of the Arctic Circle. 
 
 {See also Section 2.) 
 
 Tbe origin of 
 gold ill the 
 Bocliies Aviiere 
 the Btpwart, 
 Macinillan and 
 Klondyke 
 rivers xiae. 
 
 Quartz Reefs In the Rockies towards the Mackenzie 
 
 River. 
 
 The •' Investors' Review," October, 1897. 
 
 The United States Geological Survey has discovered 
 auriferous rocks of " well-nigh unlimited capacity " in a 
 range of low hills running between the Yukon and the 
 Tanana to the north-east, and crossing from American into 
 British territory near Fortj^-Mile Creek. But the veins 
 from which the fine gold of the Klondyke creeks has 
 been washed by the action of running water rmist be 
 located in the Rocky Mountains which trend to the north- 
 west between the Yukon and the Mackenzie, and in 
 which the Klondyke, Stewart, Macmillan, Pelly and 
 other rivers take their rise. 
 
 Quartz Reefs on Stewart River and Headwaters. 
 
 "Globe," 9th August, 1897. 
 
 Writing from San Francisco, a CDrrespondent of the 
 New York Tribune says : — ... The latest rumour 
 from Alaska is of wonderfully rich quartz in large 
 
95 
 
 quantitiefl on the Stewart Eiver ... the ledge a 
 large one . . . rock asBays 300 dols. . . . This, 
 if true, means much for the Klondike district. 
 
 The Stewart River runs into the Yukon not far ^^"^IfJl 
 above Dawson, and it is reasonable to suppose that the J^j^^^f °* "*• 
 placer gold now being found below may have its origin 
 in the mountains at the head of Stewart River and 
 neighbouring streams. 
 
 Formation of the Yukon Qoidfields. 
 
 The following recapitulation of a long Ariicle upon 
 the Alaskan Goldfields follows an Article in the London 
 Mining Journal, of October 2nd, 1897, by Russell L. 
 Dunn, M.E., from the Mining and Scientific Press. 
 
 1. The placers are derived from the direct erosion Derivation ct 
 of gold-bearing lodes in place by frost and flowing water. 
 
 placers. 
 
 2. The placers are the beds of the first few cutting Typo of the 
 channels that the living streams made in eroding the flat 
 valleys they now flow in. These old beds, lying side by % 
 
 side, aggregate a width several times the living river, but 
 at the same time have several times less width than the 
 valleys. The old beds preserve an approximately direct 
 course through the linear extent of the valleys, and have 
 the same grade as the valleys. The old beds are not 
 exposed at the surface, but are covered with from 8 to 
 20 feet of silt, so that there is no surface indication of 
 their locus beneath the silt. (This is the type of placer; 
 there are, of course, modifications of it likely to be 
 found.) 
 
 3. The richness of the Klondyke placer discovery Richness of 
 
 is likely to be equalled by many discoveries yet to be placers^* 
 
 made, and is possible of being exceeded in richness by exw^'edby 
 
 some of them. fcerie.. 
 
96 
 
 The sonroM 
 of the Gold 
 at tbe up- 
 Btream end of 
 the placers. 
 
 Plaoer Gold 
 Dot the resntt 
 of glacier 
 erosion. 
 
 Character of 
 the country ; 
 the placer 
 ground frozen 
 to the bedrock. 
 
 4. Tho lodes from which the gold of the placers 
 has come, are, for the greater number, at or about the 
 up-stream end of the placers. The lessor number of 
 them may be, however, considerably farther down stream, 
 and some even exist wholly within the placers. These 
 lodes have not been eroded very deeply ; and so closely 
 arc they connected with the placers, that richness in tho 
 latter furnishes a presumption of richness in the former. 
 
 5. Certain popular opinions, and some so-called expert 
 ones as well, are absolutely to be rejected as erroneous. 
 The gold was not broken out of the rock and distributed 
 by glaciers. If it were in Alaska, one would naturally 
 search for gold in moraines and not in flat valleys, far 
 away from them. Gold does not "flow " now, and never 
 did ; otherwise it would bo in the living rivers as much 
 as in others. Every valley and flat in the auriferous 
 region does not contain placers. All the bedrock under- 
 lying a valley in which a placer has been found is not a 
 "plaoer"; it is not possible to find gold everywhere in 
 such valleys as the Klondyke, for example. The entire 
 length of a placer is not of possible equal richness, nor 
 is the locus of the portion of greater richness an uncertain 
 or indeterminate fact. 
 
 6. To the preceding add that the surface of the 
 country, valley and mountain is covered with a deep 
 strong growth of moss ; that the silt and am'iferous sand 
 of the valleys beneath the moss is perpetually frozen to 
 the bedrock; that from these physical conditions the 
 methods of prospecting for placers and lodes employed 
 elsewhere are impossible of application here; and one 
 has clearly in view the special and, in part, unique mining 
 conditions of the Yukon Goldfields. 
 
 (See also Section 2.) 
 
 "Westminster Gazette," 24th. August, 1897. 
 
 Eioh gold An interesting item appears to-day in the Morning 
 
 Seadwatersof Posfs Now York letter to the effect that the nuggets 
 
 SUb^c'S?"^'" brought to Seattle from the North- West Goldfields by 
 
 Mountains. ^j^^ Starr on Saturday are of such different formation 
 
97 
 
 from nuggeto which have previously arrived from 
 Klondyke that experts believe they probably did uot 
 oome from the placer mines with which the world is 
 now 80 familiar. These experts have for some time 
 believed in the existence of ledges of rich gold quartz at 
 the head waters of the Klondyke Biver, and the nature 
 of the samples in question confirms them in their 
 opinion. .^, - 
 
 •■ .. . ■•#t ■ , »■ 
 
 Section 4. Other Minerals, '^•^-i^-v.^v^ 
 
 General Summary from the Cnmmittee. ■ '* 
 
 Other mineral productions in this (the N. W. Torri- » ' 
 
 tories) area are silver, copper, iron, graphite, ochre, 
 brick and pottery clay, mica, g3rpsum, lime and sand- 
 stone, sand for glass and moulding, and asphaltum, 
 while the petroleum area is so extensive as to justify 
 the belief that eventually it will supply the larger part .. 
 of this .(the American) continent and be shipped to 
 England. 
 
 Salt and sulphur deposits are less extensive, but the salt, ooai, 
 former is found in crystals equal in purity to the best fron ot'^ett 
 Bock salt, and in highly saline springs, while the latter vSu™*"'''* 
 is found in the form of pyrites, and the fact that these 
 petroleum and salt deposits occur mainly near the line 
 of division between deep water navigation and that 
 fitted for lighter craft, gives them a possible great com- 
 .mercial value. 
 
 Evidence of the Rev. E. PETITOT. 
 
 The Gorges or Eamparts of the Porcupine Eiver The great 
 offer a vast and magnificent field to the geologist and posits of the 
 the mineralogist. Biver. 
 
98 
 
 Tho Neptanian and Plutonian elements have nnited 
 there to fonn rocks and soils of an extremely varied 
 nature. . . . Goal, anthracite, gneiss, red ochre, 
 trap, porphry, marble, feldspar— pure and rose- veined, 
 all the varieties of granite, gypsum, sulphur, talc, bluj 
 marl, and a quantity of other mineral substances show 
 themselves in profusion in this canyon. Moreover, the 
 rocks, by their singular and capricious forms, as well as 
 by their striking, and one might say, improbable colours, 
 present to the brush of the landscape artist scenery of a 
 rare and striking character. 
 
 Evidence of DONALD MolVOR. 
 
 ckwi, iron. &c., Iron could be found throughout the whole country, 
 
 the Mackenzie Goal in great abundance on banks of the Mackenzie. 
 
 White clay on the river most valuable for pottery. 
 
 Quantities of lime and sandstone. Of course, petroleum 
 
 is well known to be in large quantity. 
 
 « Daily Chronicle," July 29tli 1897. 
 Minenj " Yet the resources of the country are far richer 
 
 lesonrceB far ,i • it i -i i t • i. i« 
 
 richer than than 18 generally supposed ; it abounds m every direction 
 
 suppose . j^ gold, silver, lead, copper and coal, and quite apart 
 
 from the recent discoveries in the grim district around 
 
 the Yukon River, the immediate future .... is 
 
 one full of the brightest promise." 
 
 Evidence of M. MoLEOD, Esq., Q.C., Ex-Judge. 
 
 Large deposits Sulphur seems to permeate the whole of the region 
 
 th/monthof ^^^S^^Yy because approaching the fires near the mouth 
 the Maokenaie. q{ ^Jjq Mackenzie (in the river) travellers speak of 
 sulphurous exhalations. 
 
 Evidence of BISHOP GLUT. 
 
 other miTieraiB There is copper (in the Mackenzie Basin and N. W. 
 
 copper%a?tr' Territory), and one river bears the name of Coppermine 
 gy^am', and Blvor. It is f ound there in great pieces. I have seen 
 precious stones jj^^^ crosses made of it by the savages themselves. . . 
 The sulphur abounds in several places. I have seen it on 
 
99 
 
 the Clearwater River and on the West bank of Great Slave 
 Lake. It is there in such quantities that the odour is 
 annoying to those who pass by. Near Fort Smith there 
 is a salt mine, which is probably the most beautiful and 
 the most abundant in the universe. There is a veritable 
 mountain of salt. By digging a little in the earth, from 
 
 six inches to a foot, rock salt can be found 
 
 You have only to shovel, and you can gather a fine salt, 
 pure and clean. 
 
 On the borders of the Peace Biver, stones are found 
 which are sufficiently precious to make rings of them. 
 I have seen Gypsum along the Mackenzie, a little below 
 Fort Norman. 
 
 R. Q. MoCONNELL, 1888-89. 
 
 The Devonian rocks throughout the Mackenzie ^fj*J^'*''™ *°* 
 Valley are nearly everywhere more or less petroliferous, 
 and over large areas a£ford promising indications of 
 the presence of oil in workable quantities .... 
 Near Fort Good Hope several tar springs exist, and it 
 is from these that the Hudson's Bay Company now 
 obtain their principal supply of pitch .... Still 
 farther down, in the vicinity of Old Fort Good Hope, the 
 river is bordered for several miles by evenly bedded 
 dark shales of Devonian age which are completely 
 saturated with oil (Fort Good Hope is 274 miles from 
 mouth of the Mackenzie Biver). 
 
 The oil fields of Pennsylvania and Baker already 
 (1888) show signr, of exhaustion, and as they decline 
 the oil fields of Northern Canada will have a corres- 
 ponding rise in value. 
 
 Mineral Resources of the N. W. Territories. 
 
 Evidence of Professor BELL before the 1888 Committee. 
 
 Gold has been found at Repulse Bay and near 
 Chesterfield Inlet, Hudson's Bay; also at Bumtwood 
 Lake, near Frog Portage. 
 
 H 2 
 
100 
 
 Nuggets of pure silver have been found on the 
 Upper Peace. 
 
 Native copper on the Coppermine Biver, and copper 
 ore on the Vleat Coast of Hudson's Bay. 
 
 Clay iron-stone on the Athabasca Biver, above the 
 Clearwater Biver; and magnetite at Black Bay, on 
 Athabasca Lake. 
 
 Sulphur is abundant in the form of pyrites on the 
 West Coast of Hudson's Bay. 
 
 Salt, in springs on the Clearwater and the Athabasca, 
 and copiously on the Salt Biver on the West side of 
 Slave Biver. 
 
 Petroleum and asphaltum on the Athabasca Biver, 
 Great Slave Lake, Mackenzie, &c. 
 
 Gypsum at Peace Point, Peace Biver, Salt Springs, 
 Salt Biver. 
 
 Lignite, along the Athabasca Biver, Mackenzie 
 Elver, near Great Bear Lake Biver, along Peel Biver 
 and on the coast o£ the Arctic sea on both sides of the 
 Mackenzie. 
 
 Plumbago found near Fond du Lao, Athabasca 
 Lake. 
 
 Mr. George Dawson stated to 1888 Committee : — 
 Tiie pitch of Athauasca Biver (and also of the Lake and 
 of the Mackenzie Biver) may probably be of considerable 
 value in the future, but it is most important in giving 
 reason to believe that extensive deposits of petroleum 
 exist in the country in which it occurs. Mr. Hoffman 
 reports on an examination of this material (1881-82) : — 
 He suggests its use for asphalting roadways, &c., and for 
 the purpose of distillation and for the production of 
 lubricating and illuminating oils. 
 
 Professor Bell, in his evidence to the 1888 Com- 
 mittee of the Senate, stated — "As to economic minerals, 
 magnetic iron, apparently of fine quality, judging from 
 specimens I obtained at Fort Chippewyaa, is found near 
 the entrance of Black Bay, on the north side of Lake. 
 
101 
 
 Athabasca. Graphite has been found in loose pieces, 
 near Fond du Lao Post, on the same side. Mr. Cochrane 
 found the Huronian foundation, which is always apt tc 
 be metalliferous, well developed in Black Bay, and again 
 between Fond du Lao and the eastern extremity of 
 Lake Athabasca. 
 
 « The lake is deep and navigable for steamers of a 
 large class.'.' 
 
 Evidence from the diary of ANDERSON, the Explorer, 
 Senate Committee, 1888. 
 
 Red earth, sulphisr, coal oil, salt, white earth, gPS^'eto?^ 
 limestone, ironstone, and sandstone, are found all along 
 the Mackenzie and the Athabasca. Mr. James Anderson, 
 son of the Explorer, declares that he has seen all these 
 minerals, himself, in the localities mentioned. 
 
 Evidence of G. M. DAWSON, Director of the Geological .Survey of 
 Canada, to the 1888 Senate Committee. 
 
 Referring to the CJoppermine Eiver particularly, J^^g^itf?^ 
 there is every reason to believe there is a repetition, ™®*2?n°**i,- 
 along that river and in its vicinity, of those rocks, 
 which contain copper, on Lake Superior, and which 
 have proved so rich there. If there were any way of 
 getting the copper out from that country, aa there 
 will, no doubt, eventually be, it could be examined and 
 prospected and worked at once. At the present time it 
 seems to be beyond the reach of the prospector. The 
 Hudson Bay Co. sent Heame up there in the latter part 
 of the last century to discover where the copper found 
 in the hands of the natives came from, but he could do 
 nothing but report that he found copper there. The sea 
 to the north was ice-bound, Eind he did not see his way 
 to utilising it, so it has remained ever since. With 
 respect to the barren grounds, I know nothing personally. 
 I think we really know very little about them yet. It 
 would appear that the barren grounds have been generally 
 characterised on the result of a very few expeditions 
 which have not gone over them at all extensively. 
 
102 
 
 Pitch aud 
 Asphaltam. 
 
 Evidence of the Hon. Wm. CHRISTIE to the 1888 Senate Committee, 
 
 The deposit of pitch on the Athabasca Biyer is very 
 deep. It is in springs in the sides of the banks of the 
 river. The bank at that point is not very high. A few 
 pine trees grow at the top of the bank, and there are 
 one or two springs there. They boil ap there in the 
 summer. You can put a long pole down 10 or 12 feet 
 long, and you cannot find the bottom. The pitch ia 
 black and very adhesive. It is like English pitch, but 
 it has no smell of tar. They use it at Fort McMurray 
 to cover some of the houses, and it looks like an 
 asphalt pavement. 
 
 I have never seen specimens of the crude oil that 
 comes from the wells, but the general opinion is that 
 this petroleum, or coal oil, would be found there. In 
 fact there is a report that there are some springs of itr 
 near Edmonton. The Indians report that it exists in 
 that country, but being superstitious they would not 
 show where it would be found. 
 
 A hill of iron 
 on Lake Atha- 
 bMoa. 
 
 Immense oop. 
 pes territory 
 near Chester- 
 field Inlet. 
 
 Likely gold- 
 bearing quartz 
 near the inlet, 
 
 Discoveries of Qold, Iron and Copper ; Chesterfield 
 Inlet and Lake Athabasca. 
 
 Mr. J. Burr Tyrrell, in the Geological Survey 
 Beports of 1895, mentions a hill of highly hsematitio 
 quartzite and iron ore of 125 feet in height on the shore 
 of Lake Athabasca, and in the Sessional Papers for the 
 same year he reports that for 225 miles before reaching 
 the neighbourhood of Chesterfield Inlet and along the 
 streams leading into it, formations are met with similar 
 to those which are so rich in copper ore on Lake 
 Superior, but owing to the necessity for rapid travel 
 daring the journey on which he visited this unknown 
 country he could give them no more than hasty exami* 
 nation. He (Mr. Tyrrell) considers these formations a 
 continuation of the sandstone and traps on the Copper- 
 mine Biver which have long been known to contain 
 large quantities of pure copper. Along the Doobaunt 
 Biver, and on the North side of Doobaunt Lake, out- 
 
103 
 
 crops of white Huronian quartzite were seen. (It is the 
 Huronian formation that Professor Bell describes as 
 " always apt to be metalliferous.") 
 
 It was on this ioumey that Mr. Tyrrell made the An important 
 
 ■• " " diseovcry oi 
 
 discovery of gold on Chesterfield Inlet. gold on chea- 
 
 Petroleum fields of Immense value* 
 
 From the 1888 Senate Gommittee's General Summary. 
 
 The evidence submitted to your Committee points The greatest 
 to the existence in the Athabasca and Mackenzie valleys in the world, 
 of the most extensive petroleum field in America, if not in 
 the world. The uses of petroleum, and consequently the 
 demand for it by all nations are increasing at such a 
 rapid ratio, that it is probable this great petroleum field 
 will assume an enormous value in the near future, and 
 will rank among the chief assets comprised in the Crown 
 Domain of the Dominion. 
 
 Ironstone and Copper, West of Chesterfield Inlet. 
 
 Mr. Warburton Pike, in the account (1890) of his 
 travels in the Barren Lands of North Canada, refers 
 (p. 185) several times to its huge extent of ironstone 
 country, extending North East from the Great Fish 
 Eiver, about lat. 65^. He also mentions coming upon 
 Esquimaux encampments on this river and finding stone 
 kettles and other utensils with copper let into them, 
 shewing that the natives found this metal and knew how by tEfnaUveaf 
 to work it. 
 
104 
 
 Section 5. Coal for visiting Steam- 
 shipfi, iVIanufactures and IVIining 
 Industries. 
 
 General Summary from the Oommittee.' 
 
 The extensive coal and lignite deposits of the lower 
 Mackenzie, and elsewhere, will be found to be of great 
 commercial value when the question of reducing its iron 
 ores and the transportation of the products of this vast 
 region have to be solved by steam sea-going or lighter 
 river craft. 
 
 Professor MACOUN'S Evidence. 
 
 Coal on the ^ . n , n . . » 
 
 Mackenzie. Question : — Suppose a steamer could start from 
 
 Victoria, pass through Behring Straits and the Arctic Sea 
 
 to the mouth of the Mackenzie, and ascend the river to 
 
 the Great Slave Lake, would that vessel have to take 
 
 coal enough for the return trip, or could she depend 
 
 upon the coal to be found in the Mackenzie country ? 
 
 Answer'. — There is no doubt at all that she could 
 depend upon the coal of the Mackenzie, because all 
 explorers speak of it. . . There is no doubt at all 
 that there is excellent coal on the lower Mackenzie. 
 
 Evidence of J. B. HURLBERT, M.D., LLD. 
 
 rientywood Sir John Eichardson, in passing along the Arctic 
 
 as fuel for Coast wherever there were Elvers, found timber about 
 Arctic Coast, the mouths of them in such quantities that, he said, if a 
 steamer should go into the Arctic Ocean it would find 
 wood enough to supply its daily fuel and asphaltum, or 
 something of the kind, which is found West of the 
 Mackenzie Eiver, that it would find enough there to 
 supply the daily wants of the steamer. 
 
105 
 
 Extracts from the Report of Mr. WILLIAM OQILVIE, 1896. 
 
 It is now certain that coal extends along the valley Large leami 
 of the Yukon. . . . There is a seam on it (the branch covered, 
 stream Chandindu) 6 feet thick. ... On the 
 Cornell Claim on Cliff Greek the seam is 5 feet 4 inches 
 thick. 
 
 In the course of a year I believe coal will supersede coaiwflistiper- 
 
 Bfidfi wood kOK 
 
 wood for fuel which will relieve the demand as far as fnei in the 
 towns and villages are concerned ; but mining interests 
 will require a lot of fuel where gou) cannot be taken. 
 
 Evidence of MALCOLM MoLEOD, Q.O., Ex-Judge. 
 Qtiestixm of the Committee: — You say that for a Three yards 
 
 * •' *' seam of coal at 
 
 distance of 350 miles coal is indicated by abundant the janction of 
 
 _ Mackenzie and 
 
 " shows" on the Peace Eiver in its upper reaches and Bear Lake 
 extends to the Arctic Ocean. Then you pass on to the month of 
 lignite which you say is still more extensively developed. 
 
 You give the result of Sir John Eichardson's 
 observations and enquiries on the subject in this way — 
 " At the junction of the Mackenzie and Bear Lake Eiver 
 the formation is best exposed ; it there consists of a 
 series of beds, the thickest of which exceed three yards, 
 
 separated by layers The coal when 
 
 extracted from the bed is massive and most generally 
 shows the woody structure distinctly." • 
 
 You mentioned that all along the Mackenzie — for 
 1,800 miles — there are indications of this lignite and real 
 coal. 
 
 Has anything occurred since the publication of de^^sSsafon*** 
 this pamphlet to alter your opinion ? on^he1^«* 
 
 Coast at the 
 
 Answer— Nothing. On the contrary, I have had "oa^thofthe 
 information to add to it. Of late, I find from the refer- 
 ence of Simpson to pitch coal on the shore of the Arctic 
 Sea, between the mouth of the Mackenzie Eiver and 
 Point Barrow, that the extent of the coal desposit is 
 greater than I supposed. 
 
106 
 
 Coal near the Mouth of the Mackenzie. 
 
 (See paragraph under part B, Section 10, referring to 
 Ogilvie's discovery of a large seam of excellent tested Coal 
 on Trout Biver.) 
 
 A Forerunner of Great Coal Discoveries. 
 
 "ToBONTO Monetary Times," 
 
 10th September, 1897. 
 
 Prof. John Macoun, of the Geological Survey (of 
 Canada), has returned from his rummer's work on the 
 Prairies of the North- West Territories. He states, that 
 in Mid -August, Mr. Stafford, of the Gait Coal Company, 
 discovered a 9-foot seam of excellent quahty Coal in 
 Alberta, six miles east of the mountains. 
 
 Climate of 
 Alaska bright 
 •Dd bracing. 
 
 AU the coal 
 fonnd, out- 
 oropped on the 
 river banks. 
 
 Coal on the Yukon. 
 
 Letter from Mr. James Hardy, in the "Sheffield Daily Telegraph" 
 
 August 11th, 1897, 
 
 Sir, — I should like to say a little about these gold- 
 fields, which I think would be of interest to the readers 
 of your paper. As I have spent two summers %nd a winter 
 up there prospecting, in the employ of Dr. Dawson, 
 I think I ought to knew something of camp life in that 
 barren territory. The climate is bright and bracing, not 
 damp and foggy, as Mr. Mackey says. You can work out 
 from March until October. In the winter we opened 
 several seams of coal, as I was a miner. They took my 
 advice, and it found us fire and warmth in cold weather. 
 The coal we got was lignite. We found some bituminous 
 coal some hundreds of miles from there, but did not test 
 it. All the coal we found outcropped on the river banks. 
 In some places the coal was stratified; others un- 
 stratified. I think the gold at Klondike is an outcrop of 
 some general bed. If it is so they will want miners of » 
 better stamp when they have reef to get, instead of gravel. 
 I would not advise any one to go from here until the 
 spring ; it would be madness to attempt it. It will be a 
 
107 
 
 grand place for men interested in coal, as it will be 
 wanted in winter worse than gold. Young men going 
 from here ought to get together in fours, and sixes, and so 
 on, and not to be parted at any price. I never saw the 
 mercury below 58 zero nor above 1*17 Fahr, 
 
 Section 6. Hydraulic and Placer 
 
 Mining. 
 
 Extracts from the Report ef Mr. WILLIAM OQILVIE, 1890. 
 
 The only mining done on the Stewart River was on HyaraiiMo 
 the bars in the river ; the bench and bank bars were all necessary, 
 timbered and frozen, so that to work thorn would entail 
 a resort to hydraulic mining, for which there was no 
 machinery in the country. 
 
 During the fall of 1886 three or four miners com- splendid »• 
 bined and got the owners of the " New Backet " steam- Btowu°^m 
 boat to allow the use of her engines to work pumps for taa^um*"""^ 
 sluicing with. The boat was hauled up on a bar, her 
 engines detached from the paddle wheels and made to 
 drive a set of pumps manufactured on the ground which 
 supplied water for a set of sluicing boxes. With this 
 crude machinery, in less than a month the miners cleared 
 1,000 dollars each, and paid an equal amount to the 
 owners of the boat as their share. 
 
 There are many bank and bench bars along the river a rich field for 
 which would pay well if sluiced, but there is no con- Eia^^taery. 
 venient or economical way of getting water on to them, 
 and there is no pumping machinery as yet in the country. 
 
 Gold in the Stewart River. 
 
 R. Q. MoCONNELL, 1888-89. 
 
 Extensive gravel benches of a more or less au- 
 riferous character border the Stewart Biver in many 
 places, and promise remunerative returns if worked on a 
 large scale (hydraulic machinery required). 
 
108 
 
 Special 
 
 methods called 
 for. 
 
 Depth to 
 beoiock. 
 
 The Tarioos 
 
 strata 
 
 described. 
 
 A large 
 qnantity of 
 paying gravel 
 thrown aside. 
 
 Placer Mining in tlie Klondiice Country. 
 
 Written for the "Engineering and IMining Journal" by its Special 
 Oorrespondent, October 9th, 1897. 
 
 Special oonditions call for special methods to meet 
 them, and this is certainly true of placer mining in the 
 Yukon gold belt, and more especially so in the Klondike 
 district. With the exception of some placers in Siberia, 
 nowhere else have men undertaken to seek for gold 
 above the line of constantly frozen ground. The work 
 is too arduous and forbidding, except for the short' 
 summer months when the heat is almost unbearable and 
 the mosquitoes worse. The ground below is frozen solid 
 down to bedrock, almost as hard and even more difficult 
 to excavate. The frozen earth and gravel can be blasted 
 only with great difficulty, and the only method available 
 has been to thaw the ground by fire, as is done in the 
 Siberian mines. 
 
 On El Dorado Creek, which is the richest and best 
 known of the tributaries of Bonanza Creek, the branch 
 of the Klondike on which the first strike was made, the 
 bedrock on which the rich pay-streak lies is found at a 
 depth varying from 9 feet at the mouth to 20 feet and even 
 28 or 30 feet higher up. The top layer, from 1 to 6 feet 
 thick, is of muck composed of decaying vegetable matter 
 and soil which in places is covered by long and thickly 
 matted moss. The summer heat melts the surface 
 where exposed to a depth of a few inches, making a very 
 disagreeable footing. Under the muck come the several 
 strata of gravel and sand shown in the illustration, 
 which is a typicarsection across the creek. The upper- 
 most stratum of gravel varies in thickness in places, but 
 is quite uniform as to the amount of gold carried to the 
 cubic foot ; while those below are quite uniform on all 
 the claims along the creek in thickness as well as in 
 amount of gold. Under different conditions or in any 
 other diggingB but the Yukon the upper layer of gravel 
 would be carefully worked, and most likely will be in 
 the future even there ; but so far the Elondykers have 
 wasted but little time on it, only taking out so much as 
 
109 
 
110 
 
 was necessary to reftoh the richer strata below, and in 
 most cases not even washing out the gold from what they 
 did handle. 
 
 Bow^ •hn'tB In sinking the shafts all the loose top stuff that oui 
 
 be out and scraped away is first removed, and then a 
 good pile of wood out from the adjoining hills is made 
 and set on fire. By the time this has burnt out the 
 ground below it is thawed to a depth of several inches. 
 Pick and shovel are then used to remove this over a 
 space of from 8 to 12 feet square, and the shaft may be 
 said to have been started. Alternate firing and digging in 
 time carry it down through the muck and the thick 
 upper layer of gravel to within some 7 or 8 feet of the 
 bedrock. 
 
 When the shaft becomes too deep to toss the dirt 
 out with a shovel, a windlass is rigged, and it is hoisted 
 out by a rope and bucket, the latter generally made of a 
 half barrel, with a rope handle passing through three 
 holes near the top. When the poorer upper gravel 
 has been passed the material, as far as loosened by the 
 fire, is taken from the sides as well as at the bottom of 
 the shaft, and the dump for sluicing is begun. This is 
 made with an eye to the most convenient and economical 
 way of utilizing the supply of water which is to oome 
 when the snow on the hills thaws out in the spring. 
 
 The work is then carried on down to bedrock, next 
 
 above which, with a depth of about 18 inches, lies the 
 
 rich pay-streak. From this and the cracks and rifts 
 
 Where the in the shale rock underneath come most of the 
 
 nnggets eome . , . 
 
 from nuggets. This stuff is laid by itself on the dump and 
 
 given special care in washing, as it abounds in dust and 
 
 flaxseed gold as well as nuggets. Many men have been 
 
 satisfied with one season's work on this rich deposit. 
 
 On all the deeper claims, after reaching bedrock only 
 the pay-streak and the two strata above it are followed by 
 drifting. The method is the same as in the vertical shaft, 
 wood being piled at the end of the drift and burned to 
 thaw out the ground. While mote men can find room to 
 
Ill 
 
 •work the progress made is comparatively slow, as for ^|,'JJfn"f|*f 
 lack of draught the fire burns slowly and the smoke froien gratei. 
 takes a longer time to clear out of the way, so as to allow 
 the men to get at the work of digging and hoisting out. 
 In thus going down to bedrock and then drifting on only 
 the richest strata, the readiest and largest returns are 
 secured for the time and labour expended. 
 
 This was the first object with the poorer Klondikers, 
 to take the richest, make their pile and get out of the 
 country, leaving the other stuff to be worked by those stnir thrown 
 who came after them, as it all will be when improved moMr ^lor* 
 conditions as to labour, supplies and proper machinery be waBhed'over 
 exist. So far it has not been found necessary to leave ****"" 
 pillars or put in supports for the roof of the drift. So 
 firmly is the material frozen that it is as hard and strong 
 as the bedrock below. 
 
 From rim-rook to rim-rock the El Dorado Creek width of 
 
 bottom of go1(1- 
 
 bottom varies from 80 to 500 feet m width, and, as far as bearing creeks, 
 ascertained, the deposits are quite uniform over the 
 whole with a length of about eight miles. The amount 
 of gold yet to be handled on this creek alone must be 
 very large. 
 
 A large number of the nuggets taken out of this Qnartziuthe 
 
 nuffffQbS snow 
 
 creek have had quartz imbedded in the metal, showing ^he nearness of 
 
 4Q6urtz reefs. 
 
 their original home to be not far distant, but as yet no 
 definite location has been made of any quartz ledges. 
 As a matter of fact, few have turned their attention in 
 that direction; the heavy covering of thick, matted 
 moss that lies on the hills hides the rocks from sight, 
 and makes prospecting extremely difficult. The more 
 certain returns from the creek bottoms have so far been 
 the more attractive to the miners. 
 
 Although much has been written in regard to the 
 erosion of these valleys, and the deposit of the gold 
 by the action of glaciers, an inspection of a large 
 quantity of nuggets from the several branches of the qq,^ dis i c a 
 Klondike seem to , show that they have never been f'2*» qnarta 
 
 ' letufeB by 
 
 subjected to the squeezing and grinding forces in *°?^i![S**'» 
 
112 
 
 eyicTence on the terminal moraines to be found along any 
 glaciers. They rather show proof of gradual and gentle 
 loosening from the original rock and of the after action 
 of water, and that only to a limited degree. 
 
 FiiBt steps of a 
 prospectlui; 
 miner with the 
 pan. 
 
 Next step— the 
 "looker "or 
 "cradte." 
 
 Deacription 
 of the 
 "looker." 
 
 filaicing. 
 
 Prospecting with "Rocker" and Pan. 
 
 "When a miner *' prospects " he washes a few panfuls 
 of gravel or sand, and according to the number of specks 
 of gold he sees in his pan after the dift has been washed 
 out he estimates the richness of it. The "rocker," 
 which the miner uses in placer mining, is a box about three 
 feet long and two feet wide, made in two parts, the top 
 part being shallow, with a heavy sheet-iron bottom which 
 is punched full of quarter-inch holes. The other part of the 
 box is fitted with an inclined shelf about midway in its 
 depth, which is six or eight inches lower at its lower 
 end than at its upper. Over this is placed a piece of 
 heavy woollen blanket. The whole is then mounted on 
 rockers and set in a convenient place near a good supply 
 of water. The minor puts the gravel and sand he has 
 collected into the shallow box on the top, and he rocks 
 it gently while he ladles in water. The finer matter 
 with the go^ ^ falls through the holes on to the blanket, 
 which cht'lcs its progress and holds the fine particles of 
 gold. The .iand passes over it to the bottom of the box. 
 Across the bottom of the box are fixed thin slats, behind 
 which some mercury is placed to catch particles of gold 
 which may have escaped the blanket. Of course if thero 
 are any nuggets they are retained in the upper box. By 
 sluicing, however, about three times as much dirt can be 
 washed as by the rocker, and consequently sluicing is 
 always the process employed when a good fall of water 
 can be obtained. In Alaska many miners spend the 
 winter in thawing the ground and collecting the dirt, 
 which they heap in a pile till summer comes and water 
 can be obtained. 
 
113 
 Section T. Furs, Ivory, &c. 
 
 General Summary from- the Oommittee. 
 
 The chief present commercial product of the country The great far 
 is its furs, which, as the region in question is the last wwldT* ° 
 great fur preserve of the world, are of' very great 
 present and prospective valUe, all" the finer furs of 
 conunerce being there found, and the sales 'in London 
 yearly amounting to several niillions of dollars. 
 
 Evidence of the Rev. E. PETITOT. 
 
 On the sea coast and the right bank (of the oaves con- 
 Mackenzie Eiver), the Esquimaux have told me that ii^edbonesVna 
 there are caves containing fossilized bones of large Martodoa.^ 
 antediluvian aniraals, particularly of the mastodon, of 
 which they have shown me pieces of tusks "df the finest 
 ivory. ' 
 
 Evidence of DONALD MclVOR. 
 
 Animals in Mackenzie Basin are :— red-deer, rein- Animals in 
 deer, cabre, musk ox (robes very valuable), moose, elk. Basin. 
 wild sheep and goats, lynx, Arctic fox, black fox (skins 
 worth from £6 to £8 each), silver fox (skins nearly as 
 vpluable), cross fox, wolverine, otter, beaver, martin, 
 mink, ermine, trout, pike, salmon, in fact, nearly every Fish. 
 kind most numerous. 
 
 Fursof the N.W. Territories; 1888 Committee's Report. 
 
 The Committee have found a great deal of difficulty 
 in getting information regarding the quantity of furs 
 exported from the N. W. Territories. The following is 
 incomplete, but is all the Committee could obtain. 
 
 Quantity of furs offered for sale in London at the Ic^ndonof 
 Annual Auction Sale by the Hudson Bay Co., and lu^^ex'orted 
 C. M. Lampson & Co., in the year 1887. fowitori *^" ^' 
 
 Otter 14,439 
 
 Sea Otter 8,868 
 
 fisner <<• ••• ... ... •.• i,Xt7^ 
 
 Fox, Silver , 1,967 
 
 Fox, Cross 6,785 
 
114 
 
 Fox, Bed 85,022 
 
 Fox, White 10,257 
 
 Fox, Blue ... Mr 1,440 
 
 Fox, Kitt *•. .•* ••• ••• 290 
 
 Lynx ... .•• ... ... ... 14,520 
 
 Skunk 632,794 
 
 Marten... ..« ••• 98,342 
 
 Mink ... 376,223 
 
 Beaver ... 104,279 
 
 Musquash 2,485,368 
 
 Extra Blaok Musquash 13,944 
 
 Wolf 7,158 
 
 Wolverine 1,581 
 
 Bear (all kinds) ... ..« ... 15,942 
 
 Musk Ox 198 
 
 Badger..* 3,739 
 
 Ermine 4,116 
 
 Swan... ... ... ... ... 57 
 
 Babbit (American 114,824 
 
 Hair Seal (dry) ... 13,478 
 
 Sable ... ... ... ... ... 3,517 
 
 Fox, Grey 31,597 
 
 Evidence of Mr. JAMES ANDERSON and his father, the explorer 
 
 (1888 Committee). 
 
 pm Md Pood The furs of the Mackenzie Elver are those of the 
 
 FKNortb. beaver, marten, silver fox, lynx, otter, cross fox, blue fox, 
 red fox, musquash (muskrat), mink, bears, wolves, and 
 wolverines. The food animals amongst these are the 
 beaver and bear. Towards the Arctic Ocean are found the 
 musk ox, and the reindeer, and all the fur-bearing animals 
 are found along the coast. 
 
 The food animals on the Mackenzie Biver are the 
 moose, rabbit, wood partridge, white partridge geese of 
 all kinds, cranes, waveys, and ducks of all kinds. 
 
 Large and Exceptionally Pine Specimens off ivory ffound. 
 
 '.'Pall Mall Gazette," 9th October, 1897 (from the Special 
 Correspondent). 
 
 As confirming what was said in a previous letter, 
 Mr. Wilkinson, of Nanaimo, B. C, \7ho returned from 
 
115 
 
 the Klondike some time ago with 40,000 dollars, the 
 result of but three months' labour, says that large and 
 exceptionally fine speoimens of ivory were found last 
 season solidly embedded in the ice gravel. Tusks of 
 mastodons, weighing as much as 160 lbs., were found in 
 an excellent state of preservation. While working his 
 claim, Wilkinson found a leg bone of a mastodon covered 
 with flesh. He remarks that there are indications on 
 every hand to show that Alaska was once a tropical 
 country, and rank tropical vegetation is seen preserved 
 in ice. 
 
 But it is nuggets, and not mastodons, that the 
 miners want. 
 
 An Alask Plain Strewn with Ivory Tasks. 
 
 The Sheffield " Daily Telegraph," August 21at, 1897. 
 
 Elondyke seems to be the home of ivory as well as Eiondyke Uia 
 of gold, according to the Pall Mall Gazette. "It was asweuas^^ld, 
 quite the result of accident," it says, " that what may l^t'ol^t*. 
 be called the last home of the mammoths — for we can 
 hardly credit the Indian tales of live specimens — became 
 known to a white man. The Bedskins of Kwaquihuilette, 
 a village on the Yukon Eiver, have long known of the 
 spot, but of the value of the ivory they have been totally 
 ignorant. They are silent men, those Bedskins, except 
 when the liquor is in them ; and it required long residence 
 among them before a miner, byname of George Hughes, 
 heard of the treasure-trove and its whereabouts. Illness 
 kept this man a prisoner at Kwaquihuileti;e a year or 
 two ago. As ho recovered he began to learn many of 
 the Indian ways, and partially mastered the language 
 of the particular tribe he was with. His attention was 
 attracted to the ivory ornaments the natives wore ; and 
 he noticed that even their rude dining articles were made 
 of the same material. He induced the Indians to show 
 him the place whence came this ivory. It took several 
 days hard sleighing to reach the spot. But the work 
 
 I 2 
 
116 
 
 A plain . • , 
 •oattered 
 everywhere 
 were tusks 
 white and 
 beaming with 
 
 was worth the reward. The miner saw what no white 
 man had ever before witnessed. There, on this plain, 
 frozen to the ground, were hundieds and hundreds of 
 skeletons of gigantio beasts, and scattered everywhere 
 were tusks white and gleaming with frost. This was 
 undoubtedly a graveyard of mammoths, and the miner's 
 fancy pictured iii also as a battlefield, for in some instances 
 the tusks of one animal were found buried in the skeleton 
 of another." 
 
 Section 8« Steam Navigation from 
 .* Vancouver via Beiiring Straits to 
 . Maci^enzie Bay and tiirough to 
 Mackenzie River. 
 
 
 Navigation 
 from Behring 
 Btralts to 
 Month of the 
 Mackenzie 
 open for three 
 months every 
 year. 
 
 General Summary of the 1888 Senate Committee. 
 
 A reference to the valuable evidence obtained by 
 your Committee will show that navigation from Behring 
 Straits to the mouth of the Mackenzie Eiver, and 
 probably as far East as Wollaston Land, may be had for 
 three months in each year, the soundings given on the 
 Admiralty Chart of that portion of the Arctic Sea 
 revealing an average depth of about 20 fathoms. The 
 western branch of the estuary of the Mackenzie is said 
 to be the outlet which has the deepest waters. . , , 
 
 That with suitable steam crafts this river (the 
 Mackenzie) and lake navigation may be connected with 
 Victoria and Vancouver by way of the mouth of the 
 Mackenzie, the Arctic Ocean and Behring Straits and 
 Sea. (lu is now connected on the south by 90 miles of 
 waggon road between Athabasca Landing and Edmon- 
 ton, with navigable water in the Saskatchewan Biver.) 
 
117 
 
 Evidence of W. G. BOM PAS, D.D., Bishop of Athabasca. 
 
 Regarding the object of placing steam on the Mackenzie S&ckenzif **** 
 . . . . it becomes a question how far it is consistent ^^^^j,™ 
 with the national honor and the glory of Her Majesty and Arctic ocean, 
 the British Empire to allow this magnificent stream to 
 be navigated by only a few barges, when in the neigbour- 
 ing territory of the United States most inconsiderable 
 streams are traversed by steamers. 
 
 The Mackenzie is navigable for steamers for about 
 1,300 miles from its mouth, and the channels at its 
 mouth have been correctly laid down on tho Admiralty 
 
 Charts. 
 
 It is said that Mr. Gordon Bennett of New York has Mr- Gordon 
 
 Bennett ex- 
 
 sent his vessel to explore the Mouth of the Mackenzie, pioring the 
 
 moatb of the 
 
 and its seems a pity that British vessels should be wholly Mackenzie, 
 absent from that region. " .' ' ' 
 
 Evidence Of J. B. HURLBERT, M.D., LLD. 
 
 The American whalers made voyages every year to The Arctic 
 the Arctic Ocean off Mackenzie Eiver a quarter of a nonew^thUig. 
 century ago. Dr. Eichardson inferred there was an 
 open sea from the whales in great numbers being in the 
 sea, as they must come constantly to the surface to - 
 breathe. 
 
 Captain Collinson was 50 miles off the Mackenzie 
 Eiver. 
 
 There is plenty of open water at the mouth of the openwoterto 
 Mackenzie Biver for five months in the year. for Ave months 
 
 in the year. 
 
 Evidence of DONALD MclVOR. 
 
 The average length of open water (in the Mackenzie Mackenzie 
 Eiver) is from second week in May to first or second 
 week in October. 
 
 Excellent harbours (mouth of Mackenzie) and think From threeto 
 
 whaling or sealing vessels would have at least three fishing at the 
 
 to four months' fishing without being impeded by ice. ""'^ 
 
118 
 
 General Summary from the Committee. 
 
 ^^ogbthe Arctic explorers had indeed traversed its (the N.W. 
 
 line has itoen Territory) coast line and descended two of the rivers,. 
 
 territory Inland which, east of the Mackenzie, flow into the Arctic Sea, 
 
 ■dentifloaiiy but the object BOUght by them was one which had no 
 
 **'^"*^ relation to that of the present enquiry, and it is only 
 
 incidentally that their records are now valuable. The 
 
 knowledge of missionaries and the officers of the Hudson's 
 
 Bay Company is chiefly to the water courses and the 
 
 great lakes, while scientific exploration has not as yet 
 
 extended north of Great Slave Lake. 
 
 REPOBT 
 
 By the Hon. John Schultz, Lieut* Governor 
 of Manitoba, upon Whaling in Mackenzie 
 Bay, and the Passage from Behring 
 Straits to the Mouth of the Mackenzie 
 Biiver, 
 
 Government House, 
 
 Winnipeg, 3ri August, 1894. 
 
 Open w^rto There is open water from Point Barrow to Cape 
 
 for 8 montba Bathurst f or quite three months in the summer. . . . 
 The Eskimo at the mouth of the river (Mackenzie) killed 
 over 50 of ,the white whale last summer ; in fact the 
 catch of whales last year by the whalers seems to have 
 been phenomenal. Two of the vessels captured over 50 
 each (an average whale is worth £1,000 in oil and bone), 
 which yielded an average of 1,800 lbs. of whale bone per 
 head (quantity of oil not mentioned), which would mean 
 an immense profit to someone. I understand that only 
 the bone is taken, so that the oil is nearly all wasted. 
 
 American Seven vessels wintered at Herohel Island (in Mac- 
 
 Already visiting kenzie Bay), and more are expected this year. I am 
 
 Bw, afraid that a great deal of liquor finds its way amongst 
 
 the poor Eskimo. I do not know that English or 
 
 Canadian whalers would treat the Eskimo any better 
 
119 
 
 than the Americans do, but it does seem a shame that 
 BO many hundreds of thousands of dollars should be 
 pocketed by the Americans every year and not a cent, 
 by the Canadian or British. 
 
 The only Navisrable Channel : a «affe Harbour. 
 
 Other evidence from a High Authority. 
 
 Mr. -^ states that many mouths from the 
 
 Mackenzie Biver meet the Arctic Ocean coast line ya. 
 the 40 miles across from land to land, the delta being 
 composed of so many cross channels as to produce 
 almost numberless low lying islands. All these 
 channels save the one sounded by .... and 
 himself are shallow and tortuous and the one in which only on« aeep 
 
 ohfumel 
 
 he says they never found less than two-and-a-half through the 
 
 , . , 1 , . , , . , - , delta of the 
 
 fathoms throughout is close to the east siae of the Mackenzie- 
 delta, and its navigability has been kept a secret by secret. 
 
 . . . . and himself in pursuance of a laudable 
 design to prevent the entrance of their boats or the ships 
 in question, more especially as within the mouth of this 
 branch of the delta is to be found a secure harbour. . . a secure 
 
 nacooor within 
 
 Several attempts have been made by boats from the theaeoret 
 
 ^ •' channel, 
 
 wintering ships to ascend the river, but as aU. their efforts 
 
 were confined to the West side of the delta they met with no 
 
 success, and, indeed, since Sir Alex. Mackenzie's time, and 
 
 the boat expeditions of Sir John Franklin and Dease and 
 
 Simpson, there seems to have been a gradual filling up of 
 
 these Western channel. 
 
 From the Hon. J. 8GHULTZ, Winnipeg, 4th January, 1895. 
 Now that cordial relations have been established in Herchei island, 
 
 , , , , . . , . , _ in Mackenzie 
 
 some measure, at least, between our northern inland Bay, the 
 natives and the Eskimo, Herchei Island may be reached present 
 from the head of the estuary of the Mackenzie, where re"ch^'feom ^ 
 Peel River joins it, in safety, and with comparatively * ^^' 
 little difficulty if proper voyageurs be chosen and the 
 start is made at a proper season . . . the only 
 communication (between Mackenzie Bay and the 
 Biver), as you are aware, is by the annual trips of the 
 Hudson's Bay Company's small Mackenzie Biver steamer 
 "Wrigley." 
 
120 
 
 Whaling at the 
 month of the 
 Mackenzie. 
 
 Value of tbe 
 
 ^vballng 
 
 industi^. 
 
 Section 9. Whaling and Sealing off 
 the Mouth of Mackenzie River; 
 Splendid prospects. 
 
 Evidence of GEO. M. DAWSON, M.D., LLD., Geological Survey of 
 
 Canada. 
 
 The idea I ventured to suggest was that whaling 
 stations be established east of the region usually reached 
 by whalers (near mouth of Mackenzie Eiver), which 
 would enable whaling and sealing to be carried on in a 
 way that it could not be by vessels going and returning 
 the same season, and remaining to catch whales and 
 seals in those northern waters. 
 
 To show the extent and value of the whaling industry 
 in Behiing Sea, and in the Arctic ocean to the north- 
 entered through Behring Straits, which has always been 
 considered an open route by everybody — I may give 
 the following figures: — In 1880, there were 36 sailing 
 craft, and 4 steamers. They produced — 
 
 35,000 lbs. of whalebone, valued at 850,000 dollars. 
 15,000 „ of ivory, „ 9,000 „ 
 
 21,000 barrels of oil, „ 280,000 „ 
 
 = an average of £6,700 per vessel, per year. 
 
 The Arctic 
 Ocean qoite 
 open In 
 Summer. 
 
 Seals, whales, 
 foxes and rein- 
 deer In large 
 nnmbars. 
 
 Evidence of i. B. HURLBERT, M.D., LLD. 
 
 In 1837 Thomas Simpson, on his return from a 
 voyage from the Mackenzie through the Arctic Ocean to 
 Pt. Barrow, stated : — " The sea was clear and navigable 
 by ships during the summer months. Eeindeer, Arctio 
 foxes, and seals were numerous. Many whales and 
 seals were seen everywhere. The natives met with were 
 well provided with whalebone and sealskins. They were 
 well clothed in seal and reindeer skins." 
 
 Whales, 
 seal, &c 
 
 Evidence of DONALD MclVOR. 
 
 Whale, seal, walrus are to be found in large numbera 
 in and about Mackenzie Bay. 
 
121 
 
 Great tracts of valuable timbers along the Mackenzio 
 — chiefly pine, spruce, tamarao, poplar and birch. 
 
 General Summary of the 1888 Committee. 
 
 The following (fish) have been found Fi*!** 
 
 on the Northern .... coast within the scope of 
 the present enquiry, viz. : — Salmon. The capeling is 
 found on the coast of the Arctic Ocean .... thus 
 implying the presence of cod upon banks near by, and 
 the rock cod has been frequently taken. The Greenland, 
 or harp seal and the grey square flipper seal .... 
 are all found with the walrus and porpoise off the mouths 
 and in the estuary of the Mackenzie Biver. 
 
 The seas adjoining the great territory which your whaies^seaifl. 
 Committee has had under investigation are frequented large nnuabera 
 by whales of different species, walruses, narwhals, and coast ot 
 a variety of seals. All these animals Eire valuable for 
 their oil, but the large species of whales have heretofore 
 been most sought for. Only a few years ago these 
 animals had a much more extensive range than at the 
 present time. Owing to improvements in navigation 
 and methods of capture, they have, of late years, fallen 
 an easier prey to their pursuers and have taken shelter 
 in the less frequented seas of the northern coast of 
 Canada. 
 
 Extracts from letters from Dr REEVES, Bishop Mackenzie River 
 District, to the Hon. JOHN SCHULTZ. 
 
 Government House, • ; 
 
 Winnipeg, IQth Sept., 1896. 
 
 Mr. Hodgson is here (Selkirk) on furlough to pass Mr. Hodgson's 
 this winter with his aged parents from whom he had the mou?h of 
 been separated for many years, having spent twenty-one ^^^s*^'®^*^ 
 years in the Mackenzie Eiver District, and was latterly 
 and for some years in charge of Fort Macpherson, Peel 
 Biver. 
 
122 
 
 w!nte?evS^* In immediate reference to the subject of my letter 
 
 {b^wuieBay °^ ^^^ ^^ ^*'' ^® ^^y^ *^** '^'^ whaling ships wintered 
 last winter at Herchel Island harbour, seven ships the 
 winter before, four ships on the previous winter, and 
 four ships before that again, bearing out the accuracy of 
 information supplied to me and by me transmitted to 
 you for the past several years. 
 
 w«^ Their principal reason for availing themselves of 
 
 Mackenzie Bay this most important Arctic Harbour is, as I before stated, 
 
 huboar. because of its nearness to their principal whaling 
 
 ground, whence they can proceed to their lucrative 
 
 business a long time before these grounds can be reached 
 
 from Behring Straits (in time to catch the opening of 
 
 HMtonsieBay the season) and from the fact that the spring rush of 
 
 ion?b«f on tho Water down the Mackenzie Biver clears a large area 
 
 ^c^^are ^^^ its various mouths long after the shore ice is firm 
 '*'"• far to the East and West. 
 
 Tbe whalers They do uot, therefore, go there specially to trade 
 
 kenx^Bay '^°' with the Eskimo, but this being their only profitable 
 
 with^i^kiino occupation in Winter and very early Spring, they get 
 
 eKtalmgefonr ^ large numbers of common and valuable fox skins and 
 
 *"* supply the Eskimo with goods in trade, even up to the 
 
 vicinity and at the Peel Biver Fort (MacPherson), take 
 
 beaver and other furs from the legitimate traders of that 
 
 region. 
 
 Valuable ivory Deposits. 
 
 From the Hon. J. 8CHULTZ, Winnepeg, 4th January, 1895. 
 
 BMnitBtrom Since then (date of last letter) at least one 
 
 Ma^nzie of the ships, which, in the winter of 1893-94 wintered 
 
 Si&^tira!"'"' o,t Herchel Island had reached San Francisco and 
 
 although I have no more definite account of the 
 
 value of the cargo sold by her owners at that 
 
 point than the west coast newspapers give, it would 
 
 seem that the trade in which she was engaged has been 
 
 enormously lucrative, and should the vague Eskimo 
 
 reports of prehistoric ice and mud-embedded deposits 
 
 of ivory similar to such on the Siberian coast, and that, 
 
 I believe, of Alaska also, have any foundation other than 
 
 OxMt stoiM of mere rumour, these profits might be, in the future, very 
 
123 
 
 mnoh enhanced indeed, and add to the regret that 
 foreign vessels should have so oomplete a monopoly 
 over a Canadian trade apparently so profitable, which is 
 carried on indeed in violation of several statutory enact- 
 ments and depaxtmental regulations. {See reports of 
 ivory confirmed in accompanying evidence.) 
 
 Whaling, do.. Statistics (Hon. J. 8CHULTZ). 
 1887 — Total catch by San Francisco whalers Aioh retnns 
 amounted to 2,000,000 dollars. e^^tdTtioiis. 
 
 1888 — San Francisco fleet operating in the Behrmg 
 Sea and Arctic Ocean : — 25 vessels, including tenders, 
 landed products to the value of 627,346 dollars ; average 
 value of each vessel, 25,094 dollars. Eight of these 
 were steamers — of a tonnage ranging from 250 to 860 
 tons for each vessel — average value landed from these 
 steamers was 45,820 dollars (£9,441). Nearly the whole 
 of the whaling at the mouth of the Mackenzie is done by 
 the steamers. Six of these vessels also landed 90 fox, 
 48 lynx, 2 bear, and 10 other skins, 6,000 lbs. walrus 
 hides, and 1,310 lbs. walrus ivory. 
 
 1889 — Twenty-three vessels, including tender, landed 
 products to the value of 358,935 dollars ; average value 
 
 to each vessel, 15,606 dollars there 
 
 were seven steamers, average value of products landed, 
 31,178 dollars. . 
 
 Each whale is worth 6,000 dollars, when both oil Enomoas 
 
 . . valae of eaob 
 
 and bone are utihzed. whale. 
 
 . . . Our North coast whale fisheries are ex- Theoniy 
 tremely valuable in the eyes of the Americans, for no Arctic are the 
 
 , •' J, *' AmericanB. 
 
 others operate there . . . 
 
 The fishing season of the Arctic is usually from S**of°w2aiS« 
 about the first of May to the first of October .... season. 
 
 The vessels cruise South of Behring Strait until the 
 ice breaks up sufficiently for them 'to force their way 
 through the Strait into the Arctic Ocean; This is 
 generally about the first to the middle of June. The 
 whalers enter the Arctic about the first of the month. 
 
124 
 
 JSSate ta°' When the Whales enter the Arctic they follow up 
 
 MaokeuBie the American shore into the North East as fast as the 
 Bayi 
 
 ice breaks up. They go, nobody knows where, but it 
 is surmised into the great basin at the mouth of the 
 Mackenzie Biver. 
 
 Report of inspector 0. GONSTANTINE, Oornmandant of Yukon 
 District, 20th November, 1896. 
 
 attcntkm"** "^^^ territory about the mouth of the Mackenzie 
 
 direpted to the River and Herschel Island is one that the attention of 
 
 territory at 
 
 the mouth of the Government is called to. Twelve whalers, steam 
 
 the MaokeoBie ,.,..,,,. 
 
 River. and saihug, wmtered there la j wmter 
 
 1 1, 
 Men deserting Many men desert from the whalers each season 
 
 Mackenzie Bay *^ 
 
 whalers for the and having heard of the rich placer mines of the Yukon, 
 
 diggings. make their way there These men come across 
 
 country (from Mackenzie Bay) to Bampart House, on 
 Short jonmey the Porcupine Biver, a distance of ten days' travel over 
 
 and easy travel- ^ .i •■•... i 
 
 ling from a rolling country, and, for this temtory, fairly easy 
 
 Mackenzie Bay n-i t ^ t\ • -n. -n 
 
 to the Yukon travelling, thence down the Porcupine River to Fort 
 Yukon, and from there up the river (the Yukon), 
 
 One of these men by some means got word to the 
 vessels, giving an account of the country here (Klondike), 
 which induced a number more to leave, and many 
 wished to, but were unable for various reasons. In 
 some instances, where men had succeeded in getting 
 away for some distance, they were overtaken by the 
 ship's officers, and stripped of all they had, hoping they 
 would then return. 
 
 &?ta Herschel Island is in the Yukon (Police Administra- 
 
 MackenzieBay tion) district Pearl Cove is the harbour on the 
 
 south side ..... about 80 miles from west mouth of 
 the Mackenzie. The easterly mouth of the river is the 
 main one, about 130 miles from the island. 
 
126 
 
 The loe at the island breaks up about the end of £faSd S^**** 
 May , . . . . and begins to form about 1st of September MaokenaieBay 
 each year. 
 
 Whaling; profits and particulars* 
 
 "The Morning Mercury," New Bedford, MaN.| 
 14th October, 1897. 
 
 It was in 1848 that the first whaleship passed ^Jj|^|* 
 
 through Behring Straits, and since. that time the Arctic ^^®*™®^ 
 
 Ocean has been the principal field for the hunters of oil ^^^1°^ 
 and bone. 
 
 The first steam vessel to engage in the whaling ^e®^"haier- 
 business was the "Mary and Helen," built by Captain a great catcu.' 
 Wm. Lewes in 1880. During her first voyage this 
 vessel captured a cargo of oil and bone valued at 100,000 
 dollars. She was sold to the United States Government 
 and re-named the " Bogers," and sent in search of the 
 ill-fated exploring steamer " Jeanette." 
 
 Presumably the most remarkable whaling voyage ^**^™^5. 
 ever made in the old days, so far as profit is concerned, wtasUnRToyace 
 was that of the "Envoy," which sailed from New old days. 
 Bedford in 1848. She returned to Providence in 1847 from 
 a whaUng voyage and was there condemned and sold to 
 Wm. O. Brownell of New Bedford to be broken up. 
 Mr. Brownell, however, concluded to fit her for another 
 voyage, and did bo, sending her to sea under the 
 command of Gaptam W. T. Walker. Such was the 
 condition of the vessel that the underwriters declined to 
 insure her. The net profit of the voyage was 188,450 
 dollars. The "Envoy" was fitted at an expense o! 
 about 8,000 dollars. 
 
126 
 
 Whaling; in tlie Arctic Ocean via Mackenzie River* 
 
 i t » ' 
 
 Evidence of the Hon. Wm. CHRISTIE, late Inspecting Chief Factor of 
 the Hudson Bay Co., to 1888 Committee. 
 
 fc(Mo?°ioefor'^ ^® *® whether whaling or sealing craft if built at 
 
 several months the headwaters of the Mackenzie Eiver could descend 
 to coast early enough, and ascend the river late enough 
 to permit of some months' fishing near the mouth of the 
 river, I would say, yes I do not think there would be 
 any difficulty in building craft at the head of the 
 Mackenzie to descend to the mouth of the river, 
 nain there for some time, and return the same 
 year, because, etc. . . . 
 
 Section XO« Navigability, &c., of the 
 Country's Seas, Rivers, and 
 Lakes. - - -^. 
 
 General Summary from the 1888 Committee. 
 Great extent In referring again to the navigation of this region, 
 
 of iinbrokon <j u *_» \j 
 
 navigation. all the evidence has agreed to the great extent of un- 
 broken navigation (from the mouth of the Mackenzie 
 Eiver). 
 
 The Peel Rivet The steamer " Wrigley," of the Hudson's Bay 
 
 stream. Company, distributes stores (to the Company's various 
 
 fur collecting posts) down to the mouth of the Mac- 
 kenzie, just above the estuary, where the river is said to 
 be six miles wide, and up the Peel Kiver, which joins 
 the Mackenzie near that point to Fort Macpherson, on. 
 that gold-bearing stream. 
 
127 
 
 Evidence of Hon. WILLIAM CHRISTIE, ex-member of the N.W 
 Council, late Inspecting Chief Factor of the Hudson Bay Co. 
 
 " The Hudson Bay Co. have now a steamer on the Na^we**' 
 Mackenzie River, which last year (1887) ran from Fort Watew. 
 Simpson to the sea, and down the Feel Biver." The 
 distances on the Mackenzie Biver and Lakes to the 
 mouth — *: 
 
 100 miles (say) down Slave Biver from Fort Smith 
 where there are impassable rapids, to Gt. Slave 
 Lake. 
 
 250 miles across Gt. Slave Lake to Head of 
 Mackenzie, that is, Big Island or Fort 
 Providence. 
 
 203 miles from Head of Mackenzie, i.e., Fort Provi- 
 dence, to Fort Simpson. 
 
 271 „ „ Fort Simpson to Fort Norman. 
 
 434 „ „ Fort Norman to Port Separation. , . 
 
 129 „ „ Port Separation to the sea. 
 
 1,387 miles, total distance navigable for light draught 
 steamers from Forfc Smith on Slave Biver 
 to Mouth of Mackenzie. • 
 
 Evidence of Right Rev. ISIDORE CLUT, Bishop of Arendale. 
 
 The Mackenzie is the finest river in the world for Navigable 
 its length, its depth, and its size in summer. Steamers Mackenzie ° 
 leaving Fort Smith cross the Great Slave Lake, and can ^* ' 
 descend as far as the Arctic Ocean. 
 
 They can also ascend the Peel Biver. 
 
 ' Evidence of GEO. W. DAWSON, LL.D. 
 
 It is a little difficult to separate the basin of the The Mackeuzie 
 Mackenzie from the waters of the Yukon when you get rivers inte°. 
 west of the mountains, because these rivers interlock itreams.^ 
 with eacli other in all directions. ... In passing 
 through the country last summer I formed the opinion The Ynkon- 
 that a large portion of that country would be eventually coontry wiii be 
 
 ... _ ° * " . * eventually 
 
 Bettled. settled. 
 
128 
 
 Evidenoe of WILLIAM J. MoLEAN, Chief Trader of the Hudson Bay Co. 
 
 narigawe by I Cannot speak of depth of water at the mouth of 
 
 BteametB. Mackenzie Eiver, but believe that sea-going steamers 
 would ascend its whole length. 
 
 "^' ^' Evidenoe of DONALD MclVOR. 
 
 Wooded J -nks The Mackenzie is extensively wooded on the banks, 
 
 and excelleiit 
 
 bwboors. has excellent harbours, and would be navigable for five 
 months the in year by steamers of ordinary size. 
 
 « Financial Times," July 30th, 1 897. 
 
 The Pownpine « By the treaty of Washington of 1871, the Yukon, 
 
 gable. the Porcupine (flowing into it from the east) and the 
 
 Stikine were internationalised for navigation purposes 
 
 at the suggestion of Sir Donald Smith, the present 
 
 Canadian High Commissioner." 
 
 Distance between Mackenzie and Yukon Rivers. 
 
 R. G. McCONNELL, 1888-89. 
 Acart-trau The navigable waters of the Mackenzie are sepa- 
 
 bfiiiWfidl t)ll6 
 
 Yukon and the rated from those on the Yukon in lat. 67^ 20 N. by a 
 distance of about 60 miles only. A cart trail was staked 
 out some years ago by the Hudson's Bay Company across 
 the interval separating these rivers, with the intention 
 of supplying the Mackenzie Eiver district with goods by 
 way of the Yukon River ; but the project fell through, 
 and the road was never built. 
 
 The Mackenzie River and Tributaries. 
 
 WM. OGILVIE, I887t88. 
 
 The Mackenzie Capt. Bell, of the Steamer " Wrigley," stated that 
 
 depth. the shallowest water found by him in any part of the 
 
 Mackenzie was 11 feet. . . 
 
 Important un- From all the evidence I (Ogilvie) could gather 
 
 explored Tribu- «, - ,-1^, 
 
 toriesof the vossels drawmg from 8 to 10 feet of water would find no 
 uiTer. difficulty in navigation as far ars Great Slave Lake. A 
 
129 
 
 i lort distance above the Bamparts (near Fort Good 
 Hope) a river flows into the Mackenzie from the west. 
 It appeared to be 200 yards wide at its mouth. All I 
 could learn about it at the Fort was that it came from 
 far up in the mountains. 
 
 6^ miles above Sans Sault Bapids and 328 miles 
 from Fort Macpherson, on the Mackenzie, Garcagou 
 Biver comes in from the west. It is a large river, being 
 not less than 400 yards wide at its mouth. 
 
 An Indian with me (Ogilvie) stated that this stream ^ Si|ht?rove 
 was very large and very long, the Indians having J^^^JJ®'" 
 ascended it for great distances through the mountains. 
 
 It appeared to run parallel to the Mackenzie for some 
 distance, then, turning sharply to the west, to enter the 
 mountains. This river seems to be the largest tributary 
 of the Mackenzie below the Liard. 
 
 Q. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 The Mackenzie drains an area of 677,400 square 
 
 miles. 
 
 See Section 11 for distances. 
 
 The Porcupine, Rat and Bell Rivers. 
 
 Extracts from the Report of Mr. WILLIAM OGILVIE, 1887-88. 
 
 Writing of the excellence of his two Peterborough 
 Canoes, Mr. Ogilvie writes : — 
 
 In the Spring of 1888, they (the Canoes) descended Joamey from 
 
 the latter river (the Porcupine) . ... to the mouth to the month of 
 
 of Bell's Biver, and up it to McDougall's Pass. They River.*" ^ 
 were then carried over the Pass to Poplar Biver, and 
 were used in going down the latter to the Peel Biver, 
 and thence up Mackenzie Biver, 1,400 miles. 
 
 R. Q. McCONNELL, 1887. 
 
 The Bat Biver for some miles from the Peel Biver Bat Rirer. 
 winds through a flat alluvial plain then enters a lake 
 
 K 
 
ISO 
 
 region as the current is uniform aiicl easy, 
 the mountains are reached. 
 
 After this 
 
 The Porcupine Biver rises only 80 miles from the 
 Yukon, describes a great curve and joins the Yukon 150 
 
 The Heafl- 
 \raterB of the 
 Poronpine 
 
 miles from the miles farther down. At its most easterly point it 
 approaches within 30 miles of the Mackenzie (and 
 naturally much nearer the Peel Biver). Its length 10 
 500 miles. 
 
 The B«ll Biver. 
 
 From the 
 Bioatb of the 
 Mackenzie 
 Biver to the 
 Yukon. 
 
 The Bell Biver is through alluvial and quartzita 
 country. Its upper part has not been explored. At the 
 Fort (La Pierre's House) it is a small, sluggish stream, 
 of 40 to 50 yards wide ; banks low, and alluvial with 
 wooded banks. Its length from La Pierre's House to 
 the Porcupine is about 30 miles, with no rapids and 
 navigable throughout. 
 
 The Indians take seven days to do the heavy portage- 
 boats, &c., from Fort Macpherson to La Pierre's House- 
 exactly 50 miles. (This is the cross-country, portage. 
 By way of the McDonald Pass the journey can be done 
 almost the whole way by the waters of the Eat and Bell 
 Bivers and a lake in the Pass). 
 
 Short rente 
 acroBB from 
 the month of 
 {he Uftckenzie 
 to the Forca- 
 pine. 
 
 Evidence of the Hon. WM. CHRISTIE, late Inspecting Chief Factor 
 of the Hudson Bay Co. 
 
 For the trade on the Yukon we (the Hudson Bay 
 Co.) used to take the goods down the Mackenzie and 
 across the mountains to the Porcupine, thence down the 
 Yukon. It is only a short distance across from the 
 waters of the Mackenzie Biver. Peel's Eiver (Fort 
 Macpherson) is the lowest post on the Mackenzie (near 
 the mouth). ". 
 
 See Section 11 for distances. - 
 
 Arctic Beglon 
 rivers navi- 
 gable from 3 to 
 4 month.i each 
 year. 
 
 R. Q. MoCON NELL, 1888-89. , 
 
 The Bat and Porcupine (which includes the Bell) 
 Bivers could easily be navigated for three or four months 
 of the year by small steamers from La Pierre House 
 down to the junction of the Porcupine and Yukon Bivers. 
 
181 
 
 . : R. Q. McCONNELL, 1888-89. 
 
 This river — the Porcupine — arises within 30 miles of rtBesonTao*"* 
 the Pelly-Yukon River, Lat. 65° 30' N., and after f^^o" *»»• 
 describing a huge curve of about 500 miles joins the 
 Yukon about 150 miles further down from the point 
 nearest its head waters. 
 
 From the Bell Biver to the Yukon short ripples are 
 met with . . . but no rapids or other obstructions 
 which would prevent the navigation of the stream by 
 small steamers. 
 
 The distance, by river, from La Pierre's House to 
 Fort Yukon, where the Porcupine joins the Yukon, is 
 290 miles. 
 
 See Section 11 for distances, . 
 
 Bell and Rat Rivers, and McDougal'5 Pass. 
 
 WM. OQILVIE, 1887-88. 
 
 About five miles above La Pierre's House, in an Aconntry 
 air line, but much more than that by the nver, the Rat Bo^e. 
 River joins from the East (this river flows into the Peel) 
 , . . . the country around abounds with game. 
 
 There are two routes — one for winter, and the An old route 
 other for summer travel— between La Pierre's House the mouth of 
 on the Bell River, and Fort Macpherson on the to the Yoko^i. 
 Peel. The distance between is said to be nearly 
 80 miles, and is done in three days. All the trading 
 outfit for La Pierre's and Rampart House (on the Lower 
 Porcupine) has to be brought this way in the winter 
 months on dog sleighs, and the furs and meat received 
 for it has to be taken to Fort Macpherson in the same 
 way. From there the furs are sent out by the Mackenzie 
 River. Shallow draught steamers drawing not more 
 than 2 feet 8 inches can navigate any place in the Bell 
 and Porcupine Rivers. 
 
 K 2 
 
132. 
 
 McDongall'B 
 Fmb. 
 
 Asbestos. 
 
 A large seam 
 of good ooal. 
 
 Game In 
 abnndanoe 
 
 A good road- 
 way possible. 
 
 By the Stimmer Boute vi& MoDougall's Pass the 
 Bell Biver is navigable 21 miles (Ogilyie did this journey 
 by water as early as 8th Jure). 
 
 A shallow creek about 8 miles in length takes one ta 
 the Pass, which is four miles across. Lakes on the top, 
 when open, reduce this portage distance to less than 
 half a mile. A creek, 3^ miles long, on the other side 
 takes one to Trout Biver — ^thence to the Peel. 
 
 The Pass is wide and level, the valley being nearly 
 a mile wide at the bottom and very flat. It is almost 
 treeless. 
 
 The distance from Bell Biver to Trout Biver by this 
 route is about 14^ miles. 
 
 The summit of the Pass is only 1,200 feet above sea 
 level and not more than 200 feet above the level of Bell 
 Biver. 
 
 There are several veins of asbestos at the foot of the 
 slope on the south side of the Trout Biver about four 
 miles from the Pass. 
 
 lOi miles down the river I saw (quoting Ogilvie), 
 what seemed to be a 3-feet seam of coal in the face of 
 the chff on the river edge. It extended a quarter of a 
 mile along the whole length of the cliff. Mr. McDougall 
 told me that he had found the same seam, and had taken 
 some of the coal to Fort Simpson, where it was tried 
 and found to be a fair quahty of coal. 
 
 Mountain goats, big horn sheep, cariboo, and moose, 
 abound in the hills around the Pass. 
 
 From the Pass to slack water in the level ground 
 at the foot of the hills, is a distance of 24 miles by the 
 Trout Biver. A roadway with a gradient of 55 feet to 
 the mile might be made, reducing this distance to 20 
 miles. Such a road was projected by Mr. McDougall. 
 
 Trout Biver is called — locally — ^Poplar Biver from 
 the foot of the hills to Peel Biver. 
 
133 
 
 Fort MoPherson is on the right bank of Peel River, ffl^Mii?*' 
 some 14 miles above the point where it divides and joins ^tti^j^Sh"*** 
 the Mackenzie delta. The river at the fort is about half kemie. 
 a mile wide. The growth of timber (in the district), is, 
 for the latitude, very large and thick, many spruce from 
 12 to 16 inches diameter occurring along the Peel Biver, 
 and along the Mackenzie for some miles up. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances). 
 
 The Peel River. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances.) 
 
 Extracts from the Report by R. G. McCONNELL, B.A., 1887. 
 
 The Peel River winds through a low alluvial country 
 for thirty miles from Fort MacPherson then enters the 
 mountains and is 300 miles long. 
 
 R. G. McCONNELL, I888-89. 
 
 Of the other tributaries of the Mackenzie, Peel River a very 
 is the only one that can be considered navigable. This navigable 
 is ascended annually by the steamer Wrigley as far as the MM^eiuie. 
 Fort Macpherson a distance of about 30 miles, and if 
 necessary could be followed much farther, but the exact 
 distance is not known. < 
 
 W. A. k. ISBITER'S Journey down the Peel River, 18«. 
 
 Isbiter, an employ^ of the Hudson's Bay Company The only 
 made a boat journey down the Peel in the year 1844, the Peei Biver 
 from Fort Macpherson. Some distance up the river he 
 abandoned his boats owing to the difi&culty experienced . 
 in making way against the swift stream with his small 
 party and large cumbersome boats. He took to canoes 
 which further up he also abandoned owing to the in- 
 creasing swiftness of the current. He mentions no 
 serious impediments to steamer navigation of this river 
 and gives its approximate length at 300 miles. 
 
134 
 
 , v> . ,i ,. The Yukon. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances.) 
 
 ■f 
 
 ;A-' ' 
 
 Q. M. DAWSON, 1887. ;^rv.'] 
 
 Area Oi-ftined ' The Yukon drains an area of 330,917 square miles, 
 * °°' of which 15,768 miles are in Canadian and 180,144 square 
 miles in United States territory. 
 
 V .<, Q. M. DAWGON, 1887. , ^X 
 
 N»T^abiut7 o{ The Yukon is navigable for small steamers from its 
 
 mouth to Miles Canon, thence, after an interruption of 
 about three miles, to the head of Bennett Lake and to an 
 additional distance by the waters extending south eastward 
 from Tagish Lake. 
 
 A trip up the Yukon. 
 
 "Pall Mail Qazette," 18th August, 1897. 
 A pleasant trip The trip to the gold-fields by the Yukon Eiver route 
 
 In the sommei r o j 
 
 Mme. is pleasant for tourists during the summer months. They 
 
 leave Seattle (or some other Pacific Coast Port), on a well 
 appointed ocean steamer, which proceeds up Puget 
 -Sound, passes Port Townsend and Victoria, and gets out 
 through the Straits of San Juan del Fuca, to the Pacific. 
 From then on the voyage is an interrupted run of 2,000 
 miles to Dutch Harbour, the first stop. Dutch Harbour 
 is a coaling station and a supply point for naval vessels 
 and the Behring Sea fleets of sealers and whalers. After 
 a short stop there the vessel proceeds on its way north 
 through Behring Sea, past the Seal Island of St. George 
 and St. Paul, and up through Norton Sound to Fort Get 
 There, on St. Michael's Island, where is located the 
 transfer and supply station for the Yukon Eiver. Here 
 the traveller finds a good many native Esquimos. Here 
 passengers and freight are transferred to large and 
 commodious river steamers, which proceed down the 
 coast sixty miles to the north mouth of the Yukon, a 
 river larger than the Mississippi, that can be navigated 
 
135 
 
 with large steamers 2,300 miles without a break, and NavigaWeby 
 which abounds in fish, the salmon being noted far and a 'Jl'J' «""«" 
 
 .-, ,./. n -., . without a 
 
 Wide for their fine flavour and large size. break. 
 
 As one proceeds up the river one sees innumerable 
 Indian villages and small settlements inhabited by 
 traders, missionaries, and Indians, all of interest to the 
 traveller. The first two or three hundred miles is through 
 a low, flat country, after which the mountainous country 
 is reached, and the constant change of magnificent scenery constant 
 is beyond description. At old Fort Yukon, which is ma^ifloent 
 inside of the Arctic circle, during the months of June and ■**°*'y* 
 July the sun is above the horizon without a break, and 
 all along the river during these months one can read a 
 paper at any time during the day or night without a lamp. 
 It is continuous daylight during this time. 
 
 After leaving here the next point of interest is ciroieCity 
 Circle City, the metropolis of the Yukon country. Here cudahy. 
 is a large frontier town, the houses all built of logs, and 
 while they have no pretensions to beauty they are warm 
 and comfortable. Circle city has a population of nearly 
 2,000 people, and some of the best placer mines in the 
 country are located near this place. From here the 
 traveller proceeds up the river 240 miles farther, and 
 finds Fort Cudahy at the mouth of Forty-Mile Creek. 
 This is a thriving town, similar to Circle City, but not so 
 large. It is the supply point for the mines in the forty- 
 mile district. Prosperous for the last four years, it has 
 turned out a great quantity of gold, this being the first 
 important district where coarse gold was discovered. A 
 little farther on is Dawson City and 66 miles over the °*^° ^^g^ 
 hills are the Klondike placer mines. , , ^. Snes.*' 
 
 The Klondike River. 
 
 {See Notes No. 1 for particulars of this Biver.) 
 The Globe of July 26th states that the Klondike Biver is 800 miles Length ol tbe 
 
 in length.' If so — even 200 miles — its head waters must extend 
 to the navigable waters of the Peel Biver, which joins the 
 Mackenzie at its mouth. Thus, these rich quartz reefs can 
 be reached by river steamers from Mackenzie Bay. Mr. de Windt 
 gives 160 miles as the length of the KUmdyhe.—'E. J.D. 
 
 Klondike Biver 
 
136 
 
 OgUvle'B 
 loorney from 
 the Ynkon to 
 the month of 
 the UaokeuEle 
 M3TOB8 oonntry 
 and down the 
 Foronpine. 
 
 The Peel Biver 
 near the bead- 
 waters of the 
 Foiouplna 
 
 The (^nintrjr 
 imdolating, 
 wooded and 
 aotxooky. 
 
 The Tatonduc, Porcupine and Peel River«. 
 
 WM. OQILVIE, 1887-88. 
 
 About 14 miles above the mouth (junction of 
 Tatonduc and Yukon Bivers) the forks are reached. 
 One branch comes from the S.E. and the other (down 
 which Ogilvie travelled) from the S.E. The Indians 
 state that the latter rises in a plateau three days, Indian 
 travelling, away (about 40 miles), and in the same 
 plateau a stream rises which flows to the north, 
 probably into one of the head streams of the Peel Biver. 
 The Boundary Line between Alaska and the N. W. 
 Territories crosses the Tatonduc a short distance below 
 the Forks . . . « , ,, ^. 
 
 Leaving the river (about 40 miles from its mouth) 
 and continuing about a mile up the valley of a small 
 stream coming from the east, we reached the top of ^ 
 low ridge which forms the watershed between the waters 
 of the Tatonduc and those of the stream which the 
 Indians assured me flows into the Peel. 
 
 I had much difficulty in understanding this, as I 
 could hardly believe that the watershed was so near the 
 Yukon, and it was not until they had drawn many maps 
 of the district and after much argument that I gave 
 credit to their statements. I then proposed to go down 
 this stream to the Peel and to reach the Mackenzie 
 in that way, but they professed to be horrified and 
 frightened . . . caused me to decide not to try it. 
 
 It seemed improbable that this river ran as the 
 Indians said, but I afterwards procured other evidence 
 which proves that it does. The river has been named 
 " Ogilvie Biver " by Mr. J. Johnson, Geographer to the 
 Department of the Interior. From evidence which I 
 obtained from Mr. McDougal of the Hudson's Bay Co. 
 and others, I ascertained that this "Ogilvie Biver" 
 joined the Peel about 60 miles above Fort Macpherson 
 but that it was impassable in many places. 
 
 There are mountains close to the headwaters of the 
 Tatonduc Biver, but beyond the country is undulating, 
 not rooky, and more or less wooded. 
 
137 
 
 From the Tatonduo to the Porcupine by the track I 
 followed is 16} miles. Of this distance 13 ruiles is 
 drained by the river flowing into the Peel. "Oistributed 
 over this 13 miles are 10 small creeks whioa unite 8 or 
 10 miles down the valley. I did not go down to the 
 junction but could, from some places, see the stream 
 iormed by the union, and although pj near its head it 
 appeared to be as large as the Tatouduo is about midway 
 of its course. '''■ 
 
 ' * This plateau, except for the ravines in which the Fiat country 
 
 * -^ and mnoii 
 
 creeks run, is tolerably flat. It slopes to the east down snus. 
 the river, and is, as far as can be seen, undulating and 
 wooded. Lat. 65° 25'. Where the woods are open 
 there is much fine short grass. 
 
 Where I met the Porcupine it is a large creek 
 
 flowing northward The valley can be seen 
 
 for about six miles up when it turns to the west and 
 
 goes out of sight. The stream flows in a bed of fine The Um>«r 
 
 gravel and the volume of water was large for the time fine Toimne of 
 
 of year (March). About half-a-mile below this, it enters lakes. 
 
 a lake three or four miles long and upwards of a mile 
 
 wide. Two other lakes follow this one at short intervals. 
 
 These three lakes I called the Upper, Middle and Lower 
 
 Na-hone Lakes. Below these the river (the Porcupine) 
 
 is twice the size that it is above. It flows in a valley 
 
 about a mile wide, well-timbered on the bottom, much 
 
 of the timber being of fair size, on some of the flats are 
 
 found many trees over a foot in diameter, long, clean- 
 
 trunked, a^d well suited for making lumber. 
 
 - "T" ,•■■;'■•■■■" '■ 
 < 
 
 ^ About five miles below the lower lake a large ^o^uie^wert 
 branch comes in from the west. Perhaps this should fbe'p^'rcliDiiie 
 be called the river as it is much larger than the branch 
 I came down, both in width and volume of water. It 
 comes from the S.W., and has quite a large valley which 
 can be seen from the junction of the two streams for a 
 distance of eight or ten miles. 
 
138 
 
 Timber and 
 ■hrubbei7 
 large and 
 •ti'ong in the 
 npper waters 
 country of the 
 Poranpine. 
 
 Deer, beaver, 
 Otter, rabbits 
 and game in 
 •bondance. 
 
 The Indians had told me of a large oreek down 
 Poroupine Biver heading near another oreek which flows 
 into the Lewes (Yukon). They used to go up the latter 
 cross over to the Porcupine and go down it to fish. 
 From their description and the distance they said it was 
 below the lakes, I first thought this oreek to be the one 
 referred to, but afterwards I saw another branch of the 
 Porcupine further down which is probably the one they 
 spoke of. , - ■ ' ■:■•■■ '■ 
 
 A short distance down the Porcupine, six miles below 
 the Lower Lake the Lat. is GS" 43 ' and Long. IBS^ 48' 
 West of Greenwich. The mean height of the barometer 
 here during May (I camped here until the ice broke) was 
 27.60 inches, indicating an elevation of about 2,CC0 feet 
 above sea level. Notwithstanding the high elevation 
 and latitude, the timber and shrubbery in the bottom of 
 the valley grew as large and strong as on the Upper 
 Lewes River in 6 degrees lower latitude. ^.i 
 
 Surrounding my oamp was a timber-covered flat 
 about 2 square miles in area, on which grew many nice 
 trees, upwards of a foot in diameter. Nearly all of 
 these were spruce, but there were also some clumps of 
 Cottonwood, the trees on which nearly averaged as large 
 as is the same species along the Athabasca and Peace 
 Bivers. Willows are abundant along the streams, and 
 grow as large as they generally do in other parts of the 
 territory — 4 to 5 inches thick. A few white birch were 
 seen. 
 
 Owing to the isolation of this district, animal life is 
 abundant. Beaver, otter, marten, rabbits, and number^ 
 less cariboo .... Tracks of fox and lynx were 
 also seen. Ptarmigan were numerous, and many pretty 
 birds. Moose are very numerous. ;. -j x „^ i.. 
 
 The ice cleared sufficiently for boat navigation on 
 May 28th, the date I started down the Porcupine. 
 
 About 22 miles below the Lower Lake, and 17 miles 
 from the other large branch from the S.W. we came to 
 
139 
 
 another flowing in from the west. This is, I believe, ^to'^llsros?*" 
 the creek by which the Indiana used to come in ySSJ^JftJ,"^?" 
 from the Lewes. Here are many old racks for upp«r Porou. 
 drying fish, from which I call this creek the " Fishing 
 Branch " of the Porcupine .... There are no 
 dangerous rapids on this (the Porcupine) river, but it is. 
 all swift, running over a bed of lime gravel .... 
 steamers drawing 2^ feet could navigate this stream 
 even in summer. Sights were taken from point to 
 point, and distances estimated. From the Lower Lake 
 to Bell Biver, following all the windings of the river, is 
 a distance of about 216 miles. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances). 
 
 '"• The Stewart River. 
 
 WM. OQILVIE, 1887. 
 Alexander McDonald, who has been mentioned a. McDonald 
 before, reported to me that the gold on the upper river the headwaters 
 (of the Stewart) was somewhat coarser than that on the uiver. 
 
 lower (near the mouth) He seemed satisfied 
 
 with the result of his season's prospecting and intended 
 spending the next season there. 
 
 Many of the miners who had spent 1886 on the sodootber 
 Stewart Biver and 1887 on the Forty Mile Biver seemed 
 to think the former the better all round mining field, as 
 there were no such failures there as on the Forty Mile, and 
 they declared their intention to make their way back to 
 the Stewart. 
 
 Between Klondike Biver and Stewart Biver, a large Evidence of 
 creek called Indian Greek, flows into the Yukon and rich towards the 
 prospects have been found on it, and no doubt it is in oPSSe steward 
 the gold-bearing country between the Klondike and company 
 Stewart Bivers, which is considered by all the old miners Mproaoh trom 
 the best and most extensive gold country ever found. * *' '*'* 
 Scores of them would prospect it but for the fact that 
 they cannot get provisions up there, and it is too far to 
 boat them iip from here (Gudahy) in small boats. The 
 new find will necessitate an upward step on the Yukon 
 and help the Stewart Biver Begion. 
 
140 
 
 Gooa gold .-„^ Further South (from the Klondike) yet lies the heads 
 head waters of of Several branches of the Stewart Biver on which some 
 river tiibuta- prospecting has been done this summer (1896) and good 
 
 indications found, but the want of provisions prevented 
 
 development. 
 
 richer*thMithe " ^^ '^^ ^^^^ *^** *^® Stewart Eiver, which drains an 
 Klondike immense Eirea into the Yukon, has been discovered to be 
 
 much richer than Klondike." 
 
 From the London "Standard's" Speoial Correspondent, 
 26th August, 1897. 
 
 New York. 
 
 The Stewart A telegram from Ottawa explains why Canada has 
 
 Bn^ass tho^^ neglected the Edmonton route to Klondyke mentioned in 
 the letter published in The Standard of the 17th instant, 
 from a Correspondent who subscribes himself ♦' Sixteen 
 years in Canada." Canada is quietly sending out explorers 
 thither, being informed that the placers on the Stewart 
 Eiver surpass those of Klondyke. But it desires to post- 
 pone any immigration at present;, until the administration 
 has been perfected, and the journey rendered safe. 
 
 Mr. DE WINDT, in the "Daily Teiegraph," 12th August, 1897. 
 
 The Stewart " The Stewart Eiver, some eighty miles away, is also 
 
 ^Ifd-beMU^ extremely rich in auriferous quartz, and is likely before 
 quartz. jQjjg ^Q oQme into prominence as a gold-bearing region. ' ' ' 
 
 W. OGILVIE, 1888. 
 
 The naviga- "While at the mouth (of the Stewart Eiver) I was 
 
 stowa^t Elver, fortunate enough to meet a miner who had spent tho 
 
 Sas^ontThekd whole of the summer of 1887 on the river and its 
 
 oUto^PMi^"^® branches, prospecting and exploring^ He is a nati»e of 
 
 Biver. j^g^ Brunswick, Alexander McDonald by name, and 
 
 has spent some years mining in other places, but was 
 
 very reticent about what he had made or found. 
 
 McDonald, speaking of his journey to the head waters 
 
 of the Beaver Eiver, states that he went to the head of 
 
 this branch of the Stewart Eiver, and found terraced 
 
141 
 
 gravel hills to the west and north : he crossed them to 
 the north, and found a river flowing northward. On this 
 he emharked on a raft, and floated down it for a day or . 
 two, thinking it would turn to the west and join the 
 Stewart, but finding it still continuing north, and ao« 
 quiring too much volume to be any of the branches he had 
 seen while passing up the Stewart, he returned to the point 
 of departure. . , . . 
 
 It is probable that the river flowing northwards on The Peel River 
 which he made a journey and returned, was a branch of Stewart nearly 
 the Peel Biver. . . . Judging from all I could learn navigable, 
 it is probable that a light draught steamboat could navi- 
 gate nearly all the Stewart Biver and its Tributaries. 
 
 R. Q. MoCONNELL, 1888-89. 
 
 Stewart Eiver, the principal tributary of the Yukon, 
 «... is reported to be navigable for a distance of 
 nearly 200 miles above its mouth, but has not yet been 
 ascended by the steamers plying on the Yukon^ 
 
 H 
 
 MacMiilan River. 
 
 :v: , ., . ,, Q. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 ; The MacMiilan and Stewart Eivers are navigable for The Btewart 
 
 ° and MacMiilan 
 
 steamers for a considerable, though unknown, distance. Severs naviga- 
 
 ble for a oou- 
 
 I (G. M. Dawson) met a couple of miners (Messrs. Monroe siderabio but 
 
 _ unexplored 
 
 and Langtry) who had ascended the MacMiilan for several distance, 
 days in a boat. They reported the distance of a large 
 area of low land with good soil, and had met with no 
 impediments to navigation as far as they had gone. 
 
 The Porcupine Maclcenzie Route. 
 G. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 One result of this journey (Campbell, 1850) was to MacTende to 
 
 show that the route from Fort Selkirk, by way of the the Yukon a> 
 T. .I-.. 1 ■«» 1 . ' J J preferable 
 
 Porcupine Biver to the Mackenzie, was preferable to 'o^^e. 
 that originally discovered. 
 
143 
 
 Fine gold has been found at the moiith of the Porcu- 
 pme, indicating the presence of gold-bearing bars or reefs 
 on its upper reaches. ,^v ' . - Ux; >; > -- - ;, 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances.) 
 
 ThePelly 
 navigable and 
 gold'bearlog 
 
 - The Pelly River. 
 
 G. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 From the site of old Fort Selkirk the Felly might be 
 navigated by small steamers to within 50 miles of the 
 site of old Fort Pelly Banks. 
 
 Along the Upper Felly there are large masses of 
 quartz, quartz gravel and placer bars, no doubt gold 
 bearing. 
 
 {See Section 11 " Distances of Chief Bivers, etc.") 
 
 The great 
 \7aterway from 
 the Sonth; gold 
 bearing toiba- 
 taiteB 
 
 fTtae Tippet 
 Liard ioo 
 broken for 
 ooutinnouB 
 navlgatioa 
 
 The Lewes River. 
 
 G. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 The Lewes is the chief branch, if not a continua* 
 tion, of the Yukon which it joins at Fort Selkirk. It is 
 the chief waterway by which miners enter the Yukon 
 district from the South. It is referred to, in this respect, 
 under section 10 — "Distances of Chief Eivers, &c." 
 Gold is found in small quantities along almost its entire 
 course, though chiefly on its tributaries. Dawson states 
 (1887 Eeport), that "quartz vein-stuff is much less 
 important as a constituent of the river-gravels (of this 
 river) than it is on the Upper Pelly, Upper Liard and 
 other streams to the eastward. 
 ' {See Section 11 for distances.) 
 
 K 
 
 The Liard, Francis and Dease Rivers; also Dease and 
 
 Francis Lakes. 
 
 Evidence of Q. M. DAWSON, LL.D., Director of thelGeologioal Survey 
 of Canada to 1888 Committee of the Senate. 
 
 From its mouth at Fort Simpson (Mackenzie Biver) 
 the Liard is probably navigable for steamers, in a 
 southerly direction, for about 200 miles, or the mouth of 
 
143 
 
 the Nelson or East branch. The river above this place 
 to the mouth of the Dease is generally very swift and 
 dangerous, with numerous narrow canons. 
 
 The Devil's Portage is four miles long, over a moun- pjf Jjl'^'^'" 
 tain 1,000 feet high. This part of the river is navigable 
 for boats only with great difficulty, and had always been 
 accounted the most dangerous in the region. The 
 ticnth-west branch of the Liard, known as the Black 
 Turnagain, or Mud Biver, is reported to have a moderate 
 current, and zsay prove of use as a means of com- 
 munication. 
 
 The Liard, above the month of the Dease, and Thepppez 
 
 Liard and 
 
 the Francis Eiver, its main tributary, ^^^ere ascended by FranoiB Biven. 
 me in boats last summer. There is one bad canon just 
 above the mouth of the Dease and two in the Francis 
 Biver, and these streams could only be navigated for 
 short lengths. 
 
 The Dease Eiver iz about 140 miles in length. SfveFSS" 
 There are several rapids, and it is scarcely navigable by ^*«*8« ^'^*' 
 steamers under the most favorable circumstances. It is 
 already navigated by large flat-bottomed boats. At its 
 head is Dease Lake, 26 miles in length, on which there 
 is a small steamer. Francis Lake, fit the head of the 
 above-mentioned river of same name, has two arms 
 running northwards, and has a total navigable length of ; 
 
 64 miles. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances.) 
 
 The Liard River. 
 
 [See Section 11 for distances.) 
 R.G.MCCON NELL. 1888-89. 
 The Liard is navigable from Fort Simpson — its Heu G»t»-the 
 mouth in the Mackenzie Biver to Fort Liard and thence the Liaid. 
 on up the West branch as far as Hell Gate. Above Hell 
 Gate its navigation, owing to the numerous rapids and 
 canons, is exceedingly difficult and dangerous even with 
 small boats. The NIbIsou or East branch of the Liard 
 reported to be navigable by small steamers for 100 miles 
 or BO above its mouth. 
 
144 
 
 Dangers off the Liard Route. 
 
 j^iiard^ Mr. Warburton Pike in his work, "The Barren 
 
 tenon. Grounds of Northern Canada" (published 1892), says 
 
 he would have preferred the Liard route from Fort 
 Simpson to the Pacific Coast, but — " the Liard itself is 
 so full of terrors even for the hardy voyagev/rs of the 
 North " that he could not induce guides and boatmen 
 to accompany him. 
 
 Formerly the Hudson's Bay Co. had an establishment 
 at Fort Halkett on the West Branch of the Liard, but 
 the difficulties of conveying supplies, and the frequent 
 occurrence of starvation made it a hard post to maintain ; 
 finally a boat's crew were drowned by a capsize in one 
 of the worst rapids, and the fort was abandoned. 
 
 R. Q. MoGON NELL, 1888-89. 
 
 TabQik 
 
 The Hndson From its (Liard) junction with the Dease Eiver to its 
 
 oidroate toi^e mouth this river is 470 miles long .... The 
 Hudson's Bay Company used this river for years as a 
 trading route to the YiUson, but the difficulties of navi- 
 gation caused the Company to look for an easier route 
 to the fur fields on the West of the Eockies, and they 
 changed to a route from the Pacific via the Stickine and 
 Dease Elvers. The Liard Eiver is navigable for shallow 
 draught steamers from its mouth to Hell Gate, but fi'om 
 there to Devil's Portage it has to be portaged. The rest 
 of the way to Dease Eiver is very rough in places, and 
 consequently scarcely navigable by steam craft. 
 
 This river has about 240 miles of navigable waters. 
 {See Section 1^, — '* Old Stickine Route.") 
 
 From the Liard to the Pelly* 
 
 Q. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 From the confluence of the Dease and Liard (the 
 latter at this point is 840 feet in width and 6 feet deep), 
 to Frances Eiver the distance is 45 miles. 
 
146 
 
 From this confluence to the lower end of Frances A?* °}^ "S"*,* 
 
 01 tbe Hn'ison 
 
 Lake the distance is 135 miles. Frances Lake is about ^ay Company. 
 
 33 miles in length. Finlayson River, entering the West 
 
 arm of Frances Lake is 22 miles long, navigable for boats, 
 
 and Finlayson Lake — where Finlayson River rises — is 
 
 9^ miles in length. From this lake to the Pelly River 
 
 is only a distance of 15 miles. 
 
 Gold on the Liard and Francis Rivers. 
 
 With rega: ^ to gold on the Liard I may state that important 
 remunerative barL' have been worked on its upper waters deposits wiii 
 and a long way down towards the Mackenzie. The Liard: countty 
 whole appearance of this country leads to the belief that veins. *^" ^ 
 important mineral deposits will be found in it, besides port* 
 those placer mines. There are large quantities of quartz 
 ledges along the rivers; in many places on the Liard 
 River, half the river gravel is composed of quartz and 
 the whole country is full of quartz veins, some of which 
 are likely to yield valuable minerals. 
 
 Gold has been found on many Tributaries of the 
 Liard and Francis Rivers. 
 
 Francis Lake* 
 
 This lake is at the headwaters of the Liard and ooid-bearfng 
 
 quartz about 
 
 Dawson reports that in general appearance the rocks of Francis Lake 
 Francis Lake very closely resemble those from which the 
 rich placer gold deposits of Dease Lake (Cassiar) are 
 derived . . . Where Finlayson Rivar enters Francis 
 Lake and along the shores of the lake there is a notable 
 abundance of quartz containing gold. 
 
 Road from Francis Lalce to Pelly Banks. 
 
 Evidenceof Mr. JAMES ANDERSON, quoting the diary of hisfalher 
 the explorer, before the 1888 Committee. 
 
 A portage (bad), 20 miles to the head of the J£^f,P" 
 Cordellais Cascades, Finlayson't Branch, thence possible 
 to navigate a canoe about 40 miles to Beaver Forks, 
 thence 18 miles to Finlayson's Lake ; river insignificant, 
 much barred with trees, but it is possible to get a 
 middle-sized canoe up light ; thence across Finlayson's 
 
146 
 
 Lake, 22 miles, a short portage to another small lake, 
 3 miles long, whence the waters run westward, thence 
 a small (Beaver) creek which passes through some small 
 lakes out of the direct course, thence a portage 40 miles 
 through thick woods, with the exception of two small 
 lakes and a short piece of river falling into the Pelly, in 
 all perhaps 7 miles, to the Pelly Eiver. 
 
 Dease River. 
 
 Q. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 This river has a total length, following all its sinu- 
 osities from Dease Lake to the Liard Eiver, of 180 miles. 
 It is possible that the river might be navigated by small 
 stem- wheel steamers of good jjower. 
 
 {See also Section K.) 
 
 M 
 
 The Peace River. 
 
 {See also Section 20.—" Population of the future.") 
 
 Extent of The Upper Peace Eiver is navigable for steamers 
 
 wtAen on the drawing 3 or 4 feet, and with a little improvement at 
 ***** tv/o points a draught of 5 or 6 feet could be utilized. 
 
 The Upper Peace Eiver affords a navigable stretch of 
 657 miles, which, with 222 miles on Lower Peace Eiver, 
 gives a total of navigation of 779 miles only, broken at 
 one point by a rapid 18 miles in length. , 
 
 Coal on (the Peace River. 
 
 Coal from the Malcolm MoLeod, Q.C., ex- Judge, gave evidence to 
 
 the Arctic the 1888 Committee that coal was to be found for 350 
 
 miles along the upper reaches of the Peace Eiver and 
 
 extends to the Arctic Ocean. 
 
 Ocean. 
 
 Distances and description of tlie Peace River. 
 
 G. M. DAWSON'S Evidenoe before the Committee of the Senate, ISbC. 
 
 Distances on The following is a summary of Mr. Ogilvie's 
 
 from F^rt^*''*' Departmental Eeport of 1884 upon the Peace Eiver from 
 cbippewyan. Athabasca Lake to Dun vegan. Distances : — 
 
147 
 
 MILES. 
 
 Fort Ghippewyan on Athabasca Lake to Peace 
 
 •L OIU u ••• ••• ••• ••« ••• ••• OOt 
 
 Fort Ghippewyau on Athabasca Lake to head of 
 
 Little Bapids 100^ 
 
 Fort Ghippewyan on Athabasca Lake to Falls... 234 
 
 Fort Ghippewyan on Athabasca Lake to Battle 
 
 Xvl Vulr ••• ••■ ••• ••• ••• ••• %0\J 
 
 Fort Ghippewyan on Athabasca Lake to Smoky 
 
 Jtviver ... ■«( ••• ••• ••• i.c 0x1 
 
 Fort Ghippewyan on Athabasca Lake to Dun- 
 vegan... ... ... ... ... ... 604 
 
 The Little Eapids are 3J mile's long, with a drop of 
 
 8 feet. . - .-..v 
 
 On the Falls there is a perpendicular drop of 9i ft., Particulars 
 
 ^ ^ -11, coiiserninfi the 
 
 but there is a sloping descent on one side used by boats, navigation of 
 
 * ° *' Pence litver. 
 
 One-and-a-half miles above the Falls there is a rapid 
 300 yards long, with a total fall for the distance of 8 ft. 
 
 The York boat and scows pass up and down through 
 all these, and Ogilvie states that, with the exception of 
 Little Eapids, the Falls and rapids near them, and two 
 shoal places — one near the mouth of Smoky Eiver and 
 one between Smoky Eiver and Dunvegan — the river is 
 navigable at low water for boats drawing from 5 to 6 ft. 
 
 Above Dunvegan it appears that there are no 
 serious impediments to steamer navigation to the Eocky 
 Mountain Portage, a distance of about 135 miles. 
 
 Thus, provided means are adopted for overcoming 
 the possible impediment of 3^ miles at Little Eapids 
 and 1^ mile at the Falls and rapids, the Peace Eiver 
 might afford a length of steamer navigation of about 
 740 miles. " 
 
 At the Eocky Mountain portage is an impassable 
 canon with a portage of 12 miles. This constitutes the 
 head of steamer navigation, as from this place to west 
 side of Eocky Mountains (about 83 miles) there are 
 several bad rapids. 
 
148 
 
 The Peace is formed by the confluence of the Finlay 
 and Parsnip Bivers west of the mountains. These are 
 streams of about 500 feet wide. From the confluence 
 the Parsnip might, possibly, be navigated by a small 
 steamer for 50 or more miles southward. Little is 
 known of the Finlay, but much bad water is reported. 
 
 The Smoky Eiver, from Lat. 55° to its mouth, 
 flows in a valley 400 to 600 feet deep, half a mile wide 
 in the bottom and two to three miles from rim to rim. 
 The banks are open and grassy on southern exposures. 
 The current is swift, and there are many small rapids, so 
 that it can scarcely be considered navigable for steamers 
 of any kind, though it is possible that a steamer of light 
 draught might ascend some distance at high water. 
 
 Agriculture on the Peace River. 
 
 In his evidence before the 1888 Committee the Hon. 
 Wm. Christie, late Chief Inspecting Factor of the 
 Hudson Bay Company, stated that the Peace Eiver 
 country was not liable to drought, and that it is as fine 
 a country as he ever saw. The vegetation is luxuriant, 
 and that for pasture there is no better country in the 
 world than the Peace Biver Valley. The soil is as 
 cultivable as that of Manitoba. Wheat crops can be 
 relied on. Very little affected by frosts. 
 
 N 
 
 Old Stlklne Route* 
 
 Q. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 Total distance From mouth of Stikine Biver to Telegraph Creek,, 
 
 to Fort Selkirk thence to Dease Lake, along Dease Biver, the Upper 
 
 Liard and Pelly Bivers, to the confluence of the Lewes 
 
 and Pelly (Fort Selkirk), 9ii mUes. 
 
 The extent of The Stikine is navigable by stern wheel steamers of 
 
 «oumi"he^*" strong engine T-.ower, drawing not more than 4 feet, for 
 BtiMne River. ^ ^stance of 188 miles to Telegraph Creek, 12 miles 
 iL»eyond Glenora. » , •• 
 
149 
 
 • 
 
 The " Great CaCon " which extends for miles breaks 
 the navigation beyond. A government pack-trail, 62^ 
 miles in length, connects Telegraph Creek with the head 
 of Lake Dease. 
 
 The Dease Eiver, the Upper Liard and Frances 
 Eivers — above the mouth of the Dease — can scarcely be 
 considered navigable for steamers, though passable for 
 large boats, with occasional portages. 
 
 The difficulties of the Lower Liard are such as to The lower 
 
 . T . , , , , _ Liard unsnlt- 
 
 render it an undesirable route, even for boats, and abieasaronte. 
 scarcely suitable as an avenue of trade between the 
 Mackenzie and B.C. 
 
 Following the river- valleys, by a route practicable ^ '*}t^' Yth "'^ 
 for a railway, from Eothsay Point at the Mouth of the Btiuino to the 
 
 •' Mackenzie. 
 
 Stikine to the mouth of the Dease, the distance is 830 
 miles ; thence to Fort Simpson is a further distance of 
 800 miles — total from the Pacific to the navigable waters 
 of the Mackenzie about 720 miles. 
 
 A serious impediment occurs in the navigation of ot)stacie\o 
 this (the Stikine) river at the Little Canon (63 miles ",',c1owct°°" 
 above the great bend) when the river is at its highest stikine. 
 stage in June or July, in consequence of the great 
 velocity of the current in this narrow and rocky, through 
 gorge • . , Under ordinary circumstances the ascent 
 of the river to Telegraph Creek, with a suitable steamer, 
 occupies about three days, and it is generally necessary 
 to carry a line ashore at a few places. At low tide the 
 mouth of the river has not more than two feet of water. 
 
 While snow accumulates on the river flats of the Reep enow on 
 
 the lower 
 
 Stikine to a depth of from 8 to 10 feet, at Telegraph stiMne. 
 Creek and Tahl-tan Eiver it seldom exceeds 18 inches, 
 and at the latter places horses and mules have been 
 wintering - out for a number of years. "Wheat, oats, 
 barley and potatoes can be grown and ripen well on this 
 river, and all ordinary vegetables can be produced. 
 
160 
 
 A Rood road 
 TMiito from 
 Ttiesraph 
 Creek to Deaso 
 Lake. 
 
 Dease Lake is the centre of the Cassiar districtf?, 
 and the construction of a waggon road from Telegraph 
 Creek (62^ miles) would not be very difiBcult or expensive. 
 By its construction it should be easy to lay down goods 
 at Dease Lake at very reasonable rates. One good bridge 
 over the Tooya Eiver and 8 or 10 miles of corduroy laid 
 down would be required. The length of Dease Lake is 
 24^ miles. Average width less than a mile. 
 
 This route (Stikine to Dease Lake) is an exceedingly 
 direct one, and, taken in conjunction with the valleys of 
 the Dease and Liard Eivers, it affords almost an air-line 
 from the Pacific coast to the Great Mackenzie Eiver. 
 The distance is 720 miles. 
 
 A railway de- 
 cided upon 
 from the 
 Stikine to tho 
 Yukon watef. 
 way. 
 
 The New Stikine Route. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances.) 
 
 "Times," 13th September, 1897. 
 
 "Times" Correspondent — Ottawa, Septemherl2th, 1897. 
 
 Pending the final determination of the boundary 
 between Alaska and the Yukon district, the Dominion 
 Government has decided to develop the existing all- 
 Canadian route to the new goldfields by way of the 
 Stikeen Eiver. Arrangements are being made with the 
 Canadian Pacific Eailway by which the company will 
 proceed at the earliest possible period with the construc- 
 tion of a standard-gauge railway from Glenora, on the 
 Stikeen Eiver, to the head of the navigable Waters of 
 the Yukon. Competent engineers have been ordered to 
 proceed to the locality and make a survey of the country 
 and report on the feasibility of constructing a railway 
 connecting the waters of the Stikeen with those of 
 Teslin Lake and the Yukon. Upon receipt of their 
 report the construction will be begun. The length of the 
 line will be about 150 miles. The company will run a 
 line of first-class steamers between Vancouver and 
 Glenora. 
 
 It is believed that the magnitude of the trade of th& 
 Yukon district demands such a service. Altered con- 
 
151 
 
 ditions in transport and facilities for reaching the Klondike 
 goldfields by an all-British route will secure to the coast 
 cities of British Columbia a large share of the trade of 
 this northern country. 
 
 "EVENINQ STANDARD," October 7th, 1897, from its special 
 
 Correspondent. 
 Another route which is growing in favour, owing to 
 the difficulties of the mountain Passes this Fall is the 
 Sticheen Eiver route, also known as the " All Canadian,' 
 because it is confined to Canadian territory. It has the 
 additional recommendation of being approved by 
 Dr. Dawson, Director of the Geological Survey, who 
 travelled by way of Teslin Lake ten years ago, and 
 advocated the building of a road in this direction. The 
 licad of navigation is still called Telegraph Creek, and 
 this route is dignified on the map with the name of 
 " Government Trail." Whether it exists anywhere but 
 on the maps may be doubted, and the Government, of 
 course, have accepted no responsibility beyond having 
 the country explored. Still, people who have travelled People claim 
 
 1 j-is: J. J. 1 • j.^ Ill-- • XI 1- i. A ij theStlchoenaS 
 
 l)y dinerent routes claim that this is the best. An old the beat route. 
 
 prospector reports that the trail from Telegraph Creek 
 
 to Teslin Lakes cannot be more than 115 or 120 
 
 miles long, and he describes the country as comparatively 
 
 easy of travel. The trail is fairly level, and though some 
 
 parts are swampy, there is plenty of timber to make Swampy in 
 
 corduroy, i.e., to make a solid road over the bog by ?'t''P°^*'*® 
 
 putting down brushwood and laying logs across it, a difflouit. 
 
 safe if not a very comfortable mode of travelling. Dr. 
 
 Dawson says of this route : — *' The river is navigable 
 
 for the ordinary flat bottom boats from Salt Water to 
 
 Telegraph Creek, a distance of 150 miles, from Telegraph 
 
 Creek to Teslin Lake is about another 150 miles through 
 
 what is believed to be a flat and not very diflicult country, 
 
 but very little is known about it. Mr. St. Cyr, a surveyor 
 
 on the staff of the Department of the Interior, is making 
 
 a survey of the country at the present time. He is 
 
 expected to come out this Autumn, and when he does 
 
 the practicability of the route will probably be settled. 
 
 \ 
 
152 
 
 A stretch of 
 uncertain 
 navigation on 
 the 8:ikeen. 
 
 From Teslin Lake there is no difiQculty whatever, there 
 being navigation for stern- wheel steamers right down to 
 the mouth of the Yukon. If this route proves practicable 
 it will greatly facilitate ingress and egress to and from 
 the Y'ikon country." 
 
 There is a very general opinion as to the value of 
 tnis route, and, besides the Government Surveyor, the 
 chief engineer of the Kootenay division of the Canadian 
 Pacific Eailway is investigating the locality with a view 
 to the construction of a railway. . . . The Stikeen 
 route involves a stretch of uncertain river navigation from 
 Wrangell to Telegraph Creek, while the Taku Inlet has 
 the advantage of a deep water terminus open all the 
 year round. 
 
 Notice of 
 application 
 for an Act to 
 Incorporate 
 n Railway 
 Company. 
 
 The Stiklne Route Railway. 
 
 The "Financial Post," October lltii. 
 
 Messrs. Phillips, Wootton, and Barnard, of Vancouver, 
 give notice that application will be made to the Legis- 
 lative Assembly next sension for an Act to incorporate 
 a company with power to construct and operate a railway 
 from the head of Stikeen Eiver, via Teslin Lake to the 
 north border of British Columbia. Also in a southerly 
 direction to some point on the west coast at the head of 
 Portland Canal. The construction and completion of 
 these lines of railway would give ready access to the 
 Yukon headwaters. Several fairly rich specimens of ore 
 have been brought down here lately by miners from 
 mineral ledges on the Stikeen Eiver. "We shall probably 
 hear of good discoveries in those parts soon. 
 
 The StiUne 
 Railway 
 reported 
 otr-cially to 
 bo feasible. 
 
 "Times," London, October IStli, 1897, tfircugii "Reuter's." 
 
 Ottawa, October 17th. 
 
 The Government Surveyors who have just traversed 
 the route of the proposed railway to pass solely through 
 British territory into the Yukon country, via the Stickeen 
 River, report that the project of a boundary railway from 
 Glenora on the Stickeen to Lake Tchu, from which point 
 
163 
 
 there la unintemipted navigation to Klondike, is quite 
 feasible. The distance is about 185 miles. The Canadian 
 Pacific Railway Company this week sent two additional 
 engineering staffs into the district. The work of oon* 
 struotion will be begun next spring. 
 
 Qold on the 5tlklne. 
 
 Placer gold mining has been carried on intermittently Jp*j| ^"n^. 
 on the bars of this river since 1861, and a " rush " 
 took place in the following year. This was followed by 
 exploration further into the country and the opening ' 
 
 np of the Dease Lake District and the Cassiar country 
 in 1873. In 1874 the output of gold was valued at 
 1,000,000 dollars. 
 
 O 
 
 The Tes-lin-too (Hootalinqua) Riven 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances.) 
 G. M. DAWSON. 1887. 
 
 The Tes-lin-too is navigable for stern- wheel steamers The new chief 
 for 160 miles or more from its mouth as far as Lake tifeSon^L "" 
 Teslin, while the Takh-heena may probably be ascended 
 by steamers of the same class for some distance. This 
 river (the Tes-lin-too) is no doubt destined to be the 
 chief waterway from the South to the Lower Lewes on 
 to the Yukon country. Payable gold-bearing bars are 
 found along its banks and tributaries where a number of ' 
 
 miners are now working. 
 
 P 
 
 The Big Salmon River. 
 
 Q. M. DAWSON, 1837. 
 Big Salmon river may probably be ascended by An important 
 steamers of the same class as the Tes-hn-too for some ^*'' 
 distance. Dawson reports this river as being much 
 more important than any other of the tributaries, joining 
 the Lewes further down, being 347 feet wide with a 
 depth of 5 feet, and might be navigated by stern-wheel 
 shallow draught steamers for many miles. It runs into 
 
154 
 
 " Island Lake," 190 miles from its junction with the 
 Lewes. Though there is plenty of fine gold along this 
 river there are no good payable bars. 
 
 An old Indian 
 ronte from the 
 Btikiae. 
 
 The White 
 preferred to 
 t>ie Ohilkoot 
 JPas.s by 
 Dawsou. 
 
 The Tahl-Tan Rive« 
 
 G. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 About twelve miles above Telegraph Creek, and on 
 the trail to Dease Lake, the Tahl-tan River enters the 
 Stikine. It rises about 30 miles to the north, and 
 occupies a portion of an important valley which, still 
 further to the north westward, carries the upper branche;^ 
 of the Taku River, and the furthest sources of the Lewes 
 River. The Indians travel along this valley, and it 
 appears worthy of attention as a route from the navi- 
 gable waters of the Stikine to the Yukon basin. 
 
 The Chilkoot (Taiya) Pass. 
 
 G. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 The Chilkoot Pass is such that it would scarcely 
 be possible to constract a useful trail across for pack 
 animals, Lut the White Pass appears to offer a better 
 opportunity for making a trail or road. 
 
 Anew 
 American 
 
 railway 
 prospect— 300 
 miles. 
 
 A Railway Line from Chilkoot Inlet to Fort Selkirk. 
 
 "Financial News," October 2l8t, 1897. 
 According to news from San Francisco, a party of 
 12 engineers and surveyors has left that city for Seattle, 
 where it will be reinforced by eight assistants and 50 
 otLars who will sail for Chilkoot Inlet in a steamer 
 especially chartered for the trip. At Seattle 200 horses, 
 150 cattle, feed for six months, and 200 tons of general 
 stores will be purchased for the party during fcho long 
 drive from Kiukwark, at the head of Chilkoot Inlet, to 
 Fort Selkirk, the head of steam navigation on the Yukon, 
 a distance of 300 miles, over a trail unfrequented 
 during the winter. 
 
 The expedi'jion is to deternine whether a railway 
 ..an be built over this 800 mile trail. The engineers will 
 also try to locate a now pass, believed to exist north of 
 
155 
 
 the Chilkoot. The organisers of the expe*^ i are from 
 Boston, San Francisco, and Puget Sound, anu ^ve formed 
 a company with a capital of 200,000 dollars to mef^t 
 necessary preUminary expenses. The members of thii 
 party expect to arrive in January at Fort Selkirk, whero 
 permanent headquarters for railway construction will be 
 located. All the members of the party have been 
 engaged for two years. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances, and Sections 18 and 27 
 for further particiddrs.) 
 
 S 
 
 The Chilkat Pass. 
 
 Q. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 From the "West Branch of Lynn Canal, a distance The Takh- 
 
 ■' -, (• m heenaUiver 
 
 of about 50 miles to the lake at the head of the Tahk- easy to navi- 
 gate, 
 heena river, then down the river to Lake Labarge. The 
 
 voyage down this river is said to be easier than by the 
 
 main river, the rapids being less serious. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances, and Sections 18 and 27 
 
 for further particulars.) 
 
 The White Pass. 
 
 G. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 This Pass leaves the coast at the mouth of Shkagway The route ot 
 Eiver, four miles south of the Head of Taiya Inlet, and Columbia d«- 
 runs parallel to Chilkoot Pass at no great distance IsifJX'tioa 
 from it. 
 
 The distance from the coast to the summit is about 
 17 miles, 
 
 Ogilvie describes this route (1896) as commencing OgHvie's 
 at Taiya Inlet, about 2 miles south of its north end ; it 
 follows up the valley of the Shkagway Eiver to its source, 
 and thence down the valley of another river which 
 Dr. Dawson says empties into Taku Arm of Tagish 
 Lake. Capt. Moore (mistakingly — it is believed) describes 
 this stream as emptying into Windy Arm, which lies 
 between Tagish and Bennett Lakes. 
 
 The route passes across the lakes and down the 
 Lewes Eiver. 
 
156 
 
 This, the Chil- 
 lioot Pass, is 
 paid to be im- 
 passable for 
 norses. 
 
 A route that 
 may possibly 
 be found the 
 best from the 
 South. 
 
 First five miles is through level bottom — land thickly 
 timbered. 
 
 The next nine miles is in a canon-like valley, -where 
 heavy work would be encountered in constructing a trail. 
 The remaining distance of three miles to the summit is 
 comparatively easy. 
 
 The altitude of the summit is estimated at 2,600 feet. 
 
 Beyond the summit a wide valley is entered, and the 
 
 descent to the first little lake is said to be not more than 
 
 100 feet. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances, and Sections 18 and 27 
 
 for further particulars.) 
 
 The Taiya Pass Route. 
 
 (Ohilkoot is the name by which the Pass on this route is 
 commonly hnown.) 
 
 W. OGILVIE, 1896. 
 
 This route is from Lynn Canal, Taiya Inlet and 
 Taiya rivei over Taiya Pass to Lake Lindeman. The 
 distance from the head of Taiya Inlet to the summit of 
 the Pass is 15 miles and the whole length of the Pass 
 to Lake Lindeman is 23 miles. Between Lake Lindeman 
 and Lake Bennett there is only about three-quarters of a 
 mile of river which is not more than 50 or 60 yards wide 
 and about two to three feet deep and is so swift and 
 rough that navigation is out of the question. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances, and Sections 18 and 27 
 for further particulars.) 
 
 W 
 
 Taku Route to Lake Teslfn-too. 
 
 W. 06ILVIE, 1896. 
 Indians reported journeying down the Te din-too 
 Eiver to Teslin-too Lake, and by way of a stream which 
 entered the lake from the East they reached Taku Eiver, 
 and thence to salt-water on the Taku Inlet. The 
 journey from the head of Canoe Navigation, on the 
 Teslin-too to salt-water, on Taku Inlet, took the Indians 
 four days if they had loads to carry, but only two days 
 if their baggage was light. 
 
157 
 
 Many years ago, in 1867 I think, a man named 
 Monroe prospected up the Taku, and learned from the 
 Indians something of a large lake not far from that 
 river. He crossed over and found it, and spent some 
 time in prospecting, and then crossed to the sea. 
 
 I (Ogilvie, Cudahy, June 10th, 1895) am thoroughly 
 convinced that a road from the coast to some point on 
 the head waters of the river (Yukon), preferably by the 
 Taku, if at all practicable, would convert all our pu^t 
 (the Upper Yukon) of the river into a hive of industry. 
 
 A Significant Incident* 
 
 W. OGILVIE, 1896. 
 Great anxiety is felt here (Dawson City) about a Aa incident 
 
 •' ^ •" favorable to 
 
 mail route and regular mail. Last winter three emails the Taku Kiver 
 
 zouto. 
 left the coast, one by the Taku route, one by the White 
 
 Pass, and one via Taiya ; the first two got here in good 
 
 time, the last (ours, by the way) did not, nor is it likely 
 
 to arrive for some time — may be never. The man in 
 
 charge was badly frozen on the summit, and had to turn 
 
 back An Indian brought the mail in by the 
 
 Taku Eiver and took the Slocan branch of it ^to Atlin 
 
 Lake. From what I learned of this route while up 
 
 there, it may be found to be an easier way than by 
 
 Teslin Lake, but it has the disadvantage of landing on 
 
 the head of the Lewes Eiver instead of the Hootalinqua 
 
 or Teslin, and so takes in the Caiion and White Horse 
 
 Eapids. 
 
 G. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 Little is yet known of the Taku Eiver, but the The Taku 
 
 •' ' River route is 
 
 Indians ascend it in canoes to a point at a distance of "«ie knowu as 
 about 80 miles from the head of the Taku Inlet, and 
 Indian trails lead S.E. from this vicinity to the Tahl-tan, 
 Eastward to Teslin Lake, and N.E. to the lakes at the 
 head of the Lewes. 
 
 "Evening Standard," October 7th, 1897. 
 From its Special Correspondent. 
 The Yukon Trading and Transportation Company, The Taku 
 
 1.1 . -1 /-ii if tC .. -I-.!. route choseu 
 
 which obtained a Charter from the Dominion Parliament for a taUivay. 
 last Session, including the power to provide railway 
 
158 
 
 communication, has clso done some surveying aad fixed 
 on a route. Two routas are available from the coast to 
 Teslin Lake— one by the Sticheen River and Telegraph 
 Creek, and the other further north from the Taku Inlet. 
 The former involves a stretch of somewhat uncertain 
 river navigation, from Wrangell to Telegraph Creek, 
 while the latter has the advantage of a deep-water 
 terminus open the year round. The Taku line has 
 accordingly been selected, with a maximum grade of 
 
 a direct roote^ ^^'^^y ^^^^^ P®^ cent. It is comparatively a direct route, 
 being but one hundred and sixty-two miles from Salt 
 Water to lake Teslin. It follows the Taku River to the 
 junction of Katuna River, thence up that river to Silver 
 Salmon River, and finally overland to the shores of 
 Teslin. It is the intention of the Company to proceed 
 as soon as possible with the work of construction. A 
 trail will be built over the proposed route, and a saw- 
 ,; mill will be built on Teslin Lake, where the Company 
 
 has a considerable area of fairly good timber. 
 
 X 
 
 Taku and Windy Arms. 
 
 G. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 Points at which The mountains rapidly decrease in height and 
 
 routes from tho , i . . -mi • t» . 
 
 South meet the abruptness after the summit of White Pass is passed, 
 and the valley bifurcates, one branch leading to the 
 head of Windy Arm of Tagish Lake, the other to Taka 
 Arm of the same lake. 
 
 Y 
 
 Large Rivers PSowing: into Hudson's Bay. 
 
 Prof. R. BELL, M.D., LLD., of the Geological Survey of Canada. 
 Evidence before the Senate Committee of 1888. 
 
 importaut The largest navigable river is the Attawapishkat. 
 
 the^N. West ' It enters James' Bay about 65 miles north of Fort Albany, 
 
 rna'/beVpfined and is Continuously navigable from the sea at high water 
 
 Eon'sBay. "^ as far as it will afford width for steamers, which would 
 
 be, perhaps, 260 to 300 miles. I came down the whole 
 
 length of the river without once taking my canoe 
 
 out of the water. Within 100 miles or so of its source 
 
159 
 
 there is a large lake. We named it after Lord Lans- 
 downe. It measures 13 miles in l&ngth, and over 10 in 
 width. Just below it is another lake nearly as large, 
 call 3d Attawapishkat Lake. Its general course is east- 
 ward, but it makes some large bends. 
 
 The Albany is next in point of length of navigable 
 water. It is navigable for river steamers for about 250 
 miles at high water. 
 
 The Doobaunt (Telzoa Eiver of Tyrrell, 1893), 
 flowing into Chesterfield Inlet is probably the next in 
 point of size. Length not given. The inlet runs in 
 about 250 miles from the sea. Lake Aberdeen and 
 other large lakes extend the deep navigable waters of the 
 Inlet quite 250 miles further almost due west. A large 
 river flowing in from the west probably extends the 
 navigable waterway right on to Great Slave Lake. The 
 great whaling ground of Hudson's Bay is opposite this 
 Inlet. 
 
 The Moose Biver and its branch the Missanabie 
 would be navigable for about 120 miles from the sea at 
 high water. ' . 
 
 'O'' 
 
 The Kapishcow and Equan Eivers, also on the west 
 coast of James' Bay, are navigable for a considerable 
 distance by steamers, as also are the Hayes, Steel and 
 Hill Eivers ; these three are all parts of one river, navig 
 able 140 miles altogether from the sea. 
 
 The Great Nelson Eiver is only navigable for about 
 50 miles from its mouth ; again for 150 miles (with only 
 one break) in the central part of its course, and also for 
 about 40 miles from the outlet of Lake Winnipeg. 
 
 (The Churchill Eiver has a considerable length, but 
 little of it is fit for steamer navigation.) 
 
 {For further particulars of rouUis afforded by any of these 
 rivers, see Sections 21, 22 and 26.) 
 
 -3-.- 
 
160 
 
 Section IX. Distances of Chief River» 
 Sea, Lake, and Overland Routes. 
 
 (For further particulars of tJiese routes, see Sections 8, 10^ 
 18, 21, 22, 26 and 27.) 
 
 Routes from Liverpool to the Yukon Goldflelds. 
 
 Chesterfield Inlet Boutb. 
 
 MILES. 
 
 Liverpool to Chesterfield Inlet 2,800 
 
 Length of Chesterfield Inlet (navigable) ... 250 
 Inlet to Great Slave Lake (over half of river 
 
 navigation) 820 
 
 Across Great Slave Lake (navigable) 800 
 
 Great Slave Lake to McPherson Fort ... 962 
 Fort McPherson via Peel Eiver to the region of 
 
 headwaters of Stewart Eiver (navigable) 250 
 
 4,882 
 
 Canadian Pacific, via Lynn Canal Eoutb. 
 
 (This route includes dangerous rapids and 
 mountain passes.) 
 Liverpool to Vancouver, \ik Canadian Pacific 
 
 Eailway ... ... ... ,.. ... 6,713 
 
 Vancouver to Klonoike Eiver, vid Lynn Canal 1,600 
 
 7,313 
 
 Canadian Pacific, via St. Michael's Eoutb. 
 (This route is fairly comfortable, but very 
 long and through American territory.) 
 Liverpool to Vancouver, via Canadian Pacific 
 
 Eailway 5,713 
 
 Vancouver to Klondike Eiver, yia St. Michael's 
 
 and the Yukon 4,850 
 
 10,063 
 
161 
 
 ■•..,y« 
 
 W. Ogilvle's Distances, 1896. 
 
 St. Michael's Eoute. 
 
 MILES. 
 
 San Francisco to Dutch Harbour 2,400 
 
 Seattle or Victoria to Dutch Harbour 2,000 
 
 Dutch Harbour to St. Michael 750 
 
 St. Michael to Cudahy (up the Yukon) 1,600 
 
 Victoria to Cudahy 4,350 
 
 Eoute via Taiya (Chilkoot) Pass. 
 
 Victoria to Taiya 1,000 
 
 Taiya to Cudahy 650 
 
 Total 1,650 
 
 Eoute via Stikine Eiver. 
 
 Victoria to Wrangell (sea) 750 
 
 Wrangell to Telegraph Creek (via Stikine Eiver) 150 
 
 Telegraph Creek to Teslin Lake. (Overland) ... 150 
 
 Teslin Lake to Cudahy 650 
 
 Total 1,700 
 
 Qovernment Map Measurements. 
 
 Eoute via Behbing Straits and Mouth of Mackenzie 
 Eiver, to the Peel, Porcupine and Yukon Eivers. 
 
 A])vroximate — 
 
 Victoria to Mouth of Yukon 2,700 
 
 Thence to Mackenzie Bay 1,400 
 
 Mackenzie Bay to Fort Macpherson 100 
 
 4,200 
 
 M 
 
162 
 
 Fort Macpherson to Da'' jon City. 
 
 MILES. 
 
 Fort to La Pierre's House 80 
 
 (In summer this route can be done by water 
 with less than one mile of portage through 
 MoDougall's Pass). 
 La Pierre's House to junction of Porcupine and 
 
 Yukon Rivers (navigable by steamers) . . . 290 
 
 From this junction to Dawson City 230 
 
 Total 600 
 
 La Pierre's House to Dawson City, 
 VIA Upper Porcupine River. 
 
 La Pierre's House to Junction of Bell and Porcu- 
 pine Rivers. (Navigable by steamers) ... 30 
 Junction to Head Waters of the Porcupine River... 216 
 
 (Navigable by steamers). 
 Near Head of Porcupine to the Tatonduc River ... 16 J 
 
 (Overland.) 
 Down the Tatonduc River to Junction with Yukon 
 
 River. (Navigable by steamers) 40 
 
 From Mouth of Tatonduc to Dawson City ... 75 
 
 (Along the navigable Yukon.) 
 
 Total 377i 
 
 Fort rvlAcPHERSON to Headwaters of the Peel 
 
 XviVBli ••• ••• ••• ••• ••• ••• uUvJ 
 
 (No impediments to navigation.) 
 
 The distances, land and water, separating the Head- 
 waters of the Peel from those of the MacMillan, Stewart 
 and Klondike Rivers, are unknown, the country being 
 quite undiscovered, but occasional travellers' reports and 
 the lengths of the different rivers indicate that the Peel 
 River runs very close to the last mentioned rivers, and 
 is probably connected with them by intervening lakes 
 and navigable streams. Vr 
 
 {See reports on the MacMillan, Stewart and Klondike 
 Bivers, Section 10.) 
 
163 
 
 G. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 Fort Selkirk to Lynn Canal 377 milc8. 
 
 ,, Chilkoot Pass 224 „ 
 
 ,, Hotalinqu River ... ... 294 ,, 
 
 „ Pelly Banks 213 „ 
 
 ,, Head of Pelly Lake (above 
 
 " Pelly Banks ") 276 „ 
 
 
 )) 
 
 The Upper Pelly. 
 
 ^ .. ^....n^.. ^— River Straight 
 
 G. M. DAWSON, 1887. Windines. Line. 
 
 MILES. 
 
 Felly Banks to Hoole Canon 50 31 
 
 Hoole Canon to Boss Biver 23 16^ 
 
 Boss Biver to Glenlyon Biver 82 64 
 
 Glenlyon Biver to MacMillan Biver* ... 91 61 
 
 MacMillan to Lewes Biver (Fort Selkirk) ... 74 46 
 
 3^0 218i 
 • See under heading, " MacMillan River." Section H. 
 
 From Fort Selkirk (mouth of the Lewes Biver) to 
 the MacMillan Biver the Pelly is navigable for lai'ge 
 sized stern wheel steamers, and right on to Hoole Canon 
 for small stern wheel steamers. 
 
 The Boss Biver is navigable for steamers at its 
 mouth, but its upper part is quite unknown. 
 
 Hoole Canon is quite impassable for a steamer of 
 any kind, and 18 miles further on at the mouth of Hoole 
 Biver it might prove difficult. 
 
 Further on the Pelly is navigable for small steamers 
 right on to Pelly Banks, and possibly as far as the lakes. 
 
 Dawson's Distances from Fort Selkirk to Taiya Inlet. 
 
 Miles. 
 Fort Selkirk to Bink or Five Finger Bapid ,., 66 
 
 Bink Bapid to Little Salmon Biver 63 
 
 (Coal beds found 6^ miles above BirJc Bapid.) 
 
 Little Salmon to Big Salmon Biver 34 
 
 (Numerous lignite-coal beds below Big Salmon 
 
 Eiver. ' Depth of B. S. Biver 5 feet ; width at 
 
 mouth, 347 feet.) 
 
 M 2 
 
164 
 
 Miles. 
 Big Salmon to Tes-lin-too Biver ... 31 
 
 (Tes-lin-too Biver. Width, 675 feet at mouth ; 
 depth, 18 feet. From the mouth of this river to 
 the lake is about 100 miles. Teslin Lake is 100 
 miles in length. From near head of lake to 
 Taku Biver is about 60 miles, a good trail. 
 Indians travel up continuation of T. Biver 
 from lake about 100 miles, and cross up 
 West Fork to tributaries of the Upper Liard, 
 and down that river to the Dease.) 
 Tes-lin-too Biver to Lake Labarge 27^ 
 
 Lake Labarge, length 31 
 
 (This lake is reported to be so stormy as to 
 detain miners in camp for several days.) 
 
 Lake Labarge to Tahk-heena Biver 11|; 
 
 (Length of T. Biver 50 miles, easy navigation. 
 Depth, 10 feet ; width at mouth, 237 feet.) 
 
 Mouth of Tahkheena Biver to White Horse Bapids 18 
 White Horse Bapids to Miles Canon 2f 
 
 (Usual to portage these Bapids ; too dangerous to 
 navigate.) 
 
 Miles Canon to Lake Marsh 23 
 
 Lake Marsh 20 
 
 Biver from Marsh Lake to Tagish Lake 5 
 
 Tagish Lake 16*6 
 
 Lake Nares 2*7 
 
 Bennett Lake 26*8 
 
 Stream from Lake Bennett to Lake Lindeman ^ 
 
 (Not navigable for heavily laden boats.) 
 
 Lake Lindeman 
 
 Lake Lindeman to Tide Water of Taiya Inlet 
 
 * This distance is over the Chilkoot or Taiya Pass. 
 Lake Lindeman to summit of Pass is 8^ miles. 
 
 ' The elevation of the Pass is 3,502 feet. 
 
 The traverse of the Chilkoot portage is itself a formidable 
 obstacle. 
 
165 
 
 Distances from Head of Chllkoot Inlet to the Boundary 
 Line on the Yukon River between N. W. Territories 
 
 and Alaska. 
 
 (VV. OQILVIE, 1887-88.) 
 
 MILES. 
 
 Haine's Mission (Head of Inlet) to entrance of 
 
 
 Taiya Inlet 
 
 ... 
 
 
 4-79 
 
 To Head of Taiya Inlet 
 
 
 
 2012 
 
 „ Head of Canoe navigation, Taiya Eiver 
 
 
 26-02 
 
 „ Forks of Taiya Eiver 
 
 
 
 28-50 
 
 ,, Summit of Taiya Pass 
 
 
 
 34-88 
 
 ,, Landing at Lake Lyndeman 
 
 
 
 43-18 
 
 „ Foot of Lake Lyndeman 
 
 
 
 47-01 
 
 „ Head of Lake Bennett 
 
 
 
 48-21 
 
 „ Boundary line between B. 0. and N. W. 
 
 
 
 (Lat. 60°) 
 
 ... 
 
 
 58-21 
 
 „ Foot of Lake Bennett 
 
 • • • 
 
 
 78-97 - 
 
 „ Foot of Cariboo Crossing (Lake Nares of 
 
 
 Schwatka) 
 
 
 
 76-56 
 
 „ Foot of Tagish Lake ... 
 
 
 
 93-37 
 
 „ Head of Marsh Lake 
 
 
 
 98-27 
 
 „ Foot of Marsh Lake 
 
 
 
 117-38 
 
 „ Head of Canon 
 
 
 
 14306 
 
 „ Foot of Canon 
 
 
 
 143-68 
 
 „ Head of White Horse Eapids 
 
 
 
 146-07 :; 
 
 ,, Foot of "White Horse Eapids 
 
 
 
 145-46 
 
 , , Tahk-heena Eiver 
 
 
 
 160-04 '--r >. 
 
 178-19 '^( ^ 
 
 if Head of Lake Labarge 
 
 
 
 1) Foot of Lake Labarge 
 
 
 
 204-34 S / ^ 
 
 ,t Tes-lin-too Eiver (Newberry of Schv.at 
 
 ,ka) 
 
 236-00 ^ . 
 
 „ Big Salmon Eiver of Miners (D'Abbadie of 
 
 
 Schwatka) 
 
 » • « 
 
 • • • 
 
 269-46 
 
 „ Little Salmon Eiver of Miners (Dalj 
 
 r of 
 
 
 Schwatka) 
 
 • « • 
 
 • •• 
 
 305-66 
 
 I, Five Finger Eapids (Kink 
 
 Eapids 
 
 of 
 
 . ',■ .. ... .. 
 
 Schwatka) 
 
 
 • • • 
 
 364-95 
 
 „ Pelly Eiver 
 
 
 • f • 
 
 423-41 ■ 
 
 „ "White Eiver 
 
 
 • •• 
 
 619-23 . 
 
 „ Stewart Eiver 
 
 
 • •• 
 
 629.03 
 
 „ Sixty Mile Creek 
 
 
 • •• 
 
 *65100 :: : 
 
 1, Dawson City (Klondike) 
 
 
 • • • 
 
 *59700 ' 
 
 » •«.*.- > 
 
166 
 
 '' Miles. 
 
 To Fort Eeliance 602-82 
 
 „ Forty-mile Biver 647-20 
 
 y, Boundary Line between N.W. Ten-itories 
 
 and Alaska 687*56 
 
 - * These are not OgUvie's Measurements. 
 
 Distances from Fort Macpherson to Fort Chipewan. 
 
 (WM. OQILVIE, 1887-88.) 
 
 Mackenzie Biver, Proper 32-1 
 
 Bed Biver 60.1 
 
 A large river entering from the East (name 
 
 unknown) 1205 
 
 Loon Biver 2508 
 
 Hare Indian Biver 272*4 
 
 FortGoodHope 274*7 
 
 Bamparts ... .i 283*6 
 
 Beaver Biver 295*7 
 
 Sans Sault Bapida 322-7 
 
 Mountain Biver ... 828-3 
 
 Garcagou Biver ... .. 828*0 
 
 Great Bear Biver 444-0 
 
 Fort Norman 444-2 
 
 Gravel Biver 609-3 
 
 Biver Le Vieux Grand Lac ... 650*6 
 
 Fort Wrigley 624*5 
 
 Biver between two Mountains 628-0 
 
 Willow Lake Biver 667*0 
 
 Ne-hauner Biver 683-3 
 
 Fort Simpson 758-5 
 
 Head of Tine ... .-.. ... 829-5 
 
 Yellow Knife Biver 855 6 
 
 Little Lake , 892-0 
 
 Fort Providence .• 916*0 
 
 Great Slave Lake ... ... ... ... 962*0 
 
 Hay Biver ... ... « 997*0 
 
 Buffalo Biver ... ... .-. 1,024*0 
 
 Buffalo Greek 1,071*0 
 
 Fort Besolution 1,088*0 
 
167 
 
 Fort Smith 1,273-6 
 
 Head of Bapids ... 1,287*5 
 
 Peace River 1,358*9 
 
 Fort Ghipewan 1,390*0 
 
 Evidence of Prof. ROBERT BELL, M.D., LLD, &o., before the Select 
 Committee of the Senate of Canada, 1888. 
 
 The possible avenues of communication with the 
 Mackenzie Basin are :— 
 
 Miles* 
 From one of the eastern bays of Great Bear Lake ..,w. 
 
 to the nearest point on the Coppermine River ■ 
 the distance is ... ... ... ... ... 40 
 
 From Chesterfield Inlet to the head of the Great 
 
 Slave Lake is 320 
 
 A large unknown river mentioned by Tyrrell, 
 1893, running into Aberdeen Lake at the ^' 
 head of this Inlet, along with the lakes, 
 would lessen this overland distance consider* 
 ably, if not cover it the whole way by a 
 navigable waterway. 
 
 The harbor at Churchill to the head of the Atha- 
 basca Lake is 440 
 
 Prince Albert on the Saskatchewan to Fort 
 
 McMurray, the junction of Clearwater and ,W.' 
 
 Athabasca — that point being chosen because .,/,V 
 
 there is then between that and the sea ... 300 
 
 Fort Pitt to Fort McMurray the distance is ... 300 
 
 Edmonton to Fort McMurray 226 
 
 Banff to Peace River Landing 260 
 
 The Head of Little Slave Lake to Peace River 
 
 Landing... ... ... ... ... ... 63 
 
 Head of Navigation on Stikine River to Fort 
 Liard, the head of Navigation on the Liard 
 River 370 
 
 Hazelton, presumably the head of navigation on 
 the Skeena River, to the big bend of the Peace 
 River in the Rooky Mountains 160 
 
168 
 
 Distances to points on Peace River from Fort Chippewyan 
 on Athabasca Lake. 
 
 {See part M, Section 10.) 
 
 The first part 
 of the roote 
 from Edmon- 
 ton to the 
 Tnkon Oold- 
 fleldB vUi the 
 Mitckenzie 
 BiTertoits 
 month. 
 
 Distances on the Llard, Dease and Francis Rivers. 
 
 {See part K, Section 10.) 
 
 Athabasca Landing: to Qreat Slave Lake. 
 
 QEO. DAWSON and W. OQILYIE, 1888 Committee. 
 
 (The distance from Edmonton, a terminus of the 
 Canadian Pacific Bailway, to Athabasca Landing is 90 
 miles — ahready covered by a good wagon road). 
 
 The Athabasca Eiver is navigable by steamers from 
 the Landing to the First Bapids — distance 120 miles. 
 These rapids can be navigated by steamers drawing 
 two feet. A deeper channel could easily be constructed. 
 
 The second rapid is 28 miles further on, and is more 
 easily navigable, and by vessels of deeper draught. 
 
 The Grand Bapids are 23 miles further on, or 
 166 from the Landing, and are about two miles long. 
 These rapids are not navigable. 
 
 Bapids de Boches are 194 miles below the Landing. 
 The passage is rough and stony, and is impassable for 
 canoes. Large boats in passing have to be lowered by 
 ropes from the banks. 
 
 Between Bapids de Boches and the last rapid, 251 
 miles from Athabasce:> Landing, Ogilvie states that it is 
 almost one long rapid. Fort McMurray is near this 
 last rapid. 
 
 From the last rapid, to Lake Athabasca, is a distance 
 of about 170 miles. In the evidence of Wm. Jas. 
 McLean, Chief Trader of the Hudson Bay Co., to the 
 1888 Committee, he stated that the Slave Biver is 
 navigable from Lake Athabasca to the Bapids near Fort 
 Smith, 80 miles (the rapids break the river for about 
 11 miles) and from Fort Smith to Great Slave Lake, a 
 distance of about 150 miles. Total distance 246 miles, 
 including rapids. 
 
169 
 
 Leiis:ths cf some of the Chief Lakes. 
 
 Lesser Slave Lake, 90 miles in length. 
 Lake Athabasca, 192 ,, 
 
 Isle a la Cross Lake is 36 ,, 
 Clear Lake and Buffalo Lake with Isle a la Cross 
 Lake give a navigable length of 74 miles. 
 Lao la Biche is 24 miles in length. 
 Cree Lake, 40 „ 
 
 Green Lake, 18 >, ""' 
 
 Beindeer Lake, 165 ,, 
 
 Great Slave Lake, 300 ,, 
 Great Bear Lake is 190 (width 110). 
 Wollaston or Hatchett Lake is 70 (same in width). 
 Francis Lake, navigable length ... 54 miles, 
 Dease Lake ,, ,, ... 24^ ,, 
 
 Finlayeon Lake ,, ,, ... 9^ „ 
 
 Lake Lansdowne (on Attawapishkat River) 13 >, 
 
 Lake Attawapishkat 12 ,, 
 
 Lake Aberdeen (at the head of Chester- 
 field Inlet), navigable length ... 60 „ 
 
 {For the lengths of Lakes on the Lewes Biver route to the 
 Yukon see Section 11.) 
 
 Route from Athabasca Landing to the Peace River. 
 
 Evidence of Wm. C^!RI8TIE to 1888 Committee. 
 
 Miles. 
 From the mouth of Little Slave Biver on the 
 Athabasca Biver to Lesser Slave Lake 
 
 (navigable) ., 100 
 
 Length of Lesser Slave Lake (navigable) 90 
 
 Portage from Lesser Slave Lake to the Peace 
 
 •ctiiver «.. ••• ... ... ,,, ,., q\) 
 
 Section X2« loe on Rivers and Lakes. 
 
 Ice on Mackenzie and Tributaries. 
 
 :. ... . . R. Q. McCONNELL, 1888-89. 
 
 The ice is clear in the Liard Biver aboat May Ist, 
 at its mouth in the Mackenzie Biver about May 20tb, in 
 
170 
 
 Great Slave Lake towards the end of June, about which 
 time the whole of the Mackenzie Biver is open. 
 
 loe begins to form again towards the end of October, 
 and about the middle of November, the streams are 
 frozen over. wt»:"! >»«' "^ »-» 
 
 This gives about four months clear navigation. Ice 
 breaks (sufiBcient for navigation by stout vessels) at Fort 
 Norman 19th May, Fort Good Hope 2l8t, near Fort 
 Simpson 1st of June. 
 
 Mr. Ogilvie states (1887) that ice closes in at Foi-t 
 Norman about 1st week in November, and at Fort 
 Simpson it closes in about 3rd week in November. 
 
 The ice leaves the river at Fort Macpherson about 
 June 1st. 
 
 Mr. James Mackenzie states that his father — the 
 explorer — always left Fort Simpson and proceeded down 
 the Mackenzie in May. (Committee report, 1888). 
 
 Ice on Great Slave Lake. 
 
 R. Q. McGONNELL, 1888-89. 
 Ice forms in this lake between 20th and end of 
 Ootoberj, and is fast by the middle of November. The 
 ice breaks about Ist July, and sometimes as early as 
 10th June. The channel between Owl Island and the 
 North shora of the lake is said never to freeze ; and 
 Back's experience proved this to be the case during two 
 winters. 
 
 - » . . WM. OGILVIE, 1887-88. 
 
 As a rule ice clears sufficiently for navigation on 
 Great Slave Lake in the last days-in June.- 
 
 On Lake Athabasca the ice goes a little earlier than 
 on Great Slave Lake. 
 
 .' ' . - * 
 Ice on the 5t!kine. 
 Q. M. DAWSON. 1887. 
 The Stikine is generally open for navigation about 
 the last week in April, and uloses about the middle of 
 November. 
 
171 
 
 ■. *ii\ .>4> Ice on Dease Lake. .v.'. •....' ... 
 
 Ice clears on Dease Lake about first week in June 
 and opens about 1st December. 
 
 Ice on the Liardt . . f^ ^ 
 
 Q. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 At the junction of the Dease and Liard, the latter is 
 free from ice, as a rule, from the first week in May to 
 about the first week in November. 
 
 , r ;t . Ice on the Peace* 
 
 Prof. MACOUN, 1888 CommSttM. • • - 
 
 Ice first found on the river first week in November, 
 but the river does not close until about a month later. 
 The tributaries close earlier. >. ^ ,. . . „ ' ; -, 
 
 The river is open to navigation about the middle of 
 April. Captain Butler found it quite open on April 22nd, 
 1873. 
 
 Ice on the Lewes* 
 
 Q. M. DAWSON, 1887. 
 
 The ice on the rivers opens early in May. Loose 
 ice begins to run on the rivers late in September, and 
 freezes about two weeVd later. The lakes ^on the Lewes 
 are not open until early in June. 
 
 Ice on the Yukon* 
 
 Mr. W. Sloan, a B. G. merchant and successful 
 Klondike miner, states in the Financial Times of 16th 
 September, 1897, that in 1896 the ice finally froze on 
 the Yukon about October 20th, and the river opened on 
 16th May this year (1897). 
 
 H. de Windt, 1897.— The Yukon was blocked with 
 ioe in 1896 as early as September 28th. 
 
 The Canadian Observatory Authorities state that 
 in 1896 the Yukon Biver froze up on October 28th, 
 and broke up on May 17th, 1897. 
 
172 
 
 "Mining World," Undon, 2l8t August, 1897. 
 
 Lieutenant Wilkerson, a member of the United 
 States' engineering corps which has been in Alaska for 
 the past three years . . . states, in answer to the 
 question as to how long during the year the Yukon is 
 open for navigation : — '* During the months of July and 
 August only. During the remaining months of the year 
 the ice is from 15 to 30 feet thick. During July and 
 August the ice breaks up, and the river is a mass of 
 floating chunks of ice. Those two months of the year 
 are entirely too short to enable the transportation 
 companies to carry up supplies for any large number of 
 people. « r , * ." 
 
 Ice on Lake Bennett. 
 
 Mr. W. Sloan also states that last year (1896) Lake 
 Bennett was not free for navigation until May 28th. 
 
 Ice on the Churchill River. 
 
 The Hon. W. Christie, late Chief Inspecting Factor 
 tc the Hudson's Bay Company, states in his evidence 
 before the 1888 Committee, that on the Biver Churchill 
 the ice breaks up about June 28th. 
 
 [See Section 11 for distatices.) 
 
 Section X3. Restrictions to large 
 Foreign Joint-Stock Companies 
 on the British Yukon. 
 
 From l\lr. WM. OQILVIE. . - ' 
 
 CuDAHY, 11th January, 1897. 
 
 vabnioiu rich. Men cannot be got to work for love or money, and 
 heip'Reuiiig development (on the Klondike) is consequently slow; 
 
 per 
 honr. 
 
173 
 
 one-and-a-half dollars per hour is the wage paid the few 
 men who have to work on hire and work as many hours 
 as they like. 
 
 The Yukon mining regulations, issued by the Canadian S^J""*"* 
 Government in May this year, state that each miner can reguUtiom. 
 only — on personal application — take up a section 100 ft. 
 by 600 ft. (Placer mining) ; that the Government will 
 reserve every alternate allotment and will charge 10 per 
 cent, royalty on all gold yields up to 500 dollars per 
 week, and 20 per cent, where the yield exceeds 
 this amount. 
 
 In the face of these restrictions there will be but poor bxpomm 
 
 ^ preMnt 
 
 encouragement and httle opportunity for heavy ^™'^'^L 
 capitaUsed English Companies to take up vsJuable 
 claims on any of the Yukon fields and pay good 
 dividends after all expenses in high wages (at present 
 6s. per hour), stores, machinery, and from 6d. to 
 Is. per lb. transport charges have been met. 
 
 The Pamphlet issued by the British Development Association, 
 Limited, 1897, states :— 
 
 " The claim must be actually worked by the owner. Lioenses «in 
 That is to say, no individual or company can take up on pen^^ 
 claims in the names of nominees ; and this is very right Si&ms must 
 and proper in the interests of genuine miners. . . . lao^oMM 
 
 themMhraa. 
 
 " Some companies formed with the object of taking it is a question 
 up claims on the Klondike, have recently come before ^pit'SSa^ 
 the public for subscription. It is by no means clear ffi^^mo^ 
 how any o? these companies can take up more than one namSerrfu^ 
 claim, and the Governmsnt Authorities have expressed S^^S^S^*"" 
 the strongest intention of preventing any evasion of the 
 Mining Laws. Each miner hao to pay any an annual 
 Government License of 15 dollars. 
 
174 
 Seotion 14r« Climate. 
 
 Pro. BELL, M.D., LL-D., Qeologioal Survey, Oanadi. 
 
 ftoi^lLniy ^*^® eyidence showing that the soil in the Northern 
 en the BorfMu. Territory thawed out in Summer, and instanced experi- 
 ments made at York Factory. 
 
 Qeniral Summary of the 1888 Committee. 
 
 ^hMhaT^tan ^^^ ^^^ prevailing South West Summer winds of 
 
 of POTcapine the ooontry in question bring the warmth and moisture 
 which render possible the far Northern cereal growth, 
 and sensibly a£feot the climate of the region under con- 
 sideration as far North as the Arctic Circle and as far 
 East as the Eastern rim of the Mackenzie Basin. 
 
 Extract from Leaflet iseued by the Canadian Paoiflo Railway Go. 
 
 jg*ffa>t> The climate is healthy, the winters long and very 
 acceeaue. cold, but SO devoid of humidity that their intensity is 
 not so keenly felt as would be imagined from the 
 readings of the thermometer, and with a plentiful 
 supply of suitable clothing can be made agreeable. 
 The summers are short and pleasant with very few 
 rainfalls. • ... 
 
 Inspector CONSTANTINE'S Report 
 
 cuoutoiii The cold is said not to be mere intense (in Mac- 
 
 kenzie Bay) than here (at Klondike). 
 
 Daylight in the N.W. Territorie« (Actual Sunlight). 
 
 
 W. OQILVIE. 1887-88. 
 
 - 
 
 , 
 
 Port Macpherson, At Ottawa, 
 
 
 
 h. m. 
 
 
 '•' h. m. 
 
 Lat.67«26' 
 
 ', May Ist, 17 30 
 
 Lat. 46" 
 
 26', 14 08 
 
 »t 
 
 June 1st, 24 00 
 
 **. 
 
 15 16 
 
 - ' H ' 
 
 „ 21st, 2i 00 
 
 » 
 
 16 30 
 
 i> 
 
 July Ist, 24 GO 
 
 It 
 
 16 24 
 
 »# 
 
 Aug. 1st, 19 24 
 
 »» 
 
 14 32 
 
 >f 
 
 „ 81st, 14 44 
 
 II 
 
 13 08 
 
175 
 
 JVlean Temperature at Fort Franklin, Qreat Bear Lakn, 
 
 Ut. 650 la'. 
 
 » •' OfllLVIE, 1887-88. " '• 'r-« 
 
 During May, 86» -2 Fah. • - 
 
 . ' > „ June, 6P-4 „ v - - - ---.r ^•'•r 
 
 „ July, 62* '0 „ • V" ' '^ <«'<' "-' I**"' 
 „ Aug., 60» -6 „ \ 
 
 On two occasions the thermometer went to 78* in 
 the shade and ten times to 70°. ,i7 
 
 ' When I (Ogilvie) arrived at Fort Macpherson on 
 20th June the new buds on the trees were just perceptible, 
 and on the evening of the 22iid the trees were abnost 
 fully in leaf. 
 
 The mean minimum temperature for month of July 
 was 45° -4 F. 
 
 Small Snowfall on the Mackenzie. 
 
 The Hon. Wm. Christie stated in his evidence before 
 the 1888 Committee that the snowfall on the Mackenzie 
 is not so deep. He stated that he found the snowfall 
 much greater in Ontario — as he approached Ottawa— 
 than on the Mackenzie at Fort Simpson, 
 
 The Open 5ea at the Mouth of the Mackenzie* ^ 
 
 Prof. MoCOUN'8 Evidence, 1888 Committee. 
 
 Question — Do you mention that (the drift of Mac- 
 kenzie Biver waters to the eastward in the Arctic Thesearoato 
 Ocean) as evidence that there is open navigation from the MMkrajiie 
 the mouth of the Mackenzie to Behring's Strait ? ^toiogVnai 
 
 Answer — I believe there is, and the reason is very 
 simple. We can get the records from Point Barrow, 
 where the Americans have an observatory for three 
 years. The full reports from that observatory are 
 published. The reason I think there is no obstruction, 
 and that we have a clear coast, is that the drift is to the 
 eastward. . . » . 
 
llG 
 
 £S?iirioS of ^ *°^ prepared to prove that thu mild climate of the 
 
 2roUo*ooeau^* north-west is not an occasional or accidental thing, but 
 
 SpM^euf^' that it is permanent, and that the drift of warm air from 
 
 Basin Tent- both sides of the continent seems to come up the 
 
 Mackenzie Eiver. The isothermal lines show that. 
 
 The rivers in v./hich Sur John Richardson found the 
 
 timber coming down, were near the mouth of the 
 
 Mackenzie Biver, so that I am quite sure mentally that 
 
 the rush of heated air keeps the Arctic Sea open. We 
 
 have hot air passing from the American desert to the 
 
 mouth of the Mackenzie. The American desert is the 
 
 source of the blizzards in Dakota — the source of the 
 
 good climate we have in the north-west territories, and 
 
 the bad climate they have in the States. 
 
 The mildness^ 
 of the N. W. 
 Territory 
 oliowte dne to 
 the movement 
 of theMagnetio 
 Pole westward. 
 
 Important Changes in the Climate. 
 
 Evidence of Mr. JAMES ANDERSON. Quoting from the Diaries of hie 
 Father, the Explorer, before the 1888 Committee. 
 
 Question : — Have not some voyageurs found out 
 that when they get North of the Magnetic Pole the cold 
 is not more intense ? - • r 
 
 Answer: — I do not know that, but from these 
 Diaries I find out that right up near the Arctic Ocean in 
 that new country that was explored there, a great deal 
 of it was as mild as at Fort Simpson in 1862. 
 
 Question : — The cold is not stationary. It has been 
 discovered that it has been gradually moving to the 
 Westward (towards Alaska and Northern Siberia) ? 
 
 Answer : — Yes ; that is the case. 
 
 Question : — We (the Committee) all know that the 
 East Coast of Greenland, within the memory of man, 
 was fertile, and at one time the Queen of Norway used 
 to get her supply of butter made there, though the 
 climate has, since that time, become so cold that butter 
 making has been abandoned. Would that not show that 
 if the Magnetic Pole does move westward the climate 
 changes westward with it ? > . . 
 
177 
 
 Answer : — There is no doubt that the climate is 
 changing, and we have evidenee of it in the prairies of 
 the North West. It is getting milder all the time. 
 
 Section 15* Indians and Esquimaux. 
 
 The Indian population is sparse, and the Indians, ^« Indians 
 
 ^ * are peaceable 
 
 never having lived in large communities are peaceable, and Hkeiv to 
 and their general character and habits as given by mait. 
 witnesses justify a hope that the development of the 
 country, as in the case of the Indians of British Columbia 
 may be aided by them, t • • • 
 
 Extract from the Report by R. G. MoCONNELL, B.A. 
 
 Friendly Eskimo and Indians (Lonoheux) in the 
 neighbourhood of the mouth of the Mackenzie Biver. 
 
 Employment of Indians : their numbers. 
 
 The Indians of the Lower Mackenzie are mere xnmberaof 
 industrious than those of the Upper Begion, and might E°8q^manx in 
 be utilized with great advantage to themselves and *^«^"N'^^' 
 economy to the employer in opening up the coal and 
 petroleiun fields of the Territory. 
 
 In his evidence to the 1888 Senate Committee, Bishop 
 Glut stated that there were 20,000 Indians (not including 
 Esquimaux), in the Mackenzie Basin ; about 14,000 of 
 these were Chipewyan Indians. 
 
 The Esquimaux might number 1,000 but he could 
 not say, nor, he believed, could anyone else. 
 
 N 
 
178 
 
 Trading with the Indians. 
 
 ®^**' ?f* rade ^'* ^^^P*' Whitney in his book Oti Snotv-slioes to 
 
 S^aStatho **^ Barren Grounds, published 1896 (p. 162) referring to 
 to'iies. the matter of trading with the Indians of the far north- 
 
 west of Canada, states : — " There is, of course, no money 
 in the country, a ' made beaver skin ' being the standard 
 of value by which all trade is conducted — as, for 
 example, a marten is worth from two to three beaver 
 skins, and a bear-pelt about twenty beaver skins. A 
 ' made beaver ' is a full grown dressed beaver skin, and 
 its value on rough calculation is equal to about fifty cents, 
 though it fluctuates through the country. 
 
 ThebnsineBa (P. 11.) " Except that goods are now much cheaper 
 
 o* the Hudson \ t e o r 
 
 Bay Company and furs much dearer, the fur-trading business of the 
 mnob the same ^ 
 
 N?w.^el^- Hudson's Bay Company is conducted at its inland posts 
 dSiys omince^ on much the same lines that prevailed when the company 
 "^ was first established." 
 
 Section 16. Fish (freshwater) and 
 
 Game. 
 
 Evidence of J. B. HURLBERT, M.D., LLD. 
 Fowl pientifrd The Arotio explorers found fowl so plentiful there ^ 
 
 In Mackenzie 
 
 Bay that they say you could not throw a stone without 
 
 hitting a goose or duck . , 
 
179 
 
 Evidence of DONALD MolVOR. 
 
 "White and grey wavey, crane, swan, geese and Birds, 
 dnoks in great numbers. Feathers in great quantities 
 turned out of this district every year by the Hudson Bay 
 Company. 
 
 General Summary of the 1888 Committee. 
 Of the fresh water fishes of the region Back's F***-**?.^^ 
 
 «... 1. . 1 i 1 fartherNorth 
 
 *' Grayhng are excellent species not prevalent else- theKieatet the 
 
 where, seems to be found everywhere in its rivers and even 
 
 west of the Becky Mountains, but the staple product of 
 
 its lakes and large rivers seems to be white fish of great 
 
 weight, and trout often reaching 40 lbs. in weight, and 
 
 evidence goes to show that the farther north the greater 
 
 the yield of fish till the quantiuy becomes enormous. 
 
 From the Hon. d. 8GHULTZ. 
 
 . , i . . we have possessed north of the The qnantity 
 isotherm mentioned perhaps the greatest extent of fresh fresh water 
 water food fish .... of any country in the Burpassediii 
 world .... the vast space between the isotherm 
 mentioned and our Canadian Arctic littoral is unsur- 
 passed, not only by the quantity but the quality of its 
 fresh water food fishes, and it will not be to you who 
 have doubtless made the matter a study, a surprise, to 
 find ^'hat the quantity increases as we approach the 
 Arctic Coast. 
 
 Canadian Paoiflo Railway Company's Leaflet, 1897. 
 
 The Yukon basin is an incomparable game country, a great game 
 an important factor to the miners in a land were pro- ***'"*"'' 
 visions naturally command high prices. The upper 
 portion abounds in moose, cariboo, bear and small 
 game, and the rivers and smaller streams are alive with Game, FiBb 
 salmon, whitefish, trout and other species. The lower JSSu^Sacfc 
 country is the breeding ground of innumerable geese, 
 ducks, swans and other fowl. 
 
 the world. 
 
 N 2 
 
180 
 
 Evidence of Mr. FRANK OLIVER, Editor of the " Edmonton Gazette," 
 to Select Committee of 1888. 
 
 WfttCTfowi Waterfowl are plentiful beyond oonoeption in the 
 
 Tond conoep. northern lakes of the Mackenzie Lake and on the Arctic 
 
 coast in the Summer season, and furnish abundance of 
 
 food to the Indians while they remain. 
 
 Fish abound in all the lakes of running water, and 
 the fisheries of Lake Athabasca, Lake Slave, and Great 
 Bear La<ke are at least as valuable as those of the 
 St. Lawrence Chain, while thousands of smaller lakes, 
 especially east of the Mackenzie, are stocked with fish 
 as well, The available fish supply alone is more than 
 ^uf&cient to supply ten times the present population 
 4>f the Mackenzie region. 
 
 ■■'»«■ .. • 
 
 Section 17* Corn, Vegetables arid 
 
 Pasturage. 
 
 (See also Section 25.) 
 
 Evidence 'of Bishop GLUT. 
 
 Com and vege- Wheat, barley, and potatoes, grow well at Fort 
 
 trttwnttie™ Simpson, Lat. 62^. Captain Smith, of steamer 
 
 Arctic Circle «« Wrigley," states that he saw barley, wheat, and 
 
 potatoes, growing as far north as Fort Good Hope, 
 
 on the Mackenzie, north of the Arctic Circle. 
 
 Evidence of J. B. HURLBERT, M.D., LLD. 
 ExceUent The entire area (of the Mackenzie valley) is fit for 
 
 DMtnrage on ^ *' ' 
 
 the Mackeaaie. pasturage, as the native grasses grow over the whole 
 country, even to the shores of the Hudson Bay and 
 Arctic Ocean and down the Mackenzie to the sea. 
 
181 
 
 Dr. DAWSON, 16th August, 1897. 
 
 • ■ 
 
 » • « The Hudson's Bay Company in&ny yeajfs p^tJo"^,„ 
 ago occupied several forts or trading stations in the "'^i^^^^" 
 Yukon country and ascertained by experiment that mougor the 
 barley could actually be grown at Fort Yukon within the 
 Arctic Circle and some distance north of the Klondike. 
 (Barley and potatoes are also grown at Fort Good Hope 
 on the Mackenzie). 
 
 Professor Bell states in hi& evidence before the 1888 Orowtb of 
 
 wbMt and 
 Committee that wheat ripens well &t Norway House barley beyond 
 
 and around Little Playgreen Lake. Barley ripens at 
 Oxford House, as far north as Fort Providence, . . . 
 and I have Been excellent wheat ripen at Lake la Biohei 
 where it is said to be a sure crop every year. 
 
 In the country I traversed between the North 
 Saskatchewan and Lake la Biche the grasses were the 
 most luxuriant I ever saw, being often six feet high. 
 
 Sir J. Bichardson places the northern limit of thd 
 profitable cultivation of wheat in the Mackenzie Valley 
 at Fort Liard on the Liard River (lat. 60** 6') while 
 from trustworthy information obtained by Prof. Macoun 
 it appears that even at Fort Simpson, on the Mackenzie 
 Biver in Lat. 61^ 51' wheat succeeds four times out of 
 five, and barley always ripens from the 12th to the 20th 
 of August. 
 
 In the region of the Peace River Valley there are 
 about 15,140,000 acres of cultivable land, capable of 
 producing over 300,000,000 bushels of wheat. 
 
 tbfl60<>L»t. 
 
182 
 
 Section 
 
 VhafaTonrlto 
 ronte bo far. 
 
 Not possible 
 for beayy 
 traffic and im- 
 sassable for 
 
 No anchorage 
 at Dyea. . . 
 ttae Skagway 
 the favorite 
 landing place. 
 
 A predpioe to 
 be SMoended by 
 topes on tbls 
 note. 
 
 Difficulties of Routes 
 from the Soutli. 
 
 (See also Section 27.) 
 
 From th^ Special Correspondent of the " Pall Mall Gazette," 
 7th Ootober, 1897. 
 
 The favourite route so far has been by the Chilcoot 
 PasB, from Dyea Inlet, on the arm of the Pacific, known 
 as the Lynn Canal. Nine miles from the head of canoe 
 navigation, and 15 miles from salt water, this Pass reaches 
 a height of 3,600 feet ; the grade of the last six miles 
 is nearly 550 feet per mile, along a very rough and rocky 
 road, which is subject to heavy storms from the winds 
 blowing up from the sea. On the other side the descent 
 is not so abrupt, though it is steep. Although this Pass 
 has been the most used up to the present, it cannot be 
 made into a waggon road for bearing traffic, and is 
 almost impassable for horses. The miners carry their 
 outfit and supplies in packs on their backs. At Dyea, 
 it may be remarked, there is no harbour or anchorage. 
 Vessels cannot come near the shore, and are exposed to 
 the violent winds that blow up the inlet. In case of 
 storms they have to take refuge on the Skagway Eiver, 
 three miles south, which is, therefore, gaining in favour 
 as a landing place. 
 
 At Skagway there is a wharf and deep water, where 
 cargo may be discharged at any stage of the tides. From 
 this point the way lies by the White Pass, which is 
 thought easier than the Chilcoot, and is 2,600 feet high, 
 as against 3,600. For six miles along the river flats 
 there is a waggon road, and then there is a well marked 
 trail to the summit, ascending by the canyon of the 
 western fork of the Skagway Biver. Three miles of it 
 is through a box canyon, with a precipice at the upper 
 end, which must be ascended with the aid of ropes. The 
 grade at the latter part of the ascent to the top of the 
 Pass varies from 150 to 300 feet to the mile. From the 
 summit the promoters of this route claim that there ia 
 
183 
 
 a good road, but this is hardly borne out by the experi- 
 ences of prospectors. Perhaps the most convincing 
 evidence of the daiigers of this route is that given by the 
 experience of Assistant Commissioner M'Ibee, of the 
 Dominion Mounted Police, who was ordered to lead a 
 detachment over the Pass to the Klondyke, to assist in 
 preserving order. 
 
 A private letter from one of the Mounted Police now Four miios in 
 
 en route to the Yukon says, that it took nine days to pacR horses 
 
 make four miles, that the boat building party were all day the pass 
 
 more or less sick and very thin, and had sent back for Stor^repaiw. 
 more medicine, as their stock had run out. They were 
 wet all the time, and it rained steadily. 74 pack horses 
 were killed the first day the Pass opened after repairs. 
 
 At Bennett Lake the Chilcooi and Skagway routes 
 unite, but the pioneer is still over 500 miles from the 
 Klondyke, most of which, however, can be done by canoe 
 or boat. The adventurer has to carry his craft with him bewlfdowaand 
 in sections, or hew down trees and build it when he boats buiit. 
 reaches the lakes, which means a delay of several days, 
 as suitable timber is not easy to obtain. A small stream 
 connects Lakes Bennett and Tagish, and the voyagers V 
 
 are carried by a strong current down to the head of the 
 latter very quickly. From Lake Tagish they drift dovra 
 to another small lake, named Lake Marsh, a long shallow 
 body of water. After this the real difficulties of the 
 journey by water begin. 
 
 "White Horse Bapids may, however, be avoided by 
 portage — i. e., by carrying the boat overland till the fall 
 is passed — but this is naturally a long and toilsome 
 business, as the rapids are three-quarters of a mile long. 
 Lake La Barge, which is 85 miles long and 10 wide, is 
 traversed without difficulty, and is connected by Thirty- sanken 
 mile Biver with the Hootalinqua, a tributary of the the river 
 Lewes, which at its junction with the Pelly Eivor forma ^*°*®"'"'* 
 the Yukon. Thirty-mile Biver is very rapid, and has 
 sunken boulders that make it dangerous if caution is not The Hoota- 
 exercised. The Hootalinqua, too, at times, runs a mill- a'i9m-n!o^°*'* 
 
184. 
 
 BkUl and 
 experience 
 
 A mnltltnde of 
 Islands "nd 
 narrow chan- 
 nels full of 
 
 race, and in one day voyagers have drifted to within foar 
 miles of Five linger Eapids, a distance of 125 miles. 
 Five linger Eapids are said to be more dangerous than 
 Miles Bapids described above, but they may be run by 
 a practised hand. In running rapids c rerything depends 
 wanted in run- upon skill and experience. Those without these gifts 
 
 ning rapids. ir c o 
 
 had better take to the more laborious method of portaging. 
 After Five Finger Bapids are passed, the voyage offers 
 no particular difficulty. The Yukon is one of the greatest 
 rivers on the American conticent. In many places it is 
 more than five miles in width, and in others narrower, 
 but deep, and flowing with a strong current. •' You 
 cannot by any means go to sleep, and let your boat 
 drift," says the voyager whose experiences were last 
 quoted. 
 
 There are a multitude of islands, sometimes four or 
 five abreast of each other, and as many channels, some 
 of which are very deep and clear of drift, while others 
 are shallow or narrow and full of drift. Such channels 
 must be avoided. After leaving the lakes, the current 
 rendero it easy to make a daily run of over 100 miles 
 until Dawson City is reached. ■- 
 
 It is, however, a question whether either the Chilcoot 
 or White Pass will be open in the Winter. A Zubron 
 pioneer, with considerable experience in passing to and 
 fro, says, " 'i'he only possible Winter route is by Dalton's 
 Trail (Chilkivb Pass), entailing an expense for a year's 
 supplies of at lea^^j a 1,000 dollars." A great many pack 
 horses are required for this trail, which probably accounts 
 for its not being usee' instead of the Chilcoot and White 
 routes. It is said to be free from heavy ascents and 
 easy to traverse, but only a few have attempted it, so 
 that it cannot be said to have borne the test of experi- 
 ence. The Lynn Canal is left by the Chilkat Inlet, a 
 long and narrow arm of the sea. At the head of the 
 inlet there is a small but good harbour, with shelter from 
 the strong winds prevailing in this mountainous region, 
 an exceptional advantage on this part of the Pacific 
 Coast. A mile north of the harbour the tidal flats of the 
 
 Dalton's trail 
 the only 
 possible 
 Winter tonte. 
 
185 
 
 €hiloat Eiver are encountered, and 20 miles up the 
 Indian village of Klukwau is reached, where the Klaheela 
 Eiver enters from the west. The Chilkat and Klaheela 
 are navigable for canoes, and a pack trail follows the 
 Klaheela to its source. Thence almost directly north to 
 Fort Selkirk, where the Pelly and Lewis rivers unite to 
 form the Yukon ; or if it is desired to take advantage of 
 water transportation at an earlier stage, the Lewes Biver 
 may be struck at Five Finger Rapids mentioned above. 
 Dalton, after whom the trail is named, gives the time 
 required as "nine days light, twelve to fourteen with a 
 load ;" but prospectors who have used it more recently 
 say three weeks. There is an Indian trail from the 
 Chilkat Pass, traversing the same country a little further 
 east, but of this little is known. 
 
 Mr. STUART D. MULKIN'3 Evidence. 
 
 :■ The Pelly Eiver is navigable from Houle Rapids Sord^ttT*** 
 26 miles from Pelly Banks Post to its junction (under ^f;*,S£j^» 
 the name of the Yukon), with the Porcupine River, ^f^lJa.. 
 1,000 miles without a break ; while on the other hand 
 the Lewes River, dowia which the miners from the "West 
 Coast must travel, is broken by numerous rapids and 
 three lakes, out of which the ice does not move untU 
 July. ^ 
 
 « Westminster Gazette," July 27th, 1897. ' ' 
 " The canoe journey up the Stickine (the overland Dangers and 
 
 1 » ji rt ii \ . 1 .1-11 , . r«i . . difflCUltleBOl 
 
 route from the South) is no child s play The incessant the sttddne 
 rains keep the river booming, and make the numerous 
 rapids that it boasts terribly dangerous. In spite of the 
 fikill of the Indian boatmen many an adventurer has 
 been drowned in its chilly flood. When the rapids are 
 ^uite impracticable there is nothing for it but to make a 
 portage. Everything must be unloaded and packed with 
 infinite toil over the slippery trail." 
 
 Boate. 
 
186 
 
 Tba nngnit- 
 ftbleness o( the 
 Sontbent 
 Bonte. 
 
 " Daily Telegraph," July 2gth, 1897. 
 
 " TTnder the most favourable conditions, and sup- 
 posing that steamboats, canoes, and food supplies were 
 all ready and available, the journey would take from five 
 to eight weeks, and the traveller would reach the gold- 
 diggings just as winter was dosing in and mining was, 
 to a great extent, stopped." 
 
 {See also Section 27.) 
 
 Section 19« Canadian sub- Arctic 
 Travelling in Winter. 
 
 Beinde«r feed 
 on twlRB and 
 mosses but 
 food mnst be 
 canght or 
 earned fox dogs 
 
 Why not 
 Beindeer for 
 America In the 
 Far North as 
 in Northern 
 Europe and 
 if 
 
 From the "Westminster Gazette," 27-8-97. 
 
 Will the Canadians be content to still straggle on 
 with dogs and men harnessed as draught animals to the 
 sledges on which supplies must be distributed in tha^i 
 barren and desolate region, or will they be wise in time 
 and make use of the animal which nature has adapted 
 to the zone of frost and snow exactly as she has adapted 
 the camel to the torrid wastes of burning sand ? The 
 tame reindeer has long been the ship of the desert for 
 the fjelds of Northern Norway, and the tundras of 
 Siberia. He should become that of the Arctic wastes of 
 North America. There should be no real difficulty 
 about it. The wild cariboo of North America is none 
 other than the reindeer of the Eur-Asiatic Continent. 
 The countless herds ot cariboo on which the Indians of 
 the Hudson Bay Territory chiefly rely for a subsistence, 
 afford proof positive that the country contains abundant 
 supplies of the reindeer's natural food. • What remains 
 is to introduce the tame variety of the species, whether 
 from Lapland or Siberia, and to make use of it for food 
 and for transport, exactly as is done and has beon 
 done from time immemorial by the Lapps and by the 
 
187 
 
 Samoyecles. The great objection to men and dogs as 
 
 draught animaJs Ih not that they do not pull well. The 
 
 difficulty is that neither men nor dogs can live on moss 
 
 and twigs. Their food must bo hauled for them, or whatdoga 
 
 rather they must haul it for themselves. An average 
 
 dog requires a pound of meat biscuit or of pemmican a 
 
 day, and an average man fully two pounds weight of 
 
 equally concentrated food. In a few weeks either tho 
 
 one or the ether is bound to consume all that he has 
 
 been able to bring with him from the starting-point. 
 
 But the reindeer is all right if only he can find lichen ^J^^**°**" 
 
 and browse. His native home is in the gi'eat lone land, 
 
 where men and dogs alike must starve if they cannot ■ 
 
 carry with them or kill enough to keep them alive. 
 
 That bold explorer Mr. Frederick Jackson was so struck 
 
 by the advantages of the reindeer employed by the 
 
 Samoyedes when he wintered in the Yalmal peninsular, 
 
 that he has taken them with him to Franz-Josef Land. 
 
 "Daily News," 30th August, 1897:— 
 There is a new field also, it seems, for the reindeer. Looo Reindeer 
 
 . already In 
 
 A writer in the New York Nation states the mteresting Alaska, 
 
 ° A problem 
 fact that five hundred have been imported from Siberia soKed. 
 
 into the Lower Yukon region, and with them a number 
 of Lapland families to care for them. Already the 
 number has been doubled in the natural manner, and an 
 experiment is being made of using them for transporta- 
 tion in the mining country. Should these be successful 
 the future of the dog in these regions will, it is to be 
 feared, be more or less behind him. Unlike the dog the 
 reindeer needs no food carried for him. After an eighty 
 mile drive he can be turned loose to forage for himself 
 upon the abundant reindeer moss which covers all the 
 Alaskan fields. ^ When it is necessary to kill him, he 
 furnishes better meat than the dog and more of it, and 
 every portion of him is of value. " The reindeer express More fleet than 
 up the Yukon will be," says the same authority, " almost morenUa^** 
 as fleet and more sure than the steam-cars could be 
 daring the inclemency of an Alaskan winter." 
 
188 
 
 Dog-TraloA for the Yukon. 
 
 "Pall Mall Gazbttb," October 9th, 1897. 
 From its Special Oorrespondent at Vancouver, 28th September, 1897. 
 
 With the dog- trains the Canadian Government hopes 
 
 to keep communication open all the Winter between 
 
 Dyea and Dawson. The dogs, as we see them here, are 
 
 no ordinary animals. They have ^ been bred and trained 
 
 for the especial purpose of hauling supplies through a 
 
 rough country. They weigh on an average 80 lbs., and 
 
 h^^mvbT' b*ve long hair. They are harnessed to a toboggan sleigh 
 
 SM^ 60 miieB in single file, usually four to a sleigh. One such team 
 
 xoni^ oonntry. will draw a load of 500 lbs. over the roughest country; 
 
 and, if conditions are at all favorablej will make 60 miles 
 
 a day. 
 
 " Evening Standard," 17th October, 1897. 
 
 From Sfbolu:i Gobbespondent, Montreal, October 
 
 5th, 1897. 
 The Hon. Clifford Sifton, Canadian Minister of the 
 Interior, has reached the Pacific Coast on his way to the 
 Yukon country. He is accompanied by . . . and 
 Major Walsh commanding a detachment of 20 of the 
 N.W. Mounted Police. These, with Indian runners and 
 sledge-drivers with 120 dogs will make the journey from 
 Lake Tagish to Dawson City (600 miles) along the 
 frozen lakes and rivers of the route. 
 
 High prices for 
 good 
 
 Dog.teama 
 Blloe over 
 frojien lakes 
 drawing heaTy 
 loads with 
 surprising 
 raiddlty. 
 
 Prices and Particulars of Dogs. * 
 
 ** Newcastle Weekly Leader," 4th September, 1897. 
 
 Dogs are so much used for transporting supplies to 
 miners that in Washington and Oregon they have 
 actually become more valuable than horses. . . . 
 
 At Juneau their value is double what it is at Tacoma, 
 and on the Yukon a good dog brings from £25 to £40. 
 
 Up to May, when the ice breaks up, dog-teams slide 
 over the smooth surface of the frozen lakes with sur- 
 prising rapidity considering the loads they carry. 
 
189 
 
 Their food consists principally of fish caught in the 
 'Yukon by the natives. An ordinary dog will eat daily 
 two pounds of dried salmon, which equals seven pounds 
 of fresh fish. 
 
 At Forty-Mile last winter (1896) dried salmon sold 
 at fron lOd. to 2s. per pound, and bacon, that was only 
 fit for dogs to eat, sold for Is. 7d. per pound. 
 
 ■* A good dog weighs between 80 and 90 pounds. 
 
 In some of the larger Yukon camps dogs* boarding- Dog's boarding 
 houses house and feed dogs at from 25s. to £3 per 
 month according to the season and price of fish. 
 
 Buckskin mocassins, after the pattern of a child's ^'^j^.'^ddiS?* 
 stocking, are often provided to keep the animal's feet for dogs, 
 from being worn raw by the ice and snow. 
 
 Pack-saddles for dogs, so arranged that dogs can 
 carry from 10 to 20 poimds each as well as draw a sled, 
 are coming into use. 
 
 Dogs will be needed on the Yukon in large numbers 
 for years to come. , .... 
 
 River Travel in Winter. 
 
 In thQ Strand Magazine for October, 1897, Mr. Harry 
 de Windt supplies a photograph of a team of dogs draw- 
 ing a sleigh along the ice of a frozen river, which 
 appears very level, with a few inches of snow upon it. 
 He represents this method as the means by which the 
 rivers are traversed in Alaska in Winter, 
 
 Reindeer Transport. 
 
 "Canadian Gazette," October 7th, 1897. 
 
 • Secretary Bliss is, says a Washington item, taking Reindeer for 
 a great deal of interest in different propositions to extend siver. °° 
 aid to the miners in the Yukon regions who are apt to 
 Buffer this winter from lack of food. He directed the 
 Commissioner of Education, on September 21st, to send 
 instructions to the Teller Eeindeer Station to have all 
 
193 
 
 the reindear, which are trained to draw sledges, sent to 
 St. Michael. Here they will be kept during the winter, 
 and if occasion should arise they can be utilised to trans- 
 port provisions to the Klondike. Reindeer will draw 
 800 pounds of food, and travel from 50 to 100 miles 
 a day. 
 
 Ghearfnl 
 prospect 
 orsTelling 
 along frozen 
 rivers GO and 
 10 degrees 
 below zero. 
 
 River Travelling: on the Yukon. 
 
 "Tablet," October eth, 1897. 
 
 The following extract is taken from a long interview, 
 in the Baltimore Sun, with the celebrated Father Bamum, 
 who, for some years, has been engaged in missionary 
 work in North-West Alaska. 
 
 " He was at St. Michael getting his winter supplies 
 when I arrived, and spoke as cheerfully ot CO and 70 
 degrees below zero, and travelling by a dog-sledge over 
 icy rivers from one district to another, as a man who 
 contemplated some pleasant scene." 
 
 Traversing the Mr. Casper Whitney, in his work On Snow-shoes to 
 
 the Barren Grounds (p. 803), states that — " Waterways 
 are the highways in the country for canoes in summer 
 and for snow-shoes and sledges in winter." 
 
 highways of 
 the N. W. 
 TenitorleB. 
 
 Section 20. Population of the Future. 
 
 Dr. DAWSON, 16th August, 1897. 
 
 The whole A considerable population will become resident in 
 
 soonbeiMgeiy the Yukon district, and railways will be provided to 
 
 connect it with the Canadian system. ... It 
 
 BaUways from required only the discovery of these rich far northern 
 
 goldfields to Induce the miners to investigate the whole 
 
 territory, and this will now follow very rapidly. 
 
191 - 
 
 Briefly stated, I should say that the placer mining The wboi« 
 DOW fairly begun on the Klondike is likely to continue flued with 
 for a number of years, the maximum output being . f'Settiemrat 
 attained next year or the year after. Meanwhile the permanent 
 
 whole country will be filled with prospectors oore^ ot 
 
 The very general distribution of fine gold along the rivers ''*"*■ '•^•' 
 of the whole district, with the geological structure of 
 the country so far as this is known, go to show that 
 other rich placer mining districts will undoubtedly be 
 discovered. Each of these will have a similar history, 
 but in the meantime quartia will be discovered. 
 
 " Financial Guide," 9th August, 1897. 
 
 "In a few years time, in all human probability, the Theoonntir 
 country that is now ice and snow will be transformed snow wui be 
 by the magic influence of gold. There is no reason to tMnsiomed. ' 
 doubt — nay, it is almost an absolute certainty — that the 
 history of the past in California, in Australia, and in 
 South Africa, will be the history of the future in British 
 Columbia. One difference is sure to be noted, which is 
 that the Yukon district may be expected to prove far 
 richer than any goldfield in Califomiai or Australia, or 
 South Africa." 
 
 New Yorl( Gorreepondent of the " Daily Mail," states:— 
 
 "Mr. John W. Mackay, the Bonanza King, and The Bonanga 
 president of the Commercial Cable Company, says : — prophesies the 
 
 •*■•'"' rapid opeiilog 
 
 ' I am sure the Klondike goldfields are enormously rich, np oj the 
 
 country. 
 
 Capital will fly there and open up the country, and 
 enable vast fortunes to be made.' " 
 
 Evidence of the Hon. WM. CHRISTIE to 1888 Senate Committee. 
 
 Question : — I suppose the Peace Eiver country is a Agrioniture oa 
 
 . the Peace 
 
 ^considerable size — in fact there is enough land there to Bivex. 
 make a new Province ? 
 
 Answer: — ^Yes, I sometimes hear the opinion ex- 
 pressed that our country may ere long become over 
 jpopulated, but there is not the slightest danger of that. 
 
192 
 
 You need not be afraid how many immigrants come inta 
 the country to settle. You may bring in all the immi- 
 grants Europe can send you. There is room for all in 
 the Saskatchewan and Peace Biver country. There is a 
 A TMte^nt vast extent of splendid country from Prince Albert on 
 oonntey. the whole north side of the Saskatchewan, going away 
 
 up until near Fort Pitt, keeping a little to the north. 
 Then when you come to the route of Green Lake, there 
 is two days' journey through a magnificent country, 
 beautifully timbered, well watered, and supplied with 
 abundance of fish. As I travelled through it, I remarked 
 to one of my men, "what a splendid country to settle 
 in. 
 
 •' The "Rush" of '98 to alter the face of the Country. 
 
 Mr. de WINDT in the "Strand" of October, 1897. 
 
 As to the great Klondike " rush " next spring (1898), 
 there is no doubt it will alter the face of the entire 
 region, the climate notwithstanding. Railways and 
 steamships and telegraphs will soon be established. 
 Fortunes will be made and the unlucky forced to the 
 wall. Sensational reports may be expected daily, for 
 the place is a real Tom Tiddler's ground, honey-combed 
 by rivers and creeks with sands of gold. There is plenty 
 of room for all between Klondike and the Cassiar. 
 
 New Coiners must go far Afield. 
 
 from the "Daily Chronicle" Special Correspondent. 
 
 Daily Cheoniolb, 11th October, 1897. 
 
 The only way now to share the riches of the Klondike 
 district is to buy an interest in one of the existing claims 
 and for this much capital is needed. Prices are enormous, 
 running from £40 to £100 cash per lineal foot. No man 
 with less than £5,000 to £10,000 can hope to buy 
 himself into a good property, and much larger sums 
 are needed to acquire a substantial share. During the 
 past year prospecting has been vigorously carried on^ 
 
193 
 
 but no new strikes of any importance have been made, 
 though there have been numerous stampedes, and 
 many claims have been staked out to Hunker, Henderson 
 and Dominion Creeks. 
 
 The only chance for the thousands of new comers who 
 are now pouring into the country is either to work at the 
 mines for wages or to prospect in new and unexplored 
 ground. 
 
 Section 21« Present and Prospective 
 Routes to the Gold Fields. 
 
 (See also Sections 10 and 11 .j 
 
 J-4, 
 
 1. St. Michael's Eoutb. 
 
 From Norton Sound at the entrance to Behring 
 
 Strait, up the Yukon Eiver. 
 {See Section 11 for distances). 
 
 2. The Chilkoot Pass Eoute v 
 
 (identical with the Taiya) See Sections 10 (parts 
 o m n -D-D E, S, T and V), 18, 
 
 8. The Chilkat Pass Eoute . & 27 for description, 
 
 4. The Taiya Pass Eoute and Section 11 for 
 
 6. The White Pass Eoute 
 
 6. Behking Strait to Mouth of Mackenzie Eiver. 
 This route is only possible during little more than 
 three months in the Summer, while the sea is 
 free from ice. It is, at present, only used by 
 whalers from San Francisco. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances, and Sections 5, 8, 
 9, 14, 24 and 25 for description, and other par- 
 ticulars bearing on this route.) 
 
194 
 
 7. Thb Maokbuzib BivEB Bouts. ■■v<.t"v: 
 
 * -- From the "Ghronioie" 8peoi»i CorrMpondent :— 
 -„,„... London, Daily Cheoniole, IGth Sept., 1897. 
 
 One of the Trails via Edmonton. This is the route 
 taken by the Hudson Bay Company's men. It follows 
 the Paace Biver eventually into the Mackenzie and 
 thenoe there is a carry of about 70 miles to the waters 
 
 of the Porcupine Biver The route is 
 
 down the Porcupine to its junction with the Yukon. 
 But this is 300 miles below Dawson, with a stiff current 
 against one. The intention is to turn to the southward, 
 and by a trail to be cut of not more than 125 miles, to 
 strike the. headwaters of the Klondike. 
 
 A route via tho 
 month of the 
 Haok^ude 
 Biver. 
 
 BoTite broken 
 by Bapids and 
 a 80 mile road 
 
 Edmonton Route, via the Mackenzie River. 
 
 "Evening Standard" October 7th, 1897. 
 From its Special Correspondent. 
 
 Still another route, which is claimed to be easier, 
 though it is a long way round, is from the Canadian 
 Pacific Bailroad station at Edmonton, in the North- 
 West Territories, by way of the Mackenzie Biver and 
 Fort Macpherson. Bishop Clut, of Mackenzie Biver, 
 strongly recommends it. '*It may take longer," he 
 says, •' but the difficulties the prospectors will have to 
 overcome will be certainly very much less than in going 
 through the Passes from Dyea on the Pacific coast." 
 The McDougall Pass, by which the mountains are 
 crossed, ib only twelve hundred feet high, and almost 
 the whole of the rest of the distance can be done by 
 canoe. The half-breeds of St. Albert have formed an 
 association of competent guides, and several prospectors 
 have taken this route, in view of the high prices charged 
 for transportation of supplies over the passes from Dyea 
 inlet. From Edmonton the adventurers travel ninety 
 miles by waggon-road to Athabasca Landing, then by 
 canoe down the Athabasca Biver to Grand Bapids, one 
 hundred and forty-five miles. Several small rapids 
 which are encountered in succession are easily portaged, 
 and Fort MoMurray, on Athabasca Lake, is reached 
 
195 
 
 ^thout difficulty. Erom there they proceed down the 
 Great Slb7e Biver to Smith's Landing, where there is & 
 portage of fourteen miles by oz-cart to Fort Smith. 
 The south-west shore of Great Slave Lake is sku-ted 
 for some one hundred and twenty miles, which will 
 bring the party to the Mackenzie Biver, and on down to 
 Fort Macpherson. The distance from Foxi; Smith to 
 Fort Macpherson ia one thousand two hundred and 
 eighty miles, all down stream. From Fort Macpherson seTetaipoi- 
 the adventurers proceed down the Peel Eiver, fiftesn ^^ 
 miles to Bat Biver, where a succession of portages will 
 be made with the aid of Indian guides. The Foicupine 
 Biver is then descended to the Yukon Eiver, three 
 hundred miles from Fort Macpherson. They then 
 ascen.i the Yukon two hundred and sixty miles to Diatanoa from 
 Dawson (Ji^y; the distance traversed from Edmonton p^ifloBi2fiw°r 
 is two thousand four hundred and fifty-eight miles, two 8°4w nSSS*"* 
 thousand one hundred and eighty-two of which is down 
 stream. The Government are surveying this route, but 
 there seems no doubt of its practicability. It has been 
 frequently used by hunters and traders, and Mr. Ogilvie, 
 of the Dominion Survey, who knows more of the 
 Klondyke than any other man, travelled by it some 
 years ago. • ■'.: ■: ..T:».;-;r-i ■' o;^/« '^.r^'.'^*^^^ 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances, and Sections 10, 12, 
 14, 19 and 22 for description and other par- 
 ticulars. See also Eoute No. 14 further on.) 
 
 Note. — It is more than likely that some of the 
 large rivers running into the Mackenzie from 
 the West, notably the Peace, Liard and, par- 
 ticularly, the Cacajou, will be utilised as 
 waterways into the goldbearing regions of the 
 Far North "West in the near future. 
 
 8. The Peace BivKR Eoute. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances, and Section 10, 
 part M, for particulars). ^. . ,> .^ ~ 
 
 9. The Liard BivEB Eoute. -^v- m-v"' iiu-* u ui.;.,j i 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances on the Pelly after 
 leaving the Liard Eiver, and Section 10, part K, 
 
 2 
 
196 
 
 '"' for description and distances on the Liard, 
 
 ■*.n<^ •>-, jijg^jjQQg Lg^j^Q j^jj^^ Overfand to the Pelly). 
 
 10. Thb Stikine Eivbe Eoute via Teslin Lake. 
 
 (See Section 11 for distances after leaving Teslin 
 Lake, and Section 10, part N. for distances on 
 Lower Stikine, and descriptive particulars.) 
 
 11. The Taku Eiveb Eoute via Teslin Lake. 
 
 {See Section 11 for distances from Teslin Lake,- 
 and Section 10, part W, for distances from Inlet 
 to Lake, and other particulars.) 
 
 12. Bound's Overland Eoute. 
 
 Across Chilkat Pass to the Lewes Eiver at Five 
 Finger Eapids. It is to the east of Dalton's 
 trail, and about 180 miles from Pass to Eapids. 
 This trail is, also, said to extend to Link Eapids, 
 on the Yukon. It is reported to be an easy 
 route for horses in the Summer season. 
 
 13. Dalton's Overland Eoute. 
 
 From Chilkat Pass to the mouth of the Norden- 
 skiold Eiver on the Lewes ; distance about 170 
 , . miles. Though this distance is token from the 
 Pass, Dalton's actual trail begins at Chilkat 
 Inlet, passes to the west of Chilkat Pass, and 
 while occasionally touching the river at the 
 point above-mentioned, it passes at no great 
 distance from the Lewes right on to Fort 
 Selkirk. Dalton will not permit anyone to 
 accompany him on this route. 
 
 14. The Edmonton Eoutes. 
 
 There are at least three routes proposed from 
 Edmonton to which place there is a branch of 
 the Canadian Pacific Eailway. They are — 
 
 (a) The route mentioned in this Section, 1st 
 paragraph under the heading — *' Mackenzie 
 Eiver Eoute," Eoute 7. ... 
 
 *■ ' (6) A proposed Branch of the Canadian Pacific 
 Eailway from Edmonton to the Athabasca 
 
197 
 
 Biver, thence by Athabasoa Lake and 
 Slave Eiver to the Great Slave Lake. 
 (There are 14 miles of broken water on the 
 Slave Eiver, and 70 miles on the Athabasca. 
 Mr. McConnell and Bishop Glut 1888 
 ;:,,.., Report). From these Lakes the Mackenzie 
 Biver and its Tributaries offer means 
 referred to elsewhere, under sections 10, 11, 
 12, 19 and 22, of getting across the moun- 
 tains into the Upper Yukon Country. (See 
 part headed-—" The most likely Boute from 
 Edmonton to the Yukon.") 
 
 Of all the routes from the Mackenzie, 
 those from near its mouth down the Feel or 
 Porcupine Bivers appear to be the easiesti 
 best known, and least expensive, for about 
 three or four months in the year. 
 
 (c) The third route from Edmonton may be 
 termed rather "a large order." for a 
 railway at this stage of the development 
 of the Far North West, but it has the 
 merit of being an easy though long route 
 overland. 
 
 The following evidence by Stuart D. Mulkins, Esq., 
 to the Select Committee of the Senate of the 
 Dominion in 1888, describes this route, and 
 supplies distances : — 
 
 Fort Saskatchewan, 27th February, 1888. 
 Having seen by the public prints that you intend 
 during the present session of Parliament to call 
 for a Committee of the Senate to take evidence 
 and obtain information with regard to the 
 extreme North West, and the best mode of 
 obtaining access thereto, I take the liberty of 
 sending you some information collected from 
 persons who have travelled through the Eocky 
 Mountain region, and also a suggestion as to a 
 cheap and serviceable route. The recent dis- 
 coveries of gold on the headwaters of the Yukon 
 
198 
 
 ' Biver have added importance to that oornitry^ 
 
 «. T* ■« 5 
 
 and if Canada intends to enjoy the benefit to be 
 derived from them, an easy route must be 
 devised whioh will enable the miners to enter 
 with sufiGioient supplies to enable them to work 
 ('oring at least two seasons, and such route 
 ■ Jaust commence and run through our territory. 
 
 ' ' A waggon road starting from here or Edmonton 
 
 i:;:-:.:: to the Head of Pelly Eiver, the main branch 
 
 "' -^ " of the Yukon, would fiU the biU and bring 
 
 under 800 miles in length, of which 180 miles 
 
 •-' is already completed, and 200 miles may be 
 
 ■:'ii:i L classed as light prairie, and the balance (360) 
 
 light timber — that is, openings and bluffs. 
 
 ,. ; ... This route would run to the Athabasca Landing 
 
 , ^ (90 miles of road built), thence to Lesser Slave 
 
 Lake post (160 miles), thence to Peace Eiver 
 
 (90 miles of road built), thence to Fort HaJkett, 
 
 on the Liard Eiver (200 miles), thence to the 
 
 head of Pelly Eiver (200 miles). The distance 
 
 sounds long, but from the information I have 
 
 obtained it seems that in no peirt of the whole 
 
 distance is the timber heavy, muskegs are few 
 
 and short, and all agree that the road is quite 
 
 practicable. 
 
 The advantages of such a route are obvious. 
 When it crossed the Peace Eiver and Liard 
 Eiver it would give command of those rivers, 
 and in fact the whole of the Mackenzie Eiver 
 basin, without having to pass the dangerous 
 rapids on the Athabasca Eiver, and the long 
 traverse across the Great Slave Lake. 
 
 It would also be the cheapest route to the miner 
 . . going to the Yukon or the Gassier mines ; in 
 fact, valuable mines exist on the Liard that 
 have been worked more or less ever since 1873. 
 The miner going to the Yukon would be able 
 to reach the mining ground a month earlier 
 than he possibly could by the Pacific Coast 
 route. 
 
19y 
 
 Other routes from Edmonton axQ referred to by the 
 Hon. G. H. Mackintosh, Lieut.-Goyernor of the N.W. 
 Territories, when interviewed by a correspondent of the 
 Pall Mall Gazette. He stated — , , 
 
 y"= "Pall Mall Gazette," Sept. 16,1897. 
 
 "The other route (after mentioning that of the 
 Stikine), also through British Territory, and for most of 
 its length a waterway, starts from Edmonton. Thence 
 you strike N.W. until you come to Dun vegan on the 
 Peace Biver, which will carry you into the Mackenzie. 
 Effecting, at times, a portage at Fort Macpherson, you 
 will find yourself in the Porcupine River, which will take 
 you into the Yukon, dose to Fort Yukon. ?> '^i^ 
 
 V ...... 
 
 "As an alternative, you can follow Mr. Moberly'a 
 route from Edmonton. You first make T£te Jeune 
 Cache, where you light on the North Western water 
 stretches. After negotiating Giscome Portage, the 
 Parsnip Biver helps you on a bit, when Lake Francis 
 becomes your objective. Then you get on to the Pelly 
 Biver, a tributary of the Yukon. The distance is, 
 approximately, 1,590 miles, a shorter route, but one 
 which seems to involve a good deal of cross-country 
 work. Still, the Hudson Bay Co.'s people have travelled 
 up and down these lines for a good many years. So you 
 see it is quite possible to reach the Klondike without 
 either a journey of 6,000 miles via St. Michael, or a 
 troublesome bit of work over the Chilkoot Pass." 
 
 All-Canadian Routes. 
 
 "Canadian Gazette," October 7th, 1897. 
 
 Mr. John A. Grose, of the Dominion Burglary Guar- 
 antee Company, leaves Montreal about December 1st for 
 Klondike, travelling overland from Edmonton. He will 
 not, however, follow the Mackenzie Biver. He will do 
 his travelling by sledge, and will use either dogs or overtond."''* ^ 
 ponies. The route followed will be : from Edmonton to roiite*£M only* 
 Peace Biver Crossing, 260 miles; down the Peace Biver to SSid^bwak. 
 
200 
 
 Nelson Porks, 240 miles ; from Nelson Forks to the Liard 
 Biver, 120 miles ; along the Liard to the Dease River, 
 160 miles ; from the Dease Eiver to the Pelly Eiver, 170 
 miles ; down the Pelly to the junction with the Lewes, 
 220 miles, and from there to the Klondike, 200 miles, 
 making a total distance of 1,370 miles. This route is 
 considerably shorter than by way of the Mackenzie Eiver. 
 
 Ha^»cfenz!e Another Canadian party, of Hamilton, of which Mr. 
 
 »«*0M"» A. H. H. Heming, artist, is at the head, leaves Hamilton 
 early in April. The trip will be, from Edmonton, 2,453 
 miles to the goldfields, of which 2,182 miles are down 
 stream. It will take just two months from the time of 
 starting to reach the goldfields, and this will leave the 
 members of the expedition two months, or, at the least, 
 a month and a-half to prepare themselves for the hard- 
 ships of the winter. The cost will, it is claimed, be just 
 about half of the ordinary expense. The number is 
 limited to 100. 
 
 The most likely Route from Edmonton to the Yukon. 
 
 Mr. Eoger Pooock contributes the following to 
 Lloyds' Weekly of 14th November, 1897: — A party of 
 Mounted Police, under Inspector Moodie, has been sent 
 with horses to examine an overland route, still largely 
 unexplored, from Edmonton to the Pelly River, which 
 enters the Yukon 172 miles above Dawson City. By the 
 courtesy of the Mounted Police Department I am able to 
 reproduce here the hitherto unpublished information 
 collected for Inspector Moodie from all sources available. 
 Should his report be favourable the Canadian Government 
 \vill open the route for travel :« — 
 
 MILES. 
 
 Edmonton to Old Fort Assiniboine (abandoned), 
 on Athabasca River by old cart trail. Cross 
 Athabasca Eiver 76 
 
 I'ort Assiniboine to West end Lesser Slave Lake 
 by old Hudson's Bay Company's trail ; when 
 last heard of in very bad condition and often 
 very swampy 136 
 
201 
 
 Lesser Slave Lake to Peace Eiver at the mouth of 
 
 Smoky; cart road. Cross Peace River ... 65 
 
 By fairly good trail, in part already passable for 
 
 carts, to Fort St. John, up the Peace Rivar 146 
 
 Fort St. John on Peace River in a N.W. direction. 
 No trail practicable for loaded animals. From • 
 Mr. Ogilvie's report classified — for difi&culty 
 of road construction — as medium, to mouth 
 of Nelson River on the Liard 270 
 
 Cross Nelson River, say 10 miles above mouth ; 
 Nelson River up Liard, crossing Toad River 
 easy (to advanced basis of supplies per water 
 
 f(jllu6] ••• ••• ••• ••• ••• ••• *w 
 
 Cross Liard River and follow the bank of Grand 
 
 Canyon (over 1,000 feet climb) difficult ... 20 
 
 Grand Canyon, following north bank of Liard, 
 crossing Deer, Smith, Coal, and Macpherson . 
 Rivers, 100 miles medium, 30 miles easy to 
 mouth of Dease River, which flows in from 
 the Cassiar mining country to the S. W. ... 135 
 
 Dease River northward up east bank of Liard, and 
 
 the Francis tributary to latitude 60° 30' N. 40 
 
 Thence northward, medium 20 
 
 Thence northward to lower end of Frances Lake, 
 one of the higher sources of the Liard, 
 crossing one river, easy 25 
 
 Cross Frances River at lower end of Fiances Lake 
 and up west side of lake, and strike Finlayson 
 Pwiver above its Canyon. Medium 20 miles, 
 difficult 5 miles. Crossing the divide between 
 the Yukon and Mackenzie River systems ... 25 
 
 Along Finlayson Eiver and Lake, &c., to Pelly 
 Eiver, following on bank, say 30 miles easy, 
 12 miles medium 42 
 
 Cross Pelly River and follow down on bank to 
 
 Hoole Canyon easy 30 
 
 Hoole Canyon is the highest point to which Pelly 
 River might be navigated by steamers of light 
 draught and good power at favourable stages 
 of water, to site of Fort Selkirk, where there 
 
202 
 
 MILBS. 
 
 7 is a trading posfc, and where the confluence 
 
 t'' of Felly and Lewes Bivers forms the Yukon, 
 
 ! 270 miles following bends of river. Following 
 
 ' the bank of Felly by trail striking across to 
 
 Macmillan valley from the detour, striking 
 
 / that river 20 miles above its mouth, Boss and 
 
 ' Macmillan Bivers must be crossed. A few 
 
 miles here and there would be difficult. Other 
 
 I long stretches easy — classed medium ... 175 
 
 Fort Selkirk down the Yukon to Dawson Oity ... 172 
 
 Edmonton to Dawson 1,414 
 
 As a means of reaching the Klondike this long, over- 
 land trail of 1,067 miles from the plains is not so good 
 as the short portage of 150 miles from the Stiokeen to 
 Lake Teslin, with its equally short run by boat down the 
 Yukon; but as a way for sending in cattle Inspector 
 Moodie's route will probably afford better feed than the 
 Dalton. Dawson City is not, however, the main objective 
 for most travellers. The objective is gold, and that is not 
 to be found in an overcrowded camp like the Klondike. 
 
 (See also under Boute 7.) . . . 
 
 16. The Chxtbohill Boutb fbom Hudson's Bat. 
 
 This route is by a railway which The Chartered 
 Hudson's Bay and Facific Bailway Go. proposes 
 to build from Churchill Harbor. It is proposed 
 to divide the line into three sections : — 
 
 a. From Fort Churchill to Sea Falls, 350 miles, 
 
 where it would be joined by the line at 
 present under construction from Winnipeg. 
 
 b. Section two, from Sea Falls to Frince Albert, 
 
 about 300 miles. 
 e. From Frince Albert via Battlef ord to Edmonton 
 about 350 miles ; this would connect with 
 the Canadian Facific Company's line. 
 
 The value of this line, so far as the Yukon gold- 
 fields are concerned, lies in its connection at 
 Edmonton with the routes to the Yukon Valley 
 and Mackenzie Biver proposed from that place. 
 
203 
 
 -ai jjj jjIjq event of a route being constructed from 
 Edmonton to the Yukon, thia Churchill lino 
 would prove an easy and very direct means o! 
 reaching the Far North West from England. 
 The distance from Liverpool to Churchill Harbor 
 is only 2,926 miles, whereas from Liverpool to 
 New York it is 3,040 miles, and to Montreal 
 2,990. But it is also necessary to note that 
 ^ ^ from Winnipeg to Liverpool via Montreal it is 
 
 X; 570 more by land than by this proposed 
 Churchill routo. 
 
 16. The Old Hudson Bay Eoutb from York 
 Factory at the Mouth op the Nelson, Hudson Bay, 
 TO THE Mackenzie Eiver. ^ j, ,,-!■. 
 
 Evidence of the Hon. \Vm. CHRISTIE, late Inspecting Chief Factor 
 ' of the Hudson Bay Co., to the 1888 Committee. ..> 
 
 Supplies were shipped from England to York AndWronie 
 
 T^ , T-r 1 T* r»,i . » ,1 Via Hudson's 
 
 Factory, on Hudson Bay. The route from there was up Bay. 
 Hayes and Hill Bivers, and through the lakes up to 
 Norway House, at the north end of Lake Winnipeg, 
 on Jack Biver. Then through Lake Winnipeg, up the 
 Saskatchewan, past the Grand Bapid, on to Portage La 
 Loche, on to the head of Navigation. 
 
 U«S. American v. British Territory routes to tfie Yukon 
 
 goldflelds. 
 
 " Manchester Courier," August 4th, 1897. 
 
 It (the establishment of routes through American Present Pacifio 
 Territories to the Yukon goldfields) seems to establish a baok-aoor^ ' 
 back-door entrance for the special convenience of our oar American 
 American cousins. There is certainly scope in the ''°°"*°'" 
 district for the energies of both Britisher and Yankee, 
 and there is no desire on the part of this country to 
 " play a Yukon for a Behring." All the same, the back* 
 door arrangement must be regarded as unsatisfactory in 
 view of the possibility of making a front-door which would 
 
204 
 
 A preterabie 
 tonte, via the 
 Mackeneie 
 Blver. 
 
 thi route via 
 Hudson's Bay, 
 the Great 
 81avc Lake nnd 
 Mackenzie 
 fiirer. 
 
 The Klondike 
 gold deposits 
 traced to the 
 Kooky 
 Mountains 
 between the 
 Yukon and 
 the Mackenzie. 
 
 be at least 2,000 miles nearer England than the ciroaitous 
 route by way of Vancouver Island and Juneau. This 
 possibility has been indicated in a memorial from the 
 people of Winnipeg, drawing attention to the advantages 
 for direct water communication with Klondyke which 
 are offered by the great chain of lakes and rivers 
 extending all the way from Manitoba to the mouth of the 
 Mackenzie Biver, which, although it falls into the Arctio 
 Ocean, is within comparatively easy hail of the more 
 easterly districts into which the gold discoveries are 
 rapidly being extended. Lake Athabasca, Slave Eiver, 
 Great Slave Lake, and the Mackenzie Biver are 
 navigable during at least four months of the year, and in 
 order to reach the chain from England it would not be 
 necessary to proceed to Winnipeg in the first instance. 
 Thirteen years ago the commander of the naval expedi- 
 tion, which was despatched by the British Government 
 to ascertain the feasibility of establishing regular steam- 
 ship communication between this country and the western 
 shores of Hudson's Bay, reported that the straits are 
 perfectly free of ice, every year, from the beginning of 
 June to the end of October. He also called attention to 
 the suggestive fact that the distance between England 
 and Fort Churchill, on this coast, is actually less than the 
 distance between Liverpool and New York. There 
 seems to be every probability that the whole of the 1,300 
 miles' length of the Eocky Mountain range, which extends 
 northwards through British America, will prove to be 
 quite as rich in minerals as the United States portion. 
 It has been tapped at both ends with dazzling results. 
 The quartz reefs to which the Klondyke deposits are 
 being traced prove to be even richer than the mines of 
 British Columbia. Before the great intermediate portion 
 of the range can be explored, advantage will certainly 
 have to be taken of the means of water carriage offered 
 by the great chain of rivers and lakes which is such a 
 conspicuous feature in the map of the North-West 
 Territories. The country traversed by it has a much 
 milder climate than that of Alaska, and is abundantly 
 fertile in parts. Wheat is said to grow well in the valley 
 
2C5 
 
 of the Maokenzio Bivor, oven as far north as the neigh- 
 bourhood of the Arotio Circle, and many other crops can 
 be brought to maturity during the brief but hot summer 
 of that littlo-known region. Thus one of the chief f Brituh 
 
 " front-door to 
 
 difficulties experienced at Klondyke would be solved by *''*' "•y. 
 the opening of a British front-door to that region, at the by » roate 
 same time that the development of the whole of the acroHathe 
 North-Wost Territories would receive the stimulus that Territories, 
 is alone needed to bring its immense natural resources 
 within the range of British enterprise, and thus open up 
 new markets for British trade. 
 
 17, The Chesterfield Inlet and Mackenzie 
 BivEB Route. — This proposed route is the most 
 attractive to English commercial interests. 
 (Sec Section 22, next page.) 
 
 Another Route from Mackenzie River to the 
 Stewart Headwaters. 
 
 The Calgary Herald of 16th September, 1897, con- 
 tains the following paragraph concerning an important 
 expedition that has left for the Yukon. " Messrs. B. 
 Filon, J. Lamoreaux, Louis Lamoreaux, E. St. Jean and 
 M. Verrault, of Fort Saskatchewan, left Edmonton about 
 July 15th. They built a boat at Athabasca Landing, 
 and got away from there about August 1st. Mr. Pilon 
 had gone to the Yukon, by the Mackenzie route some 
 years before. 
 
 On this occasion he intended to reach a river which ^J^l^^ ''°" 
 
 the Stewart 
 
 comes into the Mackenzie from the mountains near Fort "<>*'*,T*«'" '" 
 
 . Fort Wrigloy 
 
 WrisleV. on the 
 
 ° •' Mackenzie. 
 
 During his former trip he had heard from Indians 
 who had come down that river, that they had been west 
 of the mountains to a river where the white men were 
 mining gold. This he supposed to be the Stewart Elver. 
 He proposed to winter as far up the tributary of the 
 Mackenzie as possible, and make across to the river west 
 of the mountains either during the winter or in spring. 
 If this was found impracticable he would take the Peel 
 Eiver route to the Yukon. 
 
 Several parties had already started down the Mac- Apopniarronto 
 
 •' from Calgary is 
 
 Kenzie to traverse the Peel Eiver route. flown the Mac- 
 
 _ kenzie and Feel 
 
 L 2 . Bivers. 
 
206 
 
 
 Section 22. The Chesterfield Inlet 
 
 ,.,.,'. -r ..v-r u vi..>„,.: Route. "■■•.'-■''' -'■-■ ••■ 
 
 It is proposed to build a railway from the river at 
 the head of this Inlet to Great Slave Lake, a distance 
 of 175 miles (this distance is covered for a considerable 
 distance, if not all the way, by navigable waterways), 
 through fairly easy country. The Mackenzie River, 
 navigable for steamers drawing 6 ft. to 6 ft. from four 
 to five months in the year, would then be available. 
 This scheme also allows for a 50 mile railway line from 
 the mouth of the Mackenzie to the Porcupine Eiver, 
 a navigable tributary of the Yukon. 
 
 The Financial News of July 30th and August 28th 
 refers to this route rather favourably, as also does the 
 Financial Times of August 16th. Its advantages are 
 many and should appeal strongly to English views. 
 
 a. It would bring the Yukon Territory within nearly 
 ■ ' two weeks' distance from Liverpool. 
 
 b. The time in reaching the Territory from England 
 
 by this proposed route would be shorter than 
 than that of the shortest route from Vancouver. 
 
 c. As almost all the route would be by deep navi- 
 
 gable waters and railway, passengers and goods 
 from England would reach the North West 
 Territory quicker and cheaper than by any 
 routes proposed from the West Coast. 
 
 d. It would open up the highly mineralised but 
 
 undeveloped (for want of railways) country of 
 the Mackenzie Basin, especially the vast salt, 
 ooal and petroleum areas which are known to 
 be immense. ,,.,.. ■-■.- ,. 
 
 "': «. It would develop the fisheries of the Arctic Coast, 
 y, especially in whaling and sealing, and also the 
 .. > highly lucrative salmon and cod industries. 
 
207 
 
 /. It would open up the great fur countries of the 
 North West Territories and wide areas of good 
 *;6 pasture country in the South. 
 
 g. The Great Barren North Lands of the North 
 
 West Territory of Canada are full of rich possi' 
 
 bilities in minerals, furs and fisheries, of which 
 
 . _ . explorers speak so highly, and this route would 
 
 .^^. . open them up. . ;^ ■•; . ":: 
 
 The Shortest route from Europe to the Yukon 
 Country. 
 
 • '. The "Leeds Mercury," 3l8t July, 1897. 
 
 The opening up of the Alaskan goldfields, like those Xo*,*go,a 
 of California, Australia, and every other great gold-bear- ^^J opgQ^ap, 
 ing country, may, or will almost certainly, be followed 
 by consequences much more important and far reaching 
 than the additipn to the world's stock of the precious 
 metal, which is certain to accrue even upon the most 
 moderate estimates of the richness of the Yukon Valley 
 placers. A glance at the map of the Dominion will 
 illustrate our meaning ; here we have a country equal 
 in area to the Continent of Europe — of untold capacity Here we have 
 to support human life ; containing geological formations untold 
 which have been proved to be an untapped storehouse *^*'"'° ^' 
 of all the useful metals and minerals, with dense forests 
 of the noblest species of pine, and immense tracts of land 
 capable of cultivation, with the widest hunting-grounds 
 for fur-bearing animals on the face of the globe, and an 
 inexhaustible food supply of fish and flesh capable of 
 feeding the present population of the empire — all broken 
 up by extensive seas, lakes, and rivers navigable for 
 many months of the year for thousands and thousands 
 of miles. The Dominion Government, long cognisant 
 of the potentialities of the North- Western Territories, 
 but handicapped with an already comple'ed railway 
 system more than half the mileage of which is still 
 unproductive, and all of which is capitalised much above 
 its value, has considered many projects for constructing 
 
208 
 
 Bsilwa^ links 
 to Join the 
 lakes and 
 navigable 
 rivers between 
 Hndson Bay 
 and the 
 Mackenzie. 
 
 The shoitest 
 ronte from 
 Europe. 
 
 the railway links required to join the lakes and the 
 navigable rivers between Hudson's Bay and the lordly 
 Mackenzie; but until now the time has never seemed 
 opportune, nor has the public mind been awakened to 
 the advantage. A glance at the map shows that the two 
 routes to Klondike, specified in the Emigration Office 
 oiroular, though the only onef^^ now feasible, are by no 
 means the only ones possible ; the shortest route from 
 the United Kingdom to Alaska would be, when the 
 northern seas are open to navigation in summer, from 
 Liverpool to Hudson's Strait and Hudson Bay, up Chester- 
 field Inlet, across country some 200 miles to the Great 
 Slave Lake, and then down the Mackenzie and Porcupine 
 rivers to the Yukon — a highway for commerce aligned 
 by the distribution of land and water that may be of 
 imperial import in the future. 
 
 Part of an old 
 scheme for 
 opening np the 
 Morth-West 
 Territories. 
 
 Dawson City 
 brought within 
 fourteen days 
 (A London. 
 
 Main area of 
 Hudson's Bay 
 open all the 
 year. 
 
 London to Klondyke in a fortnight. 
 
 " Fina.ncial News," 28th August, 1897. 
 
 A writer in the Toronto Globe explains the position 
 in respect to the project for opening up a transit route 
 from the Canadian Pacific Railroad at the nearest point 
 in Ontario to Hudson Bay, and thence to the Mackenzie 
 and Yukon Basins {via Chesterfield Inlet). This scheme, 
 joined to the better steamer service between Canada and 
 Great Britain, might not impossibly bring Dawson City 
 within fourteen days of London. As regards the route 
 within the limits of Ontario The demon- 
 stration at Spithead Jubilee Naval display .... 
 showing a speed of 82f knots, or over 35 miles . . . 
 accomplished by the use of what were termed turbine 
 propellers. What a revolution would this effect if placed 
 on the route between Ontario's seaport and the western 
 end of Chesterfield Inlet I Those 300 miles would then 
 require forty hours of transit time. And hei*e it may be 
 well to remark that the main area of Hudson Bay is 
 navigable at all seasons of the year. The obstructions of 
 winter ice are confined to near-shore localities. The 
 open season on the Moose Eiver is similar in duration to 
 
209 
 
 that on the St. Mary's Eiver through which most of the 
 commerce of Lake Superior passes. That at Chester- 
 field Inlet is, of course, shorter ; but how far ice-breaking ^''^'ualfj^f^ 
 appliances will aid in lengthening the season there is yet ^^^p.'^| j« 
 to be tested. No reasonable mind, looking back on the iniet open, 
 improvements which we have witnessed in transit - 
 matters in our generation can treat these new ideas as 
 certainly impracticable in advance of actual tests. They 
 should all have a chance for trial, and may evolve 
 valuable results. The best electrical specialists consider 
 50 miles an hour a proper speed for an electrical line. • 
 
 By a calculation founded upon the foregoing estimates of ' 
 the same, in connection with possible marine speed, it 
 would appear that the transit time over the new route 
 from Missanabie to the Yukon goldfields would require 
 but ten hours by rail and 140 hours by water, or about 
 seven (' ^s from Toronto. This would certainly enable 
 us to compete with the Pacific coast for the trade of that 
 mining district, and render the intermediate sections on 
 the route tributary CO us beyond any competition. Leaving 
 the question of quicker transit time out of account, the 
 fact that, owing to the longer reaches of water transit, 
 freight can be conveyed cheaper from Ontario to those 
 north-western regions than by any other route stamps 
 this new avenue of trade for Toronto and for Central This new route 
 
 oners an oppor- 
 
 and Eastern Canada as offering an opportunity for tunUyfor 
 business enlargement on a broader basis than ever before sion far broader 
 
 ° than nefore 
 
 obtainable. This being the case, will it not be welcomed obtainable. 
 by all, and party distinctions and business rivalries be 
 subordinated to the attaining of the magnificent pos- 
 sibilities now apparently within our reach? 
 
 *' Finally : Never was there a case like this in the 
 industrial and commercial history of Ontario, where 
 time is such an element of success or failure. The con- 
 firmation of the rumors of the wealth to be found in the 
 mines along the Yukon Valley which has been heralded 
 through the press during the last few weeks has electrified : 
 the entire civilised world, and the question of the best 
 means of transit to that region is uppermost in all minds. 
 
210 
 
 The geo- 
 graphical 
 mtuation of 
 Intense interest 
 to Cinadians. 
 
 One-f onrth the 
 cost is an 
 important 
 feature. 
 
 The geographical situation is one of intense interest to 
 Canadians, because of the fact that the western ocean 
 frontage, parallel to the entire Yukon Valley, is in the 
 territory and under the jurisdiction of another nation, 
 whose citizens have as yet received at least nine-tenths 
 of the Yukon mining prizes hitherto distributed. Already 
 the people of British Columbia are agitating the question of 
 building over 500 miles of railway through a mountainous 
 district to connect the upper waters of the Yukon with a 
 British port of entry on the Pacific ; whereas half that 
 length, and probably one-fourth the cost, would connect 
 the same river with the waters which wash the shores of 
 Ontario (in other words, by the opening up of this 
 Chesterfield Inlet route). That the grandest business 
 prize in our country now waits upon the action of these 
 two provinces is too evident to need argument. ' First 
 come first served ' is a rule applicable in this case, and 
 the question of how soon communication can be opened 
 with Ontario must decide the direction of millions of 
 commercial value in the near future." 
 
 The first link 
 from the 
 Canadian 
 Pacific 
 Railway to 
 the Sonth End 
 of Hudson's 
 Bay. 
 
 HUDSON'S BAY TO KLONDIKE SCHEME. 
 
 New Scheme, supported by Toronto Influence, for a 
 connection with the Canadian Pacific. 
 
 " Financial News," London, July 30th, 1897. 
 
 The greatest interest is taken at Toronto in the 
 ambitious project of establishing rail and water com- 
 munication between the main line of the Canadian Pacific 
 Railway North of Sault Ste. Marie and tie mining 
 regions on the Yukon Eiver. The first link in the pro- 
 posed route is a railway line northward from Sault Ste. 
 Marie, crossing the Canadian Pacific at Missanabie, reach- 
 ing James Bay (the southern extension of Hudson's Bay), 
 at the mouth of Moose Eiver, the distance being about 
 400 miles. Along Hudson Bay, in a north-westerly 
 direction, the stretch of open salt water to Chesterfield 
 Inlet is 1,300 miles. From the head of navigable water 
 on Chesterfield Inlet, it is estimated by the Government 
 
211 
 
 maps that *175 miles of railway will connect with the 
 Great Slave Lake. Along that lake and down the Mac- 
 kenzie Eiver to the delta, at its mouth in the Arctic 
 Ocean, there is a stretch of navigable waterf 1,400 miles 
 in length. J Fifty miles of railway would connect the 
 Mackenzie Delta with the Porcupine Eiver, a tributary 
 of the Yukon. Down these confluent rivers there are 
 1,500 miles of navigable water to Behring Sea. This is 
 a route about 4,825 miles in length — 4,200 miles of 
 navigable water, and 625 miles of railway. With the 
 additional navigable section of the Yukon reached, there 
 would be an available stretch of transportation facilities 
 about 6,500 miles in length. "If thought advisable," 
 the Toronto Olobe says, "connection could be made witli J^^9^®1*^" 
 
 •' ' field Inlet 
 
 Athabasca Lake and River by the construction of a few route to open 
 
 •' up all the 
 
 miles of railway, thus connecting about 1,200 miles more f *Ji^i"^^^*' 
 
 of navigable water. This is, of course, independent of 
 
 the Atlantic route to Liverpool by way of Hudson Bay, 
 
 a feature considered by the promoters. The intention 
 
 of the promoters is to conunence with the section between 
 
 Missanabie, on the Canadian Pacific Eailway, and Hudson 
 
 Bay, the route along the valley of the Moose River being 
 
 240 miles. This, it is claimed, will bring the fishing Theflsbing, 
 
 trade of Hudson Bay, and the mineral and timber wealth mineral^" 
 
 along the route, into direct communication with the 
 markets of Ontario." 
 
 industries. 
 
 The link between Sault Ste. Marie and Missanabie — 
 160 miles — will perfect this part of the system. The 
 connection with older Ontario and the fish and other 
 trade of the Hudson Bay region are regarded as more 
 available for profitable development than the British Sarlfctg. 
 grain trade contemplated in the earlier projected route 
 between Winnipeg and Fort Churchill. 
 
 *A large bttt "inexplored river covers the greater part, afid 
 jperhaps the wJiole of this distance. 
 
 t This distance is iticorrect; it should be 1,280 miles. 
 
 \ In summer this distance can be covered by boats the whole 
 way, excepting an easy half-mile portage in McDougalVs Pass. 
 
 [E. J. D.] 
 
 p 2 
 
212 
 
 TRADE ROUTES FROM THE EAST TO YUKON. 
 
 "Financial Times," 16th August, 1897. 
 
 In a pamphlet recently issued by the Canadian 
 
 Department of the Interior regarding the Yukon district, 
 
 of which there has been so much talk lately, occurs this 
 
 succinct statement, laid down as a sort of first principle : — 
 
 «' Diflscnity of "The great obstacle to the development of the district is 
 
 access to the ° '^ 
 
 Yukon Gold- the difficulty of access." . . . Yet that the country 
 
 fields the great . , , f -, , . ^ , ■, , , , 
 
 obstecie." IS far from maccessible is shown by the fact that nearly 
 60 years ago it was not unknown to Hudson's Bay 
 Company's servants, while the brigades of boats of that 
 Company penetrated every season the waterways of the 
 "barren lands" to the east of the Yukon district, a region 
 enterpriM^"^"^ quite as forbidding as the new goldfields. Some of the 
 complete books of the late E. M. Ballantyne, who was once in the 
 
 Kudso^Bay employ of the Hudson's Bay Company, give a vivid 
 commenced so picture of life in the far North-West in the early days, 
 and of the manner in which the great continuous water- 
 ways were utilised for trade purposes. Indeed, the 
 Hudson's Bay Company had a well-established trading 
 post at the junction of the Yukon and Porcupine Elvers 
 as early as 1847, which must have been regularly com- 
 municated with by way of the Mackenzie Eiver, since 
 all supplies were brought from the headquarters of the 
 Company on Hudson's Bay. If, therefore, the Hudson's 
 Bay men could take in supplies and bring out furs from 
 T'he aifiference as far West as Fort Yukon in the early days, when they 
 
 between those <i j ' j 
 
 days and these, had to be guided by the reports of roving Indians, and 
 had to give a name to every stream they traversed, the 
 difficulty of establishing well-defined trade routes and 
 using them in this day of maps, surveys and exhaustive 
 reports, should not be insuperable The one 
 
 Snpo^an*"' all-important question is: Is the game worth the candle? 
 
 anawered)^^"*'^ And that qucstion has not yet been satisfactorily answered ^ 
 though it doubtless will be before long. The country 
 appears, from pretty reliable reports, to be rich both in 
 alluvial and quartz gold ; and if this prove to be true, it 
 will C3rtainly afford a valuable new market for British 
 goods, and a profitable field for the efforts of British 
 traders, since it can produce little but minerals. This 
 
213 
 
 "we know, that twc American trading companies have, 
 
 up to the present, found it sufficiently profitable to enable 
 
 them to run ocean steamers 3,000 miles, connecting with 
 
 river steamers running a further 1,600 miles. It there- What British 
 
 fore behoves British traders and capitalists to look into capitaiiBts 
 
 the matter of trade routes for themselves. .... 
 
 Much alluvial gold has undoubtedly been found in the 
 
 Yukon district, and it is an undoubted fact that there is 
 
 c[uartz gold there. It may prove to be the richest gold 
 
 field the world has ever seen, bub it has not yet been 
 
 proved so. The whole area between Hudson's Bay and The territory 
 
 the Eocky Mountains may prove to be rich in mineral ; BonTsaysm^ 
 
 coal has been discovered in some parts of it ; but little *^® Yukon. 
 
 is known about it yet. We also know that Mr. J. B. 
 
 Tyrrell, of the Canadian Geological Survey, in exploring the 
 
 shore of Hudson's Bay, discovered at Chesterfield Inlet gofd^torm^on 
 
 a similar geological formation to that which has proved ohesterfieid 
 
 rich in gold in the Rainy River and Lake of the Woods' ^'^'s' 
 
 district of the Province of Ontario. Gold has not been 
 
 found there yet, however. A line of railway from 
 
 Manitoba to Hudson's Bay has also been projected, and 
 
 this would give a short outlet to salt water for Manitoba 
 
 wheat, and furnish a very useful source of revenue to a 
 
 line of vessels also engaged in the Yukon trade. . . . 
 
 The Canadian Pacific Railway is considering the advis- The route 
 
 ability of getting into the field by prolonging its Edmonton Edmonton, 
 
 line 50 miles to the Athabasca River, whence by Athabasca 
 
 Lake and Slave River it may reach Great Slave Lake. 
 
 The Hudson's Bay Company has shown that the country 
 
 may be entered from the east by two different routes, Two different 
 "' 1 1 - m routes from 
 
 and we learn that a number of Toronto gentlemen have t^e east. 
 
 secured a charter for one of these, though they openly 
 
 confess that they have no present intention of using it, 
 
 being more keenly interested in a line northward from 
 
 Sault Ste. Marie, in the Province of Ontario, to Hudson's 
 
 Bay. They have, however, secured a charter, as we a chatter ai- 
 
 Baid, for a route by way of Chesterfield Inlet, navigable, Jo^i^rmfto bj 
 
 we believe, for ocean steamers, thence, by a line of rail- aeS li^e^!'*"* 
 
 way 175 miles long,* to Great Slave Lake, from the 
 
 * It is qu,ite probable that most of this distance, if not the wJwle 
 of it, is covered by the great but unexplored river flowing from the 
 iVest into Aberdeen Lake at the Head of Chesterfield Inlet. [E. J. D.] 
 
214 
 
 Fid tbe Mno- 
 kcDzie and 
 Porcupine 
 Birera. 
 
 FiatheLiard 
 BiTer. 
 
 A direct ronte 
 from Liverpool 
 to tbe Taken 
 nearly all by 
 - water ; l,aoo 
 miles by river 
 down Bteeam. 
 
 head of which steamers can go right to the delta of the- 
 Great Mackenzie. Another short railway line (50 miles) 
 over the height of land is said, by explorers, to be 
 practicable, when a further great stretch of navigable 
 water on the Porcupine is reached. But after reaching 
 the Mackenzie there is a shorter route which Mr. Ogilvie 
 reports practicable, namely, up the Liard Eivar, a tribu- 
 tary, and the Dease, also navigable for small steamers, to 
 Lake Teslin, thus striking both the Yukon and northern 
 British Columbia goldfieids. The Hudson's Bay people 
 used the Liard, which passes through a break in the 
 Bockies, and the Upper Pelly, but on the latter river 
 there are dangerous rapids which cannot be passed by 
 steamers. At the other end of the route, from Chestev- 
 field Inlet, direct connection may be had,'during summer, 
 with Liverpool, which is about 2,800 miles away. Thus 
 by sea, rail and river, a route might be had direct from 
 England to the Klondyke, just about equal in length 
 to that from San Francisco by way of Fort St. Michael 
 and the Yukon Biver. It should also be a quicker 
 route, a fact which, joined with the advantage in tariff 
 rates enjoyed by the British trader, should give him a 
 strong advantage. 
 
 A magniflcent 
 sobeme. 
 
 Tbe Gbester- 
 field Inlet 
 ronte a profit- 
 able Tentore. 
 
 This last scheme is an ambitious— even a magni- 
 ficent one, but we are quite willing that anyone who 
 
 oares to take it up should benefit by our idea 
 
 If the Yukon field do not peter out the establishment of 
 the rail and water line we have mentioned might be a 
 very profitable venture, even if gold or coal were not 
 found East of the Eockies, or the Manitoba wheat traffic 
 tapped immediately ; but it all rests on the future of the 
 
 Yukon district as a gold field However, 
 
 we may say that we think two or three hundred pounds 
 invested in a trading company, in whose promoters a 
 reasonable amount of confidence may be placed, is likely 
 to give quite as good returns as if invested in a ticket to 
 Klondyke, a miner's kit and a "giub-stake," with infinitely 
 less discomfort to the investor. - -^. . ,„ 
 
216 
 
 Section 23. To Chesterfield Inlet 
 from Atiiabasca Lake. 
 
 :,, By J. W. TYRRELL, CE., D.LS. 
 
 After traversing the shore of this gieat icy lake Tcfa^w' 
 
 (Lake Doobaunt, August, 1893), our river (the Telzoa) Jfcw'^l^^"™ 
 
 was again discovered. It was not obstructed by ice, but, nav£»w*'* *** 
 
 as before, its clear, cold waters rushed on to the north- ^."^SF^ ** l?'i4 
 
 ' ' of Chesterfield 
 
 ward. Inlet- 
 
 About 6 miles further on the river widened into a 
 little lake, and further down the river, on the evening of 
 August 19th, as our little Heet glided down with the 
 strong, swift stream, we sighted an Esquimaux camp. 
 
 Soon after leaving the Esquimaux camp we dis- y^^eaves 
 covered a lake, 20 milas long, which has been honoured 
 
 by the name of Whiteaves "We found the outlet 
 
 at the base of a very remarkable mountain of white 
 quartzite. Lady Marjorie Lake was next met with, a remarkable 
 The course of the river from this lake appeared to be whit^**'^"' 
 westerly and north-westerly, and this being the opposite ^°"*^'«' 
 direction to that which we were desirous of travelling, 
 we followed it somewhat reluctantly. The whole appear- 
 ance of the river was different from what it had been 
 higher up. It was now a noble stream, broad, deep and ^ noble 
 swift, with a well-defined channel and high banks of strcMn, broad 
 rock or sand. On and on we were borne in a general 
 north-westerly direction, until we began to doubt the 
 Esquimaux's report regarding the river flowing to Hudson 
 Bay. We had already passed the latitude of Chesterfield 
 Inlet and Baker Lake, and were beading from them 
 straight for the Great Fish Kiver (flowing into Great The Great Fish 
 Slave liake), which was now distant only two days' days-joumey 
 travel (something about 65 miles). • , west. ■ 
 
 On the evening of August 25th a change took place 
 in the character of our surroundings. The river banks 
 became low and composed of soft coarse-grained sand- 
 
216 
 
 A most iin> 
 portant river 
 probably 
 couuecting 
 (*re it Slave 
 Lake with 
 Chesterfield 
 Inlet by 
 navigable 
 wittera. 
 
 Lake Aberdeen 
 a (treat lake. 
 
 Bchnltz Lake 
 
 Only two 
 rapids between 
 Aberdeen Lake 
 and the Inlet; 
 easily navi- 
 gated even by 
 canoes. 
 
 Camps of 
 Esqulmaox. 
 
 Tents of the 
 ^ery valuable 
 musk-oz 
 Bkins. 
 
 Baker Lake. 
 
 stone The surprising and most delightful feature 
 
 of the locality was that upon the shores there was strewn 
 an abundance of driftwood. f 
 
 At first sight its occurrence was unaccountable, but 
 the mystery was readily solved however by finding that 
 we liad reached the confluence of mwther large river 
 flowing in from the west. Much of the driftwood was of 
 large size, and judging from the slightly battered 
 condition one would infer that it had come no very great 
 distance, or at any rate through very few rapids. 
 
 Prom the confluence, the course of the river bore 
 to the north and then to the eastward and ere long 
 brought us to the entrance of a great lake— Lake Aberdeen 
 50 miles in length. (Mr. Tyrrell mentions himself 
 and companions as the first white men who had ever 
 been on this lake.) On the morning of August 29th we 
 entered the river leading into Schultz Lake, or a few 
 miles distant, lat. 64'' 45' . 
 
 The river leading from Lake Schultz is wellformed 
 and deep. Two rapids were met with but they were 
 not difficult and were easily run. The current was 
 strong and we sped along at the rate of 8 miles an hour. 
 The river continued deep and flowing in a south-easterly 
 direction. 
 
 Shortly before the river empties into Baker Lake, we 
 came upon another Esquimo camp, and about ten miles 
 further on we came upon another large camp. One of tVie 
 first objects that attracted my attention was a " topick " 
 tent (or "wigwam") constructed of no less than the 
 most beautiful musk-ox robes. At first I foit almost 
 inclined to doubt my own eyes. It seemed such h waste 
 
 of luxury Next my attetition was drawn 
 
 to a pile of skins lying on the rocks, which with the 
 exception of a few white wolf and fox skins consisted of 
 musk-ox robes. .... We soon found that we 
 (this Esquimaux camp) were at the mouth of our great 
 river and we passed into the broad delta and gazed over 
 the blue limitless waters ... of Baker Lake, aboat 
 70 miles long and perhaps 30 wide. 
 
217 
 
 From Black Lake at the head of Lake Athabasca 
 to this (Baker) Lake, we had travelled a distance of 810 
 miles through an entirely unknown country. 
 
 From this camp at the head of Baker Lake we were Baker Lake to 
 to begin a new stage of our journey. According to our chesterfleia 
 maps we were still about 250 miles from the mouth of ^^e^'^somiieB. 
 Chesterfield Inlet. The river from Baker Lake to the 
 " big sea waters " of the Inlet is described by Tyrrell as 
 being more a, fiord than river and easily navigable. 
 
 (The sum of Mr. Tyrrell's journey appears to be that 
 a river route from Athabasca Lake to Chesterfield Inlet 
 is impossible, but that the large but unexplored river 
 entering Aberdeen Lake from the west brings the 
 navigable waters of Chesterfield Inlet very close to those 
 of the Great Slave Lake and probably unites them.) 
 
 Section 24. The Sub-Arctic Terpitory 
 of North Canada. 
 
 Evidence of Prof. J, B. HURLBERT, M.D., LLD. (1838 Committee). 
 
 The barren grounds are to the West of Hudson Bay Prof. Huibett 
 — from the 60th to 61st parallel to the extremity of the flora and fauns 
 continent (Arctic Ocean). . . . Sir John Eichardson ° s region, 
 describes even these barren grounds as covered with a 
 dense carpet of the comecularis, tristis and many other 
 plants, a dozen at least, to the shores of the ocean. 
 There are stumps of trees solitary and grouped, the size 
 not named, and clumps of living trees on sheltered banks 
 of rivers. On the sea coast even there is a good growth 
 of grasses, twelve varieties are named, such as elymus 
 mollis, campacta and several poae, varieties of our June 
 grasses and the Kentucky blue grass. Hearne in his 
 two expeditions, 1769-70, to discover Coppermine Eiver, 
 records fine weather from the 6th to the 9th November, 
 and again in December 11th and 12th. He found deer 
 
218 
 
 plentiful ; swans, geese and partridges ; killed three 
 musk oxen. He gives the following list of animals west 
 of Hudson Bay in the barren grounds : — Foxes plentiful, 
 of various colours which prey upon rabbits, mice and 
 partridges ; lynx, polar bear, black and grizzly bear and 
 wolverine as far north as Coppermine Eiver. Otters 
 plentiful to latitude 62, north of Churchill. Jackash, 
 the lesser otter; common marten, ermine or stole, 
 muskrat, porcupine, hares, numerous to latitude 72, 
 Heame names rabbits in another place. Squirrel plen- 
 tiful in wooded parts. Ground squirrels plentiful to 
 latitude 71, and large as the American grey squirrel. 
 Mice, frogs and insects in great plenty. In Hudson and 
 Arctic Sea are walrus or sea horse ; the whole coast of 
 the Hudson Bay being alive wLn them. Seals more to 
 the north, sea unicorns in the straits. Black whale, 
 white whale and salmon numerous, some seasons, and 
 kepling, shell fish ; birds numerous. Eagles, several 
 kinds, hawks of various sizes and plumage : owls, white,, 
 grey and mottled, ravens, American crows. Wood- 
 peckeis, grouse, buffalo grouse, sharp tailed grouse, 
 wood partridge, willow partridge, rock partridge, red 
 breasted thrush, grosbeak, snow bunting, lapland finch,, 
 larks, titmouse, Hudson Bay black cap, swallows and 
 martens, whooping crane, brown crane, bitterns, curlews, 
 to latitude 72, jacksnipes, red godwits, spotted godwits, 
 sandpipers, plovers, hawk eye, sea pigeons, northern 
 divers, black throated divers, white, grey and black gulls, 
 black heads (gulls), pelicans, goosanders, shell ducks, 
 swans, geese (ten varieties), horned wavies, laughing 
 geese, eider ducks, dunter goose and ducks of various 
 kinds. 
 
 Vegetables. — Gooseberries, cranberries, heath berries^ 
 currants, red and black, juniper berries, strawberries, 
 eye berries, blueberries, partridge berries. Mosses, 
 grasses of several kinds, Trees : pine, juniper, poplar, 
 creeping birch, willow (dwarf) ; birch plentiful ; pines, 
 larch and poplar. Birch grow to great size further 
 westward. Alder. Sir John Biohardsou says stumps 
 
219 
 
 of large trees are found and he saw large forests in the J^'nr^^^' 
 distance, but could not at that late season turn aside to ^™,Jij55Smer! 
 examine them. The committee can judge from these 
 statements whether the name " barren ground" is not a 
 misnomer. It should at least be qualii^cd. I know of 
 no region of equal extent in any part of the globe simi- 
 larly situated which is such a land of desolation as that 
 part of the Dominion has been represented. 
 
 Interview by the Correspondent of the " Palt Mall Gazette" with 
 
 the Hon. C. H. MACKINTOSH, Lieut.-Qovernor of the 
 
 N.W. Territories. 
 
 "Pall Mall Gazette," 15th September, 1897. 
 
 . , . It is a big subject, the North West Terri- ^J^^^^^g ^^e 
 tories — a million and a half square miles. But one thing treaBure-houBa 
 
 ^ , — . of the Empire. 
 
 I can say about the country is, that the TexTitories are 
 an undeveloped treasure-house of the Empire, and when 
 it has been exploited, well I the rest of the world will • 
 rub its eyes and wish it had a share in it. . . . Give 
 us a year — or, perhaps, two — and we will astonish the 
 dear old mother countiy, and make the nations outside 
 the Empire green with envy. 
 
 An Important Un-Mapped River. 
 
 Mr. JAMES ANDERSON'S Evidence. Quoting his Father, the 
 Explorer, before the 1888 Committee. 
 The Big Hula Dessi, or Inconnu River, rises near 
 Great Bear Lake, and flows into the Arctic Ocean, one inguptheFar 
 branch into Liverpool Bay and the other a little to the meansof water- 
 Eastward of Esquimaux Bay. Several rivers fall into it. AreSo ocean.* 
 Where it divides to form the two branches it is as broad the Territory. 
 as the Mackenzie, at Fort Simpson. The waters are 
 very clear and deep, and it is navigable from the source 
 to the mouth. Birch and pine of good size at the forks. 
 On the banks of the river marten, otter, foxes, bear, 
 wolves and wolverines abound; also moose, reindeer, 
 musk oxen, the latter all over the country. Fish abound 
 in the river and adjacent lakes. . -. 
 
220 
 
 The ice is said to break on this river earlier even 
 than the Mackenzie. Enters the sea about Long. 120° ; 
 Lat. of its source about 64 or 65. Tar and sulphur 
 springs abound. Veins of fine white earth at the forks 
 and along the river. , „ . 
 
 Important 
 notes from the 
 diary of 6 ~ 
 explore'-. 
 
 Extracts from the Explorer Anderson's Diary. 
 
 Evidence of Mr. JAMES ANDERSON, speaking chiefly from the 
 
 Diary of his Father, who was appointed by the Home Government 
 
 in 1855 l> ^0 in search of Sir John Franklin. 
 
 This diary mentions gooseberry trees in blossom 
 and strawberry plants in flower at Great Slave Lake 
 during the first week in June. 
 
 Potatoes, barley and turnips — potatoes as good as 
 any in Canada — grown at Port Simpson, lat. 62°. 
 
 Ice left the Mackenzie Eiver between Fort Good 
 Hope and Great Slave Lake about the middle of May. 
 
 The severity of the climate is not worse than at 
 St. Petersburg, which is on Lat 60°. 
 
 The diary mentions Mr. Anderson, Sen., finding 
 large pieces of coal on the Mackenzie Eiver, and seeing 
 plumbago from the Yulion. 
 
 The Hudson's Bay Company had cows and oxen at 
 Fort Simpson. 
 
 In winter, there are only two or three hours of day- 
 light at Fort Simpson, but in summer one can scarcely 
 tell the difference between night and day. 
 
 Produce is grown all along the Churchill Eiver. 
 
 Bingnlar fer- 
 tility ot the 
 N. W. Terrl- 
 tories. 
 
 Agriculture on the verge of the Barren Grounds. 
 
 Evidence of MALCOLM McLEOD, Esq., Q.C, Ex-Judge, to 1888 
 
 Senate Committee. 
 
 There was plenty of good open ground for cul- 
 tivation at Norway House, but everyone was so busy at 
 more urgent work that no one even tried it. At Oxford 
 House, nearly 160 miles further east, and colder on the 
 height of land — the summit of the Laurentian Eange — 
 
221 
 
 there was a fine garden, growing potatoes abundantly, 
 and whereof, en passant, I did eat. Here in 1832 forty 
 head of cattle were kept, and a large gang of men 
 supplied from the place while making a winter road 
 between Norway House and York Factory. At York 
 Factory, on a shore we may call Arctic, I saw nice Uttle 
 gardens with turnips, radishes and flowers, many and 
 beautiful. My old friend, Peter "Warren Dease, of Arctio 
 fame, and whose son-in-law Bell was for many years in 
 charge of the most northerly Mackenzie Eiver coasts, 
 used to tell me of his (the old gentleman's) fine and 
 successful gardening in the far north. He had a taste 
 in that way, as shown in his ever well trimmed and 
 highly cultivated grounds. To him, as a perfectly 
 reliable authority, I owe much if not "most of my very 
 strong conceptions as to the singular fertility of the 
 Mackenzie Eiver Valley. 
 
 The Chesterfield Inlet Country. 
 
 Mr. "Warburton Pike mentions in his work, "The a iari?e but oa- 
 Barren Grounds of Northern Canada " (p. 204), that ™*^'i'^' 
 when he arrived at Artillery Lake, on the Lockart Eiver, 
 he met an Indian named " Pierre the Fool " (one of the 
 most intelligent Indians in the territory), who gave a 
 great deal of information about the territory East of 
 Clinton Golden Lake, and said that three days' travel 
 East of the Lake there was a large river running in a ^ ^^^^^ ,o„ta 
 Southerly direction, and once when he had pushed ae'id'inL^t^to' 
 out further than usual Eastward, he came upon an Lftke'systom!* 
 Esquimaux camp. The Esquimaux had been cutting up 
 pine wood for their sleighs. Mr. Pke states that— 
 " from the fact of his having seen the pine trees, which 
 are said not to extend far from the salt water of Hudson's 
 Bay, he must have been within a short distance of the 
 (Hudson's Bay) Coast." 
 
 1 1 
 
223 
 
 tbem^nthof 
 the Mackenzie 
 and its Terri- 
 tory to the 
 White Bea and 
 the country 
 about Arch> 
 angel. 
 
 Dr. Dawson's 
 scheme to 
 make the 
 mouth of the 
 Macl-enzio 
 serve the N. \V. 
 Territories as 
 the Whit J Sea 
 serves North 
 Bassia. 
 
 Exports and 
 I'roducts of 
 RnsHia about 
 the ^Vhite Bca. 
 
 Section 25. important Comparison 
 with Nortli Russia. 
 
 Evidence of G. M. DAWSON, Director of the Geological Survey of 
 Canada to 1888 Senate Committee. 
 
 I have a few notes here worth considering while we 
 are dealing with the question of this Northern country, 
 particularly the Yukon. I looked up the circumstances 
 of the Northern Provinces of Eussia, and I found, taking 
 the Province of Eussia, which seemed to compare most 
 nearly with that shown on this map, both its relation in 
 Eussia to the Atlantic corresponding to the relation of 
 this Country with the Pacific and its latitude, that is the 
 Province of Vologda. That Province has a total area of 
 155,498 square miles, and it is chiefly drained to the 
 North, like the countrj^ shown here. It lies between 
 Lat. 68 and 65. It is about 750 miles in greatest 
 length, and 300 miles greatest v/idth. It is drained by 
 the Dwina Eiver chiefly. Its products are carried by 
 this river to Archangel, and exported thence in vessels 
 by the White Sea, in the same way that we hope this 
 Northern country of ours may be served by the Mac- 
 kenzie and the Arctic Sea. The mouth of the Dwina is 
 iu Lat. 65°, only a little South of tbe latitude of the 
 mouth of the Mackenzie. The climate of the two 
 countries is very similar. The winters are severe and the 
 summers warm. There is no very heavy rainfall, such 
 as we find near the Western coasts bordering on the 
 Atlantic and on the Pacific. The exports from that 
 Province of Vologda are oats, rye, barley, hemp, flax 
 and pulse. The mineral products are salt, copper, iron 
 and marble. Horses and cattle are reared, and the 
 ski 08 of various wild animals, pitch and turpentine are 
 exported. This Province supports a population of 
 1,161,000 inhabitants. 
 
 Some Particulars of Archangel. 
 
 Position of " Archangel is on the White Sea, about Lat. 64° 30" 
 
 corresponding corresponding with that of the Klondyke Eiver. The 
 Klondike. harbouT Is Only free from ice from July to September* 
 
If- 
 
 223 
 
 yet it is a thriving and rising city, with a population of 
 
 about 25,000. The British Consul's Eeport for 1898 
 
 states that over 25,000 people are engaged in fishing in 
 
 the district, and 4,500 men employed in tlie saw-mills. 
 
 This year, 1896 (the Consul states). Archangel will 
 
 probably be in telegraphic communication with the 
 
 whole of the White Sea country or the Lapland Coast 
 
 of Norway, while the railway from Vologda to Arch- Railways of 
 
 angel, with a length of 136 miles, will most probablj ba 
 
 finished. 
 
 In 1895, 172 steam and 151 sailing vessels entered i"f«?8e of 
 
 ' ° shlppmR in the 
 
 Archangel. Of the steamers 127 were British. The ^VluteBea. 
 Consular Eeport states that the White Sea shipping is 
 fast developing, the number for 1896 being 418 foreign 
 and 309 Eussian, exclusive of 1,132 coasters. Imports 
 are also increasing. 
 
 There are 1,946 miles of railways already con- 
 structed in Finland. 
 
 Populous towns in Sub-Arctic Europe and Asia. 
 
 "Birmingham Gazette," 3l8t August, 1897. 
 
 Although Klondyke is called a desolate region, it 
 must not be assumed that it is quite as hopeless ad some 
 of the papers paint it. As a matter of fact, the climate 
 of the Yulcon Valley is much the same as that of the 
 Eussian province, in Europe, of Vologva, which has a 
 population of a million and a-half, and enormous mining 
 and smelting industries, and also grows a great deal of 
 rye. There are great towns, like Archangel, Kem, i.argepopnions 
 Mezen, and Yakutsk, which flourish, although their food further north 
 and means of transport are no better than those of *" « y • 
 Dawson City will be a couple of years hence. It is also 
 a fact apparently unknown in England that the gold- 
 mines south-west of Lake Baikal, are worked under 
 conditions similar to those that prevail in Klondyke, but 
 in a far more severe climate. From these mines the 
 Czar receives an income of two and a-half millions a 
 
224 
 
 year. There is, however, an amazing degree of ignorance 
 in this country concerning Eussia and the East. For 
 instance, as late as three years ago one of the leading 
 papers had never heard of the Trans-Siberian Eailway, 
 and confounded it with the Trans-Caspian Eailway. 
 
 The possibilities of tlie Maclcenzie— Yulcon Country. 
 
 "British Review," July 3l8t, 1897. 
 
 An example ol 
 what might be 
 
 In the palmy days of the narwhal fishery, the 
 
 Mteb^inga Arctic port of " Smeerenburg" on the Spitzbergen coast 
 
 whaling station at times contained a floating population of ten thousand 
 
 of the souls. Here, rough streets of wooden huts gave the 
 
 Mackenzie. ' o o 
 
 hardy followers of the right whale indifferent shelter from 
 the icy blasts, the vilest of spirits to drink, and even the 
 refined society of a large number of ladies from the pur- 
 lieus of the Dutch and Scandinavian seaports. In these 
 matters the whalers were better off than the fur-tradeis 
 who have held their little out-posts for commerce in the 
 northern solitudes for three centuries. Starting in the 
 comparative civilisation of Manitoba and "Winnipeg, the 
 chain of Hudson Bay Company's forts has extended right 
 up the Mackenzie Eiver to within a short distance of the 
 Polar Ocean and that "North- West Passage " which was 
 not worth discovering. In these isolated block-houses a 
 few hardy Scotch factors contrived to support existence 
 even at a time when it took three years and a-half for 
 goods and letters to reach them from England. But the 
 fur-traders were not settlers or colonists. They were 
 simply sentries or vedettes thrown out by the army of 
 commerce, with instructions to fall back upon the main 
 body when their work was done. The North to them 
 was only the hunting ground for pelts, and the land very 
 much as the sea on which the whalers chased the narwhal 
 to his death. ,. • 
 
 The Ynkor 
 Gold 
 
 discoverieH 
 may open up 
 the Arctio 
 North to great 
 possibilities. . 
 
 But the gold discoveries of the Yukon region, of 
 which so much has been heard during the last few days, 
 may open another chapter in the history of the sub-Polar 
 world. If the deposits are as rich, or only half or a 
 
225 
 
 quarter as rich as they are represented to be, there will 
 speedily be a great population in the neighbourhood of 
 the Klondike and Dawson City. If that happens, we 
 shall be in face of an interesting, though it may be a 
 rather painful, experiment. For the first time almost in 
 its recorded history, mankind will have tried to hive a 
 large population of civilised human beings under conditions 
 so extraordinarily difficult and trying as those to be found 
 in the glacial regions. 
 
 There are, of course, tovms as far north as the new Large towna 
 camps of the Yukon. Many a cheap tripper from Aber- imlhcr r^rth 
 deen or Newcastle has been a good deal nearer the Pole, 
 so far as actual latitude is concerned ; for the Norwegian 
 towns, Hammerfest, Tromso, and Vardo, are in fact 
 further north than Klondike. . . .- ,-? ^ 
 
 (The large city of Archangel on the White Sea is on 
 the same latitude as Dawson City.) 
 
 than Klondike. 
 
 Section 23« Hudson's Bay and its 
 
 Territory. 
 
 Extent and Resources of the Territory, 
 
 From the Pamphlet of the Chartsred Hudson's Bay and Paoifio 
 Railway Company. Prepared by Col. J. HARRIS, F.R.G.S. 
 
 ■ The country at present under local government N.w.Terri- 
 
 "'.^, ." tories under 
 
 comprises the Provnice of Manitoba, covermg an area of locai goyern- 
 64,000 square miles, with Winnipeg as its capital, and 
 the three territories of Assiniboia, Saskatchewan, and 
 Alberta, covering an area of 303,000 square miles, with 
 Eegina as their capital. The whole of this vast region, 
 extending from about twenty-five miles West from Lake 
 
226 
 
 Are* of th«) 
 Hudson liny 
 agrtonlturui 
 territory. 
 
 Superior to the Rocky Mountains, a distance of 1,850 
 tniles, and from the forty-ninth parallel of latitude North, 
 to the water-shed of the Saskatchewan Eiver, an average 
 distance of 350 miles, embraces an area of 462,500 
 square miles, or 269,000,000 acres, two-thirds of which 
 has been proved to be capable of producing the finest 
 wheat, and the rest admirably adapted for stock raising 
 and dairy farming. The whole of this region, including 
 a great portion of the States of Minnesota and North 
 Dakota, in t)ie United Slates, is drained by the lakes and 
 tributary streams of the Nelson River, into Hudson's 
 Bay, in latitude 53 North. It comprises the richest and 
 most extensive undeveloped wheat-producing lands in the 
 world, and access to which, from the United Kingdom, 
 by ordinary steamers via Hudson's Bay can be reached 
 within eight days. 
 
 Agrlcnltoral 
 return B 
 
 Toine of live- 
 stock, grain, 
 and dairy 
 produce in 
 Canatla. 
 
 Acreagft. 
 
 Bushels. 
 
 Average yield. 
 
 .1,140,276 ... 
 
 31,775,038 
 
 ... 27-8 bushels 
 
 . 482,658 ... 
 
 22,555,733 
 
 ... 46-7 ,, 
 
 . 153,839 ... 
 
 5,645,036 
 
 ... 36-7 „ 
 
 . 16,716 .. 
 
 4,042,562 
 
 ...243-5 „ 
 
 • m-f 
 
 28,2-29 
 
 
 . 82,668 ... 
 
 1,281,354 
 
 
 • ■"" ••• 
 
 81,082 
 
 .. '■'■-. 
 
 Territory 
 
 uudor 
 
 cultivation. 
 
 ■i Dominion Government Returns of 1895 give these 
 figures for the Province of Manitoba : — 
 
 Product. 
 
 Wheat 
 Oats 
 ' Barley 
 Potatoes 
 Pease 
 Flax 
 Rye 
 
 During 1892 there was imported into the United 
 Kingdom from Canada 101,426 heads of cattle, besides a 
 large number of horses and sheep, and, incluiling grain 
 and dairy produce, was valued at 10,000,000 sterling. 
 The shipment of cattle bred on the ranches of Alberta to 
 Great Britain continues to increase, and the superior 
 quality of these animals has excited the most favourable 
 comments of buyers in England, and more than two- 
 thirds of the total increase in the shipiijent of live stock 
 took place from the North- West Territories. 
 
 " During 1891 there were under cultivation in the 
 Province of Manitoba, and the three territories of 
 
227 
 
 Assiniboia, Saskatchewan, and Alborta, 1,300,000 acres, 
 •which produced twenty-five million bushels of wheat and 
 thirty million bushels of barley and oats, whilst the 
 number of cattle was estimated at about 600,000 head." 
 
 :^-y..i^-- '" \* 
 
 f^ •; THE HUDSON'S BAY SEA ROUTE. <i 
 
 Exports and Cost of Transport. 
 
 Tha present cost of transporting wheat to the seaports ' ^^f'ifjp^^^i 
 fit Montreal, Boston, or New York, from the centre of exportation ; 
 
 fiivvlDg by tk 
 
 this region is about thirty-five cents per bushel, whilst Hudson Bay 
 the same charge per mile to Port Churchill would not 
 exceed fifteen cents, and to the ports further north in , ^ 
 
 the Bay — Chesterfield Inlet for example — the charge 
 would be proportionately less, and the saving in the 
 carriage of live stock, as stated by Admiral Markham, , 
 would be fully equal to £3 per Lead. 
 
 One of the most important questions of the day is the Exports at 
 importation of live stock into the United Kingdom. ^trict«d\^ 
 Here is a country capable of raising millions of heads of ^istttnce. 
 cattle, absolutely free from every kind of disease, owing 
 to the remarkable healthfulness of the climate ; but the 
 present export is prohibited, owing to their having to 
 pass for more than 1,000 miles through the Eastern 
 portion of Canada to a port of shipment. The opening 
 of a Hudson's Bay route would remedy all this, and 
 would enable the cattle to be shipped in prime condition 
 at half the present cost by way of Montreal. 
 
 Hudson Bay. 
 
 Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society, October, 1881, on the 
 
 Commercial Importance of Hudson's Bay, with Remarke on 
 
 Recent Surveys and investigations, by ROBERT BELL, M.D., F.Q.S.. 
 
 Assistant Direclor of ti>e Geological Survey of Canada. 
 
 I beg leave to offer to the Eoyal Geographical Society Dr. BeU'a 
 a few remarks on the great Mediterranean Sea of North HnSIon « Bay. 
 America, in regard to which there appears to be a general 
 want of correct information. Before proceeding to do 
 80, it may be proper for me to state that I have con- 
 
 Q 2 
 
228 
 
 Biderable personal knowledge uf Hudson Bay and the 
 surrounding regions. As an officer of the Geological 
 Sui'vey of Canada, I have spent six seasons since 1869 
 in explorations around the bay itself or in its vicinity, 
 while the remaining summers of this interval have been 
 devoted mostly to surveying and exploring portions of 
 the Hudson's Bay territory at greater or less distances 
 
 inland In the popular mind, Hudson's 
 
 Bay is apt to be associated with the Polar Begions, yet 
 no part of it comes within the Arctic circle, and the 
 Southern extremity is Soulh of the latitude of London. 
 
 Including its Southern prolongation of James' Bay, 
 it (Hudson's Bay) measures about 1 ,000 miles in length, 
 and it is more than 600 miles in width at its Northern 
 part. 
 
 Hadann'a Bay 
 and Htraita 
 remarkably 
 free from 
 obstmctioni. 
 
 The Bay 
 
 uniform in 
 depth and 
 affording good 
 anchorages 
 near shore. 
 
 Navigation 
 of rivers 
 flowiug into 
 Hudson's Bay. 
 
 Navigation of tlie Bay. 
 
 .... Both the bay and straits are remarkably 
 free from rocks and shoals which might interfere with their 
 free navigation. The groups of islands near the east side 
 of the bay ai-e surrounded by deep water, and a wide 
 channel leads up the centre of James's Bay. Fortunately 
 the main body of the bay, which is the portion likely to 
 be hereafter frequented by shipping, is entirely without 
 shoals, reefs, or islands. The depth is very uniform over 
 most of the bay, and nowhere does it present any great 
 irregularities. It averages about 70 fathoms throughout, 
 deepening to 100 and upwards in approaching the outlet 
 of Hudson's Strait ; while in the strait itself the sound- 
 ings along the centre vary from, about 150 to upwards of 
 300 fathoms. The bottom appears to consist almost 
 everywhere of boulder clay and mud. Near the shores 
 a stifif clay, affording good holding ground for anchors,, 
 is almost invariably met with on both sides. 
 
 Few of the rivers of Hudson's Bay afford uninter- 
 rupted navigation for large vessels to any great distance 
 from the coast. During the season of high water, 
 shallow-draft steamers might ascend the Moose river 
 and two of its branches for upwards of 100 miles. Hayes 
 
229 
 
 river and two of its branches might apparently be 
 navigated by such craft in the spring to points about 140 
 miles inland, and the Albany for nearly 250 miles ; while 
 large steamers might ascend the Nelson for seventy or 
 eighty miles from the open sea. The Churchill, which 
 is the second largest river of Hudson's Bay, is a beautiful 
 clear-water stream, somewhat larger than the Ehine. It 
 is remarkable for having at its mouth a splendid harbour 
 with deep water and every natural convenience for the 
 purposes of modem commerce. {See part Y, section 10, 
 for further references to these rivers, and to the Chesterfield 
 Inlet.) 
 
 Resources of the Hudson's Bay Territory. 
 
 !3< 
 
 ■son 
 
 The resources of Hudson's Bay and the country Theteionrc«* 
 immediately around it are varied and numerous, although ftayandTlrri. 
 as yet few of them ure at all developed. The fur trade n*im(w!MS? 
 is the principal and best known business which has 
 hitherto been carried on in these regions, but a large 
 amount of oil, derived from the larger whales, the 
 porpoises, walruses, white bears, and the various species 
 of seals which frequent the northern parts of the bay, 
 has been carried to New England, and small quantities, 
 principally of porpoise and seal oil, have from time to 
 time been brought to London by the Hudson's Bay 
 Company. The other exports from the bay have been as Bcrfdes ofl and 
 yet but trifling. They embrace whalebone, feathersi ^^^^^^ 
 quills, castorum, lead ore, sawn lumber, ivory, tallow, fe»therB,^oU^ 
 isinglass, and skins of seals and porpoises. The fisheries ore, sa^n 
 proper, speaking of Hudson's Bay, have not yet been taiiow,i'«ingiM« 
 investigated. Both the Indians and Eskimo find a besides sioted 
 variety of fish for their own use, and fine salmon abound 
 in the rivers of Hudson's Strait ; and from one or two of 
 them a considerable number of barrels, in a salted condi* 
 tion, are exported every year. Waterfowl are very 
 numerous on both sides of the bay, and larger game on 
 the " barren grounds " in the northern parts, so that the 
 natives, with prudence, may always have a plentiful ^^ ^ 
 
 aupply of food. 
 
230 
 
 The most im- 
 portant) of the 
 ■iKleveloped 
 resonrcea are 
 itfl Hoil, timber 
 •nil mineralB. 
 
 No obataoles 
 to the con- 
 striirtion of <\ 
 rsQway. 
 
 But perhaps the most important of the undeveloped 
 resources of the country around the bay are its soil» 
 timber, and minerals. To the south and west of James's 
 Bay, in the latitude of Devonshire and Cornwall, there is 
 a large tract, in which much of the land is good and the 
 olimate sufficiently favourable for the successful prosecu* 
 tion of stock and dairy farming. A strip of country 
 along the east side of James's Bay may also prove avail- 
 able for these purposes. To the south-west of the wide 
 pare of the bay the country is well wooded, and although 
 little or no rock comes to the surface over an immense 
 area, still neither the soil nor the climate is suitable for 
 carrying on agriculture as a principal occupation until 
 we have passed over more than half the distance to Lake 
 Winnipeg. This region, however, offers no engineering 
 difficulties to the construction of a railway from the sea- 
 coast to the better country beyond, and this, at present, 
 is the most important point in reference to it. Some of 
 the timber found in the country which sends its waters 
 into James's Bay may prove to be of value for export. 
 Among the kinds which it produces may be mentioned 
 white, red, and pitch pine, black and white spruce, 
 balsam, larch, white cedar, and white birch. Tha 
 numerous rivers converging towards the head of James's 
 Bay offer facUities of "driving" timber to points at 
 which it may be shipped by sea-going vessels. 
 
 Minerals In the Hudson's Bay Territory. 
 
 Mineral to be Minerals may, however, become in the future the 
 
 reKmrce8*ofthe greatest of the resources of Hudson's Bay. Little direct 
 
 Bay in future, ggg^j-^jj j^g^g as yet been made for the valuable minerals of 
 
 these regions. I have, however, found a large deposit of 
 
 rich ironstone on the Mottagami river, inexhaustible 
 
 supplies of good manganiferous iron ore on the islands 
 
 near the Eastmain coast, and promising quantities of 
 
 galena around Eichmond Gulf and also near Little "Whale 
 
 Eiver, where a small amount had previously been known 
 
 to exist. I have likewise noted traces of gold, silver, 
 
 UrtSuSSeraia. molybdenum, and copper. Lignite is met with on the 
 
2B1 
 
 Missinabe, gjrpsum on the Moose, vni petroleum-bearing 
 limestone ou the Abittibi river. Small quantities of 
 anthracite, and various ornamental stones, and rare 
 minerals, have been met with in the course of my 
 explorations. Soapstone is abundant not far from 
 Mosquito Bay, on the east side, and iron pyrites between 
 Churchill and Marble Island, on the west. Good 
 building stones, clays, and limestones exist on both 
 sides of the bay. A cargo of mica is said to have been 
 taken from Chesterfield Inlet to New York, and valuable 
 deposits of plumbago are reported to occur on the north 
 side of Hudson's Strait. Some capitalists have applied 
 to the Canadian Government for mining rights in the 
 latter region. 
 
 The New Importance of Hudson's Bay« 
 
 Situated in the heart of North America, and possess- 
 ing a seaport in the very centre of the continent, 1,600 ko°v b^Kius to 
 miles nearer than Quebec to the fertile lands of the Fntornst"'?*. . 
 North-West Territories, Hudson's Bay now begins to waybeuveen ' 
 possess a new interest, not only to the Canadians, but No^rth^vvLt 
 also to the people of Great Britain, from the fact that "■"** E«opo 
 the future highway between the great North-West of the 
 Dominion and Europe may pass through it. The possi- 
 bility of this route being adopted for trade is not a new 
 idea, and it has frequently been suggested by far-seeing 
 men in past years, and occasionally referred to in the ' 
 
 newspapers. (The discovery of the extensive and enor- 
 mously rich Goldfields in the Yukon basin adds a new 
 and important interest to Hudson Bay as providing an 
 almost direct route from England to the far North-west. 
 E. J. D.) 
 
 Sir J. H. Lefroy, t*resident of the Geographical ••TheArchangei 
 Section of the British Association, in the able address 
 which he delivered at the Swansea meeting (1880), said : 
 " Hudson Bay itself cannot fail at no distant day to 
 challenge more attention. York Factory, which is 
 nearer Liverpool than New York, has been happily called 
 by Professor H. Y. Hind the Archangel of the West." 
 
 of the West.' 
 
232 
 
 The Cnnadlan 
 Noith-W.^ht 
 cKpKble of 
 bocouiln,-; ilio 
 KreatHHt wheat- 
 flcld In tho 
 woild. 
 
 The city of 
 Wlunlpcs 800 
 luileB uem ei' 
 Llyorpool vli\, 
 Hudson's Day 
 than by the 
 St. Lawrence. 
 
 Agricultural Possibilities. 
 
 It has been shown that tho Canadian North- West 
 Territories, embracing hundreds of millions of acres of 
 line land, are capable of becoming the greatest wheatfield 
 in tho world. Tho centre of this immense agricultural 
 region lies to the north of the Saskatchov.an. If wo 
 look at the map of the northern hemisphere we shall seo 
 at a glance that the shortest route between these 
 territories and England is through Hudson's Bay. Mr. 
 Lindsay Eussell, the Surveyor- General of Canada, 1 aS 
 recently made a close calculation of relative distances, 
 and found that even the city of Winnipeg, which is near 
 the south-eastern extremity of these territories, is at 
 least 800 miles nearer to Liverpool by the Hudson's Bay 
 route than by the St. Lawrence, while the difference in 
 favour of the former will be increased continually as w© 
 advance northward into the interior. 
 
 A groat and 
 important 
 Favinr; to be 
 effected by a 
 UudBou Bay 
 route. 
 
 A Hadson Bay 
 route to open 
 up the fanning 
 Uuids of the 
 N.W.Twrl- 
 torles. 
 
 Advantage In Distance of the Hudson's Bay Route. 
 
 The route from the North - West Territories to 
 England, via Hudson's Bay, saves the whole distance 
 between Winnipeg and Montreal. The distance to 
 Liverpool by way of New York is still greater. The 
 advantages of this short route over all others are so 
 numerous that only a few of them can be referred to in 
 this short paper. The great saving in distance represents 
 an important economy in time and money, or in freight 
 and passenger rates. If the grain, cattle, and other pro- 
 ductions of the North- West Territories could reach an 
 European market, only through Ontario and Quebec, or 
 by way of New York, a large proportion of their value 
 would necessarily be consumed by the long land carriage ; 
 whereas, if they find an outlet at Churchill, there will be 
 an average saving of 1,291 miles as compared with 
 Montreal, and of upwards of 1,700 miles as compared 
 with New York, and this without any increase in the 
 length of the sea voyage. In effect, this will place a 
 great part of the farming lands of our North -West 
 Territories in as good a position in regard to a seaport as 
 
233 
 
 arc those of Ontario, west of Toronto ; and consequently . j 
 
 will greatly increase the value of every description of 
 
 faim produce, and, therefore, of the farms themselves. 
 
 Some kinds, which could not he sent out of the country 
 
 at all by the longer land route, maybe profitably exported 
 
 by the shorter one. For the transportation of both grain 
 
 and fresh meat, as Colonel Dennis has pointed out, the 
 
 northern route, besides the shortening of the distance, 
 
 would have great advantages over all those to the south, 
 
 owing to its cooler and more uniform temperature. 
 
 Heavy or bulky goods of all kinds would, of course, be 
 
 imported into the North-West by the shortest land route. 
 
 In regard to the export and import of live stock, this 
 
 independent route will possess a great importance to 
 
 these terrirtories. Hitherto, cattle, horses, hogs, and 
 
 sheep have there enjoyed an immunity from almost all Freedom from 
 
 forms of contagious diseases, and, owing to the healthy alnonR^at 
 
 nature of the climate for these animals, it is hoped this ?" w^Terei^* 
 
 state of things will continue. The domestic animals in fmpOTiantad- 
 
 the United States and the older Canadian provinces being expo?f trod^* 
 
 occasionally afflicted with contagious diseases, it becomes 
 
 necessary for European countries to impose restrictions 
 
 on their importation. In the event of an epidemic of 
 
 this nature existing in some part of these regions, but 
 
 not in the North- West Teri*itories, there need be no 
 
 objection to exporting live stock from the latter by way 
 
 of Hudson's Bay. 
 
 A Passenger Route of National Importance. 
 
 As a route for emigrants from Europe, that by An au-BritUh 
 Hudson's Bay possesses not only the advantage of the route, 
 short land journey, but the still more important one to 
 us, of entirely avoiding the United States and the 
 populous parts of Canada, in both of which, it is well 
 known, a very serious percentage of the immigrants 
 destined for our North-West lands are every year enticed 
 away to settle in the great republic. An inlet by 
 Hudson's Bay is the only thoroughly independent 
 iihannel which can ever be established between the 
 
234 
 
 British Islands and our great and valuable territories in 
 the interior of North America ; and it is very desirable^ 
 on national grounds, that it should be opened up. 
 
 The idea of ice 
 destmctiTe to 
 the naTigation 
 of Hudson's 
 Bay destined 
 to prove 
 ohimerioai. 
 
 Hudson's Bay 
 oiien all the 
 year. 
 
 The advantage 
 of « Hadson 
 Bay sea-port 
 over the St. 
 Lawrence. 
 
 No Obstructions to Navigation. 
 
 An impression has long prevailed that Hudson's 
 Bay and Strait could not be navigated for the ordinary 
 purposes of commerce on account of ice, but this idea is 
 probably destined to prove chimerical. The occasion for 
 testing the point has not hitherto arisen, and the fact 
 that these waters have been successfully navigated by 
 ordinary sailing vessels for 200 years, in order to secure 
 "what little trade the country afforded, indicates what 
 may be expected from properly equipped steamships, so 
 soon as the larger business of the future may require their 
 services in this direction. The conditions of the sea-borne 
 commerce of the North West, in relation to Hudson's 
 Bay, will probably turn out to be similar to those of the 
 rest of Canada with reference to the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 
 In both cases, everything must be done during the 
 «ummer. Yet Hudson's Bay is, of course, open all the 
 year round. No one would be likely to suppose that a 
 sea of such extent, in the latitude of the British Islands, 
 would ever freeze across. The Lower St. Lawrence is 
 also partly open even in the middle of winter. But the 
 difficulty in both cases is the impossibility of getting into 
 harbours. A harbour such as that of Churchill on 
 Hudson's Bay would have the advantage over Quebec or 
 Montreal of communicating directly with the open sea, 
 and hence in the autumn vessels would not be liable 
 to be frozen in, as occasionally happens in the 
 St. Lawrence. 
 
 Hndaen's Bay 
 ports open to 
 Bavigation 
 from middle of 
 Jane to end of 
 October every 
 year. 
 
 Period of Open Navigation in tlie Bay and Rivers. 
 
 There has been some discussion as to the length of 
 time during which Hudson's Strait and Bay might be 
 navigated each year, but there does not seem to be much 
 evidence that the strait, any more than the bay, is closed 
 
235 
 
 at any season. Its great width, depth, and strength of 
 the tides probably keep it open all winter. My own 
 experience and that of many others lead me to believe 
 that the climate generally of Hudson's Bay is much 
 bc-ter than some writers have represented it to be. From 
 all that I could learn or observe, it appears that the 
 strait and bay may be navigated and the land approached 
 by steamers during an average of four and a half montha 
 each year, or from the middle of June to the end of 
 October. The strait and bay could probably be navigated 
 by steam vessels earlier than the middle of June, but 
 nothing would be gained, except perhaps by whalers, in 
 going in before an open harbour can be reached. 
 
 I have a record of the principal phenomena of the Over so years* 
 
 ■^ 1 fii T records el the 
 
 seasons at Martm s Falls, on the Albany, extending open na^i^"*- 
 through a period of fifty years, and from it I find that some of the 
 the river is open there on an average for six months of Rivers, 
 the year. I have also a record of dates of the opening 
 and closing of Hayes Eiver at York Factory, extending 
 over more than fifty years, from which it appears to 
 enjoy an average of fully six months of open water. The 
 Nelson Eiver is open for a longer period. I think, with 
 these facts before us, we need not despair of successfully 
 navigating Hudson's Bay, as far as the length of the 
 season is concerned. Even were the time of open 
 navigation shorter than it is known to be, the very great 
 benefits which the North- West and Canada generally 
 would derive from possessing an outlet in that direction 
 are sufiicient to make it well worth an effort to open it. 
 
 Economic Advantages of this Route to Europe. 
 
 The freedom of Hudson's Strait and Bay from rocks, Navigation of 
 
 . . , .,, HucIhou'b Bay 
 
 shoals, and other impediments to navigation will exempt exempt from 
 vessels in that quarter of the globe from the heavy houses aud 
 expenses for pilots, lighthouses, &c., which burden 
 shipping by the St. Lawrence, aud are even more onerous 
 in some other parts of the world. The delays from 
 drifting ice in the strait, which have occasionally 
 occurred to sailing vessels, would not be experienced by 
 steamships. 
 
236 
 
 The Increase in 
 land TalneB in 
 the N.W. Terrl. 
 tories by the 
 shorter route 
 to Europe for 
 
 £roclacts Tla 
 [adson'a Bay. 
 
 We have seen that in proportion as we decrease the 
 cost of transportation to a foreign market, we increase 
 the home value of all kinds of farm produce, and conse- 
 quently of the farm itself. Now, considering the vast 
 extent of fine land to be affected by the opening of the 
 route above referred to, if the value of each acre of it 
 were enhanced in this way by only a few shillings, the 
 aggregate increase would amount to more than a hundred 
 million of dollars. Such a gain as this, together with 
 the various other great advantages which, as we have 
 seen, may be derived from the opening of this new ocean 
 route, will, I think, sufficiently illustrate the commercial 
 importance of Hudson's Bay. -- 
 
 HndBon's Bay 
 Co. have been 
 naTigating the 
 Bay for 147 
 years. 
 
 A marrelloas 
 record I 
 
 Record off Wrecks In Hudson's Bay; 
 Only One in 374 Years. 
 
 Dr. Eobert Bell obtained fiom the Company's offices, 
 in London, a record, which, printed in his report, shows 
 the date of arriving and sailing of their vessels at York 
 Factory for 93 years, and at Moose Fort for 147 years. 
 These lists show that in some years several vessels were 
 sent in charge of British men-of-war, and there have 
 been almost every year during the past two centuries 
 ships of various classes and sizes, navigating the strait 
 without loss, and it seems almost incredible that such a 
 number of voyages could be made, extending over 874 
 years, without the loss of over one, or, as is claimed by 
 some writers, two small sailing vessels. 
 
 ■ Important Evidence of the Bay's Navigation. 
 
 Extracts from the Hudson Bay Committee's Report of 1884. " 
 
 No evidence has been given that goes to prove that 
 Hudson's Strait and Bay proper ever freeze over, or that 
 the ice met with in those waters is sufficient to prevent 
 navigation at any time of the year. 
 
 That, consequently, the period of navigation is 
 defined by the time dmring which the ports, harbours, or 
 roadsteads on the shores of the bay can be entered by 
 vessels of a suitable description for such navigation. 
 
237 
 
 That, from the evidence adduced, it appears that hMbounfof"* 
 
 such ports or harbours are open, on an average, from ^en*2f°'^^^ 
 
 four and a half to five months in each year to ordinary 6 months every 
 , •' •' year. 
 
 vessels. 
 
 That Hudson's Bay and Strait appear, from all 
 evidence taken, to be singularly free from obstruction to 
 navigation in the shape of shoals or reefs ; and, during 
 the period of open water, from utorms or fogs. 
 
 Section 27« Dangers of the Chilkat, 
 Taiya Chi!koot, and White Passes. 
 
 W. OGILVIE, 1896. 
 
 It is said by those familiar with the locality that the Terrific atorms 
 storms, which rage in the upper altitudes of the coast J^j^n^o^lheBe 
 range during the greater part ox the time, from October Pm««». 
 to March are terrific. A man caught in one of them 
 runs the risk of losing his life, unless he can reach shelter 
 in a short time. During the summer there is nearly 
 always a wind blowing from the sea up Chatham Strait 
 and Lynn Canal, which lie in almost a straight line with 
 each other, and at the head of Lynn Canal are Chilkat 
 and Chilkoot inlets. The distance from the coast down 
 these channels to the open sea is about 380 mUes. The 
 mountains on each side of the water confine the currents 
 of air, and deflect inclined currents in the direction of the 
 axis of the channel, so that there is nearly always a 
 strong wind blowing up the channel. Coming from the 
 sea, this wind is heavily charged with moisture which 
 is precipitated when the air current strikes the mountains 
 -and the fall of rain and snow is consequently very heavy. 
 
238 
 
 In chittat Inlet Jq Chilkat Inlet there is not much shelter from the 
 
 there is IHtle 
 
 ^iteri south wind, which renders it unsafe for ships calling 
 
 there. Captain Hunter told me that he would rather 
 visit any other part of the coast than Chilkat. 
 
 17" 
 
 ««,] 
 
 In the summer months there is nearly always a wind 
 blowing in from the coast; it blows down the lakes 
 (Lindeman, Bennett, etc.,) and produces quite a heavy 
 swell. 
 
 The Chllkoot 
 Pass 
 
 condemned 
 by Mr. de 
 Windt, the 
 explorer. 
 
 Mr. de Windt's 
 opinion o{ the 
 Takn route is 
 not shared by 
 Mr. Ogilvie- 
 8ee Section 9, 
 PartW. 
 
 Extracts from Mr. H. de WINDT'S Letter in the "Times" of 
 
 28rd July, 1897. 
 
 •' The Ohilkoot Pass is difficult, even dangerous, to 
 those not possessed of steady nerves. Towards the 
 summit there is a sheer ascent of 1,000 feet, where a 
 slip would certainly be fatal. At this point a dense mist 
 Overtook us, but we reached Lake Lindemann — the first 
 of a series of five lakes —in safety after a fatiguing tramp 
 of fourteen consecutive hours through half-melted snow. 
 Here we had to build our own boat, first felling the 
 timber for the purpose. The journey down the lakes 
 occupied ten days, four of which were passed in camp 
 on Lake Bennett during a voilent storm which raised a 
 heavy sea. The rapids followed. One of these latter, 
 * The Grand Caiion,' is a mile long, and dashes through 
 walls of rock from 50 feet to 100 feet high ; six miles 
 below are the * White Horse Eapids,' a name which 
 many fatal accidents have converted into the ' Miner's 
 Grave.' But snags and rocks are everywhere a fruitful 
 source of danger on this river, and from this rapid, 
 downward, scarcely a day passed that one did not see 
 some cairn or wooden cross marking the last rest resting- 
 place of some drowned pilgrim to the land of gold. . , 
 
 " There is, however, a brighter side to this gloomy 
 picture, for there are fortunately other approaches to 
 the Yukon Valley besides the dreaded Chilkoot. The 
 chain of mountains of which the latter forms a part is 
 cut by three other passes — The Taku, the Chilkat, and 
 
239 
 
 the White Pass. Of these the two former ziiay bo dis- 
 missed as being, on account of their length and other 
 difficulties, almost as impracticable as the Chilkoot, over 
 which it would be quite impossible to lay a bridle path ; 
 but the White Pass offers no serious obstacles to the 
 construction of a railway. The White Pass is at least 
 1,000 feet lower than the Chilkoot, and, unlike the 
 latter, is timbered the entira length. The salt water 
 terminus of this pass is in Skayway Bay, 85 miles from 
 Juneau. Here ocean steamers can run up at all times 
 to a wharf w iich has been constructed in a sheltered 
 position, and there is an excellent town site with pro- 
 tection from storms. The pass lies through a box canon 
 surrounded by high granite peaks and is comparatively 
 easy. It has already been used by miners who report 
 very favourably upon the trail, and when it is con- 
 sidered that the adoption of this route obviates the 
 dangers and expenses of the Chilkoot, avoids Lakes 
 Lindemann and Bennett (the stormiest and most 
 perilous of the whole chain), shortens and greatly 
 diminishes the expense of the journey to the Yukon 
 Valley, and, above all, can be used throughout the year 
 (the interior of Alaska is now completely cut off from Mr.aeWindt 
 
 ^ , r J prefers the 
 
 the world for nine months in the year), there can be ^^■hite I'ass. 
 little reasonable doubt that the White Pass is the best 
 and most practicable route to the Yukon goldfields." 
 
 Interview with Mr. HARRY DE WINDT, "Strand Magazine," 
 
 October, 1897. 
 
 " The tramp from Dyea to Sheep Camp, at the foot 
 of the pass, can be avoided by riding, but the trail is 
 terribly rough. At Sheep Camp we stopped four days, 
 the Indians having struck for higher wages, which we 
 were compelled to give them. Here we passed three parties 
 of miners who were returning to Juneau, having failed 
 through lack of provisions to reach the Lakes. A stiff 
 climb of two hours from Sheep Camp brought us to 
 Stone House, the limit of the tree line ; and from here 
 the hard work commenced in grim earnest. For the first 
 
; 240 
 
 few hours, the way lay over a succession of snowy 
 ' plateaus,' which, broken away beneath by numberlesa 
 water-courses, formed a kind of crust 15 feet to 20 feet 
 above the ground. The travelling here was extremely 
 dangerous. There was absolutely no path or trail to 
 guide one ; and huge crevasses, where the snow had 
 faUen in upon some roaring torrent, appeared here and 
 there. There are seven or eight of these ' plateaus,' 
 which increased in steepness until, midway up the last 
 one, we were scrambling painfully up the slippery ice- 
 slope on our hands and knees. Here a dense mist 
 overtook us, and we lay shivering (at a very uncom- 
 fortable angle) for three hours, until it cleared away and 
 disclosed the rocky precipitous peak of the Chilkoot 
 towering another thousand feei above us. The cold waft 
 intense, and we were not sorry to resume our journey.- 
 The last part of the ascent was terribly hard — in places \, 
 literally perpendicular. There is no path of any kind, 
 nor would it be possible to make one, for the rocks are 
 loose and insecure, and the passage of a man will often 
 dislodge a huge boulder, and send it crashing down, to 
 the deadly peril of those below. The ascent of the 
 peak occupied nearly three hours. There were two or 
 three places where a slip must have meant certain death, 
 notably one about thirty yards from thd summit, which 
 we reached at about 5 a.m. 
 
 ♦* I have roughed it," said the explorer to me, "for 
 the past fifteen years in Siberia, in Borneo, and in 
 Chinese Tartary, but I can safely describe that climb 
 over the Chilcoot as the severest physical experience of 
 my life. A blinding snowstorm barred our way for 
 nearly an hour, and we then descended a steep ice-slope 
 of about 600 feet, which brought us to Crater Lake. 
 From here, at 7 a.m., began an exhausting tramp 
 through deep snow-drifts, gradually thawing to half- 
 frozen slush, knee-deep, as we gained the lower ground. 
 A rocky ridge of hills and three small streams were then 
 crossed. One of the latter, swollen by recent rains, 
 carried one of our pm-ty off his feet, but he. ^as, with 
 
2-il 
 
 some difficulty, escued. From 10 a.m. till midday, 
 heavy and incessant rain fell, but by 2 p.m, we stood 
 dead-beat, bleeding and exhausted (but safe), on the 
 shores of Lake Lindemann, the journey having occupied 
 nearly fifteen hours. Then we had to wait ten hours 
 longer, drenched with rain and perspiration, and sick 
 with hunger, until the Indians came up with provisions." 
 
 The head of Lake Lindemann, the first of a chain 
 of five lakes, is about nine miles from the summit of the 
 pass. If you think that, having regard to what you 
 have already endured, all will now be plain sailing, you 
 are greviously mistaken. You must build a boat here, 
 capable of carrying yourself aud your stores hundreds of 
 miles across lakes and through rapids. It doesn't matter 
 if you know nothing of boat-building; you must build 
 some sort of boat or raft, or else turn back ever the 
 awful Chilcoot. "Where is the wood?" you ask, in 
 dismay. You have to fell the trees for it — aye, and 
 travel miles to find a tree, so disafforested has this spot 
 been by hundreds of eager gold-seekers. In your bag- 
 gage should be not merely the tools for tree-felling and 
 plank-sawing, but even the very pitch which is to caulk 
 the seams of your cra?:y craft. 
 
 Leaving the Lakes on June 26th, we entered tho 
 "Lewes Eiver, and next day reached the Grand Canon 
 Eapid, which is nearly a mile long, and dashes through 
 perpendicular walls of rock from 50 feet to 100 feet high. 
 The fall is 100 feet wide, and so swift, that the stream is 
 4 feet higher in the centre than at the sides I 
 
 " Next we dashed down a perfect mill-race for six 
 miles to the White Horse Eapids — a place so fatal as to 
 have received the name of the ' Miner's Grave.' Not a 
 day passed that we did pot see a cairn, or a rude wooden 
 cross, marking the last resting-place of some drowned 
 pilgrim to the land of gold. At Fort Selkirk, the Lewes 
 Biver down which we journeyed from the Lakes unites 
 ■with the Pelly, and the two together form the giant 
 Yukon, which iias a course of 2,014 miles. 
 
 i» 
 
242 
 
 " On the twenty-fifth day out from Juneau we 
 reached Forty Mile City." 
 
 Section 2il8« General. 
 
 Extract from the Summary of the Committee appointed to enquira 
 into the resources for the Great Mackenzie Basin. 
 
 Idttle more 
 Imown of this 
 territory than 
 of Central Aus- 
 tralia and 
 Africa. 
 
 Your Committee (of the Senate of the Dominion), 
 desiring to refer briefly to the evidence upon which they 
 have based these conclusions, may explain that very 
 early in their investigations they became convinced that 
 very little more was known of the Northern and 
 Eastern portion of area committed to them for investi- 
 gation than was known of the interior of Africa and 
 Austiralia. 
 
 A Yukon Outfit. 
 
 Feom Luqbin's Publication issued fkom the Offiqb 
 OF THE Agent-Genbeal fou. B.C., London. 
 
 8 Sacks Mouz 
 l^'O ibs. Bacon 
 15Q lbs. Split Peas 
 100 lbs. Beans 
 
 25 lbs. Evaporated Apples 
 
 25 lbs. Evaporated Feachea 
 
 25 lbs. Apricots 
 
 25 lbs. Butter 
 109 lbs. Granulated Sugar 
 
 1^ dcz. Condensed Milk 
 
 ■» ■'■ lbs. Ooffea 
 
 .-J lbs. Tea 
 
 1 lb. Pepper 
 10 lbs. Salt 
 
 S-lbs. Baking Powder 
 40 lbs. Boiled Oats or Oatmeal 
 
 2 doz. Yeast Cakes 
 
 ^ doz. i oz. Beef Extract 
 
 5 bars Castile Soap 
 
 6 bars Tar Soap 
 1 tin Maiiohes 
 
 1 gal. Vinegar 
 1 box Candles 
 25 lbs. Evaporated Potatoes 
 
343 
 
 25 lbs. Rice 
 
 25 Canvas Sacks < 
 
 1 Wash Basin 
 
 1 Medicine Chest 
 
 1 Eubber Sheet 
 
 1 set Pack Straps 
 
 1 Pick 
 
 1 Handle 
 
 1 Drift Pioi 
 
 1 Handle 
 
 1 Shovel 
 
 1 Gold Pan 
 
 1 Axe 
 
 1 Whip Saw 
 
 1 Hand Saw 
 
 1 Jack Plane 
 
 1 Brace 
 
 4 Bits, assorted, 3/16 to 1 in. 
 
 1 8-in. Mill File 
 
 1 6-in. Mill Pile 
 
 1 Broad Hatchet 
 
 1 2-qt. Galv'd CoSee Pol 
 
 1 Fry Pan 
 
 1 Package Pivets 
 
 1 Draw Knife 
 
 3 CoY'dPails,4,6, 8-qt. Granite 
 
 1 Pie Plate - , •.„,. 
 
 1 Knife and Fork 
 
 1 Granite Cup 
 
 1 each Tea and Table Spoon 
 
 1 14-in. Granite Spoon 
 
 1 Tape Measure 
 
 1 !J-in. Chisel 
 10 lbs. Oftkum 
 10 lbs. Pitch 
 
 5 lbs. 20d. Nails . --.^\ 
 
 5 lbs. lOd. Nails 
 
 6 lbs. 6d. Nails 
 300 feet |-in. Rope 
 
 1 Single Block 
 
 1 Solder Outfit 
 
 1 Pair Rowlocks 
 
 1 14-qt. Galvanized Pail 
 
 1 Granite Saucepan 
 
 3 lbs. Candle Wick 
 
 1 Compass 
 
 1 Candle Stick 
 
 6 Towels 
 
 1 Axe Handle 
 
 1 Axe Stone 
 
 1 Emery Stone 
 
 1 Sheet-Iron Stov« 
 
 Some of the foregoing articles are omitted by some 
 miners, but the Dealers of Victoria or Vancouver may be 
 safely trusted to advise iniending travellers in the matter 
 of ouifits in all cases. 
 
 Joe Ladue's food outfit for 12 months. 
 
 Mr. Joe Ladue (the pioneer and founder of Dawson 
 City) states in McClure's Magazine for September, 
 1897:— 
 
 "A year's supply of 'grub,' which can be bought SSS?°2" 
 as cheaply in Juneau as anywhere, I think, is : 100 sacks aSywhex^" 
 ct flour, 15Qlbs. sugar, 100 lbs. bacon, 30 lbs. coffes, 
 
 R 2 
 
244 
 
 10 lbs. tea, 100 lbs. beans, 50 lbs. oatmeal, 100 lbs. mixed 
 froitB, 25 lbs. salt, about 10 dollars worth of spicea and 
 kniok-knaoks, and some quinine to break up oolds. 
 
 " The total cost of this outfit is about 200 dollars, 
 
 No man sboold 
 IP to the 
 
 leaslhan^ioo but no man should start with lebs than 500 dollars, and 
 Si.ooo.'^'*" ** * twice that is ten times as good." 
 
 ■i- ti.T ..■■••■ 
 
 Klondike Market Prices, July, 1897. 
 
 gammer prices 
 on the 
 Elondyke 
 daring the 
 sammexof 
 1697. 
 
 Here is a list of pnces w 
 just now : — 
 
 Elour, per 100 lb. 
 
 bich obtam at iil< 
 £2 10s. to £24 
 
 
 Beef, per lb. ... 
 
 
 4s. to 8s, 
 
 
 Bacon, per lb. 
 
 
 
 3s. 3d. 
 
 
 Moose Hams, each 
 
 
 
 £6. 
 
 
 Moose Hams, per lb. 
 
 
 
 88. 
 
 
 -i 
 
 Bice, per lb. ... 
 
 
 «• 
 
 38. 
 
 
 Tea, per lb. 
 
 
 
 12s. 
 
 
 Coffee, per lb. ... 
 
 
 • •< 
 
 9s. 
 
 
 Butter, per lb. 
 
 
 • •« 
 
 lOs. 
 
 
 " ' Eggs, per lb. ... 
 
 
 • •« 
 
 128. 
 
 
 Potatoes, per lb. 
 
 
 
 lOs. 
 
 
 Tobacco, per lb. 
 
 
 • • < 
 
 8s. 
 
 
 Canned fruit, per can 
 
 
 
 9s. 
 
 
 Coal oil, per gallon 
 
 
 
 10s. 
 
 .) ■ 
 
 Lemons, each 
 
 
 • *« 
 
 Is- 
 
 
 Oranges, each 
 
 
 • 14 
 
 28. 
 
 
 Liquors, per drink 
 
 
 • •1 
 
 • 2s. 
 
 
 Miners' picks, each 
 
 
 • • « 
 
 £18s. 
 
 
 Shovels, each 
 
 
 £3 8s. to £3 12s. 
 
 
 Shoes, per pair 
 
 
 £1 to £1 12s. 
 
 
 Eubber boots, per pair 
 
 £2 8 
 
 s. to £3 12s. 
 
246 
 
 Another Table of Prices. 
 
 Here is another table which shows what it will cost costof ontat. 
 to reach tlie cold fields from New York : — expensoB. 
 
 " time and 
 
 Fare from New York to Seattle via Northern Pacific, frSmThe"" ***'•• 
 
 n%ci a- United StetM 
 
 tit) D3. to the 
 
 , Klondylw. 
 
 Fee for Pullman sleeper, £4 2p.. 
 
 Feo for tourist sleeper, run only west of St. Paul, £1. 
 
 Meals served in dining oar for entire trip, £3 4s. 
 
 Meals are served at stations along the route a 
 la carte. 
 
 Distance from New York to Seattle, 3,290 miles. 
 
 Days required to make the journey, about six. . 
 
 Fare for steamer from Seattle to Juneau, including 
 cabin and meals, £7 
 
 Days, Seattle to Juneau, about five. 
 
 Number of miles from Seattle to Juneau, 725. 
 
 Cost of living in Juneau, abont 128. per day. 
 
 Distance up Lynn Canal to Healey's Store, steam- 
 boat, 76 miles. 
 
 Number of days New York to Healey's Store, 12. 
 
 Cost of complete outfit for overland journey, about 
 £30. 
 
 Cost of provisions for one year, about £40. 
 
 Cost of dogs, sledge, and outfit, about £30. 
 
 Stcamor leaves Seattle once a week. 
 
 Best time ^j s^. -rt is early in the spring. 
 
 Total cost of trip, New York to BLlondyke, about 
 £133 2s. 
 
 Number of days required for journey. New York to 
 Klondyke, 36 to 40. 
 
 Totnl distance, via Juneau, to the mines at ElondykOf 
 4,650 miles. 
 
246 
 
 An old 
 plonMt'aontflt 
 
 mliiw's oatfll 
 
 "" " A Light Weight Outfit. 
 From "The Review of Reviews," 15th September, 1897. 
 
 Joaquin Mi'ler, who may be regarded as an expert 
 oapable of reduoiug his impedimenta to an irreducible 
 minimum, carried with him the following kit : — 
 
 "I have twenty pounds of bacon, twelve pounds of 
 hard tack, half pound of tea. I have a heavy pair of 
 blankets, the heaviest ; socks, underclothing, boots, a 
 rubber blanket, a macintosh, a pound of assorted nails, 
 one hundred feet of small rope, a sail and an axe. My 
 pack is forty pounds all told. T have a pocket-knife and 
 an iron cup, a thermometer and about 100 dollars. 
 
 "I hope to build a raft, carry my otwn pack over all 
 the places, and travel hastily on ahead and alone. You 
 see, I have spent years alone in the mountains, and have 
 been in almost all the < stampedes ' for the last forty 
 years, and know what I am about." 
 
 If that be the minimum equipment for a forced 
 march, here is what may be regarded as adequate 
 provision for a well-to-do miner for twelve months in 
 Elondyke. It is an interesting table of the needs of the 
 civilised human when encamped on the run of the Arctic 
 Circle. The total cost of the outfit only comes to £44 : — 
 
 A twelve months' Outfit. 
 
 Fbovisions. — 75 pounds granulated sugar, 1 dozen 
 packages of beef extract, 10 pounds evaporated onions, 
 50 pounds evaporated potatoes, 50 pounds evaporated 
 peaches, 10 pounds evaporated currants, 25 pounds salt, 
 25 pounds rolled oats, 50 pounds commeal, 200 pounds 
 breakfast bacon, 50 pounds rice, 1 pound cayenne pepper, 
 1 pound black pepper, 1 case condensed milk, 10 sacks 
 flour, 1 bottle vinegar, 15 pounds dried beef, 1 case 
 baking powder, 1 pound mustard, 1 box candles, 1 can 
 matches, 20 bars soap, crackers, Castile soap, 1 dozen 
 small cheeses, 25 pounds spaghetti, 15 pounds coffee, 3 
 pounds tea, 100 pounds beans, 25 poimds of pitted plums. 
 Total cost of provisions at Seattle, £21, 
 
247 
 
 Clothing. — Thrco suits underwear, one undershirt, 
 one Yukon blanket, one summer blanket, one dozen 
 pairs socks, two pairs mittens, one cap, one bag, two 
 overshirts, one jumper, one pair gum boot socks, two 
 pairs rubber boots, two pairs leather shoes, hobnailed. 
 Total £15 6s. 4d. 
 
 Tools and Cooking Utensils. — 40 pounds wire 
 nails, 5 pounds pitch (for caulking boat), 1 whip saw, 1 
 caulking chisel, 2 pounds tallow (for caulking boat), 
 2 wedges, 1 handsaw, 250 feet |-inch manilla ropej 
 1 compass, 1 knife and sheath, 1 pack strap, 1 brace, 1 
 shovel, 1 pick and handle, 3 buckets, 1 cofifeo-pot, hooka 
 and lines, 1 stove, 1 piece sheet-iron, 1 revolver, belt and 
 cartridges, 1 gold pan. Total £Q 6s. 
 
 Besides these supplies each traveller has a case of 
 medicine that costs 38s. 
 
 To get to Klondyke with supplies for a year it is 
 estimated the miner should have a capital of from 
 £200 to £250. 
 
 Fares and Time, Uverpool to the Klondyke. 
 
 Time. — Liverpool to Montreal, about 10 days, Mon- 
 treal to Victoria, 5 days. 
 
 Fares. — Liverpool to Victoria (steam and rail), 
 1st, £24 12s. 7d. ; 2nd, £17 18s. 9d. ; 3rd, £15 18s. 9d. 
 
 The Canadian Pacific Navigation Company, book 
 passengers from Victoria (B.C.) right through to the 
 gold-fields, via St. Michael's, for £30 16s. 6d. Total 
 cost, cheapest fare from Liverpool to Dawson City, 
 £46 15s. 3d. 
 
 Next year, 1898, fares from Victoria to the gold- 
 fields will probably bo much cheaper. 
 
 The time from Victoria (B.C.) to the Yukon varies 
 according to circumstances, 2 to 6 weeks. If by 
 St. Michael's and the Yukon, according to delays at portq 
 and on the river, and obstructions on the latter ; if over* 
 land and by the Lewes River, according to luok and the 
 individual. {See Sections 10, 18 and 27.) 
 
248 
 
 How to obtaiu 
 a clear title to 
 a claim on the 
 Kloudyke. 
 
 How a Miner "peg's out" on the Yukon. 
 
 Mr. Joe Ladue states in McClure's Magazine iot 
 September, 1897 : — 
 
 This is how a miner is enabled to " read his title 
 clear ' ' to the patch of auriferous soil which he wishes to 
 claim : — 
 
 Claims have to be ■'taked out, of course, according 
 to the Canadian laws, which I think are clear and fair. 
 The only fault I find with them is that they recognise no 
 agreements that are not in writing. . . .AH you have 
 to do is to find gold, to which you must swear, then mark 
 off about five hundred feet along the bed of the creek 
 where no one has laid a claim, and stick up your stakes 
 with your n;.rae on them, one at each corner of your 
 land. Across the ends you blaze the trees. This done, 
 you go to the registrar of claims, pay fifteen dollars, and, 
 after a while, the surveyor will come along and make it 
 exact. 
 
 Dyea and 
 Bkagway, 
 British or 
 American ? 
 
 Anglo-BtiBsian 
 oon-entlon of 
 
 The British Columbia Boundary Question. 
 
 Capitalist, 2l8t October, 1897. 
 
 It is contended on the British side that the head of 
 the canal and the ports of Dyea and Skagway are in 
 British territory, and this is stoutly denied by the Wash- 
 ington Government. The United States purchased Alaska 
 from Russia in 1867, and the purchase, amongst other 
 things, was subject to the provisions of a boundary con- 
 vention between Great Britain and Eussia rjade in 1825. 
 The boundary between British and Eussian territory was 
 then described as follows : Whenever the summits of the 
 mountains, which extends parallel with the coast from 
 56 deg. N. latitude to the point of intersection of 141 deg. 
 W. longitude, shall prove to be at a distance of more 
 than ten ma:: ne loag'ies from the ocean, the limit between 
 the British possessions and the lino of coast which is to 
 belong to Bussia shall be formed by a line parallel to the 
 T^findings of the coast, and which shall never exceed ten 
 marine leagues therefrom. 
 
249 
 
 Tho interpretation of this clause is *^"! nut to be 
 -cracked between the two Governments se\ two years 
 after the treaty was made. The Lynn chaniAoi is said to 
 commence at least twenty leagues from the ocean. The 
 United States claim the inlet to be the ocean, as it is boXriog npon 
 tidal salt water accessible without hindrance from the orcoaSt?"^'"* 
 sea. In pursuance of this contention the States have 
 established custom houses at Dyea and Skagway, which 
 on the other side are claimed to be in British territory 
 because the Lynn channel cannot be considered as ocean 
 at all. The United States have scvsured possession, which 
 is held to be equal to nine points of the law, and from the 
 point of view of to-day there is the prospect of a haggling 
 for compromise. 
 
 Important, concerning Outfits. 
 
 Mr. Eoger Pocock, in writing from Victoria (B.C.), 
 to Lloyd's Weekly of 7th November, 1897, states : — 
 
 I do know something, at least, about outfitting for 
 Alaska, British Columbia, and the Territories, having 
 travelled for years in these regions, gaining experience 
 which may be useful to next year's crop of victims. 
 
 If you are going to the Yukon do not outfit in Lon- 
 don. A few things you may get there which will be 
 useful: — 
 
 Pocket medicine case full of concentrated drugs and 
 instruments of minor surgery. 
 
 " The Ship Captain's Medical Guide." 
 
 Three-cornered needles — *' surgeon's," " glover's," 
 ** sailmaker's " ; sheath knife, flexible with wooden handle, 
 patent buttons, wax end, wax, thread, &c., underclothes, 
 and toilet-gear. 
 
 For salmon — a gafif head. 
 
 For trout— common tackle. Western fish despise 
 fancy flies. 
 
 For meat — a rifle, '45 calibre. 
 
 Weapons are not carried on the Klondike. . 
 
250 
 
 It is in Canada, and the Mounted Police run that 
 department. 
 
 Winter clothes get in Winnipeg. 
 
 Gloves are dangerous. Use mitts, and have a pair 
 or two of guantlet wrists flexible to sew on to them. 
 Mitts and foot gear should be of ample size, and the supply 
 generous. 
 
 Snow goggles are ne>-essary in spring. 
 
 A fur coat should have an eight-inch collar, and not 
 reach below the knee. The -parka of the Esquimaux and 
 the fur trowsers might be got in London, and are both ex- 
 cellent. A fur cap and a large light fur robe for bedding 
 will be useful. All very expensive. Fur boots are the 
 best foot gear, but take also Canadian mocassins and shoe- 
 packs. 
 
 Snowshoes should be narrow — Pacific coast or Arctic 
 pattern. 
 
 Summer gear.— The English oilskin suit and sou'- 
 wester — seaman's pattern — is best ; do not get officers' 
 oilskin coats, which are too long. 
 
 For the rest the dealers in Victoria, B.C., are old 
 miners of large experience, and their advice is worth 
 taking. 
 
 Long-legged rubber boots are for river work, but be- 
 ware of those with linings, which are useless. In wearing 
 them put on dry socks after every meal, which will save 
 your feet from getting tender. Hang tba boots by the 
 tops at night to dry. I prefer myselt a long-legged 
 leather boot, well oiled, because it does not wear out in 
 a week at the ankles. The tops should be o'. rather light 
 leather, narrow at the ankles, close up the leg, the sole 
 broad with nails, the heel very low and large, the counter 
 built up stiff, and fitting exactly over the heel. The 
 Russian national boot is best of all ; the English makes 
 are useless, and pitifully bad ; the American fair. The 
 English hobnailed highlow is good for mountain work, 
 but bad in the wet climate of the Upper Yukon. 
 
251 
 
 The best clothes are American duck overalls, but a 
 Buit of Mackinaw, as used by lumbermen, should be taken 
 also. 
 
 The hat should shelter the eyes. 
 
 Take the best mosquito netting, and plenty of it, 
 also long-wristed gloves. The Yukon and Lapland are 
 the worst mosquito countries known. 
 
 Get large grey double blankets and a waterproof 
 sheet to roll them in; an oil canvas sack for clothes. 
 Leave all linen and fine apparel behind. 
 
 Weight from 100 lbs. ; cost, without furs, from £20. 
 
 Camp outfit for a party, buy in Canada. 
 
 An "A" tent, waterproof and strong, but light, col- 
 lapsible sheet-iron stove, with telescope pipe, frying pans, 
 camp kettles, buckets, &c., table ware of galvanised iron. 
 
 Weight from 30 lbs. ; cost from £5. 
 
 Mining Outfit. — Canadian axe, with spare helves, 
 long-handled shovel, pick, and steel gold pan. 
 
 Boat Building Outfit. — Five pound 2-in. and 4-in. 
 wire nails, 5 lb. pitch,31b. oakum, two large files, hammer, 
 brace and bit, large whipsaw, 50 ft. f-in rope, draw 
 knife, chisel, sail canvas, sail needles, wax-end, a block 
 or two. 
 
 Total weight, 70 lb. ; cost £10. 
 
 Provisions, — Under current conditions no man is 
 allowed to enter the country without a supply for one 
 year. Add 1 lb. citric acid as a light substitute for lime 
 juice (five grains dissolved in water makes a most refresh- 
 ing drink), and 100 lb. dried fruit and vegetables. Scurvy 
 is prevalent from bad living. Matches should be in tin 
 with waterproof wrapping. 
 
 All perishable goods should be in oilskin sacks. Bags 
 are easier to handle than boxes. 
 
 Weight of year's supply, 1,5001b. ; cost in Canada, 
 £30. 
 
orn 
 
 Hints to the Mining Novice. 
 
 Here — says the Calgary Herald of September 16th 
 (1897) — are a few hints for the tenderfoot who does not 
 know dolomite from a mule tract, and who may go 
 prospecting in the Yukon. This practical advice will 
 be valuable to some and interesting to many. 
 
 The great majority of the men rushing to the 
 Clondike are tenderfeet. They have never seen a gold 
 mine, and their comprehension of what is a gold mine is 
 derived from a perusal of the flotsam and jetsam of the 
 daily press, says the Vancouver World, Few of them go 
 prepared to buy claims already opened, and must locate 
 claims for themselves. Brainladen with absurd ideas as 
 to the origin of the gold, and ignorant of the natural 
 laws of its distribiition, confronted in the country with 
 the severest physical conditions under which gold mining 
 is followed anywhere, it is impossible but that there 
 should be many disappointments before a sufficient 
 number of successes shall have come to accumulate the 
 needed experience. 
 
 On the ground, and presuming all of the possible 
 ground of the Clondike placers already appropriated, 
 the attention of the miner should be first given to 
 unproven possible ground in the valleys of streams 
 adjacent to those in which gold has already been found 
 and to the valleys and streams which head in the same 
 hills or mountains as do those known gold-bearing 
 streams. It is possible for the lode system which has 
 enriched one stream to have been cut by the drainage 
 basin of another, so that it has enriched them as well. 
 
 In the Yukon, as elsewhere, the mountain uplifts 
 have resulted in forming fissured and fractured zones in 
 rocks which have filled with gold ores. These, if on one 
 side of a mountain, are apt to be duplicated on the other, 
 and, though neither can be seen, both can be inferred 
 from the discovery of gold on one side of the drainage. 
 It is justified to look on the other side as well. 
 
253 
 
 As an additional guide, the gravel rock fragments in 
 the gold-bearing stream should be compared with that 
 being prospected. If the two contain identical rocks, 
 and particularly if they both contain quartz, diorite, 
 diabase or porphyry pebbles, it is worth the chance to 
 extend the prospecting even if the first efforts disclose no 
 gold. When gold is found in several claims in the same 
 valley, the direction of the line of deposit should be 
 noted and the first prospecting should be done in that 
 line as being the most probable one for the placer. 
 
 The gold produced by the several claims going up 
 stream should be compared, both in total quantity and 
 size of grains. With the data of this comparison it is 
 possible to reason out the locus of the richest ground, 
 and also to know when the lode source of the gold is 
 being approached. Coarse gold, gold with attached 
 quartz fragments and rough gold, all indicate iihat the 
 source is comparatively close at hand — that a point is 
 being reached beyond which there will be no placer. 
 The Russians, in their mining of the Siberian placers, 
 failed generally to recognise the lode source of the gold, 
 and in many instances carried their prospecting for 
 placers miles up stream beyond the lodes from which 
 the gold came. There is no reason for Canadian miners 
 making the same mistake. 
 
 Another indication of nearness to lodes is the 
 presence of rough fragments of pyrite, chalcopyrite or 
 galena. Even if these last do not lead to gold bearing 
 lodes, they may lead to valuable lodes of copper or lead. 
 Generally, anything heavy that is found in the mining 
 should be determined. Silver, quicksilver, tin and nick' 
 ores and platinum are all worth consitlering, even in the 
 Yukon. The possibility of their occurrence should not 
 be lost sight of, the more particularly as the discovery is 
 only to be m&de by following up the stream indications. 
 
 The covering of snow over the surface for seven 
 months of the year, the covering of moss for the other 
 
 • 
 
254 
 
 five months, precludes the possibility of prospecting by 
 the ordinary surface methods. Where it is necessary to 
 prospect without the guide of discoveries ah-eady made 
 adjacent, almost total dependence must be made on the 
 character of the pebbles in the gravels uncovered in 
 prospecting. If much quartz be found, even though no 
 gold at first, it is advisable to cover the possible ground for 
 a placer pretty thoroughly before abandoning it finally. 
 
 As a general proposition, it will prove very advan- 
 tageous for a dozen or more miners to co-operate in 
 making a systematic exploration of unknown ground. 
 "Work can be done cheaper, faster and surer than by the 
 same men acting independently. Go-operation admits of 
 increasing the tool outfit by a blacksmith shop and drill 
 outfit. Powder can be used and the prospect holes sunk 
 through the frozen ground much faster than by fire. 
 Prospecting can be spread over a much larger area by 
 co-operation than by the same men acting each for 
 himself. Co-operating, once the gold is found, the whole 
 company are in a position to intelligently secure a 
 valuable claim for each member and to get the claims 
 so connected that they can be economically exploited as 
 one property. 
 
 It must be remembered that the present cumbersome 
 method of exploitation will soon be replaced by quicker 
 and better ones, admitting of the profitable working of 
 the ground now left unworked, and distinctly advan» 
 tageous to large claims, compared with small ones. 
 
 Condensed Poods for the Far N.W. Territories. 
 
 Now, what is wanted — says the Calgary Eeraid, o! 
 September 16th (1897) — is food in such a condensed 
 form that the equivalent in nourishment to 1,800 pounds 
 in bulk may be so reduced in weight that a man can 
 carry it on his back. 
 
255 
 
 Science has done a great deal towards accomplishing 
 this. The armies of the United States, England, France, 
 and Germany, in their •' emergency rations," have 
 accomplished marvels in the matter of condensation. 
 The U. S. War Department has proved it possible to 
 condense a loaf of bread into a space no larger than a 
 pack of fire crackers, a pound of beef into a hard chunk 
 an inch or so square, a cup of coffee into a cough lozenge 
 and a quart of soup into an oblong package of about two 
 cubic inches. The food is all there, all its nutritive 
 elements preserved. 
 
 Here is a partial list of things that might interest 
 the Glondiker, and which Calgary merchants should 
 carry in stock : — 
 
 Saccharine, a coal tar product put up in tiny tabletsi 
 200 times as sweet as sugar. 
 
 Femmican, a mixture of dried beef, fat and salt 
 half a pound of which goes a long way. 
 
 Dried mixed vegetables, a French preparation of 
 cabbages, turnips, beets and other things. One-tenth 
 the original weight. 
 
 Dessicated beef blocks, one ounce equal to five 
 ounces of fresh beef. 
 
 Dessicated soup, three ounces solid to a quart of 
 water, with salt included. 
 
 Beef tablets, two ounce size, contaming most of the 
 valuable elements of a pound of beef. 
 
 Coffee lozenges, a half cup each, sugar included; 
 tea ditto. 
 
 Kola put up with chocolate in cakes is stimulating 
 rather than nourishing. 
 
 Malted nuts, a highly concentrated form of food, 
 made digestible or said to be. 
 
256 
 
 Lemon and Lime tablets, one, vest button size, to a- 
 glass of water. Fruit tablets of various other sorts less 
 valuable to the miner. 
 
 Celery tablets, an appetizer a man who digs for gold 
 will hardly take except as a luxury. 
 
 ,. ^ Strawberry tablets, useful mainly for flavouring. 
 
 Dessicated apples, peaches, pears, potatoes, turnips, 
 onions, and other things — generally about one-tenth 
 weight. 
 
 Olives, stoned and dessicated, very nutritious, a 
 recent Californian arrangement. 
 
 Peanut meal, very light and nutritive, useful as a 
 soup ingredient. 
 
 Bean and pea soup packages, a compressed form of 
 the most nutritive vegetables known, combined with 
 soup stock. , . .. , . 
 
 There are milk tablets which can be used, generally 
 designed for convalescent diet, but available for general 
 purposes, — the lactopeptines, or milk and pepsin in 
 combination ; and the melted milk tablets which are 
 already used as condensed luncheons by a few New 
 York men — gold miners in the Wall Street canyon. A 
 tin can about two and a half inches high and two inches 
 and a quarter across contains the equivalent of several 
 meals, if allowed to dissolve on the tongue slowly. 
 
 The British sailor is called a " Lime-juicer," because 
 lime juice is served out to him on long cruises to prevent 
 scurvy. This disease is the bane of Arctic explorers 
 and the bugbear of Arctic miners. The Clondike man 
 wants plenty of lime and lemon tablets. 
 
 The Clondike man will do well to cultivate a sweet 
 tooth, if he has it not, Sugar is one of the most conden- 
 sible of foods, and is almost entirely a fuel, food and 
 cheater of the cold. He wants oil also. He may think 
 he doesn't, but he does. Just at this season oil doesn't 
 appeal to a jaded palate, but the Clondike has a Bussian 
 
257 
 
 olimate, and in Bussian towns poor people used to shin 
 up the lamp posts and drink all the oil designed for 
 lighting the streets, until the discovery of petroleum 
 enabled hard-hearted municipalities to substitute a 
 brand of illuminating fluid less favoured by connoisseurs 
 as a beverage. Nowadays, poor Eussians with long 
 memories look wistfully up at the gas lamps, shake their 
 ■heads, sigh, and curse the Government, 
 
 The miner who wants to ca:-ry his own pack will 
 have to live on nourishing soups and savoury stews a 
 good deal of the time after reaching the Clondike. Most 
 concentrated foods lose their fibre. There is nothing to 
 chew on. Almost everything comes m a powder or a 
 paste, and needs nothing but boiling water and an appetite 
 to make a meal. ^ 
 
 One way to get along in the Clondike region with 
 less food is to keep warm. This is generally managed 
 by building one's cabin right over his claim, and digging 
 down through the frozen ground underneath. Here, in 
 Hi great pit, sheltered from the wind, the miner works in 
 a degree of discomfort, perhaps not greater than that of 
 the Canadian lumberman out of doors. It is a useful 
 pointer that the lumberman's favorite diet is pork and 
 beans, and that pea soup comes next in flavour. 
 
 The Table off a Year'5 Food. 
 
 The accompanying table of a year's food, which may 
 be carried into Clondike on a man's back, is based partly 
 on Prof, W. 0. Atwater's tables of food values and food 
 needs, and upon the supposed strength of the various 
 tablets and extracts. It is based also, in part, upon the 
 U. S. Army Ration and other standard dietaries. It is 
 not "guaranteed to give satisfaction," but it includes 
 nothing that is not easily possible, and nothing which 
 will not be one of the commonplaces of modern life 
 within a few years. Its total weight equivalent in 
 ordinary food is only a little over 600 lbs., but the 
 ingredients are carefully chosen to avoid waste. 
 
 S 
 
258 
 The Clondlke Food Pack. 
 
 A Year's Provisions to be carried on Owner's back. 
 
 ARTICLE. ■ EQUIVALENT IN ORDINARY FOOD. 
 
 Weight lbs. lbs. ' 
 
 War Bread .. .. ,. .. 12 Bread 100 
 
 Bean and Pea Tablets .. .. 14 \ D^ed Beans and Peas.. .. 25 
 
 I Moat Soup Stock, &c 20 
 
 Beef, Dessioated 14 Neok of Beef, Bonelees .,80 
 
 Potatoes and Mixed Vegetables ) .^ 
 
 Dessicated and Condensed ) *" Fresh Vegetables .. ..100 
 
 Saccharmo J gug^^ ^ 
 
 Milk Tablets 2 i Not an exact equivalent or- | ^ 
 
 I dinary canned Milk.. ) 
 
 Coffee Tablets and Saccharine . . 1 Coffee 10 
 
 Tea Tablets with Saccharine ,. 1 rp^j^ ^ 
 
 Pre88ed01ives,stoneless, dessicated 8 Ordinary Olive 20 
 
 Lemon and Lime Tablets, almost 1 » 
 
 pure acid J Lemons and Juice in bottles.. 50 
 
 Malted Nuts and Nut Meal .. 2 Ordinary Nut Meats ., ..10 
 
 Celery Tablets 1 Celery 16 
 
 Dessioated Fruits 6 Canned Fruits 26 
 
 Bait, included in most of the | „ 
 
 Pood Tablets .. .. ( ^ • •• 7 
 
 Total ..69} Total », 618 
 
 These tablets with the new silk rubber suit of clothing, invented 
 by a man in Kokomo, Ind., which is as light as air and warm as buflfalo 
 robes, simplify the problem of the argonauts. This new garment is 
 said to be quite impervious to wind and water ; to be so firm of texture 
 that it will never wear out ; and to render the conventional suit of 
 clothes necessary only as a concession to established custom. 
 
 Termination of the Hudson Bay Company's Cliarter. 
 
 Thus the Company's privileges (the Hudson Bay Company) 
 remained unchallenged till the year 1859, when the monopoly was 
 declared illegal. But there still remained certain rights, or at least 
 claims and vested interests, which, however, were all surrendered in 
 1869 to the newly constituted Dominion of Canada. 
 
 On this occasion a very profitable arrangement was made, by 
 which the company gave up all its shadowy privileges in return for 
 an indemnity of about £300,000, and an absolute grant of 7,000,000 
 acres in the most fertile part of the territory-. It was also agreed that 
 they should retain possession of all their •' forts," or trading stations, 
 with a space of 60 acres round each enclosure. By these negotiations 
 all danger of future litigation was avoided, while hundreds of millions 
 of acres of magnilicent arable land (Manitoba, Assiniboia, &c.) were 
 immediately thrown open for free trade and settlement, and are now 
 traversed by the Canadian Pacific trunk line of railway. (The Early 
 Chartered Companies, by Causton & Keane, p. 190.) 
 

 «.-,, .. .r..., r . ... .- / , .-; ., ,,,,,V A 
 
 -APPENDIX. 
 
 » M J.Kl ..» 
 
 The 1896 (the 6th) Report of the Ontario Bureau " '^' 
 
 of Mines. '*^» ■ '"^ 
 
 Ab tho London Market is said to be preparing for a Canadian "' . 
 boom in the Spring, a short reference to this report should not be 
 inappropriate. 
 
 The most prominent feature in the matter of statistics is that 
 which illustrates the progress which gold-mining is making in 
 the Province. 
 
 The statistics for the past five years are as follows : — 
 
 Schedule. 
 
 1892. 
 
 1893. 
 
 1894. 
 
 1895. 
 
 1896. 
 
 Mines worked . . . . 
 
 9 
 
 15 
 
 4 
 
 8 
 
 8 
 
 !Men above ground . . 
 
 85 
 
 112 
 
 40 
 
 126 
 
 158 
 
 Men under ground , • 
 
 40 
 
 56 
 
 52 
 
 111 
 
 86 
 
 Ore Treated (tons) . . 
 
 3,710 
 
 5.560 
 
 2,428 
 
 6,500 
 
 13,292 
 
 Gold product (oz.) . . 
 
 • • 
 
 1,695 
 
 2,022 
 
 3,030 
 
 7,164 
 
 Gold value (ft) . . . . 
 
 36,900 
 
 32,960 
 
 32,776 
 
 50.781 
 
 121,848 
 
 Wages paid for labour (8 
 
 I) 22,760 
 
 49,027 
 
 88,032 
 
 56,234 
 
 91,210 
 
 A curious feature of the above table (the " Financial News " 
 points out) is that with 48 additional men employed in 1896 the 
 gold output considerably more than doubled in value. At the same 
 time, 237 men in 1896 cost in wages $91,210, although 189 in 1895 
 only cost $56,234 — which appears to indicate that wages are on an 
 ascending scale. The average product of the ore was $9.16 per ton, 
 as much " lean " ore was treated, owing to lack of development 
 work. The Mikado, of Shoal Lake, is stated to have given the best 
 results yet obtained in the lake of the Woods region, being au 
 average of 3.26 oz., or $48.94 per ton from a run of 297 tons treated 
 at the reduction works at Bat Portage. This is a very handsome 
 yield, but the report does not state whether the ore was picked or 
 sent at random. The total number of stamps in operation last 
 year was 45, but with new mills in course of construction puQ 
 additions to one or two of the old ones, it was believed that 130 
 stamps would be dropping before the end of 1897. 
 
 The foregoing table takes no account of development work 
 going on at mines which are not yet at the crushing stage ; but it 
 appears that much capital and labour have been expended on this 
 proving and developing of gold properties. 
 
 Until recently very few companies had been organized in the 
 Province of Ontario to carry on mining operations. Some were 
 working under foreign charters, but of these the number actually 
 
 s 2 
 
260 
 
 • ■ • • •.- ••■ .i:'!:*r*v' .•■'<«;jf* >■'■>■ ,-:0'.>i- -■: 
 
 engaged in tKo industry did not exceed half-a-dozen. In 1894 — the 
 first year which mining corporations were empowered to sell stock 
 at any fixed price above or below par (issuing shares at a discount 
 in this country is illegal) — only five charters were granted under 
 the Ontario Joint-Stock Companies Acts, and the aggregate o their 
 authorised Capital was only 92,170,000. Under the saine Act, in 
 1896 the number formed was 22, with an authorised capital of 
 912,776,000 and the charters to 12 of these, representing an 
 aggregate capital of 99,475,000 were granted during the months of 
 November and December. In the first quarter of 1897 however, 
 the record of 1896 has been far surpassed, 83 mining companies 
 having been organised and chartered, with a total authorised 
 capital of 922,665,000. These facts furnish clear evidence of the 
 advance that has been made in the mining affairs of the province 
 and of preparation for greater activity in the near future. 
 
 Digest off that portion referring to Mineral Wealtii of 
 tlie iStli Annual Report (1896-97) of the British 
 Columbia Board of Trade. 
 
 Though the Yukon Gold discoveries have diverted attention 
 from the Mines of British Columbia, the factd brought forward in 
 this report prove that those who ignore the mining prospects of 
 this Province for those wider afield and less certain will doubtless 
 have occasion to remember the imprudence of forsalring the 
 substance for the shadow. Take, for instance, tho great and 
 increasing value of the mineral production since 1890, carefully 
 prepared by the very competent Mineralogist of this richly- 
 endowed province : — 
 
 1890 92,608,608 
 
 1891 93,646,702 
 
 1892 93,071,971 
 
 1893 93,588,413 
 
 1894 94,226,717 
 
 1895 95,666,802 
 
 1896 97.146,425 
 
 The output of the mines in Kootenay during 1896 nearly 
 doubled that of the previous year. In the Trail sub-division over 
 175 claims are being worked, and five have developed into mines 
 from which regular shipments of ore are made. Some fifty mines 
 are also in constant operation in the Slocan district, these yielding 
 a galena containing on the average 117 ounces of silver per ton, 
 and 52 per cent, of lead. The mines, it is computed, yielded the 
 owners a nst profit in 1896 of 975 per ton. 
 
 In the districts of Bossland, Kootenay, and Cariboo large 
 sums are being expended in mining works, principally hydraulic ; 
 but though these districts furnish evideroe of great mineral 
 wealth, the veins carrying either silver-galena or copper-gcld ores, 
 the great cost of transportation, sixty or more miles by waggon, 
 has ratarded their development. 
 
261 
 
 It does not appear that British Columbia is rich in alluvial 
 , gold, the locations being invariably metallic lodes with smelting 
 ores, in which gold is associated with copper and silver with lead. 
 Great efforts, however, are being made to reach the bottom of deep 
 channels of creeks, the surface of which were worked some thirty 
 years since. The bottoms are now being reached by shafts and 
 timnels. Bedrock in the channel is ascertained to be 100 ft. from 
 the surface of the ground, but in order to reach it it has been 
 found necessary to sink and run about 1,50U ft. of shafts and 
 tunnels* A theory has lately been evolved that the earlier 
 waterways of Cariboo were different from those which now exist. 
 This has led to prospecting in what are believed to be dry beds 
 of former rivers and creeks, and it is reported that immense 
 quantities of gold-bearing gravel have been located. 
 
 Immediately north of Cariboo is the district of Cassiar, an 
 immense country, very little prospected. Several of the water- 
 ways have afforded rich placer diggings. The Columbian Board of 
 Trade also calls attention to the great value of the iron deposits of 
 British Columbia. The output of coal during 1896 was 846,335 
 tons; 1,665 tons of coke were produced additional. 
 
 Another New Qold-fleld in British Columbia. 
 
 " The Standard " (London) of January 1st, this year, contains 
 a lengthy report of a remarkably rich and extensive discovery of 
 gold-bearing country in the Omenioa district in the extreme north- 
 west of the Province. The discovery was made by Mr. G. D. 
 Wells, Mining Recorder for the Omenioa division of the Cassiar 
 district, along with two companions, Messrs. May and liyon. " The 
 Standard" Correspondent obtained the news directly from Mr. 
 Wells, who states that Omenica will surpass the great placers of 
 the Yukon. At present the returns run from 91 to 91^ to the 
 pan. There is a depth of 8 ft. of loose gravel, which pays about 920 
 a day per man. The gold is very coarse, nuggets going in many 
 cases as high as $20 in value. Mr. Wells says that the dirt will 
 yield H^ dollars per cubic yard. 
 
 "There is gold everywhere," Mr. Wells said to "The Standard" 
 Correspondent. '* We found traces of it in every creek along every 
 gully and hollow. It runs in a broad belt all the way from the 
 Kootenays in the South, right through British Columbia, the 
 Mackenzie and Yukon Basins, to the Arctic Ocean. Besides the rich 
 placer I have found a rich lode of free milling quartz. At 
 Kisangas, Omenica, several enormously rich strikes have been made, 
 some running as high as 9120 to the ton; every creek in the 
 country bears gold in paying quantities, some that will yield rich 
 fortunes to the lucky miners. Over on Vital Creek last summer, 
 
 S* 
 
262 
 
 a Chinese Company took out §10,000 worth of pure gold by the 
 most primitive methods of washing (Chinese are debarred by law 
 in the Dominion from operating in undergroimd workings). Vital 
 Creek is only 135 miles from Hazelton, on the Bkeena Biver, a port 
 of call for all steamers from Victoria." 
 
 Mr. Wells produced rich samples of gold-studded quartz, and 
 also samples of asbestos, of which, he stated, the country is very 
 rich. 
 
 The Omeuica is a wild, rugged, forbidding region — a sea of 
 mountains. Travelling is extremely difficult, owing to the dense 
 forests and roughness of the mountain ranges. The climate is sub* 
 arctic, in winter registering 60 to 60 degrees below zero. 
 
 The routes to the district are along the Skeena, or up the 
 Fraser (on to the Parsnip) Rivers from the west coast or along the 
 Peace Biver from Edmonton in the south-east. The Omenica 
 district is on the headwaters of the Peace Biver. 
 
 Customs Restrictions. 
 
 The Board of Trade (B.C.) has issued a report containing 
 information upon outfitting for the Yukon. Attention is called to 
 the fact that goods purchased in any country than in Canada must 
 pay an average of 35 per cent. Customs duty when entering the 
 British-Yukon. 
 
 On the other hand it must be pointed out that the Deputy- 
 Collector of Customs at Skagway and Dyea has ruled that goods 
 purchased in Canada and brought through these United States 
 ports, must either pay duty or $6 a day to an official to accompany 
 travellers to the international (?) boundary. 
 
 Projected Railway Routes to tlie Vulcon. 
 
 From "Canadian Gazette," November 23rd, 1897. 
 
 It is interesting to note the nvimber of railways that have 
 been projected to reach the Klondike, or, at any rate, to facilitate 
 travel in that direction. How many and which of them will be 
 actually constructed is another question. Here is the list : — 
 
 Skf^fway and White Pass to Lake Bennett, 50 miles. 
 Chilkafc Pass, Lynn Canal to Lake Arkell, 150 miles. 
 Taku Inlet to Lake Teslin, 162 miles. 
 Chilkoot Pass, from Dyea, Railway and Tramway, 16 miles. 
 Alaska Central Bailway, Copper Biver to Klondike, 400 miles. 
 Stikeen Biver, Telegraph Creek to Luke Teslin, 135 miles. 
 North- Western Transportation Company's projected road over 
 part of the Edmonton Boute, 100 miles. 
 
268 
 
 Short cut to the Yukon. 
 
 AK ALTBRNATIVB STIKINfi ROUTE. 
 
 " Fintnoial News," 8rd Januery, 1898. 
 
 It is stated that the all-Canadian route vi& the Stiokeen lUver, 
 has, by a recent discovery, been considerably shortened. It has 
 been proved that instead of following the Dease Lake (or the old 
 Cassiar) trail, a out-otf can be made by proceeding up the Telegraph 
 Greek trail to the Hootalinqua and following that river to the 
 Hudson's Bay post at Agnell's Mountain, thence along the Shesli 
 Biver on the ice to the main Taku Biver. Continuing along the 
 Taku north, a branch of the Nahlin Biver is reached. 
 
 From this point five miles land travel is all that intervenes 
 between the headwaters of the Teslin Lake, which, of course, is 
 practically the headwaters of the Yukon Biver. Thib route reduces 
 the total distance from Telegraph Creek to Teslin Lake to ISO 
 miles, as follows: — 
 
 Telegraph Creek to Hudson's Bay Post . . . . 40 
 
 Hudson's Bay Post to Shesli Biver 60 
 
 Taku to Nahlin Biver 96 
 
 Portage • .. 5 
 
 Total 180 
 
 This is mostly ice travel, and it is claimed that it will be found 
 to be the best available winter route. 
 
 Yukon amended Mining Regulations. 
 
 Through Reuter's Agency, Ottawa, January 17th, 1898. 
 
 The Gk>vemment has adopted amended regulations regarding 
 placer mining in the Yukon district. Every miner and the employ6 
 of every miner, must take out a miner's certificate, the fee for 
 which will be 10 dols., and In the case of a company 50 or 100 dols., 
 according to the amount of capital stock. Q'^he miner's license con- 
 fers the right to mine, fish, hunt and cut timber. The general 
 size of mining claims is 250 feat, and of discoverer's claims 500 feet. 
 Every alternate ten claims are reserved by the Government. 
 
 Subaqueous mining leases w^ be issued in five mile sections, 
 at a fee of 100 dols. per mile per annum, and the usual royalty. The 
 fee for recording and renewing mining claims is 15 dols. Five 
 miners working more than 100 miles distant from the office of the 
 recorder may appoint a recorder to record the claims. A royalty 
 of 10 per cent, on the gold mined will be collected by the Govern- 
 ment, but provision will be made for the exemption on the annual 
 product of any mining claim up to 2,600 dols., so that claims which 
 do not produce more than 3,600 dols. a year will not be liable for 
 royalty. . < 
 
264 
 
 Provisions will be made to prevent speculation in claims hy 
 throwing a claim open to entry which has not been worked for a 
 certain number of days, unless treasonable cause be shown to 
 acootmt for it. • 
 
 *Eictract« from Report5 by U.S. Mining and Oeological 
 
 Experts. 
 
 Prt>fesBor N. S. Shaler, who is the best living American 
 authority on geology has been telling his classes at Harvard for the 
 liist twenty years that the coming great discoveries of gold on this 
 continent would be in Alaska and the North-West. He explained 
 that in the great extension of the Rocky Mountain system to the 
 North doubtless lay the mother vein, which sooner or later would 
 come io light. Professor Shaler's prophecy, based on scieptifio 
 deductions, has ccme true, and other scientists agree with him that 
 the Alaskan country contains limitless possibilities for the discovery 
 of gold. 
 
 Dr. 'V{, H. Pael, of the Smithsonian Institution at Washington, 
 who has iQV years been regarded as the highest authority on the 
 Alasl»n country,, and .who is a geologist of note, says he has no 
 doubt of the truth of the stories told of the richness of the Yukon 
 soil. " The gold-bearing belt of North- Western America," he says, 
 " contains all the gold fields extending into British Columbia and 
 yrhtA is known as the North-West Territories and Alaska. The 
 Yukon really runs along in that belt for five hundred or six hundred 
 milctd. The bed of the main river is in the valley. The yellow 
 metal is not found in paying quantities in the main river, but in the 
 small streams which out through the mountains on either side." 
 
 George Frederick Wright, professor of geology at Oberlin 
 College, thinks that the '< mother lode " may be looked for success- 
 fully in Alaska. In his opinion it exists somewhere up the streams 
 on which the plexser iiiines are found. The source of the Klondyke 
 gold, he auyp,, is from the south, and the gold was doubtless 
 trSfUBported by glacier action. The Klondyke region is on the north 
 side of the St. Elias Alps, and the glaciers flowed both north and 
 south from these summits. "Placer mines," says Professor 
 Wrighti "originate in the disintegration of gold-bearing quarts 
 veins, or mass like that at Jur.eau. Under sub-aerial agencies 
 these become dissolved. Then the glaciers transport the material 
 as far as they go, when the floois of water carry it on still further, 
 Qold, t/eing heavier than the other materials associated with it, 
 lodges in the orc^ces or in the rough places at the bottom of the 
 Btreams. So to speak, nature has stamped and ' panned ' the 
 grareli first and prepared the way for man to finish th(« work. Th9 
 
 * I am indebted to Mr. Ironmonger Sola for these extraots. 
 
:<*ai/>>bv 
 
 265 
 
 amount of gold found ia the placer mines isevidenoe not so much, 
 perhaps, of a very rich vein as of the disintegration of a very hurge 
 vein, What the prospectors have found points to more. The un- 
 explored region is immense. The mountaios to the south are 
 young, having heen elevated very much since the climax of the 
 glacial period. With these discoveries and the success in introdu- 
 cing reindeer, Alaska bids fair to support a population eventually of 
 several miUions." 
 
 William Van Slooten, an eminent mining engineer and 
 metallurgist, sees in the reports from the Klondyke indications of a 
 more eztiaordinary deposit of gold than that of Galifomiai He 
 says : — " No such specifically large amounts of gold were taken out 
 by individuals during any similar period of Galifomia gold hunting. 
 Two months of work in the water has realized more than any six 
 months heretofore known in the history of gold mining. We, had 
 long been aware that there was gold in the Yukon basin, but the 
 total output for the last ten years before the Klondyke developments 
 amounted to not more than a million dollars' worth at the utmost. 
 Now, within two months, five millions have been taken out of the 
 Klondyke regions. It took the first eight months of work in 
 California to pan out that amount under infinitely more favourable 
 -conditions of climate and weather. That is a straw worth noting." 
 
 The latest and therefore the most important official inventiga* 
 tion of the gold fields is that conducted under the auspices of the 
 United States Geological Survey in 1896 by J. Edwaid Spurr, 
 accompanied by two geologic assistants. The expedition was sent 
 out in accordance with an appropriation by Gongress of 96,000 for 
 the investigation of the coal and gold resources of Alaska. A like 
 appropriation for the year before resulted in the expedition headed 
 by Dr. George F. Becker, which investigated the gold fields of 
 Southern Alaska. Mr. Spurr's party crossed the Chilkoot Pass 
 about the middle of June, and passed down the Yukon in a siinall, 
 roughly.built boat to the crossing of Forty Mile Greek. A summary 
 of his report was submitted to Congress by the director of the 
 Qeological Survey through the Secretary of the Interior, February 
 2nd, 1897. Mr. Spurr's party and Dr. Becker's both took numerous 
 photographs along the routes they traversed. It appears from 
 Mr. Spurr's report that the gold belt is likely to be found running 
 in a direction a little west of north-west. 
 
 Running in a direction a little west of north-west through the 
 territory examined is a broad, continuous belt of highly altexed 
 rooks. To the east this belt is known to be continuous fotr one 
 hundred miles or inore in British territory. The rooks constituting 
 this belt are mostly crystalline schists associated with marbles and 
 sheared quartzites, indicating a sedimentary origin for a large part 
 
266 
 
 of th« series. In the upper part a few plant remains were found, 
 which floggest that this portion is probably of Devonian age. 
 These altered sedimentary rooks have been shattered by volcanic 
 action, and they are pierced by many dikes af eruptive rock. 
 Besides the minof volcanic disturbances, there have been others on 
 a large scale, which have resulted in the formation of continuous 
 ridges or mountain ranges. In this process of mountain building 
 the sedimentary rooks have been subjected to such pressure and to 
 such alteration from attendant forces that they have been squeezed 
 into the condition of schist, and often partly or wholly crystallized, 
 so that their original pharcter has in some cases entirely disappeared. 
 In summarizing, it may be said that the rocks of the gold belt of 
 Alaska consist largely of sedimentary beds older than the carbon- 
 iferous period ; that these beds have undergone extensive alteration, 
 and have been elevated into mountain ranges and cut tlirough by a 
 variety of igneous rooks. 
 
 Throughout these altered rocks there are found veins of quartz 
 often carrying pyrite and gold. It appears that these quartz veins 
 were formed during the disturbance attending the uplift and 
 alteration of the beds. Many of the veins have been cut, sheared 
 and torn into fragments by the force that has transformed the 
 sedimentary rocks into crystalline schist; but there are others, 
 containing gold, silver and copper, that have not been very much 
 disturbed or broken. These more continuous ore-bearing zones 
 have not the character of ordinary quarts veins, although they 
 contain much silica. Instead of the usual white quartz veins, the 
 ore occurs in a sheared and altered zone of rock and gradually runs 
 out on both sides. So far as yet known, these continuous zones of 
 ore arc of relatively low grade. Concerning the veins of white 
 quarts first mentioned, it is certain that most of them which 
 contain gold carry it only in small quantity, and yet some few 
 are known to be very rich in places, and it is extremely probable 
 that there are many in which the whole of the ore is of com- 
 parativoljf high grade. 
 
 No quartz or vein mining of any kind has yet l>een attempted 
 in the Yukon district, mainly on account of the difficulty with 
 which supplies, machinery and labour can be obtained ; yet it i» 
 certain that there is a vast quantity of gold in these rooks, much 
 of which could be profitably extracted under favourable conditions. 
 The general character of the rooks and of the ore deposits is 
 extremely like that of the gold-bearing formations along the 
 southern coast of Alaska, in which the Treadwell and other mines* 
 are situated, and it is probable that the richness of the Yukon rooks 
 is approximately equal to that of the coast bolt. It may be added 
 that the resources of the coast belt have been only partially 
 explored. 
 
267 
 
 Beddes the gold foiind in the rooka of the Yukon district theie 
 is reason to exp«ot paying quantities of other mi&erals. Deposits 
 of silver bearing lead have been found in a number of looalities, and 
 ooppcr is also a constituent of many of the ores. 
 
 Since the formation of the veins and other deposits of the rocks 
 of the gold belt an enormous length of time has elapsed. During 
 that time the forces of erosion have stripped off the overlying rocks 
 and exposed the metalliferous veins at the surface for long periods, 
 and the rocks of the gold belt, with the veins which they include, 
 have crumbled and been carried away by the streams, to be 
 deposited in widely different places as gravels, or sands, or muds. 
 As gold is the heaviest of all materials found in rock, it is con- 
 centrated in detritus which has been worked over by stream action ; 
 and the richness of the placers depends upon the available gold 
 supply, the amount of available detritus, and the character of the 
 streams which carry this detritus away. In Alaska the streams 
 have been carrying away the gold from the metalliferous belt for a 
 very long period, so that particles of the precious metal are found 
 in nearly all parts of the Territory. It is only in the immediate 
 vicinity of the gold-bearing belt, however, that the particles of gold 
 are lai^e and plentiful enough to repay working, under present 
 conditions. Where a stream heads in the gold belt, the richest 
 diggings are likely to be near its extreme upper part. 
 
 In this upper part the current is so swift that the lighter 
 material and the finer gold are carried away, leaving in many 
 places a rich deposit of coarse gold overlain by coarse gravel, the 
 pebbles being so large as to hinder rapid transportation by water. 
 It is under such conditions that the diggings wliich are now being 
 worked are found, with some unimportant exceptions. The rich 
 gulches of the Forty Mile district and of the Birch Creek district, 
 as well as other fields of less importance, all head in the gold-bearing 
 formation. 
 
 A short distance below the heads of these gulches the stream 
 Talley broadens and the gravels contain finer gold more widely 
 distributed. Along certain parts of the stream this finer gold is 
 concentrated by favourable currents and is often profitably washed, 
 this kind of depo&it coming under the head of " bar diggings." The 
 gold in these more extensive gravels is often present in sufficient 
 quantity to encourage the hope of successful extraction at some 
 future time, when the work can be done more cheaply and vrith 
 suitable machinery. The extent of these gravels which are of 
 possible value is very great. As the field of observation is extended 
 farther tatd farther from the gold-bearing belt, the gold occurs in 
 finer and finer condition, until it is found only in extremely small 
 flakes, so light that they can be carried long distances by the 
 current. 
 
• 268 
 
 • It tOMj b«' steted, tKeMtoN, m a general role, that the profit* 
 able graveU ws fonnd in the vicinity of the gold-bearing roolc. 
 
 The gold-bearing belt' forms, a range of low mountains, and 
 on the flanks of these mountains, to the north-east and to the 
 sottth-vfest, lie various younger rocks which range in age frqm 
 oarboniierous to very recent tertiary, and are made mp mostly- of 
 oonglomerates, sandstones and shales, with some voloanio material. 
 These rooks were formed subsequent to the ore disposiiion, and 
 therefore do not contain metalliferous veins. They have been 
 partly derii«d, however, from detritus worn from the gold-bearing 
 belt during the long period that it has been exposed to erosion, and 
 some of them contain gold derived from the more ancient rocks and 
 concentrated in the same way as is the gold in the present^ver 
 gravels. In one or two places it is certain that these oonglomerates 
 are really fossil placers, and this source of supply may eventually 
 turn out to be very important. 
 
 In the .younger rooks which overlie the gold-bearing series 
 there are beds of black, hard, glossy, very pure lignitic coaJ. An 
 area of these ooal-bearing strata lies very close to the gold-bearing 
 district, in the uorthem paH of the region examined, and as the 
 beds of coal ebre often of considerable thickness and the coal in 
 some of them leaves very little ash and contains volatile 
 constituents in considerable amount, it is probable that the coal 
 deposits will become an important factor in the development of 
 the country. 
 
 % 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
 I 
 
 1 
 
 \ 
 
f 
 
 ^- 
 
 
 i* 
 
 •• "#■■