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Show NEW GOLD STRiKES MADE 18 ALASKA Wonderful Northern Region Is Fast. Coming Under the Control of Man. With the opening of navigation each year in Alaska there come the reports of now gold finds. The latest which has come to our notice is far into the interior, in-terior, on the Chandolar river, some 200 miles to the north of Fort Yukon, a trading trad-ing center on the Yukon river about mld-wny mld-wny between Dawson and St. Michaels. It. 13 stated that rich placer ground has been found near the headwaters nnd along the tributaries of -tho Chnndelar river and that several hundred men wintered in the region whore tho thermometer registers reg-isters for sevcrnl months ns low as 50 to 60 degrees below zero. During the pant thirty days It ls said that pver 600 men have departed from Yukon river points to these new fields, says the Mining Min-ing Reporter. This Is not the first, lime that gold strikes hnvc been reported In this locality. To tho writer's personal knowledge the Chandolar, as well as tho Qulnseg river, sixty miles up the Yukon toward Dawson, Daw-son, was the scone of a considerable gold stampede in the summer of lflOl. The country was well run over by several hundred prospectors, and while pay gravel was found In a number of places, no extensive ex-tensive fields were discovered. Perhaps a more systematic search has, as reports Indicate, resulted in the finding of really Important, placer deposits. This season will probably prove their merit and extent ex-tent Tho occurrence of gold along the northerly tributaries of the Yukon, and even of the Yukon river itself, ls proven by the fact that rarely does a pan of gravel in placo fall to' give a few colors at least. It is, therefore, not. unlikely that pay deposits of extent will yet be discovered along other known and unknown un-known streams like the Chandolar. This particular stream Is rapid and rather difficult of boat navigation poling and linlng-up being necessary in the making mak-ing of any headway up stream. There is, howovor, a good overland route from Fort Yukon a route which was followed In 189S In going to the ICoyukuk gold fields, about 100 miles to the northwest of the headwaters of the Chandelar. This route will, doubtless, be taken by those Journeying from Dawson and other up-river up-river points. From St. Michaels and other down-river settlements the region may bo more accessible from the head of navigation on the Koyukuk river (a northerly tributary of the Yukon, which is navigable for thirty-ton steamers for a distance of 800 miles by the course of tho river and about half that distance in a strnight line). The region Is sufficiently suffi-ciently timbered to afford a considerable supply of wood for fuel. Parenthetically, It Is of interest to note that, other than the new Tanana and the old Birch Creek fields, no really important impor-tant placer diggings have up to date been found along tho southern tributaries tribu-taries of the Yukon. All of the Nome region lies to the north, the Klondike to tho north and cast, the ICoyukuk to the north, etc. Seven ly-Mlle river and others emptying Into the Yukon from the south have had their' gold excitements, which wore resultant in little, if any. Important placer finds. So, too, have the Kusko-qulm Kusko-qulm and other streams lying to the south of the Yukon and emptying dlrecilf into the ocenn. In conclusion we Jot down a brief chronology of gold discoveries and excitements excite-ments In the Alaskan and Yukon coun--try: Birch Creek in the sixties, which built up a settlement of over 2000 souls at Circle City; diggings nlong streams in the vicinity of Circle City In the seventies; sev-enties; Forty-Mile and Its tributaries in the eighties: Klondike (in Yukon Territory) Terri-tory) in 1S07: Koyukuk diggings and Seventv-MIIq In 18H8: Nome and Cape York region in 1S99; Kuskoqulm In 1900: Chnndelar. Forly-Mllo and Koyukuk (the latter two for a second time) In 1901. and Tanana in 1903. There wore other excitements, which, however, were of local and minor importance. Of these, the more important, in order of output, to date have been Klondike, Nome, Tanana. Ta-nana. Birch Creek and Koyukuk. Tho Birch Creek diggings are still worked to a small extent every season The Koyukuk Koyu-kuk region, on account of its remoteness and short season, has, perhaps, not readied Its zenith. The first three sections. sec-tions. In order of output, this year will probably be Nome, Klondike and Tanana. |