Show I I I ALASKA EXPLORING EXPEDITION The San Francisco Chronicles Interview With Assistant Engineer En-gineer Lane SAN FUANCISCO Oct llThe Chronicle published this morning an interview with Assistant Engineer Lane who was with Lieutenant Stoney on his exploring expedi tion of that part of Alaska north of Yukon river and of Putnam river which was discovered dis-covered some two years ago by Stoney Assistant Engineer Lane arrived here four days ago in advance the rest of the party who are expected here on the United States steamer Bear next Friday The exploring party left San Francisco May 3d 1885 About December 1st Stoney and a party of sailors started for Noatoak river about 120 miles north of the Putnam Soundings of the river were made as well as surveys of the region through which it flowed Engineer Engi-neer Lane and several men then started to explore the country in the direction of St ilichaels That point was reaohed after a journey of twentyeight days A survey of the country by compass bearings was made While Lane was away Stoney went southwest south-west in the region of Selewik Lake and the river of the same name He noted various small lakes rivers and mountain ranges February 1st Stouey went eastward to the headwafers of the Putnam and Noatoak risers and was gone fortyfive days About those headwaters he reached an immense lake on the banks o which the natives from the region 3f Point Barrow the most northern point in the Continent of North America meet to trade with the Indian of the Pugam Valley It generally takes the natives two seasons to make this trip the severity of the winter compelling them to remain in winter quarters near the lake Stoneys intention was to make the trip to Point Barrow from this lake but an immense im-mense arid plain would have to be traversed which made it impossible on account of dogs food On April 12th however Ensign Howard and F J Price a soldier started for Point Barrow andafter great hardships and privations succeeded in reaching it on August 16th of the present year after a journey jour-ney of ninetysix days On June 1st the breaking of ice in the river enabled all of the party to pass down to its mouth The explorers gained many new facts of particular partic-ular value to geographers Professor Baird of the Smithsonian Institute had been par ioularly anxious that the party should explore ex-plore Jade Mountain or Greenstone Moun ain as the natives call it out of which they obtain the green stone used in making hatchets and other implements Engineer Lane and party visited this mountain It is 2C3 miles above the mouth of Putnam river and about 3COO feet high Green stone as it is called is more correctly a serpentine and is found inlayers layers of considerable thickness The Esquimaux Indians of that region are polyg amists No valuable minerals were d covered Coal was found in abundance on Putnam river and of good quality Granite exists in large quantities and some asbestos was found No gold or silver was found and as the Indians had none in their posses sion and never mentioned them the ex plorers came to the conclusion that it is doubtful whether they exist in large quantities ties in that part of Alaska Putnam river is about 400 miles long half a mile wide and 4 navigable for a distance of 350 miles when navigale the rapids are encountered It drains a large area of Putnam valley which is thirty miles wide The volume of water that flows down is immense The river is surrounded e of mountains about 300 feet by a range high the highest peak of which is 4CDO feet high There is a dense growth of spruce and birch wood along the banks This stream is several hundreds of miles above Yukon river flows east and west and into Katzebue Sound Noa empties I emptes river is 150 miles north I of Putnam and separated from it by a range of mountains I is shallow and rock and runs east and west There is very little vegetation along its banks I is about 4C3 miles long and empties into the Katzebue onnd South of Putnam about three miles i s nnnr Selewik lake twenty miles in diameter and very deep Selewik river is 209 miles long ver flows east and west It is divided ong into two branches and flows into the lake North of Noatoak river is a wide desert plain extending for 150 miles and interpolated plan small streams lated with many large and smal It extends clear to the Arctic Ocean The soil is very ooor and never thaws but t the depth of a few inches and aside from possible possi-ble deposits of gold and silver and the fur trade the country is not of any practical value to white men Lieutenant Lane regards re-gards the report of Sohwakas discovery of the socalled Jones river highly probable rver is so little known and there for the country litte kown are so many nvers that it is not a hard task extended in to discover a new stream an trip through the Territory |