grow luxuriantly everywhere, upon which the reindeer used to graze in numerous herds, their keen sight and the absence of timber protecting them from the rude weapons of the native hunters until the introduction of firearms, after which they were rapidly exterminated. In a few days we heard with pleasure that the "Leo" was ready and we soon quitted Alaska for good. The northwest winds sang a merry song through our sails as the meridians and parallels took on smaller numbers, and in a very few days, the twinkling twin lights of the Farallones greeted our eyes, and anchored safely within the Golden Gate, our journey ended.

CHAPTER XIII.

THE KLONDIKE REGION.

On page 244, Schwatka says:

"We camped that night at the mouth of a noticeable stream coming in from the east, which we afterwards learned was called Deer Creek by the traders, from the large number of caribou or woodland reindeer seen in its valley at certain times of their migrations."

This is the stream that is now known the world over as the Klondike. What the Indians really called it was "Thron-Diuck," from which comes the word "Klondike."

The Klondike is a small river about forty yards wide at the mouth, and shallow; the water is clear and transparent, and of beautiful blue color. Dawson City is located at the mouth of the river, and although it was located only a few months ago, it is now the scene of great activity.

Upon this stream and several of its affluents have been found the rich deposits of gold. The river is about 140 miles in length, and the gold-bearing creeks, where the richest deposits have been found, run into the Klondike from a southerly direction.

The principal creeks are the Bonanza, entering the Klondike two miles from its junction with the Yukon; El Dorado Creek, a branch of Bonanza Creek, from twelve to fifteen miles in length; about seven miles far

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ther up Bonanza Creek is Gold Bottom Creek; and a few miles beyond is Adams Creek. There are several smaller creeks emptying into Bonanza Creek, which are gold-bearing.

About twelve miles up the Klondike is Bear Creek, which has several tributaries, and twelve miles farther up is Hunter Creek. About ten miles farther up the Klondike is Too Much Gold Creek. Bonanza and El Dorado creeks have produced the richest deposits of gold yet found, but all the creeks mentioned have some very rich deposits.

It

The knowledge of these gold fields in the far north is not new. From early in the days of the Russian occupation of this territory it has been known that there were vast deposits of the precious metal in Alaska. is said that the existence of gold in quantities along the Yukon and its tributaries was known to the fur-trading companies a century and a half ago. These companies were not after minerals, and they were merely guarding the immense wealth which abounded in the fur industries when they did not give their knowledge to the world. Other fur companies have followed the example of the early traders and have kept the secret. They foresaw the effect of a rush of immigrants.

The aborigines of Alaska have been familiar with the precious yellow metal for a time that is old even in their legends. The earliest voyagers to the coasts of Alaska noticed the bits of shining gold here and there among the ornaments of the natives, and for these they traded knives, guns, and fancy trappings. Beyond the few ounces which they gained in this way, however, no gold was obtained from those regions. In 1741 the

Russian explorer, Behring, after whom the great Alaskan Sea is named, found gold, but he found what seemed to him more attractive, fine furs. Upon the value of the furs he laid great stress in his report to his monarch, and the result was that the country was granted by the Emperor Paul for fur-gathering purposes alone to the Russo-American Fur Company, and thus it remained until the purchase by the United States in 1867.

That there were deposits of gold in those icy regions was hinted by the early explorers, and incomplete records show that more than one party put civilization behind for the purpose of investigating the country. In fact, enough men had left for that region to produce sufficient gold to cause the Director of the Mint to credit Alaska with three hundred thousand dollars in gold and two thousand dollars in silver in 1885. Most of this metal came from Douglas Island. In 1896 the total output of lode and placer mines in Alaska was put at four million six hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars, and in 1897 the gold output, it is estimated, will reach twelve million dollars.

There was a great gold craze in the extreme Northwest in 1858. In the 60's there was a period when the annual production of the Northwest Province reached three millions, seven hundred thousand dollars. The known deposits were exhausted, however, and by 1890 the product fell off to less than half a million dollars.

On page 190 of this volume Mr. Schwatka says, "The mouth of the D'Abbadie marks an important point on the Yukon River as being the place at which gold commenced to be found in placer deposits. From the D'Ab