A MARVELLOUS SPECTACLE.—SACKS OF GOLD.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 10902, 8 September 1897, Page 3

A MARVELLOUS SPECTACLE.—SACKS OF GOLD.

"Two million dollars taken from the Klondyfee region in less than five months, arid a hundred times that amount awaiting those who can handle a pick and shovel, tells the story of, the most inavellous placar digging, the world has ever seen." This was the remark made _by Clarence Berry, of Fresno, who, with his wife, had ju3t returned from the great'frozan North, where gold is found in such, quantities 'as to dazzle the imagination aod startle the sceptical. At the Grand Hotel Mr Berry was the recipient of many congratulations. Old miners called to see him, and also to examine spscimens ot_ the wonderful region that yields auggets as big as hens' eggs. .-•■■.••' .. ..- . In this they wece not disappointed, for m (room 111-the socce3sful prospector, had,on exhibition a most glittering array, of nuggets, aggregating• ia value 4000dol. . 0.0 the,floor were fouc canvas sacks filled with the precious yellow metal, taken from a space less than .50fb souare, and worth all told 84,00Q501. On the table wera to be seen half a doz'an small visls and bottks each containing from lOOdol to 500i3olin gold dnst. The smallest of these contains just lOOdol, and was the first taken by Mr Bercy from the claim which yielded no handsomely durin? the five months. he worked it. iThere were two bottles, labelled 500dql and 1 200dol, which,.Mr Berry said, were the yield from one pan, the third taken from tha mine.,. Mrs Berry, who accompanied tier husband, said:— ■~-■, ... ' ■ '■-. ■'•■■',:. ■\. '• •

"If; was .December 6 of last year, when we sfcruckthe first gold. It was a happy, day for me, as well.,a.s my husband, who had worked; so bard to gain an independence.;, Of course,'at the time we did not know just what we were making, but it was.nob long before the truth dawned upon us that we were in a fair way to win a fortune. AH lest winter I visifesd the mines, and as the great chunks, of frozen earth were dumped on the ground I busied myself: in picking out the nuggets. ..." . "I think that during the se&3cn I picked up something like 10,000dol. I used to turn the clods over, and then with a sharp .stick dig into them as far as I couid untjl I camo across some-; thing that" looked like gold. The largest nugget I found was worth 231d01, and it turned out to be one of the best individual prizes found in the diggings."-- ' . ■ ■ ■.-■■ A Seattle (Washington)' .massage of July 17 says:—• ■■- , - ■ ■ ■ ', ■ It is safe to say that never ;■ in, the history of theNortbAYfist has there been sucu-excitsment; J as has prevailed in this,city,ail day long, and ;which-is raging to-night-It-is due to thearrival in this cifcy-this morning from Alaska-of the Rtsamer.Porbland, carrying 63 men from Klondyke goldflelds, .every one of whom brings home a fortune. ,l Some of these fortunes are small, Roma are large, but every man aboard the boat is able to show.at least 5000dol in.gold..dust or nuggets, while many have displayed to-day for the satisfaction of a wild population fortunes of from 25,000d01t0 130, OOOdpU ; , ~:,■. There have-been so many stories sent put from Alaska of. great strikes, which later proved ■ to be withput^ foundation, that people were I reaching that period when they refused to credit them.- But when the big Portland ran alongside .the .Ocean Dock at-8 o'clock this morning, and those .68 men, nine. out of every ten miners, walked down th^ gang plank, struggling to hold up the weighs of gold which was stacked high on their 6honldera, tte thousands of-people, who stood .on the dock to receive them were, suddenly seized with Klondyke fever, and to-nigtjit Klondyke is.on the lips of every man, woman, and child in. this city. ■ ■ .-.-.■ •■. - ■'.'.. ■-•. ■ ■': ■■■ ■•. To-night.: there is being displayed, in the windows of stores gold bricks and. enormous pans filled .with gold dust and nuggets. When the excitement will die down no ona attempts to say. ■ :,-.:'.--■.. •; >.• ■ -. ••■ .'•■■ ■. ■'■■•■' s . ■ Probably the, most conservative man who came down on the Portland is Inspector Strickland, of the North-west Canadian . mounted police.,: Here's what lie says •:•—'^When I left i Dawson City, a month ago, there were about I 800 claims, staked out, and there were between 2000 and.3ooo people in there.- We- can safely say that there was about '.1,500,000 dpi in gold mined-lR8t: winter. The wages in the mines were 15dol a day, and the saw mill,paid labourers lOdol a day. The claims now staked out will afford employment to about 5000 men. I believe. If,-,a-man .is strong, healthy,, and wants work, hie can find employment at good wages. Several men worked ou an interest, or what is termed 'a lay,' and during the winter realised from 500030 lto lO.OOOdol.apiece. The mines.are. 35 to 100 miles from the Alaska boundary." ■ . : . ' . . • Careful work place? a conservative estimate of the gold dußfc brought to Seattle by the Portland at 1,250.000d01. : The Portland brought a letter from Captain Tut'tle, of the Revenue Catter Bear, stating that there, was piled up in the North American Transportation Company's ofiice, iv St. Michael's fu11y,2,000,000d0l more. All this wealth has ; come from ckims not yeb discovered a year, from prospects only worked two months, and ifc is hardly worth counting in the grand total that.is yet to "be taken OUt. -V. ■!■ ..:•■'.-.'■-.■

The. Klondyke .miners have '; about three months' work ahead before the water, freezes, and it is known that the gold which is stacked up in heaps, stowed away.in sacks, bottles, and tin cans already far exceeds ithe millions thathave already come out. According to the collective judgment of the.men jusb from the Yukon, there cartainiy will net be less .than 15.000,000d0l from the new El Dorado before cold weather. .'.... • ■

Experienced miners interviewed: say tbere is no such thing, as a conservative reliable estimate of the gold to be. produced during the coming year In tho Klondyke region alone are numerous creeks, euch as Bonanza, Inriiac, El Dorado, Hunter,, and Bear, .and up to June 18. the date that latest news came from Klondykei no claims had been located on tueEe creeks more than three miles above their mouth*. Returning miners say that not le=s than 5000 claims, could be located under; the laws of the'-'North-west.. Territory on these creeks alp De.but whether they.would ba as rich as those already prospected is a matter of conjecture.; ■ , ; . • As far as any thorough prospecting is concerned, the basin of the Yukon has batdly been entered. The main river ,winds through a distance of more [than 3000 miles, aud its tributaries vary in length from 60 to 300 milea. and until the present season not more tbau 5000 miners had entered the basin. Hundreds and hundreds of square miles are absolutely unknown. The Yukon batin contains an extent of territory fully equal to all th« mining districts of the Pacific Coast and the Rocky Moudtains put together. / Accordingly thare are unbounded possibilities of further rich discoveries, because the conditions and the character of the entire basiu are similar to the Klondyke. .

Walter Bentley—7oU all know Walter—was at bis highest one night in " King Henry VIII" ab the Wellington Oper* House :

Farewell, a long farewell to all my greatness ; This is the stite of man : to-day he puts forth The tender leaves of hope, to-morrow blossoms, And bears his blushing honours thick upon

him; The third day cornea a frosfc, a killing frost— Voice from the gods (mimicking Walter) ■ "Then try "Woods' Great Peppermint Cure!" It brought down the house. ■

Valuable Discovery foii the Hair.—lf your hair is turuinjf grey or ■white, or falling off, n=e -,' The il'xican Hair Reaewer," for it teinposltivelt/ restore in tvery cast Grey or White Hair to its orignal colour without leaving the disagreeable smell of most " Restorers." It makes the hair charmiDSlr beautiful, as well as promoting the growth of the hair on bald spits where the Senile are not decayed. Ask your Chemist for " Ihe Mexican Hair. Restokek," sold by Chemists and Perfutuern everywhere at 3s 6d per bottle. Wliole Ac depOt, 33 Farrinstfon road, London.—Advi.