STAKING CLAIMS
A day's delay was occasioned by a snow-storm, but the second morning
opened bright, and the Indians early departed on their errand. The
Bradfords started soon afterward, crossing a bay of the lake and
making for the western shore at a point near the southern base of the
mountains. A valley, mostly wooded and several miles in width, extended
straight back in that direction; and after following it about six
miles, Uncle Will, who had previously questioned Lucky as to the route,
turned to the right toward a deep gap which now came into view. This
was the gorge of the Kah Sha River,--a stream named after the old chief
of the Stiks.
They had made fairly rapid progress, having brought but one sled with
food for two days, tents, blankets, cooking outfit, two axes, and a
gold-pan. It was necessary, however, to wear snow-shoes the entire
distance. This in itself was fatiguing, and rests were frequent.
Near the mouth of the gorge they came out of the woods into a wide,
clear space, which, later in the season, when the snow was gone, they
found to be due to an immense deposit of stones and gravel thrown
out by the stream through many generations. This open tract led them
directly to the gorge, and presently they passed in between high bluffs
of sand and gravel, which soon gave way in places to abrupt cliffs of
dark, slaty rock several hundred feet in height. The river could be
heard dashing impatiently over its stony bed under huge banks of snow,
which had drifted in upon it to so great a depth that the water could
seldom be seen. It was a wild and wonderful canyon such as the boys had
never dreamed of, and they felt the spirit of adventure rise within
them as they realized that this was a land of gold. Who could tell what
treasures lay at last beneath their feet? They could hardly refrain
from scrutinizing every rock for the gleam of yellow metal. They gazed
long and earnestly at the bare patches of sand on the slopes, till
at length they were obliged to confess that it looked quite like the
barren sand of New England.
Their elders only smiled on perceiving their enthusiasm, warning them,
however, not to go close to the cliffs; and hardly had the word been
spoken when, as if to emphasize the warning, a mass of crumbling rock
fell with a roar just behind them.
Two or three miles of this kind of travelling brought them to Al King's
tent, which stood to the left of the stream on a small level plot. On
the opposite side a rocky wall rose straight from the water's edge a
hundred feet and cut off all view, so that it seemed to the boys a
rather dreary spot. Yet here, as they presently learned, one lone man
had passed the entire winter, with no better shelter than a tent.
This man was the recorder of the district, Tom Moore by name, a
grizzled veteran of many a hard campaign of mining and prospecting. His
tent was near that of Al King. On a tree before it had been nailed a
slab from a box, bearing the inscription, "Recorder, Last Chance Mining
District, T. Moore."
The Bradfords received a hearty welcome from Al King and the recorder,
the latter, by reason of his long exile, taking especial delight in the
sight of new faces. King's fine dog "Bess" was even more demonstrative
in her welcome than the two men, and bounded from one to another of the
little group, licking their hands and receiving their caresses.
In company with Moore and King, who volunteered to guide them, they
passed the mouth of Shorty Creek,--so named from the Indian who
discovered gold there,--a small brook flowing in from the left. Neither
of the guides thought it worth while to stop there, for the best
claims were already taken. They believed that Alder Creek, a larger
tributary above on the same side, now offered the better chance, and
the Bradfords were quite willing to take their advice, since there
appeared no motive for deception. Up Alder Creek they accordingly
went, through a valley wider and less rugged than the Kah Sha gorge
and leading toward a shapely mountain about two miles away, where the
valley divided, that to the right being known as Union Gulch.
Here they found a discovery claim, located the previous year by the
miner who first found gold on that creek. By right of discovery he had
claimed five hundred feet of the valley, or twice the length of an
ordinary claim, and naturally he had chosen what he believed to be the
most promising spot. The stake which marked the upper end of his claim
was the stump of a poplar tree which had been cut off about five feet
from the ground. It stood on the bank of Alder Creek just above its
junction with Union Gulch. For a foot below the top it had been squared
with an axe, and on the smooth white wood was written in pencil,
"Discovery Claim, five hundred feet, down stream. J. Barry, September
4, 1897." There was also a stake which marked the lower end of the
claim.
Uncle Will looked the ground over carefully. Below Union Gulch was a
level expanse of gravel ten feet higher than the stream and covered
with snow except along the edge of the bank. This gravel rested upon
solid rock at about the level of the water. He took the gold-pan and
set out, with Mr. Bradford, the recorder, and King, on a tour of
investigation, bidding the boys cut stakes similar to those on the
discovery claim. David and Roly would have preferred to go with their
elders, but being accustomed to obey orders without question they set
off at once on the less romantic quest for straight young poplars.
Occasionally, however, they paused to watch the gold-seekers down the
valley.
[Illustration: "Presently some little yellow specks were uncovered"]
The stakes having been cut and trimmed, the boys brought them all down
to the discovery claim. They were four in number, sufficient for three
adjoining claims.
"What luck, Uncle Will?" shouted Roly, as they ran to join the others.
"Plenty of colors," answered that gentleman, smiling. "I've no doubt I
could get more if I had brought a shovel. The gravel is frozen so hard
that I can't scrape much together."
"What are colors?" asked David.
"Colors," explained his uncle, "are little thin flakes of gold, as
distinguished from heavier pieces called grains or nuggets. Look in the
pan here, and you'll see what colors are."
In the bottom of the pan lay a small quantity of dark sand, which Uncle
Will told them was called "black sand" and consisted mainly of iron.
Dipping up a little water, he allowed it to wash back and forth over
the black sand, and presently some little yellow specks were uncovered.
These were the colors of gold, which, being relatively heavier than
even the iron, had sifted down to the very bottom.
"Hurrah!" cried Roly, joyfully, as he caught sight of them, adding with
more force than elegance, "that's the stuff!"
David, maturer and less boisterous, was not a whit less pleased. He
expressed a desire to see how the panning was done.
Uncle Will accordingly drew on his rubber gloves to protect his hands
from the icy water, rinsed out the pan, and with some difficulty
scraped together with the head of an axe a panful of dirt and gravel
from the bank as near bed-rock as possible, explaining that the most
gold was found as a rule at the lowest possible point. He carried the
gravel to the edge of the stream, where he allowed the water to flow
in, not too swiftly, upon it. He now rinsed off and threw out the
larger stones, after which he took the pan in both hands and shook it
vigorously for a few seconds with a circular motion, finally letting
the water flow rapidly out, carrying with it some lighter portions of
earth and gravel. Then with his hands he pushed out of the pan the
upper part of its contents to the depth of about half an inch.
Roly was alarmed at once. "Look out, Uncle," said he. "You'll lose some
of the gold, won't you?"
"Not a bit," said Uncle Will, complacently. "When I shook the pan the
gold went down, aided by the water. There isn't a single color in the
top of this gravel now."
So saying, he shook the pan again as before, and pushed off a little
more of the contents, and sometimes he allowed the water to flow in
and out several times, carrying with it on each occasion the lighter
particles. In this way the amount of gravel was gradually reduced, and
in less than ten minutes there remained apparently only a quantity of
black sand and a few pebbles. The latter, Uncle Will deftly removed
with his thumb. Then he proceeded to reduce the amount of black sand,
using greater caution than before, and letting the water flow very
gently in and out.
Presently a yellow speck was uncovered, then another and another, to
the great delight of the boys; and, best of all, a little nugget of the
size of buckshot made its appearance, which Uncle Will said might be
worth fifteen cents.
All this was highly encouraging, for the Bradfords had not counted
on a gold district here when the expedition was planned. It only
remained to set up the stakes and write the names and dates thereon.
As the discovery claim included only the upper end of the bank where
the nugget was found, Uncle Will took two hundred and fifty feet next
below, followed by Mr. Bradford and David in turn. Roly, as we have
said, was under eighteen, and had no license.
"There," said Uncle Will, when all was finished and the stakes firmly
braced with stones, "I believe we've taken the cream of the creek. The
Thirty-six will probably stake the six claims next below, then they
will have to leave the next ten for the Canadian Government and begin
again below that, and so on. There's no telling what would have been
left for us if we hadn't come first."
"That's so," said Tom Moore, with a grin. "I guess ye'd 'a' ben up on
the glacier or down in Dasar-dee-ash Lake."
The party camped that night near the tents of King and the recorder,
the latter entering the claims in due form and collecting ten dollars
per claim, according to law.