Mail Contractor E.
Coke Hill Arrives
(Continued from Page lj
and very active dogs saw and ran after
caribou and moose and broke their
sleds, necessitating a long delay. Ar
mour is known ail along the Yukon
from St. Michael to Tanana as a hard
ened and very efficient mail carrier for
a number of years, and as Armour was
accompanied by John Montan, owbo
Mr. Hill says is an experienced woods
man. hunter and trapper, witb bie owo
separate team, it. seems impossible that
anything very serious could have hap
pened.
Speaking of the ro te, Mr. Hill says
it is a wonderfully level, tine route.
His only difficulty after the rivers froze
up was locating the trail from Min
ch umina to Telida. There was no
track, and at every swamp and lake
time had to be spent determining the
proper continuation, and at times it
took hours, and once days, to find it.
One of the greatest difficulties arose
from the many trails partially cut and
blazetl by trappers. At odo time Mr.
Hill followed a trail two days, only to
find that it wound up at a fallen-in
trapper’s cabin. It took him another
day to go back to Jerne, and another
to locate the right trail. He says that,
now that 1)3 and Jerne have found it, 1
there will be no further trouble. Billy i
O’Palke and Fred Whitehead 'ha<ve i
also gone in along it.
ihere is no stretch of over 21 miles
without a cabin, cooking stove and
cooking utensils, and at least at times
occupied by natives, except between
Telida'and Lake Minchumina, a dis
tance of not to exceed 50 miles, and
Mf. Hill expects that a roadhouse will
be started there very soon. There is a
good roadhouse at Big river, with dog
stables: an Indian roadhouse at Nicoli,
21 miles further, with dog houses; a
cabin at East Fork, 9 miles from Nicoli,
and at Slow Fork, 21 miles further. At
New Telida, 18 miles from Slow Fork,
is a village and native roadhouse. Mr.
Hill says both native houses are kept
very clean and the meals are better
than in many roadhouses run by whites.
The rates are $1.50 per meal. At the
west end of Minchumina. not over 50
miles from Telida, Old Andrew, a na
For a Nice Lunch
or First-Class Meal
Call At
Durant’s Cafe
Flat City
CHARLIE’S
LAUNDRY
A Bath in a Real
Bath Tub
Shoe Repairing
Sign^Writing
Paperhanging
CHARLES REBHUN
The Handy Man
live who talks no English, has a couple
of cabins. Ten miles beyond, at the
other side of the lake, Kummei sgaard
hasa very fine roadhouse, and a short
21 miles from there are Indian cabis
at the mouth of Birch creek. Six miles
further down the Kantishna, just off
the portage trail, VV. B. ilodmao has a
trading post, and nine miles from Birch
creek by portage trail is Boose vet t,
where Bob Dunsmore has a roadhouse.
Fifteen miles further is Diamond City.
Mr. Olson runs the roadhouse there,
and it is .19 miles from there to.Knight’s
roadhouse, which is 20 miles from
Kobi. There is a cabin and stove
about half wav between Diamond and
Knight’s, and between Knight s and
Kobi. Mr. Hill says that .with very
little cutting and marking between Te*
lida and Menchumina it would leave
the worst bit of trail on the route, as
far as McGrath, that between McGrath
and Big river. Cutting is, however,
very necessary. Mr. Hill and his moo
cut oul the trail laid out by the Road
Commission directly from Diamond to
Roosevelt, Bod took horses and double
enders to Roosevelt.
The distance is almost the same as
that to Nancy, but the biggest eleva
tion is not over 800 feet above sea level,
Diamond being 570 feet above by the
Government maps. Also, the new
route is out of the violent snow belt, i
The snow all the way is about the same
as at McGrat h.
Mr. Hill says that he bad expected
considerable delav with the first mail,
which, owing to Armour missing the
trail, fell upon the second. Also, Ar
mour’s difficulties may seriously inter
fere with the third and fourth mails,
but after that he expects to be regular
and expeditious
Owing to the fact that there is no
roadhouse between Telida and Min
chumiDa, Mr. Hill advises travelers to
stay off tbe new trail for a few days
yet, though he expects to put a tent at
some convenient place temporarily for
the use of t he mail. Also, owing to the
fact that this contract was not let till |
about the middle of September, dog
feed is very scarce along the route.
Joe Oetes, after bringing down Dr. i
W. F. GreeD. .yesterday, returned to
Tacotna today.
Gree Stew-art, who arrived yester
day. returned to Berry .Landing: this
morniDff.
Henrv Martello, from Flat, with the
outbound mail, arrived this afternoon.
John Matson, of Flat, arrived yester
day, leaving: this morning: for ti>e coast.
Jack Brandon came yesterday fiom
Tacotna for a short visit.
Fishermen Fight Bear
That Wanted to Ride
Port Arthur, Ont.—A fierce str'iffffle
between a mao and a biff black bear
for possession of a boat took place on
Lake Minnitaki, near Sioux Lookout,
when Johnny Lyons, who was fishing:
on the lake, ran foul of a swimminff
bear^while he was rowing to his fishing
grounds.
The bear, o'f colossal size,-was swim
ming across an arm of the lake when
LUMBER
Any Liength <Jf
WOOD FOR SALE
Delivered to Your Order
J. HEINO
the boat came right across its trail.
Evidently believing that it was easier
to ride than swim. Bruin headed for
the boat, and before the occupants
were aware of what was happening had
its front paws ever the gunwale and
threatened to upset the two occupants
into the lake.
Lyons and his companions had no
weapons other than their oars, and it
was only after a tierce battle, in which
the bear nearly came otT victorious,
that they managed to dislodge him
from his hold on the boat and were
able to discourage him from makmg
further attempts to come aboard.
Citizenship for Women
Who Marry Aliens
Washington. — The administration
bill to prevent automatic loss of an
American woman’s citizenship by her
mauriage to an alien, and to give
women of foreign birth the right ,df
naturalization despite their marital
ties, was reported favorably today by
the Senate immigration committee.
Receiving and sending hours at the
McGrath station are as follows:
Week Days-rlG a. m. and 4 p. m.
Sundays and holidays—9’45 a. m. gnd
4:30 p. m.
Northern Commercial Co.
of Alaska
WE SELL ONLY STANDARD, HIGH
GRADE MERCHANDISE
Ball Band Rubber and Woolen Goods
JPor Men, Women and Children.
Star Hams and Bacon
Petaluma Eggs
Puyallup Canned Goods
Del Monte Canned Goods
Carnation and Federal Milk
Trappers, do not forget that we will pay the best
prices for your Fur, or, if preferable, we will
advance a liberal amount of money on your
.Fur and ship on a commission basis.
For Sale
PIONEER POOL ROOM
Dave EL Clough - — 'Prop.
McGrath Roadhouse
Excellent Meals
Service Prompt and Efficient