Dawson City N.W.T Canada
Mrs Georgie Barton Mineola Mo 5/22/98
Dear wife, at last I received your letters five from you and one from Bob Huddleston of Denver Colorado. I was surprised at your letters really I believe you are trying to make me home sick (bad) for God knows how bad would like to see you. Well I am surprised at that racket between you & Pa. he owed me $50.00 that I had no note for but still have the ck that I paid him with that was what I intended for you to collect first & then the balance on note if you needed it before I came back. You never said that he had paid you that 50.00? he surely has not forgot it and Lutes note was one day after date was it not? if so it is due any time. Bob Bartley should pay that 5.00 as you see he had a credit on one of those due bills. I expect to get a position in one of the stores here & will send you some money. but if you get in a cramp borry same on the house. dont scrimp your self for any thing. We have some few claims that may turn out O.K. Lee is prospecting one now. Frank is representing one for another man, he has not recorded any claims as yet Lee has two creek claims & one bench I have two creek claims. I made three trips to Dawson this winter. I stayed up at Stewart & brought the boat down and am expecting work as soon as the boats come up. Now about coming home this fall. you must not count on it as we are just begun to get on to the country. but I may come any way. it is much cheaper to go out over the ice as it will cost nearly 300.00 to go down by boat. I traded a gun for a dog an English setter with harness collar complete he was one of the last dogs down over the ice and a fine worker can have him at tent day or night to guard same, I am now camped in D-- in 200 ft of the spring on Dr. Kenners lot. the Dr is from St Louis he made me sleep in his cabin last night as it was raining & the ground was damp to sleep on. I wrote you a few weeks ago but dont suppose you will get the letter as one of the men that taken it got drowned and the other fellow returned to Dawson. it was a long teller, he claims to have sent them on but dont think he did I have written you often by men going out but am satisfied you will not receive many of them. You were speaking of our trials since being married dear, I must say we have had many. I am getting so use to them that I hardly notice them any more my only hope is that some day we will be independent, If I should not make something in here I will try on my way home in the west for employment if I find work will send for you & will for ever keep my feet off of the Dam old Missouri soil, it seems as if my best friends are my worst enemies. We have just got a paper from San Francisco. May 3 -98 telling of the fight at Manilla with the Spaniards there is conciderable excitement in here over the war. There has about 300 people arrived. the rush will come soon as the lakes open up. many that came in are wondering what they came for. a good many are going in small boats to St Michaels but we cannot go untill our claims are sold. one of us may go down to American territory. we are going to scatter out so if there is any strike made one of us will be handy. The breaking of the ice in the Youcon was a great sight it broke on the 9th May at Stewart & on the 8th at D--. the watter run most of the people on top of their cabins at Stewart our cabin was high but came in 18 inches of it I had the boat up and was fixing to float if necessary. I run down to D-- with boat in 8.35 hours it runs very swift. You spoke of Jo being sick I did not hear of it till this last week I received a letter from you dated Jany 5th was the first to receive in here. then will be some mail delivered tomorrow I hope to get your old letters and some new ones. You say you write every week? Well I hope you will not forget to keep it up I would do the same but cannot get them out. I will write every time a boat goes down. I am still in good health weigh 167 3/4 last time I weighed you may think I am fibbing but am not my face is full the packing made me strong but I dont want any more of it if can help it. Tom See has not arrived yet nor any one that I know only a few that I got acquainted with on the trail but Tom did not come to pull below the lakes so he will have to wait til they break up. There is about 300 women in D-- and the ugliest set I ever seen. Oh I want to tell you about that dinimite in my trunk an old miner said that it got very dagerous if kept on hand long & would explode easy. so you had better take it out & do something with it also the caps that I left in the clock. give it to some one that is blasting. but be carefull how you handle it. Your Pa or ???[Peauland?] might use it. so little Jo likes to dance? well I see dancing any night I go down town at the dance halls they have good music, but I have not cared to dance yet and dont expect to till I come back home, then Jo you & I will have a dance of our own. not?
May 31 -98 Have just got back from a six days stampeed to Dominion creek but will have to protect my rights if I get same. I got seven letters in the new mail but they were all old dated letters some from Tagish lake I stopped with Lee on Dominion while out he is fleshy & strong. is prospecting some bench claims You will think it funny when I say we have no night here any more Tell Bill crane that the saw mills run here all the time as the nights are almost as light as day. it is about 12 o'clock and I am writing without any candle. June 3-- The river is still raising have to use boats to get to some parts of town. there is quite a few going down to St. Michaels in small boats. if the boys were in I would like to go that way, we could save $200.00 but we are tied up here for the summer I expect but the trail will be good over the ice next winter as there will be so many to go out that way. June 9-98 A small steam boat the May West arrived yesterday. the first up had a few down river passengers on an a lot of whiskey which is worth 1.00 per drink.
There is more excitement here over the war then over the mines we hear all kinds of reports whenever a paper is read on the streets it looks like an old camp meeting. None of the Missouri people have arrived yet. at least I have not saw them There will be some boats up in a few days and then the high prices probibly will go down butter is 2.50 per # potatoes 1.50 or 90.00 per bu (brought in by outsiders) sugar 1.00 per # canned corn 2.00 per can in fact every thing is high except for Flour and bacon which is 7.00 per sk & bacon 40 to 50 per lb, fresh meat is 2.00 per lb. I received a letter from Bob Huddleston think I will go back by Denver and see them and if can get work will send for you of course that is too far off to think of just now for the weeks are years here now. I dream of you and Jo very often. would like nothing better then to be with you but Georgie I cant be one of the Tom See kind. I am going to do my best and that is all I can do then there will be no kick coming. Frank wants to go out next winter so we probibly will come togeather. we have some claims to dispose of and prospect. so dear you for my sake can wait a little longer then fall. Yet I dont say that I will not come in the fall but can hardly see how I can. June 13 -98 another boat, the Victoria and the Weare came up from Circle City. There was a little steam boat arrived today from up the river. the first steam boat to come all the way down it brought some U.S. mail which will be opened in four days. Well the Mabry crowd is in. he told me of See, McCoffery and Neble dying all Montg-- Co boys. Purcell is expected in any time he has some mail for me which of course I am anxious to get. The boys are still on the creeks yet am expecting Lee down any day. Frank will be down the 23rd. Inst, Mabry and party are selling out an are going out they are not struck on the country. Well the first mail leaves tomorrow so I will close this protracted letter as for a while now you will hear from me some oftner, as the boats are running,
With Love and best wishes to my girl and boy
From your bad boy Everett Barton