rises twenty feet at Dyea,
that they lodged and took their meals at the ranch trading post. By
arrangement, an early breakfast was eaten the next morning, and the
goods were loaded upon the two Yukon sleds with which they were
provided. These were seven feet long, sixteen inches wide, and were
shod with steel. Other gold-seekers were stopping, like themselves, at
the ranch, but they lagged so much that when the men and boys headed
northward they were alone.

Jeff Graham and Ike Hardman passed the rope attached to one of the
sleds over their shoulders, the elder in advance, and led off. Tim took
the lead, with the boys behind him, with the second sled, following the
trail left by their friends. The deep snow was packed so hard that no
use was made of the snow-shoes which Jeff had provided.

From Dyea the trail led for five miles over the ice, when they reached
the mouth of the canon. This is two miles long with an average width of
fifty feet. The sleds were dragged over the strong ice, but later in
the season, when it breaks up, travellers are obliged to follow the
trail to the east of the canon.

The party were so unaccustomed to this kind of labor that they found it
exhausting. Curiously enough, Jeff bore the fatigue better than any.
His iron muscles were the last to yield, and he was the first to resume
the journey. He chaffed the others, and offered to let them mount his
sled while he pulled them.

Beyond the canon is a strip of woods three miles in length, which bears
the name of Pleasant Camp, though it has not the first claim to the
name. It does not contain the ruins of even a cabin or shanty--nothing,
in fact, but trees, through which the wintry winds sough and howl
dismally. There the party halted, ate lunch, rested for an hour, and
then set out with the determination to make the next camping ground
before night.

The ascent now became gradual, and before the day was spent they
arrived at Sheep Camp, on the edge of the timber. This is the last spot
where wood for fuel can be obtained until the other side of Chilkoot
Pass is reached. The tent was pitched on top of the snow, the poles and
pins being shoved down into it. Jeff took it upon himself to cut what
fuel was needed, gathering at the same time a liberal quantity of
hemlock brush, upon which to spread their blankets for beds.

Since it was necessary to use the stove, and it must rest on the snow,
a simple arrangement provided against trouble from the