Volume 2 - ElectricCanadian.com

152 HISTORY OF THE BANKjail by Inspector Starnes, and the party breakfasted at thehouse of that sterling officer, the late Superintendent C.Constantine. A small tent, with a board floor, in the barracksquare, was most kindly placed at the disposal of the bank'sofficers. A call was then made on Captain J. J. Healey, therepresentative in Dawson of the North American Transportationand Trading Company, whose officials in Chicago hadassured the bank of temporary office quarters and safeaccommodation. The question of the latter was immediatelyplaced out of court by a glimpse of the safes owned by theCompany, which were simply bursting with sacks of golddust. A small frame building, about twenty by twenty-fourfeet, covered with galvanized iron, and hitherto used for storingdog-fish, was gladly accepted as temporary quarters. It hadno windows, and a ladder in one corner led through a smallopening in the ceiling to a loft with about five feet of headroomin the centre and two feet at the sides. Arrangementswere immediately made to erect a board counter across thefull width of the office, and to provide in lieu of safes two bigwooden chests lined with sheet iron. Later on calls were madeon Captain Hansen of the Alaska Commercial Company andon Major Walsh, in charge of the administration of the District,as well as on various other officials.Captain Hansen kindlygave the bank's officers permission to erect the meltingfurnace and to install the muffle furnace, assay scales and othernecessary equipment in a storehouse, which happened to beempty for the time being. He also put them in the way ofhaving a supply of charcoal made from birch by a capableman.June 7 was devoted to giving the famous "city" the "onceover," and to making friends. Dawson had come through abad winter, as several up-river boats had failed to arrive theprevious autumn, and food was therefore scarce and expensive.Beverages were still more costly, as one of the bank's partylearned a few days later while endeavouring to enlarge hiscircle of acquaintances and to locate prospective business for