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Volume 2 - ElectricCanadian.com

Volume 2 - ElectricCanadian.com

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THE YUKON ADVENTURE 171the Mounted Police will show, were parasites and hangers-onof dance and gambling halls, burglars, confidence and holdupmen in fact, thugs of every degree of criminality. Theway in which these undesirables were kept inactive andbelow the surface by the Mounted Police was nothingshort of marvellous; to such an extent were they keptout of sight that many people lived in Dawson withoutthe slightest idea as to the extent of the menace. It wouldtake a volume to describe the full range and multiplicity ofthe duties of the Police. Their rule was absolute, yet alwaystempered with courtesy, justice and <strong>com</strong>mon sense. Underit the thug with a long and evil record on the "outside" (theKlondike being known as "the inside") became exceedinglytame and docile during his more or less transitory stay in thedistrict. As one of their officers once said, their efforts wereconstantly directed towards making life "unattractive" forpersons with questionable records. Such persons were placedunder surveillance on arrival in the country, and as a resultof this and of the pressure and advice by which it was ac<strong>com</strong>panied,the intelligent among these undesirables were glad ofan opportunity to transfer their attention to other localities.Such as did not adopt this course had only a short career,being quickly brought to book on one count or another andsent in due course to swell the number who performed usefulservice for the Government on what was known as "TheWoodpile." In bitterly cold weather, when a mist hung overthe ground, one's thoughts reverted to Dante's Inferno onpassing this unfortunate legion sawing, chopping or haulingwood for Her Majesty, under an escort of Mounted Policein short buffalo coats and with loaded carbines, stampingabout to keep warm. The object lesson was undoubtedlyuseful to the idle and crooked.In 1898 most of the entries in the "Crimes List" forDawson were for offences of a minor nature and included nodesperate crimes, such as the occasional murders which tookplacelater on. A few citations will illustrate this: non-

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